Summary This fractured fairy tale is a twist on the classic tale “The Gingerbread Man.” In this modern-day version set in a city, Mary and Joe Banks make a special gingerbread cookie for their son Tyrone. But the mischievous gingerbread cookie, known as Gingerbread Boy, pops out of the oven dancing and rapping. He runs away from the family and their neighbors, leaving a huge mess behind him. No one can catch the crafty Gingerbread Boy, until he meets Old Man, who has a gold tooth. Impressed by the shine, Gingerbread Boy takes a closer look and hides inside Old Man’s mouth. And that is the end of Gingerbread Boy.

Objectives FluencyStudents will:• Buildfluencythroughecho-reading,

choral-reading,andrepeatedreading• Readwithphrases• Readexclamationpoints

cOmprehenSiOnStudents will:• Analyzestoryelements• Determinetextimportance• Identifysequenceorstepsin

aprocess• Synthesize

WritingStudents will:• Writeapictureessay

genreStudents will:• Identifyandanalyzefeatures

offracturedfairytales

VOcabulary and WOrd StudyStudents will:• Buildvocabulary:dusted,

scrumptious,scurried• Makewordassociations• Drawwordsandaskquestions• Createwordriddles• Identifyadjectives

character educatiOnStudentswilllearnabout:• Respect• Responsibility

The Gingerbread Boy

Uptownteacher’s guide

Reader’s Theater™for Fluency and comprehension

characters levelsCustomers M/28Juan Perez M/28Anita Perez N/30Joe Banks N/30Tony N/30Tyrone Banks P/38Gingerbread Boy Q/40Old Man R/40Mary Banks T/44Narrator V/60

leVelS 28–60 m–V

“Fractured” Fairy tales

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build background•Askstudentstoshareexperiencesthey

have had with baking or with visiting a bakery. Talk with them about the different kinds of cakes, cookies, and other treats that are available at bakeries. Ask students if they have ever eaten gingerbread cookies. Ask students to talk about how the cookies looked and tasted, and who decorated them.

•Askifanystudentshaveheardtheclassic fairy tale “The Gingerbread Man.” Ask a volunteer to summarize thestoryforthegroup.Explainthatthey will be reading a humorous version of this classic story, set in modern times and with a dancing, rapping gingerbread cookie.

• Invitestudentstotalkaboutotherfairy tales they know. Invite them to describe the fairy tales and talk about ways they are all similar and different.

introduce the Script•Giveeachstudentacopyofthe

script. Read the title and the back coverblurbwithstudents.Explainthat students are going to read a fractured fairy tale. Use the Learning About Genre sidebar to help teach characteristics of fractured fairy tales.

•Askstudentsiftheyhaveeverheardorread a fractured fairy tale. Invite them to name other fractured fairy tales that they know.

•Explainthatthestorytakesplaceinamodern city and the characters are all humanexceptforthemaincharacter,GingerbreadBoy.Explainthatfairytales, including fractured fairy tales, have elements of magic, such as magic spells or talking characters that are not human.

See page 8 for English-Language Learner and Striving Reader Support.

Day One

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Copyright©2007BenchmarkEducationCompany,LLC.Allrightsreserved.Nopartoftheguidemaybereproducedortransmittedinwholeorinpartinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopy,recording,oranyinformationretrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher.

ISBN:978-1-4108-7193-0

• Combines elements of fairy tales with humor

• Original, well-known stories are retold in an unexpected way

• New characters can be added to traditional tale

• Classic characters do unexpected or out-of-character things

learning about genre: Fractured Fairy tales

introduce Vocabulary• Introducetheglossarywords.Read

the word dusted together. Ask students to tell you what comes to mind when they hear the word dusted. They might think of dusting furniture in their homes.Explainthatinthisstory,dusted means added a light covering of something, such as flour, when baking.

•Repeattheprocesswiththewordsscrumptious and scurried. First ask students to tell you what comes to mind when you say each word, and then clarify its meaning by giving examplesincontext.

•Explaindifficultphrasesorcolloquialisms to students. For example,onpage2,thecustomerssaythat the pies and tarts “really ring our bell!”Explainthatthecustomersmeanthat they really like the pies and tarts. Pointoutthenumbers“24/7”onpage2andexplainthattheymeanthebakery is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

See page 8 for English-Language Learner and Striving Reader Support.

model Fluent readingAsk students to listen and follow along with you as you read the script aloud to modelfluencyandexpression.

background information

“The Gingerbread Man”— The Classic Tale

The classic fairy tale “The Gingerbread Man” has been told for many generations. “The Gingerbread Man” is a trickster story, in which the main character meets a trickster who is even more clever than himself.

