Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death TG
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death TEACHER’S
GUIDE
Levels Q–Z FICTION Poems/Oratory
Why “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death“ Is a Classic Patrick Henry became a symbol of the American colonists’ fight for freedom largely because of his famous “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech. On March 23, 1775, Henry delivered this speech to the Virginia House of Burgesses to urge them to prepare the Virginia militia to defend the colony against British troops. Before his speech, many members of the House did not support military action against the British. Henry argued with eloquence and passion for Virginians to defend themselves against “. . . those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging.” After his dramatic, final words, the crowd erupted with the call, “To arms! To arms!” Henry’s fiery speech had convinced his listeners to take up arms against the British. Henry’s speech, a model of persuasive oratory, was influential beyond the House of Burgesses. News of the speech spread throughout the colonies, and his powerful words became a rallying cry for the Patriots. The Revolution began less than a month later. At the time of the American Revolution, Henry was considered a radical, not only by the British, but also by the colonists. He was a leader in fighting against tyranny and for the colonists’ rights. Today, Patrick Henry is remembered as a patriot of great courage and as one of America’s finest orators.
Characters
Levels
Tips for Voice and Expression
Narrator Peter Thorne Patrick Henry Patsey Lord Dunmore Johnny
Challenging/Z Challenging/Y Moderate/X Moderate/T Easy/R Easy/Q
• clear, confident • friendly, concerned • kind, confident • respectful, worried, proud • angry, outraged • respectful, worried, proud
B E N C H M A R K E D U C AT I O N CO M PA N Y
How to Implement Reader’s Theater Classics Target Skills
Steps To Follow
What To Do
Genre and Author Study • Identify features of oratory and plays • Learn about the life and times of Patrick Henry
1. Introduce the Oratory and the Script
• Share “Why ‘Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death’ Is a Classic” from page 1 of the Teacher’s Guide. • Ask: What are features of the oratory genre? List students’ ideas. Refer to the Classics Overview for the complete list. • Read aloud the script summary and “About the Playwright” from the back cover of the script.
2. Preview the Script
• Invite students to explore the layout, text, and illustrations. • Read the table of contents, cast of characters, and setting information together.
3. Introduce Vocabulary and Idioms
• Introduce key vocabulary words (militia, page 19; Patriot, page 16; petition, page 15; treason, page 10; tyrant, page 15) and other words and idioms from the glossary.
4. Read the Script
• Have students listen and follow along as you read the first few pages to model fluency and expression.
5. Build Comprehension
• Teach the “Comprehension” lesson on page 4. Engage students in discussion.
6. Introduce the Assessment Rubric
• Display and discuss the assessment rubric in the Classics Overview so that students know what you expect of them.
7. Assign Roles
• Use the reading levels on the character chart on page 1 to help you assign roles appropriately.
8. Fluency Mini-Lesson
• Teach the “Build Fluency” and “Fluency Skill” lessons on pages 4–5.
9. Small-Group Rehearsal/Reading
• Discuss and model rehearsal expectations. • Offer suggestions for expression, voice, and characterization.
10. Whole-Group Rehearsal/ Rereading
• Pull the whole group together and remind students that you will be assessing them. • Do not interrupt the rehearsal but simply observe students as they read.
11. Perform, Assess, Reflect
• Invite students to perform the script for an audience such as members of the class, students from other classes, school staff members, or parents. • Use the rubric to complete your assessment of students’ performance.
12. Literacy Connections
• Select the “Literacy Connections” activities on page 5 that best meet your particular students’ learning needs.
Vocabulary • Learn Tier Two vocabulary • Identify and define idioms • Create a word web • Recognize denotation/ connotation of adjectives • Recognize word relationships Comprehension • Make text-to-text connections • Analyze theme • Make generalizations and cite evidence to support them • Recognize persuasion • Make inferences • Identify secondary themes Fluency • Build fluency through repeated readings • Read italicized words • Read smoothly with minimal breaks
Copyright © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC. All rights reserved. Teachers may photocopy the reproducible pages for classroom use. No other part of the guide may be reproduced or transmitted in whole or in part in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 978-1-4108-7980-6
2
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Components To Use • Read and discuss “Spotlight on the Classic,” “Excerpt from the Classic,” and “The Author of the Classic” on pages 2–6 of the script. • Read aloud sections from the original text. Incorporate the think-aloud prompts from the CD-ROM into your discussion of the classic.
