MYP17 TEG07 U5 0133338665 Web

UNIT
Facing Adversity 5
INTRODUCTION UNIT
5
Jump Start
Ask students whether they have ever Facing
Adversity
encountered an obstacle that stood in the way
of something that they wanted to do. Were
they able to overcome the obstacle? How?
Facing Adversity
Ask students what the phrase facing adversity
suggests to them. Point out that as they work Sometimes life can feel like an
through this unit, they will read many examples
about people who have faced adversity and obstacle course, but if we try
overcome obstacles.
hard enough we can usually
Video
Project the introduction video in class, ask make it over the hurdles.
students to open the video in their interactive
textbooks, or have students scan the BouncePage
icon with their phones to access the video.
Discuss It If you want to make this a digital

activity, go online and navigate to the Discussion
Board. Alternatively, students can share their
responses in a class discussion.
Block Scheduling
Each day in this pacing calendar represents
a 40–50 minute class period. Teachers using
block scheduling may combine days to reflect
© by Savvas Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

their class schedule. In addition, teachers may
revise pacing to differentiate and support core
instruction by integrating components and
resources as students require.
Discuss It Are there any obstacles that are too
difficult to overcome?
Write your response before sharing your ideas.
Exclusive: Bethany Hamilton

SCAN FOR
442 MULTIMEDIA
Pacing Plan
Introduce
Whole-Class
LIT17_SE07_U05_UOP.indd 442 18/04/16 11:46 AM
Learning
Performance Task
Media:
The Dust
Unit Introduction Bowl from The Grapes of Wrath The Circuit
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
442 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

Digital
perspectives Audio Video Document Annotation EL Online
Highlights Highlights Assessment
UNIT 5
UNIT INTRODUCTION
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: LAUNCH TEXT How do we overcome
INFORMATIVE
How do we overcome obstacles? MODEL

Against the Odds
obstacles?
Introduce the Essential Question and point out
that students will respond to related prompts.
WHOLE-CLASS SMALL-GROUP INDEPENDENT
LEARNING LEARNING LEARNING • Whole-Class Learning How did the
MEDIA: VIDEO PERSONAL NARRATIVE PERSONAL NARRATIVE
characters cope with the obstacles they faced?
The Dust Bowl A Work in Progress The Girl Who Fell • Small-Group Learning How do people face
CriticalPast Aimee Mullins from the Sky
Juliane Koepcke challenges in order to overcome adversity?
• Performance-Based Assessment How
COMPARE
can people overcome adversity in the face of

ANCHOR TEXT: NOVEL EXCERPT AUTOBIOGRAPHY EXCERPT NOVEL EXCERPT
overwhelming obstacles?
from The Grapes fromThe Story of Four Skinny Trees
of Wrath My Life from The House on Mango
John Steinbeck Helen Keller Street
Sandra Cisneros
Using Trade Books
Refer to the Teaching with Trade
COMPARE
ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY MEDIA: INTERVIEW SHORT STORY

Books section in this book or online in
The Circuit How Helen Keller Rikki-tikki-tavi myPerspectives+ for suggestions on how to
Francisco Jiménez Learned to Talk Rudyard Kipling incorporate the following thematically-related
Helen Keller, with Anne
Sullivan titles into this unit:
• Letters From Rifka by Karen Hesse
NEWS ARTICLE MEMOIR
• No Promises in the Wind by Irene Hunt
A Young Tinkerer from Facing the
Builds a Windmill, Lion: Growing Up • The Clay Marble by Minfong Ho
Electrifying a Nation Maasai on the African
Sarah Childress Savanna
Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton
Current Perspectives
To increase student engagement, search
online for stories about facing adversity
and overcoming obstacles, and invite your
students to recommend stories they find.
Always preview content before sharing it with
your class.
• News Story: USC considers ways to
get blind football player into a game
PERFORMANCE TASK PERFORMANCE TASK PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP (AP, 9/23/15) An article by Dan Greenspan
WRITING FOCUS: SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS: Review Evidence for about Jake Olson, a blind football player for
Write an Informative `Essay Present Multimedia Profiles an Informative Essay USC, and his coach’s efforts to get him into
a game
PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT • Video: The ‘inspirational’ teen singer
Informative Text: Essay and Oral Presentation with Down’s syndrome (BBC, 2/4/15) A
PROMPT: video of Amy Purdy, three‑time Paralympic
How can people overcome adversity in the face of overwhelming obstacles? champion sharing her experiences in facing
adversity
443
Introduce Introduce
Small-Group Independent
LIT17_SE07_U05_UOP.indd 443 16-04-01 9:42 AM Performance
Learning Learning
Task
Performance-Based
Assessment
Media: How A Young Tinkerer
from The Story Helen Keller Builds a Windmill, Independent
A Work in Progress of My Life Learned to Talk Electrifying a Nation Learning
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Unit Introduction 443

introduction UNIT
5 INTRODUCTION
Unit Goals
About the Unit Goals Throughout this unit you will deepen your perspective about facing
These unit goals were backward designed adversity by reading, writing, speaking, listening, and presenting. These
from the Performance-Based Assessment at goals will help you succeed on the Unit Performance-Based Assessment.
the end of the unit and the Whole-Class and Rate how well you meet these goals right now. You will revisit your
Small-Group Performance Tasks. Students will ratings later when you reflect on your growth during this unit.
practice and become proficient in many more
standards over the course of this unit. 1 2 3 4 5
SCALE
NOT AT ALL NOT VERY SOMEWHAT VERY EXTREMELY
Unit Goals WELL WELL WELL WELL WELL
Review the goals with students and explain that

as they read and discuss the selections in this unit, READING GOALS 1 2 3 4 5
they will improve their skills in reading, writing, • Read and analyze informative texts.
research, language, and speaking and listening.
Reading Goals Tell students they will read and • Expand your knowledge and use of
analyze informative texts. They will also read a academic and concept vocabulary.
novel excerpt, news articles, and short stories to
better understand the ways writers express ideas.
WRITING AND RESEARCH GOALS 1 2 3 4 5
Writing and Research Goals Tell students
that they will learn the elements of writing an • Write an informative essay to examine
informative text. They will also write their own a topic and convey ideas.
informative text. Students will write for a number
of reasons, including organizing and sharing • Conduct research projects of various
ideas, reflecting on experiences, and gathering lengths to explore a topic and clarify
evidence. They will conduct research to clarify meaning.
and explore ideas.
LANGUAGE GOAL 1 2 3 4 5
Language Goal Tell students that they will
develop a deeper understanding of using
• Demonstrate command of coordinate
coordinate adjectives. They will then practice
adjectives.
using coordinate adjectives here in their
own writing.

SPEAKING AND LISTENING
Speaking and Listening Goals Explain to GOALS 1 2 3 4 5
students that they will work together to build • Collaborate with your team to build on
on one another’s ideas, develop consensus, and the ideas of others, develop consensus,
communicate with one another. They will also and communicate.
learn to incorporate audio, visuals, and text in
presentations.
 STANDARDS • Integrate audio, visuals, and text in
Language presentations.
HOME Connection Acquire and use accurately grade
appropriate general academic and
domain-specific words and phrases;
A Home Connection letter to students’ parents gather vocabulary knowledge
or guardians is available in myPerspectives+. The when considering a word or phrase
important to comprehension or
letter explains what students will be learning in expression.
this unit and how they will be assessed. SCAN FOR
444 UNIT 5 • FacINg adversITy MULTIMEDIA
Author’s Perspective LIT17_SE07_U05_UOP.indd

Ernest Morrell, 444
Ph.D. 15/04/16 3:43 PM
How to Support Kids When They 3. What support will I need from others in that achieving goals take hard work,
Have Trouble When setting goals with order to achieve this goal and how will I resilience, and determination. The third
students, have them consider these ensure that I get that support? question reassures students that help is
questions: The first question helps students see that available and shows them the importance
1. What are the opportunities open to me setting goals helps them take control of seeking—and accepting—help when
if I achieve this goal? of their life and focus on the issues that necessary.
2. What are the biggest challenges that I matter to them. As a result, they are likely
will face in attempting to achieve this to make good decisions. The second
goal? question helps students understand

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do we overcome obstacles?
Academic Vocabulary: Informative Text Academic Vocabulary:

Academic terms appear in all subjects and can help you read, write, and
discuss with more precision. Informative writing relies on facts to inform
FOLLOW THROUGH Informative Text
Study the words in this Introduce the blue academic vocabulary words in
or explain. Here are five academic words that will be useful to you in this
chart, and mark them or
unit as you analyze and write informative texts. the chart on the student page. Point out that the
their forms wherever they
appear in the unit.
root of each word provides a clue to its meaning.
Complete the chart.
Discuss the mentor sentences to ensure students
1. Review each word, its root, and the mentor sentences. understand each word’s usage. Students should
2. Use the information and your own knowledge to predict the meaning also use the mentor sentences as context to help
of each word. them predict the meaning of each word. Check
that students are able to fill the chart in correctly.
3. For each word, list at least two related words.
Complete pronunciations, parts of speech, and
4. Refer to the dictionary or other resources if needed. definitions are provided for you. Students are only
expected to provide the definition.
WORD MENTOR SENTENCES PREDICT MEANING RELATED WORDS
Possible responses:
deviate 1. Don’t deviate from the route I gave viable; viaduct
deviate v. (DEE vee ayt)
you or you’ll get lost!
Meaning: depart from an established plan
ROOT: 2. She was making an important point, Related words: deviation, deviating
-via- but she allowed herself to deviate Additional words related to root -via-: viaduct,
“way” into side issues. trivial, obvious, devious
persevere 1. Despite the difficulties Claudine had persevere v. (pur suh VIHR)
finding time to study, she persevered Meaning: to continue despite difficulty
ROOT: and received a degree. Related words: persevering, severe
-sever- 2. Though the soccer team was losing
Additional words related to root -sever-:
“strict; serious” in the first half, they were able to
severance, persist
persevere and win the game. determination n. (dih tur muh NAY shuhn)
Meaning: conclusion; firm decision
determination 1. Because of his determination to do
Related words: deter, determine, determining
well on the test, Robert studied for
Additional words related to root -term-:
ROOT: many hours.
determined, terminal
-term- 2. Despite the heavy rain, Jenny’s
“end” determination allowed her to
diversity n. (duh VUR suh tee)
complete her first marathon.
Meaning: variety; differences within a group
Related words: divergent, diversified, diversify

diversity 1. There is cultural diversity in the United Additional words related to root -ver-: diverse,
States because people come from inverse converse, reverse
ROOT: many different places. tradition n. (truh DIHSH uhn)
-ver- 2. The oceans are filled with a diversity Meaning: long-established custom or practice
“turn” of marine life. Related words: traditionalist, traditionally,
untraditional
tradition 1. My grandfather passed along many Additional words related to root -tra/tran-:
family traditions that had been traditional, transfer
ROOT: practiced for generations.
-tra-/-tran- 2. Many people follow tradition and
“across” serve turkey on Thanksgiving.
LIT17_SE07_U05_UOP.indd 445
Personalize for Learning 18/04/16 7:22 AM
English Language Support

Cognates Many of the academic words have Spanish cognates.
Use these cognates with students whose home language is Spanish.
ALL LEVELS
thesis – tesis diversity – diversidad
persevere – perseverar tradition – tradición
determination – determinación

INTRODUCTION UNIT
5 INTRODUCTION
LAUNCH TEXT | INFORMATIVE MODEL
Purpose of the Launch Text This selection is an example of an

The Launch Text provides students with
a common starting point to address the
informative text, a type of writing
in which the author provides
information about a topic. This
Against the
unit topic. After reading the Launch Text,
all students will be able to participate in
is the type of writing you will
develop in the Performance-Based
Odds
discussions about facing adversity. Assessment at the end of the unit.
Lexile: 800 The easier reading level of As you read, notice that the
this selection makes it perfect to assign for author presents facts without
homework. Students will need little or no offering opinions or arguments.
support to understand it.
Additionally, “Against the Odds” provides
a writing model for the Performance-Based
Assessment students complete at the end of
the unit.
Launch Text: Informative Model

Remind students to pay attention to how the
author structures the essay and develops ideas,
and in particular to note how the author shows
cause-and-effect relationships among ideas in
NOTES
1
2
“I f you have to ditch a commercial aircraft in the Hudson
River,” the news anchor joked, “this is the guy you want.”
The “guy” was US Airways pilot Chesley “Sully”
the essay. Sullenberger III, a 57-year-old former Air Force fighter pilot and a
Encourage students to read this text on their 29-year veteran of US Airways.
own and annotate unfamiliar words and sections 3 On January 15, 2009, Sullenberger was the pilot on US Airways
of text they think are particularly important. Flight 1549 from New York’s LaGuardia Airport to Charlotte,
North Carolina.
AUDIO SUMMARIES 4 Flight 1549 left the tarmac at 3:25 P.M. Sullenberger thought he
Audio summaries of “Against the Odds” are was in for an average flight—a routine, everyday trip.
available in both English and Spanish in the 5 The flight was unremarkable for the first 90 seconds. Then
Interactive Teacher’s Edition or Unit Resources. something caught the eye of copilot Jeff Skiles. At 3,000 feet, he
Assigning these summaries before students read saw a flock of Canada geese headed toward the plane. Moments

the Launch Text may help them build additional later the geese struck the fuselage, wings, and engine.
background knowledge and set a context for 6 The 150 passengers felt a powerful thud against the airplane,
their reading. followed by severe vibrations from the engine. One passenger
said it sounded like sneakers thumping around in a dryer. There
was a loud explosion. The cabin filled up with smoke. There was a
horrible smell and then an eerie quiet: both engines were disabled.
7 Sullenberger made a Mayday radio call to air traffic control
and calmly explained the situation. They discussed the options:
The plane could either return to LaGuardia or land at Teterboro
Airport in New Jersey.
8 Sullenberger knew the situation was too dire for the plane to
stay in the air long enough for either plan to be successful. He had
about 30 seconds to find an alternative. The pilot decided on a
SCAN FOR
446 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY MULTIMEDIA
Digital perspectives
LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 446 16-04-01 9:49 AM
Illuminating the Text To help students Have students discuss what they see and how
appreciate the events described in the Launch this helps them understand “Against the Odds.”
Text, use the search term “Flight 1549” Then, have students write a paragraph discussing
(paragraph 3) to find video footage of the plane whether the video affected their response to
in the Hudson, the rescue of its passengers, and the Launch Text. Did it change their ideas about
interviews with Sully Sullenberger. (Note: Be what they read? Why or why not? If their ideas
sure to preview any video before showing it to changed, in what way did they change?
students.)

radical move: He’d ditch the plane in the Hudson River—despite

the fact that passenger jets are not built to land on water. NOTES Word Network for Facing
9 “Brace for impact!” came the captain’s voice over the intercom. A Adversity
hush fell over the passengers. They thought they were going to die.
Tell students that they can fill in the Word
10 Sullenberger lowered the plane’s nose in a gradual glide toward
Network as they read the texts in the unit, or they
the river. The plane managed to clear the George Washington
can jot down the words elsewhere and add them
Bridge and, against the odds, land safely on the surface of the
later. Point out to students that people may have
Hudson. It skidded across the water at 145 mph and finally
personal associations with some words. A word
slowed to a stop.
that one student thinks is related to the concept
11 “He was thinking in nanoseconds,” said a former airline pilot,
of facing adversity might not be a word another
speaking of Sullenberger. “He made all the right choices at all the
student would pick. However, students should
right times. He might have been staring at the instruments, but he
feel free to add any relevant words to their Word
was feeling that airplane in his hands. He picked his landing spot
Network. Each person’s Word Network will be
and went for it.”
unique. If you choose to print the Word Network,
12 Now Sullenberger’s job was to get the people off the plane,
distribute it to students at this point so they can
which was quickly filling up with water.
use it throughout the rest of the unit.
13 Witnesses were convinced that everyone on Flight 1549 was dead.
What they couldn’t see was that passengers were already exiting the
plane. With water seeping into the plane, Sullenberger and Skiles
walked the length of the cabin twice, calling “Is anyone there?” The
water was so cold they had to walk on top of the seats. But they
would not leave the plane until they were sure everyone was out.
14 “He’s the man,” said one of the rescued passengers. “If you
want to talk to a hero, get a hold of him.”
15 After all the thanking was over, Sullenberger was humble.
“You’re welcome,” he said simply. Like most heroes, he didn’t
want the label. According to him, he was just doing his job.
16 But 154 men, women, and children owed their lives to a modest
man who faced adversity with cool competence on one of the
most remarkable days in aviation history. ❧
 WORD NETWORK FOR FACING ADVERSITY
Vocabulary A Word Network

is a collection of words related

to a topic. As you read the
selections in this unit, identify
interesting words related to the dire
idea of overcoming obstacles
and add them to your Word
Network. For example, you humble FACING
might begin by adding words ADVERSITY
from the Launch Text, such as
dire, humble, and competence. competence
Continue to add words as you
complete this unit.
Tool Kit
Word Network Model
Against the Odds 447
LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 447 Author’s Perspective Elfrieda Hiebert, Ph.D. 15-12-14 5:55 PM
Rare Words Increasing reading unknown words pertain to known heavy blah indolent
inactive
comprehension relies on a connection concepts, teachers should emphasize comatose inert off sullen
between fluency and vocabulary. Rare semantic connections across words. This
words are less frequently used words that can be achieved effectively with concept Digital tools, including online dictionaries,
represent what might be a common idea. maps or word networks that help students often have features to help demonstrate
Instead of calling a character nervous, an understand the essential characteristics the increasing complexity of the spectrum
author might use disconcerted or flustered. of a word’s meaning. Here’s an example of these words by filtering out levels of
In reading/language arts, where many rare for sluggish: complexity.

INTRODUCTION UNIT
5 INTRODUCTION
Summary Summary
Write a summary of “Against the Odds.” A summary is a concise,
Have students read the introductory paragraph.
complete, and accurate overview of a text. It should not include a
Provide them with tips for writing a summary: statement of your opinion or an analysis.
• Write in the present tense.
• Make sure to include the title of the work.
• Be concise: a summary should not be equal in
length to the original text. Possible response: The informative text “Against the Odds” describes the actions of Chesley “Sully”
• If you need to quote the words of the author, Sullenberger, a veteran airline pilot whose skill saved many lives. In early 2009, he was flying a plane full
use quotation marks. of passengers out of New York City. Less than two minutes into the flight, a flock of geese collided with
• Don’t put your own opinions, ideas, or the plane. The impact disabled the plane’s engines. Sullenberger knew that the plane could not stay in
interpretations into the summary. The purpose the air long enough to get safely back to the airport. Instead, he landed in the Hudson River. With quick
of writing a summary is to accurately represent thinking and skilled piloting, he saved all the passengers.
what the author says, not to provide a critique.
See possible summary on student page.
Launch Activity
Explain to students that as they work on this unit,
they will have many opportunities to discuss the
topic of facing adversity. Remind them that there
is no right or wrong position, but they should be
able to support their position with evidence from
the material they’ve read as well as their prior
knowledge.
Encourage students to keep an open mind and
really listen to their classmates
Launch Activity
Let the People Decide Consider this statement: Chesley

Sullenberger wasn’t really a hero because, as he himself said,
facing adversity was part of his job.
• Record your position on the statement and explain your thinking.
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
• As a class, discuss what makes someone a hero.

• After the discussion, determine whether you have changed
your mind.
• Those who changed their mind will be given a chance to read a new
statement.
LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 448 15-12-14 5:55 PM

QuickWrite QuickWrite
Consider class discussions, presentations, the video, and the Launch Text
In this QuickWrite, students should present
as you think about the prompt. Record your first thoughts here.
their own answer to the question based on the
PROMPT: How can people overcome adversity in the face material in the Unit Opener. This initial response
of overwhelming obstacles? will help inform their work when they complete
the Performance-Based Assessment at the end
of the unit. Students should make sure they
Possible response: It’s hard to think fast in an unfamiliar situation that’s unfolding very quickly. The answer the question with a clearly stated position
best way to be able to overcome adversity is practice. You don’t have to practice exactly the thing you and support their position with relevant, logical
want to prepare for; there are too many possibilities for that. It’s not like Sullenberger had ever landed reasoning.
a plane in the Hudson River before, but he knew what to do because he had spent so much time flying See possible QuickWrite on student page.
planes. So he could immediately tell the best course of action. I spend some of my free time practicing
math problems beyond homework. A test never has exactly the same questions as my practice, but my Evidence Log for Facing
practice is close enough that I can think quickly no matter how hard the test is.
Adversity
Students should record their initial response in
their Evidence Logs. Then, they should record
evidence from “Against the Odds” that supports
their initial response.
If you choose to print the Evidence Log,
distribute it to students at this point so they can
use it throughout the rest of the unit.
Performance-Based Assessment:
Refining Your Thinking
• Have students watch the video on Refining
Your Thinking.
• A video on this topic is available online in
 EVIDENCE LOG FOR FACING ADVERSITY the Professional Development Center.
Review your QuickWrite and
summarize your point of view
Title of Text: Date:

in one sentence to record in
CONNECTION TO PROMPT TEXT EVIDENCE/DETAILS ADDITIONAL NOTES/IDEAS
your Evidence Log. Then, record
evidence from “Against the
Odds” that supports your point
of view.
Prepare for the Performance-
Based Assessment at the end
How does this text change or add to my thinking? Date:
of the unit by completing
the Evidence Log after each
selection.
Tool Kit
Evidence Log Model
SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA Unit Introduction 449
LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 449 Personalize for Learning 23/02/16 5:50 PM

Idioms Help students understand the idioms A variation on this expression is “against all
against the odds (title) and ditch (paragraph 1). odds. ”That’s what Sullenberger did when he
Explain that against the odds means “there’s little realized he could not get back to the airport. To
chance of success.” When you manage to achieve ditch something means to get rid of it. In the
something against the odds, you succeed even text, ditch has a bit of a different meaning. To
though there are many things that can stop you. ditch a plane means to make a forced landing
on water. ALL LEVELS

OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW: WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING
WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
How do we overcome How do we overcome obstacles?

