genre: l teacher’s guide robin hood shoots for the queen ...robin hood shoots for the queen the...

1 Three european Legends ©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• Make judgments• Analyze character

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 dramatic expression

Writing• Writer’s tools: Word choice• Write a legend using writing-process

steps

Robin Hood Shoots for the Queen

The Story of William Tell

The Sword in the Stone

Teacher’S Guide

Level U/50

Unit at a Glance

Day 1 Prepare to Read Day 4 Read “The Sword in the Stone”*

Day 2 Read “Robin Hood Shoots for the Queen”*

Day 5 Reread “The Sword in the Stone”*

Day 3 Read “The Story of William Tell”* Days 6–15 Write a legend 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: Legends

Y07180_G5_Legends1Euro_TG_CB_CSKS_Rev3.indd 1 10/24/10 11:21 PM

2 Three european Legends ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC

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

• Ask students to turn to pages 5–7. Say: The stories in this book are based on three legendary heroes from Europe in the Middle Ages. Let’s read about these three popular heroes.

• Have three students read aloud the background information while others follow along.

• Say: Historians and others are unsure whether any of these legendary heroes actually existed. What can you infer, or tell, from this fact? Allow responses. Prompt students to understand that legends do not have to be about real people; they can be about fictional characters.

Introduce the Tools for Readers and Writers: Word Choice• Read aloud “Word Choice” on page 4. • Say: Fiction writers choose their words with great

care. Selecting just the right word helps writers communicate their thoughts and feelings clearly. Legends are filled with language that helps readers become part of the story. Let’s practice identifying effective word choice so we can recognize it in the legends we read.

• Distribute BLM 1 (Word Choice). Read aloud sentence 1 with students, pausing where the words in parentheses are located.

• Model Identifying Word Choice: I can use either of the adjectives to complete this sentence, but which is the better word choice? Good is positive in a general way, but it does not create a specific picture in my mind. Spicy suggests that something warm, containing cinnamon and other spices, is baking in the oven. Spicy creates a specific image of a warm, welcoming aroma. Therefore spicy is the better word choice.

• Ask students to work with a partner or in small groups to choose the word in parentheses that creates a more exact or detailed picture in each of the remaining sentences and complete the last three sentences using precise, descriptive word choice.

• Bring the groups together to share their findings.• Ask the groups to read one or more sentences they

completed. Use the examples to build students’ understanding of how and why writers choose words carefully. Remind students that word choice can help readers understand, visualize, and make inferences about the characters and plot of a legend.

• Ask groups to hand in their sentences. Transfer student-completed sentences to chart paper, title the page “Word Choice,” 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 watch situation comedies on TV? How many of you prefer reality shows? Situation comedies and reality shows are genres, or kinds, of television programs. All situation comedies share certain characteristics. All reality shows have some features in common, too. Genres of literature also have distinct characteristics. As readers, we pay attention to the genre because recognizing the genre helps us anticipate what will happen or what we will learn. As writers, 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 Legends in the center circle of the web.

• Say: Legends are one example of a literary genre. Think of any legends you know. How would you define what a legend is?

• Turn and Talk. Ask students to turn and talk to a classmate and jot down any features of a legend 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 legends 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 legends 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 legends 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 Legends web on chart paper. Say: Let’s compare our initial ideas about legends 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 legends unit. Say: As we read legends 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: 978-1-4509-2985-1


©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC 3Three european Legends

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 legend genre? How can a writer use word choice to communicate

his or her ideas to readers? 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.

Management Tips• Throughout the week, you may wish to use

some of the Reflect and Review questions as prompts for reader response journal entries in addition to Turn and Talk activities.

• Have students create genre folders. Keep blackline masters, notes, small-group writing, and checklists in the folders.

• Create anchor charts by writing whole-group discussion notes and mini-lessons on chart paper. Hang charts in the room where students can see them.

Before ReadingIntroduce “Robin Hood Shoots for the Queen”• Reread the Legends anchor chart or the web on

page 3 to review the features of a legend.• Ask students to turn to page 8. Ask: Based on the

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

• Invite students to scan the text and look for the boldfaced words (annual, magnificent, notorious, gratified). 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 legend, focusing on

the genre elements they noted on their anchor chart. They should also look for examples of well-chosen words and think about how the author’s careful word choice helps them better understand and appreciate the characters and events in the legend.

Read “Robin Hood Shoots for the Queen”• Place students in groups based on their reading

levels. Ask them to read the legend silently, whisper-read, or read with a partner.

