Voices

worldwise

Paul D. Coverdell

schools

from the Field

READING AND WRITING ABOUT THE WORLD, OURSELVES, AND OTHERS
This guide contains materials written by educators and others that represent their individual views.These views are not

official opinions of the United States Government or of the Peace Corps.

worldwise

schools

Paul D. Coverdell
I NTRODUCTION

Organization of this Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

About the Peace Corps.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Coverdell World Wise Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

P EACE C ORPS S T ORIES

“At Home in the World” by Bill Moyers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Heroes and Friends

“I Had a Hero” by Mike Tidwell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

“‘Magic’ Pablo” by Mark Brazaitis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

“Nomadic Life” by Susan Rich. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Perspectives

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue” by Roz Wollmering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

“On Sunday There Might Be Americans” by Leslie Simmonds Ekstrom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

No Easy Answers

“Ilunga’s Harvest” by Mike Tidwell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

“The Talking Goat” by John Acree. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

“The Extra Place” by Susan Peters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

“A Single Lucid Moment” by Robert Soderstrom. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

C ONTENTS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 3
C URRICULUM U NITS

Reading and Responding to Literature

Reading and Responding to “I Had a Hero” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Reading and Responding to “‘Magic’ Pablo” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Reading and Responding to “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Reading and Responding to “On Sunday There Might Be Americans” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Reading and Responding to “Ilunga’s Harvest”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Reading and Responding to “The Talking Goat” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Reading and Responding to “The Extra Place” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Reading and Responding to “A Single Lucid Moment”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

A Reading and Writing Workshop

The Power of Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

The Power of Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

The Power of Dialogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

The Power of Stories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Introduction to the Story Elements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Understanding Character (Part One) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Understanding Character (Part Two). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Understanding Plot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Understanding Tone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Understanding Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Reading Like Writers/Writing Like Readers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

4 Voices From the Field
Coverdell World Wise Schools 5

A PPENDIX

Appendix A: Educational Framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Appendix B: Reading Comprehension Strategies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Appendix C: Literature Circles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Appendix D: The Use of Journals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272

Years ago, I woke to look out the window of a plane I had been riding all night, and in

the still-dark morning knew I was home. Minutes later, the pilot announced that we were

beginning our descent, and I watched as the black shadows slowly dissolved into mountains

and trees, roads and houses.The sun, hiding beneath the horizon, cast the city in a pinkorange light.The plane swooped down closer, and I could see a patch of huckleberries by the

railroad tracks, a gnarled log floating down the Susquehanna, and a stack of coal outside the

old, abandoned church.We hit the ground with a dull thud, and I turned away from the

window and gathered my bags. But a sensation stayed with me for days, months, and even

years after: Peace Corps service had given me new eyes.

And ears. Because everything around me spoke, whispering of other possibilities.

Peace Corps service can have this effect. For two years you struggle to say words in a little-known dialect—simple words like “water” and “teacher”—and one day you wake up

to realize that the words for “dream” and “intention” are there, at the back of your throat,

waiting for the moment when you need them. And one day, you need them. Words like

these can change the way you see and the way you hear, and conversations like these can

cause your heart to beat in a different rhythm....

Voices from the Field

“Our classrooms ought to pulsate with multiple conceptions of what it is to

be human and alive,” writes Maxine Greene in Releasing the Imagination: Essays

on Education, Art, and Social Change. “They ought to resound with the voices of

articulate young people in dialogues always incomplete because there is always

more to be discovered and more to be said. We must want our students to

achieve friendship as each one stirs to wide-awakeness, to imaginative action,

and to renewed consciousness of possibility.”

Voices from the Field: Reading and Writing about the World, Ourselves, and Others

is a response to Greene’s challenge. And it is a celebration of and an invitation

to “wide-awakened” lives.

I NTRODUCTION

It takes a thousand voices 

to tell a single story.

Native American saying

Coverdell World Wise Schools 7
I NTRODUCTION

8 Voices From the Field

Peace Corps Literature

For the past 40 years, a quiet revolution has been taking place in the minds and

hearts of 163,000 Americans. One by one, they travel thousands of miles to villages

seldom found on any map. There, they live and work with the people of their host

communities—eating the same food, speaking the same language, living in the same

environment, and following the same cultural norms. And somewhere, somehow, at

some point, something happens:

“My Peace Corps service was a watershed experience.

It is the single most important event in my life.”

“I see my life as divided into two parts,

before Peace Corps and after Peace Corps.”

“Peace Corps shaped me, transformed me—

shaking me out of the deep fog that was my life.”

Long after Volunteers return home, they struggle to answer the question, what happened? Everyday speech proves inadequate; it is too fleeting, too trite. Only the written word—the creative outlets of poetry, memoir, and fiction—can capture the

nuances and grasp the complexities of their experience.

These creative endeavors have not gone unnoticed. The Washington Post reports

(September 9, 2001) that the Peace Corps community is “churning out enough

works—thousands of memoirs, novels, and books of poetry—to warrant a whole new

genre: Peace Corps Literature.”

Ripples of Hope

Voices from the Field is, as the name suggests, a collection, or chorus, of voices.

Although the voices of Peace Corps writers resound loud and clear, it is the voices of

the Volunteers’ friends and neighbors that will no doubt linger in the minds of readers long after the stories have ended. This is as it should be, for the Peace Corps experience is never the Volunteer’s alone; it is yours, mine, ours. As such, there is much to

be learned from it—lessons that can affect us all.

“Every time a man or woman acts to improve the fate of others,” Charles Baquet,

former Deputy Director of the Peace Corps, once remarked,“they send a tiny ripple

of hope, and crossing each other from many similar efforts, these ripples build a current that can sweep away what ails us all.”

Peace Corps Literature is a ripple of hope. And we invite your students to join

their voices to this “dialogue” that is always incomplete because there is always more

to be discovered and more to be said. Together, we can stir one another to wideawakeness.Together, we can build a current that can sweep away what ails us all.
I NTRODUCTION

Coverdell World Wise Schools 9

O RGANIZATION OF T HIS G UIDE

Voices from the Field: Reading and Writing about the World, Ourselves, and Others is designed for

use by language arts teachers in grades 7-12. The collection is divided into two sections: Peace

Corps Stories and Curriculum Units.

The Peace Corps Stories section contains nine Peace Corps texts—around which our lesson plans are organized. Representing a variety of genres (personal narratives, fiction, folktales,

and poetry), the texts are grouped under three themes: Heroes and Friends; Perspectives; and No

Easy Answers.

The section titled Curriculum Units contains two separate, but complementary language arts

units, Reading and Responding to Literature and A Reading and Writing Workshop. Both units are standards-based; both use the Understanding by Design curriculum design framework (see Appendix A);

and both can be adapted for use with secondary students of any grade or ability level.

The Reading and Responding to Literature unit is comprised of lesson plans that are especially

useful for increasing students’ reading comprehension skills. The lesson plans are designed to:

• engage students’ minds in the content of the story;

• stir their hearts with the author’s unique message;

• encourage them to identify and explore the questions the story inspires;

• increase their reading comprehension skills; and

• invite them to find connections between the author’s experience, the story’s content, and

their own lives.

A Reading and Writing Workshop uses the Peace Corps stories as a springboard to students’

own self-discovery through the writing process.The lesson plans are designed to:

• encourage students to “read like writers” and “write like readers”;

• create a community of writers and readers; and

• deepen students’ awareness of writing as a tool of self-discovery.
I NTRODUCTION

10 Voices From the Field

The Peace Corps is an independent agency of the United States Government

that was established through the vision and efforts of President John F. Kennedy,

who challenged Americans to dedicate two years of their lives to helping people

in developing countries.The Peace Corps mission is to promote peace and friendship by making available willing and qualified U.S. citizens to interested countries

to achieve the following three goals:

• To help the people of interested countries in meeting their needs for trained

men and women;

• To promote a better understanding of the American people on the part of

the peoples served;

• To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of the

American people.

Since the first group arrived in Ghana in 1961, Peace Corps Volunteers have

served in more than 130 countries. Although programs vary from country to

country based on the host nation’s needs,Volunteers traditionally offer skills in

education, agriculture, small business development, community development, the

environment, and health.

An innovative global education program of the Peace Corps, Coverdell World

Wise Schools seeks to engage U.S. students in an inquiry about the world, themselves, and others, in order to:

• broaden perspectives;

• promote cultural awareness;

• appreciate global connections; and 

• encourage service.

Since the program’s inception in 1989 at the initiation of U.S. Senator Paul D.

Coverdell, more than 2,000,000 students in all 50 states have communicated

directly with Peace Corps Volunteers all over the world. Initially set up as a correspondence “match” program between Volunteers and U.S. classes, CWWS has

expanded its scope by providing a broad range of resources for educators—including award-winning videos, teacher guides, classroom speakers, a newsletter, and a

Web site. For more information about Coverdell World Wise Schools, see

www.peacecorps.gov/wws.

COVERDELL

WORLD WISE SCHOOLS

THE PEACE CORPS
11

T

hroughout time, there have been many eloquent calls to service. In his

inaugural address, John F. Kennedy spoke words that stirred the minds and

hearts of a generation:“...ask not what your country can do for you—ask

what you can do for your country... ask not what America can do for you, but

together what we can do for the freedom of man.”

A call to serve can take many forms—something you hear or read or see.

You can’t respond to every call, but in your lifetime there will be at least one

that moves you to action. For over 163,00 Americans, the call came from the

Peace Corps.

Bill Moyers, once deputy director of the Peace Corps and a contributor to

this collection, sums up why people join. “It was said that the urge to join the

Peace Corps was passion alone. Not so. Men and women, whatever their age,

looked their lives over and chose to affirm.To affirm is the thing. And so they

have—in quiet, self-effacing perseverance.”

In the four decades it has spanned, Peace Corps has held a special attraction

for Americans—a way of serving their country and a way of helping others.

Peace Corps Volunteers are different from other Americans who go overseas.

They are not missionaries. Or tourists.They are not intelligence agents or academics. They are not there on business trips or to advise foreign governments.

Peace Corps Volunteers are invited by developing countries to come and

share their skills.They live the way the people in that country live—not in big

houses or behind high walls. They don’t drive fancy cars. In fact, they don’t

even own cars.

Most visitors to developing countries will never venture outside of the capital city or an isolated vacation spot. Peace Corps Volunteers live and work in

villages and cities that may never be tourist sites, and towns at the ends of the

earth.They unpack their belongings.They settle down.They set about to do a

job. And they make some lifelong friends along the way.

Coverdell World Wise Schools

Two or three things I know, two or

three things I know for sure, and

one of them is that to go on living

I have to tell stories, that stories are

the one sure way I know to touch

the heart and change the world.

Dorothy Allison 

Author

P EACE C ORPS S T ORIES
In many of the stories you’re about to read, you will see how Peace

Corps changed the lives of these Volunteers. As Mike Tidwell, a

Volunteer in the Democratic Republic of the Congo writes, “For two

years, I lived among the Kalambayan people. I spoke their language and

taught many of them how to raise fish. My goal was to increase protein

consumption. But what I gave these people in the form of development

advice, they returned tenfold in lessons on what it means to be human.

There, at the center of the continent, they shared with me the ancient

spirit of Africa’s heart.”

Peace Corps Volunteers have served in over 130 countries—in Asia,

Latin America, the Pacific, the Middle East, Eastern and Central Europe,

and the former Soviet Union. They’re working on education, business

development, technology, and the environment. They are working in

health and agriculture. But as many schools and roads and wells as

Volunteers have built, perhaps the most important thing they have built

is hope. It’s a very American sensibility—to think that with hard work

you can improve your life. And it’s a very Peace Corps sensibility to go

out and actually help people do it.

With all the problems and challenges facing us today, one person’s

work may seem insignificant. But perhaps Robert Kennedy said it best:

“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can

work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts

will be written the history of this generation.”

What you have here, then, is history—with many more generations

still to be written.

P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

12 Voices From the Field
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 13

S

ometimes the soundtrack of memories deep in my mind begins to play

back the Sixties, echoing the incongruities of those years. I hear the

sounds of crowds cheering and cities burning; of laughing children and

weeping widows; of falling barriers and new beginnings....

But something survived those years, something that bullets could not stop.

An idea survived, embodied in the Peace Corps.

I knew President John F. Kennedy, the founder of the Peace Corps. And I

remember him today not so much for what he was or what he wasn’t but for

what he empowered in me.We all edit history to give some form to the puzzle of our lives, and I cherish the memory of him for awakening me to a different story for myself. He placed my life in a larger narrative than I could ever

have written. John Kennedy knew what great leaders have always known: preserving civilization is the work not of some miracle-working, superhuman

personality, but of each one of us.

John Kennedy spoke to my generation about service and sharing; he called

us to careers of discovery through lives open to others.There was music in this

discovery. It was for us not a trumpet but a bell sounding in countless individual hearts, a clear note that said: ‘You matter.You signify.You can make a

difference.’ Romantic? Perhaps. But we were not then so indifferent toward

romance. We watched and cheered as each Peace Corps Volunteer waged

hand-to-hand combat with cynicism, and won.

Today, forty years later, they keep on winning.

It has been said that the urge to join the Peace Corps is passion alone. Not

so. Men and women, whatever their age, look their lives over and choose to

affirm.To affirm is the thing. And so they have—in quiet, self effacing perseverance.

They come—these men and women—from a vein of American life as idealistic as the Declaration and as gritty as the Constitution. I am reminded of

an interview I had with Henry Steele Commager, the renowned American

historian. Reviewing the critical chapters of our history, he said that great

things were done by all the generations that preceded us. And—said Dr.

Commager—there are still great things to be done...here at home and in the

world.

So there are. But if from the lonely retreats of our separate values we are to

create a new consensus of shared values; if we are to exorcise the lingering poison of racism, reduce the extremes of poverty and wealth, and overcome the

AT HOME

IN THE WORLD

By Bill Moyers

Former Deputy Director,

The Peace Corps
14 Voices From the Field

ignorance of our world; if we are to find a sense of life’s wholeness and the holiness of one another, then from this deep vein which gave rise to the Peace Corps

must come our power and light.

We Americans are not a narrow tribe of men and women.We are not a nation

so much as a world.And these Volunteers are showing us how to be at home in

the world.

“The dream we must seek to realize,” writes author Michael Venture, “the

new human project, is not ‘security,’ which is impossible to achieve on the planet Earth in the 21st century. It is not ‘happiness,’ by which we generally mean

nothing but a giddy forgetfulness. It is not ‘self-realization,’ by which people

usually mean a separate peace.There is no separate peace.Technology has married us all to each other, has made us one people on one planet.There is no such

thing as going alone. Not anymore. Our project, the new human task, is to learn

how to sustain, and how to enjoy this most human marriage.”

America has a rendezvous with what my late friend, Joseph Campbell, called

“a mighty multicultural future.” But we are not alone.We have guides—160,000

Peace Corps Volunteers who have advanced the trip. They have been going

where our country is going. Out there in the world, as John F. Kennedy might

say, is truly the new frontier.

P EACE C ORPS S TORIES
Heroes & Friends

For a moment we just kept gawking, Ilunga and I, mentally

circling each other, both of us deciding whether to burst out

laughing or to run for safety. In the end, we did neither.

We became friends.

“My name is Ilunga,” he said, extending his hand.

“My name is Michael,” I said, shaking it.

From “I Had a Hero”

I would like to trade with her

my typewriter keys

for the way she navigates the desert

From “Nomadic Life”
16 Voices From the Field

About the Setting 

The Congo, Central Africa

H EROES & F RIENDS

“I Had a Hero” and “Ilunga’s Harvest” (see page 54) both take place in the remote village of

Ntita Kalambayi in the heart of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC), formerly

Zaire (and before that, the Belgian Congo). Lying on the Equator, almost in the middle of

the continent of Africa, the DROC has the third largest population, and the second largest

land area in sub-Saharan Africa. It includes the Congo River Basin, which covers an area of

almost 400,000 square miles.The author, Mike Tidwell, served in Ntita Kalambayi as a Peace

Corps agriculture extension agent from 1985-1987.The Peace Corps has had a strong partnership with the people of Africa since its inception.Volunteers currently work in 25 African

countries in the areas of education, health, business, agriculture, and the environment.

Democratic

Republic

of the Congo
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 17

E

quipped with a motorcycle from the United States Agency for International

Development and administrative support from the Zairian Department of

Agriculture and Rural Development, I set out to show the people of

Kalambayi something about fish culture. I was an extension agent for the government’s Projet Pisiculture Familiale.

Six days a week, I left my house around 7 a.m. and rode as much as forty miles

over unspeakably eroded dirt roads and down narrow paths. I visited villages and

expounded the virtues of fish culture to anyone who would listen. “No thanks.

We’ve got enough work to do already.” Around six in the evening, exhausted

from equal parts of sun and foreign language, I’d return home.

It was after a few weeks of this that I met Ilunga Mbumba, chief of the village

of Ntita Kalambayi. I was riding my Yamaha 125 Enduro through an uninhabited stretch of bush when he appeared from out of the ten-foot-tall grass along the

trail, signaling for me to stop. Had he not waved, I’m pretty sure I would have

stopped anyway. Ilunga had been out hunting antelope and he presented a sight

worth seeing. In one hand he carried a spear, in the other a crude machete. On

his head was a kind of coonskin cap with a bushy tail hanging down in back.

Around his neck was a string supporting a leather charm to ward off bad bush

spirits.Two underfed mongrel dogs circled his bare feet, panting.

When I stopped and saw Ilunga for the first time, I saw a man living, it seemed

to me, in another century. Inside the tall grass from which he had just stepped,

the clock ran a thousand years slow, if it registered any time at all. Unable to help

myself, I stared at him openly, taking him in from head to toe. He, meanwhile,

stared back at me with the same wide-eyed incredulity.And no wonder.With my

ghost-white skin and rumbling motorcycle, with my bulging safety goggles and

orange riding gloves, with my bushy brown beard flowing out from under a

banana-yellow crash helmet—with all this, I suppose I had a lot of nerve thinking of him as a museum piece.

For a moment we just kept gawking, Ilunga and I, mentally circling each

other, both of us deciding whether to burst out laughing or to run for safety. In

the end, we did neither.We became friends.

“My name is Ilunga,” he said, extending his hand.

“My name is Michael,” I said, shaking it.

We smiled at each other another moment before Ilunga got around to telling

me he had heard my job was to teach people how to raise fish. It sounded like

something worth trying, he said, and he wondered if I would come by his village to help him look for a pond site. I said I would and took down directions

to his house.

I HAD A HERO

By Mike Tidwell 

RPCV Congo
H EROES & F RIENDS

18 Voices From the Field

The next day the two of us set off into the bush, hunting for a place to

raise fish.

“The first thing we need,” I told Ilunga, “is water. Do you know a good

spot where there’s a small stream or a spring?”

“Follow me,” he said.

Machetes in hand, we stomped and stumbled and hacked our way through

the savanna grass for two hours before finding an acceptable site along a

stream about a twenty-minute walk from Ilunga’s village. Together, we paced

off a pond and staked a water canal running between it and a point farther up

the stream.Then, with a shovel I sold him on credit against his next corn harvest, Ilunga began a two-month journey through dark caverns of physical pain

and overexertion. He began digging. No bulldozers here.The task of carving

out a pond from the valley-bottom floor was left to the farmer himself.

There is no easy way to dig a fish pond with a shovel.You just have to do

it.You have to place the tip to the ground, push the shovel in with your foot,

pull up a load of dirt, and then throw the load twenty or thirty feet to the

pond’s edge.Then you have to do it again—tip to the ground, push it in, pull

it up, throw the dirt. After you do this about 50,000 times, you have an average-sized, ten-by-fifteen-meter pond.

In many ways, the work is like a marathon. If you go too fast, you invite

physical ruin. If you go too slow, you may never finish.You have to pace yourself. You have to dig a few hours each day, carefully spreading out the pain

over time. But no matter what, you can’t take a break.You can’t stop. Not even

for a week.To do so is to risk losing the rhythm of the fight and so become

suddenly overwhelmed by the task at hand. Once the shovel enters the soil

the first time, the work must continue every day—tip to the ground, push it

in, pull it up, throw the dirt—again and again, meter by meter, 50,000 times,

until the marathon is over.

But Ilunga, being a chief and all, wasn’t content with an average-sized

pond. He wanted one almost twice that size. He wanted a pond fifteen by

twenty meters. I told him he was crazy, as we measured it out. I repeated the

point with added conviction after watching him use his bare foot to drive the

thin shovel blade into the ground.

“A pond this big is too much work for one person,” I said. “It’ll kill you.”

“See you next week,” he said.

“It’s too much, Ilunga.”

He started digging.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 19

“Okay,” I said. “Bonne chance.”

I left him at the pond site and began heading toward the village, hearing

every ten seconds as I walked away the sound of a shovel-load of dirt hitting

the ground after traveling twenty feet through the air.

For me, it was painful visiting Ilunga each week. This was the part of the

fish culture process I had been dreading ever since arriving. I’d come to check

on the pond’s progress and find Ilunga grunting and shoveling and pitching

dirt the same way I had left him the week before. I winced each time his foot

pushed the shovel into the ground. I groaned inwardly at the sight of his

clothes, ragged, full of yawning holes that revealed a glistening, overworked

body. I calculated that to finish the pond he would have to move a total of

4,000 cubic feet of dirt. Guilt gnawed at me.This was no joke. He really was

going to kill himself.

One week I couldn’t stand it any longer. I found Ilunga at the pond site

with his body covered with the usual mixture of dirt and sweat.

“Give me the shovel,” I told him.

“Oh no, Michael,” he said. “This work is too much for you.”

“Give it to me,” I repeated, a bit indignantly. “Take a rest.”

He shrugged and handed me the shovel. I began digging. Okay, I thought,

tip to the ground, push it in, pull it up, throw the dirt. I did it again. It wasn’t nearly as hard as I had thought. Stroke after stroke, I kept going. About

twenty minutes later, though, it got hot. I began wondering how, at 8:30 in

the morning, the sun had suddenly reached noontime intensity. I paused to

take off my shirt. Ilunga, thinking I was quitting, jumped up and reached for

the shovel.

“No, no,” I said. “I’m still digging. Sit down.”

He shrugged again and said that since I was apparently serious about digging, he was going to go check on one of his fields.

Shirtless, alone, I carried on.Tip to the ground, push it in, pull it up, throw

the dirt. An hour passed. Tip to the ground, push it in, pull it up... throw...

throw the... dammit, throw the dirt. My arms were signaling that they didn’t

like tossing dirt over such a great distance. It hurts, they said. Stop making us

do it. But I couldn’t stop. I had been digging a paltry hour and a half. I was

determined to go on, to help Ilunga. How could I expect villagers to do work

I was incapable of doing myself? 
H EROES & F RIENDS

20 Voices From the Field

Sweat gathered on my forehead and streamed down my face as I continued, shoveling and shoveling. About thirty minutes passed and things started

to get really ugly. My body buckled with fatigue. My back and shoulders

joined my arms in screaming for an end to hostilities. I was no longer able to

throw the dirt. Instead, I carried each load twenty feet and ignobly spooned

it onto the dike. I was glad Ilunga wasn’t around to see this. It was embarrassing. And God it was hot. The hottest day I could ever remember. Even

occasional breezes rustling through the surrounding savanna grass didn’t help.

And then I looked at my hands. Both palms had become blistered. One was

bleeding.

I took a short break and began digging again.The pain resumed, cracking

out all over my body. Fifteen minutes later, my hands finally refused to grip

the shovel. It fell to the ground. My back then refused to bend down to allow

my arms the chance to refuse to pick it up. After just two hours of digging, I

was incapable of doing any more.With a stiff, unnatural walk, I went over to

the dike. Ilunga had just returned, and I collapsed next to him.

“I think I’ll stop now,” I managed, unable to hide my piteous state. “Take

over if you want.”

He did. He stood up, grabbed the shovel and began working—smoothly,

confidently, a man inured to hard work.Tip to the ground, push it in, pull it

up, throw the dirt. Lying on my side, exhausted, I watched Ilunga. Then I

looked hard at the spot where I had been digging. I had done nothing.The

pond was essentially unchanged. I had moved perhaps thirty cubic feet of dirt.

That meant 3,970 cubic feet for Ilunga.

After the brief digging experience, my weekly visits to the pond became

even more painful and my awe of Ilunga grew. Day after day, four or five

hours each day, he kept going. He kept digging his pond. He worked like a

bull and never complained. Not once. Not when he hit a patch of gravel-size

rocks that required a pickaxe and extra sweat. Not when, at the enormous

pond’s center, he had to throw each shovel-load twice to reach the dikes.And

not when he became ill.

His hand was on fire one morning when I arrived and shook it.

“You’re sick,” I said.

“I know,” he said and resumed digging.

“Then quit working and get some rest.”

“I can’t,” came the reply. “I’ve got to finish this pond.”
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 21

Several weeks later, Ilunga drove his shovel into the earth and threw its

load one last time. I never thought it would happen, but there it was: Ilunga’s

pond, huge, fifteen by twenty meters, and completely finished. We hollowed

out a bamboo inlet pipe and positioned it in the upper dike so canal water

could enter the pond.Three days later, the pond was gloriously full of water.

Using my motorcycle and two ten-liter carrying bidons, I transported stocking fish from another project post twenty miles to the south.When the last of

the 300 tilapia fingerlings had entered the new pond, I turned to Ilunga and

shook his hand over and over again. We ran around the banks hooting and

hollering, laughing like children, watching the fish and marveling at what a

wonderful thing a pond was.Where before there had been nothing, just grass

and scrub trees, had come watery life.

To celebrate, I had brought a bottle of tshitshampa, the local home brew,

and Ilunga and I began pouring each other shots and slapping each other on

the back and talking entirely too loud for two men sitting alone on a pond

bank in the middle of the African bush. A warm glow spread from our stomachs to our limbs and soon, strongly to our heads. Ilunga expressed his dream

of digging three, no six, no twelve more fish ponds, and I concluded that

there was no biological reason why, if fed properly, tilapia couldn’t grow to be

the size of Land Rovers. At one point, we decided to assign names to all of

Ilunga’s fish. Straight-faced, signaling each other to be quiet, we crouched

next to the water and began naming the first few fish that swam by.After four

fish, though, we lost track of which fish had names.This struck us as absolutely hilarious for some reason, and we fell on our backs and stamped our feet

and laughed so hard we couldn’t stand it.

Oh, sweet joy, the pond was finished. Ilunga had done it. He had taken my

advice and accomplished a considerable thing. And on that day when we

finally stocked the pond, I knew that no man would ever command more

respect from me than one who, to better feed his children, moves 4,000 cubic

feet of dirt with a shovel.

I had a hero.

I H AD A H ERO

G LOSSARY OF T ERMS

Kalambayi: A village in rural DROC

(Zaire)

Fish culture: Raising fish

Projet Pisciculture Familiale: The

French name of the fish raising project in DROC. Due to earlier colonization by France, many people in

DROC speak French.

Ilunga Mbumba: The village chief

Machete: A very large knife used for

cutting brush

Incredulity: Disbelief

Bonne chance: Good luck (in French) 

Indignantly: Angrily

Paltry: Small, measly, insignificant

Inured to: Accustomed to

Stocking fish: A few small fish used

to begin raising many fish in a pond

Tilapia fingerlings: A type of small fish
H EROES & F RIENDS

22 Voices From the Field

“‘Magic’ Pablo” takes place in the town of Santa Cruz Verapaz, a town of 4,000 people in

the Central American republic of Guatemala.The most populous of the Central American

republics, Guatemala has a population of over 12 million people living in an area about the

size of Tennessee. The author, Mark Brazaitis, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Santa

Cruz Verapaz from 1991-1993 as a teacher and an agricultural trainer. The Peace Corps

program in Guatemala, which began in 1963, is one of the Peace Corps’ oldest. Since then,

close to 4,000 Volunteers have served in Guatemala focusing their efforts on aiding rural

communities in the areas of agriculture, environment, health, and business development.

About the Setting 

Guatemala, Central America

Guatemala
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 23

P

ablo and I liked to play “Let’s imagine.” We’d be walking down the

street, a basketball cradled under one of our arms. Clouds would be

gathering in the east, as they tended to do in early evening. A light

rain—chipi-chipi is what everyone in town called it—might even be falling.

“Let’s imagine,” Pablo would say,“that Michael Jordan is walking with us.”

He would smile. “What would these people say?” he would ask, pointing to

the women in dark blue cortes and white húipiles, the native dress in this town

in the northern mountains of Guatemala. “What would they do?”

“They’d be amazed,” I’d say. “They wouldn’t know what to do.”

Pablo would agree. “They’d probably run. But we’d just keep walking

down the street, the three of us, to the basketball court.”

Then Pablo would ask, “And how would we divide the teams?”

“Michael Jordan versus the two of us.”

Pablo would consider this. “No,” he’d say, “it’d be you and Michael Jordan

versus me.”

Pablo was sixteen when I met him, another indistinguishable face in my

English class of forty-five students.

I was twenty-five when I arrived as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Santa Cruz

Verapaz, a town of 4,000 people. I was prepared to be alone during my entire

two-year service. I figured this was the way my life was supposed to be: silent

sacrifice. I wasn’t, at any rate, expecting to make a friend my first night in

town.

But the night after my first English class, Pablo knocked on my door. I

invited him in, and he entered, looking around shyly. On a table in my dining room, he saw a copy of Sports Illustrated that my stepfather had sent from

home. He pointed to the cover photo.

“Robert Parish,” he said. “The Chief.”

Pablo, it turned out, knew as much about basketball and the NBA as I did,

and I was a former sportswriter.

I don’t know where he got his information. El Grafico, the only newspaper

from the capital sold daily in our town, rarely had stories about American basketball. A Mexican TV station that reached Santa Cruz showed NBA games

on Saturday mornings, but the town’s electricity was so unpredictable—occasionally it would be off for three or four days in a row—that I wondered how

many of these games he could have seen. Pablo just seemed to know, and he

was familiar not just with Robert Parish and other All-Stars; he could talk

‘MAGIC’ PABLO

By Mark Brazaitis

RPCV Guatemala
H EROES & F RIENDS

24 Voices From the Field

about obscure players like Chris Dudley and Jerome Kersey as if he were an

NBA beat reporter.

Pablo would come to my house at night and we would draft imaginary

line-ups. Pablo liked non-American players. Hakeem Olajuwon was his

favorite. He liked Mark Aguirre because he’d heard that Aguirre’s father was

born in Mexico. Dikembe Mutombo. Manute Bol. Drazen Petrovic. Selecting

our imaginary teams, he’d always draft these players first.

I didn’t get it.Why would he pick Vlade Divac instead of Charles Barkley?

But the longer I lived in Guatemala, the better I understood.

The American presence in Guatemala is about as subtle as a Shaquille

O’Neal slam dunk. Pepsi covers entire storefronts with its logo. In Santa Cruz,

the town basketball court is painted with a Coca-Cola motif, right down to

the backboards. In remote villages, children wear “Ninja Turtles” tee-shirts.

We had long arguments about who was the best player in the NBA.

Hakeem Olajuwon versus Michael Jordan. Hakeem versus Patrick Ewing.

Hakeem versus Magic Johnson.

Pablo stuck by his man.

Pablo and I played basketball on the court next to the cow pasture. Pablo

was taller than Muggsy Bogues but shorter than Spud Webb, both of whom

played in the NBA. When we first began playing, I could move him around

with my body, backing him close to the basket. If I missed, I was tall enough

to get the rebound. In games to twenty-one, I would beat him by nine,

eleven, thirteen points.

Pablo was the first to tell me about Magic Johnson. He came over to my

house one night, late.

“What is it?” I asked.

His head was bowed.

“What is it?”

He looked up. He wasn’t crying, but he looked like he might need to. He

said, “Magic has the AIDS virus.”

We mourned together. Feeling sentimental, Pablo admitted, “Magic might

be better than Hakeem.”

Pablo’s dream was to dunk a basketball. We calculated how many feet he

would need to jump—about four.

Pablo drew up a training plan. He would jump rope two hours a day to

build his leg strength. Every other day, Pablo would ask his younger brother
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 25

to crouch, and he would leap over him, back and forth, for half an hour.

Two weeks later, Pablo came to my house and asked me to set up a hurdle

in my courtyard. I stacked two chairs on top of each other, then another two

chairs a few feet away. I placed a broom across the top chairs and measured:

the broom was four feet off the ground.

“I’m going to jump it,” Pablo said.

“You sure?” I asked.

“Yes, I’m sure.”

We stood there, gazing at the broom.

“You sure?” I asked again.

“I’m sure.”

More gazing.

Then he backed up, took a few quick steps, and jumped. His knees shot

into his chest. He leapt over the broom like a frog.

“You did it!” I yelled.

“I can dunk now,” he said, grinning.

The next morning, we went to the basketball court. Pablo dribbled from

half court and leapt. The ball clanked off the rim. He tried it again. Same

result.

“I don’t understand,” he said.

I didn’t have the heart to admit I’d misled him: to dunk, he’d have to jump

four feet without bending his knees.

As a player, though, Pablo was getting better. He couldn’t dunk, but he’d

learned to use his quickness to drive by me and score. He had grown stronger.

I could not back into him as easily.

Also, he had developed a jump shot.

“Let’s imagine,” Pablo would say, “that David Robinson came to visit us.”

“All right,” I’d say.

“Where would he stay?”

“I don’t know. At a hotel, probably.”

“No,” Pablo would say,“he’d stay at your house.You’d let him sleep in your

bed.”

“Yeah, that would be better.”
H EROES & F RIENDS

26 Voices From the Field

“And you’d make him dinner.”

“Sure.”

“And at night,” Pablo would say, “we’d sit around and talk about basketball.”

Pablo was not my best student. He was more interested in basketball than

books. But he knew how to make his teacher laugh.

When he missed a quiz, I allowed him to make it up by writing five sentences—any five sentences of his choice—in English.

He wrote:

1. Charles Barkley sang a song in my house.

2. I beat Patrick Ewing in slam dunk.

3. I beat David Robinson in block.

4. Hakeem Olajuwon is my brother.

5. Magic and Pablo are the best friends of Mark.

Despite his interest in basketball, Pablo’s best sport was soccer. He played

for San Pedro Carcha, a nearby town. Pablo was known as a good play-maker.

Quick dribbler. Good passer. Soccer’s equivalent of a point-guard, not a

power forward.

I’d seen several of Pablo’s games and had watched him make gorgeous passes, beautiful sky-touching passes that his teammates batted into the net for

goals.

My last week in Guatemala as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I attended a game

Pablo’s team played against San Cristobal, a town nine kilometers west of

Santa Cruz.The game was tied 1-1 going into the final minutes. Pablo’s team

had a corner kick.The crowd, about a thousand strong, was silent.

The ball soared into the air. A mass of players, including Pablo, gathered to

receive it. Pablo jumped, his body shooting up like a rocket off a launcher.

His timing was perfect. His head met the ball and the ball flew past the goalie.

Pablo’s teammates paraded him around the field on their shoulders. People

from the crowd, per custom, handed him money.

When I talked to him later, I didn’t need to point out why he’d been able

to jump that high. He said it himself: “It’s basketball. I learned that from basketball. From trying to dunk.”
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 27

We played our last game the day before I left Guatemala.We played in the

evening, as a light rain—a chipi-chipi—fell.

He had learned to play defense. I tried to back him toward the basket, but

he held his ground. I was forced to use my unreliable jump shot. I could no

longer get every rebound because he’d learned to block out. And, of course,

he could jump now.

I got lucky and hit two straight jumpers to pull ahead by four. But he

countered with a reverse lay-up. He scored again on a long jump shot, a shot

he never would have made when we first played.

The rain fell harder now. Puddles were beginning to form on the court.

Pablo and I were both panting. It was getting dark; we could hardly see the

basket.

“Let’s quit,” I said. “Let’s leave it like this.”

“If you want,” he said.

“Yeah, let’s leave it like this. A tie.”

“All right,” he said. “A tie. Good. Let’s leave it.”

We hugged each other.

“Let’s imagine,” Pablo said, as we walked to my house for the last time,

“that you and I played against Michael Jordan.Who would win?”

“Jordan,” I said.

“No,” Pablo said. “We would. Believe me, we would.”
H EROES & F RIENDS

28 Voices From the Field

The poem,“Nomadic Life” and the story,“On Sunday There Might be Americans” (see page 41)

are both set in remote villages in Niger, West Africa. A country of 10 million people, many of

them members of nomadic tribes, Niger is located in sub-Saharan Africa south of Algeria and

Libya and west of Mali. A section of the Sahara Desert extends into Niger’s northern regions.

Located close to the Equator, Niger has extremely high daytime temperatures, with little rainfall

in many regions. Droughts are the main threat to food production, and malnutrition is a persistent health problem. According to Peace Corps data, roughly 25% of children under the age of

two are malnourished, resulting in one of the world’s highest infant mortality rates. Since 1962,

over 2,600 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in Niger, the majority working in rural communities, where 80% of Niger’s population lives.Their overarching goal is to provide sufficient nutrition for all families.

About the Setting 

Niger, West Africa

Niger
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 29

When I come back with the cups of tea

the sugar bowl has been emptied,

my imported M&Ms—

gone. Flies stretch their legs

search, then spiral

in a dust storm of light.

Aisha sits solemn in afternoon heat

examines the inside of ice cubes

questions what makes water 

strong or weak.

We invent common words between us,

point at the refrigerator door,

the photograph of ferns rising out of snow

the last volunteer left behind.

I’d like to trade with her

my typewriter keys

for the way she navigates the desert,

reads the coordinates of sand.

I want to know as Aisha knows

when it’s time to follow

the ambivalent line of landscape

keep faith in dunes that disappear.

By evening when she tastes

my color-coated chocolates

shares them with her friends

we both will recall the nomad

the other woman

we each might have been.

NOMADIC LIFE

By Susan Rich

RPCV Niger
.
P e r spectives

“Gud marn-ning Madame,” Musa said, the only English he knew, speaking the words in a lilting tone that he hoped sounded friendly. He alternately galloped and tiptoed as he spoke, trying

to maintain a strategic position at her side.The woman ignored his greeting, gave him a look of

impatience, and made her way through the crowd, heading into the center of the market.

He watched her go. She was tall and slender as a young girl, with her hair yellow and straight

as millet stalks. She wore pants the same as her husband’s—washed-out blue and tight as skin.

The shirt she wore was no finer than those he’d seen on boys coming back from the capital city.

How strange it seemed.These people would spend on a bottle of beer what a man in his village

couldn’t earn in a day’s work, yet they spent no money on the clothes they wore, and the women

dressed as plain as the men. He glanced down at her shoes.With sudden excitement he almost

turned to shout at one of his friends. She was from the U.S.A.! The white cloth shoes she wore

had a bright blue symbol on both sides, shaped like the blade of a butcher’s knife, curved back

at the end. Only Americans wore those shoes.

From “On Sunday There Might Be Americans”
P ERSPECTIVES

32 Voices From the Field

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue” is set in Guinea-Bissau, a small country of 1.2 million inhabitants, on the

West African Atlantic coast, bordering Senegal. Based on the September 2000 report of The World

Bank Group, Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in the world, with approximately 88%

of the population living on less than U.S. $1 per day. It is here that the author of this true story, Roz

Wollmering, agreed to serve as an English teacher and Peace Corps Volunteer.The Peace Corps has

long been active in Guinea-Bissau, providing elementary and secondary students with access to

quality education, teaming with local health committees to identify priority health needs, educating groups and schools about preventive health care practices, including HIV/AIDS prevention, and

increasing awareness about the importance of environmental preservation.

About the Setting 

Guinea-Bissau, West Africa

Guinea-Bissau
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 33

I

entered the school doors brimming with ideas, innovative teaching methods, and the desire to have an effect. Today was the first day of school in

Guinea-Bissau, the tiny West African country where I had been assigned

as an English teacher with the Peace Corps. After completing an exhausting

and demanding twelve weeks of training in language as well as cross-cultural

and technical skills, I felt more than adequately prepared for the challenge of

teaching in an under-resourced school system designed on a colonial model.

Even as I entered the pastel pink building, I noticed a strange absence of

noise, considering it was the first day of school. A few isolated students wearing white school jackets rambled about in the dimly lit hallway. As I climbed

the stairway to the administrative office, I heard a distant mango drop to the

ground with a thud and a chorus of children’s voices break out in glee.

Hoping to catch a glimpse of the fastest one carrying off the ripe prize being

pursued by the others, I looked out into the school yard and saw instead piles

of old desk fragments, broken bricks, and tree branches.

They must be cleaning the school grounds, I thought to myself. When I

entered the office, the principal and his assistant were looking at a class schedule posted on the wall and discussing the large number of teachers that still

needed to be hired by the Ministry. After greeting me warmly by inquiring

about my health, my family back in America, and my life in general, they

informed me that my teaching load had been increased by eight hours since

the previous week. “No problem,” I joyfully responded, “I love to teach.”

The classroom where I was to teach was located a short walking distance

behind the main building. Three lines of classrooms were arranged in rows

much like military barracks. Since today was the first day of classes, I hopped

on my bicycle and coasted right up to the door of classroom number 19—my

classroom. “Always wiser to be punctual and prepared than be tardy and

unequipped,” I told myself. Two students were sitting inside the classroom

playing cards when I entered. I looked at the official enrollment number of

forty-seven and asked earnestly, “Where are the other forty-five students?”

The card players faltered a bit and then mumbled, “They’ll come, by and by.”

“Well, let’s begin without them,” I suggested, with a disapproving stare at the

cards.

They shrugged their shoulders and offered instead to go and find the students. It certainly didn’t seem reasonable to me to teach two students and then

have to teach the same material again when the others showed up later. Be

flexible, I reminded myself, and so I agreed.

CROSS-CULTURAL

DIALOGUE

By Roz Wollmering

RPCV Guinea-Bissau
P ERSPECTIVES

34 Voices From the Field

One week later, there were twenty-six students outside my classroom still

waiting for the rest of their classmates to appear, by and by. I noticed that not

only were students absent, but teachers as well. Meanwhile, the principal and

his assistant were still discussing the schedule on the wall, moving multicolored pins, and deliberating how best to resolve the shortage of teachers.That

morning I had stopped by the administrative office again just to make sure

that I had understood correctly the radio announcement made by the

Minister of Education the previous evening. I thought that he had announced

that classes were in session and was quite relieved when the principal verified

my assessment. He assured me that I had understood the Minister’s announcement to the word and then asked me to teach an additional two hours a week.

Lacking the experience to rebut his statement,“When there’s a lack of teachers, we all need to pitch in a few extra hours,” I nodded my head in consent.

Considering that I wasn’t actually teaching any students at the time, two extra

hours didn’t seem to be much of a burden, and I left, feeling only the slightest premonition that I might regret it later.

By the end of week three, I had managed to convince, cajole, and beg my

students to enter the classroom.What other teachers did was their decision, I

figured, but as for me, I was itching to do something other than wait on shore

like a seafarer’s wife. Once the students had entered, I discovered to my

amazement that I couldn’t get them to quiet down. Heedless of my requests

to pay attention, they continued to socialize. Daisy painted her nails and chatted with Aminata about the new discotheque called Temptation that had just

opened across from the mosque. Bebe took Nanda’s notebook and wouldn’t

return it. Fatu gave me the peace sign and went outside to urinate.

A few others followed. Students wandered in late with irrelevant excuses

like “It’s hot” or “I’m tired.” Nelson and Marcelino held competitive jive talks

while their classmates gathered around encouraging first one and then the

other. Other students, whose teachers were absent, hung around the open

windows, throwing crumpled up bits of paper to their friends. Others simply

came to stare at me, a white woman who rode a bicycle to school. They

shoved up against the outside wall, clambered over each other’s backs, and

stuck their heads in for a peek yelling, “White woman, white woman, there

she is!”The next day, still more “window students” appeared to torment me.

Such behavior continued daily and eventually I began to yell at them—

“Get away from the windows!”—and resorted to pushing them out of viewing range. After one month at my new post, I reigned over thirty hours a

week of complete disorder in a pseudo-classroom kingdom. This is madness,

I thought.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 35

For the next month, I devoted the first twenty minutes of class solely to

establishing order and quiet. I was determined. I did this with gentle coaxes

at first, but gradually evolved to using threats (“I’ll call the school disciplinarian”) and offering sweet enticement (“If you’re good, I’ll let you out

early”). Late students were not allowed to enter, regardless of their excuses. It

seemed the only way to control the chaos. Once I had my students’ attention,

I made them copy page after page of notes from the blackboard into their

notebooks. I planned to inundate their minds with grammar rules and vocabulary lists so they wouldn’t have time to talk. Other times, I made them repeat

sentences in unison as if they were Berlitz parrots. Audio-lingual theorists

suggest that language is acquired through repetition of recurring patterns, a

proposition effectively demonstrated when I overheard my students mimicking me: “Be quiet! Go sit down!”

When the drudgery of memorization and repetition bored even me to

death, I resorted to playing Bingo, Simon Says, or Do the Hokey-Pokey. I

went to elaborate lengths to make nifty prizes for positive reinforcement and

spent numerous hours designing creative educational posters to hang on the

walls. For a time, I concentrated on visual stimulation and drama to reinforce

right-brain learning, but the posters disappeared overnight and the drama

idea erupted one day during a production of a local folk tale. I rather enjoyed

their drama productions myself, and I figured they were reviewing English

grammar and vocabulary by playing the games, but deep inside arose a persistent, nagging voice: “Surely, you can do more than baby-sit.”

Gradually, as my disciplinary measures evolved to resemble boot camp philosophy, my classes began to develop a catatonic personality. Somber students

stared back at me or out into space.

Apathy replaced the boisterous noise I had become accustomed to combating.They refused to open their notebooks until I had repeated the request

three times. Orders and instructions mollified them, sure enough, but now

they didn’t seem to have opinions, concerns, or even interests. Some simply

put their heads down and slept. Sit and listen they did, but participate and discuss and collaborate they didn’t. I wrote in letters to my friends back home

that paper plates had more personality than these kids.Their passive resistance

soon infuriated me, and I yelled in frustration at them,“I am here to help you.

Don’t you understand that?”They stared at me in a dazed disbelief.“What do

you want?” I implored them with open hands:“Do you want me to entertain

you? To treat you like military recruits? To punish you?”They shrugged their

shoulders and sighed, “Teacher, we are pitiful. That’s life.” “Go,” I told them.

“Go home. Get out.”They refused, of course.
P ERSPECTIVES

36 Voices From the Field

Against my usually discerning judgment, I finally called in the school disciplinarian. The moment he arrived, every single student in the classroom

jumped up on tiptoes to attention. They greeted him in perfect unison with

a resounding “Good morning, Mr. Disciplinarian.”When he ordered them to

sit down, an immaculate silence spread throughout the classroom like a divine

fog. I was astounded. They looked so serene and innocent as they waited

attentively for his words. Their pristine, woeful eyes and composure made

them appear as mere harmless babes, and I began to imagine that they would

convince him of their purity and that I was the evil abuser. I began to wonder, in fact, if this wasn’t perhaps partially true.

The disciplinarian picked out several students who were not wearing

school jackets. In addition, he selected students who were wearing jackets, but

had not buttoned the top button. He accused and convicted them of intent

to belittle their American teacher and expelled them for two weeks, dismissing them with a disparaging comment. He then read a list of seven students’

names. Since these students had registered for classes but had not yet paid

their school fees, he expelled them for the year, adding yet another insult as

they crept out of the classroom. He then turned to me and said, “If any one

of these students ever gives you a problem, even the smallest problem, you tell

me and I will expel the entire class for the entire year. Not one of them will

pass, and they will all have to repeat the year next year.” As I struggled to

come up with an appropriate response to his comment, he turned back to the

students, held up one finger, and challenged them,“Just one of you try it. Just

one and I’ll whip your ass.” He left, but not before making an attempt to reassure me with a vindictive smile. I stood in horrified shock and embarrassment. I had just lost thirteen students.The students said nothing.They stared

at me and waited to see what I would do next. I felt angry and stupid and

offered a feeble apology. I fumed all the way home.

That night I dreaded ever going back into the classroom again. I contemplated terminating my Peace Corps service and going home. I was sure I

could find a justifiable excuse to allow me a graceful exit. It was now the third

month of teaching and quarterly grades were due in ten days. All I had managed to teach were two review units. Two review units! My God, I realized

looking at their grades. Most of these students couldn’t even meet the standards of the previous year’s curriculum! How did they manage to pass? I was

tempted to flunk them all myself this time around, but what would that

accomplish? I looked in dismay at the stack of twenty-five lesson plans I had

diligently prepared during the late night hours of the past two months and

realized that I would never implement them.

So I switched strategies.That night I drew up a “No More” list. No more

colorful visual aids to catch their attention. No more fancy vocabulary and
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 37

grammar handouts for them to grab eagerly. No more games and no more

prizes. No more school disciplinarian to resolve the ongoing state of classroom crisis, either. My next unit began with the following dialogue.

Teacher: I am angry. I cannot teach because you do not respect me.

Students: No, no,Teacher. Please,Teacher, please.

Teacher: I don’t want to teach you. I’m leaving.

Students: No, Teacher, no. Please, Teacher.You see, you don’t understand our

situation.

Teacher:Well, tell me, just what is your “situation”? 

This time the dialogue was theirs to complete and resolve.

Her Students’ Perspective 

It was Tino and Mando who came and told us that a skinny, sickly white

woman had jumped off a bicycle, run into our classroom, and tried to teach

them English that morning.Tino and Mando weren’t even in our class:They

were just sitting there waiting to use the soccer field when she rushed in like

the rains. They weren’t sure what to say because she looked so strange. Her

hair was all falling down, and she wore a dress that looked like an old faded

bed covering that one might have bought from a Mauritanian vendor in the

used clothing market. We all walked over to Nito’s house and found a few

more of our classmates sitting out back drinking frothy tea.We decided, even

though school hadn’t really started yet, that we’d go the next day to see what

this new American teacher looked like. Tino and Mando assured us that she

was as ugly as a newly hatched, greedy-eyed vulture.

We knew that practically no one would be at school yet. Most students

were still on the farms finishing the harvest, and others were still trying to

register and pay their fees. The Ministry had changed the admission rules

again. All registrations completed at the end of the last year were now

declared invalid, and so we had to wait in line, get new photographs, show

our papers, and pay fees all over again—either that, or pay some official to put

our names on the list, which actually was much easier than completing the

registration process. We listened to the radio broadcasts by the Minister at

night reminding parents of school and smiled. Everybody knew he sent his

children, for good reasons, to the private, elite Portuguese School.Teachers at

the public schools never showed up until the third week. Didn’t she know

that? 

As it turned out, we agreed to enter the classroom just when everyone else

did. We always say: “Cross the river in a crowd and the crocodile won’t eat

you.” From that first day, she never demanded our respect. She didn’t seem to
P ERSPECTIVES

38 Voices From the Field

care if we wore our school jackets or not. She didn’t write the teaching summary on the board like our other teachers, and she was always in the classroom before the bell rang. That meant we could never stand up and honor

her entrance. She should have known not to enter until after the bell rang.

And she never took roll call first, as she should have, and so we continued

chatting and doing our homework. Of course, by this time, other students had

heard about our white woman teacher and were coming by to look at her and

watch our class. We couldn’t resist joining in the fun. At times, we believed

she was serious, for example when she told the students outside class to leave.

But where were they supposed to go?

The area in front of her classroom was the designated student recreation

area. Instead of ignoring them and us, she berated them with gestures and

scolded us in Portuguese. Her Portuguese wasn’t bad, but it sounded so amusing when she said “spoiled brats,” you just had to laugh. We laughed even

harder every time she said “Peace Corps” because in our Kriolu language

“Peace Corps” sounds like “body of fish.” We called her the “fish-body

teacher” after that.

Classes were interesting because they were so confusing. She kept switching her methods, and we were never sure what to expect next. For a while

she insisted that the mind equips itself and a teacher must not interfere in the

process. She called it “The Silent Way.” After “The Silent Way” came “Total

Physical Response.”We gave actions to everything and pretended to be desks,

pencils, and other classroom articles. We contorted our bodies into their

defining characteristics and played “What am I?”Then we role-played imaginary dialogues between, for example, two books fighting to get into a book

bag at the same time. One day she taught us the song “In the Jungle.” We

loved that song and still sing it after school when we walk home. No, you

couldn’t really call her a consistent person, but we all have our little ways.

Even so,“a cracked calabash can still be mended.” Obviously, she cared about

us because she worked so hard to prepare for class.

Most of our teachers were so busy at home or working a second or third

job, they often missed class, and when they did show up, they never prepared

anything. It’s true that we’ve already learned more English this quarter than

we learned all last year.

We always wanted to do more activities and play new games, but she

seemed to think we needed to write. Because we didn’t have books, she kept

demanding that we copy information down on paper. But Guineans are oral

people.We learn by talking; we make discoveries by sharing our experiences;

and we help others by listening and contributing to conversations. Our his-
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 39

tory is a collective memory, and we are continually passing our knowledge on

to others in our speech. She wanted us to raise our hands, one by one, and

then talk individually. That to us seemed artificial and disruptive to the storytelling flow of human conversation. Only wolves howl individually.

She confused us even more by saying pointless things with vigor— “Wake

up!” “Discover yourselves!”—or asking questions that had no obvious

answers:“Why are you here?” or “What are you going to do?”Then she’d wait

with such an intent expression on her face that we’d say almost anything to

try to please her.We always enjoyed her facial expressions because they foretold what was soon to follow in speech—anger, joy, disappointment, praise, or

contentment. She really should have learned by then how to hide and disguise

her reactions in order to suit her goals more effectively, but she didn’t seem

to care. In some ways, she was just like a child.

We just didn’t understand why it was our thinking that needed to change,

and never hers. She wore a “bad eye” charm around her neck, so we thought

she believed in superstition but when we asked her, she said she wore it not

because she believed in superstition but to show respect and affirmation for

our culture.We asked her if that was why foreigners always wanted to buy our

ritual masks and initiation staffs, but she didn’t respond. She told us we didn’t need World Bank handouts and International Monetary Fund debts.What

we needed, she said, was to learn how to grow fish. Was she crazy? We need

computers, not fish! Balanta women always know where to find fish.

