Tale of despereaux
Running head: TALE OF DESPEREAUX
Tale of Despereaux Integrated Unit
Cindy Livingston
University of Phoenix
Dr. B. Ricks
RDG 530
March 18, 2009
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Tale of despereaux
Unit Title: Tale of Despereaux Integrated Unit
Intended Grade: Fourth Grade
Unit Focus: This integrated unit uses the novel, The Tale of Despereaux, written by Kate
DiCamillo.
Unit Length: The unit will span four weeks.
Unit Goals:
1. The first goal of this integrated unit is to show reading as a joyful and fun experience.
Motivating students to read is one goal of this unit.
2. The second goal of this unit is to increase readers’ comprehension and fluency skills. It
will also build students’ vocabulary. It will increase students’ ability to read fluently and
increase understanding to an accuracy rate of 85%.
3. The third goal of this unit is to increase students’ skills in narrative and expository
writing. Daily writing exercises will foster development in this area. Students will keep a
journal and record impressions as well as complete assignments using it. Students will
understand elements of a story and be able to write one with a clear understanding of
plot, setting, point of view, characterization and theme development. Students will
advance throughout the unit to writing a five paragraph expository paper.
4. The fourth goal of this unit is to integrate literacy into math, history, science, art and
music providing an in-depth understanding of various concepts and an appreciation for
learning new things.
Unit Description: This integrated unit will use the novel, The Tale of Despereaux by Kate
DiCamillo. It will span four weeks and include five language arts’ lesson plans. The lesson plans
will emphasize cueing systems, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension, and writing. The five
lesson plans will contain the grade level content expectations for the state of Michigan. The plans
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Tale of despereaux
will also include teacher and student learning behaviors highlighting appropriate areas of
Bloom’s taxonomy, the materials required to implement the lesson, the sequence of instruction,
and activities for both at-risk and gifted / talented students, as well as assessment information.
Provided in each lesson plan will be assessment and evaluation techniques and suggestions for
field trips or extra curricular activities. Performance assessments and rubrics are included when
appropriate. A cross-curricular chart will guide the integration of the novel with the following
subjects: math, science, social studies, music, and art. Lesson plans will include the use of
technology accompanied by teacher instruction. In collaboration with the computer instructor
and in science, the students will build databases and create spreadsheet using software
applications. An annotated bibliography is provided listing the books to be read aloud. A
bibliography listing all references is provided at the end of the document. This includes
references highlighting issues of parental involvement and community literacy. The instructional
approaches used throughout this unit will accommodate whole group, small group and one-onone instruction. It will encompass direct and indirect instruction, cooperative learning groups;
shared-reading and guided-reading, center related learning activities and individual work time.
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Tale of despereaux
4
Cross-Curricular Chart for Integrated Unit
Week One
The Tale of Despereaux: Chapters 1-15: Book One
Reading Strategy Emphasized: Making connections
Subject Area
Language
Arts
Day 1
Ch. 1-4
Read chapters
above. Introduce
Individual LA
portfolio folders.
Introduce Tale of
Despereaux.
Introduce author,
genre, setting.
Show KWL chart.
Demonstrate word
attack strategies as
well as contextual
strategies.
Homework:
Students write in
their journals a
descriptive
paragraph
depicting a scene
from ch. 1-4 taking
the point of view of
father mouse,
mother mouse, one
of Despereaux’s
siblings or
Despereaux
himself.
Day 2
Ch. 5-8
Day 3
Reread Ch. 1-8
Read chapters
above. Explain
Vocabulary List and
word wall. (ongoing) Write
meaningful
sentences. Work
with the new
vocabulary words.
Learn how to use
the on-line and
paper dictionary.
Learn how to use
on-line and paper
thesauri. Learn these
reference aids for
finding
pronunciation of
words, syllabication,
antonyms, and
synonyms. Write
newspaper column
predicting
Despereaux’s
situation by using
hints from future
vocab. Words.
Discuss prediction
assignment by looking
at vocabulary given in
last lesson for chapter
9-11. Make
predictions and talk
about the personalities,
emotions, feelings of
characters.
Homework: Write in
journal one
paragraph that
describes any event
from ch. 5 – 8 from
the point of view of
the King, Pea,
Despereaux or
Furlough.
Homework: Read the
script aloud to your
family. Verbally tell
them about the story.
Have one of your
parents or siblings sign
the script upon
completion.
Reread chapters
above.
Introduce Reader’s
theater.
Pass out scripts.
Work on fluency by
engaging students in
practice.
Discuss staging and
reading performance.
Practice
Day 4
Ch. 9-15
Day 5
Summary
End of 1
Read chapters
above.
Demonstrate
connection to
self when
reading aloud.
Round-the road
summary game in
reading groups.
Record unknown
vocabulary. Put
on word wall.
Writing exercise.
Pass out
connection chart.
Read Weslandia
by Paul
Fleischman as
well as the other
books listed in
lesson plan.
Talk about and
demonstrate how
to think about
connection to
other texts as
well as self. Do
part as a whole
class assignment.
Direct
instruction.
Students fill out
own copy in
groups.
Compare and
Contrast Wesley
and Despereaux
using a VENN
Writing
instruction.
After assessment
and feedback, put
work in portfolio.
Tale of despereaux
5
diagram.
Science
Introduce
Individual Science
Portfolio folders.
Taxonomy: How
Scientists classify:
Kingdom,
Phylum,Class,Orde
r,Family Genus.
Animal
KingdomsRodents:
Research Types
and history of
domestication.
Mice:
Research and record
Characteristics
Mice: Habitats and
Biomes. Know the
major biomes. Create
biome that includes a
mouse (most all
include some type of
mouse from mouse
family)
Math
Drills in
multiplication and
division on-going.
When time test
completed with
100% accuracy, a
jewel received to
place in math
crown displayed in
middle ages math
display center.
Continued practice
in basic mathematic
operations. Continue
timed quizzes and
update math area.
Review lengths,
perimeter, area and
circumference.
Introduce volume.
Measurement:
Review length and
width. Teach
calculation of area
and perimeter
using basic pictures
of Despereaux’s
adventures:
Despereaux birth
place, library,
Pea’s room.
Include various
shapes to calculate
area and perimeter:
squares, rectangles,
trapezoids,
parallelograms.
Continued practice
in area and
perimeter using
manipulatives such
as geo-boards, graph
paper and cubes.
Introduce
circumference.
Practice calculating
circumference of
circles. Distribute
picture sheet of
Despereaux book
and include circle
items: circular soup
spoon, top of soup
bowl, circular rug,
etc. Students
calculate
circumference.
Practice figuring out
the circumference of
Practice calculating
volume.
Introduce these
concepts using word
problems.
Practice with word
problems centered
around Despereaux.
Homework:
Answer
inferential
questions. Glue
in journal.
Mice:
Finish Biome
project.
Word Problems:
Solving the
unknown
relating to
concepts studied
including the
basics of
division,
multiplication,
addition and
subtraction along
with the new
concepts
covered.
Food chains and
food webs. Know
the difference and
create one
including a
mouse.
Introduce
Scientific
observation
method.
Distribute Science
Journals.
Observe Mice:
Classroom Pet.
(ongoing)
Decorating
Despereaux’s
castle. Choose
carpet/ rugs for all
rooms in the
castle. Figure the
cost of the project
when given costs
per square meter
for various
carpets. Present
budget to teacher.
Tale of despereaux
6
circular shapes.
Social
Studies
Introduce Social
Studies Individual
Portfolio folders.
Introduce middle
ages (500-1500).
Create big picture
and study
categories: Time
period (time line),
famous people,
class structure,
inventions,
architecture and
concepts or ideas.
Art
Introduce
Individual Art
Portfolio folders.
Introduce artists of
middle ages:
Donetello,
Botticelli,
Leonardo DiVinci,
Michelangelo
Buonarroti,
Raphael Sanzio.
Compare and
contrast artists
works, techniques
and reasons for
creating art.
Music
Music of the
middle ages:
Influences (Arab
love songs, courtly
love, travels of
crusades).
Introduce chant
and minstrel music
and songs of the
troubadours.
Students listen to
music of the early
middle ages and
minstrels while
writing a song.
Calculate the birth
rates of mice over a
two-year period
Technology
Start time line of
middle ages divided
into early, high and
late. Students
research time
periods and begin to
create time line
putting up various
events, people,
creations,
inventions.
Summaries are
written based on the
research and
pictures copied for
time line.
Research portrait
art. Demonstration
of portrait art. Begin
to pencil sketch a
portrait.
Continue research,
summaries and picture
copying. Students
grouped by time
period chosen.
Students chose the
topics they will
research. They briefly
research topics, write
short informational
passages, copy
descriptive pictures
from computer. Each
group adds two
sections to time line.
Students write
speech about
their research to
present a living
time line.
Living time line
presented and
filmed.
Finish pencil
sketching portraits.
Create frame for
portrait that
resembles stainglass window.
Describe
significance of
stained-glass
windows.
Finish creating
frames and
display in
classroom.
Create a time line
for middle ages
music. Divide the
students into groups
and have them work
together to research
and summarize the
main music through
the middle ages
from Gregorian
chant to transition
music of
Renaissance.
Introduce instruments
of the middle ages:
Wind, percussion and
string instruments.
Show images. Play
music with the
instruments; have
students act out the
instruments in line
format while others
guess which
instruments they
demonstrated.
Choose a string,
percussion or
wind instrument
and, in groups,
create your own
instruments.
Provide supplies
and have
students bring
supplies from
home. Listen to
music from
middle ages.
Continue to work
on instruments in
class.
Week one: Using an
Excel Spreadsheet.
Introduce Excel and
They are given in this
lab the basic birth rate
spreadsheet with
Finish instruments
and create a music
group. If someone
will create and
sing a song then
tape the concert.
Tale of despereaux
Computer
Lab
using Excel. Work
in computer lab
once a week.
explain spreadsheet
terms, cell, column,
row. Demonstrate
how to locate
information on a
spreadsheet and how
to set up a
spreadsheet.
Students practice
setting columns,
width, headings,
highlighting, etc.
7
needed modifications.
Week Two
The Tale of Despereaux Chapter 16-33: Book Two and Three
Reading Strategies Emphasized: Making connections/ Asking questions
Subject Area
Language Arts
Science
Day 1
Ch. 16-19
Day 2
Ch. 20- 23
End of Book 2
Day 3
Ch. 24 -27
Day 4
Ch. 28 – 33
End of Book 3
Day 5
Summary End of
Book 2 and 3
Read chapters
above. Vocab.
Exercise. Put
words on word
wall. Discuss
light and
darkness. Discuss
theme and how it
is different from
plot summary.
Have students list
occurrences of
light and dark in
section read.
Read chapters
above. Vocab.
Exercise. Put
words on wall.
Discuss rules
and laws.
Discuss real
world settings:
school, home,
city and what is
done in light
and in dark.
Compare
images if mice
and rats in
literature, art,
poetry. Have
students write
poems. Half the
class on rats,
half on mice.
Read chapters
above. Teacher
explains
readers’ theater.
Students read
present section
again or any
section from
book 1 or book
2 in pairs.
Emphasis is on
intonation, and
voices. After,
practice for a
readers’ theater
performance.
This time,
students write
scripts.
Teacher reviews
connection strategy
and explains the
new questioning
strategy. Before,
during and after
questions are
described and
modeled. The six
basic types of
questions are
described: A
(answered), BK
(background), I
(inference), D
(discussion), R
(research),
C(confusion).
Chapters are read
using active
comprehension
strategy and think
aloud by teacher.
Game is played:
ReQuest: Stump
the teacher.
Review question
strategy.
Distribute a KWL
chart. Describe it
to the students.
Fill out the KWL
chart with
students. Let
students finish the
chart.
Research Rats
and then Compare
and contrast Mice
Begin study of
light and optics.
Properties of
Color of light.
Conduct
flashlight and
Light and shadow:
Create a pinhole
camera with an
Continue pinhole
camera project.
Develop film in
Compare and
contrast the main
characters using a
graphic organizer.
Use strong
adjectives and
feeling words.
Give the character
a modern
occupation and
tell why (3
reasons) they
would be in that
occupation.
Tale of despereaux
and Rats. Use
Venn diagram to
show
characteristic and
habitat
differences .
Students choose.
Put in science
portfolio.
On-going
observation of
mice behaviors,
diet, movements.
Mathematics
Social Studies
Math drills:
collect jewels for
crown.
Give math quiz
on perimeter,
area,
circumference
and volume
(extra).
Geometry:
Introduce/ Teach
polygons.
Draw pictures of
polygons, paint
them and cut
them out for use
in kaleidoscope
building.
Students quiz
each other on the
types of polygons
(sides and
angles). Group
game.
Middle Ages:
Feudal System.
Overview of
feudal system.
Class structure
explained.
Use Picture the
Middle Ages by
light. How light
travels, how it
is reflected,
absorbed,
refracted. How
light is energy.
Conduct mirror
experiment.
Continue
observing mice
and record
observations
Math drills:
collect jewels
for crown.
Play polygonmatching game.
Create a
tanagram
puzzle with
labeled
polygons.
Students put
together each
others puzzles.
Middle Ages
Feudal system
simulation
begins.
Homework:
Write in journal
on assigned
topic.
cellophane
paper
experiment that
demonstrates the
colors within
light.
Give handout
study sheet on
light.
Explain
scientific
method and
have students
hypothesize
what will occur.
Continue
observing mice
and record
observations.
Math drills:
collect jewels
for crown.
Teach types of
triangles based
on angles:
obtuse, right and
acute.
Create a mouse
house out of
cardboard using
triangular
shapes made by
the students.
Middle Ages
Feudal system
simulation.
Homework:
Write in journal
on assigned
topic.
oatmeal box. Use
photograph paper
and create a black
and white picture.
Discuss how people
see. Retina, Rods,
Cones. Show
movie.
Review handout on
light.
Continue observing
mice and record
observations. Make
hypothesis
regarding sleep,
exercise and eating
patterns.
Math drills: collect
jewels for crown.
Teach types of
triangles based on
sides: equilateral,
isosceles, scalene.
Create a mini quilt
by cutting fabric
into triangles made
and labeled by
students. Glued on
piece of felt to
become a mini
quilt.
Middle Ages
Feudal system
simulation. Some
can prepare for
tomorrow’s feast.
Serfs cut vegetables
for crock pot stew,
entertainers choose
music, others
teams with
parental
assistance.
Give quiz on light
and include an
evaluation
question on the
light unit.
Continue
observing mice
and making
hypotheses.
Math drills:
collect jewels for
crown.
Review
measurements of
different shapes
and work on word
problems: solving
for the unknown.
Write word
problems and
have classmates
solve.
Last day of
Middle Ages
Feudal system
simulation. If
parental help
available have a
middle ages feast.
Students prepare
one or two dishes
8
Tale of despereaux
Linda Honon and
modify it to cover
one week.
Students take
roles as overlords,
vassals, knights,
freemen, monks
and nuns in the
monastery,
tradespeople in
towns, nobles and
servants ,
entertainers at the
castle, peasants at
the manor. They
make decisions in
the simulation
that affects their
life and
interactions with
others.
decorate door and
table area, etc.
from the middle
ages: Trenchers,
beef or lamb
stew, wassail.
Students team up
with 2nd graders
to show and
explain their
kaleidoscopes.
They answer
questions about
light and patterns.
