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English I Through ESOL: The Gift of the Magi

English I Through ESOL

The Short Story: “The Gift of the Magi,” by O. Henry

FCAT Reading/Writing Focus: Determining Main Idea: Stated or Implied FCAT Support Skills: Literary Devices: Irony, Simile & Imagery Language Focus: Adjectives and Verb Forms Used As Adjectives (Participles) Text: Prentice Hall Literature: Gold Level

English Spanish Haitian Creole Portuguese agile ágil ajil ágil, ativo ardent apasionado, ferviente adan, vivifian ardente, caloroso beggar mendigo mandyan mendigo, pobre butcher carnicero bouche homem cruel,

açougueiro cascade cascada kaskad cascata close a deal cerrar un trato fè afè, negosye fechar um acordo craved apetecía mande, enplore desejou, suplicou,

precisou flat (n) apartamento pla apartamento flop dejar caer Plwaye, pliye jogar-se, baque fob chain cadena para reloj de

bolsillo pati chèn corrente de relógio

furnished amueblado meble mobiliado generosity generosidad jenewozite generosidade breeze brisa briz brisa laboriously penosamente laboryezman laboriosamente exchange intercambio echanj troca, barganha generous generoso, abundante jenere generoso implied incluido,

sobrentendido vize, sigjere, kondui, endike

implícito, sugerido, insinuado

imputation Atribución, insinuación

akizasyon imputação

instigates instigar, provocar envestige instiga intoxication embriaguez,

envenenamiento entoksikasyon, intoxicação

jewels joyas bijou jóias, pedra preciosa longitudinal longitudinal lojitidinal longitudinal mammoth colosal, gigantesco kolosal, gran mamute, imenso peculiar extraño, raro etranj, dwòl peculiar, especial precious precioso, hermoso presye precioso, valioso ravages estragos, ruinas ravaje, dekrinen devasta, destrói,

estraga sacrifice sacrificio sakrifis sacrifício shrunk encogido redui, repliye encolhido, reduzido slender esbelto, delgado mens, lwen, piti esbelto, delgado,

magro


English Summary

“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry

On the day before Christmas, Della counted the money she had carefully saved one penny at a time. The total was only one dollar and eighty-seven cents. Flopping on the couch, Della began to cry. That was all the money she had to buy her husband a Christmas gift. Della wanted to buy Jim a gift that was fine, rare and worthy of him. Della and Jim lived in a broken-down poorly furnished flat, costing eight dollars a week.

Della was the wife of James Dillingham Young, or “Jim” as Della called him. Jim’s wages had shrunk from thirty dollars a week to twenty dollars a week. Della and Jim had only two possessions that they were proud of and valued. One was Jim’s gold watch that had belonged to his father and his grandfather. The other was Della’s beautiful long hair. Della’s hair was more precious than the Queen of Sheba’s jewels. Jim’s gold watch was more precious than King Solomon’s treasures all put together.

Della let down her hair like a shining cascade of brown waters. It reached to her knees. A tear fell from her eye as she made a decision. Della left the flat and went to Madame Sofronie’s hair salon. Madame Sofronie offered to buy Della’s hair for twenty dollars, so Della quickly closed the deal. Della took the twenty dollars and spent two hours looking for a gift. Finally, she found the perfect gift, a platinum watch chain. It was a simple design that was perfect for Jim’s watch. The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old leather strap, and he could be proud to show his watch. She paid twenty-one dollars for the watch chain, and had exactly eighty-seven cents left. Della ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a curling iron into tiny curls. Della made fresh coffee and started dinner by seven o’clock when Jim usually arrived home. When she heard Jim’s footsteps on the stairs, she whispered, “Please, God, make him think I am still pretty.”

Jim looked thin and serious in his old overcoat. He looked at Della with a peculiar expression on his face. Jim was not surprised or angry or horrified as Della thought. Della told Jim why she had sold her hair, and then she said “Merry Christmas!” declaring her love for him. Hugging her, Jim told Della he did not love her any less because of her haircut. Then Jim pulled a package out of his pocket. Della opened the package with excitement and then with tears. Jim had bought her the beautiful set of combs for her hair that she had admired in the store window on Broadway Street. The combs were made of pure tortoise with jeweled rims, and they were the same color as her beautiful hair. Della smiled and said, “My hair grows so fast, Jim.”

Della eagerly gave Jim his gift. When he saw the platinum watch chain, he tumbled down onto the couch and smiled. Then Jim told Della that he had sold his gold watch to pay for the set of combs for her hair. “Let’s put our Christmas presents away. They’re too nice to use right now,” Jim said.

Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed their most valuable possessions in the world. The Magi were wise men, and Jim and Della were wise, too. Even though they had been unwise in their choice of gifts, Della and Jim were just as unselfish and generous as the Magi in their giving were. The wisest givers are those who don’t have much to give, but give everything they have, unselfishly in an act of true love. Jim and Della are like the Magi because they are an example of the art of giving and the faith of love. The true gift is the gift of love.


Spanish Summary

“El Regalo de los Reyes Magos” de O. Henry

Un día antes de Navidad, Delia contó centavo por centavo el dinero que había ahorrado con esmero. El total era solamente un dólar y ochenta y siete centavos. Tirada en el sofá, empezó a llorar, pues era todo el dinero con que contaba para comprarle un regalo de Navidad a su esposo. Quería que fuera algo fino, especial y digno. Vivían en un deteriorado y pobremente amueblado apartamento, donde pagaban ocho dólares a la semana.

Delia era la esposa de James Dillingham Young, o “Jim” como ella lo llamaba. El sueldo de Jim se había reducido de treinta a veinte dólares semanales. La pareja únicamente poseía dos cosas invaluables de las cuales se sentían orgullosos: el reloj de oro de Jim que había pertenecido a su padre y antes a su abuelo, y la hermosa cabellera que tenía Delia. La cabellera era más bella que las joyas de la Reina de Saba y el reloj más preciosos que todos los tesoros del Rey Salomón.

Delia con su cabellera suelta parecía tener una cascada de aguas pardas que le llegaba hasta las rodillas. Derramó una lágrima, al mismo tiempo que tomaba una decisión; salió del apartamento y fue al salón de belleza de Madame Sofronie, quien le ofreció veinte dólares por su cabellera. Delia aceptó rápidamente el trato, tomó el dinero y por dos horas se dedicó a buscar el regalo. Finalmente encontró el obsequio perfecto; una cadena de platino para el reloj. Tenía un simple diseño, el cual era perfecto y reemplazaría la vieja correa del reloj. Jim se sentiría orgulloso de mostrarlo. Delia pagó veinte dólares por la cadena del reloj y se quedó con ochenta y siete centavos. Regresó rápidamente a su casa y nerviosa se arregló el pelo en pequeños ricitos con unas tenacillas para el cabello. Jim acostumbraba a llegar usualmente a las siete en punto por lo que Delia hizo café fresco y comenzó a preparar la cena. Cuando de repente escuchó sus pasos en la escalera murmuró “Dios mío, te pido que Jim piense que sigo siendo bonita”.

Jim se veía delgado y serio en su viejo abrigo. Sus ojos se fijaron en Delia con una mirada extraña que no era de sorpresa, enojo u horror como pensó ella en un principio, entonces le explicó porqué vendió su cabello, y luego le deseó “Feliz Navidad” declarándole su amor por él. Abrazándola le dijo que no la quería menos por sólo haberse cortado el cabello. Sacó un paquete de su bolsillo que Delia abrió con mucho entusiasmo y después lloró. Era un bello juego de peinetas, el mismo que ella había visto en la vitrina de una tienda en la calle Broadway, hechos de carey auténtico, con los bordes adornados con joyas del mismo color de su preciosa cabellera. Ella sonrió y dijo; “No te preocupes Jim que mi pelo crecerá rápido”.

Delia ansiosamente le dio a Jim su regalo, quien al ver que era una cadena de platino para su reloj, se dejó caer en el sofá y sonrió diciéndole que había vendido su reloj de oro para comprarle el juego de peinetas. Luego Jim dijo “Olvidémonos de nuestros regalos de Navidad, son demasiado hermosos para usarlos en este momento”.

Al igual que los Reyes Magos, quienes llevaron regalos al Niño en el pesebre, Delia y Jim sacrificaron sus más valiosas pertenencias y fueron tan sabios como ellos. A pesar de no haber escogido los regalos más apropiados eran desinteresados y generosos como los Reyes Magos en su manera de obsequiar. Las personas más bondadosas y sabias son aquellas que no tienen mucho que ofrecer, pero dan desinteresadamente todo lo que tienen en un gesto de puro amor. Jim y Delia son como los Reyes magos por que constituyen un ejemplo de generosidad y fe en el amor. El regalo más preciado que puede obsequiarse, es el amor.

The Department of Multicultural Education Spanish Translation Team certifies that this is a true and faithful translation of the original document. (561) 434-8620 – September 2005 –SY 05-1223


Haitian Creole Summary

“Kado Maj yo” by O. Henry

Nan jou avan fèt Nowèl la, Della konte lajan li te sere a youn pa youn; Li te jwenn antou katreven santim sèlman. Paske sa te touche l anpil, Della lage kò l sou kanape a, li pran kriye. Se tout lajan li te genyen pou l achte yon kado nowèl pou mari li. Della te vle achte yon bon kado pou Jim, ki ra epi li merite l. Della ak Jim te rete nan yon vye apatman kraze ki pa byen meble, ki koute ui dola pa semèn.

Della se te madanm James Dillingham Young, oswa “Jim” se konsa Della te konn rele li. Salè Jim te soti nan trant dola pou desann nan ven dola pa semèn. Della ak Jim te posede sèlman de (2) byen yo te santi yo fyè epi ki te gen valè. Youn se te mont an nò papa ak gran papa Jim te posede. Lòt la se te bèl cheve long Della a. Cheve Della te pi presye pase bijou rèn Sheba. Mont an nò Jim nan te pi presye pase tout trezò wa Salomon te genyen yo.

