teacher’s vol. 22 no. 4 issn 1068-0292 guide...• what facts do you learn in the first paragraph...

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Teacher’s Guide

Dear teachers,If you’ve been reading Storyworks for a while, you probably

know that I’m a bit obsessed with natural disasters. I’ve written about hurricanes and tornadoes, volcanoes and tsunamis, earthquakes and dust storms.

So you can imagine my surprise when I discovered that there was a disaster I had never heard of—the Great Peshtigo Fire. The deadliest fire in U.S. history happened the exact same night as the Great Chicago Fire: October 8, 1871. As many as 2,500 people died in the Peshtigo blaze, and more than 1 billion trees were destroyed across an area the size of Rhode Island. Yet, like so many episodes in history, the story of the Peshtigo Fire has not been widely told—which made it a perfect topic for this month’s nonfiction article in Storyworks.

I am betting that you and your students will be fascinated by it. Plus, our Storyworks team has created a stupendous learning package to support the article. I can’t wait to hear what you think.

Say hi to all of your students from us!

[email protected]

January 2015 • A Complete Teaching Kit

From left: student Lyric Darling, librarian Sally Riggs, Lauren, Vanessa Goodknight

Remembering MLKCelebrate Martin Luther

King Jr.’s birthday in your classroom with our

inspiring read-aloud play, The Day Mrs.

Parks Was Arrested.

A Storyworks Reunion!

Of all the stories I’ve written, one of my

favorites is from 2012: “Out of the Tornado,”

about a school in Henryville, Indiana, that was destroyed by an F4 tornado. In November, I returned to Henryville to visit with the people I

wrote about. What a day!

J

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S T O R Y W O R K SS T O R Y W O R K ST2

Nonfiction, pp. 4-9

The Blood-Red NightThe harrowing story of America’s deadliest fire ever

Step-by-Step Lesson PlanClose Reading, Critical Thinking, and Skill Building

the activity after reading.• Highlighted words: marsh, sawmill, brush, parched, abandon, smoldering, inferno, flammable, charred

Set a Purpose for Reading (2 minutes) • Give students a few minutes to preview text features. Ask: What impression do the photo and headline on pages 4 and 5 create?• Select a volunteer to read aloud the Up Close box on page 4.

2. Close ReadingFirst Read: Get to Know the Text (20 minutes)

• Have students read the article in small groups.

1Lesson

1. Preparing to Read Watch a Video (10 minutes, activity sheet online)

• Project or distribute the video discussion questions and preview them with students.• Show our “Behind the Scenes” video, in which author Lauren Tarshis introduces the article and discusses how she wrote it. • Have students work in pairs to answer the questions. Review them briefly as a class.

Vocabulary (10 minutes, activity sheet online)

• Distribute the vocabulary activity. As a class, preview the words and definitions on page 1 of the activity. Ask students to identify all the words related to fire. Students should complete page 2 of

ÇFeatured Skill:

Main Idea and Supporting

Details

• Preview: Though few people have heard of it, the Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871 is one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history. This gripping article explores the factors that contributed to the devastating fire.

• Learning Objective: Students will identify details to support a main idea.

• Content-Area Connections: Social studies: U.S. history, migration; Science: natural disasters, weather

• Other Key Skills: vocabulary, close reading, mood, text evidence, cause and effect, author’s purpose, author’s craft, informational writing

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Second Read: Unpack the Text (30 minutes)

• Before the second read, ask the class, “What is the main idea of the article?” Together, come to a consensus. Answers should be similar to: A horrible but forgotten fire destroyed Peshtigo, Wisconsin, and a vast area around it in 1871. Then have groups read the article again, this time answering the close-reading questions. Assign the critical-thinking questions for homework.

Close-Reading Questions

(activity sheet online)

• What facts do you learn in the first paragraph of the article? What mood, or feeling, do these facts create? (supporting details/mood) You learn that on the night of October 8, 1871, the town of Peshtigo burned to the ground and as many as 2,500 people died. It was the deadliest fire in American history. Students might say these facts create feelings of shock, horror, dread, or sadness.

