DIVISION OF GEN.

TRIAS CITY
Project ISuLAT – ACTIVITY SHEETS in ENGLISH 8
(Intensified Support to Learning Alternatives Through Activity Sheets)

Name: _______________________________________ Grade & Section: ______________

ACTIVITY SHEET#4: Analyzing Literature

GEAR UP
MELC: Analyze literature as a mirror to a shared heritage of people with diverse backgrounds

After the learners have finished answering this activity sheet, they will be able to:
1. define literature, heritage and divers background;
2. explain how literature mirrors a shared heritage of people with diverse backgrounds; and
3. analyze literature to identify the shared heritage of people with diverse backgrounds.

ENGAGE
Analyzing Literature
What is Literature?
LITERATURE is a collective word that refers to the written works produced in a particular language, country,
or age in prose or verse having excellent form or expressing ideas that are of permanent or universal interest.
Examples of written works of literature include short stories, essays, novels, plays, and poems.

What is Shared Heritage?

Heritage is a property, something that is inherited, passed down from previous generations. Cultural
heritage includes the sites, things, and practices a society regards as old, important, and worthy of conservation.
It is an expression of the ways of living developed by a community and passed on from generation to generation,
including customs, practices, places, objects, artistic expressions, and values. When we say shared heritage, it
implies a shared bond, a belonging to a community with similar culture, values, and traditions. It represents our
history and our identity, our bond to the past, to our present, and the future.

What is Diverse Background?

Diverse background means having a group of people that are very different from each other. They may
have different social and ethnic background, customs, beliefs, traditions, and culture. They may be living in one
place, but they have different cultural backgrounds.

How can literature mirror the shared heritage of diverse people?

Whenever we stand in front of a mirror, we see our reflection. This is the same for literature. Whenever we
read a piece of literary work, we see the reflection of the heritage of the group of people the author belongs to,
or the author is writing about – their culture, customs, traditions, beliefs. Literature, as an imitation of human
action, often presents a picture of what people think, say, and do in the society. It illuminates similarities and
differences in people around the world, which teaches readers about our unique situations and our common
humanity.
It is important to analyze how literature reflects the shared heritage of people with diverse background to: 1)
understand other people’s culture, customs, beliefs, and traditions which promotes cultural undestanding; 2) see
the differences between our culture and that of others in an accurate and sensitive manner; and 3) learn to
respect those differences.
*Please see sources in References

TEST
Directions: Read the sentences below. On the blank, write T if the statement is true and F if it is false.

______ 1. Literature mirrors the way people live in a society – how they speak and think.
______ 2. Having a shared heritage means the community has different cultural backgrounds.
______ 3. People with diverse background have similar customs, traditions, and values.
______ 4. By reading literature, we can understand the culture and beliefs of other people.
______ 5. Cultural sensitivity and respect is learned when reading literary pieces.
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 DIVISION OF GEN. TRIAS CITY
Project ISuLAT – ACTIVITY SHEETS in ENGLISH 8
(Intensified Support to Learning Alternatives Through Activity Sheets)

REINFORCE
Directions: Read the selection below and answer the questions that follow.
Weighing the Elephant
A Chinese Folktale
A long time ago, people who lived in China knew that a strange, amazing beast called an elephant lived in a faraway
land, but no one had ever seen one. One day, a ruler came to see the Emperor of China. He brought a gift, and that gift
was a real, live elephant!
The royal court was abuzz with excitement. Word quickly spread throughout the land about the enormous creatures.
The question on everyone’s lips is – how much could it weigh?
One day the Emperor said to his mandarins, “I want to know how much this amazing elephant weighs. Who can tell
me how to weigh it?”
“I can!” said the first mandarin, who used to be a merchant. “We will just put it on a scale.”
“Not likely,” said the Emperor. “There is no scale that could hold the weight of an elephant without breaking.”
“I can tell you!” said the second mandarin, who used to be a tailor. He said, “We will measure the elephant.”
“No,” said the Emperor with a sigh. “Even if you measured all the different parts of an elephant, you would still not
know how much it weighs.”
“I can tell you!” said the third mandarin, who used to be a baker. “We will cut up the elephant and cook it. Then we
will know.”
“We will surely NOT do that!” roared the Emperor. “Is there NO ONE who can tell me how to weigh the elephant?”
Then a small voice said, “I can.”
All eyes turned to the voice. It was the Emperor’s son!
“Very well,” said the Emperor with a smile. “Tell me how to weigh the elephant.”
Here is what the boy said. “You put the elephant in a big boat and take the boat out on the water. Draw a line on
the side of the boat where it meets the water, at the watermark. Then bring the boat back to shore and take the elephant
off the boat. Put rocks on the boat, one by one. When the boat sinks to the same watermark line it had when the elephant
was in it, bring the boat to shore again. Take out the rocks and weigh them, one by one. That is how you can tell how
much the elephant weighs!"
"Wonderful! Wonderful!" shouted everyone. And the fame of Emperor's son traveled far and wide. And the fame of
Emperor's son traveled far and wide.
A Chinese folk tale retold by Elaine Lindy. Retrieved from https://storiestogrowby.org/story/early-reader-weighing-elephant-english-stories-kids/

