Laurie Shapiro

READ 520
Doctor Parlier
August 26, 2017

The following text set includes books that relate to Indian culture. They may be used to

augment instruction for an English language learner in a fifth-grade classroom. The books found

in this list vary in reading levels, in anticipation of students that may vary in their understanding

of the English language. The reading levels detailed below are based on one of two reading

scales. The first is an average of eight reading formulas: Flesch Reading Ease, Gunning Fog,

Flesch- Kincaid, Coleman- Liau Index, SMOG Index, Automated Readability Index, and the

Linsear Write Formula. The second is based on the scholastic guided reading levels.

India Text Set

Apte, S. (2009). India. New York: Childrens Press.

Dahl, M. S. (1999). India. Capstone Press Inc.

Demi. (1997). One Grain of Rice. New York, New York: Scholastic Press.

Fontes, J. (2003). India. New York: Childrens Press.

Lal, A. India (Countries of the World ). Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Gareth Stevens Publishing.

Price, C. (1966). The Valiant Chattee-Maker: A Folktale of India. London: Frederick Warne and

Co., Ltd.
 Book Talks

The Valiant Chattee- Maker: A Folktale of India

Read Aloud
The village chattee- maker was a modest, poor man who created clay jars and water pots.

One day, he lost his donkey, which delivered his jars and pots. He went searching for his donkey

in a rainstorm, but accidentally caught and rode home on a tiger. He became rich for capturing a

Tiger, but ultimately remained humble.

This book would useful for ELL students, as it is an imaginative Indian folktale. This

book is accessible to students for a few reasons. First, the story has content accessibility, since it

is a folktale that they may have already been exposed to in their native language. Second, it is

visually accessible, as there are a plethora of pictures on each page to enhance the story. Lastly,

it is a fourth-grade reading level, as its target audience includes eight and nine year olds.

However, the story is less accessible linguistically as it does not have short, simple, and repeated

phrases for beginning English learners. Therefore, using this book as a class read aloud would

augment its purpose of generating interest with English learners. Students will be more able to

understand the story if they are guided by their teacher.

One Grain of Rice

Read Aloud
One Grain of Rice is a traditional Indian folktale which describes a selfish raja that

hoards his province’s rice supply during a famine. However, he is outwitted by a young girl

named Rani, who he decides to reward for a good deed. As the reward, Rani requests one grain

of rice, and double the rice given the day before for a total of thirty days. This tale teaches

lessons about selfishness and about multiplication.

 This book would be a great read aloud story as it is intriguing and has colorful

pictures. It has a fifth-grade readability level, which may be difficult for students to read on their

own. However, the book contains elements that could be useful to English Language Learners.

For example, the story has language accessibility because it contains repetitive phrases, which is

important to someone learning a new language and a great quality to have in a read aloud.

Additionally, the story contains mathematical components, which is constant in any language.

The story is culturally accessible as it is an Indian Folktale, which students may have been

previously exposed to.

India
By: Justine Fontes
Leveled Reader
India is a nonfiction leveled reading book that details the geography, history, and culture

of India. The book has a guided reading level P, and targets grades 3-5. Information about the

topic is organized by topic and includes photographs, maps, and timelines. This would be a

useful book for guided reading, as it is well written and uses simple, direct phrases, increasing its

language accessibility to English learners. The book is culturally accessible for students of Indian

descent, as its content includes a discussion country and culture. This provides students learning

English with a sense of familiarity when reading the text, further enabling them to activate prior

knowledge in an effort to augment their understanding of the new language.

 India
By: Sunita Apte
Leveled Reader
India by Sunita Apte is a non-fiction leveled reader that provides a brief overview

of India. It discusses the subjects such as culture and the economy. The book is a guided reading

level R. This would be a great book to have for an English Language Learner as its content is

relevant and may spark a connection. Since the content may be familiar to the English learning

student, comprehension can quickly follow. The text uses simple and direct phrases, making it

language accessible. Additionally, the text provides plenty of photographs, which makes it

visually accessible to readings as this aids in understanding the content.

India
By: Michael Dahl
SOL Support
Michael Dahl’s India is a non-fiction book that describes the history, landscape, people,

animals, and culture of India. The book has a third to fifth grade readability level. This book is

perfect for SOL support, as using it for English Language Learners targets SOL 5.6, which states

that “students will demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts”. Comprehension of this text

can be enhanced by fostering student understanding of text organization, such as headings and

graphics. Students can also use prior knowledge of the subject to foster understanding and new

learning. They may learn how to locate information in this non-fiction text, and identify the main

idea and supporting details. The applicable components of this standard are listed below.

5.6 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts.
a) Use text organizers, such as type, headings, and graphics, to predict and categorize
information in both print and digital texts.
b) Use prior knowledge and build additional background knowledge as context for new learning.
c) Skim materials to develop a general overview of content and to locate specific information.
d) Identify the main idea of nonfiction texts.
e) Summarize supporting details in nonfiction texts
India: Countries of the World
Professional Development
Countries of the World series are wonderful resources for teachers looking to find

extensive information on various countries and cultures. The book that details information about

India includes an overview of topics such as geography, history, government, economy, people

and lifestyle, language and literature, arts, leisure and festivals, and food. It also gives a deeper

look these subjects, which includes land marks, religions, dynasties. Information found in this

book would be a useful for teachers with English Language Learner students from India, as it

provides a substantial understanding of cultural background. This may help teachers to become

privy in subjects that matter to their students, thus creating a connection. Such a connection is

vital in understanding student needs and breaking down any cultural barrier that may prevent the

occurrence of learning.