“Teacher,” we told her,“you will come and go, but we stay here.” How could

she understand our culture? She had only seen the rains fall once.

After a while, the novelty wore off, and we got tired of even a white

woman’s ways. It’s hard—waking up at daybreak, doing morning chores, and

then going to school for five hours without eating breakfast. Her class was

during the last hour and we were as hungry as feral street cats by that time.

Some of us lived far from school, and if our step-uncle or older cousin-brother told us to go to the market before school, we had no choice. We were

forced to run to her class with only a bellyful of worms because we knew she

wouldn’t listen to our misfortunes even if we arrived two minutes late. It’s

true! In America, time is money, but here we don’t respect time.Time is just

now, nothing more.

It wasn’t only that we had responsibilities at home that came before

school—sometimes we were sick. If we had malaria, we’d put our heads down

and sleep. And if we had “runny belly,” we’d just run out of class when the

cramping started.The dry season was so hot we faded away like morning song

birds. One day she yelled at us.We admit, we weren’t cooperating, but people
P ERSPECTIVES

40 Voices From the Field

are like that.We forgive each other and just go on.“That’s life,” we’d tell her.

“A log as long as it stays in the water will never become a crocodile.” Many

things we just accepted as natural and impervious to change, but she considered such an attitude “fatalistic.”

Finally, she called the school disciplinarian on us. She should have done

that much earlier, in our opinion. We played our roles by allowing him to

throw out a few students, because we all knew they’d be back as soon as he

got some cashew wine money from them. Anyway, that’s the right of elders

in our culture, and we’re taught in the bush school to abide by the established

hierarchical roles.We didn’t understand why she apologized after he left, and

we couldn’t believe it when she undermined his authority by apologizing for

his “poisonous pedagogy,” as she called it. Like a Guinean woman, she certainly had courage.

Today she did something different again. She came in and wrote a dialogue

on the board. She asked questions about the dialogue that made us disagree.

We had a lively discussion in English and then got into our groups and began

designing some resolutions for the problem presented in the dialogue. We

always say “When the ants unite their mouths, they can carry an elephant.”

We know she’ll stay, too.We saw it in her eyes.

C ROSS - C ULTURAL D IALOGUE

G LOSSARY OF T ERMS

Innovative: New; original; inventive

Premonition: Hunch; feeling; suspicion

Mosque: Temple; a building used for

public worship by Muslims.

Catatonic: Appearing to be in a daze or

“out of it.”

Mollify: Calm down; appease

Apathy: Indifference; lack of interest;

boredom

Pristine: Perfect; like new

Woeful: Unhappy; sorrowful

Disparaging: Disapproving; reproachful

Vindictive: Nasty; unkind

Calabash: A round gourd whose hard

shell is often used as a utensil.

Impervious: Resistant

Fatalistic: A defeatist attitude assuming

that nothing can be done to improve

the status quo.

Pedagogy: The art of teaching
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 41

Musa sat up on his mat and he knew he was done with sleep. He

strained to see a sign of light beyond the door of his mother’s hut.

The muscles in his legs were jumping already and he had to stand. He

walked to the door and pressed his eye against the crack in the straw. There

above the rim of the compound wall he could see a sliver of blue. It was

Sunday morning.

Each night the family began their sleep outside, the suffocating heat of day

lingering long past sunset. But in the chill Sahara dawn, one by one, they

dragged their mats back inside the thick mud walls of the huts, where Musa

shivered now though he’d wrapped himself in his blanket. He pulled back

one side of the door and looked into the compound. Only his uncle, Old

Baba, still lay asleep in the middle of the compound, stretched out like a crane

skirting the side of the river, his arms spread like wings and his cracked,

spindly toes almost pointed. Old Baba slept soundly whenever he closed his

eyes, warmed by the dreams of the cities he’d seen when there had been work

on the other side of the desert.

Musa turned back to look at his mother. She lay on her mat with his baby

sister, Fatouma, folded into the curve of her body. He knew his mother’s

dreams. Sometimes when she first woke she called him by another name.

Then she would tell him a story about one of his brothers or sisters who’d

died of spots, a cough, or a mysterious fever the village doctor couldn’t cure.

He remembered some of their faces.

He stepped out of the hut, pretending not to notice the other wives of the

compound emerging from the doors of their huts, kneeling to light fires

where they would cook the morning meal. One or two had gone to the center of the compound to pound millet and, soon after, the thunk of their heavy

wooden pestles joined in a rhythm that reverberated through the village. The

sound of the pestles made him hungry for porridge, but today he could leave

home without food—it was market day. The cars would drive up from the

capital city, full of Europeans looking for things to buy. There might be one

or two who would let him follow them in the market and be the “gobetween” when they wanted to bargain with a merchant for something to

buy. Maybe this would be an American. Americans would pay 10 or 20 times

what anything was worth, and then they’d give you a tip so foolish and large

that you could buy food and a pair of sandals on the same day.

Musa slipped through the forecourt, hoping the other wives wouldn’t see

him and gossip that his mother never fed him. He stood for a moment in the

narrow door of the entrance hut, listening for his name; but he had not been

noticed. He pulled the blanket up over his head and walked out into the vilON SUNDAY

THERE MIGHT BE

AMERICANS

By Leslie Simmonds Ekstrom

RPCV Niger

For a description of the setting,

Niger, see page 28.
P ERSPECTIVES

42 Voices From the Field

lage, staying close to the wall, following it around to the rear where he could

face the eastern sky. The sky changed slowly, veiled by a dull brown haze.

Rain had fallen only three times this year and the slightest wind stirred the

arid earth into the sky, where it stayed.

Musa’s family lived in a compound at the back of the village. From where

he stood against the wall, he could watch people on their way to the market,

treading the wide, worn path that ran through the uncleared bush. They

moved almost silently in the early light. He heard the bells of a train of

camels before they emerged out of the haze, bringing in salt from the desert.

The gray-white slabs of salt hung in rope slings on either side of the camels’

humps, bobbing heavily with each long, loose stride. The drivers, seated high

above their cargo, swayed forward and back, forward and back. As they came

nearer, Musa could hear the clucks of the drivers urging the beasts on and the

deep, irritable growl the animals gave in reply. The men might have been half

asleep, but they kept their feet pressed against the base of the camels’ woolly

necks, pushing hard into their flesh to keep them moving forward when they

smelled the river and strained to turn towards it.

The women who scurried along the path carried large calabash bowls on

their heads and babies tied against their backs. Musa knew the bowls would

be laden with roasted groundnuts, dried okra, guinea corn, or locust bean

cakes. His mouth watered, although even if he had the money, he wouldn’t

stop to buy something to eat from them now. They had to hurry. From his

village it was only three more kilometers to town, and some of the women

might have left their villages two hours before dawn, to arrive early at the

market grounds, hoping to get a good place where there would be shade at

midday. The Europeans would arrive at any time of day, taking shelter from

the dust and heat in the machine-cooled rooms of the Hotel.

He saw a woman he knew on the path and ducked his head into his blanket. She had been a wife in the compound, the second of his father’s youngest

brother, but she’d quarreled too much so he divorced her, sending her back

to her village with all her belongings tied in a bundle on her head. She had

been industrious but the other wives had called her greedy, and they were

glad when she was gone. He saw her glance up at the compound wall, her

neck askew from the weight of a tray of bottles on her head. She could only

roll her eyes to take in as much of her former home as there was to see in the

wall’s flat, cracked surface. When Musa’s father had been prosperous, he’d had

four wives. Long ago, his mother had been made the “favorite” wife, and Old

Baba once told him that she had been the most beautiful.

Musa pressed his back against the wall, let his knees bend and his buttocks

slide to a seat on his heels. From here, he would watch the new sun as it rose
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 43

above the horizon. When it had come between the earth and the first branch

of the gao tree, he would check his mother’s hut. If she had not awakened,

he would leave without food.

“So you have not yet gone, Ugly One,” his mother said to him, seated at a

fire near the door of her hut, her eyes squinted with sleep.

“It’s still early.”

“Baba’s goat has milk,” she said. “You can have milk if you want it.” She

held out a small round gourd. Now the wives would say she spoiled him.

“Give mine to the baby.” Musa squatted near the fire to feel the heat of

the coals. In a few hours the air would be as hot.

“Eat porridge at least.” She handed him a bowl full of yesterday’s pounded millet. It had not been heated through.

Fatouma, his baby sister, toddled out of the hut on her fat baby’s legs, hurrying to sit near him. “Moo-SA,” she called. He opened his blanket to set

her on his lap and wrapped her up beside him so that only their faces peeked

out.

“You look like two morning flowers,” his mother said with pleasure,“waiting for the morning sun to open your leaves.” Abruptly she lowered her eyes

and stirred the fire, poking it too much, fearful of what she had just said.

Tempting Allah. (Musa’s people believed that if a baby were too beautiful,

Allah—their God—would take her.)

“But Fatouma is so ugly,” he said, easing his mother’s anxiety. “Allah would

never want to take such an ugly child.” He felt his sister’s body warm against

his and gave her his porridge. He pulled her closer to him, looking down

into her clear, dark eyes. Seeing her brother’s face so near, she reached up and

touched his chin, twisting up her mouth in the way she knew would always

make him laugh. He laughed to please her and pressed his cheek against the

soft down on the top of her head.

Musa joined the stream of people on the path that led into town. A group

of Bela women, grunting like beasts of burden, came up behind him, pushing

past anyone in their way, eager to reach the market and unload the wooden

racks they balanced on top of their heads. Each rack held a half-dozen clay

jars, but these women, their shoulders deep and muscular as men’s, could bear

the precarious weight of the load. Their dark skin, black as a cooking pot,

already shone with sweat. Musa had to jump out of the path to avoid the tilting racks.

Three Fulani girls, sisters most likely, rode by on donkeys alongside the

path. Each wore an identical head cloth, brilliant green and woven with
P ERSPECTIVES

44 Voices From the Field

golden threads—too fine for a bush market. These were girls whose fathers

might wear a watch. They laughed and talked too much as they passed the

others, who traveled on foot, and one of them looked at Musa, turned her

head to stare at him, speaking to him with her eyes. Uneasily, he looked away.

This had begun to happen often, even with girls in his own village. He had

grown tall for his age, but he was still too young to answer back.

The path ended at the river where the market grounds made up half the

town. The Hotel sat on a rise above the river, surrounded by flame trees and

high white walls. When he came within sight of the Hotel, his stomach contracted, as it always did, seeing that there were at least a dozen boys milling

around, expectant, hovering near the Hotel’s gates.These boys were his competition. He was relieved to see no cars were there yet. The road at the post

office, by which the cars always came, was quiet and empty. The morning air

still felt cool. The sun barely showed through the murky sky.

Musa walked near the group of boys, keeping his distance, cautious of their

intensity. Many of these boys were his friends with whom he studied the

Koran at the malam’s house, but no one wanted competition when the

Europeans arrived from the capital city. Like a pack of hunting jackals, each

was on his own, working to become a “go-between.” Perhaps many

Europeans would come today and there would be enough for all of them. If

they were lucky, there would be Americans, who always paid more for a “gobetween” to bargain for them.

A tall, green car came fast around the corner at the post office, making a

dust storm, and the boys ran, frenzied, straight out in its direction. They met

it head on and jumped out of its way to run wildly at its sides, back toward

the Hotel. Musa joined them, shouting at the European who sat cool and

impassive inside the enormous car. The Hotel gate swung open and the guard

leaped out from behind the wall. He came after the boys with his cattle whip,

beating them away. The leather snapped against Musa’s thigh and he swallowed a yelp of pain.

There were six men in the green car. Six opportunities to be the “gobetween.” They got out of the car, and dropped money into the palm of the

guard. The guard followed them so none of the boys could get to them

before they entered the Hotel. Musa knew they would have coffee and bread

before they went into the market. He tried to see beyond them, to the inside

of the Hotel. He had heard stories of the wondrous tables there, covered with

crisp, white cloths and spread with sugar and butter that were set out to be

eaten at will.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 45

A small gray truck came more hesitantly around the corner, stopped, then

turned away from the Hotel and drove directly into the restless throng of animals tethered for sale at the market’s outer edge. A man with pumpkin-colored hair and skin speckled like eggs stuck his hands and arms out of the

truck, taking photographs, one after another, of the bawling baby camels tied

in clusters on the open grounds. The boys left their position at the Hotel

gate, tearing toward the gray truck. Musa stayed where he was, rubbing the

flesh that still stung from the snap of the guard’s whip.

Now a white sedan appeared at the post office road. A French Peugeot.

Musa could name the car. He felt the thrill of self-importance, as though he

alone possessed secret knowledge of the world outside his village. The

Peugeot moved slowly through the crowd into the large open space that separated the market from the Hotel.

Inside the Peugeot, he could see one man, one woman, and their child—a

little boy—leaning out the window, whose hair seemed to shine with silver

light. Musa touched his own head, pressed his fingers down into his dull

black, tightly curled hair. The woman in the car held her child as he stretched

out the window. “Cow,” the little boy shouted, pointing his finger at a wildeyed bull rocking its head against the ropes that tied it to a tree. Musa

thought he recognized the little boy’s word. Was it English? These might be

Americans, and the others hadn’t heard!

Instead of going through the Hotel gates, this car drove up next to the wall

of the Hotel compound. The swarm of boys ran back to the Peugeot, and the

guard came at them again with the whip, cursing their mothers because he

stumbled and nearly fell. The man locked the car and walked with his wife

and child toward the market, the guard hovering around them until they had

gone too far from the Hotel. Musa ran with the pack, circling the couple to

offer them help with bargaining in the market.

“Leave us alone,” the man shouted in the boys’ own language. “We don’t

need you to be our go-betweens,” he bellowed, his white man’s accent falling

hard on the wrong syllables. But none of the boys wanted to be the first to

give up. “Get away from us!” He raised his arm threateningly. The boys

moved back, more amused than afraid. Many Europeans who came up to the

market were like that.They wanted to be on their own and wouldn’t ask for

help even if you followed them around all day.

One of the boys sent up a shout and the rest of them turned like a herd of

sheep and stampeded toward the Hotel, bursting into the dust of another car.

Musa watched them go and turned to look toward the market. He could

already see a shimmering mirage hanging above the market stalls.The heat of
P ERSPECTIVES

46 Voices From the Field

the day had already begun.The sky had cleared and the sun was eating the air.

This might not be the Sunday he had hoped for. He should have taken some

porridge.

The young couple were walking into the cattle lot, moving cautiously

around the nervous long-horned animals. Their little boy pointed his finger

again and again, twisting in his father’s arms, excited, his eyes wide. The

woman stopped to watch a Tuareg man paint yellow lines on the backs of

bulls, to identify them and mark them for sale. Her husband placed the boy

on his shoulders, spoke a few words to her, and he left her. She was alone.

Musa’s legs moved before his mind had made its plan.

The woman walked briskly into the marketplace without the usual hesitation of a European. She seemed at ease in the noise and clutter of an African

market.

“Gud marn-ning Madame,” Musa said, the only English he knew, speaking

the words in a lilting tone that he hoped sounded friendly. He alternately galloped and tiptoed as he spoke, trying to maintain a strategic position at her

side. The woman ignored his greeting, gave him a look of impatience, and

made her way through the crowd, heading into the center of the market.

He watched her go. She was tall and slender as a young girl, with her hair

yellow and straight as millet stalks. She wore pants the same as her husband’s—washed-out blue and tight as skin. The shirt she wore was no finer

than those he’d seen on boys coming back from the capital city. How strange

it seemed. These people would spend on a bottle of beer what a man in his

village couldn’t earn in a day’s work, yet they spent no money on the clothes

they wore, and the women dressed as plain as the men. He glanced down at

her shoes. With sudden excitement he almost turned to shout at one of his

friends. She was from the U.S.A.! The white cloth shoes she wore had a

bright blue symbol on both sides, shaped like the blade of a butcher’s knife,

curved back at the end. Only Americans wore those shoes.

The American woman stopped at the stall of a Hausa merchant and knelt

down to examine a pile of his painted glass beads. The merchant ceremoniously opened a box to show her more beads, then another, and when she didn’t react, another and another, making grand movements with his arms, like a

storyteller, pouring out the beads on the mat where he sat on the ground.

The beads formed little pools of color all around him. He thrust his hand

under her face to show her a necklace, which seemed to irritate her, and she

stood up to move on, the merchant shouting at her to come back and buy

something—look at the mess he’d made for her.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 47

Musa followed her, staying close, guarding his claim, pretending he’d been

hired. They were walking through the lot where pottery was sold, Musa following noiselessly on her heels, when the woman stopped suddenly. She

stepped aside, out of the path that separated the grain pots from the water jars,

and stood there waiting, her back to him. Musa froze. He turned around and

walked the other way. Then she stepped back into the path and continued in

the direction she’d been going. He turned again to follow her. After a few

more minutes she whipped around and looked him straight in the eye. Musa

lowered his head and passed her, as though on his way to some purpose. She

walked off in the opposite direction, disappearing into the dense, noisy

crowd.

Musa maintained this pretense for only a minute, and then spun on his

heels and darted after her into the rows of fragile clay containers. He craned

his neck to find the American woman, then anxiously looked down to watch

his feet, taking small, careful steps between the pots and jars, avoiding the disaster of debt he couldn’t pay if he were to break any of them.

The American woman was not far away. He saw her. No other boy had

found her! But he jumped too quickly into the next narrow path, and his foot

hit the top of a long-necked water jar. It fell over on its side. He heard an old

woman screaming at him. She had a shrill, toothless voice that made people

turn around and look. Musa stopped in the path, wishing he’d never left his

mother’s hut.

The old woman stood up, shaking her hands at him, imploring Allah to

strike down this dangerous boy. She lifted the jar to show a gathering group

of market women the damage that had been done. Miraculously, the jar came

up off the ground in one perfect piece.The cackling old voice stopped in surprise. Musa lifted himself into the air and galloped down the path in search

of his American.

She had stopped in a path that wove through a field of enameled tin-ware.

There were dozens of bowls, pots, cups, and trays displayed on the ground,

brightening the hard-baked dirt with their painted fruits and flowers. Among

the tin ware, a half-dozen Bela girls stood in front of his American woman.

They giggled and pressed against each other, holding their henna-dyed fingertips delicately over their mouths.The girls were dressed the same, wrapped

in indigo cloth that left some if its inky color on their skin. Plastic rings and

beads covered the girls’ heads, woven into the thin, intricate braids they wore

hanging down stiffly on all sides.They smelled of honey.
P ERSPECTIVES

48 Voices From the Field

One of the Bela girls wanted to sell the American woman a bracelet, and

a small crowd formed to watch. The woman was interested in the bracelet,

but she couldn’t understand what they were saying about the price. Now she

would need him to be the go-between. Musa spoke up in careful French.

“How much would you like to pay, Madam?”

“Five hundred francs,” she answered.

Musa addressed the girls in their own language. The people of his village

looked down on the Belas, whom they considered coarse and low, but one of

the girls had large, soft eyes, gentle as a calf ’s and full of words. She turned

from Musa’s glance and lowered her eyes to the ground. He was distracted by

his need to look longer at this shy Bela girl.

“The white woman will pay five hundred,” he said. The Bela girls rolled

their eyes and giggled; they titled their heads and whispered. They loved the

crowd and were taking their time. “Five hundred,” Musa repeated, almost

inaudibly. His mouth felt full of dust and he longed for a drink from the river.

At last one of them answered him, holding her fingertips over her mouth

like a little red-orange cage, feigning modesty. “Not less than seven hundred

and fifty,” she said firmly.

Musa looked up at the woman. “They want one thousand francs, but I’m

sure I can help you. I will tell them seven hundred and fifty.”

She listened to him and repeated the amount he would offer. He nodded.

“All right,”she said. “Good.”

“She has agreed to pay seven hundred and fifty,” Musa said. The girls

squealed and leaned on each other in a haphazard circle.They studied Musa,

flashing their eyes at him. Bold girls. He had to look away from them, but his

eyes darted irresistibly back to the shy one, who was watching him, too, her

head down, stealing a glance sideways.

The American woman counted out the coins, took the bracelet, and

slipped it on her arm.The golden white brass lost some of its radiance against

her pale skin. But she seemed pleased.As she walked away from the Bela girls,

she was smiling. And he had helped her! He looked around to see if anyone

noticed, staying close to her, making helpful comments.Which she seemed to

ignore.

Suddenly Musa saw Aliyu. Sly Aliyu with the angel face had seen Musa’s

American.

“Bonjour, Madame,” sang Aliyu, and held out both his hands, filled with

rough clay beads. “My mother made these,” he said in French.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 49

The liar! “You mother eats with hyenas,” Musa muttered, his head turned

away. If his American understood what he’d said, she might disapprove.

Aliyu ignored the insult and looked up appealingly at the woman. “My

mother made them yesterday in our village.”

“How much?” she asked. She spoke directly to Aliyu, ignoring Musa as her

go-between.

“Seven hundred and fifty francs,” smiled Aliyu.

The woman was furious.“Your mother eats with the hyenas!” she snapped

at Aliyu with the angel face, and Musa staggered back and forth, holding his

stomach, shrieking with laughter. This was his American!

She turned her back to Aliyu and walked away. Musa followed, suppressing his triumph for the business at hand. He could see that her shirt was wet

and stuck to her back; she would be done with the market now. If she gave

him twenty-five francs as a tip, he would buy rice and sauce. If she gave him

fifty, he would buy rice and sauce with meat.Today he would have meat.

She took off the heavy Bela bracelet and put it in the bag that hung over

her shoulder. She looked at her watch, lifting her hand to shield her eyes from

the glare of the sun. “It’s too hot.” She looked at him now, spoke directly to

him, using his own language. He held his breath. “I will eat in the Hotel.

Then I want to go back into the market. Can you help me buy a Tuareg

ring?”

“Yes,” he said, trying to appear serious and mature.

“I will be back soon.” She walked away then, heading for the Hotel. She

took out a cloth and wiped her face. She did not take out any money.

Musa followed her to the Hotel, taking no chances. He would wait there

until she came out again with his tip. Somewhere in the shade on the other

side of the wall, he could hear the guard sleeping noisily. One half of the double gate stood open and Musa looked inside, all the way to the wide glass

doors of the Hotel. He watched the woman disappear behind one shining

panel of glass and for a moment he saw his own reflection—an almost beautiful, too-thin boy in rumpled khaki shorts and a tee-shirt that hung awry at

the bottom. He thought again of the Bela girl. He imagined himself a young

man coming back from the capital city, bringing her a gift the likes of which

she would never see in this bush market. By then he would be living in “the

hut of the unmarried sons.” He would wear new creased pants and a shirt as

crisp and white as the Hotel tablecloths.
P ERSPECTIVES

50 Voices From the Field

He looked into the sky to judge the time. It was midday. The sun seemed

to have ridden on wings that were closing down around him, suffocating him.

He felt his head grow light, as though it would separate from his body. Other

boys who had followed a European in the market might already be paid their

tip by now, sitting at a food stall under a thatched roof, eating rice and sauce.

Rice and sauce. He would be satisfied with stale porridge. Musa slid down

into the thin shade against the wall and set his swelling head against his knees,

wondering why Allah had made the world so unevenly, so unjustly.

He woke at the sound of a car’s engine. He opened his eyes to see that the

sun had left the top of the sky. He had slept too long. Shadows dropped from

the trees around the market grounds. He looked out behind the Hotel where

the afternoon sun made a hundred thousand mirrors dance on the surface of

the river. Boys his age, some of them naked, dived in and rose up through the

cool, sparkling water, rolling and turning on the surface like hippos. He

would join them soon.

He heard the creak of dry hinges and looked over to see the guard opening the Hotel gate. The guard saw Musa and slashed the air with his whip.

Then he bowed absurdly low as the tall green car drove out through the gate.

Large black letters marked the car: “RANGE ROVER.” Who had followed

the white men in the Range Rover? Which of his friends there in the river

had received more than twenty-five francs?

The sound of laughter came from behind the wall, a child’s. The little boy

with the silver hair ran out through the gate and turned to look behind him,

bending his legs with his hands on his knees, as though to brace for a run.

Musa’s American woman walked out after him, let her son run a few paces,

then grabbed him up in her arms. The husband walked out after her and held

out his hand to tip the guard. Musa heard the sound of more than one coin.

The husband took the little boy and walked to the car. The American

woman followed behind, taking a cloth out of her bag and tying it around her

hair.The guard bowed and smiled, leaning toward her, his brown teeth coming too close to her face, and she hurried past him.

Musa stood up. The woman did not see him, and took quick steps along

the wall toward the white Peugeot. She opened the car door, got inside, and

rolled down the window. Now he realized that she was not going to go back

into the market.

The car moved slowly towards Musa, passing the guard, who doffed his

dirty hat and bowed again. When the car stopped in its backward path, the

American woman twisted her head around to take a last look at the market.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 51

“Oh,” she called, seeing Musa there.“I forgot about you.”The Peugeot

turned its wheels and sped away from the wall, making a long dust

cloud that flared wider and higher at the post office road.

Musa looked out again behind the Hotel. A herdsman was forcing

his cattle into the river, smacking their hindquarters with a strip of

curled hide to get them across the shallow water. Musa’s friends

stopped their play to whoop at the timid cows. He decided not to join

them. He could swim just as well farther down the river, near his village.Then he started his long walk home.

“There you are, Ugly One,” his mother said. “It’s late. What did you

do in the market all day?”

“I helped a woman from the capital city. An American. She wanted

to buy a Bela girl’s bracelet.”

“You bargained with a Bela?”

“Yes, but only for her. My American.”

“And did she give you something for your work?”

“Two hundred francs.”

“So much!”

“I bought you a fine new water jar. And red bracelets for Fatouma.”

“Did you eat in the market?”

“I ate rice and meat. I ate so much meat I can barely move.”

“But you are moving very well, I see.You can’t eat a little more?”

“Maybe a little porridge. A little.”

His mother filled his bowl to brimming with pounded millet. It was

fresh and hot. He breathed in the steam as it rose to his face, clearing

his head of the market dust.

“So where is our new water jar?” she asked. “The old one is as frail

as Baba’s bones.”

“It was too big. I had to leave it in town.”

“With Fatouma’s bracelets?”

“Yes. I’ll get them next week.”

“You will try again next week?”

“American people come every Sunday,” he said, as he stretched out

his legs to make a place for Fatouma.

O N S UNDAY ...

G LOSSARY OF T ERMS

Compound: A small walled village containing

individual mud huts where Nigerien families

in rural areas often live.

Go-betweens: In Niger and other parts of

rural African, these are often young boys

who help tourists barter for produce, crafts,

or the work of artisans selling their wares at

large native markets.

Calabash bowls: Gourds of various shapes

and sizes that are cut in half, scraped out, and

used as bowls or cups.

Ugly One: A term of endearment the Musa’s

mother uses to refer to him.This originates

from the Muslim belief that Allah will take

away those who are too beautiful.

Bela women: Women from the nomadic tribe

named Bela.Women and girls from this tribe

often bring produce and crafts to sell at

Sunday village markets.

Fulani girls: Girls from the nomadic tribe

named Fulani.Women and girls from this

tribe often bring produce and crafts to sell at

Sunday village markets.

Ploy: Trick

Henna-dyed fingertips: Fingertips that are

dyed a reddish-brown, a custom for young

girls of the Bela tribe.
.
No Easy Answers

Fetching water in the ink-black night and looking up the hill at our

small hut, light from the lantern inside splitting the bamboo-thatched

walls, I would think of the spiritual wealth of Maimafu and the

material wealth of America: Can a community reach a balance of

material wealth and spiritual wealth? Why do these two societies

exhibit so much of one and not much of the other? Do those two ends

interfere with each other? How much spiritual wealth can we have?

How much material wealth do we need? How has the world evolved

so that some people own mansions and others lack shoes? How many

people have love in their souls but diseased water in their drinking

cups? 

From “A Single Lucid Moment”
N O E ASY A NSWERS

54 Voices From the Field

ILUNGA’S

HARVEST

By Mike Tidwell

RPCV Congo

My wife has left me, and I’ve got to harvest my pond,” Chief Ilunga said.

It was two o’clock on a Sunday afternoon and he was breathing hard.

He had just walked the five miles from his village of Ntita Kalambayi

to my house in Lulenga. He had walked quickly, stopping only once to drink

tshitshampa with friends along the way. Now his speech was excited, full of

the fast cadence of personal crisis. “My wife has left me, and I’ve got to harvest my pond. I’ve got to harvest it tomorrow and use the money to get her

back.”

It was a dowry dispute. Ilunga’s father-in-law claimed Ilunga still owed

thirty dollars in bridewealth from the marriage to his daughter five years earlier. To emphasize the point, he had ordered his daughter home to their village thirty miles away. She had obeyed, taking with her all the children. Now

Ilunga was humiliated and alone, with no one to cook his food or wash his

clothes. He needed money fast.

The development was something of a blow to me, too. Never had I

expected the first fruits of my extension work to go toward something as

inglorious as a runaway wife. But that’s what the Fates had snipped off. I

told Ilunga I would be at his pond the next morning to help with the harvest.

Ilunga’s wife had picked a bad time to leave him. His pond was in its fifth

moon of production, one month short of the gestation period best for harvesting. Still, after only five months, things looked good. Ilunga had fed his

fish like a man possessed, and as far as we could tell a considerable bounty

waited below.

Part of the pond’s success was due to a strategy I had developed not long

after I had arrived in Kalambayi. The plan was simple: get Ilunga and the

other farmers to feed their fish with the same intensity they fed me fufu, and

they would surely raise some of the biggest tilapia ever recorded.

“Imagine a fish is like an important visitor who has traveled over mountains and through rivers to see you,” I had told Ilunga after he finished his

pond. “If, when you set a meal down in front of that visitor, he finishes all

the food in two or thee minutes and then stares back at you from across the

table, how do you feel?”

He grimaced. “Terrible,” he said. “The visitor is still hungry. He should

always be given more food than he can eat. He shouldn’t be able to finish it.

That’s how you know he’s full.”

“Exactly,” I said.

Exactly. Every day for five months, Ilunga dumped more food into his

pond than his fish could possibly eat. He covered the surface with sweet

For a description of the setting,

see page 16
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 55

potato leaves and manioc leaves and papaya leaves, and the fish poked and

chewed and started to grow.

Helping things out was an unexpected gift. Two months after we stocked

the pond, an official of the United Nations Children’s Fund in Mbuji Mayi

donated two sturdy wheelbarrows to the Kalambayi fish project. The wheelbarrows were blue with “UNICEF” painted neatly on the sides in white.

When I called all the farmers together to present the tools, the shiny steel

basins and rubber tires inspired a great amount of whistling and head-shaking. I felt as if I had just delivered two mint-condition Mack trucks. The

men ran their hands along the rims and grew dizzy contemplating the wealth

the tools might bring. Using the village of Kabala as a dividing point, the

farmers split up into two committees representing the upper and lower

stretches of the Lubilashi River. After establishing rules for their use, the men

took possession of the wheelbarrows.

Ilunga, as much as anyone, parlayed the UNICEF largess into bigger fish.

He used the upper Kalambayi wheelbarrow to gather leaves and termites for

fish food. To fill his pond’s stick compost bins he went most Thursdays to the

weekly outdoor market in Ntita Konyukua. There, he used the wheelbarrow

to collect manioc peels and fruit rinds and the other rubbish village markets

leave scattered about the ground. These materials rot quickly in pond water,

stimulating a plankton growth essential for intensive tilapia culture. But to

get the goods, Ilunga had to swallow his pride. He had to hunt through the

crowd of marketers and bend over and compete with hungry dogs and goats

and chickens along the ground. It was something of a spectacle. Ilunga was

thirty years old and the chief of a village—and he was shooing away goats to

get at banana peels in the marketplace dirt. People started to talk. After a

while, one of Ilunga’s brothers tried to dissuade him from the practice.

“You’re embarrassing yourself,” he said. “The pond isn’t worth this.”

But Ilunga didn’t listen, just as he hadn’t listened back in the beginning

when I told him he was building the pond so large it might kill him. He kept

going to the market. Stares and whispers didn’t stop him.

Most amazing was the fact that Ilunga was doing all this work in addition

to tending his fields every day like everyone else. He was squeezing two jobs

from the daily fuel of protein-deficient fufu. Eventually it started to show. I

walked to his house one afternoon and found him outside, fast asleep in the

coddling embrace of the UNICEF wheelbarrow. He had lined the basin with

a burlap sack and reposed himself, his arms and legs drooping over the edges.

From the trail fifty feet away, I watched. The imagery was potent, almost

unbearable with its themes of hope and struggle and want all bound up in
N O E ASY A NSWERS

56 Voices From the Field

that exhausted face, those closed eyes, those dirty black limbs hanging down

to the ground.

God, how I had set Ilunga’s soul ablaze with my talk of rising out of poverty, of beating back the worst aspects of village life with a few fish ponds. He

had listened to me and followed every line of advice and now he lay knocked

out in the hold of the donated wheelbarrow. Deciding it would be criminal

to wake him, I walked away, praying like hell that all the promises I had made

were true.

And now we would find out. It was time for the denouement: the harvest.

Five months had passed since Ilunga’s wife had left him, and we would soon

discover what had been happening all this time under the pond’s surface. I

was anxious because, in a way, owning a fishpond is like owning a lottery ticket. Unlike corn, which you can watch as it grows, or, say, chickens, which you

can weigh as they get big, there is no way to positively assess the progress of

a pond until you harvest it. The fish are under the water, so you can’t count

them or get a good look at them. You just have to work and wait. You hang

on to your lottery ticket and wait for the drawing, never sure what number

will come up until you drain the pond.

Ilunga and I had a pretty good idea his fish were big, of course. God

knows they had been given enough to eat. We also had seen lots of offspring

along the pond’s edges. But the water was now so well fertilized and peagreen with plankton that neither of us had seen a fish in nearly two months.

(Ilunga had refused to eat any fish in order to maximize the harvest.) We

knew the tilapia were there but how many exactly? How big? And what

about the birds? How many fish had the thieving kingfishers taken? We

would soon know all the answers. An unacknowledged, icy fear ran through

both of us as we agreed that Sunday afternoon at my house to harvest his

pond the next day.

It was just past 6 a.m. when I arrived for the harvest. Ilunga and his brother Tshibamba were calling and waving their arms as I moved down the valley

slope towards the pond. “Michael, Michael. Come quickly. Hurry Michael.”

I had driven my motorcycle to Ilunga’s house in the predawn dark, using my

headlight along the way. Now as I finished the last of the twenty-minute

walk to the valley floor, the sky was breaking blue and a crazy montage of

pink and silver clouds lay woven on the horizon. The morning beauty was

shattered, however, by the cries of the men waiting for me at the pond. They

were yelling something I didn’t want to hear. It was something my mind

wouldn’t accept.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 57

“There are no fish, Michael,” they said. “Hurry. The fish aren’t here.”

I reached the pond and cast an incredulous stare into the water. They were

right. There were no fish. The men had spent most of the night digging out

a vertical section of the lower dike and slowly draining the water until there

now remained only a muddy, five-by-five pool in the lower-most corner of

the pond. The pool was about six inches deep. And it was empty.

Tshibamba was screaming, running along the dikes and pointing an accusing finger at the pond bottom. “Where are the fish?”

Ilunga was past the yelling stage. He gazed at the shallow pool, his face

sleepy and creased, and said nothing. He was a wreck; forlorn and defeated

as the pond scarecrow ten feet to his left with its straw limbs akimbo and its

head splotched with bird excrement.

“Wait a minute,” I said to the men, suddenly spotting something at one end

of the pool. “Look!”

I pointed to a fan-shaped object sticking out of the water and looking a

lot like a dorsal fin. We all looked. It moved. A fish. Before we could celebrate, other fins appeared throughout the pool, dozens of them, hundreds.

The pond water, which had continued all the while to flow out through a net

placed over the cut dike, had suddenly reached a depth lower than the vertical height of the bottom-hugging fish. The fish had been hiding under the

muddy water and were revealed only at the last moment and all at the same

time, a phenomenon of harvesting we eventually became nervously accustomed to in Kalambayi. Ilunga’s fish—big, medium, and small—had been

corralled by the dropping water into the small pool where they waited like

scaly cattle. They looked stupid and restless. “Yeah, now what?” they seemed

to ask.

Ilunga showed them. He threw off his shirt and made a quick banzai

charge into the congested fray, his arms set to scoop up hard-won booty.

There ensued an explosion of jumping fish, and Ilunga absorbed the rat-tattat of a thousand mud dots from his feet to his face. By the time his hands

reached the pool, the fish had scattered everywhere into the surrounding mud

like thinking atoms suddenly released from some central, binding force.

Ilunga raised his empty hands. He looked up at us—his face covered with

mud dots, his feet sinking into the pond-bottom gook—and flashed a wide

smile. The harvest had begun.

“The small ones,” I yelled, hurriedly discarding my shirt and shoes. “Get

the small fish first to restock with.”

I jumped into the pond and, like Ilunga, was immediately pelted with mud.

Two more of Ilunga’s brothers had arrived by then, and together, five strong,
N O E ASY A NSWERS

58 Voices From the Field

we gave battle with tenacity of warriors waging jihad. We chased the flapping,

flopping, fleeing fish through the pond bottom sludge. When we caught

them, we stepped on them and throttled them and herded them into buckets.

Ilunga took charge of capturing and counting three hundred thumb-sized

stocking fish and putting them in the small holding pond. The rest of us collected the other fish, segregating the original stockers, which were now handsized, from the multitudinous offspring. The work was dirty and sloppy and

hypnotically fun.

So engrossed was I in the harvest, in fact, that I barely noticed the tops of

the pond dikes were growing crowded with onlookers. By the time we finished capturing all the fish, people had surrounded the square pond bottom

like spectators around a boxing ring. A quarter of the men, women, and children in the village had come to see the harvest. I was impressed by their show

of support for Ilunga’s work.

Ilunga ordered the crowd to clear back from a spot on the upper dike.

Filthy like pigs, we carried the fish out of the pond in four large buckets and

set them down at the clearing. We rinsed them off with canal water and

began weighing them with a small hand-held scale I had brought. The total

came to forty-four kilos. It was an excellent harvest. After only five months,

Ilunga had coaxed three hundred tilapia fingerlings into forty-four kilos of

valuable protein. It was enough to bring his wife home and then some.

Whistling and laughing, I grabbed Ilunga by the shoulders and shook him

and told him what a great harvest it was. I had expected a lot of fish, but not

this many. It was marvelous, I told him, simply marvelous. He smiled and

agreed. But he wasn’t nearly as happy as he should have been. Something

was wrong. His eyes telegraphed fear.

Tshibamba made the first move.

“Go get some leaves from that banana tree over there,” he told a child

standing on the pond bank.

When the child returned,Tshibamba scooped about a dozen fish onto one

of the leaves and wrapped them up.

“I’m going to take these up to the house,” he said to Ilunga. “It’s been a

while since the children have had fresh fish.”

“Yes, yes,” Ilunga said. “Take some.”

“I’ll have a little too,” said Kazadi, Ilunga’s youngest brother, reaching into

the bucket.

“Go ahead. Take what you need.”
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 59

Then a third brother stepped forward.Then a fourth.Then other villagers.

My stomach sank.

It was suddenly all clear—the crowd, the well-wishers, the brothers of

Ilunga who had never even seen the pond until that morning. They had

come to divide up the harvest. A cultural imperative was playing itself out.

It was time for Ilunga to share his wealth. He stood by the buckets and started placing fish in the hands of every relative and friend who stepped forth.

He was just giving the harvest away.

There was no trace of anger on his face as he did it, either. Nor was there

a suggestion of duty or obligation. It was less precise than that. This was

Ilunga’s village, and he had a sudden surplus and so he shared it. It just happened. It was automatic. But the disappointment was there, weighing down

on the corners of his eyes. He needed the fish. Getting his wife back had

depended on them.

Caked in mud, I sat on the grassy bank and watched an entire bucket of

tilapia disappear. Fury and frustration crashed through me with the force of

a booming waterfall. All that work. All my visits. All the digging and battling kingfishers. All for what? For this? For a twenty-minute-free-for-all

give-away? Didn’t these people realize the ponds were different? Ilunga had

worked hard to produce this harvest. He had tried to get ahead. Where were

they when he dug his pond? Where were they when he heaved and hoed and

dislodged from the earth 4,000 cubic feet of dirt?

I knew the answer. They had been laughing. They had been whispering

among themselves that Ilunga was wasting his time, that moving so much dirt

with a shovel was pure lunacy. And they laughed even harder when they saw

him bending over to pick up fruit rinds in the marketplace in competition

with goats and dogs. But they weren’t laughing now. Ilunga had proved them

wrong. He had raised more fish than any of them had seen in their lives, and

now they were taking the spoils.

The fish continued to disappear, and I began bursting with a desire to

intervene. I wanted to ask Ilunga what the hell he was doing and to tell him

to stop it. I wanted to turn over the bucket already emptied of fish and stand

on it and shoo everyone away like I had shooed Mutoba Muenyi those first

few times she came to my door. “Giving is virtuous and all that,” I wanted

to tell the crowd. “But this is different. These are Ilunga’s fish. They’re his.

Leave them alone. He needs them.”

But I said nothing. I summoned every ounce of self-restraint in my body

and remained silent. This was something between Ilunga and his village. My

job was to teach them how to raise fish. I had done my job. What he did
N O E ASY A NSWERS

60 Voices From the Field

with the fish afterward really was none of my business. Even so, I didn’t have

to watch. I went over to the canal and washed up. Ilunga was well into the

second bucket when I told him I was leaving.

“Wait,” he said. “Here.”

He thrust into my hands a large bundle of fish.

Oh no, I thought. Not me. I’m not going to be part of this gouging. I

tried to hand the bundle back.

“But these fish are for you,” he said. “You’ve taught me how to raise fish,

and this is to say thank you.”

“No, Ilunga. This is your harvest. You earned it. You keep it.”

He gave me a wounded look, as if I had just spit in his face, and suddenly

I wanted to scream and kick and smash things. I couldn’t refuse his offer

without devastating him. I took the fish and headed up the hill, feeling like

a parasite.

“Wait for me at the house,” he said as I walked away.

It was 8:30 when I reached the village and stretched out, dizzy with disappointment, on a reed mat next to Ilunga’s house. He arrived about thirty

minutes later with his sister Ngala who had helped at the harvest. Both of

their faces look drained from the great hemorrhaging they had just gone

through. Without even the benefit of loaves of bread, they had fed a mass of

about fifty villagers, and now Ngala carried all that was left of one tin basin.

I estimated there were about twenty-five kilos. To my dismay, though, Ilunga

wasn’t finished. He scooped out another couple of kilos to give to older relatives who hadn’t made it to the pond. Then he sent Ngala off to the market in Lulenga with roughly twenty-three kilos of fish, barely half the harvest

total.

At the going market price of 100 zaires a kilo, Ilunga stood to make 2,300

zaires ($23). It was far short of what he needed to get his wife back. Far

short, in fact, of anything I could expect village men to accept as fair return

for months of punishing shovel work and more months of maniacal feeding.

The problem wasn’t the technology. Ilunga had produced forty-four kilos of

fish in one pond in five months. That was outstanding. The problem, rather,

was one of generosity. It was a habit of sharing so entrenched in the culture

that it made me look to the project’s future with foreboding. What incentive

did men like Ilunga have to improve their lives—through fish culture or any

other means—if so much of the gain immediately melted into a hundred

empty hands? Why work harder? Why develop? Better just to farm enough

to eat. Better to stay poor like all the rest.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 61

After Ilunga’s sister left for the market, I couldn’t hold my tongue any

longer. We were alone at his house.

“I can’t believe you gave away all those fish, Ilunga. Why did you even

bother digging a pond if all you were going to do with the harvest was give

it away?”

He knew I was upset, and he didn’t want to talk about it.

“Why did you dig a pond?” I repeated.

“You know why,” he said. “To get more money. To help my family.”

“So how can you help your family if you give away half the fish?”

“But there’s still a lot left,” he said. “You act like I gave them all away.”

I suddenly realized he was about ten times less upset by what happened

than I was. My frustration doubled.

“What do you mean there’s still a lot left? There’s not enough to get your

wife back, is there? You gave away too much for that. Your pond hasn’t done

you much good, and I guess I’ve wasted my time working with you.”

The last sentence really annoyed him.

“Look,” he said,“what could I have done? After I drained my pond, I had

hundreds and hundreds of fish. There were four buckets full. You saw them.

If my brother comes and asks for ten fish, can I say no? For ten fish? That’s

crazy. I can’t refuse.”

“No, it’s not crazy, Ilunga. You have six brothers and ten uncles and fifty

cousins. And then there are all the other villagers. You’re right. Ten fish

aren’t very many. But when you give ten to everyone you have little left for

yourself.”

“So what would you have done?” he asked me. “Would you have refused

fish to all those people?”

“Yes,” I said and I meant it.

“You mean you would have taken all the fish and walked past all those people and children and gone up to the house and locked the door.”

“Don’t say it like that,” I said. “You could have explained to them that the

pond was your way of making money, that the harvest was for your wife.”

“They already know I need my wife,” he said. “And they know I’ll get her

back somehow.”

“Yeah, how? You were counting on the harvest to do that and now it’s

over. You gave away too much, Ilunga. You can’t keep doing this. You can’t

feed the whole village by yourself. It’s impossible. You have to feed your own
N O E ASY A NSWERS

62 Voices From the Field

children and take care of your own immediate family. Let your brothers

worry about their families. Let them dig ponds if they want to. You’ve got

to stop giving away your harvests.”

Thus spoke Michael, the agent of change, the man whose job it was to try

to rewrite the society’s molecular code. Sharing fufu and produce and other

possessions was one thing. With time, I had come around to the habit myself,

seen its virtuosity. But the ponds were different, and I had assumed the farmers realized that. Raising fish was meant to create surplus wealth; to carry the

farmers and their immediate families to a level where they had more for

themselves—better clothes, extra income. That was the incentive upon which

the project was built. It was the whole reason I was there.

So when Ilunga harvested his pond that early morning and started giving

away the fish, I wanted to retreat. I wanted to renounce my conversion to the

local system and move back to the old impulse I had arrived with, the one

that had me eating secret, solitary meals and guarding my things in the selfinterested way prized by my society.

“Stop the giving”—that was the real, the final, message I wanted to bring

along to Ilunga and the other fish farmers. “Stop the giving and the community-oriented attitude and you can escape the worst ravages of poverty.

Build a pond and make it yours. And when you harvest it, don’t give away

all the fish. Forget, for now, the bigger society. Forget the extended family.

Step back and start thinking like self-enriching entrepreneurs, like good little

capitalists.”

But Ilunga didn’t fit the plan. Nor did any of the other farmers who harvested after him. “If my brother comes and asks for ten fish, can I say no?”

he had asked. His logic was stronger than it seemed. Like everyone else in

Kalambayi, Ilunga needed badly the help fish culture could provide. What he

didn’t need, however, were lessons on how to stay alive. And that, I eventually grew to understand, was what all the sharing was really about.

It was a survival strategy; an unwritten agreement by the group that no

one would be allowed to fall off the societal boat no matter how low provision ran on board. No matter how bad the roads became or how much the

national economy constricted, sharing and mutual aide meant everyone in

each village stayed afloat. If a beggar, like Mutoba Muenyi came to your

house in the predawn darkness, you gave her food. If you harvested a pond

and fifty malnourished relatives showed up, you shared what you had. Then

you made the most of what was left. If it was $23, that was okay. It was still

a lot of money in a country where the average annual income is $170 and

falling. It might not pay off a marriage debt, but $23 satisfied other basic

needs.
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 63

In the end, despite my fears, sharing didn’t destroy the fish project.

Farmers went on building and harvesting ponds, giving away twenty to fifty

percent of their fish, and selling the rest to earn money for their wives and

their children. It was a process I simply couldn’t change and eventually I

stopped trying.

And perhaps it was just as well Ilunga and the others weren’t in a hurry

to become the kind of producers I wanted them to be. They might develop

along Western lines with time, but why push them? The local system worked.

Everyone was taken care of. Everyone did stay afloat. Besides, there were

already plenty of myopic, self-enriching producers in the world—entrepreneurs and businesses guided by the sole principle of increasing their own

wealth above all else. So many were there in fact that the planetary boat, battered by breakneck production and consumption, was in ever-increasing danger of sinking, taking with it the ultimate extended family: the species.

There seemed to be no survival strategy at work for the planet as a whole as

there was for this small patch of Africa; no thread of broader community

interest ensured against total collapse. Indeed, sitting in my lamplit, cotton

warehouse at night, listening to growing reports of global environmental

degradation over my short-wave radio, the thought occurred to me more than

once that, in several important respects, Kalambayi needed far less instruction

from the West than the other way around.

At the moment, however, no one needed anything as much as Ilunga needed his wife. He had given away nearly half his fish and now the opportunity had all but vanished. I stopped back by his house after the market closed

in Lulenga and watched him count the money from the harvest: 2,000 zaires.

Even less than I thought. I reached into my pocket and pulled out all I had,

200 zaires. I handed it to him. He was still short.

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” he said, “I’ve got to think about it.”

Three days later on my way to Tshipanzula, I pulled up to Ilunga’s house

to see what solution he had come up with. I was surprised when he wasn’t

there and his neighbors said he has gone to Baluba Shankadi, his wife’s tribe.

Another week went by before I saw Ilunga again. It was in the market in

Ntita Konyukua and he was standing under a mimosa tree, gesturing and talking with two other fish farmers. As I made my way through the crowd of

marketers, getting closer, I saw Ilunga’s wife standing behind him, carrying

their youngest child.

“How?” I asked when I reached him, shaking his hand, delighted by the

sight of mother and child: “How did you do it?”
N O E ASY A NSWERS

64 Voices From the Field

At first he didn’t answer. He talked instead about his pond, telling me he

had returned the day before and now was trying to track down the UNICEF

wheelbarrow to start feeding the fish again.

“But your wife,” I said.

“Well, I really don’t know how I did it. After you left my house that day

I still needed eight hundred zaires. One of my brothers gave me a hundred,

but it still wasn’t enough. I tried, but I couldn’t come up with the rest of the

money, so I decided to leave with what I had. I walked for two days and

reached my wife’s village and handed the money to my father-in-law. He

counted it and told me I was short. I told him I knew I was but that I didn’t have any more. Then I knew there was going to be a big argument.”

“Was there?”

“No. That’s the really strange part. He told me to sit down, and his wife

brought out some fufu and we ate. Then it got dark and we went inside to

sleep. I still hadn’t seen my wife. The next morning, my father-in-law called

me outside. Then he called my wife and my sons from another house. We

were all standing in the middle of the compound, wondering what to do.

Then he just told us to leave.

“That’s it?” I said. “It’s over?”

“He told me yes, that I could go home. I didn’t think I understood him

correctly, so I asked him if he was sure he didn’t want any more money.”

“No, you’ve done enough,” he said. “Go back to your village.”

“I was afraid to say anything else. I put my wife and my sons in front of

me and we started walking away before he could change his mind.”

I L UNGA ’ S H ARVEST

G LOSSARY OF T ERMS

Tilapia: The type of fish Ilunga raised in

his pond 

Manioc: A plant grown in the tropics

Parlay: To increase into something of

greater value

Largess: Gift

Plankton: The minute animal and plant

life of a body of water

Denouement: Grand finale; conclusion;

culmination

Montage: Mosaic; mixture

Incredulous: Disbelieving

Booty: Treasure; prize; reward

Ensued: Followed

Cultural imperative: Something a particular

culture requires and expects to be done.

Gouging: Extortion

Myopic: Narrow-minded
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 65

Liberia

About the Setting 

Liberia, West Africa

“The Talking Goat” is based on an African folktale recounted by John Acree, a Peace Corps

Volunteer serving in Liberia. Located on the tropical coast of West Africa between Sierra Leone

and the Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia is home to a wide variety of indigenous African tribes. Liberia’s

rich tribal culture is passed down from generation to generation, often with little change or

contact with the outside world. According to Acree, who served in Liberia as a fisheries

Volunteer, it was during a village meeting that the village chief told the tale of “The Talking

Goat.”Acree notes that the chief was trying to explain to his people that,“although they had

waited a long time for a health clinic to be built, they would soon be rewarded.They must be

patient.”
N O E ASY A NSWERS

66 Voices From the Field

Once there was a rich man named Tugba who dressed in fine and fashionable robes. Everyday he strolled through the village, arm-in-armwith his elegant wife. The villagers held their breath as the two passed:

never before had they seen such a handsome couple.

But Tugba wasn’t admired only for his good looks and pretty wife. Farmers

would travel many miles to Tugba’s village just to catch a glimpse of his fields.

Tugba’s corn was more golden, his tomatoes more plump, and his cassava

more abundant than any in the land. His animals, too, were fat and strong. He

had two cows, five chickens, two roosters, three donkeys, and four goats.

Now Tugba’s fortune wasn’t just a matter of luck. He was a good and hardworking man who always remembered to thank the seeds for growing and the

sky for raining. And Tugba took extra care to ensure that his animals were

well-fed and content. He kept his eye on one goat in particular, and always

brought a special bundle of hay for her to chew on. This goat was Tugba’s

favorite. He had found her when she was just a kid, lost and wounded in the

jungle.

One year, little rain fell. Throughout the land, crops wilted and animals

died of thirst. Tugba’s fields alone remained fertile. But Tugba no longer

strolled through the village each day, since the villagers now rushed upon

him, begging for food. Although Tugba always gave the villagers whatever

cassava or corn he could spare, his wife was not so generous. Angered by his

inability to say “no” to the villagers’ pleas, she left Tugba, taking with her all

the gold she could carry.

Meanwhile the hungry villagers devoured Tugba’s crops and, one-by-one,

they ate his animals, too.

Except for his favorite goat. Tugba refused to let the villagers eat the goat

that he had found in the jungle many years before.

