Transcript Where the Red Fern Grows

Chapter 1-10 comprehension check
Choose one of the following topics to
research:
 Redbone
coon hounds
 Ozark Mountains
 Eastern Oklahoma
 Western Arkansas
 Bluetick coon hounds
 Events in 1913
 Raccoons
 Draw
a topic
 Write down what you already know about
the topic
 Research the topic and discover at least 5
interesting facts about the topic.
• Keep track of your sources!!!
 Make
a poster to present your
information to the rest of the class! 
 Include
the following:
• Title and author of novel
• Topic name
• Five interesting facts about your topic
• One or more photos or designs
• Works Cited page-Where did you get your
information?
 Why
do you like Billy? What are his good
characteristics?
 How
important is Billy’s grandfather to
him? Why?
 Describe
Little Ann and Old Dan. Why
are they such a good pair of dogs? Would
you like to have dogs like this? Why or
why not?
 The
Pritchards are involved in several
conflicts with Billy. What tragic thing
happens and how does it affect Billy?
 Billy’s
family seems to be close. Give
examples that show how they are a strong
family unit. (Include page numbers
please!).
 The
championship raccoon hunt is full of
conflict. Explain the conflicts and tell how
Billy handles them.
 In
the end the family moves into town.
What led to this, and do you think it was a
good or bad idea? Why?
 Explain
the events that led to the death of
Old Dan and Little Ann. How is the red
fern symbolic?
 residential
 scalded
 cur
 crude
 priceless
 caressed
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why, according to the man, was it a rare
day?
Describe the scene in which the dogs
are fighting.
Why did the man believe the dog
belonged in the country?
How did the man help the dog?
Describe the two cups on the mantel.
 sycamores
game
 waddling
 corncrib
 grieve
 bawling
 muzzle

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
What "terrible disease" was he infected with
when only ten years old?
How did Billy's Papa "pour cold water" on his
idea?
Why was Billy's mother allotted a strip of land
along the Illinois River?
What did Billy's father do for a living?
What animal tracks along the river bank,
fascinated Billy the most?
List at least five animals that Billy catches in his
traps.
How was Papa going to put the muscles back on
Billy?
 festered
 prowl
haunches
 quavering
 kennels
 horehound.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Why does Billy hurry to the deserted
campground?
What does he discover in the sportsman's
magazine?
Describe how Billy hoped to earn enough
money to buy some pups.
Why does Billy ask his grandfather not to
say anything to his father about his plan?
How long does it take the young boy to
save enough money?
How many sisters does Billy have?
 depot
 gunny
 riffle
 briers

bolts
sack
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What good news does Billy receive
about the price of the dogs?
Why did Billy have to go to Tahlequah?
Why does Billy ask how far it is to
Kentucky?
What was the population of Tahlequah?
How do we know that Billy is very poor?
Describe some of the things that
surprise Billy when he arrives in town.
 splintered
 snickered
 glaring
 ooze
 gritted
 anvil
 provisions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Who is telling the story?
How did Billy plan on carrying the
puppies?
How do we know that the stationmaster is a
kind man?
Describe the fight Billy has with the gang
of boys.
Why is Billy surprised at the behaviour of
the marshal?
What does Billy do when he hears the
mountain lion?
Why do Billy's pups give him courage?
 romping
 nestled
 trance
 querying
1.
2.
3.
4.
Describe how Billy decides to name his
dogs.
How did Billy's father already know
where he had been?
Why did Mama and Papa want to move
into town?
Why did they have to wait?
 obstacle
 wiley
 eternity
 woe
 forefinger
 diameter
 churn
 pry
 scent
 frazzle
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Why does Billy's grandfather need a brace
and bit to catch the racoon?
Why does Billy think Grandpa is joking?
According to Papa, why is Billy unable to
catch any coons?
Why does Billy desperately need a coon
skin for his pups?
Why is Papa surprised when they finally
free the coon's paw from the hole?