• Script • Poems/Oratory ReadAloud CD-ROM • Classics Overview
• Point out the color coding of characters’ names and use of stage directions.
• Script
• Students should use context clues to determine the meaning of each word or phrase. Then use the glossary to solidify students’ understanding. Use the vocabulary activity to extend learning.
• Script • Activity 1
• Ask students to finish reading the script by themselves, with partners, or in small groups as you monitor, answer questions, and provide additional modeling as needed.
• Script
• Have students think/pair/share to answer and discuss the questions on “Activity 2: Build Comprehension.”
• Activity 2
• Model each skill on the rubric so students can see and hear the qualities they are striving to attain.
• Classics Overview
• Refer to the chart for tips on voicing characters with expression.
• Script
• Have partners find and practice reading italicized words and reading smoothly with minimal breaks in other sections of the script.
• Script
• Divide the class into small groups to rehearse their roles. As students read the script and practice their parts, circulate about the room to monitor, answer questions, and provide additional modeling as needed.
• Script
• Allow time for students to give positive feedback and constructive suggestions to one another. • Decide on a stage area, how students will be positioned, and whether props or movements will be added. • Conduct a final dress rehearsal.
• Script • Classics Overview
• Take time to briefly conference with each student to provide specific feedback. • Ask students to complete “Activity 3: Fluency Self-Assessment.”
• Classics Overview • Activity 3
• Students may work individually, with partners, or in groups while other groups of students are rehearsing their roles.
• Script
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
3
Comprehension Analyze Theme Ask: What do you think the message might be in the play adaptation? Allow responses. Think Aloud: I notice that when Patsey and Johnny ask their father, Patrick Henry, why he must give that dangerous speech, he explains his struggle to figure out what he wanted to do with his life and talks to his children about how he has dedicated his life to the colonists’ cause. I think the playwright wanted to show how Henry came to dedicate his life to a cause. I also think the playwright wanted readers to see that Patrick Henry had the same kinds of questions about his future that they may have. Discuss: Encourage students to state the big idea, or message, in their own words. Students should articulate the idea that when a person dedicates his or her life to a cause, the person may be willing to risk everything for the cause. Encourage students to suggest other messages they think the playwright may have been trying to give, such as the idea that rebelling against an unjust government does not make a person a traitor. Think/Pair/Share: Invite students to make their own connections to the big idea. Ask: When you think about your future, what interests of yours do you hope to develop? What do you hope to accomplish in your life?
Build Fluency Echo-read all or part of the script aloud. Ask students to repeat the lines after you. Stop where necessary to explain figures of speech or unfamiliar words— for example, “controversial” (page 8) and “Boston Massacre” (page 17).
4
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Read with Expression: Stage Directions • Point out the stage directions that appear in italics and parentheses. Explain to students that these directions are not read, but are included to help the reader interpret the part as the author intended. Say: Stage directions tell readers how to say their lines and to whom they should be directed. For example, point out the stage directions in Patrick Henry’s first set of lines on page 8. Tell students that the stage directions show that he first reads as though he’s making his speech, and then he talks quietly to himself. Demonstrate and ask volunteers to echo-read. Read with Expression: Italicized Words • Point out Patrick Henry’s first set of lines on page 9. Model reading the lines and putting extra emphasis on the italicized words “almost” and “you.” Discuss with students why Patrick Henry might choose to emphasize these words. • Point out Johnny’s last set of lines on page 9 and the italicized word “traitor.” Discuss why Johnny would stress this word. Guide students to read the line, putting extra emphasis on “traitor.” • Ask students to find the italicized words on page 11 in Patsey’s first set of lines (“you”) and Patrick Henry’s third set of lines (“young man.”) Invite pairs of students to take turns reading these lines with extra emphasis on the italicized words.
Fluency Skill: Read Smoothly with Minimal Breaks • Tell students that if they read their lines smoothly and with minimal breaks, their reading will have more expression and their audience will
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
better understand the story. Say: When I read my lines, I pause only at punctuation or at the end of phrases. If I read smoothly and with minimal breaks, my reading will make sense to my audience. Listen as I read the narrator’s first set of lines on page 8. I will read them twice. Read the narrator’s lines twice. The first time read with many extra pauses. Then reread the lines smoothly and with minimal breaks. Say: Notice that the second time I read the lines, I read
them smoothly and without extra pauses. My second reading was more enjoyable to listen to and was easier to understand. • Point out the narrator’s second set of lines on page 8. Encourage students to note the punctuation marks (commas, periods) and discuss where students think they should pause in the lines. Invite volunteers to demonstrate and ask other students to provide feedback.