In the traditional story, a husband and his wife always wished for a child but never had one. Then one day the woman decides to make a gingerbread cookie to keep as a son. When she goes to get him out of the oven, he runs away singing, “Run! Run! As fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!”

No one can catch the trickster Gingerbread Manuntilhemeetsafoxwhoofferstotakehim across a river. When he gets too close tothefox’smouth,theGingerbreadManbecomesasnackfortheslyfox.

The Gingerbread Boy Uptown

In this fractured fairy tale, Gingerbread Boy is one of the only characters that is true to the original. His rhymes, though, sound like modern-dayrap.Thepartofthecraftyfoxis now Old Man, who tricks Gingerbread Boy to get into his mouth for him to eat.

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build Fluency: echo-read•Readthescriptaloud,andask

students to echo-read, or repeat, the lines after you. Stop where necessary toexplainunfamiliarwords,forexample,“smothered”(page2),“mambo”(page5),“delectable”and“barrage”(page6),“bolted”(page9),“disrespectful” (page10),“pursuers”(page11),“obnoxious”and“plastered”(page13),“unattended”(page14),and“avail”(page16).

•Pointoutthestagedirection“(smacking his lips)”onpage16.Explainthatthisisadirectiontotheperson playing the character of Old Man. Demonstrate how to smack your lips so that students understand what it means.

•ClarifysomeoftheexpressionsthatGingerbread Boy uses, such as “step off”(page3)(backaway);“bling” (page4)(expensivejewelry); “rocks to abeat”(page4)(dances);and“mainman”(page11)(popularcharacter).

•Askstudentstoskimthroughthescripttofindexamplesofsentencesthatendinexclamationpoints.Model reading one of the sentences to show how to read a sentence with anexclamationpoint.Explainthatstudents should raise their voices slightlyandsoundexcitedwhentheyreadsentenceswithexclamationpoints. Ask students to echo-read the sentences after you.

•Pointoutthedashesinthescript,forexample,inJoe’ssecondsetoflinesonpage3.Explaintostudentsthatthedash shows that Joe is pausing, briefly, before saying the words “and he plays a decent game of basketball.” The pause gives the words that follow the dashextraemphasis.Modelreadingthe line for students and ask them to echo-read it with you.

•Askstudentsiftheycantellwhatisunique about the way that Gingerbread Boytalks.Explainthateverythinghesays is a rhyme. Model reading a few of Gingerbread Boy’s lines, emphasizing the rhythm. Invite students to echo-read the lines.

build comprehensionEnsure students understand the ideas in the story, as well as character development, by involving them in discussion.

•Where does the story begin? (analyzestoryelements)

•What do the customers think of Banks’s Bakery?(drawconclusions)

•For whom do Mary and Joe Banks make the gingerbread cookie?(recalldetails)

•What happens right after Gingerbread Boy comes out of the oven? (identifysequenceorstepsinaprocess)

•What do the customers think of Gingerbread Boy? (drawconclusions)

•What part does Old Man play in the story?(determinetextimportance;analyzecharacter)

Day Two

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assign roles•Usethereadinglevelsprovidedonthe

front of this guide to help you assign roles that support or challenge each student appropriately.

•Thisscriptcontainstenparts,includingNarratorandCustomers.If you have more than ten students, assigntheroleofCustomerstoseveralstudents, keeping in mind the reading level of the part. You could also invite some students to be prop masters or music directors.

• InviteGingerbreadBoytoraphislines instead of simply saying them.

character tips for Voice and expression

Narrator loud, strong, confident

Mary Banks confident, proud

Tyrone Banks happy, fun-loving

Joe Banks confident, proud

Customers loud, interfering

Gingerbread Boy rhythmical, boastful

Anita Perez excited, loud

Juan Perez excited, loud

Tony surprised, angry

Old Man tricky, patient

•On page 3, what does Joe mean when he says “like father like son”? (interpretfigurativelanguage)

•Why does everyone want to catch Gingerbread Boy?(synthesize)

See page 8 for English-Language Learner and Striving Reader Support.

build VocabularyMake sure students fully understand the glossary terms. The Vocabulary in Action suggestions on the inside back cover of the script provide further ideas for building students’ understanding.

