Embedded Reading

Simplify, Scaffold, Succeed!!

Archive for the category “Using Students’ Ideas”

28 Feb 2019
2 Comments

Why Read The “Last Level”?

This is a fundamentally great question. An embedded reading is a scaffolded series of readings. So, why are we reading all of the versions in the series? It is a question that, once we know the answer, can help us figure out what to do with the readings that we have!!

The base reading is important. That is pretty easy to understand. If students understand this version of the reading, everything else falls into place. It’s the “trailer” or the summary of the piece. As students read the subsequent versions, they will “attach” all of the new details and insights on to this clear and uncomplicated version.

The second version brings the reading to a new level. There will be new details, new information and the story or text becomes a) better understood and b) even more interesting.

But after that???? Now what ?? That is what our students will want to know so we should know as well. So I offer you the TOP ________ REASONS TO READ THE LAST VERSION OF AN EMBEDDED READING !!

Reason #5: Because we have to. (Bear with me, they get better!!)

Not the best reason, but sometimes it’s the most obvious one. Occasionally we are required to have our students “read” a particular piece. The department says so, or the district says so, or maybe even the state we teach in says so. So we make sure they read it. As teachers, using embedded readings to get students to better understand a piece that even we may not see as compelling makes perfect sense. Our students may not be as appreciative, so hopefully we will not have to use this reason too frequently.

Reason # 4: Because it is a beautiful piece of literature.

This is a teacher favorite. We are often well-read and have at our disposal an enormous array of beautiful pieces that we want to share with our students. Prefacing the reading of an entire text with more comprehensible versions can make this literature much more interesting and appealing to our students. We love certain pieces so much that we feel that we are shortchanging our students if we don’t share these pieces with them.

My opinion on this one is only an opinion, but I think that it is worth considering. The best version of beautiful literature is one that students will understand. If the “last” version that we have prepared is above their level, it isn’t valuable yet. The next to last version will be the one that resonates with them, that resides in their hearts and will open the door, down the road, for a deeper and longer-lasting experience reading the original version of the piece.

The one time this does work, is in our upper level classes (usually levels 4 and up) when the final version is lyrics to a song. In beginning classes, even intermediate years, when I use a beautiful but difficult song, we will focus only on the truly comprehensible pieces of the song, usually the chorus and the first verse. However, in upper level classes, the entire song, because it may be hear over and over again afterwards is a worthwhile version to work through.

Reason # 3: Because students wrote the details in this level.

This is a truly compelling reason for students!! One of the delightful uses of an embedded reading is to ask students to suggest embellishments, improvements or information to an existing version. Students LOVE to read their own ideas in a text!!! There are several ways to bring this about. Here are a few:

Provide students with a text electronically and ask them to enter new information or change existing text. Ask them to highlight or change the text color so that their changes are easy to find. This can be done by individual students or pairs. Students then can share their new versions with you. Next, take their suggestions and ideas to combine them with the existing text to make a new and original version !!!
After reading a text with students, ask students to submit ideas for new information, language, or ideas on a slip of paper and collect them. Use these ideas to create a new version of the text.
With a longer text, print one copy and cut it into smaller sections (1-2 paragraphs). Give each section to a small group of students and have them add (by hand) new language or information to their section. Combine the sections and share with students.

Reason # 2: Because without it, the text/story is incomplete.

Sometimes an embedded reading is created so that the true and logical ending of the text doesn’t appear until the last version. Now, this is a great reason to read the “last version” of the story, and one that students will definitely buy into! Just as a trailer to a movie can give the viewer a glimpse of the film, but not the entire picture, an embedded reading can give a great deal of information or the good part of a story without giving away the ending. Reading the last version to see how it ends is very satisfying!!

Reason #1: Because the BEST STUFF IS IN THE LAST VERSION!!

This is the best reason to read the last version!! It doesn’t always happen, but when it does, BOOM!! That’s the really good stuff! Every reader loves a good plot twist and whether or not it is anticipated, keeping the plot twist for the final version is key!!! These already occur in so many “authentic” resources and as writers, it is a wonderful way to motivate students to read!! I want to give a shout out to Justin Slocum Bailey for talking about this in his blog post “Creating Twisted Embedded Readings”

When we know WHY we want students to read a “final version” it becomes so much easier to decide HOW we want to read that version (as well as previous versions) of a text. And that is the topic of the next post….so stay tuned….

Posted in Using Readings With Students, Using Songs, Using Students' Ideas
21 Apr 2015

Express Fluency NYC April 2015

Hello to those who attended the weekend classes in amazing New York City!! (and to those of you reading this post who didn’t attend!  We had a great time!)

For those who were not there, we worked through several stories.  My goal was to give students the background structures to make reading the novel Pobre Ana Bailo Tango comprehensible and clear.  Much of our discussion ended up centered around the first two minutes of this clip from the movie Dirty Dancing:

(We used it primarily without sound in a “Movie Talk” format.)  Because almost all of the class was familiar with the movie, we used their command of Spanish and the focus structures from earlier stories and conversation to share their knowledge with students who were not quite as familiar with it.   At the end of the first day, I asked the class to write, in Spanish, whatever they could about the movie and what we had discussed.    That became the material for the Embedded Reading below.

