Genre: T Teacher’S Guide Daniel Boone Sal Fink · Daniel Boone Sal Fink Paul Bunyan Teacher’S...

1 Three AmericAn TAll TAles ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLCB e n c h m a r k e d u c a t i o n c o m p a n y

Skills and Strategies

Anchor Comprehension Strategies• Analyze character • Identify cause and effect

Genre Study• Recognize genre features• Analyze genre texts• Make text-to-text genre connections

Tier Two Vocabulary• See book’s glossary

Word Study• Word origins

Fluency• Read with anticipation and mood

Writing• Writer’s tools: Hyperbole• Write a tall tale using writing-process

steps

Daniel Boone

Sal Fink

Paul Bunyan

Teacher’S Guide

Level R/40

Unit at a Glance

Day 1 Prepare to Read Day 4 Read “Paul Bunyan”*

Day 2 Read “Daniel Boone”* Day 5 Reread “Paul Bunyan”*

Day 3 Read “Sal Fink”* Days 6–15 Write a tall tale using the writing-process steps on page 10

*While you are meeting with small groups, other students can:• read independently from your classroom library• reflect on their learning in reading response journals• engage in literacy workstations

Genre: Tall Tales

Y06609_G4_TallTalesDaniel_TGCB_Rev3.indd 1 10/10/10 10:55 PM

2 Three AmericAn TAll TAles ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC

come back to this anchor chart. We will look for how these features appear in each tall tale we read.

• Ask students to turn to pages 4–5. Say: The tall tales in this book originated in different parts of the United States. Let’s read about the history of Daniel Boone, Sal Fink, and Paul Bunyan.

• Have a student read aloud the background information while others follow along.

• Say: These three tall tale characters grew from stories about real people or frontier occupations in America. What can you infer, or tell, from this? Allow responses. Prompt students to understand that the stories probably began as entertainment for early settlers.

Introduce the Tools Writers Use: Hyperbole• Read aloud “Tools Writers Use” on page 5. • Say: Many writers use hyperbole, or exaggeration.

This technique helps them create humor and establish bigger-than-life characters and events in their writing. Hyperbole is an important feature of all tall tales. Let’s practice identifying hyperbole so we can recognize it in the tall tales we read.

• Distribute BLM 1 (Hyperbole). Read aloud sentence 1 with students.

• Model Identifying Hyperbole: Can a person really clean twelve houses in half an hour? No! This is hyperbole. The author wants to make the point that Janine has far more energy than ordinary people and puts it to use getting things done. Overstating this idea creates an impression and lightens the mood.

• Ask students to work with a partner or in small groups to identify the examples of hyperbole in the remaining sentences, complete two sentences using hyperbole, and write their own hyperbole.

• Bring the groups together to share their findings. Point out that writers use hyperbole for effect and that readers do not mistake the exaggeration for truth.

• Ask the groups to read one or more sentences they wrote. Use the examples to build students’ understanding of how and why writers use hyperbole. Remind them that hyperbole helps readers understand the mood and visualize the hero or heroine of a tall tale.

• Ask groups to hand in their sentences. Transfer student-written sentences to chart paper, title the page “Hyperbole,” and post it as an anchor chart in your classroom.

Prepare to ReadBuild Genre Background• Write the word genre on chart paper. Ask: Who

can explain what the word genre means? Allow responses. Say: The word genre means “a kind of something.” How many of you like to play baseball? How many of you would rather play soccer? Baseball and soccer are different kinds of sports. Baseball games have certain characteristics that make them recognizable. Soccer games have their own, different features that set them apart. As readers and writers, we focus on genres, or kinds, of literature. When we read, we pay attention to the genre because it can help us figure out what will happen or what we will learn. When we write, we use our knowledge of genre to help us develop and organize our ideas.

• Ask: Who can name some literary genres? Let’s make a list. Allow responses. Post the list on the classroom wall as an anchor chart.

• Draw a concept web on chart paper or the board. Write Tall Tales in the center circle of the web.

• Say: Tall tales are one example of a literary genre. Think of any tall tales you know. How would you define what a tall tale is?

• Turn and Talk. Ask students to turn and talk to a classmate and jot down any features of a tall tale they can think of. Then bring students together and ask them to share their ideas. Record them on the group web. Reinforce the concept that all tall tales have certain common features.