Fluency assessment rubric•TheReader’sTheaterOverview

contains an assessment rubric you can use to quickly assess each student. Use the rubric at different times during the lesson to assess different skills.Forexample,youmaywantto select students to assess their understanding of characterization during the comprehension discussion. Alternatively, you may wish to use their performance to assess how appropriately they develop their characters.

•Discusstheassessmentrubricwithstudents so that they know what you expectofthem.

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build Fluency Skills: read with phrases•model: Tell students that when they

read with attention to phrasing, the audience can better understand the story. Use Gingerbread Boy’s lines onpage3asanexample.Say: I can read with phrases if I pay attention to the commas, periods, and exclamation points. There are a lot of commas in Gingerbread Boy’s lines because he is using rhyme and rhythm. Read Gingerbread Boy’s lines aloud, modeling how to read with phrases.

•guide: Ask students to look at GingerbreadBoy’slinesonpage4.Guide students to read the lines silently, paying special attention to phrasing. Then ask volunteers to take turns reading the lines aloud. Encourage other students to listen for phrasing and rhythmic pacing.

•apply: Point out other characters’ lines and ask students to practice reading them with attention to phrasing. Remind them to pay attention to commas and other punctuation that will indicate the start and end of phrases. Ask students to take turns reading the lines aloud and giving feedback to each other.

choral-read for Fluency Involve students in a choral-reading of the script to reinforce the fluency skill of reading with phrases. Remind them tousedramaticexpressiontobringeachcharacter’s mood or personality to life.

repeated reading: rehearse the Script•Discusstheexpectationsyouhavefor

student behavior during the rehearsal. Use the suggestions provided here and in the Reader’s Theater Overview.

•Usesmall-grouptimeforstudentstorehearse their script. Monitor students as they rehearse, and tell them you will be listening to how they develop the characters through their reading.

•Offersuggestionsforexpression,voice,and characterization as you monitor students’work.Seethechartonpage5fortipsonvoiceandexpression.Usespecific comments, rather than general ones, directed at the character, not the student.Forexample:Gingerbread Boy, can you read with more rhythm?

•Usethistimetoobserveparticularstudents and assess for behavior. Remind students of the assessment rubric and let them know you will be assessing them as you monitor the rehearsal.

See page 8 for English-Language Learner and Striving Reader Support.

Day Three

When part of the audience, students should:• demonstrate active listening;• stay silent during a performance;• give appropriate comments to performers

that provide positive feedback;• use the names of the characters when

giving feedback, rather than names of the performers.

expectations for rehearsing

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perform the ScriptInvite students to present the script to an audience. The audience might be members of their class, students from other classes, school staff members, and/orparents.

assess Students’ Fluency•Usetheassessmentrubricto

complete your assessment of students’ fluency.

•Taketimetobrieflyconferencewitheach student to provide feedback on his or her reading and behavior.

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Day Four Day Fiverepeated reading: rehearse the Script•Usesmall-grouptimeforstudent

rehearsal. Do not interrupt this second rehearsal, but simply observe students as they read.

•Usetheassessmentrubrictomonitorstudents’ rehearsal behaviors and reading fluency.

Staging and performance SuggestionsDecide on a stage area, how students will be positioned, and whether props or movements will be added. See staging tips in the Reader’s Theater Overview. Herearesomeotherideas:

placement/mOVement

•GingerbreadBoymaystandinthemiddle of the other characters, with Customersstandinginagroupontheside. Students may step forward when they speak.

•ProvideGingerbreadBoywithspaceinthe staging area to dance around.

prOpS/cOStumeS

•NecklaceforGingerbreadBoy

•Aprons,brooms,andhatsforbakersand grocery store and pizzeria owners

•Simplesignsthatread“Bakery,”“Grocery Store,” “Pizzeria,” and “Alley” (asignforeachscene)

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Support for nglish anguage earners and Striving ReadersSupport for nglish anguage earners and Striving Readers

build background and make connections (day One)•Askstudentsiftheyhaveheardrap

music, or if they have heard songs with rhyming words. Discuss what rapping sounds like. Tell students that they are going to read a story that has a rapping, rhyming character in it.

•Talktostudentsaboutfairytalesthatthey know. Make a list of the tales on the board. Then ask students if they have ever heard of other versions of these fairy tales that are silly or use different characters or settings.