One day, when his fields were completely wasted and his stockroom empty,

Tugba threw a cloak across his shoulders and walked out of his house. With

only his favorite goat as a companion, Tugba left the village and journeyed

into the jungle.

After traveling many miles, Tugba and the goat found a home for themselves inside a cave. During the day, Tugba gathered berries and nuts for the

two to eat; at nightfall, he would lay beside a mountain stream, staring up at

the sky to admire the stars.

Seven years passed. From time to time,Tugba would remember the life he

had known in the village. Once he wore elegant robes; now he wore a rotting sheepskin. Once he slept each night with his beautiful wife at his side;

now his only companion was a goat. Once he harvested the most delicious

THE TALKING

GOAT

By John Acree

RPCV Liberia
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 67

crops in the land; now he survived on little more than nuts. Still Tugba

remained a good and hardworking man, who always made sure that his

favorite goat had the choicest leaves to chew on.

One day, as he was gathering nuts, the goat spoke. “Thank you for saving

me,Tugba,” said the goat in a clear, deep voice. “You are a good man.”

Tugba turned around in surprise. Even in the jungle, goats didn’t talk.

“Did you just say something?”Tugba asked the goat.

“I said that you are a good man,” the goat repeated. “And I thanked you

for saving me.”

“But a goat...talking?”Tugba asked incredulously.

“It is so,” the goat replied calmly. “Again, thank you.” With this, the goat

turned his attention to a pile of leaves.

Tugba could not contain his excitement. “My luck is changing!” he shouted as he danced through the jungle. “A talking goat!” he laughed.

Sitting down next to a tree, he sketched out a plan. “If I take the goat to

the village, I will be rich again,” he reasoned.“The villagers will certainly pay

to hear my goat talk. Soon I will have enough money to buy a house and

field once more.”

The next morning, Tugba tied the talking goat to a tree and hastened to

the village that he had left behind seven years before.

When Tugba arrived in the village square, he discovered that all of the villagers he had once known had died in the drought. A different tribe had settled there—none of whom remembered hearing any stories about a rich man

named Tugba. Although disappointed that no memory of him had survived,

Tugba remained in good humor and asked to speak with the village chief and

elders.

Within the hour, the chief and elders, dressed in richly textured ceremonial robes, entered the village square to greet the stranger. Overlooking the rotted sheepskin draped across his waist, the elders offered Tugba a cool drink of

water. As soon as Tugba finished the water, he joyfully announced, “My goat

can talk!”

The chief and the village elders listened carefully as Tugba told them of his

talking goat, and his seven years in the jungle.When Tugba finished, the chief

deliberated with the elders for a few moments. Then, he stood up to deliver

his verdict.
N O E ASY A NSWERS

68 Voices From the Field

“If your story is true, this is a great fortune,” said the chief. “But if it is

not true, you have wasted our time and have made us fools for listening to

you.” The village elders nodded in agreement.

“If your goat can talk,” the chief continued, “we will give you half of

everything in the village. If your story is false, we will arrest you, tie you, and

beat you until you are dead.” Looking Tugba in the eyes, the chief announced,

“Bring your goat to the square!”

Tugba promptly returned to the jungle and, as quickly as could, ran back

to the village center, carrying the talking goat in his arms. The entire village

was waiting for him.

“Speak to them, sweet goat,” Tugba urged. But the goat was silent. The

chief and elders raised their brows skeptically.

“Please, goat, speak!” Tugba asked again. The goat, however, was busy

chewing on the chief ’s robe.

Tearing his robe from the goat’s teeth, the chief roared,“You have made us

all fools for listening to your story. Now you must die.”

Immediately, the elders tied Tugba’s arms and feet, and beat him with a

whip. They then dragged his body up a mountain where a large tree grew.

Along the way, everyone who saw him spit at him and threw stones. But just

before they were about to tie a lasso around Tugba’s head and hang him from

the tree, the goat ran up the mountain and, at the foot of the tree, said in a

loud and clear voice, “You must not kill him. Let him go.”

The villagers were stunned. It was true! The goat could talk.

The elders released Tugba, and carried him back to the village center.

There, the chief lay a carpet on the ground for Tugba to rest on, and ordered

the women to attend to Tugba’s bloody wounds.

“Gather up half the goods in the village,” the chief further declared, “and

bring them here as an offering to Tugba.”

As Tugba lay on a carpet, he fell into a dazed sleep. When he finally opened

his eyes, the goat was standing beside him, watching him.

“How could you act that way?”Tugba said to the goat as he slowly rose to

his feet. “Look at me. They beat me. They almost killed me. What took you

so long to speak?”

“What you do not suffer for,” the goat replied, “you do not enjoy.”
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 69

“The Extra Place” was written by Susan Peters, a Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Poland from 1990-

1992. Located in the heart of Eastern Europe, Poland is bordered by Germany on the west, the Czech

Republic and Slovakia on the south, and the Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania on the east. Its capital,

Warsaw, dating back to the Middle Ages, has a population of over 1.6 million people. Active in Poland

from 1990-2001, the Peace Corps worked to ease the country’s return to democracy after decades of

Communist rule. Since 1990, more than 950 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in communities

throughout Poland in programs focusing on English education, environmental education, and small business development.According to Peace Corps Volunteer Cindy Bestland, who served in Poland from 1996-

1998, the Polish have a saying that they take very much to heart: “A guest in the house is God in the

house.”

About the Setting 

Poland, Eastern Europe

Poland
N O E ASY A NSWERS

70 Voices From the Field

I

am talking with Kasia, a woman I met a couple of years ago. Kasia works

for a Western firm, at a salary lower than that of an expatriate but still

quite generous by Polish standards. She’s a bit younger than I am, slender, with finely-etched features, blue-grey eyes, quiet voice, a certain reserve

in her manner: what I think of as the “Polish aristocrat” look. We are in her

office, drinking tea. She is amazed at the number of Americans, ex-Peace

Corps and others, who have returned to Poland after a brief stay in the U.S.

“But the same thing happened to me, years ago,” she says thoughtfully. “I

thought that the West would be wonderful, and then I lived there for a year;

and then I started thinking about Poland, and something inside me wanted to

come back. And you know, when I came back it seemed that Poland was

...perfect.” She looks at me. “But now I think it is time for me to leave

again.”

“Is it because you’ve changed, or Poland has changed?”

“I think both.” She pauses, glances out the window. Across the street, the

renovations on the Sezam department store are underway, and the new

McDonald’s next to it is doing a brisk business.

“I will tell you about something that happened a few months ago. It was

wigilia—Christmas Eve—and my husband and I were in our apartment, and

we heard someone at the door. Not our apartment door but the door to the

outside, downstairs.”

“On the domophon,” I say. The existence of an intercom system in a building is a definite plus in security-conscious Warsaw.

“Yes, on the domophon. I asked who it was; we were not expecting anyone

at just that time, but my husband’s family—his mother, his brother and wife

and children—were coming over later for dinner. My daughter was putting

the plates on the table, and my husband was helping me with the dinner. I

remember when I heard the domophon I said to him: ‘This is your mother, I

know it, and she will be coming in the kitchen and telling me how to fix the

dinner.’

“But it was a man, a stranger. He was a refugee, from Yugoslavia he said,

and he was looking for someplace where he could spend the night. He had

no money; he had no place to go, he didn’t know anyone in Warsaw. Before

I could say anything, my husband told him that we were sorry, we couldn’t

help him.”

“That seems the reasonable thing to do,” I tell her. “After all, you didn’t

know who it was.”

She shakes her head. “You know, we have a tradition here, on Christmas,

to set an extra place for the stranger who might come. I looked at our table

THE EXTRA

PLACE

By Susan Peters

RPCV Poland
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 71

and I remembered the extra place. I wanted to ask the man in, and I told my

husband, I said to him: ‘Let him in, it’s Christmas.’

“‘No,’ he said, ‘how do we know that this person does not have two others behind him with guns?’

“‘Marek,’ I said, ‘it’s Christmas! There is the extra place!’ But he still said

no. So we quarreled a little bit—yes, I quarreled with my husband on

Christmas. I was angry, but I knew that he was right. And we didn’t open the

door.

“And I am thinking now that maybe I do not want to live in Poland for a

while. I know that the old system was bad, but I think now that we are losing our soul, and that the problem we have in Poland is not just the inflation,

that people complain about. It is something else, and I don’t know what to

call it. But we are losing... a part of ourselves.”

She pauses. “I don’t want to live in this country if we are so afraid that we

do not even open our door on Christmas to a stranger. If we are so busy that

we forget what it means, the extra place.”

We sit for a moment, not speaking. What can I tell her? I remember last

winter; I was living in an American city, in the Northeast, where an elderly

woman locked herself out of her house and froze to death on her neighbor’s

porch. The neighbor was afraid to answer the knock on the door. I think

about the millions of dollars in aid, the hundreds of advisors sent here to help

the Poles change their system, and I wonder if we ever thought to warn them

of the losses that come with the gains, of the extra places that are only empty

plates.
N O E ASY A NSWERS

72 Voices From the Field

“A Single Lucid Moment” was told by Peace Corps Volunteer, Robert Soderstrom, who

served in Maimafu, a remote, rural village of approximately 800 people in Papua New

Guinea. Spreading out over more than 600 islands just below the Equator in the southwest

Pacific, Papua New Guinea is one of the most diverse countries in the world. It is a country of four million people and 800 different languages. Because 85 percent of this mountainous country is covered with dense rain forests, many of its indigenous tribes have little

contact with each other, and rarely with the outside world. For most people living in the

rural villages of Papua New Guinea, traditions, customs, and ways of living and thinking

remain the same from one generation to the next. Over 700 Peace Corps Volunteers have

worked in Papua New Guinea since the first group arrived in September of 1981. Their

focus has been on education, agriculture, health, and natural resources management.

Papua

New Guinea

About the Setting 

Papua New Guinea, South Pacific
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 73

As the plane buzzed back over the mountains, it was now just us and the

villagers of Maimafu. My wife, Kerry, and I were assigned to this village of 800 people in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New

Guinea. It looked as if we were in for a true Indiana Jones adventure! 

The mountains were dramatic and thick with rain forest. No roads had ever

scarred them.We had loaded a four-seater plane with cargo (we would fly out

every three months to re-supply) and flew for thirty bumpy minutes southwest to the mountain ridges. From the plane, the village looked very much

like a shoebox panorama from a grade-school science project.

My wife and I were the first Peace Corps Volunteers ever in Maimafu.We

had been greeted by a large group of beautiful people, all wearing gorgeous,

curious smiles. Giggling, naked children hid behind trees during the trek

down the mountain to our new home, and a lively entourage followed using

their heads to carry our boxed supplies through the muddy trails. It was

quickly becoming clear that we had just been adopted by a very large and

unique family.

The basic culture of subsistence living had not been replaced; there were

no cars, electricity, or telephones—just grass huts, large gardens, and a whole

lot of rain forest.The women spent the day in the gardens planting, weeding,

and harvesting. The men grew coffee, from which they generated their sole

income of about $200 a year. The village had lived in harmony with its natural surroundings for millennia.

The villagers had built us a beautiful, bamboo-thatched hut on short stilts.

Planted behind the house was a three-acre garden, carefully tended and ready

to harvest. Its bounty included corn, greens, tomatoes, beans, peanuts, onions,

potatoes, and pineapples. To top it all off, the path to our new home was

sprinkled with flower petals the day we arrived.

It quickly became clear that Maimafu was a preserved example of communal living. Men rallied to the building of a new home, the elderly worked and

lived with their families, and mothers breast-fed their neighbor’s children. In

fact, the one parentless, Down’s syndrome man in our village was fed, housed,

and clothed by everyone; he would spend a few days with one family before

happily wandering in to work or play with the next.

It was when we had settled in that it happened.We were sitting in a circle

on the ground with a large group of villagers to “tok stori,” Papua New

Guinea’s favorite pastime of “telling stories.” I had passed around photos I had

snapped back home in Chicago. A villager was staring intently at one of the

photos. He had spotted two homeless men on a Michigan Avenue sidewalk

with crude signs propped between their legs.

A SINGLE LUCID

MOMENT

By Robert Soderstrom

RPCV Papua New Guinea
N O E ASY A NSWERS

74 Voices From the Field

“Tupela man wokem wanem?” he asked. (What are these two men doing?) 

I attempted to explain the concept of homelessness to the group, and the

desire of these two men to get some food. Crowding around the photograph

for a good stare, the villagers could not comprehend how the men became

homeless, or why the passersby in the photo were so indifferent. They bombarded me with questions and I did my best to make sense of the two, ragged

beggars in the midst of such glittering skyscrapers. I read from their questions

and solemn mood that they had made an important observation—these two

men must not lack only food and shelter, but also a general sense of affection

and purpose in their community.

Early the next morning, we were startled to hear a sharp rap at the door.

Opening it, I was greeted by Moia, Kabarae, Kavalo, and Lemek. Kerry and I

went out into the bright beautiful day and sat with them in a circle. Each man

gave us a pineapple. Moia spoke, “After you left last night, all of us men on

the village council had a very big meeting. For a long, long time we discussed

the two men in your picture. We have reached a conclusion and have a proposal for you.”

“What could this possibly be?” we wondered.

“Please contact those two men as well as your government. Ask the government if they will fly those two men to Maimafu, just like they did for

you.We have marked two spots of land where we will build houses for those

two men, just like we built for you. Our men will build the houses and the

women will plant the gardens to feed them.”

They were offering to do what? I was stunned and overwhelmed. Their

offer was bold and genuine. It was innocent and naïve. It was beautiful. And,

like the twist of a kaleidoscope, my world view had completely changed.

What does one say to such an offer? We stammered for a response and

stumbled over explanations of difficult logistics, scarce money, and government bureaucracies. But the councilmen would not accept no for an answer.

In their simple lives, it was impossible to comprehend that humanity was host

to such an injustice.They wanted action.

The villagers were serious. They were offering everything they had. We

reluctantly matched their enthusiasm with a few letters to America and long

conversations with the village council. We toured the sites where the homes

were to be built. We listened to the women discuss the type of gardens they

would plant, which would even include coffee trees to generate a small

income. And we answered numerous questions over time from villagers

amazed with this foreign thing called ‘homelessness.’ The plan could not
P EACE C ORPS S TORIES

Coverdell World Wise Schools 75

work, we told them.Their hearts sank, and I could see in their eyes that this

dream would not die easily.

“Sori tru, sori tru we no inap wokem dospela samting,” they told us (We are

sorry this can’t happen).They clicked their tongues and shook their heads in

disappointment.

Initially inspired by the episode, I begin mulling questions over and over

in my mind. Fetching water in the ink-black night and looking up the hill at

our small hut, light from the lantern inside splitting the bamboo-thatched

walls, I would think of the spiritual wealth of Maimafu and the material

wealth of America: Can a community reach a balance of material wealth and

spiritual wealth? Why do these two societies exhibit so much of one and not

much of the other? Do those two ends interfere with each other? How much

spiritual wealth can we have? How much material wealth do we need? How

has the world evolved so that some people own mansions and others lack

shoes? How many people have love in their souls but diseased water in their

drinking cups? 

The villagers worked with us on newer projects. And, I discovered, like

many Peace Corps Volunteers before me, that the world’s purest form of

brotherhood can often be found in the smallest of villages.

A S INGLE L UCID M OMENT

G LOSSARY OF T ERMS

Entourage: A group that follows

along. In this case, the Maimafu villagers who accompanied the Peace

Corps Volunteers back to their village.

Subsistence living: Living on only what

is absolutely necessary to survive, and

no more

Communal living: Group living, in

which each member of the group is

cared for by the other members of

the group 

C URRICULUM U NITS

C URRICULUM U NITS

The curriculum units in Voices from the Field: Reading and Writing about the

World, Ourselves, and Others are composed of two complementary approaches to language arts teaching.The Reading and Responding to Literature

unit (pages 79-172) contains a set of lesson plans designed specifically to

help students delve deeply into the content of the Peace Corps stories, while

A Reading and Writing Workshop (pages 173-258) uses the Peace Corps

stories as a springboard to students’ own self-discovery through the writing

process. Both units recognize the common denominators of language arts

learning as outlined by the National Council of Teachers of English (Tchudi,

1995), namely:

• Language learning instruction is linked to critical thinking;

• Language learning is social and interactive;

• Language learning is a process of constructing meaning from

experience;

• Language learning is based on and emerges from students’ prior

knowledge;

• Language learning is linked to problem solving; and

• Language learning is a means of empowering students as functioning citizens.

Flexible Use

We’ve designed these curriculum units in order to provide maximum flexibility for classroom use. For example, teachers may choose to use all or part

of the lessons in each unit, and adapt them to meet students’ needs.Teachers

might also choose to use either the Reading and Responding to Literature

To believe in a child is to believe

in the future.Through their aspirations they will save the world.

With their combined knowledge

the turbulent seas of hate and

injustice will be calmed.They will

champion the causes of life’s

underdogs, forging a society without class discrimination.They will

supply humanity with music and

beauty as it has never known.

They will endure. Towards these

ends I pledge my life’s work. I will

supply the children with tools and

knowledge to overcome the obstacles. I will pass on the wisdom of

my years and temper it with

patience. I shall impact in each

child the desire to fulfill his or her

dream. I shall teach.

Henry James

Author

Coverdell World Wise Schools 77
C URRICULUM U NITS

78 Voices From the Field

lesson plans or the Reading and Writing Workshop lesson plans. Or teachers

might choose to use the plans in both sections, as one unit complements and

builds on the other.

Standards

We know that teachers everywhere are faced with state and local accountability requirements—and the challenge of helping all students reach specified content standards, while keeping a love of learning alive. Thus, we’ve

made sure that each story in this collection is accompanied by a set of lesson

plans that can help you address the language arts standards of the National

Council of Teachers of English and the International Reading Association.

Because our lesson plans also have an interdisciplinary component, they also

address standards proposed by the National Council on the Social Studies.

Curriculum Framework

We’ve created this curriculum using an adaptation of the Understanding by

Design curriculum development framework (Wiggins and McTighe 1998)

published by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

(ASCD).The Understanding by Design (UbD) framework suggests that teachers begin the curriculum design process by identifying the enduring understandings, essential questions, and performance tasks they want to use to drive

the unit’s instructional activities.

Identifying enduring understandings and essential questions at the outset

gives a unit’s instructional activities greater focus and coherence.The enduring understandings we suggest for each story represent our best thinking

about the big ideas and important life messages the author was trying to

express.You may wish to adapt them so they’ll have meaning for you and your

students. For more information on the Understanding by Design curriculum

framework, see Appendix A (page 260).
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 79

The lesson plans in the Reading and Responding to Literature section of Voices

from the Field are designed to engage your students’ hearts and minds in the uniquely personal stories written by the Peace Corps Volunteers in this collection. Use

these lesson plans to help your students find personal meaning in the content of

the stories while, at the same time, broadening their perspectives and strengthening their reading comprehension skills.

Lesson Organization 

In Reading and Responding to Literature you’ll find a set of lesson plans for each

of the stories in this collection. Each set of lesson plans is guided by:

• specific language arts and social studies standards;

• enduring understandings and essential questions about the story’s content;

• an exploration of the story’s theme.

The lesson plans begin with an overview, information about the author, and a

brief introduction to the story’s content and its theme.You’ll also find information

about the story’s setting and how it influenced the story the Peace Corps Volunteer

tells.The instructional activities that follow are differentiated to meet the needs of

both struggling and experienced readers.Their goals are to:

• engage students’ minds in the content of the story;

• stir their hearts with the author’s unique message;

• encourage them to identify and explore the questions the story inspires;

• increase their reading comprehension skills; and

• invite them to find connections between the author’s experience, the story’s

content, and their own lives.

Each lesson plan begins with pre-reading activities to help students access their

prior knowledge so that they can link their new learning to what they already

know. These are followed by activities to help students interact with the text and

Reading and Responding to Literature
80 Voices From the Field

explore its meaning. At the heart of the lessons are opportunities for students

to respond to the text through small and large group dialogue, cooperative

learning activities, role plays and dramatizations, journal writing, and extended written responses to each text.

Questions for Individual and Group Inquiry

To help the reader’s mind meet the author’s text, we’ve included questions

to stimulate personal inquiry. These are questions students can take to any

text, such as:

• What is really important about this story?

• How did it make you feel?

• What did it make you wonder about?

• How did it surprise you?

• Which mental images were the strongest?

• What did this story teach you about the world, yourself, and others?

You’ll find questions like these recurring across the stories. Some of our

suggested questions and journal prompts stem directly from the enduring

understandings. Others are designed to stimulate individual interpretation

and divergent thinking about what the story might mean.

Research-Based Reading Comprehension Strategies

We recognize the challenges you face in working with students whose

reading abilities can vary dramatically. Thus, we’ve embedded in our lessons

explicit research-based reading comprehension strategies, which recur across

stories—and which students can use with a variety of texts. These strategies

include: “talking to the text”; creating detailed mental images; developing

comparisons, metaphors, and analogies; creating non-linguistic representations of key ideas; and the use of story frames and other graphic organizers.

As students become familiar with these strategies, their comprehension will

increase, and they will begin using them on their own. You will find a more

detailed description of each comprehension strategy and its source on pages

261-262.

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

At the center of the curriculum

are not the works of literature...but rather the mind as it

meets the book...When we

invite readers’ minds to meet

writers’ books in our classrooms, we invite the messiness

of personal response.... And

we also invite personal meaning.

Nancie Atwell

Educator
C URRICULUM U NITS

81

• Reading is an active process. Skillful readers interact with the text making connections between the new information and

what they already know and by making

inferences and interpretations about what

they read (Knuth and Jones, 1991).

• How well a reader constructs meaning

depends in part on metacognition--the

reader’s ability to reflect on, think about,

and control the learning process (Baker

and Brown, 1984).

• Comprehension is a process that can be

taught directly. When a student has been

taught and given the opportunity to use a

comprehension strategy repeatedly,

he/she eventually will begin to use it

automatically and independently (Fielding and Pearson, 1994).

• Reading comprehension is enhanced

through social interaction (Fielding and

Pearson, 1994).

• Competent readers are not only skilled

but strategic. They have a repertoire of

reading behaviors that they can consciously apply in a variety of situations

for a variety of purposes (Jones, 1986;

Calkins, 2001).

• Reading comprehension is enhanced

when strategy instruction is embedded in

text reading (Brown et al., 1989).

• Reading and writing are integrally related processes. Readers increase their comprehension by writing. Good readers

write, and good writers read (Tierney,

1986).

BELIEFS ABOUT READING

Learning is a Social Act

Learning is a social act, and language arts classrooms, above all,

are communities of inquiry. Students can best explore the meaning

of a text through dialogue that honors diverging points of view. As

their different interpretations are voiced and weighed, students create new knowledge—knowledge that is shared. You’ll find many

ideas for stimulating dialogue about each story—and for leading

students to trust the integrity of their unique interpretations.

Using Journals to Broaden Students’ Thinking

We believe that journal writing is a powerful way for students to

respond to a text.The lesson plans in Reading and Responding to

Literature use journal writing extensively—to provide students an

opportunity to reflect on the meaning of each text, to identify and

explore the questions it raises, to make personal connections, and

to think about how the author’s message relates to their own lives.

Thus, journal prompts and student journal entries are an important

part of each lesson. For a description of the various types of journals and journal writing you can use in these lessons, see Appendix

D, page 265.

Culminating Activities

The lesson plans culminate with ideas for extended responses to

the text through the writing of personal narratives, memoirs,

vignettes, fictional accounts, and letters.A comprehensive set of lesson plans that focus specifically on developing students’ writing

skills are found in A Reading and Writing Workshop, pages

173-258.
The Unit at a Glance:

Reading and Responding To Literature

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

82 Voices From the Field

• What does it take to be

a hero?

• How do heroic individuals influence our lives?

• How can we become

open to unlikely

friendships? Why

bother?

• Creating detailed mental images of information 

• Graphic representations

of similarities and differences/Graphic organizers 

• Comparison matrix

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

“‘Magic’ Pablo”

(Friends and Heroes)

• Heroes can kindle our

imaginations, inspire us to

dream, and influence our

lives.

• Hard work and strength of

character can bring dreams

to life.

• Friendships sometimes

develop unexpectedly, in

unlikely ways and places.

• How can heroes influence our lives?

• How can dreams

become a reality?

• How do unexpected

friendships begin and

develop?

• Graphic, non-linguistic

representations of key

ideas 

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

“Cross-Cultural

Dialogue”

(Perspectives)

• Two or more people can

have the same experience

but “see” it in entirely different ways.

• To avoid misunderstanding

others, you have to try to

see the world from their

perspective, not your own.

• How can two people

have the same experience and see it so differently?

• How do you learn to

see things from another

person’s—or another

culture’s—perspective?

Why bother?

• Graphic organizers: story

frames 

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning

strategies 

• Analyzing perspectives

Story/Theme Enduring Understandings Essential Questions Comprehension Strategies

“I Had a Hero”

(Friends and Heroes)

• The potential for heroism

lies within each of us.

• Friendships sometimes

develop unexpectedly, in

unlikely ways and places.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 83

Story/Theme Enduring Understandings Essential Questions Comprehension Strategies

“On Sunday There

Might Be Americans”

(Perspectives)

• Sometimes we are so

caught up in our own

world that we really don’t

“see” others—or realize

how they might see us.

• To avoid misunderstanding—or possibly hurting—

others, we need to see the

world from their perspective, not our own.

• Reading enables us to see

the world from many different perspectives and

expand our world view.

• How do you learn to see

things from another person’s—or another culture’s

perspective? Why bother?

• What does it take to put

ourselves in another’s shoes?

Why bother?

• How does reading help you

expand your perspective

about the world, yourself,

and others?

• Creating detailed

mental images of

information 

• Graphic representations of similarities

and differences/

Graphic organizers 

• Graphic organizers:

story frames 

• Mixed-ability grouping and cooperative

learning strategies 

“Ilunga’s Harvest”

(No Easy Answers)

• Everyone has a culture. It

influences how we see the

world, ourselves, and

others.

• Some cultures believe the

group is responsible for

the well-being of each

individual. Other cultures

believe individuals are primarily responsible for

themselves.

• Life can raise questions

with no easy answers.

• How does our culture

influence how we view the

world, ourselves, and others?

• When is taking care of the

individual more important

than taking care of the

group? When is taking care

of the group more important than taking care of the

individual?

• Why are some life questions so hard?

• How do you handle tough

life questions?

• Advance organizer

questions 

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

• Literature Circles 

• Role Playing
The Unit at a Glance 

Reading and Responding To Literature

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

84 Voices from the Field

Story/Theme Enduring Understandings Essential Questions Comprehension Strategies

“The Talking Goat”

(No Easy Answers)

• Folktales occur in all cultures and teach important

life lessons.

• Folktales contain universal

themes that transcend their

culture of origin.

• In folktales and in life,

people deal with setbacks

and adversity in many different ways.

• What life lessons can we

learn from folktales?

• When facing adversity, how

patient should one be? 

• What does this folktale

teach me about the world,

myself, and others?

• Prediction

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

• Pattern recognition/

abstracting 

“The Extra Place”

(No Easy Answers)

• Cultures and people

change.

• Change can sometimes

make us feel we are losing

a part of ourselves and

prompt questions that

have no easy answers.

• How do you hold onto the

good in the midst of

change?

• What is it “to lose a part of

yourself,” and how do you

know it’s happening?

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

• Pattern recognition/

abstracting 

“A Single, Lucid

Moment”

(No Easy Answers)

• A “single, lucid moment”

can challenge and change

our world view.

• Some cultures believe the

group is responsible for the

well-being of each individual. Other cultures believe

individuals are primarily

responsible for themselves.

• Life can raise questions

with no easy answers.

• What is a ‘single, lucid

moment,’ and how can it

challenge and change our

world view? 

• When is taking care of the

individual more important

than taking care of the

group? When is taking care

of the group more important than taking care of the

individual?

• Why are some life questions

so hard to answer?

• Mixed-ability grouping

and cooperative learning strategies 

• Creating detailed mental images

• Close analysis of selected text passages

• Dramatization of key

story events 
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 85

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the personal narrative “I Had a Hero” written by returned Peace

Corps Volunteer, Mike Tidwell. Tidwell is the author of a number of books,

including Amazon Stranger, In the Mountains of Heaven, and The Ponds of

Kalambayi, a book about his Peace Corps experience, which won the 1991

Paul Cowan Prize given by RPCV Writers and Readers. A former National

Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellow,Tidwell’s work has appeared

in such publications as National Geographic Traveler, Washingtonian, American

Heritage, and Readers Digest. He is a frequent contributor to the Washington

Post, where his writing has earned him three Lowell Thomas Awards, the

highest prize in American travel journalism. His story, “I Had a Hero,” first

appeared in Tidwell’s memoir, The Ponds of Kalambayi, and also in To Touch the

World, a collection of essays by Peace Corps writers, inspired by personal

encounters in their service abroad.

“I Had a Hero” is a memoir about cross-cultural friendship and personal

heroism. In it, Tidwell writes about his friendship with the African village

chief, Ilunga, during his service from 1985-87 in Zaire, West Africa. Like

other Peace Corps Volunteers who have been moved to write about their

friendships with people from other cultures,Tidwell’s friendship with Ilunga

caused him to confront important life issues and examine his prior assumptions about individuals in developing countries. We think it was Ilunga’s

strength of character that left a mark on Tidwell and inspired him to write

this story.

Tidwell met Ilunga when he was assigned by the Peace Corps to work in

the village of Ntita Kalambayi, in rural Zaire, to teach villagers how to build

and stock ponds for raising fish. The goal of the fish-raising project was to

increase the amount of protein in the villagers’ diet, thereby reducing one of

the causes of their malnutrition. When Tidwell taught the villagers how to

move water from one place to another, build ponds, and stock them with fish,

he worked with them to learn survival skills that they would be able to use

for the rest of their lives.

Recently, we spoke with Tidwell who provided us with insight on why he

wrote “I Had a Hero.” We think your students may enjoy hearing what he

had to say:

I wrote this essay to honor Ilunga and the dozens of other village men and

women I knew in Africa who every day work with tireless commitment to

make the future of their children just a little bit better.To this day, all of those

people are my heroes. I respect them as much as any people I’ve met before

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

I HAD A HERO
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

86 Voices From the Field

or since. I respect them twice as much now that I have my own child...I

sent Ilunga a copy of my book, The Ponds of Kalambayi, from which “I

Had a Hero” is adapted, but Ilunga speaks only Tshiluba, the local language, so he will never be able to read the original essay. Some day I hope

to travel back to my Peace Corps site and sit down with Ilunga under a

mango tree and translate the story for him, line by line. That would give

me great pleasure.”

About the Setting

To help your students understand the impact of the story, we’ve provided a bit more information on its setting, the Democratic Republic of the

Congo (DROC), formerly Zaire (and, before that, the Belgian Congo).

Lying on the Equator, almost in the middle of the continent of Africa, the

DROC has the third largest population, and the second largest land area in

sub-Saharan Africa. It includes the Congo River Basin, which covers an area

of almost 400,000 square miles. In his introduction to The Ponds of

Kalambayi, Tidwell describes the Congo River and the village of Ntita

Kalambayi. We think his description is so strong, that we’ve included it as

a separate worksheet to be photocopied for students (see page 87). We

encourage you to have students read it or, for younger or less able readers,

to read it to them.

A Note to Teachers

When you come to the section of the lesson plan (Day One) which recommends that students read Tidwell’s description, there are two important

concepts you might want to explore with students:

• The meaning of the word “traditional” as Tidwell has used it. You may

want to explain to students that the word traditional in this context refers

to a place where life is the way it has always been for many years. It is a

place far from the flow of modern technology—where children grow up

and do the same things their parents have done, where family ties are

extremely important, and where habits and values rarely change. In the

sense that Tidwell used the word traditional, it is the exact opposite of

what we in the United States would construe as “modern.”

• The meaning of Tidwell’s statement: “What I gave these people in the

form of development advice, they returned tenfold in lessons on what it

means to be human.” As students are reading the story, you may want to

ask them to look for the kinds of lessons the people of Ntita Kalambayi

gave Tidwell on “what it means to be human.”

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers

of English/International

Reading Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a wide

range of strategies as they write and

use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a

variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies

programs should provide for the

study of culture and cultural diversity so that the learner can explain

how information and experiences

may be interpreted by people from

diverse cultural perspectives and

frames of reference.
W o rksheet #1:

The Congo River Resource Sheet

Coverdell World Wise Schools 87

Bending and arching, looking curiously confused, the Congo River makes its way

through central Africa, crossing the equator twice. It’s an enormous river, dominating both

geography and human life in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo). In his

famous novella The Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad wrote of the Congo:

‘There was in the world one river especially, a mighty big river, that you could see on a map, resembling an immense snake uncoiled, with its head in the sea, its body at rest curving afar over a vast

country, and its tail lost in the depths of the land.’

Actually the Congo has several tails. A dozen major tributaries spill into its serpentine

body.These tributaries are themselves fed by other rivers, each farther and farther lost in the

depths of the land. One such branch, running through the grasslands of south-central Zaire,

roughly 1000 miles east of the Congo’s main body, is the Lubilashi River. On a map, the

Lubilashi appears as an unremarkable ribbon meandering among the others. But on the

ground it is wide and powerful; an impressive river.At one point along its banks live 20,000

people banded together in a chiefdom called Kalambayi. Like the river along which they

live, the people of Kalambayi are lost, their lives barely touched by the hands of the twentieth century.To this place I journeyed with my newly-acquired duffel bag as a Peace Corps

Volunteer.

One way to understand what it means to be lost in sub-Saharan Africa is to visualize the

continent in terms of concentric circles. The outermost circles, near the coasts, generally

have the highest levels of economic development....But as one moves inward geographically in Africa, one moves downward in income. On the way to the center of the continent,

one passes through ever-tightening circles of poverty until, inside the final, smallest ring,

one finds Kalambayi: a 400-square-mile patch of simple mud huts and barefoot people....There are few places in the world where the people are as poor and the life as traditional.

For two years, I lived among the Kalambayan people. I spoke their language and taught

many of them how to raise fish. My goal was to increase family protein consumption. But

what I gave these people in the form of development advice, they returned tenfold in

lessons on what it means to be human. There, at the center of the continent, they shared

with me the ancient spirit of Africa’s heart. They shared its hopes, its generosity. Above all,

they shared its unbending will to survive in the face of adversities so severe I nearly lost my

life more than once just passing through.”

From the Introduction to The Ponds of Kalambayi

C URRICULUM U NITS
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

88 Voices From the Field

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to “I

Had a Hero.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional activities

to provide options for using “I Had a Hero” with younger and/or less able

readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and skillful readers.We hope

you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own students—and to your

state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts

and social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum

framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 89.

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the story “I Had a Hero.”

• To stimulate individual and group reflection about the story’s meaning.

1. Provide students with a brief overview of the Peace Corps and some of

its work in Zaire (the Democratic Republic of the Congo) using the

information provided on pages 85-86. Explain to students that they will

be reading “I Had a Hero,” a personal narrative written by Mike Tidwell,

a Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Zaire from 1985-87.

2. Show students a map of Africa and point out the location of the country

of Zaire. Explain that when a new government came into power in 1997,

the country’s name was changed to the Democratic Republic of the

Congo. Provide students with a copy of The Congo River Resource Sheet

(page 87) to give them a feel for the setting of the story, the rural village

of Ntita Kalambayi.

3. Explain that the two main characters in “I Had Hero” are the author,

Mike Tidwell, and Ilunga, the chief of Ntita Kalambayi Kalambayi:

“On the way to the center of the continent, one passes through

ever-tightening circles of poverty until, inside the final, smallest

ring, one finds Kalambayi: a 400-square- mile patch of simple mud

huts and barefoot people...There are few places in the world where

D A Y O N E

It always comes back to the

same necessity: go deep

enough and there is a

bedrock of truth, however

hard.

May Sarton

Author
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 89

the people are as poor and the life as traditional...For two years,

I lived among the Kalambayan people. I spoke their language and

taught many of them how to raise fish. My goal was to increase

family protein consumption. But what I gave these people in the

form of development advice, they returned tenfold in lessons on

what it means to be human.There, at the center of the continent,

they shared with me the ancient spirit of Africa’s heart.”

4. Suggest to students that, as they read “I Had a Hero,” they look for

examples of what Tidwell was referring to in #3 above. Refer students

to the Glossary of Terms on page 21, and ask them to read “I Had a

Hero.”

5. Journal Entry: When students reach the end of the story, ask them to

respond in their Reader Response Journals to the following prompt:

• What is really important about this story?

• What feelings did you have as you read it? Why?

6. Ask students to share their journal responses with a partner and then

conduct a whole class discussion focusing on students’ various interpretations of the story.You may want to stimulate student dialogue by asking such questions as:

• What do you think Tidwell wanted readers to be thinking about

as they read “I Had a Hero”?

• What lessons on “what it means to be human” do you think

Tidwell learned from Ilunga?

7. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to re-read the story, underlining important parts, parts that made a strong impression on them, and

parts that may have been confusing to them, in preparation for tomorrow’s lesson. After they’ve re-read the story, ask students to respond in

their journals to these prompts:

• What thoughts does this story bring to your mind about friendship?

• What thoughts does this story bring to your mind about heroism?

8. Ask students to respond to these questions using examples from the text.

Enduring Understandings:

• The potential for heroism lies

within each of us.

• Friendships sometimes develop

unexpectedly, in unlikely ways and

places.

• Unlikely friendships can leave a

lasting mark on us and influence

our view of ourselves, the world,

and others.

Essential Questions:

• What does it take to be a hero?

• How can heroic individuals influence our lives?

• How can we become open to

unexpected friendships? Why

bother?

• What can this story teach us about

the world, ourselves, and others?

Materials: 

Worksheet #1: The Congo River

Resource Sheet. Worksheet #2:

Comparison Matrix

Assessments:

Journal entries; graphic organizers.

dramatizations; written responses to

the text.
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

90 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To deepen students’ understanding of the meaning of the story and help

them respond to it in writing.

• To teach students a reading comprehension strategy.

• To have students relate an aspect of the story to their own lives.

Part One

1. Have students share their underlinings from Day One with a partner.With

another partner, have students share their journal responses. With a third

partner, ask students to discuss the parts of the story that made a strong

impression on them.

2. Ask:“Was there anything confusing about this story that you’d like to clear

up?” Then facilitate a whole-class dialogue, comparing responses to the

homework assignment: “What parts of the story did you underline? Why?

What did this story say to you about friendship? About heroism?” During

the discussion, ask students to support their opinions with examples from

the text.

3. Differentiating Instruction: Reading Comprehension. We’ve provided this

optional activity for use with younger or less able readers. However, it can

be useful to readers of any age. Explain to students that you are going to

use the story of Michael and Ilunga to teach them a reading comprehension strategy that they can use any time they want to remember what they

have read. The strategy is to create detailed mental pictures of the information they are reading—almost like creating “a movie in their mind.”

Explain to students that, after you model this strategy, you would like to

hear their opinions about it.

4. It is a fairly well-accepted principle that if students have the ability to generate detailed mental images of information they are receiving, they can

improve their comprehension of the information (Marzano et al.,1997;

Marzano et al., 2001). Skilled readers may do this automatically. Struggling

readers will benefit from being introduced to this strategy.

5. Ask students to close their eyes as you go through the significant incidents

of the story using the following sensory prompts to help students create

detailed mental pictures in their minds:

• Hear the sound of Michael’s Yamaha motorcycle at the beginning

of the story. Picture him wearing orange gloves, large goggles, and

a yellow crash helmet—and suddenly seeing Ilunga emerge from

the tall grass holding a spear and a machete and wearing a coonskin cap.

D A Y T W O
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 91

• Picture this first meeting of Michael and Ilunga. How do you think

each of them felt?

• Picture Ilunga digging the fish pond covered with dirt and sweat.

Picture Ilunga putting the shovel into the earth time and time

again, refusing to give up digging.

• Picture the sweat running down Michael’s face as he tried to help

Ilunga shovel. Imagine the pain each of them felt from the exertion

of digging.

• Feel the exhaustion Michael and Ilunga experienced as they dug

for hours in the hot sun. Silently reflect: Has there ever been a

time when you felt this kind of exhaustion?

• Picture the hole for the fish pond completed. Picture the fishpond

filled with water and fish.What does it look like? Sound like?

• Picture Ilunga and Michael during their victory celebration, as

they were “hooting and hollering” and laughing in joy—and as

they, slightly drunk, began to name the fish and predict how large

they would grow. Silently reflect. How did Michael and Ilunga’s

impressions of each other change from the beginning of the story

to the end? Why?

6. In their Reading Response Journals, ask students to write about the mental image that was most significant to them.Then ask them to respond to

the question: How did Michael and Ilunga’s impressions of each other

change from the beginning of the story to the end? Why?

7. Have students share their journal responses with a partner—someone with

whom they haven’t shared their thoughts in a while. Then conduct a

whole class discussion based on students’ journal responses.

8. Ask students:What do you think of visualization as a reading comprehension strategy? Did it help you find more meaning in the story? Understand

it better? Why? Why not? Do you think this strategy will help you better

remember the story in the future? Why? Why not? Would you modify this

strategy in any way? 

9. Conduct a whole-class discussion. Elicit a variety of responses to these

questions. Mention to students that they can use this strategy on their own

to help them remember anything they might have to read in any subject.

Ask students: Have you ever used visualization as a reading comprehension strategy? In what subjects might you try it? Relate a personal example, such as:

“When I’m reading history book and know that I’ll need to remember important information, I sometimes try to create a movie in my

To create one must be able to

respond. Creativity is the

ability to respond to all that goes on

around us, to choose from the hundreds of possibilities of thought, feeling, action, and reaction and to put

these together in a unique response,

expression or message that carries

passion and meaning.

Clarissa Pinkola Estes 

Psychologist
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

92 Voices From the Field

mind of what I’m reading. Sometimes, I will even do this when I’m

reading a science book. After a while, it seems to become automatic

with me.”

Part Two

1. You may now want to turn students’ attention to one of the enduring

understandings we’ve identified for this story. Suggest to students: The

potential for heroism lies within each of us. Ask them: Do you agree with

this statement? Why or why not? Do you think anyone can be a hero?

2. Then ask students:

• What exactly does it take to be a hero?

• What are the qualities you associate with heroes?

3. As you are discussing these questions, write the qualities and characteristics students associate with heroes on an overhead transparency or a piece

of chart paper.

4. Ask students to look back at the text and identify the qualities and characteristics that caused Michael to view Ilunga as a hero. Ask students to

provide specific examples of heroic characteristics from the text. Ask:

• What do you think impressed Michael so much about Ilunga that

he was inspired to write a story about him after he returned home

from serving in the Peace Corps? 

5. Written Response to Literature: Ask students to write a brief vignette about

someone who has inspired them by their heroism. Suggest to students that

while their heroic examples can be historical or public figures, perhaps

they can also think of a heroic person “closer to home.” In particular, suggest that they think about a friend, family member, or other adult in their

lives whom they consider heroic. As they write their vignettes about this

person, ask students to pay particular attention to describing the personal

qualities and characteristics that made this person heroic to them. Then,

ask them to describe how this person inspired them or influenced their

lives.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 93

Purpose:

• To help students probe the meaning of the story using a specific comprehension strategy.

• To help students organize a written response to literature.

1. In groups of three, have students share and discuss the vignettes they have

written. Explain that you would like each student to take five minutes to

summarize his/her vignette to the members of his/her small group and

then to invite reactions from group members.

2. Following the group discussions, ask students:

• How were the heroic individuals each of you wrote about similar

and different?

• What qualities and characteristics did the heroic individuals you

wrote about possess?

• How were these similar to or different from Ilunga’s personal qualities and characteristics?

3. As students relate the heroic qualities and characteristics they’ve come up

with, add them to the list you began on Day 2 on the chalkboard, an overhead transparency, or sheet of chart paper.

4. Differentiating Instruction: Reading Comprehension. We’ve provided this

optional activity for use with younger or less able readers. However, it can

be useful to readers of any age. Recent research has found that graphic and

symbolic representations of similarities and differences enhance student

understanding of content (Marzano et al., 2001; Hyerle, 1996).

Explain to students that you are going use the heroic characteristics they

have generated to teach them another reading strategy they can use to

increase their comprehension and level of thinking about a text.The strategy is to use a specific graphic organizer called a “Comparison Matrix”

(see Worksheet #2).

5. Show students a copy of the Comparison Matrix on an overhead projector. Explain to students that in this matrix, you’ll be modeling for them

how to compare Mike and Ilunga with respect to the heroic characteristics they have generated.

6. Provide students a copy of the Comparison Matrix on Worksheet #2.

D A Y T HREE
W o rksheet #2 

Comparison Matrix

Heroic Characteristics Michael Ilunga

94

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 95

7. Walk students through the use of this strategy by saying something like:

“Suppose you were to choose ‘desire to help others’ as a heroic characteristic. You’d begin by writing it in the first box in the first column.”

Now ask students to work in pairs to add their own characteristics to the

matrix—the characteristics that have the most meaning for them. After

they have identified and written a different characteristic in each cell of

the first column of the matrix, ask students, still working in pairs, to work

row by row and write in the columns labeled “Michael” and “Ilunga”

brief examples from the text of how each man did or did not exhibit

each of the heroic characteristics.

8. Review with students the examples they identified. Ask: What conclusions can we draw from this information?

9. Written Response to Literature. For homework, ask students to write a brief

character sketch of Ilunga. Ask them to use the information they generated in their comparison matrices as an organizing structure for their

writing. Ask students to select the lines or sentences from the text that

they feel best illustrate Ilunga’s strength of character, and to include these

textual examples in their character sketch. Give older, more experienced

students the option of comparing Ilunga with the heroic individual they

described in their vignette from the night before—or with a fictional

hero or heroine. In this option, ask students to comment on what they

think it means to have “strength of character.” Let students know that, in

this assignment, you will be reading and responding to their writing.

Purpose:

• To help students relate “I Had a Hero” to specific issues in their own lives.

• To review the reading comprehension strategies used with this story.

1. Suggest to students that, just as in the case of Michael and Ilunga, friendships sometimes develop unexpectedly in unlikely ways and places.

Friendships like these can sometimes influence the way we view the

world, ourselves, and others. Ask students:

• In what ways do you think Michael and Ilunga may have changed

as a result of their friendship? 

• In what ways did Michael and Ilunga’s friendship change the way

they may have viewed the world, themselves, or others?

• In what ways were Michael and Ilunga open to having an unexpected friendship develop?

D A Y F OUR

All good books are alike in that

they are truer than if they had

really happened and after you are

finished reading one you will feel

that all that happened to you and

afterwards it all belongs to you:

the good and the bad, the ecstasy,

the remorse and sorrow, the people

and the places and how the

weather was.

Ernest Hemingway

Author
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

96 Voices From the Field

2. Ask students to think of a time when they developed an unexpected or

unlikely friendship with someone very different from themselves. Ask

them to do a five-minute “quickwrite” in their journals about this friendship and its impact on them.

3. You may want to pursue the theme of “unlikely friendships” by asking students such questions as: How can we become more open to unexpected

and unlikely friendships? Why would we want to bother? What if Michael

had met Ilunga but chose not to befriend him—because Ilunga was so

“different?” Why do we sometimes tend to avoid others who seem “different?” What if everyone in this school/this community/this country

avoided getting to know people whom they perceived to be different?

4. Journal Entry: Ask students to respond in their journals to the following

prompts:

• What did I learn about friendship and heroism from reading and

thinking about “I Had a Hero”?

• What did this story teach me about the world, myself, and others?

Choices and Explorations:

“I Had Hero” is rich with instructional possibilities. If time permits, you

many want to have students complete one of the optional assignments suggested below:

• Working in teams of four, write a script for a dramatization of “I Had a

Hero.” Then conduct your dramatization for the class.

• Imagine that you are a Peace Corps Volunteer writing about Ilunga in a

journal you keep to record your Peace Corps experiences. Describe how

your friendship with Ilunga has changed the way you view the world,

yourself, and others. As you assume the role of Mike Tidwell, describe

the reasons why you (Mike) consider Ilunga to be a hero.

• Assume the role of Ilunga and, as if you were really Ilunga, write a

description of your impressions of the Peace Corps Volunteer Michael—

from the time you first saw him (arriving on a motorcycle in orange

gloves, large bulging goggles, and a bright yellow crash helmet) until your

victory celebration with him at the end of the story. Describe how your

friendship with Michael has changed the way you view the world, yourself, and others.

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

To help students understand how

words can create images in our

minds, and to help them realize

that they can create images with

words, see pages 189-195 in the

Reading and Writing Workshop

lesson plans for “I Had a Hero.”

The Reading and Writing

Workshop lesson plans will build

students’ writing skills and culminate in their being able to write

their own personal narratives.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 97

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the personal narrative,“‘Magic’ Pablo,” written by returned Peace

Corps Volunteer, Mark Brazaitis. “‘Magic’ Pablo” is taken from the Peace

Corps book, The Great Adventure, a collection essays by Peace Corps writers,

which were inspired by personal encounters in their service abroad. From

1991 to 1993, Brazaitis worked in rural Guatemala as a high-school English

teacher, and as a trainer in the Seed Improvement and Post-Harvest

Management program. He is the author of The River of Lost Voices: Stories from

Guatemala and winner of the 1998 Iowa Short Fiction Award. Brazaitis is also

a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and his stories,

poems, and essays have appeared in The Sun, Notre Dame Review, Atlanta

Review,Western Humanities Review, Beloit Fiction Journal, Shenandoah and other

literary journals. His writing has also appeared in The Washington Post and the

Detroit Free Press. He is currently a professor of English at West Virginia

University. An interview with Brazaitis appears on page 207.

“‘Magic’ Pablo” is a true story about imagination, determination, and

cross-cultural friendship. It is about having a dream, and working to make it

a reality.The two characters in the story are: Brazaitis, the author, and Pablo,

one of his Guatemalan students. Although Pablo was just one of many students in Brazaitis’ classes, the story helps us learn what made Pablo “magic”—

and unforgettable—to him.

About the Setting

To help your students understand the impact of the story, we’d like to provide you with some information about its setting in Santa Cruz Verapaz,

Guatemala. Guatemala is the northernmost and most populous of the Central

American republics. Twelve million people live in an area about the size of

Tennessee. Guatemala has coastlines on the Pacific and the Caribbean, and

borders Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador.

More than half of Guatemalans are descendants of Mayan Indians. Many

are of mixed Spanish, European, and Mayan descent. Of the 12 million people living in Guatemala today, many live in rural areas. However, urbanization

is steadily increasing, as rural Guatemalans move into the cities seeking

employment. Nearly 1.5 million live in the nation’s capital, Guatemala City.

Throughout the country, there is a contrast between the old and the new. In

Guatemala City, home to major television stations and newspapers, there are

skyscrapers, supermarkets, and streets crowded with cars and buses.

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

‘MAGIC’ PABLO
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

98 Voices From the Field

In contrast, Santa Cruz Verapaz (the town of 4,000 people where Mark

Brazaitis served) was a remote, farming community that lacked many of the

conveniences of the urban capital. During the time he served in Santa Cruz

Verapaz (1991-1993), Brazaitis noted that “...electricity was so unpredictable

that occasionally it would be off for three or four days in a row.” At the same

time, the town basketball court was “painted with the Coca-Cola logo,”

“American basketball games were broadcast on Saturday mornings” via a

Mexican TV station that reached Santa Cruz, and “children could often be

seen wearing Ninja Turtles T-shirts” (“‘Magic’ Pablo,” pages 23-27). For additional information on the impact of Guatemala on Brazaitis’ writing, see page

207.

The Peace Corps program in Guatemala, which began in 1963, is one of

its oldest. Since then, close to 4,000 Volunteers have served in Guatemala.

Today Volunteers are focusing their efforts on helping rural communities

move from bare subsistence to small-scale commercial agriculture, manage

and conserve natural resources, improve health and nutrition, and increase

off-farm incomes. Peace Corps Volunteers live and work together with

Guatemalans, thus enabling both to learn about each others’ history, languages, and cultures.

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

“‘Magic’ Pablo.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional activities to provide options for using “‘Magic’ Pablo” with younger and/or less

able readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and skillful readers.We

hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard

for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own students—and to

your state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 99.

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers

of English/International

Reading Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a

wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing

process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 99

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the story “‘Magic’ Pablo.”

• To stimulate individual and group reflection about the story’s meaning.

1. Give students this assignment the night before they read “‘Magic’ Pablo”:

Through interviewing others (e.g., classmates, friends, relatives) and other

forms of information gathering (e.g., reading, the Internet, etc.), be able

to explain at least six basketball terms and the names of three basketball

“heroes” by this time tomorrow.

2. In addition, ask several basketball-savvy kids (both male and female) to

research the basketball careers of Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, prepare brief presentations to the class about them—and to teach the class,

if needed, the meaning of the following terms: “slam dunk.” “rebound,”

“jump shot,” “reverse lay-up,” and “block out.” This will ensure that students understand the names and terms they will encounter in the essay.

3. Begin the lesson the next day by asking students to share the basketball

information they’ve gathered with a partner. Then ask the pairs to share

this information with rest of the class. Finally, have the students you preselected make their presentations on Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson.

4. Explain to students that they will be reading a story written by a Peace

Corps Volunteer, Mark Brazaitis, about his experience as an English

teacher in a small town in rural Guatemala.The story describes one of his

students, Pablo, who had a passion for basketball.

5. Briefly describe the setting and life in Guatemala, based on the information provided on page 97-98.

6. Ask students to read “ ‘Magic’ Pablo,” keeping this question in mind:

• What made Pablo “magic” to the author?

7. Journal Entry: When students have finished reading, ask them to respond

in their journals to the following prompts:

• What questions did this story bring to your mind?

• What do you imagine the author, Mark Brazaitis, wanted readers

to be thinking about as they read the story?

• What, if anything, do you think is really important about this

story?

• What was it about Pablo that made him seem “magic” to Brazaitis?

D A Y O N E

Enduring Understandings:

• Heroes can kindle our imagination,

inspire us to dream, and influence

our lives.

• Hard work and strength of character

can bring dreams to life.