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

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

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

the Characters and Plot” and “Focus on Compre-hension” questions on page 14. Then, use the following steps to provide explicit modeling of how to make judgments about a legend.

• Explain: We learned yesterday that a legend focuses on an individual and his or her accomplishments. The main character often performs brave and/or daring deeds. When we read a legend, we can make judgments. For example, we can evaluate how effectively

Day 2

Name Date

Three european Legends ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLCBLM 1

Word ChoiceDirections: Read each sentence. Underline the word in parentheses ( ) that creates the more exact, vivid image or idea. Write about what the word choice helps you see or understand.

1. A (good, spicy) smell filled the kitchen when Brent got home. Possibleanswer:Itsmellslikecinnamonandotherspices.

2. The baby (splattered, spilled) her juice all over the floor. Possibleanswer:Splatteringmessesupalargeareaonthefloor.

3. Ashley stared in awe at the giant (building, skyscraper). Possibleanswer:Thebuildingisonacitystreet.

4. The king (laughed, snickered) at the poor man’s predicament. Possibleanswer:Thelaughismeanandsarcastic.

5. The princess wore a (dainty, pretty) slipper. Possibleanswer:Theslipperissmallanddelicate.

6. The athlete (limped, walked) to the starting line. Possibleanswer:Theathleteisinpain.

7. The parking lot was (empty, deserted) at midnight. Possibleanswer:Theparkinglotseemedcreepyandscary.

Directions: Complete the sentences with carefully chosen words.

8. After David cleaned for a couple of hours, his room was Possibleanswer:immaculate.

9. The birthday party, attended by twenty five-year-olds, was Possibleanswer:purepandemonium.

10. The gray, stormy day made the park seem Possibleanswer:bleakanddepressing.



• 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 question do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I’m looking for the words queen and Geoffrey. I want to know where Geoffrey goes. On page 8, I read that the queen says to Geoffrey, “I need you to go to Sherwood Forest. . . .” 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. Read aloud “Word Origins” on

page 4. Say: Knowing the language from which an English word comes helps readers figure out the word’s meaning. For example, in this legend, spectators watch the tournament. If you know that spectator comes from the Latin word spectare, meaning “to watch,” you can figure out the meaning of spectator: “one who watches.”

• Practice. Ask students to use a dictionary to identify the origins of other words in the legend, such as spoils (from the Latin word spolia, “animal skin”) and target (from the Middle French word targette, “light shield”).

• Say: Let’s find the boldfaced words in this legend. What can you do if you don’t know what these words mean? Allow responses. Say: Besides looking in the glossary or a dictionary, you can look for clues in the word to help you define it. One strategy is to look for word origins with which you are familiar.

• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the “Focus on Words” activity on page 15 using BLM 3 (Focus on Word Origins). Explain that they should look for words in the text that have similar spellings and meanings to the Latin words in the Word Origin column of the chart.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Ask groups of students to share their findings. Then challenge pairs of students to write original sentences using the target words in new contexts. Have two pairs take turns reading their sentences to one another, omitting the target word each time. Listeners identify the missing word, point out the Latin word from which the target word originated, and explain how the Latin word’s meaning is related to the meaning of the target word in the sentence. Pairs continue until they have presented all their sentences.

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

Day 2 (cont.)the author has depicted legendary characters and recreated an exciting plot.

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

Judgment About Characters or Plot

Details to Support Judgment

The king and the queen have an unusually competitive relationship.

The queen is tired of hearing the king boast about his archers. She secretly invites the outlaw Robin Hood to compete against the king’s archers.

It was proper for Robin Hood to be considered an outlaw.

Robin Hood and his men rob people. Even though they only rob from the rich and give the spoils to the poor, robbery is unlawful.

Robin Hood has great respect for the queen.

Robin Hood kisses the queen’s ring and says he considers it a privilege to shoot for her. He is gratified by her smile when he wins the match. He bows deeply to the queen before he leaves.

The Robin Hood legend reflects inequalities in English society of the Middle Ages.

Robin Hood and his Merry Men are well-known for stealing from wealthy Englishmen to provide for the poor and hungry. Deer are usually reserved exclusively for the king’s hunting pleasure.

• Model: When I make a judgment about a legend, I think about whether the plot holds my attention with heroic adventures of legendary characters. I also study the characters and decide whether their feats and decisions engage my sympathy or help me understand something about life. In this legend, the queen of England is tired of the king’s boasts, so she boldly invites Robin Hood and his men to compete against the king’s archers. The queen’s page is shocked that the queen would ask an outlaw to compete in the tournament. Still, the queen insists on contacting Robin Hood. This premise is intriguing and makes me want to find out how it is resolved.