Della kite cheve li pandye tankou yon kaskad dlo klere koulè mawon. Li tonbe sou jenou li. Dlo soti nan je li pandan li t ap pran yon desizyon. Della te kite kay li epi l ale nan estidyo cheve madam Sofronie. Madam Sofronie te mande Della achte cheve li pou 20 dola, se konsa, Della fè afè a byen vit. Della te pran 20 dola a epi pase 2 èdtan ap chèche kado. Finalman li te jwenn kado li t ap chèche a, yon braslè mont an nò blan. Se te yon modèl senp ki te pafè pou mont Jim nan. Chèn annò blan an te kab ranplase vye bouk kui Jim nan epi li ta kab fyè pou li montre mont li. Li te peye venteyen dola pou braslè mont la epi li te rete egzakteman katreven sèt santim. Della te kouri ale lakay li epi ak anpil emosyon mete booklet nan cheve li. Della te fè kafe epi kòmanse dine vè setè, lè Jim abitye rive lakay la. Lè li te tande bri pye Jim ap vini nan mach eskalye yo, li di tou ba, “tanpri, Bondye, fè li panse mwen toujou bèl”.

Jim te parèt mens ak serye anba vye levit li a. Li gade Della ak yon ekspresyon etranj nan figi li. Jim pa t etone oswa fache oswa enkyete jan Della te panse l la. Della rakonte Jim poukisa li te vann cheve li, epi li di “Jwaye Nowèl”!,li di li renmen l. Pandan Jim t ap anbrase Della li di l koupe cheve a pa chanje anyen nan lanmou li genyen pou li.. Apre sa Jim rale yon pake nan pòch li. Della ouvri pake a avèk jwa epi ak dlo nan je li. Jim te achte yon bèl pake peny Della t ap admire nan fenèt yon boutik sou Broadway Street. Peny yo te fèt an po tòti antoure ak rèl bijou epi yo te menm koulè ak bèl cheve l yo. Della te ri epi li te di, “cheve m pouse vit, Jim”.

Ak kè kontan, Della te bay Jim kado a. Lè li te wè braslè mont platine a la, li jete kòl sou kanape a epi li sou ri. Aprè sa, Jim di Della li te vann braslè mont an nò a pou li te kab peye pou peny yo. Jim di “Ann mete kado Nwèl yo yon kote. Yo twò bèl pou nou itilize yo kounye a,”

Tankou Magi, ki te pote kado bay rwa li te renmen anpil la, Della ak Jim te sakrifye byen ki pli presye pou yo nan mond lan. Magi se te yon nonm saj epi Jim ak Della te de moun saj, tou. Menm si yo pa t saj nan chwa yo t ap fè pou bay kado yo, Della ak Jim te donan ak Jenere menm jan Magi te ye lè li t ap bay la. Donan saj yo se moun ki pa gen anpil pou yo bay men ki bay tout sa yo genyen, san kontrent ak vrè lanmou. Jim ak Della menm jan ak Magi paske yo se egzanp moun ki konn bay ak ki kwè nan lanmou. Vrè kado a se kado lanmou.

Translated by the Creole Translation Team of the Multicultural Education Department School District of Palm Beach County –

November 2006- SY051223- Phone (561) 434-8620

English I Through ESOL: The Gift of the Magi Page 1

Resumo de Português

“O Presente dos Magos de O. Henry

Na véspera de Natal, Della contou o dinheiro que ela havia cuidadosamente juntado, centavo por centavo. O total era apenas um dólar e oitenta e sete centavos. Atirando-se no sofá, Della desatou a chorar. Este era todo o dinheiro que ela possuía para comprar um presente de Natal para seu marido. Della queria comprar para Jim um presente fino, raro e digno dele. Della e Jim moravam em um apartamento em más condições, humildemente mobiliado, que custava oito dólares por semana.

Della era a esposa de James Dillingham Young, ou “Jim”, como Della o chamava. O salário de Jim havia diminuído de trinta dólares para vinte dólares por semana. Della e Jim tinham posse de apenas duas coisas que se orgulhavam e valorizavam muito. Uma era o relógio de ouro de Jim que pertenceu ao seu pai e ao avô. O outro era o cabelo longo e bonito de Della. O cabelo de Della era mais precioso do que as jóias da rainha de Sheba. O relógio de ouro de Jim era mais valioso do que todos os tesouros do rei Salomão.

Della deixava seu cabelo cair como uma cascata de águas douradas. Ele ia até o comprimento de seus joelhos. Ao tomar uma decisão, uma lágrima caiu do seu olho. Della saiu do apartamento e foi ao salão de beleza da Sra. Sofronie. A Sra. Sofronie se ofereceu para comprar o cabelo de Della por vinte dólares, Della fechou o negócio rapidamente. Ela pegou os vinte dólares e passou duas horas procurando por um presente. Finalmente, ela encontrou o presente perfeito, uma corrente de relógio de platina. Era um modelo simples, perfeito para o relógio de Jim. A corrente de platina poderia substituir a tira de couro velha de Jim e ele poderia sentir-se orgulhoso de mostrar seu relógio. Ela pagou vinte e um dólares pela corrente do relógio e ficou com exatamente oitenta e sete centavos de troco. Della correu para casa e nervosamente arrumou o cabelo com um ondulador de cabelos, formando pequenos cachos. Della fez um café e começou a preparar o jantar por volta das 7 horas, hora que Jim geralmente chegava em casa. Quando ela ouviu os passos na escada, ela sussurrou, “por favor Deus, faça com que ele pense que ainda continuo bonita.”

Jim se mostrava esbelto e sério em seu velho sobretudo. Ele olhou para Della com uma expressão peculiar em seu rosto. Jim não estava surpreso ou com raiva ou horrorizado, como Della pensava. Della contou a Jim porque ela havia vendido seu cabelo, e então ela disse “Feliz Natal!” declarando seu amor por ele. Abraçando-a, Jim disse a Della que não a amava menos por causa do corte de cabelo. Jim tirou então uma embalagem de seu bolso. Della abriu a embalagem com entusiasmo e logo começou a chorar. Jim havia comprado o lindo jogo de pentes para o cabelo dela, o qual ela havia admirado na vitrine de uma loja na Broadway Street. Os pentes eram feitos de autêntico casco de tartaruga, adornados com aros preciosos e eles eram da mesma cor que os lindos cabelos dela. Della sorriu e disse, “Meu cabelo cresce tão rápido, Jim.”

Della ansiosamente deu a Jim o presente dele. Quando ele viu a corrente do relógio de platina, rindo, atirou-se no sofá. Então Jim disse a Della que ele havia vendido seu relógio de ouro para pagar pelo jogo de pentes para o cabelo dela. “Vamos guardar nossos presentes de Natal. Eles são muito bonitos para serem usados agora,” disse Jim.

Assim como os Reis Magos, que trouxeram presentes para o seu rei adorado, Della e Jim haviam sacrificado aquilo que possuíam de mais valor no mundo. Os Reis Magos eram homens sábios e Jim e Della também. Apesar de terem sido insensatos em suas escolhas de presentes, Della e Jim eram tão abnegados e generosos quanto os Reis Magos em suas doações. Os doadores mais sábios são aqueles que não têm muito o que doar, mas doam tudo o que possuem, de maneira não egoísta, num verdadeiro ato de amor. Jim e Della são como os Reis Magos porque eles são um exemplo da arte de doar e da crença no amor. O verdadeiro presente é a dádiva do amor.

The Department of Multicultural Education Translation Team certifies that this is a true and faithful translation of the original document. February 2006 - (561) 434-8620 - SY 05-1223


Beginning Listening Activities

Minimal Pairs Objective: Auditory discrimination of confusing sounds in words Procedure: Write a word pair on the board. (Example: there-dare) Write #1 above the first, #2 above the second. The teacher models by pronouncing one of the words without indicating which. Teams guess which word they heard, #1, or #2. Pronounce both words in the pair. Teams guess the order they heard (1-2, 2-1). Call out the numbers 1 or 2. Teams respond with the word (Can be done with sentences). Use both words in the pair in otherwise identical sentences. (Example: The Constitution is the heart of US government. The contribution is the heart of US government.) Teams decide which sentence has meaning, and which is silly. (Award points for correct responses.) Unit 3: Lesson 1: Minimal Pairs Activity: beggar/bigger close/crows rim/whim earned/yearned breeze/braise deal/dear watch/wash chain/Jane

Bingo Objective: Auditory comprehension of vocabulary from the lesson Procedure: Choose vocabulary words or phrases from the lesson summary list or from students' classroom texts. Give each team a blank Bingo card. Each team writes vocabulary words/text phrases you provide on the board in the spaces of their choice. Randomly select sentences from the text and read them aloud. Teams mark their Bingo spaces when they hear the word or phrase.

Intermediate Listening Activities

Team Spelling Test Objective: Listen for lesson vocabulary words & collaborate with others to spell them correctly. Procedure: Place ten vocabulary words (or fewer depending on time) in a pocket chart or on a chalk tray. Teams get 3-5 minutes to study the words. Hide the words from view. Each team uses one pencil and one sheet of paper. (Team name at top; numbers 1-10 down the left margin) Read the spelling words as you would during a traditional spelling test. The first team member writes word number one with the team's help, and then passes the paper and pencil to the second team member who will write word number two, etc. Students on each team take turns. Teams exchange papers. Place the 10 words back in view. Teams check each other's tests. A team gets one point for each word spelled correctly. Options: Ask for additional information. For example, you may ask teams to write a sentence with the word in it. You might ask for a specific tense, plural form, opposite, etc. An alternative technique is to have each team member complete all spelling items on his/her own paper. Team members are allowed to help each other. On completion, collect the one paper of your choice. The grade on that paper will count for each team member. The Gift of the Magi: Spelling Activity: Use the following words for the test. agile, butcher, generosity, jewels, mammoth, mendicancy, peculiar , precious, ravages, vestibule


Follow Directions Objective: Listen for the purpose of following spoken directions. Procedure: With one piece of paper and one pencil, team members take turns writing on paper what the teacher directs to complete a task.

a) For example, there might be a list of dates. The teacher might say the following: Draw a circle around 1492. Make a star in front of 1546. Connect 1322 and 1673 with a line.

b) The teacher might direct teams to make changes to a sentence. Example: He sailed to the Americas in 1492. The teacher says, “Circle the verb. Put a box around the preposition”.

c) Another example: Change the verb to the present tense. Add 505 years to the date. Change the subject to the third person plural.

d) The teacher might also direct teams to complete a drawing, or draw the route of an explorer on a map. Teams that complete the exercise correctly get a point.