“Dirty Dancing”

Thank you to all of the amazing participants!!  I hope to see you again May 30 and 31st!!

PS  Check back in a day or two.  I’m going to put the History of Carly and Terry in an Embedded Reading format for you as well!

Posted in Express Fluency, Spanish Embedded Readings, Using Students' Ideas, Videos for Embedded Readings | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2013

Epilogue Casi Se Muere

Below is the epilogue that Andrea Bush (Marcus Whitman HS, Rushville, N.Y.)  created with the help of her students.  (see previous post) Casi Se Muere is one of the novels written by Blaine Ray for emerging readers in Spanish.     This story, entitled,  One Year Later, is the epiloque written by Andrea’s students.    The idea of the story is that one year later, Ana (main character-student from California) returns to the city of Temuco, Chile where she had been a participant in an exchange program.  (Storyline of Casi Se Muere).  While she is there the first time, she saves the life of a student and they become interested in each romantically.

The idea of “one year later”  worked beautifully for repetitions!!!   At the end of the novel, the community was celebrating Independence Day.  When she returns a year later,  it’s Independence Day again!  Because of this,  Andrea was able to have the students reuse scenarios and structures from the book to create the reading.

Andrea also encouraged them to recycle other events (and therefore vocabulary and structures) from the novel in creating the story.   At the same time, they were asked to create a NEW situation or scenario.    What a great example of an upper-level task!

Below is Andrea’s 4th period class’ epilogue…first in Spanish and then in English so that those of you who do not read in Spanish can enjoy.    Thanks for sharing Andrea!!

Un Año Después

Base Reading

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.

Ana va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.

¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.

Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  De repente, Pepe la da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

Version 2

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.  Primero, Ana va a la casa de Teresa, pero Teresa no está allí.

Ana va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.  Ana habla con Teresa.

Ana y Teresa van al parque. ¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Ana grita, “¡Hola!” y camina hacia él. Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.

Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  Algo es diferente, de repente, Pepe le da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Ana piensa mucho en Jaime. Están enamorados.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

Version 3

Un año después, Ana regresa a Chile.  Ana llega en Temuco.  Primero, Ana va a la casa de Teresa, pero Teresa no está allí.

Ana está emocionada por ver a sus amigos porque tiene ropa nueva. Va a la escuela, y se siente muy feliz porque Teresa está en la escuela también.  Ana habla con Teresa.

Ana y Teresa van al parque.  De repente, Ana ve a una persona que conoce.  ¡Ana ve a Pepe Ayala!  Ana grita, “¡Hola!” y camina hacia él. Pero, Pepe tiene un problema.  Otra vez, ¡Pepe no puede tomar aire!  Ana pone los brazos alrededor de Pepe y presiona muy fuerte.  Un pedazo de empanada sale de la boca.  Cae al suelo.  Pepe dice, “Otra vez, estoy vivo gracias a tu buena acción.”

Ana quiere pasar tiempo con Pepe.  Ana mira a Pepe y Teresa.  Algo es diferente, y Teresa le da un abrazo fuerte a Pepe. De repente, Pepe le da un beso a Teresa.  Ana grita “¿QUÉ?” y se siente muy enojada.

Ana quiere ir a una de las fiestas para celebrar el 18 de septiembre.  Ana decide ir a la fiesta de Jaime porque está enojada con Teresa y Pepe.  Está enojada porque Pepe le dio un beso a Teresa. En la fiesta muchas personas comen empanadas y beben soda.

Ana está sorprendida que le gusta pasar tiempo con Jaime.  Ana está muy feliz, y piensa mucho en Jaime. Están enamorados.  Después de dos días, Ana no se siente enojada.  Está feliz porque Teresa y Pepe están felices juntos.

Después de dos semanas, Ana vuelve a California.

One Year Later

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.

Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too.

Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.

Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

Version 2

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.  First she goes to Teresa’s house, but Teresa isn’t there.

Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too. Ana talks to Teresa.

Ana and Teresa go to the park.  Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Ana shouts, “Hello!” and walks toward him.  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.

Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Something is different.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana wants to go to one of the parties to celebrate September 18th.  She decides to go to Jaime’s party because she is angry with Pepe and Teresa.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  They are in love.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

Version 3

One year later, Ana returns to Chile.  She arrives in Temuco.  First she goes to Teresa’s house, but Teresa isn’t there.

Ana is excited to see her friends because she has new clothes.  Ana goes to school and feels very happy because Teresa is in school too. Ana talks to Teresa.

Ana and Teresa go to the park.  All of a sudden, Ana sees a person that she knows.  Ana sees Pepe Ayala!!  Ana shouts, “Hello!” and walks toward him.  But Pepe has a problem!  Again, Pepe cannot breathe!  Ana puts her arms around Pepe and applies every strong pressure.  A piece of empanada flies out of his mouth.  It falls to the ground.  Pepe says,  “Again I am alive thanks to your good deed.”

