Lesson 27: A Single Shard, Chapter 11

Turn and Talk

Say these Directions: Take out your Stages of Learning graphic organizers. Use the Turn and Talk routine to share the information you added while reading Chapter 11 of A Single Shard for homework.

Engage students in a brief whole-class discussion using the following prompts:

• Ask: Which stages of learning does Tree-ear show in Chapter 11?

  • He shows the refining and creating phases.

• Ask: What details in Chapter 11 support your response?

  • Tree-ear uses what he’s learned from watching Min to create a small clay turtle. He shows the refining phase by using his knowledge of clay to find a way to protect the edges of the shard.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Throughout A Single Shard, Tree-ear has gone through various stages of learning. As the novel comes to a close, we will continue to examine his progress and how he responds and changes as a result of his experiences and relationships.

Using Context Clues

Target Words: toduk-nom, retched, descent

Preparation:

• Select one target vocabulary word from the lesson text.

• Identify:

  • A key sentence containing the word

  • At least one sentence before and/or after that provides contextual support

Say these Directions: Take out your Unit Vocabulary graphic organizers to start the Context Clues in Action routine.

Step 1: Display the Key Sentence (Teacher-Focused)

Display the key sentence from the text with the target word highlighted.

• “He was one of the dreaded toduk-nom, the bandits who hid throughout the countryside and on the outskirts of cities, emerging only to rob weary travelers.” (p. 122)

Read the sentence aloud.

• Say: This sentence includes a word we may not fully understand yet. Instead of looking it up, we’re going to use the context—the words and sentences around it—to figure out what it most likely means. Our target word is toduk-nom.

Prompt students to add toduk-nom to the first column of their Unit Vocabulary graphic organizers.

Step 2: Read the Surrounding Sentences (Student Exploration)

Display or reread the sentences before and/or after the key sentence.

• Say: As we reread these sentences on p. 122, listen for words or ideas that help explain what is happening or describe the word more clearly.

Step 3: Identify Context Clues

Say these Directions: Work with a partner to answer these questions:

• Ask: What is happening in this part of the text?

• Ask: Which words or phrases help explain the target word?

• Ask: Do the surrounding sentences:

  • Explain the word?

  • Give an example?

  • Show how a character feels or reacts?

  • Restate the idea in a different way?

Cold-call pairs to name the exact words or phrases they identified as context clues. Annotate or underline those clues in the displayed key sentence.

Step 4: Infer a Meaning

• Ask: Based on these clues, what does the word most likely mean in this text?

Accept approximate but text-supported meanings. Refine student language as needed to increase precision.

Prompt students to use this information to populate the second column of their Unit Vocabulary graphic organizers.

Step 5: Test the Meaning in Context

Substitute the inferred meaning back into the key sentence.

• Ask: If we replace the word with our meaning, does the sentence still make sense?

Confirm or revise the inferred meaning together.

Prompt students to add the class definition to the third column of their Unit Vocabulary graphic organizers.

• Say: Work with a partner to locate a verified definition for each word using a print or digital dictionary or other reference material. Note the part of speech and pronunciation for each word as well.

Step 6: Quick Application

Say these Directions: Draw the meaning of the word toduk-nom in the fourth column of your Unit Vocabulary graphic organizers. Then write an original sentence using the word toduk-nom in the fifth column.

Repeat this process for the target vocabulary words retched and then, if time allows, descent.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: These words appear in a significant scene in Chapter 11. Knowing their meaning helps us better understand exactly what is happening in the novel. Today, as we discuss Chapter 11, pay attention to the way these words are used.

Part A: Conflict and Character Development in Chapter 11 (RL.6.3) (15 minutes)

Say these Directions: Summarize the events of Chapter 11.

• Tree-ear makes it to the top of the Rock of the Falling Flowers.

• He is attacked by two bandits, who assume his jiggeh is full of rice.

• The bandits discover the vases, realize they cannot sell them, and decide to throw them over the side of the cliff for fun.

• Tree-ear goes to the bottom of the cliff to see if the vases survived. He finds that the second vase is less smashed and finds a shard of pottery the size of his palm.

• He uses a piece of raw clay to protect the edges of the shard and decides to take it to Songdo.

• Say: Reflect on the predictions you made during the Launch in Lesson 22.

• Ask: What did you predict would happen when Tree-ear reached the top of the Rock of the Falling Flowers? Was your prediction accurate? Why or why not?

  • I predicted that Tree-ear would have to demonstrate some act of courage at the top of the rock. My prediction was accurate because Tree-ear was brave when confronted by the bandits and showed courage by deciding to continue his journey to Songdo.

Next, revisit the concept of a plot diagram (or story arc) with students. Project a simple story arc on the board for students to see. Remind students that in Lesson 6, they read about the five main parts of a plot: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

• Say: Chapter 11 is the climax of the novel, or the part with the greatest tension. Typically, during the climax of a story, the character is forced to make a difficult decision. In Chapter 11, Tree-ear experiences a conflict, or struggle that he must overcome, that helps move the plot forward. In literature, a conflict can be external (between the character and an outside force) or internal (within the character).

• Ask: Is the conflict between Tree-ear and the toduk-nom external or internal? What makes you say that?

  • The conflict between Tree-ear and the toduk-nom is external. It is between Tree-ear and an outside force. In this case, the outside force is another character.

• Ask: In what way does Tree-ear also experience internal conflict? What evidence supports your response?

  • Tree-ear experiences internal conflict when he confronts his feelings of failure and decides whether he should go back to Ch’ulp’o or continue on to Songdo.

• Say: In literature, the element of conflict and how a character responds to or changes because of it can reveal new knowledge or understanding of the character..