Together with
second graders
they complete a
pattern activity
and a tanagram
puzzle.
Students finish
creating
branching
database and use
each others
database.
Art
Review pencil
sketching.
Introduce color.
Describe the color
wheel. Talk about
tone, luminosity
and depth of
color. Students
create a color
wheel.
Students study
kaleidoscope
and make
comparisons
with stain glass
windows of
middle ages.
They begin to
build a
kaleidoscope.
Continue
making
kaleidoscope.
Decorate outside of
kaleidoscope.
Music
Middle ages
music
instruments.
(Technology
integration)
Introduce
Branching
Databases (Black
Cat Decisions)
Understand the
difference
between open
and closed
questions.
Add questions
and data into the
existing musical
instruments
database.
Create a branching
database. Collect
appropriate
information
(musical
instruments of the
middle ages) and
add to the database.
Refine questions in
the branching
database.
Create a musical
information
database that
includes all
instruments used
in the middle
ages.
Search a
branching
musical
instrument
database.
Practice
searching
musical
instrument
database.
9
Tale of despereaux
Technology
Computer Lab
Listen to music
from middle ages
while working
individually with
computer.
Continue working
with Excel. Birth
rates of mice over
a 2 year period.
Students learn
how to write a
formula. How
to fill down and
how to use the
formulas.
They work on
their
spreadsheet.
Week Three
The Tale of Despereaux Chapter 34-52 plus Coda: Book Four
Reading Strategies Emphasized: Asking questions
Subject Area
Language Arts
Science
Day 1
Ch. 34-38
Use pre-reading
questions. Have
students write
questions before
reading and label
the type of
question. Ask
questions of
students. Discuss
questions. Read
chapters above
and model
questioning
during story.
Vocab. Put on
word wall.
Complete Vocab.
Activity. Discuss
answers to
questions after
reading. If some
questions needed
research, give for
homework.
Day 2
Ch.
39-44
Review answers to
questions. Review
the types of
questions asked
before, during and
after reading. Make
a chart. While
reading have
students
individually
complete the chart.
This week will
focus on sound
and hearing (ear)
(Miggery Sow)
Sound: Study high
and low
pitch(frequency)
and what the sound
waves look like
(distance between
While reading
record unknown
vocab. Words.
Vocab. Activity.
Put on word wall.
Day 3
Ch. 45-49
Read above
chapters.
Review
questions. Use
active
comprehension
strategy to pull
out questions
when reading.
Play ReQuest
game: Stump
the teacher to
check
comprehension.
Day 4
Ch. 50-52
Predict ending.
Review questions
and vocab. That
teacher has written
on board. Finish
reading book.
Discuss themes.
Graphic Organizer
themes.
Trustworthiness
Respect
Responsibility
Fairness
Caring
Citizenship
Discuss all and
what they mean.
Give examples
from real life
(world) self , the
text and other
texts.
Character
Analysis:
Compare and
contrast
Miggery Sow
and Princess
Pea.
Continue work
on sound wave
diagrams.
Students work
individually
with teacher
Day 5
Summary
Character
Education
Lesson: Theme
connection.
Write a paper
explain one
important theme
in The Tale of
Despereaux.
Continue to work
on sound diagrams.
For those who are
finished prepare a
Continue to
work on sound
diagram and
“walk-through”
ear. Some may
want to review
10
Tale of despereaux
Introduce sound
as vibrations and
waves.
Conduct sound
wave experiment
with can and salt.
Conduct water
experiment to see
how waves travel.
Students write
about sound as
waves and
describe how it
travels.
crests).
Study amplitude:
how much energy a
sound has and what
different sound
waves look like
(height of wave).
assistance
when needed.
.
Study sound
quality and
uniformity of
sound wave:
Pleasant sound
versus noise.
Explain that
volume or
amplitude is
measured in
decibels.
Choose various
sounds and create
sound wave
diagrams for them.
center with
brainpop Internet
accessibility that
describes the ear
and how it works.
Provide a diagram
of the ear and a
small model of ear.
Have a box of
supplies that could
be used for ear
parts. Let students
who are finished
create a “walk
through ear”
incorporating the
different parts of
the ear. When
finished have them
present to the class
and take the walk
through while
explaining how
sound travels
through the ear.
11
for quiz.
Save 15 minutes
to watch movie
on sound and
then take quiz
Give students study
sheet on sound and
textbook on sound
to prepare for the
next day’s quiz.
Assignment:
Diagram a sound
wave that has high
pitch/ low
amplitude, low
pitch/high
amplitude, high
pitch/high
amplitude, noise
versus pleasant
sound.
Also record volume
in decibels.
Do pitch
experiment with
partners. (Review
and practice
prediction
hypothesis)
Mathematics
Math drills:
collect jewels for
Math drills: collect
Math drills:
collect jewels
Math drills: collect
Math drills:
collect jewels for
Tale of despereaux
crown.
jewels for crown.
for crown.
jewels for crown.
crown.
Math quiz on last
week’s material.
Various polygons
and types of
triangles by angle
and by side.
The Cook’s
watercress soup.
Comparing
fractions with
different
denominators.
Adding fractions
with like
denominators.
Play the
fractions game
in teams.
Subtracting
fractions with like
denominators.
Make
Watercress soup.
Introduce
Fractions. Use
manipulatives.
Teach math
terminology.
Work on
comparing
fractions and
word problems.
Comparing
fractions with like
denominators.
Social Studies
12
Inventions /
weapons of the
middle ages.
Teacher
introduces topic
and explains
rubric and what is
expected in the
week ahead.
Research top
inventions and
weapons of the
middle ages.
Form a list and
chart it for class
to analyze.
Separate into
groups of 4 and
work on building
a replica of the
invention or the
weapon. Get
teacher approval
today and make
list of supplies.
Some ideas:
Mini catapult
machine.
Water mill
Hourglass
Spinning wheel
Eyeglasses
Printing press
sundial.
Have
Play Cook’s soup
fraction game.
Continue to
research and work
in groups.
Designate jobs and
assign
responsibilities.
Find supplies and
create a list of
things to do and the
procedures to
create machine etc.
Work on
project as
described in the
rubric
Working with word
problems.
Work on project as
described in rubric.
Help any student
who needs extra
assistance
Work on project
as described in
rubric.
Write an
evaluation of the
project and be
prepared to
present next
class period.
Tale of despereaux
Art
activity and idea
books available.
Teacher discusses
the importance of
Church mosaics
as an art form
during the middle
ages. Various
mosaics are
shown and
discussed. The
church theme is
discussed. A few
mosaics are
shown and the
process is
described by
showing a video.
The students start
creating a freehand
design for their
mosaic on
purchased garden
stones.
They label each
stone with name on
back.
Students use
adhesive for
each tile piece
and place it on
the stone.
Teacher and
parent help is
essential as the
students work
in groups.
Students continue
making mosaics.
Students work on
the medieval
ballad.
Music
Listen to the
Internet
Renaissance band
medieval music.
Discuss ballads.
Have students read
ballads from the
Ballad List on the
Internet.
Students write
a medieval
ballad.
Technology in
computer lab.
Excel Worksheet:
Birth rates of
mice over 2 year
period.
Students learn how
to copy and paste.
They set up
formulas across
spreadsheet.
Work on
calculating
birth rate of
mice.
Students
continue and
finish creating
their mosaic
stones.
A short
paragraph is
written about
mosaics in the
middle ages and
how they will
use their mosaic.
Final draft of
medieval ballad
due.
Week Four
The Tale of Despereaux
Discuss themes and write short story
Subject Area
Language Arts
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Begin a creative
short story that
centers around
life in the middle
ages. It must
include a theme
as discussed from
the Tale of
Despereaux.
Chose writer
(could be written
by a character in
the story),
Work on
organizing
theme and plot.
Sequencing
order and
choosing
characters using
graphic
organizers.
Work on rough
draft of paper.
Work on rough
draft.
Use the rubric
Homework:
work on paper.
Day 4
Work on paper.
Proofread and
refine paper.
Homework: work
on paper.
Individual
onferences with
teacher.
Day 5
Final copy due
after the
weekend. Prince
and Princess
day: Can wear
P.J.’s in school.
Read the
Princess and the
Pea fairy tale
and watch The
Tale of
Despereaux
movie in class
13
Tale of despereaux
purpose,
audience.
Include a
description of at
least 4 things
learned from the
four week unit
regarding life in
the middle ages.
Science
Build a mouse
trap.
Talk about simple
machines: levers,
pulleys.
Introduce related
vocabulary such
as incline, slope,
gravity, friction,
etc.
Mathematics
Show some
pictures of
mousetraps to
help in the
brainstorming
process
Tale of
Despereaux takes
place in the
Kingdom of Dor
where they use
the metric system.
Introduce and
teach the metric
(multiple of 10)
prefixes.
Practice learning
the prefixes.
Play prefix
matching game
with a partner.
provided.
with popcorn
and snacks. Any
questions
regarding paper
or extra
conferences
needed with
teacher can take
place on this
day.
Look at
portfolios which
contain all the
work or pictures
of the work
accomplished to
review.
Homework:
work on paper.
Pair students
and let them
build a mouse
trap.
Bring in
supplies and
work on mouse
trap.
Teacher should
question the
students to help
them think of
how to build a
mouse trap. The
mouse caught
must not be
harmed.
Work on mouse
trap.
For those finished
try it out on the
class pet mouse.
Make a prediction
of the mouse’s
behavior and record
in science
notebook.
Finish mouse
trap and
experiment.
Evaluate you
mouse trap
suggesting ways
to modify it and
make it better
depending on
the outcome of
experiment.
Introduce metric
lengths.
Compare metric
lengths.
Compare the
metric system
with the U.S.
system.
Practice measuring
items to the nearest
1.4 of an inch or
centimeter.
Play the
Measurement
mouse game to
review for quiz.
Using a ruler
design mouse
mazes using
metric lengths.
Label all sides
of the maze,
using a ruler, in
metric length.
Estimate the
lengths of a
variety of
objects from
The Tale of
Despereaux
Students will
understand the
difference
between
centimeters,
meters,
kilometers,
inches, feet,
yards. Students
should
understand
when (for
Introduce metric
vocabulary for
weight and
temperature.
Give quiz on
metric system.
Design a second
maze using the
U.S. system of
inches.
Review U.S.
vocabulary for
weight and
temperature.
Work on word
problems covering
measurements
using both the
metric system and
the U.S. system.
Review basic
14
Tale of despereaux
Social Studies
Architecture in
the middle ages
Discuss castles.
Read David
McCauley’s
Castle and
Cathedral book.
Students
understand
structures of the
architecture to
incorporate into
their art lesson.
Time line fill-in:
Explain the
topics for the
week (they
follow in this
chart).
Students choose
one topic and
obtain 4 facts
associated with
it. They write
the facts as
questions and
answers on 3x5
cards to be used
later for a game.
They put a card
with a picture on
it on the time
line along with a
couple facts
regarding their
topic.
measuring
certain items)
they would use
which
measurement.
concepts of metric
system.
The crusades:
1095-1250
Students lead class
and discuss the
topics.
Saint Francis of
Assisi:
1182-1224
Review names for
length, weight,
temperature.
Play the middle
ages game using
the question and
answer cards.
Students take notes.
Magna Carta:
1215
Students write a
paragraph about
the most
interesting topic
this week.
Marco Polo:
1254-1324
The Black
Death and Joan
of Arc:13371453
Gutenburg
Prints the Bible:
1456
Teams of
students lead the
class.
Art
Music
Draw or create a
castle or
cathedral.
Forms available
for putting
together castle
and diagrams
available for
drawing them.
Compare and
contrast Middle
age music
Work on castle
or cathedral
Work on castle
or cathedral.
Work on castle or
cathedral.
Finish castle or
cathedral.
Listen to
different types
of music and
Choose a
modern day
form of music
Continue work on
VENN diagram.
Work on essay
in class.
15
Tale of despereaux
(Gregorian chant
to ballad singing)
to modern day
music (pop,
Classical, jazz ,
new age and rock.
Listen to both
types of music
play name that
style.
Go to Library
and check out
books on music
and different
CDs to take
home.
.
Technology
Computer Lab
Rewards
Finish calculating
and filling in
formulas for birth
rate of mice over
a 2 year period.
Students can play
the game
mousetrap in
groups.
Students can
play chess in
groups.
and create a
VENN diagram
comparing and
contrasting both
types of music.
Continue to
listen to
different forms
of music.
Write a short essay
in your journal:
What is your
favorite music and
why. Include what
instruments you
enjoy, the type of
pitch and volume
you enjoy and what
you envision when
you listen to the
music. Students
will brainstorm by
drawing a graphic
organizer of their
choice in their
journals and from
that begin to write
the short essay.
16
Tale of despereaux
Annotated Bibliography
Read Aloud Literature
Anderson, L. & Faulkner, M. (2002). Thank you, sarah: The woman who saved thanksgiving.
New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.
This book is a true account of Sarah Hale, a magazine editor and author, persuaded
President Lincoln to declare Thanksgiving a national holiday. Sara wrote numerous
letters to different presidents, organizations, influential people in order to save
Thanksgiving. She was a prolific, intelligent, determined and courageous woman. This is
apparent as the story unfolds. It is a picture book but appropriate for the fourth grade
level and for the lesson on letter writing.
Di Camilo, K. (2003). The tale of despereaux. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
The Tale of Despereaux is a modern day fairy tale about a mouse that saves a princess.
He is an unusual mouse who breaks all convention. It is about a rat that lives in a
dungeon and seeks the light. Main themes of love, honor, forgiveness, greed exist in the
book. The book also lends itself to reading a loud. It is rhythmical and reaches out to the
reader.
Jordan, W. (Ed.). (1999). The middle ages: A watts guide for children. New Jersey: Grolier
Publishing.
This is a nonfiction book covering many aspects of the Middle Ages from agriculture to
women. It is an information book. It should be read section by section and not cover to
cover. This book will increase understanding of the Middle Ages. It is appropriate to
form a backdrop to The Tale of Despereaux.
17
Tale of despereaux
Maynard, C. (1998). Days of the knights: A tale of castles and battles. New York: DK
Publishing.
This DK reader provides a plethora of information about castles and weapons, knights
and princesses. The glossary in the back is very helpful to locate and learn new
terminology.
O’Brien, P. (1998). The making of a knight. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
The Making of a Knight is a picture book that traces a young boy’s journey from page to
squire to knight. The age of chivalry comes to light. Exciting battles, lavish feasts, a
courtly romance and a rowdy tournament are included in this adventure story. The
Middle Ages is presented. Beautiful artwork illustrates many events providing a good
visual for students. This is an appropriate book to complement a main novel. It is a quick
read that provides a descriptive background for this integrated unit.
Zelinsky, P. (1986). Rumpelstiltskin. New York, NY: Scholastic.
This book tells a story of trickery and prosperity. This story from the Brothers Grimm
tells of a miller’s daughter and her relationship with a magical little creature. The book
depicts a spring medieval setting illustrated in oil paintings. It provides a descriptive
visual for The Tale of Despereaux and wonderful cloze passages to practice learning
unknown words from context.