Describe how Billy Colman trains his
hounds.
 lard, grinding, wobbling, rustle, elders,
domain.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
How did Billy prepare for his first hunt?
What do Billy's parents think about him
going hunting?
Why is it necessary for Billy to hunt at
night?
Why does Billy groan and close his eyes
when he sees where the coon has been
treed?
Why is Billy so determined to cut down
the tree?
 throbbed, dumplings, civet
cat, winced.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Why was Billy crying?
What plan of action does Grandpa suggest?
Why does Grandpa pick up Old Dan and place
him in the buggy?
What does Grandpa think about young boys
chopping down such large trees?
Find the New England States in an atlas.
What fad has started back in the New England
states?
Describe what happens when Billy is wrapping
his hands to make a final attack on the tree.
What is it that Billy is firmly convinced of at the
conclusion of the chapter?
 spellbound, belligerent, stunted,
peroxide, slough, feat.
1.
2.
3.
4.
What did Billy's mother do with the first
coon hide?
Which dog did Billy think was smarter?
What happened to the price of
coonskins?
Describe what happened to Old Dan
and how Billy managed to rescue him.
 predicament, rile, ceased, eddy, trough,
stomped.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why did Billy think that the hunting
would be good that night?
Why was Billy unable to see his dogs?
What has happened to the dogs?
Describe the scene in which Billy
rescues his dogs.
At the end of the chapter, why does Billy
keep checking the handle on his
lantern?
 pelts, wattle, sidled, leering, maneuver.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What is meant by the expression, "shell
corn"?
Describe the Pritchard family.
What bet do the Pritchard boys make
with Billy?
Why was Grandpa unhappy with the
Pritchard boys?
Describe the ghost coon.
 resistance, switch, account, clambered,
protruding.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
According to Rubin, who had lived there
a long time ago and farmed the fields?
Why does Billy give Rubin the two
dollars?
Where is Little Ann finally able to locate
the ghost coon?
Describe the horrible scene that Billy is
confronted with after breaking up the
fight.
How does Billy pay his respects?
 tragedy, zipped, stubble, quivered,
blurted, droning, bashful, codger.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why does Grandpa blame himself for
Rubin's death?
How does Billy feel about entering the
championship coon hunt?
Why does Billy think he is the luckiest boy
in the world?
What comment does Billy make that
indicates he is confident about his chances
of winning?
According to Billy, what's the one thing
wrong with Little Ann?
 mush, dutch-oven, monotonous, jinx,
mares, buggy, pruned.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Why did Grandpa have an astonished
look on his face?
Explain the superstition about hearing
the owl.
Why was Billy having so much difficulty
sleeping?
Describe how Billy groomed his dog?
Why was he awarded a small silver cup?
Why did Billy crawl under the buggy?
 bawl, gingerly, discouraging, flitted,
elimination.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why did the contestants decide to move
a few miles downstream?
What is meant by "strike a trail"?
Why did Grandpa try to put his britches
on backwards?
Why did Papa tell Billy about the two
mules?
Explain how the two dogs doctored one
another.
 rhythmic, mackinaw, lull, baying,
canebrake, loomed, gawking.
 How
do we know that Billy is a brave and
determined boy?
 What did the judge say to indicate that he
thought it would be wise to give up the
hunt?
 Describe what happened to Grandpa.
 How did Billy warm Grandpa's injured
foot?
 haggard, engraving, stock, pane.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why were the limbs on the trees
snapping?
Who came searching for them?
What did Mr. Benson say that shocked
Billy?
Why did Billy decide to take the cup
home?
Why did Mama press her lips together
tightly?
 predatory, foliage, berserk, jugular,
trance, ghastly, canyon, cleaved, pry,
entrails.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Why doesn't Billy like hunting bobcats?
What is the devil cat of the Ozarks?
How does Billy finally kill the big cat?
How would you have felt in this situation?
How did the dogs prove their loyalty to
Billy?
What does Billy discover when he
examines the dogs after the fierce battle?
Do you think it is possible for animals to
die from a broken heart? What about
people?
 mounds, arches, sacred, legend, spiral,
caress.