Introduce the Book• Distribute a copy of the book to each student. Read

the title aloud. Ask students to tell what they see on the cover and table of contents.

• Ask students to turn to pages 2–3. Say: This week we are going to read tall tales that will help us learn about this genre. First we’re going to focus on this genre as readers. Then we’re going to study tall tales from a writer’s perspective. Our goal this week is to really understand this genre.

• Ask a student to read aloud the text on pages 2–3 while others follow along. Invite a different student to read the web on page 3.

• Point to your Tall Tales web on chart paper. Say: Let’s compare our initial ideas about tall tales with what we just read. What new features of this genre did you learn? Allow responses. Add new information to the class web.

• Post this chart in your classroom during your tall tales unit. Say: As we read tall tales this week, we will

Day 1

©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC. All rights reserved. Teachers may photocopy the reproducible pages for classroom use. No other part of the guide may be reproduced or transmitted in whole or in part in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.ISBN: 978-1-4509-0009-6


©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC 3Three AmericAn TAll TAles

Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Write one or more of the following

questions on chart paper. What is a literary genre, and how can understanding

genres help readers and writers? What did you learn today about the tall tale genre? How can readers recognize hyperbole? Ask partners or small groups to discuss their ideas

and report them back to the whole group as a way to summarize the day’s learning.

Before ReadingIntroduce “Daniel Boone”• Reread the Tall Tales anchor chart or the web

on page 3 to review the features of a tall tale.• Ask students to turn to page 6. Ask: Based on the

title, illustrations, and map, what do you predict this tall tale might be about? Allow responses.

• Invite students to scan the text and look for the boldfaced words (devoid, preeminent, expert, subdued). Say: As you read, pay attention to these words. If you don’t know what they mean, try to use clues in the surrounding text to help you define them. We’ll come back to these words after we read.

Set a Purpose for Reading• Ask students to read the tall tale, focusing on

the genre elements they noted on their anchor chart. They should also look for examples of hyperbole and think about how the author’s use of hyperbole adds humor to the hero’s traits and adventures.

Read “Daniel Boone”• Place students in groups based on their reading

levels. Ask students to read the tall tale silently, whisper-read, or read with a partner.

• Confer briefly with individual students to monitor their understanding of the text and their use of fix-up strategies.

Management TipAsk students to place self-stick notes in the margins where they notice examples of hyperbole or features of the genre.

After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Analyze Character• Lead a student discussion using the “Analyze

the Characters and Plot” questions on page 11. Then, use the following steps to provide explicit modeling of how to analyze characters in a tall tale.

• Explain: We learned yesterday that tall tale heroes have superhuman strength or skills they use to outwit bullies or triumph over tremendous odds. They are larger than life, able to do things no ordinary person can do. When you read a tall tale, notice what kind of bully the hero faces—nature, a machine, an animal, or an evil person—and how the hero’s abilities allow him or her to defeat this foe. Analyzing characters helps

Day 2

Name Date

THREE AMERICAN TALL TALES ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLCBLM 1

1. Janine was so energetic that she could clean twelve houses in half an hour.

2. That summer it rained so much that we turned the desert into a swimming pool.

3. The wind was so cold that it froze a forest fire.

4. As the hurricane blew, Big John said, “That’s a pleasant little breeze.”

5. Pokotulu tore the top off a mountain and used it as a glass to drink the lake dry.

Directions: Complete each sentence with an example of hyperbole.

6. I was so hungry that I could have __________________________ Possibleanswer:eatenthewholepicnicandthetable,too.

7. Quinn was so happy to win the contest that he ___________ . Possibleanswer:floatedhomethroughtheclouds.

Directions: Write your own sentence that includes hyperbole.

8. Sentenceswillvary.Possibleanswer:Iboughtanicecreamconethatwasamilehigh.

HyperboleDirections: Read each sentence. Underline each example of hyperbole.



question do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I’m looking for the words 200 years ago and America. On page 7, I read “But 200 years ago, most of America was a wild frontier.” This sentence answers the question.

• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Find It! questions.

Focus on Vocabulary: Word Origins• Explain/Model: A word’s origin tells its history.