Everyone has a bad day now and then. Most of the time we take a deep breath
obstacles? and keep going, but what happens when we meet an obstacle we don’t think
Facing obstacles may be a part of life for everyone we can overcome? You will work with your whole class to explore the concept
at one time or another. But sometimes, adversity of facing adversity. The selections you are going to read present different
can be so extreme that it seems impossible to examples of obstacles that had to be overcome.
overcome. During Whole-Class Learning, students
will read selections about people who faced
adversity and accomplished more than they ever
Whole-Class Learning Strategies
dreamed they could. Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you will
continue to learn and work in large-group environments.
Whole-Class Learning Review these strategies and the actions you can take to practice them as you
Strategies work with your whole class. Add ideas of your own for each step. Get ready to
use these strategies during Whole-Class Learning.
Review the Learning Strategies with students and
explain that as they work through Whole-Class
STRATEGY ACTION PLAN
Learning they will develop strategies to work in
large-group environments. Listen actively • Eliminate distractions. For example, put your cellphone away.
• Keep your eyes on the speaker.
• Have students watch the video on Whole-Class
Learning Strategies. •
• A video on this topic is available online in the
Professional Development Center.
You may wish to discuss some action items to add
Clarify by asking • If you’re confused, other people probably are, too. Ask a question to help your
to the chart as a class before students complete questions whole class.
it on their own. For example, for “Monitor
• If you see that you are guessing, ask a question instead.
understanding,” you might solicit the following
from students: •
• Review all of the notes you have taken so far

to see whether you need more information or

Monitor • Notice what information you already know and be ready to build on it.
detail for clarification.
understanding • Ask for help if you are struggling.
Block Scheduling •
Each day in this Pacing Plan represents a

40–50-minute class period. Teachers using
Interact and share • Share your ideas and answer questions, even if you are unsure.
their class schedule. In addition, teachers may ideas • Build on the ideas of others by adding details or making a connection.
revise pacing to differentiate and support core
instruction by integrating components and •
SCAN FOR
Pacing Plan
Introduce
Whole-Class
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WCO.indd 450 4/18/16 10:02 AM
Learning
Performance Task
Media: The Dust

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
whole-class learning
WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING
450 UNIT 5 • Facing ADVERSITY

CONTENTS
MEDIA: VIDEO
Contents
The Dust Bowl
Anchor Texts Preview the anchor texts and
CriticalPast
media with students to generate interest.
How do people survive a nightmare? Encourage students to discuss other texts they
may have read or movies or television shows they
may have seen that deal with the issues of facing
adversity and overcoming obstacles.
You may wish to conduct a poll to determine
which selection students think looks more
interesting and discuss the reasons for their
COMPARE
preference. Students can return to this poll

after they have read the selections to see if their
ANCHOR TEXT: NOVEL EXCERPT preference changed.
from The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck Performance Task
Write an Informative Essay Explain to
What can people do when their lives are
turned upside-down? students that after they have finished reading the
selections, they will write an informative essay
about people facing adversity and overcoming
obstacles. To help them prepare, encourage
students to think about the topic as they progress
through the selections and as they participate in
the Whole-Class Learning experience.
ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY
The Circuit
Francisco Jiménez
Why does a cardboard box fill the narrator

with dread?
PERFORMANCE TASK
WRITING FOCUS
Write an Informative Essay
The Whole-Class readings describe the struggles people face dealing with
tremendous adversity. After reading and listening, you will write an informative
essay on the topic of facing adversity.
Overview: Whole-Class Learning 451
Introduce Introduce
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WCO.indd 451 16-04-01 9:51 AM Performance
Learning Learning
Task
Performance-Based
Assessment
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Whole-Class Learning 451

PLANNING WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • THE DUST BOWL
The Dust Bowl

Audio Summaries Summary
Audio summaries of “The Dust
Bowl” are available online in The film “The Dust Bowl” discusses the natural and human causes
both English and Spanish in the of a great disaster. By 1930, much of the southern plains had been
Interactive Teacher’s Edition or overplowed and overfarmed. A long drought that began in 1931
Unit Resources. Assigning these dried up the overplowed soil. Then winds blew across the flatlands,
summaries prior to watching stirring up the dried soil, creating enormous dust storms. These dust
the video may help students storms continued for ten years and were devastating to many of
build additional background those who endured them. In this video selection, some of the people
knowledge and set a context for
who lived through the Dust Bowl years tell personal stories of this
their first review.
terrible time.
Insight
This selection uses photographs, interviews, and historical film footage
to create a disturbing picture of what came to be called the Dust Bowl.
Students will see the real hardship a climate disaster can cause and
how people got through it.
Essential Question:
How do we overcome Connection to Essential Question
obstacles? “The Dust Bowl” connects clearly and directly to the Essential Question,
How do we overcome obstacles? The obstacles that Dust Bowl farm
families had to overcome went beyond the huge storms of black dust to
dealing with the economic devastation that followed.
Whole-Class Learning Connection to Performance Tasks

Performance Task
Whole-Class Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
How did the individuals students will present an informative essay about how the people and
in the selections cope characters in these selections coped with the obstacles they faced. This
with the obstacles they selection presents students with evidence about what people do when
faced? their choices are extremely limited.
Unit Performance-Based Unit Performance-Based Assessment The Performance-Based
Assessment Assessment for this unit asks students to write an informative essay in
How can people overcome response to the question: How can people overcome adversity in the
adversity in the face face of overwhelming obstacles? The selections will provide students
of overwhelming with stories of characters, both real and imaginary, who have faced
obstacles? hardships.
452A UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

DIGITAL
PERSPECTIVES Audio Video Document Annotation EL Online
LESSON RESOURCES
Making Meaning Language Development

Lesson First Review Media Vocabulary
Close Review
Analyze the Media
Instructional RI.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary L.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general
Standards nonfiction . . . academic and domain-specific words and phrases . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online in the
Selection Audio
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Review Guide: Media: Video
Close-Review Guide: Media: Video
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources Audio Summaries Media Vocabulary
Interactive Teacher’s
Edition or Unit Resources
My Resources
A Unit 5 Answer Key is available online and in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition.
Media Complexity Rubric: The Dust Bowl

Quantitative Measures
Format and Length: Approximately 10.5 minute video excerpt
Qualitative Measures
Knowledge Demands Prior knowledge of the Dust Bowl era, the Depression, and labor migrations in America are required in
1 2 3 4 5 order to understand the film clip. Try to make clear the differences between the Great Depression and
the dust storms of the Dirty Thirties, which are two discrete events that happened to occur in the same
decade.
Structure The excerpt illuminates this period in American history with narration, images and film clips from the
1 2 3 4 5 time period, and interviews with those who experienced the Dust Bowl firsthand.
Language Conventionality and Clarity The interviews contain colloquialisms, accents, and lingo but are not on the whole difficult to grasp. The
1 2 3 4 5 narration is heavily informative.
Levels of Meaning/Purpose Concepts are historical but not difficult to understand.

1 2 3 4 5
Whole-Class Learning 452B

TEACHING MAKING MEANING
Comparing Media to Text

You will now watch a video about the Dust
Jump Start The DusT BoWl

Bowl. First, complete the first-review and close-
review activities. In the next lesson, you will read
from The Grapes of
an excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath and then
First Review Engage students in a discussion WraTh
compare the depiction of historical events in the
about the Dust Bowl. If students are unfamiliar
video and the novel excerpt.
with the Dust Bowl, ask them to speculate on
why something might have this name. What
comes to mind when they hear the term “Dust
Bowl”? The Dust Bowl
Media Vocabulary
The Dust Bowl These words will be useful as you analyze, discuss, and write about the
video.
Why might people have to struggle to survive a
“dust bowl”? Just how difficult was it to survive panoramic shot: film • The panoramic shot of the Grand Canyon was
the Dust Bowl? Modeling questions such as shot showing a wide, breathtaking.
these will help students connect to “The Dust unbroken view • Directors often use panoramic shots in the
Bowl” and to the Whole-Class Performance Task beginning of films to establish the setting.
assignment. Selection audio for the selection is voiceover: voice • The voiceover helps the audience to follow a
available in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition. commenting or narrating narrative.
off-camera • If there is a break in the sequence of events, a
Project the video in class, ask students to open voiceover can re-orient the audience.
the video in their interactive textbooks, or have
transition: in media, • One example of a transition is when a scene
students scan the BouncePage icon with their changes from one scene changes to another location.
phones to access the video. or shot to another • Another example of a transition is when a
director signals the end of a scene by using a
Media Vocabulary “fade to black.”
Encourage students to discuss the media
vocabulary. Have they seen or used these terms
or concepts before?
First Review MEDIA: VIDEo
Study the video and take notes as you watch.
FIRST Review

Have students perform the steps of the first TC
H
review independently.
WA
WATCH who speaks, what they NOTE elements that you find
WATCH: Students should pay attention to say, and how they say it. interesting and want to revisit.
the causes and effects of the Dust Bowl and
consider how it affected the lives of the people in
the video.
NOTE: Students should note the time stamp of CONNECT ideas in the RESPOND by completing
 sTaNDarDs
any facts they find interesting or important, or video to other media you’ve the Comprehension Check at
Reading Informational Text
moments they find especially powerful. experienced, texts you’ve read, the end.
By the end of the year, read and
comprehend literary nonfiction in images you’ve seen.
CONNECT: Encourage students to increase their the grades 6–8 text complexity band
understanding by connecting the video to other proficiently, with scaffolding as
needed at the high end of the range.
media or news reports they have seen or heard,
or other stories they’ve read.
RESPOND: Students will answer questions to
demonstrate understanding. Point out to students
that while they will complete the Respond step
at the end of the first review, the other steps will LIT17_SE07_U05_A1C_M_WC.indd 452 18/04/16 10:45 AM
probably happen somewhat concurrently. You

may wish to print copies of the First-Review
Guide: Media: Video for students to use.

MEDIA | VIDEo
The Dust Bowl Closer Review

CriticalPast
Analyze Cinematic
Technique
Circulate among students as they conduct
their close review. Have students review the
video beginning at 6:40 and ending at 6:47.
Encourage students to share their insights about
this segment and provide the following support.
NOTE: Have students note details in the video
that show the setting of a dust storm.
QUESTION: Guide students to consider what
these details might tell them. Ask what a
viewer can infer from the fact that the farm
house and other human structures are very
small compared to the giant dust, and accept
student responses.
Possible response: The viewer can see that
the farm is tiny compared to the giant dust
cloud. The farm and the people on it will
be overtaken by the destruction of the
dust storm.
BACKGROUND
One of the most devastating events in U.S. history was the formation of the Dust SCAN FOR CONCLUDE: Help students to formulate
MULTIMEDIA
Bowl. After a period of over-farming in the 1920s, a severe drought struck the conclusions about the importance of these
region around the Oklahoma panhandle in the early 1930s. The extended drought details in the video. Ask students why the
caused the topsoil to dry up, and without a strong root system of grasses to hold director might have included these details.
it in place, the soil was blown by winds. These dust storms blackened the sky and
Possible responses: It’s a dramatic shot that
were sometimes referred to as black blizzards.
gives the viewer a sense of the scale of the
disaster. You can’t see any crops in the fields, just
dirt. You get the sense that the farm is doomed,
NOTES and its own empty fields are fueling the storm.
Remind students that a panoramic shot is a

cinematic technique in which the camera
shows a wide view of open landscape. Often
directors use panoramic shots to establish the
greatness, beauty, or breadth, of a location.
However, panoramic shots can also show
large-scale devastation.
The Dust Bowl 453
LIT17_SE07_U05_A1C_M_WC.indd 453 CROSS-CURRICULAR PERSPECTIVES 16-04-01 9:53 AM
Social Studies Have students research and write short reports on

the Dust Bowl to find information that is not in the video or that
elaborates on information in the video. Have students share their
findings with the class, and discuss how this information relates to
the video or deepens their understanding of the video.

TEACHING
Comprehension Check Comprehension Check

Complete the following items after you finish your first review.
Possible responses:
1. (a) They allowed their cattle to overgraze, heavily 1. (a) According to the video, what did the cattlemen do? (b) What group followed
damaging the soil. (b) Then the farmers came and the cattlemen to the area, and what did they do?
removed the top cover of soil, which weakened
the land.
2. They came to make their living off the land by
farming and ranching.
3. (a) The climate began to change in the early
1930s. (b) The hot, dry weather caused a drought,
which contributed to difficult conditions for
farmers and ranchers.
4. People used farming techniques that worked well
in other places but were not appropriate for the 2. Why did so many people move to the area that eventually became known as the
plains; people used machines like tractors that Dust Bowl?
plowed enormous tracts of land; people plowed
land that had never been plowed before; people
plowed more land than should have been plowed.
Research
Research to Clarify If students struggle to
identify an unfamiliar detail, have them rewatch
the video and notice an idea or concept that
might be new to them, such as things related to 3. (a) When did the climate first start to change? (b) What effects did the
farming, farm equipment, or dust storms. change have?

4. Notebook How did human activity contribute to creating the Dust Bowl?
RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from the video. Briefly
research that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light on an
aspect of the story told in this video?
LIT17_SE07_U05_A1C_M_WC_APP.indd 454 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 4/18/16 10:05 AM
Challenge
Research Encourage students to research the settlement patterns in
the late-1800s Great Plains, briefly described at the beginning of the
film (0:45–1:40). Direct students to learn more about how ranchers
and farmers used the land in this period and how this background
information helps them understand the causes of the Dust Bowl of
the 1930s.

MAKING MEANING
Close Review Close Review

Watch “The Dust Bowl” again. Write any new observations
If needed, model close reviewing by using
that seem important. What questions do you have? What
can you conclude?
the Closer Review notes in the Interactive
Teacher’s Edition.
THE DUST BOWL
Remind students to use Accountable Talk in
analyze the media their discussions and to support one another as
they complete the close review.
Notebook Complete the activities.
1. Evaluate What moment, image, or detail in “The Dust Bowl” did you
find particularly powerful? Why?
Analyze the Media
1. Responses will vary. Students should (a) identify
2. Analyze (a) What sort of information do you learn from the first- a specific part of the video, and (b) clearly explain
person accounts in the video? (b) What sort of information do why they chose it.
you learn from voiceover narration? (c) Do you find these types of 2. Responses will vary. Students should differentiate
information to be of equal value? Explain why or why not. between the content related by interview subjects
3. Essential Question: How do we overcome obstacles? What have
and by the narrator.
you learned about how people deal with obstacles by seeing “The 3. Responses will vary. Students might conclude that
Dust Bowl”? Explain. people can cooperate with one another so they
don’t make a bad situation worse.
language development
Media Vocabulary
media vocabulary For more support, see Media Vocabulary.
Possible responses:
panoramic shot voiceover transition 1. The panoramic shot provides an introduction
to region.
Use the media vocabulary words in your responses to these 2. “The Dust Bowl” uses voiceover to provide
questions. background and historical information
1. How does the panoramic shot at the beginning of the video help you  evIdenCe log while the viewer sees images on the screen.
understand what follows? Before moving on to a Fictional films and TV shows use voiceover.
new selection, go to your This technique was effective in these instances
Evidence Log and record because it helped me understand the stories.
what you’ve learned
3. Answers will vary. Students should demonstrate

from the video “The Dust
2. How does the voiceover contribute to the images in “Surviving the Bowl.” understanding of what a transition is in film,
Dust Bowl”? as well as the effect a specific transition has in
telling the story of the Dust Bowl.
Evidence Log Support students in completing
their Evidence Log. This paced activity will
 STanDarDS
3. Which transition in the video creates the most powerful dramatic Language help prepare them for the Performance-Based
effect? Explain. Acquire and use accurately Assessment at the end of the unit.
grade-appropriate general
academic and domain-specific
words and phrases; gather
vocabulary knowledge when
considering a word or phrase
important to comprehension
or expression.
The Dust Bowl 455
LIT17_SE07_U05_A1C_M_WC_APP.indd Page 455 21/10/16 7:37 pm s-w-047 VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT /140/PE02830/MYPERSPECTIVES_ENGLISH_LANGUAGE_ARTS_SE_and_TE/NA/SE/2017/G1/XXXXXXX ...
Media Vocabulary Reinforcement Students This film has a great panoramic shot; it shows a
will benefit from additional practice with the huge dust storm approaching a farm.
media vocabulary. Reinforce their comprehension Then, give students this sentence prompt, and
with “show-you-know” sentences. The first part coach them in creating the clarification part: FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
of the sentence uses the vocabulary word in
context. The second part clarifies the first. Model The use of voiceover in this movie made the story Media Vocabulary
the strategy with this example for panoramic clear; _________. • If students struggle to answer the media
shot: Possible response: the narrator explained why vocabulary questions, then review relevant
the main character left his native country. parts of the video and discuss how these
techniques are used in the video.

PLANNING WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • from THE GRAPES OF WRATH

Audio summaries
Audio summaries of “from
Summary
The Grapes of Wrath” are In this moving excerpt from the novel The Grapes of Wrath, author
available online in both English John Steinbeck describes the heartbreaking preparations of families
and Spanish in the Interactive getting ready to leave their farms in Oklahoma, devastated by
Teacher’s Edition or Unit drought and dust storms, to try to make new lives in California.
Resources. Assigning these
Everything they take will have to fit in a pickup truck, so they try to
summaries prior to reading the
sell the possessions they have lived with and treasured for so long.
selection may help students
build additional background
But the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression have left thousands
knowledge and set a context for of farm families in desperate poverty. Everyone is selling, and few
their first read. are buying. The prices are weak, but the desperation and bitterness
are strong.
Insight
This selection offers insight into how this terrible period of American
history affected the lives of ordinary people. The excerpt is about more
than the loss of a family’s possessions. It reveals how deep the pain of
an economic disaster can go.
Essential question:
obstacles? The excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath connects clearly and directly to
the Essential Question. The obstacles Dust Bowl farm families had to
overcome required huge sacrifices, which are symbolized by the loss of
tools, farm animals, and “roses red under glass.”
Performance Task Connection to Performance Tasks
How did the individuals Whole-Class Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
in the selections cope with students will present an informative essay about how the characters
the obstacles they faced? in these selections coped with the obstacles they faced. This selection
presents students with evidence about what people do when their
Unit Performance-Based
Assessment
choices are extremely limited.
How can people Unit Performance-Based Assessment The tenant farmers Steinbeck
overcome adversity in describes in this excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath faced
the face of overwhelming insurmountable obstacles to keeping their land. The topsoil was
obstacles? depleted by unsustainable farming, and then it was swept away by
drought and high winds over the flat plains. After years of unprofitable
farming, in the midst of the Great Depression, banks foreclosed. The
landlords lost the farms, and the tenant farmers were thrown off. The
families had no savings, and there were no jobs. This selection gives
insight into what people do when they can do nothing else. They
move on.

DIGITAL
LESSON RESOURCES
Making Meaning Language Development Effective Expression

Lesson First Read Concept Vocabulary Writing to Compare
Close Read Word Study
Analyze the Text Author’s Style
Analyze Craft and Structure
Instructional RL.10 By the end of the year, read L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of RL.9 Compare and contrast a fictional
Standards and comprehend literature . . . unknown and multiple-meaning words portrayal . . .
and phrases . . .
RL.2 Determine a theme or central W.1 Write arguments . . .
idea of a text . . . L.4.b Use common, grade-appropriate
W.1.a Introduce claim(s) . . .
Greek or Latin affixes and roots . . .
RL.3 Analyze how particular
W.1.b Support claim(s) with logical
elements . . . L.6 Acquire and use accurately
reasoning and relevant evidence . . .
grade-appropriate general academic and
domain-specific words and phrases . . . W.1.c Use words, phrases, and
clauses . . .
W.9 Draw evidence from literary or
informational texts . . .
W.9.a Apply grade 7 Reading
standards . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online in the Selection Audio Word Network Evidence Log
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Read Guide: Fiction
Close-Read Guide: Fiction
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources
Audio Summaries oncept Vocabulary and
C Writing to Compare: Essay
Word Study
Interactive Teacher’s Annotation Highlights
Edition or Unit Resources Author’s Style: Description
EL Highlights
E nglish Language Support
Lesson: Theme
nalyze Craft and Structure: Setting
A
and Cultural Context
Reteach/Practice (RP)
nalyze Craft and Structure: Setting
A Word Study: Suffix –less (RP)
and Cultural Context (RP)
Interactive Teacher’s Author’s Style: Description (RP)
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments
My Resources A Unit 5 Answer Key is available online and in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition.

PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • from THE GRAPES OF WRATH
Reading Support
Text Complexity Rubric: from The Grapes of Wrath

Lexile: 600 Text Length: 1,403 words
Knowledge Demands A good background on American labor, the Depression, and the Dust Bowl will help students
1 2 3 4 5 understand Steinbeck’s excerpt. Some discussion of Modernist-style writing may also be warranted.
Structure The structure is ostensibly simple, but the form it takes is intuitive and somewhat hard to follow for a
1 2 3 4 5 young reader. Rereading may be required.
Language Conventionality and Clarity Some difficult above-level vocabulary rendered in a modernist style. Complex sentence structures and
1 2 3 4 5 unique syntax.
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The excerpt touches on sorrow and loss, the extent to which migrant laborers in the Dust Bowl
1 2 3 4 5 were participants in their own debasement, and how the demands of the economy stripped whole
generations and families of their humanity.
DECIDE AND PLAN
English Language Support Strategic Support Challenge

Provide English Learners with support for Provide students with strategic support Provide students who need to be challenged
language and meaning as they read the to ensure that they can successfully read with ideas for how they can go beyond a
selection. the text. simple interpretation of the text.
Language Encourage students to explore Language Ask students to analyze the Text Analysis Challenge students to put
Steinbeck’s unique language and to take language and decide whether the text is themselves in the place of migrant workers
note of interesting inconsistencies, like a monologue from a single character. If in the Dust Bowl. Ask why they may
the switch from third-person, to second- so, who is the character speaking, and have spoken with such stark urgency and
person, to first-person plural. Discuss with who is he or she speaking to? Discuss with despair. Discuss the economic forces that
students Steinbeck’s intent in writing this students how the fluid use of colloquial drove people to abandon, or burn, their
way, and what other modernists might have speech helps to create a feeling of being possessions.
influenced him. there with the person. Written Response If some students
Meaning Though the items in the excerpt Meaning Remind students that it’s more would like to look deeper into the era,
are often described as “old” or “rank,” important to get the general idea from have them do research. Encourage them to
there is still a strong sense of attachment a text like this than it is to know each go to the library or to interview their own
to them. Ask the students to discuss why individual word. Discuss strategies for family members. Have students write a
the people are sorting through them, and getting through a text, such as rereading, short report and provide a conclusion as to
why in the end they choose to burn them all note-taking, or discussion. whether they believe Steinbeck’s portrayal
instead of sell them. of life then was accurate.
TEACH
Read and Respond

Have students do their first read of the selection. Then have them complete their close read. Finally,
work with them on the Making Meaning, Language Development, and Effective Expression activities.
456C UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

Standards Support Through Teaching and Learning Cycle
IDENTIFY NEEDS
Analyze results of the
Beginning-of-Year Assessment,
focusing on the items DECIDE AND PLAN
relating to Unit 5. Also take
• If students have performed poorly on items matching these standards, then provide selection
into consideration student
scaffolds before assigning them the on-level lesson provided in the Student Edition.
performance to this point and
your observations of where • If students have done well on the Beginning-of-Year Assessment, then challenge them to
particular students struggle. keep progressing and learning by giving them opportunities to practice the skills in depth.
• Use the Selection Resources listed on the Planning pages for “from The Grapes of Wrath” to
help students continually improve their ability to master the standards.
Instructional Standards: from The Grapes of Wrath

Catching Up This Year Looking Forward
Reading You may wish to administer the RL.3 Analyze how particular Have students discuss how the
ANALYZE AND REVISE Analyze Craft and Structure: elements of a story or drama dialogue from the selection
Setting and Cultural interact. informs on the plot and
• Analyze student work for Context (RP) worksheet to themes.
help students understand how
evidence of student learning. to determine the setting and
• Identify whether or not cultural context of a written
students have met the work.
expectations in the standards.
Language Review the Author’s Style: L.6 Acquire and use accurately Discuss instances of active
• Identify implications for future
Description (RP) worksheet to grade-appropriate general and passive voice within the
instruction. help students understand how academic and domain-specific selection.
authors create images with words and phrases; gather
Have students locate any other
words. vocabulary knowledge when
suffixes they recognize in
considering a word or phrase
Review the Word Study: the text.
Suffix –less (RP) worksheet to
expression.
help students understand the
meanings of the suffixes –ness L.4.b Use common,
and –less. grade-appropriate Greek or
Latin affixes and roots as clues
TEACH to the meaning of a word.
Implement the planned lesson,

and gather evidence of student
learning.
Whole-Class Learning 456D

va
Comparing Media to Text

You will now read an excerpt from The Grapes
Jump Start The DUsT BOWL

of Wrath. Complete the first-read and close-read
activities. Then, compare the depiction of historical
from The GRApes Of
events in the video with that in the novel excerpt.
First Read Engage students in a discussion WRATh
about what kind of hardship or misfortune

might cause their families to leave their homes
and start over in another place. Then review
the extent of damage to the farms of the
About the Author
southern plains, as seen in “The Dust Bowl.”
Concept Vocabulary
You will encounter the following words as you read an excerpt from
from The Grapes of The Grapes of Wrath. Before reading, note how familiar you are with
each word. Then, rank the words in order from most familiar (1) to least
Wrath familiar (6).
What is it like to leave one place and start your Few writers portray more
WORD YOUR RANKING
life over someplace else? What might be the vividly than John Steinbeck
(1902–1968) what it was ruthless
hardest part of leaving your life behind and
like to live through the
starting over? Is this experience the same or Great Depression of the
bitterness
different for adults and children? Why? Modeling 1930s. His stories and toil
questions such as these will help students novels capture the poverty,
connect to “from The Grapes of Wrath” and to desperation, and social sorrow
the Performance Task assignment. Selection audio injustice experienced
doomed
by many working-class
and print capability for the selection are available
Americans during this bleak frantically
in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition. period. While many of his
characters suffer tragic After completing your first read, come back to the concept vocabulary
Concept Vocabulary fates, they almost always and review your rankings. Mark any changes to your original rankings.
exhibit bravery and dignity
Support students as they rank the words. Ask if
in their struggles.
they’ve ever heard, read, or used them. Reassure
them that the definitions for these words are First Read FICTION
listed in the selection. Tool Kit Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
First-Read Guide and Model opportunity to complete the close-read notes after your first read.
Annotation
FIRST READ

As they read, students should perform the steps
NOTICE whom the story ANNOTATE by marking
of the first read: is about, what happens, vocabulary and key passages
NOTICE: You may want to encourage students to where and when it happens, you want to revisit.
notice how Steinbeck tells the story and how he and why those involved react
as they do.
reveals what the characters are feeling.
ANNOTATE: Remind students to mark text that  sTANDARDs
includes both direct (clearly stated) and indirect Reading Literature CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
(implied) characterization. By the end of the year, read and
the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
comprehend literature, including
stories, dramas, and poems, in the already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
CONNECT: Encourage students to make
grades 6–8 text complexity band have already read. the selection.
connections beyond the text. If they cannot make proficiently, with scaffolding as
connections to their own lives or other texts, have needed at the high end of the range.
them consider movies and TV shows.