Ana wants to spend time with Pepe.  Ana looks at Pepe and Teresa.  Something is different and Teresa gives Pepe a big hug.  Suddenly, Pepe gives Teresa a kiss.  “What?!”, Ana shouts.  She feels very angry.

Ana wants to go to one of the parties to celebrate September 18th.  She decides to go to Jaime’s party because she is angry with Pepe and Teresa.  She is angry because Pepe kissed Teresa.  At the party, many people eat empanadas and drink soda.

Ana is surprised that she likes to spend time with Jaime.  Ana is very happy and thinks about Jaime a lot.  They are in love.  After two days, Ana doesn’t feel angry.  She is happy because Pepe and Teresa are happy together.

After two weeks, Ana returns to California.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

Posted in Creating from the Bottom Up, Spanish Embedded Readings, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas | Leave a comment
26 Apr 2013
2 Comments

These Are The Guidelines

A gifted new teacher tried out Embedded Reading for the first time this week with great success.  Andrea gave her students a chance to write an Epilogue to a novel they had read.   She didn’t ask them to write the entire thing, just a piece of it.  She then combined all of the ideas from one class period to create an Embedded Reading in three levels for her students.    She discovered, like most people do, that the students do not get bored reading the “same” story several times!!    Their feed back to her was that it was exciting to know that a) they were going to understand each piece   b)  something new was going to be in each piece and c) something they had written would show up somewhere!

Then…she was able to repeat the reading pieces by switching fourth period’s reading with ninth period’s reading and they got double the input!!

Then….she could lead discussion comparing the two versions.

Her first foray into Embedded Reading was successful because she is a caring and gifted teacher who has worked hard to establish positive relationships with her students.   She also followed several important guidelines:

1.  Less is more.

The base reading was clean, minimal and right on point for the level of her class.  Every student was able to understand it.

Then, she added just enough detail to each succeeding reading that students were interested to discover more without being discouraged by the length or difficulty.

She also kept the reading to three versions: perfect for the reading level and the amount of time that these second-year students can stay focused.

2.   Variety is the key.

Andrea added a variety of items to the new levels.   Some words and phrases were short and highly familiar.   Others were more complex or contained less familiar vocabulary.   Information/language was added to the beginning and middle of each level, as well as to the end.

She made sure that each student had contributed to the final piece by taking at least one word, phrase or idea from each student.  (This isn’t as challenging as it seems…..)

The students approached each level differently.   There were verbal questions for one, illustrations for another, discussion for the third.   This is KEY to keeping students from feeling like they are doing the same thing over and over again.

3.    Teach  For  Success

Because Andrea had already laid a foundation for success with steps 1 and 2 above, she could approach the lesson with an extremely positive outlook.   This attitude spilled over into her students.  Because she had worked hard to create an atmosphere of trust, they were willing to address material that was progressively more challenging.

It doesn’t mean that the readings didn’t require advanced skills.  It doesn’t mean that some pieces weren’t challenging.  It means that despite increasing difficulty, the scaffolding created the opportunity for students to be highly successful and they believed that they could be.

4.  Open Doors for Students to Connect with the Text.

Obviously, being able to comprehend the text is the first, best way to connect students with what they are reading.  Without that, nothing else happens!!

This particular exercise allowed students to contribute as authors.   That is the beauty of creating a “Bottom Up” reading.   As authors, they are infinitely more interested in reading.

Even if the students had not authored the text, they had numerous opportunities to interact with the text on a personal level.    The story was a continuation of one that they were already familiar with.   The location, some details, and more importantly, the characters were familiar.   By illustrating, they were able to create their own visualization of the story.

They also made a number of observations about the piece that Andrea allowed them to “own” for themselves.   Their discovery of a story within a story made them feel as if they had uncovered a surprise created for them by their teacher.   After that, every new detail was like a new little gift that she had arranged just for them to unwrap.

Four simple guidelines that, when followed, help all of us to create and use Embedded Readings successfully with our students.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

 

Posted in Tips for Success, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas
01 Feb 2013
1 Comment

Despereaux, El Pequeño Gran Héroe Post #3

The class then watched the most significant parts of the movie (with other activities that can be found later next week).   They re-read their choice of the versions of the Embedded Reading.   In one of the classes, I asked each student to add five sentences of their own creation to the base reading.   For this assignment they were allowed to work with a partner.

Their “new” versions were collected and I compiled (and corrected as necessary) their sentences.

Here they are:

La sopa es muy importante al pueblo.

Es un buen libro sobre un pequeño que se imagina como héroe.

La Reina se murió.   

La sorpresa de ver una rata en su sopa la mató.

Despereaux era muy valiente.

La rata, Roscuro, se cayó en la sopa.

Todos vivían en un castillo.

Había una princesa simpática.

La lluvia no se cayó.

Nunca tenía miedo de nada.

En este mundo, todos los ratones tenían miedo de las ratas.

Despereaux era un ratón raro.

A Roscuro no le gustaba “Ratamundo.”