18
Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan One
Word Attack Strategies
Author: Cindy Livingston
Subject: Language Arts (English), Reading, Cueing Systems
Topic / Unit of Study: Lesson One: Tale of Despereaux - Cueing Systems
Grade Level: Fourth Grade
Lesson Objective:
Instructional (Teacher) Objective: The teacher will identify and teach cueing strategies
(syntactic, semantic and Grapho-phonemic cueing systems) to help students define unknown
words in the text thereby increasing students' comprehension and ability to more fully infer
meaning from the story. Strategies covering word analysis, sentence structure and determining
meaning from context will be taught.
Behavioral (Learner) Objective: The students' after direct instruction and individual practice
time, including feedback, will be able to apply cueing strategies. This will be demonstrated
through written assignments and discussions with the teacher in a whole class as well as in
guided reading groups. When given four sentences with nonsense words, students will be able to
supply the correct word 75% of the time. When given 10 words, students will be able to divide
these words into affixes and roots with 85% accuracy. Students will be able to decipher an
unknown word given a list of suffixes and prefixes and context clues with 85% accuracy.
Students will be able to supply the correct word in a cloze passage reading using context clues
with 85% accuracy.
Areas of Bloom’s Taxonomy relevant to this lesson: Knowledge (Remembering): Students will
identify, label, and recall the various cueing systems used to decode words and meaning.
Comprehension (Understanding): Students will summarize the various strategies. Application
(Applying): Students will use the strategies with the text. Analysis (Analyzing): Students will
give reasons, verbally, for using certain strategies that assist them in figuring out an unknown
word. Evaluation and Creating: Students will discuss which strategy is best for them. They will
choose a strategy, within each situation, that helps them best and they will combine strategies
and discuss with team.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson consists of three parts. The first part is an introduction to the novel and a quick
review of pre-reading strategies: looking at book cover, questioning what may be in the book,
and thinking about what students already know about the topic, are covered. A KWL chart,
which the students are familiar with, will be used to assist them in brining their prior knowledge
19
Tale of despereaux
to the forefront is used as a pre-reading exercise. This section of the lesson is also a class
centered Read Aloud of the beginning chapters of The Tale of Despereaux. At this time, students
will use post-it notes to mark any unknown words. The second part consists of direct instruction
covering three cueing systems. At this time, the instructor will teach strategies that can be used at
the word level to uncover the meaning of unknown words (grapho-phonemic :Visual). The
teacher will explain the process of understanding unknown words based on syntax (Structure). In
addition, the instructor will discuss the semantic cueing system. He / she will model questions as
well as the decision-making processes used to determine the importance of unknown words to
the meaning of the text (Meaning). (The teacher will consistently use the terms visual strategy,
structure strategy and meaning strategy even as the unit progresses. The students, in time, with
continued practice will feel comfortable using these terms and discussing their word attack
skills.) Within the second part of the lesson, practice will be given to be completed individually.
Part three of the lesson consists of supervised reading groups. The students, in groups, will reread the first chapters of The Tale of Desperaux and as a group they will use the strategies to
determine the meaning of the unknown words tagged by the group's members at the beginning of
the Read Aloud. They will define the words in their The Tale of Despereaux journal and label the
strategy they used or found helpful in determining the definitions of the words in question.
Learning Context:
The Tale of Despereaux is presented after a unit on fables and fairy tales. This, being a modern
day fairy tale, gives students the opportunity to read and contemplate a variation on the fairy tale
/ fable genre. It gives them the opportunity to explore, in detail, themes and morals. This unit
will focus on word awareness, fluency, comprehension, theme reflection and writing. The larger
unit will focus on the middle ages for history. It will focus on basic science concepts that are
touched upon in the story such as animal classification, light and dark (optics), sound, and simple
machines such as levers and pulleys. Math concepts that will tie into the unit will be discussed
such as the metric system, measurement, area, perimeter, circumference and fractions (see
integrated unit curriculum chart). Art and music will also be integrated centered around the
Middle Ages or concepts found in the novel.
Sequence of Lesson:
Part One
The teacher introduces the unit by showing the class The Tale of Despereaux. The book is
described as a modern day fairy tale about a mouse, a princess, a rat and a servant. She displays a
KWL chart and asks the students to tell what they know about fairy tales, mice, rats, servants and
princesses. The instructor guides them in the direction of making connections from knowledge
and information outside of the novel. Some students may be familiar with the story itself and
may want to summarize it, but this is not the point of the KWL chart. In this instance, students
20
Tale of despereaux
are sharing what they know regarding mice, rats, princesses, servants and fairy tales. The teacher
briefly explains the benefits of a KWL chart emphasizing the importance of making connections
to better understand the text. The class brainstorms together recording what they already know
and what they want to know. This is kept and referred back to, from time to time, during the unit.
It is also used as an extension activity for gifted and talented students to motivate them to
research further.
The teacher then discusses the importance of comprehending and understanding a story. A
passage is read from Rumplestilskin with nonsense words inserted to create unknown words.
Some of the words are essential and some are not. She asks the children to try to define the
words. From this, she briefly introduces, while writing on the board, the three strategies for
figuring out mystery words. She encourages the students explaining that they are already using
some of these strategies without knowing the name of them. The teacher makes a chart: Visual,
Structure, Meaning and describes the strategies that the students already used with the
demonstration passage.
The teacher explains that she / he will begin reading The Tale of Despereaux and would like the
students to follow along and, using post-it notes, mark any unknown words. The teacher explains
that various strategies will be taught and the students will use them, within their groups, to define
the words they mark after the teaching time.
The teacher reads aloud chapters 1 - 4 while the students mark all unknown words.
The students write unknown words in their The Tale of Despereaux journal while the teacher
prepares the smartboard / whiteboard for direct instruction.
Part 2
The teacher explains the visual strategy to uncover unknown words. 1. First look at word. Look
at first letter and last letter. 2. Determine if the word is a compound word; if so, divide and
analyze accordingly. The teacher gives examples. 3. Determine if the word is made up of a root
word and if it has a prefix or a suffix or both. Divide the word into these chunks and analyze
each chunk. The teacher puts examples of prefixes (defined) and suffixes (defined) up on the
board and reviews definitions. The teacher then gives examples of using the strategies described
and models, through think-aloud, and encourages student participation. Practice is done as a
whole class activity with individual erasable white boards. The students retrieve their boards.
The teacher writes words on the board that are compound words and ones having prefixes and
suffixes. Some examples: misinformed, semimonthly, telepathy, supernatural, transatlantic,
jellyfish, whirlpool, haystack. The students write the words and divide them accordingly. They
then write information they know about the word. The teacher asks students to describe their
strategy and the meaning of the words. The visual strategy information is left on the smartboard.
The teacher emphasizes that this strategy is most useful when used in conjunction with the other
strategies. No strategy is isolated.
21
Tale of despereaux
The teacher then describes the syntactic cueing system. She / he calls this the structure strategy
because a sentence has a structure. This is written on the board. The teacher then writes a
sentence on the board with a nonsense word. He / she suggests that the children try to figure out
its' part of speech. Is it an adjective, noun, verb? The example follows: The thief garlished the
treasure chest until there was nothing left. The teacher works through the sentence and labels the
part of speech for the word. Then the sentence is read again. Through understanding the other
words around it and its part of speech, the teacher deciphers the meaning of the word through
thinking aloud. An extra example follows: The racecar bindled across the track at one hundred
miles an hour causing a near crash.
The teacher describes the semantic cueing system. It is called the meaning strategy.
The teacher explains that in this strategy the focus is on the meaning of the text. All words are
not pivotal (essential). The reader must decide if the word is important or not to the meaning of
the passage. Here the teacher should confirm that it is ok to discover an unknown word and to
keep reading to see if, eventually, the reader can still get the meaning from the passage without
directly knowing the word. In this strategy, after reading some of the text the reader can ask
questions to try to decipher the word based on the meaning in the text. Some questions follow:
What do you think the passage is about? What do you think will happen next? What do the
pictures tell? What would make sense in that sentence? Who is doing the action (if it is an action)
and what do you know about that character? An example is given and the teacher uses the
strategy while thinking aloud.
The teacher then displays all three strategies side by side on the board: visual, structure,
meaning. The students have their white boards ready. The teacher asks which strategy, if used,
takes apart the word, looking at prefixes, suffixes, and root words? The students write their
answers. Any re-teaching is done here. Then she / he asks which strategy looks at the sentence
and tries to determine the part of speech of the word? The students write their answers. The
teacher can re-teach if necessary. Then, the teacher asks the last question. Which strategy uses
the meaning within the passage? The students write their answers. The teacher encourages and
re-emphasizes where needed. The teacher then asks: Are the strategies used one by one (or all by
themselves) or all together?
An activity sheet is distributed to the students. It includes a prefix / suffix chart to be glued into
their journals, an assignment covering prefixes and suffixes, sentence practice applying
knowledge of word attack skills, and a cloze reading passage to practice using context.
Students complete the activity sheets and put them in the completed class work organizer.
Part 3
When completed the students gather into their reading groups. They re-read chapters 1-4 (each
member reading a chapter). There should be approximately four members per group. They read
with as much expression as possible and try to intonate different voices. They practice fluency.
22
Tale of despereaux
When they come to an unknown word (an unknown word that any member of the group
recorded) they raise their hand. The reader keeps reading until a natural pause. The reader then
becomes the teacher by prompting the person who raised their hand and asking which word is
unknown, if they feel it is important, and how they would go about figuring it out. They let that
class member work through the strategies discussed to try to figure out the word prompting when
necessary and helpful. The reading group keeps a copy of all unknown words and the person
who was responsible for voicing their strategies. Each member should read one time and be the
leader and each member should be recorded twice as having practiced the strategies. (If too loud,
give group a star chip to determine who is talking and at what time)
The teacher, at this time, walks around to the groups to check understanding. A required number
of unknown words must be recorded (8-10).
At the end of group, reading time all unknown words should be defined and strategies used
listed. If the word cannot be defined a member of the group, dictionary Dan or dictionary Dana,
should look it up in the dictionary. All of the unknown words that were written in the journals at
the beginning of lesson should be now defined and recorded.
After, one member from each group takes the role of word-wall wisdom seeker. These members,
from each group, meet to create a list of words without duplicates for the class word wall. These
members then give the list to the card creators who make the cards for the word-wall.
Scaffolding Activities for At-Risk Students:
Modify the number of examples and the work that is required on the individual assignment.
Provide the names and definitions of all strategies on the assignments and on a card in the
reading group. In the group reading time have the students responsible for one unknown word
and provide assistance, if needed, from another member of the group. Have the student read
aloud a half of a chapter instead of one whole chapter during group time.
Extension Activities for the Gifted or Talented Students:
Have the students write a summary of chapters 1 - 4. Have students conduct research and lead a
discussion in the following days regarding one of the topics listed on the KWL chart in the want
to know section for extra credit or a homework pass.
Add a PowerPoint to the presentation.
Time Allotment:
Two class period. 1.75 Hrs per class.
23
Tale of despereaux
Author’s Comments:
This lesson should take 1.5 hours but can be separated into sections between part 1, part 2 or part
3 with breaks in-between. It is preferable to separate it since it is a longer lesson.
List of Materials:
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamilo
Tale of Despereaux spiral language arts notebooks, one per student
KWL chart on smartboard or drawn on white board
KWL chart for each student to be glued into journals
Rumpelstiltskin passage with nonsense words inserted
Post-it notes for each student
Prefix-Suffix sheet to be glued into journals
The students' white boards with dry erase marker and eraser
Activity sheet (3 part)
Star chips (designated 'talking' chip) one per group (5 or 6 needed)
Dictionaries / Thesaurus
3x5 cards
Pencils, tape, glue stick
Standards:
MI- Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations
• Subject : ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
• Grade : FOURTH GRADE
• Strand : READING
• Topic : Word Recognition and Word Study
Expectation: R.WS.04.01 Explain how to use word structure, sentence
structure, and prediction to aid in decoding words and understanding the
meanings of words encountered in text.
Expectation: R.WS.04.02 Use structural, semantic, and syntactic cues to
automatically read frequently encountered words, decode unknown words,
and decide meaning, including multiple meaning words (e.g., letter/sound,
rimes, base words, affixes, syllabication).
24
Tale of despereaux
Expectation : R.WS.04.05 Acquire and apply strategies to construct
meaning, self-monitor, and identify unknown words or word parts (e.g.,
engage actively in reading a variety of genre, self-monitor and correct in
narrative and informational texts, use thesaurus).
Expectation: R.WS.04.06 Fluently read beginning grade level text
and increasingly demanding text as the year proceeds.
Parental Involvement:
Parents volunteer in the classroom to help students understand concepts taught. If a parent knows
a romance language or classical language, they can come in and share some words and their
meanings.
Field Trip Suggestions:
Children can take a trip to the local library.
Assessments:
The teacher will question the students through-out the lesson to determine their level of
understanding. The handout sheets will also be corrected in class to further determine
understanding prompting teacher reflection to modify, revise or re-teach the lesson.
The students will be evaluated from the class work / homework assignment given. They will also
be assessed from their journals and their understanding of the three-cueing strategies, their use of
strategies, and their reading within the reading groups.
25
Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan One References
O’Brien, P. (1998). The making of a knight. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
Prefix / Suffix information. (2009). Fourth grade language arts skills. Internet4Classrooms.
Information used from this site to create chart and some of the sentences was
electronically retrieved on March 15, 2009 from
http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skills_4th_lang.htm
Reading Quest. (2009). KWL chart. Retrieved electronically on March 15, 2009 from
www.readingquest.org
Zelinsky, P. (1986). Rumpelstiltskin.New York, NY: Scholastic.
26
Tale of despereaux
27
Tale of despereaux
28
Tale of despereaux
Rumpelstilskin Passage
Passage using nonsense words to practice determining meanings of unknown words from
context
Replace returned with shobuled.
Replace rejoiced with sneckeled.
Replace satisfied with renified.
Replace ordered with kendied.
29
Tale of despereaux
30
Figuring Out Unknown Words
Visual Strategy
Prefix / Suffix Sheet
List of prefixes
Prefix
Meaning
Un
Trans
Tele
Syn
Theo
Super
Semi
Re
Non
Mis
Not
Across
Distance/From afar
Together
God
Above
Half
Back/ Again
Not
Bad / Badly
Prefi
x
Bi
Anti
Inter
Uni
Tri
Post
Pre
Meaning
Divided in two
Against/ Opposite
Between
One
Three
After
Before
List of suffixes
Suffix
Meaning
Able
Ful
Less
Ly
Or
Ment
Can be accomplished
To be full of
Without/ Lacking
Like something/ similar to
One who does action
A state of
Er
Ate
Ese
Escent
A person or thing that does something
To cause or make
A native of/ Belonging to from birth
In the process of
Suffi
x
Dom
Fy
Ist
Ism
Ness
Olog
y
Meaning
Quality or realm
To make
One who does something/ That which
System or condition
State of
Study of or science of
Please keep this page to glue into your Tale of Despereaux journal. Put your name on the next page, complete the
activities and place the assignment in the Classroom Work Returned organizer.
Tale of despereaux
Example Words
Please use a slash (/) to divide these words into chunks forming a prefix, root
word, suffix. Not all words will have all three parts. Divide where appropriate.
1. Anticlockwise
2. Captivity
3. Bicycle
4. Pianist
5. Unison
6. Wisdom
7. Semicircle
8. Trimester
9. Contentment
10. Careless
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Tale of despereaux
Suffixes and Prefixes
Read the sentences below. Think about the sentence. Analyze the word in italics. Think about the
prefix or suffix as well as the root word provided. After using the visual strategy, please provide
an answer on the blank line or circle the correct answer from the ones provided.
