~ Page 1 © Gay Miller ~

Created by Gay Miller

The Gift of the Magi Book Unit – Part 3

~ Page 2 © Gay Miller ~

Thank you for downloading this portion of The Gift of the Magi Book

Unit. Other book units may be found at

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Gay-Miller

This book unit will be provided in four blog posts as part of

Christmas in July.

The posts will include:

July 7 ~ vocabulary

July 14 ~ comprehension July 21 ~ constructive response questions

July 28 ~ writing project This packet contains three constructive response writing

prompts with graphic organizers. It also contains additional writing suggestions.

I hope your students enjoy using this book study.

The Gift of the Magi

By William Sydney Porter (O. Henry)

Genre ~ Classics & Short Stories

Grade Level Equivalent: 6.1

Lexile Measure®: 940L

Simplified Version

Grade Level Equivalent: 4.9

~ Page 3 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response – Theme

List one theme that is repeated several times in the story. List examples of this theme.

Theme ___________ Example

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Proof from Text

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Example

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Proof from Text

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Example

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Proof from Text

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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to

challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct

from personal opinions or judgments.

~ Page 4 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response – Theme ~ Answer Key (Answers will vary.)

List one theme that is repeated several times in the story. List examples of this theme.

Theme Love

Example

Della excitedly shops for Jim's gift.

Proof from Text

Oh, and the next two hours

tripped by on rosy wings. Forget the hashed metaphor. She was

ransacking the stores for Jim's present.

Example

Della saves money, so she can get Jim a Christmas gift.

Proof from Text

Only $1.87 to buy a present for Jim. Her Jim. Many a happy hour she had

spent planning for something nice for him. Something fine and rare

and sterling – something just a little bit near to being worthy of the honor of being owned by Jim.

Example

Della welcomes Jim warmly when he comes home from work.

Proof from Text

But whenever Mr. James Dillingham Young came home and

reached his flat above he was called "Jim" and greatly hugged

by Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you as Della. Which is all very good.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to

challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct

from personal opinions or judgments.

~ Page 5 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response – Theme ~ Answer Key (Answers will vary.)

List one theme that is repeated several times in the story. List examples of this theme.

Theme Sacrifice Example

Jim sells his most prized possession ot have money to buy Della a Christmas gift.

Proof from Text

For there lay The Combs--the set

of combs, side and back, that Della had worshipped long in a

Broadway window. Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jeweled rims--just the shade to

wear in the beautiful vanished hair. They were expensive combs,

she knew, and her heart had simply craved and yearned over them without the least hope of

possession. And now, they were hers, but the tresses that should

have adorned the coveted adornments were gone.

Example

Della sells her most prized possession.

Proof from Text

"Will you buy my hair?" asked Della.

"I buy hair," said Madame. "Take yer hat off and let's have a sight

at the looks of it."

Down rippled the brown cascade.

"Twenty dollars," said Madame,

lifting the mass with a practiced hand.

"Give it to me quick," said Della.

Example

For weeks, Della embarrassingly shops with the butcher and grocer to try to save money.

Proof from Text

Pennies saved one and two at a

time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the

butcher until one's cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing

implied.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to

challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct

from personal opinions or judgments.

~ Page 6 © Gay Miller ~

Chapter 6 ~ Constructive Response – Course of Action

Explain what course of action you would take if you were in Jim or Della’s situation.

Jim or Della's Actions

Your Actions

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Why would your course be a more effective course than the course they chose?

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CCSS.ELA-

Literacy.RL.4.3 Describe

in depth a character,

setting, or event in a

story or drama, drawing

on specific details in the

text (e.g., a character’s

thoughts, words, or

actions).

CCSS.ELA-

Literacy.RL.5.3 Compare

and contrast two or

more characters,

settings, or events in a

story or drama, drawing

on specific details in the

text (e.g., how

characters interact).

CCSS.ELA-

Literacy.RL.6.3 Describe

how a particular story’s

or drama’s plot unfolds

in a series of episodes

as well as how the

characters respond or

change as the plot

moves toward a

resolution.

~ Page 7 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response – Summarizing

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Select the 10 most important events from the story. Use these details to write a summary.

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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to

challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct

from personal opinions or judgments.

~ Page 8 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response – Summarizing ~ Answer Key

Della goes to

the mirror and

lets down her

long hair. This

gives her an

idea.

Select the 10 most important events from the story. Use these details to write a summary.

Della goes to

Madame

Sofronie’s and

sells her hair

for $20.00.

Della

Dillingham

Young counts

her money and

finds she has

only $1.87 to

buy her

husband Jim a

Christmas gift.

Della cries

because she

has tried to

save money for

weeks to buy a gift.

Della finds Jim

the perfect gift,

a chain for his

prized watch.

Jim arrives

home at 7:00.

He is surprised

when he sees

Della has cut

her hair. He

can only stare

at her.

A little later

Jim snaps out

of his trance

and gives Della

her Christmas

present, two

beautiful

combs for her

hair.

Della returns to

the apartment

and curls her

short hair. She

prepares a

dinner and

waits for Jim to

come home.

Della cries and

Jim holds her.

She cannot use

the beautiful

combs in her

short hair.

Della then

gives Jim the

watch chain.

The two

discover that

each sold a

prized

possession to

have money to

buy the other a

Christmas gift.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to

challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct

from personal opinions or judgments.

~ Page 9 © Gay Miller ~

Additional Writing Ideas Write an argumentative essay. Select Della or Jim to argue which character gave up the most

valuable possession.

Rewrite the story from Jim’s perspective.

Compare different versions of the story.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFf3fDdtFdM (Picture Book Read)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEYKlV0vkIs (1952 black and white film staring

Farley Granger as Jim and Jeanne Crain as Della)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2VFgHGKzx4 (Bert and Ernie’s Gift of the

Magi)

The next four pages contain graphic organizers that you can use when comparing the book

to the movie. I created these as part of a free Cinderella Unit that is a sample of my short

story series. I decided to just add the organizers to this unit for your convinence instead of

offering just a link.

~ Page 10 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response

Complete the chart to analyze the elements of the text.

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CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.7 Analyze how visual and multimedia elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text (e.g., graphic novel, multimedia

presentation of fiction, folktale, myth, poem).

Meaning

Beauty

Tone

~ Page 11 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response

Complete the chart to compare two titles.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.7 Analyze how visual and multimedia elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text (e.g., graphic novel, multimedia

presentation of fiction, folktale, myth, poem).

Meaning

Beauty Beauty

Tone Tone

Meaning

1st Title _____________________________________________

2nd Title ______________________________________________

~ Page 12 © Gay Miller ~

Constructive Response

Complete the chart to compare a text to a visual or oral presentation of the text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.7 Make connections between the text of a story or drama and a visual or oral presentation of the text, identifying where each

version reflects specific descriptions and directions in the text.

Text Title Presentation

~ Page 13 © Gay Miller ~

Text Title Presentation

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.7 Make connections between the text of a story or drama and a visual or oral presentation of the text, identifying where each version reflects specific

descriptions and directions in the text.

~ Page 14 © Gay Miller ~

Clipart Credits

Do you need additional teaching resources? Check out these Christmas resources at my on Teachers Pay Teachers store.

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Book Unit

Free Game for the Holidays

Compare and Contrast Christmas

This is a free sample from the

Compare and Contrast Christmas

pictured to the right.

~ Page 15 © Gay Miller ~

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