Lesson Plan Template

EDIS 5400: English Education

Context:
Course name; Language Arts
Grade level; 6th grade
Length of lesson; 75 minutes
Description of setting, students, and curriculum and any other important
contextual characteristics; This lesson will be taught to a 6th grade Standard English
class at Sutherland Middle school. There are approximately 20 students in the class, and it
takes place during the middle of the day. The class is split by lunch and recess, so
instruction takes place both before and after these time frames. There is a special
education co-teacher in the classroom as well during this block. Students vary in ability
and needs. Certain students have reading disabilities, and need extra time or assignments
read aloud to them. Other students have a harder time communicating with peers and
become upset when they get something wrong or do not understand what is going on.
Students so far have built skills to work in groups, learned elements of media literacy and
practiced making oral presentations. They have also learned how to expand their
vocabularies and what to do when they come across unfamiliar words in a text.
Virginia SOL(s):
6.5 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of fictional texts,
narrative nonfiction, and poetry.
b. Make, confirm, and revise predictions.
f. Use information in the text to draw conclusions and make inferences.
i. Identify and summarize supporting details.
l. Use reading strategies to monitor comprehension throughout the reading process.
Common Core State Standard(s):
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular
details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.3
Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as
how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.
Objectives (KUD format):
Know:
1. Students will know how to use reading strategies to help with their understanding
of a text.
2. Students will know how to summarize texts and dig deeper for meaning.
3. Students will know to make predictions about readings.
4. Students will know how to make connections in texts.
Understand:
1. Students will understand that strategies can help independent readers further their
understanding of a reading.

2. Students will understand that making connections to readings can reveal something
about the text.
Do:
1. Students will be able to evaluate texts by making predictions and connections.
2. Student will be able to effectively summarize a text for meaning.
3. Students will be able to use reading strategies to help their understanding.
Assessments: Methods for evaluating each of the specific objectives listed
above.
Diagnostic: Students will demonstrate what they already know by
- Students will complete a Probable Passage worksheet. It will identify their ability to
make inferences and predictions about the text. They will be given a list of words
from the first section of the reading, and must place those words into certain
categories depending on what they think their importance in the story will be. From
those words they will have to create a gist statement summarizing what they
believe the text is about.
o SOL 6.5 a, b, e, f, l.b, f, l. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 K1, K3, U1, D1
Formative: Students will show their progress toward today's objectives by
- Students will work in pairs for the Say Something activity. They will read the last two
sections of the passage, changes each time as to who says something first.
Through their discussions in this activity they will talk about what has happened in
the section they just completed, and work through understanding. They will ask
questions, clarify misunderstandings, and make connections and predictions , and
comments. I will be walking around during this time to ensure students and
grasping these concepts.
o SOL 6.5 a, b, f, g, i, l.b, f, l . CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2, CCSS.ELALiteracy.RL.6.3. K1, K2, K3, K4, U1, U2, D1, D3
- Students will complete the Somebody Wanted But So worksheet, going through one
example as a class then doing it individually. I will be collecting and providing
feedback on these sheets to see what kinds of connections students are making and
gauge their level of comprehension. In regards to feedback, I will make sure that
students are accurate in their descriptions and that they are using specific
examples from the text. For any answers that are inaccurate or incomplete, I will
encourage students to go back to the text and find evidence of what they are trying
to say.
o SOL 6.5 a, d, f, g, l.f, l. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.3 K1,
K2, U1, D2, D3
Summative: Students will ultimately be assessed (today or in a future lesson) on these
standards by...
- Students will write to concretize mental actions, as described by Bomer on page
155. They will do this in a future lesson, probably on the next day. Students will
complete a reflection activity of a free-write and choose one of the reading
strategies they worked with in this lesson. They will have to describe the process of
the strategy and how it helped them understand the text as a reader. I will read
over these and look for students to point out specifically what about the activity
helped them. They will also need to include explicit examples of where the
strategies helped them in the text.
o SOL 6.5 l. K1, U1, D3

Materials Needed:
- Class Packet
o Probable Passage Worksheet
o Say Something worksheet
o SWBS worksheet
o Exit ticket
- Copies of The Monkeys Paw
- Computer
- Projector
Instructional Steps (Procedures): Detail student and teacher behavior.
Beginning Room Arrangement: Students will sit in normal seating areas with groups of
desks.
[Changes in this arrangement that become necessary later will be noted in the plan]
I.

Welcome/greeting/announcements

Hi class, welcome back. Before you take a seat today make sure that you turn in your
homework and pick up your class packet. Go ahead and take a seat, and do some silent
reading while we wait to get started.
II.

