Lesson 24: A Single Shard, Chapter 9, Part 2

Quick Write

Say these Directions: Respond to the following Quick Write prompt:

• Ask: In what ways have you been more like a mentor? In what ways have you been more like an apprentice?

Invite two or three students to share their responses with the class.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Today, you’ll continue discussing the role of mentorship in A Single Shard. As you reread Chapter 9, reflect on other connections between your personal experiences and relationships and those of the characters in the text.

Fluency Practice

Introduce the Activity: Have students turn to pp. 96–97 of A Single Shard. Tell them they will be practicing fluency—the ability to speak naturally and easily—by reading an excerpt from the text using prosody. Students should read from “Tree-ear tied the sandals together” through “. . .what he wished most to do!”

Say: Prosody is the way your voice sounds when you read or speak. It includes how you use expression, rhythm, pacing, and tone to make your words more interesting and meaningful.

For example, using prosody while reading means you don’t read in a flat, boring voice—you change your voice to match the feeling of the sentence, pause at the right times, and emphasize important words. Reading with prosody can bring you and your listeners closer to the meaning of a story, helping you understand characters’ moods and the tone of a particular section of text.

Say these Directions: Respond to the following questions.

• Ask: What does it mean to read with prosody?

  • Reading with prosody means reading with expression. It means changing your voice to show the meaning and emotion in a text.

• Ask: What does reading with prosody sound like?

  • Reading with prosody sounds like pausing at commas and periods, speaking with more excitement at exclamation points, and using an upward inflection when asking a question. It sounds like emphasizing certain words or speeding up or slowing down based on who is talking or what is happening in the text.

Model Fluent Reading: Model reading the paragraph that begins “Potters have not always been considered artists” (p. 97) aloud. Demonstrate prosody as you read by adjusting your voice to match the mood of the dialogue and changing your pace to reflect the events in the text.

• Ask: While I was reading, what did I do to make sure my reading was fluent?

  • You slowed down at commas. You spoke slowly and deliberately to show that Crane-man was speaking and sharing wisdom. You spoke with a more excited tone when reading what Tree-ear was thinking. You read with prosody.

Class Echo-Read: Reread the paragraph from p. 97 aloud. This time, have students read aloud with you.

• Ask: How did you use prosody as you read? How did using prosody bring you closer to the meaning of the text?

Partner Read: Place students in pairs. Remind them to focus on reading with prosody. Have the first partner read the next paragraph aloud (“Year after year . . .”) while the second partner listens, then provides feedback. Then prompt them to switch roles, having the second partner read the same section aloud while the first partner listens, then provides feedback. Bring the class together again.

• Ask: Did you experience any challenges reading with prosody? Why or why not?

• Ask: How can we improve our ability to read with prosody?

  • by taking note of punctuation marks; by determining who is talking in a text; by distinguishing between narration and dialogue; by determining what emotion is being communicated in the text

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Today, you will reread Chapter 9 of A Single Shard with a partner. As you partner read, focus on using prosody to read fluently.

Part A: Partner Read and Annotate Chapter 9 (RL.6.3) (15 minutes)

Say these Directions: Reread Chapter 9 of A Single Shard with a partner. As you reread the text, annotate with a focus on the following prompts:

• Ask: How does Tree-ear’s relationship with Crane-man change? How does Tree-ear’s relationship with Min change? What interactions show these changes? Use evidence from the text to support your ideas.

  • Tree-ear’s relationship with Min shifts when Min asks Tree-ear if he knows someone who could make a basket to carry the vases. This shows that Min trusts Tree-ear’s judgment.

  • Tree-ear’s relationship with Crane-man changes when Tree-ear guilts Crane-man into helping Ajima in exchange for food. Even though Tree-ear and Crane-man worked together to survive, Crane-man was always Tree-ear’s protector. Now, Tree-ear is Crane-man’s protector.

  • Tree-ear’s relationship with Min continues to shift as Tree-ear packs the straw container and prepares the jiggeh. Earlier in the novel, Min was very critical of Tree-ear; now, he trusts him to carry his work to Songdo.

  • Tree-ear’s relationship with Crane-man changes when Tree-ear gives Crane-man the clay monkey. In the past, Crane-man made things for Tree-ear to keep or wear. Now, Crane-man is honored to have something made for him by Tree-ear.

Part B: Small-Group Discussions (RL.6.3) (15 minutes)

Small-Group Discussions

Organize the class into small groups of three or four students. Have students discuss the following prompts with their groups. Prompt students to record their small-group discussions using the Reflect and Respond graphic organizer.

Say these Directions: In small groups, use the prompts to guide a discussion of each character—Tree-ear, Crane-man, and Min—and the relationships between them.

• Say: As you discuss the relationships between the characters, remember to cite evidence from the text to support your ideas. Respectfully ask and answer questions and build on your group members’ ideas.

• Ask: What are their roles in each relationship? Does one person rely on another? If so, in what ways?

  • Tree-ear and Crane-man: Both Tree-ear and Crane-man rely on each other. Tree-ear relies on Crane-man for advice and guidance, both on how to survive and on important moral issues. Crane-man relies increasingly on Tree-ear for his survival in the form of food from Ajima.

  • Crane-man and Min: Min relies on Crane-man to make a straw basket to carry the vases to Songdo. Crane-man indirectly relies on Min for food through Tree-ear and Ajima.

  • Tree-ear and Min: Tree-ear relies on Min for knowledge of how to make pottery; Min provides Tree-ear with an apprenticeship as well as a daily meal. Min relies increasingly on Tree-ear’s hard work to make his pottery, including chopping wood, collecting and purifying the clay, and preparing the kiln. Min is also relying on Tree-ear to safely carry the vases from Ch’ulp’o to Songdo; without Tree-ear, Min may never be awarded a royal commission.

Invite groups to share their responses with the class.

Class Discussion

Say these Directions: Review the following prompts and engage in whole-class discussion to analyze your responses and those of your classmates:

• Ask: How do Tree-ear’s evolving relationships with Crane-man and Min in Chapter 9 show that values, as well as skills, are passed from one generation to the next? Support your ideas with evidence from the text.

  • Throughout A Single Shard, Crane-man has taught Tree-ear important values such as hard work and caring for others. In Chapter 9, Tree-ear’s relationship with Crane-man shifts as Tree-ear finds ways to care for Crane-man while he is on his journey to Songdo.

Quick Write

Say these Directions: Respond to the following Quick Write prompt:

• Ask: What are the qualities of a good mentor? Is Min a good mentor? Why or why not?

  • Good mentors teach, guide, and provide wisdom to mentees. In my opinion, Min is not a very good mentor; Tree-ear has had to learn mostly by observing, and he is afraid to ask Min to explain things he does not understand.

Instruct students to respond in their Journal to the following prompts:

• Compare a relationship in your life to one of those in the story. Use the Venn Diagram graphic organizer or another visual to show similarities and differences.

Then read Chapter 10 through “. . . what seemed like every one of his muscles.” Respond to the following prompt:

• As you read, focus on the quote “We are afraid of the things we do not know—just because we do not know them.” What do you think this means within the context of A Single Shard?