Lesson 6: The Last Cuentista, Chapters 7–9

Turn and Talk

Have students take out their homework annotations from Chapters 7–9 of The Last Cuentista. Transition students into partners.

Say these Directions: Take out your annotations for Chapters 7–9 and turn and talk with a partner to discuss what you noted in response to the prompt:

• Ask: How do characters respond to the systems around them, and what choices do they make?

  • Ben quietly rebels against the systems. He values stories and understands that he has that in common with Petra, so he shares those stories with her. He says, “Happy Birthday, Petra! And . . . Enter,” as he provides her with the elective stories the Lead Monitor did not approve for her (p. 54). In Chapter 8, when he is discovered for keeping stories, he says, “A world without story is lost.” As a result of his quiet rebellion, he will be “purged” (p. 58).

Connection to Today's Learning

• Say: Now that you have read and shared your ideas about Chapters 7–9, you will practice fluent reading to convey suspense and meaning through pronunciation and prosody.

Pronunciation and Prosody Drill

Display the paragraph on p. 52 of The Last Cuentista, Chapter 7 that begins with “Ben reads aloud the story of the great warrior king . . .”

Model a fluent reading of the passage, including correct pronunciation and phrasing.

• Ask: What is the gist of this passage?

  • This paragraph tells part of the story of Gilgamesh, and it conveys Petra’s reaction to the story.

• Say: To read fluently, you must know how to pronounce words correctly. Once you have pronunciation down, you should work on prosody—the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech that conveys emotion, suspense, and meaning.

• Ask: Are there any words in this paragraph that you don’t know how to pronounce?

Help students pronounce any unfamiliar words, such as Gilgamesh, reenactment, holoscript, or Enkidu.

• Say: Listen as I model reading the first two sentences with correct pronunciation and prosody. Then, echo-read when I finish with the first two sentences.

Read the sentences aloud once with measured pacing and clear emphasis. Then invite the class to echo-read.

Say these Directions: Now read the paragraph with your partner two times. The first time, focus on clear pronunciation. The second time, focus on prosody by reflecting the sense of drama that builds in Gilgamesh’s story and Petra’s response.

After practicing pronunciation and prosody, reflect on the following question.

• Ask: How did reading this paragraph with a focus on prosody change the meaning or tone of this paragraph for you as a reader?

  • I understand that this is about a great battle and that Petra enjoys the action of it as Ben is watching the reenactment.

Connection to Today's Learning

• Say: You will use pronunciation and prosody as you reread a chapter with your group and analyze it for the events and point of view.

Part A: Analyzing Events and Point of View (RL.8.3, RL.8.6, SL.8.1.a) (20 minutes)

Jigsaw Reading

Divide students into three expert groups. Assign one group Chapter 7, one group Chapter 8, and one group Chapter 9. Students reread their assigned chapter, create a brief summary, and respond to the questions below. They should record their ideas to share later with another group.

Say these Directions: Reread your assigned chapter as a group, and work together to create a brief summary of the key events and ideas in the chapter. Then, answer the questions about your respective chapter. Record your responses so you can teach your chapter clearly to a new group.

Chapter 7

How is suspense created in the opening part of Chapter 7?

• Since the narrator is Petra, the reader feels her confusion and fear from the inside, and that limited point of view makes the danger feel immediate. Petra is “haunted by the Lead Monitor’s words: consensus, create a new history.” She admits she is scared by that and by “what Dad said” (p. 52). Additionally, we know that Petra is still awake even if Ben does not, so we feel her anxiety about being awake for “hundreds of years” (p. 51). The opening keeps us in suspense because we, as readers, know something is wrong, but Ben does not.

How is dramatic irony created at the beginning of Chapter 7? What do we as readers know that Ben does not?

• Readers know that Petra is awake and can hear everything that is going on and hear what Ben does and says. Petra believes Ben read the story to her because “he needs to hear it as much as I did” (p. 52). This creates dramatic irony because the reader knows something is wrong with Petra while Ben remains unaware.

What does Ben do for Petra, and why? How do his actions and his thoughts, "Readers and listeners should decide which stories speak to them or not," demonstrate what he believes about stories? (p. 52)

• Ben reads Petra stories and uses the Cog to share all the stories he has kept for her, including “Greek, Roman, Chinese, Norse” myths (p. 54). His actions suggest that he understands choice matters and that “all stories have value,” even if the ship’s monitors didn’t want Petra to have access (p. 52).

Chapter 8

What do we learn about Ben and the Collective in this chapter?

• At the beginning of Chapter 8, we learn that Ben is actively disobeying the orders of the Collective. He tries to save the stories before members of the Collective enter the pod. Right before he is caught, he says, “A world without story is lost” (p. 58). When the members of the Collective arrive, they attack Ben and carry him off. Someone says, “He’ll have to be purged” (p. 58). This moment shows how dangerous it is to resist the Collective and highlights how much Ben values stories.

What might “purged” mean in this context? (p. 58)

• In this context, “purged” seems to mean removed completely or wiped away. After Ben resists, there is a struggle and “Ben moans,” and then someone says, “He’ll have to be purged” (p. 58). Later, the Collective says “delete them all” when it talks about not compromising their mission, which suggests that purging could mean erasing his memory or eliminating him to maintain control (pp. 58–59).