Hook/ bridge/ opening to lesson

Ok everyone, lets go ahead and get started. Today we will be reading an exciting story
that I think all of you will really like. We will also be focusing on some strategies that can
help us build skills as independent readers. These are just a few strategies and may not be
your favorites, but we are going to try them out together. Hopefully you will be able to use
them on your own in the future to help you make connections with readings and really
understand the books or texts that you read.
If everyone could pull out their class packets and make sure their reading books are away
then we will get started. Make sure you are starting on the page that says Probable
Passage at the top. With this sheet, we are going to make some predictions about the
story we will be reading today before we actually read it. Making predictions can help
readers connect what they thought was going to happen with what actually does happen.
When you make them while already reading a text, they help make sure that we
understand what we have read already.
Write/project the following words on the board: wind, fire, chess, guilty, hospitable,
strange, paw, fate, sorrow, wishes, rich, son, disgust, wet
These words I have written on the board will be what you put in the boxes on the page.
They all come from the first section of the test we will be reading, so they are actually in
the story. Look at each of the words and decide what aspect of the story you think it
connects to; characters, setting, problem, or outcomes. If you arent sure what the word is,
just write it in the unknown words box. Once you have finished use these words the write
your gist statement. Gist means the essence of the text, or a summary of the essential

details. The gist statement is what you think the story is going to be about. Dont worry
about making it exactly right; the idea is just to make a prediction based on the evidence
you are given. Use the words that you place into the boxes within your gist statements so
that you are showing exactly what you are thinking and why based on the words you were
given. Its ok if you dont use every single one of the words in the gist statement but use
as many as you can so that we get a clear indication of your thinking. Go ahead and work
with a partner on this, then we will come back together and read them as a class to see
what everyone came up with.
Have students fill out the Probable Passage sheet. Walk around to make sure they are
doing it correctly and to listen to the predictions they are making.
Sample interactions:
Student 1: I really dont get how we are supposed to know which goes where.
Teacher: Thats ok! Thats kind of the point. Think about these words and what you have
experienced with them before. Did they play a role in a personal experience youve had or
in a text youve read before?
Student 1: Yeah, the word fire makes me think thats a problem because Ive seen a lot
about things burning down in fires before.
Student 2: But what if theyre just like having a bonfire and its part of the setting?
Teacher: Those both seem like reasonable thoughts to me. You dont have to put the
same things, just make your best guess based on your prior knowledge and any
connections you see between the words.Try to come up with a consensus about the best
spot to put the word. Dont worry about it being exactly right or wrong, just do what you
think is best.
Student 3: Wet and wind are definitely part of the setting. Its probably like a stormy night
or something and they are having a fire to stay warm. We should put wet, wind and fire
under setting.
Student 4: That sounds good to me. I think that makes the most sense.
Student 5: Which ones could go under characters? Is it about how they are or what they
do?
Student 6: I think with these words it could be both. Hospitable is a word that usually
describes people so we should definitely write that under characters at least.
Student 5: Good point. Also disgust probably goes there because I dont see how it
would fit anywhere else.
Student 4: Son is also probably in characters since its a person.
Student 3: The part I am having the hardest time is with the problem section. Any of
these could be related to the problem really, even if they are part of the setting or
characters too.
Student 5: Thats a good point. Maybe we should decide what words definitely could fit in
other categories first and then think about what the problems could be.
Student: What do we do for the gist statement? Do we say whatever we want?
Teacher: Make sure it is a complete sentence that captures your ideas about what the
story is about.
Student: Do we have to use the words you gave us?
Teacher: You dont have to use all of them, but it would be a good idea to try to use as
many of them as you can to give a very clear statement, and so we can all get a good
sense of what youre thinking.

Once everyone seems to be wrapping up, come back together as a class. Have students
read their gist statements aloud and see how they all differ.
Sample discussion:
Teacher: Who would like to share what they wrote for their gist statement?
Student 1: A strange, hospitable son was playing chess by the fire on a wet and windy
night when he was given wishes to change his fate that could either make him rich or
bring him sorrow.Reads sentence
Teacher: Thats a good thought. I can see what you were thinking and have an idea as to
what words you put into which boxes. Is there any reason you thought certain things
belonged in certain categories?
Student 1: ExplainsWe thought that sorrow was definitely a problem because its being
sad, and we also put wishes in as problems because they have the potential to do bad
things for him. Also we knew that wet and wind were in setting because it sounds like
words to describe a storm.
Teacher: Great, thanks. Anyone else?
Student 2: Reads sentenceA strange, guilty man wishes for a rich, hospitable son who is
good at chess on a wet and windy night as he sits by the fire, but ends up with a fate that
disgusts him.
Teacher: Great! Who can tell me how that is different from (Student 1)s?
Continue pattern with a few more students.
Then, pass out the copies of The Monkeys Paw to the class.
Thanks for sharing that everyone. Those were some really great predictions, and I can
see why you may think those things. We make predictions based on our background
knowledge and the evidence we are given, such as the words in this activity. They help us
realize what we think is happening or going to happen in a text, and help us to connect the
outcomes with what we thought was going to happen. Predictions help us to take a closer
look at the text both before, during and after our reading. Here is the story that we will be
reading for today, and the words come from the first section of the text. We will read the
first part together to see if anyones predictions were accurate.
III.