When you know the background of a word, you can make connections that help you learn its meaning and the meanings of other words that share similar histories. For example, the word wrestler (page 7) comes from the Middle English word wrestlen, meaning “to twist.” Show students this word origin under the entry for wrestle in a dictionary. Say: Most of us have seen wrestlers. We can connect what we know about wrestling to the idea of twisting and turning.

• Practice. Ask students to use a dictionary to find the origin of the word adventurer (page 7). Help them find and interpret the etymology: from Latin advenire, meaning “to arrive.” Invite students to analyze the connections between the meanings of advenire and adventurer.

• Say: Let’s find the boldfaced words in this tall tale. What can you do if you don’t know what these words mean? Allow responses. Say: Along with looking for clues in the text, you can look in a dictionary to learn the origin of the word. The history helps you understand the current definition of the word.

• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the “Focus on Words” activity on page 11 using BLM 3 (Focus on Word Origins). Explain that they should look in a dictionary to find the origin and meaning of each boldfaced word and think about the connection between the current definition of the word and its history.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Ask groups of students to share their findings. Then invite volunteers to make up sentences using the target words in context. Ask the other students to listen carefully and give a thumbs-up if they think the word was used correctly. Encourage students to use at least one of the words later today in their conversation or writing.

• Ask students to save their work in their genre studies folders to continue on Days 3 and 4.

Day 2 (cont.)you appreciate the tale’s humor and understand its lessons.

• Distribute copies of BLM 2 (Analyze Character) and/or draw a chart like the one below.

Character Daniel Boone Bear

Description, Feelings, Traits

great trapper, hunter, and soldier, preeminent bear wrestler, strong, courageous, agreeable, helpful

biggest known to man or beast, fierce, persistent, funny

Exaggerated Aspects

super strength size of a bus

Examples • can pick up and throw down a bear

• bear bounces off him as if he were a brick wall

• goes back to helping settlers

• has a bear wrestling show

• fights like he is dancing with Daniel

• seems to say “Uncle!”• keeps coming back

for rematches

• Model: When I analyze a character, I think about how the author describes him or her and look closely at what the character thinks, feels, and says. For example, the author says Daniel Boone was a great trapper, hunter, and soldier and the greatest bear wrestler of his day. Daniel’s actions also portray great courage and strength. He beats an enormous bear in a wrestling match. The Shawnee Indians who observe the match admire Daniel’s strength so much they adopt him. He is also good-hearted. When he leaves the Shawnee, he goes back to helping the Kentucky settlers. Daniel’s actions make me admire him, too.

• Guide Practice. Work with students to analyze the bear. Point out that the bear also has larger-than-life traits and represents the challenge the hero faces and overcomes. Ask students how the bear helps show Daniel’s hero status.

• Have students keep BLM 2 in their genre studies folders.

Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment• Remind students that when they answer questions

on standardized assessments, they must be able to support their answers with facts or clues and evidence directly from the text.

• Use the Comprehension Question Card with small groups of students to practice answering text-dependent comprehension questions.

• Say: Today I will help you learn how to answer Find It! questions. The answer to a Find It! question is right in the book. You can find the answer in one place in the text.

• Model. Read the Find It! question. Say: When I read the question, I look for important words that tell me what to look for in the book. What words in this



Page Word Origin and Meaning Dictionary Definition

7 devoid Anglo French des-, “out, away” + Latin vocitus, “empty”

without; lacking

7 preeminent Latin prae-, “before” + eminere, “to stand out”

the most outstanding or well-known

8 expert Latin experiri, “to try, test”

having special skills or knowledge from training or experience

9 subdued Latin sub-, “away” + ducere, “to lead”

brought under control

Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Ask partners or small groups to

reread the “Features of a Tall Tale” on page 3 and decide whether all of these features are present in “Daniel Boone.” Ask groups to share and support their findings.

Fluency: Read with Anticipation and Mood• You may wish to have students reread the tall tale

with a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on reading to express anticipation and mood. Explain that a tall tale storyteller often uses an enthusiastic tone and playful style to establish a humorous mood. Model reading page 8 aloud, using tone of voice, pace, volume, and pitch to anticipate Daniel’s meeting with the bear and emphasize the examples of hyperbole. Ask students to work in pairs, taking turns reading the page aloud to express the humorous mood.

Before ReadingIntroduce “Sal Fink”• Ask students to turn to page 12. Say: You are

going to read another tall tale today. Turn to a partner to discuss how you will use your genre knowledge as a reader to help you understand the tall tale.