456 UNIT 5 • facINg adversITy
RESPOND: Students will answer questions and
write a summary to demonstrate understanding.
Point out to students that while they will always
complete the Respond step at the end of the Personalize for Learning
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 456 15/04/16 4:01 PM
first read, the other steps will probably happen
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print English Language Support
copies of the First-Read Guide: Fiction for Similar Words Help students understand the “a tax or fee.” (We had to pay a toll to drive
students to use. differences between toil, toll, and tool. Explain that over the bridge.) Tool is a noun that typically
as it’s used in the text, toil is a verb that means “do means “a handheld device that aids in
Remind students that during their first long, difficult, tiring work.” (It is not easy to toil in accomplishing a task.” (A hammer is a tool
read, they should not answer the close-read the hot sun picking fruit.) Toll is a noun that means that’s used to drive nails into wood.)
questions that appear in the selection.

ANCHOR TEXT | NOVEL EXCERPT
from
The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck
BACKGROUND
During the Great Depression, a severe drought in Oklahoma caused SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA
massive dust storms that blew away topsoil and destroyed farmland.
Devastated farming families had no choice but to sell all their
belongings and leave. This is the situation faced by the Joad family
in John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath. In this excerpt, the
narrator describes the aftermath of the devastating drought.
I n the little houses the tenant people sifted their belongings and
the belongings of their fathers and of their grandfathers. Picked
over their possessions for the journey to the west. The men were
NOTES
ruthless because the past had been spoiled, but the women knew ruthless (ROOTH lihs) adj.
how the past would cry to them in the coming days. The men having no compassion
or pity
went into the barns and the sheds.
2 That plow, that harrow, remember in the war we planted
mustard? Remember a fella wanted us to put in that rubber bush
they call guayule?1 Get rich, he said. Bring out those tools—get
a few dollars for them. Eighteen dollars for that plow, plus
freight—Sears Roebuck.2
1. guayule (gwy YOO lee) a desert shrub containing rubber, native to Mexico and Texas.
During the Great Depression, it was thought that guayule could be profitably processed
for rubber.
2. Sears Roebuck company that sold clothes, farm equipment, and other goods by mail
order, which supplied much of rural America.
from The Grapes of Wrath 457
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 457
Cross-Curricular Perspectives 4/4/16 9:21 AM
Social Studies
Farming Review paragraphs 2 and 3 and as well as an image for each. Remind students
call student attention to the farm equipment that this story takes place in the 1930s, so their
described. Have students research and write images should reflect what this equipment
a short report about one of the farming looked like at that time. Have volunteers share
tools or pieces of equipment mentioned in their research with the class, and discuss how the
paragraphs 2–3: plow, harrow, harness, carts, information and images help students understand
seeders, hoes. They should include information the story.
about what the tool is and what it is used for,

TEACHING
3 Harness, carts, seeders, little bundles of hoes. Bring ‘em out.
NOTES Pile ‘em up. Load ‘em in the wagon. Take ‘em to town. Sell ‘em for
Additional English Language Support
what you can get. Sell the team and the wagon, too. No more use
is available in the Interactive Teacher’s
for anything.
Edition.
4 Fifty cents isn’t enough to get for a good plow. That seeder
cost thirty-eight dollars. Two dollars isn’t enough. Can’t haul
bitterness (BIHT uhr nihs) n. it all back—Well, take it, and a bitterness with it. Take the well
quality of having a sharp, pump and the harness. Take halters, collars, hames, and tugs.3
unpleasant taste; condition
causing pain or sorrow
Take the little glass brow-band jewels, roses red under glass. Got
those for the bay gelding.4 ‘Member how he lifted his feet when
he trotted?
5 Junk piled up in a yard.
6 Can’t sell a hand plow any more. Fifty cents for the weight of
the metal. Disks and tractors, that’s the stuff now.
7 Well, take it—all junk—and give me five dollars. You’re not
buying only junk, you’re buying junked lives. And more—you’ll
see—you’re buying bitterness. Buying a plow to plow your own
children under, buying the arms and spirits that might have saved
you. Five dollars, not four. I can’t haul ‘em back—Well, take ‘em
for four. But I warn you, you’re buying what will plow your
own children under. And you won’t see. You can’t see. Take ‘em
for four. Now, what’ll you give for the team and wagon? Those
fine bays, matched they are, matched in color, matched the way
they walk, stride to stride. In the stiff pull-straining hams5 and
buttocks, split-second timed together. And in the morning, the
light on them, bay light. They look over the fence sniffing for us,
and the stiff ears swivel to hear us, and the black forelocks! I’ve
got a girl. She likes to braid the manes and forelocks, puts little
red bows on them. Likes to do it. Not any more. I could tell you
a funny story about that girl and that off bay. Would make you
laugh. Off horse is eight, near is ten, but might of been twin colts
the way they work together. See? The teeth. Sound all over. Deep
lungs. Feet fair and clean. How much? Ten dollars? For both? And
the wagon—I’d shoot ‘em for dog feed first. Oh, take ‘em! Take

‘em quick, mister. You’re buying a little girl plaiting the forelocks,
taking off her hair ribbon to make bows, standing back, head
cocked, rubbing the soft noses with her cheek. You’re buying years
toil (TOYL) v. work hard and of work, toil in the sun; you’re buying a sorrow that can’t talk.
with difficulty But watch it, mister. There’s a premium goes with this pile of junk
and the bay horses—so beautiful—a packet of bitterness to grow
sorrow (SOR oh) n. great
in your house and to flower, some day. We could have saved you,
sadness; suffering
but you cut us down, and soon you will be cut down and there’ll
be none of us to save you.
3. halters, collars, hames, and tugs parts of the harnesses used to attach horses to
horse‑drawn plows.
4. bay gelding reddish‑brown male horse.
5. hams back of a horse’s knee.
Personalize for Learning
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 458 4/4/16 9:19 AM
Strategic Support
Author’s Style Discuss the writing technique the story by revealing both sides of the
Steinbeck uses to tell the story in paragraphs 4–7. conversation but chose to do it this way. A
We experience the men selling their possessions likely reason is that it’s more dramatic this way.
through the speech of one unnamed character as We learn the thoughts and feelings of the man
he argues with the junk dealer. Steinbeck doesn’t selling his possessions as they spill out in one
include the junk dealer’s side of this conversation, long nonstop rush, which makes this entire
though we know he is talking to the man because episode much more emotional.
the man is responding to what the dealer is saying.
Steinbeck could have chosen to tell this part of

8 And the tenant men came walking back, hands in their pockets,
hats pulled down. Some bought a pint and drank it fast to make NOTES
CLOSE READ
the impact hard and stunning. But they didn’t laugh and they
didn’t dance. They didn’t sing or pick the guitars. They walked You may wish to model the Close Read using the
back to the farms, hands in pockets and heads down, shoes following think-aloud format. Possible responses
kicking the red dust up. to questions on the student page are included.
9 Maybe we can start again, in the new rich land—in California, CLOSE READ You may also want to print copies of the Close-
where the fruit grows. We’ll start over. ANNOTATE: Mark
examples of repetition
Read Guide: Fiction for students to use.
10 But you can’t start. Only a baby can start. You and me—why,
of words and phrases in
we’re all that’s been. The anger of a moment, the thousand
paragraph 10.
ANNOTATE: As I read paragraph 10, I see that
pictures, that’s us. This land, this red land, is us; and the flood Steinbeck doesn’t just repeat the word years,
years and the dust years and the drought years are us. We can’t QUESTION: What ideas
but each time he uses it he adds something to
are being emphasized
start again. The bitterness we sold to the junk man—he got it all this word.
through repetition? Why
right, but we have it still. And when the owner men told us to does the narrator keep QUESTION: I think Steinbeck repeats the word
go, that’s us; and when the tractor hit the house, that’s us until using the pronouns “us” years to emphasize how long these people have
we’re dead. To California or any place—every one a drum major and “we”?
been farming this land together.
leading a parade of hurts, marching with our bitterness. And some
CONCLUDE: What can
day—the armies of bitterness will all be going the same way. And you conclude about the
CONCLUDE: I can conclude that the narrator
they’ll all walk together, and there’ll be a dead terror from it. narrator by the words sympathizes with the people he is describing. He
11 The tenant men scuffed home to the farms through the red dust. he uses and ideas he is one of them.
12 When everything that could be sold was sold, stoves and conveys?
bedsteads, chairs and tables, little corner cupboards, tubs and
tanks, still there were piles of possessions; and the women sat
among them, turning them over and looking off beyond and back,
pictures, square glasses, and here’s a vase.
13 Now you know well what we can take and what we can’t
take. We’ll be camping out—a few pots to cook and wash in,
and mattresses and comforts, lantern and buckets, and a piece of
canvas. Use that for a tent. This kerosene can. Know what that
is? That’s the stove. And clothes—take all the clothes. And—the
rifle? Wouldn’t go out naked of a rifle. When shoes and clothes
and food, when even hope is gone, we’ll have the rifle. When
grampa came—did I tell you?—he had pepper and salt and a
rifle. Nothing else. That goes. And a bottle for water. That just
about fills us. Right up the sides of the trailer, and the kids can set
in the trailer, and granma on a mattress. Tools, a shovel and saw
and wrench and pliers. An ax, too. We had that ax forty years.
Look how she’s wore down. And ropes, of course. The rest? Leave
it—or burn it up.
14 And the children came.
15 If Mary takes that doll, that dirty rag doll, I got to take my
Indian bow. I got to. An’ this roun’ stick—big as me. I might need
this stick. I had this stick so long—a month, or maybe a year. I got
to take it. And what’s it like in California?
16 The women sat among the doomed things, turning them over doomed (doomd) adj.
and looking past them and back. This book. My father had it. He destined to a bad outcome
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 459 How Language Works 16-04-01 9:57 AM
Repetition Use paragraph 10 to discuss the a rhythm that emphasizes how long and how
value of well-crafted repetition. Point out that often these people faced these difficulties.
Steinbeck could have written the text this way: Show students the following two sentences:
“the flood, dust, and drought years.” But he Caleb wished until he had no more wishes left.
repeats not only years, but also and and the, Caleb wished and wished and wished until he
giving the reader a sense of the ongoing trials had no more wishes left. Which is a stronger
and challenges these people faced, and creating sentence? Why?

TEACHING
liked a book. Pilgrim’s Progress.6 Used to read it. Got his name in
NOTES it. And his pipe—still smells rank. And this picture—an angel.
CLOSE READ
I looked at that before the fust three come—didn’t seem to do
You may wish to model the Close Read using the CLOSE READ much good. Think we could get this china dog in? Aunt Sadie
ANNOTATE: Mark the brought it from the St. Louis Fair.7 See? Wrote right on it. No, I
following think-aloud format. Possible responses
punctuation in paragraphs guess not. Here’s a letter my brother wrote the day before he died.
to questions on the student page are included. 17 and 18.
Here’s an old-time hat. These feathers—never got to use them. No,
ANNOTATE: As I read paragraphs 17–18, QUESTION: What patterns there isn’t room.
I highlight the punctuation. are created by the 17 How can we live without our lives? How will we know it’s us
questions and statements?
QUESTION: I notice that in each paragraph without our past? No. Leave it. Burn it.
What do the dashes
there are several consecutive questions followed indicate?
18 They sat and looked at it and burned it into their memories.
by several statements ending in periods. The How’ll it be not to know what land’s outside the door? How if
CONCLUDE: What effect you wake up in the night and know—and know the willow tree’s
dashes indicate the narrator is inserting additional
do the patterns and use
thoughts or emphasis. not there? Can you live without the willow tree? Well, no, you
of dashes create? How
do they bring to life this can’t. The willow tree is you. The pain on that mattress there—that
CONCLUDE: I think the effect created by the
unnamed narrator? dreadful pain—that’s you.
punctuation helps give the narrator an urgency by
19 And the children—if Sam takes his Indian bow an’ his long
asking a number of difficult questions and then
roun’ stick, I get to take two things. I choose the fluffy pilla.
providing equally difficult answers. The narrator
That’s mine.
is digging deep into his emotions to describe the
20 Suddenly they were nervous. Got to get out quick now. Can’t
plight of these people, and the phrases within
wait. We can’t wait. And they piled up the goods in the yards and
dashes help emphasize this tone.
set fire to them. They stood and watched them burning, and then
frantically (FRAN tuh klee) frantically they loaded up the cars and drove away, drove in the
adv. acting wildly with dust. The dust hung in the air for a long time after the loaded cars
anger, worry, or pain
had passed. ❧
6. Pilgrim’s Progress Christian story by John Bunyan about living virtuously.
7. St. Louis Fair: The World’s Fair of 1904, celebrating a hundred years of American
ownership of lands west of the Mississippi River.
“Chapter 9,” from The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, copyright 1939, renewed © 1967 by John Steinbeck. Used by
permission of Viking Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

Vocabulary Development
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 460 16-04-01 9:57 AM
Multiple Meanings Call students’ attention years of service, Smith held the rank of general.);
to the word rank in paragraph 16. Explain to “line of soldiers ranged side by side in close
students that the word has several meanings. order” (The soldiers stood at attention in the
As used in the text, it’s an adjective that means ranks.); “the body of enlisted personnel” (Jane
“offensive in odor or flavor.” (That rotten food rose quickly through the ranks.). As a verb it can
has a rank smell.) Explain to students that they mean “to determine the relative position of; to
will probably more often encounter this word rate” (Ken ranked his favorite books from one
as a noun or a verb. As a noun it can mean “a to ten.); “to take or have a position in relation to
grade of official standing in a hierarchy.” (After others” (Melinda ranks first in her class.).

Complete the following items after you finish your first read.
Possible responses:
1. What big change is taking place in the lives of these characters? 1. They are leaving their farms.
2. They are selling their possessions.
3. They leave as fast as they can.
4. Summaries will vary, but students should include:
people who are being forced to leave their farms
look through their belongings, deciding what to
keep and what to leave behind; the men take
farm equipment to the junk dealer to sell but
are disappointed and angry when they are paid
much less than they believe these possessions are
2. What are the men doing in paragraph 7?
worth; returning with the money they raised, they
decide to burn whatever they don’t take before
leaving for California; they worry about starting
over and leaving their past behind, but they have
no choice—they must leave; they set fire to what
they can’t take, watch it burn, then drive away
over a dust-covered road.
Research
3. What happens after the people burn their belongings? Research to Clarify If students struggle to
identify an unfamiliar detail, have them reread
the text and notice words or details that might be
new to them, such as farm equipment or words
in dialect.
4. Notebook Write a brief summary of this excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath.
RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from the text. Briefly research
that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light on an aspect of
the story?
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC.indd 461 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 16-04-01 9:57 AM
Challenge
Interpret Ask students to consider a particularly no, you can’t. The willow tree is you. The
moving passage or two from the story—for pain on that mattress there—that dreadful pain—
example, this passage from paragraph 18: that’s you.
How’ll it be not to know what land’s outside Have students rewrite the passage(s), expressing
the door? How if you wake up in the night and the ideas in their own words. Ask volunteers to
know—and know the willow tree’s not there? share their rewrites with the class.
Can you live without the willow tree? Well,

Close Read the Text

Jump Start 1. This model, from paragraph 1, shows two sample
annotations, along with questions and conclusions. Close
read the passage, and find another detail to annotate. Then,
Close Read Have students close read the
write a question and your conclusion.
title, The Grapes of Wrath. Have students from THE GRAPES OF WRATH
discuss the meaning of wrath (strong, vengeful

anger or indignation; punishment for an ANNOTATE: There is repetition here, of words
offense or a crime). Discuss how wrath and and ideas.
punishment are reflected in the excerpt. What QUESTION: What ideas are being emphasized
does this suggest about Steinbeck’s intention in through repetition?
ANNOTATE: The
writing this story? CONCLUDE: The tenants are sorting through
author personifies
generations of memories and belongings.
the past by saying
it “would cry
In the little houses the tenant people to them in the
Close Read the Text sifted their belongings and the coming days.”
Walk students through the annotation model belongings of their fathers and of QUESTION: Why
on the student page. Encourage them to their grandfathers. Picked over their did the author
complete items 2 and 3 on their own. Review tool Kit make this choice?
possessions for the journey to the
and discuss the sections students have marked. Close-Read Guide and
west. The men were ruthless because CONCLUDE:
If needed, continue to model close reading by Model Annotation The women
the past had been spoiled, but the understand how
using the Annotation Highlights in the Interactive women knew how the past would cry much they will
Teacher’s Edition. to them in the coming days. miss the past.
Analyze the Text

Possible responses:
1. Details include the names of farming tools and 2. For more practice, go back into the text and complete the
farm equipment among the men’s possessions. close-read notes.
The men also discuss details about planting crops. 3. Revisit a section of the text you found important during your
(Paragraphs 2–3) DOK 2 first read. Read this section closely and annotate what you
2. The general attitude of the characters is anger notice. Ask yourself questions such as “Why did the author
and bitterness. You can tell because of what make this choice?” What can you conclude?
they say to the junk dealer when they sell their

possessions. (Paragraph 7) DOK 3
CItE tExtuAl EvIdENCE
3. They burn their possessions because they know Analyze the Text to support your answers.
they are never coming back and they’re angry
they’re being forced to leave. Also, burning their Notebook Respond to these questions.
possessions symbolizes the end of the lives they’ve 1. Classify What story details reveal that these characters are farm
led until now. DOK 3 people?
4. Responses will vary. Students may conclude that 2. Interpret What is the general attitude of the characters? How can
one way some people deal with obstacles is  STANDARDS you tell?
moving to a new place and starting over. DOK 3 Reading Literature 3. Analyze Why do the characters burn their belongings at the end of
• Determine a theme or central idea
of a text and analyze its development
the excerpt?
over the course of the text; provide 4. Essential Question: How do we overcome obstacles? What have
an objective summary of the text.
• Analyze how particular elements of you learned about how people deal with obstacles by reading this
a story or drama interact. selection?
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC_APP.indd 462 16-04-01 10:01 AM
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Analyze the Text
• If students fail to cite evidence, then remind
them to support their ideas with specific
information from the text.
• If students fail to grasp key ideas in the text,
then have them review the relevant sections of
the excerpt.

Analyze Craft and Structure Analyze Craft and Structure

Theme Every successful literary work develops at least one theme,
Setting, Cultural Context, and Theme Point
or central message. Themes can be expressed as general truths about
people or life. Writers develop themes through careful selection of
out that Steinbeck doesn’t directly set the scene
significant story details, including the following elements: in this excerpt—he doesn’t say this part of the
story takes place on farms. Instead, he reveals the
• Setting is the time and place in which a story occurs.
setting through details such as the people owning
• Cultural and historical context is the social, cultural, and farming tools and equipment. Similarly, he
historical environment of the characters, including major events establishes the cultural context through the words
that affect them. the characters speak. Draw students’ attention
• Characters’ actions and reactions to situations can reveal themes, to the following text: “That just about fills us.
or insights about human nature. Right up the sides of the trailer, and the kids can
In The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck uses the setting of Oklahoma during set in the trailer, and granma on a mattress.”
the Great Depression to develop themes about how people respond to (paragraph 13) Discuss what these words reveal
great hardships, such as drought. The cultural and historical context of about these people and the world they live in. For
the novel includes the ongoing drought and the disappearance of usable more support, see Analyze Craft and Structure:
farmland, the resulting conditions of poverty, and the different roles that
Setting and Cultural Context.
men and women traditionally follow in that time and place.
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Practice
Practice to support your answers.
Possible responses:
Notebook Complete the following activity, and then respond 1. a. dust of the farmlands, abandoned tools and
to the questions. possessions.
b. They cannot survive as farmers due to drought
1. Complete the chart to analyze how story elements determine theme.
and the failing economy. They have to sell off and
Identifying Theme even burn any equipment and possessions they
cannot take to California.
SETTING a. See possible responses in Teacher’s THEME c. Men are ruthless; women are regretful.
Edition.
What are the most important details What general truth is d. Driven into poverty by both natural and
about the setting of this excerpt? developed by these economic disaster, people will make heartbreaking
story elements? d. and seemingly heartless decisions in order to
CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT follow any path toward hope and survival.
What parts of the characters’ environment 2. The hardship of their experience has made the
have the greatest impact on their choices? people tremendously bitter. Their bitterness leads
b.
CHARACTERS’ ACTIONS
them to discard valuable farm tools and family
heirlooms that hold sentimental value. All that
How do men and women in the excerpt matters is their ability to survive, and there seems
respond differently to their situation? c. to be no room for sentiment in their lives.
3. Answers will vary. Students should address the
2. Repeated words and ideas can highlight key themes. What theme about human themes of the story and not just the specific
nature is suggested by the narrator’s repetition of the noun bitterness? conditions of the time as modern-day conditions
might create a different outcome.
3. Would the themes suggested by this passage of The Grapes of Wrath be much
different if the story were adapted and set in modern-day Oklahoma? Why or
why not?

• If students have difficulty identifying elements
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC_APP.indd 463 Personalize for Learning 18/04/16 10:43 AM of setting, then show them setting-related
English Language Support details in the text and discuss what they reveal
Finding the Theme Have students read a short events point to it. Also have them explain how
about where the story takes place.
story and determine the theme. After their the theme is universal. Expanding • If students have difficulty understanding
activity, have students persuade a partner about Ask students to write a paragraph stating the theme cultural context, then review appropriate parts
their opinion regarding the theme. of the story. Tell them to include text evidence of the text and discuss what they reveal about
Have students create a poster that illustrates the and explain how the evidence directly or indirectly the world in which these characters live.
theme of the story. Emerging supports their theme. Bridging For Reteach and Practice, see Analyze
Have students write a few sentences describing An expanded English Language Support Craft and Structure: Setting and Cultural
the theme and how the characters and story Lesson on Theme is available in the Interactive Context (RP).
TEACHING Language DeveLopment
Concept Vocabulary Concept vocabulary

ruthless toil doomed
Why These Words?
bitterness sorrow frantically
Possible responses:
from THE GRAPES OF WRATH
1. The concept vocabulary sharpens the reader’s
understanding because the words describe how Why These Words? The concept vocabulary words describe extreme
the characters feel as they leave their farms and emotions or conditions that people experience. For example, the men
start over. feel much bitterness as they sell their belongings, the women feel
great sorrow as they say good-bye to their homes, and the characters
2. spoiled (paragraph 1); stunning (paragraph 8); frantically load their cars and leave their homes behind.
anger (paragraph 10); drought (paragraph 10);
dust (paragraph 10); flood (paragraph 10) 1. How does the concept vocabulary sharpen the reader’s understanding
of the story’s characters and setting?
Practice
Possible responses: 2. What other words in the selection describe or relate to the difficult
A ruthless person might go after whatever he conditions these characters face?
or she wants in spite of who might be hurt. A
person might feel sorrow after losing something Practice
of value that cannot be replaced. A person
might express bitterness toward someone by Notebook The concept vocabulary words appear in the excerpt
insulting them. Shoveling snow is a form of toil.  WoRD netWoRK from The Grapes of Wrath. Use each word in a sentence that
demonstrates your understanding of the word’s meaning.
If something is doomed, it is sure to be destroyed Add interesting words
or ruined. Someone might behave frantically from the text about facing
if they believe they are late in getting to a very adversity to your Word
Network. Word Study
important event.
Old English Suffix: -less The Old English suffix -less means “not
Word Network having” or “unable to be acted on or to act.” It usually indicates that
the word in which it appears is an adjective. For example, the word
Possible words: journey; past; coming days;
ruthless means “having no pity,” “merciless,” or “cruel.” In the story, the
remember; burn it; hope
men are described as ruthless as they pick through belongings with no
outward show of emotion or feeling.
Word Study
For more support, see Concept Vocabulary and 1. Write your own sentence that correctly uses the word ruthless.
Word Study

Possible responses:
 STANDARDS
1. The ruthless politician won the election but made Language
2. Write definitions for these words, consulting a dictionary if you need
many enemies along the way. • Determine or clarify the meaning help: heartless, pitiless, purposeless.
of unknown and multiple-meaning
2. heartless: without kindness or caring; pitiless: words and phrases based on grade 7
without sympathy; purposeless: aimless, having reading and content, choosing
no direction or goal flexibly from a range of strategies.
b. Use common, grade-appropriate 3. Think of two other words that have the suffix -less. Record a definition
3. Answers will vary. Greek or Latin affixes and roots as for each word, and write a sentence that correctly uses it.
clues to the meaning of a word.
• Acquire and use accurately
grade-appropriate general academic
and domain-specific words
and phrases; gather vocabulary
knowledge when considering
a word or phrase important to
comprehension or expression.
AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC_APP.indd 464 Elfrieda Hiebert, Ph.D. 4/18/16 10:09 AM
Digital Tools As students develop and expand • Lexipedia, for example, is a visual thesaurus.
their word networks, remind them of the digital Users type in any word and Lexipedia
tools available and of their value. Explain what displays that word with others in the word
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT digital tools offer—pronunciation; audio; word network, color-coded by parts of speech and
Word Study families; definitions; links to synonyms and relationships. Hover over the word for a full
If students have trouble finding appropriate antonyms; interactive levels of complexity of definition.
synonyms and antonyms; words in context • Snappy Words is similar, providing words
words, then review using a dictionary to
sentences, and so much more. Experiment with arranged in networks.
find different word forms. For Reteach and
these digital tools:
Practice, see Word Study: Suffix -less (RP).

