The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure

$The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure book cover$

Grade 3
5 skill lessons · 3 math-through-reading

Math

Skill lessons

The mathematics the book carries, taught directly. Each lesson has printable workbook pages and a separate teacher key.

1Three Sets of Four: What the Spell Does to Twelve
2Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes
3How Many Groups Made Four Frogs?
4Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses
5Spell Cards: Getting Fast on the Story's Divisions

Math + reading

Math through the reading

The same book, entered through a sentence it prints. Change one word in the reading and the numbers change with it.

6Divided By Three, or Into Groups of Three?
7The Spell Nobody Heard
8Ten Cows, Five Froggy Cows

Reading

Reading and language lessons

The same book read as a text. What a word means in its sentence, how a character is shown, how the writing is put together - no mathematics.

9Four Hard Words, Four Sentences That Explain Them
10Who Said It, and How: Reading the Tags in the Cave
11Says One Thing, Wants Another: Peter and Matilda
12Four Stops on Peter's Way Home
13Out Loud or In His Head: Reading Peter's Questions

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Skill lessons

5 lessons on the mathematics the book carries. Each lesson has printable workbook pages and a separate teacher key.

1. Three Sets of Four: What the Spell Does to Twelve Concept · Dividing twelve into equal groups

The book hands students one clean division and says it twice: a spell divides twelve kittens by three, and four of the twelve become frogs. Students deal twelve counters onto three plates, then onto four plates, and fill a record strip with the three numbers each deal produces. The lesson ends with students pushing one plate of four forward as the group that turned into frogs and counting what is left on the other two plates.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Count out the twelve kittens (4 min)
Each pair counts twelve counters into one pile, one counter per number word, and says the total aloud. Keep the pile whole while the spell sentence is read. Put a flat hand on the pile and say twelve kittens before anything is moved.
Word preview: divided by
Then they came upon a little girl playing with twelve kittens.
2. Deal the twelve onto three plates (5 min)
Deal the twelve counters onto three plates one at a time until the pile is gone. Count each plate and check with your partner that every plate holds the same amount. Say how many counters are on one plate, then say how many plates there are.
Word preview: equal groups
“Kittens divided by three,” Rumpelstiltskin said.
Four of the twelve became froggy kittens.
3. Fill the record strip twice (6 min)
Write the three numbers from the plates on the record strip: twelve in the total box, three in the number-of-groups box, four in the amount-in-each-group box. Then sweep the same twelve counters up and deal them onto four plates, and fill a second strip. Read both strips aloud and say which number changed places.
Word preview: quotient
Division is an operation that divides something into equal groups or parts of a whole.
And the amount in each group is called the quotient.
4. Push forward the group that turned into frogs (5 min)
Rebuild the twelve counters as three plates of four, then push one plate forward as the group that turned into frogs. Count that plate aloud, then count the counters left on the other two plates. Say both numbers to your partner before you clear the plates.
Word preview: sets of
Twelve kittens can be divided into three sets of four.
Rumpelstiltskin is dividing people and animals into groups . . . and one group is turning into frogs!

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Count out the twelve kittens (4 min)
Count twelve counters into one pile, one counter per number word, and say the total aloud. Keep the pile whole until the spell sentence has been read.
Word preview: divided by
Then they came upon a little girl playing with twelve kittens.
2. Deal the twelve onto three plates (5 min)
Deal the twelve counters onto three plates one at a time until the pile is gone. Check that every plate holds the same amount, then say the amount on one plate and the number of plates.
Word preview: equal groups
“Kittens divided by three,” Rumpelstiltskin said.
Four of the twelve became froggy kittens.

Three levels

Support: Deal only the first arrangement, twelve counters onto three plates, and stop there. Count one plate, say four, and write four in the amount-in-each-group box while a partner writes the other two numbers. One deal, one number to produce, the same plates and the same counting as everyone else.
At Grade: Deal twelve onto three plates and again onto four plates, fill both record strips without help, and say which number moved from the groups box to the amount box.
Extension: After both deals, split the same twelve counters into three plates that are not equal, five and four and three, and try to fill the amount-in-each-group box. Say to a partner why that box cannot be filled, pointing at the plates as the reason, then say what the story would have had to show if the spell worked that way.

English learners

Two things trip students here. In amount in each group, each carries the mathematics and is easy to hear as the, and the swap between three sets of four and four sets of three, which many languages order the other way round. Drill one frame while pointing: twelve counters, three plates, four in each plate. Students may count and check in their home language first, then say the frame in English with a hand on one plate.

Materials

Twelve two-color counters per pair
Three paper plates per pair
Record strip with three boxes: total, number of groups, amount in each group
Word cards: divided by, equal groups, quotient, sets of

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Record Strips strip set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Three Sets of Four: What the Spell Does to Twelve

Record Strips

Write the three numbers from your plates in the boxes.

Fill a new strip after each deal.

Word Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Three Sets of Four: What the Spell Does to Twelve

Word Cards

Teacher key (1 page) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Record Strips half page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Three Sets of Four: What the Spell Does to Twelve — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Record Strips

Expected entries, in the order the step produces them:

First deal, three plates: total 12, number of groups 3, amount in each group 4.
Second deal, four plates: total 12, number of groups 4, amount in each group 3.
Third strip is spare. Extension students use it for the uneven split of five, four and three, and leave the amount-in-each-group box empty because no single amount is in every plate.

Read for: the total stays 12 on both strips and only the 3 and the 4 trade boxes. A close response names which number moved; a loose one reads the two strips as two different totals or writes 12 in a groups box.

Support students write only the amount-in-each-group number, 4, on the first strip while a partner writes the other two. That strip is still complete.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

2. Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes Representation · Showing a division of fifteen as rows and groups

Peter finds fifteen covered holes and counts them as five rows of holes in groups of three, which is the one place in the book where a division is already drawn. Students lay fifteen paper circles into that arrangement, write the equation the rows produce, then rebuild the same fifteen as three rows of five and draw it. The last step spreads the fifteen into fifteen single circles so students can draw the arrangement that leaves Peter one hole.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Lay out the fifteen holes (5 min)
Count fifteen paper circles and lay them flat in five rows with three in every row. Touch each row in turn and count by threes to fifteen, one touch per number word. Leave the rows where they are for the rest of the lesson.
Word preview: rows of
There were fifteen covered holes.
Peter counted five rows of holes in groups of three.
2. Turn the rows into an equation (6 min)
Write on the equation strip the division that matches what is on your desk: fifteen circles, five rows, three in a row. Slide each row into a heap and check that every heap holds three. Point at your equation and say aloud which number counts the rows and which counts what one row holds.
Word preview: groups of
“I could divide fifteen by five to get three holes . . . or, wait. . . .”
3. Rebuild the same fifteen a different way (5 min)
Move the same fifteen circles into three rows of five, then draw exactly what you built and write the equation for it underneath. Put the two drawings side by side. Tell your partner one thing that stayed the same and one thing that changed.
Word preview: rows of, groups of
4. Draw the one hole that remained (4 min)
Spread the fifteen circles so each circle stands alone as its own group, and draw the fifteen single circles in one line. Write the equation for fifteen groups of one and ring the single hole Peter kept. Read your equation aloud while your partner points at the ringed circle.
Word preview: remained
Peter aimed the Great Divide and said, “Holes divided by fifteen.”
One hole remained.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Lay out the fifteen holes (5 min)
Count fifteen paper circles into five rows with three in every row. Touch each row and count by threes to fifteen, one touch per number word.
Word preview: rows of
Peter counted five rows of holes in groups of three.
2. Draw the one hole that remained (4 min)
Spread the fifteen circles so each stands alone, draw the fifteen single circles in a line, and write the equation for fifteen groups of one. Ring the one hole Peter kept and read the equation aloud.
Word preview: remained
Peter aimed the Great Divide and said, “Holes divided by fifteen.”
One hole remained.

