Lesson 3: The Call of the Wild - Build Vocabulary and Analyze Tone and Mood About this lesson Students continue reading chapter 1 of The Call of the Wild, build vocabulary through context, and discuss how the author’s word choice and description set a tone/mood that emphasizes Buck’s return to a primitive state. An audio recording of The Call of the Wild is available at https://librivox.org/call-of-the-wild-by-jack-london/.
We read the beginning of The Call of the Wild and characterized Buck based on textual evidence. Let’s Review! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~1 minute Directions: Briefly review the previous learning.
Analyze the author’s word choice and its impact on tone. Today we will: Continue reading, discussing, and defining words in context in Chapter 1 of The Call of the Wild. Continue to analyze how Buck’s experiences and interactions reveal aspects of his character. Analyze the author’s word choice and its impact on tone. Let’s Prepare! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~1 minute Directions: Read the slide. Briefly explain how this lesson prepares students for another lesson and/or the end-of-unit assessments. Throughout the lesson, compare students’ responses and work to the student look-fors. Determine the students who need additional support with reading, understanding, or expressing their understanding of complex, grade-level texts. During this lesson or before the next lesson, support those students individually or in a small group using the Additional Supports for Diverse Learners.
The Call of the Wild by Jack London You will need: The Call of the Wild by Jack London Your split-page notes for Chapter 1 The conversation stems Let’s Prepare! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~ 3 minutes Directions: Distribute the text. Access and distribute the conversation stems learning tool using an established classroom routine. Ask students to locate their split-page notes handout for chapter 1 and their vocabulary chart handout from the previous lesson. This lesson uses accountable talk. Access the strategy one-pager to learn about accountable talk.
Share your paragraph from the end of the previous lesson with a partner. Let’s Discuss! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~3 minutes Directions: Divide the class into pairs using an established classroom routine. Purposefully pair together students with different levels of language proficiency. Direct pairs to select a partner A and B. Establish norms for the partner work and explain that students will be held accountable for their learning by using the conversation stems learning tool during the discussion. Direct partner A to begin the discussion by sharing their paragraph from the previous lesson with their partner. Allow 1 minute for partner A to share. Then direct partner B to respond and share for an additional minute. Prompt pairs to use the conversation stems learning tool as they discuss. After 2 minutes, engage students in a brief, whole-class discussion by asking how they would characterize Buck/ why given their discussion with their partners. Use teacher talk moves so students [clearly express their ideas (Goal One), listen carefully to understand others’ ideas (Goal Two), provide evidence to support their claims (Goal Three), establish new ways of thinking (Goal Four)]. Possible Supports During the Lesson: As needed, prior to the discussion, model how to use the conversation stems learning tool or identify specific stems students must use during the conversation. Student Look-Fors: Access a completed split-page notes handout.
Follow along in your copy of The Call of the Wild while I read aloud. Let’s Read! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~5 minutes Directions: Say: “I’m going to read the this text aloud. As I read, think about how Buck’s experiences reveal aspects of his character, and how the author’s word choice develops the tone. Read aloud beginning with paragraph 22 as students follow along. Read through: “There was an instantaneous scattering of the four men who had carried it in, and from safe perches on top the wall they prepared to watch the performance.” Direct students to turn and talk for 30-60 seconds to discuss the gist of this section of the text. Possible Supports During the Lesson: As needed, play the audio recording instead of reading aloud the text. To keep students actively involved during the read aloud and to practice their reading fluency, engage students in choral reading or echo reading. Student Look-Fors: Students should follow along silently as you read aloud.