• Ask the partners to summarize what they heard.• Say: Let’s look at the title and illustrations of this

tall tale. What do you predict it might be about? • Ask students to scan the text and look for the

boldfaced words (malevolent, malodorous, antisocial, incapacitated). Ask: What do you notice about these words? Why do you think they appear in boldfaced type? (All the words contain a root that is part of other words students may know.)

• Say: As you read, try to figure out the meanings of these words. Think about other words you know that share a root or word part with the boldfaced word. Look in a dictionary to find the origin of the word and the origin’s meaning.

Set a Purpose for Reading• Ask students to read the tall tale, focusing on the

exaggerated traits and actions of the heroine and what they reveal about her character. Encourage students to notice the author’s use of hyperbole.

Read “Sal Fink”• Place students in groups based on their reading



After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Analyze Character• Say: Yesterday we analyzed Daniel Boone and

the bear in the first tall tale. Who is the hero of this tall tale? Who are the bullies? What feelings and traits does each character portray? Record responses on a whole-group chart like the one below.

• Discuss Characters Across Texts. Lead a discussion using the following questions: How does the description of Sal Fink compare to the description of Daniel Boone? What actions reveal each main character’s super strength and abilities? Which tall tale do you think is more humorous? Why? Where does the author use hyperbole in the tall tales? How do these examples of hyperbole add to the mood of the tall tales?

Day 3



Page Word Origin and Meaning

Dictionary Definition

13 malevolent Latin male, “badly, ill” + volens, velle, “to wish”

having ill will, spite, or hatred; causing harm or evil

13 malodorous Latin male, “bad” + olere, “to smell”

having a bad smell

13 antisocial Latin anti-, “against” + socius, “companion, ally”

showing hostile or harmful behavior

14 incapacitated Latin im-, in-, “not” + capere, “to take”

unable to move or act

Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Ask partners or small groups to

discuss the following questions and report their ideas to the whole group.

Does Sal seem like a typical tall tale heroine? Why or why not?

Think of a time you wished you had super abilities so you could stop a bully or solve a problem. Tell how you felt.


with a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on reading to express anticipation and mood. Ask students to practice using tone of voice to express the mood the author creates when describing the traits of different characters. For example, students might use a low pitch when reading the passage that describes the pirates to create a sinister mood and a higher pitch when describing Sal to create a lighter mood.

Day 3 (cont.)

Character Sal Fink Pirates


young gal, daughter of a famous keelboat pilot, happy, mad at pirates, brave, loud, cheerful

mean criminals who gang up on a girl, want revenge and money, smelly, evil, antisocial

Exaggerated Aspects

voice so loud it takes leaves off trees, strength

overwhelmed by a girl wielding a lightning bolt

Examples • fights battle using a lightning bolt for a sword

• wrestles seven pirates down and ties them up

• mighty cry shatters lightning bolt

• drag Sal to their ship and tie her up so she can’t move

• hold Sal for ransom• sleep through a

thunderstorm

Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment • Use the Comprehension Question Card to practice

answering text-dependent questions.• Say: Today we will learn how to answer Look Closer!

questions. The answer to a Look Closer! question is in the book. You have to look in more than one place. You find the different parts of the answer. Then you put the parts together to answer the question.

• Model. Read the Look Closer! question. Say: This question asks me to identify a cause-and-effect relationship. I know because it has the clue words why, cause, and effect. Now I need to look for other important information to find in the book. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I’m looking for what caused Sal to be incapacitated. On pages 13 and 14 I read that the pirates dragged Sal to their ship, they tied her up with rope, and they gagged her so she couldn’t scream. I have found the answer in the book. I looked in several sentences to find the answer.

• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Look Closer! questions.

Focus on Vocabulary: Word Origins• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the

“Focus on Words” activity on page 15 using BLM 3. Have groups of students share their findings.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Invite students to role-play the scene in which the pirates kidnap Sal, using the target words in the dialogue they create. Encourage them to use facial expressions, body language, and actions to suggest the meaning of each word. Invite the audience to explain the meanings based on the actors’ performance.