Three levels

Support: Stay with the five rows of three that are already on the desk and draw only that one arrangement. Trace around the circles themselves so the drawing matches the rows exactly, then copy the one equation for it onto the strip. Same circles, same counting by threes, one picture instead of three.
At Grade: Build, draw and write equations for all three arrangements of the fifteen circles, and say which number in each equation counts the rows.
Extension: Hunt for a fourth arrangement of the fifteen circles with equal rows. Show with the circles either the arrangement you found or the two you tested that broke, and write one sentence saying what it is about fifteen that keeps the list this short.

English learners

The rows carry the meaning without English: a student can build, count and draw five rows of three and be fully correct in silence. The English that trips learners here is the pair of phrases rows of and groups of, both of which put the size after the word of while many languages put it first, so five rows of three is easy to hear as five threes in a row and then drawn sideways. Model one frame with a finger on the desk: five rows, three in each row, fifteen in all. Invite students to say the count by threes in their own language while a partner tracks the rows, then repeat the frame in English.

Materials

Fifteen paper circles per pair
Equation strip, one per student
Blank drawing paper, one sheet per student
Crayon or marker per student
Word cards: groups of, remained, rows of

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Fifteen Circles to Cut Out card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes

Fifteen Circles to Cut Out

Equation Strips strip set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes

Equation Strips

Write the division that matches what is on your desk.

Use a new strip each time you rebuild the circles.

Word Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes

Word Cards

Teacher key (1 page) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Equation Strips half page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Five Rows of Three: Drawing Peter's Fifteen Holes — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Equation Strips

Expected equations, one per strip, in the order the lesson builds them:

Five rows of three: 15 ÷ 5 = 3.
Three rows of five: 15 ÷ 3 = 5.
Fifteen single circles: 15 ÷ 15 = 1.

Read for: the first number is 15 on every strip, and the middle number counts the rows the student actually built. A close response can point at the rows while reading the middle number; a loose one writes 5 ÷ 3 = 15 or swaps the divisor and the quotient without checking the desk.

Support students fill one strip only, for the five rows of three already on the desk: 15 ÷ 5 = 3.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

3. How Many Groups Made Four Frogs? Application · Finding an unknown divisor from the amount in one group

What number the knights were divided by is never stated. Twelve of them stood at the gate, four frogs in armour appeared, and the rule is shown elsewhere, on the kittens: the spell names the number of groups, and one whole group turns into frogs. Students count out the twelve, break them into groups of four to find how many groups fit, and write the divisor with the equation that proves it.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Count out the knights and the frogs (4 min)
Count twelve counters of one colour into a row for the knights at the gate. Set four counters of the other colour beside the row for the frogs that appeared. Say both numbers aloud before you move anything.
Word preview: divided by
Peter greeted the twelve knights who guarded the castle gate.
Four frogs in shining armor appeared where knights had once stood.
2. Find how many groups of four fit (5 min)
Push four counters from the row into a cup, then another four, and keep going until the row is gone. Count the cups and say the number aloud. Write the equation that matches the cups on your desk.
Word preview: in each group
3. Check the rule on the kittens (6 min)
Deal twelve counters into three cups the way the kitten spell says, and count what one cup holds. Say which number the spell gives you, the number of cups or the amount in one cup. Then write the divisor you say turned twelve knights into four frogs, and next to it the equation that proves it.
Word preview: divisor
“Kittens divided by three,” Rumpelstiltskin said.
Four of the twelve became froggy kittens.
Rumpelstiltskin is dividing people and animals into groups . . . and one group is turning into frogs!
4. Test the rule on the smallest spell (5 min)
Set out two counters for the butcher and his wife and split them the way that spell says. Count what one group holds and say how many turned into a frog. Tell your partner whether the rule you wrote for the knights still holds, and what in the story tells you so.
Word preview: divided by
“Butcher and wife divided by two!” he yelled.
Suddenly the wife turned into a large frog wife and croaked loudly at her stunned husband.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Count out the knights and the frogs (4 min)
Count twelve counters of one colour into a row for the knights, and set four of the other colour beside it for the frogs. Say both numbers aloud before anything moves.
Word preview: divided by
Peter greeted the twelve knights who guarded the castle gate.
Four frogs in shining armor appeared where knights had once stood.
2. Find how many groups of four fit (5 min)
Push four counters at a time from the row into a cup until the row is gone. Count the cups, say the number aloud, and write the equation that matches them.
Word preview: in each group

Three levels

Support: Start from the kitten spell, which states its number, before going back to the knights. Deal twelve into three cups, count four in a cup, and only then push the twelve knights into cups of four. The divisor still has to be written and the equation still has to be produced; the known spell just comes first.
At Grade: Work the knights first, find the number of cups of four, then check the rule against the kitten spell and write the divisor with its equation.
Extension: Try the rule on the lady in the street, where two of her children are frogs and six children are still children, and say what number the spell must have named. Then say what the story would have to have told you for that answer to be certain, and whether it does.

English learners

The cups do the explaining: filling cups with four until the row runs out shows what an unknown divisor is without a sentence of English. The lesson turns on two-way phrasing: divided by three against groups of four, where English uses the same word divided for both moves and only the following phrase says which. Walk through both frames back to back while pointing at the cups: twelve in groups of four makes three cups; twelve divided by three puts four in each cup. Students may talk the rule through in their everyday language before writing the divisor in English.

Materials

Twelve counters in one colour and four in another, per pair
Paper cups, four per pair
Equation strip, one per student
Two counters per pair
Word cards: divided by, divisor, in each group

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Equation Strips strip set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — How Many Groups Made Four Frogs?

Equation Strips

On the first strip, write the equation that matches your cups.

On the second, write the divisor and the equation that proves it.

Word Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — How Many Groups Made Four Frogs?

Word Cards

Teacher key (1 page) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Equation Strips half page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — How Many Groups Made Four Frogs? — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Equation Strips

First strip, the cups of four:

12 ÷ 4 = 3. Twelve knights make three cups of four.

Second strip, the divisor and its proof:

Divisor: 3.
12 ÷ 3 = 4. Twelve knights in three groups puts four in each group, and one group of four became the frogs.

Read for: the divisor named is the number of groups, three, and the equation the student writes beside it puts four in each group. A close response can point to the kitten check as the reason the spell names the number of groups; a loose one writes 4 as the divisor because four frogs appeared.