“He was metamorphosed into a raging fiend. So changed was With your partner, complete the following sentence stem “The word ‘metamorphosed” means….” “He was metamorphosed into a raging fiend. So changed was he that the Judge himself would not have recognized him; and the express messengers breathed with relief when they bundled him off the train at Seattle.” Let’s Work With Words! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~10 minutes Directions: Divide the class into pairs using an established classroom routine. Purposefully pair/group together students with similar levels of language proficiency. Direct pairs to select a partner A and B. Establish norms for the partner work and explain that students will be held accountable for their learning by participating in the whole-class discussion. Give students 1 minute to develop their answer. Then direct partner A to begin the discussion by completing the sentence stem: “The word ‘metamorphosed’ means. . .” Allow 1 minute for partner A to share. Then direct partner B to respond and share. Prompt students to use the conversation stems learning tool during the discussion. Conclude the discussion by conduct a brief whole-class discussion: Ask: “What does the word, ‘metamorphosed’ mean?” Ask: “What part of the passages helped you understand the meaning of the word?” Ask: “Why is this word choice important? Possible Supports During the Lesson: If students are not providing answers similar to the Student Look-Fors: Ask: “What connotation or relationships does the word ‘metamorphosed’ suggest?” Ask: “Why did Jack London choose this word instead of just saying he changed?” Ask: “What, then, is the significance of this particular word?” Student Look-Fors: The word metamorphosed means changed.. In the discussion of the third question, students should note: The word metamorphosed has a scientific or natural feel to it. It seems to emphasize the idea that the wild/nature is behind this transformation. By using the word, the author is also emphasizing how much Buck is changing. Buck has become a different dog from the pampered “king” of the Judge’s place. He is suffering for the first time in his life; he has not been given enough water and has a fever. He is caged, and no longer free to roam around. He is learning more and more not to trust men; the men he encounters now are “evil-looking creatures, ragged and unkempt.” At first Buck responds with violence (“he stormed and raged…”) but then he realizes that the men will only tease him so he learns to react less. Buck is no longer a trusting, domesticated dog; he is a wild and dangerous animal. This is one of the themes of the novel: the transition of a character.
Follow along in your copy of The Call of the Wild while I read aloud. Let’s Read! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~7 minutes Directions: Before reading aloud, ask students to share what they know about tone and mood and their differences. Students should note that tone is the how the author feels about the character or subject of the text (e.g., serious, comical, etc.). Students should note that mood is the feeling that the reader has about the text (Note: These should be familiar literary terms for students. If students struggle, consider giving the examples below). Tell students to pay attention to the tone of the writing in the next section, and how this makes them feel as a reader. Give directions to students to follow along in their copies of the text as you read aloud. Start at: “Buck rushed at the splintering wood, sinking his teeth into it, surging and wrestling with it.” Stop at: “Also he saw one dog, that would neither conciliate nor obey, finally killed in the struggle for mastery.” Possible Supports During the Lesson: If students struggle to define tone and mood, share the following examples: Say: “Consider a newspaper article that’s purpose is to give information about a new store that’s opening in the community. The tone of that article is likely serious or objective given it’s supposed to give you, the reader, factual content. Since the purpose is to give you information, it may not evoke a particular mood.” Say: “Compare that to a ghost story that you have heard or read. The tone of that may be more mysterious, and the mood that’s created for you, the reader, is one of fear or suspense.” Say: “The words an author uses help to determine the tone of the text. Just like your tone of voice when you are speaking with someone, your attitude toward that person or the subject you are talking about will change the way you say or word things. So, if the author uses the word “confident” to describe a person, the tone is respectful versus if the author uses the word “arrogant” to describe the same person.” Say: “The words an author uses also help to determine the mood of the text. In the ghost story example above, words and phrases like, ‘the dark, empty room was silent’ or ‘an hollow wind blew through the alley and I got an eerie sense that someone was following me’ create a mood of fear or suspense in the reader. Student Look-Fors: Students should follow along silently as you read.
Reread paragraphs 32-34 with your partner. Identify sensory details used to describe Buck’s beating. How do these details make you feel as a reader? How does the author’s use of vivid, violent description impact the tone and mood of the text? Let’s Discuss! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~8 minutes Directions: Students may remain in pairs. Give students directions to reread paragraphs 32-34 and answer the questions on the split-page notes handout. Remind students to include textual evidence to support their answers. Monitor student work time, and provide support to pairs as needed by asking questions or prompting students to look back in the text. After 5 minutes, engage students in a brief, whole-class discussion of questions 1-2 to ensure student comprehension. Use teacher talk moves so students [clearly express their ideas (Goal One), listen carefully to understand others’ ideas (Goal Two), provide evidence to support their claims (Goal Three), establish new ways of thinking (Goal Four)]. Possible Supports During the Lesson: If students are not providing answers similar to the Student Look-Fors: Ask: “How is Buck described?” Ask: “What do words like ‘hair bristling, mouth foaming, a mad glitter in his bloodshot eyes’ suggest? How do they make you feel as a reader? Why?” Ask: “What adjectives and adverbs are used to describe Buck’s response to the beating? What does it mean to ‘stagger limply’?” Ask: “How does Buck physically look or appear after the beating?” Ask: “What verbs emphasize the cruelty of the beating and the fierce resistance from Buck? What tone or mood do these create? Why?” Student Look-Fors: Access a completed split-notes handout for Chapter 1.