Before ReadingIntroduce “Paul Bunyan”• Ask students to turn to page 16. Say: Today we are

going to read “Paul Bunyan.” This tale is written in a different format from the other tall tales we have read. Notice how in the margins there are notes to you, the reader. The first time we read the text, we will read to understand the tale, focusing on the characters, plot, and challenge. Tomorrow, we will reread this tale like a writer and think about the notes in the margin as a model for how we can write our own tall tales.

• Point out the boldfaced words (horizon, telescope, posterior, impending). Say: When you see these words in the tall tale, use context clues and look for information about their origins in a dictionary to help you understand what they mean.

Set a Purpose for Reading• Ask students to read the tall tale, focusing on how

the characters and plot reveal a challenge the hero must face and solve. Students should also look for examples of hyperbole and think about how the author’s use of hyperbole helps them better understand the tall tale.

Read “Paul Bunyan”• Place students in groups based on their reading



After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Analyze Character• Lead a whole-class discussion about the strategy

of analyzing character. Ask: When you analyze the characters in a tall tale, what are you looking for? Allow responses. Make sure students understand that readers learn about the hero and bully by paying attention to the author’s descriptions and the characters’ words, actions, and thoughts. In a tall tale, the hero and any helper have exaggerated traits and abilities they use to fight or outwit an opponent or beat the odds.

• Pair students and give partners time to analyze the characters Paul Bunyan and Babe by filling in BLM 2 with details from the tall tale.

• Ask partners to create role plays for the two characters using actions, gestures, body language, and dialogue to reveal what they have learned about Paul Bunyan and Babe. Suggest that partners consider the following questions as they prepare their role plays.

What adjectives best describe each character? What actions can we use to reveal those

character traits? How does each character feel about the other

character? How can we show those feelings?• Invite partners to present their role plays to the

class. Encourage the audience to identify the character traits illustrated in each role play.

Character Paul Bunyan Babe


gigantic lumberjack, loves out-of-doors and natural beauty, cares for a baby blue ox, gentle, strong, helps settlers

enormous blue ox, desire to help Paul, brawny, loyal, obedient

Exaggerated Aspects

superhuman size and strength

extraordinary size and strength

Examples • cleared land for all people moving to north woods

• cut down trees for homes for a group of pioneers

• walked ten miles in ten steps

• stood at near end of river while Paul walked to far end

• pulled on rope to pull curves out of river

Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment • Use the Comprehension Question Card with small

groups of students to practice answering text-dependent questions.

• Say: Today I will help you learn how to answer Prove It! questions. The answer to a Prove It! question is not stated in the book. You have to look for clues and evidence to prove the answer.

• Model. Read the Prove It! question. Say: I will show you how I answer a Prove It! question. This question asks me to analyze character. I know because I must find clues that indicate a particular character trait. Now I need to look for other important information in the question. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I need to read what Paul and Babe do on page 19. The author says, “One day, word got to Paul that a group of pioneers had run out of logs to build their cabins.” Then I read “Paul and Babe got right to work cutting down trees.” I have found the clues that tell me Paul and Babe are kind to others.

• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Prove It! questions.

Day 4



Before ReadingSummarize and Make Connections Across Texts• Engage students in a discussion about the three

tall tales in this book. Invite a different student to summarize each tale. Encourage other students to add their ideas and details.

• Ask students to turn to the inside back cover of the book. Say: Good readers think about how literary works are related. We know, for example, that all of these tales share certain features. They all have a larger-than-life hero. They all have a bully or something that challenges the hero. What else do they have in common? Allow responses. Say: Today we will think about the characters and endings in all three tales and what we can learn from them.

• Ask students to work individually or in small groups to complete BLM 4 (Make Connections Across Texts). Then bring students together to share and synthesize their ideas.

Daniel Boone Sal Fink Paul Bunyan

Hero or Heroine


Bully or Challenge

bear pirates log jam in river

How does the author describe the hero or heroine?

great trapper, hunter, soldier; preeminent bear wrestler of his day; helped colonists settle Kentucky

almost always happy; screams the leaves off trees; able to use lightning bolt as sword

outrageously huge; gentle and kind; unbelievably strong; happy to be of help

How does the author describe the bully or challenge?

size of a bus; never gave up trying to beat Daniel

mean and smelly; try to make Sal their slave

has twists and turns that won’t let logs float downstream

How does the tall tale end?