Era muy fuerte.

Era muy especial y tenían las orejas muy grandes.

Era completamente diferente que los otros ratones.

Era diferente que las otras ratas.

El habló con la princesa.

Todos los días no había sol ni sopa en el pueblo.

Despereaux pensaba que la princesa era ángel.

Había un cocinero que trabajaba en la cocina del castillo.

Despereaux quería ser caballero y héroe.

El hermano de Despereaux tenía mucho miedo como un ratón típico.

Despereaux tenía problemas con el Consejo de Ratones.

El rey estaba muy triste después de la muerte de su esposo.

Despereaux no era típico.

The other two classes were required to read these sentences and choose fifteen of them to add to the base reading!!    I collected those and used their ideas to create the following, more difficult, version.   I had to add additional sentences in order to make the piece cohesive.  I also added information in order to add new material from the film.  Next week I’ll post how we used this more complex version!

Movie Review

La película “Despereaux, El Pequeño Gran Héroe” es actualmente la historia de tres héroes:  un ratón que prefiere leer libros antes de comerlos, una rata poco feliz que planea dejar atrás la oscuridad y una sirvienta. Sus destinos se cruzaron y eso cambió sus pequeñas vidas.La película fue basada en el libro de Kate DiCamillo, originalmente titulado en inglés “The Tale of Despereaux.  Es un buen libro sobre un pequeño que se imagina como héroe y otros quienes nunca podían imaginarse así.

*****************************************************************************************************************

Hace mucho tiempo, El Pueblo Dor, flotaba la magia en el aire, donde todos reían y había litros y litros de sopa. La sopa es muy importante al pueblo.  Había un cocinero que trabajaba en la cocina del castillo.  Todos los días el cocinero preparaba la sopa. 

 

Había también en el castillo una princesa simpática, y sus padres, el Rey y la Reina del pueblo.   Era un mundo muy feliz.

 

Pero algo destrozó el corazón del rey, le dio tristeza a la princesa y dejó al pueblo muy triste. ¿Qué pasó?  La Reina se murió.   Durante una celebración de la sopa, la celebración más importante del año, una rata se cayó inesperadamente en su sopa.   La sorpresa de ver una rata en su sopa la mató.

 

La rata culpable fue condenada.   Actualmente, todas las ratas del pueblo fueron condenadas.    Fueron expulsadas y formaron “Ratamundo.”  A la rata culpable, quien se llamaba Roscuro, no le gustaba “Ratamundo.” 

 

El Rey estaba muy triste después de la muerte de su esposa. La ausencia de las ratas cambió la balanza del medio ambiente del pueblo tanto que la lluvia ya no se caía.  El sol ya no se veía. Todos los días ya no había sol ni sopa en el pueblo.  Ya no había esperanza en una tierra donde desapareció el sol y no había sopa. El mundo se convirtió a gris.

 

Hasta que nació Despereaux Tilling. Era un ratón muy especial y tenían las orejas muy grandes.  Despereaux era un ratón raro.  ¿Por fue considerado tan raro?  Porque, en este mundo, todos los ratones tenían miedo de las ratas, y de los seres humanos (las personas/la gente), y de todo.  Era la regla. Fueron entrenados para temer (tener miedo). Era también la regla.  Despereaux Tilling era completamente diferente que los otros ratones.  Nunca tenía miedo de nada.  Despereaux era muy valiente.  Era muy fuerte. 

 

Un día su familia insistió que Despereaux fuera con su hermano mayor para aprender ser más tímido.  El hermano de Despereaux tenía mucho miedo como un ratón típico.  Ellos fueron a la biblioteca donde su hermano le insistió a Despereaux que comiera un libro.  (Eso era normal en su mundo.  Era la regla.)  Pero Despereaux no tenía ganas (no quería) de comer el libro.  El quería leerlo en vez de comerlo.  

 

Al leer el libro Despereaux sabía que quería ser caballero y héroe.  Un día, Despereaux conoció a la princesa del castillo.  El habló con la princesa.  Despereaux pensaba que la princesa era ángel.

 

Pero era contra las reglas hablar con los seres humanos, así que cuando Despereaux le dijo a su hermano que había (had) hablado con la princesa, el hermano tuvo que decirlo a sus padres.  Era la regla.  Sus padres tuvieron que decirlo al Consejo de Ratones porque eso también era la regla.  Pobre Despereaux tenía problemas con el Consejo de Ratones.

 

El Consejo de Ratones no soportó un ratón valiente.  Era contra la regla.  Así que el pobre ratoncito fue condenado también al “Ratamundo.”

 

Film “The Tale of Desperaux” © Universal Pictures 2008

Book ©  “Desperaux” by Kate DiCamillo, published by Candlewick Press 2003.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

 

Posted in Spanish Embedded Readings, Teachers Talk About Embedded Reading, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas
13 Oct 2012
6 Comments

The Origin of Embedded Reading: “Justin’s Story”

In 2006 I had a student who baffled me.  I simply could not get him to engage.  He would walk in to the class with his hoodie up over his head, put his head down on the desk and not participate at all.  Loving attention, phone call home and disciplinary measures did nothing.  I tried to get background information, but got nothing.  (I would find out at the end of the year that he had been language-exempt until that year, but had then not only been declassified, but was also not working with a 504 nor any support staff.  His reading level was about 4th grade.)  It was very frustrating.

