Pink+Interactive+Read-Aloud

Grade: 4th

Time: 20 Minutes

Standards: Reading Standards for Literature Key Ideas and Details: 3. Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions).

Objective: Students will examine different and similar character traits between Pink and Say.

Materials: · //Pink and Say// by Patricia Polacco · Writer’s Notebook

Lesson Sequence: · Before Reading: o “Boys and girls, today I am going to read you a story called //Pink and Say// by Patricia Polacco. Have you read any other books by Patricia Polacco? Some of her other works are //The Junkyard Wonders// and //Thank you, Mr. Falkner.// Patricia Polacco is one of my favorite children’s authors because she writes inspiring books about her family history and her own \ past.” o “Looking at the front cover, who thinks they know what //Pink and Say// is about?” o Call on three students and discuss their thoughts. o “//Pink and Say// is a book about Pinkus Aylee and Sheldon Curtis. Pinkus likes to be called Pink and Sheldon likes to be called Say. They are both soldiers in the Civil War.” o “While I am reading, I would like you to listen carefully to the text and Patricia Polacco’s descriptions of Pink and Say. If you think a trait is of importance, please write it down in your writer’s notebook.” · During Reading: o Page 5: “Has anyone heard of the word marauder before? It means people who raid other’s houses. During the Civil War, marauders used to raid people’s homes to find food. They were also violent people. This word will come up a few times in the text, so keep in mind what it means.” o Page 16: “When Pink uses the word ‘master’, does anyone know whom he is referring to? Yes, that’s correct. Pink’s family used to be slaves and their master was Mr. Aylee.” o Page 26: “What do you think the marauders would have done if they knew Pink and Say were both in the house?” · After Reading: o “Patricia Polacco uses vivid language in this book to describe her characters. Who can tell me some of the details they wrote down either about Pink or about Say?” o Allow four students to give examples of what they wrote down. o “Those are all great! Now what I’m going to have you do is turn and talk to your writing partner about the differences and similarities between Pink and Say.” o After a few minutes I will call on three students to give me a similarity and difference between the characters. Assessment: · I will know students understand how to examine different and similar character traits between characters by having students share their thoughts and by reading their writing journals.