Both strips use the same twelve counters, so a student who writes 12 ÷ 4 = 3 on the second strip has given the number of cups rather than the divisor the spell named.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

4. Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses Reasoning · Comparing what different divisors do to fifteen

Peter says out loud that he could divide fifteen by five to get three holes, stops himself, and divides by fifteen instead, and one hole remains. Students build both results side by side with counters on two labelled mats, write both equations, and then argue for one divisor in a frame that forces both numbers into the sentence. The last step adds a third divisor so students have to place a new result between two they already own.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Build both of Peter's choices (5 min)
On the left mat build fifteen counters as five groups of three. On the right mat build the same fifteen as fifteen groups of one. Count what a single group holds on each mat and leave both mats built.
Word preview: divided by
“I could divide fifteen by five to get three holes . . . or, wait. . . .”
Peter aimed the Great Divide and said, “Holes divided by fifteen.”
2. Line the two results up (4 min)
Lift one group off each mat and set them side by side, three counters from the left and one from the right. Say which result leaves Peter fewer holes to dig and by how many. Write both equations under the mats.
Word preview: remained
One hole remained.
3. Argue for one divisor (6 min)
Finish the frame strip out loud with both numbers in it: I would divide by ___ because it leaves ___ holes. Your partner then argues the other divisor with its own two numbers. Neither of you may say better, easier or faster without a number attached.
Word preview: reduce
“Zero, with the Great Divide I can reduce the number of holes and find the Great Multiplier before Rumpelstiltskin and Matilda find us,” Peter said.
4. Test a third divisor (5 min)
Build the same fifteen counters as three groups of five and count what one group holds. Say where that result sits between the other two, naming all three numbers. Decide with your partner whether it changes the argument you just made, and say why.
Word preview: divided by

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Build both of Peter's choices (5 min)
Build fifteen counters as five groups of three on the left mat and as fifteen groups of one on the right mat. Count what one group holds on each mat and leave both built.
Word preview: divided by
Peter aimed the Great Divide and said, “Holes divided by fifteen.”
2. Line the two results up (4 min)
Set one group from each mat side by side, three counters and one counter. Say which result leaves Peter fewer holes and by how many, then write both equations under the mats.
Word preview: remained
One hole remained.

Three levels

Support: Argue from the mats instead of from the strip: hold up one group from each mat and say the two numbers, three and one, then finish the spoken frame with a partner reading the blanks aloud for you. The building, the counting and the choice are unchanged; only the sentence is carried between two people.
At Grade: Build both mats, write both equations, and finish the frame with both numbers in it while a partner argues the other divisor with its own numbers.
Extension: Take the divisor you argued against and make the strongest case you can for it, using the three counters as the reason rather than the one. Then say what would have to be true about the buried stick for that case to win, and whether the story gives it.

English learners

The comparison itself is visible on the mats and needs no English at all: one counter against three settles which is fewer. The English that carries load is the because clause, since many languages put the reason before the claim and students who reason correctly can sound as though they have answered a different question. Rehearse the frame in exactly the order it is printed: I would divide by fifteen because it leaves one hole. Students may make the argument in their strongest language first, then say the frame in English while pointing at the two groups on the desk.

Materials

Fifteen counters per pair
Two labelled mats per pair, one marked five groups and one marked fifteen groups
Dry-erase marker per pair
Reason frame strip: I would divide by ___ because it leaves ___ holes
Word cards: divided by, reduce, remained

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Two Mats full page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses

Two Mats

Build fifteen counters on each mat.

Write the equation for each mat on its line.

Reason Frame Strips strip set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses

Reason Frame Strips

Say the whole sentence out loud with a number in each blank.

Your partner then says it for the other divisor.

I would divide by __________ because it leaves __________ holes.

Word Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses

Word Cards

Teacher key (2 pages) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Two Mats half page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Two Mats

Expected equations, one under each mat:

Mat marked five groups: 15 ÷ 5 = 3. One group holds three.
Mat marked fifteen groups: 15 ÷ 15 = 1. One group holds one.

Lined up side by side, one counter against three: dividing by fifteen leaves two fewer holes than dividing by five.

Third divisor, built on the same fifteen counters in the last step: three groups of five, 15 ÷ 3 = 5. Its result sits above both, since five in a group is more than three and more than one.

Read for: the equation under each mat matches the counters actually on that mat. A close response takes the divisor from the mat label and the last number from what one group holds; a loose one writes the same equation under both mats, or puts the 15 where the amount in one group belongs.

Teacher Key: Reason Frame Strips half page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Divide by Five or by Fifteen? Peter Chooses — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Reason Frame Strips

Both fillings are acceptable, and each pair should produce both:

I would divide by fifteen because it leaves one hole.
I would divide by five because it leaves three holes.

There is no single right choice here. A strong response puts a number in both blanks and the two numbers belong together, the divisor and the amount one group holds after that divisor.

Read for: a number in the second blank, not a word. A close response says fifteen and one, or five and three; a loose one says better, easier or faster, or pairs a divisor with the other divisor's result.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

5. Spell Cards: Getting Fast on the Story's Divisions Fluency · Dividing within twenty-four with equal groups

Every count in this book is small and clean: twelve kittens, twelve knights, fifteen holes, twenty-four advisors, ten cows, six children. Students deal those counts into equal groups until the deals are quick, then answer a deck of division cards built only from numbers the story states. The last step makes students say three of their fastest facts as full sentences that name what the number counts, so speed does not turn into a number with nothing attached to it.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Warm up on twelve (4 min)
Deal twelve counters into two equal groups, then three, then four, then six, clearing the desk between deals. Say the amount in one group aloud the moment each deal ends. Then say the whole fact: twelve divided by three is four.
Word preview: divided by
Then they came upon a little girl playing with twelve kittens.
2. Run the fifteen family (5 min)
Do the same with fifteen counters: three equal groups, then five, then fifteen. Say each fact aloud as soon as the deal ends, without recounting the whole pile. Check your partner by counting one group and then counting the groups.
Word preview: dividend
There were fifteen covered holes.
3. Beat the timer on the spell cards (6 min)
Turn the spell cards face up one at a time and say each answer before the sand runs through. Reach for counters only on a card that stalls you, and finish that card before turning the next. Sort the cards you answered without counters into one pile and the rest into another.
Word preview: divisor
“Father has twenty-four advisors. What happened to the other twelve?”
4. Say three facts as whole sentences (5 min)
Pick three cards from your fast pile. Say each one as a sentence that names what the number counts. Fifteen holes divided by five is three holes in each row. Your partner listens for the amount in one group and says stop if you name the number of groups instead. Swap roles and do three more.
Word preview: divided by
And the amount in each group is called the quotient.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Warm up on twelve (4 min)
Deal twelve counters into two equal groups, then three, then four, then six. Say the amount in one group the moment each deal ends, then say the whole fact aloud.
Word preview: divided by
Then they came upon a little girl playing with twelve kittens.
2. Run the fifteen family (5 min)
Do the same with fifteen counters: three equal groups, then five, then fifteen. Say each fact as soon as the deal ends, and check your partner by counting one group and then the groups.
Word preview: dividend
There were fifteen covered holes.

Three levels

Support: Work the same decks with the counters staying on the desk the whole time, so every card is dealt before it is answered. Keep the timer out of it and answer the cards in the order they come. The facts, the counts and the sentences are the same as everyone else's.
At Grade: Deal the warm-ups, then run the deck against the timer with counters available only for cards that stall, and say three facts as full sentences at the end.
Extension: Take two cards with the same total, twelve divided by three and twelve divided by four, and say without dealing what happens to the amount in one group when the number of groups grows. Then find the card in the deck whose answer is one and say why that is the only card in the deck that does it.

English learners

Facts practised at speed are the most language-independent work in this book, and a student can be fast in one language and slow in another for reasons that have nothing to do with mathematics. Number words themselves are the load here: fifteen and fifty sound alike under time pressure, and divided by is a two-word chunk many learners split. Rehearse one frame until it is automatic: fifteen divided by five is three. Students may answer the cards in their strongest language for the first pass and in English for the second, and the sorting into piles works either way.