1.
2.
3.
4.
What does Billy mean when he says,
"Papa…didn't have that whipped look on
his face anymore"?
What does Billy see when he goes to say
goodbye to his dogs?
Briefly retell the story of the Indian
legend.
Are you surprised when Billy says that
he has never been back to the Ozarks?
Why?
As we read, we
will determine
how a narrator’s
opinions and
experiences affect
how he or she tells
the story.
Is it
ALWAYS
safe to tell
the truth?
As we read,
we will
contrast points
of view of two
internal
narrators.
No More...
Would you
rather read a
story with one
narrator or
more than
one?
Cycle 1 Day 2
As we read, we
will identify
words that
reveal a
narrator’s
subjective point
of view.
No More...
Why is it
important
to be able
to tell fact
from
opinion?
Cycle 1 Day 3
As we read, we
will contrast
the viewpoints
of three
narrators and
draw
conclusions
about them.
No More...
Why do
people
write about
themselves
in journals
or diaries?
Cycle 1 Day 4
As we read, we
will analyze the
importance of
point of view in
a story with
multiple
narrators.
No More...
What can
you do
when
teachers
won’t listen?
Cycle 1 Day 5
As we read, we
will identify the
examples of
figurative
language and
explain the
comparisons
they make.
No More...
What if you
never meant
for something
to happen, but
it does anyway
– are you still
responsible for
the outcome?
Cycle 2 Day 1
As we read, we Which is
better:
to
will interpret the
have a crowd
meaning of
of friends or
figurative
one or two
language used in close friends?
the story.
No More...
Cycle 2 Day 2
As we read, we
will evaluate the
effectiveness of
figurative
language used in
the story.
No More...
How do you
react when you
have a great
idea and then
someone takes
your idea and
changes it?
Cycle 2 Day 3
As we read, we
will evaluate
the
effectiveness of
figurative
language used
in the story.
No More...
What do
you do to
get noticed?
Cycle 2 Day 4
As we read,
we will
identify
figurative
language and
evaluate its
effectiveness.
No More...
When
something is
bothering you,
is it sometimes
easier to tell a
stranger about
it instead of a
friend? Why?
Cycle 2 Day 5
Write a description of a
scene using different types of
figurative language.
No More...
Cycle 2
Set the
scene:
The wind was cold and cut like a
knife (simile)
A fluffy blanket of snow covered
the ground (metaphor)
Not a soul was on the street
(idiom)
Action:
Suddenly a girl whipped by at
laser speed. ( hyperbole)
Her feet were a blur
She was so fast that the snow shot
up behind her like a rooster tail
(simile)
Close behind her flew a remote
control plane that moved like a
hawk after its prey (simile)
As we read,
we will
identify
conflicts for
the
characters.
No More...
How important
is it to be
cheered on
when you are
putting in a lot
of effort?
Cycle 3 Day 1
character
vs. character
character vs. nature
character vs. society
character vs. himself/herself
As we read, we
will draw
conclusions
about the
characters and
how they deal
with conflict.
No More...
What can
cause a
popular
person to
become
unpopular?
Cycle 3 Day 2
As we read,
we will draw
conclusions
about how the
characters
have
changed.
No More...
Has an event
in your life
changed the
way you see
yourself?
Cycle 3 Day 4
Static
Dynamic
As we read,
we will draw
conclusions
about how the
characters
have
changed.
No More...
What does
it mean to
be honest
with
yourself?
Cycle 3 Day 5
Who
What
Lead:
Catchy Headline:
When
Where
Why
Excerpt 1:
These three creatures were
so old that they had forgotten
their own age, and nobody
could count the years they
had lived. The long hair that
covered their heads had been
gray since they were born;
and they had among them
only a single eye and a single
tooth which they passed back
and forth from one to another
(Old Greek
Stories by James Baldwin)
Excerpt 2:
(The Red Headed League by Sir Conan Doyle
“I had called upon my friend, Mr.
Sherlock Holmes, one day in the autumn
of last year and found him in deep
conversation with a very stout, floridfaced, elderly gentleman with fiery red
hair. With an apology for my intrusion, I
was about to withdraw when Holmes
pulled me abruptly into the room and
closed the door behind me.”
 Discuss
what you know about theme with
your partner
 A few ideas….
 The
main idea
 Common thread or repeated idea
demonstrated throughout
 Author’s message about a topic
 A lesson or piece of advice that the
author wants the reader to know
 Helps shape the character and plot of the
story
 What
are some important topics in the
novel or reoccurring events (or character
traits) that we see?
Brainstorm:
 Using
our books, let’s find some
examples of these reoccurring events, or
events that relate to the topic.
 Analyze
(look carefully, think deeply)
about the examples we found. What
message is the author trying to tell us?
 Our
conclusion:
 You
are going to do two activities
regarding Where the Red Fern Grows
chapters 1 through 10.
 This will allow you to:
• Demonstrate comprehension
• Make connections to your life
• Think deeper and learn more about the novel
• Be creative!!
 One
will be about the theme of the novel
 The other you get to choose from a long
list of ideas! 
 Both
activities will be due Tuesday
• You will have work time today, perhaps a little on
Monday, and will present in small groups on
Tuesday.
1
– Theme: faith and spirituality
 You will answer the following questions
in a paragraph:
• What does faith mean to you?
• What are examples (events) that discuss Billy’s
faith?
• Is your faith similar or different to Billy’s and
why?
• Make sure you give specific examples from the
book and refer to the chapter it takes place in.
 2-
Loyalty
 You will write a paragraph answering the
following questions:
• Why might loyalty be a character trait AND a
theme of this novel?
• Where and how do we see this show up in
chapters 1-10?
 Give specific examples (at least two) and tell me
what chapter it is found in. Also, you need to explain
how this shows loyalty.
 3-
Perseverance
 You will write a paragraph answering the
following questions:
• Why might perseverance be a character trait
AND a theme of this novel?
• Where and how do we see this show up in
chapters 1-10?
 Give specific examples (at least two) and tell me
what chapter it is found in. Also, you need to explain
how this shows perseverance.
 1-
Drawing
• What is the setting of a novel? Describe in a
sentence.
• Pick two important settings in the book and
illustrate each. Explain why these are important
settings in a few sentences.
 2-
Paragraph/drawing
Write a short paragraph describing:
• Would you like to live in a cabin in the Ozark
Mountains like Billy? Why or why not?
Draw a picture of what it might look like.
 3-
Paragraph
• Write a paragraph addressing the following
questions:
• Why is the campsite (chapter 3 and others)
important in the story? How does it affect the
plot of the story (in other words, how would the
story be different without it?!)?
 4-
Letter
• Write a letter to me addressing the following
questions:
• How does Billy’s family influence him?
• How does your family influence you?
 5-
Comic strip
• Draw a comic strip displaying the first coon that
Billy hunted. Make sure you include important
aspects of this hunt (spans a few chapters).
 6-Comic
strip
• Draw a comic strip to show and retell what
happened to Billy when he was in town getting
his puppies. Make sure you show how the boys
treated him.
 7-
Research- setting
• Read the information I printed about the setting
and time period.
• Write a key word outline to show important facts
that you learned.
 8-Research-
author
• Read the article about Wilson Rawls (the author).
• Write a key word outline to show important facts
that you learned.
•
 9-
Creative writing
• Choose an important scene from the novel and
rewrite from a different character’s perspective
(not Billy’s!!).
 10-
Scavenger hunt
• Look throughout chapters 1-10 and write down
the different events that take place in Grandpa’s
store.
• Then, write a few sentences to answer the
following questions:
 How do these events influence Billy? Why is this an
important setting?
 Choose
answer
ONE theme related question to
&
 Choose ONE of the “Second Activity”
options
 Make
sure you read the entire activity
and all questions carefully. Make sure
your response is complete! Take your
time and do your best! 