Reading 3 · picasso to the beetle · The One and Only Ivan

Copywork

First she watched him for a long time, chewing on her thumbnail. I could tell she was looking at him the way an artist looks at the world when she’s trying to understand it.

He was smart and cunning, but his gaze was wistful. Under the picture were three bold, confident marks, circled in black.

Read both passages aloud. Ivan says the dog in Julia’s picture was “smart and cunning, but his gaze was wistful.” How can one dog be both?

Discussion

Narration Tell back what happens, in order, from Mack’s yellow crayon to the beetle by Ivan’s pool.

The boy spits at Ivan’s window, and the girl throws pebbles. Ivan says, “Sometimes I’m glad the glass is there.” After the visitors come back, he says, “Sometimes I wish the glass were not there.” Why might the glass feel so different to him the second time? Character
Ivan says he is sorry for calling the visitors “slimy chimps.” Then he says, “My mother would be ashamed of me.” Why might Ivan think of his mother when he feels sorry? Moral reasoning
For the educator The reading gives only this one line about Ivan’s mother, so the talk stays with what he says and does here.
Mall workers called, “Here, doggie,” and held out food, but the little dog always ran off. Julia watched him for a long time, and then she drew him. His name was under her picture. She said, “I had to draw him first.” Why might she have to draw him before she knew his name? Inference
Mack picks up Ivan’s first drawing. “Another day, another scribble,” he says. Later he gives George money to buy Julia “some more crayons.” Why might the same man do both? Character
For the educator The reading shows Mack’s bottle, his stare and his money and gives no reason for any of them. Keep the talk on what he says and does.
Ivan says, “Gerald was my favorite keeper.” But the person he remembers most is Mack, “day in and day out, year after year after year.” Why might Ivan remember Mack more than his favorite? Inference

Make a Connection Think of a story, or a time in your own life, when someone looked closely at something and saw what others missed. What helped that person see it?

Vocabulary

tactful: Bob is not always tactful. Careful to say hard things gently so that no one’s feelings are hurt. Ivan says Bob is not always this, right after Bob’s remark about the cage.
confident: Under the picture were three bold, confident marks, circled in black. Sure and steady, without any doubt. Ivan uses it for the marks Julia draws under her picture.
skitter: Before Mack can stomp, the beetle skitters away, disappearing through a crack in the wall. To dart away on quick, light little steps. Here a beetle does it before Mack’s foot can come down.
wistful: He was smart and cunning, but his gaze was wistful. Quietly sad and longing for something you do not have. Ivan uses it for the gaze of the dog in Julia’s drawing.
excel: I am sure I would excel at homework. To do something very well, better than most. Ivan says he would do this at homework.
strut: I strut across my domain for them. To walk in a proud, showy way so that others will watch. Ivan does it across his domain for the visitors.
elegant: I am an elegant fellow in her pictures, with my silver back gleaming like moon on moss. Graceful and handsome in a fine, careful way. Ivan uses it for how Julia draws him.
recall: When I think about all the people who have taken care of me, mostly it’s Mack I recall, day in and day out, year after year after year. To bring something from the past back into your mind. Ivan uses it for the people who cared for him.
juvenile: I remember how he gave me a coconut when I was still a juvenile. A young animal that is not yet fully grown. Ivan uses it for himself when Karl gave him a coconut.

Critical thinking

Mack sees “A big, black nothing” in Ivan’s drawing. Julia finds a beetle and says, “I know a beetle when I see one.” Does Julia understand Ivan, or only his drawing?
Ivan says, “I think I may be a little tired of my domain.” Bob answers, “That’s because it’s a cage,” and Stella says, “It’s a very small domain.” Why might Stella use Ivan’s word and not Bob’s?
Stella tells Ivan there is a difference between “can’t remember” and “won’t remember.” Should Ivan try to remember, or is he better off forgetting?