STUDENT GUIDE

​

“John Henry: The Steel Driving Man” and Poem: “John Henry”

​

Compare and contrast the story and poem versions of the legend of John Henry. Which version do you think better illustrates Henryʻs bravery and daring? Explain your answer using specific details from both texts.

​

​

​

​

thinkcerca.com

Table of Contents

Skills Focus

• Build Your Vocabulary: Map a Word
• Cornell Notes: Compare and Contrast Texts Across Genres and Themes

Overview and Connect

• Find Your Purpose for Learning
• Share Your Personal Connection

Read and Check

• Share Your Reflections
• Test Prep Strategy: Pre-Reading Strategies (Optional)

Analyze / Engage with the Text

• Highlight and Annotate

Summarize

• Write a Summary

Develop / Build Your Argument

• Share Your Argument Builder

Draft and Review / Create your CERCA

• Peer Editing Activity
• Reflect on Your Writing

thinkcerca.com

Extension Activities

• Storytelling Activity: Oral Storytelling of Traditional Tales
• Inquiry to Research: Asking Questions of the Texts

thinkcerca.com

SKILLS FOCUS

Build Your Vocabulary: �Map a Word — Legend�

​

​

​

Synonym (similar or like word)

Antonym (opposite word)

Picture of Vocabulary Word

Vocabulary Word and Definition

​

​

​

Part of Speech

Root Word or Origin

​

​

​

Sentence Using Vocabulary Word

Instructions: Analyzing key vocabulary words will help you better understand the texts you are reading. Word mapping can also help the words "stick" in your memory. Complete the map below with the vocabulary word provided in the title. Use a dictionary if necessary. Fill as many boxes as you can.

thinkcerca.com

SKILLS FOCUS

Cornell Notes: Compare and Contrast Texts Across Genres and Themes

Instructions: Take notes on the Direct Instruction lesson using the organizer below. Then summarize and reflect on the next page.

Complete the Direct Instruction lesson online at learn.thinkcerca.com

thinkcerca.com

SKILLS FOCUS

Cornell Notes: Compare and Contrast Texts Across Genres and Themes

Summarize and Reflect

In your own words and in complete sentences, write a 3–4 sentence summary of this Direct Instruction lesson. An accurate summary will cover the lesson's central ideas and include important details to support those ideas.

​

​

Record your summary here:

OVERVIEW AND CONNECT

Find Your Purpose for Learning

Instructions: When you have finished reading the Overview for this lesson, answer the following questions in the space below:

​

What more would you like to learn about the legend of John Henry? What would you like to know about the role that the steam drill plays in the legend of John Henry and what it symbolizes?

​

thinkcerca.com

Read the Overview provided at learn.thinkcerca.com

OVERVIEW AND CONNECT

Share Your Personal Connection

​

​

thinkcerca.com

Complete the Connect section for this selection at learn.thinkcerca.com

Instructions:�

1. Think: On your own, think about your experiences related to the topic.
2. Pair & Share: With a partner, group, or a trusted listener, share the parts of your response that you feel comfortable sharing.
3. Reflect: If time permits, reflect on your experience. What ideas did others share that you hadn't considered? How were your ideas alike?

READ

Share Your Reflections

Instructions: During or after you have finished reading, find the questions in the text marked Pause and Reflect. These questions may help you understand the text, or they may help you connect the text to yourself, to other texts, or to the world around you.

Use the space on the left below to answer the reflection questions. Then discuss your answers, noting how they were similar or different.

Record “Pause and Reflect” answers here:

Record discussion reflections here:

thinkcerca.com

Refer to the Pause and Reflect questions within the Read section of the lesson at learn.thinkcerca.com.

​

thinkcerca.com

READ

Test Prep Strategy: Pre-Reading Strategies

Pre-reading involves making predictions before you dive into a passage. Taking this step before you read strengthens comprehension and test-taking skills.

First, preview the text. If you are reading on a screen, scroll through the piece to determine its length. Then, look at the text and ask the following questions:

• Based on the title, what do you think the reading will be about?
• How is the passage organized?
• Are there pictures (photos, maps, charts) with captions? If so, what do they suggest to the reader?
• What predictions can you make based on bolded vocab words, subheadings, and other text features?
• Is it fiction, or nonfiction? What is the genre (fiction examples include folklore, fantasy, and mystery; nonfiction includes biography and autobiography)?

​

Asking these questions before reading will help you actively think about the text as you read, and after.

Refer to the reading for this lesson at learn.thinkcerca.com.

thinkcerca.com

ANALYZE / ENGAGE WITH THE TEXT

Highlight and Annotate

​

In this step, you will analyze the text closely, then discuss your findings to begin developing reasoning for your argument.

​

1. Read the text again, highlighting and annotating important details. ��Follow the prompts provided. The highlighting prompts will help you with the final writing task. ��You will find evidence to support your own argument or informational piece, as well as models of excellence that will help you better understand a writer’s craft in narratives and poetry. The evidence you highlight will be available when you begin building your draft in the next step.

​

2. If time permits, pair and share your highlights and annotations with a classmate. Pay close attention to this conversation! Your thinking is important reasoning that you may include in your final draft.

​

​

Return to learn.thinkcerca.com to complete Analyze / Engage with the Text.

thinkcerca.com

SUMMARIZE

Write a Summary

​

Summaries help you process your thinking about a text and are often a great way to start off an argumentative or informational essay. A good summary shows you have knowledge about a topic.

​

Practicing summarizing also helps you prepare for the main idea questions posed on many standardized assessments. In addition, summarizing is a helpful skill for working with others, such as when you need to confirm your understanding of what someone else has said. That's a useful skill for all parts of life.