• What was special about Wisconsin in the 1860s? Which lines support your answer? (text evidence) Wisconsin was covered with trees. The article says there were “billions and billions of trees.” The forest was “like no other on Earth.” The article also quotes Laura Ingalls Wilder describing “The great dark trees . . . and beyond them were other trees, and beyond them were more trees.”

• Reread the section “Chop, Chop, Chop.” How did Chicago’s fast growth affect Peshtigo? (cause and effect) Chicago needed a huge amount of wood for the construction of its many buildings. The vast forest surrounding Peshtigo was a great source of wood, so lumber companies set up large operations in the region.

• Why did people around Peshtigo set fires intentionally? What natural conditions made fires likely in 1871? (supporting details) Lumberjacks set fires to burn the branches they cut off trees, and farmers set fires to clear their land. Not much rain fell in the Midwest in 1871, so the area was dry and fires could start more easily.

• How did the fire that started on October 8 grow and change? (supporting details) The fire started as many small fires; no rain fell to put them out, and strong winds made them grow. The small fires eventually joined together into a large fire, which then turned into an extremely hot and violent firestorm that exploded out of the forest.

• What were the effects of the Great Peshtigo Fire? (cause and effect) Peshtigo and 16 other towns burned down; more than a billion trees were destroyed; an area twice the size of Rhode Island burned to ash; between 1,000 and 2,500 people died.

• The Peshtigo Fire and the Great Chicago Fire happened on the same night. Was this simply by chance? Explain. (cause and effect) No, it was not by chance. The same strong winds and dry weather that caused the Peshtigo Fire also caused the Chicago Fire.

Critical-Thinking Questions (activity sheet online)

• Why do you think the author wrote this article? (author’s purpose) She likely wanted to inform readers about a disaster that many people have forgotten. Remembering the tragedy teaches us about our history and honors the memory of the people who suffered and died.

• The author tells the events of the Peshtigo Fire through the story of a real family. Why do you think she includes the Kramers’ story? (author’s craft) Knowing the story of real people helps readers understand what it was like to live through the fire. The Kramers’ story makes the article more interesting.

3. Skill BuildingFeatured Skill: Main Idea and Supporting Details

• Distribute our activity sheet on main idea and supporting details to help students respond to the writing prompt on page 9.

Turn the page for differentiation and more!6

Online ResourcesVideo: “Behind the Scenes: The Blood-Red Night”

Differentiation: Lower-Lexile version of this article; audio recordings of on-level and lower-Lexile articles

Activities to print or project • Video Discussion Questions • Vocabulary• Close-Reading and Critical-

Thinking Questions• Core Skills Workout: Main Idea

and Supporting Details, Text Features, Summarizing, Text Evidence, Text Structures

• Comprehension Quiz—Now on two levels!

storyworks.scholastic.com

S T O R Y W O R K ST4

Complexity Factors See how this story will challenge

your students.

Purpose: “The Blood-Red Night” describes the deadliest fire in U.S. history, which took place in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, in 1871. “The Great Chicago Fire” explains why the Peshtigo fire is not well known.Structure: “The Blood-Red Night” is nonlinear and includes narrative and informational passages. The sidebar includes cause/effect and compare/contrast structures.Language: “The Blood-Red Night” contains challenging vocabulary having to do with fire, such as smoldering and charred, as well as metaphors and similes. Knowledge Demands: Familiarity with the geography of the American Midwest will aid comprehension. Lexile Level: 940LGuided Reading Level: S DRA Level: 40

Common Core State StandardsThis article and lesson support the following College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.4, R.7, R.9, R.10, W.2, W.10, SL.1, SL.2, L.6Go online to find specific grade-level correlations for grades 3 through 6.

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Differentiation

bb For Advanced Readers

Ask students to write a short essay comparing and contrasting the Peshtigo and Chicago Fires. It

should include what happened at the time of the disasters and how

history has remembered them.

For Struggling Readers

Have students design a bullet-pointed fact sheet that could be

distributed at a history fair to inform visitors about the Great

Peshtigo Fire.

