Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah
Laurie Molloy
March 26, 2011
Chinese Cinderella Pre-Reading Activity
Grade Level: 7
Lesson Rationale and Context: This lesson is a pre-reading activity to prepare students for reading the
memoir, Chinese Cinderella. It is designed to activate prior knowledge and stimulate students’ interest in
what the memoir will be about. The four week unit as a whole is devoted to reading of the memoir, students
writing their own memoirs, and also and independent reading project. This unit will address a need to
incorporate more informational texts into the curriculum.
Goal Statement: The lesson will guide students through making predictions about what may happen in the
memoir, which hopefully will inspire students to want to know more about the memoir they will be
reading.
Essential Questions:
 What is the value of reading a memoir?
 How the following issues: racism, prejudice, and oppression, affect the world?
Objectives:
 Students will make predictions about possible themes and ideas that might be conveyed in the
novel Chinese Cinderella through answering leading questions and commenting on peer’s answers
to questions.
 Through silent discussion, students will be able to practice writing and communication skills by
carefully responding to questions posed.
Standards:
 RI.7.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on
meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
 S.L.7..1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and
teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas
and expressing their own clearly.
Materials: overhead projector, 6 large sheets of blank paper (large enough for all students to comment on),
different colored sharpies (enough so that each student has a different color), handouts for Do Now activity
and Reading Schedule, 6 letter size sheets of paper with a different pre-reading question written on each
one in large letters
Anticipatory Set:
 Do Now – Wordle and Questions on back of the page: Students view a handout with a cluster of
words on one side. These words are the most frequently occurring words in the novel Chinese
Cinderella. Students are instructed to think while looking at the words and brainstorm different
ideas regarding what the words make them think of. After viewing the words, students flip their
page over and answer questions related to making predictions about the memoir.
Lesson Procedure:
 Do Now: Prior to completing the Wordle handout, explain the handout and describe exactly what
the students need to do. Give out Wordle. Answer any questions which arise before, during and
after completion of handout.
 Provide the students with a reading schedule. Explain what is required of the students (when
reading needs to be completed, when quizzes will be held, and when their personal memoirs will
be due)

Silent Dialogue Modeling: Two teachers model activity on a whiteboard. If there is only one
teacher, a student can be selected to help model dialogue. It would be recommended to explain the
process to a student helper prior to the day of the lesson. The teacher picks a question to write on
the whiteboard. All of the students observe the teacher and assistant write comments back and
forth to each other regarding the question.
 Joint Participation: Teacher answers students question about the silent dialogue
 Guided/Independent Practice – (During the silent dialogue the teacher participates but slows
participation as the dialogue progresses) Students are grouped in clusters of 4. After about a
minute and a half to 3 minutes, students switch as a group to the next question, switching until
they have answered all 6 questions. Silent Dialogue: Answer and respond silently to your
classmate’s answers to the following questions:
o Have you ever felt unwanted by your family and friends? If so, what types of things did
they do that made you feel they did not care about you? If not, what do you think would
make someone feel unwanted?
o Do you feel arranged marriage can be a good thing or are you against arranged marriage?
Discuss why you feel either way.
o Women were oppressed by the Chinese culture for a long time. Do you think it is fair that
men were given a higher quality of education than women?
o Is it okay to lie to protect yourself or other people? Why or why not?
o What/Who is your favorite fairy tale character or superhero? What qualities make you
like that character or hero?
o Describe the main qualities of a villain. Are villains only in movies or books? Where do
we see them in real life?
·
Exit Card (Assessment) – Write down any predictions you may have about the memoir, Chinese
Cinderella. What question did you like to write about the most from today’s dialogue?
Assessment: Students will be assessed throughout the entire procedure. During the Do Now Activity, the
teacher will walk around the room to encourage participation. When students answer questions, teacher will
ask students to clarify and elaborate. During the silent dialogue, teacher will participate and monitor
students’ participation. The exit card at the end of the activity will demonstrate if students were able to
meet the goal of making predictions and also how well they enjoyed the activity.
Adaptations: In the class which I taught this lesson, adaptations were not necessary. If there were students
with disabilities in the classroom, I would have written an outline of the procedure for the day on the board.
Also, during the silent dialogue, I would make sure students were placed in mixed ability groups. For ELL
students, this activity might be very difficult especially if they have difficulty writing in English. I might
change the activity from a silent dialogue to a written dialogue. Then if an ELL student had trouble writing
in English, a peer could be assigned to the ELL student to help write down what the student wanted to say.
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