A lesson in Retellingby

Mrs. Holloway

Day One:

Sneak PeekBringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain

 That needed the rain

from the cloud overheadThe big, black cloud,all heavy with rain.

That shadowed the groundon Kapiti Plain.

VocabularyName_____________________________________________________Date_______________________

Vocabulary What do I think? Now that I have read…

Kapiti Plain

belated

herdsmen

pasture

migrated

drought

pierced

Set a PurposeWhat are context clues?

How do we use pictures to help us understand what the word means?

How do you use text to help us understand the word?

Turn and Talk

First Read Along with Teacher

Complete Vocabulary ChartName_____________________________________________________Date_______________________

Vocabulary What do I think? Now that I have read…

Kapiti Plain

belated

herdsmen

pasture

migrated

drought

pierced

Use context clues and the illustrations to

determine the meaning of the words as they are used in the text. Complete the last

column by writing the meaning of the word from the story. You

may work with a partner.

Day Two:

Set a PurposeWhat is a retelling?

What parts does a good retelling have?

Turn and Talk

Second Read Along with Teacher

Turn and TalkWhat do we need to know about the story to do a retelling?Who is the main character in the story? How would you

describe him?What is the setting?What is the problem in the story?Why is rain important to Kapiti Plain?How did Ki-pat react when he saw how hungry and dry his

cows were?How does the character respond to the problem?What is the result of his actions?What is the solution in the story?What is the central message of the story? What are the key

details in the story that support your answer?

Culminating Activity

Students will complete a Story Map using text evidence from the story.

Students may use shoulder partners.

Third Read Along with Teacher

Find the RhymeBringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain

 That needed the rain

from the cloud overheadThe big, black cloud,all heavy with rain.

That shadowed the groundon Kapiti Plain.

Turn and TalkHow does the use of rhyming words supply

rhythm when reading the story aloud?Why does the author keep repeating the lines

of the text?What type of feeling does the use of rhyme,

rhythm, and repeated lines create?This is an African folktale. How does the

author's use of words represent the African culture?

Group Retelling CardsWork with your table partners to create

retelling cards about the story, Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain.

Use text-evidence from the story to guide your retelling.

When your cards are complete, we will have time to share.

Student-Created RubricStudent-Created Rubrics

Criteria This needs A LOT of

work!

This is pretty

good, but it could be

better.

This was really good.

Wow! This is totally

awesome!

Use your own words to describe you retelling pictures. Add pictures to illustrate.

Personal Narrative Rubric

Yikes! This is not

so good. (1 point)

An okay job (2 points)

A pretty good job (3 points)

A super great job! (4 points)

Hook

This hook doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the story!

The hook is connected to the story, but it really wouldn’t catch the reader. It is B-O-R-I-N-G!

It uses a strategy we talked about in class, but it only kind of catches the reader’s attention. It could be better.

Makes use of one of the hook strategies we talked about in class. It is irresistible; the reader won’t be able to wait to read the rest!

Connecting the hook to the rest

of the introduction

The sentences after the hook barely connect. The reader would think, “those sentences really don’t go together.”

The rest of the introduction sentences connect to the hook, but it’s not a perfect fit (they don’t connect very well).

The rest of the sentences connect with the hook pretty well, but the reader is not going to be super engaged, just kind of engaged.

The rest of the sentences in the introduction flow together and connect perfectly to the hook. It still engages the reader.

Sentences flow into each other

Sentences sound very choppy like you have just written a list of ideas (it sounds like a spit machine gun instead of a flowing river).

A few of the sentences flow into each other, but most of the sentences just sound like a list of ideas.

Most sentences flow into one another, but there are a few places where the sentences sound a little choppy and disconnected.

Sentences don’t sound the least bit choppy. One sentence flows right into the next one. The flow helps to create better description.

Uses good sentence variety

Most sentences start with the same words. Almost every sentence is just a simple sentence.

A lot of the sentences start off the same words. The sentences sound very similar when you read them and most are simple sentences.

Most sentences sound different than the ones before, but a few times there are repeats right in a row.

Sentences don’t start with the same words over and over again. Sentences come in different forms (simple, compound sentences, complex).

Uses details to create a movie in the reader’s mind

The writer includes no descriptions and only uses very simple sentences. You can’t even understand what the writer is talking about! The writer jumps from topic to topic.

There are very few descriptions in the writing. The reader would have to stretch his/her imagination to try to picture what the writer is talking about.

The writer includes some description in the writing. There are places where it is easy to picture what is happening and other places where there aren’t enough details to create a picture.

The writer includes a lot of descriptions of characters, settings, actions, and other important items. The reader will see the movie in his/her mind because of the great details.

Conclusion Wraps Up the

Story

There really isn’t a conclusion to the story. It just kind of ends and you’re left thinking, “is it over or did I lose a page?”

There is a quick conclusion, but it doesn’t do much to wrap up the writing.

The conclusion includes some of the elements of an effective story ending (memory of main event, feelings, hopes, wishes, decisions). It could use a few improvements to make it sound better.

The conclusion includes most of the elements of an effective story ending (memory of main event, feelings, hopes, wishes, decisions). The conclusion sounds good and leaves the reader feeling satisfied.

Mechanics

There are so many mistakes in spelling, punctuation, grammar, capitalization, etc. that the writing is almost impossible to read.

There are several mistakes in spelling, punctuation, grammar, capitalization, etc. The mistakes make it difficult to read and understand this narrative.

There are some mistakes in spelling, punctuation, grammar, capitalization, etc. Some of the mistakes make it difficult to read and understand this narrative.

There are almost no mistakes in spelling, punctuation, grammar, capitalization, etc. That makes it really easy to read this narrative.

Name:

Narrative Retelling ParagraphFirst,

Next,

Then,

After that,

Finally,

In the end,

Final Thoughts…How can we use context clues to figure out the

meaning of new words?Why is it important to use text evidence when

answering a question?How do characters' actions contribute to the

events in a story?How do you retell a story?How do we determine the central message of a

story?How does an author's use of words create rhythm

and meaning in a story?