A Directed-Listening-Thinking-Activity (DLTA) on Sarah, Plain and Tall
MacLachlan, P. (1985). Sarah, plain and tall . New York: Harper Collins.
Targeted Grade Level for this DLTA: 3 rd grade
Chapters Targeted: 7-9
Step 1: Motivation and Development of Background
Develop a “mystery box” with different items and have students make predictions as to how the items might relate to the story. Items to consider including: a musical note, a yellow bonnet, seashells, handwritten letters, and want-ad samples. Another suggestion for activating schema and building background is to go through a "mock" purse and see what someone might have in a purse (water-color pencils, seashells, etc.).
Step 2: Initial Predictions
Ask students: What does Sarah look like? Why is she leaving the sea and coming to the prairie?
Step 3: Set purpose for initial reading
Listen to pages 38 through 43 to find out who comes to visit Sarah, Papa, and the children.
Who comes to visit?
What event is taking place?
Step 4: Designate all stops, what questions you would ask to prompt for predictions and give purposes for reading.
1. Listen from page 44 to 50 to find out what argument Sarah intends to have with Papa.
What is the argument?
Why is this important to Sarah?
How does Sarah help Papa?
What one event made Caleb “[smile] and [smile] until he could smile no more”?
2. Listen from page 51 to 58 to see what happens after the storm.
What does Sarah learn to do? Why does she want to learn how to do this?
What does Papa mean when he says that Sarah is Sarah? Do you think he likes this about her?

Why do you answer as you do?
How does the book end? Is it a good ending? Why or why not?
Step 5: List 1 reading skill you could focus on with this story.
Characterization and reading for details would work well with this piece of literature.
Step 6: How would students practice this skill.
Students could complete an open-mind portrait to highlight characterization of the four main characters: Papa, Sarah, Anna, and Caleb.
Students could record in a double-entry journal each of the clues surrounding the issue if Sarah will stay or not and then respond to them with their own ideas.
Step 7: Enrichment activities.
Students could dress like their favorite character and present the highlights of the book to the entire class. They could plan Jacob and Sarah’s wedding, from the invitations to the vows to the design of the wedding cake.