Extension activity: Have students propose ways to commemorate the Peshtigo Fire: a statue, a ceremony, etc. Ask them to explain their choice.

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Paired Texts, pp. 10-13

Hamburger History/ Tacos Take Over

The fascinating stories of two American favorites


know or can figure out from context.• Review the words as a class, giving students a chance to fill in definitions they did not know. • Highlighted words: immigrated, native, reputation, wholesomeness, ecstasy, cumin, concocted, piquant

2. Close ReadingRead and Unpack the Text (30 minutes)

• Have students read “Hamburger History” independently, then answer the close-reading questions in small groups. Next, they should do the same for “Tacos Take Over.” • Ask groups to answer the critical-thinking questions, or assign them as homework.

2Lesson

1. Preparing to Read Set a Purpose for Reading (5 minutes)

• Have students open their magazines to the articles and take a minute to look over them. Ask: What do you notice that is similar about these articles? (They’re both about the history of a popular food.) • Have a volunteer read aloud the Up Close box on page 10.

Preview vocabulary (15 minutes, activity sheet online)

• Distribute the vocabulary activity and have students find the vocabulary words in the articles. They should read the sentences in which they find the words and write definitions for those they

ÇFeatured Skill:

Compare and

Contrast

• Preview: Students will find many parallels as they “dig in” to these fun articles about the history of the hamburger and the rise of the taco.

• Learning Objective: Students will compare and contrast how the hamburger and the taco became popular in the United States.

• Content-Area Connections: Social studies: immigration, geography

• Other Key Skills: vocabulary, close reading, author’s craft, inference, problem and solution, drawing conclusions, supporting details, synthesizing, applying ideas, explanatory writing

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“Hamburger History” Close-Reading Questions


• Why do you think the article opens with stories of three different people who claim credit for inventing the hamburger? (author’s craft) These accounts make you ask yourself where the hamburger actually came from. The rest of the article then answers this question.

• Reread the section “Cheap Ground Beef.” Who first ate hamburgers in the United States? What does this tell you about how people often choose their food? (inference) German immigrants in the 1800s were the first to eat hamburgers. This suggests that people often like to eat food that is familiar to them; ground-beef burgers were similar to sausages and other meats the Germans had eaten in their home country.

• Why did most Americans avoid ground beef? How did Walt Anderson get them to eat it? (problem and solution) Most Americans avoided ground beef because it often contained spoiled meat and unappetizing scraps. Walt Anderson let customers watch his cooks grind fresh meat in a clean kitchen, convincing them that his burgers were safe.

• What can you conclude about how White Castle influenced Americans? (drawing conclusions) You can conclude that White Castle convinced many Americans to eat hamburgers. By the 1950s, 30 years after the first White Castle opened, hamburgers were the most popular food in the country.

“Tacos Take Over” Close-Reading Questions


• What is similar about the Mexican immigrants in the section “A Taste of Home” and the German immigrants in “Hamburger History”?

What is similar about the way others reacted to their food? (compare and contrast) Mexican and German immigrants both enjoyed eating traditional foods from their home countries. Other people avoided the unfamiliar food at first, fearing they would not like it or that it would make them sick.

• What problem did Glen Bell encounter in trying to make tacos to sell? How did he solve it? (problem and solution) He wanted to produce tacos quickly, but the shells would become soggy if they were prepared in advance. He experimented at home until he found a way to keep the shells crisp.

• How did Bell make tacos appealing to non-Hispanic customers? (supporting details) He made

the tacos milder, with a less-spicy sauce, and made his restaurant seem like a modern fast-food place.


• Based on these two articles, what can you conclude about how foods often become popular?

(synthesizing) Foods often become popular when people find them familiar. Hamburgers and tacos were first eaten by people who brought the recipes from their homelands. Walt Anderson and Glen Bell figured out how to “Americanize” the recipes. Once people got to know these foods, they loved them.

