Mrs. Pfaff
Collection 1 study guide
“Amigo Brothers” page 14-26
author- Piri Thomas
He grew up in a rough neighborhood in New York City.
He spent time in prison because of drugs and crime.
He began writing when he was in prison.
Setting-the lower side of New York City
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Characters-
Antonio (Tony)
Felix
Theme- What value does someone place on friendship
Climax- When the referee realizes Felix and Antonio are gone.
Resolution- The friendship wins.
Conflict- Character vs. Character Antonio vs. Felix
Character vs. Himself each boy vs. himself
Plot-
Two best friends are confronted with an intense challenge to their friendship in this story about an important boxing tournament. Having found out that they must face each other in the boxing ring, Antonio and Felix must decide whether their friendship will also take a severe blow. The prospect of competing against each other in this important tournament raises serious questions about their loyalty to one another and causes both external and internal conflicts as Antonio and Felix determine the future of their friendship.
Antonio and Felix are best friends who have trained together as boxers. After a series of elimination bouts, they learn they must fight each other during division finals. They decide not to see each other while training for the big fight. During the match the boys fight hard, and at the end of the third round, they embrace. We never learn who has won the fight. As the referee begins to call the fight and name the winner, he realizes that the “champions” have left the arena together.
Vocabulary
bouts
pensively
torrent
dispelled
frenzied
“An Unforgettable Journey” page 30-38 Autobiography
Vocabulary
Refuge
Transition
Persecution
Deprivation
Song of the Trees page 42-58 Novella
Author-- Mildred D. Taylor
She also wrote Song of the Trees, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Let the Circle Be Unbroken, and The Road To Memphis. These books are all about the Logan family.
Setting-- The Great Depression--1930’s, The Logan house and forest in rural Mississippi.
Characters--
Big Ma--grandma, Caroline Mama--Mary
Cassie--9yrs. old Stacy--11yrs. old
Christopher -John- 7yrs. old Little Man- 6yrs. old
Papa--David Mr. Andersen-
Tom-- Claude-
Narrator--1st person--Cassie
Theme-- Self-respect for the family, the Logans. Prejudice------Racism
Conflict—character vs. society character vs. character
The Logans vs. racism The Logans vs. Mr. Andersen
Literature term--- Novella
Vocab (words to own)—dispute
Elude
Curtly
Incredulously
Climax-- When the children are fighting with Mr. Anderson , and Papa shows up .
Resolution-- When Papa threatens to dynamite the forest. Mr. Anderson leaves.
Conflict-- Character vs. Character and Character vs. Society
The Logans vs. Mr. Anderson and The Logans vs. racism and prejudice.
Personification-- When an inanimate object takes on human characteristics.
Example-- The sun peeps out.
Cassie hears the singing trees.
Plot---
The Depression years have been hard on the Logans, and African American farm family. To earn money, Mr. Logan has left Mississippi to work in Louisiana, The rest of the family -grandmother, mother, and four small children- continue to work their small farm. On day Cassie Logan- the narrator of the story- learns that Mr. Andersen, a white lumberman , is planning to cut down the Logans’ trees. Andersen attempts to intimidate Grandma Logan into accepting his offer of $65 dollars for the trees. As Mr. Andersen begins to cut the trees, Stacey Logan rides to Louisiana in search of his father. While he is gone, the three remaining children attempt to stop the lumbermen themselves. A scuffle results, and just as Mr. Andersen in about to beat Cassie with a belt, her father arrives and threatens to blow up the forest with dynamite if the lumbermen don’t leave. Ignoring Andersen’s threats of retribution, Mr. Logan says that he must keep his self-respect no matter what the cost. Mr. Andersen backs down and the trees are saved.
“A Mason- Dixon Memory” page 62-70
author- Clifton Davis He is a minister and an actor. (T.V. show Amen) He also writes songs and music.
Setting-
Beginning- a banquet honoring Donde’ Green Cleveland 1990’s and Louisiana golf tournament 1990’s
then- 1959 Washington D.C.
characters
Donde’ Green
Clifton Davis-narrator
Frank
Narrator- 1st person point of view
Theme- Use actions and words to support what is right. To do the right thing.
Climax- When the boys decided to stay with the narrator and not go to to the amusement park.
Resolution--boys went to a pro sports event
Conflict- Character vs. Society
Clifton and Dondre’ vs. bigotry and racism
Vocabulary
predominantly
resolve
ominous
forfeit
bigotry
Cinderella stories
- these are fairy tales and other stories of enchantment, folk tales from around the world.