• Friendships sometimes develop

unexpectedly, in unlikely ways and

places.

• Unlikely friendships can leave a lasting mark on us and influence our

view of the world, ourselves, and

others.

Essential Questions:

• How can heroes influence our lives?

• How can dreams become a reality?

• How do unexpected friendships

begin and develop?

• What does this story teach me about

the world, myself, and others?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for use

with students in grades 7-12.

Assessments: 

Group discussions, oral presentations,

journal entries, extended writing

assignments.
R EADING AND RESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

100 Voices From the Field

8. For homework, ask students to complete their responses to the prompts

in #7. Let students know that their responses will form the basis of

tomorrow’s class discussion.

Purpose:

• To have students probe the deeper meanings in “‘Magic’ Pablo” through

small group dialogue.

• To encourage students to use a variety of ways to process the story’s

meaning.

1. Have students number off from 1-4. All the students with the #1 will

gather in one group, the students who are #2 will gather in another

group, the students who are #3 will gather in another group, and so forth.

2. Write the following questions on an overhead transparency or a piece of

chart paper, and number them from 1-4.

• What was it about Pablo that made him seem “magic” to the

author, Mark Brazaitis?

• What questions and thoughts did this story bring to your mind?

• What do you imagine Brazaitis wanted readers to be thinking

about as they read “‘Magic’ Pablo”? 

• What, if anything, is really important about the story “‘Magic’

Pablo”? 

3. Ask students to discuss these questions in their small groups. Group #1

will discuss question #1; group #2 will discuss question #2 and so forth,

so that each group is discussing a different question.

4. Give groups five minutes to discuss their assigned question.Then ask each

group to select a reporter who will summarize the group’s responses to

its assigned question for the rest of the class. After each summary, ask the

class: What other ideas you would like to add?

5. Finally, ask groups to discuss the following question: How did heroes kindle Pablo’s imagination, inspire him to dream, and influence his life?

6. Give each group a sheet of chart paper and a set of felt-tipped markers of

various colors. Explain to the groups that you would like them construct

an “ideagram.” An “ideagram” is a device for summarizing information

or responses to questions using pictures, symbols, graphics, and simple

words or phrases. The “ideagram” is then used to clearly explain the

group’s summary to the whole class.

D A Y T W O

We grow great by dreams. All

big men are dreamers. They

see things in the soft haze of

a spring day or in the red fire

of a long winter’s evening.

Some of us let these great

dreams die, but others nourish

and protect them; nurse them

through bad days till they

bring them to the sunshine

and light which comes always

to those who sincerely hope

that their dreams will come

true.

Woodrow Wilson

U.S. President
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 101

7. Give groups 10 minutes to work on an “ideagram” that clearly summarizes

their responses to the question in #5. In some cases, teachers have groups

select one or two group members who are skilled at drawing to be the primary recorders of group members’ ideas. However, all group members

contribute verbally to the summary and help the “artists” clearly depict

the information that will be shared with the rest of the class.

8. Have each group explain its “ideagram” to the rest of the class.

9. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to re-read “‘Magic’ Pablo,”

underlining the parts of the story that have special meaning to them.

Suggest to students:“As you are re-reading the story, imagine that you are

having a conversation with Mark Brazaitis, the author. Imagine that you

are asking him: What is your message?” Also suggest to students that they

try to use the same comprehension strategy when re-reading “‘Magic’

Pablo” that they used when they were reading “I Had a Hero”; i.e., suggest that they try to form detailed mental pictures in their minds of Mark,

Pablo, and the events in the story. Finally, ask students to respond to the

following journal prompts, using examples from the text:

• What mental image was strongest to you?

• Does the story have a message? If so, what is it?

Purpose:

• To encourage students see the connections between Pablo’s actions and

their own lives.

• To enable students to see the connections between “‘Magic’ Pablo” and “I

Had a Hero.”

1. Prior to students’ arrival, write each of the following quotes in large letters on a separate sheet of chart paper. Post each sheet in a different corner of the room.

• “If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you

can become it.”

• “The only thing that stands in the way of people and what they

want in life is simply the will to try and the faith to believe it’s

possible.”

• “To achieve a goal, nothing can take the place of persistence.

Talent cannot. Genius cannot. Persistence and determination can

accomplish the impossible.”

D A Y T HREE
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

102 Voices From the Field

• “Your mind can amaze your body if you just keep telling yourself:

“I can do it, I can do it, I can do it.”

2. When students arrive, revisit core ideas from yesterday’s discussion and

invite new ideas, based on students’ journal entries. Ask students to share

the various mental images they formed while re-reading “‘Magic’ Pablo”

with a partner. With another partner, have them discuss their thoughts

about the story’s message.Then conduct a whole-class discussion.

3. Ask students to think about the phrase that is repeated throughout the

story: “Let’s imagine...” Then ask them: What is “Let’s imagine...” an

invitation to do? 

4. Call students’ attention to the four quotes in each corner of the room.

Ask students to reflect on each quote and then to stand up and move to

the corner of the room with the quote that has the most meaning for

them. When groups have formed under each quote, ask students to discuss why they selected this particular quote.Then give each group a sheet

of paper on which you’ve reproduced the questions below. Ask students

in each corner to appoint a discussion leader, who will lead the group’s

discussion on each question, and a reporter, who will summarize the

group’s responses to the questions for the rest of the class. Questions:

• How do you feel about this quote?

• How does this quote relate to Pablo’s experience?

• How does it relate to Ilunga’s experience in “I Had a Hero”?

• In what ways are Pablo and Ilunga alike?

• If you were to take this quote seriously, what would it mean for

your life?

5. Give students three minutes to discuss all five questions.Ask each group’s

reporter to summarize for the rest of the class his/her group’s responses

to these questions.

6. Suggest to students that both “I Had a Hero” and “‘Magic’ Pablo” are stories about unexpected and unlikely friendships. They are about friendships that left a lasting impression on the authors of these stories and, in

some ways, changed or enriched their lives.

7. Ask students to think about the following questions:

• What “mark” or lasting impression did Mark and Pablo leave on

each other? In what ways, if any, were they each changed by their

friendship? 
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 103

• How do you think Pablo and Mark’s friendship may have influenced their view of the world, themselves, and others? 

8. Allow time in the remainder of the class period for a discussion of these

questions.

9. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to respond to the following

prompts in their Reader Response Journals:

• In the story,“‘Magic’ Pablo,” both Mark and Pablo gave something

to their friendship and received something from their friendship.

What did Mark give to his friendship with Pablo, and what did he

receive?

• What did Pablo give to his friendship with Mark, and what did he

receive?

10. For an extended assignment, ask students to relate these questions to Mike

Tidwell’s friendship with Ilunga in “I Had a Hero.” Ask them to compare

the impact of Tidwell’s friendship with Ilunga to Brazaitis’ friendship with

Pablo.

Purpose:

• To encourage students to reflect on the promises and possibilities of

unexpected friendships.

• To allow students the opportunity to create an extended response to the

text.

1. Suggest to students that it was highly unlikely that a Guatemalan teenager and an American Peace Corps Volunteer would become such good

friends. However, not all “unlikely friendships” have to be with someone

from another culture.They could be with someone from another part of

town, someone with a different background, someone with different

interests, someone who isn’t inside the circle of one’s usual friendships/group. Perhaps give an example from your own experience.

2. Ask students to review the journal entry they wrote when reading “I

Had a Hero,” in which they described an unlikely/unexpected friendship

they developed with someone very different from themselves. Then ask

them:What “mark” or impression did this friendship leave on you?

3. Following this discussion, suggest to students that—in order to develop

an unexpected, unlikely friendship—one first has to be “open” to having

this kind of experience. Ask:Why would any of us want to bother being

D A Y F OUR
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

104 Voices From the Field

open to unlikely friendships? What does being “open” to a friendship

mean?

4. Ask students to do respond in their journals to the following idea:

• Think of someone very different from yourself with whom you

might want to become friends. What promises or possibilities

might this new friendship hold for you? How would you go about

beginning this friendship?

5. Conduct a whole-class discussion on the possible reasons why we would

want to begin a friendship with someone very different from ourselves.

6. Journal Entry: Ask students to respond in their journals to the following

prompts:

• What did I learn about friendship and heroism from reading

“‘Magic’ Pablo”?

• What did this story teach me about the world, myself, and others?

Optional Extended Response to Literature: 

Explain to students that you would like them to create an extended response

to “‘Magic’ Pablo” by selecting one of the writing options below. For this

assignment, if time permits, you may want to have students use all aspects of

the writing process: pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.

Have students work on the writing option they have selected. Provide time

for peer review, feedback, and revision. When students have completed their

essays, have them share them with each other in small groups. If you are

teaching this unit to another class, you might arrange for an exchange of

essays.

• Imagine that you and Pablo begin corresponding to each other. Write

four or more letters (e.g., two from you to Pablo and two to you from

Pablo) that describe major events (real or imagined) in each of your

lives—and that also illustrate how your friendship develops and grows

stronger over time.

•. Write a sequel to this essay describing how you think Pablo’s life evolved

in the years following the time the story ends. In what ways does his

imagination help him? In what ways does his determination help him? In

what ways does his friendship with Mark remain with him even after

Mark returns to the United States? 

• Step into the shoes of Pablo. In the first person, as if you were Pablo,

describe how you felt and what you did after Mark left Guatemala.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 105

Describe the impression Mark has left on you. Then describe how your

life unfolds over the next two years. What goals do you pursue? What

dreams do you follow? How does your strength of character help you?

Choices and Explorations:

Below are several ideas you might want to consider for having students

respond to the story in a way that allows for multiple intelligences (Gardner,

1983). For example, you may want to ask students to select from one of the

following options:

• Have students write and enact a role play in which they assume the roles

of Mark and Pablo in a meeting that occurs several years following the end

of the essay. Assume that Mark has returned to the United States shortly

after the essay ends and is now returning to Guatemala to visit Pablo.

(Verbal/linguistic intelligence; bodily/kinesthetic intelligence)

• Have students create a flowchart that illustrates the sequence of events in

“‘Magic’ Pablo.” (Logical/mathematical intelligence)

• Have students engage in a debate in which half the class takes the affirmative position and half the class takes the opposing position to the following statement: “It is not natural talent, but imagination, effort, and

perseverance that enable us to achieve important personal goals.” Have

students work in groups of four to develop arguments for either the

affirming or opposing position. (Verbal/linguistic intelligence)

• Have students illustrate key events in “‘Magic’ Pablo” in a series of drawings or in a six-block cartoon (Visual/spatial intelligence)

• Have students write and present a poem, song, or rap that captures the

events and main ideas in the essay, “‘Magic’ Pablo.” (Musical/rhythmic

intelligence)

• Have students assume the role of Pablo and write a diary entry in the first

person that describes some aspect of his friendship with Mark Brazaitis,

and the impact it had on him. (Intrapersonal intelligence; verbal/linguistic intelligence)

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

To focus students’ attention on

the way in which Mark

Brazaitis used the literary

device of dialogue to bring

power to the story “‘Magic’

Pablo,” see page 196-202 in the

Reading and Writing

Workshop unit.
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

106 Voices From the Field

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the personal narrative “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” written by former Peace Corps Volunteer, Roz Wollmering.Wollmering’s narrative is taken

from the Peace Corps book To Touch the World, a collection of Peace Corps

Volunteer stories about their service abroad. Wollmering served in GuineaBissau,West Africa, from 1990-1992. In this essay, she writes about the problems she experienced as a beginning English teacher in an unfamiliar culture—an experience in which she felt very much like an “outsider.”

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue” is a story about individuals from two different

cultures trying to understand one another, and having a very difficult time of

it. It’s a story about someone who, despite many frustrating experiences, continues to persist in trying to cross a cultural divide. Originally titled “My Side

vs. Their Side,” the author (Roz) tells the story first from her point of view,

and then from what she imagines to be her students’ point of view. Writing

is Roz’s way of sorting out and making sense of a chaotic experience.

You may want to explain to your students that when the story shifts from

Roz’s point of view to her students’ point of view, it is really Roz who is

writing both sides of the “dialogue.” As she writes about the experience from

her students’ point of view, she is trying to step into their shoes and “see” the

world as they see it.A remarkable thing about Roz’s story is her strong-willed

and humble commitment to achieve understanding of another culture—and

to see the world with new eyes.

About the Setting

Guinea-Bissau is a small country on the West African Atlantic coast, bordering Senegal. Of its one million inhabitants, more than half over the age of

15 cannot read or write. Many people live in small villages in remote areas,

often without access to paved roads. Based on the September, 2000 report of

The World Bank Group, Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in the

world, with approximately 88% of the population living on less than U.S. $1

per day. It is here that Roz Wollmering agreed to serve as an English teacher

and Peace Corps Volunteer.

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional activities to provide options for using “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” with

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

CROSS-CULTURAL

DIALOGUE
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools

younger and/or less able readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and

skillful readers. We hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a

flexible springboard for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own

students—and to your state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 109.

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the story “Cross-Cultural Dialogue.”

• To help students understand how a writer can write from two different

perspectives.

• To teach students two reading comprehension strategies.

1. Provide students with a brief overview of the Peace Corps and its work

in Guinea-Bissau, using the information provided above. Explain to students that they will be reading a personal narrative written by a Peace

Corps Volunteer titled “Cross-Cultural Dialogue,” based on one of the

Volunteer’s experiences as she served as an English teacher in GuineaBissau,West Africa.

2. Show students a map of Africa, and point out the location of the country of Guinea-Bissau. Explain that it is one of the poorest countries in

the world where more than half of the adult population cannot read or

write. Explain that while a high value is placed on education, many factors interfere with children being able to attend school on a regular basis.

Some of these factors, at the time this story was written, included: children were needed at home to help with growing and harvesting food;

children were sometimes needed to care for younger siblings while their

parents worked in the fields; there was a high degree of illness due to

unsafe drinking water and lack of refrigeration for food; schools were

badly in need of teachers and supplies, and often had to make do with

very little.

3. Explain that the author of this story, Roz Wollmering, chose to serve as

an English teacher and a Peace Corps Volunteer in a rural area of GuineaD A Y O N E

107
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

108 Voices From the Field

Bissau from 1990-1992. Despite extensive cross-cultural training, Roz

was in no way prepared for the situation she encountered on her first day

of school. Her determination to understand the local culture, and to

bridge the cultural divide that separated her from her students, is clearly

evident in “Cross-Cultural Dialogue.”

4. Suggest to students: “Imagine that you are a Peace Corps Volunteer who

has been assigned to teach English to pre-teens and teenagers in a remote

and impoverished part of the world.You arrive at your destination and are

excited to begin your work.What is going through your mind? What are

your expectations of what the school and students will be like? What are

you most looking forward to?” Conduct a brief class discussion.

5. Prior to asking students to read the story, explain that it is written in two

parts and from two different perspectives. Explain to students that the

story was originally titled “My Side vs.Their Side,” because Roz tells the

story first from her point of view, and then from what her experience in

her students’ culture led her to believe was their point of view. In order

to write from her students’ point of view, Roz had to try to step into their

shoes and see the world as they saw it.

6. You may want to point out that, rather than being a conversation among

two or more people, the “dialogue” in this story is an internal one. It is

between Roz and herself, as she uses writing as a vehicle for sorting

through a very complex experience.

7. Explain to students that as Roz writes about the events from her students’

point of view, she is making an attempt to step into their shoes and

understand the world from their cultural perspective. Suggest to students:

When you’ve finished reading Roz’s story, decide how successful you

think she was in capturing her students’ perspective. If it is difficult to

decide this, think about what additional information you might need.

How would Roz ever be able to know how her students really experienced the situation?

8. Refer students to the Glossary of Terms on page 40 and ask them to read

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue.” Optional Comprehension Strategy: You may

want to say to students:“As I am reading a story, I often use a highlighter

or make notes in the margin when I think something is important, when

I like a particular line or sentence the author has written, or when something raises a question for me—almost as if I’m “talking to the text.”

Doing this helps me get at the meaning of what I’m reading.”

9. Suggest to students that they try this strategy to see whether it works for

them. Ask them to highlight those parts of the story that they think are

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers of

English/International Reading

Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a

wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing

process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
C URRICULUM U NITS

109 Coverdell World Wise Schools

important, the lines of the story that they like, and any parts of the story

that are confusing to them.As questions come up, ask them to write their

questions in the margins, almost as if they were “talking to the text” and

asking: “Story, what are you telling me?”

10. Provide students the remainder of the class period for reading the story.

11. Comprehension Strategy. There is a significant research base relating the use

of graphic organizers to increases in student achievement. With this in

mind, we are suggesting you use a “Story Frame” (Fowler, 1982) to help

students sort out the multiple meanings in “Cross-Cultural Dialogue.”

Close to the end of the class period, provide students with copies of

“Story Frame A” (Worksheet #3a) and “Story Frame B” (Worksheet

#3b). Then give students the following homework assignment: “For

tomorrow’s class discussion, I’d like you to review the events of the story

from each of the two perspectives: Roz’s perspective and her students’

perspective. Using “Story Frame A,” describe in writing the events from

Roz’s perspective. Using “Story Frame B,” describe in writing the events

from her students’ perspective.”

Enduring Understandings:

• Two or more people can have the

same experience but “see” it in

entirely different ways, especially

when crossing cultures.

• To avoid misunderstanding others,

you have to try to see the world

from their perspective, not your

own.

• Writing can help us sort out life

experiences and better understand

the world, ourselves, and others.

Essential Questions:

• How can two people have the

same experience and see it so differently? 

• How do you learn to see things

from another person’s—or another culture’s—perspective? Why

bother?

• How can writing help us make

sense of life experiences and better understand the world, ourselves, and others?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for

use with students in grades 7-12.

Assessments: 

Group discussions, graphic organizers, role plays, journal entries,

extended writing assignments.
W orksheet #3a

Story Frame “ A ” : Roz’s Perspective

110

Directions: Fill out this story frame in response to the following prompts:

In this story, Roz’s problem starts when:

After that:

N ext:

Then:

Finally:

Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE
W orksheet #3b

Story Frame “ B ” : Roz’s Students’ Perspective

Coverdell World Wise Schools 111

In this story, students’ problem starts when:

After that:

N ext:

Then:

Finally:

Directions: Fill out this story frame in response to the following prompts:

C URRICULUM U NITS
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

112 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To have students probe the deeper meanings of the story.

• To have students experience what it is like to try to see the world from

another perspective.

1. Have students share their highlights with one partner, the lines or sentences they liked with another partner, and the parts of the story that

were confusing or raised questions for them with another partner. Then

conduct a whole-class discussion. Ask:What is really important about the

story “Cross-Cultural Dialogue”?

2. Next, divide the class into two groups—“A” and “B.” Students in the “A”

group will focus on Story Frame “A.” Ask the “A” group to form groups

of three. Ask students in the “B” group to focus on Story Frame “B” and

to also form groups of three.Thus, students who are focusing on the same

Story Frame (“A” or “B”) will be seated together.

3. Ask students in each group to compare their story frames, fill in details

they may have missed, and help each other clarify points that may have

been confusing.

4. Ask students: What do you think of using a “story frame” as a reading

comprehension strategy? Did it increase your understanding of the story?

If so, in what ways? If not, why not? When else might you use this strategy?

5. Role-Play Activity. Next, explain to the groups that you’d like them to participate in a role-play activity.To prepare for this, explain that groups who

have focused on Story Frame “A” (Roz’s viewpoint) will have 10 minutes

to decide what they will say in a role play when they are paired with

someone who has focused on Story Frame “B” (Roz’s students’ viewpoint). Students in the “B” group will be preparing in the same way.

6. Next, set up the role-play activity in the following way:Ask one group of

students focusing on Story Frame “A” to pair up with one group focusing on Story Frame “B”, thus forming groups of six. Do this until you

have several groups of six, with the “A”s and “B”s seated facing each

other.

7. Everyone with Story Frame “A” will play the role of Roz. Everyone with

Story Frame “B” will play the role of her students. Thus, there will be

three people who can play Roz in each group of six, and three people

who will play her students. Groups should rotate the role of Roz among

D A Y T W O

Either write something worth

reading or do something

worth writing.

Ben Franklin 

U.S. Statesman
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 113

the three players. Encourage both Roz and her “students” to refer back to

the text for ideas if the role play begins to lag. Finally, ask students to

imagine that the role play begins on the day when there are enough students in Roz’s class for school to actually begin.

8. Provide students with approximately 10 minutes for the role play.

Circulate among groups taking brief notes on interesting comments.

9. Debrief the role play with the following questions:

• How did it feel to step into the shoes of Roz?

• How did it feel to step into the shoes of her students?

10. Journal Entry. For homework, ask students to do the following: Select one

incident from the story—one that seems significant to you, and around

which there was considerable misunderstanding. Describe the incident in

your Reading Journals. Then, try to step into Roz’s shoes and interpret

and write about the incident from her point of view. Next, try to step

into her students’ shoes, and interpret and write about the incident from

their point of view. Finally, explain in writing what you learned by going

through this process.

Purpose: 

• To have students use the incidents in Roz’s story to explore the concept

of “crossing cultures.”

• To have students reflect on what it is like to feel like an outsider (in the

way that Roz did).

1. Ask students to share their journal entries with a partner, and then in a

whole-class discussion. Ask: Why is it sometimes difficult to step into

another person’s shoes? 

2. Then ask: If you had been in Roz’s situation, what might you have done?

If Roz’s students were to have the opportunity to read her story, do you

think they would agree with the way she has portrayed the situation?

Why or why not?

3. Make the point, if it hasn’t already come up, that to imagine someone’s

point of view is not the same thing as actually knowing what that person’s point of view really is. How could Roz have checked out whether

or not her perceptions were correct? Do you think every student in

Roz’s class would have seen the situation in exactly the same way?

D A Y T HREE
R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

114 Voices From the Field

4. Ask students: How is it possible that two or more people can experience

the same events and interpret them completely differently? Have you ever

had the experience of going to a movie or watching a video with a

friend, and each of you thought that something completely different was

important? Ask: How could that be? You each saw the same movie.

5. Explain that it is rare that two people have the same experience and

interpret it in exactly the same way. This situation becomes even more

complex when the two people come from different cultures.

6. Explain to students that when Roz left the familiar culture of the United

States and entered the unfamiliar culture of Guinea-Bissau, she experienced a phenomenon called “crossing cultures.”

7. Ask students: What do you think the phrase “crossing cultures” might

mean? Have you ever “crossed cultures”? What did it feel like? Ask students to discuss these questions with a partner, and then conduct a

whole-class discussion.

8. Clarify the concept of “crossing cultures” by explaining to students that

when we talk about behaviors and beliefs that a group of people have in

common, we are talking about culture. Culture consists of the daily living patterns and the most deeply held beliefs that a group of people hold

in common. It is demonstrated in many ways: customs, traditions, values,

world view, styles of dress, attitudes toward education, beliefs about the

importance of time, the responsibilities of children and teens, and the role

of the family, as well as celebrations, music, art, and much more.

9. When individuals cross from one culture into another, they often may

feel different, “strange,” or like an outsider—and they may often view

people from the new culture as different or “strange.”They may feel that

they have stepped out of a very familiar place where all the rules for

behavior are known—into a place where they have to learn a whole new

set of rules.

10. Journal Entry. Ask students to respond in their Reading Journals to this

prompt: Have you ever had the experience of not being sure what the

rules were? (Explain that this could be the experience of moving to a

new country, moving to a new state, city, town, or neighborhood, moving to a new school, or moving to a new group within a school.) Ask students to write about this experience and what it felt like.

11. Ask students to share their responses with a partner.Then ask partners to

share with another set of partners in groups of four. Students in your class

who have come to the United States from another culture can be a great

resource in this activity. Invite them to share their experiences.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 115

12. Ask students: What experiences did you hear about that made a strong

impression on you? Elicit several different responses.

13. Journal Entry. For homework, ask students to consider the following

statement:“To avoid misunderstanding the behavior of individuals different from yourself—and/or from another culture—you have to try to see

the world from their perspective, not your own.” Ask them to explain in

their Reading Journals whether they agree with this statement or not—

and their reasons why. Then ask them to respond in their Reading

Journals to this question: What are some possible ways to go about seeing things from another person’s—or another culture’s—perspective?

Purpose:

• To have students experience the way in which the act of writing can be

a way of sorting out complex experiences that involve different perspectives.

• To have students apply what they have learned in reflecting on the meaning of “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” to their own lives.

1. Ask students to share their journal responses from the night before in

groups of three and then in a whole-class discussion.

2. If students don’t mention this, suggest that the act of writing was Roz’s

attempt to try to see the world from another culture’s perspective and to

sort out the meaning of her experience.

3. Now ask students to think about a misunderstanding that has occurred in

their own lives. Suggest to students: “Let’s see if writing about this experience can help you sort it out—or at least see it with new eyes.” Explain

to students that you would like them to try to write about the misunderstanding first, from their own point of view, and then from the point

of view of the other person involved. To help students organize their

thoughts and their writing, suggest the following:

“If you are comfortable doing this, talk to the person with whom

you had the misunderstanding and—putting your own perspective

aside for a moment—try to see the misunderstanding from his/her

perspective. If you’re not comfortable talking to the person, try to

imagine, as Roz, did what the situation looked like from that person’s perspective.

D A Y F OUR
4. Then use the graphic organizer in Worksheet #4 and the questions to help

you develop a set of written reflections on the misunderstanding. Try to

write about the misunderstanding, as Roz did, from two points of view.

Before writing about the misunderstanding, brainstorm a set of preliminary notes in Worksheet #4.

5. Once students have made their preliminary notes in the graphic organizer, have them try to write about the misunderstanding from both points

of view (their own and that of the other person involved), incorporating

their notes in the graphic organizer with a response to the following

prompt: Here is what I learned from the experience of writing from two

different points of view.

6. Have students begin this assignment in class and complete it for homework. Have them share their work with in small groups during the next

day’s class. Ask for volunteers to share their writing and what they learned

as they worked to see a situation from two points of view. In the course of

the discussion ask:

• What was the most difficult part of this writing assignment? Why?

• What was the most important thing that you learned?

7. Journal Entry: Conclude the lesson on “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” by asking students to respond in their journals to the following prompt: How

did reading and responding to “Cross Cultural Dialogue” help you better

understand the world, yourself, and others?

Choices and Explorations:

Ask students to select an individual in your school or community who has

come from another culture. Ask them to talk with this person about things

that have been difficult for them to understand about the culture of the

United States. Ask students to follow up their conversations with a written

account of what they have learned about seeing the world from another culture’s perspective.

116 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

To focus students’ attention on

the way in which Roz

Wollmering used the five main

elements of storytelling in

“Cross Cultural Dialogue” see

page 215-220 in the Reading

and Writing Workshop unit.
W o rksheet #4: 

Sorting Out Perspectives

Directions: Complete the worksheet by responding to each of the prompts.

Coverdell World Wise Schools 117

The experience as the other person saw it

(or how you think they saw it):

How the other person felt about the experience (or how you think they felt):

Why the other person felt they way he/she

did (or why you think they person felt that

way):

The experience as I saw it:

How I felt about the experience:

Why I felt the way I did:

C URRICULUM U NITS
A R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

118 Voices From the Field

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the short story, “On Sunday There Might Be Americans” written

by former Peace Corps Volunteer, Leslie Simmonds Ekstrom. The story was

published in Living on the Edge: Fiction by Peace Corps Writers, a collection of

Peace Corps Volunteer fiction edited by John Coyne (Curbstone Press). Many

Peace Corps Volunteers are moved to write about their encounters with other

cultures—especially relationships or events which held great meaning for

them. Often their writing is a way of preserving their memories of important

people, stirring events, and significant places in their Peace Corps experience.

Sometimes it is a way of thinking through differences in cultural values—or

reflecting on personal changes they may have experienced as a result of their

Peace Corps service.And sometimes it is a way of sorting through their experience of leaving the United States, a land of plenty, and encountering cultures and peoples who may lack the basic necessities of life.

Leslie Simmonds Ekstrom served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Niger, a

small country in West Africa from 1963-1965. At the beginning of her story,

Leslie tells readers what prompted her to write it. She says:

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, I’d always loved being part of the excitement and

commotion of an African marketplace (where local farmers and craftsmen come

to sell their produce and artwork). Except for the noisy boys who demanded

to guard your car, barter a price, or carry your loads, the market that most

reminded me of my Volunteer days was at Ayarou, near the Mali border. One

Sunday at Ayarou, a small boy followed me all through the market. He was

shy and hesitant and I thought I could ditch him, but then he’d reappear in

my shadow again. I finally paid him to go away. But I kept thinking about

him—what his life might be like, how he perceived Westerners, and how easily Westerners become oblivious to the lives of ordinary people like him.Trying

to imagine his life, I wrote “On Sunday There Might Be Americans.”

“On Sunday There Might Be Americans” is a story about many things: it’s

about a young boy taking responsibility for his family’s survival; about how

close family bonds bring balance to difficult economic conditions; about a

young boy’s hopes and dreams; and about how it feels to be overlooked and

ignored.

On the deepest level, it is a story about seeing yet not “seeing” others. For

example, we see many people each day in our busy lives. Many times we see

them only with our eyes. Other times we are so preoccupied with our

thoughts, tasks, and what we want to accomplish, that we only “notice” the

people around us in passing—or sometimes we are simply oblivious to them.

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

ON SUNDAY

THERE MIGHT

BE AMERICANS
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 119

But on some occasions, we also “see” certain people with our minds and

hearts.The difference between seeing people with our eyes only and “seeing”

them with our minds and hearts is immense. This story is a way for you to

explore these issues with your students. It is also an opportunity for your students to experience what it’s like to be growing up in a culture very different from their own.

Ekstrom’s nonfiction articles and commentary pieces have been published

in numerous community publications, as well as The Washington Post. Her fiction has appeared in The Bridge, a national publication on cross-cultural

affairs.

About the Setting

To help your students understand the context of the story, we’d like to provide you with some information on its setting. Niger,West Africa, a country

of 10 million people, is located in sub-Saharan Africa, south of Algeria and

Libya and West of Mali. A section of the Sahara Desert extends into Niger’s

northern regions. Located very close to the equator, Niger has extremely high

daytime temperatures and little rainfall in many regions. Droughts are the

main threat to food production, and malnutrition is a persistent health problem. Many Peace Corps Volunteers work in rural areas of Niger to improve

the nutritional status of children and pregnant women.

According to World Bank data, Niger is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world. According to World Bank statistics for the year

2000, Niger ranked 173 out of 174 on the United Nations Human

Development Index—an assessment of social, health, and economic conditions (www.worldbank.org/afr). According to Peace Corps data, roughly 25%

of children under the age of two are malnourished, resulting in one of the

world’s highest infant mortality rates (www.peacecorps.gov/countries/niger).

Nearly a third of the children born in Niger die before age five from malnutrition and poor health conditions (www.countrywatch.com). The life

expectancy for the total population is 45 years. According to World Bank statistics for 1999, only 23% of Nigeriens over age 15 can read and write, and

only 24% of school-age students attend school.

You can find additional information about Niger provided by Peace Corps

Volunteers on the World Wise Schools Web site (www.peacecorps.gov/wws).

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers

of English/International

Reading Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures

of the United States and the

world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a

wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing

process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
120 Voices From the Field

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

“On Sunday There Might Be Americans.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional activities to provide options for using “On Sunday There

Might Be Americans” with younger and/or less able readers, as well as with

older, more sophisticated and skillful readers.We hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard for tailoring instruction to

the unique needs of your own students—and to your state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 121.We hope they have meaning for you and your students.

Purpose:

• To introduce the story to students and have them reflect on its setting.

• To stimulate large and small group discussion about the story’s meaning.

1. Provide students with information about Niger presented on page 119.

Show students a map of Africa, and point out Niger’s location in West

Africa.

2. Based on the data from The World Bank and other sources on page 119,

explain that Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world. Refer students to the Web sites on page 119 for further information.

3. Ask students: What do you think the lives of Nigerien children and

teenagers must be like? Give students an opportunity to share their

thoughts with a partner.

4. Explain to students how Leslie Simmonds Ekstsrom came to write “On

Sunday There Might Be Americans,” using the information provided on

page 118. Ask students: What do you think Leslie may have wanted readers to be thinking about as they read her story?

5. Explain to students that they will be reading about a day in the life of

Musa, a 12-year-old Nigerien boy.

D A Y O N E

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 121

6. Refer students to the Glossary of Terms on page 51, and have them read

the story. Ask students, as they did when reading “I Had a Hero,” to try

to visualize the different scenes in the story as if they were creating “a

movie in their minds.” Ask students, as they are reading, to highlight sentences or passages of particular meaning to them and to jot down notes

in the margin regarding anything that may raise questions or cause confusion.

7. When students have finished reading the story, ask them to form groups

of three and share their highlights and questions.Then conduct a wholeclass discussion.Ask: Is there anything that you are confused about or that

raises questions in your mind? 

8. Explain to students that there is no one “right answer” when trying to

interpret a story. Different individuals will respond to a story in different

ways, based on their own unique perspectives and life experiences.

Suggest that reading a story is enriched by hearing many different interpretations and then selecting those that may have the most meaning.With

these thoughts in mind, ask students the following questions:

• What is significant about this story?

• What ideas do you think Leslie wanted her readers to be thinking

about?

9. As you conduct a whole-class discussion on these questions, different students will focus on different things. Some students will focus on the personal and cultural differences between Musa’s life and their own. Some

will focus on the relationships in Musa’s family. Others will focus on the

issue of poverty. And still others will focus on the way the American

woman was so caught up in her own world that she simply ignored Musa

and what his needs might have been. All these interpretations will help

students recognize the many rich facets of “On Sunday There Might Be

Americans.”

10. If time permits, additional questions you might ask to stimulate discussion are:

• Why did Leslie choose this particular title for her story? Does the

title make sense to you? Why or why not? Is there another title

you would have used?

• Why do you think Leslie ends her story the way she does?

(Remind students that since this story is fictional, Leslie could

have ended it any way she wished.) So why this particular ending?

Enduring Understandings:

• Sometimes we are so caught up

in our own world that we really don’t “see” others—or realize

how they might see us.

• To avoid misunderstanding—or

possibly hurting—others, we

need to see the world from

their perspective, not our own.

• Reading enables us to see the

world from many different perspectives and expand our world

view.

Essential Questions:

• How do you learn to see things

from another person’s—or

another culture’s—perspective?

Why bother?

• What does it take to put ourselves in another’s shoes? Why

bother?

• How does reading help us

expand our perspective on the

world, ourselves, and others?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted

for use with students in grades 7-

12.

Assessments: 

Group discussions, journal entries,

graphic representations of key

ideas; extended writing assignments.
122 Voices From the Field

11. You may first want to have students discuss these questions with a partner before beginning a whole-class discussion.

12. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to re-read the story, complete

the “Story Frame” on Worksheet #4 on the opposite page, and respond

in their Reading Journals to the following prompts:

• What does this story leave you wishing you knew more about? 

• What other experiences does this story make you think of? 

• What is really important about this story?

Note to Teachers: 

In preparation for tomorrow’s lesson, here are questions of a more factual nature that you may want to ask to check students’ comprehension of

the story:

• Describe Musa’s surroundings and what they tell you about his life

and economic situation.

• Explain the dynamics between the pack of boys “hovering near the

hotel gates” and the people driving the cars through the gates.

• How does the man in the white Peugeot respond as the pack of boys

circle the car? What do you think of his response? How would you

have responded?

• When one of the Fulani (a nomadic tribe) girls looked at Musa,

“speaking to him with her eyes,” he didn’t “answer back.” Later, when

the Bela (another nomadic tribe) girls were “flashing their eyes at

him,” this time he looked back. What do these encounters reveal?

How can you relate to this?

• As Musa looks at his reflection far off in the hotel’s doors, he sees into

his future. What are his dreams? How are they like yours? How are

they different?

• Re-read the dialogue at the end of the story between Musa and his

mother.What is taking place between the two of them? Do you think

Musa’s mother understands what really happened at the market? What

keeps Musa going back to the market on Sundays?

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE
In U.S. Culture In

Coverdell World Wise Schools 123

W orksheet #5

Story Frame: Understanding Musa

In this story, Musa’s problem starts when:

After that:

Next:

Then:

Finally:

Directions: Fill out this story frame in response to the following prompts:

C URRICULUM U NITS
124 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To help students see the world from Musa’s point of view.

• To allow students to capture the essence of the story using graphic representations.

1. Remind the class of the visualization strategy they experienced in “I Had

a Hero.” Ask them: In what ways did using this strategy increase your

comprehension? Have you tried to use visualization as a comprehension

strategy in other classes? Which ones? How did the strategy work?

2. Explain to students that you’d like to try the visualization strategy again

to help them increase their comprehension of the story. This time you

will be focusing on mental pictures, but also on feelings. For example, you

will be asking them to feel how Musa must have felt at different points

in the story.You would like them to put themselves in Musa’s place and

try to “walk in Musa’s shoes.” Ask students to close their eyes and picture

in their minds the following:

• Picture Musa holding his baby sister in his lap and feeding her his

porridge.

• Feel how Musa must have felt as he was walking in the crowd of

people going to the town market.

• Picture all the boys swarming around the large green car filled

with wealthy Europeans going to the hotel. Feel how Musa must

have felt as he watched them.

• Feel how Musa felt when he looked inside the hotel gates.

• Picture Musa following the American woman around the market

hoping she would ask for his help.

• Picture Musa being distracted by the shy Bela girl.

• Feel how Musa felt when the American woman allowed him to be

the “go-between” so that she could buy a bracelet.

• Feel how Musa must have felt in the heat of the day when the

American woman went into the hotel.

• Feel how Musa must have felt looking into the hotel knowing that

this “world” was closed to him and that he could never go in.

• Feel how Musa must have felt when he realized he had slept too

long and woke up to find that the Americans were leaving.

• Feel what Musa must have felt when the American woman said to

him: “Oh, I forgot about you.”

D A Y T W O
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 125

• Picture Musa returning home to his family with nothing to show

for his day at the market. Feel how he must have been feeling.

• Feel how he must have felt when he returned home and his mother offered him a fresh, warm bowl of porridge.

• Feel how Musa must have felt when he told his mother he would

try again next week because “Americans come every Sunday.”

3. In a whole-class discussion, ask students:

• What visual images in the story were particularly striking to you?

• How easy or difficult was it for you to put yourself in Musa’s

shoes? Why?

• What makes it hard to see the world from another person’s point

of view?

• Did the American woman see the world from Musa’s point of

view? Why or why not?

• How do you learn to see things from another person’s point of

view? Why bother?

4. Now ask students to turn to the Story Frame and questions they responded to in last night’s homework. Have students compare their Story Frame

in pairs, and then in groups of four.Tell students to not expect that each

Story Frame will be the same. Different students will think that different

things are important in the story. Ask them to see what they can learn

from their partner’s Story Frames. (Note: Consider using mixed-ability

groups for this activity as a comprehension and discussion aid.)

5. After five minutes or so, ask several volunteers to share the content of

their Story Frames with the whole class.

6. Then have students discuss their responses to the journal prompts they

completed for homework. Remind them that these are not easy questions

to answer and, in fact, there is not one “right” answer to the questions.

These are questions that call for personal interpretation. Encourage students to express many different ideas and to back them up with quotes

from the text.

• What does this story leave you wishing you knew more about? 

• What other experiences does this story make you think of? 

• What is really important about this story?

7. Ask students to discuss their responses with a new partner, and then in

groups of four. Follow this with a whole-class discussion.
126 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

8. One way to encourage students to express different points of view is to

remain non-judgmental about their responses and to use questions like:

“Who has a different viewpoint about this?” “Who has viewpoint that is

similar to the last one but not exactly the same?” “Is there another way

to look at this?” “Who has something else to add to this?” Remind students to always support their viewpoints with examples from the text.

9. Graphic Representations: Allow sufficient time for a discussion of these

questions.Then wrap up the day’s lesson with the following activity: Ask

students to form groups of three. Give each group a large sheet of paper

and some felt-tipped markers in various colors. Ask the groups to draw

symbols, sketches, or other graphic representations that capture the main

ideas in “On Sunday There Might Be Americans.” Research (Marzano et

al., 2001) has shown that when students are able to represent key ideas

non-linguistically, their comprehension is increased.

10. As students may not have enough time to complete this activity in today’s

class, ask each student, for homework, to come up with his or her own

symbols, images, or sketches. Ask students to also look in various magazines for photos that may represent the main ideas of the story and to

bring these photos to class tomorrow. Let students know that tomorrow

they will return to their same group of three and finish their graphic representations of the main ideas of “On Sundays There Might Be

Americans.”

Purpose:

• To encourage students to probe the deeper meanings of the story.

• To help students relate important ideas raised by the story to their own

lives.

1. Have students rejoin their groups of three and complete their graphic

representations. Provide glue sticks to groups that have magazine photos

to add.

2. After groups have completed this assignment, ask each group of three to

share their graphic representations with another group of three. Group

members should be able to provide good reasons for the particular images

they selected to convey the story’s main idea. Have two or three groups

share their graphics with the whole class.Then, post each group’s graphic representation on the walls around the room.

D A Y T HREE
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 127

3. Cooperative Learning Activity: Reassemble the class into groups of four or

five (the goal is to have no more than five groups). Give each group a

number from 1-5. Explain to students that you will give each group a different question to respond to; e.g., question #1 will go to group #1; question # 2 will go to group #2, question #3 will go to group #3, and so

forth.

4. Here are some suggested questions. Write each question on a separate

sheet of paper. Number each paper with the question number. Staple 3-4

sheets of blank paper behind the paper with the question on it.

• In what ways did the American woman not really “see” Musa? If

the American woman had been able to “see” Musa not only with

her eyes, but with her mind and heart, what do you think she

would have done differently? Why? 

• How do you think the world within the Hotel gates and walls is

different from the world Musa lives in? What does it feel like to be

an “outsider”?

• Musa wonders “why Allah had made the world unevenly.” Why

does he wonder this? Describe a time when you felt the same way.

• What disturbed you most about the story “On Sunday There

Might Be Americans”? Why?

• Like the American woman, sometimes we are so caught up in our

own worlds that we really don’t “see” others—or realize how they

might “see” us. How could we change this? What would we need

to do differently?

5. Once you have prepared the questions (best to do this before class),

explain to the five groups of students that each group will be receiving a

different question about the story. Each group’s task is to read the question, discuss possible answers, arrive at the best answer(s), and write them

on the attached sheets of blank paper. Each group will have 5-7 minutes

to do this. Ask each group to select a discussion leader, a timekeeper, a

“gatekeeper,” a recorder, and a reporter.

6. Explain that you will call “time” at the end of seven minutes, at which

time each group will pass their question and answer(s) to the group on

their right. In this way, each group will have a new question to answer, but

may benefit from thinking about the answers from the group that previously answered that particular question.

7. Repeat the process, call time, and have each group again pass their question to the group on their right. Ask the discussion leaders to read the

Reading a book is like re-writing it

for yourself....You bring to a novel,

anything you read, all your experience of the world.You bring your

history and you read it in your

own terms.

Angela Carter

Author
128 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

group’s new question, as well as the answers from the previous

group(s).The process repeats itself for a total of five rounds, with each

group responding to a new question with each new round. The process

continues until each group has its original question back again.

8. At this point the groups read all the responses to their question, and discuss and reflect on the responses in order to present a summary of the

responses to the whole class. Ask each group’s reporter to present a summary of the responses to their question to the whole class.

9. Since this is a cooperative group process, it works best when each member of the group has a role to play.We’ve suggested the roles of discussion

leader, timekeeper, “gatekeeper,” etc.You may want to add your own.

10.The discussion leader’s role is to read each question to his/her group, to

read previous responses to the question to his/her group, to make sure

that each group member has a chance to contribute to the discussion, and

to permit only one person to speak at a time. This role is an important

one, so you will want to make sure that the class knows these ground

rules.The gatekeeper’s role is to support the discussion leader by ensuring

that all members are being listened to.The recorder’s role is to write down

the group’s responses to each question. The reporter gives the final summary, and the timekeeper gives the “two-minute” warning.

11. Journal Entry. In all likelihood, it will take the rest of the class period to

complete this activity. So you will need to process it on the next day. For

homework, ask students to respond to the following prompts in their

Reading Journals:

• As I think about the activity we just completed, here are some

things that I came to realize about the story’s meaning that I hadn’t thought of before...

• As I think about “On Sunday There Might Be Americans,” what

surprises me is...
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 129

Purpose:

• To stimulate further thinking about the meaning of the text.

• To provide students the opportunity to craft an extended written response

to the text.

1. Ask students to share their journal responses from the night before with a

partner and then in a whole-class discussion.

2. Remind students that when the class read “I Had a Hero” and “‘Magic’

Pablo,” they explored the idea of character and “strength of character.”

There was a discussion that character can sometimes be viewed as the

“mark” you leave on another person. Ask students:

• What impression or “mark” did Musa leave on the American

woman?

• What impression or “mark” did the American woman leave on

Musa?

• What impression or “mark” did Musa leave on you?

• What do you see as Musa’s “strength of character”? What are the

character traits that most impress you about Musa?

3. After exploring these questions, talk with students about the ways they

think reading can provide new perspectives on the world. Ask:What new

perspective on the world did you gain as a result of reading “On Sunday

There Might Be Americans”?

4. Also talk to students about the ways they think writing can help us make

sense of confusing or complicated experiences. Ask: Why do you think

Leslie wrote “On Sunday There Might Be Americans”? What was she trying to make sense of?

5. Extended Response to Literature. Explain to students that to conclude work

on this story, you would like them to have the opportunity to respond to

“On Sunday There Might Be Americans” through an extended piece of

writing. They will have many options to select from; e.g., personal narratives, a piece of fiction, an exchange of letters, or poetry. The suggested

options are presented below.

Responding Through a Personal Narrative: Write a personal narrative, using (or adapting) one of the scenarios below:

• Describe a time when someone (a friend, teacher, coach, group of

kids) made a you feel completely left out, “invisible,” disregarded,

or ignored—or a time when you made someone else feel that way.

D A Y F OUR
130 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

• Describe a time when someone seemed completely oblivious of

your feelings and needs—or when you were oblivious of theirs.

• Describe the similarities and differences between a Sunday in your

life and a Sunday in Musa’s life.What are the reasons your life is the

way it is, and what are the reasons Musa’s life is the way it is? What

does comparing your lives make you think about? Describe a “new

Sunday” in Musa’s life the way you’d like it to be.

Responding Through Fiction: Write a piece of fiction, based on one of

the ideas below. Your fictional account should include characterization,

description, setting, and dialogue.

• Rewrite the ending of “On Sunday There Might Be Americans”

in a way that is credible to readers, based on what they know about

Musa and his situation.

• Write a sequel to “On Sunday There Might Be Americans” that

begins at the point where the short story ends.

• Write a fictional piece of your choice that in some way reflects the

ideas in “On Sunday There Might Be Americans.”

Responding Through Letter-Writing: Write three letters: the first

from you to Musa; the second from Musa to you in response to your letter; and the third from you to Musa in response to his letter to you. Or

write a series of letters from you to the American woman and from the

American woman to you.

Responding Through Poetry: Compose a narrative poem about Musa

that captures the essence of “On Sunday There Might Be Americans” —

and that also captures the way in which this story relates to your own life.

In your poem, rhyme is not as important as is expressing the essence of the

story, your response to it, and/or the way the story may have changed you.

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

You may also choose to use the

lessons on pages 221-227 in the

Reading and Writing Workshop to

help students understand character

development in the context of “On

Sunday There Might Be Americans.”

In these lessons, students explore the

techniques writers use to make the

characters in their stories come alive.

They also have the opportunity to

practice developing a character of

their own in preparation for writing

their own personal narratives at the

end of the unit.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 131

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the personal narrative “Ilunga’s Harvest” written by former Peace

Corps Volunteer, Mike Tidwell.

“Ilunga’s Harvest” is a fascinating sequel to “I Had a Hero.” In it, Tidwell

writes again about his extraordinary friendship with the African village chief,

Ilunga. This time, Tidwell also writes about an incident with Ilunga and the

people of Kalambayi that caused him to become aware of, question, and come

to grips with his own deep-rooted cultural beliefs as he had never done

before. The experience he describes in “Ilunga’s Harvest” raises complex

questions that have no easy answers.

As we noted earlier when introducing “I Had a Hero” (pages 85-86),

Tidwell met Ilunga during his Peace Corps service in the village of Ntita

Kalambayi, in the African nation of Zaire (now, since 1997, the Democratic

Republic of the Congo).Tidwell’s assignment as a Peace Corps Volunteer was

to teach the villagers how to build and stock ponds for raising fish.

We chose “Ilunga’s Harvest” as the first story under the No Easy Answers

theme because we think it presents an invaluable opportunity for students to

learn about cultural differences—and to think about times in their lives when

they faced questions/situations that had “no easy answers.” In “Ilunga’s

Harvest,” Tidwell describes an incident in which there is no clear right or

wrong course of action. On one level, the story deals with a people’s struggle

to survive. On a deeper level, it deals with issues of generosity, justice, individualism and community, and the complexity of cultural differences. It

demonstrates the way in which our cultural upbringing influences our beliefs,

our behavior, and the decisions we make. The story also illustrates how the

experience of going from one culture to another caused Tidwell to raise

questions—not just about the new culture, but also about his own. And the

questions that Tidwell confronted were the kind that are not easily answered.

About the Setting

To help your students understand the impact of the story, you might want

to review with them the information we provided with “I Had a Hero” on

its setting (pages 85-86)—the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC),

formerly Zaire (and, before that, the Belgian Congo). As you’ll remember

from the lesson plans for “I Had a Hero,”Tidwell, in his introduction to The

Ponds of Kalambayi, describes the Congo River and the village of Ntita

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

ILUNGA’S HARVEST
132 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Kalambayi in the very heart of central Africa.We included the description of

the Congo River basin as a separate worksheet with “I Had a Hero” on page

87 to be photocopied for students.We encourage you to have students review

it again or, for younger or less able readers, to read it again to them.

When you come to the section of the lesson plan (Day One) which recommends that students read Tidwell’s description of the setting, there are two

important concepts you might want to revisit with students:

• The meaning of the word “traditional” as Tidwell has used it.You

may want to explain to students that the word traditional in this

context refers to a place where life is the way it has always been for

many years. It is a place far from the flow of modern technology—

where children grow up and do the same things their parents have

done, where family ties are extremely important, and where habits

and values rarely change. In the sense that Tidwell used the word

traditional, it is the exact opposite of what we in the United States

would construe as “modern.” Thus, on one level, “Ilunga’s

Harvest” is about a “modern man” (Tidwell) encountering a “traditional” culture.

• The meaning of Tidwell’s statement: “What I gave these people in

the form of development advice, they returned tenfold in lessons

on what it means to be human.” As students are reading “Ilunga’s

Harvest,” you may want to ask them to look for exactly the kind of

lesson the people of Ntita Kalambayi taught Tidwell on “what it

means to be human.”

Introduction

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

“Ilunga’s Harvest.” We’ve differentiated the instructional activities to provide

options for using “Ilunga’s Harvest” with younger and/or less able readers, as

well as with older, more sophisticated and skillful readers. In particular, we

introduce the option of using Literature Circles (Daniels, 1994) with older,

more experienced readers (see Appendix C, page 264 for instructions). We

hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard

for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own students—and to

your state or local curriculum standards.

Differentiating Instruction: Older Students

We suggest that you try using the strategy of Literature Circles (Daniels,

1994) with older students to help them become more self-directed in exploring the deeper meanings of a text—and to increase their level of understandS T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers of

English/International Reading

Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a

wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing

process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 133

ing and ownership of the ideas embedded in “Ilunga’s Harvest.” For information on Literature Circles, see page 264.

Differentiating Instruction: Younger Students 

We’ve written this sequence of lesson plans for “Ilunga’s Harvest” with

explicit guidelines, questions, and suggested activities for younger students or

struggling readers. However you can easily adapt the instructional sequence

below for students of any age or ability level.

Keep in mind that the use of Literature Circles and the lesson plan that follows are not mutually exclusive.You may want to use parts of the following

lesson plan together with Literature Circles, or you may want to use only the

instructional sequence as it’s presented below. In any case, we’ve written all of

our lesson plans with the idea that teachers who use them will make modifications or enhancements based on time, experience, their students’ needs.

We’ve also developed these lesson plans to address specific language arts

and social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum

framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

to the right.

Enduring Understandings:

• Everyone has a culture. It influences

how we see the world, ourselves,

and others.

• Some cultures believe the group is

responsible for the well-being of

each individual. Other cultures

believe individuals are primarily

responsible for themselves.

• Life can raise questions with no easy

answers.

Essential Questions:

• How does our culture influence

how we view the world, ourselves,

and others?

• When is taking care of the individual more important than taking care

of the group? When is taking care of

the group more important than taking care of the individual?

• Why are some life questions so hard?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for use

with students in grades 7-12.

Materials: 

Worksheet #1: The Congo River

Resource Sheet (see page 87); Worksheet

#6:“Ilunga’s Harvest” Discussion Guide

Assessments: 

Journal entries; oral presentations; role

plays; extended written responses to the

text.
134 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the story “Ilunga’s Harvest.”

• To stimulate individual and group reflection about the story’s meaning.

1. Provide students with a brief review of Tidwell’s work with the Peace

Corps in Zaire (the Democratic Republic of the Congo) using the

information provided on pages 85-86 and page 131. Explain to students that in “Ilunga’s Harvest” they will be reading a sequel to “I

Had a Hero.” In it,Tidwell describes what happens to Ilunga’s extraordinary fish pond and how what happened caused him to think

about things in a way he had never done before.

2. Have students review The Congo River Resource Sheet (page 87) so that

they, once again, have a feel for the setting of the story, the rural village of Ntita Kalambayi.

3. Explain that the two main characters, again, are the author, and Peace

Corps Volunteer, Mike Tidwell, and Ilunga, the chief of the African

village of Ntita Kalambayi. Ask students to discuss the following

questions with a partner: What do you already know about Ilunga?