•Readaversionofthetraditionaltale“The Gingerbread Man.” Then, explainthatstudentswillbereadingamodern version of this classic fairy tale. Explainthattheversiontheywillbereading is called a fractured fairy tale.

develop Vocabulary and language (day One)•Explainthatthisscriptusesalotof

dialect and conversational phrases. Point out words that ELLs may find difficult, such as the word “’cause” (page4).Explainthatthereis no real contraction for the word because, but this contraction is used inconversationanyway.Explainthattheword“’hood”(page4)means neighborhood. If students are not familiar with the term “break-dancing”(page4),explainthatitis a kind of hip-hop dance.

•Writesomeofthefollowingsayingsfromthescriptontheboard:“thisisonesmartcookie”(page6);“Wewantapieceofhim,too”(page7);and“that’s the way the gingerbread cookie crumbles”(page16).Discusshowthesephrases and sentences are used in the script. Discuss the literal meaning and the figurative meaning of each phrase. Forexample,forthephrase“thisisone smart cookie,” draw a picture of a cookie with a speech bubble that includes algebraic equations. Also draw a picture of a well-educated person, such as a teacher. Then tell students that the phrase “smart cookie” is used to describe an intelligent person.

•Writesomeofthemoredifficult words on the board, such as “barrage” and“hurled”(page6),“obnoxious”(page13),and“avail”(page16).Explaineachwordtostudentsandsay sentences that put each word into context.

•ModelreadingtherhythmicversesofGingerbread Boy and then ask students toecho-readafteryou.Explainthatthe lines are supposed to be said with attention to phrasing. Ask students to echo-read, or repeat, the lines after you.

•Writetheworddusted on the board and invite students to act the word out with you.Explainthatwhenyoubake,youdust the surface you are working on with flour.

Support for nglish anguage earners and Striving Readers

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Support for nglish anguage earners and Striving Readers•Thenwritethewordscrumptious.

Pantomime the word by pretending to eat something and then rubbing your belly to show that it was delicious. List synonyms for scrumptious, such as yummy, delicious, and tasty.

•Repeatwiththewordscurried. Write the word on the board and then pantomime the word’s meaning for students. List synonyms for scurried, such as hurried, scampered, and ran.

build comprehension (day two)Engage students in discussion about the script, starting with simple literal questions and progressing to more difficult ones. As students discuss the questions, ask them to point to places in the script that best answer the questions. Suggestedquestions:

•Where and when does the story take place?(analyzestoryelements)

•Who is Gingerbread Boy baked for? (recalldetails)

•What kind of character is Gingerbread Boy?(analyzecharacter;recalldetails)

•Who tells about the events and characters’ actions? (analyzetextstructureandorganization)

•What do the characters like about Gingerbread Boy?(makeinferences)

•Who catches Gingerbread Boy?(recalldetails)

•What does Gingerbread Boy like about Old Man? (identifymainideaandsupportingdetails;recalldetails)

•How does Gingerbread Boy act toward the other characters? (makejudgments;analyzecharacter)

read and perform (days two–three)•Provideextrapracticereadingthe

script as a group before students read their individual parts to ensure they are familiar and comfortable with the language and vocabulary.

•Youmaywanttoassigntwostudentsto a role so they can read the part together. This will help support their reading.

•Besuretousethereadinglevelsprovided on the cover of this Teacher’s Guide to help you assign the roles.

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Literacy Extensions

Word StudydraW WOrdS and aSk queStiOnS

•Reviewthethreeglossarywordswithstudents:dusted, scrumptious, and scurried. Give each student a sheet of construction paper and then ask each student to fold his or her paper into thirds. Ask students to write each of the words on one section of their papers. Invite students to illustrate each word.

•Discusseachwordwithstudents.Askthemquestionssuchas:What is the most scrumptious thing you have ever eaten? What would you do if a mouse scurried past you? Why might it help if you dusted flour on surfaces while you baked?

•Askstudentstoworkinsmallgroupsand think of their own questions that use the vocabulary words. Invite students to share their questions with the whole group.

WOrd riddleS

•Pointtotheword“handsome”onpage3andaskstudentswhatotherwords they associate with handsome. Students may suggest good-looking or attractive.

•Workwithstudentstocomeupwithquestions or clues that would help someone guess the word handsome. Forexample,studentsmightsay,“This word is similar to pretty” or “Mary thought Tyrone’s face was this word.”