“He was beaten (he knew that); but he was not broken. He saw, once With your partner, complete the following sentence stem “The word ‘primitive” means….” “He was beaten (he knew that); but he was not broken. He saw, once for all, that he stood no chance against a man with a club. He had learned the lesson, and in all his afterlife he never forgot it. That club was a revelation. It was his introduction to the reign of primitive law, and he met the introduction halfway.” Let’s Work With Words! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~6 minutes Directions: Students may remain in pairs. Direct pairs to select a partner A and B. Establish norms for the partner work and explain that students will be held accountable for their learning by participating in the whole-class discussion. Give students 1 minute to read the sentences from chapter 1 on the slide develop their answer. Then direct partner A to begin the discussion by completing the sentence stem: “The word ‘primitive’ means. . .” Allow 1 minute for partner A to share. Then direct partner B to respond and share. Prompt students to use the conversation stems learning tool during the discussion. Conclude the discussion by conduct a brief whole-class discussion: Ask: “What does the word, ‘primitive’ mean?” Ask: “What part of the passages helped you understand the meaning of the word?” Ask: “What does the author mean when he says that this was Buck’s first introduction “to the reign of primitive law”?” Use teacher talk moves so students [clearly express their ideas (Goal One), listen carefully to understand others’ ideas (Goal Two), provide evidence to support their claims (Goal Three), establish new ways of thinking (Goal Four)]. Possible Supports During the Lesson: If students are not providing answers similar to the Student Look-Fors: Ask: “Why does Buck learn from this experience with the club?” Ask: “What does the author mean by ‘the reign of primitive law’?” Ask: “What rules govern Buck and his life now? Why is that significant?” Student Look-Fors: In the discussion about the meaning of the “reign of primitive law,” students should note: The lines refer to the rules of nature, rather than the rules of civilization. This quote touches on another theme of the book: a comparison of the wild and civilization. In these lines, the author shows just how far Buck has come from Judge Miller’s place. There, the Judge treated Buck with respect. In this new, primitive world, Buck can expect violence. As long as he knows how to react to it, though, Buck has shown he can survive—and still keep his dignity. Buck has learned that he has to obey men with clubs, but also that he does not have to treat them as his master.
Complete the last box on your split-page notes handout. As you write your response, reflect on the novel’s epigraph and consider whether Buck’s return to a primitive state is the result of instinct or reason and emotions? Let’s Express Our Understanding! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~ 5 minutes Directions: Read the directions on the slide for students. Share the qualities of a strong response (e.g., restates the question, demonstrates understanding of the text, includes relevant evidence to support the ideas, written in complete sentences, etc.). Monitor student work time. If students need more time to complete their response, they should do so for homework. Possible Supports During the Lesson: If students are not writing answers similar to the Student Look-Fors: Prompt students to return to their split-page notes handout from earlier in the lesson to support their answer. Ask: “Why did you choose that text evidence? How does it support the idea of the wild or the natural, somewhat violent state of things?” Student Look-Fors: Access the completed split-page notes handout. Students should also begin to make connections between Buck’s character, a theme of the novel, and the unit focus questions. Many will not be able to express their understanding yet, which is acceptable.
In this lesson, you continued reading Chapter 1 of The Call of the Wild by Jack London. You also analyzed the author’s tone and word choice to emphasize Buck’s return to a primitive state. Let’s Close! Teaching Notes Suggested Pacing: ~1 minute Directions: Read the slide.