Daniel defeats bear, joins Shawnee Indians, later goes back to helping settlers and bear wrestling

Sal frees one arm and grabs a lightning bolt, defeats the pirates, shatters the bolt with a scream, gives pieces to army for ammunition

Paul harnesses Babe to the riverbank; she pulls the kinks out of the river so logs can flow; Paul and Babe stop logging to plant trees and watch birds

Set a Purpose for Rereading• Have students turn to page 16. Say: Until now,

we have been thinking about tall tales from the perspective of the reader. Learning the features of tall tales has helped us be critical readers. Now we

Focus on Vocabulary: Word Origins• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the

“Focus on Words” activity on page 21 using BLM 3. Have groups of students share their findings.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Divide the class into four teams. Assign a target word to each team. Have teams prepare a poster for their word using the information they compiled on BLM 3 as well as additional information they find when researching the word. Remind them to include images as well as text on their posters. Suggest that they also investigate and analyze words that share their word’s roots. Invite teams to present their posters to the class.



17 horizon Greek horizein, “to bound, define,” from horos, “boundary”

the line where the sky and Earth seem to meet

18 telescope Greek tele-, “far” + skopos, skopein, “to watch”

an instrument that lets people see long distances

18 posterior Latin posterior, “after, later, behind,” from posterus, “coming after,” from post, “after”

the rear parts of the body; buttocks

19 impending Latin im-, in-, “in, into” + pendere, “to hang”

about to occur

Reflect and Review • Ask and discuss the following questions. How have you used the new words you learned this

week in your daily life? Which tall tale character do you think is most heroic?

Most likable? Why? How can you use word origins and hyperbole as

a writer?


with a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on reading to express anticipation and mood. Ask pairs of students to find three funny parts of the tale. Encourage them to experiment with using tone of voice and facial expression to express the humorous mood. For example, they might use a faster pace and a wide-eyed innocent facial expression to express the outrageous exaggerations on page 17.

Day 4 (cont.) Day 5



• Read step 2. Say: In the tales we read, the main character uses his or her abilities to solve a problem caused by a bully—a person, animal, or force of nature. For example, Paul Bunyan uses his super strength and pet ox Babe to defeat a river by straightening out its curves. Who or what could our bully be? What other characters will we need? What are their traits? What might they do based on these traits? Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.

• Read step 3. Say: Before you’re ready to write, you need a setting and plot. “Sal Fink” takes place on the Mississippi River. This is a natural setting for the plot, since Sal and her dad live and work on the Mississippi and pirates were a threat on major rivers. When you write your tall tale, think about what setting is right for your characters. What plot, or actions, will help show the abilities of our hero and how he or she solves a problem? Choose one of the heroes and bullies the class has brainstormed, and work as a group to construct a possible setting and plot.

Build Comprehension: Identify Cause and Effect• Explain: When authors write, they show why

things happen and what happens as a result of certain actions. In tall tales, actions sometimes have surprising and amusing effects. For example, when Daniel Boone stops running, the bear runs into him and bounces off. Stopping is the cause; the bear hitting Daniel and bouncing off is the effect. Paying attention to cause-and-effect relationships helps readers follow the plot and better understand the characters’ actions.

• Model: Paul Bunyan’s parents anchored his cradle in the ocean because he was too big for the house. Paul’s giant size was the cause; anchoring the cradle in the ocean was the effect. In a story, an effect often becomes the cause of a new event. Because his crib was anchored in the ocean, Paul caused a tidal wave while rocking himself to sleep. Rocking himself to sleep on the ocean was the cause; the tidal wave was the effect.

• Guide Practice. Invite students to work in small groups to identify cause-and-effect relationships in each tall tale. Challenge them to see who can find the longest chain of related causes and effects. Ask each group to share their findings with the class.

are going to put on a different hat. We are going to reread “Paul Bunyan” and think like writers. We’ll pay attention to the annotations in the margins. These annotations will help us understand what the author did and why she did it.

Reread “Paul Bunyan”• Place students in groups based on their reading levels.

Ask students to reread the tall tale silently or whisper-read and to pay attention to the annotations.

After ReadingAnalyze the Mentor Text• Read and discuss the mentor annotations with the

whole group.

Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment• Use the Comprehension Question Card with small

groups of students to practice answering text-dependent questions.

• Say: Today I will help you learn how to answer Take It Apart! questions. The answer to a Take It Apart! question is not stated in the book. You must think like the author to figure out the answer.

