TeacheR'S eDITIOn SampleR - Scholastic

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Item # 623513 10M 3/13

Copyright © 2013 by Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. SCHOLASTIC, COMMON CORE CODE X, READ 180, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. Common Core State Standards © copyright 2010, National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. LEXILE FRAMEWORK is a registered trademark of MetaMetrics, Inc.

www.scholastic.com/codex

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NEWfor Middle School

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scholastic.com/codexscholastic.com/codex 1

Overview p.2

StandardsProgression p.10

TableofContents,Grade6 p.12



Grade6,Unit4 p.18

Bringing the Common Core to Life in the Classroom

Code X Prepares Students for the demands of the Common Core

through a powerful combination of:

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Scholastic Common Core Code X(CodeX)isanewcomprehensiveEnglishLanguageArtsCurriculumformiddleschool.CodeXwasbuiltinpartnershipwiththeNewYorkCityDepartmentofEducationinordertoprovidestudentsandtheirteacherswithacurriculumbuiltspecificallytoaddresstherigorousdemandsoftheCommonCoreStateStandards(CCSS).TheprogramwasdesignedtoensurethatstudentsbecomedeepreadersandmeasuredwriterswhocantranslatetheseskillsintosuccessontheNextGenerationAssessments.

Eachgrade-leveleditionofCodeXoffersafullyearofinstruction,designedaroundsevenUnits.TheseUnitsfocusonvocabulary,comprehension,writing,andperformancetasksdesignedtoengagestudentsinCloseReadinganddailywritingaboutcomplexnonfictionandcontemporaryliterature.

• Cross-curricular content to build knowledge across disciplines (science,socialstudies,technology,andthearts)

• Text analysis & Close Readingofcontemporary,relevantnonfictionandliterature

• Writing & Performance Assessmentsdesignedtoensureevidence-basedcompetency

• Routinesthat build academic languageandvocabulary

• Daily opportunitiesfor direct instruction,academic discussion,small-group, pair,andindependent work

• Supportto scaffold text anddifferentiate learningforall students


2 3scholastic.com/codex

Program PhilosophyCode X is built from the ground up to teach, practice, and master the CCSS.

Engagement & Rigor

Instruction Focused on Key Instructional Shifts

Inspiration & Aspiration

Student Performance Tasks & Teacher Support

Beck,IsabelL.,MargaretG.McKeown,andLindaKucan.BringingWordstoLife:RobustVocabularyInstruction.NewYork:Guilford,2002.Print.

Dutro,Susana,andKateKinsella.“EnglishLanguageDevelopment:IssuesandImple-mentationinGrades6–12.”ImprovingEducationforEnglishLearners:Research-BasedApproaches(2010).

NationalGovernorsAssociationCenterforBestPractices,andCouncilofChiefStateSchoolOfficers.“CommonCoreStateStandardsEnglishLanguageArts&LiteracyinHistory/SocialStudies,Science,andTechnicalSubjectsAppendixA.”Washington,D.C.:NationalGovernorsAssociationCenterforBestPractices,CouncilofChiefStateSchoolOfficers,2010.PDF.http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Appendix_A.pdf.

Robb,Laura.TeachingReadinginMiddleSchool(Grades5&Up).NewYork:Scholastic,2002.Print.

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Overa90-yearhistory,Scholastichasdevelopedmaterialsthatappealtostudents’heartsaswellastheirminds.Weknowakeytenetoflearningtheoryisstudentaffectand“mindset.”EachUnitinCodeXisbuiltaroundanengaging concept, an essential question,and an enduring understanding worthreading,writing,andtalkingabout—CloseReadingmustbuildknowledge.Topicsrangefromcivilrightstosymbiosis,fromeconomicstoidentity,fromarcheologytoconservation,andmore.

Engagementismuchmorethanstudentinterestorpositivemindset,however.Withoutexplicitclassroompracticesandlanguagesupports,wecannotexpectallstudentstomeetthelevelofacademic rigorrequiredbytheCCSS(Dutro&Kinsella,2010).CodeXequipsteacherswithexplicit instructional routinestoensureallstudentscanengagewithtextwithspecificity,andthattheyallcanequally participate in academic discourseasaclassorinsmallergroups,andintheirwriting.

CodeXsupportsmultiplepurposesforreadinginamiddleschoolliteracyclassroom:instructional close reading, novel study, literature circles, and inde-pendent reading (Robb,2002).Textselectionsandtextlistsbalance:student interest, genre, diversity of author and character, content area connection,andthemewithtextcomplexity.Wewantstudentstobereadingnotonlydeeplybutwidelyandtobuildtheirvocabularyandknowledge(Beck,McKeowen,andKucan,2002).

Eachtextintheprogramisanalyzedandevaluatedus-ingtheLexile Framework® for ReadingandtheQualitative Text Complexity Rubric,developedbyScholastic,informedbyAppendixA(NationalGovernorsAssociation),reviewedbyexperts,andfield-testedwithNewYorkCityteachersinfall2012.Thisin-formationguidesteachersintargetingspecificaspectsoftext,structure,vocabulary,language,orconceptsforfocusedinstructionand/ordifferentiation.

Texts:Throughclose,sustained reading,studentsstudyshorter,challenging textsthatpresentincreasingchallengesintermsofvocabulary,sentencestructure,andtextorganization.

Questions and Tasks: Readinginstructionfocusesonclose reading of textandgathering evidence.Questionsandshorttasksareallinserviceofdeepreadingofthewords,phrases,anddetailsofthetextsthatshouldbeusedassourcesforwritingassignments.Dailyinstructionandpracticeincludesacademic language development routines.Teachersfocusonexplicitsyntacticprecisionaspartofclassdiscussion.Students must speak before they can write.

Vocabulary: Vocabularyinstructionissystematic,efficient,andintensive.CodeXfocusesonacademicvocabulary,wordswithabstractormultiplemeaningsoruses,domain-specificterms,andwordsthatarepartofawordfamilyorsemanticnetwork—tobuildstudents’knowledgeandunderstanding.

Writing to Source: Studentscomposebothon-demand andprocess writing(e.g.,multipledraftsandrevisionsovertime)aswellasshort,focusedresearch projects.StudentswillbecomeproficientwithkeywritingtypesdrivenbytheCCSSrequirements(informativeessay,argumentessay,andnarrativewriting).

NosetoftextsorcurriculacanachievethegoalsoftheCCSS;therealworkisintheclassroom—anddemonstratedthroughassessmenttasks.CodeXwillchallengestudentsastheyworktowardeachUnit’sPerformanceTask;theywillbeaskedtoread, think, analyze, synthesize, question, cite evidence, argue, debate, and write every dayintheprogram.Thesetasksprovidekeyformativeassessmentsandinformationforteachers,students,andfamiliesasstudentsworktowardrigorousfinalwritingassignmentssuchasthoseexpectedtoappearontheNextGenerationAssessments.

CodeXprovidesteacherswhoareconfidentwiththeinstructionalshiftsoftheCCSSwithrichtextsandtaskstoenhancetheirunderstandingandteaching,anditensuresthatlessconfidentornewerteachershaveaprofessional learning toolandday-by-day instructiontoimplementtheCCSScomprehensively,thoughtfully,andeffectively.


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Student edition[ Course III ]

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TeacheR’S eDITION

[ Course 3 ]

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assessment guide

[ Course III ]

Program Components

Grade-Specific Student Editions: IncludesevenUnitsofCloseReadingexemplars,writingtasks,andperformancetasks.

Grade-Specific Teacher’s Editions: IncludeinstructioninCloseReadingexemplars,textanalysisrubrics,academicvocabulary/wordstudyanalysis,andscaffoldedwriting.

Grade-Specific Asessment Guides: IncludeUnitassessmentsmodeledontheNextGenerationAssessments.

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Student edition

[ Course II ]

TeacheR’S [ Course 3Course 3Course 3

Teach

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TeacheR’S eDITION

[ Course 2 ]

assessment guide Course III

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assessment guide

[ Course II ]

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Student edition

[ Course I ]

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TeacheR’S eDITION

[ Course I ]

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assessment guide

[Course I ]

Professional Learning Support:

Scholasticprovideseducatorswithcomprehensiveprofessionallearningsupport.Teachersandleadersdevelopandenhancetheirexpertisethroughresearch-based,classroom-testedteachingpractices.Ourhighlyqualifiedconsultantsprovideweb-basedprofessionallearning,in-personprofessionallearning,andjob-embeddedinstructionalcoachingthatwillenableeveryteacherandleadertotransforminstruction.


Program Development & New York City Collaboration

Over2010and2011,ScholasticstaffmetwithmanyoftheorganizationsandindividualsresponsibleforthedevelopmentoftheCCSS,includingtheCouncilofChiefStateSchoolOfficers,NationalGovernorsAssociation,andStudentAchievementPartners.Workingwithkeyindividualsandwithclassroomteachers,wedevelopedamodelforCloseReadingthataccountedforthe“how” as well as the “what”of implementing the instructional shifts of the CCSS.Thismodelintegratesauthentic,complexgrade-level,nonfictiontext,whole-andsmall-groupteaching,classroomroutinesfordevelopingacademicdiscourse,instructiontomeetstudentsatdifferentlevels,andrigorouswritingtasksandprojects.

Inlate2012,keyliteracystaff,CommonCoreFellows,andexternaladvisersattheNYCDepartmentofEducationreviewedearlyprototypesforCodeX,calledScholasticStretchTexts.SomemiddleschoolteacherspilotedtheseinstructionaltextsinNYCclassroomsinthefall,providingstudentwritingexamples,textannotations,andqualitativeteacherandstudentfeedbacktoScholastic.

ScholasticthenworkedcollaborativelywithkeyNYCliteracystaffandmasterteacherstodevelopandreviewprogrammatrices;adetailedstandards mapping scope and sequence performance tasks and rubrics; teacher lessons;andnovel studyandliterature circle reading lists.

Program Implementation: Grades 6-8

Tier 1 Students

Tier 2 Students

CodeXisdesignedtobeuseddailyforcoreEnglishLanguageArtsinstruction.Itcanalsobeusedinconjunctionwithareadinginterventionprogram,suchasREAD180.

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TeacheR’S eDITION

[ Course I ]

The following pages feature

a sample of content from the

Teacher’s Edition, Grade 6,

Unit 4, Coming to America.

In addition, the entire

table of contents for each

grade-specific course is

included, as well as a

sample of how the CCSS build

and progress from one grade

level to the next.

Grade 6, Unit 4: Coming to America

R’S eDITIONDITIONeDITION Course I Course I Course I Course I ]

DITIONDITION Coming to Coming to Coming toAmerica


Built for the Common Core

BelowisasampleofhowtheCommonCoreContentStandardsandobjectivesbuildthroughoutaschoolyearandhowtheybuildfromoneyear/gradetothenext.CodeXaddressesthesestandardsasstudentsmovethroughoutaparticularcourseandacrossgradelevels.AsstudentsprogressthroughCodeX,theyencounterinstructionthat:

• DeepenstheCognitive Processes

• IntroducesNew Aspects of Content & Skills

• ExtendsKnowledge&SkillstoaWider Range of Content

• DecreasestheLevelof Scaffolding/ Teacher Support

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Standard RL.6.4 Determinethemeaningofwordsandphrasesastheyareusedinatext,includingfigurativeandconnotativemeanings;analyzetheimpactofaspecificwordchoiceonmeaningandtone.

Early–Mid 6th3 Identifyandinterpretsimple,single-sentence

similesandmetaphors

3 Identifyandinterpretovertsymbolisminatext

3 Identifyandinterpretflashbackandforeshadowinginatext

3Analyzetheimpactofspecificwordchoiceonthemeaningofasentence

3Determinetheliteralmeaningofunknownwordsbasedontheircontextandrecognizethatwordscanhavemultiplemeanings

3 Identifydialectandanalyzeitsimpactonthemeaningandtoneofatext

Mid–Late 6th3 Identifyandinterpretsimplemetaphorical

languageinatext

3 Identifyandinterpretovertsymbolismandanalyzeitssignificanceinatext

3 Identifyandinterpretflashbackandforeshadowingandanalyzeitspurposeinatext

3Analyzeandevaluatetheimpactofspecificwordchoiceonthemeaningandtoneofatext

3Determinetheliteralandfigurativemeaningsofunknownwordsbasedontheircontext

3Evaluateauthors’useofdialectsacrossgenres

3Determinethelocationofrhymeandrepetitioninapoemorsectionofastoryordrama

Sample Reading Standard Progression

Grade 6Standard RL.7.4 Determinethemeaningofwordsandphrasesastheyareusedinatext,includingfigurativeandconnotativemeanings;analyzetheimpactofrhymesandotherrepetitionsofsounds(e.g.,alliteration)onaspecificverseorstanzaofapoemorsectionofastoryordrama.

Early–Mid 7th3 Identifyandinterpretmorecomplexmetaphorical

languageinatext

3 Identifyandinterpretovertandsubtlesymbolismandanalyzeitssignificanceinatext

3Comparetheuseandpurposeofflashbackandforeshadowingacrosstexts

3Evaluatetheauthor’sspecificwordchoiceandgenerateideasabouthowthemeaningandtonewouldchangewithdifferentchoices

3Determinehowrhyme,repetition,rhythm,andmeterimpactapoemorsectionofastoryordrama

Mid–Late 7th3 Identifyandinterpretmorecomplexmetaphorical

languageanditsmultiplemeaningsinatext

3Analyzeovertandsubtlesymbolisminatextanditssignificanceonmultiplelevels

3Comparetheuseandpurposeofflashbackandforeshadowingacrosstextsandgenres

3Comparewordchoiceandtoneacrosstextsandgenres

3Evaluatetheimpactofrhyme,repetition,rhythm,andmeterandcomparehowtheyareusedbyvariouspoets,playwrights,andauthors


Grade 7Standard RL.8.4 Determinethemeaningofwordsandphrasesastheyareusedinatext,includingfigurativeandconnotativemeanings;analyzetheimpactofspecificwordchoicesonmeaningandtone,includinganalogiesorallusionstoothertexts.