• Guide Practice. Work with students to make judgments about the king, the queen, and the queen’s idea. Help them understand that the behavior of the queen and king before and during the tournament helps readers evaluate these characters.

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

Practice 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.



Word Origin Meaning Page Word from Legend

Possible Definition from Origin and Text

annuatis year 8 annual something done once a year

magnificentio more splendid

8 magnificent extremely wonderful

noscere to come to know

10 notorious well-known for negative deeds

gratificari to show kindness to

13 gratified rewarded

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

reread the “Features of a Legend” web on page 3 and decide whether all of these features are present in “Robin Hood Shoots for the Queen.” Ask groups to share and support their findings.

Fluency: Read with Dramatic Expression• You may wish to have students reread the legend

with a partner during independent reading time, focusing on reading with dramatic expression. Model how the queen and Geoffrey would speak on pages 8–9 using pauses, pacing, and intonation to express the queen’s determination and Geoffrey’s shock. Then ask students to read pages 10–11 aloud, expressing the king and queen’s feelings by varying the tone, volume, and pace of their reading and incorporating facial expressions and body language.

Note Regarding This Teacher’s GuideEach book provides an opportunity for students to focus on an additional comprehension strat-egy that is typically assessed on state standards. The strategy is introduced on page 4 (the third item in the “Tools for Readers and Writers” section) with text-specific follow-up questions found on the Reread pages. Some Reread sections also introduce an advanced language arts concept or comprehension strategy, such as protagonist/antagonist, perspective, or subtitles, because students at this level should be able to consider more than one comprehension strategy per text.

Before ReadingIntroduce “The Story of William Tell”• Ask students to turn to page 16. Say: You are

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

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

legend. What do you predict it might be about? Give students time to share their predictions.

• Ask students to scan the text and look for the boldfaced words (despot, humble, tribute, liberating). Ask: What do you notice about these words? Why do you think they appear in boldfaced type? (All of these words come from Latin words.)

• 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 and what that root or part means.

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

the plot illustrates the character traits of William Tell. Encourage students to notice the author’s skill in choosing words.

Read “The Story of William Tell”• Place students in groups based on their reading



After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Make Judgments• Say: Yesterday we made judgments about the

plot and characters in the first legend. In today’s legend, what traits make William Tell a complex character? Are the other characters as complex as William Tell? What role does chance play in the outcome of the story? Record responses on a whole-group chart like the one below.

• Discuss Making Judgments Across Texts. Lead a discussion using the following questions: How is William Tell similar to and different from Robin Hood? How are the characters who cause events to happen in each legend similar and different? What role does chance play in each legend? What word choices in the legends do you find particularly powerful and effective? How do these examples of strong word choice help you better understand the characters and plot?

Day 3



Word Origin

Meaning Page Word from Legend


despot-es master, lord 16 despot tyrannical leader

humus earth 16 humble act subservient

tribuere to bestow, to pay

16 tribute respect

liber free 19 liberating freeing

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

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

What lesson, or moral, does this legend teach? Do you agree with the moral? Why or why not?

Think of a time in your life when you had to do something that required courage. What happened?


with a partner during independent reading time, focusing on reading with dramatic expression. Ask students to choose the part of the legend they think is most dramatic, such as the dialogue between Tell and Gessler on pages 16–17, and read it aloud in a way that shows each character’s emotions. Remind them to use tone, pacing, pauses, and volume as well as facial expressions and body language.

Day 3 (cont.)



William Tell is courageous because he acts according to his beliefs.

Tell refuses to pay tribute to Gessler’s cap. He eventually kills Gessler to liberate the people.

Gessler is a one-sided, evil character. He is an extremely insecure, unfair leader who needs to be overthrown.

Gessler demands a ridiculous tribute from his subjects. He puts Tell in the tragic position of having to endanger his own son. He threatens to kill Tell’s son himself. He worries constantly that the people will rebel against him and his government.

William Tell sometimes acts rashly, endangering himself and others.

Tell refuses to pay tribute to Gessler. He hides an extra arrow in his coat. He angrily denounces Gessler to his face.

Chance plays a big part in the outcome of the legend.

William Tell is only unchained in the boat because a big storm breaks out.

