Instructional Guidelines for Sarah, Plain and Tall
Novel Study the Common Core Way
It is important to remember that our main goal when reading an extended text is not to
“cover the book.” Rather, we are using the book to explore key concepts and deepen
students’ understandings of the Common Core Standards for reading a particular type of text.
Since Sarah, Plain and Tall is a work of fiction, the concentration here is on the standards for
reading literature. Ideally, teachers should select an essential question that can be answered
by reading the text. They can then build a thematic unit around the novel and pair it with
other texts, fiction and nonfiction. Throughout the novel study, students should be engaged
in writing assignments to deepen their understandings. There are many study guides available
for teaching this text, but examine them carefully before deciding to use one of these to
ensure that the study guide meets the demands of the Common Core.
Before Reading
Resist the urge to do too much “frontloading;” rather, allow students to discover key concepts
while they are reading. Avoid pre-teaching vocabulary by developing students’ abilities to
discern the meanings of new words from context. Before reading, do let students know that
this is a work of historical fiction. The story was set in the late 1800’s on the prairie of the
United States. Have them look for evidence of the time period while they read.
Possible Essential Questions
Essential questions will vary based on the needs and experiences of students in a classroom.
A possible essential question for this book might be: What can be gained from experiencing
new places and people?
During Reading
Teach students to take notes while they are reading. It is important that the notes should
lead them to completion of the writing tasks planned for this study. The Performance Task
focuses on sequence of events, so students will need to take notes that help them remember
key events in order. Ask text-dependent questions while they are reading that will lead them
to mastery of the focus standards. Examples follow, arranged by chapters.
Focus Standards: RL 3.1, R L 3.2, RL 3.3, RL 3.4, RL 3.5, RL 3. 6, W 3.1
After Reading
Although students will engage in routine writing while they are reading the novel, it is
important to have them solidify their learning after by completing both a written performance
task and an analysis. The PARCC Framework calls for opinion writing this nine weeks, so the
analysis paper is in the form of an opinion letter. In order to write the letter, students will
need to gather evidence about prairie life from the story and from external sources, so they
will also be engaging in some academic research.
Writing Assignments from the Curriculum
Analysis: Write an opinion paper based on the novel:
You wake up in the middle of the night to find yourself sitting at the kitchen table with Papa,
Anna and Caleb. You are anticipating the coming of Sarah and want to write her all about life
on the Prairie. Before you can convince her that the prairie is where she should be, you need
to do some investigating on your own. Find out everything you can about life on the prairie,
using details in the story and information found in other texts. Find interesting facts that
would draw someone to that area. When your research is complete, you will write a letter to
Sarah assuring her that the Prairie is the best place for her to be. (W 3.1, W 3.8)
CCSS Performance Task
Prompt: Students write a narrative describing key events in Sarah, Plain and Tall, explicitly
referring back to the book to place the events in sequential order. (RL 3.1; adapted from CCSS
Appendix B, p. 52)
Sample Text-Dependent Questions from Each Chapter
Note that this is not an exhaustive list of questions; rather, these are samples of questions that
can be asked to ensure that students understand what they are reading.
Chapter 1
1. Who is telling the story and how do you know? Students will need to read to page 5
to learn that the narrator’s name is Anna.
2. According to Anna, what is the worst thing about Caleb? Anna says that the worst
thing about Caleb is that Mama died the morning after he was born.
3. Where and when does the novel begin? The story takes place at dusk (p. 3) on the
prairie (p. 5) near the end of winter (pp. 5-6).
4. What finally convinced Anna to love Caleb? On p. 6 Anna says it was his smile that
made her love him.
5. Caleb asks several times why Papa doesn’t sing anymore. Based on the evidence in
the story, why do you think he doesn’t sing? Papa sang before Mama died, but not
after. When he tells the children that he has sent for a wife, he says that he might
remember the songs. So, Papa must have stopped singing because he was lonely or he
missed his wife.
Chapter 2
1. Caleb and Anna are both worried that Sarah might not stay if she comes, but they
worried about different things. What were they? Caleb is worried that he is too “loud
and pesky;” Anna is worried that a woman who loves the sea might not like the prairie.
2. The children must have asked Sarah several questions in the letters they wrote her.
Name some of these. Anna asked if she could braid hair, make stew, and bake bread.
She also asked about Sarah’s favorite colors. Caleb asked about her cat, if she could
keep a fire going, and if she snored.
3. Based on Sarah’s letter to Caleb, do you think she will get along well with Anna and
Caleb? Answers will vary, but students should be able to note that Sarah sent Caleb a
picture of her cat and her cat’s footprints for him to show to the dogs. She also told
him that their house sounds “lovely.”
4. What does Sarah write that makes Papa smile? Sarah writes that she can sing.
Chapter 3
1. What time of year is it when Sarah comes? Sarah comes in the Spring.
2. How does Papa feel about meeting Sarah for the first time and how do you know
this? Answers will vary, but they might include “excited” or “nervous.” According to
the text, Papa takes great care brushing his hair; he also wears a clean shirt and a belt
rather than his usual suspenders.
3. In what way does Sarah “bring the sea?” Sarah brings Caleb a moon snail and Anna a
sea stone.
4. What do Anna and Caleb fear about Sarah? They are afraid she won’t like it on the
prairie and that she won’t stay.
Chapter 4
1. What does the author mean when she says, “Seal was a roamer,” and how do you
know? The line just before this one says that no one knows where Seal sleeps. This
means that Seal doesn’t stay in one place.
