1Learning Through Asian Folktales

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How to Teach This Book 4 Unit 1 The Rat and the Cat 11 Unit 2 The Fox and the Crow 17

Unit 3 The Fire Dogs 23

Unit 4 Barking Like a Dog 29 Unit 5 The Dog and His Refl ection 35

Unit 6 The New Bed 41

Unit 7 The Hen and the Rooster 47 Unit 8 The North Wind and the Sun 53 Unit 9 The Uncle and Nephew 59 Unit 10 No Food for Lunch 65

Content s

Reading Wise 1

Learning Through Asian Folktales Helen Kirkpatrick

ISBN: 978-1-59966-532-0 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 14 13 12 11

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Unit 11 The Thief‛s Coat 71 Unit 12 The Flying Cow 77

Unit 13 The Big Lie 83

Unit 14 Freeing the Birds 89

Unit 15 The Eyes 95

Unit 16 The Leaning Tree 101

Unit 17 The Hat 107

Unit 18 The Thief and the Policeman 113

Unit 19 The Birthday Present 119

Unit 20 Mr. Wang‛s Animals 125

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Reading Wise is a reading series for high beginner and intermediate learners. The book consists of twenty units, each containing ten activities based on the main story of the unit. In particular, each unit includes a short story, a picture-based summary activity, a dialog based on the story for listening and speaking practice, and expansion activities. Expansion activities encourage students’ creative use of language by allowing them to express their own opinions and ideas.

The teacher should write the title of the unit on the board. Students should find a partner and look at the picture. Single partners are suggested for this activity so that students can help each other communicate without being nervous in front of the entire class.

Next, the teacher should go over the questions to make sure the students understand them. Pairs should then ask each other the questions and answer them. Students need NOT come to any consensus on the answers as the questions are designed to activate the students’ background knowledge related to the topic. If time allows, have some of the pairs share

answers to specific questions. Record useful related vocabulary on the board and discuss how the vocabulary may be related to the reading.

(5 min.)

How to Teach This Boo k

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In this activity, simple sentences give context to key vocabulary that can be found in the story. It is important that students fully understand each vocabulary word or phrase. This section will give them synonyms to use, which will increase the depth of their language use.

Have students work individually to complete the exercise. They will match the underlined word to its meaning. When they are finished, have students check their answers with their partner. Review the answers as a class. While going through the list of words, ask the class to generate synonyms or antonyms that come to mind for each word. Having the class

generate new example sentences using the words will also reinforce the learning of new vocabulary items for students.

(10 min.)

Students should read the passages silently for a few minutes. Ask students to underline any words they do not understand while they are reading. If there are, explain what the words mean.

Next, have students complete the “Understanding the Key Ideas” section. They should check their answers with a partner. If they do not agree, refer students to the reading passage again. They can circle the part that indicates the correct answer.

This section is meant to be a general review of the story.

(5 min.)

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This section consists of various activities that practice grammatical structure.

The main purpose of this book is not to teach grammar, though it is important to point out key grammatical aspects while focusing on reading comprehension.

Each unit has a different grammar point that the “Language Focus” section covers, and teachers are encouraged to think of ways to make grammar points relevant and interesting. For example, if the section is about adjectives, the teacher can have students brainstorm about different adjectives, creating word bubbles around each word, and linking them to other synonyms.

(5 min.)

This section gives teachers an opportunity to see if their students fully understand the passage. If they do not understand specific sections of the reading, the teacher should review difficult portions of the

text. Again, students should work alone to complete the questions and then work with a partner to check their answers.

Students should refer to specific places in the story to explain how they reached their answers if these words are too close together. Pointing this out to students makes them responsible for their own understanding and also helps them learn to skim material for information, which is an important skill in reading. It would also be helpful for students to draw a box around portions of the text that show the answers.

wonderful

amazing awesome

great excellent

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(5 min.)

Each unit has a picture-story activity that allows students to retell the story in their own words with a bit of guidance. It would be best to have the students work with a partner to encourage them to talk about the story.

First, have students put the story in order, based on the pictures. Students may need to refer to the story to complete the exercise.

Next, have students use the words under each picture to create a full sentence. The words will give them a clue and also provide guidance for actually writing the sentences that explain the story. While answers may vary slightly, the activity is structured

so that students will have a lot of support in writing their sentences. As time allows, have volunteers write their sentences on the board to check.

(5 min.)

Have students read the dialog related to the story. Students can make guesses as to the correct word to fill in each blank. Then play the audio recording of the dialog for the students to check and fill in any of the blanks that they could not guess previously.

For pronunciation practice, play the dialog again. Stop after each phrase or sentence and have students repeat what they heard. After this practice, students can work in pairs reciting the dialog together.

If there is time, the teacher can choose 2-4 pairs to perform the dialog. Seeing the story in live motion will make it more dynamic for students to

connect the reading to actual events. The more dramatic the acting, the more likely students will be to remember key elements of the story.

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By the time students arrive at the summary section, they have already reviewed the story in three different ways: Reading Comprehension, Picture Story, and Act Out the Story. The Summary activity reinforces acquisition of the unit’s target vocabulary.