The Gift of the Magi: Follow Directions Activity: Provide students with the following sentences from the story. Directions: For each sentence, students underline the verb, circle the subject, and draw a triangle around each adjective. Then draw an arrow to the word the adjective describes. Sentences:

a) She always said little silent prayers about the simplest everyday things. b) Tears splashed down on the worn red carpet. c) Then Della leaped up like a little singed cat. d) The dull precious metal flashed with the reflection of her bright ardent spirit. e) Her head was covered with tiny, close-lying curls. f) It was a platinum fob chain, simple and chaste in design. g) Beautiful tortoise combs to wear in her beautiful vanished hair.


Dictation

Objective: Listen to discriminate words in sentences and reproduce them in writing. Procedure: Dictate sentences from the lesson, saying each sentence only two times (once if listening skills allow) Team members take turns writing the sentences, assisting each other. (Teams can write sentences on the board to correct them in class, or collect as a quiz.) Option: An alternative technique is to have each team member complete all dictation items on his/her own paper. Team members are allowed to help each other. On completion, collect one paper of your choice. The grade on that paper will count for each team member. Option: Dictate a sentence with an important word left out. Offer four choices for teams to write. Example: Columbus landed in… a) Boston b) Haiti c) Argentina d) England Option for Dictating Dates or mathematical concepts/formulas: Can be written in number form or in word form (fourteen hundred and ninety-two) (All sides are equal in an equilateral triangle.) Dictate the question, so teams can write them down. Then each team answers the question in the group. (What kind of polygon has two parallel sides?) The Gift of the Magi: Dictation Activity:

a) Della wanted to buy him a gift that was fine and rare and worthy of him. b) Della let down her hair like a shining cascade of brown waters. c) Jim was not surprised or angry or horrified like Della thought. d) They were just as unselfish and generous in their giving as the Magi. e) Flopping on the couch, Della cried.

Proficient Listening Activities

Interview Objective: Role play a verbal interaction in the form of an interview Procedure: You play the role of an informative person relative to the topic of the unit. Choose a representative from each team and distribute the questions among them. These students play the role of journalists. Provide students with these questions to interview you in your new role. Teams must coach their representative, and take notes of the answers for Writing Activity #1, Language Experience Story. The Gift of the Magi: Interview Activities: You play the role of Jim. Choose several students to play the role of Della. Provide students with the questions below. They take turns asking you these questions. Students not asking questions must take notes of Jim's answers. Students should save notes for Writing Activity #1, Language Experience Story.

a) What happened to your beautiful hair? b) Why did you sell it? c) Where did you sell it? d) How much did Mms. Sofronie pay? e) How did you find the platinum watch chain? f) Why didn’t you talk to me first? g) Did you think about how I would feel? h) What will we do with the set of combs now? i) Are you upset with me for selling my watch?


Beginning Speaking Activities

Intentional Intonation Objective: Auditory discrimination and oral production of intonation/stress patterns in spoken English Procedure: Write the sentence on the board and then say it, stressing one word. Teams take turns explaining the special meaning the emphasis brings to the sentence. Repeat this process several times with the same sentence, each time emphasizing a different word. Example: All for one and one for all! (not none) …..(not, “None for one and one for all!) All for one and one for all! (not from) …..(not, All from one and one for all!) All for one and one for all! (not three) …..(not, “All for three and one for all!) All for one and one for all! (not or) …..(not, “All for one or one for all!”) All for one and one for all! (not everyone) …..(not, “All for one and everyone for all!”) All for one and one for all! (not to)….. (not, “All for one and one to all”!) All for one and one for all! (not nobody) …..(not, “All for one and one for nobody!”) The Gift of the Magi: Intentional Intonation Activities:

The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not the vegetable man and the butcher) The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not will be) The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not unwise) The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not animals) The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not wanted to be) The Magi were wise men who were givers. (not takers)

Backwards Build-up Objective: Auditory discrimination and oral reproduction of rhythmic patterns of spoken English Procedure: Students practice the intonation, stress, and punctuation of sentences by repeating, by teams, the increasingly larger fragments of a sentence modeled by you. Repeat each line (as necessary) until teams can pronounce the segments well. Continue to build up to the complete sentence. Teams completing the exercise correctly get a point. Example: …in fourteen hundred and ninety-two …blue in fourteen hundred and ninety-two …the ocean blue in fourteen hundred and ninety-two …sailed the ocean blue in fourteen hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue in fourteen hundred and ninety-two. The Gift of the Magi: Backward Build-up Activity:

a) On the day before Christmas, Della counted the money she had carefully saved one penny at a time.

b) Jim’s gold watch was more precious than King Solomon’s treasures all put together. c) The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old leather strap, and he could be proud to

show his watch. d) Hugging her, Jim told Della he did not love her any less because of her haircut. e) Jim had bought her the beautiful set of combs for her hair that she had admired in

the store window on Broadway Street.


Intermediate Speaking Activities

Charades Objective: Oral production to determine word meaning and context of new lesson vocabulary Procedure: Team members guess who/what the teacher (or student) is silently role-playing. (Ex: famous person, geometric shape, scientific theory) The team guessing correctly gets point. The Gift of the Magi: Charades Activity: Suggestions: agile, flop, foolish, peculiar , unselfish, shrunk, intoxication, breeze, laboriously, exchange, yearned

Mixed-up Sentence Objective: Each team consults to give spoken directions to correct a “mixed-up” sentence. Procedure: Write a sentence on the board that contains lesson vocabulary and grammar, but scramble the order of the words and put a capital letter or two in the wrong places(s). Tell the class the way the sentence should read. Example sentence: A dicot seed has two parts. You might write on the board: “tWo a seed dicot hAs parts”. The person whose turn it is must verbally give directions to make a correction after consulting with the team. The teacher follows the exact directions given and, if correct, gives the team a point. Then s/he calls on next team. Example: “Move the A to the front”. You might decide to erase letter “a” in “part” and put it at the beginning of the sentence. Perhaps you erase an “a” and rewrite it on the wall somewhere in front of the classroom. In both cases, you were not given the detailed instructions necessary to complete the task, and you would move on to the next group without awarding a point. You are looking for a response something like, “Remove the first capital A and replace it with a lower case A.” Directions like these get teams points. Continue until the sentence is reorganized, with a capital at the beginning and a period at the end. Notes: This activity is very difficult and takes several weeks to master. Students will prefer to show you what to do, but do not let them. The idea is to tell you, not show you. The first time you use the activity do not spend more than five minutes. Stop and discuss the kinds of directions they need to give in the future. Do not give up on this activity, no matter how immature the students.

Proficient Speaking Activities

Twenty Questions Objective: Ask oral questions about a photo or picture to determine meaning of vocabulary words. Procedure: A student from one team selects a photo or picture without showing it to members of teams. Teams take turns asking YES/NO questions about the picture. The picture holder can only answer yes or no. If a team guesses correctly, it receives 20 points minus the number of questions that have been asked divided by two. Ex: Is it from the fifteenth Century? Is it a boat? The Gift of the Magi: Twenty Questions Activity: Photo or picture suggestions: fob chain, butcher, beggar, tiny, treasures, jewels, mammoth, flat (n), slender, cascade


FCAT FOCUS READING SKILL: Determining Main Idea, Stated or Implied

Teacher-Student Grammar Notes are provided as a teaching resource or student study notes.

Determining Main Idea, Stated or Implied What to do and what to watch for. The main idea tells what the whole passage is about. The main idea is the main or most important point the writer wants to make. Read the title of the passage (if there is one). The title is written in BOLD at the top of the passage. Find the title before you read the passage. Read it and think about it by asking:

What is this reading all about? What’s the main point? Why did the writer write this?

What information will I get from this reading? What is the BIG picture here? Why would someone want to read this?

Read the introduction (if there is one). The introduction is right under the title. It is one or two sentences written in ITALICS. Just like the title, the introduction gives important information about what you are going to read. Sometimes, the introduction tells you the main idea before you read. After you read the introduction, think about it by asking yourself the same questions.

STATED MAIN IDEA Read the passage. Is there a topic sentence? The topic sentence is a sentence that explains in a few words what the whole passage is all about. This sentence tells the main idea or topic of the passage. Often, the topic sentence is the first sentence, but sometimes you will find it in the middle or at the end. When you find a topic sentence, you have found the stated main idea.

TOPIC SENTENCE + DETAILS = STATED MAIN IDEA

With stated main idea, you can prove your answer by going directly to the passage to check it. Your answer is clearly stated in the passage, and should be easy to find. Questions on stated main idea are based on what is written exactly or stated in the passage itself. For these questions, you go directly to the reading and look for the information. In other words, prove it! Example

There are many different ways to make a friend. One way to make a friend is to be a friend. If someone needs you, be there. Second, remember that everyone is a different person. Respect the way other people are, and get to know them. They will respect you, and want to get to know you too. Another thing you can do is always to be kind to everyone. You’d be surprised how many great friends are waiting for you.

The first sentence is the topic sentence (“There are many different ways to make a friend).) The other sentences tell the details to support the main idea, “ways to make a friend”. You can test your answer because the topic sentence states this idea. In addition, all of the other sentences (the details) are talking about the same main idea. Use graphic organizers. You can visualize and organize the main idea and details in many different ways. Continued on the next page


Teacher-Student Notes: Determining Main Idea, Stated or Implied (Continued)

TOPIC SENTENCE + DETAILS = STATED MAIN IDEA

With stated main idea, you can prove your answer by going directly to the passage to check it. Your answer is clearly stated in the passage, and should be easy to find. Questions on stated main idea are based on what is written exactly or stated in the passage itself. For these questions, you go directly to the reading and look for the information. In other words, prove it! Example

There are many different ways to make a friend. One way to make a friend is to be a friend. If someone needs you, be there. Second, remember that everyone is a different person. Respect the way other people are, and get to know them. They will respect you, and want to get to know you too. Another thing you can do is always to be kind to everyone. You’d be surprised how many great friends are waiting for you.

