®
Guided
Reading
LitPairs
Folktale
530L/590L
A: Two Brothers and the
Old Traveler
B: Diamonds and Toads
Session 1: Text A
Students
key idea In this Russian folktale, a greedy older brother snatches gold coins from a traveler without
giving anything in return. The kind younger brother offers to help the weary traveler and is rewarded
with riches.
Session Learning Focus/Standards
RL.3.2 Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from
diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral, and
explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
SL.3.1c Ask questions to check understanding of information presented,
stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
Comments for future instruction:
X = not demonstrated/not articulated
✓= demonstrated/articulated
Previewing the Text 5 minutes
efore we give this folktale a closer read, let’s read the title and scan the text and the
B
illustration to get an idea of what type of story it is.
In a folktale, the characters often represent a certain quality, such as greed, kindness, good,
or evil. Does anyone have another idea to share?
READING THE TEXT CLOSELY 5 minutes
olktales are short stories that teach lessons and are passed down through generations.
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The details about the characters, who represent two opposing traits, express these messages.
Let’s read the first seven paragraphs and then talk about what we read. . . .
Mondo Bookshop Grade 3 1
Let’s read the last three paragraphs. . . . Who can tell us what it’s about?
To find the central message of this folktale, think about the result of each brother’s actions.
Discussing the Text 10 minutes
et’s discuss the purpose of this folktale. Listen carefully to each other so you can add to
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what you hear.
What is the central message of this folktale?
How is the younger brother rewarded for his kindness?
his phrase is an exaggeration, or an overstatement of the facts. Certainly, the brother could
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count the coins if he chooses. Why does the author use this nonliteral language?
et’s sum up what we know about how text details help to convey a central message. You can
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do this every time you read a story to really understand it.
2 LITPAIRS
®
Guided
Reading
LitPairs
Folktale
530L/590L
A: Two Brothers and the
Old Traveler
B: Diamonds and Toads
Session 2: Text B
Students
key idea In this folktale, a younger sister is rewarded for her kindness, and an older sister is punished
for her greed.
Session Learning Focus/Standards
RL.3.2 Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from
diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral, and
explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
RL.3.5 Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or
speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
SL.3.1c Ask questions to check understanding of information presented,
stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.
Comments for future instruction:
X = not demonstrated/not articulated
✓= demonstrated/articulated
Previewing the Text 5 minutes
oday, we’ll read another folktale. This one is about another pair of siblings and their
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encounters with an old woman. What do you notice as you scan this text?
It’s likely that the central message will be a bit different in this folktale, too. Let’s read closely
to find out.
READING THE TEXT CLOSELY 5 minutes
s we read to determine how the text details work together to convey the central message,
A
we’re also going to pay attention to how each scene or event leads to the next one. Let’s read
the first four paragraphs. . . . Who can describe the scene or event in the first four paragraphs?
Mondo Bookshop Grade 3 1
In the next scene, the younger sister rushes home to tell her story. How does this scene lead
to the next scene involving the older sister?
ow does the scene between the older sister and the old woman differ from the scene
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between the younger sister and the old woman?
o, the scenes between the two sisters and the old woman are similar, but there’s one major
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difference. This difference shows us the central message of the folktale.
Discussing the Text 10 minutes
Let’s quickly review this folktale. What is the central message?
Who can add to this idea using details from the story?
et’s talk about how each scene builds on earlier scenes. We know that stories are made up
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of characters in particular places who go through a series of actions or events. Each action or
event is a scene in the story. What comments do you have about how this author connects
the scenes in this story?
ach sister represents a set of character traits. The younger sister is “kind and generous,”
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and the older sister is “disagreeable and greedy.” Let’s think about the words jewels and
toads. What do these items represent?
ou did a great job thinking about how the details and scenes work together to tell us the
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central message. Use this thinking when you read other folktales.
2 LITPAIRS
®
Guided
Reading
LitPairs
Folktale
530L/590L
A: Two Brothers and the
Old Traveler
B: Diamonds and Toads
Students
Session 3: Texts A and B
Session Learning Focus/Standards
RL.3.2 Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from
diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral, and
explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
RL.3.5 Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or
speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza;
describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
RL.3.9 Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories
written by the same author about the same or similar characters.
Comments for future instruction:
X = not demonstrated/not articulated
✓= demonstrated/articulated
REFLECTING ON the Texts 5 minutes
lthough both relate stories about the results of greed and kindness, you found different
A
details, scenes, and messages. Who will retell the folktales for us?
CROSS-TEXT ANALYSIS 5 minutes
Let’s think and talk more about how the two folktales are similar. Who would like to start us off?
Yes, we call words and phrase like that nonliteral language.
Now that we’ve compared them, let’s talk about how they are different.
olktales are meant to teach lessons. Sometimes, similar stories are told in different cultures.
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Let’s share what we noticed about how the details and scenes show us the central messages.
Mondo Bookshop Grade 3 1
INTEGRATING THE LEARNING 10 minutes
et’s think about these two folktales as a pair. We know they are different in some ways, but
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we can draw some conclusions now that we’ve read them both. Who’d like to start?
Who has another thought to share?
We’re having a good discussion.
Let’s review the thinking we used to deepen our understanding of both of the fables we read.
2 LITPAIRS