• Model. Read the Take It Apart! question. Say: This question asks me to analyze text structure and organization. I know because it says “What text structure. . . ?” Now I need to look for other important information in the question. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I need to look for information about Babe’s cry on page 18. The author says that Babe sounded like a baby person when she cried. The word like compares Babe’s cry to the cry of a human baby. The author used a comparison text structure.

• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Take It Apart! questions.

Analyze the Writer’s Craft• Ask students to turn to page 22. Explain: Over the

next few days, you will have the opportunity to write your own tall tales. First, let’s think about how the author wrote “Paul Bunyan.” When she developed this tall tale, she followed certain steps. You can follow these same steps to write your own tall tales.

• Read step 1. Say: The first thing you’ll do is decide on a hero or heroine who uses special strengths or skills to solve a problem. Let’s look again at the descriptions of the heroes and heroines in the tall tales we read. (Write characters’ names and special skills on chart paper.) What hero or heroine would you like to create? For example, I might write a tall tale about a girl with super speed who chases a runaway rocket. What other heroes or heroines can you think of? Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.

Day 5 (cont.)


10Three AmericAn TAll TAles ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC

Write a Tall Tale• Use the suggested daily schedule to guide

students through the writing-process steps. Allow approximately 45 to 60 minutes per day. As students work independently, circulate around the room and monitor student progress. Confer with individual students to discuss their ideas and help them move forward. Use the explicit mini-lessons, conferencing strategies, and assessment rubrics in Using Genre Models to Teach Writing for additional support.

• Before students begin planning their tall tales, pass out copies of BLM 5 (Tall Tale Checklist). Review the characteristics and conventions of writing that will be assessed. Tell students that they will use this checklist when they complete their drafts.

• This daily plan incorporates the generally accepted six traits of writing as they pertain to tall tales.

Days 6–7: Plan • Ask students to use BLM 6 (Tall Tale Planning Guide)

to brainstorm the hero, bully, other characters, setting, and plot for their tall tales.

• Encourage students to refer to the “Features of a Tall Tale” web on page 3 and to the steps in “The Writer’s Craft” on pages 22–23 of the book.

• Confer with individual students and focus on their ideas. Did students develop a hero or heroine with superhuman strength and skills? Did they establish who or what the bully is early in the story and identify the problem the bully causes?

Days 8–9: Draft • Tell students that they will be using their completed

Planning Guides to begin drafting their fables. • Say: Remember, when writers draft their ideas, they

focus on getting the ideas on paper. They can cross things out and make mistakes in spelling. What’s important is to focus on developing your characters, setting, and plot. You will have an opportunity to make corrections and improvements later.

• Confer with students as they complete their drafts. Use the Tall Tale Checklist to draw students’ attention to characteristics of the tall tale genre that they may have overlooked. Focus on how students have organized their ideas and the voice of the writer. Did students introduce the hero or heroine and the setting at the beginning of the tall tale? Did they set up a problem caused by a bully and later show a resolution by the hero? Does the tall tale have a strong voice? Will the voice keep readers interested?

• Pair students for peer conferencing.

Days 10–11: Edit and Revise • Based on your observations of students’ writing,

select appropriate mini-lessons from Using Genre Models to Teach Writing.

• Remind students to use the Tall Tale Checklist as they edit and revise their tales independently.

• Confer with students focusing on sentence fluency, word choice, and conventions. Did students include both long and short sentences? Do the sentences read smoothly? Have students used interesting words and phrases? Did they include examples of hyperbole? Did they use appropriate spelling, punctuation, and grammar?

• You may want students to continue their editing and revision at home.

Days 12–13: Create Final Draft and Illustrations • Ask students to rewrite or type a final draft of their

tall tales.• Invite students to illustrate their final drafts with one

or more drawings that depict specific characters or events in their tall tales.

• Confer with students about their publishing plans and deadlines.

Days 14–15: Publish and Share• Explain: Authors work long and hard to develop

their works. You have worked very hard. And one of the great joys of writing is when you can share it with others. Authors do this in many ways. They publish their books so that people can buy them. They make their work available on the Internet. They hold readings. We can share our writing, too.

• Use one or more of the ideas below for sharing students’ work: Make a class display of students’ completed tall tales. Hold a class reading in which students can read their tales to one another and/or to parents. Create a binder of all the tales and loan it to the library so that other students can read them.