1. Precooked shrimp are shrimp that were cooked _____________ you bought them.
2. When you bisect a line, you divide it into how many parts? ______________
3. What does an antiperspirant do to sweat?
a. Support it
b. Go between it
c. Fight against it
4. Where are the traffic lights at the intersection?
a. After streets
b. Before streets
c. Between streets
d. Against streets
5. When a group acts in unison, it behaves as how many?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. Four
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Tale of despereaux
Please fill in the blank below with a correct word. The word will have a
suffix or a prefix.
(The first three sentences use the same word in the form of a verb.)
1. An avid _ _ _ _ _ _ reads three or four books a week.
2. One who deceives other people can be called a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _.
3. My grandmother’s tendency to nurture everyone who comes to her house
makes her a true _ _ _ _ _ _ _.
4.
5.
6.
She is a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ businesswoman. (Hint: Full of success) (suffix needed)
The trapeze artist appeared _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. (Without fear) (suffix needed)
I bought the _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ shrimp for the party. (Not yet cooked) (prefix needed)
7. Before a surgical operation, a patient is _ _ _ operative.
8. After surgery, a patient is _ _ _ _ operative.
9. My sister speaks two languages that makes her _ _ lingual.
10.
The choir sounded like one voice because they sang in _ _ _ son. (Together as one)
33
Tale of despereaux
Discovering Unknown Words by Using the Structure strategy
1. The vicious dog growled and snarled at its owner.
Part of speech:________________________
Meaning:_____________________________
2. Julie and I did not mind sharing a room because we were so
compatible.
Part of speech:________________________________
Meaning:_____________________________________
3. I dropped my packages when someone in the crowd jostled me.
Part of speech:_________________________________
Meaning:_____________________________________
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Tale of despereaux
Cloze Reading Passage
The Making of a Knight
“I am Sir James! I have come to fight for England!” James _____ into his
father’s room, his wooden sword ________ the air before him. He
imagined he was _______ a suit of _______ armor, traveling the
countryside in search of adventure. “James,” said his father, “put aside
your sword. I need to talk to you.” His father was a wise old knight,
known throughout England for his ________ and strength. “Now that
you are seven years old, it is time for you to become a ____ in a great
castle, “ Jame’s father told him. “That means that one day, if you learn
well and practice hard, you will become a knight as I am. Then you will
have real weapons and armor and will no longer need your sword of
wood.”
(For those blanks you are unable to answer realize this may be an important word that when reading needs to be
looked up or analyzed and not skipped. We will discuss in class)
Answers
(Do not copy for handout)
burst, slashing, wearing, shining, bravery, page
From The Making of a Knight by Patrick O’Brien
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Lesson Plan Two
Vocabulary
Author: Cindy Livingston
Subject: Language Arts (English), Reading, Vocabulary
Topic / Unit of Study: Lesson Two: The Tale of Despereaux - Vocabulary
Grade Level: Fourth Grade
Lesson Objective:
Instructional (Teacher) Objective: The teacher will identify new vocabulary from the text.
Strategies to understand the vocabulary from context clues will be discussed and practiced.
Using the new vocabulary, in relevant contexts, will be emphasized. Teacher will teach
antonyms and synonyms for given words within the text. Teacher will explain reference aids
including dictionaries, thesauri, and on-line sources used for determining the meanings,
pronunciations, syllabications, synonyms, antonyms and parts of speech of new vocabulary
words. The teacher will use technology in this lesson teaching students how to search the internet
and use an on-line dictionary and thesaurus.
Behavioral (Learner) Objective: The students will be able to decipher new vocabulary words by
using context clues and reference aides. They will understand how use and how to locate
antonyms and synonyms for a given word. They will learn how to locate, when given a word, its
in antonyms and synonyms in both paper and on-line references. They will be able to say and
write antonyms and synonyms for various words. When given words, students will be able to
find both antonyms and synonyms with 100% accuracy. Students will understand how to use a
dictionary for gaining information related to pronunciation, syllabication, and parts of speech of
new words. When given words, they will be able to look them up in print and online resources
and find their definition and their part of speech with 95% accuracy. They will also be able to
use a thesaurus to locate both synonyms and antonyms.
Area of Bloom's Taxonomy Relevant to this Lesson: Knowledge (Remembering): Students will
define antonym, synonym, and syllabication. Comprehension (Understanding): Students will
communicate the definition of the above mentioned and summarize how to locate and analyze
vocabulary. Application, Analysis and Synthesis (Creating): Students will construct and organize
a T-chart of synonyms and antonyms. They will compare and contrast these and compose a story
using these new words.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson consists of six parts. It involves moving around and game playing. Please allow for
transition time and have method for focusing students.
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Tale of despereaux
The students will learn new vocabulary words. They will use context clues and the dictionary
(both on-line and print) to figure out the meanings of the words. A lesson will be given on
antonyms and synonyms. They will use the thesaurus to locate words and apply appropriate
words to the vocabulary words. Teacher will demonstrate an in-depth examination of one word.
Students will read in reading groups, play vocabulary bingo, play vocabulary search and apply
what they have learned by writing a short informative (newspaper) article.
Learning Context:
This is a sequential lesson plan within a larger unit. It follows a lesson plan that focused on
cueing systems and word attack skills. Skills were taught to uncover the meaning of unknown
words by using various strategies. This lesson builds on the previous one by introducing new
vocabulary words, trying to define them through contextual clues and looking them up in
reference aids. It expands by including a lesson on synonyms and antonyms as well as
syllabication and the pronunciation of words.
Sequence of Lesson:
Part One:
The teacher will introduce new vocabulary words found in Chapters 1-8 of The Tale of
Despereaux. As a class, chapters 5 - 8 will be read aloud. The students will mark new vocabulary
words ( not presented) with post-it notes. After, the teacher will review the vocabulary words and
have the students try to define them using context cues and methods previously taught. The
teacher as well as the students will use Modeling and thinking aloud. (Learning Style: Auditory
and Visual)
Part Two:
The vocabulary words that are not figured out will be looked up in the dictionary. The teacher
will explain how to find the pronunciation of the word in the dictionary as well as its
syllabication. The students will practice, in their reading groups, looking up the words in the
dictionary. They will write the definitions in their The Tale of Despereaux journal.
Part Three:
When finished the teacher will continue whole class teaching by explaining synonyms and
antonyms. After defining these, the students will look up the words in thesauri and write down
both synonyms and antonyms for chosen vocabulary words in their reading groups. These will be
discussed and shared with the class to ensure that every student has synonyms and antonyms for
the vocabulary words.
Part Four:
The teacher will play vocabulary Bingo with the class using the words from Chapters 1 - 8.
Bingo forms are attached and should be laminated. Using dry erase markers, the students write
the vocabulary words in different locations on the sheet using as many squares as necessary. The
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teacher then says the definition or a sentence with a blank auditory cloze representing a word
listed on the card. The teacher can also write all sentences on board or have them prepared on
smartboard. (Kinesthetic)
Part Five:
The children will return to their reading groups and read chapters 5 - 8 again working on fluency.
Part Six:
After, they will receive a few key vocabulary words for the new chapters. They will play, in their
groups, vocabulary sort. (See attached for definition of how to play this game) (Kinesthetic)
After this game they will, for homework, write a short newspaper article describing what will
happen to Despereaux (prediction) using at least three of the vocabulary words, their synonyms
or their antonyms. These will be presented in class on the following day.
The vocabulary words are as follows:
The teacher may modify them.
Desperate, despair, litter (10), speculation (16), obscenely (17), scurrying (20) (21), molding
(21), indignant (24), destined (25), conform (25), indulge (27), scat (39), endangers, consorts
(43), perfidy (45), Furlough (name of brother in chapter 9).
Vocabulary within next chapters: To be used for Vocabulary sort game: egregious (52), renounce
(55) repent (55), collective outrage (56), devotion (61). Courtly love (61), beleaguered (77).
Scaffolding Activities for At-Risk Students:
Students will not be responsible for looking up and defining as many words as others. Students
will be paired with a peer tutor who will assist them in searching the dictionary and thesaurus.
Students can write part of the definition on their vocabulary bingo sheets. Their sheets can be
half filled in with the answers. The students instead of writing an informative article can simply
fill out a graphic organizer that plans the writing and describes characters, setting and events. It
is possible to write story later for extra credit.
Extension Activities for Gifted / Talented Students:
Students will become peer tutors for those in need. Students will create the next vocabulary list
(5 words) from future chapters. Students can read about Walt Disney and the creation of Mickey
Mouse, define highlighted words from context clues, and add to class word wall. (See attached
sheet) They can also give presentation in class summarizing article.
Time Allotment:
2 class periods. 1.5 Hrs per class.
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Tale of despereaux
Author’s Comments:
This lesson focuses on building vocabulary and word research skills. It may take two class
periods but it can be modified if time is limited.
List of Materials:
The Tale of Despereaux book
Post-it notes
Vocabulary and definition handout (to be glued in journal) (attached sep.)
Synonym and Antonym handout (to be glued in journal) (attached sep.)
Glue sticks, pencils, erasers, dry erase markers, erasers
Dictionaries
Thesauri
Dictionary Page (For overhead or put on smartboard) (attached sep.)
Vocabulary Bingo laminated sheet to be used throughout the unit: One for each student (att sep.)
Directions for Vocabulary Sort Game (attached sep.)
Paper
A Mouse is Born article for extension activity (att. sep.)
Standards:
Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations
Subject : ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
Grade : FOURTH GRADE
Strand : READING
Topic : Word Recognition and Word Study
Expectation: R.WS.04.04 Know the meanings of words encountered
frequently in grade level reading and oral language contexts.
Expectation : R.WS.04.05 Acquire and apply strategies to construct
meaning, self-monitor, and identify unknown words or word parts (e.g.,
engage actively in reading a variety of genre, self-monitor and correct in
narrative and informational texts, use thesaurus).
Expectation: R.WS.04.06 Fluently read beginning grade level text and
increasingly demanding text as the year proceeds.
Expectation: R.WS.04.07 Determine the meaning of words and
phrases in context (e.g., similes, metaphors, content vocabulary), using
strategies and resources (e.g., context clues, semantic feature analysis,
thesaurus).
Assessments:
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Tale of despereaux
The students will be assessed on their vocabulary defining skills. The required number of
vocabulary words defined and the meaningful sentences written for their synonym and antonym
charts.
Their writing assignment will be assessed using the rubric attached.
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Two References
Hodkinson, K. & Adams, S. (2007). A mouse is born. Wordly Wise 3000: Book 5. New York,
NY: Educators Publishing Service.
Merriam Webster. (1976). Dictionary Page for perfidy. Sringfield, MA: G & C Merriam
Company.
The Teacher’s Desk. (2009). Vocabulary sort game. Idea and directions electronically retrieved
on March 14, 2009 from http://instructionweb.com
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All materials to be used with this lesson are attached in a separate file due to the size of
the attachments. It is labeled lesson 2 materials. Six material sheets are included in
conjunction with this lesson.
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Three
Fluency
Author: Cindy Livingston
Subject: Language Arts (English), Reading, Fluency
Topic / Unit of Study: Lesson Three: The Tale of Despereaux – Fluency: Reader’s Theater
Grade Level: Fourth Grade
Lesson Objective:
Instructional (Teacher) Objective: The teacher will teach students how to conduct a reader’s
theater. The teacher will provide the opportunity to practice and develop fluency as a reader in a
small group and whole class setting. The teacher will discuss the importance of reading with
expression, understanding the characters, questioning oneself about the characters, their
emotions and the setting of a text. The experience will help to increase fluency. The teacher will
create an enthusiasm for reading and learning how to read.
Behavioral (Learner) Objective: The students will collaborate with peers and discuss as well as
write about the main characters in a story emphasizing their emotions and their actions. They
will chose a character and demonstrate an understanding of their personalities by analyzing their
actions, background information and the setting of the book. They will question themselves to
arrive at these conclusions. Given a graphic organizer, the students will be able to list five
character traits of at least one character in the book with 95% accuracy. They will be able to
apply this information in a representation of a character (or narrator) through a reader’s theater
production. The students will learn how to conduct a reader’s theater by reading tips for staging
and performance. They will increase their reading fluency and their comfort level when reading
aloud to a group. The students will perform reading their script in front of an audience with 85%
accuracy.
Area of Bloom's Taxonomy Relevant to this Lesson: Knowledge (Remembering): Students will
recall plot of text to help them comprehend at a deeper level. Comprehension (Understanding):
Students will understand reader’s theater incorporating the text into the performance.
Application, Analysis and Synthesis (Creating): Students will create character maps from
analyzing main characters. Students will organize a reader’s theater production. Evaluation:
Students will evaluate the experience to determine if it helped them increase fluency and their
motivation to learn to read.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson will focus on the first chapters in The Tale of Despereaux. The teacher will introduce
students to reader’s theater offering tips on the reading performance as well as staging. The
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teacher will help the students understand the characters’ feelings and emotions. He / she will then
help the students to put appropriate expression and intonation into a reading performance. The
teacher will help students increase their fluency. The students will also be able to evaluate each
other as well as themselves. They will also be given the opportunity to evaluate the lesson’s
utility.
Learning Context:
This lesson follows a lesson plan focused on defining new vocabulary words. The previous
lesson emphasized understanding how to use reference aids to help define meaning, learn how to
pronounce new words and to learn the parts of speech of new words. This lesson builds on the
previous one by introducing fluency and giving the students an opportunity to use new
vocabulary words as well as familiar ones by performing a portion of the text.
Sequence of Lesson:
Introduce Reader’s theater to the class. Give an overview of what it is and how it will be carried
out over the next class periods. Explain the presentation at the end. Describe the reasons for
engaging in reader’s theater: increase fluency (explain fluency), increase comfort in reading,
increase motivation to learn, as well as to increase comprehension of text, etc. Summarize the
tips provided (attached) regarding staging and reading performance and encourage the students
to apply these tips to their practice and their performance. Write main points on the smartboard
or the white board. Pass out tips: One per group.
Read aloud chapters 1 – 8 again using intonation and applying character voices and personality
traits into expression while reading. Popcorn read.
Show them the rubric that will be used to evaluate the readers. This should be presented in an
upbeat way emphasizing what the teacher expects from each student.
Form the class into previously defined groups (four groups). Give each student a script. Give
them time to read the scripts. Let them decide roles and give them strategies to work through this
decision-making process.
Circulate around the room and give assistance where needed.
Pass out the character realization map graphic organizer. Once students have determined their
role have them fill out the organizer. Encourage them to think about the character’s personality
and their emotions. If they are the narrator encourage them to think about the situation and how
they feel towards the characters in the scene.
Give the groups time to practice their scripts. Again, walk around the groups giving advice and
reminding them about the tips.
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Let the groups rehearse their scripts in front of the class. The class will give feedback using the
student evaluation rubric provided.
Give a performance in front of the class. The teacher tapes the performance. Students take turns
documenting the presentation by taking pictures using a digital camara. Students give oral
feedback. The teacher evaluates using the evaluation rubric.
Perform the scripts for a second grade class.
Scaffolding Activities for At-Risk Students:
Students will be paired accordingly by group and given an appropriate character for their reading
level.
Extension Activities for Gifted / Talented Students:
Students can read the tips for scripting and add to or write a new script that can be performed by
class members.