Literacy Connections Vocabulary and Word Study Striving Readers/ELLs: Word Web • With students, create a word web for liberty. Draw the web with liberty in the center circle. On branches around the center circle, record students’ suggestions for synonyms, antonyms, examples of liberty, and sentences with the word liberty. On-Level Learners: Denotation/Connotation • Invite students to make a list of all the adjectives they can find that were used to describe Patrick Henry’s speech, for example, “controversial” (page 8), “big” (page 9), “incendiary” (page 14), “hotheaded” (page 16), and “important” (page 21). Discuss the meaning of each adjective and their connotations, or implied meanings. Ask the pairs to think of other adjectives that could be used to describe Patrick Henry’s speech and to explain the connotations of their adjectives. Above-Level Learners: Word Relationships • Write the following words on the board: traitor, treason, Patriot, loyal, Loyalists, tyrants, rights, harmony, and war. Ask students to © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
write relationships between the words. For example, they may point out that traitors commit treason or that Patriots were considered traitors by the British. They might notice words that imply opposites, such as war and harmony. Encourage students to write as many word relationships as they can.
Reading Across Texts • Read “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” from a site on the Internet, from an anthology, or on the Poems/Oratory Read-Aloud CD-ROM. • Refer students to page 24 of the script and “Interpreting the Classic” question #2. Say: Patrick Henry, Patsey, Johnny, and Lord Dunmore were real people, but Peter Thorne is a fictional character created by the playwright. What function or purpose does Peter Thorne serve? (Possible answer: The playwright wanted to show a range of opinions on the conflict—Patrick Henry (Patriot), Peter Thorne (Loyalist), and Lord Dunmore (British). He also wanted to add some human drama. Patrick Henry and Peter Thorne, who are friends, respect each other while disagreeing.) Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
5
Activity 1: Robust Vocabulary
Name ______________________________
Date ________________
Directions: Create a word map for each word in the word bank. Word bank: militia, Patriot, petition, treason, tyrant
Definition
Word
Characteristics/Description of the Word
Examples of the Word
New Sentence
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Activity 2: Build Comprehension Name ___________________________________ Date ________________ Directions: Answer each question using complete sentences. Support your answers with information from the script. Use a separate sheet of paper if necessary. 1. How do you think Patrick Henry would describe Loyalists? How do you think Peter Thorne would describe Patriots? What evidence in the text supports your thinking? (make generalizations; cite evidence to support generalizations)
2. Patrick Henry’s speech was intended to persuade the members of the Virginia House of Burgesses. How does he try to persuade his children to accept him giving this speech? (recognize persuasion)
3. Why does Lord Dunmore offer Patrick Henry a good position in London? What evidence from the text supports your thinking? (make inferences)
4. The children mention the death of their mother and the changes in their household. What effect does this information have on the story? (identify secondary themes)
For additional questions for discussion, see “Interpreting the Classic” on page 24 of the script. © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Activity 3: Fluency Self-Assessment Name _____________________________ Date________________________ Script _____________________________ Role________________________ Directions: Complete the rubric below. Tell how you plan to improve your reading fluency in the areas where you answered no. Skill
Behavior
Yes
No
I read in longer, meaningful phrases.
Fluency and I paid attention to the author’s language patterns. I made the reading sound like dialogue. Phrasing I stressed certain words to emphasize their importance. I used my voice to make the reading reflect feeling, anticipation, tension, mood, and the personality of my character.
Intonation
I paid attention to punctuation. I raised or lowered my voice to interpret the punctuation of sentences. I used an appropriate speed of reading.
Pacing
I read the lines with the same speed and flow that I use when I talk. I read with very few hesitations or unnecessary pauses and repetitions. I recognized words quickly and read them correctly.
Accuracy
I really thought about the meaning of the story and known words and word parts to help me figure out unknown words. I corrected myself when I made an error. I made the words sound meaningful. I made inferences about my character. I used my voice (tone) to sound like the character.
Character Analysis
I used my voice to express a particular feeling of the character. I used body language (gestures) to better express the feelings of the character. I used appropriate facial expressions to represent my character.
Plan of Action: Describe how you will improve your reading fluency during the repeated readings of your character’s lines.
