Days 9-12 Shared Reading

Day
Shared Reading
Malinali
9
Key Idea Malinali, daughter of a Mayan chief, tells the story about her challenges after
her father’s death. She describes the experience of being enslaved and tells about the
opportunities that arose from her contact with people from different cultures who speak
different languages.
Learning Focus
RL.5.3*
Students will determine major challenging events in the story and describe how characters
respond and how these events progress the plot line.
Previewing the Text
3 minutes (pages 3–9)
Today we’re going to start a new selection. Let’s read the title page together. . . .
What have you learned?
We will read parts of this text over the next few sessions. We will read about
Malinali’s challenges and discuss how she responds to them.
Remember when I read “Journal from Finland” to you, we talked about how
characters respond to challenging events and how those responses help move
the plot forward. We will use this same strategy as we read Malinali.
Close Reading of the Text
7 minutes
Let’s read pages 3–6 together. As we read, let’s pay attention to all the events in
the story. Think about which events are challenges, and how Malinali responds
to those challenges.
What characters have we met so far?
What challenges have the characters faced so far?
What events have happened so far?
Remember that a suffix is a word part added to the end of a word that changes
the word’s meaning. Look at the word protector on page 7. The root word of
protector is protect, from a Latin word, protegere, meaning “to cover” (tegere)
“in front” (pro). The suffix -tor changes the verb protect to mean “one who
protects.” How does this help you understand protector as it’s used on page 7?
Let’s keep reading. Pay close attention to the characters and their challenges.
Focus especially on Malinali, the main character.
Mondo Bookshop Grade 5 • Theme 6 1
Discussing the Text
10 minutes
As we share our thinking today, be sure that we are first listening to our
classmates as they share their ideas. If we’re really listening to each other,
we have less of a chance of interrupting others who are speaking. When one
speaker finishes, you can add a thought or ask a question about what you
just heard.
Let’s review what we’ve read up to this point. Who’ll share what Malinali is about
so far?
Who’ll share how Malinali describes her response to the challenges she faces?
Let’s talk about those words. Is anger really hot? Does anger actually bite
her heart?
How does Malinali being sold into slavery move the plot forward?
You’ve shared important details about Malinali’s responses to her experiences.
Who can point to specific details in the text that helped you understand
Malinali’s intelligence and determination?
We often come across some unfamiliar words or ideas as we read. For example,
you can see on page 7 that Malinali burns incense when she prays to the Moon
Goddess. When you come across unfamiliar words or concepts, such as incense,
try to understand them from the context of the words and sentences around
them. What are some clues you notice?
Great. Incense is something people burn that creates a pleasing smell, and it’s
often used during ceremonies or important rituals.
2 Journals and Diaries from Other Cultures
Shared Reading
Day
Malinali
10
Learning FocusES
RL.5.3*, RL5.6*, RL.5.9
Students will determine the major challenging events in the story and describe how characters
respond and how these events progress the plot line. They will also describe how the point of
view of the story’s narrator establishes narrative tone and the effect it has on the reader. In
addition, they will compare and contrast other texts on their approaches to similar themes and
topics.
Returning to the Text
3 minutes (pages 3–9)
Before we reread the first part of this text, who can recount what has happened
so far?
I like that you included many of the challenging events.
Today we’re going to reread the journal from the beginning. We’ve talked about
how to examine a character’s response to challenging events. As we reread
Malinali today, we’ll think and talk about Malinali’s point of view. We’ll discuss
how her point of view establishes the narrative tone and affects our thoughts
about the story. We’ll also compare the text to other texts we have read in
this theme.
Close Reading of the Text
7 minutes
Reading a selection a second time helps us see details we might’ve missed
about the events, characters, and tone. Read with me. . . . Malinali, the main
character, is the narrator of the story. She uses the pronouns I, me, and my.
What does that tell us about the journal’s point of view?
Tell me more about that. Does this first-person narrator know the thoughts of
any characters?