• Over the years, immigrants have brought to America most of the foods we eat. What are some other examples of popular dishes that came from abroad? (applying ideas) Answers will vary but may include pizza from Italy, spring rolls from China, and sushi from Japan.

3. Skill BuildingFeatured Skill:

Compare and Contrast• Print and distribute our compare-and-contrast activity sheet. It will help students prepare to respond to the writing prompt on page 13.

S T O R Y W O R K SS T O R Y W O R K ST6

ÉConnect to Social Studies!Have students

mark on a world map

where popular foods came

from.

Online Resources

Differentiation: Lower-Lexile version of this article; audio recordings of on-level and lower-Lexile articles

Activities to print or project: • Vocabulary• Close-Reading and Critical-

Thinking Questions• Core Skills Workout:

Compare and Contrast, Summarizing, Making Inferences

• Comprehension Quiz—Now on two levels!



your students.Purpose: These articles recount the histories of two popular foods. By reading them together, students will be able to identify many parallels in their histories.Structure: “Hamburger History” is nonlinear and includes cause/effect and compare/contrast structures. “Tacos Take Over” is chronological.Language: Both texts contain rhetorical questions and some challenging academic and domain-specific vocabulary, such as wholesomeness and concocted. Knowledge Demands: Familiarity with immigration in the U.S. will enhance understanding of the texts.Lexile Level: 1020LGuided Reading Level: S DRA Level: 40

Common Core State StandardsThis article and lesson support the following College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.9, R.10, W.2, W.10, SL.1, L.4, L.6Go online to find specific grade-level correlations for grades 3 through 6.

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Differentiation


Have students research where today’s largest immigrant populations come from. Based on what they learn and

on what they read in these articles, ask them to predict what the next big trend

in fast food will be.


Put students in pairs and ask each partner to write a summary of

one of the articles. They should then exchange papers to read and

suggest improvements to their partner’s summary.

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Play, pp. 14-19

The Day Mrs. Parks Was Arrested

The inspiring story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott


activity sheet to introduce vocabulary.• Highlighted terms: equality, boycott, segregation, civil rights, unconstitutional

2. Reading the Play• Look at the character box together. Point out to students that four of the characters were real people: Rosa Parks, James Blake, Policeman, and Dr. King. Their lines are based mainly on words they actually spoke.• Assign parts and read the play aloud as a class.After reading, ask students to answer the close-reading and critical-thinking questions in groups, or discuss them as a class.

3Lesson


• Invite students to open their magazines to the play. Call on a volunteer to read aloud the Up Close box on page 15. • Ask: Who is the brave woman mentioned in the Up Close? What do you think the fight for fairness was about? Let students share what they know about Rosa Parks.

Domain-Specific Vocabulary (5 minutes, activity sheet online)

• The highlighted vocabulary in this play has to do with civil rights. Project or distribute our

ÇFeatured Skill:

Cause and Effect

• Preview: The historic events that led to the end of segregation on public buses are seen in this play through the eyes of a 10-year-old girl.

• Learning Objective: Students will analyze the cause-and-effect relationship between Rosa Parks’s actions and the important events that followed.

• Content-Area Connections: Social studies: civil rights movement

• Other Key Skills: domain-specific vocabulary, fluency, close reading, key detail, character, compare and contrast, inference, analyzing, explanatory writing

changes her mind and agrees to boycott.

• What was the result of the Montgomery bus boycott? (cause and effect) The result was that the Supreme Court declared the segregation rules on Montgomery’s buses unconstitutional. The buses had to have the same seating rules for everyone.

Critical-Thinking Questions(activity sheet online)

• What role does Rosa Parks play in changing the laws on Montgomery’s buses? (analyzing) Rosa Parks provides the spark that inspires others to act along with her. In response to her arrest, people boycott first for one day, and then, under Dr. King’s leadership, they boycott for a year until segregation ends on Montgomery’s buses.

• Why was it important for everyone to participate in the boycott? (inference) It was important to make an impact on the bus companies.

Most passengers were black, so when the bus companies lost their business, they lost a lot of money. Also, the large participation was a show of strength. It sent a strong message that African-Americans would no long tolerate unfair treatment.