What is the Collective’s purpose?

• The Collective’s purpose seems to be to create control and a new “history” that is not connected to Earth’s past. They want to control what the passengers do, so they do not want them to have knowledge that isn’t approved by them, like “[b]ooks from Earth; music, mythology.” (p. 59). They want to create “a new history” without memories of Earth or stories of the past interfering.

Chapter 9

What does Petra and her dad’s conversation while rock hunting reveal about who they are as people?

• Their conversation shows that Petra is curious, observant, and eager to learn meaning from the world around her. It also shows that her dad is patient and thoughtful because he takes time to teach her and connect small objects to who they are as people. For example, he tells her that they should take their time and appreciate the “gift” of the earth and take only “what you need” (p. 65). They are respectful of the land and of people. When the other people come and drill and take away rocks quickly, Petra asks why they have to do it the slow way. Her dad says, “Because that’s not who we are” (p. 64). This reveals that both Petra and her dad value respect, patience, and responsibility toward the natural world.

What does Petra’s dad value? What text evidence shows that?

• Petra’s dad values knowledge, history, and the stories hidden inside science and nature. In the rock-hunting scene, he treats rocks as clues to Earth’s past and invites Petra to think deeply about the rocks as opposed to just collecting objects. For example, he says, “When we find turquoise, it’ll be with respect” (p. 65). Additionally, he values passing on knowledge to the next generation, as he says, “Differences make things beautiful as a whole.” This evidence shows that her dad values difference and diversity, and making sure the young generation knows how to value what the earth provides.

Circulate as students share in their new groups and listen for clear summaries and use of text evidence. Prompt students to move beyond retelling by asking, “What does this reveal about the character or situation?” or “How does this moment create suspense or develop point of view?” Provide quick feedback to support students in clarifying or strengthening their explanations.

When expert groups have finished responding to questions, transition students to share their knowledge of the chapter with a new group. Have students form new groups in which each chapter is represented by a different student from one of the expert groups.

Say these Directions: Now move into a new group where each person is the expert on a different chapter. Take turns sharing your summary and your text analysis by sharing the questions you answered and using evidence from the text so your group understands all three chapters.

Check for Understanding

Provide students with a confidence continuum (i.e., 1–5). As needed, model how to demonstrate a level of confidence using the continuum.

Part B: Analyzing Central Ideas in Chapters 7–9 (RL.8.2) (10 minutes)

Conduct a whole-class discussion analyzing how Chapters 7–9 develop central ideas about memory, story, and identity.

• Say: A central idea is the message that the author wants readers to understand. An author develops a central idea throughout the text, building on it as the chapters progress. In Chapters 7–9, Petra often returns to memories of family, Earth, and stories. To analyze the central idea, think about what that repetition suggests.

Use the following questions to guide the class discussion. Encourage students to use their homework annotations and notes from the earlier group discussion in their responses.

• Ask: Why does Petra need to hold on to memories and stories?

  • In Chapter 7, Petra realizes “Fire snake has already come home to its mother, Earth” (p. 54). She knows that she’ll “never again snuggle into Lita . . . stare out at the red, gold, and brown rocks” of Earth (p. 54). This realization makes it even more urgent for Petra to remember the stories of her family and of other cultures to bring along with her to the new civilization.

• Ask: What do Petra’s memories of family and culture demonstrate about her sense of self in Chapters 7–9? Cite evidence to support your response.

  • Petra’s memories show that her sense of self is rooted in family, culture, and identity. In Chapter 8, Petra recalls her grandmother saying, “Proclaim to the universe what you will be.” Petra has a strong vision of what she plans, which includes, “I will always say what I really feel” (p. 59). This shows that Petra has a strong sense of self and plans to stay true to herself even in the face of potential memory erasure by the Collective.

• Ask: What central ideas are developed across these chapters?

  • These chapters begin to develop the central idea that memory and stories are critical to one’s identity and history. For example, when Ben is watching over the pods, he listens to the first story ever recorded and talks about the idea that “all stories have value” (p. 52). And he tries to protect the preservation of stories when the Collective tries to remove them, stating, “‘A world without story is lost” (p. 58). The novel suggests that stories are not extras to keep only when life is easy; they are part of what makes a person fully human.

Quick Write

Transition students into reflecting on their learning from the lesson.

Say these Directions: Write two to three sentences in response to the prompt below. Use at least two specific details from Chapters 7–9 to show how the author develops the idea that memories matter.

• How does the author develop the idea that memories matter?

  • Optional Sentence Starter: The author develops the idea that memories matter because __________.

    • The author develops the idea that memories matter because they keep Petra connected to her real identity when the world around her is trying to obliterate it. In the tense scene in Chapter 8, Petra thinks, “If I can have one final memory . . . , it has to be perfect and special” (p. 59). Then, she recalls Lita telling her to “proclaim to the universe what you will be.” The fact that her perfect, special memory is about her identity shows that memories make a person who they are.

Instruct students to take notes in their Journal on the following prompt:

• Review Chapters 1–9 of The Last Cuentista to observe Higuera’s narrative writing craft. As you review, identify one key moment you might want to rewrite from a different character’s point of view other than Petra.

  • What happens in this moment?

  • Which character’s perspective would you choose, and why?