Materials

Twelve counters per student
Fifteen counters per student
Spell cards: twelve division facts drawn from the story counts, one deck per pair
One-minute sand timer per pair
Word cards: divided by, dividend, divisor

Workbook

Print these for the class. They carry your edits, and they print in black and white.

Spell Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Spell Cards: Getting Fast on the Story's Divisions

Spell Cards

Word Cards card set

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Spell Cards: Getting Fast on the Story's Divisions

Word Cards

Teacher key (1 page) — not for the class

Teacher Key: Spell Cards full page

The Multiplying Menace Divides: A Math Adventure — Spell Cards: Getting Fast on the Story's Divisions — Teacher Key

Teacher Key: Spell Cards

The deck is twelve facts, and every count in it is a count the lesson states: twelve kittens, fifteen holes, twenty-four advisors, ten cows, six children.

12 ÷ 3 = 4
24 ÷ 4 = 6
15 ÷ 5 = 3
6 ÷ 2 = 3
12 ÷ 6 = 2
15 ÷ 15 = 1
24 ÷ 2 = 12
10 ÷ 2 = 5
12 ÷ 2 = 6
15 ÷ 3 = 5
24 ÷ 3 = 8
12 ÷ 4 = 3

The seven facts warmed up in the first two steps are all in the deck: 12 ÷ 2, 12 ÷ 3, 12 ÷ 4, 12 ÷ 6, 15 ÷ 3, 15 ÷ 5, 15 ÷ 15.

Extension pair: 12 ÷ 3 and 12 ÷ 4 are both in the deck. 15 ÷ 15 is the only card in the deck whose answer is one.

Read for: on the sentence step, the number the student names last is the amount in one group, not the number of groups. A close response says fifteen holes divided by five is three holes in each row; a loose one says three rows, which names the wrong number.

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

Math through the reading

The mathematics is reached through a sentence the book prints: change one word in the reading and the numbers change with it. These carry their own standards, matched against these lessons rather than inherited from the skill ones.

6. Divided By Three, or Into Groups of Three? Integrated · Students build both readings of the kitten spell with counters and use the book's own result sentence to decide which reading Rumpelstiltskin spoke.

Students build both readings of the kitten spell with counters and use the book's own result sentence to decide which reading Rumpelstiltskin spoke.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Read the spell aloud and count out the twelve (5 min)
Partners read the spell strip and the result strip aloud to each other, twice, swapping who reads which. Then they count twelve counters into one pile, one counter per number word, and leave the pile whole. Before anything is dealt, each partner says what they think the three in the spell is counting.
2. Build the spell both ways (5 min)
Deal the twelve counters onto three plates, one at a time, until the pile is gone, and write the equation for what is on the desk. Sweep them up and deal the same twelve into plates of three, stopping each plate at three, and write that equation too. Leave both arrangements built, side by side.
3. Count the frogs each arrangement makes (4 min)
Push one whole plate forward on each arrangement as the group that turns into frogs, and count that plate aloud: four on the left, three on the right. Read the book's result strip aloud with a hand on the plate that matches it. Say to your partner which arrangement the story rules out and what number does the ruling.
4. Write the sentence that settles it (6 min)
Write one sentence saying which wording Rumpelstiltskin must have used and why, with both numbers in it. Circle the words in your sentence that made the difference. Read it to a partner, who checks that the sentence names the frog count and not only the plates.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Build the spell both ways (5 min)
Deal the twelve counters onto three plates, one at a time, until the pile is gone, and write the equation for what is on the desk. Sweep them up and deal the same twelve into plates of three, stopping each plate at three, and write that equation too. Leave both arrangements built, side by side.
2. Count the frogs each arrangement makes (4 min)
Push one whole plate forward on each arrangement as the group that turns into frogs, and count that plate aloud: four on the left, three on the right. Read the book's result strip aloud with a hand on the plate that matches it. Say to your partner which arrangement the story rules out and what number does the ruling.

Three levels

Support: Both arrangements still get dealt, counted and pushed forward; nothing is taken off the mathematics. For the last segment the teacher rereads the two wordings aloud and the student points at the arrangement each one describes, then finishes the spoken frame — the spell said divided by three, so three plates, so four frogs — with a partner holding the strip. The sentence is spoken rather than written.
At grade: Deal both arrangements, write an equation under each, push forward the group that turns into frogs on both, and write the sentence naming which wording the book's four froggy kittens prove, with both numbers in it.
Extension: Using the same twelve counters, find the wording that would turn exactly three kittens into frogs and the wording that turns exactly four, and show both. Then try to find a wording that turns exactly five into frogs while the groups stay equal, and say what it is about twelve that stops you.

English learners

Number and dealing transfer completely: a student who counts in Somali, Spanish or Mandarin deals twelve onto three plates correctly with no English at all, and both arrangements can be built and compared in silence. The two-word chunk that carries the mathematics is the part a first language does not supply. English uses the same verb, divided, for both moves, and only the tiny word after it says which one — by names the groups, into groups of names what one group holds — and many languages mark that difference with a case ending or word order instead, so learners routinely map both onto one meaning. Rehearse the two frames back to back with a finger on the plates: twelve divided by three, three plates, four on a plate; twelve into groups of three, four plates, three on a plate. Students may argue which wording the story proves in their strongest language first, then say the frame in English while pointing at the plate they pushed forward.

Materials

Twelve two-color counters per pair
Seven paper plates per pair
Spell strip printed with the kitten spell sentence
Result strip printed with the sentence reporting the froggy kittens
Equation strip, one per student
Pencil per student
The two wordings written side by side where the class can see both
One enlarged pair of plates showing three of four and four of three

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

IB PYP developmental alignment

Phases are not grades. The Primary Years Programme is a developmental continuum and your school places each student in a phase, so this names the strand the lesson works in and the phases it could sit across. Confirm against your own school's placement.

Number · Phases 1–3

Phase 1: Develop meaning for counting, quantity, number relationships, simple operations, and early fractions in meaningful contexts.
Phase 2: Develop place value and whole-number operations, mental strategies, fractions, and mathematical language for practical problem solving.
Phase 3: Extend number understanding to larger numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, and efficient strategies for the four operations.

7. The Spell Nobody Heard Integrated · Students work out the number Rumpelstiltskin must have spoken at the castle gate, and must hand in the sentences that prove it alongside the number.

Students work out the number Rumpelstiltskin must have spoken at the castle gate, and must hand in the sentences that prove it alongside the number.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Set up the gate with counters (5 min)
Partners read the two gate sentences aloud, then build the scene: twelve counters of one colour in a row for the knights, four of the other colour set beside them for the frogs. Say both numbers aloud, then say what the book does not tell you, in one sentence, out loud.
2. Hunt the sentences that fix the rule (5 min)
Read the five candidate sentences on the evidence sheet and underline the ones that tell you how the spell works. Read your underlined sentences aloud to your partner and say what each one adds. Do not touch the counters yet; the sentences come first.
3. Fill the cups and find the number (4 min)
Push four counters at a time from the row of knights into a cup until the row is gone, and count the cups. Write the equation that matches the cups. Then deal a fresh twelve evenly into that many cups and check that each holds four.
4. Hand in the number with its reason (6 min)
Write the missing number and the equation on the evidence card, and copy the two sentences you underlined underneath it. Read the whole card aloud to your partner, who checks that the number and the sentences agree with each other. A card with a number and no sentences, or sentences and no number, goes back.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Hunt the sentences that fix the rule (5 min)
Read the five candidate sentences on the evidence sheet and underline the ones that tell you how the spell works. Read your underlined sentences aloud to your partner and say what each one adds. Do not touch the counters yet; the sentences come first.
2. Fill the cups and find the number (4 min)
Push four counters at a time from the row of knights into a cup until the row is gone, and count the cups. Write the equation that matches the cups. Then deal a fresh twelve evenly into that many cups and check that each holds four.