Questions:

1. To which country does the literature belong to?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

2. What word is used to name the head / ruler of China in the story?
_____________________________________________________________________________________

3. Based on how the Chinese ruler was called, what type of government do you think they have?
_____________________________________________________________________________________

4. How does a leader in China make a decision?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

5. Based on the selection, what kind of people are the Chinese?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

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 DIVISION OF GEN. TRIAS CITY
Project ISuLAT – ACTIVITY SHEETS in ENGLISH 8
(Intensified Support to Learning Alternatives Through Activity Sheets)

INTEGRATE
Directions: Compare the culture of China as reflected in the story with our own culture in the Philippines.
Write your answers in the table below. Then, answer the questions that follow.

Point of Comparison China Philippines

Ex. race yellow people brown people
The continent where the country is found

How the people are called

The ruler of the government

Kind of Government

Characteristics of the people

1. How is our culture like China’s?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

2. How is our culture different from China?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

3. What can we learn as Filipinos from the culture of China mirrored in the folktale above?
_____________________________________________________________________________________

ASSESS
Directions: Read each question carefully. Write the letter of you answer on the blank.

______ 1. What is collective word that refers to the written works produced in a particular language, country, or
age in prose or verse?
a. book b. encyclopedia c. literature d. novel

______ 2. Which is NOT an example of a literature?

a. essays b. paintings c. poems d. short stories

______ 3. What shared heritage do the literature from Japan and Korea have?
a. The people in the two countries share the same style of clothing.
b. Both countries are found in Asia and have similar food cultures.
c. Korea was once part of Japan, according to history.
d. There is no shared heritage between the countries.

______ 4. How does literature help us see the shared heritage of people with diverse background?
a. Literature uses beautiful language that keeps us entertained.
b. Literature talks about the ills of the society and how different people are.
c. Literature shows us the similarities and differences of people around the world.
d. Literature does not help us see the shared heritage of people with diverse background.

______ 5. Why do we need to study the shared heritage of people with diverse background through literature?
a. It helps us understand the culture of other people.
b. It helps us become sensitive to the differences in culture.
c. It helps us respect cultural differences of different people.
d. All of the above

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 DIVISION OF GEN. TRIAS CITY
Project ISuLAT – ACTIVITY SHEETS in ENGLISH 8
(Intensified Support to Learning Alternatives Through Activity Sheets)

SHARPEN
Directions: Read and analyze the short story below. Identify the culture shown and its shared heritage by
answering the questions that follow.