Create a binder of all the tales for your classroom library.

Days 6–15

Name Date


Title:

Features of the Genre Checklist Yes No 1. My tall tale has a strong lead. 2. My tall tale has a setting with time and place. 3. The main characters are based on real people. 4. The main character (hero or heroine) has superhuman

strength and skills. 5. The hero has a helper. 6. The hero outwits the “bully” in the tall tale. 7. I tell the problem at the beginning of the tall tale. 8. I have 3 to 5 events in my tall tale. 9. I have a solution to the problem in the tall tale. 10. My tall tale is funny with exaggerations. 11. I used figurative language in my tall tale.

Quality Writing Checklist Yes No I looked for and corrected . . .

• run-on sentences • sentence fragments • subject/verb agreement • correct verb tense • punctuation • capitalization • spelling • indented paragraphs

Tall Tale Checklist

Name Date


Name DateName Date

Tall Tale Planning GuideDirections: Use the steps below to plan your own tall tale.

1. Decide on a hero or heroine. _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

2. Brainstorm characters.

Characters Traits, Actions Based on TraitsCharacter 1:

Character 2:

Character 3:

Character 4:

3. Brainstorm setting and plot.

Setting

Problem

Events

Solution


Name Date

Three AmericAn TAll TAles ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLCBlm 1

HyperboleDirections: Read each sentence. Underline each example of hyperbole.

1. Janine was so energetic that she could clean twelve houses in half an hour.

2. That summer it rained so much that we turned the desert into a swimming pool.

3. The wind was so cold that it froze a forest fire.

4. As the hurricane blew, Big John said, “That’s a pleasant little breeze.”

5. Pokotulu tore the top off a mountain and used it as a glass to drink the lake dry.

Directions: Complete each sentence with an example of hyperbole.

6. I was so hungry that I could have _________________________

7. Quinn was so happy to win the contest that he ___________ .

Directions: Write your own sentence that includes hyperbole.

8. _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________


Name Date


Analyze CharacterDirections: Use the chart below to analyze pairs of characters from each tall tale.

Daniel Boone

CharacterDescription, Feelings, Traits Exaggerated Aspects

Examples

Sal Fink

Character Description, Feelings, Traits Exaggerated Aspects

Examples

Paul Bunyan

Character Description, Feelings, TraitsExaggerated Aspects

Examples


Name Date


Focus on Word OriginsDirections: Reread each tall tale. Use a dictionary to find the origins, meanings, and definitions of the words from the texts.



7 devoid

7 preeminent

8 expert

9 subdued



13 malevolent

13 malodorous

13 antisocial

14 incapacitated



17 horizon

18 telescope

18 posterior

19 impending


Name Date


Make Connections Across TextsDirections: Use the chart to compare and contrast the three tall tales.


Hero or Heroine

Bully or Challenge

How does the author describe the hero or heroine?

How does the author describe the bully or challenge?

How does the tall tale end?


Name Date


Title:

Features of the Genre Checklist Yes No 1. My tall tale has a strong lead. 2. My tall tale has a setting with time and place. 3. The main characters are based on real people. 4. The main character (hero or heroine) has superhuman

strength and skills. 5. The hero has a helper. 6. The hero outwits the “bully” in the tall tale. 7. I tell the problem at the beginning of the tall tale. 8. I have 3 to 5 events in my tall tale. 9. I have a solution to the problem in the tall tale. 10. My tall tale is funny with exaggerations. 11. I used figurative language in my tall tale.

Quality Writing Checklist Yes No I looked for and corrected . . .

• run-on sentences • sentence fragments • subject/verb agreement • correct verb tense • punctuation • capitalization • spelling • indented paragraphs

Tall Tale Checklist


Name Date


Tall Tale Planning GuideDirections: Use the steps below to plan your own tall tale.

1. Decide on a hero or heroine. _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

2. Brainstorm characters.

Characters Traits, Actions Based on TraitsCharacter 1:

Character 2:

Character 3:

Character 4:

3. Brainstorm setting and plot.

Setting

Problem

Events

Solution


Genre: T Teacher’S Guide Daniel Boone Sal Fink · Daniel Boone Sal Fink Paul Bunyan Teacher’S...

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