Three levels

Support: The evidence sheet arrives already cut into five strips, so the search is choosing among five sentences rather than combing the story for them, and a partner may read the strips aloud. The student still underlines the two that fix the rule, still reads them back, and still fills the cups, writes the equation and produces the number exactly as everyone else does.
At grade: Choose the sentences from the full evidence sheet, read them aloud, fill the cups to find the number, check it by dealing twelve evenly, and hand in the card with the number, the equation and both sentences on it.
Extension: Run the same rule on the lady in the street, where two of her children are frogs and six children are still standing beside her, and say what number that spell must have named. Then say what the book would have had to tell you for that answer to be as certain as the knights' answer, and whether it tells you.

English learners

The cups carry the reasoning: filling cups with four until the row runs out shows what a missing divisor is without a word of English, and the second check is equally visible. The load sits in the evidence half, and it is specific. English says divided by three and groups of four with the same verb, so a learner reading the kitten sentences can take both phrases to mean the same move and then underline a sentence that does not in fact fix the rule. The tense also matters here: became froggy kittens reports a finished change and is what makes the four a result rather than a starting count. Rehearse one frame while pointing at the cups: twelve knights, groups of four, three groups, so the spell said three. Students may search the sentences and argue the rule in their strongest language, and may read their underlined lines aloud in English with a partner tracking the words.

Materials

Twelve counters in one colour and four in another, per pair
Paper cups, four per pair
Evidence sheet of five candidate sentences copied from the story
Evidence card with a box for the number, a box for the equation and lines for the sentences
Pencil per student
The two gate sentences enlarged where the class can see them
A cup of four counters held up as the group that turns

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

IB PYP developmental alignment

Number · Phases 1–3

Phase 1: Develop meaning for counting, quantity, number relationships, simple operations, and early fractions in meaningful contexts.
Phase 2: Develop place value and whole-number operations, mental strategies, fractions, and mathematical language for practical problem solving.
Phase 3: Extend number understanding to larger numbers, fractions, decimals, percentages, and efficient strategies for the four operations.

8. Ten Cows, Five Froggy Cows Integrated · Students build the farm as two lined-up rows of counters and say the relation between the herds in both directions, changing the comparison word without changing what is true.

Students build the farm as two lined-up rows of counters and say the relation between the herds in both directions, changing the comparison word without changing what is true.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Build the farm in two rows (4 min)
Read the farm sentence aloud, then build it: ten counters in a top row, five counters of another colour in a bottom row, lined up one under the other from the left. Ring the counters in the top row that have nothing under them and count them aloud.
2. Say it both ways (5 min)
Say the relation aloud with your hand on the ringed counters: ten is five more than five. Then say it the other way, starting with the froggy cows, and let your partner stop you if the comparison word did not change. Swap and do it again, so each partner says both directions at least once.
3. Write both sentences and check they agree (5 min)
Write both sentences on the strip, one under the other. Underline the comparison word in each and circle the number they share. Read the pair to your partner and answer their question: do these two sentences say different things, or the same thing twice?
4. Test the pair at the castle gate (6 min)
Build the second pair the same way, twelve counters over four, ring the difference and count it. Write both directions for this pair too. Then say which of your four sentences would stop being true if a single counter were added to the bottom row, and move one to find out.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Build the farm in two rows (4 min)
Read the farm sentence aloud, then build it: ten counters in a top row, five counters of another colour in a bottom row, lined up one under the other from the left. Ring the counters in the top row that have nothing under them and count them aloud.
2. Say it both ways (5 min)
Say the relation aloud with your hand on the ringed counters: ten is five more than five. Then say it the other way, starting with the froggy cows, and let your partner stop you if the comparison word did not change. Swap and do it again, so each partner says both directions at least once.

Three levels

Support: The rows, the ringing and the counting are unchanged, and the difference is still found by matching rather than told. For the sentences, the strip arrives with both frames printed — there are ___ more ___ than ___ and there are ___ fewer ___ than ___ — so the student supplies the numbers and the herds rather than the syntax, and may say each frame aloud before writing it.
At grade: Build both pairs, ring and count each difference, and write both directions of the relation for each pair with the comparison word changing on the reversal.
Extension: For the cows, say the relation a third way, as how many times as many: ten is two times five. Then try the same on the knights and the frogs in armor and on the advisors, and say which of the three pairs will not take a times as many sentence with whole numbers, using your rows as the reason.

English learners

Comparative syntax is the exact place where a child whose arithmetic is sound still looks wrong, and English is unhelpful here in a specific way: it puts the compared thing after the word than, so more froggy cows than cows and more cows than froggy cows differ only by word order, with no ending on either noun to mark which is larger. Languages that mark the comparison on the noun or with a separate particle give learners no cue to listen for, and the ringed counters are the fix — every sentence must be said with a hand on them, so word order is checked against an arrangement rather than against a rule. The pair more and fewer is a second, separate load: many languages use one word for both directions, and fewer is often replaced by less in speech the students hear around them. Rehearse both frames in order, pointing: ten cows, five more than the froggy cows; five froggy cows, five fewer than the cows. Students may work out which row is larger and rehearse both directions in their strongest language before writing either sentence in English.

Materials

Twelve counters in one colour and five in another, per pair
A two-row comparison mat per pair
Sentence strip with room for two sentences, one per student
Loop of yarn or a crayon for ringing the difference
Pencil per student
The farm sentence enlarged where the class can see both counts in it
One built pair of rows with the difference ringed, kept up through the lesson

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

IB PYP developmental alignment

Number · Phases 1–2

Phase 1: Develop meaning for counting, quantity, number relationships, simple operations, and early fractions in meaningful contexts.
Phase 2: Develop place value and whole-number operations, mental strategies, fractions, and mathematical language for practical problem solving.

Shape and space · Phases 1–2

Phase 1: Describe and compare 2D and 3D shapes and use everyday spatial language for position, direction, paths, regions, and boundaries.
Phase 2: Classify 2D and 3D shapes by properties; explore symmetry and transformations; interpret and create simple directions.

Reading and language lessons

5 lessons on the reading and language the book carries - what a word means in its sentence, how a character is shown, how a text is built. No mathematics: these are matched against the English language arts curricula, which are a different and smaller set than the mathematics ones.