• Invitestudentstolookthroughthescript and find other interesting words. Ask them to make associations with the words they find and then form questions or clues for the words. Encourage each student to work with a partner to guess each other’s words. Ask students to continue giving clues until their partners guess the correct words. If a student needs a hint, his or her partner may say the page number where the word appears.

adjectiVeS

•Explainthattheauthorusesinterestingadjectivestodescribecharacters, places, and things in the story. Point out Narrator’s second set oflinesonpage10.InvitestudentstopickouttheadjectivesthatNarratorsays(“mischievous,”“elderly,”and“small”).Then,askstudentstofindtheadjectivesinNarrator’slinesonpage11(“safe”and“gold”).

•Followthesameprocessusingothercharacters’ lines on other pages. Encouragestudentstoexplainthemeaningsofsomeoftheadjectivesortonamesynonymsfortheadjectives.

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reader responseAsk students to reflect on their reader’s theaterexperiencebywritingordrawingintheirjournals.Studentscould:

• reflectonhowitfeelswhensomeoneruns away from them or plays tricks onthem;

• reflectonwaysthatpeopletrickeachother;

• visualizeascenefromthescriptthatwasnotillustratedandsketchit;

• reflectontheirfluencyandpacingduring their performance and how it could be improved.

Writing•Askstudentstodrawapictureessay

of the story. Invite them to block the story into scenes and draw what happens in each scene. When students are finished with their drawings, invite them to write a sentence or two that describes the action of the scenes. Encourage them to draw speech

bubbles and include the characters’ dialogue. Invite students to use their picture essays to retell the story.

read across texts•Readaloudaversionoftheoriginal

story of “The Gingerbread Man.” Ask students to talk about how the story is similar to and different from the fracturedfairytaletheyjustread.Askstudents to compare the characters as well as the events in each story.

•DrawaVenndiagramontheboardto compare the main character in the original fairy tale “The Gingerbread Man” with the main character in the fractured fairy tale The Gingerbread Boy Uptown. Ask small groups of students to create their own Venn diagrams that compare the two characters. Invite the groups to share and compare their Venn diagrams when they are completed. Fill in the Venn diagram on the board as students discuss the two tales.

the gingerbread man

the gingerbread boy uptown

both

• sings a song as he runs from characters

• is tricked by a fox

• dances and raps different songs when he runs from characters

• is tricked by Old Man

• both run from the oven

• both trick other characters

• both get eaten

respect •Explaintostudentsthatpeoplewho

show respect treat other people well. They treat others as they would like to be treated themselves. Respectful people are tolerant of differences between people, use good manners, and do not use bad language. Respectful people care about others’ feelings. They don’t hurt other people even when faced with anger, insults, and disagreements.

•ExplaintostudentsthatthecharactersMary, Joe, and Tyrone Banks treat others with respect. Ask students to thinkofexamplesfromthescriptthat show that the Banks family is respectful. They may mention that Tyrone is respectful when he speaks to his parents and to Old Man, and that Mary and Joe speak respectfully to each other and to their son.

•DiscussthewaysGingerbreadBoyacted without respect. Encourage students to point out places in the script where Gingerbread Boy uses disrespectful language as well as places where his actions harmed others.

•Askstudentstoshareexamplesofrespectful language they can use in the classroom and on the playground.

B e n c h m a r k e d u c a t i o n c o m p a n y

Character Education Connection

responsibility•Explainthatresponsiblepeopledowhat

they are supposed to do. Responsible people keep on trying, even when they don’t succeed the first time. Responsible people always do their best and use self-control.Explainthatittakesresponsibilityto think before you act and to consider the consequences of your actions.

•PointouttostudentsthatGingerbreadBoy does not act responsibly. He plays tricks on people and makes a big mess wherever he goes. Gingerbread Boy does not use self-control or consider the consequences of his actions.

•Askstudentstothinkofsomeonetheyknow who is responsible. Ask: What does the person do to show responsibility?

demonstrate respect• Inviteeachstudenttomakeaposter

about respect. Ask students to divide their posters into two parts. The top part should be labeled “Respect.” The bottom part should be labeled “No Respect.”

•Askstudentstodrawillustrationsofcharacters in the script demonstrating these traits. Tell students that their illustrations should show the characters doing something from the script.

•Invitestudentstopresenttheirposterstothe whole group.