- there are more than 900 versions of this popular tale.
- the oldest version has been traced back more than a thousand years, to China.
- the version that we know best was probably collected by the 1600’s by a French writer named Charles Perrault. This is the only version to include a fairy godmother and a midnight curfew.
- three is a charmed number in European folklore.
-these stories describe a world in which the wicked are punished, and the good love others for their true selves, and magical transformations occur as part of everyday life.
“Aschenputtel” -- German retold by Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm p. 74-84
- classic story of a girl who rises from rags to riches and lives happily ever after.
- German Cinderella version.
-Aschenputtel is German for “little ash girl”
Setting- Aschenputtel’s home, a festival--- Germany--- Past
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Characters
Aschenputtel prince
stepmother king
stepsister #1 father of Aschenputtel
Stepsister #2 Doves
Theme--
Conflict--Character vs. Character
Literature focus or term--- folktale and motif
Vocabulary—persisted
Splendor
Glistening
Entranced
vigil
Climax--
Resolution--The shoe fits and Aschenputtel becomes the prince’s bride and lives happily ever after.
“Aschenputtel” is the German version of one of the world’s best-known folk tales, called” Cinderella” in English. After her mother dies and her father remarries, young Aschenputtel is treated badly by her stepmother and stepsisters. Aschenputtel sees a chance to escape from her horrible existence when the king announces a three-day festival to help the prince find a bride.
The wife of a rich man dies and leaves him with a daughter. Soon the man remarries, and his new wife brings home her two evil daughters. the daughters force their stepsister to cook and clean and to sleep in the ashes by the fire, so they begin to call her Aschenputtel, which means”little ash girl” in German. When Aschenputtel’s father goes to a fair, he brings back a hazel twig for her. She plants this twig at her mother’s grave and waters it with her tears. Every time she prays at the tree, a white bird flies out and brings her what she wishes. One day the king announces that all the young women in the kingdom are invited to a festival so that the king’s son may choose a bride. The stepmother and stepsisters will not let Aschenputtel join them at the festival. Aschenputtel goes to her mother’s grave and prays, and the bird in the tree gives her a dress and a pair of slippers to wear. At the festival she dances with the prince but escapes before he can find out where she lives. On the third day, as she leaves the festival, her shoe gets caught on the steps. The prince takes the shoe to the father, and each of the stepsisters tries it on. Finally, Aschenputtel tires on the shoe; it fits perfectly, and she becomes the prince’s bride.
Aschenputtel’s mother dies.
Aschenputtel’s stepsisters make her a kitchen maid.
The king announces a three-day festival to find a princess.
Aschenputtel flees the festival and hides from the prince.
The prince has pitch put on the steps.
The stepsisters cut off parts of their feet to fit the slipper.
Aschenputtel’s foot fits in the slipper.
Aschenputtel marries the prince.
Things to know
-Motif- is a repeated element in storytelling.
-look for things happening in threes
- define slant - a peculiar or personal point of view, attitude, or opinion.
Vocabulary
Splendor
persisted
Yeh-Shen” p.86-90 - this tale comes from China
Vocabulary
Glistening
Entranced
Vigil
setting- Southern China
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Conflict- Character vs. Character
Characters
Chief Wu
Yeh-Shen
stepmother
fish
old man
king
Climax--
Resolution-- The king finds Yeh-Shen, who fits the shoe, he follows her home, falls in love with her, and marries her.
Theme--
Yeh-Shen, an orphan, grows up in her stepmother’s household, Her stepmother, jealous of Yeh-Shen’s beauty, gives her the hardest chores, Yeh-Shen’s only friend is a fish with golden eyes that she feeds every day. The stepmother finds out about the fish and becomes very angry; she stabs the fish and brings it home for dinner. An old man appears to Yeh-Shen and tells her that the bones of the fish are very powerful and can grant her heart’s desire, so she collects them. When the spring festival arrives, her stepmother will not allow Yeh-Shen to go in case some man should be taken by Yeh-Shen’s beauty rather than by her own daughter’s. When her stepmother is gone, Yeh-Shen goes to the bones of the fish and asks for clothes to wear to the festival. She receives beautiful garments and golden shoes. As Yeh-Shen runs away from the festival, she loses one of her tiny golden shoes. the king of a nearby island kingdom is given the shoe, and he decides to look for the woman whose foot fits it. He places the shoe in a pavilion and watches as women try it on. In the middle of the night, Yeh-Shen comes to claim the show. The king follows her home, falls in love with her, and two are married.