 

One day I was greeting students outside my door and caught a glimpse of “Justin” coming down the hall.  The problem was, I didn’t recognize him.   I thought that I was seeing a new student.  He was standing tall, wore no hood, was laughing and smiling and talking with other students.   I wondered for a moment who this new student was.   Then, as he approached my room, he began to slouch.  He stopped smiling.  He pulled the hoodie up over his head, shoved his hands in his pockets and I realized that the young man that I hadn’t recognized, was my student “Justin.”

 

This was a horrifying moment.  I saw him transform on his way to my class, BECAUSE HE WAS COMING TO MY CLASS.  It really, really bothered me.

 

In January, after midterms I often show the movie Selena in English to my 9th graders.   For the first time,  “Justin” paid attention.  When, after we watched a 20 minute segment each day, we did interactive activities in Spanish about the movie, the head would go back down.  But, for 20 minutes a day, he was actually a member of the class.  One of his friends pulled me aside and told me that “Justin” had actually downloaded some of Selena’s music.    So I knew, at the very least, that a tiny crack existed in the armor he had put around himself.

 

When the movie was done, and we had finished all of our discussions and readings and drawings etc.. I gave students a blank sheet of paper and asked the students to do a “free write.”  “Write, in Spanish, ANYTHING that you can think of about this movie and the real Selena”, I told them.   And the pens went flying across the paper, except, of course, for “Justin”, whose head stayed firmly on the desk.  Then, after a minute, I realized that he actually was writing something on his paper.  Unbelievable.

 

When I collected the papers and the kids had left the room, I scrambled to find his paper.  After 5 months of NOTHING, I was dying to find out what he had given me.   It was 5 very simple sentences in SPANISH about Selena.   I couldn’t believe it.  I was stunned.   Then, as I was going through the other papers, I saw another student’s paper that was nearly identical and my heart just sunk.  “He copied.” I thought.   Then I was actually encouraged by that.  At least he had copied IN SPANISH!!!!  Then, as I continued to go through the papers, I saw several others that were nearly  the same.  I realized that these students had not been sitting near each other.   It had also been an UNANNOUNCED quiz.   They couldn’t have prepared a “cheat sheet.”  Finally it dawned on me.  If I truly believed in acquisition I had evidence of it right in front of me.  These four students were in the same place.  THIS IS WHAT THEY HAD ACQUIRED AND SO THEIR PAPERS WERE SIMILAR.

 

In order to celebrate “Justin’s” entry into language, I took his paper and typed his five sentences (errors corrected) in a word document.  Then I copied and pasted the paragraph a second time and INSERTED words, phrases or sentences from other students papers to make it more detailed.   But ‘Justin’s” paragraph remained the core of the reading.  I wanted him to know, without making a public spectacle of it, that I was honoring him.   That next paragraph was pretty interesting so I just kept going.  Copy, Paste, INSERT neat things that other students had written.  I could honor everyone.  I had done similar things before, but not exactly in this way.

 

The next day I passed out the papers face down and told the students that on the count of three they should turn them over, read the paragraph, and then make silent eye contact with me when they had finished, and understood, the paragraph.  If they hadn’t understood, then they should stay silent, but not make eye contact with me.  One, two, three!!  Everyone started reading.  Except for “Justin”, whose head remained down on the desk.   Then I saw him pick up his head and glance at the desk of the student next to him.   He sat right up and looked at the paper of the student on the other side.  He flipped over the paper, took one look at it, looked straight at me and silently mouthed the words, “THIS IS MINE!!” in great surprised.  I nodded and he gave me a smile.

 

When the rest of the class had read and made eye contact, I asked them to do the same with the second page, the longer piece.  They did, including “Justin”, who made eye contact and smiled, again.  When the students turned to the third page I watched “Justin” carefully follow the text.  He looked up at me, pointed to the reading and mouthed the words, “ I can do this!  I CAN DO THIS!” with that same smile.

 

And that is how it started.  It was so successful, not only with “Justin”, but with all of my students, that I just kept playing with it.  I truly believe that it is not something that I created, but a gift that I was given to connect with a young man who didn’t believe in his  own abilities.  For that reason, I am sharing it with all of you.   You all have “Justins”.  This not only helps the “Justins” that you are trying to reach, but offers every student a way to be successful and interested in reading.   It just doesn’t get any better than that.

 

With love,

Laurie

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

Posted in "Justin's Story" The Origin of Embedded Reading, Definitions and Explanations, Differentiation, Using Students' Ideas
09 Oct 2012

Shared Stories in Spanish #1

A teacher in another state sent me a story that she and her class had used in a “story-asking” lesson via TPRS.   We read it together as a class and then I asked the students, in pairs, to add words, phrases and/or sentences in order to make the story more detailed and interesting.  I took their additions and created a second and third level to the story.   I sent the new versions back to her students to read and we’ll read the new levels too!!  I’m posting it here so that a) you can see how we made it work and b) you can use the base story or the entire reading.