• Ask: How does the conflict in Chapter 11 influence Tree-ear? What details support your response?

  • During the conflict detailed in Chapter 11 , Tree-ear goes from scared and full of shame for his perceived failure (a topic throughout the novel) to showing a type of courage he has not yet shown by finding a way to continue to Songdo despite his setback.

Think-Pair-Share

Have students use the Think-Pair-Share routine to respond to the following prompts.

Say these Directions: Before beginning Think-Pair-Share, reflect on your responses before sharing your ideas with a partner and then the whole class.

• Ask: How does Tree-ear’s decision show how he has been impacted by what his mentors have taught him? How does creativity play a role in this situation? Use details from the story to support your ideas.

  • Tree-ear’s decision to continue on to Songdo shows the value of perseverance, which is something Crane-man taught him directly and Min taught him indirectly. Even though he experiences a major setback, he keeps trying. Tree-ear realizes that he does not have a whole vase to bring to the royal emissary, but he does have one beautiful shard that shows the beauty of Min’s work. He finds a creative solution by taking only a single shard of pottery, protected around the edges by clay, to Songdo.

• Ask: Why does Tree-ear choose to save a single shard? What does this decision reveal about how a craft or artwork can represent cultural value, identity, or memory across generations? Use details from the story to support your ideas.

  • Tree-ear chooses to save a single shard so that his journey and all his and Min’s hard work will not have been in vain. He believes the craftsmanship in just that single shard is enough to represent Min and the pottery tradition of Ch’ulp’o. This decision reveals that a craft can represent cultural value, showing what is important to Tree-ear and the place he comes from.

Part B: Perseverance, Courage, and Innovation (RL.6.3, RL.6.4) (15 minutes)

Review the meanings of the words perseverance, courage, and innovation.

1. Ask: Where do you see evidence of characters displaying perseverance, courage, or innovation in chapter 11?

• • Perseverance: Tree-ear keeps trying to protect the vases while the robbers attack him, and even after they are smashed, he continues searching along the riverbank for any surviving pieces instead of giving up on his mission.

  • Courage: Tree-ear feels ashamed and briefly thinks about jumping off the cliff, but he remembers Crane-man’s words and chooses to live and face Min, showing bravery in accepting the consequences of what happened.

  • Innovation: Tree-ear comes up with a new solution by taking a single shard of the broken vase and deciding to continue to Songdo so he can still show the pottery’s craftsmanship, even though the vases were destroyed.

• Ask: Based on what you notice in Chapter 11, what relationship do you notice among these character traits (perseverance, courage, and innovation)?

  • In Chapter 11, perseverance, courage, and innovation are closely connected and build on each other. First, Tree-ear shows perseverance by not giving up after the robbers destroy the vases and by continuing to search along the riverbank. This perseverance leads to courage when he decides not to jump off the cliff and instead faces the shame of returning to Min. Finally, his perseverance and courage allow him to think creatively and show innovation when he chooses to take a single shard and continue to Songdo. Together, these traits show that when Tree-ear keeps going through hardship, he becomes brave enough to face failure and creative enough to find a new solution.

Think-Pair-Share

Instruct students to recall the Stages of Learning graphic organizer that they began populating in Lesson 5.

Say these Directions: Use the Think-Pair-Share routine to respond to the following prompt. First reflect on your responses before sharing your ideas with a partner and then the whole class.

• Ask: How do these character traits (perseverance, courage, and innovation) connect to the stages of learning (trying, failing, refining, creating)?

  • Perseverance, courage, and innovation connect closely to the stages of learning: trying, failing, refining, and creating. Perseverance is most important during the trying and failing stages because it helps a person keep going even when the work is difficult or mistakes happen. Courage is needed when someone faces failure and must decide whether to give up or keep learning from the mistake. Innovation connects to the refining and creating stages because it involves thinking of new ideas or solutions after learning from what went wrong. Together, these traits show that learning is a process: you try something, you may fail, you bravely keep going, and then you use what you learned to improve and create something new.

• Ask: What stages of learning does Tree-ear go through in Chapter 3? Add this information to the appropriate columns of the Stages of Learning graphic organizer.

  • Observation of a master: Tree-ear watches the other potters quickly cut and carry away the clay from the riverbank. Trying: Tree-ear tries to copy the motions of the other potters when removing the clay from the riverbank. Failing: Tree-ear gets his spade stuck in the clay. He struggles to cut the clay into large blocks and has to cut them into much smaller pieces to carry them.

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

Quick Write

Say these Directions: Respond to the following writing prompt as a Quick Write:

• Ask: Explain how the events of the plot in Chapter 11 impact Tree-ear and help him continue to develop and change as a character. Include text evidence to support your ideas.

  • In Chapter 11, the events of the plot have a big impact on Tree-ear and help him grow as a character. When the robbers smash the vases, he feels ashamed and believes he has failed, thinking of it as “the most dishonorable failure,” which shows how much he now cares about responsibility and honor. He even thinks about jumping off the cliff, but he remembers Crane-man’s words that “leaping into death is not the only way to show true courage” and decides to face the consequences instead of giving up. Then he shows perseverance and innovation by searching along the river and finally deciding to continue his journey with “the single shard,” believing it can still show the beauty of Min’s work. This moment shows that Tree-ear is becoming braver, more responsible, and better able to solve problems on his own.

Have students finish reading Chapter 12 of A Single Shard. Instruct students to take notes in their Journal on the following prompt:

As you finish Chapter 12, annotate the text for descriptive language. Then respond to the following question:

• What do the descriptive details show about how art relates to heritage and identity?