2. On page 26 Caleb picks up a hint that Sarah will stay. What does he hear her say to
give him this impression? Sarah talks about having flowers in the winter; that makes
him think that she plans to stay longer than a month.
3. On page 29 Sarah says something else that reinforces Caleb’s belief that she will stay.
What is this? Sarah says, “…later.” That convinces Caleb that she plans to stay.
4. What does Caleb’s behavior on pages 26 and 29 indicate about Caleb? Caleb is
hopeful that Sarah will stay; he is looking for indications that she will.
5. At the end of this chapter Sarah indicates that she is homesick. How does she do
this? When Caleb says that he wishes he could touch a seal, Sarah sighs and agrees
with him. This indicates that she misses the sea and her home there.
Chapter 5
1. Why does Sarah shout and shake her fists at the turkey buzzards? The turkey
buzzards are trying to eat the dead lamb, and Sarah does not want them to do it.
2. What do we learn about Papa and his feelings for Sarah in this chapter? We learn
that Papa wants to please Sarah. He buries the dead lamb so the turkey buzzards
won’t get it, and he shows Sarah how sliding down the hay can be almost like sliding
down a sand dune.
3. On page 36 Caleb hears something else that makes him hopeful. What does he
hear? Caleb hears Sarah write to her brother about “our” dune; this makes him
hopeful that Sarah will stay.
Chapter 6
1. What word(s) could you use to describe Jack, and why? Caleb says that Jack doesn’t
like to work, so you could call him lazy. Students may suggest synonyms.
2. How are some of the barns in Maine different from barns in the prairie? Sarah says
that some barns in Maine are attached to the house, but on the prairie barns are apart
from the house.
3. Why does Papa tie a rope to the barn in the winter? When there is much snow, Papa
ties a rope to the barn so they won’t get lost when they go tend to the animals.
4. What does Anna mean when she says, “I sank like a bucket filled with water”? Anna
had a hard time learning to float.
5. What image is conveyed by Sarah’s description of the sea (“It gleams like the sun on
glass.”)? Sarah’s words paint a picture of the sea shining brightly.
6. What might the narrator mean when she describes the cows as having “dinner-plate
faces?” This is open to interpretation, but students might say that dinner plates are
round, so cows must have round faces.
Chapter 7
1. What does the author mean when she says, “The dandelions in the fields had gone
by, their heads soft as feathers”? Although most of your students have seen this
happen, some students might need assistance understanding that the author is
referring to the process by which dandelions go to seed.
2. On page 44 there is another indication that Papa is trying to please Sarah. What is
it? The narrator comments that Papa picked for Sarah the flowers that are in her hair.
This must mean that he is trying to please her.
3. Why does the narrator comment that the chickens will not be for eating? There are
several clues that might help students with this passage. Throughout the story Sarah
has shown a fondness for animals; she treats them like friends. When she first gets
the chickens, she plays with them. Anna must find it hard to imagine that Sarah will
kill her “friends” and eat them.
4. How does Anna feel when Sarah is talking about home with Maggie? Anna is afraid;
she doesn’t want Sarah to miss her home so much that she will want to return to
Maine.
5. What does Maggie mean when she says, “There are always things to miss, no matter
where you are?” Answers will vary, but students should see that people form
attachments, and when they are away from the people and things they love, they will
miss them.
6. At the end of the chapter, Anna knows that the chickens will not be eaten. How
does she know this? Sarah wants to name the chickens, so Anna knows that they will
be pets, not food.
Chapter 8
1. Why do Papa and Sarah argue in the beginning of this chapter? Sarah wants to do
things that Papa thinks are unladylike, like wearing overalls and riding Jack.
2. Why doesn’t Caleb want Sarah to go to town by herself? Caleb is afraid Sarah will
leave them.
3. When Sarah says that she is a good carpenter, what does she mean? Sarah means
that she likes to work with her hands. Students might remember that Sarah told Anna
this in the first letter she wrote to her.
4. When Sarah unpacks the basket with cheese, bread, and jam, her shells are also in
there. Why might Sarah have put the shells in the basket? Answers will vary, but
students might note that the shells remind Sarah of her home in Maine; they are
important to her, and she doesn’t want to lose them to the storm.
5. Papa calls the storm a “squall.” What does it sound like to you? Students might call it
a thunderstorm; some might even say that it could be a tornado. Evidence includes the
driving rain, thunder and lightning, and eerie light in the barn.
6. Why does Caleb “smile and smile until he could smile no more?” Caleb is happy to
see Papa standing with his chin on Sarah’s hair. This shows him that Papa cares for
Sarah, and it gives him hope that Sarah will stay.
Chapter 9
1. Why are Caleb and Anna worried about Sarah going off alone? They are afraid she
won’t come back.
2. Why does Papa look surprised when Sarah kisses him? Students can infer that she has
never kissed him before, so he is surprised when it happens.
3. Stop on p. 61 and ask students if they think Sarah will return and why. Students
should note that Sarah leaves Seal, so she must intend to come back.
4. Watching Sarah leave in the wagon reminds Anna of another time. What is it, and
how does it make her feel? Anna is reminded of the wagon that took her mother
away and did not return. This probably makes her sad and nervous or apprehensive,
because she doesn’t want to lose another mother.
5. Why do you think Caleb says, “Seal was very worried?” Caleb is probably afraid to let
Sarah know that he was worried, so he says it was Seal who was worried.
6. What do Caleb and Anna learn about Sarah in this chapter? They learn that Sarah
loves them and wants to stay.
7. In what way does Sarah “bring the sea?” Sarah brings colored pencils that will let her
more accurately depict the sea in her drawings.