The Lantern – A Ramadan Story

Once upon a time there was a young prince who lived alone with his father, the caliph, after his mother died.
The caliph married again but his new wife was often unkind to the prince. The caliph did not care much and this made
the young prince very unhappy.
On the 15th day of the month of Sha’aban, the son said to his pet pigeon, “Let us not stay here anymore.
Let us run away because nobody here cares about us.” So, they both ran away into the jungle.
After a long time, they came to a grand palace which belonged to a lonely ghoul. “This is the awful ghoul’s palace,” said
the prince, “but we are very hungry and cold and he might be asleep. Let us sneak in and rest till the morning.” But the ghoul
was not asleep. He was watching them.
The prince found a bed and fell asleep. When he woke up, he was surrounded by golden prison bars: he was in a jail!
The ghoul said, “I know all about your evil step-mother. Your father does not love you. I’m lonely, so I’ll keep you here as my
pet!”
The little prince pleaded with the ghoul to set him free. Finally, the ghoul growled, “I’ll send your pigeon home.
If the caliph misses you, he will follow the pigeon back here and save you. If not, you’ll spend the rest of your
life here!” The pigeon raced to the caliph’s palace.
Since his son had run away, the caliph cried and prayed every night that he would see him before the holy month of
Ramadan. On the last night of Sha’aban, he felt that his son was close. He opened the window and found the pigeon sitting
on the ledge! He knew that he had to follow the pigeon, but it was really dark.
A princess, the caliph’s sister, suggested that everyone in the palace hold a candle and light the way for the grieving
father. In minutes, the news spread. Every man, woman and child held a candle and followed the caliph.
On their way the children sang songs to celebrate the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. The prince heard the
songs and saw the light from his prison window. He knew it was his father. The ghoul was touched by the whole scene. He
whispered, “I was mistaken. Your father deserves a second chance. Go back home.”
The young prince was reunited with his father. They returned to the caliph’s palace and fasted together on the first day
of Ramadan. To reward his loyal subjects, the caliph gave them gold lanterns to put outside their houses. Then he ordered
his ministers to light the streets and mosques with colorful lamps.
Since that day children have bought lanterns to mark the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.
The Lantern – A Ramadan Story. (2012). British Coouncl – LearnEnglish Kids. Retrieved from
http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/sites/kids/files/attachment/stories-the-lantern-a-ramadan-story-transcript-final-2012-07-15.pdf

A. Analysis
1. Group / Race / Nationality
a. To What specific group (religious, ethnic, etc.), race, nationality do the characters in the literary piece
belong to?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

b. Why do you say so? (Cite lines from the story to justify your answer)
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

2. Shared Heritage
a. What specific behavior that shows culture, tradition, custom, religious belief of the characters in the
story did the author mirror in his writings?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

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 DIVISION OF GEN. TRIAS CITY
Project ISuLAT – ACTIVITY SHEETS in ENGLISH 8
(Intensified Support to Learning Alternatives Through Activity Sheets)

b. Based on the literary piece, why did the characters behave this way?
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

B. Personal Reflection

1. Does the culture your own group of people have similarities with the culture of the characters as mirrored
in the story? In what way?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

2. Which behavior of the characters in the story can you relate to? Why?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

RUBRIC:
CRITERIA STANDARDS Points Score
Answers in every question are correct. 5
ACCURACY
Answers are clear and well-explained with evidence (lines from the story) cited. 10
All questions have answers. Great effort was very evident in the output. The work was neatly done, little to no
EFFORT
erasures, and has legible handwriting.
5

References:
Brumann, Christoph. (2015). Cultural Heritage. International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (Second Edition). Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/cultural-heritage
Culturally Diverse Literature. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://bbmedia.dmacc.edu/lit/105/MacKrell_Childrens_Lit/PowerPoints_for_Review/Ancillary%20Review%20Materials/Chap_1_Culturally%20Diverse%20Literature.pdf
HOW TO ANALYZE LITERATURE AS MIRROR TO SHARED HERITAGE OF PEOPLE WITH DIVERSE BACKGROUND (ENG 8 -Q3). (20 February 2021). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOOPm7701bo
International Encyclopedia of Human Geography - Second Edition. (2020). Cultural Heritage. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/cultural-heritage
Steiner, Stan F. (17 October 2016). Multicultural Literature: Reflecting Diversity in Literature for Youth. Retrieved from https://www.literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-now/2016/10/17/multicultural-literature-reflecting-diversity-in-
literature-for-youth
The Lantern – A Ramadan Story. (2012). British Coouncl – LearnEnglish Kids. Retrieved from http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/sites/kids/files/attachment/stories-the-lantern-a-ramadan-story-transcript-final-2012-07-
15.pdf
Weighing the Elephant. (2005). Learn to Read with English Stories for Kids - A Chinese folk tale retold by Elaine Lindy. Retrieved from https://storiestogrowby.org/story/early-reader-weighing-elephant-english-stories-kids

TEACHER’S FEEDBACK

SELF-MONITORING
Name of Learner: Week:
Grade & Section: Subject:

For Learners (Please complete the statements.)

The part of the activity sheet that I found very
difficult to answer …
The part of the activity sheet that I found very
easy to answer …

I still need help on …

For Parents / Guardians (Please check one in each column.)

My son / daughter was able to do all the exercises in
My son / daughter …
the activity sheets
on his / her own without any help was able to answer all exercises
was not able to finish answering some of the
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exercises
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activity sheet

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