teaching fourth-grade text features using beowulf · pdf fileteaching fourth-grade text...

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Copyright © 2012 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner DigitalTM and Lerner eSourceTM are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com. From Beowulf: Monster Slayer. © by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. 1

Features that help students understand how an informational text is organized:

FEATURE PURPOSETitle page Confirms title, author’s name, and publisher

Table of Contents Identifies the topics to be presented and their order

Chapter name, heading, or subheading Helps students identify main topics on a quick pass through the text

Panel Gives students a way to follow the sequence of a story. Students can think of these parts of a graphic novel page as movie

scenes or paragraphs. Panels should be read from left to right and top to bottom.

Speech balloon Tells students who is speaking or thinking. A tail attached to the balloon points to the speaker. Sometimes the border of a

balloon shows how the words are spoken. A solid border means the words are spoken out loud. A dashed border might mean

a silent thought or a whisper. Balloons should be read in descending order. That is, within the same panel, students should read

the left-hand or higher balloon first.

Glossary Defines new and important words

Pronunciation Guide Helps students figure out how to say new words

Further Reading and Websites Helps students expand their knowledge of the topic by listing other informational texts in print or on the Internet

Index Lists the main ideas in the text, with page numbers to help students find them

Visual aids that help students understand informational texts:

VISUAL AID PURPOSEIllustration Shows the action of a graphic novel story

Map Puts the places in the informational text in the context of space and time

Features that point out important or additional information:

FEATURE PURPOSEBold print Tells students a word is shouted or stressed

Italic print Tells students the word is supposed to stand out. It may be for emphasis or because it is a book name, a newspaper, a movie

title, a foreign word, or the directional for a photo or an illustration.

Graphic novel caption Narrates or describes information relevant to the story that can’t be learned through art or speech balloons

Sound effect Tells students the sound that goes with an action. A sound effect is usually presented in a different lettering style and is not in

a balloon.

Label Identifies important points of interest in a diagram or photograph that students might otherwise miss

Author’s Acknowledgment/Afterword Winds down the informational text; sets forth the names of those with whom the author worked to create the book

Teaching Fourth-Grade TEXT FEATURES Using BEOWULF: MONSTER SLAYER

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g r a p h i c u n i v e r s e tm • m i n n e a p o l i s

TITLE PAGE: This page tells you what the name, or the title, of the book is. It also tells you who wrote the book and who published it.

GRAPHIC NOVEL: This is a story told in the form of a comic book.

MAP: This is a flat drawing that shows the shape and features of a place, such as a country, a state, or a city. The title of the map may be at the top of the drawing.

LABELS: These are words in a diagram or photo that point out important parts of the diagram or photo. On a map, labels name important features, such as rivers or cities.

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table of contents

the coming of beowulf . . . 6

the horror of heorot . . . 8

grendel . . . 16

a mother’s revenge . . . 22

beowulf the king . . . 33

the dragon . . . 37

the funeral of beowulf . . . 45

glossary and pronunciation guide. . . 46

further reading and websites . . . 47

creating beowulf : monster slayer. . . 47

Index . . . 48

about the author and the artist . . . 48

TABLE OF CONTENTS: This lists the chapters in your book by chapter title and the pages on which they begin. The contents might also list features, such as the index, that are at the end of the book.

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CHAPTER TITLE: This tells you what topic will be discussed in the chapter. Chapter titles often give you the main ideas of the book.

ILLUSTRATION: The artwork in a graphic novel shows the action of the story.

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PANEL: This is a section of a comic book page that has its own image and text. Panels are like movie scenes that show you the sequence of the story.

SPEECH BALLOON: This is a rounded shape that holds the dialogue of one of the characters in a graphic novel story. A tail points to the character who is speaking. A solid balloon border means the words are spoken out loud. A dashed balloon border might mean a silent thought or a whisper. Within a panel, you should read the left-hand or higher balloon first.

GRAPHIC NOVEL CAPTION: This is boxed text within a panel. Captions narrate or give information relevant to the story that can’t be learned through either art or speech balloons.

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SOUND EFFECT: This tells you the sound of an action going on in a panel. The sound is usually in a different type style than speech balloons.

BOLD PRINT: This helps a word stand out. It might be a shouted word. Bold print is also used in the glossary.

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barrow: a mound of dirt or stonesthat marks a person’s burial place

beowulf (BAY-uh-wulf): the warriorhero of Beowulf, an Old Englishepic from A.D. 700 –800

dragon: a scaly, serpentlike creaturefrom mythology. Many countrieshave stories about dragons. InChina and Japan, they aresymbols of good luck. But inEuropean mythology, dragonsare dangerous, fire-breathingkillers. In English myths, theyare sometimes called worms.

ecgtheow (EDGE-theh-ow):Beowulf’s father

enchantment: a magical spell thatinfluences the physical world,either by causing something tohappen or by preventing it

fens: wetlands usually covered bypools of water, grasses, and reeds

geatland (yay-AHT-lond): a regionin the southwestern corner ofmodern Sweden

geats (yay-AHTS): people fromGeatland. Beowulf and hissoldiers were Geats.

helm: a metal helmet worn in battle

heorot (HAIR-ut): KingHrothgar’s mead hall

herald: a person who carriesmessages and announcesinformation

hilt: the end of a sword used as ahandgrip

hrothgar (HRAHTH-gahr): aking of Denmark

hrunting (HRUN-ting): the swordgiven to Beowulf by Unferth

hygelac (HOO-yuh-lahk): the kingof the Geats

mail: a material used in makingmedieval soldiers’ protectivegear, such as byrnies. Mail wasmade from small circles ofhammered metal linked togetherto form a fabric. Mail is oftencalled chain mail.

mead: an alcoholic drink made fromhoney and fruit

mead hall: a gathering place fordining and socializing

thane: a king’s attendant. Thaneswere usually soldiers to whom theking gave land in return formilitary service.

glossary and pronunciation guide

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GLOSSARY: This is a list of important new words that you have learned by reading the book. Each glossary word is in bold letters. After the bold word is a phrase that tells the meaning of the word.

PRONUNCIATION GUIDE: This breaks down unfamiliar or hard-to-say words into short sounds. When put together, the sounds help readers pronounce, or say, the words.

HEADINGS AND SUBHEADINGS: These separate the main text into smaller chunks of information. A heading tells you what the section below it is about.

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further reading and websites

The Anglo-Saxonshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/anglosaxons/index.shtml

The “Schools” section of the British Broadcasting Corporation’s homepagefeatures a history of the Anglo-Saxons. How the Anglo-Saxons came to theBritish Isles, how they lived, what religious beliefs they held, and other facetsof Anglo-Saxon life are discussed. Each topic includes links to a glossary.

Beowulfhttp://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/themes/englishlit/beowulf.html

The Online Gallery of the British Library features information about the lastremaining copy of the original Beowulf manuscript and a brief explanation ofthe epic poem’s importance to English literature. The gallery also features animage of a page from the one-thousand-year-old manuscript.

Crossley-Holland, Kevin. Beowulf. Illustrated by Charles Keeping. Oxford:Oxford University Press, 1987. Crossley-Holland retells the Anglo-Saxonepic in prose for young readers. The story is accompanied by Keeping’s black-and-white illustrations.

creating beowulf: monster slayerIn creating the story, author Paul D. Storrie used well-known translations ofBeowulf, including the translation (with introduction) by Burton Raffel, theDonaldson translation (with background, sources, and criticism) edited by JosephF. Tuso, and an Oxford University Press translation by Ian Serraillier. ArtistRon Randall used sources on Anglo-Saxon armaments, ships, clothing, andarchitecture to shape the story’s visual details. Consultant Andrew Scheil of theUniversity of Minnesota provided expert guidance on historical details, textualaccuracy, and Anglo-Saxon pronunciation.

original pencil from page 39

FURTHER READING: This is a list of books and websites on the same subject as the book you just read. The list is at the end of your book.

ITALIC: This type is slanted to make a word or a phrase stand out. Italicized words may be names of books, newspapers, movies, ships, or foreign words. They may also tell you which caption goes with which photo.

AFTERWORD: This section usually comes after the main text. It tells the reader the names of people or groups that helped during the research and writing of the book.

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about the author and the artist

paul d. storrie was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He has returned tolive there again and again after living in other cities and states. He beganwriting professionally in 1987 and has written comics for Caliber Comics,Moonstone Books, Marvel Comics, and DC Comics. His Graphic Myths andLegends work includes Hercules: The Twelve Labors; Robin Hood: Outlaw ofSherwood Forest; Yu the Great: Conquering the Flood; and Amaterasu: Returnof the Sun. He had also written Robyn of Sherwood (featuring stories aboutRobin Hood's daughter); Batman Beyond; Gotham Girls; Captain America:Red, White and Blue; Mutant X; and Revisionary.

ron randall has drawn comics for every major comic publisher in the UnitedStates, including Marvel, DC, Image, and Dark Horse. His Graphic Mythsand Legends work includes Thor & Loki: In the Land of Giants andAmaterasu: Return of the Sun. He has also worked on superhero comics suchas Justice League and Spiderman; science fiction titles such as Star Wars andStar Trek; fantasy adventure titles such as DragonLance and Warlord;suspense and horror titles including SwampThing, Predator, and Venom; andhis own creation, Trekker. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

Beowulf: battle with Grendel, 17–21;battle with Grendel’s mother, 26–29;death of, 44; decision to travel toDenmark, 6, 10; fighting the dragon,37–43; funeral of, 45; legendarystrength of, 6, 11; named king of theGeats, 33

Brecca, 13–14

Denmark, 6, 7

Ecgtheow, 7, 11

Geatland, 6Geats, 7, 11Grendel, 9, 12, 13, 15, 20, 21, 22, 29, 36;

battle with Beowulf, 17–21

Grendel’s mother, 22, 23, 24, 25; battlewith Beowulf, 25–29

Heorot, 7, 8, 10, 30Hrothgar, 7, 8, 11, 21, 22, 24, 31, 32; as

friend of Beowulf’s father, 6, 12, 13Hrunting, 24, 26, 29, 32Hygelac, 7, 12, 24, 32

North Sea, 6

Sweden, 6

Unferth, 13, 14, 24, 32

Wealhtheow, 15Wiglaf, 39, 40, 43–44, 45

index

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INDEX: This is an alphabetical list of words at the end of your book. The index tells some of the book’s main ideas. Each word is followed by page numbers. These numbers tell you where to go in the book to find that main idea.

teaching fourth-grade text features using beowulf · pdf fileteaching fourth-grade text...

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