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
©2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
GUIDE
Levels Q–Z FICTION Poems/Oratory
Why “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death“ Is a Classic Patrick Henry became a symbol of the American colonists’ fight for freedom largely because of his famous “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech. On March 23, 1775, Henry delivered this speech to the Virginia House of Burgesses to urge them to prepare the Virginia militia to defend the colony against British troops. Before his speech, many members of the House did not support military action against the British. Henry argued with eloquence and passion for Virginians to defend themselves against “. . . those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging.” After his dramatic, final words, the crowd erupted with the call, “To arms! To arms!” Henry’s fiery speech had convinced his listeners to take up arms against the British. Henry’s speech, a model of persuasive oratory, was influential beyond the House of Burgesses. News of the speech spread throughout the colonies, and his powerful words became a rallying cry for the Patriots. The Revolution began less than a month later. At the time of the American Revolution, Henry was considered a radical, not only by the British, but also by the colonists. He was a leader in fighting against tyranny and for the colonists’ rights. Today, Patrick Henry is remembered as a patriot of great courage and as one of America’s finest orators.
Characters
Levels
Tips for Voice and Expression
Narrator Peter Thorne Patrick Henry Patsey Lord Dunmore Johnny
Challenging/Z Challenging/Y Moderate/X Moderate/T Easy/R Easy/Q
• clear, confident • friendly, concerned • kind, confident • respectful, worried, proud • angry, outraged • respectful, worried, proud
B E N C H M A R K E D U C AT I O N CO M PA N Y
How to Implement Reader’s Theater Classics Target Skills
Steps To Follow
What To Do
Genre and Author Study • Identify features of oratory and plays • Learn about the life and times of Patrick Henry
1. Introduce the Oratory and the Script
• Share “Why ‘Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death’ Is a Classic” from page 1 of the Teacher’s Guide. • Ask: What are features of the oratory genre? List students’ ideas. Refer to the Classics Overview for the complete list. • Read aloud the script summary and “About the Playwright” from the back cover of the script.
2. Preview the Script
• Invite students to explore the layout, text, and illustrations. • Read the table of contents, cast of characters, and setting information together.
3. Introduce Vocabulary and Idioms
• Introduce key vocabulary words (militia, page 19; Patriot, page 16; petition, page 15; treason, page 10; tyrant, page 15) and other words and idioms from the glossary.
4. Read the Script
• Have students listen and follow along as you read the first few pages to model fluency and expression.
5. Build Comprehension
• Teach the “Comprehension” lesson on page 4. Engage students in discussion.
6. Introduce the Assessment Rubric
• Display and discuss the assessment rubric in the Classics Overview so that students know what you expect of them.
7. Assign Roles
• Use the reading levels on the character chart on page 1 to help you assign roles appropriately.
8. Fluency Mini-Lesson
• Teach the “Build Fluency” and “Fluency Skill” lessons on pages 4–5.
9. Small-Group Rehearsal/Reading
• Discuss and model rehearsal expectations. • Offer suggestions for expression, voice, and characterization.
10. Whole-Group Rehearsal/ Rereading
• Pull the whole group together and remind students that you will be assessing them. • Do not interrupt the rehearsal but simply observe students as they read.
11. Perform, Assess, Reflect
• Invite students to perform the script for an audience such as members of the class, students from other classes, school staff members, or parents. • Use the rubric to complete your assessment of students’ performance.
12. Literacy Connections
• Select the “Literacy Connections” activities on page 5 that best meet your particular students’ learning needs.
Vocabulary • Learn Tier Two vocabulary • Identify and define idioms • Create a word web • Recognize denotation/ connotation of adjectives • Recognize word relationships Comprehension • Make text-to-text connections • Analyze theme • Make generalizations and cite evidence to support them • Recognize persuasion • Make inferences • Identify secondary themes Fluency • Build fluency through repeated readings • Read italicized words • Read smoothly with minimal breaks
Copyright © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC. All rights reserved. Teachers may photocopy the reproducible pages for classroom use. No other part of the guide may be reproduced or transmitted in whole or in part in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 978-1-4108-7980-6
2
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Components To Use • Read and discuss “Spotlight on the Classic,” “Excerpt from the Classic,” and “The Author of the Classic” on pages 2–6 of the script. • Read aloud sections from the original text. Incorporate the think-aloud prompts from the CD-ROM into your discussion of the classic.