Author’s Style Author’s Style

Description Descriptions of people, places, and things are shaped by
Description Discuss choosing words that appeal
word choice, the specific language an author uses to create a strong
impression.
to the five senses. What type of words appeal to
sight? Sound? Taste? Smell? Feel? Also, remind
Word choice also helps a writer create imagery —descriptive language students that similes and metaphors are tools
that appeals to one or more of the five senses. they can use to write effective descriptions and
create imagery. (Jason looked like he was about
EXAMPLES FROM THE TEXT NOTES
to explode. / Suddenly, Jason exploded.) For more
Precise words That plow, that harrow, remember in Plow, harrow, mustard are all simple,
the war we planted mustard? precise words. support, see Author’s Style: Description.
The tenant men scuffed home to the The verb scuffed is much more MAKE IT INTERACTIVE
farms through the red dust. precise than a verb such as walked Have students write a detailed, vivid sentence
or went.
describing something in the room without
Imagery Take the little glass brow-band These words appeal to the sense
actually mentioning the object. When they read
jewels, roses red under glass. of sight.
the description to the class, can other students
And his pipe—still smells rank. These words appeal to the sense guess what they’re describing?
of smell.
I choose the fluffy pilla. These words appeal to the sense Practice
of touch.
Possible responses:
1. matched in color; stiff pull-straining hams and
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE buttocks; they look over the fence sniffing for us;
stiff ears swivel to hear us; deep lungs; feet fair
Complete the activity, and then respond to the questions. and clean
1. Reread paragraph 7 of “The Grapes of Wrath.” Use the chart below to show 2. Answers will vary.
three examples of Steinbeck’s word choice to describe the horses. 3. (a) visual (b) The images create a mood of
resignation and desperation as the narrator lists
the few necessities they will bring.
horses
2. Evaluate (a) Which words from the graphic organizer enable you to imagine
the horses most clearly? Explain your choices. (b) To which senses do the words
you chose appeal?
3. Interpret (a) To what sense do the images in paragraph 13 mostly appeal?

(b) What mood or atmosphere does the use of these images create?
Author’s Style
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC_APP.indd 465 19/04/16 9:36 AM • If students struggle with description, then
review easily-accessible descriptions in the
• Lingro turns a website into a clickable dictionary,
text and discuss why each is an effective
providing a variety of definitions. For example,
clicking on the word “writing” on the website
description.
provides six different definitions. • If students have trouble understanding or
• Shahi, another visual dictionary, melds Wiktionary interpreting imagery, then review images in
content with Flickr images and more. the text and discuss the picture each creates for
the reader.
For Reteach and Practice, see Author’s Style:
Description (RP).

TEACHING EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION
Writing to Compare Writing to Compare

The documentary video you watched provides in-depth information
As students prepare to compare the documentary
about the Dust Bowl, the historical event that is an essential part of the
video “The Dust Bowl” with the excerpt from the setting of John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath. Now, deepen
novel The Grapes of Wrath, they will analyze how your understanding of the topic by analyzing what you have learned and
THE DUST BOWL
the sources convey historical information about expressing your ideas in writing.
farmers.
Assignment
Prewriting The video “The Dust Bowl” and the novel The Grapes of Wrath present
Analyze Perspectives Encourage students to very different perspectives, or points of view, about the role of farmers
focus on the points of view of the rancher in the in the 1930s drought and its aftermath. Were farmers innocent victims
video and the farmers in the novel excerpt. Have of a natural disaster, or were they guilty of creating the disaster due to
them consider how these points of view differ. from THE GRAPES OF WRATH poor land management?
Possible responses in chart on student page: Write an argumentative essay in which you state and support an
argument about the role of farmers in the Dust Bowl. Use details from
a. Some farmers misused the land and Steinbeck’s novel and the documentary video as evidence to support
contributed to the erosion of the soil. A long your claim. Strengthen your support by addressing one counterclaim.
drought made the situation much worse for
farmers.
b. Tenant farmers could not find work in the Dust Prewriting
Bowl region. Many sold their possessions and
Analyze Perspectives Review both sources to understand how the
headed west to California. video and the novel present different perspectives on farmers during the
c. The images of barren farmland and dead Dust Bowl. Complete the chart to summarize how each source depicts
livestock make a powerful impression. the role of farmers. Then, include details from each source that produce a
d. The information about farmers selling their strong impression or impact.
most cherished possessions for little money is
dismaying. HISTORICAL VIDEO: LITERARY TEXT: from
“THE DUST BOWL” THE GRAPES OF WRATH
Possible responses to Notebook questions:
Role of Farmers in a. See answers in b.
1. The video focuses on wheat farmers, claiming the Dust Bowl Teacher’s Edition.
they were only interested in monetary gain and
did not take good care of the land; background
 STANDARDS
music heightens the effect. The literary text
Reading Literature
focuses on tenant farmers’ attitudes toward their

Compare and contrast a fictional
desperate economic situation and their efforts to portrayal of a time, place, or Strong Impressions c. d.
deal with it. character and a historical account
of the same period as a means of
2. The video is more persuasive because it provides understanding how authors of fiction
use or alter history.
broader historical information about the causes
Writing
and results of the Dust Bowl. • Write arguments to support claims
with clear reasons and relevant
evidence.
a. Introduce claim(s), acknowledge Notebook Respond to these questions.
alternate or opposing claims, and
organize the reasons and evidence 1. How do the video and the novel use different techniques to influence
logically. an audience’s response?
b. Support claim(s) with
logical reasoning and relevant 2. Which perspective on the role of farmers in the Dust Bowl is more
evidence, using accurate, credible
sources and demonstrating an
persuasive? Why?
understanding of the topic or text.
LIT17_SE07_U05_A2C_WC_APP.indd 466 Personalize for Learning 30/05/16 10:15 AM
Challenge
Spoken Language Have students rewatch the video “The Dust
Bowl” and focus on the personal stories told by people who lived
through the Dust Bowl. Ask students to write a paragraph discussing
how the everyday speech of the people in the video compares
with how characters speak in The Grapes of Wrath. How are they
different? How are they similar?

Drafting
Drafting
Outline Your Essay Complete the outline to plan and draft your
Outline Your Essay Remind students that as
argumentative essay. Adjust the outline as needed.
they compare the video and the text, they should
I. Introduction Begin with a strong opening that clearly states the claim keep in mind that one is nonfiction and the other
you are making about how much responsibility farmers should bear for is fiction; they should address any impact this has
the Dust Bowl. on their comparison between the two.
Opening Claim: Regardless of which organizational structure
students choose, encourage them to use
transitional words to link the ideas that appear in
the body of their essay.
II. Body
A. Provide Evidence from Sources Choose evidence from the Reviewing, Revising, and Editing
sources that supports your argument. Consider whether you will Remind students to check that they’ve included
begin with your strongest evidence, or present your strongest specific details from both the video and the
evidence last. text to support their claims. Ask them to review
Evidence: their word choice. Finally, remind students to
 EVIDENCE LOG
check for grammar, usage, and mechanics.
Evidence: Before moving on to a
new selection, go to your
For more support, see Writing to Compare:
Evidence Log and record Argumentative Essay.
Evidence:
what you’ve learned Evidence Log Support students in completing
from this excerpt from
B. Address a Counterclaim Introduce the counterclaim, or opposite The Grapes of Wrath.
help prepare them for the Performance-Based
position, presented in the video or novel. Then, explain why you
think this argument is weak or incomplete.
Assessment at the end of the unit.
Counterclaim:
Your Response:  STANdArdS

Reading Literature
Compare and contrast a fictional
III. Conclusion End your essay by summarizing your claim and leaving portrayal of a time, place, or
your readers with an important idea or perspective on the subject. character and a historical account
of the same period as a means of
Closing Idea: understanding how authors of fiction
use or alter history.
Writing
Write arguments to support claims
with clear reasons and relevant
Reviewing, Revising, and Editing evidence.
Formative Assessment
a. Support claim(s) with
Once you have written a complete draft, revise it for clarity and
effectiveness. Is your claim clear and strong? Do you provide enough
logical reasoning and relevant Writing to Compare
evidence, using accurate, credible
evidence to support your argument? Do you describe the counterclaim sources and demonstrating an If students are unable to provide specific
understanding of the topic or text. examples and details, then have them skim the
fairly and explain why you think your claim is stronger? c. Use words, phrases, and clauses
to create cohesion and clarify excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath and rewatch
Swap drafts with a partner to review and proofread one another’s work. the relationships among claim(s), “The Dust Bowl” for ideas.
Make changes and correct errors to prepare a final draft. reasons, and evidence.
• Draw evidence from literary or
informational texts to support Selection Test
analysis, reflection, and research.
a. Apply grade 7 Reading standards Administer the “from The Grapes of Wrath
to literature. (with The Dust Bowl)” Selection Test, which is
available in both print and digital formats online
The Dust Bowl • from The Grapes of Wrath 467 in Assessments.
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Strategic Support
Organization Review point-by-point comparison management as it relates to the text, pointing
as an organizational structure for this kind of out similarities and differences between the two.
essay. Explain that with this kind of structure, After discussing land management, the writer
writers focus on one idea at a time and discuss would move on to the next idea, which might be
how it relates to the things being compared. For weather. Remind students that when using this
example, if the first idea is land management, kind of structure they should still end their essay
the writer would discuss land management as it with a concluding paragraph.
relates to the video and then discuss land

PLANNING WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • THE CIRCUIT
The Circuit
Audio Summaries
Audio summaries of “The
Summary
Circuit” are available online in “The Circuit” is one of author Francisco Jiménez’s best-known
both English and Spanish in the stories. The narrator, a young Latino boy, comes back from a day of
Interactive Teacher’s Edition or picking strawberries to find all the family’s belongings packed. With
Unit Resources. Assigning these strawberry picking season over, the family has to move on. In the
summaries prior to reading the next place, he and his brother pick grapes with their father and hide
selection may help students from school authorities. But after the grape season, the narrator
finally gets to join other students in the sixth grade, where he has a
great teacher. Things are looking up.
their first read.
Insight
This selection reveals what life can be like when supporting a family
means that even children have to work. Although the narrator must
move again just as the teacher, Mr. Lema, begins to show him real
opportunities, the story helps students understand what a difference
one adult can make in a child’s life.
Essential Question:
obstacles? “The Circuit” connects to the Essential Question by showing that one of
the ways we may be able to overcome obstacles is through the help of
someone else.
Whole-Class Learning
How did the individuals Whole-Class Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
in the selections cope students will write an informative essay about coping with obstacles.
with the obstacles they This selection shows a boy turning to a supportive adult for help in
faced? coping with the obstacles he faces.
Unit Performance-Based Unit Performance-Based Assessment For the narrator of “The Circuit,”
Assessment one of the biggest obstacles he faces is the difficulty of getting an
How can people overcome education. Students should consider that his family is constantly moving
adversity in the face from one crop to another to find work, leaving him unable to stay in
of overwhelming the same school for any length of time. And much of the year he has to
obstacles? work in the fields. In this situation, what does Mr. Lema offer him that
would help him overcome adversity?

DIGITAL
Lesson Resources

Lesson First Read Concept Vocabulary Writing to Sources
Close Read Word Study Speaking and Listening
Analyze the Text Conventions
Instructional RL.10 By the end of the year, read and L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of RL.2 Determine a theme or central idea . . .
Standards comprehend literature . . . unknown and multiple-meaning words
W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts . . .
and phrases . . .
RL.1 Cite several pieces of textual
W.2.b Develop the topic . . .
evidence . . . L.4.a Use context as a clue . . .
W.9 Draw evidence from literary or
RL.2 Determine a theme or central idea L.4.b Use common, grade-appropriate
informational texts . . .
of a text . . . Greek or Latin affixes and roots . . .
W.9.a Apply grade 7 Reading standards . . .
L.2 Demonstrate command of the
conventions . . . SL.1 Engage effectively . . .
L.2.a Use a comma . . . SL.1.a Come to discussions prepared . . .
SL.1.c Pose questions . . .
SL.4 Present claims and findings . . .
W.7 Conduct short research projects . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Selection Audio Word Network Evidence Log
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Read Guide: Fiction
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources
C Writing to Sources: Explanation
Word Study
English Language Support Lesson:
Edition or Unit Resources Word Study: Old English Suffix -ly Writing Informative Essays
EL Highlights
Conventions: Commas S peaking and Listening:
Analyze Craft and Structure: Theme
Role-Play Interview
nalyze Craft and Structure:
A ord Study: Old English
W Writing to Sources: Explanation (RP)
Theme (RP) Suffix -ly (RP)
Interactive Teacher’s S peaking and Listening: Role-Play
Edition or Unit Resources Conventions: Commas (RP) Interview (RP)
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments
My Resources

PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • THE CIRCUIT
Reading Support
Text Complexity Rubric: The Circuit

Knowledge Demands A brief background on Mexico and migrant farm labor will be useful.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure The structure is somewhat sophisticated, with an emotionally stunning ending that may surprise
1 2 3 4 5 some students.
Language Conventionality and Clarity Although the writing is conventional, it contains many regionalisms and Spanish words.
1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The story does not conclude happily and touches on issues of labor, family, Latin culture, migration, and
1 2 3 4 5 youth.
Decide and Plan

Provide English learners with support for Provide students with strategic support Provide students who need to be challenged
language and structure as they read the to ensure that they can successfully with ideas for how they can go beyond a
selection. read the text. simple interpretation of the text.
Language Ask students to think about Language Ask students to read the story Text Analysis Ask students to make note
why Jiménez may have included words in and use context to figure out the meaning of where in the text, before the ending,
Spanish, and then to think about what it of unknown words, such as sharecropper, the author prepared the reader for the turn
means that the boy’s new teacher speaks Caranchita, and carne con chile. Later, look of events as they played out. Ask them to
to him in English. Encourage them to think them up together. consider whether there was any way they
about what an author is trying to do when could have predicted that the boy would
Structure Ask students if they understand
he writes in two languages at the same time be taken out of school so suddenly. Have
what really happened in the story’s ending.
and not just one. them discuss with each other how this story
Talk about whether it is accurate to think
Structure Toward the end, readers are the boy will return to the school and benefitted from such a stunning conclusion.
made to feel some relief for the poor one day learn the trumpet. Encourage Written Response Challenge students to
narrator, who now has a good school to them to think about how the manner in come up with their own ending for “The
attend and a teacher who wants to teach which the story was constructed supports Circuit.” Tell them to imagine, in just a few
him the trumpet. The sudden reversal is their conclusion. paragraphs, that they are the narrator who
devastating, though not unexpected. Talk had these experiences, and to use their
about why Jiménez composed the story in imaginations to create a new conclusion.
this way, instead of just showing the family
moving on to the next farm.
TEACH
Read and Respond

Have students do their first read of the selection. Then have them complete their close read. Finally,

IDENTIFY NEEDS
• Use the Selection Resources listed on the Planning pages for “The Circuit” to help students
continually improve their ability to master the standards.
Instructional Standards: The Circuit

Reading You may wish to administer the RL.2 Determine a theme Challenge students to discuss
ANALYZE AND REVISE Analyze Craft and Structure: or central idea of a text and how characters, plot, and
Theme (RP) worksheet to help analyze its development over setting help inform the themes.
• Analyze student work for students understand how to the course of the text; provide
determine a work’s theme. an objective summary of
evidence of student learning. the text.
• Identify whether students
have met the expectations in Writing You may wish to administer W.2 Write informative/ Challenge students to
the Writing to Sources: explanatory texts to examine incorporate outside research
the standards.
Explanation (RP) worksheet to a topic and convey ideas, into their essays.
• Identify implications for future help students understand how concepts, and information
instruction. to write an informative essay. through the selection,
organization, and analysis of
relevant content.
Speaking You may wish to administer SL.1.c Pose questions that Challenge students to improvise
and the Speaking and Listening: elicit elaboration and respond portions of their role plays; i.e.,
Listening Role-Play Interview (RP) to others’ questions and allow the class to ask questions.
worksheet to help students comments with relevant
prepare for their role playing. observations and ideas that
bring the discussion back on
topic as needed.
TEACH
Implement the planned lesson, Language You may wish to administer the L.2 Demonstrate command of Introduce students to dashes
and gather evidence of student Conventions: Commas (RP) the conventions of standard and ellipses.
learning. worksheet to help students English capitalization,
Have students practice adding
understand how commas signal punctuation, and spelling when
-ly to the end of words.
a brief pause in a sentence. writing.
You may wish to administer L.4.b Use common, grade-
the Word Study: Old English appropriate Greek or Latin
Suffix -ly (RP) worksheet to affixes and roots as clues to the
help students understand how meaning of a word.
-ly changes words into adverbs.
Whole-Class Learning 468D

About the Author

The Circuit
Jump Start Concept Vocabulary
You will encounter the following words as you read “The Circuit.”
First Read Prior to students’ first read, Before reading, note how familiar you are with each word. Then, rank
remind them that this unit’s theme is facing the words in order from most familiar (1) to least familiar (6).
adversity. Briefly explain that migrant workers
move from place to place picking different Francisco Jiménez WORD YOUR RANKING
crops, and engage students in a discussion (b. 1943) was born in
thoroughly
about what kinds of adversity people living Mexico and came to the
such lives might face. United States with his wearily
family when he was four
years old. The family instinctively
settled in California and
The Circuit became migrant workers. enthusiastically
Although he could not go
What is it like to be constantly moving from to school before the harvest hesitantly
place to place? What obstacles might people ended, Jiménez studied in
who constantly move face that other people the fields. His hard work understandingly
might not have to deal with? Modeling questions paid off as he went on to
become an outstanding After completing your first read, come back to the concept vocabulary
such as these will help students connect to
teacher and award-winning and review your rankings. Mark any changes to your original rankings.
“The Circuit” and to the Performance Task writer.
assignment. Selection audio and print capability
for the selection are available in the Interactive
Teacher’s Edition. First Read FICTION
Tool Kit Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
Concept Vocabulary First-Read Guide and Model opportunity to complete the close-read notes after your first read.
Annotation
Support students as they rank the words. Ask if
they’ve ever heard, read, or used any of them.
Reassure them that the definitions for these NOTICE whom the story ANNOTATE by marking
words are listed in the selection. is about, what happens, vocabulary and key passages
where and when it happens, you want to revisit.
and why those involved react
First Read as they do.

As they read, students should perform the steps
of the first read: CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
NOTICE: You may want to encourage students to the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
notice how the family’s moving about affects the already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
have already read. the selection.
narrator of the story.
ANNOTATE: Remind students to mark text that
reveals obstacles and issues the characters in the  STANDARDS
story have to deal with. Reading Literature
CONNECT: Encourage students to make comprehend literature, including
stories, dramas, and poems, in the
connections beyond the text. If they cannot grades 6–8 text complexity band
make connections to their own lives or other proficiently, with scaffolding as
texts, have them consider movies, TV shows, and needed at the high end of the range.
news reports.
complete the Respond step at the end of the LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC.indd 468
CROSS-CURRICULAR PERSPECTIVES 16-04-01 10:04 AM

Social Studies Have students research and list the crops grown
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print in the United States that must be picked by hand and the regions
copies of the First-Read Guide: Fiction for in which the crops are grown. Tell students to note when the
students to use. crops are harvested. Ask volunteers to share their information with
Remind students that during their first the class, and encourage students to notice how it is reflected in
the story.
read, they should not answer the close-read
questions that appear in the selection.

ANCHOR TEXT | SHORT STORY
Closer look
Analyze Cultural Context

Students may have marked text in
paragraph 2 during their first read. Use
The Circuit this paragraph to help students understand

the cultural context of the story. Encourage
them to talk about the annotations that they
Francisco Jiménez marked. You may want to model a close read
with the class based on the highlights shown
in the text.
Annotate: Have students mark details in
paragraph 2 that reveal the cultural context of
the story, or have students participate while
you highlight them.
Question: Guide students to consider what
these details tell them.
BACKGROUND Possible response: The narrator is from Mexico.
This selection is from The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant SCAN FOR
People disappear from his life.
MULTIMEDIA
Child, a collection of autobiographical short stories by Francisco
Jiménez. In this story, the narrator, Panchito, tells of his difficult early Conclude: Help students to formulate
years as part of a family of migrant farm workers. To him, life consisted conclusions about the importance of these
of constant moving and work, with school wedged in around harvesting details. Ask what these details reveal about
jobs. The “circuit” in the title refers to the path migrant workers take the narrator’s life.
every year to find jobs. Possible response: It is probably hard for the
narrator to make or keep friends because people
1
I t was that time of year again. Ito, the strawberry sharecropper,1

did not smile. It was natural. The peak of the strawberry
season was over and the last few days the workers, most of them
NOTES
often suddenly disappear from his life.
Remind students that cultural context
is the historical background and values
braceros,2 were not picking as many boxes as they had during the
that influence a writer. Point out that the
months of June and July.
author directly states the narrator is from
As the last days of August disappeared, so did the number
2
Mexico, but indirectly establishes that people
of braceros. Sunday, only one—the best picker—came to work.
disappear from his life. This may happen often
I liked him. Sometimes we talked during our half-hour lunch
because we know that, as migrant workers,
break. That is how I found out he was from Jalisco, the same state
the narrator’s family moves frequently. All
in Mexico my family was from. That Sunday was the last time I
this movement—and the loss of potential
saw him.
friendships—is part of the author’s
3 When the sun had tired and sunk behind the mountains, Ito
cultural context.
signaled us that it was time to go home. “Ya esora,”3 he yelled in
his broken Spanish. Those were the words I waited for twelve
hours a day, every day, seven days a week, week after week. And
the thought of not hearing them again saddened me.
1. sharecropper (SHAIR krop uhr) n. one who works for a share of a crop; tenant farmer.
2. braceros (bruh SAIR ohs) n. migrant Mexican farm laborers who harvest crops.
3. Ya esora (yah ehs AW rah) Spanish for “It’s time.” (Ya es hora.) Edition.
The Circuit 469
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC.indd 469 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 16-04-01 10:03 AM

Multiple-Meaning Words Call student attention “a pointed part of a garment” (Leroy saluted,
to the word peak in paragraph 1. Explain that touching the peak of his cap.) or “the top of a
the word has several meanings. As it’s used in hill or mountain” (We climbed for two hours and
this part of the text, it’s a noun that means “the finally reached the mountain peak.). Peak can also
highest level, or greatest degree.” (The peak of be an adjective that means “being at or reaching
the strawberry season is the time when there are the maximum” (peak levels; peak output) and
the most strawberries to be picked. After this “relating to, or being a period of maximum
time, there will be fewer and fewer strawberries.) activity” (peak business hours). All Levels
Explain that as a noun, peak can also mean

TEACHING
4 As we drove home Papá did not say a word. With both hands
NOTES on the wheel, he stared at the dirt road. My older brother, Roberto,
was also silent. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Once
in a while he cleared from his throat the dust that blew in from
outside.
5 Yes, it was that time of year. When I opened the front door to
the shack, I stopped. Everything we owned was neatly packed in
cardboard boxes. Suddenly I felt even more the weight of hours,
days, weeks, and months of work. I sat down on a box. The
thought of having to move to Fresno4 and knowing what was in
store for me there brought tears to my eyes.
6 That night I could not sleep. I lay in bed thinking about how
much I hated this move.
7 A little before five o’clock in the morning, Papá woke everyone
up. A few minutes later, the yelling and screaming of my little
brothers and sisters, for whom the move was a great adventure,
broke the silence of dawn. Shortly, the barking of the dogs
accompanied them.
8 While we packed the breakfast dishes, Papá went outside to
start the “Carcanchita.”5 That was the name Papá gave his old
black Plymouth. He bought it in a used-car lot in Santa Rosa in the
Winter of 1949. Papá was very proud of his little jalopy. He had a
right to be proud of it. He spent a lot of time looking at other cars
before buying this one. When he finally chose the Carcanchita,
thoroughly (THUR oh lee) he checked it thoroughly before driving it out of the car lot. He
adv. completely; entirely examined every inch of the car. He listened to the motor, tilting his
head from side to side like a parrot, trying to detect any noises that
spelled car trouble. After being satisfied with the looks and sounds
of the car, Papá then insisted on knowing who the original owner
was. He never did find out from the car salesman, but he bought
the car anyway. Papá figured the original owner must have been
an important man because behind the rear seat of the car he found
a blue necktie.
Papá parked the car out in front and left the motor running.