The first sentence is the topic sentence (“There are many different ways to make a friend).) The other sentences tell the details to support the main idea, “ways to make a friend”. You can test your answer because the topic sentence states this idea. In addition, all of the other sentences (the details) are talking about the same main idea. Use graphic organizers. You can visualize and organize the main idea and details in many different ways. DETAIL: Be a friend DETAIL: Respect other people DETAIL: Get to know them

DETAIL: Respect other people

DETAIL: DETAIL: Be a friend. Be kind.

DETAIL: Get to know them.

Pay attention to the details. Details are little pieces of information that tell more about the main idea. Details support the main idea and are connected to the main idea. All of the details will talk about the main idea and lead you to the main idea, like little clues. The main idea covers all of the details. Continued on the next page

MAIN IDEA

DET

AIL

DET

AIL

DET

AIL

DET

AIL

DET

AIL

MAIN IDEA

Topic Sentence: There are many different ways to make a friend.


Teacher-Student Notes: Determining Main Idea, Stated or Implied (Continued) Read actively. This means that while you are reading, you continue to ask yourself questions to anticipate what is coming next.

What is the writer trying to say here? What do the details have in common? What can I infer from the information I have read so far? What do these details add up to?

In other words, if the main idea is not stated, then it is implied. The implied main idea is not stated it is only suggested. There is not a topic sentence, so you need to be a good detective. Pay attention to the details, and put them together with your own knowledge to determine the main idea. This is called drawing an inference. You draw an inference to find the implied main idea:

+

Example: Miguel got an “F” on his history test. He only completed 30% of the classwork, and 0% of his homework. When the teacher called Miguel’s father, Miguel was grounded for a month. He had to bring his books home every night and sit at the kitchen table to study.

If you think while you are reading (read actively), then you know that all of these details + what you know about school (your knowledge) add up to one thing (the main idea). Miguel failed history class! The passage never stated directly the main idea, but you can figure it out (infer) from the details PLUS what you yourself know.

DETAILS YOUR KNOWLEDGE IMPLIED MAIN IDEA

IMPLIED MAIN IDEA

Miguel failed

history class!

DETAILS • Miguel got an “F” on his

history test. • He only completed 30% of the

class work. • He completed 0% of his

homework. • The teacher called home. • He was grounded for a month. • He brought his books home

every night to study.

YOUR KNOWLEDGE • “F” on a test means you fail. • You have to do homework to

pass a class. • Finish your class work to

pass a class. • You’re in trouble when the

teacher calls home. • If you fail you get grounded. • A failing grade means study

hard at home to bring up your grade.

=


Beginning Reading Activities

Pre Reading Objective: Listen to a short series of oral sentences in order to answer simple questions. Procedure: Use the short summary paragraph below (5-10 sentences). Read the paragraph to the class two times. Then read the paragraph a 3rd time, stopping at the end of each sentence to ask questions. Ask several questions for each sentence, and ask a variety of types of questions (i.e. yes/no, either/or, and “wh-“). Ask the questions at a quick pace, and if the group cannot answer quickly enough, move on to the next group. Example: Columbus sailed to America in 1492. Sample Questions: Did Columbus sail to America? Did Columbus sail to Europe? Did Columbus sail to Europe or America? Where did he sail? Did King Ferdinand sail to America? Did Columbus or King Ferdinand sail to America? Who sailed to America? Did he sail in 1942? Did he sail in 1492 or 1942? When did he sail? Option: Read the paragraph a 4th time. Ask questions again. End the activity by dictating the paragraph to the teams. Allow collaboration within the team. Collect/grade one dictation from each team. Each student on the team receives the same grade. The Gift of the Magi: Pre Reading Activity: On the day before Christmas, Della had one dollar and eighty-seven cents to buy her husband Jim a gift. Della and Jim valued two possessions. One was Jim’s gold watch that had belonged to his father and his grandfather. The other was Della’s beautiful long hair. Mme. Sofronie offered to buy Della’s hair for $20. Della took the $20 and bought a platinum watch chain. She ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a curling iron into tiny curls. When Jim arrived home, he told Della he did not love her any less. Jim had sold his gold watch to buy a set of combs for Della’s hair. The wisest givers don’t have much to give, but give everything they have unselfishly.


Intermediate-Proficient Reading Activities

Total Recall Objective: Read a text in order to ask and answer short questions. Procedure: Teams prepare 3 (or more) questions and their answers from the text. Teams are allowed to write notes about the text. Teams take turns asking each other their questions, and challenging incorrect responses. Responding teams are not allowed to raise hands. The team asking the question chooses which team answers. The same question cannot be asked twice. If a team does not answer correctly, it loses a point and the team asking the question gets a point. When a team does not agree with the answer that the questioner deems correct, it can challenge that team. The challenging team must prove that it is also correct or that the questioning team is incorrect. It does not need to prove both. All teams can join a challenge on either side (questioner's side or respondent's side), but they must do so immediately. (Teams may wait to see how many teams are joining each side, which is unfair.). Once the teams have taken sides on a challenge, they look up the answer in the book. All teams siding with the correct answer get 2 points, and losers lose 2 points.

Story Grammars Objective: Identify a common organizational pattern or “grammar” of a reading text. Procedure: Introduce story grammars by using the Language Experience Approach. The second time, have each group prepare one. Once groups have mastered story grammars, individuals can prepare their own, but include incentives for the group to help individual members. For example, you might want to give a team a point for each member who receives a grade of B or higher. Example: Setting:___, Characters:___, ___,Problem:___, Goal:___, Events Leading to goal (list in order):___, ___, ___,Resolution: ___(Three possibilities include: character solves problem, character learns to live with problem, problem defeats character) Note: Story grammars help students understand that most stories have a common organization, and they help students to write reports, evaluate the quality of stories, and write their own stories.

Judgment Objective: Read a text for the purpose of identifying facts and opinions. Procedure: On five separate strips of paper, each team writes (or copies) 5 sentences from the text that show facts and opinions. Teams write their team name on the backs of the 5 strips, and swap their sentences. Teams read the sentence strips they have, and place them in either a fact basket or opinion basket in front of the room. The teacher reads each sentence strip from the two baskets. For each, the teams decide if the sentence was correctly placed. If correct, the team with its name on the strip gets a point. If not correct, that team loses a point. (This encourages effective writing.) Option: This activity may be adapted to focus on cause/effect, reality/fantasy or inferred/explicit.


True or False

Objective: Read a text passage for the purpose of making true and false statements about it. Procedure: Teams make a “T” chart (2 columns with titles--one side is for true, the other side is for false). Teams make three true or false statements about the text. A representative from the first team reads one statement aloud. The other teams listen and place their token on the appropriate side of their True/False chart. The questioning team decides which choices are correct. Each correct answer earns a team a point. In a disagreement, follow the challenge rules of Total Recall.

Scan Objective: Scan a text for the purpose of asking and answering simple questions. Procedure: 1. Teams write 3 questions about an assigned text. Next to each question, they write page number

and paragraph number where the answer is located. 2. A representative from each team asks the team’s questions. The other teams get 60 seconds for

each question to scan the text, find the answer, page and paragraph numbers, and write them on a sheet of paper. Any team not getting the answer within that time loses a point.

3. Any time a responding team loses a point, the questioning team gets a point. The responding teams take turns reading out their page and paragraph numbers. Then the questioning team reads its page and paragraph numbers.

4. Team respondents who have the same answer as the questioner get an automatic point. Respondents who do not have the same answer as the questioner are not automatically wrong. Both the questioner and respondent read aloud their chosen paragraph. The questioner then decides if the respondent is also correct (Many times the answer to a question can be found in more than one place in a text). If the respondent is also correct, the respondent gets a point.

5. If the questioner says that the respondent is incorrect, the respondent may challenge (as in Total Recall). The responding team must prove that it is also correct or that the questioner is incorrect. It does not need to prove both. Other teams may join one side or the other. The teacher then decides who wins. Winning teams get 2 points and losers lose 2 points.


Beginning- Writing Activities

Language Experience Story Objective: Use student-created writing as a text as a model for individual student writings, for rereading or other written activities, including Story Grammars, RAFT, and Spool Writing. Procedure: Language Experience instruction involves asking students to talk about some item of relevance to the class. You may use information from Listening Activity “Interview” or information learned in other unit activities. Individual team members and teams take turns offering sentences to be added to the text. You write individual contributions on the board, including non-standard forms or word order. Then ask teams to correct or change the text to standard English grammar and syntax and to decide on an organizational format. Assist teams in making necessary adjustments. After the text is corrected, students copy it in their notebooks, or you can type and distribute it.

Indirect Speech Objective: Write a familiar dialog in paragraph form, using indirect or reported speech. Procedure: Use the dialog in this lesson written for Presenting Activity “Dialog”. After teams have completed presenting their dialogs (see Presenting Activities), have each group write the dialog in a paragraph format using indirect speech. Example: COLUMBUS: “I need money to buy ships to sail west.” Columbus asked the queen for some money to sail to the west. Teams use one piece of paper and one pencil only. Each member takes a turn writing a line of the dialog. Other team members can offer help, but they cannot write it for the individual whose turn it is to write. Collect and grade. Each member of the team gets the same grade. The Gift of the Magi: Indirect Speech Activity: Use the dialog in this lesson written for Presenting Activity “Dialog”.

Example: Della to Jim: I’ve cut it off and sold it. Della told Jim that she had cut off her hair and sold it.

Intermediate-Proficient Writing Activities Language Experience Story

Objective: Create a collaborative writing text to use as a model for re-reading, individual student writing or other written activities (including Story Grammars, RAFT, and Spool Writing) Procedure: Language Experience Story instruction involves asking students to talk about some item of relevance to the class. (You may use information from Listening Activity 6, the Interview, or information learned in other unit activities.) Teams take turns, through individual members, offering sentences to be added to the text. You write their contributions on the board, including non-standard forms and word order. Ask groups to change the text to standard English grammatical and lexical forms and to decide on an acceptable organizational format. Help the groups when they cannot make all of the necessary adjustments. After the text is corrected, students copy it in their notebooks, or you can type and distribute it.