• Why do you think Rosa Parks is still an inspirational figure today?

(inference) Answers will vary. Students might say that she showed the power of one person to start making a change, or that she courageously took a risk to do what was right.

3. Skill BuildingFeatured Skill: Cause and

Effect• This play shows how one action can start a series of events, leading to great change. Distribute our cause-and-effect activity to help students understand how change happens in this play.

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Close-Reading Questions(activity sheet online)

• Why is Rosa Parks arrested in Scene 1? (key detail) She is arrested because she refuses to stand and give her seat to a white man. At the time, the law required African-Americans to sit in the back of the bus, or, if they sat in middle rows, to give their seats to any white passengers who were standing.

• Why do you think Mrs. Parks does not stand up, even though she knows she could be arrested? What does this tell you about her? (character) She does not stand up because she is tired of being treated unfairly. She is willing to be arrested to protest this treatment. This tells you that she is brave; she takes a risk to fight for justice.

• In Scene 2, how do Aunt Abigail’s and Mrs. Joseph’s responses to Mrs. Parks’s actions differ? (compare and contrast) Aunt Abigail supports Mrs. Parks’s actions because she thinks they will lead to fairer laws that require black people and white people to be treated the same. Mrs. Joseph fears that the actions will stir up trouble for blacks.

• What does Reverend Allen ask people at church to do? How has Rosa Parks influenced them? (cause and effect) Reverend Allen asks people to stay off the buses the following day to show they are unhappy with the segregated-seating rules. Everyone shouts “Amen!” and Mr. Joseph says he will walk seven miles to work. Rosa Parks has inspired them to demand fair treatment on the buses.

• How many people come to the Holt Street Baptist Church? What can you conclude from this? (inference) Five thousand people come. You can conclude that black people were fed up with the segregation laws and eager to make a change.

• What does Dr. King ask people to do? What effect does his speech have on the crowd? (cause and effect) He asks people to boycott the buses until the bus companies change their rules. His speech inspires the crowd to participate in the boycott, to “fight—peacefully—for equality.” Even Mrs. Joseph M

INH

UONG Turn the page for

differentiation and more!6

ÉBackground:Dr. Martin

Luther King Jr. first came to national prominence during

the Montgomery bus boycott.


Online Resources

Activities to print or project: • Domain-Specific

Vocabulary• Close-Reading and

Critical-Thinking Questions

• Cause and Effect• Comprehension Quiz—

Now on two levels!



your students.Levels of Meaning: The play depicts the early days of the Montgomery bus boycott. It introduces information about the civil rights movements. Structure: The play is chronological. “Historian” characters read past-tense lines that offer additional information. Language: The play includes some higher-level domain-specific vocabulary, such as boycott and unconstitutional. Knowledge Demands: Prior knowledge of the civil rights movement will aid comprehension.Guided Reading Level: T DRA Level: 50

Common Core State StandardsThis article and lesson support the following College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards: R.1, R.3, R.10, W.2, SL.1, SL.2, L.4, L.6Go online to find specific grade-level correlations for grades 3 through 6.

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Differentiation


Have students work in groups to write and videotape a TV news report for

December 21, 1956, the day the boycott ended. It should include background information about how the boycott started, what happened, and what

was achieved.


Ask students to write a paragraph explaining how

Mrs. Joseph changes from the beginning of the play to

the end.

More resources! Find a trove of resources for teaching about Rosa Parks at teacher.scholastic .com/rosa.

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Fiction, pp. 20-24

Lemonade: The Musical

Michael prefers to work alone—until a wise teacher shows him otherwise


• The words on the activity sheet are lanky, catapults, extravaganza, epic, and glower.

2. Close ReadingFirst Read: Get to Know the Text (20 minutes)

• Have students read the story through one time to generally understand what happens.

Second Read: Unpack the Text (30 minutes)

• The questions in the margins serve as the close-reading questions for this story.• Have students discuss the questions in groups and answer them on their own paper. Answers are on the next page. • Next, have groups answer the critical-thinking questions, or assign them as homework.

