Realistic fiction The Real McCoy – Rigby

2. Have students read the second and
third full paragraphs on page 105.
What really matters to Devin at the
end of this story? How have his character
traits changed over the course of
the summer?
3. Depending on students’ success
with the book, address one or
more of the teaching points listed
on Day 1. Use these teaching
point as appropriate during the
five-day teaching sequence.
Responding to the Text
Optional independent or smallgroup
response activities are listed
below.
Reread the book. Invite students
to reread a portion of The Real
McCoy.They may reread a chapter
or two that show the biggest
changes in Devin.They can also
listen to the CDs that accompany
this book.
✔Write about the book Invite
students to write about The Real
McCoy in their reading logs, or
have them choose an activity listed
below. You may also encourage
students to suggest their own writing
projects related to the book.
Below Grade Level Readers
• Students can complete a Fact or
Opinion Chart about Squeezie the
python. (See the Rigby Literacy
Graphic Organizer Book, page 55.)
What facts and opinions can they
gather from The Real McCoy and
other sources? What opinions can
they gather from conducting a survey
of classmates’ feelings about
having a python as a pet?
• Invite students to create a menu of
dishes that they might serve at
their own diner.What diner lingo
would they assign to each item?
On Grade Level Readers
• Throughout The Real McCoy,
Devin McCoy changes. Have students
find examples of his character
trait changes and complete a
Character Change Story Map. (See
the Rigby Literacy Graphic Organizer
Book, page 35.) Encourage students
to explore how the character
has grown physically and emotionally
over his summer in Maine.
• Have students write a few paragraphs
about Devin’s shyness and
his tendency to “think himself into
a box” (jump to conclusions). How
did this cause a big misunderstanding
between Devin and Danny?
When does the turning point
occur? What is the outcome?
Above Grade Level Readers
• The author includes examples of
foreshadowing in The Real McCoy.
Have students write their own
definitions of this literary term.
Then have them cite examples
of foreshadowing from the story.
How did foreshadowing help
students make predictions?
• At the end of each chapter, students
can complete a Problems-
Solutions Chart to list Devin’s
problems and how they were
resolved. (See the Rigby Literacy
Graphic Organizer Book, page 41.)
Then have students sum up how
these problems lead Devin to grow
as a character.
✔Assessment
Also, see the Features of
Fiction Assessment on
pages 21–23 of the
Reading Workshop
Blackline Master
Assessment Book.
When you reread a
classic, you do not see
more in the literature
than you did before;
you see more in
yourself than there
was before.
—Clifton Fadiman
The Real McCoy 61 F