 

*The original story-asking activity was designed to help the students and the teacher become skilled in the story-asking format.  Teagan, Chandra, Austin and Bob the characters’ names (chosen by the classes).  Taylor Lautner is a popular young actor known for his work in the ‘Twilight” films, and Austin Powers is the name of a character in the movie of the same name.  Ryan Lochte is a swimmer in the U.S. Olympic swim team.

Había una chica 2

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Shared Stories, Spanish Embedded Readings, Using Students' Ideas | Leave a comment
14 Sep 2012

Picture-based Embedded Reading

Thanks to Nathan who shared this on his and Michele’s TPRS blog and gave me permission to share.   His idea for an embedded reading came from a student drawing!  He writes:

Last week as part of introducing some past-tense modal verbs to my German II students (wanted, had to, was able to), I asked them to draw me pictures to illustrate them, and one student turned out this masterpiece:

We spent about five to ten minutes unpacking this picture in class (that’s the Pillsbury Doughboy fighting a chocolate chip cookie dough monster in Mordor), but for the past week, I’ve been trying to figure out a way to get a little more burn for it.

This morning, however, I realized it would make a great embedded story as long as I withheld enough details from the early drafts. As I result I ended up with something like this:

Draft One
The Pillsbury Doughboy wanted to eat chocolate chip cookies, but didn’t have an oven. He was sad, because without an oven he couldn’t bake anything. The Pillsbury Doughboy had to find a new oven and Mr. S. had a big oven. Mr. S. wanted to eat the cookies but couldn’t.

The emphasis in this draft was to try and make the story as normal as possible.  The picture is so over the top, I wanted to build up to the story slowly.  After reading this draft with the class I then had my students draw me a picture of something from this story, with an emphasis on speed over quality (3-5 minutes drawing time).  We then looked at the pictures on the document camera and discussed how well they matched the story.

Draft Two
The Pillsbury Doughboy wanted to eat chocolate chip cookies and made a lot of cookie dough. But the Pillsbury Doughboy didn’t have an oven. He was sad because he couldn’t bake anything without an oven. 

The Pillsbury Doughboy also had another problem: the chocolate chip cookie dough was angry at the Doughboy.  It didn’t want to become cookies. The Doughboy had to fight with the cookie dough AND find an oven.

Mr. S. had a big oven and the Pillsbury Doughboy brought the cookie dough to his house. But Mr. S. was a very bad man.  Mr. S. wanted to kill the Doughboy and eat the cookies, but he couldn’t do anything. He could only watch.

In this draft I started throwing out a few of the funky details such as the cookie dough monster, the fight and the evil Mr. S.  Again I had the students quickly sketch me something from this story, but because this story was longer, I asked them to caption their picture.  Some students gave me a couple words, some wrote out full sentences.  Again we debated how well the pictures matched the story, and sometimes went back and forth between the picture and the story several times to establish the links.

Then I showed them the original picture and said this is what we were working towards.  Comparing notes, we then read the final draft.

Draft Three
The Pillsbury Doughboy wanted to eat chocolate chip cookies, and made a lot of cookie dough. But the Pillsbury Doughboy only had a normal oven and needed a very big oven for his cookie dough. He was sad, because he couldn’t find such a big oven. He had to do something.

The Pillsbury Doughboy also had another problem. There was so much cookie dough that it became a monster. The chocolate chip cookie dough monster was angry at the Doughboy because it didn’t want to become cookies. The Pillsbury Doughboy had to fight with the monster, but the monster was much bigger than he.

Mister Sauron had a big oven and the Pillsbury Doughboy brought the cookie dough to his house. But Mr. Sauron was a very bad man. Mr. Sauron lived in Mordor, and Mt. Doom was his very big oven. Mr. Sauron wanted to kill the Doughboy but he didn’t have any hands. He wanted to eat the cookies but he didn’t have a mouth. Mr. Sauron only had an eye and could only watch. 

What I liked about this approach was the “reveal” that I was working towards.  I had a great over the top picture to end with, and the progressive reveal coupled with additional pictures made it a really fun day.  I teach two sections of German II, and even the class that worked with the original picture had only two people figure out that we were working towards this picture before the finish.

 

All content of this website © Embedded Reading 2012-2014 or original authors.  Unauthorized use or distribution of materials without express and written consent of the owners/authors is strictly prohibited.   Examples and  links may be used as long as clear and direct reference to the site and original authors is clearly established.

Posted in Definitions and Explanations, Examples of Embedded Reading in English, Ideas, Teachers Talk About Embedded Reading, Using Readings With Students, Using Students' Ideas | Leave a comment
25 Jul 2012

Combining Student Story Ideas for An Embedded Reading

How can embedded stories and “classroom-created” stories blend together?  Here is one example…..This can be helpful if you need to prepare for a day out of the classroom, give your voice a rest, or get additional reading time in….