What is he like as a person? What more would you like to find out?

What do you think his “harvest” will be?

4. Ask students to notice that “Ilunga’s Harvest” has been included

under the theme of No Easy Answers rather than under the theme of

Heroes and Friends. Thus, you may wish to ask:

• What makes some questions in our lives so hard to answer? 

• Why, in some situations, is it difficult to know the right thing

to do? 

5. Journal Entry: Ask students: Think of a time in your life when you

faced a question that had no easy answers. Briefly jot down some

notes about this incident in your journal.Then, ask students to do the

following:As you are reading “Ilunga’s Harvest” continue to ask yourself:What are the questions/situations in this story that have no easy

answers?

6. Refer students to the Glossary of Terms on page 64, and ask them to

read the first part of the story up to the sentence at the end of the

third paragraph on page 56: “An unacknowledged, icy fear ran

through both of us as we agreed that Sunday afternoon at my house

to harvest his pond the next day.”

D A Y O N E
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 135

7. Ask students to stop reading for just a moment and discuss with a partner:

What is really going on here? What does Mike want us to understand—about

the fish pond, about himself, and about Ilunga? 

8. Following this discussion, ask students to read the next part of the story from

page 56 to the top of page 60, ending with the sentences: “I couldn’t refuse

his offer without devastating him. I took the fish up the hill, feeling like a real

parasite.”

9. Ask students:What were all the different emotions Mike wanted to convey in

this section of the story? What do you think was going through Ilunga’s mind

as he gazed into the shallow fish pond and saw no fish? What do you think

was going through Mike’s mind? What are the questions with no easy answers

in this section of the story?

10. After a brief class discussion, ask students to finish reading the story. Remind

them, as they read, to continue asking themselves:What are the questions/situations in this story that have no easy answers?”

11. For homework, ask students to re-read “Ilunga’s Harvest.” Provide each student with a copy of Worksheet #6: “Ilunga’s Harvest” Discussion Guide on

page 137 and ask them to jot down notes under each question as they reread the story.

Purpose: 

• To have students probe the deeper meanings of “Ilunga’s Harvest.”

• To stimulate active engagement with the ideas of the story.

1. Prior to class, post five sheets of chart paper around the room, with ample

space between each sheet of paper. Number the questions as they appear on

Carousel Brainstorming Activity, Figure One, on the next page.Write one question (and its number) at the top of each sheet of chart paper. Use masking

tape to tape a felt-tipped pen next to each sheet of paper.

2. When the time comes for this activity, begin at the front of the room, and ask

students to number off from 1-5 (or you can assign them numbers sequentially from 1-5).When students have their numbers, ask them to stand up and

move to the piece of chart paper on which their number is written.This will

give you an approximately equal number of students standing in front of each

sheet of paper.

3. Then ask students to discuss the question on their group’s sheet of chart

paper. Let groups know they will have five minutes for discussion. Before the

D A Y T W O

Cooperative Learning

Strategy:

Carousel Brainstorming

We suggest using this strategy with

“Ilunga’s Harvest” and then again

with the next selection, “The

Talking Goat” (pages 144-153),

because we think it is a useful and

active way to elicit divergent viewpoints on a story’s multiple meanings. We suggest that you use five

questions from the Discussion

Guide in Figure One as the basis

for this activity. Use the five questions we’ve selected or any adaptations you may choose.
136 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

discussion begins, ask each group to select a recorder. As groups are discussing their question, the recorder’s role is to record the group’s responses on the chart paper using the felt-tipped marker you’ve provided.

4. Call time after five minutes. Then give the recorders time, with their

group members’ help, to summarize in writing their group’s responses to

its question.

5. Now, ask each group of students to move to the next piece of chart paper

on their right. Ask the recorders to take their pens with them.Thus, each

group will now be standing in front of a new question. The process

repeats, with five minutes for discussion and recording, until you once

again call time. Groups again move one sheet of paper to their right. The

process continues until all groups have discussed and responded to all

questions—and when the groups arrive back to their original question.

6. Ask groups to read the responses to their question that the other groups

have written. Ask groups to select a reporter who will provide a summary of what his/her group thinks are the most interesting responses.At the

end of all of the summaries, ask:Why do some of these questions have no

easy answers?

7. Conduct a whole-class discussion on the remaining questions in the

Discussion Guide (Worksheet #6).Try to elicit as many different responses as you can; e.g.,What is important to you about this story? What questions did this story raise that have no easy answers?

8. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to respond to the following

prompts in their journals:

• As I think about the Carousel Brainstorming activity we just completed, here are some things that I came to realize about the story’s

meaning that I hadn’t thought of before:

• Describe a time when you faced a question that had no easy

answers.What was the question? What made it difficult to answer?

Did you ever resolve it? If so, what helped? 

1. What is Ilunga’s crisis? What

does it have to do with the fish

pond?

2. Describe Ilunga’s efforts to feed

his fish and what this revealed

about his character.

3. Why did Michael ‘pray like hell’

that the promises he made

about helping Ilunga rise out of

poverty were true?

4. What made the argument

Michael had with Ilunga such a

heated and emotional one?

5. What do the incidents in

“Ilunga’s Harvest” make you

wonder about?

F IGURE O N E :

Carousel

Brainstorming Questions
In U.S. Culture In

Coverdell World Wise Schools 137

W o rksheet #6:

Ilunga’s Harvest Discussion Guide

What is Ilunga’s personal crisis? What

has it got to do with the fish pond?

Describe Ilunga’s efforts to feed his fish

and what this revealed about his character.

What do the incidents in “Ilunga’s

Harvest” make you wonder about? 

What is important to you about this

story?

What are the main questions with no

easy answers the story raises?

Why do these questions have no easy

answers?

C URRICULUM U NITS
138 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To engage students in a closer analysis of the text.

• To have students consider the cultural influences on the events in “Ilunga’s

Harvest.”

1. Explain to students that sometimes, when readers really want to go deeper into the meaning of a story, they take a paragraph or part of the story

that seems very important, and they study it in depth, really trying to think

about what the author means and how it relates to life and their own

thinking.

2. By way of example, you might want to say the following: “There is one

passage in “Ilunga’s Harvest” that seems very important to me. I’d like to

share it with you and hear your thoughts on it.” Read the following passage to students:

You gave away too much, Ilunga.You can’t keep doing this.You can’t feed

the whole village by yourself. It’s impossible.You have to feed your own children and take care of your own immediate family. Let your brothers worry

about their own families. Let them dig ponds if they want to.You’ve got to

stop giving away your harvests.... Stop the giving and the community-oriented attitude, and you can escape poverty. Build a pond and make it yours.

And when you harvest it, don’t give away the fish. Forget, for now, the bigger society. Forget the extended family. Start thinking of yourself.

3. Then you might say to students:“This passage raised many questions in my

mind.” For example:

• Did Ilunga really give away too much? 

• Can someone be too generous? 

• Does generosity have a limit? If so, how do you know what the

limit is?

4. Then you might continue by saying: “Other questions this passage raises

for me are:

• When is taking care of the individual more important than taking

care of the group? When is taking care of the group more important than taking care of the individual? Why might the answers to

these questions vary from culture to culture? 

• Would it have been possible for Ilunga to ‘stop the giving and the

community-oriented attitude.... and forget the extended family,’

given the culture he was raised in? 

D A Y T HREE
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 139

• Did Ilunga’s brothers have a responsibility to dig their own ponds

and raise their own fish?”

5. Have students form groups of four to discuss these questions.You might

want to photocopy the questions onto several sheets of paper and give one

copy of the questions to each group. Allow groups 10 minutes for discussion. Ask each group to select a reporter to summarize his/her group’s

thoughts for the rest of the class to hear.

6. When the summaries are complete, ask students: Why are these questions

examples of questions that have no easy answers?

7. At this point, you may want to explain to students the dynamics of the

“cultural imperative” that was playing itself out in Ilunga’s village. Explain

to students that everyone has a culture that influences how we view the

world, ourselves, and others.

8. Explain further that the culture in which people are raised exerts a powerful influence on their behavior. For example, Ilunga’s culture actually

“required” him to share the fish. In his culture, it was the “right” thing to

do. It was “expected” and “normal.” It was, as Tidwell phrased it, a “cultural imperative.” In Ilunga’s culture, taking care of the group is a natural

instinct that takes precedence over taking care of oneself. In Ilunga’s culture, people could not survive if they did not care for one another.

9. Ask students: In what ways, if any, is the culture of the United States different from the culture of the village of Kalambayi? Which words and

phrases that Mike used in explaining the argument he had with Ilunga

over the fish were an example of a cultural instinct that was ingrained in

him, having been raised in the United States? 

10. Ask students to discuss these questions in their groups. Then ask for an

example of the words Mike used that demonstrated the difference

between his culture and Ilunga’s culture. Undoubtedly students will come

up with this example: “Build a pond and make it yours. And when you

harvest it, don’t give away the fish. Forget, for now, the bigger society.

Forget the extended family. Start thinking of yourself.” Encourage students to come up with other examples from the text that demonstrate

how Mike’s culture influenced the way he saw the world, himself, and

others.

11.Then ask groups to discuss: Why do you think Mike became so angry

when Ilunga began giving his fish away that he said that “fury and frustration crashed through him with the force of a booming waterfall”? What

caused this intense reaction?

Note to Teachers: 

Cultural anthropologists might

classify Ilunga’s culture as a “collectivist” culture.They might classify the culture of the United

States as a more “individualistic”

culture. For information on individualistic and collectivist cultures, see pages 29-36 of the Peace

Corps cross-cultural training manual, Culture Matters: Fundamentals

of Culture I: The Concept of Self.

You can find the full text of this

manual on the World Wise Schools

Web site: www.peacecorps.gov/

wws/culturematters.
140 Voices From the Field

D A Y F OUR

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

12. Finally, ask students: Do we in the United States take care of our own as

well as Ilunga took care of the people in his village? Why or why not?

Which way is better? Does this question have an easy answer? Why or

why not? 

13. Role Play Option: If time permits, this would be an excellent place to stop

the discussion and ask groups to prepare to role play, during tomorrow’s

class, the argument that took place between Mike and Ilunga on page 58

that begins with the words: “After Ilunga’s sister left for the market, I

couldn’t hold my tongue any longer. We were alone at his house.” Using

this option, you might give the groups of four some time at the end of

this class and the beginning of the next one to prepare for the role play.

14. Journal Entry: Conclude today’s lesson by saying to students,

“Just as I selected a passage from the text that had particular meaning for me, I’d like you, for homework, to go back through the text

and select a passage that has great meaning for you. In your Reading

Response Journals, summarize the passage, and then write about

what it means to you. Jot down any questions the passage may raise

in your minds. I’ll ask you to share your selections in class tomorrow.

Perhaps your ideas will help us learn something from the story that

we may have missed.”

Purpose:

• To have students examine the impact of the events in “Ilunga’s Harvest”

on Mike, on Ilunga, and on the people of Kalambayi.

• To have students develop an extended response to literature.

1. Journal Walk: This is a strategy you can use to help students think more

deeply about other portions of the story.The directions are as follows:Ask

students to open their Reading Journals to the pages on which they

wrote down a passage from the text and described why it seemed important to them.Then ask students to stand up and silently circulate around

the room reading various journal responses, thinking about the passages

others have selected and reflecting on how they might add to their own

responses, based on what they’ve read. (Note: If some students prefer to

keep their writing private, provide them the option of turning their journals face down.)
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 141

2. Provide 5-10 minutes for this activity.Then have students return to their

seats. Give them time to add to their own journal responses based on

what they’ve read in their classmates’ responses.

3. Now might be a good time to read students the passage in the worksheet

on The Congo River Basin (page 95) in which Tidwell remarks:

“On the way to the center of the continent, one passes through ever-tightening circles of poverty until, inside the final, smallest ring, one finds

Kalambayi: a 400-square-mile patch of simple mud huts and barefoot people....There are few places in the world where the people are as poor and the

life as traditional.... For two years, I lived among the Kalambayan people.

I spoke their language and taught many of them how to raise fish. My goal

was to increase family protein consumption. But what I gave these people in

the form of development advice, they returned tenfold in lessons on what it

means to be human.There, at the center of the continent, they shared with

me the ancient spirit of Africa’s heart.”

4. Ask students: What lessons on “what it means to be human” do you think

Mike learned from the people of Kalambayi? Ask students to first discuss

this question with a partner, and then have partners join another group

of partners forming a group of four. Ask the groups of four to discuss:

What did Mike mean when he said: “They shared with me the ancient

spirit of Africa’s heart?”

5. Journal Entry. Ask students to return to their seats and respond to the

questions in writing in their journals. Then conduct a whole-class discussion about the lessons Mike learned from his Peace Corps service in

Kalambayi. Conclude the discussion by asking:

• What mark did Mike’s Peace Corps service leave on the people of

the village of Kalambayi and on Ilunga?

• What mark did the people of Kalambayi and Ilunga leave on Mike?

• How were each changed by their encounters with the other?

• Did each leave the other with questions that have no easy answers?

• If so, what were they?

6. Conclude the lesson by asking students to respond in their journals to the

prompt: What mark do you hope to have on others?

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

You may also choose to use the

lessons on pages 228-234 in the

Reading and Writing Workshop

section to help your students further understand techniques for

character development in the context of “Ilunga’s Harvest.” In these

lessons, students explore techniques

writers use to hold the reader’s

interest, with examples from

“Ilunga’s Harvest.” They have an

opportunity to work on their own

personal narratives in preparation

for the personal narrative they will

write at the end of the unit.
142 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

7. Extended Response to Literature: Provide students the opportunity to select

from one of the following options for an extended written response to

“Ilunga’s Harvest”:

• Interview someone from another culture. First summarize the

events in “Ilunga’s Harvest” and then ask what that person would

have done in Ilunga’s situation.Write up an account of your interview in the form of a newspaper article to be submitted for publication in the school newspaper.

• Working in groups of four, develop a written script for a dramatization of the main events in“Ilunga’s Harvest.” Perform this dramatization for a class of younger students. Each person in the group

should be able to provide a summary of the background of the

story and explain the story’s significance. After the dramatization,

ask the younger students: What would you have done in Ilunga’s

situation?

• Write a paper describing Mike and Ilunga’s friendship and how it

developed, beginning with the events Mike described in “I Had a

Hero” and ending with the events he described in “Ilunga’s

Harvest.” Describe the challenges their friendship faced. Explain

their growing mutual respect. Describe the mark each left on the

other and how their friendship may have changed each of them

forever.

• Write a position paper in which you take a controversial issue of

your choice from “Ilunga’s Harvest” and develop a written argument for or against the position. An example of a controversial

issue might be: “Was Ilunga right in giving away his fish?”

• Write a letter to Ilunga describing the impact he had on you.What

“mark” has he left on you? Use examples from “I Had a Hero” as

well as from “Ilunga’s Harvest.” How have you changed as a result

of “knowing” Ilunga?

• Write a letter to Mike describing what you learned about him as

an author and a person. Describe the way his writing in “I Had a

Hero” and “Ilunga’s Harvest”affected you personally.

• Write an essay describing a time in your own life when you faced

a question with no easy answers and how you resolved (or didn’t

resolve) it.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 143

• Write an essay addressing the question: When is it more important

to take care of the group, and when is it more important to take

care of the individual? Why is this a question with no easy answers?

Why might the answers vary from culture to culture?

• Write an essay addressing the question: How would life in our

school be different today if everyone in our school shared the values of the people of Kalambayi?
144 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the African folktale,“The Talking Goat.” This folktale was told to

returned Peace Corps Volunteer, John Acree, who then shared it with us for

use on the Coverdell World Wise Schools Web site (www.peace

corps.gov/wws/folktales). Acree served in the African nation of Liberia from

1983-1985. He notes:

During a village meeting in rural Liberia, the chief of the village told the

tale of the “The Talking Goat.” He was trying to explain to villagers that,

although they had waited a long time for a health clinic to be built, they

would soon be rewarded.They must be patient.

We chose to include “The Talking Goat” as part of the No Easy Answers

theme because it raises questions about justice and adversity that are not easily answered. We think “The Talking Goat” will provoke lively discussions

among the students in your classroom.

About the Setting

Liberia, a country slightly larger than the state of Tennessee, is located in

the tropics of western Africa between Sierra Leone and Cote d’Ivoire. It is

bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Liberia is home to a wide variety of indigenous African tribes.While Liberia’s political leaders are continually working to strengthen the country’s social and economic structure, the

process is a slow one. According to 1999 World Bank statistics, less than half

of Liberians over the age of 15 can read and write (www.worldbank.org).

According to these same statistics, close to 55% of Liberians live in remote

tribal villages far from the modern conveniences and public services that we,

in North America, have come to consider necessities of life.Their rich tribal

culture is passed down from generation to generation, often with very little

change or contact with the outside world.

About Folktales

Folktales began as simple stories passed down from one person to the next

by word of mouth in the oral tradition. Indigenous storytellers in cultures

everywhere preserved these oral tales. Stories and folktales began as an

attempt to explain and understand the natural and spiritual world. One can

imagine groups of people sitting around a campfire on a starry night weaving

stories that not only entertained but also helped make sense of their world.

These stories were passed on from one generation to the next, undoubtedly

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

THE TALKING GOAT
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 145

with changes or embellishments uniquely created by each storyteller.

Gradually folktales began to appear in written form. They appear today in

every culture in the world.

The telling of stories appears to be a cultural universal, common to traditional and modern societies alike. Folktales often reflect the values and customs of the culture from which they come. Because folktale plots are generally concerned with life’s universal themes, they often transcend their culture

of origin and reveal the commonality of human experience.The structure of

folktales is often similar from culture to culture. They contain colorful people, talking animals, humorous events, suspense, action, and a definite conclusion.The conclusion normally teaches a lesson—often in the form of a moral

or admonition. Or sometimes a folktale will end simply with the well-known

phrase “...and they lived happily ever after.”

Folktales can be divided into separate parts. First, there is an introduction,

which introduces the leading characters (both humans and animals), the

time/place of the story, and the problem or conflict to be faced. Following

the introduction is the development of the folktale. Here the action mounts

quickly and steadily until it reaches the next stage, the climax, where the

problem or conflict is confronted and resolved.Typically, the hero or heroine

faces many obstacles and is sometimes reduced to helplessness before the climax.The last stage is the conclusion where all is resolved, the just obtain their

reward, and a moral is offered. Most folktales have happy endings.At the same

time, some, like “The Talking Goat,” raise questions that have no easy answers.

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

the folktale “The Talking Goat” . In particular, we have differentiated the

instructional activities to provide options for using “The Talking Goat” with

younger and/or less able readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and

skillful readers. We hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a

flexible springboard for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own

students—and to your state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in Appendix

A.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we

suggest for this story in the sidebar on page 260.

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers of

English/International Reading

Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a wide

range of strategies as they write

and use different writing process

elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for

a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
146 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the folktale genre.

• To engage students in the content of “The Talking Goat.”

1. Prior to this lesson, photocopy the folktale in two different sections.The

first section represents the majority of the story and ends with the chief ’s

words:“Looking Tugba in the eyes, the chief announced,‘Bring your goat

to the square!’” The second section begins with the words: “Tugba

promptly returned to the jungle....” It ends at the end of the story.

2. Explain to students that “The Talking Goat” is an African folktale about

a rich man named Tugba and his struggles with misfortune. Explain that

Peace Corps Volunteer John Acree first heard this folktale narrated by a

village chief when he was serving in Liberia, West Africa in 1983. Also

explain to students the reason why the village chief told the story of

Tugba to his villagers (see page 144).

3. Provide students with background information on Liberia (page 144).

Show students a map of Africa, and point out Liberia’s location.

4. You may want to explain to students the basic elements of a folktale

(pages 144-145). Or you may wish to go directly into the story. (With

struggling or younger readers, you may wish to use one of the reading

comprehension strategies used earlier in this collection: visual imagery,

graphic organizers, story frames, or highlighting).

5. Explain to students that you will be giving them only the first section of

the folktale to begin with. Ask students, when they read this section of

the folktale, to think about the following questions:

• How generous should we be?

• How patient should we be?

• What is another question with no easy answer that this section of

the folktale raises?

6. When they’ve finished reading the section, ask students to form groups of

four to discuss their thoughts about the questions in #5. Then ask each

group to predict how they think the folktale will end.

7. Now give students the second half of the folktale and have them read its

ending.When they have finished reading, ask students to respond in their

Reading Journals to the following prompts:

D A Y O N E

Enduring Understandings:

• Folktales occur in all cultures and

teach important life lessons.

• Folktales contain universal themes

that transcend their culture of origin.

• In folktales and in life, people deal

with setbacks and adversity in many

different ways.

Essential Questions:

• What life lessons can we learn from

folktales?

• When facing adversity, how patient

should one be? 

• What does this folktale teach me

about the world, myself, and others?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for use

with students in grades 7-12.

Assessments: 

Group discussions, oral presentations,

journal entries, extended writing

assignments.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 147

• How do you feel about the way “The Talking Goat” ended? Why? 

• Which did you like better: your group’s predicted ending or the

actual ending? Why? 

8. Have students react to the story’s ending in a whole-class discussion.

9. For homework, ask students to re-read the folktale and respond in their

journals to the following prompts:

• Which lines and sentences held the most meaning and power for

you? Why?

• What thoughts does this folktale bring to your mind about how

generous one should be? About how patient one should be?

• What other questions does this folktale raise in your mind?

Purpose:

• To have students probe the deeper meanings of the folktale.

1. Have students share their journal responses first with one partner and then

with another. Then conduct a whole class discussion about the questions

the folktale raises.

2. Cooperative Learning Strategy: “Carousel Brainstorming.” Prior to class,

post five sheets of chart paper around the room, with ample space between

each sheet of paper. Number the questions as they appear on Worksheet

#7 on page 148 and write one question (and its number) at the top of

each sheet of chart paper. Use masking tape to tape a felt-tipped pen next

to each sheet of paper.

3. When the time comes for this activity, begin at the front of the room, and

ask students to number off from 1-5 (or you can assign them numbers

sequentially from 1-5). When students have their numbers, ask them to

stand up and move to the piece of chart paper on which their number is

written. This will give you an approximately equal number of students

standing in front of each sheet of paper.

4. Then ask students to discuss the question on their group’s sheet of chart

paper. Let groups know they will have five minutes for discussion. Before

the discussion begins, ask each group to select a recorder. As groups are

discussing their question, the recorder’s role is to record the group’s

responses on the chart paper using the felt-tipped marker you’ve provided.

D A Y T W O
148

In U.S. Culture In

W orksheet #7

“The Talking Goat” Discussion Guide

How did Tugba deal with adversity?

How would you have handled your

bad luck if you’d been in Tugba’s position?

Why does misfortune befall good

people? How much control do we

have over the events in our lives?

When things are tough, how patient

should we be? As patient as Tugba?

Do you agree with the statement:

“What you do not suffer for, you do

not enjoy”? Why or why not?

What questions do the folktale raise

that have no easy answers?

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 149

5. Call time after five minutes. Then give recorders time, with their group

members’ help, to summarize in writing their group’s responses to its

question.

6. Now, ask each group of students to move to the next piece of chart paper

on their right. Ask the recorders to take their pens with them.Thus, each

group will now be standing in front of a new question. The process

repeats, with five minutes for discussion and recording, until you once

again call time. Groups again move one sheet of paper to their right. The

process continues until all groups have discussed and responded to all

questions—and when the groups arrive back to their original question.

7. Ask groups to read the responses to their question that the other groups

have written. Ask groups to select a reporter who will provide a summary of what his/her group thinks are the most interesting responses.At the

end of the summaries, ask:Why are these questions with no easy answers?

8. Conduct a whole-class discussion on each of the five questions. For

homework, ask students to respond in their Reading Journals to the following prompts:

• As I think about the carousel brainstorming activity we just completed, here are some things that I came to realize about the folktale’s meaning that I hadn’t thought of before:

• Describe a time when you faced a question that had no easy

answers.

Purpose:

• To help students find the patterns in a text.

• To use the text of “The Talking Goat” to increase students’ skills in analogical reasoning.

1. Have students open their journals to the page where they responded to

the questions above. Ask students to stand up and do a “silent journal

walk.” In a silent journal walk, students have the opportunity to circulate

around the room and read their classmates’ journal responses. Provide

approximately 10 minutes for this activity. Then have students add to

their own journal responses based on what they’ve read.

2. Then explain to students that you would like to teach them a strategy

that they can use in many subject areas to strengthen their ability to find

patterns and relationships in texts that they read. Research (Marzano et

al. 2001, pp. 16; 23-26) has shown that helping students learn to recogD A Y T HREE
150 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

nize the patterns in a text and identify analogies leads to higher levels of

thinking and increased academic achievement. If this is the first time you

are using this “pattern recognition” strategy with your students, plan to

spend at least 15 minutes explaining and modeling the example provided

in the worksheet on page 148.

3. Begin by explaining to students that folktales and stories often have an

abstract pattern underlying their structure. Being able to uncover the

abstract pattern can increase their ability to think about and analyze the

story at higher levels. Explain that there is an abstract pattern within “The

Talking Goat” that, literally, doesn’t have anything to do with Tugba or

goats. Explain that you will provide them an example of this. Give each

student a copy of Worksheet #8, and walk them through the example

given.

4. As you are completing the rows in Column 2, it is often useful to provide

students with the first few examples of the pattern, and then give them

an opportunity to come up with the next one or two until the whole pattern is revealed. Remind students that each part of the pattern cannot

mention Tugba, the talking goat, the village chief, or any other literal

details of the story. Remind them that they are trying to uncover the

abstract pattern in the folktale.

5. Ask students: Can you think of any other story you’ve read or film you’ve

seen that contains this pattern? If students can think of examples for even

part of the pattern, this is the first step toward learning how to use it. If

students get stuck, perhaps you might mention the example of Cinderella

and ask students to identify the similarities between the story of

Cinderella and the folktale “The Talking Goat.”

6. To ensure that students understand the difference between the literal

story and the abstract pattern, work through the left-hand column of the

chart together with them (Worksheet #9). Explain that this column is

meant to be used to record the literal elements of the folktale “The

Talking Goat” that correspond to the abstract pattern.

7. Note: Because abstracting allows students to see how two seemingly different things are connected, it is a very powerful tool for strengthening

their thinking and analogical reasoning skills. Becoming skilled in the

process of abstracting can help students create metaphors and analogies

between the known and unknown in any content area. (For further information about the process of abstracting the patterns from a text see

Marzano et al. Dimensions of Learning, ASCD, 1997, p. 130.)

What is written without effort 

is read without pleasure.

Samuel Johnson 

Author
How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How important is time and the clock?

How/when do kids become adults?

What do people seem to value most?

In U.S. Culture

Coverdell World Wise Schools 151

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How important is time and the clock?

How/when do kids become adults?

What do people seem to value most?

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How important is time and the clock?

How/when do kids become adults?

What do people seem to value most?

In U.S. Culture

W orksheet #8

The Abstract Pattern in “The Talking Goat”

Literal Elements Abstract Pattern New Literal Elements

• Someone is leading a happy life.

• This person is generous and kind.

• Misfortune befalls him/her

unexpectedly.

• He/she is reduced to helplessness for a

long time.

• Suddenly, his/her luck changes.

• A magical creature appears.

• This creature has the potential to save

him/her.

• At the critical moment, the creature

loses its magic.

• The person feels that all is lost.

• Suddenly the creature’s magic returns.

• The person is saved and happy once

again.

C URRICULUM U NITS
152

In U.S. Culture

W orksheet #9

The Literal Elements in “The Talking Goat”

Literal Elements Abstract Pattern New Literal Elements

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

• Tugba and his wife are rich and

happy.

• Someone is leading a happy life.

• Tugba cares for his animals and helps

his neighbors.

• This person is generous, and kind.

• A terrible draught comes over the

land. Crops wilt and animals die.

• Misfortune befalls him/her unexpectedly.

• Tugba leaves his ravaged property

and brings with him only his favorite

goat.

• He/she is reduced to helplessness

for a long time.

• One day,Tugba discovers his goat can

talk!

• Suddenly, a magical creature

appears.

• Tugba makes a plan to take his

goat to the village square. He will

become rich again!

• This creature has the potential to

save him/her.

• When Tugba takes his goat to the

village square, the goat does not

talk.

• At the critical moment, the creature loses its magic.

• The angry villagers beat Tugba and

prepare to kill him.

• The person feels that all is lost.

• Suddenly, the goat says: “You must

not kill him. Let him go.”

• Suddenly the creature’s magic returns.

• Tugba receives many riches from

the village chief.

• The person is saved and happy once

again.

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 153

8. You may want to have students practice finding analogies between “The

Talking Goat” and another folktale or fairytale, like Cinderella. To do

this, have students work with a partner to complete column 3 of

Worksheet #9 by writing down the literal elements of the folktale or

fairytale you (or they) select that correspond to the abstract pattern in

“The Talking Goat”

9. Optional Extended Response to Literature: Have students use the abstract

pattern in “The Talking Goat” to write a folktale of their own creation.

Students can use Worksheet #9 as a graphic organizer to begin to brainstorm the literal elements of their own folktale. Before students begin

working on their folktales, review with them the information on folktales

on page 144-145 at the beginning of this lesson. Remind students of the

structural elements of folktales: an introduction, a development, a climax,

a conclusion, and a moral. As students are brainstorming the plot of their

own folktale, have them compare their initial notes with a partner prior

to writing.

10. Conclude the lesson by asking students to respond in their journals to

the following prompt:What has reading and discussing the folktale “The

Talking Goat” taught me about the world, myself, and others?

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

You may also want to look at

pages 235-241 of the Reading

and Writing Workshop for ideas

on how to use “The Talking

Goat” as a vehicle for teaching

students about the structure of

folktales and the elements of

plot. In these workshops, students

analyze “The Talking Goat.”

explore its underlying structural

elements, and consider techniques to improve the organization of their own narratives.
154 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the story, “The Extra Place,” written by returned Peace Corps

Volunteer Susan Peters. Susan served as a Volunteer in Poland from 1990-

1992—a time of unprecedented political, social, and economic change. The

free national elections that occurred in November of 1989 marked the first

time in 40 years that Poland was led by a non-Communist government.While

the change to democracy in Poland was a welcome one, the transition was not

easy. For 40 years, the Polish economy was centrally planned by the

Communist government.Then, in 1990, the new government began Poland’s

transition to a free market economy. As with all transitions, there was a period of confusion and uncertainty as the Polish people dealt with the impact of

these changes—including an initial period of high inflation and unemployment. Now Poland’s economic growth rates are among the highest in Europe.

We chose to include “The Extra Place” within the No Easy Answers theme

because it deals with the complex issues of personal safety—balanced against

compassion and a cultural tradition of welcoming strangers—in a climate of

social and personal change. In “The Extra Place,” the way the main characters

deal with the dilemma they are confronted with raises questions that have no

easy answers.

The Peace Corps was active in Poland from 1990 until June 2001, working to ease the country’s return to democracy after decades of Communist

rule. Peace Corps Volunteers have worked in two specific areas: education and

the environment.Volunteers taught English at secondary schools and teacher

training colleges. They also assisted governmental agencies heighten public

awareness of environmental issues.

About the Setting

To help your students understand the context of the story, we’d like to provide you with some information on its culture and setting. Poland is located

in the heart of Eastern Europe bordered by Germany on the west, the Czech

Republic and Slovakia on the south, and the Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania

on the east. Its capital, Warsaw, has a population of over 1.6 million people.

An estimated 99 percent of the population, age 15 and older, can read and

write (www.countrywatch.com). Ninety-five percent of Poles are Roman

Catholic. Because of this, many Polish holiday traditions are closely tied to the

religious beliefs and customs of the people. In particular, Christmas Eve supper, called Wigilia (Ve-gee-lee-ya) is widely celebrated as one of the most

important holiday meals for the Polish people. Wigilia involves many tradiREADING AND

RESPONDING TO

THE EXTRA

PLACE
Coverdell World Wise Schools 155

tions, one of which is to leave one extra chair and a table setting for an unexpected or missing guest. Uneaten food is also left on the table for anyone who

might come in. According to Peace Corps Volunteer Cindy Bestland, who

served in Poland from 1996-1998, the Polish have a saying that “a guest in the

house is God in the house.” According to Cindy, they take this saying very

much to heart.

Suggested Instructional Sequence

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to

“The Extra Place.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional

activities to provide options for using the story with younger and/or less able

readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and skillful readers.We hope

you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own students—and to your

state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on pages 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 156.We hope they have meaning for you and your students.

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers of

English/International Reading

Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a wide

range of strategies as they write

and use different writing process

elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for

a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.

C URRICULUM U NITS
156 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To introduce the story to students and have them reflect on its setting.

• To stimulate large and small group discussion about the story’s meaning.

1. Explain to students that the next selection they will read describes a

story told to a Peace Corps Volunteer, Susan Peters, who served in

Poland from 1990-1992. Provide students with the information about

Poland on pages 154-155. Show students a map of Europe, and point out

Poland’s location.

2. Present students with this scenario:

“Imagine that your family is getting ready for a holiday celebration.

Unexpectedly, a stranger knocks at your front door.You don’t know

this person and are afraid to open the door, so you talk to the

stranger through the intercom.You are impatient to get on with your

holiday preparations as you ask the stranger what he wants.You discover the stranger is homeless. He is cold and hungry and has

nowhere to stay. He wants your family to take him in. Would you

open the door?”

3. Have students discuss this question with a partner. Then have partners

stand up and share their responses to the question with another set of

partners, forming a group of four. Allow each group of four time to try

to agree, if they can, on a response to this question, and then conduct a

whole-class discussion, based on the responses of each group.

4. Ask students, as they are reading, to highlight particular sentences or

phrases that have meaning to them.

5. Then have students form new groups of four to discuss the questions

above. Ask each group to try to come to consensus on what they think is

significant about “The Extra Place”—and on one or two questions they

think the story raises that have no easy answers. Give each group a sheet

of chart paper for use in summarizing its responses.

6. Give groups 10 minutes to discuss the questions and record their

responses on the chart paper. Ask each group to select a reporter to present his/her group’s responses, using the chart paper summary as a guide.

7. Journal Entry: For homework,ask students to tell the story of “The Extra

Place” to an adult—or to a younger person—and ask that person:What

made Kasia’s situation so difficult? What would you have done in her

position? 

D A Y O N E

Enduring Understandings:

• Cultures and people change.

• Change can sometimes make us

feel we are losing a part of ourselves and prompt questions that

have no easy answers.

• Reading can help us see the world

from many different perspectives

and lead to a deeper understanding

of ourselves and others.

Essential Questions:

• How do you hold onto the good

in the midst of change?

• What is it “to lose a part of yourself,” and how do you know it’s

happening?

• How does reading help us expand

our perspective on the world, ourselves, and others?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for

use with students in grades 7-12.

Assessments:

Group discussions, journal entries,

oral reports, extended writing assignments.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 157

Purpose:

• To help students probe the meaning of the text.

• To help students connect the story to their own lives.

1. Ask students to return to their groups of four from yesterday and share

their journal summaries from the last class. Then conduct a whole-class

discussion.

2. You might now want to read this passage from “The Extra Place” to students:

So I am thinking now that maybe I do not want to live in Poland for a

while. I know that the old system was bad, but I think now that we are losing our soul, and that the problem we have in Poland is not just the inflation that people complain about. It is something else, and I don’t know what

to call it. We are losing...a part of ourselves’.... She pauses. ‘I don’t want

to live in this country if we are so afraid that we do not even open our door

on Christmas to a stranger. If we are so busy that we forget what it means,

the extra place.

3. Ask students: What do you suppose Kasia meant when she said “we are

losing our soul...a part of ourselves”? What exactly does it mean “to lose

your soul...to lose a part of yourself,” and how do you know it’s happening? What is the connection between change and “losing a part of yourself”? Conduct a whole class discussion.

4. Suggest to students that making the transition from childhood to adulthood represents a change in which a part of us is lost or left behind to

make room for the new person we are becoming. Ask: How might the

story “The Extra Place” help you think about changes you’re experiencing in your own lives? Ask students to return to their groups of four from

yesterday to discuss this question.

5. After the groups have had some time for discussion, ask: How can we

hold on to the good in the midst of change? Give groups five minutes to

discuss this question, and then have a volunteer from each group summarize his/her group’s responses.

6. Journal Entry: Ask students to return to their seats and respond in their

journals to the following prompt: Describe a time in your life when, as a

result of a change or event that occurred, you felt as if you were “losing

a part of yourself—or losing your soul.” For example, this might have

been a situation where, because of peer pressure, you may have comproD A Y T W O
158 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

mised your values. Or it could be an event or change that had nothing to

do with friends. It might have been moving to a new place, growing up and

facing issues that you didn’t have to face as a child, seeing things in the

media you didn’t agree with, etc.

7. Give students at least 10 minutes for writing, and then ask them to share

their thoughts with a partner. Then ask for volunteers to share their

thoughts with the rest of the class.

8. For homework, ask students to return to their journal response in #6,

write about it in more detail, and then respond to the question: Is change

always accompanied by losing a part of yourself? Why or why not?

Purpose:

• To give students the opportunity to think about and discuss a question the

text raises that has no easy answers.

1. Conduct a class discussion on the journal responses to the question: Is

change always accompanied by losing a part of yourself? Why or why not?

2. The night before the class, make large signs that say: “Strongly Agree,”

“Agree,” “Disagree,” and “Strongly Disagree.” Post each of the signs in a

different corner of the room.

3. Ask students to re-read “The Extra Place” and then form new groups of

four. Ask each group to identify the most important question they think

the story raises. Allow time for groups to discuss their question and possible answers.

4. Suggest to students: “Some people might say (or perhaps a group has

already said) that because it was Christmas and a Polish tradition to set an

extra place at the table, Kasia and her husband should have invited the

stranger to come in and share the meal with them.This is a difficult question to answer. I’d like to invite you to stand up and move to the corner

of the room that best expresses your opinion on this issue: Strongly Agree;

Agree; Disagree; or Strongly disagree.”

5. Allow students time to move to their desired corner—the one that

expresses their opinion on this issue. When they have moved to their

desired corner, ask students to select a partner and discuss the reasons why

they have taken this position on the issue—or perhaps, more importantly,

why it was hard to take a position.

6. After students have had a chance to discuss the reasons for their position

D A Y T HREE
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 159

with a partner, ask them to discuss it with the rest of the students in their

corner’s group. Explain that they will have five minutes for discussion,

after which a spokesperson from each corner will be selected to summarize the reasons behind his/her group’s position.

7. Now ask groups to come up with another issue the story raises that has

no easy answer. Select an issue from one of the groups and repeat steps

#4 and #6. If there is time, select still another issue from another group

and, again, repeat steps #4 and #6. Issues might include: Is it progress

when traditions give way to new realities? Is losing a tradition that big

a deal? 

8. Journal Entry: Following the group summaries, debrief the activity by

asking students to return to their seats and respond in their journals to

the following prompts:

• As a result of this activity, what have you learned? 

• As a result of reading and thinking about “The Extra Place,” what

have you learned about the world, yourself, and others? What have

you learned about change?

9. Ask students to complete their journal writing for homework. Explain

that you are looking forward to reading their thoughts and responding

to what they have written about each of the above questions in a “dialogue journal” format. If students are not familiar with dialogue journaling, explain to them that it is an opportunity for them to express their

thoughts to you, and for you to respond back to them in writing with

your own reflections on what they have written.

Choices and Explorations:

1. To reinforce the process of finding the more abstract patterns in a text

(see pages 149-152), explain to students that, just as folktales like “The

Talking Goat” have abstract patterns that underlie their structure, so

does a story like “The Extra Place.” Explain that the more they practice

finding the abstract patterns in a text, the easier it becomes. Then they

can use this skill in this class—or even in a social studies or history

class—to make connections between two seemingly unrelated stories,

incidents, or events, based on their abstract patterns. Explain that the

ability to uncover abstract patterns and make connections can increase

their ability to think at higher levels about what they are learning in any

class. Provide students with the following example on Worksheet #10 on

page 161.

The sole substitute for an experience

which we have not ourselves lived through is

art and literature.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn

Author
160 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

2. Ask students to help you complete parts of the middle column and then

to fill in the left-hand column with the literal facts from “The Extra

Place.”

3. Then ask them: “What analogy can you develop in the right-hand column? What is something you have seen, or read, or experienced that follows the abstract pattern in the middle column, but that has nothing to

do with Christmas or strangers at the door?”

4. Have students work with a partner to come up with an analogy. Then

ask for volunteers to share their analogies with the rest of the class. See

how many different analogies you can elicit. Ask students: What do you

think of the strategy of abstracting the pattern in a story? How might

you use this strategy in another class? In another subject area?

5. Based on these analogies, or on their personal responses to “The Extra

Place,” you might ask students to write a poem or draw a mind map or

other graphic representation that illustrates the mental connections they

have made.

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshop Unit

You may also choose to use the

lessons on pages 242-250 in the

Reading and Writing Workshop section to help your students explore

techniques authors use to create a

style and tone in the context of

“The Extra Place.” In these lessons,

students have an opportunity to

experiment with style and tone in

the drafts of their own personal narratives, and to receive feedback from

peers.
How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How important is time and the clock?

How/when do kids become adults?

What do people seem to value most?

In U.S. Culture

C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 161

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How important is time and the clock?

How/when do kids become adults?

What do people seem to value most?

In U.S. Culture

W orksheet #10

The Abstract Pattern in “The Extra Place”

Literal Elements Abstract Pattern New Literal Elements

• People are preparing for an

enjoyable and important event.

• Unexpectedly, they are interrupted by someone.

• This person asks them to do

something difficult.

• The people are not sure how to

respond or what to do.

• Finally, they refuse the request.

• Afterwards, they feel uneasy

about their decision.
162 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Overview

We’ve designed this lesson plan to help you and your students explore the

meaning of the story, “A Single, Lucid Moment,” written by former Peace

Corps Volunteer, Robert Soderstrom, who served in the Pacific nation of

Papua New Guinea. Soderstrom and his wife Kerry were the first Peace

Corps Volunteers ever to serve in the remote village of Maimafu in the

Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. Soderstrom describes

Maimafu as a village of just 800 people “who had lived in harmony with their

natural surroundings for millennia.” There were, he says, “no cars, electricity,

or telephones—just grass huts and large gardens, and a whole lot of rain forest.”

We chose to include this selection as the last one in the No Easy Answers

theme because we felt that it would speak strongly to students on many levels—emotionally and intellectually. “A Single, Lucid Moment” deals with a

sudden and profound change in world view that occurs when individuals

from a modern, technological, materially wealthy culture encounter individuals from a traditional, materially poor, communal culture. It raises questions

about the meaning of individualism and community and about the values of

generosity and self-sufficiency. In “A Single, Lucid Moment,” the way the

main characters deal with the dilemma they are confronted with when they

move from one culture into another raises questions that have no easy

answers.

About the Setting

To help your students understand the context of the story, we’d like to provide you with some information on its culture and setting—the remote, rural

village of Maimafu, a village of about 800 people in Papua New Guinea. A

country about the size of California, Papua New Guinea spreads out over

some 600 islands just below the Equator in the southwest Pacific.The majority of the people live in rural areas—often without access to electricity, telephones, or cars—and are dependent on subsistence agriculture for their living.

Papua New Guinea is one of the most diverse countries in the world. It is

a country of four million people and 800 different languages. It is home to

more than 200 cultures, each with its own traditions. Because 85% of Papua

New Guinea is covered with dense rain forests—and because of its rough,

mountainous terrain—many of its numerous tribes of people never have contact with each other, and rarely with the “outside world.” For most people living in rural villages and tribes in Papua New Guinea, life goes on without

READING AND

RESPONDING TO

A SINGLE, LUCID

MOMENT
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 163

change year after year. Traditions, customs, and ways of living, thinking, and

being remain the same from one generation to the next. The tribal cultures

are primarily communal ones in which each member of the community can

count on being cared for in some way within a circle of family, community,

and friends.

Introduction

In this lesson plan, we present many ideas for reading and responding to “A

Single, Lucid Moment.” In particular, we have differentiated the instructional activities to provide options for using the story with younger and/or less

able readers, as well as with older, more sophisticated and skillful readers.We

hope you will view our suggested lesson sequence as a flexible springboard

for tailoring instruction to the unique needs of your own students—and to

your state or local curriculum standards.

We’ve also developed this lesson plan to address specific language arts and

social studies standards using the Understanding by Design curriculum framework (Wiggins and McTighe,1998). The framework, based on “enduring

understandings” and “essential questions,” is described in detail in the

Appendix to this collection on page 260.You can find the enduring understandings and essential questions that we suggest for this story in the sidebar

on page 164.We hope they have meaning for you and your students.

S T ANDARDS

National Council of Teachers of

English/International Reading

Association

• Standard 1: Students read a wide

range of print and non-print texts

to build an understanding of texts,

of themselves, and of the cultures of

the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide

range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an

understanding of the many dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide

range of strategies to comprehend,

interpret, evaluate, and appreciate

texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a

wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing

process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

National Council of 

Social Studies

• Theme 1: Culture. Social studies programs should provide for the study

of culture and cultural diversity so

that the learner can explain how

information and experiences may be

interpreted by people from diverse

cultural perspectives and frames of

reference.
164 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To introduce students to the story and its setting.

• To encourage students to find personal meaning in the text.

1. You might begin this lesson by explaining to students: “This story, “A

Single, Lucid Moment,” written by Peace Corps Volunteer Robert

Soderstrom, will have more meaning for you if we take a moment to

explore the meaning of its title and some information about its setting.

Let’s begin first with the title and, in particular, the meaning of the term

“single, lucid moment.”You may already know that the word lucid means

“clear.” In the context of this story, it means “extremely clear”—a

moment in which your entire way of looking at life might be brought

into focus, so that you never see the world in quite the same way again.

Here are a few examples:

• Have you ever experienced a moment when you suddenly realized that something you accepted and took for granted was not

accepted or taken for granted by others? Examples of things we

might take for granted are:When people are sick, they can go to

the emergency room.When people need a loaf of bread, they can

go to the store and buy one. When people see violence in movies

or cartoons, they know it’s just for fun. Or it could be a moment

that comes as a result of:

a.) Traveling to another place and seeing that people there

see the world and behave differently than people do in

the place where you live;

b.) Spending the night or a weekend at a friend’s home and

noticing that your friend’s family has completely different customs, traditions, and ways of interacting than

your family does.

c.) Seeing a movie in which you are strongly affected by

the way the main character sees the world, even though

that person is very different from yourself and sees the

world in a completely different way.

d.) Becoming friends with someone who sees the world in

exactly the opposite way that you do.

2. Ask students to pair up with a partner and share their reactions to the

scenarios presented above. Ask partners to think, in particular, about this

D A Y O N E

Enduring Understandings:

• A “single, lucid moment” can challenge and change our world view.

• Some cultures believe the group is

responsible for the well-being of

each individual. Other cultures

believe individuals are primarily

responsible for themselves.

• Life can raise questions with no easy

answers.

Essential Questions:

• What is a ‘single, lucid moment’ and

how can it challenge and change

our world view? 

• When is taking care of the individual

more important than taking care of

the group? When is taking care of the

group more important than taking

care of the individual?

• Why are some life questions so hard?

Grade Levels:

This lesson plan can be adapted for use

with students in grades 7-12.

Assessments: 

Group discussions, journal entries, oral

reports, extended writing assignments.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 165

question: How have you felt when you’ve suddenly realized that the

things you’ve accepted as true for yourself and for everyone are only true

for yourself, and not true for everyone?

3. Explain to students: “The moment when we realize that the things we

accept as true or normal for everyone, are not true or normal for everyone—or that our view of the world is not the only view of the world—

can become a ‘single, lucid moment’ for us. This is exactly what happened to the Peace Corps Volunteers in the story you are about to read.”

4. Explain to students that the story describes an experience in the lives of

two Peace Corps Volunteers—who are just beginning their two years of

service in a remote, rural village of 800 people on an island in Papua

New Guinea. Explain that Papua New Guinea spreads out over some

600 islands just below the Equator in the southwest Pacific and, taken as

a whole, it is about the size of California.

5. Explain that the majority of the people live in rural areas—often without access to electricity, telephones, or cars—and are dependent on subsistence agriculture for their living. Explain that for most people living

in rural villages and tribes in Papua New Guinea, life goes on without

change year after year. Traditions, customs, and ways of living, thinking,

and being remain the same from one generation to the next. The tribal

cultures are primarily communal ones in which each member of the

community can count on being cared for in some way within a circle of

family, community, and friends.

6. Explain that Papua New Guinea is one of the most diverse countries in

the world. It is a country of four million people and 800 different languages. It is home to more than 200 cultures, each with its own traditions. Because 85 percent of Papua New Guinea is covered with dense

rain forests—and because of its rough, mountainous terrain, many of its

numerous tribes of people never have contact with each other—and

rarely with the “outside world.”

7. Explain that the author of the story, Robert Soderstrom, and his wife

Kerry, were the first Peace Corps Volunteers ever to serve in the remote

village of Maimafu in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New

Guinea. Soderstrom describes Maimafu as a village of just 800 people

“who had lived in harmony with their natural surroundings for millennia.”

8. Suggest to students: “As you are reading “A Single, Lucid Moment,” jot

down notes in the margin—or highlight sentences—that give you a very

strong reaction. Pay particular attention to points when the story makes
166 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

you feel happy, peaceful, sad, frustrated, angry, or confused. At those

points in your reading, you might want to try ‘talking to the text’—i.e.,

writing notes in the margin about what those particular passages meant

to you, as if you are asking:‘Story, what is your message?’Then have students read “A Single, Lucid Moment.”

9. As students finish reading the story, ask them to look back over the sentences they have highlighted, and select one or two sentences that evoked

the strongest response.

10. Then call on volunteers to read the sentences that evoked the most powerful response and to explain why.After each comment, ask:“Did anyone

highlight the same sentence? Was it for the same reason, or a different

one?” “Did anyone highlight a different sentence or passage? Let’s hear

which one and why.” Elicit as many different responses as possible.

11. Interviews and Journal Entries: For homework, ask students to retell the

story of “A Single, Lucid Moment” to another person (adult, child, or

teen).Then interview that person on how they might have responded to

the Maimafu village council’s questions about homelessness. Finally, ask

students to summarize the interview response and their reaction to it in

their Reading Journals. Explain that their written journal entry will help

them in tomorrow’s lesson.

Purpose:

• To have students probe the deeper meanings of the story and the questions it raises.

• To prepare students for a written response to the story.

1. Ask students to form groups of four and share the results of their interviews and their journal responses from the night before. Follow this with

a whole-class discussion about the various responses students may have

received. Ask: Why were the Peace Corps Volunteers so startled by the

Maimafu Village Council’s request?

2. Now you may want to tell a personal story something like this:

“Often as I walk to work in the morning or leave in the evening, I

will pass a homeless person. My feelings are always mixed— sympathy, fear, uncertainty, sadness, uneasiness, concern. I always wonder:

“Should I give this person money? How will he/she use it? How can

I ignore someone who is obviously distressed? Will my giving this

person money only perpetuate his/her situation and keep him/her

D A Y T W O
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 167

from seeking legitimate help? Is the person really as helpless as

he/she looks? If I give to one homeless person, do I need to give to

every homeless person? What is the right thing to do? What if I were

this person? How would I feel? What would I need? What if someone asked me to bring this person into my home? What would I

do?”

3. Suggest that the increasing phenomenon of homelessness in the United

States is no doubt troubling to all of us. Sometimes it is even easier to

pretend it doesn’t exist. Ask students to turn to a partner and discuss: If

you were to pass a homeless person on the street, what would you do?

Would you talk to him/her? Would you give him/her money? Would you

invite him/her into your home? Then conduct a whole class discussion.

4. Ask students:Why are these questions ones with no easy answers?

5. Then suggest to students:Try to imagine a culture in which the concept

of homelessness doesn’t even exist until the two American Peace Corps

Volunteers arrive. Try to imagine a culture in which people simply cannot grasp the idea that a person might exist outside the circle of the love

of family, friends, and community.

6. Ask students to close their eyes and imagine they are one of the Peace

Corps Volunteers in this story. You might say:

“Picture the bamboo home the Maimafu have built for you. Picture

the path to your home sprinkled with flower petals. Picture the garden in the back of your home the Maimafu have started. Imagine

how the pictures of the two homeless men in Chicago must have

looked to the Maimafu villagers. Now picture a village elder asking

you: ‘Why do you have homeless people in your country? How can

it be that, in such a rich country, there is no one who will take care

of them?’”

7. Ask students to form groups of four and share the way they might have

responded to these questions.

8. Then ask the groups to discuss: Why—when the Maimafu Village

Council proposed to bring the homeless men to Papua New Guinea—

was this ‘a single lucid moment’ for the Peace Corps Volunteers? How

did what the Maimafu villagers asked them to do turn the Volunteers’

world view upside down and leave them speechless? How might it have

made them see the world in a way they had never seen it before? Do you

think they would ever be able to look at the photographs of the homeless men in Chicago in the same way as they had before? Why was the
168 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

memory of this moment so strong that it caused one of the Volunteers to

later write a story entitled “A Single, Lucid Moment”? 

9. Conduct a whole-class discussion, based on the groups’ responses to

these questions.Then ask students to respond to the questions as a journal entry in preparation for tomorrow’s class.

10. Near the end of the class, we suggest that you read this passage from the

story aloud:

Moia spoke, “After you left last night, all of us men on the village council

had a very big meeting. For a long time we discussed the two men in your

picture.We have reached a conclusion and have a proposal for you. “

“What could that possibly be,” we wondered.

“Please contact those two men as well as your government. Ask the government if they will fly those two men to Maimafu, just like they did for you.

We have marked two spots of land where we will build houses for those two

men, just like we built for you. Our men will build the houses and the

women will plant the gardens to feed them.”

They were offering to do what? I was stunned and overwhelmed.Their offer

was bold and genuine. It was innocent and naïve. It was beautiful.And, like

the twist of a kaleidoscope, my world view had completely changed.