Early–Mid 8th3 Identifyandinterpretcomplexmetaphorical

languageanditsmultiplemeaningsinatext

3Analyzetheuseofsymbolisminatextanditssignificanceonmultiplelevels,makingcomparisonsacrossavarietyofgenres

3 Identifytheliterarydevicesofanalogy,allegory,andsatireinatext

3 Identifyneologismsandallusionstoothertexts

3Comparetheuseofpoeticandliterarydevicesbyvariouspoets,playwrights,andauthors

Mid–Late 8th3 Interpretandcomparemetaphoricallanguage

acrosstextsandthroughoutaparticularcanonorsetofliteraryworks

3Analyzetheuseofsymbolismacrosstextsandthroughoutaparticularcanonorsetofliteraryworks

3Analyzetheimpactofanalogyandallegoryonthemeaningofatext

3Analyzethepurposeanduseofsatireacrossgenresandcontentareas

3Analyzethepurposeandmeaningofneologismsandallusionstoothertexts

3Evaluatetheuseofmultipleliterarydevicesbyvariouspoets,playwrights,andauthors


Grade 8


Grade 6


GRADE 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Unit 1 | Stories of Survival | 8

Speaking and Listening• Present a Short Story

Writing: Fictional Narrative• Skill Builder: Description• Skill Builder: Use Pronouns

Extended Readings • The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls• Dirk the Protector by Gary Paulsen

SHORT STORY“Tuesday of the Other June”by Norma Fox Mazer

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Figurative Language

Reading Literary Text• Identify Evidence• Key Ideas & Details• Craft & Structure

POEM “Life Doesn’t Frighten Me at All” by Maya Angelou

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Symbolism


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKWrite a short story describing a challenging experience of one character. consider his/her actions, relationships, and dialog.[ ]

Unit 2 | Live Your Dream | 52

Speaking and Listening• Present a Speech

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Combining Sentences• Skill Builder: Recognize and Correct

Inappropriate Shifts in Pronoun Number and Person

Extended Readings • Fa Mulan by Robert D. San Souci• Peak Performance by Samantha Larson

MEMOIRDreams of My Fatherby Barack Obama

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Metaphorical Language

Reading Informational Text• Identify Evidence• Key Ideas & Details• Craft & Structure

AUTOBIOGRAPHY Playing to Win by Derek Jeter

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Domain-Specific Vocabulary


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKExplain how these writers use text structure and language to help the reader understand what challenges they experienced as they pursued their goals.[ ]

Unit 4 | Coming to America |140


Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Compare/Contrast• Skill Builder: Use Effective Transitions

Extended Readings • “Einstein’s Miracle Year” by John Schwartz• from Shutting Out the Sky: Life in the Tenements

of New York 1880–1924 by Deborah Hopkinson

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKWrite an essay to explain the strategies and techniques the authors use to present their points of view of their new American neighbors.[ ]

MEMOIRfrom Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in Americaby Firoozeh Dumas

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Context Clues


MEMOIR from Of Beetles & Angels by Mawi Asgedom

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Roots and Suffixes


Unit 3 | World Wonders | 96

Speaking and Listening• Hold a Debate

Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Construct a Thesis Statement • Skill Builder: Consult Reference Materials

Extended Readings • Talking About World Wonders

by Joy Nolan• “The Rise and Fall of China’s Great Wall”

by Anonymous

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKMake a case for the value of preserving one of the world wonders. Consider specific facts, data, and details about the location or monument.[ ]

WEBSITEWorld Wonders, WORN DOWN?by Cody Crane

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Hyperbole


ESSAY from “How to Save the Taj Mahal” by Jeffrey Bartholet

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Context Clues/Foreign Words &

Phrases


Unit 5 | Cities of Gold |184


Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Defend an Opinion• Skill Builder: Use Effective Transitions

Extended Readings • The Building of Manhattan by Donald A. MacKay• from Here Is New York by E.B. White

POEMS“City” by Langston Hughes“Song of the Builders”

by Jesse Wilmore Murton“Our City” by Francisco AlarconLanguage• Academic Vocabulary• Figurative Language


NOVEL EXCERPT from The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Archaic/Domain-Specific Terms


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKAnalyze how cities are described in these texts and what point of view about cities these writers share.[ ]

Unit 6 | History of Lost and Found |228

Speaking and Listening• Present a Website

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Using Sequence Words• Skill Builder: Connotation and Denotation

Extended Readings • from Cities of the Dead by Denise Rinaldo• “A Dinosaur Named Dakota” from

Dinomummy by Dr. Phillip Lars Manning and Tyler Lyon

MAGAZINE ARTICLEfrom “New Discoveries in Ancient Egypt” by Bryan Brown

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Technical/Domain-Specific

Vocabulary


MEMOIR from Curse of the Pharaohs: My Adventures With Mummies, by Zahi Hawass

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Wordplay/Idiom and Allusion


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKCompare and contrast how these writers convey the historical importance of these recent discoveries. How do the writers support their points of view?[ ]

Unit 7 | The Big Give |272

Speaking and Listening• Role Play

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Construct a Thesis Statement • Skill Builder: Consult Reference Materials

Extended Readings • “Ryan and Jimmy and the Well in Africa That

Brought Them Together” by Herb Shoveller• “Marina Silva” from Marina Silva: Defending

Rainforest Communities in Brazil by Ziporah Hildebrandt

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKWhat techniques do these authors use to describe and explicate relationships between an individual and the world?[ ]

FOLKTALE“Tale of a Wealthy Man” African Folktale



POEM “If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking” by Emily Dickinson

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Parallel Structure/Syntax


NOVEL EXCERPT from by L. Frank Baum

Language• •

Reading Literary Text• • •

MEMOIR from My Adventures With Mummies, by Zahi Hawass

Language• •

Reading Informational Text• • •

POEM “If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking”

Language• •

Reading Literary Text• • •

Confidential Draft TM ® & © Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved. Confidential Draft TM ® & © Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved.

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Tuck Everlastingby Natalie Babbit

Novel Study |316

CHAPTERS 1–9

• Textual Analysis• Key Ideas & Details• Craft & Structure

• Independent Study • Independent Writing

CHAPTERS 10–20



CHAPTERS 20–EPILOGUE



TO BEGIN LOG ON TO: http://www.scholastic.com/codex [ ]

TEACHER LED

INDEPENDENT

BEFORE READING

• Summary • Text Complexity Study • About the Author• Notes About Fantasy

Performance tasks provide key assessments of reading and writing standards.

14 15scholastic.com/codexscholastic.com/codex

GRADE 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Unit 2 | Sports Report | 52

Speaking and Listening• Present a Sports Report

Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Construct a Thesis Statement• Skill Builder: Use Phrases and Clauses

Extended Readings • “Confessions of a Doper”

by Jonathan Vaughters• “Casey at the Bat” by Ernest L. Thayer

ESSAY“What Could Be Better Than a Touchdown?”by Kalefa Sanneh

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Irony/Rhetorical Questioning


NONFICTION Prologue from Why We Run by Bernd Heinrich

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Imagery


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASK“Being successful in sports is less about physical prowess than mental agility.” Discuss how the authors of these texts develop or refute this claim.[ ]

Unit 4 | Nature’s Fury |140


Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Combine and Reunite Sentences• Skill Builder: Syntax

Extended Readings • “Haiti: After the Devastation, the Emotional

Wreckage” by Jeffrey Kluger• “Flooding Wipes Out Two Communities”

by Brian Thevenot and Manuel Torres

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKWhat strategies and techniques in the two texts convey the idea that disasters are preventable? [ ]

MAGAZINE ARTICLE“Super Disasters of the 21st Century” by Jacqueline Adams

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Foreign Places/Names


LITERARY NONFICTION from The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Technical and Domain-Specific

Vocabulary


Unit 3 | Your Vote! Your Rights! | 96


Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Compare and Contrast • Skill Builder: Use Greek and Latin Affixes

Extended Readings • “Ain’t I a Woman?”

by Sojourner Truth• “I Was a Teenager on Death Row”

by Susan Kuklin

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKExplain these writers’ point of view on democracy. Analyze how they use text structure to establish and develop these ideas differently.[ ]

DRAMAfrom FencesAugust Wilson

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Dialect


POEMS “Democracy” by Langston Hughes“Democracy” by Sara Holbrook



Unit 1 | Mapping Your Life | 8

Speaking and Listening• Present a Debate

Writing: Personal/Fictional Narrative• Skill Builder: Narration• Skill Builder: Using Phrases and Clauses

Extended Reading • from My Beloved World

by Sonia Sotomayor

NOVEL EXCERPTCall Me Mariaby Judith Ortiz

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Spanish Words & Phrases /

Dialect


POEM “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Poetic Structure


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKTell the story of an important event or decision; it can be real or imagined. What understanding or insight did this experience reveal?[ ]


Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Write a Strong Conclusion• Skill Builder: Use Phrases and Clauses

Extended Reading • “1961 Inaugural Address”

by John F. Kennedy

Unit 7 | A Better World |272WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKTrace the line of argument in Sachs’ chapter and the Kiva manifesto. Evaluate the specific claims.[ ]

NONFICTIONfrom The End of Poverty by Jeffrey Sachs

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Technical/Domain-Specific

Vocabulary


WEBSITE “Saving the World One Click at a Time” by Renee Carver

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Mathematical/Economic

Concepts


Unit 5 | Stolen Childhoods |184

Speaking and Listening• Present a Character Map

Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Defend an Opinion• Skill Builder: Use Transition Words

Extended Reading • from “Rose Cohen: First Day in a

Sweatshop” by Philip Hoose

LITERARY NONFICTIONfrom Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Foreign Words/Phrases/Names


NOVEL EXCERPT from Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Metaphor


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKWhich author conveys the challenges of family life most successfully? Consider structure of the narrative, specific language choices, and dialog.[ ]

Unit 6 | America Speaks |228

Speaking and Listening• Present a Text

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Compare and Contrast• Skill Builder: Use Precise Language

Extended Readings • “The Times They Are a-Changin’”

by Denise Rinaldo• “The All-American Slurp” by Lensey

Namioka

POEMS“I Hear America Singing”

by Walt Whitman“I, Too, Sing America”

by Langston Hughes“I, Too, Sing America” by J. AlvarezLanguage• Academic Vocabulary• ParallelismReading Literary Text• Identify Evidence• Key Ideas & Details• Craft & Structure

GRAPHIC NOVEL from Kira-Kira by Gene Luen Yang

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Dialect/Foreign Words and

Phrases


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKThese writers all claim a specific vision of what it means to be an American. Compare and contrast their points of view.[ ]


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Inkheartby Cornelia Funke

Novel Study |316

CHAPTERS 1–15



CHAPTERS 31–45



CHAPTERS 46–59




TEACHER LED

INDEPENDENT

BEFORE READING

• Summary • Text Complexity Study • About the Author• Notes About Fantasy

CHAPTERS 16–30



Grade 7Rich, diverse nonfiction content and literature engages students.

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Unit 1 | College 101| 8

Speaking and Listening• Present an Opinion

Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Construct a Thesis Statement• Skill Builder: Form and Use Verbs

Extended Readings • “Homeless to Harvard” by Laura Linn• “Finding Their Futures”

by Karen Fanning

ESSAY“Essays That Make a Difference”by Christina Mendoza, James Gregory, and Hugh Gallagher



MAGAZINE ARTICLE “The Year of the MOOC” by Laura Pappano from The New York Times

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Hyperbole


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKAnalyze which college applicant (Mendoza, Gregory, or Gallagher) would be the best candidate to attend a “reinvented college.” [ ]

Unit 2 | Survivor | 52

Speaking and Listening• Present a Film Analysis

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Support Generalizations• Skill Builder: Verb Voice and Mood

Extended Readings • from Shabanu by Suzanne Fisher Staples• “Crisis on Top of the World” by Patty Jones

SHORT STORY“The Story of Keesh”by Jack London

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Connotation


NOVEL EXCERPT from The Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Allusion


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKProvide an objective summary of life in the extreme environments portrayed in these two texts. [ ]

Speaking and Listening• Present a Response

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Compare and Contrast• Skill Builder: Consult Reference Materials

Extended Readings • “Meet the Man Who Built a 30-Story

Building in 15 Days” by Lauren Hilgers• “A Revolution Begins” from The Road Ahead

by Bill Gates

MAGAZINE ARTICLE“La Vida Robot” by Joshua David

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Domain-Specific/Technical Vocabulary


BIOGRAPHY from Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Analogies


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKContrast David’s point of view on the factors necessary to build an effective technology team with Isaacson’s.[ ]

Unit 4 | Designing the Future |140

Speaking and Listening• Present an Argument

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Describe Cause and Effect• Skill Builder: Sequence of Events

Extended Readings • “Refugee In My Own Country”

from First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung

• “Marching off to War” from The Boy’s War by Jim Murphy

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKAnalyze in detail how Ung’s and Boyd’s early experiences impacted their adult lives. [ ]

MEMOIRfrom First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Foreign Names/Places


BOOK REVIEW Babes in Arms by William Boyd

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Rhetorical Questioning


Unit 6 | Children of War |228

Unit 5 | Space Invaders |184

Speaking and Listening• Present a Comparison

Writing: Informative Essay• Skill Builder: Combine and Rewrite Sentences• Skill Builder: Understand Word Relationships

Extended Readings • “Who’s There?” by Arthur C. Clarke• “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street”

by Rod Sterling

SHORT STORY“Zero Hour” by Ray Bradbury



NOVEL EXCERPT from The War of the Worlds, by H.G. Wells

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Dramatic Irony


WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKHow do these authors portray life on earth during an alien invasion? Compare and contrast the setting, imagery, and themes.[ ]

Speaking and Listening• Present a Research Project

Writing: Fictional Narrative• Skill Builder: Narrate Events• Skill Builder: Use Greek and Latin Affixes

Extended Readings • “Dear Olivia: Letters to a Bullied Girl”

by Olivia Gardner• “When Somebody Falls Down, What Do You Do?”

by Geoff Martz and Anna Norman

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKMany events of the Little Rock Nine tested the strength of people to be brave, heal, and forgive. Write a narrative to describe one such event. [ ]

HISTORY TEXTfrom The Little Rock Nineby Stephanie Fitzgerald



NEWS ARTICLE “Elizabeth Eckford and Hazel Bryan: The Story Behind the Photograph That Shamed America” by David Margolick

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Mixed Genres/Changing Voices


Unit 7 | Do the Right Thing | 272


TM

Unit 3 | The Power of Art |96

Speaking and Listening• Present Artwork

Writing: Argumentative Essay• Skill Builder: Defend an Opinion• Skill Builder: Interpret Figures of Speech

Extended Readings • Vincent Van Gogh: Portrait of an Artist

by Jan Greenburg and Sandra Jordan• “Ten Artists Who Changed the World”

by Francesca Alta

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASKAccording to these writers, what role can art play in young people’s lives? [ ]

LETTERSLetters to a Young Artistby Anna Deveare Smith



SHORT STORY “Zebra” by Chaim Potok

Language• Academic Vocabulary• Humor


Monsterby Walter Dean Myers

Novel Study |316

CHAPTERS 1–4



CHAPTERS 5–9



CHAPTERS 10–12




TEACHER LED

INDEPENDENT

BEFORE READING

• Summary • Text Complexity Study • About the Author• Notes About Realistic Fiction

[

BEFORE READING

• • • • Realistic Fiction

Grade 8All units designed with instructional tasks that scaffold to the final assessment task.

18 19scholastic.com/codexscholastic.com/codex18

WRITING PERFORMANCE TASK

EXTENDED READINGS _____________________Sciencefrom 1905: Einstein’s Miracle Year by John Schwartz

Guiding Questions

Social Studiesfrom Shutting Out the Sky: Life in the Tenements of New York 1880-1924 by Deborah Hopkinson

Guiding Questions

WRITING ___________________________________Writing: Informative Essay•Read the Model

•Analyze the Model

•Gather Evidence

•Organize Ideas for Writing

•Language Study: Compare and Contrast Statements

•Conventions Study: Transitions

•Revise and Edit

SPEAKING AND LISTENING _________________Present a Speech•Collaborate and Present

Rubric: Speech

MEMOIRS __________________________________from Funny in Farsi, by Firoozeh Dumas

Language•Academic Vocabulary

•Words-in-Context: Context Clues

Reading Informational Text•Identify Evidence

•Key Ideas & Details

•Craft & Structure

from Of Beetles & Angels, by Mawi Asgedom

Language•Academic Vocabulary

•Words-in-Context: Roots & Suffixes

Reading Informational Text•Identify Evidence

•Key Ideas & Details

•Craft & Structure

Write an essay to compare and contrast the authors’ purposes and points of view. Explain the strategies they use in their writing.