9
“Listo,”6 he yelled. Without saying a word Roberto and I began to

carry the boxes out to the car. Roberto carried the two big boxes
and I carried the two smaller ones. Papá then threw the mattress
on top of the car roof and tied it with ropes to the front and rear
bumpers.
10 Everything was packed except Mamá’s pot. It was an old
large galvanized7 pot she had picked up at an army surplus
store in Santa Maria. The pot had many dents and nicks, and the
4. Fresno (FREHZ noh) n. city in central California.

5. Carcanchita (kahr kahn CHEE tah) affectionate name for the car.
6. Listo (LEES toh) Spanish for “Ready.”
7. galvanized (GAL vuh nyzd) adj. coated with zinc to prevent rusting.
PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING

LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC.indd 470 16-04-01 10:03 AM
Strategic Support
Author’s Style Discuss the point of view from from them because they don’t tell the narrator.
which Jiménez tells the story (first-person point Remind students that in The Grapes of Wrath,
of view of the narrator). This means readers will John Steinbeck alternated between the
know only what the narrator knows. For example, third person (when the narrator told the story)
in paragraph 4 we get a sense of how Papá and the first person (when an individual character
and Roberto feel because of what the narrator was telling the story). Encourage students to
observes, but we don’t learn their feelings directly consider how the point of view affects a story.

more dents and nicks it acquired the more Mamá liked it. “Mi
olla,”8 she used to say proudly. NOTES
CLOSE READ
11 I held the front door open as Mamá carefully carried out her
pot by both handles, making sure not to spill the cooked beans. You may wish to model the close read using the
When she got to the car, Papá reached out to help her with it. following think-aloud format. Possible responses
Roberto opened the rear car door and Papá gently placed it on the to questions on the student page are included.
floor behind the front seat. All of us then climbed in. Papá sighed, You may also want to print copies of the Close-
wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and said Read Guide: Fiction for students to use.
wearily: “Es todo.”9 wearily (WIHR uh lee) adv. in
12 As we drove away, I felt a lump in my throat. I turned around a tired manner ANNOTATE: As I read paragraph 15, I see
and looked at our little shack for the last time. descriptive language used to describe the garage.
13 At sunset we drove into a labor camp near Fresno. Since Papá
QUESTION: The effect is one of great pity for the
did not speak English, Mamá asked the camp foreman if he
people who must live in such a place.
needed any more workers. “We don’t need no more,” said the
foreman, scratching his head. “Check with Sullivan down the CONCLUDE: I can make conclusions about how
road. Can’t miss him. He lives in a big white house with a fence grim and depressing the family’s living quarters
around it.” are. The additional detail comparing the floor to
14 When we got there, Mamá walked up to the house. She went a road map may imply the nature of their lives—
through a white gate, past a row of rose bushes, up the stairs to they frequently move from one place to another.
the front door. She rang the doorbell. The porch light went on and
a tall husky man came out. They exchanged a few words. After
the man went in, Mamá clasped her hands and hurried back to the
car. “We have work! Mr. Sullivan said we can stay there the whole
season,” she said, gasping and pointing to an old garage near the
stables.
15 The garage was worn out by the years. It had no windows. CLOSE READ
The walls, eaten by termites, strained to support the roof full of ANNOTATE: Mark the
holes. The dirt floor, populated by earth worms, looked like a gray words and phrases in
paragraph 15 that the
road map.
describe the garage.
16 That night, by the light of a kerosene lamp, we unpacked and
cleaned our new home. Roberto swept away the loose dirt, leaving QUESTION: What effect
do these words create?
the hard ground. Papá plugged the holes in the walls with old
newspapers and tin can tops. Mamá fed my little brothers and CONCLUDE: What can you
sisters. Papá and Roberto then brought in the mattress and placed conclude about the lives
it on the far corner of the garage. “Mamá, you and the little ones of migrant workers from
this passage?
sleep on the mattress. Roberto, Panchito, and I will sleep outside
under the trees,” Papá said.
17 Early next morning Mr. Sullivan showed us where his crop was,
and after breakfast, Papá, Roberto, and I headed for the vineyard
to pick.
18 Around nine o’clock the temperature had risen to almost one
hundred degrees. I was completely soaked in sweat and my
mouth felt as if I had been chewing on a handkerchief. I walked
over to the end of the row, picked up the jug of water we had
8. Mi olla (mee OH yah) Spanish for “My pot.”

9. Es todo (ehs TOH thoh) Spanish for “That’s everything.”
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Idioms Review paragraphs 12 and 17. Help students understand
the idioms “lump in my throat” (paragraph 12) and “head for”
(paragraph 17). The expression “have a lump in your throat” means
“feeling like you’re about to cry.” It’s used to describe someone
who is feeling a lot of emotion and might start crying. “Head for”
means “to go toward.” When the narrator says he headed for the
vineyard, he means that he went toward the vineyard to pick grapes.
All Levels

TEACHING
brought, and began drinking. “Don’t drink too much; you’ll get
NOTES sick,” Roberto shouted. No sooner had he said that than I felt
CLOSE READ
sick to my stomach. I dropped to my knees and let the jug roll off
You may wish to model the close read using the my hands. I remained motionless with my eyes glued on the hot
following think-aloud format. Possible responses sandy ground. All I could hear was the drone of insects. Slowly
to questions on the student page are included. I began to recover. I poured water over my face and neck and
watched the dirty water run down my arms to the ground.
ANNOTATE: As I read paragraph 20, I look 19 I still felt dizzy when we took a break to eat lunch. It was past
for verbs that describe the actions of the sun, two o’clock and we sat underneath a large walnut tree that was on
mountains and valley, and the vines. the side of the road. While we ate, Papá jotted down the number
of boxes we had picked. Roberto drew designs on the ground
QUESTION: The author instills a sense that
with a stick. Suddenly I noticed Papá’s face turn pale as he looked
nature is powerful and has a will. This emphasizes
down the road. “Here comes the school bus,” he whispered
the idea that the workers’ lives are controlled
instinctively (ihn STIHNGK loudly in alarm. Instinctively, Roberto and I ran and hid in the
more by nature than their own free will. tihv lee) adv. done vineyards. We did not want to get in trouble for not going to
automatically, without
CONCLUDE: The text would not have been as thinking
school. The neatly dressed boys about my age got off. They carried
effective if the author had simply said that the books under their arms. After they crossed the street, the bus
sun was setting behind the mountains. drove away. Roberto and I came out from hiding and joined Papá.
“Tienen que tener cuidado,”10 he warned us.
CLOSE READ 20 After lunch we went back to work. The sun kept beating down.
ANNOTATE: Mark the The buzzing insects, the wet sweat, and the hot dry dust made
verbs in paragraph 20 that the afternoon seem to last forever. Finally the mountains around
describe the actions of the
the valley reached out and swallowed the sun. Within an hour it
sun, mountains and valley,
and vines. was too dark to continue picking. The vines blanketed the grapes,
making it difficult to see the bunches. “Vamonos,”11 said Papá,
QUESTION: Why has the
signaling to us that it was time to quit work. Papá then took out
author chosen verbs that
a pencil and began to figure out how much we had earned our
make nonhuman things
seem human? first day. He wrote down numbers, crossed some out, wrote down
some more. “Quince,”12 he murmured.
CONCLUDE: Would the
21 When we arrived home, we took a cold shower underneath
text be as effective if the
author had made different a water hose. We then sat down to eat dinner around some
choices? wooden crates that served as a table. Mamá had cooked a special
meal for us. We had rice and tortillas with “carne con chile,”13 my
favorite dish.

22 The next morning I could hardly move. My body ached all
over. I felt little control over my arms and legs. This feeling went
on every morning for days until my muscles finally got used to
the work.
23 It was Monday, the first week of November. The grape season
was over and I could now go to school. I woke up early that
morning and lay in bed, looking at the stars and savoring the
10. Tienen que tener cuidado (tee EHN ehn kay tehn EHR kwee THAH thoh) Spanish for
“You have to be careful.”
11. Vámonos (VAH moh nohs) Spanish for “Let’s go.”
12. Quince (KEEN say) Spanish for “Fifteen.”
13. “carne con chile” (KAHR nay kuhn CHIHL ay) dish of ground meat, hot peppers, beans,
and tomatoes.
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC.indd 472 15/04/16 3:29 PM

thought of not going to work and of starting sixth grade for the
first time that year. Since I could not sleep, I decided to get up and NOTES
join Papá and Roberto at breakfast. I sat at the table across from
Roberto, but I kept my head down. I did not want to look up and
face him. I knew he was sad. He was not going to school today. He
was not going tomorrow, or next week, or next month. He would
not go until the cotton season was over, and that was sometime in
February. I rubbed my hands together and watched the dry, acid
stained skin fall to the floor in little rolls.
24 When Papá and Roberto left for work, I felt relief. I walked
to the top of a small grade next to the shack
and watched the Carcanchita disappear in the
distance in a cloud of dust. Two hours later, “F inally, after struggling
around eight o’clock, I stood by the side of the
road waiting for school bus number twenty. for English words, I
When it arrived I climbed in. Everyone was
busy either talking or yelling. I sat in an empty
managed to tell her that
seat in the back. I wanted to enroll in the
25 When the bus stopped in front of the
school, I felt very nervous. I looked out the sixth grade.”
bus window and saw boys and girls carrying
books under their arms. I put my hands in my
pant pockets and walked to the principal’s office. When I entered
I heard a woman’s voice say: “May I help you?” I was startled. I
had not heard English for months. For a few seconds I remained
speechless. I looked at the lady who waited for an answer. My
first instinct was to answer her in Spanish, but I held back.
Finally, after struggling for English words, I managed to tell her
that I wanted to enroll in the sixth grade. After answering many
questions, I was led to the classroom.
26 Mr. Lema, the sixth grade teacher, greeted me and assigned me
a desk. He then introduced me to the class. I was so nervous and
scared at that moment when everyone’s eyes were on me that I
wished I were with Papá and Roberto picking cotton. After taking
roll, Mr. Lema gave the class the assignment for the first hour.
“The first thing we have to do this morning is finish reading the
story we began yesterday,” he said enthusiastically. He walked enthusiastically (ehn thoo
up to me, handed me an English book, and asked me to read. “We zee AS tihk lee) adv. with
eager interest
are on page 125,” he said politely. When I heard this, I felt my
blood rush to my head; I felt dizzy. “Would you like to read?” he
hesitantly (HEHZ uh tuhnt
asked hesitantly. I opened the book to page 125. My mouth was lee) adv. in an unsure or
dry. My eyes began to water. I could not begin. “You can read cautious way
later,” Mr. Lema said understandingly.
understandingly (uhn duhr
27 For the rest of the reading period I kept getting angrier and STAN dihng lee) adv. in a
angrier at myself. I should have read, I thought to myself. knowing way; kindly
The Circuit 473
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Concept Vocabulary Reinforcement Reinforce students’

understanding of both the story and the three concept vocabulary
words in paragraph 26. Ask: Why is Mr. Lema speaking
enthusiastically? What does this tell you about him? Why does
he speak hesitantly when he asks the narrator to read? What
causes him to be hesitant? Why does he speak understandingly
when he tells the narrator he can read later? What does Mr. Lema
understand about the narrator?

TEACHING
28 During recess I went into the rest room and opened my English
NOTES book to page 125. I began to read in a low voice, pretending I was
CLOSER LOOK
in class. There were many words I did not know. I closed the book
and headed back to the classroom.
Analyze Author’s Choices 29 Mr. Lema was sitting at his desk correcting papers. When I
Students may have marked text in paragraph entered he looked up at me and smiled. I felt better. I walked up to
31 during their first read. Use this paragraph him and asked if he could help me with the new words. “Gladly,”
to help students understand what the end he said.
of the story signifies. Encourage them to talk 30 The rest of the month I spent my lunch hours working on
about the annotations that they marked. You English with Mr. Lema, my best friend at school.
may want to model a close read with the class 31 One Friday during lunch hour Mr. Lema asked me to take a
based on the highlights shown in the text. walk with him to the music room. “Do you like music?” he asked
ANNOTATE: Have students mark details me as we entered the building. “Yes, I like corridos,”14 I answered.
in paragraph 31 that bring the story to a He then picked up a trumpet, blew on it, and handed it to me. The
close, or have students participate while you sound gave me goose bumps. I knew that sound. I had heard it in
highlight them. many corridos. “How would you like to learn how to play it?” he
asked. He must have read my face because before I could answer,
Question: Guide students to consider what he added: “I’ll teach you how to play it during our lunch hours.”
these details tell them. 32 That day I could hardly wait to tell Papá and Mamá the great
Possible response: The family is going to news. As I got off the bus, my little brothers and sisters ran up
move again. to meet me. They were yelling and screaming. I thought they
CONCLUDE: Help students to formulate were happy to see me, but when I opened the door to our shack,
conclusions about the importance of these I saw that everything we owned was neatly packed in cardboard
details. Ask how this reveals what the boxes. ❧
narrator’s life is like.
14. corridos (koh REE thohs) n. ballads.
Possible response: Every time the narrator
begins to feel at home someplace, he’s uprooted
by his family moving yet again.
Remind students that author’s choices direct
the timing of information in a text. Point out
that, as important as this moment is to the
story, Jiménez doesn’t directly say the family
is moving again. He doesn’t have to, because

in the beginning of the story he clearly
established the significance of the packed
boxes. Nor does Jiménez have to say that this
will keep happening to the narrator. That, too,
is clearly established. Explain that sometimes
an important idea in a story is stronger or
more dramatic if it isn’t said directly because
readers fill in “missing” information using
their imaginations.
DIGITAL PERSPECTIVES
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC.indd 474 4/4/16 9:22 AM
Enriching the Text To help students understand and how it helps them understand the text.
and appreciate what the narrator’s life is like, Also discuss how the video adds to their
use the search term “U.S. migrant workers” to understanding of the reports on migrant workers
find video footage online showing the world of they wrote and listened to earlier. Then, have
migrant workers in the United States. (Note: Be students write a paragraph about how the video
sure to preview any video before showing it and “The Circuit” are connected. (Research to
to students.) Have students discuss the video Clarify)

Complete the following items after you finish your first read.
Possible responses:
1. What kind of work does Panchito’s family do? 1. They are migrant farm workers.
2. They have been picking strawberries, but
strawberry season is over, so they must find
other work.
3. The boys should be in school, but they are
working instead.
4. His teacher, Mr. Lema, befriends him.
2. Why does the family move at the beginning of the story?
5. Summaries will vary; however, students should
include: The narrator is a boy from Mexico whose
family finds jobs as migrant farm workers; when
the strawberry seasons ends, the family moves
to Fresno, where they get jobs picking grapes.
When the grape season ends, the narrator goes
to school, starting sixth grade. He is scared and
3. Why does Papá warn his sons that the school bus is coming when they are nervous—he has no friends and he hasn’t spoken
picking grapes? English in months. His teacher, Mr. Lema, is a
friendly, understanding man who helps him with
his English. When Mr. Lema offers to teach him
to play the trumpet, it looks like the narrator will
begin to truly enjoy school. He rushes home to tell
his family the good news, only to learn they are
moving again.
4. Who befriends Panchito at school?
Research
Research to Clarify If students struggle to
identify an unfamiliar detail, have them reread
the text and notice details or words that might
be new to them, such as the names of places or
5. Notebook Write a brief summary of “The Circuit” to confirm your Spanish words.
understanding of the story.
RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from the text.
Briefly research that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light
on an aspect of the story?
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Challenge
Extend Ask students to consider what will happen next to the
narrator of “The Circuit.” Have them write one or two paragraphs
from the narrator’s point of view, briefly describing what happens
to him in the next place his family moves to. Ask volunteers to share
their responses with the class.

Close Read the Text

Jump Start 1. This model, from paragraph 3, shows two sample
annotations, along with questions and conclusions. Close
read the passage, and find another detail to annotate. Then,
Close Read Have students close read the
write a question and your conclusion.
title, “The Circuit.” Point out that the story has THE CIRCUIT
only two stops on this “circuit,” yet it reflects a

much bigger path. Ask students how Jiménez ANNOTATE: The author describes the sun
conveys the idea of a circuit in the story. Is this as being “tired.”
a good title for the story? Why or why not? QUESTION: Why did the author choose to
describe the sun in this way? ANNOTATE:
This sentence
CONCLUDE: The author personifies the
has a repetitive
sun as “tired” to suggest the fatigue of
Close Read the Text the workers.
structure.
QUESTION: What
Walk students through the annotation model effect is created
on the student page. Encourage them to When the sun had tired and sunk by the repetition?
complete items 2 and 3 on their own. Review behind the mountains, Ito signaled CONCLUDE:
and discuss the sections students have marked. us that it was time to go home. “Ya The structure
If needed, continue to model close reading by esora,” he yelled in his broken Spanish. of this sentence
using the Annotation Highlights in the Interactive Those were the words I waited for mirrors the long,
repetitive working
Teacher’s Edition. twelve hours a day, every day, seven days in the fields.
days a week, week after week. And
Analyze the Text the thought of not hearing them again
Possible responses: saddened me.
1. (a) He is sad and about to cry. (paragraph 12)
DOK 2 (b) He would like to stay in one place.
DOK 3 Tool Kit 2. For more practice, go back into the text and complete the
2. (a) Mr. Lema offers to give him music lessons. Close-Read Guide and close-read notes.
DOK 2 (b) He will never be able to take music Model Annotation 3. Revisit a section of the text you found important during your
lessons because his family is moving. DOK 3 first read. Read this section closely and annotate what you
3. He probably feels disappointed and frustrated notice. Ask yourself questions such as “Why did the author
because he was just starting to really like school make this choice?” What can you conclude?
and he wanted to learn to play the trumpet.

(paragraph 31) DOK 3
4. Responses will vary. Students may conclude Analyze the Text to support your answers.
that one way to face adversity is to accept what
happens and do the best you can. DOK 3 Notebook Respond to these questions.
1. (a) Interpret How does Panchito feel as his family drives away from
the “little shack”? (b) Make Inferences What does this detail suggest
 STANDARDS about him?
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT Reading Literature
• Cite several pieces of textual
2. (a) What is the best thing that happens to Panchito on the last day of
Analyze the Text evidence to support analysis of what school? (b) Make Inferences What is the worst thing?
the text says explicitly as well as
• If students fail to cite evidence, then remind inferences drawn from the text. 3. Draw Conclusions How does Panchito most likely feel when he sees
them to support their ideas with specific • Determine a theme or central idea the packed boxes at the end of the story? Why?
information from the text. of a text and analyze its development
4. Essential Question How do we overcome obstacles? What have
over the course of the text; provide
• If students fail to grasp key ideas in the text, an objective summary of the text. you learned about facing adversity by reading this selection?
then have them review the relevant sections of
the story. 476 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY
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New Words In paragraphs 28–31, the narrator talks about asking
Mr. Lema to help him with English words he doesn’t know. Ask
students to identify two or three new words in the text that they
don’t know and would like help with. Help students use context
clues to define each word, discuss the word, and ask students to
use it in a sentence. ALL LEVELS


Theme The theme, or central idea of a story, is an insight about life that
Theme Remind students that at the beginning of
the story conveys. Although the themes of a work are sometimes directly
stated, more often they are hinted at or suggested.
the story, the narrator mentions liking one of the
other workers, a man he never sees again after
• Stated themes are expressed directly within a text. Classic fables, that day (paragraph 2). Ask students to imagine
like The Fox and the Grapes, have stated themes provided at the a story in which this is the central event. What
story’s end. might be the theme of that story? (Appreciate
• Implied themes are suggested by the author by story details and your friends, for you never know when you might
are not directly expressed. Most narratives, like “The Circuit,” lose them.) For more support, see Analyze Craft
have implied themes. It’s important to note that there is no single and Structure: Theme.
“correct” theme for a work: You must infer, or make educated
guesses, about themes based on story clues. make it interactive
Have students write one-sentence themes for
To infer a theme— stories. It can be the theme of a story they’ve
• Identify the main conflict of the story and its outcome. read or a movie they’ve seen. Have students share
• Examine characters’ responses to conflicts, and identify any lessons
their themes and discuss what the story would
learned. tell.
• Look for repeated ideas expressed by story characters. Possible response:
• Analyze the story’s title to see if it hints at or reveals an important In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy wants to find the
aspect of the story. perfect place to live, and finally learns it’s her own
home. Theme: Be thankful for what you have.
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE Practice
Possible responses:
Notebook Complete the activity, and then respond to the questions. 1. See possible responses in chart on student page.
1. To begin inferring theme, complete this chart with clues from the text. Then, in 2. (a) The title reinforces that being uprooted and
the final row of the chart, write your ideas about theme, based on your analysis starting over is a cycle that happens to Panchito
of the clues you gathered. again and again. (b) A circuit is a cycle that is
difficult to break, and Panchito’s family seems
MAIN CHARACTERS’ REPEATED stuck in a cycle of being uprooted.
STORY’S TITLE
CONFLICT RESPONSES IDEAS 3. Answers will vary.
Panchito longs to be Pachito fights back People leave A circuit is a repeated
like other kids but his tears. Papá records of suddenly. Daily cycle. The story
family is continually how much they earn. routines are described discusses many cycles:
uprooted for work. Pachito can’t go to many times. Pachito days, weeks, seasons, FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
school regularly. often nearly cries. harvests, moving.
Theme(s) A boy’s desires to maintain his pride and to belong in society are challenged by
• If students have difficulty understanding
his family’s need to move repeatedly as they seek seasonal farm work. theme, then relate one or two simple stories
(like “The Three Little Pigs” or “The Tortoise
2. (a) Why do you think Francisco Jiménez titled this story “The Circuit”? (b) What and the Hare”) and discuss the message in
clues to theme might the title reveal? each story.
• If students have difficulty identifying theme
3. If you were to adapt this story and provide a stated theme, what would be the in the text, then review theme-related parts
theme, how would it be revealed, and by whom? of the text and discuss what message the
author is trying to communicate in that part of
the story.
For Reteach and Practice, see Analyze Craft and
The Circuit 477 Structure: Theme (RP).
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC_APP.indd 477 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 15/04/16 3:31 PM
Strategic Support
Theme Help students further understand identifying themes of
magazine articles or TV shows. (They might also identify the theme
of the Launch Text, “Against the Odds.”) Ask students to explain
how they determined the themes. Is the theme directly or indirectly
stated in the article or show? What parts of the article or show help
them understand the theme? Can a text or show have more than
one theme? Why or why not?

TEACHING LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Concept Vocabulary Concept Vocabulary

Why These Words? thoroughly instinctively hesitantly
Possible responses: wearily enthusiastically understandingly
1. The concept vocabulary sharpens the reader’s THE CIRCUIT
understanding of “The Circuit” by describing Why These Words? The concept vocabulary words from the text
characters’ feeling or actions. The narrator is in describe ways in which characters act or respond. For example, after
many different situations and feels many different Papá works hard to load the car, he wipes his forehead wearily; when the
things. These words help describe what he’s narrator and his brother are told the school bus is coming, they run away
feeling and how he’s acting at different times in instinctively (done automatically without thinking).
the story.
2. smile (paragraph 1); disappeared (paragraph 2); 1. How does the concept vocabulary sharpen the reader’s understanding
signaled (paragraph 3); saddened of characters in “The Circuit”?
(paragraph 3); silent (paragraph 4); yelling
(paragraph 7); screaming (paragraph 7) 2. What other words in the selection are used to describe feelings or
actions?
Practice
Possible responses:
Practice
1. One should thoroughly check that everyone is
wearing a seat belt before driving anywhere  WORD NETWORK Notebook The concept vocabulary words appear in “The Circuit.”
in a car. Add interesting words Respond to these questions, based on your knowledge of each word.
2. A person might behave wearily when he or she is from the text about facing 1. What is a task that should be done thoroughly?
coming home from a day of hard work. adversity to your Word
Network.
2. When might someone behave wearily?
3. Someone might instinctively react to danger by 3. How might someone instinctively react to danger?
running away or by hiding his or her face.
4. How might people behave if they were responding enthusiastically?
4. People responding enthusiastically might leap to
their feet, clap their hands loudly, and cheer. 5. How might someone sound when asking a question hesitantly?
5. Someone asking a question hesitantly might 6. What might someone do when listening to a friend understandingly?
speak quietly and sound unsure.
6. Someone listening to a friend understandingly Word Study
might smile and nod often.
Old English Suffix: -ly When added to the ends of adjectives, the Old
English suffix -ly creates an adverb that describes how something was
Word Network

done. For example, when -ly is added to the adjective thorough, it creates
Possible words: tired, saddened, silent, move, an adverb, thoroughly, which means “in a thorough way or manner.”
sick, careful, good news
1. Write your own sentence that correctly uses the word instinctively.
Word Study  STANDARDS
Language
For more support, see Concept Vocabulary and Determine or clarify the meaning
Word Study. of unknown and multiple-meaning
words and phrases based on 2. Think of three other words that contain the suffix -ly. Record a
Possible responses: grade 7 reading and content, definition and write a context sentence for each word.
choosing flexibly from a range of
1. When Lee saw Tanya begin to stumble, she strategies.
instinctively reached out to help her. a. Use context as a clue to the
meaning of a word or phrase.
2. Sample answers provided. Quickly: “with speed.” b. Use common, grade-appropriate
After waking up late, I dressed quickly in order to Greek or Latin affixes and roots as
catch the bus. Quietly: “without noise.” Gina shut clues to the meaning of a word.
the door quietly so she wouldn’t wake Grandpa
from his nap. Gladly: “with joy or cheer.” After 478 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY
struggling to start the lawn mower, Mona gladly
accepted her neighbor’s help.
WriteNow Express and Reflect

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Concept Vocabulary QuickWrite Have students write a

paragraph in which they use all the concept vocabulary words. Tell
students their writing can be fiction or nonfiction, but point out
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT that fiction will give them more flexibility. Make it clear that they
Word Study should not simply write six unrelated sentences—they should write
a coherent essay, article (nonfiction), or story (fiction) that makes
If students have trouble finding appropriate
sense and has a beginning, middle, and end.
words, then review using a dictionary to find
words. For Reteach and Practice, see Word
Study: Old English Suffix -ly (RP).