​

1. Use the sentence stems provided in the online lesson to summarize the text. Your summary should:
1. Be brief
2. Include the main idea and key details
3. Represent these ideas fairly and accurately �
2. If time permits, pair and share with a classmate. Read each other’s summary, and discuss how they are similar or different. What did you say were the main idea and key details? Were your summaries fair and accurate? Why?

​

Return to learn.thinkcerca.com to complete Summarize.

thinkcerca.com

DEVELOP / BUILD YOUR ARGUMENT

Share your Argument Builder

When you’ve completed the argument building step, share your results with others, and listen to how they responded to the same question. Ask questions, and give feedback to help strengthen your partners’ reasons and evidence.

Complete Develop / Build Your Argument to begin building your argument at learn.thinkcerca.com

DRAFT AND REVIEW / CREATE YOUR CERCA

Peer Editing Activity

​

​

​

1. Do a self-assessment of your CERCA. Use the online rubric for the lesson on learn.thinkcerca.com, checking each box where you find evidence that you have achieved the criteria.�
2. Next, collaborate with a classmate to read each other’s drafts. Again, use the rubric to evaluate each other’s work.�
3. Share insights into what might make your pieces stronger. Find two positive attributes and one area of growth for each draft you review.�
4. Revise your piece using what you learned from your self-assessment and the feedback from your peers.

Complete your Draft at learn.thinkcerca.com

thinkcerca.com

DRAFT AND REVIEW / CREATE YOUR CERCA

Reflect on Your Writing

Before you submit your final CERCA, write a brief reflection describing your experience.

An area for growth for me on this piece or in my writing in general is…

​

The strongest areas of this piece of writing are…

thinkcerca.com

Through self-assessment and/or peer editing, I learned…

Extension Activities

​

The following activities can be used as extensions to this lesson.

thinkcerca.com

OPTIONAL EXTENSION : STORYTELLING ACTIVITY

Oral Storytelling of Traditional Tales

What is Oral Storytelling?

Most traditional tales began as stories that were passed down orally (through spoken word) from generation to generation. Some can even be traced back to ancient times and have taken many different forms throughout the ages. Similar to the “game of telephone,” traditional stories are interpreted differently through the lens of each storyteller who chooses to tell them. In the process, these stories take on new cultural elements and may even adapt to new genres as they spread around the globe. Now it’s your turn to add to this rich tradition! Follow along with this activity to learn more about and participate in this traditional way of storytelling.�

Materials Needed:

• A printed copy of your story
• Oral Storytelling Tips page
• Highlighters and pencils�

Instructions:

• Review the Oral Storytelling Tips on the next page.
• In a small group, assign each person a part of the story to read and perform aloud.
• Highlight or underline the places in the story where you speak.
• Make notes on the story about how you will perform those parts and what you should do with your body to show your the thoughts, feelings, and actions in that moment of the story.
• If your teacher says to do so, find or create small props, costumes, and set pieces, or arrange the room in a way that shows the setting of the story.
• Practice your part using the storytelling tips (using props, costumes, and backgrounds—if you choose to make them).
• Come back together as a group to perform your story.
• Celebrate your first oral storytelling performance by complimenting your classmates!�

Share

Teachers can take photos and videos of your performance, if your school policies allow it.

​

thinkcerca.com

OPTIONAL EXTENSION : STORYTELLING ACTIVITY

Oral Storytelling Tips:

• Always face your audience or turn your body 45 degrees to avoid turning your back to viewers. Make eye contact with the other storytellers and your audience. Look up from your story as much as possible—even if you don’t have it memorized.�
• When you are assigned a part of the story, think about the characters in the story. What do the characters want? How do they feel throughout the story? How would they sound and move their bodies? What motivates them to do the things they do? Be confident in who the character is—own it and commit! �
• Don’t worry about mistakes—just keep going. Most of the time, our audience doesn’t even notice, unless we point it out!�
• Listen to the other storytellers so you know when it is time for your part. �

​

​

​

��

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

• Project your voice—this means you should speak slightly louder than you normally would. Your audience can’t understand your awesome lines if they can’t hear you! Consider adding in dramatic pauses.�
• Great storytellers also play with sound effects. How can you use your voice and/or body to creatively make the sounds that are described on the page? For example, if someone knocks on the door in the story, could you knock on a desk to create a sound effect? If there is a train coming, could someone make the sound?

​

• Consider the rate, or speed, at which you speak.
• Playing with different speeds can reflect different emotions in a story. For instance, super fast indicates suspense, while super slow might indicate slower plots, mystery, or even fear. Mix it up to show your audience that your storytelling has range.�
• Consider the volume, or loudness/softness, with which you speak.
• Like rate, volume indicates different emotions. Loud is often interpreted as shouting, which indicates anger. It could also indicate that the action of the story is getting more intense. A whisper could indicate sneakiness or meekness from a character. It could also hint at mystery or fear in a story.
• Sometimes, storytellers will make their voices soft and quiet right before an intense, loud moment to shock or surprise their audiences.�

​

​

​

​

thinkcerca.com

OPTIONAL EXTENSION : INQUIRY TO RESEARCH

Ask Questions of the Texts

As you engage with texts in any subject, you can actively ask questions about the author’s purpose, intended audience, and occasion to understand the message. The table below provides examples.

​

thinkcerca.com

OPTIONAL EXTENSION : INQUIRY TO RESEARCH

Ask Questions of the Texts (continued)

Use the table below to record questions about the text you read.

/ 224.412.3722 / thinkcerca.com