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Lesson 3

We will continue to read legendary stories as we develop skills to respond to questions, read closely, attend to details, and analyze relationships. We will learn about the literary concepts of narration, narrative structure, personal narrative, and memoir by reading a personal narrative by Leslie Marmon Silko.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I use questions to independently analyze ideas and details from Silko’s “Introduction"?

  • Can I use questions and a tool to do a close reading of a narrative vignette from Storyteller?

Texts

Core

  • Unit Reader
    • “Introduction,” “But Sometimes What We Call ‘Memory,’” “Coyotes and the Stro’ro’ka Dancers,” excerpts from Storyteller, Leslie Marmon Silko, Viking Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 2012
  • Digital Access
    • “Coyote Dances with a Star,” Joe Hayes, Joe Hayes, 2016

Optional

  • Tradebook
    • Excerpts from The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros, Vintage Books, 2009

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Read – Write

We will continue to develop skills to respond to questions, read closely, attend to details, and analyze relationships by examining the cultural and personal stories presented by Leslie Marmon Silko in her introduction to the 2012 edition of her story collection, Storyteller.

Step 1

Review the first two pages of Silko’s introduction toStoryteller, noticing what you have annotated in response to the reading questions below. Follow along as your teacher works with the opening paragraphs of the essay to model annotation and the use of an Attending to Details Tool in response to one of the following questions:

  1. How does Silko explain and support her opening claim that "nearly everything of consequence that we tell one another involves narration or story"?

  2. What does Silko suggest about why stories were so important in "the survival of the human species"?

  3. How might we summarize what Silko is saying about her Pueblo culture when she says (in Paragraph 7) "The entire culture, all the knowledge, experience, and beliefs, were kept in the human memory of the Pueblo people in the form of narratives that were told and retold from generation to generation. The people perceived themselves in the world as part of an ancient continuous story composed of innumerable bundles of other stories"?

  4. How might what Silko says about storytelling in her Pueblo culture be seen as true for other cultures as well?

Step 2

Develop a new text-based observation from the details your teacher has noted on the model Attending to Details Tool and from what you have annotated on the text.

Compare your observation and its supporting details with those of a reading partner.

Discuss similarities and differences between these observations based on the question you considered and your different reading perspectives.

Step 3

Discuss the following questions as a class:

  1. What kinds of stories did Silko’s relatives tell her when she was a girl?

  2. How did those stories represent different aspects of her evolving culture?

  3. What might Silko mean when she concludes by claiming that "Old stories and new stories are essential"?

Activity 2: Read – Write

We will read and annotate Silko’s memoir vignette, “But Sometimes What We Call ‘Memory,’” and analyze key details from the narrative.

Use the following questions to guide your reading and annotation of details from Silko’s memoir vignette, "But Sometimes What We Call ‘Memory.’"

  1. What are the key ideas about storytelling conveyed in Paragraphs 1-3 in Silko’s short narrative?

  2. What are the key narrative details of the story that Silko relates about how "the coyotes finally got Rooster too"?

Activity 3: Discuss

We will discuss and compare the two Silko coyote stories in terms of their subjects, plots, and forms, and then compare them to Joe Hayes’s coyote story.

Discuss and compare the two Silko stories with the class, considering the following questions:

  1. Both stories are narratives about coyotes. How are they different in their depiction and presentation of a coyote tale?

  2. Though similar in subject, the stories are told in very different ways: the first as a narrative poem and the second as a remembered vignette. How do the forms of the stories influence your experience in listening to or reading them? What specific details from the text most influence your listening or reading experience?

  3. How do Silko’s two stories relate or compare to "Coyote Dances with a Star"?

Activity 4: Read

We will work with vocabulary and adding words to our Vocabulary Journals.

For this activity, you will use a Vocabulary Journal, which you will maintain for the entire unit. You might use a Vocabulary in Context Tool for words you can decipher from the text; for others, you might use morphology to decipher the meaning, or a reference resource to check if your meaning is accurate. For some words, your teacher might present you with definitions.

Write down the words and definitions in your Vocabulary Journal. For each word, identify the vocabulary strategy (e.g., context, morphology, reference resource) you used to determine its meaning.

Activity 5: Read – Write – Discuss

We will interact with the words we defined to cement our understanding of their meaning.

Work with a partner or group to respond to the vocabulary exercises, as directed by your teacher.

Activity 6: Write

We will prepare to retell a legendary story for the Section Diagnostic by researching a Myth, folk tale, fairy tale, cultural story, or parable that we find interesting and meaningful.

Access the Section 1 Diagnostic Checklist and read the question and task you will be responding to.

Task Question: What legendary story can you tell?

Write a short narrative that demonstrates your emerging voice and abilities as a storyteller. Your narrative should take one of the following formats:

  • Option 1: a story that has been passed down in your own family

  • Option 2: a legend, myth, or fairy tale that you have always liked or found meaningful

  • Option 3: a coyote story or other folktale that presents a commentary on life

  • Option 4: a story or parable drawn from your own cultural or religious background

In your short narrative, be sure to do the following:

  • Organize your story in a structure that makes sense for your purpose.

  • Use vivid details and sensory language to develop the characters and plot and bring the story to life.

  • Maintain consistent verb tense.

You will have the opportunity to present your story to peers through a dramatic reading in Lesson 8.

Think about legendary stories you have found meaningful since you were younger. These could be myths, folk tales, fairy tales, cultural stories, or parables that you have read, seen interpreted through a movie, or studied as part of your faith. Your stories could also be ones that have been passed down over time in your family or your culture. Talk with your family and friends about stories you might consider.

For the Section Diagnostic, you will retell this story in your own words to practice and develop your skills as a storyteller. If you are retelling a fairy tale or another published story, you might want to have a copy of the original story to use as a reference when you plan and write your retelling of it. If you are retelling a family or cultural story that you have heard, you might want to have someone tell it to you again and jot down the key details of the story to work from.

Research options for the story you will retell, making a list of possibilities and locating versions of the stories you might use to guide your retelling. Be prepared to bring the story you are considering and talk about it for the Section Diagnostic.