What does one say to such an offer? We stammered for a response and stumbled over explanations of difficult logistics, scarce money and government

bureaucracies. But the councilmen would not accept no for an answer. In their

simple lives, it was impossible to comprehend that humanity was host to such

an injustice.They wanted action.

11. Writing Assignment: Conclude the class by saying that for homework, you

would like students to write a script for a dramatization of the story “A

Single, Lucid Moment.” Explain that tomorrow you will ask for students

to volunteer to play the roles of the Peace Corps Volunteers and the

Maimafu Village Council members. Explain to students that, while the

passage you’ve just read should be the basis of the dramatization, you

would like them to elaborate on what you’ve read by adding new dialogue of their own, based on other passages in the story that held great

meaning for them. Ask students, as they are writing the script, to try to

see the world from two points of view—that of the Peace Corps

Volunteers and that of the Maimafu villagers.

12. Differentiating Instruction: Depending on the ability-level of your students,

you may want to provide an extra class period for students to complete

this writing assignment in groups of three.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 169

Purpose:

• To deepen students’ understanding of the story by engaging them in an

experience that makes its events come alive.

• To inspire student empathy.

1. Ask students to share their scripts in small groups.Then ask for volunteers

to conduct the dramatization. One way to conduct the dramatization to

increase student involvement is as follows: Explain to students that when

one of the student volunteers runs out of ideas for things to say during

the dramatization, another student from the class can take that person’s

place, adding their own dialogue.

2. Explain to students who are observing the dramatization to think about

the question: If you could step into the shoes of these Peace Corps

Volunteers, and actually go to the Maimafu village, what would you say

and do in response to the village council’s request?

3. Debrief the dramatization by asking the role players to talk about how

they felt as they stepped into the shoes of the Peace Corps Volunteers and

of the Maimafu villagers.What is it like stepping into the shoes of others

and trying to see the world from their point of view?

4. Journal Entry: For homework, ask students to respond in their journals to

the following ideas: Some cultures, like the Maimafu, believe the group is

responsible for the well-being of each and every individual; other cultures

believe that individuals are primarily responsible for themselves. Is one

way better than the other? Why or why not? Do you think this is an

either/or situation? Or is it possible to achieve a balance between the two

beliefs? If so, how might this balance be accomplished? If not, why not?

5. Explain to students that they will have a chance to read each others’ ideas

in tomorrow’s lesson.

D A Y T HREE
170 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

Purpose:

• To engage students in a close analysis of the text.

• To strengthen students’ awareness that responses to literature are both

unique and personal.

1. Journal Walk. Begin the lesson with a “Journal Walk.”We’ve used this strategy in earlier lessons (see page 140). It takes place as follows: Students

open up their journals to the page where they have responded to the

homework questions. Then they stand up and silently walk around the

room reading other students’ responses to the journal prompts. After sufficient time has passed for students to read other students’ responses, ask

them to return to their seats and add anything they wish to their own

responses.

2. Give students the option of leaving their journals face down if they wish

to keep their writing private.

3. After students have had a chance to walk, reflect, and write, conduct a

whole-class discussion on the journal responses.

4. Now explain to students that, sometimes, when readers really want to go

deeper into the meaning of a story, they take a paragraph or part of the

story that seems very important, and they study it in depth, really trying

to think about what the author means and how it relates to life and their

own thinking.

5. Suggest: “Let’s try out this technique with a paragraph I selected and

some questions it raised for me.Then you can select one of your own and

do the same thing.You may want to read the following passage from ‘A

Single, Lucid Moment’ to the class (or select another of your own)”:

“Fetching water in the ink-black night and looking up the hill at our small

hut, I would think of the spiritual wealth of Maimafu and the material

wealth of America: Can a community reach a balance of material wealth and

spiritual wealth? Why do these societies exhibit so much of one and not

much of the other? Do those two ends interfere with each other? How much

spiritual wealth can we have? How much material wealth do we need? How

has the world evolved so that some people own mansions and others lack

shoes? How many people have love in their souls but diseased water in their

drinking cups?...I discovered that the world’s purest form of brotherhood can

often be found in the smallest of villages.”

6. Now you might say: Here are some questions this passage raised for me.

It may raise different ones for you:

D A Y F OUR
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 171

• What does the author mean by “the spiritual wealth of Maimafu”?

Can a community reach a balance of material wealth and spiritual wealth? How much spiritual wealth can we have? How much

material wealth do we need?

• How has the world evolved so that some people own mansions

and others lack shoes? What is our responsibility to others less fortunate than we are—whether in our own country or in other areas

of the world? 

7. Divide the class into small groups to discuss these questions. Then ask

groups to select a passage of their own for analysis. Once each group has

selected a passage, ask groups to identify the ideas and questions the passage raises in their minds.You might also provide students the option of

selecting the same passage that you selected, but identifying different

questions.

8. Ask each small group to select a reporter to read the group’s selection and

summarize the group’s questions for the rest of the class.

9. After each report, ask the class: How might you respond to these questions? After each response, ask:“Are there any other ways to look at this?”

“Was there something else in this passage that another group found had

great meaning for them—or raised new questions for them?” Elicit a variety of responses.

10. Explain to students that responding to literature is a very personal experience. What may evoke a strong reaction in one reader may not necessarily evoke the same reaction in another reader—and vice versa. The

important things to do, when reading, are: 1.) to actively look for what

has meaning for you; 2.) to think about what you agree and disagree

with; 3.) to think about what the author was trying to say that was

important for him/her.

11. Journal Entry: Conclude the lesson by asking students to respond in their

journals to the following prompts:

• What is really important about the story “A Single, Lucid

Moment”?

• What did this story make you wonder about?

• What did this story teach you about the world, yourself, and others?

12. Extended Response to Literature. Ask students to select from one of the following options in response to their reading of “A Single, Lucid

Moment.”
172 Voices From the Field

R EADING AND R ESPONDING TO L ITERATURE

• Write a personal response to the story of “A Single, Lucid

Moment.” Your response might simply be a description of what

the story meant to you personally, citing passages from the text

that were important to you.Your response might also be a personal narrative, similar to Soderstrom’s, describing a time when you,

yourself, experienced a “single, lucid moment”—a moment that

was startling or troubling and caused you to look at the world in

a new and different way. Perhaps it was a moment that caused you

to no longer be able to see the world in the same way as you had

before. (Note to teachers:You may want to consult Session 10 in

the Reading and Writing Workshop lessons to help students with

this assignment.) 

• Write a personal response to the story in which you revisit the

inability of the Maimafu to comprehend a person being without a

home—without a circle of family, friends, and community that

loves and cares for him/her. In your written response, develop a

list of questions the Maimafu might ask about American culture—

and explain how you would respond to them. In addition, develop another list of questions you might want to ask the Maimafu

about their culture.

• Look back at the lines and sentences in “A Single, Lucid Moment”

that held the most meaning for you in the story—the lines you

highlighted that evoked a strong emotional response.Then write a

narrative in which you discuss the lines and sentences and the reasons why they held meaning for you. Explain to students that you

are looking forward to reading their thoughts and commenting on

them later.You would like to submit the best pieces of writing for

publication on the Coverdell World Wise Schools Web site

(www.peacecorps.gov/wws).

• Write a personal response to the story in which you compare the

issues raised by “A Single, Lucid Moment” with the issues raised

by “Ilunga’s Harvest.” Explain how reading these stories caused

you to think in new and different ways—and altered your view of

the world, yourself, and others.

Connections to the

Reading and Writing

Workshops

You may also choose to use the

lessons on pages 247-250 in the

Reading and Writing Workshop section to help your students understand that there are universal themes

in writing that help the reader feel

connected to the experience the

writer describes and that give a

piece of writing greater meaning to

the reader. In these lessons, students

have an opportunity to examine the

element of theme in their own personal narratives in the context of “A

Single, Lucid Moment.” They look

at the impact of change in

Soderstrom’s story and in their own

writing.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 173

A Reading and Writing Workshop seeks to create a community of readers,

writers, and concerned world citizens. Here, the Peace Corps stories on pages

11-75 become a springboard to students’ own self-discovery through the writing

process. The reading and writing workshop sessions culminate in a celebration

of students’ stories—personal narratives about the students’ own understanding of

the world, themselves, and others.

Lesson Organization

In The Art of Teaching Writing, Lucy Calkins advises us that “writing does not

begin with deskwork, but lifework.”The reading and writing lessons in this unit

were designed with this suggestion in mind. The metaphor of a writing journey

is used throughout, as the stories of Peace Corps Volunteers guide students on an

exploration of “connections.” The goals of this unit are to:

• cultivate curiosity and wonder about the world, ourselves, and others;

• stimulate critical and creative thinking;

• encourage students to “read like writers” and “write like readers”;

• create a climate of unity within diversity;

• foster empathy, human connections, and relationships; and

• deepen students’ awareness of writing as a tool of self-discovery.

Like the Reading and Responding to Literature section, this unit is driven by

specific language arts standards as well as enduring understandings and essential

questions. However, the format of this unit differs from the previous section.

Each “session” consists of both a reading and writing workshop. The workshop

has three phases—mini-lessons, independent work, and share time:

A Reading and Writing Workshop

If writing is thinking and discovery and selection and order and

meaning, it is also awe and reverence and mystery and magic.

Toni Morrison

Author
174 Voices From the Field

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

• Mini-lessons are short (5-15 minutes) focused lessons about

how authors write as well as specific strategies students can use

in their reading and writing.The teacher often begins a mini-lesson with a poem or passage from a book that illustrates the topic

of the mini-lesson and encourages students to consider that topic

as they read and write that day.

• Independent Work Time. By the end of the mini-lesson, the

purpose for students’ independent work time is set. Students may

be trying strategies presented that day or applying strategies from

past mini-lessons. During this time, students may also be participating in a peer or teacher conference. In this unit, students are

also given the option of participating in a Literature Circle in

order to discuss the content of the Peace Corps stories. (For

information on Literature Circles, see page 264.) 

• Share. The workshop time concludes with a sharing session, where

students discuss their reading and writing. Sharing provides an

opportunity for a few students to share briefly about how they

applied a concept introduced during a mini-lesson. Sharing needs

to be brief and allow many students to participate.

The Writing Process 

A Reading and Writing Workshop emphasizes the process of writing rather

than the end product.

• Sessions One to Four focus on prewriting strategies. Here, students begin by reflecting on their lives as writers, and are later

shown ways to generate ideas for stories through brainstorming,

freewriting, outlining, and interviewing.

• In Sessions Five to Ten, students alternate between drafting and

revising. The teacher models the process of organizing words on

a page and then seeing (“re-visioning”) it from a reader’s perspective.

• Session Eleven guides students in editing, as they analyze the qualities of “good writing.” This session emphasizes that “good grammar is good manners.”

• In Session Twelve, students share their personal narratives with one

another in a class celebration or publication. The final workshop

allows time for students to reflect on this particular “writing journey.”

Ink runs from the corners of my mouth.

There is no happiness like mine.

I have been eating poetry.

Mark Strand

Poet
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 175

Assessment

During independent work time, teachers circulate around the

room, writing anecdotal records or conferring with individual students about their reading and writing. Conferences provide the

teacher with an opportunity to meet individually with a student to

assess progress, to provide guidance as needed, and to assist in goalsetting.

The Use of Poetry

Many of the mini-lessons in this unit are introduced with a suggested poem. We encourage you, however, to introduce each lesson

with a poem, illustration, or passage that resonates most powerfully

for you.

Most of the suggested poems in this unit are not reprinted in

their entirety; however, all can be easily accessed on the internet.

Because of constant “site changes,” the Web site addresses for these

poems are not listed. Instead, we suggest that you use a search

engine, such as www.google.com or www.yahoo.com for the most

updated information.

Language Arts Standards

A Reading and Writing Workshop meets the following language arts

standards as outlined by the National Council of Teachers of English

and the International Reading Association:

• Standard 1: Students read a wide range of print and non-print

texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the

cultures of the United States and the world.

• Standard 2: Students read a wide range of literature from many

periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many

dimensions of human experience.

• Standard 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts.

• Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they

write and use different writing process elements appropriately to

communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

B ELIEFS ABOUT W RITING

Our beliefs about the teaching of writing are

based on the research of Nancie Atwell

(1998), Lucy Calkins (1986), and Donald

Graves (1995):

• Time: Students need to write for large

blocks of time on a consistent basis.

• Choice: Students should have as many

opportunities as possible to choose their

own topics, forms, and styles for writing. Choosing topics that have personal

meaning gives students ownership of

their writing.

• Community: Students need a supportive, trusting writing community where

their ideas are valued. In order to create

this community of readers and writers,

we as teachers must be willing to take

the first step by sharing our own writing

with students

• Response: Writers need constructive

feedback from the teacher or a peer in

order to see their writing from different

points of view.

• Audience and Purpose: Understanding audience and purpose enables students to make choices about topics,

forms, and styles.

• High Expectations: We must have high

expectations for quality writing. Students

should be responsible for keeping track

of their progress.
How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

176

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

In U.S. Culture In

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

How do people dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of the family?

Who is more important: each person 

or the whole group?

What is the role of religion?

In U.S. Culture In

The Unit at a Glance:

A R eading and Writing Workshop

Title Process Reading Workshop Writing Workshop Peace Corps Story 

Voices From the Field

Session One:

The Power 

of Words

Introduction Enduring Understanding:

Words have power.

Through language we

can imagine different

worlds.

“At Home in the

World”

Enduring Understanding:

Writing is a journey.

Session Two

The Power 

of Objects

Prewriting Enduring Understanding:

Words have power.

Through language we

can imagine different

worlds.

Essential Question:

How do words create

images in our minds?

Enduring Understanding:

Objects tell stories.

“I Had a Hero”

Session Three

The Power 

of Dialogue

Prewriting Enduring Understanding:

Through dialogue, we

come to understand the

world, ourselves, and

others.

Essential Question:

How do words create

images in our minds?

Enduring Understanding:

Objects tell stories.

“‘Magic’ Pablo”

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Essential Question:

How do words create

images in our minds?

Essential Question:

Why journey?

Essential Question:

How can we find the

objects of our stories?

Essential Question:

What do our objects

say?
In U.S. Culture In Dominican Culture

Coverdell World Wise Schools 177

Session Process Reading Workshop Writing Workshop Peace Corps Story 

Session Four:

The Power 

of Our Stories

Prewriting Enduring Understanding:

Knowing context can

broaden our appreciation

of a text.

Essential Question:

How can context broaden our appreciation of a

text?

Enduring Understanding:

Through stories, we

make sense of the world

around us.

Essential Question:

What are our stories?

“Nomadic Life”

Session Five:

Introduction

to the Story

Elements

Drafting Enduring Understanding:

All stories share common

elements.

Essential Question:

Why do all stories share

common elements?

Enduring Understanding:

All stories share common

elements.

Essential Question:

What are the elements of

our stories?

“Cross-Cultural

Dialogue”

Session Six:

Understanding

Character

Development

(Part One)

Drafting Enduring Understanding:

Character is revealed in

words, actions, and

appearance.

Enduring Understanding:

Words have power.

Through writing, we

can invite readers to see

the world as we see it.

“On Sunday There

Might be

Americans”

C URRICULUM U NITS

Essential Question:

How do authors make

words come alive?

Essential Question:

How can we make

our words come

alive?
How do people

dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of

the family?

178

How do people

dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of

the family?

In U.S. Culture In

How do people

dress?

What is school like?

What is the role of

the family? the family?

In U.S. Culture In

The Unit at a Glance:

A R eading and Writing Workshop

Title Process Reading Workshop Writing Workshop Peace Corps Story 

Session Seven:

Understanding

Character

Development

(Part two)

Drafting/

Revising

Enduring Understanding:

In literature and life, we

all have reasons for

behaving the way we do.

Essential Question:

How do authors hold the

readers interest?

Enduring Understanding:

In literature and life, we

all have reasons for

behaving the way we do.

Essential Question:

How can we hold the

readers interest?

“Ilunga’s Harvest”

Session Eight:

Understanding

Plot

Drafting/

Revising

Enduring Understanding:

Plot builds a story’s

structure.

Essential Question:

How do authors use

plot?

Enduring Understanding:

Plot builds a story’s

structure.

Essential Question:

How can we use plot?

“The Talking

Goat”

Session Nine:

Understanding

Style and Tone

Drafting/

Revising

Peer Response

Enduring Understanding:

Style and tone affect a

reader’s understanding of

a story.

Essential Question:

How do authors develop

voice?

Enduring Understanding:

Through dialogue, we

come to understand the

world, ourselves and

others.

“The Extra Place”

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Essential Question:

How can we develop

voice?

Voices From the Field
In U.S. Culture In Dominican Culture

Coverdell World Wise Schools 179

Title Process Reading Workshop Writing Workshop Peace Corps Story 

Session Ten:

Understanding

Change

Final Draft Enduring Understanding:

A story is about life.

Life means change.

Enduring Understanding:

Stories connect us to the

world.

“A Single Lucid

Moment”

Session Eleven:

Reading Like

Writers/

Writing Like

Readers

Editing Enduring Understanding:

Good writing shares similar characteristics.

Enduring Understanding:

Good grammar is good

manners. Readers

deserve our respect.

Session Twelve:

Celebrations

Publishing Enduring Understanding:

Through stories we create community.

Enduring Understanding:

Writing is a journey.

Essential Question:

Why journey?

Review

C URRICULUM U NITS

Essential Question:

What makes a piece of

writing good?

Essential Question:

Why edit?

Essential Question:

How are we connected?

Essential Question:

How do authors use

change?

Essential Question:

How are we connected?
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

180 Voices From the Field

Enduring Understanding:

Words have power. Through

language, we can imagine different worlds.

Essential Question:

How do words create images in

our minds?

Materials:

“At Home in the World” (page

13-14); Worksheet #1: Peace

Corps Fact Sheet; overhead projector; chart paper

Note to Teachers:

This introductory session differs from the usual workshop format. In place

of students’ independent work time, you will read aloud the essay, “At Home

in the World.” The essay contains words and references that might be confusing for many student readers. As you demonstrate your own reading

process, you can help broaden students’ frame of reference about the 1960s,

John F. Kennedy, and the Peace Corps.

Purpose:

• To broaden students’ frame of reference about the Peace Corps.

• To demonstrate the reading process of a proficient reader.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students together in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the

workshop by reading the poem, “English as a Second Language” by Lisel

Mueller.

The underpaid young teacher

prints the letters t, r, e, e

on the blackboard and imagines

forests and gardens springing up

in the tired heads of her students.

But they see only four letters

a vertical beam weighed down

by a crushing crossbar

and followed by a hook

and after the hook, two squiggles,

arcane identical twins

which could be spying eyes

or ready fists, could be handles

could take root

could develop leaves.

THE POWER OF

WORDS

Reading Workshop 

Session One
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 181

2. Read the poem a second time, writing the letters “t-r-e-e” on the chalkboard. As you read the words “vertical beam” “hook” “identical twins”

“squiggles,” trace the individual letters on the chalkboard. Afterwards,

share a story about your own life as a reader. An example might be:

“I don’t remember the day when the squiggles and hooks of the letters ‘t-r-e-e’ took root and became a tree. But I do know what it is

like to see only squiggles and hooks—not the images that the words

convey. For three years I lived in Morocco, a country where the primary language is Arabic. Reading Arabic was a great struggle for me,

and I was often frustrated. I remember the day I read the letters CO-K-E in Arabic and understood what they meant. (The red-andwhite letters on the bottle and caramel-colored soda inside were

clues....)”

3. Encourage students to share stories of their own experiences as a reader

in either a first or second language. Ask students: Do you remember the

day the letters “t-r-e-e” took root and became a tree? 

4. Write the word “home” on a piece of chart paper. Ask students:What do

you see when I write the word “home”? Do you see a person? Do you

see a place? Do you see a house? Your house? Do you see a town? A state?

A country? Gather students’ impressions on the chart paper. Finally, ask

students: Do you see the “world as home”? Is it valuable to see the world

as home? Why or why not? 

5. Explain to students that they will be reading stories written by Peace

Corps Volunteers. These stories might lead students to an understanding

of the “world as home.”

6. Students who have been participating in the Coverdell World Wise

Schools program may already be familiar with the Peace Corps and its

mission. If the program is new to students, however, their knowledge of

the Peace Corps may be limited. Nevertheless, ask all students: What is

the Peace Corps? Who are Peace Corps Volunteers? What do they do?

Gather students’ ideas, guesses, and impressions on a sheet of chart paper.

7. Display Worksheet #1: The Peace Corps Fact Sheet, on an overhead projector. Read the information with students, pausing to clarify as needed.

Compare the students’ initial impressions with the Fact Sheet. Which

guesses and ideas were correct? 

8. Tell students that, when Peace Corps Volunteers complete their service

overseas, they refer to themselves as “returned” Peace Corps Volunteers
182

In U.S. Culture In

W orksheet #1

P eace Corps Fact Sheet

The Mission of

the Peace Corps

• To help the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and

women.

• To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.

• To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

Volunteers • Current number (2001) of Volunteers serving overseas: 7,300

• Gender: 61% Female 39% Male

• Age: 29 years old (Average)

• Peace Corps officially established: March 1, 1961

• Total Number of Volunteers as of September 2001: 163,000

• Total Number of Countries served: 135

History

Assignments

• Information Technology: Volunteers work with local organizations to provide young

people and entrepreneurs with basic training in computer use and Internet technology,

opening the doors to e-commerce for micro and small business ventures.

• HIV/AIDS Education and Prevention in Africa: Every Volunteer serving in Africa is

trained to help prevent the spread of this disease through education and awareness projects, regardless of their area of service.

Focus Areas

(2001-2002)

Voices From the Field

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

• Education Volunteers work primarily in Teaching English as a Foreign Language

(TEFL). Education is the Peace Corps’ largest program.

• Business Volunteers work in education, private businesses, public organizations, government offices, cooperatives, women’s and youth groups, and more.

• Environment Volunteers work on a wide variety of activities, from teaching environmental awareness to planting trees with a community.

• Agriculture Volunteers work with small farmers to increase food production while

promoting environmental conservation practices.

• Health Volunteers raise community awareness, train health workers, and educate families.

• Community development Volunteers conduct assessments to determine ways to address

a community’s needs.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 183

rather than “former” Peace Corps Volunteers. Ask students: What is the

difference? Why might they use the word “returned” rather than “former”? 

9. You might suggest that the stories of returned Peace Corps Volunteers

may help students to see the “world” a little differently. They may also

help them to see “home” a little differently.Ask students to take out their

journals and briefly respond to the question: What image do you have

of the “world as home”?

Read Aloud:

1. Tell students that, in order to find out a little more about the Peace

Corps, today you will read aloud the essay, “At Home in the World”

(pages 13-14) written by Bill Moyers. Some students might know of Bill

Moyers from his documentaries on PBS.They may not be aware, however, that Moyers played a role in the establishment of the Peace Corps. (Bill

Moyers was the Peace Corps’ first Deputy Director, from 1961-1963.) 

2. Before reading, have students close their eyes and imagine that they are

looking at a blank movie screen. Ask them to focus on the images they

see as they listen to the words.

3. Begin by reading the title, “At Home in the World.” Ask students to picture the image that those words convey. After reading two or three paragraphs, you might pause and tell students the images that you see. For

example, you might say:

“When I read the word ‘Sixties’ I first see the black-and-white newsreels of a young and handsome John F. Kennedy hand-in-hand with

his wife, Jacqueline; and I see a proud Martin Luther King, Jr. proclaiming, ‘I Have a Dream.’ I also see the Beatles, when they first

played on the Ed Sullivan show, singing the song ‘She Loves You.’

Their hair was short, and they looked young and innocent. But the

word “Sixties” also reminds me of some other images:The newsreels

announcing the death of John F. Kennedy, of Martin Luther King, Jr.,

of Robert Kennedy; the student uprisings in the South; the protests

of the Vietnam War.... I understand what Moyers means here by

‘incongruent.’ Incongruent is from the Latin verb congruere, meaning to

agree. The images I have of the 1960s are, on the one hand, some of

the proudest moments in our nation’s history; on the other hand,

they are some of the most tragic moments in our nation’s history.

The images I see in my mind’s eye don’t ‘agree.’ They are incongruent.”
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

184 Voices From the Field

4. Continue to explain the images that the text brings to mind, attempting

to create as vivid a picture as possible of the 1960s, John F. Kennedy, and

the Peace Corps.

Share:

1. After completing the reading, ask students: What images did you see

while listening to this essay?

2. Write the following sentences from the essay on a piece of chart paper.

Ask students to briefly respond to the sentences in their journals.

• “[John F. Kennedy] placed my life in a larger narrative than I could

ever have written.”

• “America has a mighty multicultural future. But we are not alone.

We have guides—163,000 Peace Corps Volunteers who have

advanced the trip. They have been going where our country is

going. Out there in the world, as John F. Kennedy would say, is

truly the new frontier.”

3. Facilitate a discussion on one or both of these passages. Discussion questions might include:

• What does it mean to “place my life in a larger narrative than I

could ever have written”? Have you ever had such an experience?

Would you want to have such an experience?

• What is a “multicultural future”? Why is it “mighty”? Why might

we need guides?

4. Ask students: After reading this essay, what is the image that comes to

your mind when I say “at home in the world”? Is the image different

from what you originally pictured? If so, how did this essay create a different image in your mind? 

Choices and Explorations:

If there is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) in your community,

invite him or her to this reading session.The RPCV may be able to provide

additional insights into the Peace Corps as well as the essay, “At Home in the

World.”

When power leads man toward

arrogance, poetry reminds him of

his limitations. When power

narrows the areas of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the

richness and diversity of his

existence.When power corrupts,

poetry cleanses, for art establishes the basic human truths which

must serve as the touchstone of

our judgment.

John F. Kennedy

U.S. President
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 185

Note to Teachers: 

The mini-lesson for this introductory writing workshop is unusually long

(approximately 20-30 minutes). As students progress through this unit, however, the time allotted for independent writing increases.

Purpose:

• To provide students with an overview of the unit.

• To review the elements of the writing process.

Mini-Lesson:

1. You might introduce the workshop by reading Mary Oliver’s poem,“The

Journey.” Afterwards, share your impressions of the poem, and encourage

students to share their own interpretations. Try to connect the idea of

“journey” to the writing process. For example you might say:

“This poem reminds me of my own writing process. Sometimes

when I write, there are voices that keep “shouting bad advice.” These

voices tell me to give up writing because I’m not as good a poet as

Mary Oliver. It’s not easy to leave these voices behind. But, as Mary

Oliver writes in this poem, ‘little by little, the stars begin to burn

through the sheets of clouds, and there is a new voice which I slowly recognize as my own, that keeps me company as I stride deeper

and deeper into the world.’”

2. Tell students that today they will be investigating the theme of “writing

as a journey.” Ask students: How is writing similar to a journey?

3. You might show students your own writing journal (writer’s notebook).

Remind students that “journal” and “journey” share a common root: the

French word “jour” meaning “day.” Ask students: In what other ways are

a journal and a journey similar? What is the purpose of a journey? What

is the purpose of a journal?

4. You might suggest that, during this unit, journals will be the physical

“path” of students’ journeys. It is a very private path—a path that allows

them to explore, experiment, and stride “deeper and deeper into the

world.” Share with students the ways in which you use your journal. An

example might be:

“I write in my journal everyday, usually in the mornings. I use my

journal to record my thoughts and dreams, to keep track of story

THE POWER

OF WORDS

Writing Workshop 

Session One

Enduring Understanding:

Writing is a journey.

Essential Question:

Why journey?

Materials:

“The Journey” by Mary Oliver;

your journal; Worksheet #2:

What We Need To Know; overhead projector; chart paper.
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

186 Voices From the Field

ideas and odd bits of information, and to jot down reminders to

myself....”

5. Ask students to share their own experiences with journals. Have they

been helpful? If not, why? What are ways that we can make journal writing enjoyable and meaningful?

6. Remind students that they will be reading stories written by Peace

Corps Volunteers. In a sense, these Peace Corps stories are “journey” stories. Ask students:What are journey stories? What are examples of journey stories? Do we need to travel great distances to write journey stories of our own? 

7. You might suggest that students imagine this workshop unit as a journey. Although the class will not be taking a plane, train or automobile,

they will be going somewhere.To keep them properly informed of their

destination, lodging, and traveling companions, you have prepared a list

of “What We Need To Know.” Distribute copies of Worksheet #2: What

We Need To Know, reading through each item on the list and pausing to

clarify as needed.

8. After reading item one on the Worksheet, you might want to review the

genre of personal narrative. Points might include:

• Personal narratives share many of the craft elements of fiction,

such as dialogue, setting, point of view, and characterization.They

differ, however, in one crucial aspect: a personal narrative is

grounded in reality, based on facts.

• Personal narratives generally move from the particular to the universal.The writer brings a global theme (such as friendship, community, homelessness) closer to home by relating it to specific,

individual examples.

• Personal narratives are, by definition, personal.They are written in

the first person.

9. Also, suggest real-life outlets for publication, such as the school magazine, an essay-writing contest, or the school’s Web site. Emphasize to students, however, that the final goal of writers isn’t just to publish; it is to

publish a piece that represents their best writing abilities.

10. There is no single answer to item #5, Why am I going on this journey?

You may want to use this opportunity to facilitate a whole-class discussion on the purposes of writing. Possible “reasons to write” might

include:

• I write to understand myself.

• I write to face my fears.

A tearing wind last night. A

flurry of red clouds, hard, a

water colour mass of purple and

black, soft as a water ice, then

hard slices of intense green

stone, blue stone and a ripple of

crimson light.

Virginia Woolf

Author

in her diary,

August 17, 1938

Poetry is the journal of the sea

animal living on land, wanting to

fly in the air. Poetry is a search

for syllables to shoot at the barriers of the unknown and the

unknowable. Poetry is a phantom

script telling how rainbows are

made and why they go away.

Carl Sandburg 

Poet
W orksheet#2:

What We Need To Know

Coverdell World Wise Schools 187

C URRICULUM U NITS

1. Where are we going? 

Our destination or goal is to publish a personal narrative that represents our best writing

abilities.

2. How will we get there?

We will get there through the writing process—namely, prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.

3. Who will take us there?

We will be guided by the writings of Peace Corps Volunteers.

4. How long will we be gone?

The deadline for this personal narrative is______________.

5. Why are we going on this journey?
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

188 Voices From the Field

• I write to witness.

• I write to voice my opinions.

11. Tell students that, during the Independent Work Time, they will be

reflecting on their own writing journeys. To help recall specific aspects

of their journeys, they might want to first compose a timeline of their

writing careers.To model the activity, you might want to share a timeline

of your own writing career. An example might look like this:

• Age 3-4—Scribbled on walls, doors, desks, and (occasionally)

paper.

• Age 5—Wrote my name (had difficulty holding crayons).

• Age 6—First Grade. Received holiday stickers and stars on my

papers for good spelling; liked to write “poems” for my mother.

• Age 7—Wrote a letter to apologize to my mother after we had a

fight. I wrote “No one could never ever be mad at someone, right?

But we always make it so we’re going good.”

• Age 8—My third grade teacher said my penmanship needed a lot

of improvement.Was crushed....

Independent Work Time:

After students compose a timeline, they should answer the following questions in their journals:

• How has writing been a journey for me?

• Has my journey been “rocky”? Adventurous? Dull? Frustrating?

Rewarding?

• What are the highlights of my writing career?

• What are the low points of my writing career?

• What are my goals as a writer? 

Share:

Gather students back in the circle or meeting area. Read aloud Mary Oliver’s

poem, “The Journey,” once again. As you read, ask students to keep in mind

the “writing as journey” theme. Afterwards, ask students to share their own

writing experience. Possible questions might be: How is writing a journey

for you? Why is writing a journey? Why journey?
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 189

Purpose:

• To identify ‘picture’ words in “I Had a Hero.”

• To demonstrate how words can create ‘pictures’ in the reader’s mind.

Mini-Lesson:

1. You might begin by reading the poem, “There Was a Child Went Forth”

by Walt Whitman. As you read, ask students to close their eyes and picture the images that the words convey. Afterwards, try to connect the

images in the poem to the journey theme. An example might be:

“During our last workshop, we spoke about journeys. To me, this

poem is a ‘journey’ poem. But it describes a journey that is very different from the travels of mythic characters like Odysseus. Those

journey tales chronicle the lives and loves of courageous heroes who

could fight dragons, discover lost treasures, and save damsels in distress. No dragons cross the path of the child in Whitman’s poem—

and if they did, I doubt he would fight them. To “fight” is to resist

something or someone. The child in this poem does not resist;

instead, he opens himself up to experience, inviting everything within his path to become “a part of him.” To me, this is a journey—a

courageous journey. Odysseus’ heroism pales in comparison.”

2. Ask students: What do you see when I say the word “hero”? Do you see

a real-life person, a character from a book, a celebrity? 

3. Explain to students that today they will be reading a personal narrative

titled, “I Had a Hero” written by returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Mike

Tidwell.The story takes place in the Congo, (formerly Zaire) in central

Africa. Locate the Congo on a world map. If possible, show students

magazine photos or images which approximate the setting of central

Africa. Ask students what it might be like to take a journey to the

Congo. (For more background information on the Congo, see page 16.)

4. Tell students that “I Had a Hero,” is about a Peace Corps Volunteer’s

encounter with a African village chief named Ilunga. Ask students: Can

you imagine meeting an African village chief? What would happen? What

would you say? What would you do? 

5. As you read Worksheet #3: Excerpt from “I Had a Hero,” guide students in

imagining the scene of Mike and Ilunga’s first encounter. If possible,

bring in props that might be similar to the details that the author provides (for example, a coonskin cap, leather charm, or a crash helmet).

6. Tell students that they will read “I Had a Hero” in its entirety during

THE POWER

OF OBJECTS

Reading Workshop 

Session Two

Enduring Understanding:

Words have power.Through

language, we can imagine different worlds.

Essential Question:

How do words create images

in our minds?

Materials:

“I Had a Hero” (pages 17-21);

“There Was a Child Went Forth”

(page 192); Worksheet #3:

Excerpt from “I Had a Hero”;

overhead projector; chart paper.

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of the

setting and theme of “I Had a

Hero,” see Reading and

Responding to “I Had a Hero”

on pages 85-96.
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

190 Voices From the Field

Independent Work Time. Explain to students that, as they read this essay,

they should search for the ways in which the author/narrator helps us to

“see” Ilunga. Using Worksheet #3, demonstrate this activity by asking students what words are “picture” words. Underline or highlight these words,

and remind students to do the same in their own independent reading.

Independent Work Time:

1. As students read independently, you might confer with individual readers. Students who are not visually-oriented might need additional modeling. Encourage students to talk about their reading process.You might

ask them: Do you see pictures in your mind when you read? Is this difficult or easy for you? Which words in the story are objects that you might

see and touch in the world? Which words are abstract—things that can’t

you see and touch? 

2. When students have completed the reading, encourage them to discuss “I

Had a Hero” in a Literature Circle (see Appendix C, page 264). Remind

students to support their responses with actual passages from the text.

Questions to facilitate students’ initial discussion of “I Had a Hero” might

include:

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• Why do you think Illunga is the author/narrator’s “hero”?

• What questions would you ask the author/narrator or Ilunga?

• What would you have done if you were Mike?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to Mike’s?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this story?

Share:

Gather students back in the meeting area. Facilitate a whole-class discussion

on the objects or visual images in “I Had a Hero.” Questions might include:

• Did you “see” the story taking place? If so, how did the

author/narrator do that? 

• What is the one visual image in this story that stands out among

the rest?

• What words in this story created images in your mind? How did

this happen?

I am a writer who came of

a sheltered life. A sheltered

life can be a daring life as

well, for all serious daring

starts from within.

Eudora Welty

Author
W o rksheet #3:

Excerpt from “I Had a Hero”

Coverdell World Wise Schools 191

2. Conclude the class by asking students about how this story might illustrate

the “world as home.” Questions might include:

• What is the author/narrator’s message in this story? How does he use

his own personal experience to illustrate a universal theme?

• How is Mike’s experience a “journey”?

• Does Mike seem at “home in the world”?

• Do you think Mike might consider his life to “be part of a larger narrative”? If so, what’s the bigger picture?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural future”?

• How might this personal narrative help you in writing your own personal narrative?

C URRICULUM U NITS

When I stopped and saw Ilunga for the first time, I saw a man living, it seemed to me, in another

century. On his head was a kind of coonskin cap with a bushy tail hanging down in back. Around

his neck was a string supporting a leather charm to ward off bad bush spirits. Two underfed mongrel dogs circled his bare feet, panting. Inside the tall grass from which he had stepped, the clock ran

a thousand years slow, if it registered any time at all. Unable to help myself, I stared at him openly,

taking him in from head to toe. He meanwhile stared back at me with the same wide-eyed incredulity. And no wonder. With my ghost-white skin and rumbling motorcycle, with my bulging safety

goggles and orange riding gloves, with my bushy brown beard flowing out from under a banana yellow crash helmet—with all this, I suppose, I had a lot of nerve thinking of him as a museum piece.

For a moment we just kept gawking, Ilunga and I, mentally circling each other, both of us trying

to decide whether to burst out laughing or run for safety. In the end, we did neither. We became

friends.

“My name is Ilunga,” he said, extending his hand.

“My name is Michael,” I said, shaking it.
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

192 Voices From the Field

There was a child went forth every day,

And the first object he look’d upon, that object he became,

And that object became part of him for the day 

or a certain part of the day,

Or for many years or stretching cycles of years.

The early lilacs became part of this child,

And grass and white and red morning-glories, and white

and red clover, and the song of the phoebe-bird,

And the Third-month lambs and the sow’s pink-faint litter,

and the mare’s foal and the cow’s calf,

And the noisy brood of the barnyard or by the 

mire of the pond-side,

And the fish suspending themselves so curiously below

there, and the beautiful curious liquid,

And the water-plants with their graceful flat heads,

all became part of him.

The field-sprouts of Fourth-month and Fifth-month

became part of him,

Winter-grain sprouts and those of the light-yellow corn,

and the esculent roots of the garden,

And the apple-trees cover’d with blossoms and the fruit

afterward,

and wood-berries, and the commonest weeds by the road,

And the old drunkard staggering home from the outhouse

of the tavern whence he had lately risen,

And the schoolmistress that pass’d on her way to the

school,

And the friendly boys that pass’d, and the quarrelsome

boys,

And the tidy and fresh-cheek’d girls, and the barefoot

negro boy and girl,

And all the changes of city and country wherever he went.

His own parents, he that had father’d him and she that had

conceiv’d him in her womb and birth’d him,

They gave this child more of themselves than that,

They gave him afterward every day,

they became part of him.

EXCERPT FROM “THERE WAS A CHILD WENT FORTH” 

by Walt Whitman
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 193

Purpose:

• To brainstorm ideas for stories.

• To demonstrate how objects can help generate story ideas.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the workshop

by reading William Stafford’s poem, “What’s in My Journal.” Share your

impressions of the poem and encourage students to offer their own interpretations. Afterwards, try to connect the images in the poem to the visual

images and objects in “I Had a Hero.” An example might be:

“Reading this poem makes me wonder what objects are in Mike

Tidwell’s journal.What objects do you think would be in it? Why would

those objects be in it?”

2. Explain to students the purpose of today’s lesson is to brainstorm as many

objects as possible to store in their journals. Ask students: Why look for

objects? What purpose can they serve? How might they help us in writing

our own personal narratives.

3. You might illustrate the value of objects by reminding students of the following line in “I Had a Hero”:

“With my ghost-white skin and rumbling motorcycle, with my bulging

safety goggles and orange riding gloves, with my bushy brown beard

flowing out from under a banana yellow crash helmet—with all this, I

suppose, I had a lot of nerve thinking of him as a museum piece.”

4. Ask students: Would you ever see a banana yellow crash helmet, safety goggles, and orange riding gloves in a museum? What things do you see at a

museum? Why would someone visit the National Museum of American

History, for example, just to see a pen that former President Gerald Ford

used, or to see a gown that Hillary Clinton once wore? Why are these objects

considered valuable?

5. Remind students of the last writing workshop in which you gave students a

list of “What We Need to Know.” Tell students that during Independent

Work Time they will compile a list of “Things We Need to Bring” on a journey. These things are “objects” belonging to our own personal “museum of

me.” You might suggest that these lists will be highly individual. What is

important to one person may not be important to someone else.To illustrate

this point, show students an example of your own list of “Things I Need to

Bring.” An example might be:

Enduring Understanding:

Objects tell stories.

Essential Question:

How can we find the objects

of our stories?

Materials:

“What’s in My Journal” by

William Stafford; a pre-prepared

list of “Things I Need to

Bring”; overhead projector;

chart paper.

THE POWER

OF OBJECTS

Writing Workshop 

Session Two
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

194 Voices From the Field

Things I Need to Bring...

Breadcrumbs in case I get lost 

My good luck medal 

Orange diaries, red notebooks, and blue (never black) pens 

Minerva’s head 

Fossils and rocks and scrapes of tree barks

Daisies 

Recipes for 12 Polish soups

A shovel to dig to China

An imaginary dog named Puff

A lost dog named Raider

Peaches and strawberries

Strands of yellow silk

A year’s supply of chocolate-covered coffee beans

Pink beads to plant

Seeds to eat

Bruce Springsteen and Harriet the Spy

6. You might explain that the items on your list may seem nonsensical to

others, but they actually have great personal meaning to you. Some items

represent significant moments in your life—moments that you don’t

want to forget. Other items have less significance, but they make your life

more enjoyable. Pick one item from your list and explain to students the

way in which that particular object tells a story about your life.

Independent Work Time:

1. Have students open up their journals to a blank page and write the words

“Things I Need To Bring.” You might ask students to close their eyes as

you relate the following scene:

“Imagine that you are going on a trip—a very long trip.You don’t

know when you will return home.The director of this trip has given

you the following instructions: You are not to pack a suitcase.

Instead, you are to write a list of everything you want to take with

The act of writing is the act of

discovering what you believe.

David Hare

Playwright
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 195

you—everything that has significance to you or that makes your

life enjoyable or more meaningful.When you arrive at your destination, all of these objects will be there waiting for you.

However, if you do not write these items down, you may never

see them again. It is important that you be very specific—not

trees, but oak trees; not animals, but my dog Raider; not people,

but Mike. Remember, you can bring only the items that you

mention on this list, and no others.”

2. Ask students to pick up their pencils, and begin to list as many objects

as possible. Remind students that the objects should have personal

value—signifying either an important event or person in their lives or

something which makes life more enjoyable or meaningful.You might

want to explain that in the next writing workshop students will look

for the stories that these objects tell, but today they will simply compile a list. However, if students appear to have exhausted possibilities

for their lists, have them write the reason why each particular item is

significant.

Share:

Gather students back in a circle. Ask students to share an object on their

lists and to briefly explain how that particular object tells a story of their

life. Afterwards, ask students:

• Did you enjoy this activity? Why or why not?

• How might this activity help us in our writing? 

• Why are objects useful in storytelling?

• How can we find other objects for storytelling?
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

196 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To identify the use of dialogue in “‘Magic’ Pablo.”

• To demonstrate how dialogue can create pictures in the reader’s mind.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area. Rather than read a poem,

play a piece of jazz music for students. (Miles Davis’s “Kind of Blue”

might be a good choice.) Share your impressions of the piece and

encourage students to offer their own interpretations. Afterwards, try to

connect the “story” that the music tells to the theme of today’s lesson,

dialogue. An example might be:

“Jazz music, is often described as a conversation or dialogue between

musicians. One musician plays a chord, and then another answers

him in another chord. No two jazz sessions are alike because the

musicians never repeat the same conversation, just as we can’t repeat

the same conversation in words. Even though I might say ‘Good

morning, class’ every morning, I can’t say it exactly the same way

each time. Today I am happy and well-rested, the weather is warm,

and every member of the class is here. But tomorrow, I might be miserable and sleepy, the weather might be cold and rainy, and one of

you might be home watching TV. My ‘Good morning, class’ is never

the same.”

2. Ask students to think of other situations in which their own words and

actions vary according to the circumstances. An example might be a

friend who brings out the clown in you.Ask students: Is this a side of you

that your Grandmother has never seen? What does your Grandmother

“bring out” in you? How is this different from the “you” your friends

know? 

3. Explain to students that we are in constant dialogue with the world

around us. Our identity is formed by the way we interact with others.We

might hear the voice of our mother inside our heads saying “Eat your

vegetables,” and we might hear the voice of an actress on a TV commercial saying: “When I need a break, I have a chocolate bar.”

4. Tell students that today they will read a story about the dialogue that

takes place when two people discover friendship.The title of the story is

“‘Magic’ Pablo.” Like “I Had a Hero,” “‘Magic’ Pablo” is about a Peace

Corps Volunteer’s encounter with someone who is native to the country

where the Volunteer was serving. But unlike “I Had a Hero,” the person

that the Volunteer meets is not a village chief; he is a 16-year-old boy

who loves basketball.

Enduring Understanding

Through dialogue, we come to

understand the world, ourselves, and others.

Essential Question

How do words create images in

our minds?

Materials:

CD of jazz music; CD player;

“‘Magic’ Pablo” (pages 21-27);

overhead projector; post-it notes

for students; Worksheet #4:

Excerpt from “‘Magic’ Pablo.”

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of the

setting and theme of “‘Magic’

Pablo,” see Reading and

Responding to “‘Magic’ Pablo”

on pages 97-105.

THE POWER

OF DIALOGUE

Reading Workshop 

Session Three
5. If possible, show students photographs or images of Guatemala, the country where the

story is set. (Note: The cover photograph of this book, Voices from the Field, was taken in

Guatemala.) If there is a student in your classroom who was born in Central America,

ask the student to share his impression of the lifestyle of Guatemala and how it might differ from the U.S.

6. Read aloud Worksheet #4: Excerpt from “‘Magic’ Pablo.”As you read, try to vary your tone

and expression in the exchange between Mark, the 25-year-old American teacher, and

Pablo, the young Guatemalan student.

7. Ask students: Based on this small excerpt, what might be the “magic” in “‘Magic’ Pablo”?

What impression do you have of Pablo? How did you form this impression? 

W o rksheet #4:

Excerpt from “‘Magic’ Pablo”

Coverdell World Wise Schools 197

C URRICULUM U NITS

Pablo and I liked to play “Let’s imagine.”We’d be walking down the street, a basketball cradled

under one of our arms. Clouds would be gathering in the east, as they tended to do in early

evening. A light rain—chipi-chipi is what everyone in town called it—might even be falling.

“Let’s imagine,” Pablo would say, “that Michael Jordan is walking with us.”

He would smile.“What would these people say?” he would ask, pointing to the women in dark

blue cortes and white húipiles, the native dress in this town in the northern mountains of

Guatemala. “What would they do?”

“They’d be amazed,” I’d say. “They wouldn’t know what to do.”

Pablo would agree.“They’d probably run. But we’d just keep walking down the street, the three

of us, to the basketball court.”

Then Pablo would ask, “And how would we divide the teams?”

“Michael Jordan versus the two of us.”

Pablo would consider this. “No,” he’d say, “it’d be you and Michael Jordan versus me.”
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

198 Voices From the Field

8. Remind students of the very visual images in “I Had a Hero.” Here, the

author/narrator also creates a very visual scene. How does he do it?

9. Explain to students that people are at the heart of every story, and people’s personalities are conveyed through action and dialogue. Sometimes,

as readers, we’re not as interested in what the author tells us about a

character; we’re more convinced if we find out about the character the

way we would in real life—through conversation.To illustrate the power

of dialogue, you might write the following four lines on a piece of chart

paper. Ask students: Do you get any impressions of character based on

these words? What are they? Who are they?

• I promise, Daddy. I won’t ever do it again. I swear.

• Good evening, Miss Dowd. May I take your coat?

• Okay. Okay. I hear you already.Would you just leave me alone?

• You ought to be ashamed of yourself...a grown man.

10. Ask students: What if those four lines were all spoken by the same person. What impression do you have now? How do the circumstances

“change” the person? How does dialogue create an image of a person?

11. Place Worksheet #4 on an overhead projector and ask students to tell you

those passages that use speech to convey an image. As students point out

the passages, place a post-it notes next to the text. On the post-it notes,

write down the image or mood that the lines convey.

12. Distribute post-it notes to students and ask them to read “‘Magic’ Pablo”

during Independent Work Time, marking the passages as you just demonstrated. Also, as students read, ask them to focus on the question: How

does dialogue help us to understand the world, ourselves, and others? 

Independent Work Time:

When students have finished reading “‘Magic’ Pablo,” encourage them to participate in a Literature Circle. Questions to facilitate a discussion on “‘Magic’

Pablo” might include:

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• Do you think Pablo was “magic”? Why or why not?

• What questions would you ask the author/narrator? Pablo?

Not only is your story

worth telling, but it can be

told in words so painstakingly eloquent that it

becomes a song.

Gloria Naylor

Author

I learned to write by listening to people talk. I still feel

that the best of my writing

comes from having heard

rather than having read.

Gayl Jones

Poet
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 199

• What would you have done if you were Mark? Pablo?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to Pablo’s?

• Did you ever have a friendship like Mark and Pablo’s?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this story?

Share: 

1. Gather students back in the meeting area. Facilitate a whole-class discussion on the visual images in “‘Magic’ Pablo.” Questions might

include:

• Did you “see” the story taking place? If so, how did Mark use dialogue to do that?

• Are there any instances in which the dialogue does not convey an

image?

• What does Pablo “bring out” in Mark? 

• What does Mark “bring out” in Pablo?

• How does dialogue help us to better understand ourselves?

• How does dialogue help us to understand others?

• How does dialogue help us to understand the world around us?

2. Conclude the class by asking students about what they have learned about

Mark, the author/narrator, from this personal narrative. Discussion questions might include:

• What is the author/narrator’s message in this story? How does he

use his own personal experience to illustrate a universal theme?

• How is this story similar to “I Had a Hero”? How is it different?

• How is Mark’s experience a “journey”?

• Does Mark seem at “home in the world”?

• Do you think Mark might consider his life to “be part of a larger

narrative”? If so, what’s the bigger picture?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural

future”?

• How might this story help us with writing our own personal narratives? 
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

200 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To practice the prewriting technique of freewriting.

• To generate story ideas.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area. You might introduce the

workshop by reading Langston Hughes’ poem “Aunt Sue’s Stories.” Share

your impressions of the poem, and encourage students to offer their own

interpretations. Afterwards, try to connect the images in this poem to the

theme of listening. For example, you might say:

“And black slaves/singing sorrow songs on the banks of the mighty

river/mingle themselves softly/in the flow of old Aunt Sue’s voice,/mingle

themselves softly/....I can imagine Aunt Sue’s voice, even though the

poet doesn’t quote Aunt Sue. Like Hughes, I had an aunt who told

me stories as a child. If I were to hear those same stories today, they

probably wouldn’t sound the same. Sometimes that happens when

you grow up. A few years ago, I visited the school where I attended

kindergarten. As a child it seemed huge and very worldly—but 25

years later, it looked small and rather clumsy. Maybe my Aunt Ann’s

stories would sound small and clumsy too if I were to hear them

today. But as a child, my aunt’s stories were magical. She would tell

fantastic stories about rocks and birds and potatoes. And I believed

them all. I believed that everything was alive, and that I could carry

on a conversation with a rock as easily as (actually more easily than)

I could with my brother.”

2. Ask students if they ever experienced a similar situation when they were

very young. Perhaps they owned a stuffed animal or doll that gave them

special comfort. The object obviously didn’t talk—but it communicated

something.What was it?

3. Remind students of the activity in the last writing workshop, brainstorming a list of Things I Need to Bring. In the last session, students

concluded that “objects tell stories.” Explain to students that today they

will be listening to what our objects “say.”

4. Show students an entry from your own journal. In this entry, you have

grouped the objects from your brainstorming list into categories. An

example might look like this:

Enduring Understanding:

Objects “tell” stories.

Essential Question:

What do our objects say?

Materials:

“Aunt Sue’s Stories” by Langston

Hughes; a pre-prepared brainstorming list; a pre-prepared

example of freewriting; an overhead projector; chart paper.

THE POWER

OF DIALOGUE

Writing Workshop 

Session Three
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 201

Things that tell about 

childhood and home:

Good luck medal

An imaginary dog named Puff

A lost dog named Raider

Things that tell about 

my hopes and dreams:

Orange diary 

Minerva’s head

Fossils and rocks

Pink beads to plant

Things that tell about 

special people in my life:

Daisies

Recipes for 12 Polish soups

Strands of yellow silk

Things that don’t have much to say:

Peaches and strawberries

Chocolate-covered coffee beans

Fig-colored lipstick

5. Next, tell students that you decided to listen closely to what one object

had to say, and to freewrite whatever images came mind.Tell students that

the term “freewriting” means putting pen to paper and writing whatever

comes into your head. It is a useful tool for generating ideas and discovering attitudes (see Elbow, 1975). The key is to keep writing, even when

you are having difficulty thinking of something to say.Try not to let your

pen leave the paper. If you can’t think of anything to write, keep writing

“I can’t think of anything to write” over and over again.

6. Before sharing your freewriting with students, you might want to assure

students that, although “listening” to objects may seem a little odd, that is

the point. During the prewriting stage of the writing process, the writer

needs to tap her “creative” resources. She must allow herself free reign and

not censor any ideas that might initially appear strange. The role of the

writer in prewriting has been likened to a “Madman/Madwoman” (see

Flower, 1981).

Freewriting is not writing that should be judged; it is merely a way of

generating ideas and getting into the flow of writing. On an overhead

projector, provide your own example of freewriting. It might look like

this:

So.The fossil. Covered in dirt for a long time. Near the woods by my house.

20 years ago, I think. It was summer. Lots of leaves around. History. People

from so long ago. I don’t know what else to say. I’m getting hungry. I have

some soup in the fridge, but that doesn’t sound so good. Anyway. So.What

the fossil says. He or actually I think she is better. She says: Hi. How are

The mind I love must have wild

places, a tangled orchard where dark

damsons drop in the heavy grass, an

overgrown little wood, the chance of

a snake or two, a pool that nobody’s

fathomed the depth of, and paths

threaded with flowers planted by

the mind.