Unit OverviewIn excerpts from two memoirs, discover how two writers experience life in America as immigrants and learn life lessons in their new homes.

In Funny in Farsi, Firoozeh Dumas (fi-roo-zay doo-MAH) recounts a series of anecdotes about her experiences as an Iranian immigrant in America and her later years adapting to life in her new country.

Mawi Asgedom tells the story of leaving his native country of Ethiopia and ultimately graduating from Harvard University in Of Beetles & Angels.

What do experiences with others teach people about themselves?

Coming to Coming to Coming toAmerica

Engage Students Build BackgroundLEXILE

830QM

complex 1 LEXILE

970QM

complex 1 Discuss the Performance TaskDefine Author’s Purpose: Explain that every writer has a purpose, or reason, for writing. Authors write to inform, entertain, or persuade. What was your purpose when you wrote about your experience? (to inform others about something you learned from an experience)

Connect to the Text Type: Talk about authors’ purposes in writing memoirs. Why might authors write personal stories? (to share points of view, or perspectives, about experiences or ideas) Explain that writers use strategies, like humor or reflection, to share ideas.

Develop KnowledgeFunny in Farsi Build background about Iran (ee-RAHN). Explain that Iran, formerly known as Persia, is a country in Western Asia.

Geography: Use Anchor Images to locate Iran on a map and share visuals of the mountainous and desert regions.

History & Government: Iran is one of the oldest nations in the world. The nation is ruled by a leader who is appointed, not elected.

People & Culture: Almost all Iranians are Muslim, or followers of Islam. Farsi is the official language of the Republic of Iran.

Of Beetles & Angels Build background about Ethiopia, a country in northeast Africa.

Geography: Use Anchor Images to locate Ethiopia on a map and share visuals of the Horn of Africa.

People & Culture: Most Ethiopians are farmers and herders. But deforestation and drought have caused crop failures and famine during the past few decades; seven million people face starvation.

Why do authors write personal stories? Describe the homelands of these two authors.

Introduce the UnitPose the Essential Question. Use Routine 1: Think-Write (Pair) Share to discuss: Describe an experience you had with a particular person — a neighbor, teacher, friend, teammate — that taught you something. What did you learn?

Describe the Unit Objective: We will read about the experiences of two people who moved to the United States. One author tells a very funny account and the other gives a serious and reflective speech. They use different strategies to tell their stories and share what they learned.

Read the Unit OverviewUse Routine 2: Reading to read the Unit Overview.

1. The text describes the authors as immigrants. What is an immigrant? •Point students to the description of Dumas

as “an Iranian immigrant in America.”

•Explain that Dumas moved from Iran. Asgedom moved from Ethiopia and ultimately went to Harvard, a university in Boston, MA, in the United States.

•Help students conclude that an immigrant is an individual who moves from one country to another.

2. Ask students to use the context of the Overview to define the text type. What is a memoir? How are these texts described?•Point students to the fact that Dumas

“recounts her experiences” and “her later years.”

•Asgedom “tells the story of leaving his native country of Ethiopia and ultimately graduating.”

•Guide students to understand that, based on these details, a memoir is a personal account of a writer’s life experiences. The word comes from the French word mémoire, which means memory.

Unit 4 | Coming to AmericaScholastic Common Core Code X 145144

MEMOIR


UNIT 4


Words In Context

Rating Scale ① I don’t know the word. ② I’ve seen it or heard it. ③ I know its meaning. ④ I know it and use it.

Close Reading

PE Box Body

PE Box Head

Funny in Farsiby Firoozeh Dumas

Key Ideas & Details

2. When did the author come to America?

Writing1. Based on the details in paragraph 1,

how can you tell that this text is about the author’s personal experiences? What is the author writing about?

Because the author uses the pronoun _____, I can tell that she is writing about personal experiences. The focus of her memoir is _______.

Words to Know

tabulae rasae: (n.) clean slates; an absence of ideas (singular: tabula rasa)

caviar: (n.) the salted eggs of a large fish usually served as an appetizer before a meal

¶1 I was lucky to have come to America years before the

political upheaval in Iran. The Americans we encountered

were kind and curious, unafraid to ask questions and willing

to listen. As soon as I spoke enough English to communicate,

I found myself being interviewed nonstop by children and

adults alike. My life became one long-running Oprah show,

minus the free luxury accommodations in Chicago, and Oprah.

¶2 On the topic of Iran, American minds were tabulae

rasae. Judging from the questions asked, it was clear that most

Americans in 1972 had never heard of Iran. We did our best

to educate. “You know Asia? Well, you go south at the Soviet Union and there we

are.” Or we’d try to be more bucolic, mentioning being south of the beautiful Caspian

Sea, “where the famous caviar comes from.” Most people in Whittier did not know

about the famous caviar and once we explained what it was, they’d scrunch up their

faces. “Fish eggs?” they would say. “Gross.” We tried mentioning our proximity to

Afghanistan or Iraq, but it was no use. Having exhausted our geographical clues, we

would say, “You’ve heard of India, Japan, or China? We’re on the same continent.”

Determine the meaning of the bold words below from Dumas’s memoir.

1. The Americans we encountered

were kind and curious, unafraid to

ask questions and willing to listen.

As soon as I spoke enough English

to communicate, I found myself

being interviewed nonstop by

children and adults alike.

2. We tried mentioning our proximity

to Afghanistan or Iraq, but it was

no use. Having exhausted our

geographical clues, we would say,

“You’ve heard of India, Japan,

or China? We’re on the same

continent.”

Word Meaning Example

upheaval (n.) p. 146

① ② ③ ④

a very big change that often causes problems

luxury (n.) p. 146

① ② ③ ④

something expensive that you may want but do not need

bucolic (adj.) p. 146

① ② ③ ④

of the pleasant aspects of country living

proximity (n.) p. 146

① ② ③ ④

nearness

uncanny (adj.) p. 147

① ② ③ ④

very strange and difficult to explain

foreshadowing (v.) p. 148

① ② ③ ④

indicating or hinting about a future event

Academic VocabularyFrom Funny in Farsi by Firoozeh Dumas

Rate your understanding of each word. Then read its meaning and write a sample sentence.

Context Clues are words in a text that help you figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar word. Sometimes words are defined in the text or meaning is suggested.

Context Clues

Close Reading

First Reading Read the Complete TextIntroduce the Text. •Explain that you are reading for the key idea.

•Point out that definitions are provided for words and phrases (Words to Know) underlined in the text.

Read the text. •Use Routine 2: Reading to read the entire text aloud, or ask students

to read in pairs or independently.

•Review Words to Know in context.

Summarize the key ideas. •Use Routine 3: Summarize to support students in describing the gist

of the memoir.

Second Reading Model Close Reading Read chunks of text to dig deeper into the language and ideas.

1. Writing (¶1)Use Routine 6: On Demand Writing to support student responses. Possible responses include: the author’s use of the pronoun “I”; immigrating “to America”; coming “to America”; leaving “Iran”

2. Key Ideas & Details (¶2)Guide students to recognize that even though the author doesn’t specifically state that she arrived in 1972, she dates other events surrounding her arrival (“being interviewed nonstop”) as taking place in 1972.

Why did the author call this memoir “Funny in Farsi”? (The title indicates that this is a series of humorous stories about one American life.)

Preteach Academic VocabularyRead aloud each Target Word from the memoir and have students rate their knowledge. Use Routine 5: Academic Vocabulary to teach the meaning of each word.

Demonstrate Word AnalysisExplain that the prefix fore- in the word foreshadowing means “in, at, or toward the front.” Give the following example: fore- + head = forehead, an area in front of the head. Ask students to think about other words they know that begin with the prefix fore-. Discuss the meaning of words like foresight (ability to see what lies ahead), forewarn (to warn in advance), and forecast (to predict).

Model Using Context CluesRead aloud the definition of context clues.

1. Model clues in the first sentence that reveal the meaning of the word encountered. Help students define encountered as meaning “to have met.” The author uses the word “encountered” to describe “kind and curious” Americans who were “unafraid to ask questions.” The author must have “met” or “encountered” these people in order to determine those qualities about them.

2. Discuss clues that show how exhausted is used. Exhausted means tired. Dumas’ family lists every place they can think of to teach the location of their home, tiring out the options for teaching Americans about Iran.

Find images online of bucolic scenes, luxury items, and people or places that are in close proximity.

Vocabulary Acquisition and Use


LITERARY NONFICTION MEMOIR


Vocabulary Acquisition and Use

Scholastic Common Core Code X146Access to vocabulary to support English language learners and those who need intensive support for academic language development. Students engage in multiple reads

of each text throughout each Unit.


Possible responses include: the author’s use of the pronoun “I”; immigrating “to America”; coming “to America”; leaving “Iran”

2. Key Ideas & Details (¶2)Guide students to recognize that even though the author doesn’t specifically state that she arrived in 1972, she dates other events surrounding her arrival (“being interviewed nonstop”) as taking place in 1972.

Why did the author call this memoir “Funny in Farsi”? (The title indicates that this is a series of humorous stories about one American life.)

Unit 4 | Coming to America 147

their knowledge. Use Routine 5: Academic VocabularyAcademic Vocabulary to teach the meaning of each word.

Demonstrate Word AnalysisExplain that the prefix fore- in the word foreshadowing means “in, at, or foreshadowing means “in, at, or foreshadowingtoward the front.” Give the following example: fore- + head = forehead, an area in front of the head. Ask students to think about other words they an area in front of the head. Ask students to think about other words they an area in front of the headknow that begin with the prefix fore-. Discuss the meaning of words like foresight (ability to see what lies ahead), forewarn (to warn in advance), and forecast (to predict).

1. Model clues in the first sentence that reveal the meaning of the word encounteredmet.” The author uses the word “encountered” to describe “kind and curious” Americans who were “unafraid to ask questions.” The author must have “met” or “encountered” these people in order to determine those qualities about them.

2. Discuss clues that show how Dumas’ family lists every place they can think of to teach the location of their home, tiring out the options for teaching Americans about Iran.

Find images online of bucolic scenes, luxury items, and people or places that are in close proximity.

20

Scholastic Common Core Code X146


Close ReadingClose Reading

Words & Phrases in Context 6. What words or phrases tell you that

the tone has shifted in paragraph 6?

Writing7. What does the author mean by “I,

however, never punched anybody with my fists”?

Words to Know

paparazzi: (n.) photographers who chase celebrities to take pictures of them

Words to Know

Lawrence of Arabia: (n.) a classic movie about a British soldier and a writer who helped the Arabs revolt against the Turks in the Middle East

petroleum: (n.) an oily flammable liquid, obtained from wells drilled in the ground, that is the source of gasoline, kerosene, fuel oils, and other products

Writing5. Find details in paragraph 5 that give

the text a humorous and informal tone. Explain how Dumas’ word choice helps to set the tone.

Text Structure3. Why does the author ask three

questions in paragraph 3? What effect does this have?

Key Ideas & Details

4. Find two or three things about Iran that Americans were confused about, according to the author.

¶6 I tried my best to be a worthy representative of my homeland, but, like a

Hollywood celebrity relentlessly pursued by paparazzi, I sometimes got tired of the

questions. I, however, never punched anybody with my fists; I used words. One boy

at school had a habit of asking me particularly stupid questions. One day he inquired

about camels, again. This time, perhaps foreshadowing a vocation in storytelling,

I told him that, yes, we had camels, a one-hump and a two-hump. The one-hump

belonged to my parents and the two-hump was our family station wagon.

His eyes widened.

¶7 “Where do you keep them?” he asked.

¶8 “In the garage, of course,” I told him.

¶3 None of the kids in Whittier, a city an hour outside of Los Angeles, ever asked

me about geography. They wanted to know about more important things, such as

camels. How many did we own back home? What did we feed them? Was it a bumpy

ride? I always disappointed them by admitting that I had never seen a camel in my

entire life. And as far as a ride goes, our Chevrolet was rather smooth. They reacted

as if I had told them that there really was a person in the Mickey Mouse costume.

¶4 My family and I wondered why Americans had such a mistaken image of Iran.

We were offered a clue one day by a neighbor, who told us that he knew about Iran

because he had seen Lawrence of Arabia. Whoever Lawrence was, we had never

heard of him, we said. My father then explained that Iranians are an Indo-European

people; we are not Arabs. We do, however, have two things in common with Saudi

Arabia, he continued: “Islam and petroleum.” “Now, I won’t bore you with religion,”

he said, “but let me tell you about the petroleum industry.”

¶5 Another neighbor, a kindly old lady who taught me how to take care of indoor

plants, asked whether we had many cats back home. My father, with his uncanny

ability to forge friendships, said, “We don’t keep pets in our homes. They are dirty.”

“But your cats are so beautiful,” our neighbor said. We had no idea what she was

talking about. Seeing our puzzled expressions, she showed us a picture of a beautiful,

longhaired cat. “It’s a Persian cat,” she said. That was news to us; the only cats we had

ever seen back home were the mangy strays that ate scraps behind people’s houses.

From that day, when I told people I was from Iran, I added “where Persian cats come

from.” That impressed them.

Firoozeh Dumas was born in

Abadan, Iran, and moved to Whittier,

California, at the age of seven. In

2001, Firoozeh decided to write her

stories as a gift for her two children.

Funny in Farsi was a finalist for the

PEN/USA award in 2004. Dumas

was also a finalist for the prestigious

Thurber Prize for American Humor,

the first Middle Eastern woman ever

to receive this honor.

Tone is the author’s attitude toward the topic and/or readers. Authors express tone through word choice, imagery, and details.

Tone

Close Reading Close Reading 6. Words & Phrases in Context (¶6)

•Provide sentence starters: - In paragraph 6, the author’s tone becomes ____. (weary, annoyed) - One detail that helps me conclude this is ____. (“I tried my best to be a worthy representative of my homeland”; “I sometimes got tired of the questions”; “I never punched anybody”)

•Prompt a volunteer to explain that even though the author tried to have a good attitude about the Americans’ questions, after a while, she grew tired of correcting the misconceptions.

7. Writing (¶6)•Use Routine 6: On Demand Writing to support student responses.

•Help students understand that the use of the word “however” suggests that she means she expressed her annoyance, or “punched,” in another way.

•Guide students to recognize that she “punched” figuratively, or fought back with words, not her fists.

•Assist students in identifying that when the author told “one boy” that her family “had camels,” she was not telling the truth. She was lying to him to set him up to look like a fool. This was her way of fighting back.

3. Text Structure (¶3)•Guide students to recognize that, even though the questions are not in

quotation marks, these are the kinds of questions the other children would ask her about camels. She wants the reader to experience the barrage of questions she experienced.

4. Key Ideas & Details (¶4)•Help students recognize why the author begins paragraph 4 by stating

she and her family “wondered why Americans had such a mistaken image of Iran.”

•Guide students to recognize that the author provides an answer in the next sentence (“we were offered a clue”).

•Show students photos from the movie Lawrence of Arabia that depict characters with camels.

5. Writing (¶5)•Use Routine 6: On Demand Writing to support student responses.

Provide sentence starters: - One detail that gives the text a humorous and informal tone is ____. - Another detail that contributes to the tone is ____. (“seeing our puzzled expressions”; “that was news to us”; “from that day, when I told . . . I added ‘where Persian cats come from’”; “that impressed them”)

•Be sure students understand that the author is being ironic when she writes “his uncanny ability to forge friendships” about her father. The neighbor clearly likes cats. The author’s father responds to her curtly with “They are dirty.” This might have been insulting to the neighbor.