EssEnTial QUEsTion: How do we overcome obstacles?
Conventions Conventions
Commas Commas are essential tools for writers. Commas (,) signal a
Commas Tell students that a good way to figure
brief pause; they enable readers to absorb information in meaningful,
accurate chunks.
out where to place commas is to read sentences
aloud. Where you naturally pause while reading,
Use the chart to review the functions of commas. place a comma. Point out that the pause may be
short or subtle. Remind students that commas
Using Commas ExamplE
should never be used in place of a period. See
Use a comma before a conjunction that joins Julia started laughing, and she could not stop. possible responses in the chart on the student
independent clauses—groups of words that can
page. For more support, see Conventions:
stand on their own in sentences.
Commas.
Use a comma after an introductory word, phrase, If it rains, will you still be able to start the project? Make it Interactive
or clause. Have students write sentences with commas and
then read them aloud. Can other students tell
Use commas to separate three or more words, The salad consisted of lettuce, carrots, cucumber, and olives.
where to place the comma?
phrases, or clauses in a series.
Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives. Read It

These are consecutive adjectives that modify the John wrote a funny, insightful play. Possible responses:
same noun and whose order can be reversed.
John wrote an insightful, funny play. 1. (a) after an introductory word, phrase, or clause
Coordinate adjectives can be linked together
smoothly with the word and.
(b) to separate three or more words, phrases, or
[John wrote a funny and insightful play.] clauses in a series
(c) before a conjunction that joins independent
clauses in a compound sentence
Read It
1. Reread these sentences from “The Circuit.” Identify the function of the (d) after an introductory word, phrase, or clause
comma or commas in each sentence. Write It
a. As the last days of August disappeared, so did the number of Possible responses:
braceros.
1. The tall, brown house blended in with the trees
around it.
b. Suddenly I felt even more the weight of hours, days, weeks, and
months of work. 2. Everyone liked Miranda because she was friendly,
smart, and polite.
c. I sat at the table across from Roberto, but I kept my head down. 3. The buffalo bellowed, snorted, and roared as they
thundered across the plains.

d. After the man went in, Mamá clasped her hands and hurried back 4. We can go to the flower show, or we can see a
to the car. photography exhibition.
Write It
Notebook
1. Write a sentence using two coordinate adjectives to describe a house.
Conventions
 sTanDaRDs • If students have trouble understanding
2. Write a sentence using three coordinate adjectives to describe a
person.
Language commas, then review what commas do and
• Demonstrate command of the
conventions of standard English when to use them.
3. Write a sentence correctly using commas to separate three or more capitalization, punctuation, and
words in a series. spelling when writing. • If students have trouble using commas
• Use a comma to separate correctly, then show them several sentences
4. Write a compound sentence correctly using a comma to separate coordinate adjectives..
independent clauses. with commas and discuss comma use in each.
For Reteach and Practice, see Conventions:
The Circuit 479
Commas (RP).
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC_APP.indd 479 HOW LANGUAGE WORKS 18/04/16 8:57 AM
Commas Use “The Circuit” to reinforce students’ understanding

of commas. Choose sentences from the text that have commas,
and have students identify what each comma does in each
sentence. If students demonstrate solid, consistent understanding
of commas, you may wish to discuss two other uses of commas: to
offset parenthetical information (“Ito, the strawberry sharecropper,
did not smile.” / “My older brother, Roberto, was also silent.”) and
punctuate quotations (“Gladly,” he said. / “You can read later,”
Mr. Lema said understandingly.).

TEACHING EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION
Writing to Sources Writing to Sources

Discuss with students the importance of stating
Assignment
their ideas clearly so readers know exactly what
In “The Circuit,” the narrator’s life follows a pattern as his family moves
they are explaining in their explanation. Also
THE CIRCUIT from workplace to workplace. Write a short explanation of additional
remind students that it’s important they explain
patterns you find in the story (related to characters’ behavior, actions,
why they believe the theme they’ve identified seasons, and so on). Conclude your explanation with observations
is the theme of the story. If they use ideas the about how these patterns give meaning to the story.
author states directly, they should quote or
When you write your explanation:
paraphrase the appropriate text. If they use ideas
the author states indirectly, they should explain • Analyze evidence from the text to determine the main idea you
how they arrived at their conclusion about this want to convey.
text. For more support, see Writing to Sources: • Include details from the text to support your ideas.
Explanation. • Organize your explanation in a clear, logical way.
Vocabulary and Conventions • Conclude by restating your main idea and providing an additional
Connection Remind students that they should thought or idea.
try to use concept vocabulary words in their
explanation. They should also use commas to
show relationships among parts of sentences. Vocabulary and Conventions Connection Think about including
several of the concept vocabulary words in your writing. Also, remember
Reflect on Your Writing to correctly use commas in your sentences.
Possible responses:
1. Responses will vary. Encourage students to be thoroughly instinctively hesitantly
specific in their responses and to give a reason wearily enthusiastically understandingly
(or reasons) why it was easy or difficult to
determine the theme.
2. Responses will vary. If students need support, Reflect on Your Writing
help them revisit their decision-making process.
After you have written your explanation, answer these questions.
3. Responses will vary. Have students list specific
1. Was it easy or difficult to identify and analyze patterns in the story?
words they chose that describe the effect of
 STANDARDS Why?
patterns on the story’s meaning.
Reading Literature

Determine a theme or central idea of
a text and analyze its development
over the course of the text; provide
an objective summary of the text. 2. (a) What decisions did you make about organizing your ideas?
Writing (b) What did you end up liking or disliking about those decisions?
• Write informative/explanatory texts
to examine a topic and convey ideas,
concepts, and information through
the selection, organization, and
analysis of relevant content.
b. Develop the topic with relevant 3. Why These Words? The words you choose make a difference in your
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT facts, definitions, concrete details, writing. Which words did you choose to describe the effect of patterns
quotations, or other information on the story’s meaning?
and examples.
Writing to Sources • Draw evidence from literary or
If students have trouble determining the theme, informational texts to support
then ask them to tell you, in one sentence, what a. Apply grade 7 Reading
message they think the author is trying to convey standards to literature.
in the story. For Reteach and Practice, see Writing
to Sources: Explanation (RP). 480 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC_APP.indd 480 15/04/16 4:08 PM

Writing Informative Essays Have students Ask students to write an Informative different stories, such as the setting of
choose a topic for an Informative essay, paragraph on their topic. Remind students “The Circuit” and the setting of another
such as how “The Circuit” is affected by its to introduce their topic, support it with story they have read recently. BRIDGING
setting. Encourage students to use adverbs details, and write a solid conclusion. An expanded English Language Support
and adjectives in their writing. EXPANDING Lesson on Writing Informative Essays
Ask students to write a topic sentence for Ask students to write an Informative essay is available in the Interactive Teacher’s
an essay on their topic. EMERGING comparing and contrasting a quality of two Edition.

Speaking and Listening Speaking and Listening

Assignment  EVIDENCE LOG 1. Plan Your Presentation You may wish to help
Work with a partner to research what life was like for migrant farm
Before moving on to a students choose their sources of information.
new selection, go to your Remind them that there are a variety of sources
workers and their families in the time period of “The Circuit” (from
Evidence Log and record
about the 1940s to the 1960s, mainly in California—but also in other on this topic, from objective news reports to
what you’ve learned from
parts of the United States). Come up with questions such as: “The Circuit.” first-hand accounts written by migrant workers.
• Where did families travel to harvest grapes, strawberries, and 2. Rehearse Your Presentation Remind
cotton? students to take each other’s preference into
• How did the children of migrant farm workers attend school? account when deciding which role each partner
will play. If both people want to play the same
Then, work with your partner to answer the questions, drawing on
information from the story and research. Then, role-play an interview
role, partners should find a fair way to decide
between a reporter and a farm worker to present your information. who gets it.
3. Deliver Your Presentation Remind students
1. Plan Your Presentation to speak clearly and to take their time when
• Research and discuss the topic and questions.
they give their presentations. There’s no need
to rush.
• Use the Internet and library resources to gather information.
4. Evaluate Presentations Encourage students
2. Rehearse Your Presentation to make one supportive comment about each
• Decide who will role-play the reporter and who will role-play the presentation.
farm worker.  STANDARDS
Speaking and Listening For more support, see Speaking and Listening:
• Practice what each of you will say during your role-play. • Engage effectively in a range of Role-Play Interview.
collaborative discussions (one-on-
3. Deliver Your Presentation one, in groups, and teacher-led) with Evidence Log Support students in completing
diverse partners on grade 7 topics,
• Once you begin, stay in character until the role-play is finished. texts, and issues, building on others’
• Speak as if you were the person you are role-playing. ideas and expressing their own help prepare them for the Performance-Based
clearly.
• Maintain appropriate eye contact with each other. a. Come to discussions prepared,
having read or researched material
4. Evaluate Presentations Use a presentation evaluation guide like under study; explicitly draw on
that preparation by referring to
the one shown to analyze your own as well as your classmates’ evidence on the topic, text, or issue
presentations. to probe and reflect on ideas under
discussion.
c. Pose questions that elicit
PRESENTATION EVALUATION GUIDE elaboration and respond to others’

questions and comments with
Rate each statement on a scale of 1 (not demonstrated) relevant observations and ideas
that bring the discussion back on
to 5 (demonstrated). topic as needed.
• Present claims and findings,
The role-play presented important, relevant information. emphasizing salient points in a
focused, coherent manner with
The role-play was realistic. pertinent descriptions, facts, details,
and examples; use appropriate eye
The people role-playing stayed in character. contact, adequate volume, and clear
pronunciation.
Writing
The role-players maintained eye contact with each other.
• Conduct short research projects
to answer a question, drawing on
The role-players spoke loudly enough to hear them. several sources and generating
additional related, focused questions
for further research and investigation. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Speaking and Listening
The Circuit 481 • If students have trouble finding information,
then suggest sources they can use.
• If students have trouble delivering their
PERSONALIZE
LIT17_SE07_U05_A3_WC_APP.indd 481 FOR LEARNING 18/04/16 8:57 AM
presentation to the class as role-play, then
have them present their information as
Strategic Support monologues, with each person speaking one
Extend Discuss with students that other people, besides migrant at a time.
workers, have jobs in which they face adversity and obstacles as part
of their daily life. Ask: Who are some other people that face adversity For Reteach and Practice, see Speaking and
on an ongoing basis as part of their jobs? (police, firefighters, Listening: Role-Play Interview (RP).
soldiers) In what ways are the lives of these people, and the adversity Selection Test
they face, similar to the lives of migrant workers? In what ways are
their lives, and the adversity they face, different from the lives of Administer the “The Circuit” Selection Test,
migrant workers? which is available in both print and digital formats
online in Assessments.

TEACHING PERFORMANCE TASK: WRITING FOCUS
Writing to SourceS
Write an Informative Essay
Jump Start
• thE Dust BoWl
You have just read and watched selections that relate to how people
• from thE GrapEs of deal with obstacles. “The Dust Bowl” shows the devastating effects of
Ask students to write one or two additional Wrath a drought. The excerpt from The Grapes of Wrath depicts farmers who
things they have learned about facing adversity lost their land and had to leave their homes. “The Circuit” portrays farm
• thE CIrCuIt
in life as a result of seeing “The Dust Bowl” and workers who don’t have permanent homes.
reading “from The Grapes of Wrath and “The
Circuit.” You might guide them with questions Assignment
such as, “What were some of the most difficult Write an informative essay in which you answer this question:
obstacles the characters faced?” “What do How did the individuals in the selections cope with
you think might help people to overcome the obstacles they faced?
obstacles and endure hardships?” “What good Describe the hardships faced by the people or characters in the
might come from having to face adversity?” selections, and inform the reader about how they dealt with those
As students share, ask them to cite specific obstacles. Use details from the selections to support your ideas.
examples from the selections to support their
ideas.
Elements of a Informative Essay
AcADeMic
VocABuLArY A informative essay presents information about a topic. Ideas are
Write an Informative Essay As you craft your essay,
supported with precise, factual details.
Make sure students understand what they are consider using some of An effective informative essay contains these elements:
being asked to do in the assignment. Explain the academic vocabulary
• an introduction in which the topic and thesis are revealed
that they are being asked to write an informative you learned in the
beginning of the unit. • supporting factual details that support the writer’s ideas
essay that describes how the characters in the
deviate • clear, consistent organization
selections coped with the obstacles they faced.
persevere • a conclusion in which the writer’s thesis is restated and additional
Students should complete the assignment determination
using word processing software to take insights are provided
diversity
advantage of editing tools and features. tradition • a formal, objective tone
Elements of an Informative Essay Tool Kit Model Informative Essay For a model of an LAUNCH TEXT
Student Model of an informative essay, see the Launch text, 5
UNIT INTRODUCTION
Remind students that informative essays contain LAUNCH TEXT | INFORMATIVE MODEL
This selection is an example of an
Informative Essay
informative text, a type of writing
Against the
“Against the Odds.”
in which the author provides
information about a topic. This
Odds
vivid details and sensory images that engage
is the type of writing you will
develop in the Performance-Based
As you read, notice that the
author presents facts without
offering opinions or arguments.
Challenge yourself to find all of the elements of an

the reader and that support the writer’s ideas.
Students should choose interesting and accurate informative essay in the text. You will have NOTES
1
2
“I f you have to ditch a commercial aircraft in the Hudson
River,” the news anchor joked, “this is the guy you want.”
The “guy” was US Airways pilot Chesley “Sully”
Sullenberger III, a 57-year-old former Air Force fighter pilot and a
29-year veteran of US Airways.
an opportunity to review these elements as you

3 On January 15, 2009, Sullenberger was the pilot on US Airways
Flight 1549 from New York’s LaGuardia Airport to Charlotte,
descriptive words.
North Carolina.
4 Flight 1549 left the tarmac at 3:25 P.M. Sullenberger thought he
was in for an average flight—a routine, everyday trip.
5 The flight was unremarkable for the first 90 seconds. Then
something caught the eye of copilot Jeff Skiles. At 3,000 feet, he
prepare to write your own essay.

saw a flock of Canada geese headed toward the plane. Moments

later the geese struck the fuselage, wings, and engine.
6 The 150 passengers felt a powerful thud against the airplane,
followed by severe vibrations from the engine. One passenger
said it sounded like sneakers thumping around in a dryer. There
was a loud explosion. The cabin filled up with smoke. There was a
Make It Interactive
horrible smell and then an eerie quiet: both engines were disabled.
7 Sullenberger made a Mayday radio call to air traffic control
and calmly explained the situation. They discussed the options:
The plane could either return to LaGuardia or land at Teterboro
Airport in New Jersey.
8 Sullenberger knew the situation was too dire for the plane to
stay in the air long enough for either plan to be successful. He had
about 30 seconds to find an alternative. The pilot decided on a
Project “Against the Odds” from the Interactive

SCAN FOR
LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 446 16-04-01 9:49 AM
Teacher’s Edition and have students identify  staNDarDs

Writing
examples of descriptive language and vivid • Write informative/explanatory texts
imagery (“powerful thud”; “severe vibrations”; to examine a topic and convey ideas,
“sounded like sneakers thumping around in the selection, organization, and
a dryer”). analysis of relevant content.
• Write routinely over extended time
frames and shorter time frames for
Academic Vocabulary a range of discipline-specific tasks,
purposes, and audiences.
Ask students for examples of how they might use
the academic vocabulary in their essays.
Author's Perspective
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 482 Kelly Gallagher, M.Ed. 28/05/16 9:54 AM
Read, Analyze, Emulate Teachers can use voice, and organization. Encourage students to
scaffolding to help students grow as writers by look for the moves the writer made to elicit a
studying good writing with them. When students response in readers.
recognize the qualities of good writing, they Step 2: Analyze Focus on the ideas by asking
begin producing it. students questions such as “What is the writer’s
Step 1: Read Provide students with excellent theme? How did the writer develop it?” Then
narratives from the text and direct them to “read turn to style and voice, asking, “How did the
like a writer” by paying attention to ideas, style, writer develop the characters?” “What effect did

ESSENTIAL QUESTION : How do we overcome obstacles?
Prewriting / Planning Prewriting/Planning

Gather Details Revisit the selections to gather specific details that
Gather Details Encourage students to focus on
provide information you will share in your essay. Complete this chart as
one selection at a time. Help them understand
you identify obstacles and coping strategies, or methods of handling or
overcoming challenges. In some sources, different people may exhibit that the obstacles may be different in the
methods of dealing with problems. selections, based on differences in medium,
writing style, language, etc. Remind them that
OBSTACLE COPING STRATEGIES coping strategies will likely be different for
The Grapes of Wrath different obstacles.
Formulate a Thesis Guide students to
understand that a thesis statement may need to
evolve. Have them try writing a thesis statement
“The Dust Bowl”
and then go through a process of checking
how well the thesis statement aligns with each
selection. When they encounter details or ideas
that challenge the thesis statement, they should
“The Circuit” consider ways in which the thesis statement may
need to be revised.
Formulate a Thesis A strong thesis statement will give your essay a

sharp focus, indicating both your subject and the central message you
want to share with readers. An effective thesis statement should:  EVIDENCE LOG
• State one key idea clearly and directly. Review your Evidence Log
and identify key details you
• Use precise, formal language. may want to include in
• Avoid overgeneralizations and vague or unnecessary words. your essay.
Notice how one of the following statements would be a much stronger  STANDARDS
stronger thesis statement for an informative essay. Writing
• Write informative/explanatory texts
Overgeneralization and informal language: Everybody’s afraid to examine a topic and convey ideas,
of something, and that’s just how it is no matter who you are. concepts, and information through

Sharply focused thesis: Many literary works show that facing analysis of relevant content.
one’s greatest fear is a difficult but worthwhile challenge that can a. Introduce a topic clearly,
build character and solve problems. previewing what is to follow;
organize ideas, concepts, and
Review the details you gathered and look for a single idea about obstacles information, using strategies
and coping strategies that connects them. Use your analysis to formulate such as definition, classification,
comparison/contrast, and cause/
a thesis statement below. effect; include formatting, graphics,
and multimedia when useful to
My thesis about how individuals cope with obstacles:
aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete details,
quotations, or other information
and examples.
c. Use appropriate transitions to
create cohesion and clarify the
relationships among ideas and
concepts.
Performance Task: Write an Informative Essay 483
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 483 18/04/16 9:00 AM
the dialogue have?” “What sensory details did the writer

use?” and “Where do you hear the author’s distinctive
voice?” Finally, ask questions about organization, such as
“How did the writer pace events?” “What do you notice
about the writer’s paragraphing decisions?”
Step 3: Emulate Select one or two or the writer’s moves
to practice. Guide students to follow the models they
studied as they write.

Organize Details Your informative essay will explain specific coping

Organize Details Remind students to challenge strategies presented in three selections. Before you draft, decide the
their own thesis statements as they put details order in which you will discuss the works. For example, you might begin
and evidence in order. They should not simply by discussing the work that contains the strongest support for your thesis
discard important details that do not agree with statement. On the other hand, you might decide to build up to your
their thesis; they should use these challenges to strongest ideas.
strengthen the validity of their thesis. Complete this outline to plan the details and ideas you will include in the
body of your essay.
Drafting First Selection:
Write a First Draft Remind students that a Details and Analysis:
strong introduction will not only help readers but
will help them as well because writing a good
introduction will help them focus on what they
want to communicate in their essay.
Remind students to utilize strong transitions as
they move from point to point in their draft. Second Selection:
Choosing strong transitions at the drafting stage Details and Analysis:
is one way students can double-check that they
are following a logical and clear sequence of
ideas to support their thesis.
Point out that a strong conclusion is just as
important as a strong introduction. Students are
writing about three selections, each with its own Third Selection:
characters and events, so they’ll be presenting Details and Analysis:
many different ideas. A strong conclusion will
help to tie everything together for the reader.
 STANDARDS
Writing
Write informative/explanatory texts
Drafting
concepts, and information through Write a First Draft As you draft, focus on writing down your ideas

analysis of relevant content. without worrying about word choice and grammar. You will have a
a. Introduce a topic clearly, chance to revise and edit your work once your draft is finished.
previewing what is to follow;
organize ideas, concepts, and Follow these steps to create your draft:
information, using strategies
such as definition, classification,
• Begin with a strong introduction that presents your thesis statement
comparison/contrast, and cause/ and clearly identifies the selections you will discuss.
effect; include formatting, graphics,
• Follow the organization you planned in the body of your essay,
aiding comprehension. using transitions, such as similarly, in contrast, or however, to make
b. Develop the topic with relevant comparisons, move from one topic to another, or emphasize key
ideas.
and examples. • End your draft with a conclusion that connects ideas from the body
f. Provide a concluding statement
or section that follows from
to your thesis statement and leaves readers with a single, powerful
and supports the information or message.
explanation presented.
Author's Perspective Jim Cummins, Ph.D.

LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 484 28/05/16 10:00 AM
Working in Pairs There is an important sense entails social interaction, which fosters language that highlights what they found important,
in which the development of academic expertise development. or responds to a prompt teachers provide.
on the part of English learners is a process of • First, teachers can partner students to read, Encourage students to include specific details
socialization rather than simply instruction. As discuss, and react to a reading in the unit. Select from the text in their drafts.
a result, English writing development will be a text, such as a nonfiction article, poem, or • Then, teachers can invite partners to share their
enhanced when students can work in pairs to narrative. writing with the whole class. Guide students to
create texts to share with others. That’s because explain how working together helped them express
the process of collaboration and communication • Have partners discuss the text, make notes
about their ideas, and together write a response their ideas more effectively than working alone.

Language DeveLopment: Conventions The Use of Commas

Remind students that reading what they’ve
the use of Commas
written out loud is an excellent way to identify
Revise Incorrect Use of Commas The correct use of commas will help incorrect use of commas. When we read our
Coordinate adjeCtives
to ensure that your informative essay is clear to readers. Knowing when
You can recognize writing out loud, we tend to automatically pause
not to use commas is just as important as knowing when to use them.
coordinate adjectives where there should be a comma. If they find
Here are some guidelines and examples taken from the Launch Text:
because they can be themselves pausing and there is no comma, or
INCORRECTLY CORRECTLY separated by the word and. they don’t naturally pause and there is a comma,
PUNCTUATED PUNCTUATED (He was a rich, famous
SENTENCE SENTENCE
they should consider revising that part of the
writer = He was a rich and
Separate coordinate Sullenberger thought Sullenberger thought famous writer.) sentence.
adjectives with a he was in for an average he was in for an average
comma, but do flight—a routine, flight—a routine, Read It
not separate the everyday, trip. everyday trip. Coordinate adjectives: clear, understandable
adjectives from the
noun they modify.
Compound subjects: Commas …
Do not separate With water seeping into With water seeping into
punctuation marks
compound subjects the plane, Sullenberger, the plane, Sullenberger Compound verbs: be sure; strive to
with a comma. and Skiles, walked the and Skiles walked the
length of the cabin twice, length of the cabin twice, Make it Interactive
calling “Is anyone there?” calling “Is anyone there?” Project these sentences from “Against the Odds”
Do not separate Sullenberger made a Sullenberger made a from the Interactive Teacher’s Edition and ask
compound verbs Mayday radio call to air Mayday radio call to air students to identify the compound subject or
with a comma. traffic control, and calmly traffic control and calmly
compound verb in each. Point out that there is
explained the situation. explained the situation.
no comma separating the parts of the compound
Read It subject or compound verb.
Read this paragraph and identify the coordinate adjectives, compound Paragraph 10: It skidded across the water at
subjects, and compound verbs. 145 mph and finally slowed to a stop. (skidded/
Commas and other punctuation marks are critical to clear slowed)
writing. Be sure to review and revise any incorrect uses of
Paragraph 11: He picked his landing spot and he
commas and punctuation in your writing. Strive to create
clear, understandable sentences.
went for it. (picked/went)
Write It Paragraph 13: With water seeping into the plane,

Sullenberger and Skiles walked the length of
As you draft your essay, remember to use commas properly. Copy the faulty
the cabin twice, calling “Is anyone there? Come
sentences and re-punctuate them, either adding or removing commas.
forward!” (Sullenberger and Skiles)
FAULTY SENTENCE MY REVISION
We inched across the rickety, We inched across the rickety, Write It
swaying, bridge. swaying bridge. Review the chart on this page, pointing out the
Studying together, Glenda, and Studying together, Glenda and specific use of commas to revise the sentences.
Jasmine, helped each other earn Jasmine helped each other  STANDARDS
better grades. Language
earn better grades. • Demonstrate command of the
At summer camp we learned archery, At summer camp, we learned conventions of standard English
and knots. archery and knots. capitalization, punctuation, and
spelling when writing.
The actor bowed, and smiled. The actor bowed and smiled. a. Use a comma to separate
coordinate adjectives.
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 485 Personalize for Learning 28/05/16 10:37 AM

Commas Review with students how to revise Anne, and Leo will meet us at the park.
sentences that have an incorrect use of commas. (Anne and Leo will meet us at the park.)
Provide the following sentences and have I read books, and magazines.
students revise them. (I read books and magazines.)
The huge graceful airplane landed safely at the Marco swims, and jogs for exercise.
airport. (Marco swims and jogs for exercise.)
(The huge, graceful airplane landed safely at the
airport.)