4Lesson

1. Preparing to Read Preview text and questions (5 minutes)

• Have students look through the pages of the story, or project it for the class.• Ask a volunteer to read aloud the Up Close box on page 21.• Have students preview the questions in the story’s margins. Remind them that they will answer the questions the second time they read the story.

Vocabulary (5 minutes, activity sheet online) • Project or distribute our vocabulary activity, which introduces five challenging words students will encounter in the story. Students will also have an opportunity to pick out and define words that are unfamiliar to them.

ÇFeatured Skill:

Character

• Preview: This whimsical story about a zany drama club production will delight your students—and get them thinking about the power of teamwork! Use our close-reading questions on the story’s pages to enhance your students’ fiction-reading skills.

• Learning Objective: Students will identify what the main character learns.

• Other Key Skills: author’s craft, literary devices, plot, character’s motivation, author’s craft, inference, compare and contrast, tone, theme, explanatory writing

excited about working with others. She is happy to be part of the stage crew and says, “We make magic happen.” Michael, on the other hand, has a sour attitude about collaborating. Shelly teaches Michael the importance of working together.

• Character (p. 24) By the end, Michael realizes that with everyone’s ideas and efforts, the play has become much better than what he could have come up with by himself.


• What is the tone of the story? Why do you think the author uses this tone? (tone/author’s craft) The tone of the story is humorous. The author likely uses this tone to entertain readers and to hold their attention. The jokes allow the author to write

about an important idea—teamwork—in an appealing way.

• What is the theme of “Lemonade: The Musical”? (theme) The theme of this story is that

when you work together, you can create something better than you would on your own.

3. Skill BuildingFeatured Skill:

Character• Print and distribute our character activity sheet, which will prepare students for the writing prompt on page 24.


Answers to Close-Reading Questions• Author’s craft (p. 21) The author starts the story this way to grab your attention. The intriguing first paragraph makes you want to read on to discover why Mr. Shaun rolls a lemon onto his desk and what is about to begin.

• Literary device (p. 21) This flashback tells you why Michael joined the Drama Club.

• Character (p. 21) You learn that Michael likes to work alone. He is not the type of person who likes to play on a team or work with a group.

• Plot (p. 22) Answers include: Michael’s classmates have so many ideas about the play that Michael struggles to keep up; Michael is put on stage crew against his wishes; Michael doesn’t know how to build a robot by himself.

• Inference (p. 22) Michael feels like the story is out of control because his classmates keep shouting out their ideas. He wants to be the only writer of the story, and he feels frustrated that he can’t control where the story is going.

• Character’s motivation (p. 23) As the teacher, Mr. Shaun needs to make sure that all his students feel involved in creating the play. Also, Mr. Shaun probably senses that Michael wants to be in charge of the story, and is trying to encourage Michael to be part of a team effort.

• Author’s craft (p. 23) This paragraph is capitalized to illustrate Gabrielle’s loud voice. It is a humorous way to show that she is screaming.

• Inference (p. 23) You can infer that Michael has a poor attitude. Instead of feeling excited by what he could learn on stage crew, Michael is upset that he has to work on a part of the play he wasn’t expecting to work on.

• Compare and contrast (p. 24) Shelly is genuinely

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ÁA word from the author!Paul Acampora tells us, “I write stories about things I love. I love musicals and theater and school . . . and lemonade!

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Online Resources

Activities to print or project: • Vocabulary• Critical-Thinking

Questions• Character• Comprehension Quiz—

Now on two levels!



your students.Levels of Meaning: “Lemonade: The Musical” is a sweet and entertaining story. On another level, it encourages readers to reflect on the value of teamwork. Structure: The story is mainly chronological with one flashback. It is told in the present tense and from the first-person point of view. Language: The text includes some higher-level academic vocabulary (such as misadventures and glower), as well as examples of metaphor, simile, and hyperbole. Knowledge Demands: Experience with theatrical productions will aid comprehension. Lexile Level: 650LGuided Reading Level: T DRA Level: 50

Common Core State StandardsThis article and lesson support the following College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.6, R.10, W.2, SL.1, L.4, L.5, L.6Go online to find specific grade-level correlations for grades 3 through 6.