•The author is making an ironic observation about her father—he is curt or terse and doesn’t actually “forge friendships” quickly.






Writing10. Explain how Dumas reacts to her

classmates’ curiosity. Provide two examples with evidence from the text.

Words & Phrases In Context12. What does the last sentence of the

text mean?

Key Ideas & Details11. Find the evidence that Dumas

includes in paragraph 12 to support her claim that “almost every person who asked us a question asked with kindness.”

Key Ideas & Details8. Find details in the text that show you

how the boy reacted after realizing that the author “had fooled him.”

Key Ideas & Details9. What is the “problem” the author

describes in paragraph 11 that she needed to solve? Explain how she solved it.

¶12 But almost every person who asked us a question asked with kindness.

Questions were often followed by suggestions of places to visit in California.

At school, the same children who inquired about camels also shared their food

with me.

¶13 “I bet you’ve never tried an Oreo! Have one,” or “My mom just baked these

peanut butter cookies and she sent you one.” Kids invited me to their houses to show

me what their rooms looked like. On Halloween, one family brought over a costume,

knowing that I would surely be the only kid in the Halloween parade without one. If

someone had been able to encapsulate the kindness of these second-graders in pill

form, the pills would undoubtedly put many war correspondents out of business.

¶9 Having heard what he wanted to hear, he ran off to share his knowledge with

the rest of the kids on the playground. He was very angry once he realized that I had

fooled him, but at least he never asked me another question.

¶10 Often kids tried to be funny by chanting, “I ran to I-ran, I ran to I-ran.” The

correct pronunciation, I always informed them, is “Ee-rahn.” “I ran” is a sentence, I

told them, as in “I ran away from my geography lesson.”

¶11 Older boys often asked me to teach them “some bad words in your

language.” At first, I politely refused. My refusal merely increased their

determination, so I solved the problem by teaching them phrases like man kharam,

which means “I’m an idiot.” I told them that what I was teaching them was so nasty

that they would have to promise never to repeat it to anyone. They would then spend

all of recess running around yelling, “I’m an idiot! I’m an idiot!” I never told them

the truth. I figured that someday, somebody would.

Close Reading Close Reading 11. Key Ideas & Details (¶12)

•Help students identify evidence such as “the same children . . . shared their food” and “one family brought over a costume.”

• Guide students to recognize that the author basically had a good experience after arriving in America. She was asked a few questions about “camels” and was pressured to teach “nasty” phrases. But she handled those situations with humor and generally felt welcomed by Americans.

12. Words & Phrases In Context (¶13)•Be sure students understand that “to put out of business” is an idiom

that means “to stop.” Explain that war correspondents write articles about war and conflict. The war correspondents would be stopped or out of a job, if the “kindness” could be put in “pill form” because there might be no wars.

•Do you think this is true? That if we could hand out “kindness” in “pill form” that there would be fewer wars?

•Provide a sentence starter: - The last sentence means ____. (that if everyone in the world were as kind to each other as her American neighbors were to her, there would be no war)

Do you think the memoir is funny? Use evidence.

8. Key Ideas & Details (¶9)•Help students identify that the boy was “very angry” but he never asked

her “another question.”

•Guide students to recognize that the author’s tactic of “punching” with words, not “fists,” was successful. She stopped the questioning.

9. Key Ideas & Details (¶11)•Provide sentence starters:

- The problem was _____. (that the author didn’t want to teach the “older boys” “bad words,” but they kept asking her to do so)

•Help students recognize that this is another way the author “punched” with words and not “fists.”

10. Writing (¶9–11)•Use Routine 6: On Demand Writing to support student responses.

•Help students identify that the author told the boys what they wanted to hear even though it was a lie. Dumas was “tired of questions” and became frustrated by her classmates’ “particularly stupid questions.”

•Guide students to recognize that initially Dumas was polite to the older boys in refusing to teach them bad words. But after they persisted, she lied again.




Checks for understanding throughout each Unit.


Evidence Source Page Explanation

5. “Kids invited me to their houses to show me what their rooms looked like.”

6.

7.

Identify Evidence | Analyze Individuals, Events, and IdeasReread Funny in Farsi, highlighting the examples and anecdotes Dumas offers to describe her early experiences in America. How does she introduce and describe individuals, events, and ideas?

•As you read, use the Evidence column to record examples from the text that describe Dumas’s early experiences.

•In the Explanation column, explain how the author uses evidence to introduce and describe individuals, events, and ideas.


1. “Americans we encountered were kind and curious, unafraid to ask questions and willing to listen.”

Dumas 147 The Americans Dumas met had a lot of questions, but they listened and showed that they were interested in really learning about her and her family.

2. “Another neighbor, a kindly old lady who taught me how to take care of indoor plants”

3. “Almost every person who asked us a question asked with kindness.”

4. “Questions were often followed by suggestions of places to visit in California. At school, the same children who inquired about camels also shared their food with me.”

Assess Understanding Identify Evidence

IF

“My student is not grasping the humorous sarcasm.”

THEN

Ask a series of “check in” questions as you reread the sarcastic parts of the excerpt. Revisit paragraph 5 and ask: Does the author really mean that her father can forge, or build, friendships easily? Revisit the father’s straightforward response to the neighbor’s idea about Persian cats.

IF

“There are many vocabulary words that are unfamiliar or that are used in a different way than students are used to.”

THEN

The text is full of words used in a different way than their most common usages. Help students recognize and determine the meanings of less common uses of the following: “mistaken image of Iran,” “forge friendships,” “judging from questions.”

Conference with StudentsWork one on one or in small groups to support students who need more support. Use the routines and strategies below.

What sensory details — sight, smell, hearing, touch, or taste — does the author use to describe individuals or events?

Third Reading Analyze Individuals, Events, and IdeasDirect students to reread the text, highlighting Dumas’s descriptions of people and events. Explain that students will use this chart to note Dumas’s descriptions. First, walk through the organization of the chart and define each column heading:

•Evidence: the words, phrases, or sentences from the text that Dumas uses to describe people and events. Note that these do not always have to be complete sentences, but they are always direct quotations.

•Source: the narrator or character who provided the evidence•Page: the place where you noted the evidence in the text. Note that

you might also want to indicate the paragraph, as you might want to write that some evidence was explained in the first, second, third, etc. paragraph.

Model Identifying and Explaining EvidenceModel the first example.

•Dumas tells several stories of her neighbors. One, on page 148, in the fifth paragraph, was significant because, even though this neighbor did not know much about Dumas’s homeland or life in Iran, she welcomed Dumas — and also shared talents and ideas with her.

Unpacking Evidence: DescriptionDefine and point out descriptive language.•Description helps readers to picture individuals, events, and ideas. To

create descriptions writers often use sensory details — sight, smell, hearing, touch, or taste. Sometimes they tell anecdotes, or stories.

•Discuss the descriptive language in the first example What impression does this description give the reader of Americans?




“On Halloween, one family brought over a costume, knowing that I would surely be the only kid in the Halloween parade without one.”

“If someone had been able to encapsulate the kindness of these second-graders in pill form, the pills would undoubtedly put many war correspondents out of business.”

Ongoing formative assessment and differentiation.


Craft & Structure

Structure of the Memoir1. Make a list of descriptive words or phrases Dumas used to describe Americans

in the paragraphs below. Compare and contrast these words.

Paragraphs 1-2 Paragraphs 7-13

2. Why do you think Dumas’s language and tone changed throughout the excerpt?

Narrator’s Perspective and Point of View3. Describe the different perspectives in paragraph 6.

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of first person point of view?

5. What is Dumas’s conclusion about Americans?

Key Ideas and Details

Determining the Central Idea1. Summarize the key idea of Dumas’s memoir. What is the central idea of the text? Use evidence.

2. List three key individuals that Dumas introduces in this excerpt. Explain why each individual is important to the central idea.

Individuals Significance

boy at school who asked “stupid questions” shows how she used humor to deal with ignorance

3. List three key events that Dumas introduces in her memoir. Explain why each event is important to the central idea.

Event Significance

Narrative Perspective is the voice a narrator uses to describe what he or she sees or feels. Authors use descriptions and anecdotes to communicate perspective.

Narrative Perspective

Point of view is the lens through which the reader sees and understands individuals, events, or ideas.

• first person = the narrator is part of the story (I, me, my, mine, we, us, ours)

• second person = the narrator gives information or addresses someone (you, yours)

• third person = the narrator tells another person’s story (he, she, her, they, them).

Point of View

Examine Craft & Structure Explore Key Ideas & Details Determine the Central Idea Use Routine 6: Summarize to discuss the central idea of the text.

Use Routine 1: Think-Write (Pair) Share to discuss: Think back to the experience you described when you learned something from a neighbor, teacher, friend, or teammate. Write down one important character. Why was this person important? Now write down one important event. Why was this event important? How did your descriptions of these characters and events help you to communicate your key idea?

Analyze Individuals and EventsRemind students that they encountered important characters and events. An author makes choices about what characters and events she shares in a memoir. What defines the most significant?

Model explaining the significance of a particular character.

•The boy at school who “had a habit of asking me particularly stupid questions” (page 149, paragraph 6) was significant. He represented the Americans who had uninformed ideas about Iran. He thought that everyone in Iran drove a camel.

•This event was significant because it showed how Dumas used humor and sarcasm to deal with uninformed people: “I told him that, yes, we had camels, a one-hump and a two-hump.”

Describe the events that could put war correspondents “out of business.” (They are small acts of kindness.)

Discuss Structure: MemoirDefine memoir and anecdote. Review descriptive language. Point out that paragraph 10 recounts an anecdote.

•When the kids were chanting, “I ran to I-ran, I ran to I-ran,” why did Dumas use the word “informed” to describe her response? (She was trying to teach them the correct information about her homeland.)

•Why did Dumas use this example: “I ran away from my geography lesson”? (She was being sarcastic, pointing out that the students obviously did not pay attention in geography, since they did not know anything about Iran.)

•Be sure that students understand that Dumas structures her memoir as a series of anecdotes to tell her story about growing up in America as an Iranian immigrant.

Discuss Narrative PerspectiveDefine Narrative Perspective. Explain that authors use descriptions and anecdotes to communicate perspective.

•Dumas’s perspective is based on her opinions and experiences, which are different from her classmates’.

•Review with students how Dumas’s tone changes.

•Ask students to go back to the text to circle anecdotes that reveal Dumas’s conclusions about her American neighbors. Think about how the anecdotes helped her communicate her opinions. Consider how the kindly old lady, the boy with stupid questions, the kids who chanted I-ran, and the kids who shared Oreos and Halloween costumes formed her ideas.

How do the descriptions of Americans change through the memoir?




The neighbor’s perspective is different from the perspective of the narrator and her father in the following ways:••

Core Instructional Routines make CCSS shifts explicit and intentional.


Words In Context

Rating Scale ① I don’t know the word. ② I’ve seen it or heard it. ③ I know its meaning. ④ I know it and use it.

Close Reading

Words to Know

trance-walking: (noun) walking while you are thinking about something else so much that you do not notice what is happening around you

Text Structure2. What is the effect of putting the

parents’ words in all capital letters in paragraphs 3 and 4?

Key Ideas & Details1. How does Asgedom believe his

mother felt about leaving their house in Adi Wahla? What evidence from paragraph 1 allows you to infer this?

¶1 I may or may not remember seeing my mother

look at our house in Adi Wahla, Ethiopia, just before we

left. Gazing at it as though it were a person whom she

loved and cherished. Trance-walking to the house’s white

exterior, laying her hands on it for a few moments, feeling

its heartbeat—feeling her own heartbeat—then kissing it,

knowing that she might never see it again.

¶2 From our very first days in America, my mother

and father hammered into our minds the importance of

excelling in school.

¶3 RIGHT NOW, WE ARE AMONG THE POOREST IN THE LAND.

NEITHER YOUR MOTHER NOR I WILL FIND GOOD WORK BECAUSE WE

LACK SCHOOLING. WE WILL HAVE TO WORK BACK-BREAKING JOBS,

WE WILL NEVER FULLY UNDERSTAND OUR RIGHTS, AND OTHERS

WILL TAKE ADVANTAGE OF US.

¶4 BUT IF YOU, OUR CHILDREN, WORK HARD AT SCHOOL

AND FINISH THE UNIVERSITY, MAYBE SOMEDAY YOU CAN HELP

YOURSELVES AND HELP YOUR FAMILY, TOO.

Circle the roots and underline the suffixes in the words below.

1. commencement

2. reflection

3. obligation

4. fruition

5. obviously

Word Meaning Example

affluent (adj.) p. 158

① ② ③ ④

having plenty of money

commencement (n.) p. 158

① ② ③ ④

a beginning; graduation ceremony

fruition (n.) p. 159

① ② ③ ④

the point at which a plan is successfully completed

obvious (adj.) p. 160

① ② ③ ④

easy to notice or understand

mutual (adj.) p. 161

① ② ③ ④

shared by two or more people

reflect (v.) p.161

① ② ③ ④

easy to notice or understand

obligated (adj.) p. 162

① ② ③ ④

feeling that you must do something because it is right

Academic VocabularyFrom Of Beetles & Angels by Mawi Asgedom

Rate your understanding of each word. Then read its meaning and write a sample sentence.

A root word is a word that cannot be broken into smaller, meaningful parts. A suffix is a word part at the end of a word that changes its meaning. You can use word parts to determine the meaning of a word.

• the root commence means to begin

• the suffix-ment means an action or process

Roots and Suffixes

Of Beetles & Angelsby Mawi Asgedom

Close Reading First Reading Read the Complete Text

Introduce the Text. •Explain that you are reading for the key idea.

•Point out Words to Know definitions.

Read the text. •Use Routine 3: Reading to read the entire text aloud, or ask students

to read in pairs or independently.

•Review Words to Know in context.

Summarize the key ideas. •Use Routine 4: Summarize to describe the gist of the memoir.

Second Reading Model Close ReadingRead chunks of text to dig deeper into the language and ideas.

1. Key Ideas & Details (¶1)Help students determine that the mother is distraught about leaving the house. The author describes her as looking at the house “as though it were a person whom she loved and cherished.” He describes her as “laying her hands on it” and looking at it as if “she might never see it again.”

2. Text Structure (¶3 & 4)•Help students understand that capitalizing the parents’ words

emphasizes how they spoke these words; they “hammered” these words into their children’s minds; the words were an order.

What does the use of the word excelling tell you about Asgedom’s parents’ values? (They value education.)

Vocabulary Acquisition and Use Teach Academic VocabularyRead aloud each Target Word on the chart on this page and have students rate their knowledge. Use Routine 2: Academic Vocabulary to teach meaning.

Introduce Word FamiliesTell students that words in word families are related. Write and display: obligated/obligation. Explain: Each of these words is a member of a word family. This word pair have the same root word, but different suffix endings. Define the root obligate: to compel or require. Ask yes/no questions using the word family words. Have students vote in unison with a thumbs-up for yes and a thumbs-down for no. For example: Do you feel obligated to turn in your homework? Do you have an obligation to your classmates to be respectful and participate in class?

Use Roots and Suffixes Read aloud the definitions of roots and suffixes. Discuss the example word, commencement, and model the first item.