Framed Paragraphs

Objective: Use a “frame” (outline or template) for writing a paragraph that contains a main idea (topic sentence), supporting details, and a summary statement (conclusion). Note: Framed paragraphs are most useful in preparing students for exam questions. In fact, framed paragraphs make very good exam questions. Procedure: Introduce framed paragraphs to the class by creating a story collectively using the language experience approach. The second time you assign framed paragraphs, have each group prepare one. Once the groups have mastered framed paragraphs, each student prepares his/her own. Include incentives for the group to help individual team members. For example, give a team one point for each member who receives a grade of B or higher. After constructing a model paragraph with the class, groups, pairs, or individuals find examples in text. Social Studies Example: There are many cultures of people living in Florida. First.... Second.... Third.... These groups and others.... Language Arts Example: ..., a character in the novel... by... is.... An example of this behavior is... Another example is.... Finally.... Therefore, this character is... Science Example: OBSERVATION: After observing... HYPOTHESIS: I think... MATERIALS: 1…2…3… PROCEDURE: 1…2…3… DATA: 1…2…3… ANALYSIS: The results of the experiment show.... This was caused by.... Therefore, my hypothesis was/was not correct because....

The Gift of the Magi: Framed Paragraphs Activities: Sample #1: (Literary Devices: Irony) Use the following examples of irony in “The Gift of the Magi, ”by O. Henry

a) Jim bought a set of combs for Della, but she has little hair left to wear the combs she yearned to have.

b) Della bought a chain for Jim’s watch, but he had already sold it. c) Della and Jim went to great lengths to buy gifts that they could not use at the end of the

story. d) O. Henry thinks Della and Jim are really wise because they gave the gift of unselfish

love, even though they were unwise in their choices.

In the short story “The Gift of the Magi”, O. Henry, fools our sense of reality and our expectations by creating unexpected events that are ironic. Three examples of irony in this chapter are _____, _____ and _____ (topic sentence). It is ironic that _____because _____ (detail #1). A second example of irony is _____because_____ (detail #2). A third example or irony in the chapter is _____. This is ironic because_____ (detail #3). What appears to be true and what is really true surprises the reader in Chapter 8 of the story. Our new reality is _____, _____ and _____ (restate briefly-conclusion). See next page for more Framed Paragraph Activities.


The Gift of the Magi: Framed Paragraphs Activities:

Sample #2: (Simile and Imagery) Use the following sentence from the story to illustrate simile. Then describe the picture or image left in the reader’s mind: “So now Della’s beautiful hair fell about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters”.

In the short story “The Gift of the Magi”, the author O. Henry uses a powerful simile to create an image in the reader’s mind (Topic Sentence). In the sentence (or comparison)_____ (“So now Della’s beautiful hair fell about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters”), the author compares two things that are not alike, _____(water) and______(hair) (Detail #1-simile). In describing _____ (the first item in the comparison-Della’s hair), the words _____ (beautiful), _____ (fell), _____ (rippling), and _____ (shining) are used to make you think about _____ (the second item in the comparison-the water). (Detail #-simile 2) In describing __________ (the second item in the comparison-the water), the author uses the words _____ (cascade) and _____ (brown waters). This makes you think about _____ (her hair when she takes it down and it falls like a cascade) (Detail #3-simile). O. Henry paints a visual picture or image in the reader’s mind of_____ (Detail #4-imagery). This picture creates a real sense or image of _____ (Della as a person) (Detail #5-imagery), and makes the story more visually appealing. By using the literary devices of simile and imagery, the writer makes a comparison that helps the reader get closer to the story events and characters (Conclusion).

Opinion/Proof Objective: Organize ideas/information to find supporting evidence for an opinion. (pre-writing) Procedure: Introduce the concept by having students read a selection from which opinions can be formed. Draw a “T” chart on the board. On the left side of the “T”, write OPINION and on the right, PROOF. Under OPINION, write the students’ opinion(s) of the selection. For each opinion, students must find factual statements from the text that support the opinion. Example: OPINION: Napoleon was a great leader. PROOF: He ended the revolution. He drew up a new constitution. He made taxation fair. He chose government workers for their ability. Option: Opinion/Proof may be used for several written activities described in this document, including Story Grammars, RAFT, and Spool Writing. It can also be used by students as a format for note taking from books, videos, and lectures. Option: Teams can write their opinions and support with proof. (think/pair/share activity). The Gift of the Magi: Opinion/Proof Activity: Opinion/Proof may be used for several written activities described in this document, including Story Grammars, RAFT, and Spool Writing. Students can also use it as a format for note taking from books, videos, and lectures. Allow teams to write their own opinion to support with proof if they are at a proficient level. This can be used as a think/pair/share activity. Use the following as a starter for less proficient students:

Opinion: Jim and Della made foolish decisions about their Christmas presents. Proof They could not afford expensive gifts. Della bought a chain for a watch that already was sold. Jim bought a set of combs for hair that was already sold. A husband and wife should discuss things so there is no misunderstanding. They had no use for the Christmas gifts at the end of the story


Spool Writing

Objective: Write a “spool” (5-paragraph essay with an introduction, 3-paragraph body of supporting arguments with evidence, and a concluding paragraph. Procedure: Use graphic organizers, the summary, modeled writing, and guided writing to plan prewriting activities for developing a “spool”. A spool is a five-paragraph essay in which the first paragraph is an introduction (controlling idea, or thesis). The next three paragraphs make up the body of the essay. Each of these paragraphs begins with an argument sentence to support the thesis and has three supporting sentences for the argument sentence. The weakest argument should be presented in the first paragraph of the body, and the strongest argument in the last paragraph of the body. The final (5th) paragraph is the concluding paragraph, which begins with a restatement of the thesis sentence, and is followed by a restatement of the three argument statements of the body. Introduce the spool essay by creating a story collectively using the Language Experience Approach. The second time you use spool writing, each group prepares one. Once the groups have mastered the spool essay, each student prepares his/her own, but include incentives for the team to help individual members. For example, you might want to give a team one point for each member who receives a grade of B or higher.

SAMPLE FORMAT FOR IDENTIFYING STATED MAIN IDEA In the chapter/passage/story/piece/poem __, by __, the main idea is _____. It is stated in

the topic sentence. The main idea is supported by details in the reading like information about ___ and __ (information in the reading).

First, in the topic sentence the author clearly states the main idea that_____ (information

in the reading-Argument #1 Topic Sentence). The topic sentence is _____ (identify it). The topic sentence is stated in _____ (tell location: first sentence, middle, last sentence, etc.) This is the topic sentence because it covers all of the details in the reading.

The details in the passage can all be tested to support the main idea _____ (Argument

#2 topic sentence). One example is _____ (Supporting Detail #1 information). Another detail that supports the main idea is ____ (Supporting Detail #2 information). Furthermore, ___ and ____ (Supporting Details #3, #4 information) also discuss the topic of the reading.

In conclusion, all of the details in the reading lead us back to the same main idea that is

stated in the topic sentence. The main idea is _____ (restate main idea). The details include _____, _______, and _____ (briefly summarize some details). All of these details are talking about the same point that was stated in the topic sentence or main idea.

See next page for more Spool Writing.


Spool Writing Activities (continued).

SAMPLE FORMAT FOR IDENTIFYING IMPLIED MAIN IDEA

In the chapter/passage/story/piece/poem __, by __, the main idea is _____. The main idea is not stated in a topic sentence. Therefore, the main idea is implied or suggested. There are details in the reading like information about ___ and __ (information in the reading). These details can be put together with personal knowledge from experience to figure out that the main idea of this reading is_____ (briefly state main idea or topic). This main idea covers all of the details in the reading.

First, the author writes details about_____ (information in the reading-Argument #1

Topic Sentence). Some of these details include _____ (Supporting Detail #1 information) and _____ (Supporting Detail #2 information). In addition, there are references to (information about) _____ (Supporting Detail #3 information). Based on what I know on the subject, I can figure out that the author is talking about_____. Based on my prior knowledge of this subject, ____________ (what I know about the subject), I also know that _____ (what I know). I have also heard (read, seen) that____ (topic). The author’s details plus my knowledge lead back to the same main idea, _____.

The details in the passage can all be tested to support the main idea _____ (Argument

#2 topic sentence). One example is _____ (Supporting Detail #1 information). Another detail that supports the main idea is ____ (Supporting Detail #2 information). Furthermore, ___ and ____ (Supporting Details #3, #4 information) also discuss the topic of the reading.

In conclusion, all of the details in the reading lead us back to the same main idea that is

implied or suggested in the reading. The main idea is _____ (restate main idea). The significant details include _____, _______, and _____ (briefly summarize some key details). Putting this together with personal knowledge of the subject, including ___ and ___ (restate key points from general knowledge) the main idea is clear. The Gift of the Magi: Spool Writing Activities: Use Sample Format for Determining Stated or Implied Main Idea: Suggested Topic: Use the following paragraph from O. Henry’s story to write about stated main idea using the sample format above.

“Now there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride. One was Jim’s gold watch that had been his fathers and grandfathers. The other was Della’s hair. Had the Queen of Sheba lived in the flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hair hang out the window some day to dry just to depreciate Her Majesty’s jewels and gifts. Had King Solomon been the janitor, with all his treasures piled up in the basement, Jim would have pulled out his watch every time he passed, just to see him pluck at his beard with envy.”

Suggested Topic: In the short story “The Gift of the Magi”, by O. Henry, the implied main idea of is that the real gift is the gift of love. (Use the last paragraph of the summary to get started.)


RAFT

Objective: Write on a topic in a specific format, understanding role as a writer and audience. R-A-F-T is a system for students to practice their role as a writer (R), their audience (A), the format of their work (F), and the topic of the content (T). Examples: persuade a soldier to spare your life, demand equal pay for equal work, or plead for a halt to coal mining in our valley.

• (R): For role (R), of the writer, the writer considers who s/he is (Examples-a soldier, Abraham Lincoln, a slave, a blood cell, or a mathematical operation).

