Spend two days on each lesson to give scholars practice.
Lesson 1: Great readers recognize the common characteristics of myths.
Lesson 2: Great readers pay attention to what characters say, do, and think over time to develop ideas about characters.
Lesson 3: Great readers identify how the negative and positive attributes of characters lead to consequences or rewards.
Lesson 4: Great readers retell myths by explaining the key events and how they lead up to the outcome of the story.
Lesson 5: Great readers explain what they’ve learned about life from the characters by using key details to prove their thinking.
Lesson 1
What Does Success Look Like?
Great readers recognize the common characteristics of myths.
Success is when scholars have mastered the idea that myths are often either cautionary tales, or origin stories (how something in the world came to be).
Lesson 1
Engage — 1 minute
Today we’re going to begin our exploration of myths. Just like folktales and fables, myths are stories that have been passed down for many, many years. It is our job as readers to find out what kinds of stories keep occurring throughout myths.
Direct Instruction (Model/ Practice) — 5–7 minutes
- Read “The Golden Touch: The Story of Bacchus and King Midas,” on pages 9-11 of Mary Pope Osborne’s Favorite Greek Myths. Think aloud about how the myth serves as a cautionary tale by teaching us not to be greedy.
- Read “Demeter and Persephone: A Tale of Four Seasons,” on pages 42-43 of Children’s Book of Mythical Beasts and Magical Monsters.
- Scholars turn and talk about the outcome of the myth. Listen in to understand how well scholars can recognize myths’ roles as cautionary tales or explanations of how something came to be.
- Briefly share out two scholar responses.
Independent Reading/ Targeted Teaching Time — 25 minutes
- Scholars sustain focused reading for 25 minutes.
- Whether you are flying solo or teaching as part of a duo, start by making sure all kids are focused and the room has a hushed tone. Play classical or instrumental jazz music, but the volume should be low.
- Narrate scholars who are following through on your expectations, such as staying focused on their books, or who are demonstrating strong reading habits, such as always making mind movies.
- Spend 2-3 minutes working individually with 3-5 scholars. Ask each scholar to identify his reading goal and what’s holding him back. Kids should know and articulate their goals!
- Listen to scholars read, and assess their struggles and level of understanding.
- Model for scholars and give them strategies to tackle their goals.
- Listen to scholars as they read and hold them accountable for applying the strategies.
Partner Share — 3–5 minutes
- When the timer is up, reset expectations for partner talk.
- In partnerships, scholars share whether the myth they read is a cautionary tale or origin myth and how they know.
- Listen in to determine if scholars are mastering the lesson objective. Look for a scholar who can model her thinking during the Whole-Class Share.
Whole-Class Share — 5 minutes
- Bring scholars together at the rug and reinforce today’s objective.
- Choose a scholar to share the common characteristics of myths she found in her book, and have scholars evaluate which great reading tactic the scholar used.
Lesson 2
What Does Success Look Like?
Great readers pay attention to what characters say, do, and think over time to develop ideas about characters.
Success is when scholars understand the traits and motivations of mythical characters like the hero, villain, and wise one.
Lesson 2
Engage — 1 minute
Today we will further explore the common characteristics of myths by focusing on the characters that appear in these stories! As readers, we must understand the traits and motivations of these characters to help us better understand the genre.
Direct Instruction (Model/ Practice) — 5–7 minutes
- Read “Perseus and Medusa,” on pages 110–111 of Children’s Book of Mythical Beasts and Magical Monsters. Think aloud about how the hero is overcoming challenges to accomplish his goals or gain wisdom.
- Scholars turn and talk about what other characters appear in the story and their characteristics. Listen in to understand how well scholars can identify characters and their traits.
- Briefly share out two scholar responses.
Independent Reading/ Targeted Teaching Time — 25 minutes
- Scholars sustain focused reading for 25 minutes.
- Make sure all kids are focused and the room has a hushed tone. Play classical or instrumental jazz music, but the volume should be low.
- Narrate scholars who are meeting your expectations.
- Spend 2–3 minutes working individually with 3–5 scholars. Ask each scholar to identify his reading goal and what’s holding him back. Kids should know and articulate their goals!
- Listen to scholars read, and assess their struggles and level of understanding.
- Model and give scholars strategies to tackle their goals. Listen to scholars read and hold them accountable for applying the strategies.
Partner Share — 3–5 minutes
- When the timer is up, reset expectations for partner talk.
- In partnerships, scholars describe the traits and motivations of the characters in the book.
- Listen in to determine if scholars are mastering the lesson objective. Look for a scholar who can model her thinking during the Whole-Class Share.
Whole-Class Share — 5 minutes
- Bring scholars together at the rug and reinforce today’s objective.
- Choose a scholar to describe the hero, villain, or wise one in the myth, and have scholars evaluate which great reading tactic the scholar used.
Lesson 3
What Does Success Look Like?
Great readers identify how the negative and positive attributes of characters lead to consequences or rewards.
Success is when scholars understand that specific characters’ attributes affect what will happen to them in the mythical story.
Lesson 3
Engage — 1 minute
We know that the hero, villain, and wise one all have specific characteristics that help us identify who they are. Today, we’ll explore how these characteristics lead to positive or negative outcomes.
Direct Instruction (Model/ Practice) — 5–7 minutes
- Read paragraphs 1–2 of “Echo and Narcissus,” on page 92 of D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths. Think aloud about Echo’s punishment for gossiping.
- Read paragraphs 3–9 of “Echo and Narcissus.”
- Scholars turn and talk about how Narcissus’ attributes led to a specific outcome. Listen in to understand how well scholars can recognize the connection between positive attributes leading to rewards and negative attributes leading to unpleasant consequences.
