Old Yeller

By Teacher Jasmine

Big Question

How can we help protect those we love?

Setting

Time and place in which a story takes place.

Setting

Determines some eventsInfluences behaviors

of characters

Plot

Is the pattern of events in a story, including a conflict, rising action, climax, and a resolution.

http://www.glencoe.com/sec/literature/course/genre/shortstory/cs1-3/plot.html

P. 22-23

Vocabulary Words

Lunging Nub Romping Rowdy Slung Speckled P.24-25

Lunging

Ways moving forward. Walking, inching, leaping

Nub

A small amount of something Slice, sliver, bit

Romping

Ways of playing Frolicking, running, cavorting

Rowdy

Describe behavior Calm, loud, polite

Slung

Ways of throwing Hurled, flung, tossed

Speckled

Patterned with round markings Spotted, dotted, freckled

Explore

Why do people have dogs as pets? When a dog is well trained, what

can you expect from him or her? Do you have or know a dog? If so,

what is the dog like?

Historical Fiction

Is realistic fiction that takes place in the past. Historical fiction is a combination of imagination and fact. Characters are placed in a factually accurate setting to act out a fictional plot.

Picture Walk

Preview the title of the story and the illustrations.

Predict what you will find out in this story.

Guide Questions

What is the setting of the story? What personal and physical

characteristics would a person need to survive on Texas frontier in 1867?

On page 29, Travis relates that he spent more than a week teaching Arliss to kill snakes. How does this plot even fit with the story’s setting?

From what point of view is this selection told?

What effect does point of view have on the way readers experience the story?

Guide Questions

What words in pages 30-31 sounds as though it may be a lie?

What inferences can you make about the boys’ mother based on her reaction to Travis?

Guide Questions

In paragraphs 2-5 on page 32, how does the author help you visualize Travis’s actions?

Visualize the last two paragraphs on page 33. What do you see and hear?

What happens on pages 32-33 that dramatically alters the plot of the story?

What two things are compared in the last line of the second paragraph on page 33?

What does the smile suggests about the way Travis is running?

Guide Questions

What causes Travis to feel a chill clear through to the marrow of his bones?

What adds to Travis’s fear and desperation?

Reread paragraph 2 on P. 34. How does Travis’s description help readers visualize how fast he is running?

Travis thinks Arliss wouldn’t let go of the cub’s hind legs because he was to afraid. Based in what you know about little Arliss, do you agree with Travis?

Guide Questions

Use your background knowledge and as many senses as possible to visualize the action in paragraph 5 P. 36. What do you see, hear, feel, and smell?

Based on what you already know about Travis and what you learn about him from his behavior on P. 36, what conclusions can you draw about the kind of person he is?

How does Old Yeller respond to the bear’s threat, despite his smaller size?

Guide Questions

How might the story have ended differently?

What do Old Yeller’s action tell about his character?

Compare and contrast the way the mother bear fights with the way Old Yeller fights?

How successful is the author at writing a story to entertain?