Instructional steps

Now we are going to use a strategy called Say Something. The rules for this are outlined
on the next page of your class packet. With your elbow partner you will be reading the last
two sections of the story. One person will read the first part, and afterwards you will
discuss what you read. The person who read it aloud will be the first to say something.
Then, the next person will listen to what they have said and respond with their own
thought that relates to their partners idea. Today we are going to focus on making
connections and making predictions, so make sure to pick one of those 2 when it is your
turn to say something. There are sentence stems on the bottom of the page to help you
get started when it is your turn. By doing this after we read the sections, it helps us as
readers to really take a closer look at what we just experienced. It helps to further our
comprehension of the text, and allows us to take a look at what we didnt understand.
Lets try one together. Can I have a volunteer?

Have student read first small paragraph of section 2.

Great, now go ahead and respond by either making a connection to the text or a
prediction. Make sure to explain your connection or prediction and use the text in your
reasons. Use the stems on the worksheet if you would like.
Student: I predict that something is actually going to happen with the paw. I think this
because it describes the paw as just sitting there with no one believing in it and I dont
think the author would make that point unless something else is going to happen with it.
Otherwise there would be no reason to say it. Also the story is called The Monkeys Paw
so something has to happen with it.
Teacher: That makes a lot of since. Since the text calls it shriveled and little, I think the
next thing thats going to happen is that the paw is going to start getting bigger and
bigger until they have to do something with it. They are ignoring it now but the sergeant
gave all those warnings about using it so I bet it will get so big that they cant ignore it
anymore and have to do something with it.
Teacher: This setting reminds me of a snow day when I was younger. I can picture eating
breakfast and watching the sun glisten on the fresh snow, and being excited to have the
whole day off to play in it outside.
Student: I predict that the monkeys paw is going to get really big sink it made sure to say
its shriveled and little here.
Does everyone understand what we did? (Student 1) made a prediction about the next
part of the text and used one of the sentence starters from the worksheet. She used what
was in the text to base her predictions, and then I was able to respond to her prediction by
extending on it. I didnt come up with something completely different but rather made
sure I responded to what she was thinking. This is what you all should do when you are
working. Even if you make connections you should point out what part of the text made
you feel that way and your partner should respond to that. Also, your responses will be
longer than ours since you are reading longer amounts of texts. If you come to the end of
your section and dont have a prediction or connection then you need to reread. Are there
any questions? Alright, go ahead and get started with your partner.
Circulate the room making sure that students are trading off who says something. Help
students who have questions, and stop by pairs to hear what they are saying. Ask follow
up questions to help them extend their thinking.
Sample interactions: (after section 2 of reading)
Student 1: I predict that they are going to throw the paw away.
Student 2: You have to explain that now.
Student 1: Well I think they are going to throw it away because it has caused these
problems for them and they dont want to deal with the paw anymore.
Student 2: Yeah I think I would probably throw it away. I definitely agree and think the
family will do something with the paw but I dont think theyll just throw it away. They will
probably try to destroy it in a different manner so no one can use it ever again.
Teacher: Make sure you use specific information from the text when you are explaining to
review what you just read. For example, explain what problems the paw caused for the
family.
Have class come back together to discuss as a whole.

Potential discussion:
Teacher: Good prediction. Why do you think that?
Student 1: Because it did something bad.
Teacher: Where do you see that in the story? Make sure you are using the text to support
your connections and predictions so that they can be seen as reasonable and like they
would make sense.
Teacher: Ok class, lets come back together now. Did anyone have any connections they
wanted to share?
Student 1: It reminded me of times that I make wishes. Every year at Thanksgiving my
brother and I split the wishbone of the turkey. Whoever breaks off the bigger side is
supposed to have their wish come true.
Student 2: Yeah or like when you make a wish when you blow out birthday candles.
Student 3: Also I make a wish when it turns 11:11
Student 4: Yeah and you can make wishes when you throw a penny in a fountain.
Teacher: OK great those are some great examples. How can we connect times that we
have made wishes to what happens with the wishes in the story?
Student 1: Well Ive heard the phrase be careful what you wish for and I think thats
really true in this story.
Teacher: How so? Explain using the text.
Student 1: Well the family wished that they had more money because they didnt know
that the paw would give it to them but in a bad way. They ended up getting the money but
it was because their son died at work in an accident and the company was giving them
money for it. They should have not wished for the money and then their son probably
wouldnt have died.
Teacher: Great example.
Student 2: How were they supposed to know that their son would die though? They just
asked for money not for him to die.
Student 3: They couldnt have known that but the sergeant tried to warn them about the
paw. He told them nothing good would come out of using it but the family didnt believe
him.
Teacher: Thats greatWait for answers Lets go back and look at where the sergeant tried
to warn them. Can anyone find what he says to the family?
Student 4: At one point the story says, "Hold it up in your right hand and wish aloud,' said
the sergeant-major, "but I warn you of the consequences."
Student 1: And after that it says "If you must wish," he said gruffly, "wish for something
sensible."
Teacher: Good. Do you think that this is also the author trying to tell the readers that
something bad is going to happen?
Student 2: Yeah thats what I thought when we were reading. I knew that something bad
was going to happen but just didnt know exactly what it was.
Teacher: Great! When you do that while reading, what is it called? Some of you may have
done this in our last activity.
Student 2: Making a prediction!
Good. Where there any misconceptions about the text that still need to be cleared up?
Guide students through their thinking if they still have questions.
Student 1:

Just to make sure we really understand what we have read in this story today, we are
going to do a summarizing sheet called Somebody Wanted But So. It should be the next
page in your class packet. With this sheet you will go back through the story and look at
what happened. Try to examine each character and what they do. In the column you will
label the characters name, then in the next column write what they wanted or were trying
to do. After that you will write whatever problems came up with that in the But column,
and finally under So you will write what the character did to address that problem and
work towards what they wanted. This strategy helps us remember what we just read. It
takes us back through the plot and helps us examine everything that happened. It also
gives us a deeper look into the characters by really understanding what they wanted and
maybe why they did the things they did. We will go through one example together, and
then you will work through the story on your own. Try to do as many as you can find. If you
dont finish, you can take it home and finish it tonight. Everyone will be turning it in
tomorrow for me to see what you have found.
Lead one example on the board, showing students how it works.
Lets do one together. The character I will do will be Sergeant-Major Morris. So, I will write
that under somebody. He wanted to burn the monkey paw. But, Mr. White grabbed it from
the fire. So, he warned the White family that they should be careful with their wishes.
Everyone understand?
Potential student questions:
Do we have to do this for every character? Yes
Can you explain the So part more? Look back at what you wrote as the problem they
were facing. How did the character most past that issue? What action did they take?
What if a character doesnt want anything? I would suggest that you reread the story
and really examine the characters. Everyone has a motivation and though it might not be
a huge part of the story I think you will be able to write something down. If you really get
stuck on a character, let me know and we can walk through it together like I did on the
board.
Great, go ahead and get started.
Then have them work independently. Circulate around the room to help students find
other examples if they are struggling. Answer any comprehension questions they may
have.
Potential student interactions:
Student 1: I am not sure what Mr. White wants exactly.
Teacher: Why is that? Whats your thinking?
Student 1: Well he says that he have everything he wants before he wishes and its his
son who tells him to wish for the money. So is that really what he wants?
Teacher: Good thinking. If you were in that scenario and someone told you what to wish
for, do you think you would say thats what you wanted?
Student 1: Probably not.
Teacher: Ok, so maybe Mr. White doesnt want anything physical. Maybe he just wants to
do something. Can you think of something that may be?
Student 1: Yeah well he wants to use the monkeys paw but he just doesnt know what to

wish for.
Teacher: It sounds to me like you could use that information in two of the columns. Youre
on the right track!
Student 2: Does the son before and after he dies count as 2 different characters?
Teacher: Do they seem like different characters to you?
Student 2: Well when he comes back he is kind of like a zombie so I think it would be a
different character.
Teacher: Thats good. Can you think of different wants the have?
Student 2: Yeah the first son when he is alive wants the 200 pounds of money from the
monkeys paw. And when hes dead I would say he wants to get back in the house.
Teacher: Those sound reasonable to me.
Student 2: But when I do it for the zombie son, he wants to get in the house but doesnt.
How would I fill in the last two columns?
Teacher: The characters dont have to have accomplished what they want. Try to think
about how other characters are involved in what the zombie son wants and how they
affect it. You can fill it out that way.
Student 3: What should we do if characters want more than 1 thing?
Teacher: Do the different wants come with different ways of handling the situation?
Student 3: Yeah most of the time.
Teacher: Ok, do you think you would be able to fill the boxes our thoroughly for all the
situations you are finding?
Student 3: Yeah because some characters are more involved than others so they do more
things.
Teacher: Ok great. I would say make sure you fill out one for each character first and
focus on the one that you think is most important to them. They if you have time you can
go back and add more.
IV.

Closing

Great work today everyone. Hopefully these strategies will help you as you become
independent readers. Remember, there are many other strategies you can use if these
dont work for you for some reason. Before you go, please fill out the exit ticket on the last
page of your packet. Rip it off and leave it on your desk when you have finished. Thanks
for working so hard, have a great rest of your day.
Attention to Individual Student Needs: Detail specific actions/materials you will
use to differentiate your instruction to meet various individuals learning needs
in this lesson.
For the student who has dyslexia, I would pair them with someone who will be patient with
their reading and can help them in their comprehension and reading skills. I would also
expect the honors level class to make more connections on their SWBS worksheet, and
have discussions past the surface level of understanding for the Say Something activity.
The standard class would focus more on the comprehension, while hopefully the advanced
class would get both comprehension and analysis.
Technology Use: Detail specific technology being used in the lesson with
explanation for why it is being used. -

The only technology that will be used in todays lesson will be a computer and a
projector. It will be used to project the story on the screen so that students can either
follow along by looking at the screen or their own copy while we read and examine certain
parts of the text as a class. It will also be used to project the words students will be using
for the Probable Passage worksheet. I will also use it to show the list of starter points that
students can use for the Say Something activity. Finally, I will project the SWBS sheet while
we fill out one row together as a class.
How this lesson incorporates specific insights from course readings and/or class
discussion:
This lesson specifically pulls from chapters 6, 7 and 8 from the Kylene Beers reading
When Kids Cant Read. In these chapters she outlines specific strategies for frontloading,
constructing and extending meaning for students before, during and after reading. I use
the Probable Passage, Say Something and Somebody Wanted But So strategies in this
lessons to gauge and increase student comprehension of the text. These reading
strategies will also help students be able to become better independent readers in the
future. I also took one of Professor Kiblers exit ticket questions and reworded it to make it
more accessible to 6th graders.
Materials Appendix:

THE MONKEY'S PAW (1902)

from The lady of the barge (1906, 6th ed.)
London and New York
Harper & Brothers, Publishers

by W.W. Jacobs

I.
WITHOUT, the night was cold and wet, but in the small parlour of Laburnam Villa the blinds were drawn
and the fire burned brightly. Father and son were at chess, the former, who possessed ideas about the
game involving radical changes, putting his king into such sharp and unnecessary perils that it even
provoked comment from the white-haired old lady knitting placidly by the fire.
"Hark at the wind," said Mr. White, who, having seen a fatal mistake after it was too late, was amiably
desirous of preventing his son from seeing it.
"I'm listening," said the latter, grimly surveying the board as he stretched out his hand. "Check."
"I should hardly think that he'd come to-night," said his father, with his hand poised over the board.
"Mate," replied the son.

"That's the worst of living so far out," bawled Mr. White, with sudden and unlooked-for violence; "of
all the beastly, slushy, out-of-the-way places to live in, this is the worst. Pathway's a bog, and the road's a
torrent. I don't know what people are thinking about. I suppose because only two houses on the road are
let, they think it doesn't matter."
"Never mind, dear," said his wife soothingly; "perhaps you'll win the next one."
Mr. White looked up sharply, just in time to intercept a knowing glance between mother and son. The
words died away on his lips, and he hid a guilty grin in his thin grey beard.
"There he is," said Herbert White, as the gate banged to loudly and heavy footsteps came toward the
door.
The old man rose with hospitable haste, and opening the door, was heard condoling with the new
arrival. The new arrival also condoled with himself, so that Mrs. White said, "Tut, tut!" and coughed
gently as her husband entered the room, followed by a tall burly man, beady of eye and rubicund of
visage.
"Sergeant-Major Morris," he said, introducing him.
The sergeant-major shook hands, and taking the proffered seat by the fire, watched contentedly while
his host got out whisky and tumblers and stood a small copper kettle on the fire.
At the third glass his eyes got brighter, and he began to talk, the little family circle regarding with eager
interest this visitor from distant parts, as he squared his broad shoulders in the chair and spoke of strange
scenes and doughty deeds; of wars and plagues and strange peoples.
"Twenty-one years of it," said Mr. White, nodding at his wife and son. "When he went away he was a
slip of a youth in the warehouse. Now look at him."
"He don't look to have taken much harm," said Mrs. White, politely.
"I'd like to go to India myself," said the old man, "just to look round a bit, you know."
"Better where you are," said the sergeant-major, shaking his head. He put down the empty glass, and
sighing softly, shook it again.
"I should like to see those old temples and fakirs and jugglers," said the old man. "What was that you
started telling me the other day about a monkey's paw or something, Morris?"
"Nothing," said the soldier hastily. "Leastways, nothing worth hearing."
"Monkey's paw?" said Mrs. White curiously.
"Well, it's just a bit of what you might call magic, perhaps," said the sergeant-major off-handedly.

His three listeners leaned forward eagerly. The visitor absentmindedly put his empty glass to his lips
and then set it down again. His host filled it for him.
"To look at," said the sergeant-major, fumbling in his pocket, "it's just an ordinary little paw, dried to a
mummy."
He took something out of his pocket and proffered it. Mrs. White drew back with a grimace, but her
son, taking it, examined it curiously.
"And what is there special about it?" inquired Mr. White, as he took it from his son and, having
examined it, placed it upon the table.
"It had a spell put on it by an old fakir," said the sergeant-major, "a very holy man. He wanted to show
that fate ruled people's lives, and that those who interfered with it did so to their sorrow. He put a spell
on it so that three separate men could each have three wishes from it."
His manner was so impressive that his hearers were conscious that their light laughter jarred somewhat.
"Well, why don't you have three, sir?" said Herbert White cleverly.
The soldier regarded him in the way that middle age is wont to regard presumptuous youth. "I have,"
he said quietly, and his blotchy face whitened.
"And did you really have the three wishes granted?" asked Mrs. White.
"I did," said the sergeant-major, and his glass tapped against his strong teeth.
"And has anybody else wished?" inquired the old lady.
"The first man had his three wishes, yes," was the reply. "I don't know what the first two were, but the
third was for death. That's how I got the paw."
His tones were so grave that a hush fell upon the group.
"If you've had your three wishes, it's no good to you now, then, Morris," said the old man at last. "What
do you keep it for?"
The soldier shook his head. "Fancy, I suppose," he said slowly.
"If you could have another three wishes," said the old man, eyeing him keenly, "would you have
them?"
"I don't know," said the other. "I don't know."
He took the paw, and dangling it between his front finger and thumb, suddenly threw it upon the fire.
White, with a slight cry, stooped down and snatched it off.

"Better let it burn," said the soldier solemnly.

"If you don't want it, Morris," said the old man, "give it to me."
"I won't," said his friend doggedly. "I threw it on the fire. If you keep it, don't blame me for what
happens. Pitch it on the fire again, like a sensible man."
The other shook his head and examined his new possession closely. "How do you do it?" he inquired.
"Hold it up in your right hand and wish aloud,' said the sergeant-major, "but I warn you of the
consequences."
"Sounds like the Arabian Nights," said Mrs White, as she rose and began to set the supper. "Don't you
think you might wish for four pairs of hands for me?"
Her husband drew the talisman from his pocket and then all three burst into laughter as the sergeantmajor, with a look of alarm on his face, caught him by the arm.
"If you must wish," he said gruffly, "wish for something sensible."
Mr. White dropped it back into his pocket, and placing chairs, motioned his friend to the table. In the
business of supper the talisman was partly forgotten, and afterward the three sat listening in an
enthralled fashion to a second instalment of the soldier's adventures in India.
"If the tale about the monkey paw is not more truthful than those he has been telling us," said Herbert,
as the door closed behind their guest, just in time for him to catch the last train, "we shan't make much
out of it."
"Did you give him anything for it, father?" inquired Mrs. White, regarding her husband closely.
"A trifle," said he, colouring slightly. "He didn't want it, but I made him take it. And he pressed me
again to throw it away."
"Likely," said Herbert, with pretended horror. "Why, we're going to be rich, and famous, and happy.
Wish to be an emperor, father, to begin with; then you can't be henpecked."
He darted round the table, pursued by the maligned Mrs. White armed with an antimacassar.
Mr. White took the paw from his pocket and eyed it dubiously. "I don't know what to wish for, and
that's a fact," he said slowly. "It seems to me I've got all I want."
"If you only cleared the house, you'd be quite happy, wouldn't you?" said Herbert, with his hand on his
shoulder. "Well, wish for two hundred pounds, then; that'll just do it."

His father, smiling shamefacedly at his own credulity, held up the talisman, as his son, with a solemn
face somewhat marred by a wink at his mother, sat down at the piano and struck a few impressive
chords.
"I wish for two hundred pounds," said the old man distinctly.
A fine crash from the piano greeted the words, interrupted by a shuddering cry from the old man. His
wife and son ran toward him.
"It moved, he cried, with a glance of disgust at the object as it lay on the floor. "As I wished it twisted
in my hands like a snake."
"Well, I don't see the money," said his son, as he picked it up and placed it on the table, "and I bet I
never shall."
"It must have been your fancy, father," said his wife, regarding him anxiously.
He shook his head. "Never mind, though; there's no harm done, but it gave me a shock all the same."
They sat down by the fire again while the two men finished their pipes. Outside, the wind was higher
than ever, and the old man started nervously at the sound of a door banging upstairs. A silence unusual
and depressing settled upon all three, which lasted until the old couple rose to retire for the night.
"I expect you'll find the cash tied up in a big bag in the middle of your bed," said Herbert, as he bade
them good-night, "and something horrible squatting up on top of the wardrobe watching you as you
pocket your ill-gotten gains."
He sat alone in the darkness, gazing at the dying fire, and seeing faces in it. The last face was so
horrible and so simian that he gazed at it in amazement. It got so vivid that, with a little uneasy laugh, he
felt on the table for a glass containing a little water to throw over it. His hand grasped the monkey's paw,
and with a little shiver he wiped his hand on his coat and went up to bed.

II.
IN the brightness of the wintry sun next morning as it streamed over the breakfast table Herbert laughed
at his fears. There was an air of prosaic wholesomeness about the room which it had lacked on the
previous night, and the dirty, shrivelled little paw was pitched on the sideboard with a carelessness
which betokened no great belief in its virtues.
"I suppose all old soldiers are the same," said Mrs White. "The idea of our listening to such nonsense!
How could wishes be granted in these days? And if they could, how could two hundred pounds hurt you,
father?"
"Might drop on his head from the sky," said the frivolous Herbert.

"Morris said the things happened so naturally," said his father, "that you might if you so wished
attribute it to coincidence."
"Well, don't break into the money before I come back," said Herbert, as he rose from the table. "I'm
afraid it'll turn you into a mean, avaricious man, and we shall have to disown you."
His mother laughed, and following him to the door, watched him down the road, and returning to the
breakfast table, was very happy at the expense of her husband's credulity. All of which did not prevent
her from scurrying to the door at the postman's knock, nor prevent her from referring somewhat shortly
to retired sergeant-majors of bibulous habits when she found that the post brought a tailor's bill.
"Herbert will have some more of his funny remarks, I expect, when he comes home," she said, as they
sat at dinner.
"I dare say," said Mr. White, pouring himself out some beer; "but for all that, the thing moved in my
hand; that I'll swear to."
"You thought it did," said the old lady soothingly.
"I say it did," replied the other. "There was no thought about it; I had just----What's the matter?"
His wife made no reply. She was watching the mysterious movements of a man outside, who, peering
in an undecided fashion at the house, appeared to be trying to make up his mind to enter. In mental
connection with the two hundred pounds, she noticed that the stranger was well dressed and wore a silk
hat of glossy newness. Three times he paused at the gate, and then walked on again. The fourth time he
stood with his hand upon it, and then with sudden resolution flung it open and walked up the path. Mrs.
White at the same moment placed her hands behind her, and hurriedly unfastening the strings of her
apron, put that useful article of apparel beneath the cushion of her chair.
She brought the stranger, who seemed ill at ease, into the room. He gazed at her furtively, and listened
in a preoccupied fashion as the old lady apologized for the appearance of the room, and her husband's
coat, a garment which he usually reserved for the garden. She then waited as patiently as her sex would
permit, for him to broach his business, but he was at first strangely silent.
"I--was asked to call," he said at last, and stooped and picked a piece of cotton from his trousers. "I
come from Maw and Meggins."
The old lady started. "Is anything the matter?" she asked breathlessly. "Has anything happened to
Herbert? What is it? What is it?"
Her husband interposed. "There, there, mother," he said hastily. "Sit down, and don't jump to
conclusions. You've not brought bad news, I'm sure, sir" and he eyed the other wistfully.
"I'm sorry----" began the visitor.
"Is he hurt?" demanded the mother.

The visitor bowed in assent. "Badly hurt," he said quietly, "but he is not in any pain."
"Oh, thank God!" said the old woman, clasping her hands. "Thank God for that! Thank----"
She broke off suddenly as the sinister meaning of the assurance dawned upon her and she saw the
awful confirmation of her fears in the other's averted face. She caught her breath, and turning to her
slower-witted husband, laid her trembling old hand upon his. There was a long silence.
"He was caught in the machinery," said the visitor at length, in a low voice.
"Caught in the machinery," repeated Mr. White, in a dazed fashion, "yes."
He sat staring blankly out at the window, and taking his wife's hand between his own, pressed it as he
had been wont to do in their old courting days nearly forty years before.
"He was the only one left to us," he said, turning gently to the visitor. "It is hard."
The other coughed, and rising, walked slowly to the window. "The firm wished me to convey their
sincere sympathy with you in your great loss," he said, without looking round. "I beg that you will
understand I am only their servant and merely obeying orders."
There was no reply; the old woman's face was white, her eyes staring, and her breath inaudible; on the
husband's face was a look such as his friend the sergeant might have carried into his first action.
"I was to say that Maw and Meggins disclaim all responsibility," continued the other. "They admit no
liability at all, but in consideration of your son's services they wish to present you with a certain sum as
compensation."
Mr. White dropped his wife's hand, and rising to his feet, gazed with a look of horror at his visitor. His
dry lips shaped the words, "How much?"
"Two hundred pounds," was the answer.
Unconscious of his wife's shriek, the old man smiled faintly, put out his hands like a sightless man, and
dropped, a senseless heap, to the floor.

III.
IN the huge new cemetery, some two miles distant, the old people buried their dead, and came back to a
house steeped in shadow and silence. It was all over so quickly that at first they could hardly realize it,
and remained in a state of expectation as though of something else to happen--something else which was
to lighten this load, too heavy for old hearts to bear.

But the days passed, and expectation gave place to resignation--the hopeless resignation of the old,
sometimes miscalled, apathy. Sometimes they hardly exchanged a word, for now they had nothing to
talk about, and their days were long to weariness.
It was about a week after that that the old man, waking suddenly in the night, stretched out his hand
and found himself alone. The room was in darkness, and the sound of subdued weeping came from the
window. He raised himself in bed and listened.
"Come back," he said tenderly. "You will be cold."
"It is colder for my son," said the old woman, and wept afresh.
The sound of her sobs died away on his ears. The bed was warm, and his eyes heavy with sleep. He
dozed fitfully, and then slept until a sudden wild cry from his wife awoke him with a start.
"The paw!" she cried wildly. "The monkey's paw!"
He started up in alarm. "Where? Where is it? What's the matter?"
She came stumbling across the room toward him. "I want it," she said quietly. "You've not destroyed
it?"
"It's in the parlour, on the bracket," he replied, marvelling. "Why?"
She cried and laughed together, and bending over, kissed his cheek.
"I only just thought of it," she said hysterically. "Why didn't I think of it before? Why didn't you think
of it?"
"Think of what?" he questioned.
"The other two wishes," she replied rapidly. "We've only had one."
"Was not that enough?" he demanded fiercely.
"No," she cried, triumphantly; "we'll have one more. Go down and get it quickly, and wish our boy
alive again."
The man sat up in bed and flung the bedclothes from his quaking limbs. "Good God, you are mad!" he
cried aghast.
"Get it," she panted; "get it quickly, and wish---- Oh, my boy, my boy!"
Her husband struck a match and lit the candle. "Get back to bed," he said, unsteadily. "You don't know
what you are saying."

"We had the first wish granted," said the old woman, feverishly; "why not the second."
"A coincidence," stammered the old man.
"Go and get it and wish," cried the old woman, quivering with excitement.
The old man turned and regarded her, and his voice shook. "He has been dead ten days, and besides
he--I would not tell you else, but--I could only recognize him by his clothing. If he was too terrible for
you to see then, how now?"
"Bring him back," cried the old woman, and dragged him toward the door. "Do you think I fear the
child I have nursed?"
He went down in the darkness, and felt his way to the parlour, and then to the mantelpiece. The
talisman was in its place, and a horrible fear that the unspoken wish might bring his mutilated son before
him ere he could escape from the room seized upon him, and he caught his breath as he found that he
had lost the direction of the door. His brow cold with sweat, he felt his way round the table, and groped
along the wall until he found himself in the small passage with the unwholesome thing in his hand.
Even his wife's face seemed changed as he entered the room. It was white and expectant, and to his
fears seemed to have an unnatural look upon it. He was afraid of her.
"Wish!" she cried, in a strong voice.
"It is foolish and wicked," he faltered.
"Wish!" repeated his wife.
He raised his hand. "I wish my son alive again."
The talisman fell to the floor, and he regarded it fearfully. Then he sank trembling into a chair as the
old woman, with burning eyes, walked to the window and raised the blind.
He sat until he was chilled with the cold, glancing occasionally at the figure of the old woman peering
through the window. The candle end, which had burnt below the rim of the china candlestick, was
throwing pulsating shadows on the ceiling and walls, until, with a flicker larger than the rest, it expired.
The old man, with an unspeakable sense of relief at the failure of the talisman, crept back to his bed, and
a minute or two afterward the old woman came silently and apathetically beside him.
Neither spoke, but both lay silently listening to the ticking of the clock. A stair creaked, and a squeaky
mouse scurried noisily through the wall. The darkness was oppressive, and after lying for some time
screwing up his courage, the husband took the box of matches, and striking one, went downstairs for a
candle.
At the foot of the stairs the match went out, and he paused to strike another, and at the same moment a
knock, so quiet and stealthy as to be scarcely audible, sounded on the front door.

The matches fell from his hand. He stood motionless, his breath suspended until the knock was
repeated. Then he turned and fled swiftly back to his room, and closed the door behind him. A third
knock sounded through the house.
"What's that?" cried the old woman, starting up.
"A rat," said the old man, in shaking tones--"a rat. It passed me on the stairs."
His wife sat up in bed listening. A loud knock resounded through the house.
"It's Herbert!" she screamed. "It's Herbert!"
She ran to the door, but her husband was before her, and catching her by the arm, held her tightly.
"What are you going to do?" he whispered hoarsely.
"It's my boy; it's Herbert!" she cried, struggling mechanically. "I forgot it was two miles away. What
are you holding me for? Let go. I must open the door."
"For God's sake, don't let it in," cried the old man trembling.
"You're afraid of your own son," she cried, struggling. "Let me go. I'm coming, Herbert; I'm coming."
There was another knock, and another. The old woman with a sudden wrench broke free and ran from
the room. Her husband followed to the landing, and called after her appealingly as she hurried
downstairs. He heard the chain rattle back and the bottom bolt drawn slowly and stiffly from the socket.
Then the old woman's voice, strained and panting.
"The bolt," she cried loudly. "Come down. I can't reach it."
But her husband was on his hands and knees groping wildly on the floor in search of the paw. If he
could only find it before the thing outside got in. A perfect fusillade of knocks reverberated through the
house, and he heard the scraping of a chair as his wife put it down in the passage against the door. He
heard the creaking of the bolt as it came slowly back, and at the same moment he found the monkey's
paw, and frantically breathed his third and last wish.
The knocking ceased suddenly, although the echoes of it were still in the house. He heard the chair
drawn back and the door opened. A cold wind rushed up the staircase, and a long loud wail of
disappointment and misery from his wife gave him courage to run down to her side, and then to the gate
beyond. The street lamp flickering opposite shone on a quiet and deserted road.
(End.)

ProbablePassage
TitleofSelection:________________________________________________________
Characters

Setting

Problem

GistStatement.
____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________
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Outcomes

UnknownWords

Todiscover
1.
2.
3.

Rules for Say Something

1. With your partner, decide who will say something first.
2. When you say something, do one or more of the following;
a. Make a prediction
b. Make a connection
MakeaConnection

3. If you cant do one of those things,

then you need to reread
Thispartremindsmeof

MakeaPrediction
Ipredictthat
Ibetthat
Ithinkthat
Sincethishappened(fillin
detail)thenIbetthenextthing
thatisgoingtohappenis
Readingthispartmakesme
thinkthatthis(fillindetail)is
abouttohappen
Iwonderif

Thispartislike
Thischaracterislike(another
character)because
Thisissimilarto
Thedifferencesare
Ialso(namesomethinginthe
textthathasalsohappenedto
you)
Inever(namesomethingin
thetextthathasnever
happenedtoyou)
Thischaractermakesmethink
of
Thissettingremindsmeof

SOMEBOD
Y

WANTED

BUT

SO

EXITTICKET

1. Howdidyourpredictionshelpyouunderstandwhatyouread?
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2.Howdidtheconnectionsyoumadechangeyourunderstanding
ofthereading?
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EXITTICKET
1. Howdidyourpredictionshelpyouunderstandwhatyouread?
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
2.Howdidtheconnectionsyoumadechangeyourunderstanding
ofthereading?
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
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