- Briefly share out two scholar responses.
Independent Reading/Targeted Teaching Time — 25 minutes
- Scholars sustain focused reading for 25 minutes.
- Whether you are flying solo or teaching as part of a duo, start by making sure all kids are focused and the room has a hushed tone. Play classical or instrumental jazz music, but the volume should be low.
- Narrate scholars who are following through on your expectations, such as staying focused on their books, or who are demonstrating strong reading habits, such as always making mind movies.
- Spend 2–3 minutes working individually with 3–5 scholars. Ask each scholar to identify his reading goal and what’s holding him back. Kids should know and articulate their goals!
- Listen to scholars read, and assess their struggles and level of understanding.
- Model for scholars and give them strategies to tackle their goals.
- Listen to scholars as they read and hold them accountable for applying the strategies.
Partner Share — 3–5 minutes
- When the timer is up, reset expectations for partner talk.
- In partnerships, each scholar shares an example of a positive or negative attribute leading to a specific outcome.
- Listen in to determine if scholars are mastering the lesson objective. Look for a scholar who can model her thinking during the Whole-Class Share.
Whole-Class Share — 5 minutes
- Bring scholars together at the rug and reinforce today’s objective.
- Choose a scholar to share a connection between a positive attribute and reward, or negative attribute and subsequent consequence, as demonstrated by one of the characters in her book. Have scholars evaluate which great reading tactic the scholar used.
Lesson 4
What Does Success Look Like?
Great readers retell myths by explaining the key events and how they lead up to the outcome of the story.
Success is when scholars are able to retell a myth by identifying key events and articulating how these events lead to the outcome.
Lesson 4
Engage — 1 minute
Myths are traditionally told by word-of-mouth, which is how they’ve been passed down over so many years. As we learn more about this genre, we too can retell a myth by identifying the key characters and events in the story and explaining how they lead to an outcome.
Direct Instruction (Model/ Practice) — 5–7 minutes
- Read “Arachne and the Weaving Contest,” on pages 36–37 of D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths.
- Scholars turn and talk about the key events and how they drive toward the outcome of the myth. Listen in to understand how well scholars can identify the effects of specific events on the outcome.
- Briefly share out two scholar responses.
Independent Reading/Targeted Teaching Time — 25 minutes
- Scholars sustain focused reading for 25 minutes.
- Whether you are flying solo or teaching as part of a duo, start by making sure all kids are focused and the room has a hushed tone. Play classical or instrumental jazz music, but the volume should be low.
- Narrate scholars who are following through on your expectations, such as staying focused on their books, or who are demonstrating strong reading habits, such as always making mind movies.
- Spend 2–3 minutes working individually with 3–5 scholars. Ask each scholar to identify his reading goal and what’s holding him back. Kids should know and articulate their goals!
- Listen to scholars read, and assess their struggles and level of understanding.
- Model for scholars and give them strategies to tackle their goals.
- Listen to scholars as they read and hold them accountable for applying the strategies.
Partner Share — 3–5 minutes
- When the timer is up, reset expectations for partner talk.
- In partnerships, scholars share the key events that occur throughout the myth and how they lead to the outcome of the story.
- Listen in to determine if scholars are mastering the lesson objective. Look for a scholar who can model her thinking during the Whole-Class Share.
Whole-Class Share — 5 minutes
- Bring scholars together at the rug and reinforce today’s objective.
- Choose a scholar to share the key events that occur in her myth and explain how those events lead to the outcome. Have scholars evaluate which great reading tactic the scholar used.
Lesson 5
What Does Success Look Like?
Great readers explain what they’ve learned about life from the characters by using key details to prove their thinking.
Success is when scholars can use evidence from the myth to articulate a lesson they’ve learned from it.
Lesson 5
Engage — 1 minute
As we’ve seen, characters in myths can teach us many things about life. As readers, we must always explain the things we learn by using key details from the story that help us understand these lessons.
Direct Instruction (Model/ Practice) — 5–7 minutes
- Read “Pandora’s Box: How Evil Came Into the World,” on pages 34–35 of Children’s Book of Mythical Beasts and Magical Monsters.
- Scholars turn and talk about what they’ve learned about life from the myth, citing the key details that support their thinking. Listen in to understand how well scholars can support their thinking with details from the story.
- Briefly share out two scholar responses.
Independent Reading/ Targeted Teaching Time — 25 minutes
- Scholars sustain focused reading for 25 minutes.
- Whether you are flying solo or teaching as part of a duo, start by making sure all kids are focused and the room has a hushed tone. Play classical or instrumental jazz music, but the volume should be low.
- Narrate scholars who are following through on your expectations, such as staying focused on their books, or who are demonstrating strong reading habits, such as always making mind movies.
- Spend 2–3 minutes working individually with 3–5 scholars. Ask each scholar to identify his reading goal and what’s holding him back. Kids should know and articulate their goals!
- Listen to scholars read, and assess their struggles and level of understanding.
- Model for scholars and give them strategies to tackle their goals.
- Listen to scholars as they read and hold them accountable for applying the strategies.
Partner Share — 3–5 minutes
- When the timer is up, reset expectations for partner talk.
- In partnerships, scholars share how they’ve used evidence from their myths to understand life lessons.
- Listen in to determine if scholars are mastering the lesson objective. Look for a scholar who can model her thinking during the Whole-Class Share.
Whole-Class Share — 5 minutes
- Bring scholars together at the rug and reinforce today’s objective.
- Choose a scholar to share something she has learned about life from her myth and have her identify the key details that support her thinking. Have scholars evaluate which great reading tactic the scholar used.