Time Allotment:
2 class periods. 1.5 Hrs per class.
Author’s Comments:
This lesson focuses on building confidence and reading fluency. It should be a very fun and
exciting lesson.
List of Materials:
The Tale of Despereaux book
Character Realization Map: Graphic Organizer
Scripts written by teacher (attached)
Reader’s Theater tips written by Aaron Shepard and modified by teacher (attached)
High and low stools or chairs
Folders or binders to hold scripts
Student feedback sheet
Teacher reader’s theater evaluation rubric
Standards:
MI- Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations
• Subject : ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
• Grade : FOURTH GRADE
• Strand : SPEAKING
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• Topic : Spoken Discourse
Expectation : S.DS.04.01 Engage in interactive, extended discourse to
socially construct meaning (e.g., book clubs, literature circles,
partnerships, or other conversation protocols).
Expectation : S.DS.04.02 Discuss narratives (e.g., mystery, myths
and legends, tall tales, poetry), conveying the story grammar (i.e.,
various character roles, plot, story level theme) and
emphasizing facial expressions, hand gestures, and body language.
• Strand : READING
• Topic : Word Recognition and Word Study
Expectation : R.WS.04.03 Automatically recognize frequently
encountered words in print, with the number of words that can be read
fluently increasing steadily across the school year.
Expectation : R.WS.04.06 Fluently read beginning grade level text
and increasingly demanding text as the year proceeds.
Expectation : R.AT.04.01 Be enthusiastic about reading and learning
how to read.
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Lesson Plan Three References
Di Camillo, K. (2003). The tale of despereaux. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.
Shepard, A. (2009). Reader’s theater tips. Retrieved electronically on March 15, 2009 from
http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/Tips.html
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Reader’s Theater
General Introduction
By Aaron Shepard
Reader’s theater is often defined by what it is not—no memorizing, no props, no
costumes, no sets. All this makes reader’s theater wonderfully convenient. Still,
convenience is not its chief asset.
Like storytelling, reader’s theater can create images by suggestion that could never
be portrayed realistically on stage. Space and time can be shrunk or stretched, fantastic
worlds can be created, marvelous journeys can be enacted. Reader’s theater frees the
performers and the audience from the physical limitations of conventional theater,
letting the imagination soar.
Enjoy the magic of reader’s theater
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Reader’s Theater Tips for Preparing, Rehearsing and Performing
By Aaron Shepard
Preparing
First, here are instructions your readers can follow—individually or in a group—to
prepare their scripts and get familiar with their parts.
 Highlight your speeches in your copy of the script. Mark only words you will
speak—not role tags or stage directions. (Yellow non-fluorescent marker is
best.)
 Underline words that tell about anything you’ll need to act out—words in either
the stage directions or other readers’ speeches. If you’re given extra stage
directions later, write them in the margin with pencil.
 Read through your part
silently. If there are words you’re not sure of, look them
up in a dictionary. If there are words you must remember to stress, underline
them. If there are places you’ll need to pause, mark them with a couple of
slashes, //. (For instance, you may have to pause so the audience will know
there’s a change of scene or time in the story.)
 Read through your part out loud. If you’re a character, think
about how that
character would sound. Should you try a funny voice? How would the character
feel about what’s happening in the story? Can you speak as if you were feeling
that?
 Get up and read through the script
again, trying out faces and actions. Would
your character stand or move a special way? Can you do that? If possible, do all
this in front of a mirror.
Even before you give your readers their scripts, you can help them by reading to
them the script or its source story. Effective modeling will give them a head start against
any difficulties. You may also want to discuss the difference between characters and
narrators. (“In the story, character parts are inside the quotation marks, and narrator
parts are outside.”)
Rehearsing
Here are pointers your readers should remember both in rehearsal and
performance.
 Hold your script at a steady height, but make sure it doesn’t hide your face. If
there’s anyone in the audience you can’t see, your script is too high.
 While you speak, try to look up often, not just at your script. When you do look at
it, move just your eyes and keep your head up.
 Talk slowly. Speak each syllable clearly.
 Talk loud! You have to be heard by the little old deaf lady in the back row.
 Talk with feeling. Audiences love a ham!
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 Stand and sit straight.
Keep your hands and feet still, if they’re doing nothing
useful!
 If you’re moving around, face the audience as much as you can. When rehearsing,
always think about where the audience will be.
 Characters, remember
to be your character even when you’re not speaking.
 Narrators, make sure you give the characters enough time for their actions.
To help your readers get full vocal power, have them check their breathing by
placing their hands on their stomachs and inhaling. If they’re breathing fully, their
hands will go out. (The diaphragm muscle pushes down on the stomach to let the lower
lungs expand.) If their hands go in, it means they’re breathing with only their upper
lungs.
To help your readers hold themselves straight, ask them to imagine a string tied to
their chest, pulling up. Tongue twisters and other vocal exercises can help them speak
more clearly. In fact, you may want to warm up your readers with vocal exercises and
stretches before your rehearsals and performances.
Performing
Before an actual performance, discuss with your readers the “what-ifs.”
 If the audience laughs, stop speaking until they can hear you again.
 If someone talks in the audience, don’t pay attention.
 If someone walks into the room, don’t look.
 If you make a mistake,
pretend it was right.
 If you drop something,
try to leave it at least till the audience is looking
somewhere else.
 If a reader forgets to read, see if you can read their part instead, or make
something up, or maybe just skip over it. But don’t whisper to the reader!
 If a reader falls on their rear end, pretend they didn’t.
Finally, a couple of reminders for the director: Have fun, and tell your readers
what they’re doing well!
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Tale of despereaux
Tips on Staging: Reader’s Theater
By Aaron Shepard and modified by Cindy Livingston
Stage Movement
Stage movement is encouraged.
 Characters move around the stage much as in a play, acting out or suggesting the
movements described in the story, often by simple mime devices like walking
in place.
 Though narrators look at the audience,
characters most often look at each other.
 Scripts in sturdy binders are held in one hand, leaving the other hand free
gesturing.
for
 A set of low stools and a single high stool serve as versatile stage scenery/props.
 It is unnecessary for the narrators to engage in movement if they do
not to. They
can place their scripts on music stands and face the audience, making eye
contact but reading from a script placed on the stand.
Equipment
For reader’s theater, you really need nothing but scripts. But a little basic
equipment can add a lot. Here are some suggestions:
 Script binders. Sturdy ring binders are best. Whatever you use, make sure the
pages turn easily. On stage, the binder may also become a prop, representing a
book, a notepad, the surface of a table.
 Smocks. These give the readers a team look, yet are also neutral—so readers can
easily change character in the minds of the audience. The smock can be a
simple rectangle of cloth with a headhole, fastened together at the sides.
 Chair-height
stools. These are your most useful props. For some stories, you
won’t need any; for others, you may need one for each reader on stage. They
must be solid enough to stand on!
 High
stools. One or two should be enough. These too should be solid enough for
standing.
 Portable screens. These are strictly optional, but they’re fun to use if they’re
handy. They provide an alternative for entrances and exits and for some special
effects.
 Small props. These can sometimes add nice touches—as when a Pied Piper has
a tin whistle to play.
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Script Handling
The trick with scripts is to handle them so they can be referred to easily but don’t
seriously restrict movement or distract the audience. The script is held by one hand
only, leaving the other hand free for acting. For a relaxed grip, the binder spine can
simply lie in the palm. If readers are moving around a lot, they can instead grip the
binder’s top edge. Part of the binder rests against the upturned forearm.
Right-handers hold a script with their left hand, left-handers with their right. But
sometimes a reader may have to switch hands, if a particular hand is needed for stage
action, or if looking at the script turns the reader too far from the audience.
Though readers don’t need to memorize, they should know their lines and cues
well enough so they can look up from their scripts about half the time. When they do
look down, it’s only with the eyes, keeping the head straight up.
You will have to be flexible about script handling. A character who has to look
upward for much of a scene may have to memorize part of the script. A narrator who has
a long speech may have to run a free hand along the edge to keep the place. A reader
who will have no free hand when a page must be turned can place that page backward in
the binder to get two pages facing.
The “Set”
You don’t construct sets for reader’s theater—but you can suggest them. The
narrator’s descriptions are brought to life by the readers’ movements and mime. If a
reader opens a door, we see it. If readers hang ornaments on a Christmas tree, we know
right where it is.
Stools are among your chief aids for suggesting sets, as well as being practical
props. Three short stools in a semicircle can be a dining room. Two short stools close by
each other can be a bench in a park, or a roof ridge atop a house. A single high stool can
be a throne room. A high stool with a short stool next to it can be a tree to climb, or a
mountain. An area with no stools can be anything at all!
As in theater, you start designing your “set” by figuring out what locations your
script calls for. Then you position those locations on your stage in whatever
arrangement works and looks best. Look for ease of reader movement, stage balance,
and openness to the audience.
Readers can move to different stage areas for different scenes. Or they can stay in
the same area and you can “change the set.” Or the set can move to them! For instance, a
reader could move from room to room in a house just by walking in place, climbing
some stairs, and opening some doors—all without moving an inch.
Reader Movement
After designing your “set,” decide where your readers will start and where they will
go. Don’t forget the narrators.
Drawing a series of movement diagrams can help you spot problems, save time
during rehearsal, and jog your memory the next time you use the script. In one simple
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diagram system, circles are low stools, double circles are high stools, crosses are readers,
and arrows show movement.
To go “offstage,” a reader doesn’t need to actually leave the area but can instead go
BTA—“back to audience.” This indicates to the audience that the reader is out of the
picture. If sitting on a stool, the reader can usually just turn around on it. If standing,
the reader should also get out of the way by moving toward the back of the stage.
Narrators seldom go BTA, even if they’re not reading for a while.
In regular theater, the curtain or the lights coming down indicates a “scene
change”—a jump in time and/or place. In reader’s theater, this change is shown by some
kind of break in movement. For instance, the readers can all “freeze” in place like
statues. Or they can turn BTA, freeze, then come back in. Or they can freeze, then cross
the stage for the next scene. If one scene in the story flows smoothly into the next,
without a jump, you may not need a break at all.
Mime and Sound Effects
Whatever action is described in the script, readers should try either to do it or else
to suggest it through mime. If someone is eating, we should see the fork carried to the
mouth. If someone is hanging in the air, we should see the arm pulled tight by the
floating balloon. If someone is racing a horse, we should see the galloping hooves.
The key word here is “suggest,” because the movements are often far from
realistic. For instance, it’s hard to take off a coat realistically when one hand holds a
script. Readers quickly learn to sleep sitting up, with their heads bent to the side. And
walking in place is a reader’s favorite mode of travel.
Though formal mime techniques aren’t required, they do add polish to a
performance. It’s always good to draw on proven tricks for walking in place, climbing up
or down stairs or ropes or ladders, lifting or pulling heavy objects, flying, falling, and so
on. Look for library books on mime, or invite a local mime to conduct a workshop.
Part of successful group mime is being aware of the invisible. If a stool is meant to
be a chair at a table, make sure no one walks through the table! Even a door that’s
invisible shouldn’t shift position as different people pass through it. If two characters
look at a picture on the wall, they will hopefully agree where it is!
Sounds in the story too should be added where possible—explosions, wind, bees,
roosters, whatever. To help the illusion, this is usually handled by readers who are BTA.
Focus
Focus refers to where the readers are looking. Most of the time, it’s simple:
Narrators use audience focus—they look straight at the audience. Characters use onstage focus—they look at whoever they’re talking to, just as in plays or real life.
But sometimes you may want characters to use off-stage focus. The readers
imagine a screen facing them, as wide as the stage, set up at the front edge of the
audience. On this screen they imagine a mirror image of all the readers. Then instead of
talking straight to each other, they talk to each other’s image. If you prefer, you can
“move” the screen farther from the readers.
Offstage Focus
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Tale of despereaux
The most important use of off-stage focus is to help create illusions of distance or
height. Two characters on the same stage but using off-stage focus can shout and wave
at each other as if a mile apart. If one looks upward and one looks downward, you have a
midget talking to a giant, or a woman in a window talking to a man in the street.
Characters can at times also use audience focus, addressing comments directly to
the audience. They might also use this focus if the audience is drawn into the story—as
might happen, for instance, if the audience suddenly becomes a hill completely covered
with cats.
Beginnings and Endings
One reader should introduce the story with at least the title and the author.
Beyond that, something can be said about the story, about the author, or about the
performance. Just don’t give away the plot!
After the introduction, the readers wait to begin until they’re all in place and
frozen and the audience is quiet.
At the end, the last words are spoken slowly and with rhythm, so the audience
knows the story is over. Everyone recognizes the ending “hap-pily ev-er af-ter.” But the
same effect can be achieved with almost any words by reading them in a “slow three.”
When the story is finished, the readers freeze for a long moment to break the
action. Then they close their scripts, face the audience, and bow all together. You may
want to assign one reader to lead this closing sequence.
Beginnings and endings should be rehearsed along with the story so they’ll go
smoothly.
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Tale of despereaux
Reader’s Theater Feedback
Student Copy
Group Number:______
Script Number: ________
I feel this is how you related to the audience: (Circle one number)
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
Excellent
I feel this is how you used expression when you read your parts: (circle one number)
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
Excellent
I feel this is how your group staged the performance (moved around on stage to create good effect): (circle
one)
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
I feel this is how confident you looked: (circle one number)
Excellent
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
Excellent
I feel this is how you projected your voice: (circle one number)
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
I feel this is how you used gestures on stage: (circle one number)
Excellent
1----------------------2--------------------------3---------------------------4------------------------------5-----------------------6
Needs Improvement
Pretty Good
Excellent
Give one positive comment:
Give one constructive comment that will help the group improve their performance:
Reader role:_____________________________________________
Positive comment:
Reader role:______________________________________________
Positive comment:
Reader role:______________________________________________
Positive comment:
Reader role:______________________________________________
Positive comment:
Reader role:______________________________________________
Positive comment:
Reader role:______________________________________________
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Tale of despereaux
Reader’s Theater Assessment
Teacher
Reader Name:_________________________________
Group Number:________________________________
Script Number: ________________________________
Use of Script
Presentation
____Cue Pick-up
____Flow
____Pacing
____Handling
____Interest Level
____Audience Engagement
____Confidence / not fidgeting or hiding
Reading
Relationship with other Readers
____Fluency (smooth reading)
____Projection / Volume
____Intonation
____Taking on role of character
Key
! Great
+ Good
/Could Improve
X Not Prepared
____Physical / Gestures with other readers
____Focus / posture when not reading
____Movement on Stage
____Appropriate grouping with others
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Tale of despereaux
Character Realization Map
Who is it?
Personality Traits / Emotions
Name of Character
Some examples of that character portraying those traits or emotions
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Tale of despereaux
Reader’s Theater: Group One (7) Students (one prop)
Tale of Despereaux
Script 1
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Narrator 3
Mother
Father
Merlot
Furlough
Despereaux (Does not say anything…can be in other group as well) Prop.
Narrator 1: This story begins within the walls of a castle, with the birth of a mouse.
A small mouse. The last mouse born to his parents and the only one of his litter to
be born alive.
Mother: “Where are my babies?”
Narrator: 1 Said the exhausted mother when the order was over.
Mother: “Show me my babies.”
Narrator 3: The father mouse held the one small mouse up high.
Father: “There is only this one.”
Narrator 2: He said.
Father: “Yes there is just one. Will you name him?”
Mother: “All of that work for nothing.”
Narrator 2: Said the mother.
Mother: “It is so sad. It is such the disappointment.”
Narrator 2: She was a French mouse. Disappointment was one of her favorite
words and she used it often.
Father: “Well will you name him?”
Mother: “Will I name him? Will I name him? Of course, I will name him, but he will
only kie like the others. Oh so sad. Oh such a tragedy.”
Narrator 1: The mouse mother held a handkerchief to her nose and then waved
it in front of her face. She sniffed.
Mother: “I will name him. Yes I will nhame this mouse Despereaux, for all the
sadness, for the many despairs in this place. Now, where is my mirror?”
Merlot: “Here is your mirror mother. You look very beautiful and very young.”
Furlough: “Very beautiful, very young”
Narrator 3: While mother mouse touched up her eye makeup, the mouse father
put Despereaux down on a bed made of blanket scraps.
Narrator 2: The other, older mice children gathered around to stare at
Despereaux.
Merlot: “His ears are too big.” Those are the biggest ears I’ve ever seen.”
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Tale of despereaux
Furlough: “Look, his eyes are open. Pa, his eyes are open. The shouldn’t be
open.”
Narrator 3: It is true. Despereaux’s eyes should not have been open. But they
were. He was starting at the sun relecting off his mother’s mirror.
Narrator 2: The light was shining onto the ceiling in an oval of brilliance, and he
was smiling up at the sight.
Merlot: “There’s something wrong with him.”
Furlough: “Leave him alone.”
Narrator 1: Despereaux’s brothers and sisters stepped back, away from the new
mouse.
Mother: “This is the last. I will have no more babies. They are such the
disappointment. They are hard on my beauty. They ruin me, my looks. This is the
last one. No more.”
Father: “This is the last one, no more.”
Merlot: “This is the last one, no more.”
Furlough: “This is the last one, no more.”
Narrator 3: “Everyone!” Said in a kind of sad tone but encouraging participation.
(The student waves their arms to included all audience and every character to
chant)
Everyone: “This is the last one, no more.”
Father: “And he will be dead soon. He can’t live. Not with his eyes open like
that!”
Narrator 1 & Narrator 2 & Narrator 3: But audience, he did live. This is his story.
Everyone leaves “stage”.
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Tale of despereaux
Reader’s Theater Group Two (7) Students
Tale of Despereaux
Script 2
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Narrator 3
Narrator 4
King
Princess Pea
Despereaux
Narrator 1: Despereaux’s Brothers and sisters tried in vain to educate him in the
art of mouse-ness. But they soon abandoned this thankless task.
Narrator 2: And so Despereaux was free.
Narrator 3: He spent his days as he wanted: He wandered through the rooms of
the castle, staring dreamily at the light streaming in through the stained-glass
windows.
Narrator 4: He went to the library and read over and over again…..(interrupted)
Narrator 2: Yes audience, you heard it right. This special mouse could read.
Narrator 4: (clear throat…irritated at being interrupted)…the story of the fair
maiden and the knight who rescued her.
Narrator 3: And he discovered, finally, the source of the honey-sweet sound. The
sound was music.
Narrator 4: The sound was King Phillip playing his guitar and singing to his
daughter, the Princess Pea, every night before she fell asleep.
Despereaux: “Oh! It sounds like heaven. It smells like honey.”
Narrator 4: He stuck his left ear out of the hole in the wall so that he could hear
the music better…
Narrator 1: and then he stuck his right ear out so that he could hear better still.
Narrator 2: And it wasn’t too long before one of his paws followed his head…
Narrator 3: and then another paw, and then without any real planning on
Despereaux’s part,…
All Narrators: The whole of him was on display!
Despereaux: “I want to get closer to that heavenly music”
Narrator 4: Now audience Despereaux did not follow the normal ways of the
ordinary mice but he did adhere to one rule and that was…
Narrator 1: Do not ever, under any circumstances, reveal yourself to humans.
Despereaux: “But…. the music, the music.
Princess Pea: “Oh Papa, look a mouse.”
Narrator 2: The King stopped singing. He was nearsighted and could not see
anything in front of his eyes.
King: “Where?”
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Tale of despereaux
Princess Pea: “There”
King: “That, my dear Pea, is a bug, not a mouse. It is much too small to be a
mouse.”
Princess Pea: “No, no, it’s a mouse.”
King: “A bug”
Princess Pea: “A mouse”
Narrator 3: Said Pea who knew that she was right.
Princess Pea: “He’s frightened. Look, he’s so afraid he’s shaking. I think he was
listening to the music. Play something, Papa.”
King: “A King play music for a bug?” “Is that proper, do you think?” “Wouldn’t
that make this into some kind of topsy-turvey, wrong-headed world if a king
played music for a bug?”
Princess Pea: “Papa, I told you, he’s a mouse. Please?”
King: “Oh well if it will make you happy, I, the king, will play music for a bug.”
Princess Pea: “A mouse.”
Narrator 1: The king adjusted his heavy gold crown.
Narrator 2: He cleared his throat.
Narrator 3: He strummed the guitar and started to sing a song about stardust.
All Narrators: Despereaux forgot all his fear. He only wanted to hear the music.
Narrator 1: He crept closer
Narrator 2: And closer
Narrator 3: And closer
Narrator 4: And closer
Narrator 4 whispers and encourages the audience to chant
ALL “And Closer”
Narrator 2: Until audience, he was sitting right at the foot of the king.
All readers leave “stage”.
Reader’s Theater Group three (6) Students
Tale of Despereaux
Script 3
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Despereaux
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Tale of despereaux
Princess Pea
Furlough
Audience member (A Student sitting in the audience)
Narrator 1: The Princess Pea Looked down at Despereaux. She smiled at him.
And while her father played another song, a song about the ddp purple falling
over sleepy garden walls, the prnicess reached out and touched the top of the
mouse’s head.
Narrator 2: Despereaux stared up at her in wonder. The Pea, he decided, looked
just like the picture of the fair maiden in the book in the library.
Narrator 1: The princess smiled at Despereaux again, and this time, Despereaux
smiled back.
Narrator 2: And the, something incredible happened: The mouse fell in love.
Narrator 1: Audience, you may ask this question; in fact, you must ask the same
question I am pondering…
Student as Audience Member Stands up: “Is it ridiculous for a very small, sickly,
bigeared mouse to fall in love with a beautiful human princess named Pea?”
Narrator 2: The answer is…..
Narrator 1: Yes! Of course, it’s ridiculous.
Narrator 2: Love is ridiculous.
Despereaux: “But love is also wonderful. And powerful. “
Narrator 1: And audience Despereaux’s love for the Princess Pea wold prove, in
time, to be all of these things:
Narrator 2: powerful, wonderful and ridiculous.
Princess Pea: “You’re so sweet.” “You’re so tiny.”
Narrator 1: As Despereaux looked up at her adoringly, Furlough happened to
scurry past the princess’s room, moving his head left to right, right to left, back
and forth.
Forlough: “Cripes”
Narrator 2:He stopped. He started into the princess’s room. His whiskers became
as tight as bowstrings.
Narrator 1: What Furlough saw was Despereaux Tilling sitting at the foot of the
king. What Furlough saw was the princess touching the top of his brother’s head.
Forlough:”Cripes”
Narrator 2: Shouted Forlough.
Forlough:”Oh Cripes! He’s nuts! He’s a goner!”
Narrator 1: And, executing a classic scurry, Furlough went off to tell his father,
Lester Tilling, the terrible….
Narrator 2: the unbelievable
Narrator 1: The shocking…
Narrator 2: news of what he had just seen.
Readers leave “stage.”
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Tale of despereaux
Reader’s Theater Group Two (8) Students
Tale of Despereaux
Script 4
(Note: For those students who did not have a substantial part in last script, they can play another part in this one)
Characters
Narrator 1
Narrator 2
Narrator 3
Father Mouse
Mother Mouse
Princess Pea
King
Despereaux
Father Mouse: “He CAN NOT, he simply cannot be my son.”
Narrator 1: Lester said as he clutched his whiskers with his front paws and shoot
his head from side to side in despair.
Mother Mouse: “Of course he is your son. What do you mean he is not your son?
This is a ridiculous statement. Why must you always make the ridiculous
statements”…more to herself “I need my mirror.”
Father Mouse: “You.” “This is your fault. The French blood in him has made him
crazy.”
Mother Mouse:”C’est Moi? C’est Moi?” “Why must it always be I who takes the
blame? IF your son is such the disappointment, it is as much your fault as mine.”
Father Mouse: “Something must be done.”
Narrator 2: Said Lester, as he pulled on a whisker so hard that it cam loose. He
waved the whisker over his head.
Narrator 1: He pointed it at his wife.
Father Mouse: “He will be the end of us all.”
Narrator 2: He shouted.
Father Mouse: “Sitting at the foot of a human king. Unbelievalbe! Unthinkable!”
Mother Mouse:”Oh, so dramatic.”
Narrator 1: Said Mother Mouse, as she held out one paw and studied her painted
nails.
Mother Mouse:”He is a small mouse. How much of the harm can he do?”
Father Mouse: “If it is one think I have learned in this world, it is that mice must
act like mice or else there is bound to be trouble. I will call a special meeting of
the Mouse Council. Together, we will decide what must be done. He must be
punished. He must be brought before the tribunal.”
Narrator 2: Lestor dug through some paper scraps and found the council signal
drum. He turned back to his wife and closed his eyes and took a deep breath
Narrator 1: And began to beat the drum slowly,
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Tale of despereaux
Narrator 2: one long beat with his tail,
Narrator 1: two staccato beats with his paws.
Narrator 2: Boom
Narrator 1: Tat-tat
Narrator 2: Boom
Narrator 1: Tat-tat
Narrator 2: Boom
Narrator 1: Tat-tat.
Narrator 3: And what was our own favorite member of the mouse community
doing while the soundof the Mouse Council drum echoed through the walls of
the castle?
Audience, I must rport that Furlough had not seen the worst of it. Despereaux sat
with the princess and the king and listened to song after song. At one point,
gently,, oh so gently, the Pea picked up the mouse in her hand. She cupped him
in her palm and scratech his oversize ears.
Pea: “You have lovely ears. They are like small pieces of velvet.”
Narrator 3: Despereaux thought that he ight faint with the pleasure of someone
referring to his ears as small and lovely.
Narrator 1: He laid his tail against the Pea’s srist to steady himself and he felt the
princess’s pulse,
Narrator 2: the pounding of her heart,
Narrator 3: and his own heart immediately took up the rhythm of hers.
Pea: “Papa, I am going to keep this mouse. We are going to be great friends.”
Narrator 1: The king looked at Despereaux cupped in his daughter’s hands. He
narrowed his eyes..
King: “A mouse”
Narrator 2: He muttered.
King: “A rodent”
Pea: “What”
King: “Put it down.”
Narrator 3: The king commanded.
Pea: “No”
Narrator 1: Said Pea, who was a person not at all used to being told what to do.
Pea: “I mean why should I?”
King:”Because I told you to.”
Pea: “But why?”
Narrator 1: Protested Pea.
Pea: “Because it is a mouse. I know. I’m the one who told you he was a mouse.”
King:”I wasn’t thinking.”
Narrator2: Said the king.
King:”Your mother. The queen..”
Pea: “My mother”
Narrator 3: Said the Pea sadly.
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Tale of despereaux
King:”Mice are rodents, They are related to ….rats. You know how we feel about
rats. You know of our own dark history with rats.”
Narrator 1: Pea shuddered.
Pea: “But Papa, he is not a rat. He’s a mouse. There’s a difference.”
King: “Royalty has many responsibilities. And one of the is not becoming
involved personally with even the distant relatives of one’s enemies. Put him
down Pea.”
Narrator 2: The princess put Despereaux down.
King:”Good girl”
Narrator 3:Then he looked at Despereaux
King:”Scat”
Narrator 3: He said.
Narrator 1: Despereaux however, did not scat. He sat and stared up at the
princess.
Narrator 2: The King stamped his foot.
King:”Scat”
Narrator 3: He shouted.
Pea: “Papa, please, don’t be mean to him.”
Narrator 1: And she began to weep.
Narrator 2: Despereaux, seeing her tears, broke the last of the great, ancient
rules of mice. He spoke. To a human.
Despereaux: “Please, don’t cry.”
Narrator 3: He held out his handkerchief to the princess.
Narrator 1: Pea sniffed and leaned down close to him.
King:”Do not speak to her!”
Narrator 2: thundered the king.
Narrator 3: Despereaux dropped his handkerchief. He backed away from the
king.
King: “Rodents do not speak to princesses. We will not have this becoming a
topsy-turvey, wrong-headed world. There are rules. Scat. Get lost, before my
common sense returns and I have you killed.”
Narrator 1: the king stamped his foot again. Despereaux found it alarming to
have such a big foot brought down with so much force and anger so close to his
own small head. He rean toward the hole in the wall.
Narrator 2: But he turned before he entered it. He turned and shouted to the
princess.
Despereaux: “My name is Despereaux.”
Pea: “Despereaux?”
Despereaux: “I honor you!”
Narrator 3: shouted Despereaux.
Narrator 1: I honor you was what the knight said to the fair maiden in the story
that Despereaux read every day I the book in the library.
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Tale of despereaux
Narrator 2: Despereaux had mttered the phrase often to himself, but he had
never before this evening had occasion to use it when speaking to someone
else.
King:”Get out of here!”
Narrator 2: shouted the king, stamping his foot harder ..
Narrator 3: and then harder still so it seemed as if the whole castle,
Narrator 1: the very world
Narrator 2: were shaking.
King: “Rodents know nothing of honor.”
Narrator 3:Despereaux ran into the hold and from there he looked out at the
princess.
Narrator 1: She had picked up his handkerchief and she was lookin gat him…
Narrator 2: right, directly into his soul.
Pea: “Despereaux”
Narrator 3: she said.
Narrator 1: He saw his name on her lips.
Despereaux: “I honor you.”
Narrator 2: whispered Despereaux.
Despereaux: “I honor you.”
Narrator 3: He put his paw over his heart.
Narrator 1: He bowed so low that his whiskers touched the floor.
Narrator 2: He was, alas, a mouse deeply in love.
Readers leave “stage.”
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Four
Comprehension
Author: Cindy Livingston
Subject: Language Arts (English), Reading, Comprehension
Topic / Unit of Study: Lesson Four: The Tale of Despereaux – Connection Chart
Grade Level: Fourth Grade
Lesson Objective:
Instructional (Teacher) Objective: The teacher will increase students’ comprehension and
inference skills by teaching the connection strategy. The students will learn how to make
connections between the text and self, other texts and the world. The teacher will demonstrate
how to make connections to the text using a connections graphic-organizer. The teacher will
demonstrate connection making and explain how this increases comprehension and the ability to
understand the story’s themes. The teacher will periodically check for understanding and goal
attainment by spacing instruction and practice time. Mini lessons will be taught at the group level
if necessary.
Behavioral (Learner) Objective: The students will learn how to make connections with the story
to better understand themes, relate to the characters, and increase comprehension. The students
will write at least four statements (12 total) describing a connection between text and self, text
and another text and the text and real life. These statements will be written in a connections chart
provided by the teacher. The students will compare and contrast Despereaux and Wesley. They
will be able to place six characteristics in a VENN diagram of the similiarities and differences
between the characters with 100% accuracy. They will provide The students will answer four
inference questions regarding the story. They will provide at least one example with each
question. They will use one connection example to infer meaning.
Area of Bloom's Taxonomy Relevant to this Lesson: Comprehension (Understanding): Students
will explain the utility of making connections to the text. Application: They will apply this
knowledge by making connections to a new text introduced during the lesson. Synthesis
(Creating): Students combine information from connections made to generate ideas regarding
possible themes in the text and predictions about the plot. The students will answer inferential
questions regarding the story.
Lesson Summary:
This lesson will cover chapters 9 – 15 in The Tale of Despereaux. The teacher will introduce the
connections chart, the strategy and utility of making connections while reading. The teacher and
the students will read chapters in The Tale of Despereaux aloud. At this time, the connection to
self-strategy will be demonstrated. The teacher will encourage active participation. The teacher
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Tale of despereaux
will check for understanding, ask questions and require examples that will be written on the
board. Another book will be read aloud: Weslandia by Paul Fleishman. The students, in groups,
will make connections centered on text to text. The students will make connections to the real
world by reading a current events story and asking themselves questions about the world around
them. They will, independently, make connections between the story and real life. Discussion
will occur regarding the many connections recorded. These will then be expanded to relate to the
characters and uncover thematic elements. Information will be recorded and predictions will be
made regarding the story.
Learning Context:
This lesson occurs after the reader’s theater. The students are developing sensitivity to the
characters. They are learning emotion words as well as personality traits. They are learning how
to infer meaning from the text based on a deeper knowledge of the characters. This lesson takes
that one-step further. It exemplifies a strategy that allows readers to understand story characters,
setting and plot in order to increase comprehension.
Sequence of Lesson:
The teacher introduces the connections strategy and explains how good readers ask questions
while reading because they make connections between themselves and the story. They ask: “Is
there something or someone in the story like me?” At this time, the teacher should draw the chart
on the board. Emphasizing the Text – Self connection is important here. The teacher points out
that there are two other columns to make connections (she / he briefly explains what they are)
but emphasizes that they will be taught later in the lesson.
The teacher begins to read the story and while reading makes connections to self. She / he
encourages sharing and participation. Sometimes the reading is paused to fill in the chart under
connections to self.
While reading, the teacher also models general question asking.
The teacher allows other children to read and asks the students to share connections, when
appropriate, while she writes them on the board. The active comprehension strategy is applied.
The teacher asks questions that will lead to students asking more questions.
The teacher checks for comprehension by asking comprehension questions when appropriate. If
review is in order it is unfolded at this time.
The teacher models inference by stating things about the characters that are not directly stated in
the text but apply. Emphasizing this, the teacher encourages active thinking about the characters,
the setting and the themes. Inference type questions are asked at this time.
After the chapters are read. Discussion begins. Connections are shared and inferences are made
about the characters based on the story and on the connections. The ReQuest method is applied.
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Tale of despereaux
The stump-the-teacher game is played. The children examine the text and ask the teacher
questions. The teacher thinks out-loud and answers the questions.
The teacher then points out the second column of the chart: Text – Text. At this time an
explanation is given about text to text. The teacher asks: “Is there something or someone in the
story that reminds you of people or things in another story?” Discussion continues.
The teacher holds up three books: Days of the Knights: A Tale of Castles and Battles by
Christopher Maynard, The Middle Ages: A Watts Guide for Children edited by William Chester
Jordan and Weslandia by Paul Fleischman. The teacher shows the covers of the book and asks
the students what they know about knights, kings and castles. She reads portions of the first two
and Weslandia.
The teacher again models aloud but less direct modeling is given and more questions are asked
of the students. They are encouraged to participate and make connections between Weslandia
and The Tale of Despereaux. The teacher checks for understanding and notes any students who
may be having difficulty.
The teacher distributes a connections chart to each student.
Students work in their reading groups to fill in the chart based on Weslandia (text-text). A copy
of Weslandia is given to each group so the students can read it again silently if necessary. The
teacher circulates, assisting where necessary and asking inferential questions when talking with
group members. A VENN diagram is given to the children and they compare and contrast
Despereaux and Wesley. At this time the teacher circulates the room visiting every group. The
teacher checks for understanding and also examines spelling and grammar as the children write.
She provides mini lessons when appropriate.
The teacher then explains the chart: text-world. The teacher encourages students to think about
how the story resembles their life. The question modeled here is “Are there people in the story
who remind me of people I know? Are there things happening in the story that remind me of
things happening around me, at home or at school or in my neighborhood?”
The teacher writes these questions near the class chart and keeps them up for reference. The
teacher again models and thinks out loud for the children always connecting something and
bringing out hidden meaning in the text.
Time is given for the students to individually fill out the chart.
The chart is collected to be evaluated with feedback offered.
The teacher then passes out an assignment. This assignment asks inferential questions regarding
the story, the characters and the setting. The students are encouraged to put all the information
together to try to answer the questions. It is explained and reviewed in class but given as
homework.
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Tale of despereaux
When finished the teacher has the students draw the chart in their The Tale of Despereaux
journals and write the following questions:
Text – Self: Is there something or someone in the story like me?
Text-Text: Is there something or someone in the story that reminds you of people or things in
another story?
Text-Real life: Are there people in the story who remind me of people I know? Are there things
happening in the story that remind me of things happening around me at home, at school, in my
neighborhood?
Scaffolding Activities for At-Risk Students:
At-Risk students will not be required to completely fill in the chart. They can also work with a
peer tutor. They will be given a copy of the questions to ask: What in the story reminds me of
me? Is there someone or something in the story that reminds me of someone or something in
another story? Is there something or someone in the story that reminds me of someone or
something in my home or my neighborhood, my school or my community? The At-Risk student
can be excused from answering the last two inferential questions on the homework sheet.
Extension Activities for Gifted / Talented Students:
Extension activities: Write a short paragraph describing a connection the student has with the
text. Use an example. Write a poem comparing and contrasting a character in the story to
someone at home, at school or to oneself. Write an acrostic poem from the letters
DESPEREAUX trying to include as many character traits as possible that fit Despereaux.
Field Trip / Extra Curricular Activity:
A field trip to the art museum including a walk through of the Middle Ages room is an
appropriate activity. The students would observe armor, weapons, dress and artifacts from the
days of knights and castles. They could draw a suit of armor or a crest representing their family
name.
Parents come in and talk about heroes. They discuss who inspired them in life showing a picture
of their hero or mentor. A hero day is established where the students and parents share their
heroes.
Time Allotment:
2 class periods. 1.5 Hrs.
List of Materials:
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Tale of despereaux
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamilo
Connections chart: One for each student
Weslandia by Paul Fleischman (Five copies, one for each reading group)
The Middle Ages: A Watts Guide for Children edited by William Chester Jordan
Days of the Knights: A Tale of Castles and Battles by Christopher Maynard.
VENN diagram
Inferential Question assignment about The Tale of Despereaux
Assessments:
The students will be assessed on the connections chart, the VENN diagram and on the Question
assignment. The criteria will be explained to the students and written on the assignment sheets.
They must have, at minimum, four connections listed for each section within the connections
chart (12 in total). They are required to list at least six characteristics on the VENN diagram
without repetition. They are required to provide at least one example of a connection when
answering the questions on the Question assignment.
Standards:
MI- Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations
• Subject : ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
• Grade : FOURTH GRADE
• Strand : READING
• Topic : Comprehension
Expectation : R.CM.04.01 Connect personal knowledge, experience, and
understanding of the world to themes and perspectives in text through oral
and written responses.
Expectation : R.CM.04.03 Explain oral and written relationships
among themes, ideas, and characters within and across texts to create a
deeper understanding (e.g., categorize and classify,
compare and contrast, draw parallels across time and culture).
Topic : Metacognition
Expectation : R.MT.04.01 Independently self-monitor comprehension
when reading or listening to text by automatically using and discussing
the strategies used by mature readers to increase comprehension and
engage in interpretive discussions (e.g., predicting, constructing
mental images, representing ideas in text, questioning, rereading or
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Tale of despereaux
listening again inferreing, summarizing).
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Four References
Di Camilo, K. (2003). The tale of despereaux. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
Jordan, W. (Ed.). (1999). The middle ages: A watts guide for children. New Jersey: Grolier
Publishing.
Maynard, C. (1998). Days of the knights: A tale of castles and battles. New York: DK
Publishing.
Weissman, A. (2003). Candlewick press teacher’s guide. Cambridge, MA. Electroncially
retrieved March 16, 2009 from
http://www.candlewick.com/book_files/0763617229.mis.1.pdf
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Tale of despereaux
Connections Chart
Text - Self
Text - Text
(Please provide four connections for each section)
Text – Real Life
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Tale of despereaux
The Tale of Desereaux
Lesson 4: Questions
1. What happens when Despereaux’s sister Merlot tries to teach him to nibble paper? How
does this affect the rest of the story?
2. Why does the King tell the Princess not to speak with Despereaux? When Despereaux
leaves the Princess, he says to her, "I honor you." Why?
3. Would Despereaux help someone in need? Explain with example?
4. Would Despereaux make a good engineer or scientist? Explain?
(Please use one example of a connection at least once when answering any of the following questions)
75
Tale of despereaux
Compare and Contrast Despereaux and Wesley
Despereaux
(Please provide at least six characteristics on thi
(Please provide at least six characteristics on this chart)
Wesley
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Five
Writing
Author: Cindy Livingston
Subject: Language Arts (English), Reading, Writing
Topic / Unit of Study: Lesson Five: The Tale of Despereaux – Writing
Grade Level: Fourth Grade
Lesson Objective:
Instructional (Teacher) Objective: The teacher will demonstrate how to write a formal persuasive
letter, to an audience in the book, (Mouse Council, King, Princess Pea, Father Lester) asking for
the release or pardon of Despereaux. The teacher will teach the format of letter writing. The
teacher will explain and guide students in choosing how they will present ideas to their audience;
highlighting differences in recipients’ points of view and how these can impact the effectiveness
of the letter. The teacher will describe and guide students through the writing process:
prewriting, drafting, revising, editing and publishing. The teacher will conduct mini-lessons on
logic (cause and effect), spelling, handwriting and grammar as needed. The teacher will use a
planning map, a spider map and proofreading checklists as well as a rubric for evaluating the
students’ work.
Behavioral (Learner) Objective: The students will learn the six sections of a formal letter. When
given a persuasive letter to read, they will identify all six parts with 100% accuracy. The students
will apply this knowledge by writing a letter that includes all six parts: Heading, recipient’s
address, greeting, body, salutation or closing, and signature line. The students, when given a
sample letter, will identify the main idea and the supporting details. The students, after reading
persuasive letters, discussing with each other and teacher, planning using graphic organizers, will
write a persuasive letter requesting the release of Despereaux that includes, at least, two reasons
or persuasive examples supporting the main idea. The students will completely fill out a planning
map and a spider map before the draft writing stage. The students will produce a rough draft, a
revision including a proof reading checklist, as well as a final copy of the letter.
Areas of Bloom’s Taxonomy Relevant to the Lesson:
Knowledge: The students will identify the six parts to a formal letter.
Understanding: The students will summarize Despereaux’s situation in order to write the letter.
Application: The students will use what they have learned regarding formal letter writing and
persuasive writing and apply these skills to a new situation (writing a letter to chosen audience).
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Tale of despereaux
Analysis: The students will analyze Despereaux’s situation as well as the situation of the chosen
audience and give reasons why the audience would benefit from Despereaux’s release. In this
phase, the students must test various scenarios and perceive the interrelationships of them.
Synthesis: The students will compose a letter that proposes solutions and presents reasons for the
request. All information regarding the story’s plot, characters, setting will be synthesized to
create a persuasive argument.
Lesson Summary: This lesson covers how to write a formal persuasive letter using
information from the story The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DeCamilo. It teaches the five stages
of writing and how to write considering different points of view.
Learning Context: This follows a lesson designed to increase comprehension by using the
connections strategy. It follows a lesson that provided in-depth analysis of the main character
and his situation. This lesson provides a summary of Book One in The Tale of Despereaux and
leads as a bridge for Book Two.
Sequence of Lesson:
The teacher will introduce the lesson by saying: “Despereaux needs your help.” The teacher will
ask the students how they think they could help Despereaux out of the dungeon. The students
brainstorm and write ideas on the board.
The teacher introduces the power of letter writing and explains the lesson and the writing
activity.
The teacher reads Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Anderson
and Matt Faulkner. She emphasizes the determination and courage Sarah demonstrated and the
power of the letters she wrote. She / he discusses with the class. The discussion is guided and
questions asked regarding how the letters were written. What reasons did she give to nationalize
Thanksgiving? How do you think she presented them? Discussion continues and the teacher
models thinking aloud.
The teacher will introduce and explain the six parts to a formal letter.
The teacher will put on the smartboard or an overhead a persuasive letter. With the class, the six
parts will be identified.
The teacher will distribute formal persuasive letters to the class. One for each student. They will
read the letter (letters will vary) and identify all six parts.
The class will discuss common elements in persuasive style writing. The teacher will write these
elements on the board.
The students, with teacher instruction, will verbally identify the request (main idea) in a few
sample letters and list the supporting details. (Whole-class activity).
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Tale of despereaux
The students, in groups, will identify the main idea and the supporting details in writing using a
spider map of a persuasive letter.
The teacher will review the assignment and the rubric. She will explain the process of writing
and tell students the length of the project.
The teacher will review the planning organizer.
The students will individually fill out a planning organizer choosing an audience for their letter.
The class will discuss differences in the point of view of various audiences and brainstorm ways
to persuade them to release Despereaux. The teacher will check for understanding. At this time,
if some students do not understand she will, as a small group, work with them.
She will pass out the spider map and have students fill in the main idea and supporting details
they will use in the letter. The teacher circulates the room providing mini-lessons when
appropriate.
The students, after spider map is approved, can begin work on a rough draft on the letterform
provided. The teacher sets up challenge zones and helps small groups at a time.
Once students have finished their draft, they will edit each other’s letters using the editing
checklist or the proofreading checklist.
If necessary, upon teacher reflection. Some time could be spent on the teacher demonstrating
editing on a letter he / she wrote.
For peer editing, suggestions should be made regarding main idea, supporting ideas, sequence
and organization of paragraphs, transitions etc. At this phase, substantive changes are suggested
and are made. (The teacher makes a distinction between editing and final revision or
proofreading)
Students enter the revising stage. At this point the teacher conferences one-on-one (five minutes)
with each student.
The students proofread their own compositions, using a proofreading checklist and increasingly
identify and correct their own errors.
Students publish a final draft of the letter to be read in class, and if decided, to be sent to
volunteers requesting a reply.
Scaffolding Activities for At-Risk Students:
At-Risk students will copy information from the organizer to the letter and are required to
provide only one supporting detail within one paragraph.
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Tale of despereaux
The teacher will provide the supporting ideas for the students after students have chosen their
audience.
If students need review of plot summary, traits of main characters, letter writing parts, etc. they
can play the road game. Game board provided. Roll dice and take turns asking each other
questions and figuring out answers. Who ever reaches the end first wins. (game board attached)
If the letter writing is much too difficult, have students fill in squares on the game board with
actions they would take to get Despereaux out of the dungeon.
Extension Activities for Gifted / Talented Students:
Extension activities: Students can use Pivot to design a stick man animation on the internet to
replicate Despereaux’s fall into the dungeon hoping to illicit sympathy and expedite the release
of Despereaux. This free software can be downloaded from:
www.snapfiles.com/php/download.php?id=107965
Field Trip / Extra Curricular Activity:
Field trip to the post office is taken. An understanding is gained regarding the following: The
journey of a letter, jobs in the postal service, services provided by the postal system.
Stamp collecting is conducted. Students bring in old or new stamps. They are placed on a map
and displayed.
Stamps are created. Parent volunteers help the students design stamps for the Kingdom of Dor by
making print blocks from wood. The art of William Morris is shown and described.
Parental / Community Involvement:
The letters are sent to volunteers: parents, principal, community leaders with a request to reply.
The assignment is explained including a short description of the story and the reason
(educational growth and motivation for students) for the requested reply.
The replies are read in class and discussed. Logic and various points of view are considered.
Time Allotment:
Two class periods. 1.5 Hrs.
List of Materials:
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamilo
Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Anderson and Matt Faulkner
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Tale of despereaux
Definition of parts of a letter
Examples of persuasive letters (at least one for each student)
Example of formal persuasive letter (parts defined and highlighted)
Guidelines / steps for writing the letter (helping aid)
Letter writing planning map (attached in sep. file)
Spider map (attached in sep. file)
Editing checklist
Proof read checklist (attached in sep. file)
Road Map game (attached in sep. file)
Assignment: Letter writing rubric
Paper, pens, envelopes
Assessments:
Students are assessed for understanding during class discussion and group work both verbally
and in their written work. The teacher will monitor the students as they fill in the planning map
and the spider map. Teacher will also approve these assignments before writing the letter.
The teacher will make frequent checks for understanding at appropriate pauses in the lesson
using the hand standard spectrum. (Outstretched: Students feel comfortable and understand
100%, held tight to body: Students feel uncomfortable or lost).
Evaluation:
The teacher will evaluate the letter writing using a writing rubric. The teacher will determine if
the students understood letter writing as well as persuasive writing with, at least, 80% accuracy.
Standards:
MI- Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations
Subject : ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
• Grade : FOURTH GRADE
• Strand : WRITING
• Topic : Writing Process
Expectation : W.PR.04.01 Set a purpose, consider audience, and replicate
authors’ styles and patterns when writing narrative or informational text.
Expectation : W.PR.04.02 Apply a variety of drafting strategies for
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Tale of despereaux
both narrative and informational text (e.g., graphic organizers such as
story maps, webs, Venn diagrams) in order to generate, sequence, and
structure ideas (e.g., plot, connecting time, setting, conflicts, resolutions,
definition/description, chronological sequence).
Expectation : W.PR.04.04 Constructively and specifically respond
orally to the writing of others by identifying sections of the text to
improve organization (e.g., rearranging paragraphs and/or sequence,
relating main and supporting ideas, using comparative transitions).
Expectation : W.PR.04.05 Edit and proofread their writing using
appropriate resources (e.g., dictionary, spell check, grammar check,
grammar references, writing references) and grade
level appropriate checklists both individually and in groups.
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Tale of despereaux
Lesson Plan Five References
Anderson, L. & Faulkner, M. (2002). Thank you, sarah: The woman who saved thanksgiving.
New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.
Di Camilo, K. (2003). The tale of despereaux. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
English Plus. (2008). Business letters. Electronically retrieved on March 17, 2009 from
http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000149.htm
Persuasive Writing Guidelines. (2009). Writing steps. Retrieved electronically March 17,
2009 from http://www.hiddenvilla.org/OnlineCurric/teacher/curculum/actpersv.html)
Persuasive Writing Samples. (2009). Example writing. Retrieved electronically March 17,
2009 from http://www.washburn.edu/services/zzcwwctr/persuasive-ltrs.wm.txt
Scholastic Red. (2000). Graphic Organizers: Planning chart and spider map. Retrieved
electronically March 15, 2009 from http://www.scholastic.com
Smith, M. (2009). The revised checklist. Writer’s Workshop. Electronically retrieved on March
17, 2009 from http://www.rccsd.org/MSmith/Writers'Workshop.htm.
83
Tale of despereaux
Some of the materials to be used with this lesson are attached in a separate file due to the
size of the attachments. It is labeled lesson 5 materials. Four material sheets are not
shown here but included in the attachment.
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85
Jack Bluebird
555 Sunset Blvd
Caribbean Bay, MN 34567
Heading: The Sender’s add.
March 17, 2009
Principal DavyJones
Caribbean Day School
111 Myway Drive
Caribbean Bay, MN 34567
Dear Principal DavyJones:
Inside Address:The Receiver
Greeting / Salutation
At the last school board meeting much discussion centered on the issue of recess.
It has come to my attention that the members are thinking about canceling recess.
As a recess-loving fourth grader at Caribbean Day School, I would like to remind
you why recess exists and why it is important for all elementary aged children.
Students apply themselves at school. We work hard and our minds and bodies
need a break from the intense learning. Recess gives us a chance to socialize
breath fresh air and do what we choose for a short period of time. We get to be
ourselves. We relax, play with out friends, laugh and participate in team-centered
sports activities. After recess, we have renewed energy. We are motivated and
ready to apply ourselves again to our studies.
Some people might argue that recess is a waste of time. They feel students should
just study, study, study. I think students should be well-rounded people. I think
that is part of our mission statement. Recess, in fact, supports the mission of our
school and the development of us as growing children. Please listen to my request
and do not take recess away.
I appreciate you attention,
Closing Line
Jack Bluebird
Signature Line
Body
of
Letter
Tale of despereaux
Parts of a Formal Letter: Definitions
Heading: This part contains the return address. That is your address.
(skip line) A date is include on the last night. Sometimes an e-mail or a
phone number is included in this part. (skip line)
Inside Address: You are sending the letter to this address. This
information because of its position, if the letter is folded a special way,
can appear in a transparent window in an envelope. This information is
also important because what if the envelope got lost and the office
workers did not know who should receive the letter. (skip line)
Greeting: This is also called salutation. Do you know of another word
that sounds the same? This is a formal letter so a person’s first and last
names are used. It also starts with Dear. The person’s title is also used.
Mr. (male), Mrs. (married female), Ms. (unmarried or marital status
unknown older female), Dr. (doctor of PhD.), Sir (younger male) Miss
(younger female). The greeting always ends in a colon. (skip line)
Body: This is the text of the letter. (skip line)
Closing: This is a short, polite closing. It ends with a comma. (skip two
lines)
Signature Line: This includes the typed name of the sender. The sender
will sign their name above the typed name.
Information culled from: Business Letters. Electronically retrieved on March 17, 2009 from
http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000149.htm
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Tale of despereaux
Pendergast Smith
1234 East Street
Topeka, KN 55511
March 17, 2009
Rick Streetsher
2545 West 31st Street
Topeka, Kansas 66611
Dear Mr. Streetsher,
It was a pleasure meeting you Sunday at the Open House. I am excited that you
are looking to buy a new home. House hunting can be an exhausting experience. I
would like to help you find the home that is just right for you.
It can be difficult for a person not represented by a real estate agent to be aware of
everything when you are house shopping. The homes in good locations and
reasonably priced will not be for sale very long. I study the new listings
throughout the area from a computer that gives me up to the minute information. I
can help you.
Real estate agents are often thought to be dishonest. It is in my best interest to
always keep my clients interest in mind. I would rather become friends with my
clients and remembered as trustworthy so you could refer me to others, thereby
building my business.
Right now is a good time to buy real estate. Houses are inexpensive. You can get a
loan at a good price. I feel the time to buy is now before interest rates rise and
while the price of homes is within reason. I can help you.
Sincerely,
Pendergast Smith
Realtor
Retrieved electronically on March 17, 2009 from http://www.washburn.edu/services/zzcwwctr/persuasive-ltrs.wm.txt Modified
by Cindy Livingston
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Tale of despereaux
Persuasive Letter Writing Guidelines
1. Introduce yourself (who you are and how you are connected to the issue
or to your intended audience).
2. Briefly explain your issue of concern (why you are writing).
3. Explain how your intended audience is connected to the issue.
4. Say what you would like them to do (thesis statement).
5. Write your body paragraphs, each focusing on a different main point or
action you would like them to take. Start with your strongest argument.
6. In your conclusion, briefly remind your intended audience what
action(s) you want them to take and thank them ahead of time for
considering your ideas.
Remember, you are trying to convince someone to do something they might not
really want to do. You definitely want them to read your entire letter. Therefore,
while your arguments absolutely must be strong, it is best to write them in a
polite way. Don't offend your reader. Also, when at all possible, integrate the selfinterest of your intended audience into your arguments. How can your reader
benefit from taking the actions you propose?
(Information electronically retrieved March 17, 2009 from http://www.hiddenvilla.org/OnlineCurric/teacher/curculum/actpersv.html)
88
Tale of despereaux
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Category
General
Design and
Idea
1
I wrote the letter but my
ideas were not persuasive
or connected. They seem
to be unrelated. I was not
clear in my writing and do
not really have a main idea
or any supporting details. I
don't even really know
what I am writing about or
whom I am writing to.
2
I wrote the letter but my
ideas were not persuasive
or connected. They seem
to be unrelated. I was not
clear in my writing and do
not really have a main idea
or any supporting details. I
don't even really know
what I am writing about or
whom I am writing to.
3
My ideas are expressed
in a pretty clear
manner, but the
organization can be
better. I have a main
idea and supporting
details. I am pretty
polite but the letter is
not organized as
smoothly as it could be.
4
My ideas are expressed in a clear
and organized fashion. When
reading it is easy to figure out
what the letter is about. The main
request is clear and the reasons
(supporting details) are clearly
stated. I am polite in the letter.
Letter Format
I did not use any parts of
the letter format. My letter
is not even in paragraphs. I
forgot most of the
conventions to be used
I used 2 sections well in
the letter. I did not space
correctly between sections
of the letter. I forgot many
details such as date in
heading, colon in greeting,
and title of person's name.
I used 3 or 4 sections of
the letter and they are
clearly noticeable. My
spacing between parts
is almost accurate. I
forgot a few details.
I used all six parts of a letter. My
spacing is accurate between
sections. I used a data in the
heading, the word "Dear" , a title,
and a colon in the greeting.
Grammar and
Spelling
(conventions)
I made more than 4 errors
in grammar or spelling.
I made 3-4 errors in
grammar and/or spelling.
I made 1-2 errors in
grammar and/or
spelling.
I made no errors in grammar
and/or spelling.
Sentences and
Paragraphs
I wrote sentences but they
are in fragments or they
run on. My paragraphing
needs work and I did not
use any transitions
between paragraphs
Most of my sentences are
complete and wellconstructed. Paragraphing
needs some work
All of my sentences are
complete and well
constructed (no
fragments or run-ons).
Paragraphing is
generally done well.
I wrote sentences and paragraphs
that are complete, wellconstructed and of varied
structure. I even used smooth
transitions.
Neatness
My letter is typed and
looks like it has been
shoved in a pocket or
locker. It may have several
distracting error
corrections. It looks like it
was done in a hurry or
stored improperly.
My letter is typed and is
crumpled or slightly
strained. It may have 1 -2
distracting error
corrections. It is done with
some care.
My letter is neatly
hand-written, clean, not
wrinkled, and is easy to
read with no distracting
error corrections. It was
done with care.
My letter is typed, clean, not
wrinkles or dirty. It is easy to
read with no distracting error
corrections. It is done with pride
and I can't wait to send it out.
Tale of despereaux
CUPS Revise/Edit Checklist
Name _______________________________
Date _____________________
Title ___________________________________________________________
Read your piece carefully.
Use a red colored pencil to make all corrections.
C...Capitalization
~first word in a sentence
~proper nouns
U…Understanding
~makes sense
~beginning, middle, ending
~interesting detail
~indent where needed
P…Punctuation
~periods, question marks, exclamation points, commas,
quotation marks
S…Spelling
~check Quick Word Dictionary, Word Wall, regular dictionary
I peer conferenced with ___________________________ and revised my work.
I met with a teacher for a final conference.
~Teacher ________________________________________
~Date __________________________________
Checklist electronically retrieved on March 17, 2009 from http://www.rccsd.org/MSmith/Writers'Workshop.htm
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Tale of despereaux
References
Anderson, L. & Faulkner, M. (2002). Thank you, sarah: The woman who saved thanksgiving.
New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.
Di Camilo, K. (2003). The tale of despereaux. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.
English Plus. (2008). Business letters. Retrieved March 17, 2009 from
http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000149.htm.
Hatry, H. & Morley, E. (2008). Looking for and learning from community literacy outcomes.
Community Literacy Journal, 3(1), 22-31.
Hodkinson, K. & Adams, S. (2007). A mouse is born. Wordly Wise 3000: Book 5. New York,
NY: Educators Publishing Service.
Hopkins, G. (2007). Bringing families and schools together: FAST. Education World. Retrieved
March 10, 2009 from http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin170.shtml.
Jordan, W. (Ed.). (1999). The middle ages: A watts guide for children. Princeton, NJ: Grolier
Publishing.
MacDonald, E. (2005). Developing positive parent partnerships. Education World. Retrieved
March 15, 2009 from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/columnists/mcdonald/mcdonald004.shtml.
Maynard, C. (1998). Days of the knights: A tale of castles and battles. New York, NY: DK
Publishing.
Merriam Webster. (1976). Dictionary page for perfidy. Sringfield, MA: G & C Merriam
Company.
O’Brien, P. (1998). The making of a knight. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge Publishing.
91
Tale of despereaux
Prefix / Suffix information. (2009). Fourth grade language arts skills. Internet4Classrooms.
Retrieved March 8, 2009 from http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skills_4th_lang.htm.
Persuasive Writing Samples. (2009). Example writing. Retrieved March 17,
2009 from http://www.washburn.edu/services/zzcwwctr/persuasive-ltrs.wm.txt.
Persuasive Writing Guidelines. (2009). Writing steps. Retrieved March 17,
2009 from http://www.hiddenvilla.org/OnlineCurric/teacher/curculum/actpersv.html.
Reading Quest. (2009). KWL chart. Retrieved March 9, 2009 from www.readingquest.org.
Scholastic Red. (2000). Graphic Organizers: Planning chart and spider map. Retrieved March
2, 2009 from http://www.scholastic.com
Shepard, A. (2009). Reader’s theater tips. Retrieved March 15, 2009 from
http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/Tips.html.
Smith, M. (2009). The revised checklist. Writer’s Workshop. Retrieved March 17, 2009 from
http://www.rccsd.org/MSmith/Writers'Workshop.htm.
Tompkins, G. (2002). Reading and Language Arts. [University of Phoenix Custom Edition etext]. Boston, MA: Pearson Custom Publishing. Retrieved January 29, 2009, from
University of Phoenix, Resource, RDG530 Curriculum Constructs and Assessments
Course Web site.
The Teacher’s Desk. (2009). Vocabulary sort game. Retrieved March 14, 2009 from
http://instructionweb.com
Weissman, A. (2003). Candlewick press teacher’s guide. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.
Retrieved March 16, 2009 from
http://www.candlewick.com/book_files/0763617229.mis.1.pdf.
Zelinsky, P. (1986). Rumpelstiltskin. New York, NY: Scholastic.
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