Literature to Urban Pupils As Well As for Stimulating Effective
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 026 425 UD 007 697 By-Brocki, A.C., Ed. Teaching Voices of Youth and Three Novelettes: An Instruction4 Bulletin for 87 Enghsh. Los Angeles City Schools, Calif. Div. of Secondary Education. Repor t No- L ACS-ESE A -T -E -129-67 Pub Date 7 Jul 67 Note-494p. EDRS Price MF-$2.00 HC-$24.80 Descriptors-*Curriculum Guides,Discussion (TeachingTechnique). *Instructional Materials, *Junior High Schools, Lesson Plans, Literature, Novels, Reading, *Reading Materials, StudentInterests, Textbooks, *Urban Schools Identifiers-Danger Above and Below, Jacqueline Ludlum, Jane Sprague. Robert JFranklin, Runaway Jerk, Tramp Dog The document consists of three parts--an instructional bulletin for teachersof urban junior high school students with average and below averagereading ability, a book of readings, and three novelettes preparedfor these students. The bulletin offers guidelines on the ways to use the readings and suggestionsfor teaching .literatureto urban pupils as well as for stimulatingeffective discussion. Also presented are outlines of lesson plans, both general and specific.The paperbound. pocket sized book of readings .contains both fiction and non-fiction selections written especially for city pupils. (NH) ti C." A t 6ft mom =="4 ROBERT 1. FRANKLIN flEVEITAIY ANSECIIINIV CI CI OICA11111 ACT LOS ANGELES CITY SCHOOLS HEALTH, EDUCATION B.WELFARE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF L/1 OFFICE Of EDUCATION REPRODUCED EXACTLY ASRECEIVED FROM THE ,s0 THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN POINTS OF VIEW OROPINIONS PERSON OR ORGANIZATIONORIGINATING IT. REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICEOF EDUCATION STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY CD POSITION OR POLICY. rRAMP DOG by ROBERT J.FRANKLIN t\. B7 English Na4 LOS ANGELES CITYSCHOOLS Division of Secondary Education 1\ Specially-FundedPrograms Publication No. ESEA 4-10 NJ 1967 This publication was developedwith funds pro- vided by the federal governmentunder Title I, Elementary and SecondaryEducation Act of 1965. APPROVED: EVERETT CHAFFEE Associate Superintendent Division of Instructional Planningand Services ROBERT E. KELLY Associate Superintendent Division of Secondary Education ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many of the persons who took part in demeloping reading selections for B7 English have been recognized and thanked in the introductory pages of Voices of Youth, the anthology for B7 English. Special appreciation is expressed here to Eileen McDowell, of Berendo Junior High School, who took time to read, evaluate, teach and have her pupils evaluate Tramp Dog in a trial edition. Al Kaelin, Consultant, Pilot Projects, designed the cover. HARRIETTE F. WILLIAMS Pilot Projects Coordinator Specially-Funded Programs THOMAS 0. LAWSON Administrative Coordinator Specially-Funded Programs TRAMP DOG CHAPTER 1 Benny Martinez wasvery lonely because he had no friends. He had no friends because hewas shy. He was shy because he thought hewas ugly. When he looked in the mirror hesaw very high cheek bones, a humped nose, slittedeyes, and straight black hair. His skinwas rough. His teeth were yellow and crooked. Hisears stuck out like airplane wings. Benny was fifteen years old and in the tenthgrade. He made the boys nervous when hecame around them, and the girlswere quick to do other things 1 when he came near.Nobody at schooltalked much with Bennyexcept histeachers. SometimesBenny felt so lonely for someone totalk with that a great sob would start to risefrom deep insidehim and reach all the way to hislips, but he wouldclose his lips tight not to let it out; sothe sob wouldcontinue up to his eyesand make them watery.He did not understand why no onewould be his friend. Benny's English teacher,Mrs. Brown, was anice lady. She was older thanhis mother, he thought. The English class was verysmall, only twenty,and the teacher was kind withhim when she calledhim to her desk to helphim in reading. She wasalso patient when he mademistakes on the ditto papers which asked questionsabout the stories.Sometimes Mrs. Brown asked Bennyquestions about his mother and father and hishome. And one time,she asked him what he was going tobe when he finishedschool. For that question, hehad no answer. Hedid not think about such things. Benny liked agricultureclass the best. He liked to dig in the garden, workthe fertilizer into the ground and make it smooth. Heliked to make straight rows and poke little holesfor the seeds which Mr.Stein, the teacher, gave him.He planted each seedwith great care andcovered it with a softtouch. He watered carefully so as not touncover theseeds, and he had a feelingof great joy when thelittle yellow-green shoots sproutedthrough the dirt. Mr. Stein saw how Bennyloved the plants and gavehim 2 three rows of ground for his very own. There he planted carrots, radishes, tomatoes, and Swiss chard. Mr. Stein explained how the roots got food from the soil and how the leaves got energy from thesun. Benny did not like it when they had to read from books and magazines with hard words to tell how to take care of plants. He mostly liked to feel the soil and watch the seeds grow. However, these things did not fill the empty feeling inside Benny. He wanted a friend, and he did not know how to make friends. 