I’ll use sample phrases from one of Anne Matava‘s stories:  receives a package, is afraid to open the package

Divide students into groups.  Ask them to create a skeleton story (3-10 lines) in the TL (or English if you have beginning students) using the target phrases.   Give students 10 minutes to write their version down and hand it in.

Collect the skeleton stories.   Now you have your ideas!

(At this point Michele has used these stories in class to build and write the stories as a group….I will let her explain that…she has had a lot of success with it!)

Let’s say you collect the following:

Group #1   On July 4th, Arnold Schwarzenagger receives a package in the mail.   Arnold is afraid to open the package.  He gives it back to the Post Office.  The Post Office gives it back to Arnold.   Arnold buries the package in his backyard.

Group #2  Mr.  Tanner, the math teacher, receives a package.  It arrives at his classroom, during 5th period.   Mr. Tanner ignores the package.  He wants to teach.  The package starts to  sing like Elton John.   The students say, ‘Mr. Tanner, the package is singing”.  Mr.  Tanner is  mad.  He doesn’t like Elton John.    Mr. Tanner gives the package detention.

Group #3  Apolo Anton Onho is in Vancouver counting all of his medals.  He receives a package from the Canadian hockey team.   Apolo is afraid of the package.  Apolo is afraid of the Canadian Hockey Team.  Apolo calls Lindsey Vonn.   Lindsey is not afraid.  Lindsey opens the package.  Inside there are 245632.56 Chicken Nuggets with Spicy Chili Sauce.

So…now…you look at the possibilities and combine as much of it as you can into a skeleton story.

Arnold Schwarzenagger receives a package.  Arnold is afraid to open the package.   Arnold gives the package back to the Post Office.  The Post Office sends the package to Mr. Tanner the math teacher.  Mr. Tanner gives the package detention.   A boy in detention takes the package on the bus.  He leaves the package on the bus.  The hockey team finds the package.  The hockey team leaves the package at the hockey rink.   The Canandian Hockey team finds the package.  The Canadian Hockey team sends the package to Apolo Anton Ono.  Apolo is afraid to openthe package.  He calls Lindsay Vonn.

You copy and paste the skeleton story on to a new page.  Now you go back to the stories written by the students and add more details.

 Arnold Schwarzenagger receives a package.  The package starts to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.  Arnold is afraid to open the package.   Arnold gives the package back to the Post Office.

Peter the Postman takes the package from Arnold.  Peter is also afraid to open the package.  The package sings “They Say It’s Your Birthday!”  Peter the Postman from the Post Office sends the package to his friend,  Mr. Tanner the math teacher.

Mr. Tanner receives the package on the first day of school.   He receives the package during 5th period.     Mr.  Tanner is afraid to open the package.  Mr. Tanner gives the package detention.

Mark Messesup is a boy in detention.   He puts the package on his desk.  Mark Messesup takes the package home on the bus.  On the bus, the package sings Miley Cyrus songs.  Mark is afraid to open the package now.  He leaves the package on the bus.

The bus picks up the hockey team.  The hockey team brings the package in to the hockey rink.   It sings more Miley Cyrus songs.  The hockey team is also afraid of Miley Cyrus. The hockey team leaves the package at the hockey rink.

The Canadian Hockey team finds the package.  The package is still singing Miley Cyrus songs.  The Canadian Hockey Team is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.   But they don’t like her music.    The Canadian Hockey team sends the package to Apolo Anton Ono.

Apolo Anton Ono is in Vancouver when he receives the package.   The package starts to sing.    Apolo calls Lindsey Vonn.  “I received a package that sings”   Lindsey Vonn arrives.   “Wow!” she says.   The package starts to sing very loudly like Miley Cyrus.  Now, Apolo is afraid of the package.   He is really afraid of Miley Cyrus.

Lindsey Vonn is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.  She is not afraid to open the package.  She opens the package.  Inside of the package she finds 245632.56 Chicken Nuggets with Spicy Chili Sauce.     She eats 245627.56 Chicken Nuggets.

And repeat the process……..

On July 4th, Arnold Schwarzenagger receives a package.  The package starts to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.  Arnold is afraid to open the package.   Arnold gives the package back to the Post Office.

Peter the Postman takes the package from Arnold.  Peter is also afraid to open the package.  The package sings “They Say It’s Your Birthday!”  Peter  gets an idea.  Peter the Postman from the Post Office sends the package to his friend,  Mr. Tanner the math teacher.

Mr. Tanner receives the package on the first day of school.   He receives the package during 5th period.    The package sings the Star-Spangled Banner, but the 5th period class is very loud and no one hears it.   During 6th period the package “They Say It’s Your Birthday”,Mr.  Tanner thinks that it is a student.  He thinks that it is his favorite student George Geometria.   Mr.  Tanner is afraid to open the package.  Mr. Tanner gives the package detention.