“Amigo Brothers” page 14-26
author- Piri Thomas
He grew up in a rough neighborhood in New York City.
He spent time in prison because of drugs and crime.
He began writing when he was in prison.
Setting-the lower side of New York City
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Characters-
Antonio (Tony)
Felix
Theme- What value does someone place on friendship
Climax- When the referee realizes Felix and Antonio are gone.
Resolution- The friendship wins.
Conflict- Character vs. Character Antonio vs. Felix
Character vs. Himself each boy vs. himself
Plot-
Two best friends are confronted with an intense challenge to their friendship in this story about an important boxing tournament. Having found out that they must face each other in the boxing ring, Antonio and Felix must decide whether their friendship will also take a severe blow. The prospect of competing against each other in this important tournament raises serious questions about their loyalty to one another and causes both external and internal conflicts as Antonio and Felix determine the future of their friendship.
Antonio and Felix are best friends who have trained together as boxers. After a series of elimination bouts, they learn they must fight each other during division finals. They decide not to see each other while training for the big fight. During the match the boys fight hard, and at the end of the third round, they embrace. We never learn who has won the fight. As the referee begins to call the fight and name the winner, he realizes that the “champions” have left the arena together.
Vocabulary
bouts
pensively
torrent
dispelled
frenzied
“An Unforgettable Journey” page 30-38 Autobiography
Vocabulary
Refuge
Transition
Persecution
Deprivation
Song of the Trees page 42-58 Novella
Author-- Mildred D. Taylor
She also wrote Song of the Trees, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Let the Circle Be Unbroken, and The Road To Memphis. These books are all about the Logan family.
Setting-- The Great Depression--1930’s, The Logan house and forest in rural Mississippi.
Characters--
Big Ma--grandma, Caroline Mama--Mary
Cassie--9yrs. old Stacy--11yrs. old
Christopher -John- 7yrs. old Little Man- 6yrs. old
Papa--David Mr. Andersen-
Tom-- Claude-
Narrator--1st person--Cassie
Theme-- Self-respect for the family, the Logans. Prejudice------Racism
Conflict—character vs. society character vs. character
The Logans vs. racism The Logans vs. Mr. Andersen
Literature term--- Novella
Vocab (words to own)—dispute
Elude
Curtly
Incredulously
Climax-- When the children are fighting with Mr. Anderson , and Papa shows up .
Resolution-- When Papa threatens to dynamite the forest. Mr. Anderson leaves.
Conflict-- Character vs. Character and Character vs. Society
The Logans vs. Mr. Anderson and The Logans vs. racism and prejudice.
Personification-- When an inanimate object takes on human characteristics.
Example-- The sun peeps out.
Cassie hears the singing trees.
Plot---
The Depression years have been hard on the Logans, and African American farm family. To earn money, Mr. Logan has left Mississippi to work in Louisiana, The rest of the family -grandmother, mother, and four small children- continue to work their small farm. On day Cassie Logan- the narrator of the story- learns that Mr. Andersen, a white lumberman , is planning to cut down the Logans’ trees. Andersen attempts to intimidate Grandma Logan into accepting his offer of $65 dollars for the trees. As Mr. Andersen begins to cut the trees, Stacey Logan rides to Louisiana in search of his father. While he is gone, the three remaining children attempt to stop the lumbermen themselves. A scuffle results, and just as Mr. Andersen in about to beat Cassie with a belt, her father arrives and threatens to blow up the forest with dynamite if the lumbermen don’t leave. Ignoring Andersen’s threats of retribution, Mr. Logan says that he must keep his self-respect no matter what the cost. Mr. Andersen backs down and the trees are saved.
“A Mason- Dixon Memory” page 62-70
author- Clifton Davis He is a minister and an actor. (T.V. show Amen) He also writes songs and music.
Setting-
Beginning- a banquet honoring Donde’ Green Cleveland 1990’s and Louisiana golf tournament 1990’s
then- 1959 Washington D.C.
characters
Donde’ Green
Clifton Davis-narrator
Frank
Narrator- 1st person point of view
Theme- Use actions and words to support what is right. To do the right thing.
Climax- When the boys decided to stay with the narrator and not go to to the amusement park.
Resolution--boys went to a pro sports event
Conflict- Character vs. Society
Clifton and Dondre’ vs. bigotry and racism
Vocabulary
predominantly
resolve
ominous
forfeit
bigotry
Cinderella stories
- these are fairy tales and other stories of enchantment, folk tales from around the world.
- there are more than 900 versions of this popular tale.
- the oldest version has been traced back more than a thousand years, to China.
- the version that we know best was probably collected by the 1600’s by a French writer named Charles Perrault. This is the only version to include a fairy godmother and a midnight curfew.
- three is a charmed number in European folklore.
-these stories describe a world in which the wicked are punished, and the good love others for their true selves, and magical transformations occur as part of everyday life.
“Aschenputtel” -- German retold by Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm p. 74-84
- classic story of a girl who rises from rags to riches and lives happily ever after.
- German Cinderella version.
-Aschenputtel is German for “little ash girl”
Setting- Aschenputtel’s home, a festival--- Germany--- Past
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Characters
Aschenputtel prince
stepmother king
stepsister #1 father of Aschenputtel
Stepsister #2 Doves
Theme--
Conflict--Character vs. Character
Literature focus or term--- folktale and motif
Vocabulary—persisted
Splendor
Glistening
Entranced
vigil
Climax--
Resolution--The shoe fits and Aschenputtel becomes the prince’s bride and lives happily ever after.
“Aschenputtel” is the German version of one of the world’s best-known folk tales, called” Cinderella” in English. After her mother dies and her father remarries, young Aschenputtel is treated badly by her stepmother and stepsisters. Aschenputtel sees a chance to escape from her horrible existence when the king announces a three-day festival to help the prince find a bride.
The wife of a rich man dies and leaves him with a daughter. Soon the man remarries, and his new wife brings home her two evil daughters. the daughters force their stepsister to cook and clean and to sleep in the ashes by the fire, so they begin to call her Aschenputtel, which means”little ash girl” in German. When Aschenputtel’s father goes to a fair, he brings back a hazel twig for her. She plants this twig at her mother’s grave and waters it with her tears. Every time she prays at the tree, a white bird flies out and brings her what she wishes. One day the king announces that all the young women in the kingdom are invited to a festival so that the king’s son may choose a bride. The stepmother and stepsisters will not let Aschenputtel join them at the festival. Aschenputtel goes to her mother’s grave and prays, and the bird in the tree gives her a dress and a pair of slippers to wear. At the festival she dances with the prince but escapes before he can find out where she lives. On the third day, as she leaves the festival, her shoe gets caught on the steps. The prince takes the shoe to the father, and each of the stepsisters tries it on. Finally, Aschenputtel tires on the shoe; it fits perfectly, and she becomes the prince’s bride.
Aschenputtel’s mother dies.
Aschenputtel’s stepsisters make her a kitchen maid.
The king announces a three-day festival to find a princess.
Aschenputtel flees the festival and hides from the prince.
The prince has pitch put on the steps.
The stepsisters cut off parts of their feet to fit the slipper.
Aschenputtel’s foot fits in the slipper.
Aschenputtel marries the prince.
Things to know
-Motif- is a repeated element in storytelling.
-look for things happening in threes
- define slant - a peculiar or personal point of view, attitude, or opinion.
Vocabulary
Splendor
persisted
Yeh-Shen” p.86-90 - this tale comes from China
Vocabulary
Glistening
Entranced
Vigil
setting- Southern China
Narrator- 3rd person point of view
Conflict- Character vs. Character
Characters
Chief Wu
Yeh-Shen
stepmother
fish
old man
king
Climax--
Resolution-- The king finds Yeh-Shen, who fits the shoe, he follows her home, falls in love with her, and marries her.
Theme--
Yeh-Shen, an orphan, grows up in her stepmother’s household, Her stepmother, jealous of Yeh-Shen’s beauty, gives her the hardest chores, Yeh-Shen’s only friend is a fish with golden eyes that she feeds every day. The stepmother finds out about the fish and becomes very angry; she stabs the fish and brings it home for dinner. An old man appears to Yeh-Shen and tells her that the bones of the fish are very powerful and can grant her heart’s desire, so she collects them. When the spring festival arrives, her stepmother will not allow Yeh-Shen to go in case some man should be taken by Yeh-Shen’s beauty rather than by her own daughter’s. When her stepmother is gone, Yeh-Shen goes to the bones of the fish and asks for clothes to wear to the festival. She receives beautiful garments and golden shoes. As Yeh-Shen runs away from the festival, she loses one of her tiny golden shoes. the king of a nearby island kingdom is given the shoe, and he decides to look for the woman whose foot fits it. He places the shoe in a pavilion and watches as women try it on. In the middle of the night, Yeh-Shen comes to claim the show. The king follows her home, falls in love with her, and two are married.