Right. What she knows comes from her own experiences and observations. Let’s
look at page 6 to evaluate what the first-person narrator knows. Read the last
paragraph. . . . What does Malinali say about her conversation with her mother?
Does she know what will happen?
What tone does Malinali use?
Is it objective and nonemotional? Or is it personal?
Mondo Bookshop Grade 5 • Theme 6 1
Good. What effect does this tone have upon you as the reader?
Let’s think together about how knowing the narrator’s point of view helps us
understand Malinali and her responses to challenging events. Any thoughts?
Let’s continue reading through page 9. Keep our learning focuses in mind as we
read together.
Discussing the Text
10 minutes
Each of the texts we have read so far read was written from the first-person
point of view. Who’ll share what advantage this point of view offers?
Can someone share some examples?
2 Journals and Diaries from Other Cultures
Shared Reading
Day
Malinali
11
Learning Focus
RL.5.3*
Students will determine the major challenging events in the story and describe how characters
respond and how these events progress the plot line.
Returning to the Text
3 minutes (pages 10–14)
Before we read the next part of Malinali today, let’s briefly review our reading
so far. Listen to each other’s comments so you can add to what your classmates
have shared.
In our last two sessions, we determined the early challenges Malinali faced and
examined how she responded to those challenges. We also examined events in
the text and discussed how they moved the plot forward. Today, we’re going to
focus on additional challenging events and examine how the plot continues
to unfold.
Close Reading of the Text
7 minutes
We’re going to read to the end of page 14 today. When we get to the end of
page 11, we’ll stop to discuss challenges Malinali has faced so far. . . . Let’s stop
and talk about what the narrator is describing.
Who can offer details that tell us about the challenge of being a slave?
Malinali facing some tough challenges. How does she respond to these
challenges?
Let’s finish this part of the text. As we read, we’ll keep thinking about how
Malinali responds to the challenges she faces and how the plot advances.
Discussing the Text
10 minutes
Who’d like to share something you learned about how Malinali responds to the
challenges she faces?
Mondo Bookshop Grade 5 • Theme 6 1
Each event that unfolds brings new challenges and new opportunities for
Malinali and other characters to respond to. Each character’s response prompts
new events. In this way, the plot continues to unfold. By thinking about Malinali’s
challenges and looking closely at how she responds to her challenges, we better
understand Malinali as a character. We also better understand the story as
a whole.
2 Journals and Diaries from Other Cultures
Shared Reading
Day
Malinali
12
Learning FocusES
RL.5.3*, RL.5.6*, RL.5.9
Students will determine the major challenging events in the story and describe how characters
respond and how these events progress the plot line. They will also describe how the point of view
of the story’s narrator establishes narrative tone and the effect it has on the reader. In addition,
they will compare and contrast other texts on their approaches to similar themes and topics.
Returning to the Text
3 minutes (pages 3–14)
Today we’re going to think more about the point of view in the text. We’ll
examine the narrator’s point of view and tone as well as its effect on us as
readers. We’ll also compare this text with the other texts we’ve read.
Close Reading of the Text
7 minutes
Now that we’ve read more of the text, let’s examine the narrative tone and
discuss how it affects us as readers. Who’d like to begin?
How does that affect you as a reader?
Let’s talk about how Malinali has responded to her life as a slave and how her
responses to challenges have moved the story along. Who has an idea to share?
Think about the selections we’ve read in this theme. Who can explain what the
different narrators have in common?
How are the narrators of “Letter Home to Vietnam” and “Bem’s Blog” similar in
their approach?
How are the narrators of “Postcard from Agra” and “Journal from Finland”
similar?
What does Malinali have in common with them?
Discussing the Text
10 minutes
As we wrap up our discussion, let’s think about the many cultures Malinali wrote
about. How did Malinali adapt to new cultures?
How did she manage to thrive?
How does integrating information from other texts we’ve read help you form a
more complete picture of the theme?
Mondo Bookshop Grade 5 • Theme 6 1