Define the following suffixes before students work independently. The suffix –ion means the act of. Remind students that reflect and reflection and obligated and obligation are word families.

The suffix –ly means in a certain way. Point out that obvious and obviously are word families.

After students have completed questions 1-5, model using roots and suffixes to determine the meaning of a word. The root reflect means to think carefully and the suffix -ion means the act or state of, so I know that reflection means the act of reflecting or thinking.

Find images online of college commencement ceremonies.


LITERARY FICTION MEMOIR


Predictable structure and design to build competence with instructional shifts in ELA Common Core.


house. The author describes her as looking at the house “as though it were a person whom she loved and cherished.” He describes her as “laying her hands on it” and looking at it as if “she might never see it again.”

2. Text Structure (¶3 & 4)•Help students understand that capitalizing the parents’ words

emphasizes how they spoke these words; they “hammered” these words into their children’s minds; the words were an order.

What does the use of the word excelling tell you about Asgedom’s parents’ values? (They value education.)

Unit 4 | Coming to America 157

rate their knowledge. Use Routine 2: Academic VocabularyAcademic Vocabulary to teach meaning.

Introduce Word FamiliesTell students that words in word families are related. Write and display: obligated/obligated/obligated obligation. Explain: Each of these words is a member of a word family. This word pair have the same root word, but different suffix endings. Define the root obligate: to compel or require. Ask yes/no questions using the word family words. Have students vote in unison with a thumbs-up for yes and a thumbs-down for no. For example: Do you feel obligated to turn in your homework? Do you have an obligation to your classmates to be respectful and participate in class?

word, commencement

Define the following suffixes before students work independently. The suffix –ionreflection and

The suffix –ly means ly means lyobviously are word families.

After students have completed questions 1-5, model using roots and suffixes to determine the meaning of a word. think carefully and the suffix reflection means the act of reflecting or thinking.

Find images online of college commencement ceremonies.

30

Scholastic Common Core Code X156



Words to Know

welfare: (n.) money that is paid by the government to people who are very poor or unemployed

Writing8. What was the “dream” of the author’s

mother and father that the author refers to in paragraph 11? How does the author support his claim that “the dream” that his father and mother “shared has already begun to come true”?

The author’s parents dreamed that _____. One way the author supports this claim is by _____. Another way he supports this claim is by _____.

Words & Phrases in Context5. Find the sentences the author uses

to describe how his father would have behaved at his graduation from Harvard, if he had been there.

What can you infer from these details about how Asgedom thinks his father would have felt that day?

Words & Phrases in Context

6. Who is the “son” in paragraph 10?

Find the context clues that identify the son.

Words & Phrases in Context7. What is the meaning of “ironic”?

Find the context clues that helped you determine its meaning.

Key Ideas & Details3. What has Asgedom learned from his

parents?

Key Ideas & Details4. Asgedom gave the commencement

speech at his graduation from Harvard. What can you infer from this fact about his parents’ influence and his experiences at Harvard?

¶10 But like my brother, my father missed my graduation. Ironic, isn’t it, that

father and son survived disease, war, and famine in Africa, but could not survive

something as preventable as drinking and driving in America?

¶11 My father departed before it came to full fruition, but the dream that he and

my mother shared has already begun to come true. His children have graduated from

college—first me, then Mehret, and one day, Hntsa. Mulu lives in Atlanta and raises

two more children with that same dream.

¶5 What’s both beautiful and scary about young children is that they will believe

most anything that their parents tell them. If our parents had told us that black

refugees growing up on welfare in an affluent white community couldn’t excel, we

probably would have taken them at their word.

¶6 But they told us that we could do anything if we worked hard and treated

others with respect. And we believed them.

¶7 It hurt my brother and me to see our parents struggle, and we wanted, more

than anything, to be able to help them someday. So we worked hard at school, and

after several years, we graduated from the ESL (English as Second Language)

program at Longfellow Elementary and entered regular classes full-time.

¶8 Sometimes I wonder what my father would have done at my graduation

from Harvard. He probably would have leaped from his seat and interrupted my

commencement speech in front of 30,000 spectators. Standing with his back straight,

chest out, and right hand pointing forward, he would have shouted, loud enough for

everyone to hear:

¶9 THIS IS MY SON, SELAMAWI. A LONG TIME AGO, WHEN HE WAS

JUST A LITTLE ONE, I TAUGHT HIM TO WORK HARD AND TO RESPECT

OTHERS. NOW LOOK WHERE THAT HAS TAKEN HIM.

Mawi Asgedom (far right) was born in Ethiopia, but fled to Sudan to escape war. After three years living in a Sudaneese refugee camp, Mawi and his family moved to the U.S. in 1983, when Mawi was seven years old. He is the bestselling author of Of Beetles & Angels: A Boy's Remarkable Journey from a Refugee Camp to Harvard and The Code: The 5 Secrets of Teen Success.

Close Reading Close Reading 6. Words & Phrases in Context (¶10)

•Help students recognize that the “son” is the author’s brother, not his son.

•Point out context clues such as “like my brother, my father” and that they both “missed” the author’s graduation because they both “could not survive . . . drinking and driving in America.”

7. Words & Phrases in Context (¶10)•Define ironic as happening in the opposite way of what is expected.

•Guide students to recognize that the dangers they faced in Africa (e.g., “disease, war, and famine”) were much more dangerous and constant than the danger of randomly being killed by someone who was “drinking and driving in America.” One would have expected the father and brother to die in Africa, but in reality they died in America. They survived the horrors of disease and war, only to be killed by a drunk driver.

8. Writing (¶11)•Possible answers include:

- The author’s parents dreamed that their children would excel at school, go to college, and lead successful lives. - One way the author supports this claim is by pointing out that the children “have graduated from college.” - Another way he supports this claim is by explaining that Mulu is raising “two more children” with the “same dream.”

•If students have trouble responding, guide them to look back at paragraphs 3, 4, and 5, which describe how the author’s parents “hammered into” his head that he should do well and “finish the university.” Help them infer that Mulu must be one of the author’s siblings and that her children are the grandchildren of the author’s parents. Mulu is passing their parents’ dream onto the next generation.

3. Key Ideas & Details (¶5 & 6)•Asgedom recognizes that his parents set him and his brother on a

rewarding path. They could have said that the children “couldn’t excel.” Instead, their parents told them that they “could do anything if [they]worked hard.”

• Provide a sentence starter: - Asgedom has learned that ____.

•Possible responses include: - he and his brother “could do anything if [they] worked hard and treated others with respect” - people who “lack schooling . . . have to work back-breaking jobs” - people who “lack schooling . . . never fully understand their rights” and “others take advantage of them.”

4. Key Ideas & Details (¶8)•Guide students to infer that Asgedom must have “worked hard” and

excelled in his classes and treated others with respect—just as his parents told him to—to have been chosen to give the commencement address.

5. Words & Phrases in Context (¶9)•Help students locate details such as “leaped from his seat,” “back

straight,” “chest out,” and shouting “loud enough for everyone to hear” that “THIS IS MY SON” and “LOOK WHERE THAT HAS TAKEN HIM.”

•Guide students to infer from these details that Asgedom thinks that his father would have been very proud of him as he delivered the commencement speech at such a respected university.




Sentence frames, morphology, and Think-Pair-Share Routines support multiple entry points to text.


PE CR Head1. Numbered

Indented

Indented



11. What is the meaning of “surroundings” in paragraph 15?

Words to Know

receptionist: (noun) someone whose job is to welcome and help people arriving in an office

devotion: (noun) a strong love and commitment

Words to Know

Tae Kwon Do: (noun) a style of fighting from Korea

Crew Team: (noun) a group of people who compete in rowing races in boats designed for many people who row together


13. What does Asgedom mean when he writes “we carried a home, a community”? Cite specific evidence.

Key Ideas & Details14. What can you infer from paragraph

17 about why the author tells the story about his co-worker helping an elderly woman?


12. Which student is the author referring to when he writes in paragraph 16 “never has a Harvard student seemed so great to me as in that moment...”?

What did the student do to gain the author’s admiration?

Key Ideas & Details9. What was the author’s life like in

Sudan?

Find the details that support this.

Key Ideas & Details10. What does Asgedom forget?

Why does he forget it?

¶16 During my sophomore year, however, something happened to remind me

of my mother’s advice. I was working as a delivery man for the Harvard Student

Agency. One day as I was waiting for my packages in the office, an elderly black

woman tottered in and wearily leaned on her cane. She hoped to find someone

who would type a short letter for her. Such a simple, easy thing to do. But HSA

has no typing service, and the receptionist had to tell her that she had come to the

wrong place. As the old woman turned to leave, frustrated and confused, one of my

coworkers called her over, gently sat her down, and typed the letter. It was such a

simple act. Yet never has a Harvard student seemed so great to me as in that moment

of reaching out.

¶17 I began to reflect on what my mother might have meant. In the Sudan, we

had carried with us all that we owned, but that included our devotion to one another.

In that sense we carried a home, a community, a sense of mutual responsibility

wherever we went. On that day in the Harvard Student Agency, my coworker carried

a community with her as well: the simple community of human connection and duty.

¶12 I delivered the commencement address at my graduation from Harvard in

1999. This is the text of my speech.

¶13 When I was a child, my mother told me that I should always sleep with the

covers over my head. At the time, my family was living in a Sudanese refugee camp,

in Africa, and we owned nothing that we did not carry with us. On many a night, we

slept out in the open, and my mother warned that if we let the covers down, snakes

could slip in and slither into our mouths. We had no trouble following her advice.

¶14 Years later, in the comfort of the United States, my mother gave me another

piece of advice, this one less obvious. “Always remember where you came from,” she

told me just before I left for Harvard. I was puzzled. The first piece of advice had

been easy. Who wants a mouth full of snake! But why was it important to remember

where I came from?

¶15 When I moved on to Harvard and saw new worlds open before me, I quickly

forgot about trying to understand my mother. Before I knew it, I was signed up

for the Tae Kwon Do Club, the Harvard African Students’ Association, a Phillips

Brooks House Program, the Freshman Crew Team (where I totaled a $15,000 boat

against the dock), and a Freshman Bible Study (I figured I needed all the prayer that

I could get). And, of course, I was taking four classes and trying to meet as many of

my 1,600 classmates as wanted to meet me. As I focused my energies on myself and

my immediate surroundings, remembering where I had come from seemed far less

important than knowing where I was supposed to be every half hour.

Close Reading Close Reading Close Reading 12. Words & Phrases in Context (¶16)

•Provide sentence starters: - The author is writing about the student who _____. - He admires the student because _____.

•Possible responses include: - typed the letter for the “elderly black woman” - she helped the woman even though the “HSA [had] no typing service” - she helped the woman who was “frustrated and confused”

13. Words & Phrases in Context (¶17)•Prompt a volunteer to provide the standard definition of community—

the people who live in the same area.

•Help students identify details that express the author’s meaning of community, e.g. “devotion,” “home,” and “a sense of mutual responsibility.”

•Guide students to infer that to the author community is more than just a group of people who live in the same area, but rather a group of people who take care of one another.

14. Key Ideas & Details•Help students recognize that the incident prompted the author to

“reflect” on his mother’s advice and begin to understand it.

•Guide students to recognize that the co-worker is an example of how to “remember where you came from” and care for your community.


- In Sudan, the author’s life was _____. - One detail that supports this is _____. - Another detail that supports this is _____.

•Possible responses include: - difficult, dangerous, a struggle - they lived in a “refugee camp” - they “owned nothing that [they could] not carry” - they worried about “snakes”


- Asgedom forgets _____. (his mother’s advice to “Always remember where you came from.”) Point out the reflective tone.

- He forgets it because _____. (his “surroundings” at Harvard are new, exciting, and a distraction; he had so much to do that it took effort just to know where he “was supposed to be every half hour”)

11. Words & Phrases in Context•The paragraph is mostly about what the author did on a daily basis at

Harvard. Guide students to infer that when Asgedom writes “I focused my energies on myself and my immediate surroundings,” he is referring to the things that were around him at that time.

Make a list of details from this section that suggest a reflective tone.






Words to Know

unsolicited: (adjective) not asked for

ranks: (noun) people who belong to a particular group

nourished: (adjective) given the food and other substances necessary to live

Words to Know

vulnerable: (adjective) easily harmed

Words & Phrases in Context20. What does the author mean when

he tells his classmates to “face the snakes and drive them away”?

Find the details that helped you determine this.


17. According to the author, what makes “many of us go through life with covers over our heads”?


18. How does the author give a different meaning to his mother’s use of the word “covers”?

Key Ideas & Details

19. What point is Asgedom trying to make by saying “a butterfly flapping its wings in Japan can cause a hurricane in Louisiana”?

Where does he provide examples of this?

Key Ideas & Details15. What does Asgedom say is the

most important lesson he learned at Harvard?

Find the details that he uses to express this significance.


16. What did the author’s mother mean by “Always remember where you came from”?

¶21 Some people say that a butterfly flapping its wings in Japan can cause a

hurricane in Louisiana. Anyone of us, however small and helpless we may feel, can

spark unimagined changes. Today’s small act of kindness can become tomorrow’s

whirlwind of human progress.

¶22 But as you all know, progress is not easy, and it will not come unsolicited. I

hope that many of us will inspire positive change. There is still so much to be done

both in distant lands such as the Sudan, and closer to home in our own communities.

The big, sweeping, revolutionary actions are always most noticeable. But quite often,

it will be the small things that all of us can do that will have the most impact. Yes,

we will be busy in our lives. But we can all take a little time to do a little deed of

kindness. We can help write a letter; we can inscribe a little goodness on the hard

surface of this world.

¶23 In a few minutes we shall be welcomed to the ranks of educated men

and women. As we start the journey to wherever our dreams may lead, we must

remember where we have come from. We must recall our membership in the human

community that has nourished us; we must accept the responsibility to keep that

community alive. Improving the quality of life for the entire human community is

the single greatest task that faces our generation and generations to come. Of course,

no worthy endeavor is without risks and pitfalls—without snakes, if you will—but I

know that you, my classmates, are ready to peek out, to see beyond yourselves, and

cast off the covers. You are ready to face the snakes and drive them away. You are

ready to change the world. Thank you! Good luck! And congratulations!

¶18 So what have I learned from my four years at Harvard? Many facts and

formulas, many new ways of thinking, a fresh understanding of the world. But what’s

most important to me is that after four years at Harvard I’m finally beginning to

understand my mother’s advice.

¶19 Remembering where you come from means holding on to the vision that

you are a part of a human community that you can carry with you every day. That

community has given us much. Are we not obligated to give it something back?

¶20 My mother’s advice in childhood was to pull the covers over my head—that

had been the easy part. But her later advice meant, I now realize, that I should know

when to pull the covers down and stick my neck out. That’s the hard part. Too many

of us go through life with the covers over our heads. We want to reach out, but we

fear to make ourselves vulnerable. And we are also busy. We have appointments to

keep; we have things to do. We race through a world of demands. And then we ask

ourselves almost helplessly, “What can we do as individuals?”

Close Reading Close Reading 19. Key Ideas & Details (¶22)

•Assist students in recognizing that “a butterfly flapping its wings” is a small insect making a small motion and that a “hurricane in Louisiana” would be a massive, hugely significant event far from “Japan.”

•Help students understand that the author is using figurative language and that he doesn’t really believe that a butterfly can “cause” a hurricane.