Mark Messesup is a boy in detention.    He receives the package when it arrives.  He puts the package on his desk.  The package sings like Michael Jackson.    Mark Messesup takes the package home on the bus.  On the bus, the package sings Miley Cyrus songs.  Mark is afraid to open the package now.  He leaves the package on the bus.

The bus picks up the hockey team.  The hockey team thinks that the package is food for after practice.  The hockey team brings the package in to the hockey rink.   During practice the package starts to sing.  It sings more Miley Cyrus songs.  The hockey team is also afraid of Miley Cyrus. The hockey team leaves the package at the hockey rink.

The Canadian Hockey team finds the package.  The package is still singing.  The package is still singing Miley Cyrus songs.  The Canadian Hockey Team is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.   But they don’t like her music.    The Canadian Hockey team sends the package to Apolo Anton Ono.

Apolo Anton Ono is looking at all of his  medals in Vancouver when he receives the package.   The package starts to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.    Apolo calls his friend Lindsey Vonn.  “I received a package that sings from the Canadian Hockey Team!!”   Lindsey Vonn arrives.   She looks at the package.   “Wow!” she says, “You received a cool package!”   Apolo  walks towards the package.  The package starts to sing very loudly like Miley Cyrus.  Now, Apolo is afraid of the package.   He is really afraid of Miley Cyrus.

Lindsey Vonn is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.  She is not afraid to open the package.  She opens the package.  Inside of the package she finds 245632.56 Chicken Nuggets with Spicy Chili Sauce.     She eats 245627.56 Chicken Nuggets.

And then…copy and paste…..and on the next page…one more set of details…….

On July 4th, Arnold Schwarzenagger receives a package.  The package starts to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.  Arnold is afraid to open the package.   Arnold buries the package in his backyard.  The package sings all summer in Arnold’s back yard.  Arnold is really afraid to open the package.  In September, Arnold digs up the singing package.  Arnold gives the package back to the Post Office.

Peter the Postman takes the package from Arnold.   Peter does not know what to do with the singing package.  Peter is also afraid to open the package.  The package sings “They Say It’s Your Birthday!”  Peter  gets an idea.  Peter needs a birthday present for his friend Mr. Tanner.  Peter the Postman from the Post Office sends the package to his friend,  Mr. Tanner the math teacher.

Mr. Tanner receives the package on the first day of school.   He receives the package during 5th period.    The package sings the Star-Spangled Banner, but the 5th period class is very loud and no one hears it.   During 6th period the package “They Say It’s Your Birthday”, but Mr. Tanner is yelling about homework and doesn’t hear it.  During 7th period the package sings Rocket Man like Elton John.  Mr.  Tanner thinks that it is a student.  He thinks that it is his favorite student George Geometria.  “It’s not me!” says George. “It’s the package!”  George is afraid to open the package.  Mr.  Tanner is afraid to open the package.  Mr. Tanner gives the package detention.

Mark Messesup is a boy in detention.    He receives the package when it arrives.   He is not afraid of the package.  He puts the package on his desk.  The package sings like Michael Jackson.  Mark likes to sing like Michael Jackson.   Mark Messesup takes the package home on the bus.  On the bus, the package sings Miley Cyrus songs.  Mark is afraid to open the package now.  He leaves the package on the bus.

The bus picks up the hockey team.  The hockey team finds the package.  The hockey team thinks that the package is food for after practice.  The hockey team brings the package in to the hockey rink.   During practice the package starts to sing.  It sings more Miley Cyrus songs.  The hockey team is also afraid of Miley Cyrus.  They are afraid to open the package because Miley might be in the package.  The hockey team leaves the package at the hockey rink and runs to the bus, screaming.

The Canadian Hockey team finds the package.  The package is still singing.  The package is still singing Miley Cyrus songs.  The Canadian Hockey Team is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.   But they don’t like her music.  They only like polka music.   The Canadian Hockey team sends the package to Apolo Anton Ono.

Apolo Anton Ono is looking at all of his  medals in Vancouver when he receives the package.   The package starts to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.   Apolo is surprised.   What a nice gift!  Apolo calls his friend Lindsey Vonn.  “I received a package that sings from the Canadian Hockey Team!  Come over and see it!”   Lindsey Vonn arrives.   She looks at the package.  The package starts to sing Rocket Man.  “Wow!” she says, “You received a cool package!”   Apolo says, “I want to know who is inside singing.”  He walks towards the package.  The package starts to sing very loudly like Miley Cyrus.  Now, Apolo is afraid of the package.   He is really afraid of Miley Cyrus.

Lindsey Vonn is not afraid of Miley Cyrus.  She is not afraid to open the package.  She puts on her ski helmet.  She puts on her ski goggles.  She opens the package.  Inside of the package she finds 245632.56 Chicken Nuggets with Spicy Chili Sauce.   Lindsey is very happy!!  She is very hungry.   She eats 245627.56 Chicken Nuggets.  At the bottom of the box are a group of Chicken Nuggets that sing.  They are afraid of Lindsey Vonn.   “Don’t eat us!  We sing!”  Lindsey names the nuggets The Spicy Girls and they become famous on American Idol!!

 

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