Source: Nature: "Christmas in Yellowstone"
Funding for the VITAL/Ready to Teach collection was secured through the United States Department of Education under the Ready to Teach Program.
In this narrative adapted from Nature: Christmas in Yellowstone, a young otter has injured one of his front feet. He is struggling along the frozen banks of the Yellowstone River. He calls for his family but they aren’t in sight. Finally, his family swims down the river towards him. A happy reunion ensues but then they leave him again to hunt for fish. He cries as they swim away, and then he mistakenly swims in the opposite direction. Near a water fall, he stops. His family is nowhere in sight, but he does catch a fish. A coyote looks on hungrily, anxious to scare the otter and steal his meal.
Download and ShareThe following Frame, Focus and Follow-up suggestions are best suited for middle school students using this video in an English language arts lesson. Be sure to modify the questions to meet your students' instructional needs.
What is Frame, Focus and Follow-up?
Frame (ELA) What does it mean to make a prediction?
Focus (ELA) As you watch the video, predict what will happen next to the young otter.
Follow Up (ELA) What do you think became of the young otter? Does the coyote attack him? Does he get reunited with his family?
NARRATOR: An otter family appears to have found a lost youngster, whose frantic calls carry up and down the river.
NARRATOR: Somehow, he’s been injured and is favoring his left front foot.
NARRATOR: Finally, he gets the attention he’s been crying for.
NARRATOR: The family soon heads off again, but the youngster doesn’t follow.
NARRATOR: They need to find fish …
NARRATOR: and maybe he just can’t keep up.
NARRATOR: When he finally enters the river, he heads in the wrong direction, swimming farther and farther from his family.
NARRATOR: In the shadow of the falls, a lone otter is finishing a fish.
NARRATOR: It’s the injured youngster still nursing his foot. He calls … but no one answers. His family is no where in sight.
NARRATOR: Another small figure has been watching. A coyote has a slim chance of actually taking an otter. His best hope is to scare one into dropping a fish. At this time of year, his finest meals come from someone else’s table.
NARRATOR: No otter, no fish. The coyote must move on.
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