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4th Grade Distance Learning Menu
Reading
Read 30 minutes a day and complete at least 2 of the following activities during the week. You may use the biographies provided.
**Biography/Autobiography**
List two traits of the person you just read about. Write text
evidence of each trait.
Name 2 text features that were included in the text and
explain in what way they supported the article.
Find two words in the text that you don’t know. Use context
clues to figure out their meaning. Use a dictionary (print or digital) to determine if you were right. Write a sentence
using each word. What are some of the main
contributions this person made to our world throughout his/her
life? How would the world be different if they hadn’t
accomplished these things? Use text evidence to support your
answer.
What lesson can we learn from this biography? Use text evidence to support your
answer.
Create a timeline that shows the most important events in
this person’s life. Use the timeline to write a summary of
the biography.
Writing and Grammar This week, we are writing personal narratives. A personal narrative is a story about your personal experience. It is written in past tense and focuses on one small moment. You can use this graphic organizer and/or watch
this YouTube video to help you plan your story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1UctktEyds
Complete 1 of the boxes below during the week.
Write about a time when you tried your hardest.
Choose three sentences from your writing and underline the subject and verb in each sentence.
*Be sure to use past tense verbs.
Write about a time when you felt scared.
Highlight or underline three compound sentences with past tense verbs. If you don’t have three compound sentences, find two simple sentences
to combine to make one.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Musicians: Celia Cruz
TOP: Celia Cruz portrait. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. MIDDLE: Singer Celia Cruz in Paris, France. Photo by Lionel Decoster.BOTTOM:Celia at the Grammys 2002.
Synopsis: Celia Cruz was born in Havana, Cuba, on October 21, 1925. Her first success was in the
1950s, as a singer with the orchestra La Sonora Matancera. Cruz left Cuba for the United States
after the rise of Fidel Castro. She recorded 23 gold records with Tito Puente, the Fania All-Stars
and other musicians. Cruz died in New Jersey in 2003. She was 77 years old.
Early Years
Celia Cruz grew up in the poor neighborhood of Santos Suárez in Havana, Cuba. Cuba had many
types of music that influenced Cruz. In the 1940s, Cruz won a singing contest on the "La Hora del
Té" ("Tea Time") radio program. The win got her music career started. Cruz's mother encouraged
her to enter other contests. Her father had other plans for her, though. He wanted her to become a
teacher. This was a common job for Cuban women at that time.
Rising Musical Career
By Biography.com Editors and A+E Networks, adapted by Newsela staff on 09.15.16Word Count 616Level 710L
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Cruz enrolled at a college for teachers, but she dropped out soon after. Her live performances and
radio shows were becoming popular. Yet Cruz put aside her ambition to be a singer because her
father wanted her to stay in school. She enrolled at Havana's National Conservatory of Music.
However, one of her professors told her her heart was not in school. He convinced her that she
should try a full-time singing career.
Cruz made her first recordings in 1948. By 1950, her
singing career started to take off. She began singing
with the famous Cuban orchestra La Sonora
Matancera. At first, people did not think that Cruz
could do as well as their last lead singer. Some did not
think a woman could sell salsa records at all.
However, Cruz helped the group become more
successful. She pushed all Latin music to new heights.
The band toured widely through Central and North
America through the 1950s.
Commercial Success
In 1959, communism took over in Cuba. La Sonora
Matancera was touring in Mexico at the time.
Members of the band decided to leave Cuba for good.
They headed to the United States instead of returning
home. Cruz became a U.S. citizen in 1961. Citizens of
communist countries were not allowed to move away.
Fidel Castro, the new leader of Cuba, was angry with
Cruz for leaving. He said she could never return to
Cuba.
At first, not many people knew about Cruz in the United States. She was only popular with other
Cubans who were already living in the country. Then she joined the Tito Puente Orchestra in the
mid-1960s. That let many more people get to know her style of salsa music. Puente had fans all
across Latin America. Cruz was the new face of his band. She became an exciting member of the
group. Together, they gained many new fans. On stage, Cruz thrilled audiences. The fans loved her
colorful costumes. They loved the way she talked to them. These things helped to keep her singing
career going for 40 years.
Cruz's voice was always strong. She continued performing live and recording albums through the
1970s, 1980s and beyond. She made more than 75 records, and 23 of them went gold. A gold
record has sold more than 500,000 copies.
Cruz won several Grammy Awards and Latin Grammys. She appeared in several movies, and
earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Cruz was awarded the National Medal of Arts by
the National Endowment for the Arts.
Death And Legacy
Celia Cruz died in New Jersey on July 16, 2003. She was 77. Cruz is remembered as the "Queen of
Salsa," and one of the 20th century's most beloved and popular Latin musicians.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Activist and Labor Organizer: Cesar Chavez
Farm labor leader Cesar Chavez pickets outside the San Diego headquarters of Safeway markets in protest over the arrest of 29 persons ata Delano, California, Safeway. Bettmann/Contributor
Synopsis: Cesar Chavez was born in 1927. He started the United Farm Workers group. Chavez
led marches and protests to get better conditions for workers. He died in 1993. Lawmaker Robert
Kennedy called Chavez an American hero.
Working In The Fields As A Child
Cesar Chavez was born in 1927. At age 11, his family lost their farm in Arizona. They became
traveling farmworkers. Chavez moved across California working in the fields. His life was not easy.
Chavez joined the U.S. Navy in 1946. He returned from the service in 1948 and married Helen
Fabela. Together they settled in San Jose, California, and had eight children.
Making Life Better For Farmworkers
At the age of 35, Chavez had his first regular job. He worked with a group fighting for fair
treatment. He helped people sign up to vote and battled against discrimination.
By Cesar Chavez Foundation, adapted by Newsela staff on 11.09.16Word Count 416Level 520L
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
But Chavez's dream was to help farmworkers. He had been poor. He understood how having no
money had hurt farmworkers for many years.
In 1962, he started the National Farm Workers
Association. The group later became the United Farm
Workers of America (UFW).
Chavez traveled to farm towns, asking workers to join
his group. Many people were afraid to join.
Getting Support For His Mission
Chavez wanted to build a strong union. A union is a
group of workers from a single trade. Together, they
bargain for things like better pay and work hours.
Chavez hoped his union would give power to poor farmworkers.
Chavez used peaceful ways of fighting. He made farmworkers promise never to hurt other people.
To win fights, Chavez used marches and protests. Many Americans supported him. They refused to
buy grapes and other foods until the growers listened to the workers. This helped the workers win
better pay and work hours.
Chavez's Top Achievements
The UFW won huge victories for farmworkers. It was the first successful farmworkers union in
American history.
The group helped farmworkers win new rights. It gave them better lives. Thanks to Chavez, they
had more breaks at work. The fields had clean drinking water.
Death And Legacy
Chavez died in his sleep in 1993. More than 50,000 people went to his funeral.
Chavez liked to say "Si se puede!" This means "Yes, it can be done!" in Spanish. He inspired many
people. His birthday is now a holiday in 10 states.
Chavez helped regular people do amazing things. He helped people believe in themselves, even if
they were poor.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
Inventors and Scientists: Thomas Edison
A portrait of prolific inventor Thomas Edison. National Portrait Gallery
Synopsis: Thomas Edison was born on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio. In his lab in Menlo
Park, New Jersey, he came up with several inventions such as the telegraph, phonograph, electric
light bulb and a motion picture camera. He died on October 18, 1931, in West Orange, New Jersey.
Younger Years
Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio. When he was a child, he had
illnesses that caused him to lose most of his hearing.
Edison attended public school for just a few weeks. He was easily distracted. His mother thought
he would learn better at home. She turned out to be right. Edison came up with a way of teaching
himself that worked well.
Early Career
At age 12, Edison sold newspapers to passengers along the Grand Trunk Railroad line. He got to
read news stories sent by telegraph to the train station office. The telegraph was a machine that let
By Biography.com Editors and A+E Networks, adapted by Newsela staff on 07.11.16Word Count 634Level 740L
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.
people send messages across long distances. With this information, Edison decided to start his
own newspaper. The passengers loved it.
A brave act brought him good fortune. He saved a 3-year-old from being run over by a train. The
child’s grateful father wanted to reward him. He taught Edison to send messages with a telegraph
machine.
In 1866, at age 19, Edison was working as a telegrapher. At first he did well. At the time, messages
were printed on paper. Telegraph technology soon changed, however. Messages started being sent
as clicking sounds. Edison lost the job because he could not hear the clicks.
Becoming An Inventor
In 1869, Edison moved to New York City. His first invention was the Universal Stock Printer. It
collected the information on stock prices from different sources. The Gold and Stock Telegraph
Company paid him $40,000 for the rights. By age 22, Edison was a full-time inventor.
In 1870, Thomas Edison set up his first small lab and factory in Newark, New Jersey. He sold his
inventions to Western Union and other companies.
In 1876, he moved his expanding business to Menlo Park, New Jersey. He was a well- known
inventor by then. In December of 1877, he developed the phonograph. It was a machine that could
record and play sound. The invention made him famous. He later developed a motion picture
camera and the alkaline battery.
Edison Illuminating Company
Edison's next great invention was an electric light bulb. He wanted to light up the cities of the
world. In 1880, he founded the Edison Illuminating Company. The company later became the
General Electric Corporation. In the early 1880s, he built a power station on Pearl Street in New
York City. He sold electricity in other American cities too.
Later Years
Edison got into a fight with Nikola Tesla over the best way to deliver electricity. Tesla was a
talented inventor who used to work for Edison. Edison was in favor of using direct current (DC)
electricity. Tesla preferred a different kind of electricity called alternating currents (AC). It was
easier to send AC electricity very long distances over thinner and cheaper wires. With Edison's
direct current, customers had to live close to a power station. In the end, people chose AC over DC
in the 1890s.
In later years, Edison invented a battery that could power an electric car. The battery was used in
the Model T car built by his friend, Henry Ford, in 1912. By the end of his life, Edison came up with
more than 1,000 inventions.
The Passing Of Edison
Thomas Edison died on October 18, 1931, in West Orange, New Jersey. He was 84 years old.
People all over the world dimmed their lights to mark his passing. Edison had set the stage for the
modern electric world.
This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.