• Script • Poems/Oratory ReadAloud CD-ROM • Classics Overview
• Point out the color coding of characters’ names and use of stage directions.
• Script
• Students should use context clues to determine the meaning of each word or phrase. Then use the glossary to solidify students’ understanding. Use the vocabulary activity to extend learning.
• Script • Activity 1
• Ask students to finish reading the script by themselves, with partners, or in small groups as you monitor, answer questions, and provide additional modeling as needed.
• Script
• Have students think/pair/share to answer and discuss the questions on “Activity 2: Build Comprehension.”
• Activity 2
• Model each skill on the rubric so students can see and hear the qualities they are striving to attain.
• Classics Overview
• Refer to the chart for tips on voicing characters with expression.
• Script
• Have partners find and practice reading italicized words and reading smoothly with minimal breaks in other sections of the script.
• Script
• Divide the class into small groups to rehearse their roles. As students read the script and practice their parts, circulate about the room to monitor, answer questions, and provide additional modeling as needed.
• Script
• Allow time for students to give positive feedback and constructive suggestions to one another. • Decide on a stage area, how students will be positioned, and whether props or movements will be added. • Conduct a final dress rehearsal.
• Script • Classics Overview
• Take time to briefly conference with each student to provide specific feedback. • Ask students to complete “Activity 3: Fluency Self-Assessment.”
• Classics Overview • Activity 3
• Students may work individually, with partners, or in groups while other groups of students are rehearsing their roles.
• Script
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
3
Comprehension Analyze Theme Ask: What do you think the message might be in the play adaptation? Allow responses. Think Aloud: I notice that when Patsey and Johnny ask their father, Patrick Henry, why he must give that dangerous speech, he explains his struggle to figure out what he wanted to do with his life and talks to his children about how he has dedicated his life to the colonists’ cause. I think the playwright wanted to show how Henry came to dedicate his life to a cause. I also think the playwright wanted readers to see that Patrick Henry had the same kinds of questions about his future that they may have. Discuss: Encourage students to state the big idea, or message, in their own words. Students should articulate the idea that when a person dedicates his or her life to a cause, the person may be willing to risk everything for the cause. Encourage students to suggest other messages they think the playwright may have been trying to give, such as the idea that rebelling against an unjust government does not make a person a traitor. Think/Pair/Share: Invite students to make their own connections to the big idea. Ask: When you think about your future, what interests of yours do you hope to develop? What do you hope to accomplish in your life?
Build Fluency Echo-read all or part of the script aloud. Ask students to repeat the lines after you. Stop where necessary to explain figures of speech or unfamiliar words— for example, “controversial” (page 8) and “Boston Massacre” (page 17).
4
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Read with Expression: Stage Directions • Point out the stage directions that appear in italics and parentheses. Explain to students that these directions are not read, but are included to help the reader interpret the part as the author intended. Say: Stage directions tell readers how to say their lines and to whom they should be directed. For example, point out the stage directions in Patrick Henry’s first set of lines on page 8. Tell students that the stage directions show that he first reads as though he’s making his speech, and then he talks quietly to himself. Demonstrate and ask volunteers to echo-read. Read with Expression: Italicized Words • Point out Patrick Henry’s first set of lines on page 9. Model reading the lines and putting extra emphasis on the italicized words “almost” and “you.” Discuss with students why Patrick Henry might choose to emphasize these words. • Point out Johnny’s last set of lines on page 9 and the italicized word “traitor.” Discuss why Johnny would stress this word. Guide students to read the line, putting extra emphasis on “traitor.” • Ask students to find the italicized words on page 11 in Patsey’s first set of lines (“you”) and Patrick Henry’s third set of lines (“young man.”) Invite pairs of students to take turns reading these lines with extra emphasis on the italicized words.
Fluency Skill: Read Smoothly with Minimal Breaks • Tell students that if they read their lines smoothly and with minimal breaks, their reading will have more expression and their audience will
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
better understand the story. Say: When I read my lines, I pause only at punctuation or at the end of phrases. If I read smoothly and with minimal breaks, my reading will make sense to my audience. Listen as I read the narrator’s first set of lines on page 8. I will read them twice. Read the narrator’s lines twice. The first time read with many extra pauses. Then reread the lines smoothly and with minimal breaks. Say: Notice that the second time I read the lines, I read
them smoothly and without extra pauses. My second reading was more enjoyable to listen to and was easier to understand. • Point out the narrator’s second set of lines on page 8. Encourage students to note the punctuation marks (commas, periods) and discuss where students think they should pause in the lines. Invite volunteers to demonstrate and ask other students to provide feedback.