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 sequence of events. I know because it has the clue word then. 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 happened after Tell’s son stood against a tree. On page 18, I read that an apple was placed atop his head. Tell gently touched the boy’s shoulder and told him to remain still. The, the boy nodded bravely. 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 21 using BLM 3. Have groups of students share their findings.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Invite pairs of students to take turns finding and reading the sentence in which each target word is used. Then they should make up a new sentence using the target word and including context clues. Ask listeners to identify the target word and the clues they can use to figure out its meaning.



Before ReadingIntroduce “The Sword in the Stone”• Ask students to turn to page 22. Say: Today we are

going to read “The Sword in the Stone.” This legend is written in a different format from the other legends 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 legend, focusing on the characters, plot, and setting. Tomorrow, we will reread this legend like a writer and think about how the notes in the margins can help us write our own legends.

• Point out the boldfaced words (fortitude, heritage, unison). Say: When you see these words in the legend, think about their possible word origins. Remember that looking for word origins you know is a strategy that can help you define unfamiliar words.

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

miraculous or supernatural events affect the plot. Students should also look for examples of effective word choice and think about how the author’s word choice helps them understand the legend.

Read “The Sword in the Stone”• Place students in groups based on their reading



After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Make Judgments• Lead a whole-class discussion about the strategy

of making judgments. Ask: How do you support judgments you make when reading a legend? Allow responses. Make sure students understand that readers make judgments by evaluating the legend’s elements, such as a heroic main character or connection to history, and support their judgments with details and examples.

• Divide the class into two teams. Give each team time to review the legend and use BLM 2 to record judgments about it, citing details and examples that support the judgment.

• Read aloud statements that make judgments about the legend. Alternate having each team provide a detail or example that supports the judgment. Use these examples and create more of your own. The turbulent political atmosphere in England is a key aspect of the legend. Merlin is an extremely powerful figure.

The legend shows the importance of religion in Britain in the Middle Ages. Arthur is likeable because he is so humble and unassuming. The symbolism of the sword is an essential part of the legend.



The legend resulted from the turbulent politics in Britain in the Middle Ages.

The bad political situation causes the queen to give up her son. Later, it causes Merlin to reveal Arthur’s identity.

Merlin is the most powerful figure in the legend.

Merlin engineers the adoption of Arthur and his crowning as king. Everyone, from Sir Hector to the archbishop, does as Merlin asks.

Arthur is kind, humble, and unassuming.

Arthur pulls out the sword only because he wants to help his brother. He is surprised when his father and brother kneel before him.

The symbolism of the sword helps explain the British people’s feelings about their monarchy.

The sword symbolizes power. Only the person born to the king and queen can grow up to become king.

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 make a prediction. I know because it asks, “What clues tell you . . .?” 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 reread the part about Sir Hector and Arthur on page 26. I read that Sir Hector looked at the sword and then looked at his foster son. It was the sword that had been in the stone in front of the cathedral. Then he thought about the night Merlin had brought baby Arthur to his door and the mystery of Arthur’s parentage. These clues support the conclusion that Hector is figuring out who Arthur is.

• 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 legends

in this book. Invite a different student to summarize each legend. 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 legends share certain features. They all focus on an individual with exceptional skills or character. They all have some basis in historical fact. What else do they have in common? Allow responses. Say: Today we will think about the elements of all three legends 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.

Directions: Use the chart to compare and contrast the three legends.




Location the city of London in England Switzerland Britain and the city of London

Main Character(s)

Queen Eleanor, King Henry, Geoffrey, Gilbert, Tepus, Hubert, Will Scarlet, Little John, Robin Hood

Hermann Gessler, William Tell, William Tell’s son

King Uther, Queen Igraine, Merlin, Sir Hector, Kay, Arthur, the Archbishop of Canterbury

Situation Queen Eleanor wants archers who can beat her husband’s team. She calls on Robin Hood.

William Tell refuses to pay tribute to the despot Gessler. Gessler says Tell must shoot an apple off his son’s head or the boy will be killed.

Merlin sends Arthur, the heir to the English throne, to live anonymously with another family.

Miraculous Event

Robin Hood shoots three arrows in virtually the same spot in the target.

William Tell shoots the apple off his son’s head.

Merlin uses magic to place a sword in a stone in the courtyard of the cathedral. Arthur is the only one able to remove the sword from the stone.

Ending Robin Hood wins the tournament and gives part of his prize to some of the other archers.

Tell is sentenced to prison for hiding another arrow, but he escapes from a boat and kills Gessler, liberating the people.