Katherine Mansfield 

Author
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

202 Voices From the Field

you? What’s new. Deep down in the ground. Covered by leaves.A leaf inside

a rock. Baked like a cookie. So old. I wonder how old. Finding it was a connection to the past. And planting those beads was a way of connecting to the

future. I felt small but important....

7. After you read your entry, share with students an idea for a personal narrative based on this object. An example might be:

“Writing about this fossil gave me an idea for a story. I can write

about the day I discovered this fossil in the woods near my house. I

felt very aware of all the people who have lived before me. And I

started to think about all the people who would come after me. I

decided to bury a ‘treasure’—a string of pink beads—with the hope

that, years later, a boy or girl would find it.”

Independent Work Time:

During independent work time, students will be freewriting about their

selected object. As you confer with individuals, you may need to provide

more models of freewriting. Afterwards, watch as students follow your example. Remind them to keep writing without stopping.

Share:

1. Gather students back in the circle or meeting area. Ask students to share

the object they wrote about and to tell, in a sentence or two, a story they

could write based on it. If a student can’t think of a story to write based

on his object, encourage the other students to help him/her “dig deeper” by asking that student more questions about his object.

2. Remind students that they can choose another object if the one they

chose today doesn’t seem “right.”As a homework assignment, tell students

to mull over their lists of “Things I Need to Bring” to find the “just

right” object. By the next writing workshop, they should have determined the object/story idea for a personal narrative.

Children don’t read to find their

destiny. They don’t read to free

themselves of guilt, to quench the

thirst for rebellion, or to get rid of

alienation.They have no use for

psychology.They detest sociology.

They still believe in the good, the

family, angels, devils, witches, goblins, logic, clarity,punctuation and

other such obsolete stuff.

Isaac Bashevis Singer

Author
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 203

Purpose:

• To define context.

• To demonstrate reading the context in “Nomadic Life.”

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area. Tell students that today the

Peace Corps selection will be a poem, titled “Nomadic Life.” Ask students:What does the word “nomadic” mean? Rather than reveal the definition, explain to students that you want them to figure out the meaning of the title based on “clues” within the poem itself.You might begin

by asking students:The title is “nomadic” life. What other kinds of “life”

are there? Possibilities might include:

• High life

• Low life

• School life 

• Writing life

2. You might suggest that the words above refer to particular “ways of living.” As you read the poem, have students focus on the question: What is

the “way of life” described in this poem?

3. Read the poem “Nomadic Life” on page 29. Afterwards, display the

poem on an overhead. Ask students: What is the narrator/poet’s way of

life? What is Aisha’s way of life? What words in this poem help you see

the setting? What is the setting?

4. Before reading the poem once more, highlight the phrase “the last volunteer left behind.” Ask students what the word “volunteer” refers to here. If

students guess that volunteer refers to a Peace Corps Volunteer, ask them

how they arrived at that conclusion.

5. Explain to students that their “guesses” about the volunteer and the “way

of life” is called “reading the context.” The word context refers to the

“interrelated conditions in which something exists or occurs.” For example, the meaning of the phrase “I am hungry” is connected to the environment or situation in which it is spoken. Ask students: How might the

statement “I am hungry” be interpreted if it was spoken by someone

who just finished eating a five-course dinner? Someone whose longstanding illness has caused them to lose their appetite for food?

6. Tell students that context also refers to how the meaning of an individual word—such as “nomadic”—is connected to the meaning of the senTHE POWER OF

OUR STORIES

Reading Workshop 

Session Four

Enduring Understanding:

Knowing “context” can broaden our appreciation of a text.

Essential Question:

How can context broaden our

appreciation of a text?

Materials:

“Nomadic Life” (page 29); overhead projector;Worksheets #5-

#7: Author Interviews
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

204 Voices From the Field

tence or passage in which it appears. When reading an essay, story, or

poem, we can guess the meaning of a word based upon the words or passage surrounding it (i.e., the “context clues”).

7. Read “Nomadic Life” once more, pausing frequently. For example you

might say:

• imported M&Ms.... Where are M&Ms made? Where are they

“imported to”? How do these words convey a “way of life”?

• Flies stretch their leg.... Aisha sits solemn in afternoon heat. Can flies

stretch their legs? Why do you think the poet uses this phrase?

How do these words convey a “way of life”?

• examines the inside of ice cubes/ questions what makes water strong or

weak...How can water be “strong or weak”? Why would someone

examine ice cubes? How do these words convey a “way of life”?

• point at the refrigerator door/ the photograph of ferns rising out of

snow...Why would the poet refer to the refrigerator door, and a

photograph of ferns rising out of snow? How do these words convey a “way of life”? 

• my typewriter keys for the way she navigates the desert reads the coordinates of sand....What is the poet telling us about herself and Aisha?

How are Aisha and the poet different? How are Aisha and the poet

similar? How do these words convey a “way of life”?

8. After completing the poem, distribute copies of it to students. Afterwards

ask students: What does the word “nomadic” mean? Does knowing the

meaning of the word “nomadic” help our understanding of the poem

itself? Could we enjoy this poem even if we didn’t know the meaning of

the word “nomadic”? What is the event or situation which the poet is

describing?

9. Tell students that, during Independent Work Time, they will read interviews with Mike Tidwell, Mark Brazaitis, and Susan Rich, the authors of

“I Had a Hero,” “‘Magic’ Pablo,” and “Nomadic Life.” These interviews

can help shed light on the “context” of their stories—that is, their friendships (with Ilunga, Pablo, and Aisha), their work in the Peace Corps, and

their lives as professional writers. (See Worksheet #5-7, pages 206-209.)

10. Explain to students that these interviews will be the basis of a classroom

version of “Meet the Authors.” Rather than discuss their own reactions

to stories in a Literature Circle, today they will participate in a simulated talk show by taking on the “role” of Mike, Mark, Susan, Ilunga, Pablo,

Aisha, and talk show host. The role they play will be chosen at random
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 205

(students will select a slip of paper with one of the names) so they should

pay close attention to the information they read about all six people. As students read the author interviews, ask them to focus on the following questions:

• Who is most like you—Mike, Ilunga, Mark, Pablo, Susan or Aisha?

Why?

• Who would you most like to be—Mike, Ilunga, Mark, Pablo, Susan or

Aisha?

• What questions would you most like to ask these Peace Corps writers? What questions would you most like to ask the people they write

about?

11. Students should respond to the questions in their journals when they have

completed their reading.

Independent Work Time:

1. As students read the author interviews, write down the names Mike, Ilunga,

Mark, Pablo, Susan, Aisha, and “Host” on seven slips of paper. When students complete the reading and writing activities, ask them to join a

Literature Circle. Each circle must have no more than seven students.

2. Have each student within the circle pick a slip of paper.Tell students that the

name they pick is the character that they will portray on the “Meet the

Author” talk show. The task of “Host” is to interview the authors and characters. The authors and characters must answer the host’s question as if they

were actually that person.

3. To warm-up, have each member of the Literature Circle discuss their “character” for exactly 2 minutes. After the 2 minutes are up, they should move

on to the next character. Possible discussion questions might include:

• How has your friendship influenced your life?

• How are you and your friend alike? How are you different?

• What did you learn from one another?

• Do you feel “at home in the world”? Why?

Share:

Ask one or more groups of students to perform their “talk show” interview for

the whole class. Afterwards, facilitate a whole-class discussion. Ask students: Has

knowing the context of these Peace Corps stories broadened your appreciation

of them? If so, how?
206

In U.S. Culture In

W orksheet #5

Interview with Mike Tidwell

Why did you write “I Had a Hero”?

I wrote this essay to honor Ilunga and the dozens of other village men and women I knew in Africa who

every day work with tireless commitment to make the future of their children just a little bit better.To this

day, all of those people are my heroes. I respect them as much as any people I’ve met before or since. I respect

them twice as much now that I have my own child.

Are you still in contact with Ilunga?

Unfortunately, because of political upheaval and civil war in the Congo, Ilunga and I have been in touch

only sporadically by mail since I left Africa in 1987. I sent him a copy of my book, The Ponds of Kalambayi,

from which “I Had a Hero” is adapted, but Ilunga speaks only Tshiluba, the local language, so he will never

be able to read the original essay. Some day I hope to travel back to my Peace Corps site and sit down with

Ilunga under a mango tree and translate the story for him, line by line.That would give me great pleasure.

How has your Peace Corps service influenced your life? Your writing?

My Peace Corps service was a watershed experience for me. It was the most formative period of my life,

shaping me as a citizen of the planet and as a writer. In Africa, I grew to see America as much of the rest of

the world sees it: Big, rich, often wasteful, often narrow-minded in its view of the rest of the world. Living

in a totally different culture, learning to think in a different language, profoundly stretched my ability to

comprehend and write about the human predicament.

What advice would you give to aspiring, young writers?

If you want to write, then do it.Write.Write every day. Someone who doesn’t write isn’t a writer. If you

don’t realize your genius you don’t have one. If you’re REALLY serious about writing, my best advice is to

do what I did when I was starting out: Feed yourself by getting a job working nights and/or weekends, thus

leaving your 9-5 weekday hours free to write.This is the best way to put writing at the center of your life.

With enough discipline and skill and a little luck, you may eventually earn enough money from your writing to quit the night/weekend job as I have been able to do.

Keeping journals is also a good idea. For example, I filled seven journals during my two-year Peace Corps

service which later became the core of my Peace Corps memoir.

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Voices From the Field
In U.S. Culture In

Coverdell World Wise Schools 207

W orksheet #6

Interview with Mark Brazaitis

C URRICULUM U NITS

Why did you write “‘Magic’ Pablo”?

I wrote “‘Magic’ Pablo” as a tribute to the best friend I made in Guatemala. I also wrote it as a way of showing how easily and wonderfully friendships can be formed across cultures.

Are you still in contact with Pablo?

Pablo and I keep in touch regularly to this day. After I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala, I

returned two years later as a Peace Corps trainer. During this time, I spent Christmas with Pablo and his family. Two years after this, I dragged my wife to Guatemala on our honeymoon and we stayed with Pablo and

his family. (Pablo’s brother Augusto lent us his room to sleep in.) 

I sent Pablo a copy of the book The Great Adventure, where “‘Magic’ Pablo” first appeared. Although he

doesn’t speak English, he had an English-speaker translate it for him. In his typical, optimistic way, he’d decided that The Great Adventure must be a best-seller in the States.Why? Because he was in it, of course.

How has your Peace Corps service influenced your life? Your writing?

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, I learned to see people in Guatemala—and, by extension—people around the

world as potential friends, people I cared about. Living in the United States, one can find it very easy, I think,

to ignore what is going on elsewhere in the world. We shouldn’t. We are on this planet together. We should

look out for each other.

Without having served in the Peace Corps, I wouldn’t be the writer I am today. Living in a foreign country and having to use another language besides English in order to communicate made me understand the

crucial importance of words.The better I learned Spanish, the better able I was to communicate what I wanted, what I felt, what I saw.The same lesson, I found, applied to my use of English.The more careful and precise I was about the words I used, the better I was able to communicate exactly what I meant. There is, for

example, a difference between “happy” and “joyful,” don’t you think?

What advice would you give to aspiring, young writers?

For young people interested in writing, I have two suggestions: read and write. By reading, we learn what

kind of writing we enjoy, what kind of writing moves us and teaches us about ourselves. By writing regularly, we hone our ability to communicate.Writing seems easy; it isn’t. It takes practice.
208

In U.S. Culture In

W orksheet #7

Interview with Susan Rich

Why did you write “Nomadic Life”?

I began this poem more than seven years after my Peace Corps service in Niger. Aisha was the mother of Sa-a, a young boy who came to visit me almost everyday. I don’t remember how I knew that Aisha

was Sa-a’s mother but I knew. I wanted her to approve of me. Sa-a was probably in his very early teens

(although no one in Niger knows their exact birth date) and I thought perhaps it was a worry that he

spent so much time with a foreigner.

Aisha and Sa-a were Wodaabe Fulanis, a nomadic people who travel the Sahel desert and have very little to do with Europeans or Americans—or even other Nigeriens. The Wodaabe don’t attend school or

learn to read or write.This is because any outside influence is seen as being corrosive to their culture and

traditions. It was only due to severe drought that the Wodaabe had come into the town where I lived. I

knew Sa-a much better than I knew Aisha.

After writing a poem about Sa-a, I had the idea to write about my visit with his mother, Aisha.

“Nomadic Life” doesn’t mention that Aisha was visiting my house because of Sa-a. Or perhaps Aisha wasn’t only concerned for her son; perhaps she also came looking for food. Sa-a and his friends had lunch at

my house almost every day. There was a bad drought the first year I was in Niger. The drought is what

brought nomads like Aisha and Sa-a near the town.

During Aisha’s visit, I brought out snacks. When I left the room for a moment, Aisha emptied them

into her plastic sack. I didn’t consider this to be stealing because I had served the food for her to enjoy.

Of course, it was a cultural difference and one that probably wouldn’t have happened between two

Wodaabe women.

As the poem developed, I realized that we had both seen the other as a stranger in the most profound

sense of that word. While thinking about Aisha I became slightly obsessed with what it would be like if

we were able to switch identities and know what the other woman knew.Writing the poem is the closest way I know to have that kind of transformation.

How has your Peace Corps service influenced your life? Your writing?

Growing up we all tend to surround ourselves whenever possible with people who think like we do,

act like we do, even look a little like we do.Well, when you are the only white woman in the neighborhood there is nowhere to hide! Living in Niger gave me insight into a world far different from my own.

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Voices From the Field
In U.S. Culture In Dominican Culture

Coverdell World Wise Schools 209

It left me curious about how others live and let me understand how much a person can learn about

herself when living among people who uphold different values, and have a different way of life.

As a teacher in Niger, I learned that humor was the educator’s best defense if she wanted her students to listen to her; from the nomadic children that came to my home everyday looking for food

and friendship, I learned that language was not needed in order to love; and from the challenges I

faced daily by virtue of living in an African town, I came to see that I was more resilient than I’d ever

known myself to be.

Many of the poems in my book The Cartographer’s Tongue: Poems of the World are based on my Peace

Corps experience including the opening piece “Lost By Way of Tchin-Tabarden.” Peace Corps gave

me a world outside of myself to explore and try to understand. I have continued to write about

Africa even though it is now fifteen years since I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Niger.

What advice would you give to aspiring, young writers?

Growing up, I was never one of the best poets or storytellers at school, although I always loved to

write. In college, I had teachers who actively discouraged me from being a poet. For ten years after

I graduated, I listened to those harsh voices that said I wasn’t good enough to be a writer. Today, I

teach college students myself and do my best to persuade them that they are all writers. I can guide

them, and hopefully teach them a thing or two; but as a writer what you really need is your own passion balanced with the discipline to learn all you can about your art. Read everything, go to poetry

readings, and show your work to people other than parents and good friends. Don’t worry about

whether you are the next great American writer—it is impossible to know these things. Understand

that every poem you write, every story you compose is a way of finding out what you didn’t know

you knew. Enjoy the thrill of discovery, the thrill of finding the right word, the pleasure of creation.

Continued

C URRICULUM U NITS
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

210 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To explore the purpose of storytelling.

• To identify the audience of students’ stories.

Mini-lesson

1. Gather students together in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the

workshop by reading Lisel Mueller’s poem,“Why We Tell Stories” (opposite page). Share your own impressions of the poem, and encourage students to offer their own interpretations. An example might be:

“I wanted to share this poem with you today because it reminds me

of the importance of stories. I believe that stories are as important as

food and water. Stories are in our blood. Through stories we make

sense of the world around us. They help us to find order in a world

that often seems chaotic.And when we write stories, we leave a mark

on the world—a mark that says, ‘I am.’

“Reading this poem also reminds me that the stories I tell should be

purposeful. My story should have a message—a message that leaves

my own unique mark on the world.”

2. Remind students that their homework for today was to select one

object/story idea that they will base their personal narrative upon. Now

that students have the object/story idea, they need to ask themselves:

Why tell this story? What is the message that I want to convey? Who am

I telling this story to? 

3. Share an entry from your own journal that answers the questions posed

above. If possible, try to connect the story you will write to the theme of

“at home in the world.” An example might be:

Object/Story Idea: Fossil and beads.

Why I Am Telling This Story: I want to tell my story about the

fossil and pink beads because I discovered something about myself

and the world. I discovered that we are all connected. It was my own

experience of being “at home in the world” even though I didn’t

travel overseas as the Peace Corps writers did. That day, I felt the

same impulse that Susan Rich describes in “Nomadic Life.” I wanted to know what the Native Americans knew—the people who,

years ago, walked in the same woods that I did. I wanted to see the

trees as they saw them.And I wanted just one little boy or girl in the

future to find my hidden treasure. It was the only way I knew of

reaching out to them and saying, “This is me. ...”

Enduring Understanding:

Through stories, we make

sense of the world around us.

Essential Question:

What is our story?

Materials:

“Why We Tell Stories” by Lisel

Mueller (page 211); a pre-prepared journal entry about the

story you yourself will write;

overhead projector; Worksheet

#8: Interview with a Storyteller;

Worksheet #9: Guidelines for

Peer Conferences.

THE POWER OF

OUR STORIES

Writing Workshop 

Session Four
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 211

Why We Tell Stories

by Lisel Mueller

For Linda Foster

1

Because we used to have leaves and 

on damp days

our muscles feel a tug,

painful now, from when roots

pulled us into the ground

and because our children believe

they can fly, an instinct retained

from when the bones in our arms

were shaped like zithers and broke

neatly under their feathers

and because before we had lungs

we knew how far it was to the bottom

as we floated open-eyed

like painted scarves through the scenery

of dreams, and because we awakened

and learned to speak

2

We sat by the fire in our caves,

and because we were poor, we made up a tale

about a treasure mountain

that would open only for us

and because we were always defeated,

we invented impossible riddles 

only we could solve,

monsters only we could kill,

women who could love no one else

and because we had survived

sisters and brothers, daughters and sons,

we discovered bones that rose

from the dark earth and sang

as white birds in the trees

3

Because the story of our life 

becomes our life

Because each of us tells

the same story

but tells it differently

and none of us tells it

the same way twice

Because grandmothers looking like spiders

want to enchant the children

and grandfathers need to convince us

what happened happened because of them

and though we listen only

haphazardly, with one ear,

we will begin our story

with the word and
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

212 Voices From the Field

4. Next show students an entry titled,“Who I Am Telling This Story To.” In

this entry, try to choose a specific person, not a general audience. An

example might be:

Who I Am Telling This Story To: I am writing this story for my

10-year-old niece, Hannah. I want her to read this story on her 21st

birthday. To me, she is the “future” and I will, in a way, be burying a

treasure for her to find years from now. It seems appropriate. But I

am also writing this story for me. I want to remember how magical

the world was when I was young. It doesn’t seem magical to me now.

Maybe this story will help me to see the world as I once saw it.

5. Tell students that, during Independent Work Time, they are to write

about the object/story idea they have chosen; why they want to write

about this particular story; what message they want to convey through

their story; and who they are writing their stories to. After they have

completed this writing task, they should discuss these items with another student. (Students will not be sharing written journal entries; instead,

they will be discussing the story for feedback.) The job of the “responder” is to ask the storyteller questions about her story. The storyteller

might want to take notes, if the questions help to uncover a hidden aspect

of the story. Students should respond to one another’s writing using

Worksheet #8: Interview with the Storyteller.

Independent Work Time: 

You might want to take this opportunity to review your own classroom

“rules” for peer conferences. An example is provided on page 214,Worksheet

#9: Guidelines for Peer Conferences.

Share:

Gather students in a circle or meeting area. Ask students:What did you learn

about your stories? Guide students in a whole-class discussion on the purpose

of stories. Possible questions might include:

• Do you think stories are important? Why or why not?

• What purpose have stories served in your life?

• Has a story ever helped you “make sense of the world”? What was

it? 

• Are you looking forward to writing your story?

A word is a bud attempting to

become a twig. How can one not

dream while writing? It is the

pen which dreams. The blank

page gives the right to dream.

Gaston Bachelard

Philosopher
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 213

W orksheet #8

Interview with the Storyteller

Where did you find this object or idea?

Who were the people involved?

What was the setting? (summer, winter, at

an aunt’s house, at the beach)

What happened?

How did this change you?

Object/Story Idea 

What did you discover about the world,

yourself, and others?

What do you hope others will discover

when they read your story? 

The Message

Why do you want to tell this story?

What does this story say about you?

Why This Story

Who is the person or persons you want to

tell this story to? Why?

The Reader
How

do

people

dress?

214

W orksheet #9

Guidelines for Peer Conferences

1. Sit in an area of the classroom where you won’t disturb others.

2. Speak in low voices.

3. Listen carefully as your partner reads his or her writing.

4. Ask your partner: Did you have any difficulties with understanding my writing?

If so, what were they? How would you suggest that I improve this piece? 

5. When responding to your partner’s writing, be helpful, but not bossy. Say “You

might want to try....” Don’t say, “You should....”

6. Take notes on what your partner says. 

7. End the conference by asking your partner what he or she plans to do next with

this piece of writing.

A R EADING A N D W RITING W ORKSHOP

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 215

Enduring Understanding:

All stories share common elements.

Essential Question:

Why do all stories share common

elements?

Materials:

“Why We Tell Stories” by Lisel

Mueller (page 211); “Cross-Cultural

Dialogue” (pages 33-40); pre-prepared chart of “The Five Elements

of Storytelling.”

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of the setting and theme of “Cross-Cultural

Dialogue,” see Reading and

Responding to “Cross-Cultural

Dialogue” on pages 106-117.

Purpose:

• To define five basic literary elements in stories.

• To identify the story elements in “Cross-Cultural Dialogue.”

Mini-Lesson:

1. You might begin the workshop by reading Lisel Mueller’s poem,“Why

We Tell Stories” (page 211) once again. Afterwards, try to connect

today’s topic of “stories” to the topic of the last reading workshop,

“knowing context.” For example, you might say:

“I like the way Lisel Mueller ends this poem: ‘and though we listen

only/haphazardly, with one ear/we will begin our story with the word

and.’ To me, this passage refers to how we all are a part of a continuing story—a story that depends upon all those who lived before

us and all those who will live after us: We begin our stories with

the word ‘and.’

“During our last workshop, we defined context as “interrelated

conditions in which something exists or occurs.”We also looked at

the Peace Corps writers themselves, and discovered that knowing

the “context” of their writing could deepen our understanding of

their work. Stories also have a context. As Lisel Mueller shows us

in this poem, all stories exist within a storytelling tradition.

2. Remind students that personal narratives contain all the elements of fictional stories. But they differ in one crucial aspect. Personal narratives

are grounded in reality, based on facts.While students know the “facts”

of their lives, they may be less familiar with how the elements of storytelling can transform those “facts” into “stories.”

3. Ask students: What are the main elements of stories? After gathering

students’ responses, show them a prepared chart of “The Five Elements

in Storytelling” below (see Calkins, 2001). How did students’ responses

compare to this chart?

The Five Elements in Storytelling

The Character(s):The people the story is about.

Setting: The place and time where the story happens.

Plot: What happens in the story.

Change: Something changes between the beginning and the end.

Movement through Time: A certain amount of time always passes in a

story.

INTRODUCTION

TO STORY

ELEMENTS

Reading Workshop 

Session Five
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

216 Voices From the Field

4. As you read each item on the chart, ask students: Why do all stories contain this element? 

5. Illustrate the five elements in storytelling by asking students to tell you

how the five elements correspond to both “I Had a Hero” and “‘Magic’

Pablo.” An example might look like this:

6. Explain to students that today they will be looking at the five story elements in a more challenging story, “Cross-Cultural Dialogue.” This personal narrative is written by returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Roz

Wollmering who served in Guinea-Bissau. If possible, show students pictures or images that approximate the West African setting. (For more

information on the setting, see page 32.)

7. After reading the excerpt, call attention to “The Five Elements in

Storytelling” chart.Ask students: Based on this excerpt, who might be the

characters? What might be the setting? What do you think the plot might

be? What do you think the change might be? How much time do you

think will pass in this story? Write down student guesses on a piece of

chart paper.

8. Remind students that, since this is a personal narrative (which is grounded in reality, based on fact) we already know that the main character is

the author/narrator, Roz Wollmering and the setting of the story is the

country of her Peace Corps service, Guinea Bissau.

9. Have students copy “The Five Elements of Storytelling” chart in their

journals.Tell students that, during Independent Work Time, they will read

“Cross Cultural Dialogue.” As they read, students should underline passages which relate to the Five Elements. When students have finished

reading the story, they should work with a partner to fill in the missing

information on Story Elements in their journals.

• What would you have done if you were Roz?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to Roz’s? What was it like?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this story? 

Independent Work Time:

When students complete the reading activities for “Cross-Cultural Dialogue,”

encourage them to participate in a Literature Circle. Questions to facilitate a

discussion on “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” might include:

The Five Elements in

“I Had a Hero”

Character:

Author (Mike) and Ilunga

Setting:

Congo, village of Kalambayi

Plot:

Mike wants to help Ilunga

create a pond for fish. To

create the pond, they must

move 30 cubic feet of dirt.

Ilunga manages to do this by

himself, despite heat and illness. Mike finds Ilunga’s persistence and hard work

“heroic.”

Change:

First, Mike thinks he can

teach people things. Later, he

realized that he learns something.

Movement through Time:

The action takes place over

the course of several weeks,

as Ilunga digs out the pond.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 217

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to the one Roz writes

about here?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this?

• What questions would you ask Roz, the author/narrator?

• What question would you like to ask her students?

Share:

1. After gathering students back into a circle or meeting area, have one or

two partners share what they noticed about the story elements in “Cross

Cultural Dialogue.” Ask students to back up their conclusions with passages from the text. If there is disagreement about one or two story elements in “Cross-Cultural Dialogue,” facilitate a discussion between students. Questions might include:

• How do the characters relate to the elements of plot and change?

• What would this story be like if the element of plot was missing?

If the element of change was missing?

• Why do all stories contain common elements?

2. Conclude the class by asking students:

• How is Roz’s experience a “journey”?

• Does Roz seem at “home in the world”?

• Do you think Roz might consider her life to “be part of a larger

narrative”? If so, what’s the bigger picture?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural

future”?

• How might this story help us with the writing of our own personal

narratives?
218

W orksheet #10

Excerpt from “Cross-Cultural Dialogue”

....The classroom where I was to teach was located a short walking distance behind the main building.Three

lines of classrooms were arranged in rows much like military barracks. Since today was the first day of classes, I

hopped on my bicycle and coasted right up to the door of classroom number 19—my classroom.“Always wiser

to be punctual and prepared than be tardy and unequipped,” I told myself.Two students were sitting inside the

classroom playing cards when I entered. I looked at the official enrollment number of forty-seven and asked

earnestly,“Where are the other forty-five students?”The card players faltered a bit and then mumbled,“They’ll

come, by and by.”“Well, let’s begin without them,” I suggested, with a disapproving stare at the cards.They

shrugged their shoulders and offered instead to go and find the students. It certainly didn’t seem reasonable to

me to teach two students and then have to teach the same material again when the others showed up later. Be

flexible, I reminded myself, and so I agreed.

One week later, there were twenty-six students outside my classroom still waiting for the rest of their

classmates to appear, by and by. I noticed that not only were students absent, but teachers as well....

By the end of week three, I had managed to convince, cajole, and beg my students to enter the classroom.What

other teachers did was their decision, I figured, but as for me, I was itching to do something other than wait on

shore like a seafarer’s wife. Once the students had entered, I discovered to my amazement that I couldn’t get

them to quiet down. Heedless of my requests to pay attention, they continued to socialize. Daisy painted her

nails and chatted with Aminata about the new discotheque called Temptation that had just opened across from

the mosque. Bebe took Nanda’s notebook and wouldn’t return it. Fatu gave me the peace sign and went outside

to urinate.A few others followed. Students wandered in late with irrelevant excuses like “It’s hot” or “I’m tired.”

Nelson and Marcelino held competitive jive talks while their classmates gathered around encouraging first one

and then the other. Other students, whose teachers were absent, hung around the open windows, throwing

crumpled up bits of paper to their friends. Others simply came to stare at me, a white woman who rode a bicycle to school.They shoved up against the outside wall, clambered over each other’s backs, and stuck their heads

in for a peek, yelling,“White woman, white woman, there she is!”The next day, still more “window students”

appeared to torment me. Such behavior continued daily and eventually I began to yell at them—“Get away from

the windows!”—and resorted to pushing them out of viewing range.

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 219

Purpose:

• To apply the five basic literary elements to students’ stories.

• To begin writing a rough draft.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students together in a circle or meeting area. Remind students

that today they will begin writing the first drafts of their personal narratives. Before beginning their drafts, it is helpful to fill out “The Five

Elements of Storytelling” chart. Demonstrate the activity by showing students how the five storytelling elements apply to the personal narrative

you are writing. An example might be:

Character: Me, my father

Setting: The woods near my home in Laflin, Pennsylvania. It was

summer of 1976.

Movement through Time: Two days passed between finding the fossil

and making the beads.

Plot: I found a treasure (a fossil) in the woods, and wanted to bury a

treasure (beads) in return.

Change: In the beginning of the story, I didn’t think much about history. The woods near my house were mine and mine alone. But at

the end of the story, I realized that many people shared the woods

before me, and many people would share the woods after me. The

fossil connected me to the past and the beads connected me to the

future.

2. After reading the elements of your story, ask students: What are some

ways I could begin to tell this story? Possibilities might be:

• Describe myself in the beginning of the story.What did the woods

look like when they were mine and mine alone?

• Describe the setting.

• Describe the day I found the treasure.

3. Demonstrate how you yourself might write a first draft. Using an overhead projector, begin to write.As you do, articulate your thought process.

An example might be:

“Let’s see, where should I begin...One day I went to the woods near our

house. I liked the woods. Hmm...liked is not a good word to use but

Enduring Understanding:

All stories share common

elements.

Essential Question:

What are the elements of our

stories?

Materials:

Pre-prepared chart of “The

Five Elements of Storytelling”

(applied to the story you

yourself are writing); overhead

projector; chart paper.

INTRODUCTION

TO STORY

ELEMENTS

Writing Workshop 

Session Five
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

220 Voices From the Field

I’ll worry about that later. Okay, what did I like about it? I would

climb trees and make tree houses. Sometimes I would look for berries and

flowers. I’m getting off track. Maybe the story begins...One day I

found a fossil in the woods. What happened then? I showed it to my

father. And what did he say?...He told me that you could find lots of

things buried in those woods. A long time ago American Indians lived there.

I decided to make a gift and bury it in the woods for people to find in the

future....

4. Remind students that the draft you wrote is very far from complete. You

will need to write several more drafts before you begin to see your story

taking shape.

5. Before sending students to their desks for independent writing, have students turn to a neighbor and briefly discuss the five element of their stories.

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with individuals, you might want to take notes as students tell

you about the story they are writing. Some students are better at telling stories than writing stories. Show students how you took “dictation” based on

their recitals.

Share:

Gather students back in the meeting area. Ask students: Did completing a

Story Element Chart help you to write your first draft? How? How do you

feel about your first draft? 

Starting a piece seems to be

extremely difficult for me.....

Perhaps the reason is that good

writing is based on clear thinking, which is the hardest thing

we have to do. It’s as plain as

that. It’s hard to start to write

because what you have to do is

start to think.

Roger Angell

Author
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 221

Purpose:

• To examine character in “On Sunday There Might Be Americans.”

• To analyze how authors enable the reader to “see” a character.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by telling

students about one of your favorite stories. It could be a novel, a short

story, or a piece of nonfiction. Explain to students why this story is

important to you. For example, you might say:

“One of my favorite stories is Harriet the Spy. I first read this book

when I was 11 years old, and I immediately felt a kinship with the

main character, Harriet....”

2. Ask students: What is your favorite story? Why do you like this story so

much? Would you like the story just as much if the main character were

totally different?

3. Explain to students that readers often enjoy books that have strong leading characters—characters who sometimes seem more real than people in

our ordinary lives.At the heart of every good story, there is a strong character who the reader comes to care deeply about.

4. Tell students that today they will be reading a short story written by a

Peace Corps Volunteer. Before sharing an excerpt of the story, read the

background information included on Worksheet #11: Excerpt from “On

Sunday There Might be Americans.”

5. After reading the background to the story, repeat the phrase “trying to

imagine his life....” Ask students: How is the context of this story similar

to the context of “I Had a Hero,” “‘Magic’ Pablo,” or “Nomadic Life”?

How is it different?

6. Read the excerpt from “On Sunday There Might Be Americans” on

Worksheet #11.

7. Using an overhead projector, tell students to point out words or sentences

which help the reader “see” the characters. Underline each passage.

Afterwards, turn to a piece of chart paper and ask students to group the

underlined passages under the subject headings. An example might look

like this:

Enduring Understanding:

Character is revealed in words,

actions, and appearance.

Essential Question:

How do authors make words

come alive?

Materials:

“On Sunday There Might Be

Americans (Pages 41-51)

Worksheet #11: Excerpt from

“On Sunday There Might Be

Americans”; overhead projector; chart paper; post-it notes.

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of

the setting and theme of “On

Sunday There Might Be

Americans” see Reading and

Responding to “On Sunday

There Might Be Americans”

on pages 118-130.

UNDERSTANDING

CHARACTER

DEVELOPMENT

( P ART O N E )

Reading Workshop 

Session Six
W orksheet #11

Excerpt from “On Sunday...”

222

In U.S. Culture In Dominican Culture

Background:

As a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) in Nigeria, I’d always loved being part of the excitement and commotion

of an African marketplace. When I later lived in Niger with my husband, who was working in Niger at the

time, I didn’t have the freedom I’d had as a PCV and I missed being “among the people” in a bush marketplace. Except for the sassy noisy boys who demanded to guard your car, barter a price, or carry your loads, the

market that reminded me of my Volunteer days was at Arayou near the Mali border. One Sunday at Arayou a

small boy followed me though the market. He was shy and hesitant and I thought I could ditch him, but then

he’d reappear in my shadow again. I finally paid him to go away. But I kept thinking about him—what his

life must be life, how he perceived Westerners, and how easily Westerners become oblivious to the lives of

ordinary people like him. Trying to imagine his life, I wrote “On Sunday There Might be Americans.”

—Leslie Simmonds Ekstrom

Excerpt:

“Gud marn-ning Madame,” Musa said, the only English he knew, phrasing the word in a lilting tone that he

hoped sounded friendly. He alternately galloped and tiptoed as he spoke, trying to maintain a strategic position at her side. The woman ignored his greeting, gave him a look of impatience, and made her way through

the crown, heading into the center of the market.

He watched her go. She was tall and slender as a young girl, with her hair yellow and straight as millet

stalks. She wore pants the same as her husband’s—washed-out blue and tight as skin. The shirt she wore was

no finer that those he’d seen on boys coming back from the capital city. How strange it seemed. These people would spend on a bottle of beer what a man in his village couldn’t earn in a day’s work, yet they spent no

money on the clothes they wore, and the women dressed as plain as the men. He glanced down at her shoes.

With sudden excitement he almost turned to shout at one of his friends. She was U.S.A.! The white cloth

shoes she wore had a bright blue symbol on both sides, shaped like the blade of a butcher’s knife, curved back

at the end. Only Americans wore those shoes.

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

Voices From the Field
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 223

Action:

• “He alternately galloped and tiptoed”

• “trying to maintain a strategic position”

• “The woman ignored his greeting”

• “gave him a look of impatience”

Words/Thoughts:

• “Gud marn-ning Madame”

• “the only English he knew”

• “phrasing the word in a lilting tone that he hoped sounded friendly”

• “How strange it seemed. These people would spend on a bottle of

beer what a man in his village couldn’t earn in a day’s work, yet they

spent no money on the clothes they wore, and the women dressed as

plain as the men.”

• “With sudden excitement he almost turned to shout at one of his

friends. She was U.S.A.!”

Appearance:

• “She was tall and slender as a young girl, with her hair yellow and

straight as millet stalks.”

• “She wore pants the same as her husband’s—washed-out blue and

tight as skin.”

• “The shirt she wore was no finer that those he’d seen on boys coming back from the capital city.”

• “The white cloth shoes she wore had a bright blue symbol on both

sides, shaped like the blade of a butcher’s knife, curved back at the

end. Only Americans wore those shoes.”

8. Ask students: Based on this small excerpt, what do you think the two characters, Musa and the American, will be like? How is their character revealed

through action, words/thoughts, and appearance? 

9. Tell students that, as they read through this story, they should place a postit note next to those passages which reveal character. On the post-it, they

should note what is revealed about the character through his or her action,

words/thought, and appearance. They should also make a note of how they
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

224 Voices From the Field

can apply this technique to the characters in the personal narratives that

they are writing.

10. Also remind students of the Five Elements of Storytelling Charts, which

they used in the last workshop. Students should make a chart for “On

Sunday There Might Be Americans,” and fill in the missing elements

when they have finished the story.

Independent Work Time: 

“On Sunday There Might Be Americans” is longer than the other stories students have read in this unit. Many students may not have time to participate

in a Literature Circle. Students who have completed the activities and would

like to discuss the story, however, might consider the following questions:

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• What questions would you ask Leslie, the author of this story?

What questions would you like to ask Musa? The American

woman?

• What would you have done if you were Musa? The American

woman?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this?

Share:

1. Gather students back in the meeting area. Facilitate a discussion on the

use of character in “On Sunday There Might be Americans.” Possible

questions might include:

• Did you “see” Musa? What did you see? 

• What phrases does the author use to describe Musa? Are these

effective?

• How does the setting affect the characters?

• How do the characters relate to the elements of plot and change?

2. Conclude the class by asking students:

• How might Leslie’s experience of writing this short story be a

“journey”?

• Does the American woman in this story seem at “home in the

world”? Does Musa? Why or why not?

• How is this story similar to the other Peace Corps stories we have

read? How is it different?
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 225

Purpose:

• To define revision.

• To illustrate the axiom, “show, don’t tell.”

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the workshop by reminding students of the last two Peace Corps stories they read,

“Cross-Cultural Dialogue” and “On Sunday There Might Be Americans.”

Try to connect the stories’ theme of “perspectives” to today’s topic,“revision.” An example might be:

“One of the things that I admire about ‘Cross-Cultural Dialogue’ and

‘On Sunday There Might Be Americans’ is the writers’ ability to see

the world from another point of view. In ‘Cross-Cultural Dialogue,’

Roz sees herself through the eyes of her students. It isn’t a flattering

picture, but she isn’t afraid to stop, look, and learn from it. In ‘On

Sunday,’ the writer reminds us of the times we pass by someone like

Musa without ever seeing him.

“We can learn a lot from these two writers. As writers ourselves, we

have to take risks. We have to see our stories—ourselves—from the

point of view of someone else. It isn’t easy. But our growth as writers depends on it.”

2. Remind students that in the last writing workshop, they wrote a first draft

of their personal narratives. Explain that today students will revise these

drafts. Revise means to “see again,” and revision in the writing process

requires that we look at our drafts as another reader might. Emphasize

that a first draft should never be a final draft. In fact, many claim that what

separates the great writers from the mediocre writers is their willingness

to revise and revise and revise.

3. You might explain that today students will be re-reading their first drafts

and applying the “golden rule” of writing to it—namely, “Show don’t

tell.” To illustrate this axiom, you might want to share the following scenario:

“Imagine that the editor of The Washington Post phones me and asks

me to write an article about our town. I would like to publish an

article in The Washington Post, so I reply, ‘Yes. I’ll have the article on

your desk by Monday morning!’ As soon as I hang up the phone, I

rush to the library and begin researching information.

Enduring Understanding:

Words have power. Through

writing, we invite readers to

see the world as we see it.

Essential Question:

How can we make our words

come alive?

Materials:

Pre-prepared “article” on your

hometown; overhead projector;

chart paper; post-it notes.

UNDERSTANDING

CHARACTER

DEVELOPMENT

( P ART O N E )

Writing Workshop 

Session Six
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

226 Voices From the Field

“On Monday morning, I go the editor’s office and hand him my article. But he barely even reads the article, before he begins shaking his

head, saying, “No, no, no! Don’t tell me about your town! Show me

your town!”

4. Using an overhead projector, show students an “article” on your hometown. An example might look like this:

Wilkes-Barre

Wilkes-Barre is located in Pennsylvania, the Keystone State. It has a moderate climate with four distinct seasons....

Most people in Wilkes-Barre are employed by the health care industry.

There are eight hospitals in the area.

According to the town’s mayor, Wilkes-Barre has a variety of cultural offerings including regular symphony, ballet, and theater performances. The town

also boasts of a baseball team, 42 golf courses, 16 major parks, and 17 ski

resorts....

5. Ask students: Looking at this article, what do you think the editor meant

when he said, “Don’t tell me...show me!”

6. Remind students of the short story, “On Sunday There Might Be

Americans.” Ask students: What would this story be like if Leslie didn’t

show us Niger; instead, she told us about Niger? What are the ways in

which Leslie shows us an experience? Possible answers might include:

• She writes about a particular boy, Musa, not a general topic like

“poverty in Niger” or “tourism in Niger.”

• She uses action verbs (“dragged,” “shivered” “scurried”).

• She uses “sensual” details (“He bellowed....” “They smelled of

honey...” “...the pounded millet was fresh and hot”).

• She uses specific language (“the white Peugeot” not “the car”).

7. Return to your article on your hometown, underlining the phrase, “The

town has four distinct seasons.” Ask students: How can I create a picture

of just one of these seasons? 

8. On a piece of chart paper, write “Winter in Our Hometown.” Have students brainstorm precise details—focusing on nouns and verbs rather than

adjectives and adverbs. Prompt students with questions such as:What are

the smells of winter? What are the sounds of winter? The tastes? What

does winter feel like? What do we see in winter? 

9. Returning to your article, underline “the mayor.” Ask students: How can

I create a vivid picture of our town’s mayor? Possibilities might include:

To get the right word in the

right place is a rare achievement.To condense the diffused

light of a page of thought into

the luminous flash of a single

sentence, is worthy to rank as a

prize composition just by

itself.... Anybody can have

ideas—the difficulty is to

express them without squandering a quire of paper on an

idea that ought to be reduced

to one glittering paragraph.

Mark Twain

Author
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 227

• Describe his appearance (height, weight, hair color, eyes, facial

expression, clothing).

• Use direct quotes.What does the mayor’s voice sound like?

• What is the mayor doing? How does he walk, write, eat, gesture?

10. Before sending students to their desks for independent writing, ask them

to turn to a neighbor and briefly describe the characters and setting of

their stories.Working with neighbors, have them brainstorm possibilities

of “showing, not telling.”

11. Ask students to re-read their drafts from the last workshop and circle

those passages where they are “telling, not showing.” After brainstorming

the ways that they can be more specific, definite, and concrete, they

should revise their stories with the goal of making the reader “see.”

Questions might include:

• Do details give the reader important information that goes beyond

the obvious or predictable? 

• Do my words convey the intended message in a precise, interesting,

and natural way? 

• Are my words specific and accurate?

• Is it easy to understand what I mean?

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with individuals, you may need to model the “show, don’t tell”

activity by prompting students with questions specific to their stories. (What

sounds did you hear? What kind of tree was it?) Although a thesaurus can

come in handy, students can easily “overindulge” in adjectives and adverbs

(e.g., The blissful, jovial toddler walked timorously into the outstretched, apprehensive arms of his ebony-haired mother). Remind student to focus on making their

words as precise and economical as possible.

Share:

Gather students back in the meeting area. Ask students to share their writing

with the class. Encourage students to ask the authors questions about their

stories. How did the writers make us “see”? 

A word is not a crystal, transparent

and unchanged; it is the skin of a

living thought, and may vary greatly in color and content according to

the circumstances and the time in

which it is used.

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Poet
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

228 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To explore motivation in “Ilunga’s Harvest.”

• To analyze the way authors arouse the reader’s curiosity.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the class by

informally asking a few students,What did you do yesterday after school?

Then, addressing the whole class, ask:What did you do after school yesterday? Does anyone have a good story to tell? If a student volunteers

to tell a story that the rest of the students enjoy, ask students: Why was

this a “good” story? Or you might want to illustrate the elements of a

good story with the following examples:

Sandra’s story:

I walked home after school yesterday.The sun was shining, and there

was a nice breeze. When I got home, I turned on the TV and

watched the Simpsons and Jeopardy until 6 p.m. Then my mother

told me dinner was ready: We had chicken, rice, and peas. (I liked

the chicken and rice, but I hated the peas.) For dessert, I had vanilla ice cream.Then I worked on my math and Spanish homework, and

then....

Natalie’s story:

As I was walking home from school yesterday, I realized I didn’t have

my house keys. I searched my backpack, pockets, the sidewalk—

everywhere. Then I ran back to school to see if I might have left

them in my locker or the gym or the school yard or one of my classrooms. I was real, real nervous because I’d already lost our house keys

three times in the past month. My mother nearly had a fit the last

time I lost them. To make it all worse, my mother had asked me to

start dinner because she wouldn’t be home until 6 p. m. She had to

take my little sister to a doctor’s appointment. So there I was: Sitting

on the front steps of the school, biting my nails and trying to figure

out what to do....

2. Ask students: What’s the difference between these two stories? Would

you like to hear more of Sandra’s story? Would you like to hear more of

Natalie’s story? What other questions would you ask Sandra? What other

questions would you ask Natalie?

Enduring Understanding:

In literature and in life, we all

have reasons for behaving the

way we do.

Essential Question:

How do authors hold the

readers’ interest?

Materials:

“Ilunga’s Harvest” (pages 54-

64); chart paper; post-it notes.

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of the

setting and theme of “Ilunga’s

Harvest” see Reading and

Responding to “Ilunga’s

Harvest” on pages 131-143.

UNDERSTANDING

CHARACTER

DEVELOPMENT

( P ART T W O )

Reading Workshop 

Session Seven
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 229

3. Explain to students that the question,What happened next? is at the heart

of all good stories. Readers need to have a reason to turn the page.Their

“goal,” then, is to find out “what happens next” and their “motivation” is

curiosity. Ask students:Would you be as interested in Natalie’s story if she

quickly found her keys, went home, and started dinner? Why? What is

Natalie’s goal? What is her motivation for achieving that goal?

4. You might explain to students that Natalie’s story is compelling because

something stands in the way of achieving her goal. The reader wants to

find out:Will she achieve her goal (find her keys, go home, and start dinner) or will she fail (face her mother’s wrath when she returns home at 6

p.m.)? Will she find another way of getting into the house (crawl into a

window)? 

5. Continuing to use the example of Natalie, ask students: What if this was

the first time Natalie lost her keys? Would the story be as interesting?

What if this were the first time Natalie lost her keys and her mother

hadn’t asked her to start dinner? 

6. Explain to students that Natalie’s mother has a reason for getting angry at

Natalie. What might be her mother’s motivation? What might be her

mother’s goal? 

7. Tell students that today they will be reading “Ilunga’s Harvest,” a personal narrative written by Peace Corps Volunteer Mike Tidwell about his

friend, Illunga. Remind students that Mike Tidwell also wrote “I Had a

Hero,” which they read earlier. The characters and setting of “Ilunga’s

Harvest” are the same as those of “I Had a Hero.” Ask students: What do

you remember most about Mike and Ilunga from “I Had a Hero”?

Looking at the title, what do you think the story will be about? What do

you think Mike’s goal might be in this story? What do you think Ilunga’s

goal might be?

8. As students read, ask them to focus on the following questions:

• What are the characters’ goals?

• Why do the characters act the way they do? (What is their motivation?)

• How do the characters attempt to achieve their goals?

• Do the characters achieve their goals?

• How do character goals and motivations apply to my personal narrative?
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

230 Voices From the Field

9. Remind students to find specific passages in the story that support their

opinions. Also, ask students to fill out an Elements of Story chart for

“Ilunga’s Harvest” when they have completed their reading.

Independent Work Time:

1. As you confer with individual students, check to see if they are using

reading “tools”— highlighter pens, post-it notes, notetaking—for comprehension. Because character motivation is more abstract than other elements of characterization, students may need additional modeling.

2. When students have completed the reading activities for “Ilunga’s

Harvest,” encourage them to discuss the story in a Literature Circle.

Discussion questions might include:

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading “Ilunga’s

Harvest”?

• What questions would you ask Mike, the author/narrator? What

questions would you like to ask Ilunga?

• What would you have done if you were Mike? Ilunga?

• Does this story remind you of something that has occurred in your

own life?

Share:

1. Gather students back into the meeting area. Ask students to report on

their findings about the characters’ goals. Remind students to support

their claims by referring to specific passages within the text. Afterwards,

facilitate a whole-class discussion on “Ilunga’s Harvest.” Question might

include:

• What are Mike’s goals? Ilunga’s goals?

• Why do they act the way they do? (What is their motivation?)

• How does Mike attempt to achieve his goal? How does Illunga?

• Do Mike and Illunga achieve their goals?

• How can character goals and motivations apply to our personal

narrative?
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 231

2. Conclude the class by asking students what they have learned about the

author/narrator. Discussion questions might include:

• What is the author/narrator’s message in this story? How does he

use his own personal experience to illustrate a universal theme?

• How is Mike’s experience in this story a “journey”?

• How does this journey differ from the journey in “I Had a Hero”?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural

future”?

• How might this story help us with the writing of our own personal narratives?

The two most engaging powers of an

author are, to make new things

familiar, and familiar things new.

Samuel Johnson

Author
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

232 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To illustrate the technique of pacing.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might introduce the class

by reading the excerpt from “Ilunga’s Harvest” on the opposite page.

Afterwards, share your impressions of this passage with students. An

example might be:

“This is one of my favorite passages in ‘Ilunga’s Harvest.’ I admire

the way Mike Tidwell builds suspense and makes us care about characters. My heart dropped when I read, ‘There are no fish, Michael.’

And I breathed a sigh of relief when Michael says, ‘Wait a minute!

Look!’”

2. Ask students:What makes this passage so engaging? How does the author

draw us into the story? How does he make us care what happens next? 

3. You might suggest that one possibility is the story’s organization. Details

seem to fit where they’re placed; the sequencing is logical and effective.

Also, the author knows when to slow down and elaborate and when to

pick up the pace and move on. (To illustrate “pace,” you might compare

it to the tempo of music—e.g., rock ’n roll music usually has a very

quick pace, while a waltz has a very slow pace. ) 

4. Ask students if they were ever in a situation similar to the one Mike

describes in this passage.You might prompt students with questions such

as: Did you ever take an important exam? How did you feel during the

minutes before you found out your results? Did time pass very slowly or

very quickly? You might want to share a story from your own life to

illustrate. An example might be:

“This passage reminds me of an episode in my life. I had completed

all my courses in graduate school and had one final requirement

remaining: a proficiency test in a foreign language. I waited until the

last moment to take the test. It was May, and I planned to leave New

York City in June for a teaching position in another state.The teaching position required an M.A. If I passed the exam, I would earn my

degree and leave New York. If I failed, I’d have no job, no degree,

and no place to live (the lease to my apartment was up). I remember walking to the Arts and Humanities Building to find out my

results. I remember every single step up the stairs. I remember seeing

the a list on the Spanish professor’s office door, and searching for my

name. I saw everything in slow-motion.”

Enduring Understanding:

In literature and life, we all

have reasons for behaving the

way we do.

Essential Question: 

How can we hold the readers

interest? 

Materials:

Worksheet #12: Excerpt from

“Ilunga’s Harvest”; overhead

projector; chart paper; post-it

notes.

UNDERSTANDING

CHARACTER

DEVELOPMENT

( P ART T W O )

Writing Workshop 

Session Seven
Coverdell World Wise Schools 233

W orksheet #12

Excerpt from “Ilunga’s Harvest” 

C URRICULUM U NITS

It was just past 6 a.m. when I arrived for the harvest. Ilunga and his brother Tshibamba were calling and waving their arms as I moved down the valley slope towards the pond. “Michael, Michael.

Come quickly. Hurry Michael.” I had driven my motorcycle to Ilunga’s house in the predawn dark,

using my headlight along the way. Now as I finished the last of the twenty-minute walk to the valley floor, the sky was breaking blue and a crazy montage of pink and silver clouds lay woven on the

horizon. The morning beauty was shattered, however, by the cries of the men waiting for me at the

pond. They were yelling something I didn’t want to hear. It was something my mind wouldn’t

accept.

“There are no fish, Michael,” they said. “Hurry. The fish aren’t here.”

I reached the pond and cast an incredulous stare into the water. They were right. There were no

fish. The men had spent most of the night digging out a vertical section of the lower dike and slowly draining the water until there now remained only a muddy, five-by-five pool in the lower-most

corner of the pond. The pool was about six inches deep. And it was empty.

Tshimbamba was screaming, running along the dikes and pointing an accusing finger at the pond

bottom.

“Where are the fish?”

Ilunga was past the yelling stage. He gazed at the shallow pool, his face sleepy and creased, and

said nothing. He was a wreck; forlorn and defeated as the pond scarecrow ten feet to his left with

its straw limbs akimbo and head splotched with bird excrement.

“Wait a minute,” I said to the men, suddenly spotting something at one end of the pool.

“Look!”
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

234 Voices From the Field

5. Ask students: Why do you think “everything appeared in slow motion”?

You might suggest to students that “slow-motion” moments usually occur

when we are in sight of a goal. Our life hinges on the outcome.Will we

win or will we lose? 

6. Remind students about their work on understanding character motivation in the reading workshop of “Ilunga’s Harvest.” Suggest that, in the

passage you read from “Ilunga’s Harvest,” both Mike and Illunga were

within sight of their goals.This passage marked a turning point.

7. Explain to students that, as they work on their personal narratives today,

they should ask themselves:

• What is my goal in this story? Why do I act the way I do?

• What are the goals of the other characters in my story? Why do

they act the way they do? 

• What is turning point of my story? 

• Is my pacing well controlled? Do I slow down the pace at some

points, and pick up the pace at other points?