Students should complete the summary section on their own. After they complete the section, the teacher can choose students to read the sentences for the rest of the class, which allows them the opportunity to listen to the summary again, while also checking their answers.

This section is meant to provide students with an opportunity to expand on the lesson in a creative way. These exercises should be completed in small groups to encourage conversation. The teacher should place students into groups of 3-5. For most questions, the answers may vary among students.

Therefore, it would be best for teachers to monitor their students’ conversations.

Expansion Questions may ask students to share experiences, knowledge, or opinions related in some way to the unit theme. Once everyone has expressed their opinion, the group can choose one person to summarize their discussion for the entire class.

(5 min.)

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Vocabulary word Definition

Part of speech New sentence in context (Example)

Feathers Light, hair-like structures

noun Peacocks have beautiful and colorful feathers.

Another component that could help students acquire new vocabulary items would be to create a vocabulary log that students are responsible for and must keep throughout the entire course. Once the teacher reviews the words, students can keep a separate sheet with all of the vocabulary words listed on the left side.

Next, students would write the definition of the word. The teacher and students could then create an entirely new sentence, using the word in context. The process of writing and creating a new contextual sentence that has meaning for the student may make the word and definition easier to remember.

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Unit 1

Match each word or phrase with its meaning.

1. huge • • a. to decrease in speed

2. palace • • b. to go in the same direction

Think about the following questions, and discuss your answers with a partner.

1. Which do you think is stronger, a very big rat or a cat?

2. Which are more clever, rats or cats?

3. Have you ever had a cat?

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Choose the best answer.

1. What is the story about?

a. A very large rat b. A very large cat c. A very clever rat d. A very clever cat 2. Why was the cat clever?

The Rat and the Cat

T

here was a huge rat in the king’s palace. It was so big that it killed every cat that tried to catch it.

“I hate that rat! It’s dirty!” the king shouted to his servants. “Go find the strongest cat in the land!”

Soon, a man came to the palace with his cat. The king thought it was too small, but the man said his cat could kill the rat. When the cat saw the huge rat, she jumped onto a table. The rat followed her. She jumped to the floor and so did the rat. The cat kept jumping, and the rat kept following.

“Your cat is terrible!” said the king.

“Just wait,” said the man. After a while the rat began to slow down. Then suddenly the cat turned and killed the rat.

“I was wrong!” the king said. “Your cat is brave and clever. She waited until the rat was tired. Then it was easier to capture!”

01 01 Track

Reading Time _______ minutes _______ seconds 166 words

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Match the opposite word or phrase.

1. servant • • a. speed up

2. strongest • • b. wonderful

3. terrible • • c. king

1

^Unit

Circle T for true or F for false.

1. The strongest cat in the land killed the rat. T F 2. The cat was smarter than the rat. T F

Choose the best answer.

3. At first, the king __________.

a. thought the cat was good b. thought the cat was brave and clever c. thought the cat wasn’t big enough d. thought the cat was too big

4. In the end, the king thought the cat was __________.

a. brave and clever b. too small

c. tired d. the strongest cat in the land

5. How did the cat catch the rat?

a. She ran faster than the rat. b. She made the rat tired.

c. She used her strength. d. She scared the rat.

Choose the proverb that best fits the main idea of the story.

6. a. When the cat is away, the mice will play.

b. A drop of knowledge is better than an ocean of strength.

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B What did you say? Write about each picture using the given words and phrases.

1. ____________________________________________________________________

2. ____________________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________________

4. ____________________________________________________________________

A Number the pictures in the correct order according to the story. Then, talk about each picture.

rat / cat / very tired

ordered / find / good cat

rats / dirty

was wrong / brave and clever a

c

b

d

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1

^Unit

Fill in the blanks to complete the story.

The king told his 1______________ to find the strongest cat in the land.

He wanted to catch a 2______________ rat. Soon, a man came to the king’s

3______________ with his cat. The cat 4______________ onto a table, then back to the floor. The rat did the same.

The cat kept jumping and the rat kept following.

After a while, the rat got tired, then the cat

5______________ around and 6______________ the rat! The king realized how clever the cat was. She

Fill in the blanks to complete the conversation.

afraid of cats clever

killed table dirty

King I don’t like rats. They are 1______________ animals. This huge rat has eaten all the 2______________ in the palace.

Man This is my cat. She is very 3______________. She can take care of your rat problem.

King Your cat has jumped onto the 4______________ ! She sees the rat, but she is running away from it! She is 5______________ it!

Man No, look! She tricked the rat. Now my cat has 6______________ the rat!

Practice the conversation, changing roles with a partner.

jumped waited

capture

dirty killed

palace

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1. Write strong or clever under the pictures of the animals you think are strong or clever.

Write both if you think an animal is strong and clever. Write X if you think it is neither.

2. Now, tell your partner why you think each animal is strong or clever.

Example I think dogs are clever because they can understand people.

I think horses are strong because they can pull something heavy.

a. ____________ b. ____________ c. ____________ d. ____________

e. ____________ f. ____________ g. ____________ h. ____________

Think about the following questions, and discuss your answers with a partner.