The Boatman's Flute Get Ready HMH Plot, Point of View, & Themes

By Katherine Carlson

The Boatman's Flute & The Mouse Bride

We will read two stories which are folktales. We will answer questions about each story, find the themes for each story, and lastly we will use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the stories.

A folktale is a story told by a group of people from a single culture and usually passed on orally from one generation to the next. Most folktales include characters that try to thwart the actions or success of a good person.

Folktales often involve some form of magic in which things are not what they appear to be. The problem faced by the main character is overcome by an act of kindness, courage, or intelligence. Folktales exhibit basic story structure ​

​Folktales, Plot, Point of View, Theme, Vocabulary & Some Grammar: Get Ready The Boatman's Flute

Multiple Choice

What is a folktale?

• A folktale is a tale told exclusively by people named "Folk."

• Folktales are ancient recipes passed down through generations for making folk bread.

• A folktale is a type of story that is usually told by a group of people and handed down by word of mouth. There is usually one person trying to stop the main character. Many times there is magic.

• A folktale is a type of story where magic is not used and the main character does not have any problem with anyone and there is always a happy ending.

Folktales often have a “moral to the story” or a message about human nature to remind the listener or reader to look carefully within themselves for wisdom and avoid common errors that sometimes have devastating consequences. The Essential Question asks what hidden truths are revealed in stories, and “The Boatman’s Flute” explores this theme through mistakes made and regretted by its main characters.

​​Folktales

When an author writes any type of story including a folktale there is always a main theme. There can always be more than one them, but there is always one main theme.

A theme is the moral or message about a story. It is what the author believes about a topic or the main conflict in the story. We need to read the whole story to know what the theme is. Some common topics for themes are courage, death, bravery, love, etc. For example, after reading The Boatman's Flute, as your self what does the author believe about mistakes?

​​Theme

Multiple Select

Which are examples of a themes for the poem or movie, The Grinch? Choose two correct answers.

• Kindness and forgiveness can change your life

• The Grinch learned that Christmas doesn't come from the store and that it is so much more!

• You do not need material things to celebrate with your loved ones.

• It's fun to be mean!

• the Land of Small Dragon (paragraph 1): Vietnam

• ballads of old (paragraph 2): old stories that are sung

• dewy (paragraph 3): moist with water droplets condensed from the air

• dappled shade (paragraph 3): shade spotted with filtered sunlight

• knew . . . by heart (paragraph 10): memorized

• pour his heart and soul (paragraph 12): put all his energy and enthusiasm into

​​Critical Vocabulary

​When an author tells a story, they are not telling the story. It is either a character telling us the story or a narrator. Pronouns helps us understand who is telling us the story.
1st Person POV uses the pronouns me, we, I, our, and we know that a character in the story is telling us the story.
3rd POV uses the pronouns she, he, they, them, and the names of people this lets us know that a narrator is telling the story.

Point of View

Folktales just like any other story follows plot. Therefore, this means there will be conflict, characters, theme, and plot. Plot is the sequence or order of the story.

​​Plot

Multiple Select

Which are examples of 1st person point of view? Choose 2 correct answers.

• "Sarah walked into the classroom, her heart pounding with excitement. She had studied hard for the test and felt confident. As she took her seat, she glanced around and saw her friends giving her encouraging smiles."

• "I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the huge roller coaster. My heart was pounding as I got in line. I kept telling myself, 'You can do this,' even though I was really scared."

• "Dear Diary, today was the best day ever! I finally got to present my science project, and everyone loved it. I felt so proud when my teacher said I did a great job."

• "In the magical land of Eldoria, the young wizard, Liam, discovered a mysterious book in the ancient library. The book glowed with a strange light, and as Liam opened it, he realized it held the secrets to powerful spells that could save his village."

Multiple Select

Which are examples of 3rd person point of view? Choose 2 correct answers.

• "When Emily moved to a new town, she felt lonely and out of place. But over time, she made new friends and found her passion for painting. Emily learned that change, though difficult, could lead to wonderful new opportunities."

• "When I first moved to this new town, I was nervous about making friends. But now, I realize that change can be a good thing. I've met so many amazing people and learned a lot about myself."

• "Tom and his friends stood at the edge of the forest, staring into the dark, dense trees. They knew the treasure was hidden somewhere inside, but the path was filled with dangers. With a deep breath, Tom led the way, determined to find the hidden gold."

• "As I stepped into the dark cave, I could hear the sound of dripping water echoing around me. I held my flashlight tightly, hoping it wouldn't go out. I had to find the hidden treasure before anyone else did."

Drag and Drop

What does plot mean?​

Placeholder

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

The sequence or order of events in a story.

A type of character in a story

The setting of a story

The moral lesson of a story

Draw

Label the parts of plot by writing with your finger the correct answer at the correct part of plot:

initiating event, resolution, rising action, exposition, climax, falling action