The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush by Tomie dePaola

The story follows a young Native American boy, named Little Gopher, who has a talent of painting instead of the typical warrior skills that other young boys have. 'The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush' by Tomie dePaola is a piece of Native American culture that tells the story of how the flower, the Indian Paintbrush, came into existence based on the folklore and stories of the Native American people.

This activity would help the student dig in to the literal words of the text. The students would then be told to convey through picture what the story was about. The second extension I would do Is after we read the book out loud as a class I would have the students get the art paper and either color pencils, crayons, or paint. Then I would have the students work as a group paring up writing down what they 'saw' while listening to the books text. The two extensions I would do with this book would be to first have the students close their eyes as I read the book. This book is a nice book that brings to mind how beautiful our world is and with hard work we will be able to reach our dreams. He always wanted to capture the sunset but he never could.The boy one day fullfills his dreams of capturing the sunset. This dream told the boy that he would one day become a painter. The old Indian tale is that many years ago when people traveled the plains of the county a young Indian boy had a dream/ vision. This tells how the beautiful plant gets its name.

Waving their reds, oranges, and yellows of the Indian Painbrush. The meadows and the hills in Texas and Wyoming are in full color. 'The Legend of the Indian Painbrush' by Tomie dePaola is set in spring.

The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush by Tomie dePaola