3 n'g CHAPTER 2 Then one day, when Benny was walking home after school, a friend appeared. It was like magic. In a way, the friend looked very much like Benny big nose, long ears, and short bowed legsthe friend was the ugliest dog Benny had ever seenin his life. It looked like part of everything in the dog world. At first Benny said, "Shoo! Go home!" The dog stopped, cocked its head sideways and cringed a little.Its overlong tail drooped between its legs. When Benny continued walking, the dog continued following. Three times, Benny shooed the dog away, but each time he said it softer. Then, he pretended to pay no attention to it. A block from his house, Benny turned to the dog for the fourth time. "What's the matter with you?" he said. "Ain't you got no home?" The dog cringed low and crawled to Benny's feet. Then it lay flat on its belly and rolled over on its side with its tail between its legs. It was a very dirty dogall dirty white, with black ears, black feet, and a black tip on the tail. It was a boy dog. Its ribs stood out as though it was starving. Its big brown eyes looked very sad and lonely. Benny leaned down and patted the dog's head. When he did this, the dog licked his hand. The dog had no collar. It belonged to no one. "Golly!" Benny said. "You sure are ugly. How come you follow me? Ain't you got no friends?" 4 The tail came out from between the legs and wagged with such great speed that it raised dust in the unpaved street. Benny laughed. "By golly,you are ugly," he said again. He continued on his way home, and the dog followed. Now Benny didnot shoo it away. When he got to the wooden picket fence that separated his front yard from the dirt-path sidewalk, he left the little gateopen and went around to the kitchen door without looking back. Benny said hello to his mother, whowas peeling potatoes at the sink. His mother smiled at him and nodded and kept on peeling. She had Indian features, was a quiet woman, and spoke very little. Benny went on through the kitchen to the frontroom and peeked through the worn curtain of the big window. He saw the dog, still in the gateway withone paw raised, afraid to stepacross the invisible line that shut it out from a home. It just stood with thepaw raised and the head turned sideways, wündering if it should cross the line. Benny went back to the kitchen. "Mama," he said, "you think I can have a dog?" Mrs. Martinez answered in Spanish. "Whyyou want a dog?" "I do not know," Benny said. "A little dog followed me home from the school. Many times I told him, 'Go away,' but he followedme anyway. He is at the front gate now." 5 Mrs. Martinez went to the front window and looked out. The dog still stood with its paw raised. "It is not a good dog," she said. "No," Benny repeated, "it is noz a good dog. But it followed me." "It does not look good," his mother said. "I think he likes me," Benny answered. "I have no friend who likes me. I have never had a dog. I would like this one." "Your father will decide," she said, and she returned to the kitchen. Papa will not like the dog, Benny thought. Maybe, if I give him a bath, he will look better. Benny stepped to the wooden pori-h and said, "Come here, The dog jumped through the gateway and wiggled and squirmed at Benny's feet. It followed him to the backyard where Benny gave it a bath in his mother's big wash tub. The dog looked very miserable, and seemed skinnier than ever, dripping wet. Benny wiped him dry, and, as Benny rubbed him with an old sweater, the dog licked Benny's face. Benny laughed, "Hey, you 'crazy dog. 'Cause I give you a bath, you try to give me one." The dog tried to lick Benny's face again. The ribs sticking out made the boy sad. He went into the kitchen and asked his mother for food for the dog. She gave him a piece of bread. The dog gobbled the bread 6 in two gulps. Then Benny gave him fresh water to drink, and he drank with great thirst. "Now I must give you a name," Benny said aloud. "You are very ugly, but you have pretty eyes that look sad.