Arthur and the people realize that Arthur is the true king.

Set a Purpose for Rereading• Have students turn to page 22. Say: Until now,

we have been thinking about legends from the perspective of the reader. Learning the features of legends has helped us be critical readers. Now we are going to put on a different hat. We are going to reread “The Sword in the Stone” 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.

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

“Focus on Words” activity on page 29 using BLM 3. Have groups of students share their findings.

• Transfer Through Oral Language. Divide the class into four teams. Write the target words on chart paper or the board, assigning three or four words to each team. Have teams generate as many new words as they can that have the same origins as their assigned words and then use their new words in sentences. Count all sentences that use the words correctly. The team with the most correct sentences wins.

Word Origin



fortis strong 22 fortitude strength of character

heres heir 25 heritage the family and privileges one is born with

uni-; sonus

one; sound 27 unison with one voice

Reflect and Review • Ask and discuss the following questions. What new words have you added to your vocabulary

this week? Which is your favorite? Which legendary character do you most admire?

Why? How can you use word choice and word origins as a

writer?


with a partner during independent reading time, focusing on reading with dramatic expression. Read page 27 aloud in a monotone, without facial expressions or body language. Ask students what is wrong with this reading. Then invite partners to take turns reading the page to one another, using tone, inflection, pace, and volume as well as facial expression and body language to communicate the feelings behind the words.

Day 4 (cont.) Day 5



• Read step 3. Say: Before you’re ready to write, you need a setting and plot. The legend you retell will be set in a definite time and place. “The Sword in the Stone” is set in England in the Middle Ages, and each event in the plot contributes to showing the main character’s skills and traits. When you write your legend, think about the setting of the original story. What plot, or actions, must you tell to show the legendary character’s strengths? Choose one of the legends and some of the characters the class has brainstormed, and work as a group to construct a possible setting and plot.

Build Comprehension: Analyze Character• Explain: Legends are about a main character

who has special accomplishments or powers and the people who help or hinder him or her. When we analyze a character, we think about what the character does and says. Then we can describe the traits shown by these words and actions. For example, Robin Hood gives part of his tournament prize to the best archer on the king’s team. This shows that he is the kind of man everyone thinks he is. Analyzing characters helps us better understand and appreciate the story.

• Model: William Tell’s son nodded bravely when his father told him to remain still. He wasn’t afraid, because he trusted in his father’s skill as an archer. Tell did everything he could to protect his son from harm. From these actions, I know that Tell and his son have a close, loving relationship. Knowing this helps me better understand Tell’s motives for wanting to liberate the people from their evil leader, Gessler.

• Guide Practice. Work with students to analyze characters in one of the legends. Help them locate the most important things the characters say and do and use these to identify the traits they show. Then ask students to think about how the traits create well-rounded main characters who have inspired legends for hundreds of years.

• Pair students for peer conferencing.

Reread “The Sword in the Stone”• Place students in groups based on their reading

levels. Ask them to reread the legend silently or whisper-read and to pay attention to the annotations.

After ReadingAnalye 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. I know because I must find a particular type of word in the text. 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 reread what Merlin says to Sir Hector on page 22. He says, “But I am imploring you to take him. . . .” I have found the strong word. The word is imploring, which is a strong word for asking.

• 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 30. Explain: Over the

next few days, you will have the opportunity to write your own legends. First, let’s think about how the author wrote “The Sword in the Stone.” When she developed this legend, she followed certain steps. You can follow these same steps to write your own legends.

• Read step 1. Say: The first thing you’ll do is research legends and find one you want to retell. Two legends we read originated in England and the other originated in Switzerland, all during the Middle Ages. What legend would you like to research and retell? For example, Wild Bill Hickok is a legendary character from the American West. What other legends have you heard? Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.

• Read step 2. Say: In each legend we read, the main character was powerful and heroic, and other characters showcased the character’s heroism by helping or hindering him. Who could our characters be? Let’s make a list of heroic legendary characters and other characters who assist or oppose them. Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.

Day 5 (cont.)


10Three european Legends ©2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC

Write a Legend• 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 legends, pass out copies of BLM 5 (Legend 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 legends.

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

to brainstorm the famous figure or event, characters, setting, and plot for their legends.

• Encourage students to refer to the “Features of a Legend” web on page 3 and to the steps in “The Writer’s Craft” on pages 30–31 of the book.

• Confer with individual students and focus on their ideas. Did students begin their legends by researching a legend from a specific country or culture? Did they develop the legendary character through the events of the plot?

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

Legend Planning Guides to begin drafting their legends.

• Say: Remember that when writers draft their ideas, they focus on getting their ideas on paper. They can cross things out. They can 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 Legend Checklist to draw students’ attention to characteristics of the legend genre that they may have overlooked. Focus on how students have organized their ideas and the voice of the writer. Did students introduce characters at the beginning of the legend? Did they set the legend in a specific historical time and place? Does the legend 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 Legend Checklist as they edit and revise their legends 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 choose their words to be as exact and vivid as possible? 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

legends.• Invite students to illustrate their final drafts with one

or more drawings that depict specific characters or events in their legends.

• 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 legends. Hold a class reading in which students can read their

legends to one another and/or to parents. Create a binder of all the legends and loan it to the

library so that other students can read them. Create a binder of all the legends for your classroom

library.

Days 6–15

Name Date


Title:

Features of the Genre Checklist Yes No 1. My legend has a strong lead. 2. My legend is told in first or third person. 3. My legend has a basis in historical fact. 4. My legend focuses on one individual and his/her

accomplishments or powers. 5. My legend includes a miraculous event. 6. My legend contains a moral or lesson embedded

in the story. 7. My legend takes place in the context of particular place and

its history, creating a connection with a culture. 8. I tell the problem at the beginning of my legend. 9. I have 3 to 5 main events in my legend. 10. My legend has a solution to the problem. 11. I used figurative language in my legend.

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

Legend Checklist

Name Date


Legend Planning GuideDirections: Use the steps below to plan your own legend.

1. Research legends and decide on one to retell.

2. Identify and develop characters.

Characters Traits, Special Skills, Effect on PlotCharacter 1:

Character 2:

Character 3:

3. “Rethink” setting and plot.

Setting

Problem

Events

Solution


Name Date


Word ChoiceDirections: Read each sentence. Underline the word in parentheses ( ) that creates the more exact, vivid image or idea. Write about what the word choice helps you see or understand.

1. A (good, spicy) smell filled the kitchen when Brent got home. 2. The baby (splattered, spilled) her juice all over the floor. 3. Ashley stared in awe at the giant (building, skyscraper). 4. The king (laughed, snickered) at the poor man’s predicament. 5. The princess wore a (dainty, pretty) slipper. 6. The athlete (limped, walked) to the starting line. 7. The parking lot was (empty, deserted) at midnight.

Directions: Complete the sentences with carefully chosen words.

8. After David cleaned for a couple of hours, his room was . 9. The birthday party, attended by twenty five-year-olds, was .10. The gray, stormy day made the park seem .


Name Date


Make JudgmentsDirections: Use the charts below to make judgments about the legends.

Robin Hood Shoots for the QueenJudgment About Characters or Plot


The Story of William TellJudgment About Characters or Plot


The Sword in the StoneJudgment About Characters or Plot



Name Date


Focus on Word OriginsDirections: Reread the legends. Look for words in the text that have similar spellings and meanings to the Latin words in the Word Origin column of the charts. Then record a possible definition based on the origin and text clues.

Word Origin



annuatis year 8

magnificentio more splendid

8

noscere to come to know

10

gratificari to show kindness to

13

Word Origin



despotes master, lord 16

humus earth 16

tribuere to bestow, to pay

16

liber free 19

Word Origin



fortis strong 22

heres heir 25

uni-; sonus one; sound 27


Name Date


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




Location

Main Character(s)

Situation

Miraculous Event

Ending


Name Date


Title:

Legend Checklist Features of the Genre Checklist Yes No 1. My legend has a strong lead. 2. My legend is told in first or third person. 3. My legend has a basis in historical fact. 4. My legend focuses on one individual and his/her

accomplishments or powers. 5. My legend includes a miraculous event. 6. My legend contains a moral or lesson embedded

in the story. 7. My legend takes place in the context of particular place and

its history, creating a connection with a culture. 8. I tell the problem at the beginning of my legend. 9. I have 3 to 5 main events in my legend. 10. My legend has a solution to the problem. 11. I used figurative language in my legend.

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


Name Date


Legend Planning GuideDirections: Use the steps below to plan your own legend.

1. Research legends and decide on one to retell.

2. Identify and develop characters.

Characters Traits, Special Skills, Effect on PlotCharacter 1:

Character 2:

Character 3:

3. “Rethink” setting and plot.

Setting

Problem

Events

Solution


genre: l teacher’s guide robin hood shoots for the queen ...robin hood shoots for the queen the...

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