•Guide students to infer that the author is trying to say that our small actions, even if we feel “small and helpless,” can have significant results, or “spark unimagined changes.”

20. Words & Phrases in Context (¶23)•Provide a sentence starter:

- The author means that his classmates should _____. (help others when they can, even if it’s difficult to do so; make life choices that help their communities) - Details such as _____ and _____ helped me determine this. (“we must recall our membership in the human community”; “we must accept the responsibility to keep that community alive”; “improving the quality of life for the entire human community is the single greatest task”; and “no worthy endeavor is without risks and pitfalls”)

What purpose does a commencement address serve? (a call to action)

15. Key Ideas & Details (¶18)•Help students recognize that the most important lesson the author

learned is that he is “finally beginning to understand [his] mother’s advice to “remember where you came from.”

•Prompt a volunteer to explain that Harvard is one of the best colleges in the United States, so it is significant that he learned this important lesson from his mother, not from one of his distinguished professors, while at Harvard.

•Guide students to understand that the author first lists what he did learn from his professors — establishing the significance of his mother’s lesson.


- Asgedom’s mother meant _____. (you have to remember the community that made you who you are and you have “to give it something back”)


- One reason the author gives is _____. (we don’t want to be vulnerable, we are too “busy,” we don’t feel like we can make a difference)

18. Words & Phrases in Context•Guide students to infer that the author is using “covers” in paragraph

20 as a metaphor for refusing to be part of the community. Remind students that the mother used “covers” in a literal way.






5.

6.

Identify Evidence | Analyze Individuals, Events, and IdeasReread Of Beetles & Angels, highlighting examples and anecdotes Asgedom offers to describe his experiences in America. How does he introduce, illustrate, and elaborate on individuals, events, and ideas?

•As you read, use the Evidence column to record examples from the text that describe Asgedom’s experiences.

•In the Explanation column, explain how the evidence introduces and illustrates individuals, events, and ideas.


1. “One of my co-workers called her over, gently sat her down, and typed the letter. It was such a simple act. Yet never has a Harvard student seemed so great to me…”

Asgedom 161 The author is reminded of his mother’s advice to “remember where you came from” when a fellow student helps a confused, elderly woman with a small task.

2. “I TAUGHT HIM TO WORK HARD AND TO RESPECT OTHERS. NOW LOOK WHERE THAT HAS TAKEN HIM.”

Assess Understanding Identify Evidence Conference with StudentsWork one on one or in small groups to support students who need more support. Use the routines and strategies below.

Which events are part of the author’s reflections on how to “recall our membership in the human community”?

IF

My student is very interested in the history of Iran and Ethiopia.

THEN

Revisit the Text Complexity Rubric and share more examples of the purpose, structure, and language in the two texts. Use Anchor Media to elaborate on the historical and cultural references in the texts.

IF

My student isn’t decoding grade-level text.

THEN

Scaffold student reading with Routine 3: Reading. Support students to read actively and with accountability using routines like oral cloze, modeled fleunt reading, choral reading, and partner cloze to move students toward reading fluency and independence.

Third Reading Analyze Individuals, Events, and IdeasDirect students to reread the text, highlighting Asgedom’s descriptions of people and events. Explain that students will use the chart to note and explain the significance of the author’s descriptions. First, revisit the organization of the chart. Ask students to define each column heading:

•Evidence: the words, phrases or sentences from the text that we will write down as evidence of how Asgedom describes his point of view. Note that these do not always have to be complete sentences, but they are always direct quotations.

•Source: the narrator or character who provided the evidence•Page: the place where you noted the evidence in the text. Note that

you might also want to indicate the paragraph, as you might want to write that some evidence explained something in the first, second, third, etc. paragraph.

Model Identifying and Explaining EvidenceModel the first example:

•The story of the author’s co-worker at the Harvard Student Agency is one of the clearest examples of how Asgedom shares his point of view on the importance of kindness and community.

•On page 161, he describes the student’s interaction with an elderly woman who was looking for help: “One of my co-workers called her over, gently sat her down, and typed the letter. It was such a simple act. Yet never has a Harvard student seemed so great to me…”

•The author is reminded of his mother’s advise to “remember where you came from” when a fellow student helps a confused, elderly woman with a small task.

SWD

G&T




“…we carried a home, a community, a sense of mutual responsibility wherever we went…. my coworker carried a community with her as well: The simple community of human connection and duty.”

“Today’s small act of kindness can become tomorrow’s whirlwind of human progress.”


Craft & Structure

Structure of a Memoir1. Make a list of significant events of Asgedom’s life in sequential order.

Author’s Purpose2. What are Asgedom’s suggestions to the reader about the lessons he learned?

Provide evidence from the text.

3. Compare and contrast Asgedom’s purpose to Dumas’ purpose for writing.

Asgedom’s Purpose Dumas’s Purpose

Key Ideas and Details

Determining the Central Idea1. Summarize the key idea of Asgedom’s memoir. What is the central idea of the text? Use

evidence.

2. List three key individuals that Asgedom introduces in this excerpt. Explain why each individual is important to the central idea.


The lessons he taught the author lead to success in life

3. List three key events that Asgedom introduces in his memoir. Explain why each event is important to the central idea.


Sequence is the order of events of a story. Transition words like first, right now, years later, can help readers identify the next event.

Sequence

Author’s purpose is the reason authors write a story. Authors write to inform, to entertain, or to persuade.

Author’s purpose

Examine Craft & Structure Explore Key Ideas & Details Discuss Structure: SequencePoint out how paragraphs 13 and 14 recount an anecdote from Asgedom’s childhood.

•How does Asgedom begin paragraph 13? (“When I was a child”)

•How does Asgedom begin paragraph 14? (“Years later, in the comfort of the United States”)

•What does this reveal about the structure of Asgedom’s memoir? Be sure that students understand that Asgedom structures his memoir as a series of anecdotes and reflections from his past and his present. He constantly juxtaposes memories of life in Sudan with experiences he had in America to convey his point of view.

Discuss Author’s Purpose•Review Author’s Purpose. Discuss why Dumas and Asgedom wrote

memoirs.

•Ask students to go back to the text to identify evidence to support their analysis of the two author’s purpose. Think about the message the authors want readers to understand after reading their memoirs.

In what way does Asgedom’s memoir serve multiple purposes? (The author informs readers about his experiences, attempts to persuade readers of his opinion that “improving the quality of life for the entire human community is the single greatest task,” and entertains by telling a story for enjoyment.)

Determine the Central Idea Use Routine 7: Summarize to discuss the central idea of the text.

Analyze Individuals and EventsRemind students that they encountered several important characters and events in Of Beetles & Angels. Asgedom, like Dumas, made choices about which characters and events he included in his memoir.

Before breaking students into small groups, ask students to look back at page 154 and share one of the characters or events that was significant to Dumas’s memoir. Use Routine 2: Idea Wave to share responses.

Model Text-Based Responses Think aloud as you model explaining the significance of a particular character and event from Of Beetles & Angels.

•Take a look at page 158, paragraph 9. I thought that Asgedom’s father was significant. Remember: we discussed that the author put this section in capital letters to emphasize how important his father’s advice was to him.

•This event, remembering what his father taught him, is significant, since the writer feels that the lessons of his father — about working hard and helping others — influenced his success in one of America’s greatest universities.

Explain how the Harvard student who helped the elderly woman “inscribe[d] a little goodness on the hard surface of this world.” (The student took “a little time to do a little deed of kindness.”)




The author’s father

Practice with note-taking guides for oral and written summaries.


So was your speech a success?Use the rubric below to evaluate your collaboration skills, speech content, and final presentation. Think carefully about your work. Choose one box in each category below to determine your score.

Collaboration: Did I build on my partner’s ideas and express my own thoughts clearly?

Exemplary (4) Meets Standards (3) Needs Work (2) Does Not Meet Standards (1)

•I build on my partner’s ideas and express my ideas clearly.

• I follow rules for discussions and lead others by example.

• I pose/respond to specific questions.

•I build on my partner’s ideas and express my ideas clearly.

•I follow rules for discussions.

•I pose/respond to specific questions.

•I express my own ideas clearly.

•I don’t always follow rules for discussions.

•I pose/respond to specific questions.

•I ignore or discredit my partner’s ideas and fail to express ideas clearly and concisely.

•I do not follow rules for discussions and do not pose or respond to specific questions.

Content: Was the material in my speech accurate? Was it well explained?


•My speech includes all the information relevant to the task.

•I explain how the author used humor effectively/ ineffectively.

•My speech includes most of the information relevant to the task.

•I mostly explain how the author used humor effectively/ ineffectively.

•My speech includes only some relevant information.

•My explanation of how the author used humor effectively/ineffectively is unclear.

•My speech includes only some relevant information.

•My explanation of how the author used humor effectively/ ineffectively is unclear.

Presentation: Did I present my speech clearly? Did I use appropriate presentation techniques for the space and audience?


I confidently presented my speech and:

•used sophisticated command of formal English.

•used appropriate volume/tone.

•had strong posture and confident stance.

•made frequent eye contact.

I presented my speech and demonstrated appropriate presentation techniques:

•used command of formal English.

•had appropriate volume/tone.

•had strong posture and confident stance.

•made eye contact.

I presented my speech and:

•used informal English.

•used inappropriate volume/tone.

•had poor posture/stance.

•made little eye contact.

I did not present my speech, or, I presented my speech and did not use any of the appropriate presentation techniques.

• So what you are saying is...

• So what you mean is...

• In other words, you think...

• If I understand you correctly, you are saying...

Seeking Clarification

• _____ pointed out

• _____ indicated that

• _____ emphasized

Reporting Ideas

• Be still and have good posture.

• Speak loudly and clearly.

• Make eye contact with your audience.

Presentation

Collaborate and PresentAssignment: Work with a partner to plan and write a two-minute speech about the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of humor and reflection in either Dumas’s or Asgedom’s memoir. Follow the steps below to create a speech and deliver it to the class.

Analyze the Content

1. Consider the following questions:

•Did any sections make you laugh? What was the author emphasizing in the part that you found humorous?

•What is the effect of reflection in the memoirs?

2. Go back to the text and choose at least two examples of how either Dumas or Asgedom uses humor/reflection. List the examples and explain the effect.

Example Effect

Write Your Speech3. Use your chart of examples and explanations as talking points for the body

of your speech.

•Draft your speech on paper or on the computer.

•Remember to introduce yourself to your audience and add a conclusion.

Present4. Deliver your speech.

Presentation and Evaluation Comprehend and Collaborate Provide Directions for Public Speaking •Before students present their speeches, lead the class in finding

information in the rubric that will help them deliver their speeches. Which section of the rubric helps us determine what to work on as we deliver our speeches?

•Guide students to concentrate on the last row of the rubric: Presentation.

•Facilitate whole-group presentations.

Lead Self-Evaluation Use Routine 10: Self Evaluation & Peer Feedback to have students evaluate the success of their speeches. Which section of the rubric helps us determine what to work on as we deliver our speeches?

Summarize the feedback you received from your partner. Use sentence frames to report ideas.

Analyze the Task Use Routine 5: Unpack the Task to determine the purpose, audience, and expectations for writing. Remind students that the writing process will allow them to organize and express the ideas they had as they read, reread, and responded to the memoirs throughout the Unit.

Use Routine 4: Think-(Write)-Pair-Share to have students share answers to the questions in section 1. Provide sentence frames:

- One section that I laughed at was _____.

- I determined that _____ was using humor when _____.

- I did/didn’t find _____ funny because_____.

- The author was reflective when he/she _____.

Model an Example •Guide students to think about what makes text funny. I chuckled when

the young Dumas jokingly told a boy in her class that her “family station wagon” was a two-hump camel! This line made me laugh because the narrator let me “in” on a little joke she was playing on someone.

•Record the information in an example T-chart as a model for students.

Facilitate Partner Work •Facilitate as students work together and take notes in their T-charts.

Provide sentence frames to help students discuss what they thought was funny or effective.

- One part I found funny was _____.

- It was effective because _____.

Scholastic Common Core Code X 169168


Scholastic Common Core Code X 169168 Unit 4 | Coming to America

Unit 4 | Coming to America

Dumas explains to one of her annoying classmates that her “family station wagon” was really a two-hump camel (pg 149).

This line in the story made me laugh because the narrator let me in on a little joke she was playing. I knew that she didn’t have camels, but the boy she was talking to didn’t know.

Explicit teaching and assessment tasks for speaking, listening, and working in groups.


In a block format, the writer discusses all the key points about one text in the first half of the essay.

Then in the second half of the essay, these same key points are analyzed about the second text.

Transition words and phrases tie ideas and paragraphs together.

Block Format

Analyze the ModelA compare/contrast essay explains similarities and differences between two texts.

Introduction

Which sentence sets up the compare/contrast focus of the essay?

Body Paragraph 1: Schwartz

Purpose: explain the impact of Einstein’s theories on science, America, and the world

Point of View: Strategies:Example:

Body Paragraph 2: Hopkinson

Purpose:Point of View: Strategies:Example:

Conclusion

How does the writer conclude the essay?

• Find two examples of academic and domain-specific vocabulary.

• Find two examples of the author’s standard use of capitalization.

• Find two examples of the effective use of punctuation.

Language and Conventions

An informative essay provides an overview of the key topics and ideas of a text.

Informative Essay

Shared Purpose, Varied Paths By Declan Wallace

Authors John Schwartz and Deborah Hopkinson both tell the stories of

American immigrants. However, the two authors tackle their topics differently and

use contrasting structures to convey their ideas. In “1905: Einstein’s Miracle Year,”

Schwartz presents factual information about Albert Einstein’s ground-breaking

Theory of Relativity and his eventual immigration to the U.S. Alternatively,

Hopkinson constructs a first-person narrative to reveal one young Romanian

immigrant’s shock at arriving in a New York tenement. While both authors share

immigrant experiences, they use different strategies to convey their points of view.

In “1905: Einstein’s Miracle Year” Schwartz explains how Einstein’s theory behind

E=MC2 changed the foundations of science and enabled America to develop the

atom bomb. Schwartz states his point of view when he says that Einstein “rewrote

the rules of physics, and in the process, changed the world forever.” Throughout the

article, Schwartz uses facts and historical references, such as newspaper clippings and

letters, to show Einstein’s impact on science, America, and the world.

In contrast, Deborah Hopkinson tells an image-rich narrative in “Shutting Out the

Sky,” using a storyteller’s tone to reveal her view that immigration is a vital part of

American history. Hopkinson’s perspective comes across in her vivid descriptions of

one young immigrant’s arrival in the “bitter cold” of New York City. Eventually he is

welcomed in a tenement that “hummed with activity.” Four young men sleep on the

sofa cushions, with “their feet propped awkwardly on chairs.” Through such descriptions,

Hopkinson brings the dynamics of the immigrant experience to life for the reader.

In conclusion, while both of these authors tell about people and events that are

significant in American history, they use different approaches to achieve that purpose.

Read the ModelWriters use many strategies to craft ideas and share information. The writer of this informative essay compares and contrasts structure to show how two authors approach similar topics in different ways. Read and discuss the model essay below.