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Differentiation


Have students write an essay evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of

working alone. They can use evidence from this story and their own experiences

in their evaluations.


Ask students to imagine they’re Michael. Have them write a letter

to Mr. Shaun explaining what Michael has learned and how he will use this lesson in the next Oakwood Drama Club show.

Discussion starter: Use this story to talk about why teachers sometimes assign group projects. This could be a great way to talk about the benefits of working as part of a team!

¾


Poetry, p. 25

Words Free As Confetti

An exuberant poem shows the joy words can bring us


words can evoke. They show that words have almost limitless possibilities.

• Why do you think the poet includes some Spanish words? (inference) Including a second language opens up a whole other world of words.

• How are words “free as confetti”? (main idea) A speaker can use words in endless ways. Words are like many pieces of confetti, with different shapes and colors, floating freely through the air.

3. Skill BuildingGo online to find an activity sheet to guide students through a more in-depth analysis of this poem.

Common Core State Standards R.1, R.2, R.4, R.5, R.6, R.10, SL.1, SL.2, L.5

Online Resources• Audio version of poem

Activities to print or project: • Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions• Analyzing Poetry • Comprehension Quiz


5Lesson


• Ask students to imagine confetti floating through the air, or have them look at the border on page 25. Discuss: What feelings does confetti evoke? What clue does the title of the poem give about how the poet feels about words?• Have a volunteer read aloud the Up Close box.

2. Reading the PoemRead the poem aloud for the class or play our audio version. Then discuss the following questions.

Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions (15 minutes, activity sheet online)

• Who is the speaker talking to in this poem? (point of view) The speaker is talking to words.

• The speaker uses many comparisons to describe words in this poem. What are some examples? (text evidence) The speaker describes words as “sweet as plump plums,” “warm as almonds,” “green and soft as new grass,” and so on.

• What is the effect of including many different comparisons, one after another? (author’s craft) The many different comparisons emphasize the diverse things words can express and the varied feelings that

ÇFeatured Skill:

Comparisons

• Preview: This poem uses an explosion of comparisons to show the many different and wonderful qualities of words.

• Learning Objective: Students will analyze the various comparisons the poet includes and the effect they create.

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Grammar Cop, p. 2Steely McBeam: 1. carried 2. tried 3. worries 4. readies

Phillie Phanatic: 1. believe 2. achieve 3. weigh 4. friend

Benny the Bull: 1. beginning 2. whipped 3. sitting 4. dropping

Debate, p. 28Answers will vary but should be similar to: Matt’s reasons: Fifty-six percent of kids ages 8 to 12 already have cell phones—that’s millions of American kids. The smartphone won’t cause conflict between Matt and his mom, since 84 percent of parents whose kids have a phone say it doesn’t lead to more fighting. Matt can pay for the phone and monthly bill using his allowance. Plus, it will make his mom’s life better

because she won’t feel guilty when she forgets to pick him up from practice; he will be able text her.Mom’s reasons: Millions of American parents may have bought their kids cell phones, but millions of others have not. Matt does not earn enough allowance to pay for the smartphone. He may become addicted to checking his phone, a habit that scientists say can affect concentration and memory. Kids with phones spend an average of 73 minutes a day texting, and Matt’s time would be better spent doing other things.Who wins? Answers will vary.

Word Nerd, p. 31Answers will vary but should be similar to: As I played in the forest, I saw a squirrel that was very hungry and looking for food.

