By: Julius Lester Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

John Henry

Genre: Tall Tale/LegendAuthor’s Purpose: EntertainmentSkill: Making Judgments

Compiled by Terry Sams, Piedmont

Summary   Folks knew John Henry was special from

the day he was born.  He jumped right out of his mama's arms and grew so fast that his head and shoulders poked through the porch roof.  He went on to win a race with Ferret-Faced Freddy, even though Freddy was riding a horse and John Henry was running on his own two legs.  Later, he broke up a boulder that even dynamite couldn't touch.

Genre: Tall TalesA tall tale is a story that has these features:

A larger-than-life, or superhuman, main character with a specific job.

A problem that is solved in a funny way. Exaggerated details that describe things as

greater than they really are. Characters who use everyday language. There are some real-life details.

Comprehension Skill: Making Judgments

Making judgments means thinking about and deciding how to react toward people, situations, and ideas in stories you read.

Use what you have read and your own experiences as you make judgments. Ask yourself if the author is trying to influence you and whether he succeeds.

Comprehension Skill Review –Character

Authors provide information about characters through thoughts and actions.

Authors also use a character’s relationships to give clues to their traits.

Pay attention to motivations, conflicts, points of view, and changes to help you better understand a character’s traits.

Practice Character Clue to Example fromCharacter Story TraitMotivation “What matters is how goodhearted well you do your living (p.254)Conflict “But even you can’t outhammer competitive a machine.” P.251)Point of View “I’ve heard you are the best respected

there ever was.” (p.251) Relationship “That day John helped his papa hard-working rebuild the porch he had busted…”(p. 244)Changes “…that baby jumped out of his tall tale hero mama’s arms and started growing.”p.242)

Vocabulary Skill:Multiple-Meaning Words

Many words have more than one meaning. To decide which meaning of a word is being used, look for clues in the surrounding sentences or paragraph.

Use context clues, experience, and word order to decide on the correct meaning of a multiple-meaning word.

Click on the title to practice this skill.

Research Skill – Card Catalog/Library Database

To find books in the library, you can use the card catalog or library database.

You can search for a book by author, title, or subject.

When searching by author, always use the author’s last name first.

When searching for what a book is about, always use the subject of the book.

If you only know the title, always look for the title first.

More Good Stuff ABC Spelling words John Henry Stories More About Tall Tale More on John Henry Create your own tall tale Reading Test Spelling Test

Weekly Fluency Check -Improve Read with Expression

● Students should vary reading pace to match the action of the story. Because of the exaggeration and vivid language in tall tales, the pace and intensity of the story are often at high levels.

● Reflect this pace through stressed words, loudness and softness, and a slightly quickened reading rate.

● Go to pages 248-249, beginning with “That dynamite. . .”

Read to Find Out – Day 1 Pages 241-247

1. What happens when John Henry is born?

2. What jobs does John Henry accomplish the day after he is born? Is this possible or exaggerated?

3. Why do you think John Henry challenges Ferret-Faced Freddy to a race?

Read to Find Out – Day 2 Pages 248 - 257

1. How does John Henry succeed in building the road when no one else could do it?

2. How was John Henry different from other newborn babies?

3. How was John Henry like a steam drill?

4. What lesson does this story teach?

Writing Assignment

Pretend to be John Henry and write a diary entry describing one of the events that happened in the story.

Write an article for a newspaper or television broadcast that tells about John Henry and his amazing feats.

Pick one of the following and write it on notebook paper.

Say It!boulder glimpseholleredhorizon

rhythmshiveredtunnel

More Words to Knowdynamiteparapets

sledgehammer

bouldera large rock

glimpse a short look

hollered cried or

shouted loudly; yelled

horizon the line where the earth

and sky seem to meet

rhythmany movement with regular

repetition of a beat

shivered shook with

cold, fear, or excitement

tunnelan underground

passage

dynamite a powerful explosive most

commonly used in blasting rock

parapets low walls or mounds of stone or

earth used to protect soldiers

sledgehammera large hammer usually

swung with both hands

The soldiers hid behind the parapet when the shooting started.

The soldiers hid behind the parapet when the shooting started.

A large boulder blocked my way out.

A large boulder blocked my way out.

The workers used dynamite to move the mountain out of the way of the new road.

The workers used dynamite to move the mountain out of the way of the new road.

The children hollered so loud you could hear them over the roaring of the cars on the street!

The children hollered so loud you could hear them over the roaring of the cars on the street.

I got a glimpse of the butterfly as it fluttered by the window.

I got a glimpse of the butterfly as it fluttered by the window.

The sun comes up on the eastern horizon.

The sun comes up on the eastern horizon.

The rhythm of a heartbeat is very important.

The rhythm of the heartbeat is very important

John Henry shivered when he got out of the creek.

John Henry shivered when he got out of the creek.

The train tunnel through the mountain was very dark.

The train tunnel through the mountain wasvery dark.

Spelling WordsSpelling WordsAdding -Adding -erer and - and -estest

smallestlargesthappiesthottestsaddest

deepestclosestscariestfunniestfattest

Spelling WordsAdding -er and -est

smallerlargerhappierhottersadder

deepercloserscarierfunnierfatter

This Week’s Word Wall WordsThis Week’s Word Wall Words

Click and type your own words for this week:

Let’s review our spelling words.

Watch carefully because they will flash on the

screen for just a moment. We will clap as we spell

the word..

smaller

smallest

larger

largest

happier

happiest

hotter

hottest

sadder

saddest

deeper

deepest

closer

closest

scarier

scariest

funnier

funniest

fatter

fattest

GREAT JOB!