Revising Revising
Evaluating Your Draft
Evaluating Your Draft Use the checklist to evaluate the effectiveness of your draft. Then, use
Remind students to use the chart to evaluate their your evaluation and instruction on this page to guide your revision.
draft to make sure it contains all the required
elements of a well-constructed, well-organized, Focus and organization EvidEncE and Elaboration convEntions
informative essay, and to be sure it addresses
both parts of the assignment. Provides an introduction that Clearly shows relationships Uses words, phrases,
reveals the topic and thesis. among ideas. and clauses that create
Revising for Focus and Organization cohesion and clarify
Is organized clearly and logically. Supports ideas with the relationships
Provide a Clear Conclusion Encourage relevant evidence and among ideas.
students to use highlighting to track the details Provides a concluding statement details from the selections.
and evidence from the selections they are using that brings the essay to a Attends to the norms
in their essays. When they’re finished, they can satisfying close. Maintains a formal tone. and conventions of the
review and make sure each paragraph utilizes discipline, especially
details and evidence and that the details are from correct use of commas.
all three selections.
Revising for Evidence and Elaboration Revising for Focus and Organization
Support Ideas With Relevant Evidence Advise Provide a Clear Conclusion Review the conclusion you have drafted,
 WORD NETWORK
students that in the revision stage, they may and check to be sure that it follows logically from your thesis and body
Include interesting words
need to make difficult decisions about deleting paragraphs. Strive to keep your conclusion brief but engaging. You might
from your Word Network in
examples and evidence. Some evidence that was your essay.
consider ending your conclusion with a question or with a powerful
present in the essay’s original outline may now quotation from a text you read.
be superfluous, and some of a writer’s “favorite”
Revising for Evidence and Elaboration
examples may lead to tangents.
Support Ideas With Relevant Evidence Evaluate with a critical eye the
Maintain a Formal Tone Remind students details you have used to support ideas. First mark the ideas or claims you
that maintaining a formal tone is essential to an  standards
Writing
make. Then, mark support you have given. Add details as needed, and
effective essay. Ask them to pay attention to the • Write informative/explanatory texts delete unneeded or irrelevant information.
words they are using and to avoid any language to examine a topic and convey ideas,
Maintain a Formal Tone A writer’s tone is his or her attitude toward
that would be used for informal communication. the selection, organization, and the audience or subject. Apply the following steps to revise for a formal
analysis of relevant content. tone in your essay:

a. Introduce a topic clearly,
previewing what is to follow; • Identify any informal language or any slang expressions in your essay.
organize ideas, concepts, and Change them to formal, academic language appropriate for an essay.
such as definition, classification, • Underline any clichés (overused expressions, such as “what goes
comparison/contrast, and cause/ around comes around”) or idioms (figurative expressions, such as “a
effect; include formatting (e.g.,
headings), graphics (e.g., charts, chip on your shoulder”). Replace clichés and slang with fresh, original
tables), and multimedia when language that better suits your audience.
useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with relevant
and examples.
d. Use precise language and
domain-specific vocabulary to
inform about or explain the topic.
e. Establish and maintain a
formal style.
HOW LANGUAGE WORKS LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 486 15/04/16 3:32 PM
Incorrect Use of Commas Review the rules for 2. Do not separate parts of a compound subject Revision: In the distance we could see whales
revising sentences for incorrect use of commas: or object. and dolphins.
1. Separate coordinate adjectives but do not Incorrect: Lenore, and Ellie are teaching 3. Do not separate the parts of a compound verb.
separate the adjectives from the noun. me archery. Incorrect: The waves pounded, and crashed
Incorrect: The large red, balloon floated across Revision: Lenore and Ellie are teaching against the cliffs.
the sky. me archery. Revision: The waves pounded and crashed
Revision: The large, red balloon floated across Incorrect: In the distance we could see whales, against the cliffs.
the sky. and dolphins.

Peer review
Peer Review
Exchange essays with a classmate. Use the checklist to evaluate your classmate’s essay and Before students begin their peer review,
provide supportive feedback. remind them that they are reviewing for clarity
1. Is there an effective introduction? and completeness, not whether they agree
yes no If no, suggest a better way the writer could introduce the topic. or disagree with the writer’s ideas. They should
not comment on whether their classmate is
2. Are the writer’s ideas supported by details and support from the selections? “right” or “wrong.” They can, however, make
yes no If no, point out where the writer should provide support. helpful suggestions if they see something in the
3. Are there clear connections among ideas?
essay that could be better.
yes no If no, point out where the writer should use transitions to make
these connections clearer.
Editing and Proofreading
As students proofread, they should check for
4. What is the strongest part of your classmate’s essay? grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.
Remind them to check that all causes lead to
logical, relevant effects, all effects are linked to
logical, relevant causes, and all three selections
are discussed. Also remind students to check for
the correct use of commas.
Editing and Proofreading Publishing and Presenting

Edit for Conventions Reread your draft for accuracy and consistency. Before students review their classmates’ essays,
Correct errors in grammar and word usage. Review your use of commas remind them to:
to ensure that you have followed punctuation rules.
• Be honest, but maintain a respectful tone in
Proofread for Accuracy Read your draft carefully, looking for errors their comments.
in spelling and punctuation. Also, check your spelling of homonyms— • Use formal rather than informal language.
words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different
meanings: for example, their, they’re, and there. • Move the discussion forward by building on the
ideas of others.
• Disagree respectfully. Different opinions are
Publishing and Presenting fine, but they should be expressed politely.
Create a final version of your essay. Share it with your class or with a
• If you disagree, support your position with
small group of classmates, so you can get constructive feedback. In turn,

review and comment on your classmates’ work. As a group, discuss what evidence.
your essays have in common and the ways in which they are different.
Reflecting
Reflecting Encourage students to reflect not only on their
essay, the process of writing it, and any new
Reflect on what you learned as you wrote your essay. How did writing
understanding of how people deal with obstacles
the essay heighten your understanding of how people deal with  STANDArDS
obstacles? What did you learn from peer review that might help you with Language
they may have gained from writing this essay,
future writing assignments? Demonstrate command of the but also on what they may have learned from
conventions of standard English
capitalization, punctuation, and
reviewing others’ work and the comments they
spelling when writing. received on their essays.
a. Use a comma to separate
coordinate adjectives.
b. Spell correctly.
LIT17_SE07_U05_A_WC_PT.indd 487 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 15/04/16 3:32 PM
Challenge
Extend Remind students that dealing with adversity and obstacles
can either defeat people or make them stronger, depending on the
situation and how people deal with the challenges they’re facing.
Have students write two paragraphs, one describing someone who is
defeated by adversity, and one describing someone who overcomes
obstacles and is made stronger because of the experience. Ask
volunteers to share their responses with the class.

OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW: SMALL-GROUP LEARNING
SMALL-GROUP LEARNING ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

You’ve hit a bump in the road. Now what should you do? You will read
obstacles? selections that describe obstacles that people have faced and how they were
Explain that overcoming obstacles often requires able to overcome them. You will work in a group to continue your exploration of
people to have a great deal of resilience, and the topic of facing adversity.
that facing adversity can be life-changing or
even inspiring at times. During Small-Group
Learning, students will read selections that show Small-Group Learning Strategies
how people’s lives changed because they faced Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you will
adversity and overcame obstacles. continue to learn and work with others.
Look at these strategies and the actions you can take to practice them as you
Small-Group Learning work in teams. Add ideas of your own for each step. Use these strategies during
Strategies Small-Group Learning.

explain that as they work through Small-Group STRATEGY ACTION PLAN
Learning they will develop strategies to work in Prepare • Complete your assignments so that you are prepared for group work.
small-group environments. • Organize your thinking so you can contribute to your group’s discussions.
• Have students watch the video on Small-Group •
Learning Strategies.
You may wish to discuss some action items to add Participate fully • Make eye contact to signal that you are listening and taking in what is being said.
to the chart as a class before students complete • Use text evidence when making a point.
it on their own. For example, for “Clarify,” you
•
might solicit the following from students:
• Write down specific points you might want
explained during discussions.
• Ask others to elaborate on any ideas you think Support others • Build off ideas from others in your group.

are unclear. • Invite others who have not yet spoken to do so.
Block Scheduling •
Each day in this Pacing Plan represents a

40–50 minute class period. Teachers using
their class schedule. In addition, teachers may Clarify • Paraphrase the ideas of others to ensure that your understanding is correct.
revise pacing to differentiate and support core • Ask follow-up questions.
instruction by integrating components and
•
SCAN FOR
Pacing Plan
Introduce
Whole-Class
LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SGO.indd 488 15-12-14 12:56 PM
Learning
Performance Task
Media: The Dust

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

CONTENTS
PERSONAL NARRATIVE
Contents
A Work in Progress
Selections Circulate among groups as they
Aimee Mullins
preview the selections. You might encourage
Why be “normal,” when you can be extraordinary? groups to discuss any knowledge they already
have about any of the selections or the situations
and settings shown in the photographs. Students
may wish to take a poll within their group
to determine which selections look the most
interesting.
AUTOBIOGRAPHY EXCERPT Remind students that communicating and
from The Story of My Life collaborating in groups is an important skill that
Helen Keller they will use throughout their lives—in school, in
their careers, and in their community.
Just one little word can make all the difference.
Performance Task
Present Multimedia Profiles Give groups time
to read about and briefly discuss the multimedia
COMPARE
presentation they will create after reading.

Encourage students to do some preliminary
MEDIA: INTERVIEW
thinking about the types of media they may want
How Helen Keller Learned to Talk to use. This may help focus their subsequent
Helen Keller, with Anne Sullivan reading and group discussion.
Can one dramatic moment change Helen Keller’s
life forever?
NEWS ARTICLE
A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill,

Electrifying a Nation
Sarah Childress
One young man’s brilliant idea transforms an entire town.
PERFORMANCE TASK
SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS
Present Multimedia Profiles
The Small-Group readings demonstrate how people can overcome tremendous
adversity. After reading, your group will plan and deliver a multimedia presentation
about people who faced huge obstacles, but overcame them in creative ways.
Overview: Small-Group Learning 489
Introduce Introduce
LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SGO.indd 489 15/04/16 4:47 PM Performance
Learning Learning
Task
Performance-Based
Assessment
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
small-group learning
Small-Group Learning 489

OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW: SMALL-GROUP LEARNING
SMALL-GROUP LEARNING
Working as a Team
Working as a Team 1. Take a Position In your group, discuss the following question:
1. Take a Position Remind groups to let all Are any challenges impossible to overcome?
members share their responses. You may wish As you take turns sharing your ideas, be sure to provide examples
to set a time limit for this discussion. to make your response clear. After all group members have shared,
discuss your responses. Were other group members’ responses similar
2. List Your Rules You may want to have groups
to yours? Did other group members share challenges that you had not
share their lists of rules and consolidate them
thought of, but could relate to?
into a master list to be displayed and followed
by all groups.
2. List Your Rules As a group, decide on the rules that you will follow
3. Apply the Rules As you circulate among the as you work together. Samples are provided; add two more of your
groups, ensure that students are staying on own. You may add or revise rules based on your experience together.
task. Consider a short time limit for this step. • Everyone should participate in group discussions.
4. Name Your Group This task can be creative • People should not interrupt.
and fun. If students have trouble coming
up with a name, suggest that they think of •
something related to the unit topic. Encourage
groups to share their names with the class.
5. Create a Communication Plan Encourage
•
groups to include in their plans agreed-upon
times during the day to share ideas. They
should also devise a method for recording and
saving their communications.
3. Apply the Rules Practice working as a group. Share what you have
Accountable Talk learned about overcoming obstacles. Make sure each person in the
group contributes. Take notes and be prepared to share with the class
Offer students these Accountable Talk
one thing that you heard from another member of your group.
suggestions:
Remember to . . . 4. Name Your Group Choose a name that reflects the unit topic.
Ask clarifying questions.

Our group’s name:
Which sounds like…
Can you please repeat what you said?
5. Create a Communication Plan Decide how you want to
Would you give me an example? communicate with one another. For example, you might use online
I think you said _____. Did I understand you? collaboration tools, email, or instant messaging.
Remember to . . .
Explain your thinking. Our group’s decision:
Which sounds like . . .
I believe _____ is true because _____.
Remember to . . .
Build on the ideas of others.
Which sounds like . . .
When _____ said _____, it made me think of _____.
490 UNIT 5 • FacINg adversITy
AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE Kelly Gallagher, M.Ed.

LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SGO.indd 490 16-04-01 10:14 AM
Accountability in Group Work The or if there is no accountability. To help 2. Let each group know that one student If groups struggle, teachers can prod
teacher’s role during group work is to groups work together well, achieve their will be selected randomly to share the them with questions that support
serve as the facilitator rather than as the goals, and ensure accountability, teachers group’s thinking. This randomness how they will get to the answer. For
leader. This means that the teacher should can follow these three steps: builds in accountability. example, if they are unable to find the
support the thinking and discussion 1. First, define and clarify the task. 3. Pull the whole class back together to main point of the essay, ask them: “In
but not provide the answers or content Explain why it is valuable, and make share back information and to check this type of text, where might a reader
direction. Problems can arise if a group is sure students know what they are learning.
unfocused, if the task is not meaningful, look to find the main idea?”
expected to do.

Making a Schedule Making a Schedule

First, find out the due dates for the Small-Group activities. Then, preview
Encourage groups to preview the reading
the texts and activities with your group, and make a schedule for
completing the tasks.
selections and to consider how long it will take
them to complete the activities accompanying
SELECTION ACTIVITIES DUE DATE each selection. Point out that they can adjust the
due dates for particular selections as needed as
they work on their small-group projects, however,
A Work in Progress they must complete all assigned tasks before the
group Performance Task is due. Encourage groups
to review their schedules upon completing the
activities for each selection to make sure they are
from The Story of My Life on track to meet the final due date.
Working on Group Projects

How Helen Keller Learned to Talk Point out to groups that the roles they assign
can also be changed later. Students might have
to make changes based on who is best at doing
what. Try to make sure that there is no favoritism,
A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, cliquishness, or stereotyping by gender or other
means in the assignment of roles.
Also, you should review the roles each
group assigns to its members. Based on your
understanding of students’ individual strengths,
Working on Group Projects you might find it necessary to suggest some
As your group works together, you’ll find it more effective if each person changes.
has a specific role. Different projects require different roles. Before
beginning a project, discuss the necessary roles and choose one for each
group member. Here are some possible roles; add your own ideas.
Project Manager: monitors the schedule and keeps everyone on task

Researcher: organizes research activities
Recorder: takes notes during group meetings
SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA Overview: Small-Group Learning 491
LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SGO.indd 491 Facilitating Small-Group learning 16-04-01 10:14 AM
Forming Groups You may wish to form groups for Small-

Group Learning so that each consists of students with different
learning abilities. Some students may be adept at organizing
information whereas other may have strengths related to
generating or synthesizing information. A good mix of abilities
can make the experience of Small-Group Learning dynamic and
productive.

PLANNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • A WORK IN PROGRESS
A Work in Progress
Audio Summaries
Audio summaries of “A Work
Summary
in Progress” are available online Shortly after Aimee Mullins was born, she reports in “A Work in
in both English and Spanish in Progress,” doctors amputated both her legs below the knee. But
the Interactive Teacher’s Edition that is not the beginning to a sad story. Aimee’s life is a story of
or Unit Resources. Assigning adventure, excitement, and achievement. At every turn, people try
these summaries prior to reading to put her into a mold—the stereotype of a disabled person who
the selection may help students
should work as hard as possible to seem normal. But Aimee is not
normal. She is remarkable. Refusing to allow anyone to limit her, she
their first read.
becomes a world-record-setting athlete and fashion model.
Insight
This intriguing memoir is a loud affirmation of the need to be oneself.
Mullins deals with her physical problems, her prosthetics, and the
authority figures in her life with humor and irreverence as she moves
from athlete to fashion model to international celebrity.
Essential Question:
obstacles? The connection of “A Work in Progress” to the essential question
is clear and strong. Aimee Mullins faces powerful physical and
social obstacles, but she seems to see them all as challenges and
opportunities.
Small-Group Learning
How do people
Small-Group Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
overcome enormous
students will present an informative essay about how people face
challenges?
challenges to overcome adversity. This selection provides students with
the insight that being yourself is the surest path to the kind of success
Assessment you value.
How can people overcome Unit Performance-Based Assessment Aimee Mullins is an excellent
adversity in the face of example of a person who has the confidence and drive to use whatever
overwhelming obstacles? life gives her to build an extraordinary life. For Aimee, obstacles are seen
as opportunities. This is an important insight that students can use in
responding to the assessment.

DIGITAL
LESSON RESOURCES

Lesson First Read Concept Vocabulary Speaking and Listening
Instructional RI.10 By the end of the year, read and L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of SL.1 Engage effectively in a range of
Standards comprehend literary nonfiction . . . unknown and multiple-meaning words collaborative discussions . . .
and phrases . . .
L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of SL.1.a Come to discussions prepared . . .
unknown and multiple–meaning words L.4.b Use common, grade-appropriate
SL.1.b Follow rules for collegial
and phrases . . . Greek or Latin affixes and roots . . .
discussions . . .
L.4.a Use context as a clue . . . L.1 Demonstrate command of the
SL.1.c Pose questions . . .
conventions . . .
RI.3 Analyze the interactions between
individuals . . . L.2 Demonstrate command of the
conventions . . .
RI.4 Determine the meaning of words
and phrases . . .
RI.6 Determine an author’s point
of view . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online Selection Audio Word Network Evidence Log
in the Interactive
Student Edition or First-Read Guide: Nonfiction
Unit Resources Close-Read Guide: Nonfiction
A Work in Progress: Text Questions
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources
Audio Summaries Concept Vocabulary and Word Study S peaking and Listening: Group
Discussion
Interactive Teacher’s Annotation Highlights Conventions: Informal Grammar
EL Highlights
E nglish Language Support
Lesson: Hyperbole
Analyze Craft and Structure: Humor
A Word Study: Latin Prefix extra- (RP) S peaking and Listening: Group
Humor (RP) Discussion (RP)
Interactive Teacher’s Conventions: Informal Grammar (RP)
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments
My Resources
Small-Group Learning 492B

PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • A WORK IN PROGRESS
Reading Support
Text Complexity Rubric: A Work in Progress

Knowledge Demands This is a personal story told by an accomplished athlete.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure “A Work in Progress” is the transcription of a speech given by Aimee Mullins for The Moth Radio Hour
1 2 3 4 5 storytelling series. The structure is conventional.
Language Conventionality and Clarity The language is simple, conventional, and clear with most vocabulary on-level, aside from a few difficult
1 2 3 4 5 technical terms.
Levels of Meaning/Purpose Straightforward meaning and purpose.

1 2 3 4 5
Decide and Plan

language and meaning as they read the to ensure that they can successfully read with ideas for how they can go beyond a
Language Discuss with students the Language Have students go through the Text Analysis Ask students to reread the
narrative form and style of Mullins’ piece, text and think about what makes it a unique text and locate clues that indicate that
which will seem somewhat different from story. Discuss “voice” in writing and talk Mullins’ story is a speech. Make a short list
others they’ve read. Discuss how the fact about how much work it can take to sound for them of “colloquialisms.” Discuss what
that it was a speech delivered in public familiar. To understand the effect achieved, makes a colloquialism. Talk about why more
changes the tone and the language used. they can make a list of familiar phrases and formal written work would not include
Meaning Ask students to talk with each words and contrast them with the more phrases such as, “I was like, ‘What?’”
other about what they learned about difficult words, such as “prosthetic” or Written Response Challenge students
disability and prosthetics, and whether “polypropylene.” to write their own inspirational story for
they knew that it was possible for a Meaning Discuss the idea that when The Moth Radio Hour. Tell them they can
person without her lower legs to become we “truly own what it is that makes us take something from their own life, or an
a professional athlete. Encourage them to different, we’re able to find the source inspirational idea from a friend or family
think about what they may have to do to of our greatest creative power.” Ask member outside of school. Tell them that
overcome their own obstacles. students if they think this is true, and then the focus for this speech will be the crafting
discuss it. Discuss how society views the of a strong voice to tell a good story in
unconventional. under eight minutes.
Teach
Read and Respond

Have groups read the selection and complete the Making Meaning, Language Development, and
Effective Expression activities.

IDENTIFY NEEDS
• Use the Selection Resources listed on the Planning pages for “A Work in Progress” to help
students continually improve their ability to master the standards.
Instructional Standards: A Work in Progress

Reading You may wish to administer the RI.6 Determine an author’s Work with students to discuss
ANALYZE AND REVISE Analyze Craft and Structure: point of view or purpose in how the humor of the selection
Humor (RP) worksheet to help a text and analyze how the helps the reader to see from
• Analyze student work for students understand how an author distinguishes his or her narrator’s point of view.
author can construct point of position from that of others.
evidence of student learning. view through humor.
have met the expectations in Speaking You may wish to administer SL.1 Engage effectively Challenge students to have a
the standards. and the Speaking and Listening: in a range of collaborative debate rather than a discussion.
Listening Group Discussion (RP) discussions with diverse
• Identify implications for future worksheet to help students partners on grade 7 topics,
instruction. prepare for their discussion. texts, and issues, building on
others’ ideas and expressing
their own clearly.
Language You may wish to administer L.1,2 Demonstrate command Have students incorporate
the Conventions: Informal of the conventions of standard commas into their sentences to
Grammar (RP) worksheet to English grammar and usage add direct and indirect objects.
help students understand the when writing or speaking.
Have students find other
difference between direct and L.4.b Use common, grade- examples of Latin prefixes.
TEACH indirect objects. appropriate Greek or Latin
You may wish to administer affixes and roots as clues to the
Implement the planned lesson, the Word Study Latin Prefix meaning of a word.
and gather evidence of student extra- (RP) worksheet to help
students understand that
learning.
extra- means “beyond the
scope of.”
Small-Group Learning 492D

FACILITATING MAKING MEANING
About the Author

A Work in Progress
Jump Start Concept Vocabulary
As you perform your first read of “A Work in Progress,” you will
First Read To establish a context for reading encounter these words.
the selection, engage students in a discussion
of the different challenges people face in their accomplishments extraordinary celebrate
lives. Ask: What challenges have you faced? Aimee Mullins (b. 1976)
What challenges have other people you know is an athlete, model, and Context Clues If these words are unfamiliar to you, try using context
faced? What enables people to overcome such actor. At the age of one, clues to help you determine their meanings. To do so, look for clues given
she needed to have both of by other words in the text that surround the unfamiliar words. There are
challenges?
her legs amputated below various types of context clues that you may encounter as you read.
the knee. Mullins learned
how to walk and run
A Work in Progress with prosthetics, enabling Synonyms: His aberrant behavior was unexpected. It is strange for
him to be impolite.
her to participate in the
What enables some people to face huge 1996 Paralympic Games,
Restatement of an idea: Because of a rare bone disease, her bones
challenges with humor and grace? How can where she set three world
are delicate and more likely to break.
humor help people face adversity? What other records in running and
qualities and attitudes can help people face jumping events. Contrast of ideas and topics: James will not eat foods made with
adversity? Modeling the questions readers might artificial ingredients; he shops only at organic food stores.
ask as they read “A Work in Progress” brings
the text alive for students and connects it to the Apply your knowledge of context clues and other vocabulary strategies to
Small-Group Performance Task question. Selection determine the meanings of other unfamiliar words you encounter during
your first read.
audio and print capability for the selection are
available in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition.
Concept Vocabulary First Read NONFICTION

Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
Ask groups to look closely at the information
opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.
on context clues and how to use them. Walk
students though the process of using each
type of context clue. Explain that while context
clues sometimes appear in the same sentence NOTICE the general ideas of ANNOTATE by marking
as an unfamiliar word, they can also appear in the text. What is it about? vocabulary and key passages

surrounding sentences. Who is involved? you want to revisit.
 STANDARDS
FIRST READ Reading Informational Text
comprehend literary nonfiction in
Have students perform the steps of the first read the grades 6–8 text complexity band CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
independently: proficiently, with scaffolding as the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
needed at the high end of the range.
already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
NOTICE: You may want to encourage students to Language
have already read. the selection.
notice details and specific word choices that add Determine or clarify the meaning
of unknown and multiple–meaning
humor in the selection. words and phrases based on
grade 7 reading and content,
ANNOTATE: Remind students to mark vocabulary choosing flexibly from a range
and key passages. of strategies.
a. Use context as a clue to the
CONNECT: Encourage students to go beyond meaning of a word or phrase.
the text to make connections to their own

experiences with adversity. 492 UNIT 5 • FacINg adversITy

Point out to students that while they will always Author's Perspective
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 492 Jim Cummins, Ph.D. 16-04-01 10:17 AM
complete the Respond step at the end of the

first read, the other steps will probably happen Language Awareness Vocabulary knowledge Definition Image
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print is an extremely robust predictor of students’
reading comprehension. The Frayer model is an
copies of the First-Read Guide: Nonfiction for
effective tool for enabling students to extend
students to use. their vocabulary knowledge in a systematic way. Target Word:
The tool aims to deepen students’ knowledge of Synonym Sentence
words and concepts by focusing their attention and/or antonym
not only on simple definitions but also on
characteristics of the concept and examples and
nonexamples of it.

