Chapter Graphic : Wishing Ring
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  Level: Year 4 and year 8
Approach: Team
Focus: Making up and telling the ending of an incomplete story.
80k
Resources: Audio recording on laptop computer.

Questions / instructions:
Click the Wishing Ring button.
You are going to hear the start of a story called The Wishing Ring. You'll hear most of the story — but not its ending.

After you have heard the start of the story, you can make up your own ending for the story and tell it to me. If you already know this story try to think of your own ending — not the one you already know.
Click the Play button to start the video.

The Wishing Ring
- a folk tale -

Once upon a time there was a poor farmer whose life was very hard. He was resting at his work one day when an old witch walked past. She stopped and asked, "Why do you work so hard when it brings you so little reward? I'll tell you what to do. Walk straight ahead until you get to a great pine tree that is taller than all the trees in the forest. Chop it down and your luck will be made."

The farmer took his axe and started out. After two days he found the pine tree. He chopped its mighty trunk, and when the tree finally came down, there fell from its highest tip a great bird's nest with two eggs in it.

The eggs rolled on to the ground and broke. Out of one came an eagle, out of the other fell a gold ring. Then the eagle grew and grew until he was half as big as the farmer himself. The eagle tried his wings and as he flew up he called out, "You have rescued me. Take the ring that fell from the egg. It is a wishing ring! Put it on your finger as you speak your wish out loud, and the wish will surely come true. But remember – there is only one wish with the ring. When it has come true it will have lost its power and will be like any other ring. So think hard before you make your wish so that you don't regret it later."
Then the eagle flew away.

The story teller stopped before the story finished. I want you to take over and be the story teller. Keep on telling the story, and try to give it a good ending. Remember, you're a story teller.
Encourage the student to take the role of a story teller.
     
% responses
y4
y8
Creativity/originality
very
18
34
 
moderate
41
47
little or no
41
19
Continuity
follows narrative thread appropriately
very well linked
20
37
partially fits, some discontinuity
62
59
doesn't follow story at all
18
4
Achieved closure
brought story to clear conclusion
very cohesive, complete ending
12
24
quite cohesive, most elements pulled together
27
42
partial, abrupt or confusing ending
36
29
story clearly not completed
25
5
Oral presentation
very expressive and lively
8
15
 
moderately expressive
43
59
little expressiveness
49
26
Language
used rich descriptive language
17
30
Total score:
8 – 10
11
25
 
5 – 7
25
40
3 – 4
28
22
0 – 2
36
13
Commentary:
About 25 percent more year 8 than year 4 students scored well on this task overall. It was quite a challenging task, with about half of the year 4 students scoring the lowest rating on two or more of the five criteria. These results can be compared with a parallel task – p.20, Writing Assessment Results 1998, Report 12.
 
 
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