Read the Model Analyze the Model Evaluate Craft and StructureRemind students that they are examining the comparative structure of the model essay. This model can be used as an example of how to write a compare/contrast essay.•Analyze the introduction. Remind students that the introduction

identifies what the writer will discuss and previews the rest of the essay. What does this introduction include? (the names and authors of the texts; a focus statement that provides a plan for the essay)

•Analyze the first body paragraph. Draw students’ attention to the sidebar explaining a block format. What is each body paragraph going to be about? (one of the texts; a description of the author’s approach) What details are included in each body paragraph? (purpose, point of view, strategy, examples)

•Analyze the second body paragraph. What role do transitions play? (help organize ideas, lead the reader to the next idea) What information is included in this body paragraph? (the same details are included, but the focus is on the second text)

•Evaluate the Evidence. Discuss whether the text evidence is effective in supporting the focus statement. What text evidence supports the focus statement clearly? Are there any details that are unclear?

•Analyze the conclusion. Point out that the conclusion is the final paragraph of an informative essay. How does this writer restate his focus statement? (by paraphrasing, saying it in a new way)

What strategy did the writer use in the model? (The writer used a block by block comparison of the two texts.)

Introduce the StrategyDefine Informative Essay. Explain that one way to write an informative essay is to compare and contrast two topics. Guide students to understand that the model essay, based on the performance task for this workshop, will deepen their understanding of this type of writing.

Examine a ModelRead the model aloud. During reading, focus on the features that are unique to this compare and contrast text structure. Ask the questions below as students find examples in the model.

•Identify the introduction. Reread the introduction and explain its purpose. The introduction identifies the authors, texts, and topics that this writer will discuss. Then, a focus statement tells the focus of the essay.

•Identify the body. Reread the text aloud. Each body paragraph is about one of the texts. The first body paragraph focuses on “Einstein’s Miracle Year.” The second body paragraph focuses on “Shutting Out the Sky.”

•Identify the conclusion. Read the conclusion aloud. This conclusion restates the focus statement. A strong conclusion could also leave the reader with something to think about.

•Identify language and conventions. Note that using academic vocabulary, standard capitalization, and effective punctuation are important conventions in an informative essay. In addition, this writer uses transition words that are particular to the comparative structure. The phrase “In contrast” at the beginning of the second body paragraph tells the reader that differences are going to be discussed.


LITERARY NONFICTION PERFORMANCE TASK




Step 2 | Organize Ideas for WritingWhat You Need to Know | When you compare two things, you describe their similarities.

When you contrast them, you focus on their differences. To develop your topic: 1. Describe Dumas’s purpose and strategies 2. Describe Asgedom’s purpose and strategies

What You Need to Write | Determine which of these authors’ purposes and points of view are the same and which are different.

Step 3 | DraftWrite a draft of your essay on the computer or on paper.

Step 1 | Gather EvidenceWhat You Need to Know | Examine the evidence you have collected (see pages 108 and 120).

What You Need to Know | Note the key ideas you have drawn from the evidence. Select the key ideas you will include in your essay.

Funny in Farsi Of Beetles & Angels

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Point:

Evidence:

Page # _______

Write an essay to explain two authors’ purposes or points of view. Explain the strategies they use in their writing.

Body Paragraph 1:

Purpose:

Point of View:

Strategies:

Example:

Body Paragraph 2:

Purpose:

Point of View:

Strategies:

Example:

(author’s name)

(author’s name)

Evaluate Evidence Organize Ideas Revisit Compare/Contrast Remind students that informative essays can present similarities and differences.

Review Text EvidenceRemind students that informative essays have to be based on the text. In order to figure out the topic of the essay, a writer must consider all the relevant text evidence and determine what key ideas it shows. In this part of the writing process, you will think logically about your text evidence to develop the topic of your essay.

CollaborateHave students use frames and Routine 1: Think-(Write)-Pair-Share to discuss their key ideas with a partner.

- One big idea in my informative essay is _____.

- The detail _____ supports the idea _____.

- The text evidence from _____ shows _____.

Draft

Remind students about the important parts of their draft. What should you include in your introduction? (focus statement) Be sure your body paragraphs state the key purposes and use evidence to support these key ideas.

Analyze the Task Use Routine 5: Unpack the Task to determine the purpose, audience, and expectations for writing. Remind students that the writing process will allow them to organize and express the ideas they had as they read, reread, and responded to the memoirs throughout the Unit.

Select Relevant EvidenceDirect students to go back to their Identify Evidence notes to capture the key points and pieces of evidence that show the authors’ purposes.

Guide students to develop their topic by sorting their evidence into logical groups of key ideas. What patterns do you notice? What does the evidence reveal about the authors’ purposes? What key ideas can you come up with based on the evidence you have collected?

Revisit Authors’ StrategiesRevisit the strategies the authors use to convey point of view, drawing upon the conversations you had during the Close Reading of the texts.

• Reflection: Go back to the text and find examples of times when the narrators, Dumas and Asgedom, were thinking about and directly expressing a key idea to the reader.

• Humor: Did you find examples of funny anecdotes the authors have used to express their points of view?

• Irony: Remember we discussed irony, something that happens in the opposite way than we expect. Return to the texts to find some examples of how ironic statements helped the authors share a key idea.

Share one example of relevant evidence you have selected for your essay. Why is this detail important to your key idea?





Targeted organizers for writing.


Apply It | Compare/contrast Dumas’s and Asgedom’s purposes and points of view. Choose a frame to jump start your essay about these two authors.

1. The differences/similarities between (author 1)

and (author 2)

are (state similar or different key ideas)

.

2. (Although, While)

some similarities exist, the differences between (author 1)

and (author 2)

are

.

3. Both (author 1)

and (author 2)

tell (key idea of texts 1 and 2)

. These two authors present

accounts of (detail about their stories)

in (similar/different)

ways.

4. (author 1)

states (key idea of text 1)

in the (title of text 1)

while (author 2)

states

(key idea of text 2) in the

(title of text 2).

5. Two (text types, i.e., memoirs)

, (titles of text 1 and text 2)

offer a different view of (key idea)

, from

(detail of text 1) to

(detail of text 2) .

1. Jason Chin blends myths and folklore with science in his historical account of the Galapagos, while Loretta Wise simply tells facts about the islands.

2. Two new books, An American Journey by Lincoln Petronis and The Immigrant Life by James Hopper, both offer unusual views of the immigrant experience.

3. Mental Floss and Slate are groundbreaking magazines that each challenge the reader to look at American society in a fresh light.

4. While James Ross entertains with his riveting graphic novels, Tullida Ride uses the graphic novel form to tell dark and serious stories.

Language Study | Compare and Contrast Statements

Try It | Put an S by the sentences that compare or highlight similarities. Put a D next to the sentences that contrast or highlight differences.

Get It | Statements that compare and contrast give details about how two subjects are similar and how they are different. When writing statements that compare and contrast:

•identify the subjects being compared and contrasted•tell how the subjects are similar and different•use signal words such as both, also, and in addition to show similarities•use signal words such as although, but, however, and in contrast to show differences

Write Statements Analyze Statements Focus on the TaskTell students that they will craft compare/contrast statements to use in their informative essays about the Dumas and Asgedom memoirs. Remind students that the focus statement should tell what their essay will be about, but will never actually include the words “my essay is about.” Your focus statement should state the key idea you want to express in your essay. The goal of this short writing activity is to help us craft effective focus statements that identify relevant supporting evidence. That way, we will be even better at writing our own focus statements for our informative essays.

CollaborateAsk students to try using each of the frames as a focus statement template. Have students use Routine 1: Think-Pair-Share to discuss their ideas with a partner. Provide additional sentence frames to help them analyze the syntax of the compare/contrast statements they used.

- The structure that I find most effective is _____ because _____.

- I am comparing _____ with _____, so I am going to use _____.

Remind students to check their drafts and analyze the statements they used to compare and contrast the two memoirs. Ask them to circle the transitions they used.

Text AnalysisRead the directions aloud. Be sure students understand the difference between statements that compare and statements that contrast. Explain that the purpose of the exercise is to look closely at the language used to compare and contrast texts.

•Let’s look at the first statement together. The writer states the approach of two authors, Jason Chin and Loretta Wise. What do both writers write about, according to the statement? (the history of the Galapagos islands)

•Does the first statement stress similarities or differences in the two authors’ approaches? (differences).

•What words or phrases are used to compare or contrast? (the author uses the transition while to contrast the authors’ approaches. Chin uses myth and folklore, while Wise focuses just on fact).

Review the ExamplesHave students read the examples, labeling the statements. Ask students to point out words and phrases that indicate comparison (both and each) and contrast (while).

Encourage students to find more examples of statements that compare and contrast. Share a number of sample book reviews from a range of sources, such as the New York Times. Challenge students to find statements in the reviews that compare and contrast the strategies authors use in works of fiction and nonfiction.





Thorough writing process supports.


Step 5 | Revise & PublishRevise your draft, making sure that your essay provides an appropriate response to the writing prompt. Use the Revision Rubric to assess your drafts. Have a partner assess your draft as well.

Organization and Clarity

I state the title and the authors of the texts in my introductory statement. Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I introduce my ideas about how the authors structured their texts in my introductory statement.

Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

The topic sentences of my body paragraphs include controlling ideas.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I wrap up my ideas in a concluding paragraph.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

My concluding paragraph includes a final thought about the implications of how the authors structured their texts.

Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

Evidence and Reasoning

I include three or more pieces of evidence to develop my essay in each body paragraph.

Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I cite the author and paragraph number for each piece of evidence.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

Language and Conventions

I use appropriate transition words to link sections of my essay and ideas within each paragraph.

Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I include compare and contrast statements that show similarities and differences.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I use academic and domain-specific vocabulary from the texts as appropriate.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

I establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone throughout my essay.Self 1 2 3 4

Partner 1 2 3 4

Get It | Transitions clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.

Try It | Find the transition words or phrases that the writer used in the sentence below from the model. How did he summarize or wrap up the central idea in the conclusion?

In conclusion, while both of these authors tell about people

and events that are significant in American history, they use

different approaches to achieve that purpose.

Apply It | Now craft your conclusion. Use a meaningful transition to move your reader to your final thought.

Conventions Study | Transition Words and Phrases

Revise & Publish Skill Builder: Use Transitions Peer AssessmentFollow the steps below to have partners self-assess and then assess each other’s work using the scoring guide and Routine 10: Self Evaluation & Peer Feedback.

1. Direct students to read their papers and select appropriate ratings.

2. Ask pairs to exchange papers and books, read their partner’s paper, and select ratings for their partner’s writing.

Share FeedbackRemind students to give their partners positive feedback before making suggestions for revision. Model an example. A strong part of your essay is the introduction because the focus statement is very clear. Your essay needs to include more citations to give credit for your evidence. •Guide students to share positive comments and suggestions for

revision with their partner.

•Have pairs return drafts and have one partner discuss feedback.

•Direct the second partner to ask questions and summarize the feedback using sentence frames.

•Ask partners to switch roles.

Identify Transitions in the ModelHave students reread the model on page 170 to highlight the use of transition words and phrases. Analyze the text for transitions that achieve different purposes.

•Contrast Ideas: Reread the last sentence of the introduction. Note the two separate parts of the sentence. Using the word although sets up the similarities in the authors’ purposes. The second part of the sentence establishes the contrast.

•Introduce Evidence: Reread the last sentence of the first body paragraph. This phrase moves the reader from a description of specific evidence to a discussion of how the author uses evidence in the entire text.

PracticeHave students use Routine 9: Draft to guide students through the process of writing a conclusion, beginning with a transition. Point out that different transition techniques are used for different purposes. What other transition word or phrases could be used? Make a list of transition words students can use to achieve the following purposes:

•Contrast Ideas: instead of, while, despite, though, although, conversely, on the other hand, on the contrary, rather, however

•Introduce Evidence: specifically, especially, in particular to, to enumerate, in detail, namely, including

•Conclude: in summary, in all, therefore, on the whole, given these points






QuestionsQuestions

Words & Phrases in Context3. What words and phrases develop

the comparison of Einstein to “an artist—a musician” in both a literal and figurative sense?

Key Ideas & Details2. Why does the author compare Einstein

to “rock stars and movie hearthrobs” in paragraph 5?

Text Structure1. What is the effect of using the heading

that begins “How an unknown scientist rewrote the rules of physics...”?

¶6 A Times reporter described Einstein’s arrival: A man in a faded gray raincoat

and a flopping black felt hat that nearly concealed the gray hair that straggled over

his ears stood on the boat deck of the steamship Rotterdam yesterday, timidly facing

a battery of cameramen. In one hand he clutched a shiny briar pipe and with the

other clung to a precious violin. He looked like an artist—a musician. He was. But

underneath his shaggy locks was a scientific mind whose deductions have staggered the

ablest intellects of Europe.

¶7 Twelve years later, the world-famous Einstein returned to America for good,

fleeing Nazi Germany and its persecution of Jews, and settled in New Jersey to work

at Princeton University. His theories, and those of other physicists, led Einstein to

believe that science could unlock the promise of E=MC2.

¶8 In August 1939, with World War II looming, he wrote a letter to President

Franklin D. Roosevelt that launched the massive effort to build the atomic bomb.

Einstein had been a lifelong pacifist.

¶9 The two atom bombs dropped on Japan in August 1945 brought the war to

a close, but Einstein was devastated by the resulting destruction and loss of life. “I

made one great mistake in my life—when I signed the letter to President Roosevelt

recommending that atom bombs be made,” he later wrote, adding, “but there was

some justification—the danger that the Germans would make them.”

¶10 After the war, Einstein and other physicists pushed to control the power

they had helped to unleash, calling for arms control. Einstein was offered the

presidency of Israel in 1952, but turned it down. He died a U.S. citizen in Princeton,

in April 1955, at age 76. In an editorial following his death, The Times said that

what distinguished Einstein was his passionate devotion to truth, and his great

imagination. “Mathematical physicists in Einstein’s class are the epic poets of our

time,” the paper said. “The universe we conceive is their intellectual creation.”

1905: Einstein’s Miracle Yearby John Schwartz

How an unknown scientist rewrote the rules of physics, and in the process, changed the world forever.

¶1 One hundred years ago, a young patent clerk in Switzerland named Albert

Einstein began publishing his revolutionary theories of how the physical universe

worked, and the world hasn’t been the same since.

¶2 Einstein was 26 and unknown in 1905 when, in the course of a year, he

completed three scientific papers that would begin to rewrite the rules of physics

and make him a star. While the term genius is often overused, Einstein’s enormous

accomplishments, beginning in what has been called his “miracle year,” established

him as the most famous genius in the world. And his reputation has only grown in

the decades since his death.

¶3 Einstein’s “Special Theory of Relativity,” one of his accomplishments of 1905,

postulated that time and space were not absolute, but instead varied, depending on

one’s perspective; in other words, they were “relative.”

¶4 The same theory yielded modern science’s most important equation, E=MC2,

which states that energy (E) is equal to mass (M) times the speed of light squared.

While deceptively simple, its consequences were monumental because it described

the enormous amounts of energy that might be liberated from matter—so much that

a penny, if it could be completely converted into energy, would provide all the power

used by New York City for two years. The same concept would lead to the idea of

harnessing the energy in matter to develop atomic weapons and nuclear power.

¶5 Einstein received the kind of adulation now reserved for rock stars and movie

heartthrobs. On his first trip to the United States in 1921, crowds waited for hours at

the dock in New York for his ship to come in, and thousands more lined the streets to

cheer for him.

