Lesson flow
Strut the Yard
Pupils walk between the desks with their chests stuck out and their heads high while you say, "Up and down he went, in and out among the hens." Then say, "Stop! Something is shining in the straw." Everyone freezes and looks down.
Dig in the Straw
Pile torn scrap paper on a table with a ball of white paper hidden in it. A volunteer sweeps the paper left and right with both hands, digging and rooting until the white ball rolls out. Tap it on the table and say, "Tap! Tap!" Name strutted, rooted and pearl as you point to what just happened, and touch the top of your head for comb.
Two Pecks
Write peck on the board twice. Draw a beak tapping beside one and a big bucket beside the other. Read "gave it a peck" and "a whole peck of pearls". Pupils tap one finger for the first meaning and make a bucket with their arms for the second. Explain that a barleycorn is one single grain.
Read and Stop at the Tap
Read the story aloud for Grades 2 and 3. In Grade 4, partners read it, taking a paragraph each. Stop after "He looked at it for a while with his head on one side." Pupils put their heads on one side and tell a partner, in a proud voice, what Master Rooster will say. Read the ending and compare.
Treasure to Whom?
Pupils draw two circles and label them "Men who care for such things" and "Master Rooster". Say these items one at a time and pupils write each in a circle: the pearl, pale as the moon, hard as a stone, one barleycorn, something to eat. Ask, "Is the pearl any less of a treasure because Master Rooster cannot use it? Who can use it?"
Yard Retell
Write strut, kick, tap, speak, strut on the board. Partners retell the story with an action for each word and say the moral in their own words. Grade 3 adds one detail that proves the moral. Grade 4 writes a three-sentence summary and one sentence explaining why the pearl was no treasure to him.
STORY OVERVIEW
- Title and Moral: The Cock and the Pearl - "Treasure is only treasure to those who can use it."
- Plot Summary: Master Rooster digs a pearl out of the straw in the farmyard and pecks at it, but it is as hard as a stone. He says he would rather have one barleycorn than a whole peck of pearls, and he struts away.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Retell what Master Rooster does, in order, from strutting in the yard to turning his tail on the pearl.
- Identify the two meanings of peck in the story.
- Explain why the pearl is a treasure to some people but not to Master Rooster.
WORDS TO TEACH FIRST
- strutted: walked in a proud way with the chest pushed out.
- comb: the red crest on top of a rooster's head.
- rooted: dug about with a beak, looking for something.
- pearl: a small, round, shiny treasure that grows inside some shellfish.
- barleycorn: one single grain of barley.
- peck: a quick tap with a beak, or an old measure about the size of a big bucket.
TEXT QUESTIONS
- What did Master Rooster do to get at the shining thing? Sample answer: "He kicked the straw to the left and he kicked it to the right", and "He dug and he rooted" until it rolled out.
- How did he find out the pearl was no use to him? Sample answer: He gave it a peck and then another, and "It was as hard as a stone."
- What did he mean by "a whole peck of pearls"? Sample answer: Here a peck is a big measure, about a bucketful. He would rather have one barleycorn to eat than a great heap of pearls he cannot use.
EXIT TICKET
On a slip of paper, pupils finish this sentence: The pearl is a treasure to ____, but not to Master Rooster, because ____.
SUPPORT AND STRETCH
- Support: Read the Easier version and have pupils strut two fingers on the desk on "Up and down" and say "Ho! Ho!" with you. It says "one bit of grain" and "a heap of pearls", so read those words first and match them to barleycorn and peck on the board.
- On level: Pupils finish the two circles and retell the story with the five action words.
- Stretch: The story says, "Someone had lost it in the yard long ago." Pupils imagine that person comes back, and write what they would say to Master Rooster and what he would say back, using two details from the story.
ENGLISH LEARNERS
Have pupils strut, kick and peck as they say each word. Give the frame "It is a treasure to ____. It is not a treasure to ____." for the two circles.
Answer key
Comprehension
- He strutted with his chest stuck out and his red comb high.
- He kicked it left and right, dug and rooted, and sent it flying all over the yard.
- It was a small round thing, as pale as the moon.
- It went Tap! It was as hard as a stone.
- He would rather have one barleycorn.
Vocabulary
- C
- F
- B
- E
- A
- D
Writing Task
A good answer says the barleycorn is food for Master Rooster and the pearl is a treasure only to men who care for such things.
Original text available on the story page.