Guiding Comprehension

Sequence • Literal

What happened the second time the farmer's friend tried to get the eagle to fly?

The eagle flapped its wings, then returned to the chickens.

Draw Conclusions • Critical

Why do you think the bird refused to fly?

It didn't know what to do because none of the chickens ever flew.

STRATEGY SELF-CHECK

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are charts and other visual aids that help us see and understand what we are reading. They can be very simple or very detailed, depending on their purpose.

Create a graphic organizer to help you understand the plot of Fly, Eagle, Fly! Draw separate boxes for the beginning, middle, and end of the selection. Fill it in with information you have read. At this point, you should be able to fill in the first two boxes. You can fill in the third when you have finished the selection.

SELF-CHECK

Students can ask themselves these questions to assess their ability to use the skill and strategy.

Is there a box for each part of
the story—beginning, middle,
and end?
Have I filled each box with as
much information as I have
about the selection so far?
Does the graphic organizer help me better understand the story?

then…
revisit the skill lesson on
pp. 112–113. Reteach as necessary.

If… students have difficulty completing the graphic organizer with details about the story plot,

Plot Structure

Check Predictions Provide the following prompt: Was your prediction accurate? Revise your old prediction or make a new prediction about the rest of the selection.

If you want to teach this selection in two sessions, stop here.

"Fly, Eagle, Fly! An African Tale"
retold by Christopher Gregorowski

Student Edition
Unit 4, pp. 116–129

This is a folk tale, a story or legend from another land that is handed down from one generation to the next.

One day a farmer went to search for a lost calf. He looked and called by the river and in the reeds. He searched the hillside, the valley, and the forest. Finally he began to climb the mountain. His voice echoed. Nothing. He looked in a gully to see if the calf was hiding there. Instead, on a rocky ledge, he saw something very strange. It was the day-old chick of an eagle, the king of birds. The farmer gently picked up the frightened baby bird. He would take it home. "We shall train it to be a chicken," he said.
The baby bird got along with the chickens. It learned to scratch in the dirt for food. But it began to look different as it grew older. One day a friend came by. He saw the bird with the chickens and said that it was an eagle. The farmer smiled. It was a chicken, he insisted.
The friend asked to show he was right. He caught the bird. Holding it high above his head, he told the bird it was an eagle. "You belong not to the earth but to the sky. Fly, eagle, fly!" he said. The bird stretched out its wings. Then it looked down and saw the chickens scratching. It jumped to the ground. The farmer laughed.
The next day the friend came back to try again. He asked for a ladder and took the bird with him to the top of the tallest hut. Again the friend told the eagle, "Fly, eagle, fly!" Again the bird scrambled back to the chickens. The farmer laughed even harder.
Very early the next day, before it was light, the friend woke the farmer. This time, he begged, they would go to the mountain. They would let the eagle see the sunrise. The farmer finally agreed. The two friends walked until the path grew narrow. They began to climb. The friend found a ledge and carefully set down the bird. He talked to the bird about the sun. "When it rises, rise with it," he said. Sunlight began to fill the sky. "Fly, eagle, fly!" he called one last time.
The bird slowly stretched its neck. It straightened its wings. It leaned forward, and its claws clutched the rock. Then, as the wind rose, the eagle leaned forward even more and was carried up into the sky. It disappeared, never to live with the chickens again.

From Fly, Eagle, Fly! Text copyright © 2000 by Christopher Gregorowski. Reprinted with permission of Margaret K. McElderry Books, an Imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division. All rights reserved.



	Close
	PRACTICE LESSON VOCABULARY Have students respond orally to each question. If your voice echoed, did you hear it again? (Yes) Are reeds small trees? (No, they are tall grasses.) Is a valley lower or higher than a mountain's peak? (Lower) BUILD CONCEPT VOCABULARY Review previous concept words with students. Ask if students have come across any words today in their reading or elsewhere that they would like to add to the Concept Web.

"Fly, Eagle, Fly! An African Tale" retold by Christopher Gregorowski

"Fly, Eagle, Fly! An African Tale"
retold by Christopher Gregorowski