The Story
of Jumping Mouse
A Native American Legend
Retold by John Steptoe
The
Story of Jumping Mouse is an engaging story full of life
lessons for any age. It allows the reader to make connections to
their own lives and the lives of others. It incorporates many
character traits, perspectives on seeing the world in different
ways, and examples of how we should treat others. Jumping Mouse
is curious and has a dream to fulfill. This legend takes us
through his journey as we recognize our own actions and feelings
in many of the characters.
Used as
part of our �tales and legends� genre study, my students were
able to pick out the elements of a tale in this story. We found:
the characters are �personified.� There were lessons learned (of
lasting importance). There was also some magical events,
![chart that describes characters](chart.jpg)
We read
this book twice. The first time was to just listen. We later
discussed the story in literature circle groups. The second time
it was read, students used post-it notes to record character
traits of the characters. We then gathered to list the character
traits that the characters exhibited. This also generated a lot
of discussion about the characters actions.
Student
then were given one trait to write a journal response on. Some
students write about themselves while others wrote about someone
else. This personal connection created great discussion during
sharing time!
Using
Kidspiration, students created self character webs using
character traits to describe themselves.
![kidspiration diagram of story character](jumpingmouse.gif)
Connecticut
Standards:
Technology: Standard 1: Basic Operations and Concepts Standard
2: Social, Ethical and Human Issues (practice responsible use of
technology)
Standard 3: Technology Productivity Tools (use of appropriate
software)
Standard 4: Technology Communication Tools (Use of technology
resources)
Language Arts:
Standard 1: Reading and Responding (1.1, 1.2, 1.4)
Standard 2: Exploring and Responding to Literature (2.1, 2.2,
2.3, 2.4)
Physical Education
and Character Education:
Standard 4: Responsible Behavior |