Literacy Connections Vocabulary and Word Study Striving Readers/ELLs: Word Web • With students, create a word web for liberty. Draw the web with liberty in the center circle. On branches around the center circle, record students’ suggestions for synonyms, antonyms, examples of liberty, and sentences with the word liberty. On-Level Learners: Denotation/Connotation • Invite students to make a list of all the adjectives they can find that were used to describe Patrick Henry’s speech, for example, “controversial” (page 8), “big” (page 9), “incendiary” (page 14), “hotheaded” (page 16), and “important” (page 21). Discuss the meaning of each adjective and their connotations, or implied meanings. Ask the pairs to think of other adjectives that could be used to describe Patrick Henry’s speech and to explain the connotations of their adjectives. Above-Level Learners: Word Relationships • Write the following words on the board: traitor, treason, Patriot, loyal, Loyalists, tyrants, rights, harmony, and war. Ask students to © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
write relationships between the words. For example, they may point out that traitors commit treason or that Patriots were considered traitors by the British. They might notice words that imply opposites, such as war and harmony. Encourage students to write as many word relationships as they can.
Reading Across Texts • Read “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” from a site on the Internet, from an anthology, or on the Poems/Oratory Read-Aloud CD-ROM. • Refer students to page 24 of the script and “Interpreting the Classic” question #2. Say: Patrick Henry, Patsey, Johnny, and Lord Dunmore were real people, but Peter Thorne is a fictional character created by the playwright. What function or purpose does Peter Thorne serve? (Possible answer: The playwright wanted to show a range of opinions on the conflict—Patrick Henry (Patriot), Peter Thorne (Loyalist), and Lord Dunmore (British). He also wanted to add some human drama. Patrick Henry and Peter Thorne, who are friends, respect each other while disagreeing.) Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
5
Activity 1: Robust Vocabulary
Name ______________________________
Date ________________
Directions: Create a word map for each word in the word bank. Word bank: militia, Patriot, petition, treason, tyrant
Definition
Word
Characteristics/Description of the Word
Examples of the Word
New Sentence
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
© 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Activity 2: Build Comprehension Name ___________________________________ Date ________________ Directions: Answer each question using complete sentences. Support your answers with information from the script. Use a separate sheet of paper if necessary. 1. How do you think Patrick Henry would describe Loyalists? How do you think Peter Thorne would describe Patriots? What evidence in the text supports your thinking? (make generalizations; cite evidence to support generalizations)
2. Patrick Henry’s speech was intended to persuade the members of the Virginia House of Burgesses. How does he try to persuade his children to accept him giving this speech? (recognize persuasion)
3. Why does Lord Dunmore offer Patrick Henry a good position in London? What evidence from the text supports your thinking? (make inferences)
4. The children mention the death of their mother and the changes in their household. What effect does this information have on the story? (identify secondary themes)
For additional questions for discussion, see “Interpreting the Classic” on page 24 of the script. © 2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
Activity 3: Fluency Self-Assessment Name _____________________________ Date________________________ Script _____________________________ Role________________________ Directions: Complete the rubric below. Tell how you plan to improve your reading fluency in the areas where you answered no. Skill
Behavior
Yes
No
I read in longer, meaningful phrases.
Fluency and I paid attention to the author’s language patterns. I made the reading sound like dialogue. Phrasing I stressed certain words to emphasize their importance. I used my voice to make the reading reflect feeling, anticipation, tension, mood, and the personality of my character.
Intonation
I paid attention to punctuation. I raised or lowered my voice to interpret the punctuation of sentences. I used an appropriate speed of reading.
Pacing
I read the lines with the same speed and flow that I use when I talk. I read with very few hesitations or unnecessary pauses and repetitions. I recognized words quickly and read them correctly.
Accuracy
I really thought about the meaning of the story and known words and word parts to help me figure out unknown words. I corrected myself when I made an error. I made the words sound meaningful. I made inferences about my character. I used my voice (tone) to sound like the character.
Character Analysis
I used my voice to express a particular feeling of the character. I used body language (gestures) to better express the feelings of the character. I used appropriate facial expressions to represent my character.
Plan of Action: Describe how you will improve your reading fluency during the repeated readings of your character’s lines.
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
©2007 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