9. Four Hard Words, Four Sentences That Explain Them Reading · Working out a word's meaning from the sentence around it

The book drops four hard words into sentences that each carry their own explanation: Peter's ruse is named one sentence after he tells the lie, deterred sits beside Matilda swinging and yelling, vanquished sits beside an exploding staff and a dog turned back, and banished sits inside the sentence where Peter argues himself out of a suspicion. Students underline the word, circle the clue words in the same printed passage, write a meaning, then test it by swapping it into the sentence. No student defines a word from a glossary; every meaning is argued from the sentence printed in front of them.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Read the ruse sentence and say what Peter wants (5 min)
Read the passage aloud twice, once for the spoken part inside the quotation marks and once for the sentence after it. Underline the word ruse. Tell a partner in your own words what Peter says out loud and what the next sentence says he actually needs, then finish the frame A ruse is a ____ because Peter says one thing and wants another.
Word preview: ruse
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
2. Mine two more words from their own sentences (6 min)
Work in pairs on the two printed passages. For deterred, circle the words yelled and swinging and say what Matilda is refusing to stop doing. For vanquished, circle exploded and turned back into a dog and say what happened to the magic. Write one sentence per word on the context-clue log: the word, the clue words you circled, and your meaning.
Word preview: deterred, vanquished
“Get Zero away from me,” Matilda yelled swinging the staff at the dog. “I will not be deterred from my division quest!”
The staff exploded, bursting the Frog Crystal into a shower of green sparks. Zero instantly turned back into a dog. The magic was vanquished.
3. Test a meaning by swapping it in (5 min)
Take the passage where Peter talks to himself. Read it with the word banished, then read it again with your own meaning said in its place. Decide with your partner whether the sentence still makes sense in the story, and mark your context-clue log kept or changed. Say aloud one clue in the story that told you Peter thinks this person is far away.
Word preview: banished
“Nah, it couldn’t be . . . he’s been banished,” he said to himself.
4. Rank the four words by clue strength (4 min)
Lay your four word cards in a line, strongest clue first. For the word you put first, read aloud the exact sentence from the printed passages that gave you the clue. For the word you put last, say what the story would have to add for you to be sure. Keep the line on your desk for the teacher to read.
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
“Get Zero away from me,” Matilda yelled swinging the staff at the dog. “I will not be deterred from my division quest!”
The staff exploded, bursting the Frog Crystal into a shower of green sparks. Zero instantly turned back into a dog. The magic was vanquished.
“Nah, it couldn’t be . . . he’s been banished,” he said to himself.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Read the ruse sentence and say what Peter wants (5 min)
Read the passage aloud once. Underline ruse. Tell a partner what Peter says out loud and what he actually needs, then finish the frame A ruse is a ____ because Peter says one thing and wants another.
Word preview: ruse
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
2. Mine two more words from their own sentences (4 min)
In pairs, circle the clue words in each printed passage: yelled and swinging for deterred, exploded and turned back into a dog for vanquished. Write one line per word on the context-clue log giving your meaning.
Word preview: deterred, vanquished
“Get Zero away from me,” Matilda yelled swinging the staff at the dog. “I will not be deterred from my division quest!”
The staff exploded, bursting the Frog Crystal into a shower of green sparks. Zero instantly turned back into a dog. The magic was vanquished.

Three levels

Support: Stay with the ruse passage alone. The teacher reads it aloud twice while the student follows with a finger, then the student says only the two halves out loud — what Peter says, what Peter wants — before writing one meaning on the log. Do not add the other three words.
At Grade: Work all four words: underline, circle the clue words in the same passage, write a meaning on the log, and test one by swapping it into the sentence.
Extension: After ranking the four cards, write the one sentence you would add to the banished passage to make its clue as strong as the clue for vanquished, and say which clue word your new sentence supplies.

English learners

Ruse, deterred and vanquished have no everyday cognate that helps here, so rehearse the frame aloud before writing: He says ____ but he wants ____. Vanquished behaves like Spanish vencido and French vaincu and that transfer is safe; deterred does not transfer and needs the circled clue words. Invite students to give the first meaning in their strongest language and then say it again in English from the frame.

Materials

Printed passage: Peter's ruse at the alley
coloured pencil for underlining
meaning-from-context frame strip
Printed passage: Matilda swings the staff at Zero
Printed passage: the staff explodes
context-clue log
Printed passage: Peter talks himself out of a suspicion
four word cards from this lesson
Word cards: ruse, deterred, vanquished, banished

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

10. Who Said It, and How: Reading the Tags in the Cave Reading · Tracking who is speaking and what the speaker tag tells you

The villains' scenes are almost all dialogue, and the book never lets two lines carry the same tag. Students underline the tags in a printed passage, decide which quoted words belong to which speaker, and then sort the tag verbs — screeched, howled, laughed, whined — by the tone each one puts in a reader's voice. The last step swaps a tag verb for said so students hear exactly what the book's choice was carrying. Every claim about a speaker change sits beside the passage that visibly prints two tags.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Split the cave lines between two speakers (5 min)
Read the printed passage with a partner. Draw a line under each speaker tag you find: Rumpelstiltskin said and the witch screeched. Decide which words belong to which speaker, then read the passage again with one of you taking each part and only the words inside the quotation marks spoken aloud.
Word preview: screeched
“Matilda, your Frog Crystal is creating more chaos than the Great Divide could do on its own,” Rumpelstiltskin said. “Soon we’ll divide the whole kingdom into frogs!” the witch screeched.
2. Sort the tag verbs by how they sound (6 min)
Read the two printed passages aloud in your pair. Find the tag verbs howled, laughed and whined and write each one on the tone chart. For each verb say aloud whether the speaker is louder or quieter, and pleased or annoyed, and put a mark in that column. Then reread the line using the verb's tone in your voice.
Word preview: howled, whined
Rumpelstiltskin laughed. “First I need something from the boy .” “He’s mine!” Matilda howled. “I have a craving for Frog Prince stew .”
“Rumpel, I want a turn,” Matilda whined. “You don’t know how to use it,” Rumpelstiltskin said. Matilda grabbed the stick. “How hard can it be? See that horse? W atch!”
3. Swap the tag verb and hear what changes (5 min)
Take the printed passage and read Matilda's lines exactly as written. Now read them again saying said in place of the tag the book uses, and tell your partner what you lost. Write one sentence on the tone chart naming what screeched or howled tells a reader that said does not.
Word preview: thrust
“Rumpel, you promised him to me! Frog princes are all the rage, according to In Stye magazine.” She thrust the pages under his nose. “Eating them is good for your skin. Not to mention delicious. . . .”
4. Perform four lines and name each speaker (4 min)
In fours, read the two printed passages as one short scene. One reader takes Rumpelstiltskin, one takes Matilda, one reads only the narration outside the quotation marks, and one listens and writes down each speaker's name in the order they speak. Compare the listener's list with the underlined tags on the two-column speaker chart.
“Matilda, your Frog Crystal is creating more chaos than the Great Divide could do on its own,” Rumpelstiltskin said. “Soon we’ll divide the whole kingdom into frogs!” the witch screeched.
Rumpelstiltskin laughed. “First I need something from the boy .” “He’s mine!” Matilda howled. “I have a craving for Frog Prince stew .”

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Split the cave lines between two speakers (5 min)
Read the printed passage with a partner and underline the two speaker tags. Decide which quoted words belong to which speaker, then read it aloud taking one part each.
Word preview: screeched
“Matilda, your Frog Crystal is creating more chaos than the Great Divide could do on its own,” Rumpelstiltskin said. “Soon we’ll divide the whole kingdom into frogs!” the witch screeched.
2. Sort the tag verbs by how they sound (4 min)
Read the two printed passages aloud. Write howled, laughed and whined on the tone chart and mark each louder or quieter, pleased or annoyed. Reread one line using that tone in your voice.
Word preview: howled, whined
Rumpelstiltskin laughed. “First I need something from the boy .” “He’s mine!” Matilda howled. “I have a craving for Frog Prince stew .”
“Rumpel, I want a turn,” Matilda whined. “You don’t know how to use it,” Rumpelstiltskin said. Matilda grabbed the stick. “How hard can it be? See that horse? W atch!”

Three levels

Support: Stay with the cave passage only. The teacher reads it once while the student traces the two tags with a finger, then the student says just the two names in the order they speak before taking one part aloud. Do not add the tone chart yet.
At Grade: Underline the tags in all three printed passages, assign every quoted line to a speaker, and complete the tone chart for howled, laughed and whined.
Extension: After the swap, write the one line of dialogue you would add to the cave passage for Matilda, choose the tag verb it needs, and defend the verb by naming what the reader would otherwise not know.

English learners

Speaker tags come after the quotation in English but before it in many students' first languages, so rehearse the pattern aloud with the printed line before writing: quoted words, then comma, then name and verb. Screeched, howled and whined are all loud-or-complaining verbs with no single equivalent in most languages; teach them by voice, not by translation. Let students first say who is speaking in their strongest language, then point to the tag in English that proves it.

Materials

Printed passage: the two villains overheard in the cave
coloured pencil for underlining
two-column speaker chart
Printed passage: the two villains argue over Peter
Printed passage: Matilda demands a turn
tone chart
Printed passage: Matilda claims the prince
Word cards: screeched, howled, whined, thrust

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

11. Says One Thing, Wants Another: Peter and Matilda Reading · Working out what a character wants from what the character says and does

Three passages in this book put a character's words and a character's wants side by side in the same span, so motive can be argued rather than guessed. Peter's spoken request is followed by a sentence naming the thing he really needs; Matilda's friendly-sounding reply is bracketed by a wicked smile and by her pointing the staff at the dog anyway; Peter's suggestion is addressed to one character and aimed at another. Students build a says-and-wants card for each, then defend one motive by copying the single sentence that proves it. The evidence is always printed in the step.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Separate what Peter says from what Peter wants (6 min)
Read the printed passage and fold a card in two. On the left write the words Peter says out loud, copied from inside the quotation marks. On the right write what the next sentence says he actually needs. Tell your partner in one sentence why he cannot say the right-hand side out loud.
Word preview: ruse
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
2. Find the same gap in Matilda (5 min)
Read the printed passage in pairs. On a new says-and-wants card, copy what Matilda says to Peter on the left. On the right write what she has just done to Rumpelstiltskin instead of what she said she would do. Say aloud one word from the passage that warned you her friendly line was not honest.
Word preview: wicked
A wicked smile swept over the witch’s face. “Good try but I need Rumpel around. Besides I have a better idea.” She pointed the staff at Peter’s dog.
3. Read the trap Peter sets and say who it is really for (5 min)
Read the printed passage aloud with a partner, one taking Peter and one taking Rumpelstiltskin. Then answer on your motive log: Peter speaks to Matilda, but who is he trying to help, and how do you know from this passage alone. Use the frame Peter tells Matilda to ____ because he wants ____.
Word preview: deterred
“Matilda,” Peter said, “Quick! Divide Rumpelstiltskin by zero. Then you’d have the staff all to yourself.” “It’s a trick!” Rumpelstiltskin cried, trying to get past Zero to reach Matilda.
4. Argue one motive from the printed lines (4 min)
Choose Peter or Matilda. On the motive log write one sentence naming what your character wants, then copy the one sentence from the printed passages that best proves it. Read your pair of sentences to another pair, who must say whether your proof sentence really shows the want or only shows the words.
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
A wicked smile swept over the witch’s face. “Good try but I need Rumpel around. Besides I have a better idea.” She pointed the staff at Peter’s dog.
“Matilda,” Peter said, “Quick! Divide Rumpelstiltskin by zero. Then you’d have the staff all to yourself.” “It’s a trick!” Rumpelstiltskin cried, trying to get past Zero to reach Matilda.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Separate what Peter says from what Peter wants (5 min)
Read the printed passage and fold a card in two. Copy what Peter says out loud on the left and what the next sentence says he needs on the right. Tell a partner why he cannot say the right side out loud.
Word preview: ruse
Thinking quickly , he said aloud, “I need your help to find the alley where my dog is. Only Zero knows where the multiplier is buried.” He hoped his ruse worked; he knew where the alley was but needed a chance to get the Great Divide away from Rumpelstiltskin.
2. Find the same gap in Matilda (4 min)
Read the printed passage in pairs. Copy Matilda's friendly words on the left of a new card and what she actually does on the right. Say one word from the passage that warned you.
Word preview: wicked
A wicked smile swept over the witch’s face. “Good try but I need Rumpel around. Besides I have a better idea.” She pointed the staff at Peter’s dog.

Three levels

Support: Use the ruse passage alone and fill only the left side of the card by copying Peter's spoken words. The teacher reads the right-hand sentence aloud and the student says it back in their own words before writing three words on the right. Do not add the second character.
At Grade: Build says-and-wants cards for both characters, then write one motive sentence on the log with one copied proof sentence beside it.
Extension: Argue the harder case: Matilda says she needs Rumpel around, and then acts against Peter. Write two sentences naming what she wants that both her words and her action fit, and copy the one sentence from the passage that rules out the simpler reading.

English learners

The says-and-wants split is the whole skill, so give the frame before the writing: He says ____, but he wants ____. Wicked and ruse both need teaching; wicked has no reliable cognate and is learned here from the smile and the action beside it. Let students state a character's want in their strongest language first, then point to the English sentence in the printed passage that proves it before rewriting the want in English from the frame.

Materials

Printed passage: Peter's ruse at the alley
folded says-and-wants card
Printed passage: Matilda's better idea
Printed passage: Peter's suggestion to Matilda
motive log
Word cards: ruse, wicked, deterred

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

12. Four Stops on Peter's Way Home Reading · Retelling a sequence of events in the order the text gives them

Peter's journey to the castle is told in four printed stops, each opening with a phrase that fixes when it happened: As Peter passed a farm, When he neared town, at the castle gate, then the throne room. Students label the stops on a strip, copy the phrase from each passage that names what Peter found there, circle the time-order openings, and retell all four from memory using first, next, then and finally. The last step gives them a scrambled retelling to catch, so the order has to be defended from the printed words rather than remembered.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Number what Peter sees on the way to the castle (6 min)
Read the three printed passages in order with a partner. On your sequence strip write a short label for each one: the farm, the town, the castle gate. Under each label copy the one phrase from that passage that names what Peter saw. Do not write anything the passages do not print.
Word preview: grazing, guarded
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.
Peter greeted the twelve knights who guarded the castle gate. Suddenly the ground shook and . . . FLASH! Four frogs in shining armor appeared where knights had once stood.
2. Circle the words that fix the order (5 min)
Go back over the same three printed passages and circle the opening words that tell you when each thing happened: As Peter passed a farm and When he neared town. Tell your partner which two passages you could not swap without breaking the story, and why the castle gate has to come last.
Word preview: neared
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.
3. Retell the four stops in order using the strip (5 min)
Read the fourth printed passage, then add throne room to the end of your sequence strip. Turn the strip over and retell all four stops to your partner from memory, using first, next, then and finally, one for each stop. Your partner turns the strip back over and checks that you kept the order and named what Peter found at each stop.
Word preview: throne
The queen sat crying with a large frog on her lap. “Where’s Father?” Peter asked. “He’s a frog . . . again.”
4. Judge a retelling that has the order wrong (4 min)
Listen to your partner retell the four stops with one stop deliberately moved. Use the retelling checklist to say which stop moved and name the word in the printed passages that proves it belongs where it was. Swap roles and do it again with a different stop moved.
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.
Peter greeted the twelve knights who guarded the castle gate. Suddenly the ground shook and . . . FLASH! Four frogs in shining armor appeared where knights had once stood.
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.
The queen sat crying with a large frog on her lap. “Where’s Father?” Peter asked. “He’s a frog . . . again.”

