Table of Contents

Prologue: A Song of Greatness Chippewa Song 4

Creating Context: Boy, Do We Ever Need a Hero Concept Vocabulary 9

Cluster 1 What Are Some Types of Heroes?: Thinking Skill Classifying 13

Older Run Gary Paulsen autobiography 14

The Man in the Water Roger Rosenblatt editorial essay 22

The Hero's Test Alisoun Witting Greek myth 26

Birdfoot's Grampa Joseph Bruchac Poem 33

The Teacher Who Changed My Life Nicholas Gage memoir 34

Flying in the Face of the Führer Phil Taylor article 39

Responding to Cluster One Writing Activity Sketch a Hero 42

Cluster 2 What Makes A Hero?: Thinking Skill Analyzing 43

Tough Alice Jane Yolen short story 44

Excerpt from Great Plains Ian Frazier essay 54

The Letter "A" from My Left Foot Christy Brown autobiography 56

Those Winter Sundays Robert Hayden poem 63

Sir Bors Fights for a Lady Rosemary Sutcliff Arthurian legend 64

Elizabeth Blackwell: Medical Pioneer Joanna Halpert Kraus drama 72

Responding to Cluster Two Writing Activity Short and Sweet 88

Cluster 3 Hero or Not?: Thinking skill Evaluating 89

Hero's Return Kristin Hunter Shott Story 90

A Couple of Really Neat Guys Dave Barry satire 100

Time for a Hero Brian M. Thomsen short story 104

The Unknown Hero Rebecca Christian essay 114

Responding to Cluster Three Writing Activity Choose a Star 116

Cluster 4 Thinking on Your Own: Thinking Skill Synthesizing 117

Hamish Mactavish Is Eating a Bus Gordon Kormam short story 118

Who's the Greatest of All? Daniel Okrent article 130

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. David Dinions Eulogy 132

Visible Ink Nikki Giovanni poem 134

The Woodcutter's Story Nancy Schimmel Fairy tale 136

Responding to Cluster Four 142

Close Reading 143

Using Textual Evidence 150

Comparing Texts 152

Author Biographies 155