• (A): For audience (A), the writer considers to whom s/he is writing (Examples-to a mother, to Congress, to a child.)

• (F): Format (F) determines what form the communication will take. (Examples-letter, speech, obituary, conversation, memo, recipe or journal)

• (T): The topic (T) consists of a strong verb as well as the focus. Procedure: Introduce RAFT by creating a story collectively using the Language Experience Approach. The second time you assign RAFT, have each group prepare one. Model for students, explaining that all writers must consider their role as a writer, their audience, the format, and the topic These four components are critical in every written assignment. Assist teams to brainstorm ideas about a topic. Work with teams to list possible roles, audiences, formats, and strong verbs that are appropriate for each topic. Once the groups have mastered RAFT, have each student prepare his/her own, but include incentives for the group to help individual members. For example, you might want to give a team a point for each member who receives a grade of B or higher. The Gift of the Magi: RAFT Activity: Students write according to role, audience, format, & topic.

R-Your role as a writer is Jim. A-Your audience is your Della. F-The format of your writing is a letter. T-Your topic is to write to tell her about the details of how you decided to sell your watch to buy the set of combs, and to explain how you feel about your decision.


FCAT Writing

FCAT Writing: Lesson Topic: (Persuasive or Expository Prompt) Distribute the planning sheets and writing folders containing the prompts to the students. Provide students with the writing situation and directions for writing. Remind the students to budget their time: approximately ten minutes on brainstorming and prewriting, twenty-five minutes on drafting, ten minutes on editing. Record the time and give students the command to begin. After 45 minutes, ask the students to stop writing and place their planning sheets inside their folders. The Gift of the Magi: FCAT Writing Activity (Persuasive Prompt):

Writing Situation: You are the class president. Your teachers have approved a gift exchange for students who want to participate. There is only one rule. Gifts cannot cost any money. You have to persuade your classmates to participate. Directions for Writing Before you write, think about giving gifts to others. Do you think giving gifts is about money or about love, friendship and caring? How would you persuade your classmates to participate in giving gifts that don’t cost any money? Is it easier or more difficult for students to participate? What kinds of things can students give each other? Can a gift be something you do for another person? Can you give examples of some “no-money” gifts? How can this gift exchange benefit the students in your class? What can they learn from this plan?

Now, write to persuade your classmates to participate in the “no-money” gift exchange.


Beginning Presenting Activities

Dialog Objective: Write a short dialog of 4-6 lines between two familiar characters. Procedure: A dialog can be between 2 historical characters, 2 fictional characters in a story, novel, play, etc. or between 2 imaginary characters such as a germ and a white blood cell. The topic of the dialog should be related to the subject being studied, and the grammar and vocabulary used in the dialog should reflect the grammar and vocabulary focus of the unit. Model each line of the dialog, having the entire class repeat after you. Then, say each line and call on whole teams to repeat the line. Then say each line and call on individual students to repeat the line. Practice dialog lines using the whole class, a whole team, and individuals until students can know the lines of the dialog. Example:

Character A: These items are expensive. We are not selling very many. Character B: We need to sell more of them. Character A: But, then the price will decrease! Character B: But, we will still get more money because the volume will increase. Character A: We do not have enough money to make more than we do now. Character B: Then we will borrow some money by issuing bonds.

Option 1: You take the part of A and the class takes the part of B. Then you take part B and the class takes A. Then work with whole teams and you, then individuals and you, then groups and groups, then individuals and individuals. Move back and forth among these combinations until you think the majority have adequate intonation, stress, and pronunciation. Option 2: Erase two words at random from each line during repetition. Then erase two more, two more, and so on until there are no words left on the board. Option 3: Each group chooses a member to represent them by presenting the dialog with a member from another group in front of the class. If the representative can say his/her lines correctly then the group gets a point. Option 4: Have each group rewrite the dialog from memory. Groups are to use one piece of paper and one pencil or pen only. Each member takes a turn writing a line of the dialog. Other team members can offer help but they cannot write it for the individual whose turn it is to write. Collect the paper and grade it. Each member of the team gets the same grade. The Gift of the Magi: Dialog Activity:

Jim: You’ve cut off your hair? Della: Cut it off and sold it. Maybe the hairs on my head were numbered, but

nobody can ever count my love for you. Jim: I don’t think there’s anything that could make me like my girl any less. Della: My hair grows so fast, Jim.


Intermediate Presenting Activities

Show and Tell Objective: Present orally on a familiar topic and respond to questions on the topic. Procedure: A student brings something to class related to the subject at hand and, within 3 minutes, makes an oral presentation about it. Teams take turns asking the student questions about it. For each question the presenter can answer, his/her team gets a point. For each question he/she cannot answer, the team loses a point.

Proficient Presenting Activities

Making the News Objective: Present orally to a group on a familiar academic topic in a news format. Procedure: Teams take turns developing a 3-4 four-minute news broadcast about the subject being studied. There may be several related stories. There must be one story (no matter how short) for each member of the group. The reporting group may refer to notes but not to the text. Other teams can refer to their texts, and have the opportunity to each ask two questions of the reporting team. The reporting team members take turns answering questions, but other team members may help them. The questioning group gets two points for each question the reporting group cannot answer. The reporting group gets a point for each question it can answer. Follow the rules for Total Recall when there is a challenge. Examples: Columbus gets the jewels from the Queen of Spain, the long voyage, Hispaniola landing The Gift of the Magi: Making the News Activities:

Money Isn’t Everything Love More Important Than Gifts

Intermediate-Proficient Viewing Activities

Total Recall, True or False, Judgment Objective: View a video or speech for the purpose of asking and answering simple questions, making true and false statements, and distinguish facts from opinions. Procedure: Modify reading activities, such as Total Recall, True or False, and Judgment to use when viewing a video or speech. The effectiveness of a challenge is not as high as with a written text.


Beginning Vocabulary Activities

Line of Fortune Objective: Identify and recreate words and word parts from spelling clues. Procedure: (This activity is very similar to Hangman, but involves more complex team decision-making.) Choose a word from the lesson’s vocabulary and write the appropriate number of dashes to represent the letters of the word. For example, for the word dicot you would draw five dashes. A team member guesses a letter. If the letter is not found in the word, write the letter under the dashes and move on to the next team. If their letter is found in the word, then write the letter on the appropriate dash. When a team guesses correctly, they have the option to guess the word. If they choose not to guess the word, call on the next team. If they choose to guess and successfully guess the word, then they receive ten points minus the number of letters written under the dashes from incorrect previous guesses, and the game is over. If they choose to guess and do not guess the word, then they lose points equal to the number of letters written under the dashes, and you call on the next team. If no team can guess the word before ten incorrect letters are written under the dashes then all teams lose points equal to the number of teams in the class.

Concentration Objective: Identify vocabulary words and their meanings. Preparation: On twenty 8” x 5” index cards, write the numbers 1-20, one number per card. Place these cards in order, 3 per line in a pocket chart. On another 20 index cards, write, one word per card, 10 vocabulary items from the lesson 2 times each. Shuffle these cards and place them behind the numbered cards. Procedure: Teams will match the vocabulary words with their meanings. Choose one team to go first. A member of that team picks two numbers. Remove those cards from the chart, leaving the words behind them visible to the class. The student reads the words, with the team’s assistance if needed. If the words match, leave them showing and give the team a point. If they do not match, replace the numbers and call on the next team. Option: Instead of writing each noun 2 times, write it once in the singular and once in the plural. When working with verbs, write one in the present tense and one in the past. Matching variations such as these helps the students understand that, despite certain differences in the visible spelling of two words, they are still semantically related at a deeper level. The Gift of the Magi: Concentration Activity: Match vocabulary words with their meanings:

mammoth enormous, huge generous kind and giving; unselfish vestibule entrance hall, foyer ravages damage or negative effects cascade waterfall pier glass a tall mirror flat (n) apartment yearned craved, longed for peculiar strange, different, unusual


Intermediate Vocabulary Activities

Jeopardy Objective: Use clues to identify vocabulary words, characters’ names, places, etc. in the story. Preparation: Place 3 cards across the top of a pocket chart, the first with the letter A printed on it, the second with B, and the third with C. Down the left side of the chart (one per line), place three cards with the numbers 2, 3, and 4 respectively. Place three easier vocabulary items (not visible to the class) next to the number 1 card, and below each of the letter cards, place 3 more difficult words on line 2 in the same manner, place three of the most difficult words on line three. Procedure: Choose one team to go first. A member of that team picks the word s/he wants to guess (“2-C” for example). Give the student a definition of clue for the word (This animal barks.) The student, with the help of his team, responds with the word presented in question format (What is a dog?). If the answer is correct, that team gets 2, 3, or 4 points, depending on the word’s level of difficulty. If the answer is incorrect, the next team tries for the same word but for one point less than the previous team. For example, if the first team guessed incorrectly for a word worth 3 points, the next team to try would get 2 points if it answered correctly. If it too guessed incorrectly, the next team would get one point if it answered correctly. If no team can answer correctly before the points are reduced to zero, then all teams lose 1 point. The Gift of the Magi: Jeopardy Activity: Question Answer

a) Why Della sold her hair buy a Christmas gift a) Who bought Della’s hair Mme. Sofronie a) How Jim got money for a gift sold his gold watch b) How long was Della’s hair below her knees b) When Jim Usually arrived home seven o’clock b) What Della called a watch chain fob chain c) Why Della and Jim had money problems salary sunk from $20 to $30 c) Who had treasures piled up King Solomon c) What they ate for dinner chops

Wrong Word Objective: Identify, analyze, and correct errors in vocabulary usage. Procedure: Teams find the word that is “wrong” and correct it. Teams get a point for each correction. Read a sentence with a wrong word in it. Examples: The contribution tells us how the government will operate. (should be Constitution) Many people have moved to Florida for the arctic climate. (should be tropical) When teams get good at this activity, embed an incorrect sentence among other correct sentences. Teams can make sentences with incorrect words for other teams to correct.


Classification Objective: Classify vocabulary into two or three groups. Procedure: Model the activity, beginning with several words for teams to classify into groups. Ask students to identify an appropriate label for the groups they create. Discuss other words that could go into each group. Each team gets out one pencil and one sheet of paper. The captain writes team name and divides the paper into the appropriate number of columns (groups). The captain labels columns for classifications and sets timer for 5 minutes. Team members take turns writing words in appropriate columns (as in the Team Spelling Test). Note that words do not have to come from the lesson vocabulary. When the timer rings, collect papers. Teams get one point for each word they place correctly. Spelling should not count.


Beginning Grammar Activities

Teacher-Student Grammar Notes are provided as a teaching resource or student study notes.

ADJECTIVES AND VERB FORMS USED AS ADJECTIVES (PARTICIPLES) Review of Adjectives: Adjectives describe nouns. They give a different meaning to a noun or improve the meaning of a noun. An adjective is not singular or plural. It uses the same form in English no matter what it is describing. When an adjective is used next to the noun it describes, it comes before its noun.

Examples: a) We enjoyed the beautiful blue sky (Beautiful and blue describe sky) b) Bilingual students are better thinkers. (Bilingual describes students) c) The rich young man saved his money. (Rich and young describe man)

Verb Forms Used As Adjectives (Participles): Verb forms that describe a noun are acting like adjectives, and are called participles. Sometimes a group of words or a phrase acts like an adjective. This is an adjective phrase. When the adjective phrase starts with a verb form, it is called a participial phrase. Study the examples below.

Examples: a) The developing storm threatened our picnic.

(Developing describes storm) b) I found my sister studying.

(Studying describes my sister) c) An annoying man interrupted our conversation.

(Annoying describes man) d) Angered by the argument, Julie went to her room without a word.

(Angered by the argument describes Julie) e) Thinking Maria really liked him, Ramon invited her on a date.

(Thinking Maria really liked him describes Ramon) f) Frightened by the loud noise, the baby cried.

(Frightened by the loud noise describes the baby) g) Destroyed by a fire, the building remained empty.

(Destroyed by a fire describes the building)

Word Order Cards Objective: Identify and use appropriate word order in sentences. Procedure: Choose some of the more complex sentences of the summary to cut up for this exercise. After writing a sentence on a sentence strip, cut up the sentence into individual words. Shuffle the words. With the team's support, one member rearranges the words to reform the sentence. The team gets a point if the cards are rearranged correctly.


Modified Single Slot Substitution Drill

Objective: Substitute alternative vocabulary, syntax, and grammatical forms in a familiar sentence in a single slot. Procedure: The teacher writes a sentence on the board and underlines one word. Teams take turns replacing the underlined word with a new word. When students can no longer think of substitutes, the teacher underlines a different word, and the activity continues. Example: The soldiers who surrendered were killed. Possible substitutions for killed: butchered, kissed, hugged, spared The soldiers who surrendered were butchered. Possible substitutions for surrendered: spared, killed, ran, slept The soldiers who surrendered were spared. Possible substitutions for soldiers: people, police, robbers, children Notes: • Sometimes, changing one word necessitates changing another word as well. The queen was dancing when the soldiers arrived. (Substitute king and queen) The king and queen were dancing when the soldiers arrived. • It is not necessary for the sentences to be historically correct, sensible, or even possible. It is

important for the correct part of speech to be used. The Gift of the Magi: Modified Single Slot Substitution:

(a) Flopping on the couch, (b) Della (c) cried. Possibilities:

a) running home quickly, thinking about Jim, arriving at the flat b) she, the young wife, Jim c) fixed her hair, decided, carried a small package


Intermediate Grammar Activities

Sentence Builders Objective: Expand sentences by adding new words in the appropriate order in a sentence. Procedure: The teacher says a sentence, and, after a pause, an additional word or words. Teams must make a new sentence that adds the new word(s) in the correct place in the teacher's original sentence. Give a point for each correct answer. Example:

Teacher: Fish is a food. (healthy) Team Response: Fish is a healthy food. Teacher: Fish is a healthy food. (fresh) Team Response: Fresh fish is a healthy food.

The Gift of the Magi: Sentence Builders: a) The chain could replace Jim’s strap. (platinum)

The platinum chain could replace Jim’s strap. (old) The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old strap. ( leather) The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old leather strap. (and he could be proud) The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old leather strap, and he could be proud. (to show his watch) The platinum chain could replace Jim’s old leather strap, and he could be proud. to show his watch.

Continue with the following: b) She ran home. (and arranged her hair) (nervously) (with a curling iron) (into tiny curls) c) The wisest givers are those who don’t have much to give. (but give everything) (they

have) (unselfishly) (in an act of love) (true) d) Jim and Della are the Magi. (because they are an example) (of the art of giving) (and the

faith of love) e) The combs were made of tortoise. (pure) (with rims), (jeweled) (the same color as her

hair) (beautiful)

Multiple Slot Substitution Drills Objective: Substitute alternative vocabulary, syntax, and grammatical forms in a familiar sentence in a multiple slots. Procedure: This drill is often taught together with or right after the single slot substitution drill. Its organization is similar to single slot substitution, but more that one part of the sentence changes. Give a point for each correct answer. Example: Columbus sailed in 1492. (Pizarro) Pizarro sailed in 1492. (1524) Pizarro sailed in 1524. (arrived) Pizarro arrived 1n 1524. The Gift of the Magi: Multiple Slot Substitution Activities:

(a) Jim looked (b) thin and serious (c) in his old overcoat Possibilities: at the door of the flat, excited and happy, anxious and nervous, she seemed, on the stairs, sad and happy at the same time, Della looked, Jim seemed, in the vestibule, tattered and tired, Jim appeared, in her new haircut


Flesh it Out

Objective: Use key words in the appropriate order in a grammatically correct sentence. Procedure: The teacher gives the key words of a sentence and teams puts them into a grammatically correct sentence. Give points for correct answers in the oral format. Give grades in the written format. Key words: he/sail/america/1492. Answer: He sailed to America in 1492. Key words: he/sail/america/? (past)(yes/no) Answer: Did he sail to America? The Gift of the Magi: Flesh it Out Activities:

a) Della/want (past)/buy/him/gift/that/be (past)/fine/rare/worthy/him. b) They/live (past)/in/broken-down/poorly/furnished/flat/$8/week. c) Della/leave (past)/flat/go (past)/to/Mme. Sofronie/hair salon. d) Magi/be (past)/wise/men/Jim/Della/be (past)/also/wise. e) Della/hair/be (past)/more/precious/than/Queen of Sheba/jewels.

Transformation Exercises Objective: Change the form or format of a sentence according to the situation. Procedure: Students change the format of a sentence based on teacher directions or prompts. Give points for correct answers in the oral format. Give grades in the written format. Examples: 1. Is it raining? (Answer the question, yes.) Yes, it is raining. 2. It is raining. (Ask a yes/no question.) Is it raining? 3. Many Indians died from disease. Many Indians died from starvation. (Combine 2 sentences into one sentence.) Many Indians died from disease and starvation. The Gift of the Magi: Transformation Exercises: Students respond by combining the sentences using the adjectives and adjective phrases in parentheses.

Example: Della cried. (Flopping on the couch) Flopping on the couch, Della cried.

a) Tears splashed on the carpet. (worn, red) b) , Della thought about Jim. (Arranging her hair into tiny curls) c) Jim told Della he did not love her any less because of her haircut. (Hugging her,

short) d) The chain could replace Jim’s strap. (platinum, old, leather) e) Della made coffee and started dinner by seven o’clock. (fresh) f) Della wanted to buy him a gift that was and worthy of him. (fine, rare) g) They lived in a flat at $8 a week. (broken-down, poorly furnished) h) Della looked out dully at a cat walking on a fence in a back yard. (gray, gray, gray)


Who What, When, Where, How, Why Objective: Listen to a sentence and respond to “Wh" questions in writing. Procedure: Read a sentence and then ask the “wh" questions about it. Teams write a short answer on a numbered sheet of paper. Example: Teacher: The heart constantly pumps blood to the body 24 hours a day to keep the body alive. What…? (Teams write heart.) Where…? (Teams write to the body) How...? (Teams write constantly) Why…? (Teams write to keep the body alive) When…? (Teams write 24 hours a day). Team members take turns writing answers on the board (for class discussion) or on a team/individual paper (for a grade). An alternative technique is to have each team member complete all items on his/her own paper. Team members are allowed to help each other. On completion of the activity, collect the one paper of your choice. The grade on that paper will count for each team member. Unit 3: Lesson 1: Who, What, When, Where, How, Why Activities:

a) On the day before Christmas, Della counted the money she had carefully saved one penny at a time. (who, what, when, why, how)

b) When she heard Jim’s footsteps on the stairs, she whispered, “Please, God, make him think I am still pretty.” (who, what, when, where, why, how)

c) Della made fresh coffee and started dinner by seven o’clock when Jim usually arrived home. (who, what, when, where, why)

d) When he saw the platinum watch chain, he tumbled down onto the couch and smiled. (who, what, when, where, why, how)

e) She ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a curling iron into tiny curls. (who, what, where, why, how)

Sentence Stretchers Objective: Expand grammatically correct sentences by adding new words in appropriate order Procedure: One team begins by making a sentence orally that contains the language or content focus of the lesson. (Make the starter sentence as short as possible.) For example, in a lesson focusing on weather and on adjectives, the first team might say, The cloud is floating. The first team gets a point. Other teams take turns expanding the sentence, getting a point each time something is added successfully or until teams run out of expansions. The white cloud is floating. The fluffy white cloud is floating in the sky. The fluffy white cloud that looks like a boat is floating in the sky. Etc. The Gift of the Magi: Sentence Stretcher: Begin with the sentence: Della and Jim had sacrificed.

Della and Jim had sacrificed. Just like the Magi, Della and Jim had sacrificed. Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their king, Della and Jim had sacrificed. Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed. Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed their possessions. Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed their most valuable possessions. Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed their most valuable possessions in the world.


Look it Up Objective: Identify specific grammatical structures and change them according to the situation. Procedure: Teams look up sentences in their text that have a specific grammatical structure. As an oral practice, teams get a point for a correct answer. As a written exercise, it can be graded. Version One: Discuss the grammar point with the students then have them find example sentences in their texts. You might want to limit the pages they are to search. Version Two: Write sample sentences on the board in a tense not usually used in the text. Ask students to find similar sentences in the text and to determine the difference between the text sentences and the sentences on the board. In history books, for example, most sentences are in the past tense, so the sentences you write on the board would be in the present tense. During a discussion of the difference between the text sentences and your sentences, you would help the class discover why the text uses past tense sentences so often. Version Three - Students locate sentences in the text with a specific grammatical structure and then restate or rewrite the sentence in a new form specified by you. Example: change statements into questions, affirmative to negative, past to present or passive voice to active. The Gift of the Magi: Look it Up: Teams locate examples of Adjectives and Verb Forms Used As Adjectives (Participles) in the text and in the summary.

Rewrite the Paragraph Objective: Identify specific grammatical structures and change them according to the situation. Procedure: Use a paragraph based on the text, and language focus structures of the lesson. Teams read and discuss necessary changes. Members work together to rewrite a grammatically correct paragraph with the changes. Collect one paper from each team for a grade. (Examples: Change one verb tense to another, nouns to pronouns, adverbs to adjectives, etc.) The Gift of the Magi: Rewrite the Paragraph Activity: Teams will rewrite the paragraph changing the verbs to the present tense.

On the day before Christmas, Della had one dollar and eighty-seven cents to buy her husband Jim a gift. Della and Jim valued two possessions. One was Jim’s gold watch that had belonged to his father and his grandfather. The other was Della’s beautiful long hair. Mme. Sofronie offered to buy Della’s hair for $20. Della took the $20 and bought a platinum watch chain. She ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a curling iron into tiny curls. When Jim arrived home, he told Della he did not love her any less. Jim had sold his gold watch to buy a set of combs for Della’s hair. The wisest givers don’t have much to give, but give everything they have unselfishly.


Name _____________________________________ Date _____________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 1 Fill in the blanks with the correct word.

possessions

wisest

gift

curling iron

unselfishly

set of combs

belonged

Christmas

to buy

platinum

less

On the day before __________, Della had one dollar and eighty-seven cents to buy

her husband Jim a __________. Della and Jim valued two __________. One was Jim’s gold

watch that had __________ to his father and his grandfather. The other was Della’s beautiful

long hair. Mme. Sofronie offered __________ Della’s hair for $20. Della took the $20 and

bought a __________ watch chain. She ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a

__________ into tiny curls. When Jim arrived home, he told Della he did not love her any

__________. Jim had sold his gold watch to buy a __________ for Della’s hair. The

__________ givers don’t have much to give, but give everything they have __________.


Name ______________________________________ Date _______________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 2 Read each sentence and decide if it is true or false. If it is true, write the word “true” on the line. If the sentence is false, rewrite the sentence to make it a true. 1. Jim was surprised or angry and horrified like Della thought.

______________________________________________________________________

2. Jim’s wages had shrunk from $30 a week to $20 a week.

______________________________________________________________________

3. The combs were made of platinum with jeweled rims.

______________________________________________________________________

4. Della counted the money she had carefully saved one penny at a time.

______________________________________________________________________

5. Madame Sofronie offered to buy Della’s hair for $30.

______________________________________________________________________

6. When he saw the watch chain, Jim tumbled down onto the couch and smiled.

______________________________________________________________________

7. Jim told Della that he had sold his gold watch to pay for the rent on the flat.

______________________________________________________________________

8. Della paid $21 and returned home with eighty-seven cents.

______________________________________________________________________

9. She ran home and nervously arranged her hair with a set of combs.

______________________________________________________________________

10. Jim looked at Della with a surprised expression on his face.

______________________________________________________________________


Name ____________________________ Date __________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 3 (FCAT Practice/Reading Comprehension) Read the following passage. Identify the stated main idea, the topic sentence and the details. Then fill in the chart below.

On the day before Christmas, Della did not have enough money to buy her husband a gift. She counted the money she had carefully saved one penny at a time. The total was only one dollar and eighty-seven cents. Flopping on the couch, Della cried. That was all the money she had. Della wanted to buy him a gift that was fine and rare and worthy of him. They lived in a broken-down poorly furnished flat at $8 a week. The mailbox and the doorbell were broken. Della was the wife of James Dillingham Young or “Jim” as Della called him. Jim’s wages at his company had shrunk from $30 a week to $20 a week. It was not easy to save money because expenses were high.

DETAIL: _______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

DETAIL: _______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

DETAIL: _______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

DETAIL: _______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

DETAIL: _______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________


Name ____________________________ Date __________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 4 (FCAT Practice/Reading Comprehension) Read the summary paragraphs from “The Gift of the Magi”, by O. Henry. Then answer the questions.

Della and Jim’s flat was not exactly fit for beggars, but it was in very bad shape. Everything was broken and worn out. The mailbox was broken, and the doorbell wouldn’t ring anymore. The letters on the nameplate in the vestibule were blurred. After all, the flat only cost $8 a month. In spite of the conditions of the flat, Jim came home every evening to a smile and a hug from Della.

State the implied main idea of the paragraph. _________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Identify the details that support the main idea. _________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Write below any personal knowledge you have on the topic.

______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Just like the Magi, who brought gifts to their beloved king, Della and Jim had sacrificed their most valuable possessions in the world. The Magi were wise men, and Jim and Della were wise, too. Even though they had been unwise in their choice of gifts, they were just as unselfish and generous in their giving as the Magi. The wisest givers are those who don’t have much to give, but give everything they have unselfishly in an act of true love. Jim and Della are like the Magi because they are an example of the art of giving and the faith of love. The true gift is the gift of love.

What is the connection between the Magi and the couple in the story? ______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

What do you think is the author’s theme in the story? ______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________


Name ____________________________ Date __________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 5 Fill in the blanks.

On the day before __________, Della counted the money __________ had carefully

saved one __________ at a time. The __________ was only one dollar __________ eighty-

seven cents. Flopping on __________ couch, Della began to __________. That was all the

__________ she had to buy __________ husband a Christmas gift. __________ wanted to

buy Jim __________ gift that was fine, __________ and worthy of him. __________ and Jim

lived in __________ broken-down poorly furnished flat, __________ eight dollars a week.

__________ was the wife of __________ Dillingham Young, or “Jim” __________

Della called him. Jim’s __________ had shrunk from thirty __________ a week to twenty

__________ a week. Della and __________ had only two possessions __________ they

were proud of __________ valued. One was Jim’s __________ watch that had belonged

__________ his father and his __________. The other was Della’s __________ long hair.

Della’s hair __________ more precious than the __________ of Sheba’s jewels. Jim’s

__________ watch was more precious __________ King Solomon’s treasures all

__________ together.

Della let down __________ hair like a shining __________ of brown waters. It

__________ to her knees. A __________ fell from her eye __________ she made a

decision. __________ left the flat and __________ to Madame Sofronie’s hair __________.

Madame Sofronie offered to __________ Della’s hair for twenty __________, so Della

quickly closed __________ deal. Della took the __________ dollars and spent two

__________ looking for a gift. __________, she found the perfect __________, a platinum

watch chain. __________ was a simple design __________ was perfect for Jim’s

__________. The platinum chain could __________ Jim’s old leather strap, __________ he


could be proud __________ show his watch. She __________ twenty-one dollars for the

__________ chain, and had exactly __________ cents left. Della ran __________ and

nervously arranged her __________ with a curling iron __________ tiny curls. Della made

__________ coffee and started dinner __________ seven o’clock when Jim __________

arrived home. When she __________ Jim’s footsteps on the __________, she whispered,

“Please, God, __________ him think I am __________ pretty.”

Jim looked thin __________ serious in his old __________. He looked at Della

__________ a peculiar expression on __________ face. Jim was not __________ or angry

or horrified __________ Della thought. Della told __________ why she had sold

__________ hair, and then she __________ “Merry Christmas!” declaring her __________

for him. Hugging her, __________ told Della he did __________ love her any less

__________ of her haircut. Then __________ pulled a package out __________ his pocket.

Della opened __________ package with excitement and __________ with tears. Jim had

__________ her the beautiful set __________ combs for her hair __________ she had

admired in __________ store window on Broadway __________. The combs were made

__________ pure tortoise with jeweled __________, and they were the __________ color

as her beautiful __________. Della smiled and said, “__________ hair grows so fast,

__________.”

Della eagerly gave Jim __________ gift. When he saw __________ platinum watch

chain, he __________ down onto the couch __________ smiled. Then Jim told __________

that he had sold __________ gold watch to pay __________ the set of combs __________

her hair. “Let’s put __________ Christmas presents away. They’re __________ nice to use

right __________,” Jim said.


Just like __________ Magi, who brought gifts __________ their beloved king, Della

__________ Jim had sacrificed their __________ valuable possessions in the __________.

The Magi were wise __________, and Jim and Della __________ wise, too. Even though

__________ had been unwise in __________ choice of gifts, Della __________ Jim were

just as __________ and generous as the __________ in their giving were. __________

wisest givers are those __________ don’t have much to __________, but give everything

they __________, unselfishly in an act __________ true love. Jim and __________ are like

the Magi __________ they are an example __________ the art of giving __________ the

faith of love. __________ true gift is the __________ of love.


Name ____________________________ Date __________ The Gift of the Magi: Exercise 6 Combine the two sentences into one sentence by using a participial (verb) phrase as an adjective. Follow the example.

Example: The men were exhausted from working in the sun. The men took a break. Exhausted from working in the sun, the men took a break.

1. The team was excited by how well they were playing the game. The team began to play

even harder. ______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

2. The child was frightened to see the huge gray elephant. The child screamed. ______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

3. Jimmy was bored during a movie on the history of the human race. Jimmy fell asleep and began to snore.

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4. The father was expecting a baby daughter to be born. The father was shocked to meet his new son.

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5. The waitress was balancing the heavy tray on her fingertips. The waitress’s fingers began to hurt.

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6. The family was locked out of their new house at midnight. The family had no choice but to rent a hotel room.

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7. I was embarrassed by the whole experience. I never wanted to make a speech again. ______________________________________________________________________

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English I Through ESOL - SDPBC Web CMS · cabellera era más bella que las joyas de la Reina de...

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