Extend Guiding Questions Words & Phrases in Context3. Students should analyze the use of language used to compare

Einstein to “an artist—a musician” in paragraph 6 and through the rest of the text.•Descriptive language creates the literal vision of Einstein as creative

and unkempt. He looks the way one might picture an artist or musician, with gray hair “straggled over his ears,” clinging to “a precious violin.” Einstein fits an artistic stereotype because of his physical appearance.

•The author also develops another meaning of the word artist—as in a person whose work exhibits exceptional skill. Figuratively, Einstein is a “world-famous” and “passionate” mathematical artist with a “great imagination,” and is one of the “epic poets of our time.”

•In what ways can Einstein be considered an artist? Why? Help students see that the portrayal of Einstein as an artist is the strategy the author uses to express his point of view that Einstein changed the world.

Reading and Writing ConnectionsProvide extended opportunities for students to synthesize across texts and connect to essential Unit understandings.

•Text Connection: Explore the dichotomy that German-born Einstein “had been a lifelong pacifist,” yet supported the building of the atom bomb. Help students synthesize information in another biographical text to infer Einstein’s character, motivation, and beliefs.

•Unit Connection: Compare the experiences of other immigrants “coming to America” with Einstein’s experience. For example, consider the factors that caused them to immigrate, the times in their lives when they immigrated, and how they were treated when they arrived.

•Research Connection: Study the lives of famous American immigrants such as: Patrick Ewing, who was an NBA star and Olympic gold medallist; David Ho, who revolutionized the treatment of HIV; and Madeleine Albright, who was the first female Secretary of State.

Use Routine 2: Reading to read the entire text aloud. Help students analyze the text with guiding questions before asking students to read as a group, in partners, or independently.

Key Ideas & Details1. Examine the author’s use of the bold heading as a text feature

that summarizes the key ideas of the text. •Explain that the purpose of headings can vary based on a

text’s structure.

•Headings can be used to divide a text into manageable chunks.

•This heading summarizes the key idea of the text (that Einstein rose from obscurity with scientific discoveries that made significant contributions to the world).

•How does the heading help you understand the text before and after you read? How else could the author have used headings?

Key Ideas & Details: Point of View 2. Analyze the comparison of Einstein to “rock stars and movie

heartthrobs.” Explore the meaning in terms of Einstein’s popularity and the author’s point of view. •Explain that readers can analyze the author’s choices to make

inferences about the author’s point of view.

•What is the author trying to say with this comparison? Have students reread paragraph 5. Guide them to determine the purpose of this comparison and what it reveals about the author’s point of view.

•On one level, the author makes the comparison to show Einstein’s popularity. Thousands “lined the streets to cheer for him,” just as they might do today for a rock star or celebrity. On a deeper level, the line reveals the author’s reverence for Einstein and supports the author’s idea of the impact Einstein had on Americans.



More informational texts aligned to social studies and science topics and themes.


QuestionsQuestions

Words & Phrases in Context3. Why does the narrator describe the

banana Mrs. Segal brings back from the market as “an exotic yellow fruit in the shape of a cucumber”?

Key Ideas & Details1. What is Marcus’s overall impression of

his relatives and their life in America? Support your answer with details from the text.

Key Ideas & Details2. Determine the narrative perspective of

the text. What is the effect of including Marcus’s inner thoughts in the narration?

¶7 Marcus soon found out. It wasn’t long before everyone began to rush about,

lining up chairs in rows to make beds. Marcus and three other young men shared

the sofa, sleeping with their heads on the cushions and feet propped awkwardly on

chairs. Nine bodies pressed together on the floor, huddling like seals on a rock. In the

kitchen, Mrs. Segal and one child cuddled on top of the washtubs while the rest of the

children slept on the floor.

¶8 Soon the rooms were filled with deep breathing, dreadful snoring, and smells

of all kinds. Yet despite his new, strange circumstances, Marcus fell asleep right away.

Next morning he woke to the puffing of steam engines and clatter of wheels outside

the windows. Once again the rooms hummed with activity. People raced to put the

furniture back into place; the men scrambled to get dressed before the girls awoke.

¶9 After everyone else had hurried off to work or school, Marcus and Mrs. Segal

were left alone in the now neat and tidy apartment. He was thoroughly surprised

to see Mrs. Segal clean the kitchen floor with precious soap rather than sand, as his

mother would have back home.

¶10 When Mrs. Segal came back from the market, Marcus felt more confused

than ever. She’d bought the largest eggplant he’d ever seen, as well as an exotic

yellow fruit in the shape of a cucumber—a banana. To say nothing of meat—which

she cooked for lunch!

¶11 Back home in his village only rich people could indulge in the luxury of

meat, eat such extraordinary vegetables, use soap to clean floors, or live on the

second floor of such a nice apartment.

¶12 But, Marcus puzzled, if the Segals were rich, why did they share their fine

apartment with so many boarders?

¶13 To a newcomer, or “greenhorn,” like Marcus, it was all very confusing.

From Shutting Out the Sky: Life in the Tenements of New York 1880–1924by Deborah Hopkinson

Settling In: Boarders and Greenhorns

¶1 One early morning in December 1900, a sixteen-year-old boy left Ellis Island

and made his way alone into New York City. Struggling with his heavy bundles,

Marcus Ravage elbowed his way through the crowded streets of the Lower East Side.

¶2 Marcus shivered in the bitter cold. If only he’d followed his mother’s advice

and brought his heavy coat to America. He’d been so sure he wouldn’t need it. Why

should he bother carrying old clothes when he’d soon be rich enough to buy new

ones?

¶3 But Marcus had brought something almost as precious as a warm coat. It was

just a crumpled bit of paper, but it was a link between his old life in Romania and his

new one. On the paper was scribbled the New York address of distant relatives from

back home.

¶4 Before long, Marcus found himself in the apartment of the Segal family, who

had arrived from Romania just three months before. Mrs. Segal, along with her son

and five daughters, lived in a five-room apartment on the third floor of a Rivington

Street tenement. Looking around at the sofa, kitchen table, and ever so many chairs,

Marcus felt sure that the Segals were already rich. And he wouldn’t be far behind.

¶5 Mrs. Segal told Marcus he could stay for free for a few days. After that, he

would be expected to find a job and pay fifty cents a week for his bed.

¶6 That evening, people Marcus had never seen before began to stream into the

apartment, tired from a long day of work. As the hours ticked by and the strangers

didn’t leave, Marcus realized they were boarders—they lived there, too! They paid

Mrs. Segal for a bed, and perhaps for meals and laundry. Where would everyone

sleep? he wondered.

Extend Guiding Questions Use Routine 2: Reading to read the entire text aloud. Help students analyze the text with guiding questions before asking students to read as a group, in partners, or independently.

Key Ideas & Details 1. Students should explore Marcus’s impression of his relatives in

America. •Marcus has “never seen” anything like the Segals’ home, and “felt

sure that the Segals were already rich.”

•Guide students to see how the author’s word choice conveys Marcus’s situation. Marcus “wondered” and “puzzled,” and “it was all very confusing.”

•How does the author use language to show Marcus’s interpretation of the situation?

Key Ideas & Details: Narrative Perspective 2. Examine the author’s choice of narrative perspective, guiding

students to see the purpose of the third-person limited narration. •Explain that this text is in the third-person: the narrator is outside

the story.

•This narrator only knows about a certain character’s thoughts and feelings, in this case, Marcus. The reader hears Marcus’s thoughts, but also gets an objective look at his situation. The reader understands that even though Marcus believes his relatives are rich, in reality, they are poor.

•Marcus is convinced that he “wouldn’t be far behind” the Segals in their wealth, but the reader, with some background knowledge of immigration in this era, expects that his dreams will soon be dashed.

•What information does the reader know that Marcus doesn’t understand? How does this impact the reader’s view of Marcus?

Words & Phrases in Context 3. Analyze the narrator’s language, exploring how the description of

the fruit sets up the contrast between Marcus’s previous world view and the lifestyle he is now experiencing. •Remind students about the text’s narrative perspective, which gives

readers a glimpse into Marcus’s inner monologue.

•The narrator describes the banana as an “exotic yellow fruit,” because to Marcus, it is exotic. This line highlights the way Marcus sees the world.

•Marcus’s moments of discovery are similarly revealed by word choice: the soap is “precious,” the meat is “cooked for lunch!”

•What other words and phrases from the text highlight the differences between Marcus’s old life and his new one?

Reading and Writing ConnectionsProvide extended opportunities for students to synthesize across texts and connect to essential Unit understandings.

•Text Connection: Explore the Ellis Island Passenger Records (www.ellisisland.org). Compare and contrast the accounts of other Romanian immigrants to this description of Marcus’s experience.

•Unit Connection: Compare and contrast Marcus’s view of America to the views of Firoozeh Dumas or Mawi Asgedom. How are their understandings about America similar and different?

•Research Connection: Discover the history of Romanian immigration in America. Consider geographical distribution, time periods, population statistics, and primary source documents.




Related Text and Media

Literature Circle Novels

Any Small Goodness: A Novel of the Barrio by Tony Johnston: Arturo Rodriguez and his family have just arrived in East L.A. from Mexico. In each chapter, a character performs a random act of kindness.

A Friendship for Today by Patricia C. McKissack: Rosemary is one of the first African Americans to enter the white school in her town. She eventually becomes friends with the white girl who was most cruel to her.

90 Miles to Havana by Enrique Flores-Galbis: When a political revolution takes place in Cuba, Julian’s parents send him to Miami, where Julian’s older brothers protect him in a refugee camp. The brothers are separated, however, and Julian must make a dangerous journey before being reunited with his mother and his father.

Fiction, Poetry & Novels

Breaking Through by Francisco Jimenez: Discover what happens when Francisco and his family are caught by immigration officers and forced to leave their California home.

Laughing Without an Accent: Adventures of a Global Citizen by Firoozeh Dumas: Read more of Dumas’s dry wit and bold language, as she explores the themes of family, community, and tradition.

Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario: An 11-year-old immigrant boy tries to find his mother in North Carolina by dodging immigration officials and jumping on and off the “Train of Death” on his way through Mexico and into the United States.

Letters from Rifka by Karen Hesse: Rifka journeys from the Ukraine to America, encountering obstacles along the way.

Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan: Esperanza’s life is shattered when a tragedy forces her and Mama to flee Mexico to a California farm and work as migrants, facing harsh working conditions and the Great Depression.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros: A teen girl named Esperanza tells stories about her home in a Hispanic- American neighborhood in Chicago.

Flight to Freedom by Ana Veciana-Suarez: Read about the work camps and prejudice that drove 13-year-old Ana and her family to escape from Communist Cuba in 1967.

The Star Fisher by Laurence Yep: Joan Lee and her family must struggle against old prejudices as they ad-just to life as the first Chinese Americans to settle in a West Virginia town.

Films & TV

Dollars and Dreams: West Africans in New York (Blue Saxophone Films, 2007) Follow West African immigrants as they pursue the American Dream in New York City. (56 min.)

Dying to Get In (Mooncusser Films, 2007) Listen to stories from the U.S. and Mexico border, where illegal immigrants have to cross miles of the Sonoran Desert to enter the United States. (39 min.)

Immigrants in America, 1970 (National Archives, 2008) Learn about the economic disparities and challenges African, Asian, Italian, and Irish immigrants faced.

Investigative Reports: American Dream, American Nightmare (A&E Home Video, 2006) Learn how mismanagement in the Immigration and Naturalization Service has affected American immigrant families. (50 min.)

Patriot Acts (Thirst Films, 2004). Explore the effects of a program that requires non-immigrant Muslim males over 16 to register with the Department of Homeland Security. (39 min.)

Real Women Have Curves (HBO Independent Productions, 2002) Ana struggles to balance her family’s needs, her culture, and her dreams of a college education. (90 min.)

Websites

Crossing the BLVD: Find radio clips, video, stories, images, and songs of recent immigrants living in Queens, a diverse borough of New York City.

Ellis Island Passenger Records: Find out if your ancestors passed through Ellis Island by searching New York passenger records.

New Naturalization Test: Try your hand at this test from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Nonfiction | Social Studies

A Patriot’s Handbook: Songs, Poems, Stories, and Speeches Celebrating the Land We Love, edited by Caroline Kennedy: Experience a personal “collage of America” with words from famous Americans.

Children of the Wild West by Russell Freedman: Historical photographs with explanatory text present a picture of life in the American West from 1840 to the early 1900s.

Island of Hope: The Story of Ellis Island and the Journey to America by Martin W. Sandler: More than 12 million immigrants entered the U.S. through Ellis Island — the Island of Hope — between 1892 and 1954. Through first-hand accounts and anecdotes, stirring historical photographs, and a moving narrative, this remarkable book provides perspective and insight into this uniquely American experience.

New Kids in Town: Oral Histories of Immigrant Teens by Janet Bode: Teenage immigrants from various countries recount the emotional experience of fleeing their homelands and adjusting to a new life in the United States.

The History of Emigration from China & Southeast Asia by Katherine Prior: Discover the often hostile reception received by Asians as they immigrated to Western countries (includes photographs, maps, and a time line).

Magazines

Immigration Times: Stay up-to-date on immigration laws and trends.

National Geographic World: Look for articles about the native cultures and societies of people who have immigrated to the United States.

The Immigrant Magazine: Learn more about the lifestyles and cultures of immigrants and their ethnic heritage.

U.S. News & World Report: Search for articles about current issues in immigration and articles about America’s diversity.

Independent Reading Literature Circles Research has shown that being able to read complex text independently and proficiently is essential for high achievement in college and the workplace and important in numerous life tasks (Common Core Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects).

The Common Core Code X provides students with independent reading resources that allow them to build on the close-reading skills learned during guided instruction, and increase their knowledge and enjoyment about a specific subject.

Independent Reading RoutineTo support students reading independently, use the following fluency and comprehension strategies:

Activate Prior Knowledge Provide material to connect what students know and what they have learned or read about the topic.

Direct Assign a task to help students get structured outcomes during reading.

•When you read an important idea, place a sticky note marked “important idea” beside the text.

•When you read a supporting detail place a sticky note marked “supporting detail” beside the text.

Read Have students read the selection independently and observe students as they read and make notes using frames.

•Remember to make notes of your observations as you read.

Discuss When students finish reading, discuss the selection briefly. Ask students to share their observations, reporting on their note-taking frames.

Remind students that Literature Circles provide them with opportunities to talk meaningfully with other students about literature that relates to the Essential Question of the Unit. When I’m reading a book I can’t put down, I want to talk to someone about it. So do most readers. In Literature Circles, you’ll share insights, thoughts, and questions about a book with other students as you dig deeply into the text.

Create interest by previewing Literature Circle titles for the Unit. Read each book description aloud. Discuss with students how each book might relate to the Essential Question based on the description.

Help students to form effective Literature Circles by choosing books based on interest and Lexile measure or Text Complexity.

Facilitate and guide Literature Circles using resources provided in the Literature Circle tab of this book following these guidelines.

•Ask questions to create interest.

•Preview content-area or domain-specific vocabulary

•Guide students to use strategies and resources to identify key ideas, events, and vocabulary in the novel.

•Use routines to structure meaningful conversations using text evidence about key ideas, vocabulary, and concepts.

•Use relevant text evidence to respond to writing prompts with short and extended writing.



Opportunities for differentiation, leveled reading, and grouping.

Literature circles to build reading stamina and motivation.


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