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with individuals, you may need to model “pacing” more for

students. One way to do this is to write one sentence—for example, I opened

the door—at the top of a blank piece of paper. Write another sentence—I

won!—several spaces below. Ask students to expand on the writing by adding

facts and specific details.

Share:

Gather students back in the meeting area. Ask one or two students to read

their drafts and have other students guess the characters’ goals and motivations. Encourage students to ask questions about the authors’ stories. Try to

find examples of student writings which build suspense. Referring to these

passages, ask students: Do you want to find out what is going to happen next?

Why? How does the writer make you care?
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 235

Purpose: 

• To define plot.

• To identify the plot of “The Talking Goat.”

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the workshop by reading Pablo Neruda’s poem, “Ode to My Socks.” Afterwards

share your own impressions of the poem, and invite students to offer their

own interpretations. Try to connect the subject of this poem (the magic

of everyday life) to folktales, the genre that students will be reading in

today’s workshop. For example you might say:

“I love Pablo Neruda’s poetry because he celebrates the ordinary—

tomatoes, artichokes, socks. In this poem, Neruda sees his socks as

magical: they are at once sharks, blackbirds, cannons, fish, and rabbits.

He is in awe of everyday life and tells us that things are only as beautiful as they are useful or pleasurable—and, as we all know, there is

nothing more useful and pleasurable than a pair of wool socks on a

wintry night.

“Reading Neruda’s poem is like entering a world of fairytales, where

anything is possible. Socks and fairytales have a lot in common.

Fairytales—or folktales—serve a practical purpose. Years and years

ago, our great-great grandparents told their children (our greatgrandparents) these tales in order to teach them how to behave, how

to love, and how to live a life of honor and courage. But our greatgreat grandparents were smart people: They knew their children

wouldn’t swallow ‘lessons’ that tasted as humorless and good-for-you

as cold medicine. So they wrapped their words in chocolate and cinnamon and everything else that children like and served them as

folktales. Like socks, folktales are as useful as they are pleasurable—

especially on wintry nights.”

2. Tell students that today they will be reading a different kind of Peace

Corps story—a folktale—called “The Talking Goat.” Ask students: What

do you think this tale will be about? Have you heard of this tale before? 

3. Share the background information, provided by Peace Corps Volunteer

John Acree, on “The Talking Goat”:

During a village meeting in rural Liberia, the chief of the village told the

tale of the “Talking Goat.” He was trying to explain to villagers that,

Enduring Understanding:

Plot builds a story’s structure.

Essential Question:

How do authors use plot?

Materials:

“Ode to My Socks” by Pablo

Neruda; “The Talking Goat”

(pages 66-68); overhead projector; chart paper; post-it

notes.

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of

the content and theme of

“The Talking Goat” see

Reading and Responding to

“The Talking Goat”on pages

144-153.

UNDERSTANDING

PLOT

Reading Workshop 

Session Eight
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

236 Voices From the Field

although they had waited a long time for a health clinic to be built, they

would soon be rewarded.They must be patient.

4. Remind students of the workshop activity in Session One in which the

writing process was compared to a journey. Before embarking on this

journey, the class asked, Where are we going? What is our destination?

Suggest that folktales also begin with an “end” in mind. The storyteller’s

“moral” or message is the destination. In the case of “The Talking Goat,”

the village chief told a tale in order to impart a message about the value

of patience.

5. Remind students of the topic of the last reading and writing workshops—character motivation and goals. Using an overhead, show Natalie’s

story to students once again.

Natalie’s story:

As I was walking home from school yesterday, I realized I didn’t have

my house keys. I searched my backpack, pockets, the sidewalk—

everywhere. Then I ran back to school to see if I might have left

them in my locker or the gym or the school yard or one of my classrooms. I was real, real nervous because I’d already lost our house keys

three times in the past month. My mother nearly had a fit the last

time I lost them. To make it all worse, my mother had asked me to

start dinner because she wouldn’t be home until 6 p. m. She had to

take my little sister to a doctor’s appointment. So there I was: Sitting

on the front steps of the school, biting my nails and trying to figure

out what to do....

6. Ask students: Does this story have a message or moral? Is it leading anywhere? What is its “destination”?

7. You might explain to students that, although Natalie’s story kept the

reader wondering, “what happened next?”, it doesn’t appear to be leading to any “message” or moral. Possibly this story could lead to a commentary on life—implicit or explicit—but right now it isn’t headed in

that direction. It’s all action.There’s no “so what?”

8. Explain to students that good stories lead to a central idea or message. A

“solid story” guides the reader from point A to point B and ultimately all

the way to point Z, the author’s message. If readers become lost along the

way, chances are the author hasn’t built a good structure. Story structure—or plot—is the framework that holds a story together.

9. Tell students that folktales usually have simple plots.To illustrate, ask students to recall a familiar folktale. You might want to use the following

prompts:
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 237

• Beginning: How does the tale begin? Who is the story about?

Where and when is the story taking place? 

• Middle: What happens to the character? 

• End: How do you know the tale is over? What is the lesson

learned?

10. Using the Cinderella story, an example of plot might be:

• Beginning: Introduced to Cinderella, a kind and generous girl, who

is mistreated by her stepmother. There is a ball. Cinderella isn’t

allowed to go; instead she must complete household tasks.

(Character and setting)

• Middle: Because of her goodness, Cinderella’s fairy godmother

appears to help. Cinderella goes to the ball and dances with the

prince. But at midnight, the fairy godmother’s magic disappears.

Cinderella runs home, crying. (Movement through time; action)

• End: The prince recognizes Cinderella without the aid of magic.

Cinderella’s innate goodness shines through. Cinderella and the

prince marry and live happily ever after. The moral: In the end,

inner beauty shines more powerfully than outer beauty. (Change)

11. Have students read “The Talking Goat” during independent work time.

As they read, ask students to focus on how the story elements of character, setting, movement through time, and change fit into the plot structure of beginning, middle, and end. Focus questions might include:

• Beginning: How does the tale begin? Who is the story about? Where

and when is the story taking place? 

• Middle: What happens to the character? 

• End: How do you know the tale is over? What is the lesson

learned?

• How can this tale help me with my personal narrative?

Independent Work Time:

When students have completed the reading activities, encourage them to participate in a Literature Circle. Discussion questions might include:

• Did you like this tale? Why or why not?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading “The

Talking Goat”?

There is no secret to success except

hard work and getting something

indefinable which we call the

‘breaks.’ In order for a writer to succeed, I suggest three things—read

and write—and wait.

Countee Cullen

Poet

Under adversity, under oppression,

the words begin to fail, the easy

words begin to fail. In order to convey things accurately, the human

being is almost forced to find the

most precise words possible, which is

a precondition to literature.

Rita Dove

Poet
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

238 Voices From the Field

• What questions would you ask Tugba, the hero? What questions

would you like to ask the talking goat?

• What would you have done if you were Tugba? 

• Does this tale remind you of any other folktales you have read? 

Share:

1. Gather students back in the meeting area. Ask students:

• Where is the story element of “character” introduced in this

tale—in the beginning, middle, or end?

• Where is setting introduced?

• Where does the central action occur? How does “movement in

time” relate to the action?

• Where does change occur?

• Why do stories have a beginning, middle, and end? 

2. Conclude the workshop by asking students:

• Are there any similarities between this tale and the other Peace

Corps stories we have read? How is it different?

• How does the plot structure of beginning, middle, and end relate

to a “journey”?

.
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 239

Purpose:

• To identify the structures of stories.

• To practice the technique of “flashback.”

Mini-Lesson:

1. You might introduce the writing workshop by asking students to summarize the beginning, middle, and end of “The Talking Goat.” Write

down student responses on a chart paper. An example might look like

this:

• Beginning: There was a very rich man named Tugba who lived in a

small village. One year, the rains did not come and the village people went hungry. The rich man gave all his animals to the villagers

to eat except his favorite goat. Then the rich man was poor so he

left the village and went to live in the jungle with his favorite goat.

• Middle: Time passed. One day, the goat spoke to Tugba. The man

thought that having a talking goat would make him rich again, so

he went back to the village. The entire town wanted to hear the

goat talk. But the goat remained silent. Because he lied to them,

the villagers tied Tugba and began to beat him.

• End: Finally the goat spoke. The villagers were stunned. They let

Tugba go.Tugba was mad at the goat for taking so long to talk.The

goat told him, “What you do not suffer for, you do not enjoy.”

2. Explain to students that this tale is told chronologically. The storyteller

begins at the beginning and ends at the end. Ask students:What other

ways can a story be organized? Possibilities might include:

• In medias res (in the middle of things): The writer begins a story in

the middle.

• Before and After:The writer contrasts two stories, presenting a picture of “before and after.”

• Flashback:The writer interrupts a chronological story to explain an

earlier event; the writer begins a story at the end.

3. Tell students that, as a class, they will use the technique of flashback to

tell the tale of “The Talking Goat.” Suggest that they will “begin at the

end”—i.e., tell the story from either the point of view of Tugba or “The

Talking Goat.” (Let them choose.) To get them started, write one of the

following beginning lines on a chalkboard:

Enduring Understanding:

Plot builds a story’s structure.

Essential Question:

How do we build our stories?

Materials:

Overhead projector; chart

paper; post-it notes.

UNDERSTANDING

PLOT

Writing Workshop 

Session Eight
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

240 Voices From the Field

• “Thank you, Tugba,” I said. But as soon as I opened my mouth to

speak, I knew I’d live to regret it....

• Getting a goat to talk is not easy.

4. As you write their suggestions on the board, have all students contribute

to the retelling of the “The Talking Goat” using flashback. Remind students that the elements of character, setting, movement through time,

action, and change must all be present.When you have finished your class

retelling of “The Talking Goat” ask students: What do you think of our

tale? Is it better than the original? 

5. Explain to students that good writing needs to go someplace. It must have

a beginning, middle, and end (regardless of whether “the end” is the

beginning, or “the beginning” is the end). Good writing builds up to a

particular point. A “solid story” guides the reader from point A to point

B and ultimately all the way to point Z, the author’s message. If readers

become lost along the way, chances are the author hasn’t built a good

structure.

6. Suggest to students that organizing personal narratives is often easier than

organizing other essays, since most people tell stories chronologically,

presenting events in the order they occurred. But as this flashback activity illustrates, more interesting methods do exist. Students may want to

consider using flashback to make their narrative more engaging and suspenseful. Emphasize, however, that whether students use linear chronology or a more creative pattern, they should always strive for clarity and

coherence, so that readers will be able to understand the flow of events

immediately, without having to re-read them.

7. Remind students of the “prewriting” stage of the writing process when

techniques such as freewriting helped to unleash the creative “madman/madwoman” within. At this stage of the writing process, however,

the writer must play the twin roles of carpenter and architect. The carpenter does all the sweaty, labor-intensive work, while the architect stands

back to coolly survey the building’s structure. Likewise, students must

now alternate between building and surveying.

8. Ask students to try re-writing their personal narratives using the flashback technique demonstrated today. If the story doesn’t work (if the

building collapses) they can return to the structure they were previous-
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 241

ly using. Suggest that beginning our stories at the end may give us new

insights about theme and message.

Independent Work Time:

1. As you confer with individual students, you may need to model this

activity further.You might want to prompt students with the following

questions:

• What is the message of your story? 

• What is the “change” that occurs? 

• What happened after the “change” occurred?

2. Questions on a story’s organization may also be helpful. Possibilities

might include:

• Does the organization of my story enhance and showcase my central message? Does the order and structure of information guide

the reader smoothly to the final destination—my message?

• Does my introduction draw the reader in? Does my conclusion

leave the reader with a sense of closure and resolution?

• Do the transitions in my story clearly show how ideas connect?

Share:

Gather students back in the meeting area. Ask one or two students to read

their drafts using the flashback technique. Ask students: Did this technique

help you to see your story from a new perspective? How? Do you prefer the

organization of your original draft? Why or why not? 

To use books rightly, is to go to them

for help; to appeal to them when our

own knowledge and power fail; to be

led by them into wider sight and

purer conception than our own, and

to receive from them the united sentence of the judges and councils of all

time, against our solitary and unstable opinions.

John Ruskin

Art Critic
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

242 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To identify style and tone in “The Extra Place.”

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area. You might begin by reading

Emily Dickinson’s poem, “There’s a Certain Slant of Light.” Share your

impressions of the poem and encourage students to offer their own interpretations. Afterwards, try to connect this poem to the topic of today’s

lesson, style and tone. An example might be:

“In one of our first writing workshops, we read a poem by Walt

Whitman, “There Was a Child Went Forth.” Walt Whitman and

Emily Dickinson are considered two of the most important

American poets of the 19th century. But I can’t imagine two poets

whose styles and tones differ as much as these two do. Dickinson’s

poetry is intensely private, intimate and stark, whereas Whitman is

outward-looking, extroverted, and rambling.

2. Have students name some of their favorite authors.Ask students: Based on

their writing, what do you think their personalities might be like? Is their

writing “introverted and private” like the poetry of Emily Dickinson or

“extroverted and expansive” like the poetry of Walt Whitman?

3. Suggest to students that, although an author reveals aspects of himself or

herself through writing, we can’t always assume that we “know” the

author. An example is the essayist E.B. White, who was reportedly very

quiet and ill-at-ease in public, yet his writing is humorous and elegant.

Experienced writers develop distinct writing “styles” which are often as

unique as fingerprints.

4. Explain to students that style is affected by many factors, such as sentence

construction, use of descriptive details, use of similes and metaphors, and

use of literary devices such as comparison and contrast.The styles of some

authors display distinct rhythm and patterns.

5. Another aspect of a writer’s work is tone, the author’s manner of expression.Tone may be serious in an editorial, light in a comedy, and tense in

a mystery. A writer’s style and tone combine to create a mood or atmosphere.

6. Tell students that the Peace Corps story they will read today is titled “The

Extra Place.” The story takes place in Poland. (For background informaEnduring Understanding:

Style and tone can affect a

reader’s understanding of a

story.

Essential Question:

How do authors create a style

and tone?

Materials:

“There’s a Certain Slant of

Light” by Emily Dickinson;

The Extra Place’ (pages 70-71);

overhead projector; chart

paper; post-it notes.

Connections:

For an in-depth analysis of

the content and theme of

“The Extra Place” see

Reading and Responding to

“The Extra Place” on pages

154-164.

UNDERSTANDING

STYLE AND TONE

Reading Workshop 

Session Nine
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 243

tion on Poland see page 69.) As students read this essay, they should focus

on the following questions:

• What is the style of this essay?

• What is the tone (light, serious, informative, scary)?

• What kind of mood do the style and tone create?

• Did the author’s style and tone affect your understanding of this

story? In what ways? 

• How do authors create a style and tone?

Independent Work Time:

When students have completed the reading activities, encourage them to participate in a Literature Circle. Discussion questions might include:

• What questions would you ask Susan, the author/narrator?

• What questions would you ask Kasia?

• What questions would you have liked to ask the man who rang the

doorbell?

• What would you have done if you were Kasia?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to Kasia’s? What was it

like?

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this story? 

Share:

1. Gather students back in a circle or meeting area. Ask students: What

impressions did you have of this story? Facilitate a discussion on the

story’s style, tone, and mood.

2. Conclude the class by asking students:

• How is Susan’s experience a “journey”?

• Does Susan seem at “home in the world”? Does Kasia?

• Do you think Susan might consider her life to “be part of a larger

narrative”? If so, what’s the bigger picture?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural

future”?

• How is this story similar to the other Peace Corps stories we have

read? How is it different?
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

244 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To explore style and tone in students’ stories.

• To practice reading students’ drafts aloud.

Mini-Lesson

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by referring

to the last line of the essay, “The Extra Place.”

I think about the millions of dollars in aid, the hundreds of advisors sent her

to help the Poles change their system, and I wonder if we ever thought to

warn them of the losses that come with the gains, of the extra places that are

only plates.

2. After reading the passage, try to connect it to the theme of today’s lesson,

“engaging readers through style and tone.” An example might be:

“What I admire about ‘The Extra Place’ is the author’s conversational style.Throughout the essay, the reader seems to be eavesdropping on an exchange between Susan and Kasia. But in the last paragraph, the conversation turns inward. Susan allows us access to her

private thoughts.”

3. Ask students to recall stories that were written in a fluid, conversational

style. Did you feel as though you were eavesdropping? Did you feel as

though you were just sitting down next to the writer and having a conversation? 

4. Write the following description of a personal narrative on a piece of

chart paper:

“The hallmark of a personal [narrative] essay is its intimacy. The

writer seems to be speaking directly into your ear, confiding everything from gossip to wisdom. Through sharing thoughts, memories,

desires, complaints, and whimsies, the personal essayist sets up a relationship with the reader, a dialogue—a friendship, if you will, based

on identification, understanding, and companionship.” (Philip

Lopate, The Art of the Personal Essay)

5. Ask students: Do you agree with this description? Why does the personal essayist set up a relationship with the reader? How do writers create

intimacy?

Enduring Understanding:

Through dialogue, we come to

understand the world, ourselves,

and others.

Essential Question:

How do we engage readers in

conversation?

Materials:

Worksheet # 13: Peer Review

Questionnaire; overhead projector;

chart paper; post-it notes.

UNDERSTANDING

STYLE AND TONE

Writing Workshop 

Session Nine
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 245

6. Explain to students that “conversational” writing may seem effortless, but

it is not.Writers work hard at developing this skill.Ask students:What are

ways that we can achieve a conversational style? 

7. You might explain that one way we can develop a conversational style is

by reading our stories aloud. Sentences that are difficult to say aloud will

most likely be difficult to read.Another way to develop our skill is to ask

a trusted friend or advisor to read our work.A friend can help us see passages in our stories that are confusing or unclear. When working on any

writing piece, it is often difficult to distance ourselves from it. We often

become absorbed in the small details and can’t see the bigger picture.

Trusted peers can help.

8. Tell students that in Independent Work Time, they will share their drafts

with a peer. Working in pairs, students will first take turns reading their

drafts aloud—making note of those sentences which are not natural to

students’ usual speech patterns. Afterwards, students should review one

another’s draft using Worksheet #13: Peer Review Questionnaire.

9. You might want to take this opportunity to once again review the

Guidelines to Peer Conferences (page 214).

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with students, take note of students who are working together thoughtfully and ask if they would be willing to share the insights of revising with the class.

Share:

Ask the students to share their experience with peer response. Questions to

facilitate a discussion might include:

• Did your conversation with a peer help you to see your draft more

clearly?

• Did reading your draft aloud help you to understand your writing

better?

Let us guess that whenever we

read a sentence and like it, we

unconsciously store it away in our

model-chamber; and it goes, with

the myriad of its fellows, to the

building, brick by brick, of the

eventual edifice which we call our

style.

Mark Twain

Author

The most original thing a writer

can do is write like himself. It is

also the most difficult task.

Robertson Davies

Author
246

In U.S. Culture In

W orksheet #13

P eer Review Questionnaire

1. What were your favorite parts of

this story? Why?

2. Which sentences were easy to

read? Why?

3. Which sentences sounded “conversational”? Why?

4. Which sentences “painted” a picture in your mind? Why?

5. Do you “see” the characters in the

story?

6. Do you “see” the setting in this

story?

7. What is the plot of this story?

8. What change occurs in this story?

9. What is the message in this story? 

10. How does the writer’s personal

experience illustrate a universal

theme?

Voices From the Field

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 247

Purpose:

• To explore change in “A Single Lucid Moment.”

• To examine the particular and universal elements of stories.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students together in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the

workshop by reading T.S. Eliot’s poem,“The Journey of the Magi.” Share

your impressions of the poem, and encourage students to offer their own

interpretations. Afterwards, try to connect the poem to the theme of

today’s lesson, change. An example might be:

“Eliot’s poem reminds me of the flashback activity in one of our

writing workshops:We began our stories not at the beginning, but at

the end. Here the poet tells us that “beginnings” are endings—and

often we don’t know whether to celebrate a birth or mourn a death.

“When I was twelve years old, I had an experience similar to the one

Eliot speaks of in this poem. My relatives had gathered at my grandmother’s house for Christmas dinner. My grandmother had given a

younger cousin of mine, Christy, a beautiful miniature doll house.

Christy wanted me to play with her, but I told her I was much too

old, much too sophisticated for dolls.That year, my grandmother had

given me money as a Christmas present, just as I requested.The cash

gift was an acknowledgment that I was no longer a child. But I

secretly envied Christy’s doll house. It was a beginning of a new stage

in my life—young adulthood—but it seemed more like an ending. I

didn’t know if I should be happy or sad.

2. Ask students if they have ever experienced similar moments—beginnings

that felt like endings. Ask students: How was that moment a turning

point? How did your life change? How did you feel about that change?

3. You might suggest to students that, in the anecdote above, the gift of a

doll house represented the carefree play of childhood, while the “cash

gift” represented the individual choice and responsibility that comes

with adulthood. Ask students: What were the particular details of your

turning point moment? How did those particular details relate to a universal event?

4. Remind students once again, that one of the qualities of a personal narrative is using a personal experience to illustrate a universal event.

Distribute copies of the narrative, “A Single Lucid Moment.” As stuEnduring Understanding:

A story is about life. Life

means change.

Essential Question:

How do authors use change?

Materials:

“Journey of the Magi” by T.S.

Eliot; “A Single Lucid

Moment” (page 73-75); overhead projector; chart paper;

post-it notes.

Connections: 

For an in-depth analysis of the

setting and theme of “A Single

Lucid Moment,” see Reading

and Responding to “A Single

Lucid Moment” on pages 162-

172.

UNDERSTANDING

CHANGE

Reading Workshop 

Session Ten
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

248 Voices From the Field

dents read, have them focus on how “change” relates to the

personal/universal experience in this story. Questions might include:

• What is the change in this story? 

• What is a “single lucid moment”? 

• Have you ever had a “single lucid moment”?

• How do the particular and personal changes in this story relate to

a universal event?

• Is the element of change necessary in stories? Why?

• What is the change in the personal narrative that I am writing?

• How do the particular and personal changes in my story relate to

a universal event?

Independent Work Time:

When students have completed the reading activities, encourage them to participate in a Literature Circle. Questions for small group discussion might

include:

• Did you like this story? Why or why not?

• What questions would you ask the author/narrator? What questions would you like to ask the villagers?

• What would you have done if you were Robert?

• Did you ever have an experience similar to Roberts? 

• What emotions or thoughts did you have while reading this? 

Share:

Ask students to share their impressions of the story in a whole-class discussion. Conclude the class by asking students:

• How is Robert’s experience a “journey”?

• Does Robert seem “at home in the world”? Do the villagers?

• Do you think Robert might consider his life to “be part of a larger narrative”? If so, what’s the bigger picture?

• How might this story be a guide to “a mighty multicultural

future”?

• How is this story similar to the other Peace Corps stories we have

read? How is it different?
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 249

Purpose:

• To explore theme.

• To identify connections between particular events and universal themes

in students’ stories.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by writing

the following passage on a piece of chart paper.

“At the heart of the personal essay is the [idea] that there is a certain unity to human experience. As Michel de Montaigne (the

father of the personal essay) puts it, “Every man has within himself

the entire human condition.” This meant that when he was telling

about himself, he was talking, to some degree, about all of us. (Philip

Lopate, The Art of the Personal Essay)

2. Ask students: Is there a “unity to human experience”? How do each of us

have within us the “entire human condition”? How might understanding

ourselves help us to understand others?

3. Remind students of the anecdote in the last reading workshop in which

the gift of a doll house represented the carefree play of childhood, while

the “cash gift” represented the individual choice and responsibility that

comes with adulthood. Is this experience unique? Although the “particulars” (doll houses and cash) might vary considerably, what does this

example “tell about all of us”?

4. Explain to students that the “universal” in writing is also called theme. It

is the writer’s message. However, if the writer’s message is an “individual

opinion” rather than a universal “experience” it isn’t a theme. For example, if a writer’s “message” is “Don’t eat broccoli. It tastes lousy” the story

would have very limited appeal. But if the writer’s message is an experience of “how parents struggle (and sometimes fail) to teach their children

what is good for them,” it is a theme.We can all relate to it.

5. Many expert writers advise us to allow theme to unfold through the

process of writing. Author John Gardner once commented that theme is

not imposed on the story but evoked from within it. And Vladimir

Nabokov suggests: “...fondle details. There is nothing wrong about the

moonshine of generalization after the sunny trifles of the book have been

lovingly collected. If one begins with a ready-made generalization, one

begins at the wrong end and travels away from the book before one has

started to understand it.”

Enduring Understanding:

Stories connect us to the world

Essential Question:

How are we connected?

Materials:

Overhead projector; chart

paper; post-it notes.

UNDERSTANDING

CHANGE

Writing Workshop 

Session Ten
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

250 Voices From the Field

6. Tell students that, as they complete their drafts today, they should

consider:

• How does my story have meaning for everyone?

• What have I discovered about this story that I wouldn’t have

known if I didn’t write it?

• How am I connected to the world?

• How does understanding myself help me to understand others? 

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with individuals, remind students that they are now working

on the final revision of their story. For the next writing workshop, students

will be editing their work.

Share:

Ask students to share how themes have emerged from their writing? Possible

questions might include: Is this theme different than what you originally

thought it would be? In what ways? How might others share in the experience you relate in your story? How are you connected to the world?

The writer must teach himself that

the basest of all things is to be

afraid; and teaching himself that,

forget it forever, leaving no room in

his workshop for anything but the

old verities and truths of the ear,

the old universal truths lacking

which any story is ephemeral and

doomed—love and honor and

pity and price and compassion

and sacrifice.

William Faulkner

Author
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 251

Purpose:

• To identify traits of good writing in Peace Corps stories.

• To apply traits of good writing to students’ stories.

Mini-lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by reading

Susan Rich’s poem, “Nomadic Life” once more. Afterwards try to connect this poem to the theme of today’s lesson, evaluating writing. An

example might be:

“When I look back at all the Peace Corps writings that we have read,

I’d have to say that Susan Rich’s poem,‘Nomadic Life’ is my favorite.

I love its cadence, its rhythm, and its insight into the lives of Peace

Corps Volunteers.”

2. Ask students: Which Peace Corps story did you most enjoy reading?

Why? Which Peace Corps writer would you most like to write like?

Why?

3. Tell students that today they will use their favorite Peace Corps story

(excluding “Nomadic Life”) as a model, by identifying the traits that

make the writing good. They will complete Worksheet #14: Traits of

Writing Checklist (adapted from “Northwest Regional Education

Laboratory: Six Traits of Writing”). For each trait listed, students should

find at least one example from their favorite Peace Corps story.

Afterwards, students should note on the worksheet how they might use

this particular trait/technique in their own personal narrative.

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with students, you might want to take the opportunity to make

reading-writing connections. From your notes on previous writing conferences with students, you might want to identify particular techniques that

individuals need to work on, and then look for this example in the story that

the student has chosen.

Share:

Gather students back in a circle or meeting area. Ask students to report on

their findings.What makes your favorite story so good? What traits would you

like to include in your own personal narrative? Why? 

Enduring Understanding:

Good writing shares common

traits.

Essential Question:

What makes a piece of writing good?

Materials:

“Nomadic Life” (page 29);

Worksheet #14: Traits of

Writing; overhead projector;

chart paper; post-it notes.

READING LIKE

WRITERS

Reading Workshop 

Session Eleven
W orksheet #14

Tra its of Writing Checklist

Trait Peace Corps Story Ideas for My Story

252

IDEAS AND CONTENT

• The topic is narrow and

manageable.

• The writer demonstrates

insight—an understanding

of life and a knack for picking out what is significant.

ORGANIZATION

• An inviting introduction

draws the reader in; a satisfying conclusion leaves the

reader with a sense of closure

and resolution.

VOICE

• The reader feels a strong

interaction with the writer,

sensing the person behind the

words.

WORD CHOICE

• Language and phrasing is natural and effective.

• Lively verbs add energy while

refreshing nouns and modifiers add depth.

SENTENCE FLUENCY

• Sentences vary in length as well

as structure. Dialogue, if present, sounds natural.

Voices From the Field

A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 253

Purpose:

• To edit students’ stories.

• To review the conventions of English.

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin the workshop by reading aloud Linda Pastan’s poem, “Grammar Lesson.” Share

your impressions of the poem and invite students to share their own

interpretations. An example might be:

“This poem reminds us of an essential aspect of our writing lives: our

audience. Change to the plural/where you will/never/be lonely again, the

poet advises us. In our last reading workshop, we looked at how our

favorite stories were superbly crafted. And we realized, through our

own writing, that it is not as easy as it looks.Those expert writers are

keenly aware of us, their readers. And they show us respect by following the conventions of English.”

2. Explain to students that “conventions” is defined as a “practice or procedure widely observed in a group, especially to facilitate social interaction; a custom, such as the convention of shaking hands.” In other words,

good grammar is simply good manners. Our readers deserve our respect.

3. Tell students that William Zinsser, author of On Writing Well, writes,“The

common assumption is that the style is effortless. In fact, the opposite is

true: the effortless style is achieved by strenuous effort and constant

refining.The nails of grammar and syntax are in place and the English is

as good as the writer can make it.”

4. Remind students of the “carpenter and architect” analogy used earlier

(Flowers, 1981). Here, Zinsser calls grammar and syntax the “nails.”

Without the nails in place, the work of a carpenter and architect is

meaningless.

5. Using an overhead, show students Worksheet #15: Editing Checklist.

Read through each item on the list, pausing to clarify as needed.Ask students to provide examples of the grammatical points listed.

Independent Work Time:

1. Explain to students that, during Independent Work Time, they should

edit their work using a copy of the Editing Checklist.

Enduring Understanding:

Good grammar is good manners. Our readers deserve our

respect.

Essential Question:

Why edit? 

Materials:

“Grammar Lessons” by Linda

Pastan; Worksheet #15:

Editing Checklist

WRITING LIKE

READERS

Writing Workshop 

Session Eleven
2. As students work, you might want to assess whether individuals are paying attention to appropriate conventions. Also, you might want to keep

in mind grammatical difficulties of individual students. For example, a

student who tends to use a lot of run-on sentences, should be reminded

to pay close attention to this item on the checklist.

3. During the first half of independent work time, you might want to let

students work alone. But during the second half, you might encourage

them to work with a partner prior to the share time.

Share:

1. Gather students back in a circle or meeting area. Ask students: How do

you feel about the story you have written? Is it ready to be published?

2. Tell students that, in the next reading workshop, they will each have the

opportunity to share their writing with the class. Everyone will read the

personal narrative that they have written. (You might want to invite students’ parents or another class to the event.) In addition to the celebratory reading, remind students of other outlets for publication, such as the

school newspaper or literary magazine.

254 Voices From the Field

A R EADING A N D W RITING W ORKSHOP

I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and

brief sentences.That is the way to

write English—it is the modern

way and the best way. Stick to it;

don’t let fluff and flowers and

verbosity creep in. When you

catch an adjective, kill it. No, I

don’t mean utterly, but kill most

of them—then the rest will be

valuable.They weaken when they

are close together. They give

strength when they are wide

apart. An adjective habit, or a

wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once

fastened upon a person, is as hard

to get rid of as any other vice.

Mark Twain

Author
W orksheet #15

Editing Checklist

C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 255

Examples Checklist

1. Replace “to be” verbs

(is, was, were, etc.)

with strong active verbs.

2. Be concise.

3. Vary the structure and

length of sentences.

4. Use transitional words

and phrases to show

relationships between

sentences.

___ My verbs are strong and

active.

___ My sentences are strong

and concise.

___ My sentences vary in

structure. Some are long

and some are short.

___ I use transitional words

and phrases to show

relationship between sentences.
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

256 Voices From the Field

Purpose:

• To create a community of readers and writers.

• To celebrate students’ stories.

Note to Teachers: 

This reading workshop differs from the usual format.Today, students will read

their own personal narratives for their classmates and invited guests.

Mini-Lesson:

Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by reading, once

again, Lisel Mueller’s poem, “Why We Tell Stories.” Afterwards, explain to

students why we share stories. An example might be:

“Stories are meant to be shared.Through stories we create community.We come to realize that, though we may at times seem different

from one another, we are not.We are all just trying to figure out the

world, ourselves, and others.We are all just trying to figure out what

it means to be human.”

Student Readings:

Have students read the stories they have written. After each student finishes

his/her story, ask the author:

• What did you learn about “writing” from this story? 

• What did you learn about yourself?

• What did you learn about the world and others?

Share:

When all students have completed their readings, ask students:

• How are our stories similar?

• How are we connected to one another?

• How are we connected to our community?

• How are we connected to the world?

• How do our stories express being “at home in the world”? 

CELEBRATIONS

Reading Workshop 

Session Twelve

Enduring Understanding:

Through stories we create

community.

Essential Question:

How are we connected?

Materials:

“Why We Tell Stories” by

Lisel Mueller (page 211).
C URRICULUM U NITS

Coverdell World Wise Schools 257

Purpose:

• To reflect on students’ growth as writers.

• To re-examine the phrase “at home in the world.”

Mini-Lesson:

1. Gather students in a circle or meeting area.You might begin by sharing

the following lines from T.S. Eliot’s poem, “Four Quartets”

We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time

2. Share your own impressions of the lines and encourage students to offer

their own interpretations. Afterwards try to connect those lines to the

theme of “writing as journey.” An example might be:

“For me, the best part about going on a trip is those first few

moments when I return home. I enjoy traveling, and I certainly

wouldn’t want my trips to end too soon. But after a long car or plane

trip, I love the moment when I can finally throw open the door to

my house and announce ‘I’m home!’ These lines from Eliot’s poem

remind me of that brief moment when you see it:You see home as

if for the first time. And the irony is: If you didn’t have distance from

it—if you didn’t go on a trip—you probably wouldn’t really be able

to see home with such clarity.

“I have the same clarity when I complete a writing project and I can

exult, for just a moment, in the joy of “having written.” All the long

hours, all the nail-biting and hair-pulling pay off. I see it: I see the

“end” of writing. I see why I need to write. This sensation doesn’t

last too long because, before I know it, I’m caught up in another

writing project and biting my nails and pulling my hair all over

again.”

3. Remind students that, in the first workshop for this unit, you wrote the

word “home” on a piece of chart paper and asked students:What do you

see? Do you see a person, a place? Do you see the world as home?

During that first workshop, you also suggested to students that the stories of Peace Corps Volunteers might help us to see home and the world

Enduring Understanding:

Writing is a journey

Essential Question:

Why journey?

Materials:

“Four Quartets” by T.S. Eliot;

chart paper.

.

CELEBRATIONS

Writing Workshop 

Session Twelve
A R EADING AND W RITING W ORKSHOP

258 Voices From the Field

a little differently. Did these stories indeed accomplish that? In what

ways?

4. Tell students that, during Independent Work Time, they will be reflecting on this “Peace Corps” journey. Possible writing prompts might

include:

• How is my image of “at home in the world” different from the

image I originally had?

• Have the stories of Peace Corps Volunteers “guided” me? If so, in

what ways?

• What is a “mighty multicultural future”? Am I part of it?

• What have I liked most about this writing journey?

• What have I liked least about this writing journey?

• Why journey?

Independent Work Time:

As you confer with individuals, you may want to remind students of their

journal notes from the first workshop session.

Share:

Gather students back in a circle or meeting area. Ask students to share

excerpts from their journal reflections. In what ways have students’ journey’s

been similar? In what ways have they been different? Why journey?

It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey

that matters in the end. 

Ursula K. LeGuin

Author
Appendix
Appendix A:

EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK

A PPENDIX

260 Voices From the Field

We’ve created this curriculum guide using the curriculum design framework,

Understanding by Design (Wiggins and McTighe 1998), developed with the support

of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD). The

Understanding by Design (UbD) approach is intended to deepen student understanding of important concepts and skills in such a way that this knowledge will

endure over time. In contrast to the traditional way of designing curriculum

(identifying objectives, planning lessons, and assessing results), the Understanding by

Design framework uses a “backward design process” that identifies assessments

before planning learning experiences and lessons.We’ve summarized the process

of “backwards design” below:

• Identify desired results: What is worthy of student understanding?

• Determine acceptable evidence: How will students demonstrate their

understanding?

• Plan learning experiences, lessons, and instruction: What will we have

students experience and do in order to achieve the desired results?

U B D C URRICULUM D ESIGN F RAMEWORK :

Stage One: Identify Desired Results

• What understandings are desired?

• What essential questions will guide this unit and focus learning?

• What key knowledge and skills will students acquire?

Stage Two: Determine Acceptable Evidence

• Through what authentic performance task(s) will students demonstrate

understanding, knowledge, and skill?

• Through what prompts/academic problems will students demonstrate

understanding, as well as more discrete knowledge and skill?

• Through what observations, work samples, etc. will students demonstrate

understanding, knowledge, and skill?

Stage Three: Plan Learning Experiences and Instruction 

• What sequence of teaching and learning experiences will equip students to

develop and demonstrate the desired understandings?
A PPENDIX

Coverdell World Wise Schools 261

Research on reading has shown that comprehension is a process that can be

taught directly. When a student has the opportunity to use a comprehension

strategy repeatedly, he/she eventually will begin to use it automatically and

independently. Reading research has also shown that comprehension can be

enhanced by collaborative learning—small and large-group dialogue in

response to open-ended questions. In The Art of Teaching Reading, Calkins

(2001) also suggests that literary interpretation can be taught:

“...the difference between experienced readers and the rest of us is that the experts

have the strategies, the tools, and the inclination to extend and deepen their responses

to a text...Teaching interpretation means teaching students a process that, for the rest

of their lives, will yield big, thoughtful responses to texts” (pp. 477-478).

In the “Reading and Responding to Literature” lessons in Voices from the

Field, we use a recurring set of questions proposed by Calkins to strengthen

interpretation and divergent thinking about a text, as well as selected comprehension strategies from reading research.These are summarized below.

Strengthening Students’ Interpretation Skills:

Calkins (p. 478) notes that the first interpretation strategy good readers use is

to ask themselves any one or two of the following questions:

• What is really important about this story?

• What does this story say about the world?

• What does this story say about my life?

• What is the point of this story for me?

• What is this story really about?

• Does it matter if people read this story or not? Why should or shouldn’t

they?

Comprehension Strategies Used:

1. Creating Detailed Mental Images of Information. Research has shown that

comprehension of textual information increases when students can create

detailed mental pictures of what they are reading.The mind stores knowledge in two forms—a linguistic form and an imagery form.The linguistic form is semantic in nature—the actual words on the page. The

imagery form, in contrast, is expressed as mental pictures—and even

physical sensations, such as smell, sound, taste, and touch. The more students use both systems of representation—linguistic and non-linguistic,

Appendix B:

READING COMPREHENSION

STRATEGIES
A PPENDIX

262 Voices From the Field

the better able they’ll be to think about and recall what they’ve read.

(Muehlherr and Sieman, 1996; Desmarias et al., 1997; as referenced in

Marzano et al. 2001).

2. Creating Graphic Representations of Similarities and Differences. Graphic representations of similarities and differences using such graphic organizers as

Venn diagrams and comparison matrices can enhance student learning for

many of the same reasons as those stated in #1 above (Marzano et al.

2001).

3. Using Mixed-Ability Grouping and Cooperative Learning Strategies. Reading

comprehension can be increased when students are able to share their

interpretations of a text with peers. Working in cooperative, mixed-ability groups can help students clarify the basic meaning of the text. As they

hear the opinions and interpretations of others, students’ own thinking

about a text can be expanded upon, clarified, or enhanced (Fielding, 1994;

Calkins, 2001; Marzano et al., 2001).

4. Creating Graphic Representations of Key Ideas. Drawing pictures or pictographs (i.e., symbolic pictures) to represent key ideas is a powerful way

for students to generate non-linguistic representations of information.The

more teachers use both linguistic and non-linguistic systems of representation the better students are able to think about and recall knowledge

(Newton, 1995 as referenced in Marzano et al., 2001, p. 74).

5. Analyzing Perspectives. Stepping into the shoes of another and trying to see

that world from that person’s point of view not only builds empathy, but

also strengthens students’ critical thinking skills (Wiggins and McTighe,

1998; Marzano et al. 1997; Paul, 1990).

6. Using Advance Organizer Questions. Advance organizer questions can help

students activate their prior knowledge and lead them to focus on the

most important parts of the text. Research has shown that advance organizers, particularly in the form of “higher-level’ questions, significantly

increase student achievement (Walberg, 1999).

7. Close Analysis of Text Passages. As Calkins (2001) notes, when good readers

really want to go deeper into the meaning of a story, they take a paragraph

or part of the story that seems very important and they study it in depth,

really trying to figure out what the author means and how it relates to

their own thinking. This strategy is further enhanced when done in a

small-group discussion format and when students have an opportunity to

write essays based on the lines that held the most meaning for them.
A PPENDIX

Coverdell World Wise Schools 263

8. Dramatization of the Key Events in a Story. This strategy is yet another variation of creating “non-linguistic” and linguistic images of a text (Marzano

et al., 2001). The more immersed students become in the dramatization,

the more intense learning becomes.Through dramatization, students can

experience a story both emotionally and rationally; in so doing, the story

becomes more deeply embedded in long-term memory.

9. Using Journals and Other Forms of Writing-to-Learn Strategies. How well a

reader constructs meaning depends in part on metacognition--the reader’s ability to reflect on, think about, and control the learning process

(i.e., to plan, monitor comprehension, reflect on what and how he/she

has learned, and revise the use of strategies for comprehension). Reading

comprehension is enhanced when students are encouraged to respond in

writing to what they read through the use of journals, quick-writing,

mind-mapping, and other strategies. Students’ thinking about a text is

greatly enhanced when journal writing prompts are designed to foster

multiple interpretations.

10. Literature Circles. Reading comprehension is enhanced through social

interaction—especially through large and small-group dialogue, in which

students are encouraged to seek out the meaning and formulate their

own interpretations of the text. Literature Circles are yet another cooperative learning strategy that can lead to increased student achievement

(see #3 above). See Appendix C, page 264 for further information on

Literature Circles.

Note: 

The list of References on

pages 266-270 provides complete bibliographic information on all citations found

in this Appendix.
A PPENDIX

264 Voices From the Field

Description:

Literature Circles are small, temporary discussion groups comprised of students

who are reading the same text (see Daniels, 1984). The Circle usually consists of

five students. Each student reads the story individually, and each student is also

responsible for playing a particular role during the conversation once the

story has been read.The roles are:

• Summarizer: This student lays out the story’s action at the beginning of the Circle’s meeting.

• Discussion Leader: This student devises thought-provoking discussion questions and keeps the discussion moving along.

• Passage Master: This student cites what he/she thinks are important

passages to be read aloud and discussed.

• Connector: This student suggests connections between the text and

students’ real world experiences.

• Illustrator: This student produces a graphic, non-linguistic representation of what he/she thinks are the key ideas of the text and

a brief written description of why these ideas are important.

Student Guidelines:

If this is the first time you’ll be using Literature Circles, ask students to

keep several ground rules in mind:

• Everyone participates in the discussion, in addition to taking

responsibility for the particular role they are assigned.

• When discussing the text, different interpretations are to be welcomed, because they add richness and interest to the conversation.

• There is no “one right way” to respond to a text. Each person will

find his/her own unique meaning in what has been read. When

each member of the group feels free to express his/her unique

point of view (and knows that it will be listened to with respect),

the conversation becomes much more engaging.

• Conversations about the story should last a minimum of 30 minutes.

• Only one student may speak at a time.

• Each Circle’s Discussion Leader and Illustrator are also responsible

for summarizing the important parts of the Circle’s conversation—including areas of disagreement—to the whole class on the

day following the Circle’s discussion of the text.

Appendix C:

LITERATURE CIRCLES

How to Set Up 

a Literature Circle:

To set up a Literature Circle,

divide the class into groups of

five, and ask the students in each

group to agree on the role each

will take responsibility for.

Explain that each role requires a

written component that allows

you, the teacher, to see how they

have prepared for their parts.
A PPENDIX

Coverdell World Wise Schools 265

Journal writing provides students with an opportunity to express their

ideas, observations, and emotions—while confident that their writing will be

accepted without criticism.

Useful across the entire curriculum, journal writings can help students:

• explore experiences, solve problems, and consider varying

perspectives;

• examine relationships with others and the world;

• reflect on goals, ideas, and values; and

• summarize ideas, experiences and opinions before and after

instruction.

There are two types of journals used in the curriculum units in Voices from

the Field. The Reading and Responding to Literature unit uses a literature

log/response journal and the Reading and Writing Workshop uses a “writer’s

notebook” journal.They are defined as follows:

• Literature logs or response journals are an integral part of

reading instruction, because students’ responses are the basis for

literature discussion and are central to assessment for comprehension. It contains not only self-selected topics but also assigned topics.

• Writer’s notebooks/journals help student writers capture fleeting thoughts, ideas, images, and dreams that can potentially be

“seeds” for a story or poem. Student writers should be encouraged to write in their journals daily, and carry them wherever they

go. Many experienced writers consider journals a necessity to the

“writing life.”

Appendix D:

THE USE OF JOURNALS
A PPENDIX

266 Voices From the Field

Reading and Writing: Process and Strategies

Alvermann, D.E. et al. 1988. Using Discussion to Promote Reading

Comprehension. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Anderson, J.R. 1995. Learning and Memory: An Integrated Approach. New York:

John Wiley and Sons.

Atwell, Nancie. 1998. In the Middle: New Understandings about Reading,Writing,

and Learning. 2nd Edition. Montclair, NJ: Boynton/Cook Publishers.

Ausubel, David. 1968. Educational Psychology: A Cognitive View. New York:

Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.

Beach, R. and S. Hynds. 1991. “Research on Response to Literature.” In

Handbook of Reading Research:Vol. II. New York: Longman.

Billmeyer, Rachel and M. Barton. 1998. Teaching Reading in the Content Areas.

Aurora, CO: Mid-Continent Regional Education Laboratory.

Brown, J.S., et al. 1989. “Situated Cognition and the Culture of Learning.”

Educational Researcher 18, 1: 32-42.

Calkins, Lucy McCormick. 2001. The Art of Teaching Reading. Boston:Addison

Wesley Publishers.

Calkins, Lucy McCormick. 1986. The Art of Teaching Writing. Portsmouth,

NH: Heinemann.

The Commission on Reading. 1985. Becoming a Nation of Readers.

Champaign, Il: Center for the Study of Reading, University of Illinois.

Cunningham, Patricia and Richard L. Allington. 1999. Classrooms that Work.

New York: Addison-Wesley.

REFERENCES
A PPENDIX

Coverdell World Wise Schools 267

Daniels, Harvey. 1994. Literature Circles:Voice and Choice in the Student-Centered

Classroom. Stenhouse Publishers.

Elbow, Peter. 1996. Writing Without Teachers. New York: Oxford U. Press.

Elbow, Peter. 1998. Writing With Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing

Process. New York: Oxford U. Press.

Fielding, G. et al. 1994. “Reading Comprehension:What Works,” Educational

Leadership (51)5. Alexandria,VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum

Development.

Flowers, Betty S. 1981. “Madman, Architect, Carpenter, Judge: Roles and the

Writing Process.” Language Arts,Volume 58.

Gardner, Howard. 1983. Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences.

New York: Basic Books

Graves, Donald. 1994. A Fresh Look at Writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Graves, Michael F., Connie Juel and Bonnie R. Graves. 1998. Teaching Reading

in the 21st Century. Boston: Allyn and Beacon.

Greene, Maxine. 1995. Releasing the Imagination: Essays on Education, the Arts,

and Social Change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Hyerle, David. 1996. Visual Tools for Constructing Knowledge. Alexandria, VA:

ASCD.

Johnson, D. et al. 1981. “The Effects of Cooperative, Competitive, and

Individualistic Goal Structures on Achievement: A Meta-analysis.”

Psychological Bulletin. 89(1), 47-62.
A PPENDIX

268 Voices From the Field

Knuth, R.A. and B. F. Jones. 1991. "What Does Research Say about

Reading?" Oak Brook, IL: North Central Regional Education Laboratory

(NCREL).

Lopate, Philip. 1995. “Introduction” from The Art of The Personal Essay. New

York: Anchor Press.

McTighe, Jay and Grant Wiggins. 1999. The Understanding by Design

Handbook. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum

Development.

Marzano, Robert et al. 2001. Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-Based

Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. Alexandria,VA: ASCD.

Marzano, Robert et al. 1997. Dimensions of Learning. Alexandria, VA:

Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Murray, Donald A. 1996. Crafting a Life in Essay, Story, and Poem. Portsmouth,

NH: Heinemann.

Paul, Richard. 1990. Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Know in a

Rapidly Changing World. Rohnert Park, CA: Sonoma State University.

Standards for the English Language Arts: A Project of the National Council of

Teachers of English and the International Reading Association. 1996. Urbana, IL:

NCTE and Newark, DE: IRA.

Tchudi, Stephen. 1995. The Interdisciplinary Teacher’s Handbook: Teaching Across

the Curriculum. Portsmouth, NH: Boyton/Cook.

Walberg (Eds.) New Directions for Teaching Practice and Research, 75-104.

Berkeley, CA: McCutchen Publishing Corporation.

Wiggins, Grant and Jay McTighe. 1998. Understanding by Design. Alexandria,

VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
A PPENDIX

Coverdell World Wise Schools 269

Zemelman, Steven. et al. 1998. Best Practice for Teaching and Learning in America’s

Schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Zinsser,William. 1998. On Writing Well. New York: HarperCollins.

Poetry

Dickinson, Emily. 1976. “There’s a Certain Slant of Light” in Complete Poems of

Emily Dickinson. (ed.Thomas A. Johnson). Boston: Little Brown & Company.

Eliot,T.S. 1963. “Journey of the Magi” and “Four Quartets” in Collected Poems

of T.S. Eliot, 1909-1962. 1963. New York: Harcourt Brace.

Hughes, Langston. 1986.“Aunt Sue’s Stories,” in The Dream Keeper. New York:

Alfred A. Knopf.

Mueller, Lisel. “Why We Need Stories” in The Need to Hold Still. 1980. Baton

Rouge: Louisiana State University Press.

Mueller, Lisel. “English as a Second Language” in Your Tired,Your Poor” from

Second Language: Poems by Lisel Mueller. 1986. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State

University Press.

Neruda, Pablo. “Ode to My Socks” in Selected Odes of Pablo Neruda. 2000.

Berkeley: University of California Press.

Pastan, Linda. 1999. Carnival Evenings, New and Selected Poems 1968-1998. New

York:W.W. Norton & Company.

Stafford, William. 1991. “What’s in My Journal” from Passwords. New York:

HarperCollins.

Whitman, Walt. “There Was a Child” in Leaves of Grass. 1993. New York:

Modern Library (Random House).
A PPENDIX

270 Voices From the Field

Peace Corps Texts

Acree, John. 2000. “The Talking Goat” from Only the Mountains Never Meet.

Washington, DC: Peace Corps.

Bellamy, Carol. 1996.“Peace Corps Stories” adapted from “Call to Service” in

At Home in the World.Washington, DC: Peace Corps.

Brazaitis, Mark. 1998. “Magic Pablo” from The Great Adventure. Washington,

DC: Peace Corps.

Coyne, John (editor). 1999. Living on the Edge: Fiction by Peace Corps Writers.

Willimantic, CT: Curbstone Press.

Moyers, Bill. 1996. “At Home in the World” from At Home in the World.

Washington, DC: Peace Corps.

Peters, Susan. 1998. “The Extra Place” from Destination: Poland. Washington,

DC: Peace Corps.

Rich, Susan. 2000. “Nomadic Life” from The Cartographer’s Tongue: Poems of

the World. Buffalo, NY:White Pine Press.

Simmonds Ekstrom, Leslie. 1999. “On Sunday There Might Be Americans”

from Living on the Edge: Fiction by Peace Corps Writers. Willimantic, CT:

Curbstone Press.

Soderstrom, Peter. 2001. “A Single Lucid Moment” from A Day in the Life.

Washington, DC: Peace Corps.

Tidwell, Mike. 1990. The Ponds of Kalambayi. New York: Lyons and Burford

Publishers.

Wollmering, Roz. 1995. “Cross-Cultural Dialogue” from To Touch the Earth.

Washington, DC: Peace Corps.
Coverdell World Wise Schools 271

The Peace Corps wishes to thank the following for permission to reprint previously published material:

“English as a Second Language” in “Your Tired, Your Poor” from Second

Language: Poems by Lisel Mueller. Copyright 1986. Published by Louisiana

State University Press. Reprinted by permission of publisher.

“I Had a Hero”and “Ilunga’s Harvest” from The Ponds of Kalambayi by Mike

Tidwell. Copyright 1990. Published by Lyons and Burford Publishers, New

York. Reprinted by permission of Mike Tidwell.

“Nomadic Life” from The Cartographer’s Tongue: Poems of the World by Susan

Rich. Published by White Pine Press. Copyright 1998. Reprinted by permission of Susan Rich.

“On Sunday There Might be Americans” from Living on the Edge: Fiction by

Peace Corps Writers edited by John Coyne. Copyright 1999. Published by

Curbstone Press, Willimantic, CT. Reprinted by permission of Leslie

Simmonds Ekstrom.

“There Was a Child.” from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman. Copyright 1993.

Published by Modern Library. Reprinted by permission of publisher.

“Why We Tell Stories” from The Need to Hold Still by Lisel Mueller.

Copyright 1992. Published by St. Louis University Press. Reprinted by permission of publisher.

CREDITS

A PPENDIX
A PPENDIX

272 Voices From the Field

The Peace Corps acknowledges the following people in the writing,

editing, design, review, and production of Voices from the Field: Reading

and Writing about the World, Ourselves, and Others: Cerylle Moffett, Betsi

Shays, Beth Giebus, Susan Bloomer, Wayne Breslyn, Susan Buchanan,

Anastasia Miller, Donna Molinari, Mandy Tumulty, Lisa Ward, and Amy

Wickenheiser.

The Peace Corps also wishes to acknowledge the special efforts of Kate

Montgomery and Heidi Hayes Jacobs.

A special thank you to all the Peace Corps writers who have contributed to Voices from the Field,and to John Coyne, the “father” of Peace

Corps Literature.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS