Working hard to please everyone often pleases no one, according Aesop's fable "The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey." After listening to an audio version of the story, individuals invent their own endings to the passage using a thought-provoking writing activity.

Concepts

personal narratives, aesop's fables, critical reading

Show More Show Less

Additional Tags

english language arts

Show More Show Less

Instructional Ideas

• Before submitting the writing activity, have a peer-editing session that focuses on a couple topics such as use of dialogue, imagery, or grammar
• Consider having a model text for the personal narrative activity, such as Sandra Cisneros's "Eleven" 

Classroom Considerations

• Be prepared for some of your learners to share personal or embarrassing experiences that may not be appropriate for class
• Includes a Flesch-Kincaid readability score of 5.8
  

Pros

• A 1:52 audiobook recording differentiates the passage for all readers
• The short length of the fable allows educators to focus on instruction and skills rather than reading the text

Cons

• Does not provide a rubric for the writing activity

Common Core

W.5.3.a W.6.3.a W.7.3.a W.8.3.a