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Number what Peter sees on the way to the castle (5 min)
Read the three printed passages in order. Label them farm, town, castle gate on your sequence strip and copy under each the phrase naming what Peter saw.
Word preview: grazing, guarded
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.
Peter greeted the twelve knights who guarded the castle gate. Suddenly the ground shook and . . . FLASH! Four frogs in shining armor appeared where knights had once stood.
2. Circle the words that fix the order (4 min)
Circle the opening time words in the two printed passages, As Peter passed a farm and When he neared town. Say which two stops cannot be swapped and why.
Word preview: neared
As Peter passed a farm, he noticed ten cows and five froggy cows grazing in the field. One froggy cow stopped chewing its cud and mooed a ribbity moo. “What is the farmer feeding them?” Peter wondered.
When he neared town a lady ran past him, screaming, “Two of my children are frogs!” Peter stared as two child-sized frogs hopped around the woman and six children.

Three levels

Support: Use the farm and town passages only. The teacher reads each one aloud while the student points to the opening time words, then the student says just two stops in order, farm then town, before writing the two labels. Do not add the castle gate or the throne room.
At Grade: Label all four stops, circle the time-order openings, and retell the four in order using first, next, then and finally.
Extension: Retell the four stops so that each sentence names both what Peter saw and why that sight made the next stop more alarming, and mark on the strip the one stop after which Peter could no longer explain the sightings away.

English learners

First, next, then and finally are the load-bearing words and they transfer well from most languages, so put them on the strip and rehearse the retelling aloud twice before any writing. Grazing and guarded do not transfer and are learned here from the printed sentence. A student may retell the four stops in their strongest language first and then again in English from the strip; the order, not the accent, is what is being judged.

Materials

Printed passage: the farm
Printed passage: the town
Printed passage: the castle gate
sequence strip
coloured pencil for circling
Printed passage: the throne room
retelling checklist
Word cards: grazing, guarded, neared, throne

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.

13. Out Loud or In His Head: Reading Peter's Questions Reading · Telling spoken words from unspoken thoughts by the punctuation around them

This book keeps Peter's private questions unpunctuated by quotation marks and his speech inside them, often within a single printed span. Students highlight the quoted words, box the unquoted question, and sort several of Peter's lines by whether a bystander would have heard them. The muttering line is the hard case and is meant to be argued: it is punctuated as speech even though it is nearly private. The last step turns the mark into a voice — quoted lines at normal volume, unquoted thought in a whisper — so students hear the punctuation doing its work.

Full lesson — 20 minutes

1. Mark the spoken words and the thought in one passage (6 min)
Read the printed passage aloud in pairs. Highlight every group of words that sits inside quotation marks, then box the question that has no quotation marks around it. Tell your partner which one a person standing next to Peter would have heard, and which one only the reader gets.
Word preview: wondered
“Butcher and wife divided by two!” he yelled. Suddenly the wife turned into a large frog wife and croaked loudly at her stunned husband. How does he know what number to divide by? Peter wondered.
2. Sort three more lines onto the mat (5 min)
Read the two printed passages with a partner. Cut nothing; just write each of Peter's lines on the said-or-thought sorting mat under heard by others or heard only by the reader. For each one write the proof in three words: quotation marks, or no quotation marks. Watch the muttering line carefully and argue it out before you place it.
Word preview: muttered
“Can’t you find it with your crystal?” Peter asked. “The crystal can only see living things, dearie,” Matilda said. “I’m a witch, not a miracle worker!” “Like ribbiting cows happen every day?” Peter muttered to himself.
Peter scratched his head. Why did dividing by a fraction produce more froggy horses rather than fewer?
3. Rewrite a thought as speech and say what breaks (5 min)
Take the boxed question from the first printed passage and rewrite it on your log as something Peter says out loud, with quotation marks and a tag. Read your new version to your partner, then read the book's version. Write one sentence naming what Peter would give away if he said it aloud in front of Rumpelstiltskin.
Word preview: yelled
“Butcher and wife divided by two!” he yelled. Suddenly the wife turned into a large frog wife and croaked loudly at her stunned husband. How does he know what number to divide by? Peter wondered.
4. Read a passage aloud in two voices (4 min)
In pairs, read the printed passage so that the quoted lines are spoken at normal volume and the unquoted thought is read in a whisper. Swap and repeat. Then say which punctuation mark told your voice what to do, and check your partner whispered exactly the words with no quotation marks around them.
“Can’t you find it with your crystal?” Peter asked. “The crystal can only see living things, dearie,” Matilda said. “I’m a witch, not a miracle worker!” “Like ribbiting cows happen every day?” Peter muttered to himself.

Short version — 9 minutes

1. Mark the spoken words and the thought in one passage (5 min)
Read the printed passage aloud. Highlight the words inside quotation marks and box the question with none. Say which one a bystander would have heard.
Word preview: wondered
“Butcher and wife divided by two!” he yelled. Suddenly the wife turned into a large frog wife and croaked loudly at her stunned husband. How does he know what number to divide by? Peter wondered.
2. Sort three more lines onto the mat (4 min)
Read the two printed passages and place each of Peter's lines on the sorting mat under heard by others or heard only by the reader, writing quotation marks or no quotation marks as your proof.
Word preview: muttered
“Can’t you find it with your crystal?” Peter asked. “The crystal can only see living things, dearie,” Matilda said. “I’m a witch, not a miracle worker!” “Like ribbiting cows happen every day?” Peter muttered to himself.
Peter scratched his head. Why did dividing by a fraction produce more froggy horses rather than fewer?

Three levels

Support: Stay with the butcher passage. The teacher reads it aloud twice, once at normal volume and once whispering the unquoted question, and the student traces the quotation marks with a finger before highlighting. Sort only that one pair onto the mat.
At Grade: Highlight and box in the first passage, then sort all of Peter's lines from the two further passages onto the mat with the punctuation named as proof.
Extension: Argue the muttering line: it carries quotation marks yet Peter muttered to himself. Write two sentences saying what the book gains by punctuating it as speech and what would change if it were printed unquoted like the wondering lines.

English learners

Not every language marks reported thought differently from speech, and several use dashes rather than quotation marks for dialogue, so name the mark itself before the sorting: these two curly marks mean somebody heard it. Wondered and muttered are the two tags that carry the whole distinction and need saying aloud with the passage. Students may say heard or not heard in their strongest language while placing a line on the mat, as long as they point to the punctuation in English that proves it.

Materials

Printed passage: the butcher and his wife
highlighter
said-or-thought sorting mat
Printed passage: the crystal that sees living things
Printed passage: Peter scratches his head
said-or-thought log
Word cards: wondered, muttered, yelled

Standards & curriculum

Choose your curriculum above to see the standards for this lesson.