ANSWER KEYAnswers to skills exercises appearing in the January 2015 student edition

CREATE A READING JOURNAL SCRAPBOOK - LITERACY LESSONS AND ACTIVITIES GRS 3-5. SCHOLASTIC.COM/ANNI

Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation of Scholastic Storyworks (as required by Title 39, United States Code). Date of Filing: October 1, 2014. Title of Publication: Scholastic Storyworks. Frequency of issue: 6 times during the school year: Monthly, September, October, January; Bimonthly, November/December, February/March, April/May. Location of Known Office of Publication: 2931 East McCarty Street, Cole County, Jefferson City, MO 65101-4464. Location of the Headquarters of the Publishers: 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012-3999. Publisher: M. Richard Robinson; Editor: Lauren Tarshis (both of 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012-3999). Owners: Scholastic Corp., M. Richard Robinson, Trust under will of Maurice R. Robinson, Trust under will of Florence L. Robinson, all of 555 Broadway, New York, NY 10012-3999. During Preceding 12 Months Average Number of Copies: Printed each issue, 683,987; Paid Circulation, 634,844; Free Distribution, 19,137; Total Number of Copies Distributed, 653,981; Copies Not Distributed, 30,006; Total, 683,987. For Single Issue Nearest to Filing Date: Number of Copies Printed, 835,819; Paid Circulation, 654,625; Free Distribution, 548; Number of Copies Distributed, 655,173; Copies Not Distributed, 180,646; Total, 835,819.

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Major Features Language Arts Skills Development Online Resources

Nonfiction, p. 4“The Blood-Red Night” By Lauren Tarshis

CCR Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.4, R.7, R.9, R.10, W.2, W.10, SL.1, SL.2, L.6

Featured Skill:• Main idea and supporting details

Other Key Skills: vocabulary, close reading, mood, text evidence, cause and effect, author’s purpose, author’s craft, informational writing

• Video: “Behind the Scenes: The Blood-Red Night”

•Video Discussion Questions•Vocabulary• Close Reading and Critical Thinking• Core Skills Workout: Main Idea and

Supporting Details,* Text Features, Summarizing,* Text Evidence,* Text Structures

•Comprehension Quiz*

Paired Texts, p. 10“Hamburger History” and “Tacos Take Over” By Lauren Tarshis

CCR Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.9, R.10, W.2, W.10, SL.1, L.4, L.6

Featured Skill: •Compare and contrast

Other Key Skills: vocabulary, close reading, author’s craft, inference, problem and solution, drawing conclusions, supporting details, synthesizing, applying ideas, explanatory writing

•Vocabulary• Close Reading and Critical Thinking• Core Skills Workout: Compare and

Contrast, Summarizing,* Making Inferences*

•Comprehension Quiz*

Play, p. 14The Day Mrs. Parks Was Arrested

CCR Anchor Standards: R.1, R.3, R.10, W.2, SL.1, SL.2, L.4, L.6

Featured Skill: •Cause and effect

Other Key Skills: domain-specific vocabulary, fluency, close reading, key detail, character, compare and contrast, inference, analyzing, explanatory writing

•Domain-Specific Vocabulary• Close Reading and Critical Thinking•Cause and Effect•Comprehension Quiz*

Fiction, p. 20“Lemonade: The Musical”By Paul Acampora

CCR Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.6, R.10, W.2, SL.1, L.4, L.5, L.6

Featured Skill: •Character

Other Key Skills: author’s craft, literary devices, plot, character’s motivation, author’s craft, inference, compare and contrast, tone, theme, explanatory writing

•Vocabulary• Critical Thinking•Character•Comprehension Quiz*

Poetry, p. 25“Words Free As Confetti” By Pat Mora

CCR Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.4, R.5, R.6, R.10, SL.1, SL.2, L.5

Featured Skill: •Comparisons

Other Key Skills: point of view, text evidence, author’s craft, inference, main idea

• Close Reading and Critical Thinking•Analyzing Poetry• Comprehension Quiz

* Available on two levels!

January at a Glance

GrammarSpellingpage 2

Writing RescueEditing

page 26

DebateOpinion Writing

page 28

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Departments and Skills Pages

Vocab LabVocabulary Skills

page 30

InfographicMain Idea and Supporting Details

page 32


teacher’s vol. 22 no. 4 issn 1068-0292 guide...• what facts do you learn in the first paragraph...

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