PERSONAL NARRATIVE
CLOSER LOOK
Hyperbole
Circulate among groups as students conduct
their close read. Suggest that groups close
read paragraph 1. Encourage them to talk
about the annotations they mark. If needed,
provide the following support.
Annotate: Have students mark words and
phrases that are examples of hyperbole, or
using exaggerations for comic effect.
Question: Guide students to consider what
these word choices might tell them. Ask what
A Work in Progress a reader can infer from the exaggerations,
and accept student responses.
Aimee Mullins Possible response: The hyperbole adds humor
and sets the tone for the selection. The reader
understands that the author has a good sense of
humor and uses it to face challenges in her life
and to entertain others.
Conclude: Help students formulate
conclusions about the importance of humor in
the text. Ask students why the author might
have taken a humorous tone toward her
subject.
BACKGROUND Possible response: The humor sets readers at
ease, helps them identify with the author, and
A prosthetic is an artificial substitute for a missing body part. Over the SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA entertains them.
past few decades, prosthetic technology has advanced greatly. Modern
prosthetics can often fully replace the function of a missing limb due to Reminds students that hyperbole is a deliberate
the invention of lighter materials and more sophisticated designs. overstatement or exaggeration used for comic
effect.
S o two weeks ago I was a bridesmaid, and the reception was

actually here at the New York Public Library, and I will
never forget this wedding. Yes, it was very beautiful. But more
NOTES
importantly, I survived the slick marble floors that are all over this
building. Tile and marble floors are public enemy number one to a
stiletto-loving girl like me. And I had five-inch heels on that night.
2 Most people learn to walk in very high heels. They bend their
ankle so that the ball of the foot touches the ground first; you have
more stability.
Edition.
A Work in Progress 493
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 493 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING

4/18/16 10:13 AM
Create an electronic template and have represented in a group, students could English Language Support
students work in groups of “language take turns entering words in their home Exaggeration Review paragraph 1 with students. Exaggeration is
detectives” to enter new and interesting language, and all members of the group often based on idiomatic expressions, such as “public enemy number
words onto the group’s template. If could learn that word. At the end of one.” To help students understand the exaggeration in this selection,
time allows, encourage students to each week, the teacher could compile have them listen to the audio recording of Aimee Mullins reading her
complete two to five words each day. the words into a class quiz. work for The Moth Radio Hour (available for free download). Hearing
Where multiple home languages are the author’s inflections as they follow along in the text will help
students make inferences about when Mullins is exaggerating and
will help them understand the humor in the selection. ALL LEVELS

FACILITATING
3 I don’t have ankles, so I hit each step on the stiletto, which
NOTES makes the possibility of the banana peel wipeout very likely.
CLOSER LOOK
But given the choice between practicality and theatricality, I say,
“Go big or go home, man. Go down in flames if you’re gonna go.”
Analyze Tone 4 I guess I’m a bit of a daredevil. I think that the nurses at DuPont
Circulate among groups as students conduct Institute would agree. I spent a lot of time there as a child. Doctors
their close read. Suggest that groups read amputated1 both of my legs below the knee when I was an infant,
paragraphs 3 and 4. Encourage them to talk and then when I was five, I had a major surgery to correct the
about the annotations they mark. If needed, wonky direction in which my tibia was growing. So I had two
provide the following support. metal pins to hold that—full plaster casts on both legs. I had to use
Annotate: Have students mark words and a wheelchair because I couldn’t wear prosthetics.
phrases that show the author’s tone, or her 5 One of the best things about getting out of the hospital is the
attitude toward the subject and the audience. anticipation of the day you return to school—I had missed so
much class, I just couldn’t wait to get back and see all my friends.
Question: Guide students to consider what But my teacher had a different idea about that. She tried to
these word choices might tell them. Ask what prevent me from returning to class, because she said that in the
a reader can infer from the author’s tone, and condition I was in, I was “inappropriate,” and that I would be a
accept student responses. distraction to the other students (which of course I was, but not
Possible response: The author’s tone is because of the casts and the wheelchair).
informal and funny. Readers can infer that she is 6 Clearly she needed to make my difference invisible because she
self-confident enough to joke about herself and wanted to control her environment and make it fit into her idea of
her challenges. what “normal” looked like.
Conclude: Help students formulate 7 And it would’ve been a lot easier for me to fit into what
“normal” looked like. I know I wanted that back then. But instead
conclusions about tone and author’s purpose
I had these wooden legs with a rubber foot that the toes broke off
in the text. Ask students to identify what her
of, and they were held on with a big bolt that rusted out because I
tone suggests about her purpose.
swam in the wooden legs.
Possible response: The author’s tone suggests
8 You’re not supposed to swim in the wooden legs, because, you
her purpose is not only to inform but also to
entertain. know, the wood rots out.
9 So there I was in second grade music class, doing the twist, and
Remind students that tone is an author’s mid-twist I hear this [makes loud cracking sound]. And I’m on the
attitude toward his or her audience or subject.
floor, and the lower half of my left leg is in splinters across the
Tone can often be described by a single
room. The teacher faints on the piano, and the kids are screaming.
adjective, such as formal, serious, playful, or
And all I’m thinking is, My parents are gonna kill me. I broke my leg!

ironic. In prose, word choice, sentence structure,
and repetition can contribute to tone. 10 It’s a mess.
11 But then a few years later, my prosthetist2 tells me, “Aimee, we
got waterproof legs for you. No more rusty bolts!”
12 This is a revelation, right? This is gonna change my life. I was so
excited to get these legs . . . until I saw them.
1. amputated (AM pyoo tayt ihd) v. removed surgically.

2. prosthetist (PROS thuh tihst) n. professional who fits and designs prosthetic limbs.
FACILITATING SMALL-GROUP Close Reading

LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 494 4/18/16 10:13 AM
CLOSE READ: Autobiographical Narratives As very important to understanding the theme,

groups perform the close read, circulate and offer or big idea, of the selection.
support as needed. • Point out that voice and tone are determined
• Remind groups that when they are reading by word choice, sentence structure, and
an autobiographical narrative, they are choice of details.
reading a story that the author is telling • Challenge groups to imagine the author’s
about his or her own life. voice as they read and to identify her tone in
• Explain that in most autobiographical their own words.
narratives, the author’s voice and tone are

13 They were made of polypropylene, which is that white plastic
“milk jug” material. And when I say “white,” I’m not talking NOTES
about skin color; I’m talking about the color white. The “skin
color” was the rubber foam foot painted “Caucasian,” which
is the nastiest shade of nuclear peach that you’ve ever seen in
your life. It has nothing to do with any human skin tone on the
planet. And these legs were so good at being waterproof that
they were buoyant. So when I’d go off the high dive, I’d go down
and come straight back up feet first. They were the bane of
my existence.
14 But then we’re at the Jersey Shore one summer. By the time we
get there, there’s three hundred yards of towels between me and
the sea. And I know this is where I first honed my ability to run
really fast. I was the white flash. I didn’t wanna feel hundreds
of pairs of eyes staring at me. And so I’d get myself into the
ocean, and I was a good swimmer, but no amount of swimming
technique can control buoyant legs.
15 So at some point I get caught in a rip current, and I’m migrating
from my vantage point of where I could see my parents’ towel.
And I’m taking in water, and I’m fighting, fighting, fighting.
And all I could think to do was pop off these legs and put one
under each armpit, with the peach feet sticking up, and just bob,
thinking, Someone’s gotta find me.
16 And a lifeguard did. And I’m sure he will collect for therapy
bills. You know? Like, they don’t show that on Baywatch.3
17 But they saved my life, those legs.
18 And then when I was fourteen it was Easter Sunday, and I was
gonna be wearing a dress that I had purchased with my own
money—the first thing I ever bought that wasn’t on sale.
19 Momentous event; you never forget it. I’d had a paper route
since I was twelve, and I went to The Limited, and I bought this
dress that I thought was the height of sophistication—sleeveless
safari dress, belted, hits at the knee.
Coming downstairs into the living room, I see my father
20
waiting to take us to church. He takes one look at me, and he says,

“That doesn’t look right. Go upstairs and change.”
21 I was like, “What? My super-classy dress? What are you talking
about? It’s the best thing I own.”
3. Baywatch popular television show from the late 1990s about the lives of fictional
lifeguards.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 495 HOW LANGUAGE WORKS 15-12-14 12:02 PM
Italics Call student attention to the italics in paragraphs 13–16.

Explain that italics are used to distinguish letters, words, and phrases
from the rest of the sentence. For instance, italics are used for titles
and also for words used as words and foreign words. Explain that
italics may also be used for emphasis and to distinguish a character’s
or writer’s thoughts. Have students work in their groups to decide
why each of the following is italicized in the selection: the color white
(paragraph 13), buoyant (paragraph 13), Someone’s gotta find me
(paragraph 15), and Baywatch (paragraph 16).

FACILITATING
22 He said, “No, you can see the knee joint when you walk.
NOTES It doesn’t look right. It’s inappropriate to go out like that.
Go change.”
23 And I think something snapped in me. I refused to change. And
it was the first time I defied my father. I refused to hide something
about myself that was true, and I refused to be embarrassed about
something so that other people could feel more comfortable.
24 I was grounded for that defiance.
25 So after church the extended family convenes at my
grandmother’s house, and everybody’s complimenting me on
how nice I look in this dress, and I’m like, “Really? You think I
look nice? Because my parents think I look inappropriate.”
26 I outed them (kinda mean, really).
27 But I think the public utterance of this idea that I should
somehow hide myself was so shocking to hear that it changed
their mind about why they were doing it.
28 And I had always managed to get through life with somewhat
of a positive attitude, but I think this was the start of me being
able to accept myself. You know, okay, I’m not normal. I have
strengths. I’ve got weaknesses. It is what it is.
29 And I had always been athletic, but it wasn’t until college that
I started this adventure in Track and Field. I had gone through
a lifetime of being given legs that just barely got me by. And I
thought, Well, maybe I’m just having the wrong conversations with
the wrong people. Maybe I need to go find people who say, “Yes, we can
create anything for you in the space between where your leg ends and
the ground.”
30 And so I started working with engineers, fashion designers,
sculptors, Hollywood prosthetic makeup artists, wax museum
designers to build legs for me.
31 I decided I wanted to be the fastest woman in the world on
artificial legs, and I was lucky enough to arrive in track at just
the right time to be the first person to get these radical sprinting
legs modeled after the hind leg of a cheetah, the fastest thing that

runs—woven carbon fiber.4 I was able to set three world records
with those legs. And they made no attempt at approximating
humanness.
32 Then I get these incredibly lifelike silicon legs—hand-painted,
capillaries, veins. And, hey, I can be as tall as I wanna be, so I
get different legs for different heights. I don’t have to shave. I
can wear open-toed shoes in the winter. And most importantly,
4. carbon fiber (KAHR buhn FY buhr) n. very strong, lightweight material.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 496 Digital perspectives 22/04/17 12:09 am
Enriching the Text To help students understand how the carbon

fiber sprinting legs work, show them a video of a sprinter using
them. You might also consider showing students the TED video
from 1998 in which Mullins talks about her career as a runner and
her experience in the Paralympics. (Research to Clarify)

I can opt out of the cankles5 I most certainly would’ve inherited
genetically. NOTES
Concept Vocabulary
33 And then I get these legs made for me by the late, great
ACCOMPLISHMENTS If groups are struggling
Alexander McQueen, and they were hand-carved of solid ash
to define the word accomplishments in
with grapevines and magnolias all over them and a six-inch
paragraph 35, direct their attention to context
heel. And I was able to walk the runways of the world with
clues in paragraphs 34 and 35. For example,
supermodels. I was suddenly in this whirlwind of adventure and
the author is telling the man with whom she’s
excitement. I was being invited to go around the world and speak
speaking about the “amazing things that had
about these adventures, and how I had legs that looked like glass,
happened” to her, and he then describes her as
legs covered in feathers, porcelain legs, jellyfish legs—all wearable
“polished.” Have students infer the meaning of
sculpture.
the word accomplishments based on these clues.
34 And I get this call from a guy who had seen me speak years
ago, when I was at the beginning of my track career, and he says, Possible response: Based on the context clues, the
word accomplishments must mean “noteworthy or
“We loved it. We want you to come back.” And it was clear to me
impressive achievements.”
he didn’t know all these amazing things that had happened to me
since my sports career. EXTRAORDINARY If groups are struggling to
35 So as I’m telling him, he says, “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on, understand the meaning of extraordinary in
Aimee. The reason everybody liked you all those years ago was paragraph 38, guide them through the process
because you were this sweet, vulnerable, naïve girl, and if you Mark context clues or indicate of using a contrast context clue to understand
another strategy you used that
walk onstage today, and you are this polished young woman with helped you determine meaning. it. Point out that the author contrasts being
too many accomplishments, I’m afraid they won’t like you.” accomplishments (uh KOM extraordinary with being normal, so extraordinary
36 For real, he said that. Wow. plihsh muhnts) n. must be the opposite of normal. Point out that
37 He apparently didn’t think I was vulnerable enough now. He MEANING: context also suggests the author is thankful to be
was asking me to be less than, a little more downtrodden. He was extraordinary, so it must be a positive thing. Tell
asking me to disable myself for him and his audience. students to verify the meaning in a print or online
38 And what was so shocking to me about that was that I realized dictionary.
I had moved past mere acceptance of my difference. I was having Possible response: Extraordinary means
fun with my difference. Thank God I’m not normal. I get to be “very special.”
extraordinary. And I’ll decide what is a weakness and what is extraordinary (ehk
a strength. STRAWR duh nehr ee) adj.
39 And so I refused his request. MEANING:
40 And a few days later, I’m walking in downtown Manhattan at a

street fair, and I get this tug on my shirt, and I look down. It’s this
little girl I met a year earlier when she was at a pivotal moment in
her life. She had been born with a brittle bone disease that resulted
in her left leg being seven centimeters shorter than her right. She
wore a brace and orthopedic6 shoes and they got her by, but she
wanted to do more.
5. cankles (KANG kuhlz) n. informal term for thick ankles.

6. orthopedic (awr thuh PEE dihk) adj. designed to treat a muscular or skeletal problem.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 497 VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT 16-04-01 10:17 AM
Concept Vocabulary Reinforcement To increase familiarity

with the concept vocabulary words, ask students to use each
of the words in a sentence about their own accomplishments.
Encourage students to use each type of context clue—synonym,
restatement, and contrast—in the sentences. Have students share
their sentences in their small groups and identify the context clues
used by group members.

FACILITATING
41 And like all Internet-savvy kindergarteners, she gets on the
Concept Vocabulary NOTES computer and Googles “new leg,” and she comes up with dozens
of images of prosthetics, many of them mine. And she prints them
CELEBRATE If groups are struggling to
out, goes to school, does show-and-tell on it, comes home, and
find context clues for the word celebrate
makes a startling pronouncement to her parents:
in paragraph 44, direct their attention to
42 “I wanna get rid of my bad leg,” she says. “When can I get a
paragraph 43. Ask: What details describe the
new leg?”
girl’s new leg? What do these details suggest
43 And ultimately that was the decision her parents and doctors
about the girl’s feelings about the leg? Is the leg
made for her. So here she was, six months after the amputation,
merely functional, or something more? What
and right there in the middle of the street fair she hikes up her
does this tell you about the meaning of the word
jeans leg to show me her cool new leg. And it’s pink, and it’s
celebrate? Tell students to verify the meaning in a
tattooed with the characters of High School Musical 3, replete with
print or online dictionary.
red, sequined Mary Janes on her feet.
Possible responses: Celebrate means 44 And she was proud of it. She was proud of herself. And the
“enjoy and publicly acknowledge.” Mark context clues or indicate
marvelous thing was that this six-year-old understood something
helped you determine meaning. that it took me twenty-something years to get, but that we both
celebrate (SEHL uh brayt) v. did discover—that when we can celebrate and truly own what
MEANING: it is that makes us different, we’re able to find the source of our
greatest creative power. ❧

LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 498 Personalize for Learning 15-12-14 12:02 PM
Strategic Support
Distinctiveness Review paragraph 44 and discuss the writer’s
attitude about prosthetic legs. Have students quick write about
something that sets them apart from others and that they might
see as a disadvantage. Tell them to identify this difference and then
discuss how they might celebrate this difference and use it as a
source for creative power and strength. Give students the option to
share their responses in their small groups, but do not require it.

Complete the following items after you finish your first read. Review and clarify
details with your group. Possible responses:
1. because she likes to wear high heels but does not
1. Why does the author, Aimee Mullins, have difficulty walking across the marble floor have ankles to help her balance in them
of the library? 2. She refused to change out of a dress that showed
her knees.
3. She worked with designers and manufacturers to
make sure they were made to meet her needs and
her taste.
2. What happened between Mullins and her father that caused her to be grounded? 4. According to the author, we can find the greatest
source of our creative power “when we can
celebrate and truly own what it is that makes us
different.”
5. The author’s legs are amputated when she is five,
3. What does Mullins do to become more involved with the quality of her limbs? and she is equipped with wooden legs. However,
the bolts in these legs get rusty when she swims
and the legs tend to break. Eventually, she realizes
she can ask for better legs. She is equipped with
legs that help her run so fast that she breaks
world records and other legs that are works of art.
4. According to the author, what is the source of the “greatest creative power”? Subsequently, she discovers that her difference
from others is her greatest strength.
Research
5. Notebook Confirm your understanding of the selection by briefly summarizing Research to Clarify Remind groups to
key events. adequately narrow their topics and search terms
for research. For instance, “prosthetic legs”
is too broad a topic and would probably yield
RESEARCH an overwhelming amount of information, but
narrowing the topic to “carbon fiber sprinting
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from the text. Briefly
legs” would be more effective. Have groups
research that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light on the
selection? Share your findings with your small group. present the findings of their research to the class.
Research to Explore Tell students that the
topic suggested here is just one possibility. They
should choose the topic for further research that
Research to Explore Choose something from the text that interested you. For most interests them. Here are some additional
instance, you might want to learn more about the newest kinds of prosthetic limbs.
ideas: the Americans with Disabilities Act, the
How does this information deepen your understanding of the personal narrative? Share
Paralympics, cheetahs, silicon legs, and wearable
your findings with your small group.
sculpture.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG.indd 499 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 4/4/16 9:47 AM
Challenge
Narrative The author of “A Work in Progress” describes Encourage them to incorporate exaggeration, comic
how she overcame the physical challenges associated diction, and other humorous elements in a manner
with having had both of her legs amputated beneath the similar to that employed by author Aimee Mullins.
knee. This is a serious topic, but the author presents her Point out that students need not write about
story in a positive way and writes with a sense of humor anything they feel is too personal—a challenge
that reflects her personality and brings her words to life. might simply be studying for and passing a tough
Have students write a short autobiographical narrative test, working hard to make a sports team, learning
about a challenge they’ve faced. to play an instrument, and so on.

FACILITATING maKIng meanIng
Close Read the text

Jump Start With your group, revisit sections of the text you marked
during your first read. What do you notice? What
questions do you have? What can you conclude?
Close Read Ask groups to consider the
following prompt: What challenges are you A WORK IN PROGRESS
currently facing? How can you overcome these Cite textual evidenCe
challenges? As students discuss in their groups, analyze the text to support your answers.
remind them to listen respectfully to the notebook Complete the activities.

challenges faced by group members.
1. Review and Clarify With your group, reread paragraphs 5–6. What
GROUP DISCUSSION
reason did the narrator’s teacher give for not wanting her to return to
When you work with your
class? What do you think might have been the real reason?
Close Read the Text group, be sure to cite
textual details to support 2. Present and discuss Now, work with your group to share the
If needed, model close reading by using the your ideas. passages from the text that you found especially important. Take turns
Annotation Highlights in the Interactive Teacher’s presenting your passages. Discuss what you noticed in the text, the
Edition. Remind students to use Accountable questions you asked, and the conclusions you reached.
Talk in their discussions and to support one
another as they complete the close read. You may 3. essential Question: How do we overcome obstacles? What has
want to print copies of the Close Read Guide: this selection taught you about facing adversity? Discuss with your
group.
Nonfiction for students to use.  WoRd netWoRK
Add interesting words
Analyze the Text related to facing adversity language development
from the text to your Word
1. Possible response: The teacher said she was
Network.
“inappropriate.” The real reason might be she is Concept vocabulary
afraid of people who are different or that she is
unsure how to act. accomplishments extraordinary celebrate
2. Passages will vary. Students should discuss why  StANdARdS
they think the passages are important. Reading Informational Text Why these Words? The concept vocabulary words from the text are
• Analyze the interactions related. With your group, determine what the words have in common.
3. Responses will vary. Students should support their between individuals, events, and Write down your ideas, and add another word that fits the category.
ideas with details from the selection. ideas in a text.
• Determine the meaning of
words and phrases as they are
Practice
Concept Vocabulary used in a text, including figurative,
connotative, and technical

Confirm your understanding of the concept vocabulary words by using
Why These Words? Possible response: The meanings; analyze the impact
of a specific word choice on them in a discussion with your group in which you address the following
words all relate to overcoming obstacles. meaning and tone. question: What makes a person extraordinary?
• Determine an author’s point
Practice of view or purpose in a text
and analyze how the author
Responses will vary, but student discussions distinguishes his or her position Word Study
should demonstrate an understanding of each from that of others.
latin Prefix extra- The Latin prefix extra- means “beyond the scope of”
Language
word. Determine or clarify the meaning or “in addition to what is usual or expected.” At the end of the selection,
of unknown and multiple-meaning the author realizes that what makes her different also makes her
Word Network words and phrases based on grade
extraordinary, or beyond what is ordinary or expected. With your group,
7 reading and content, choosing
Possible words: progress, bane, hone, vulnerable flexibly from a range of strategies. identify and define two other words you know that include this prefix.
b. Use common,
Word Study grade-appropriate Greek
or Latin affixes and roots as
clues to the meaning of a word.
For more support, see Concept Vocabulary and
Word Study.
Possible response: words include extracurricular,
extrasensory, extraterrestrial
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG_APP.indd 500 4/18/16 10:16 AM
Analyze the Text Concept Vocabulary Word Study

If students struggle to close read the text, If students have difficulty identifying the If students have difficulty identifying words that
then provide the A Work in Progress: Text connection among the words, then have them begin with the prefix extra-, then guide them
Questions available online in the Interactive use each word in a sentence about facing in adding extra- to the beginnings of various
Teacher’s Edition or Unit Resources. Answers and adversity and consider what the sentences have adjectives. For Reteach and Practice, see Word
DOK levels are also available. in common. Study: Latin Prefix extra- (RP).

EssENTIAL QUEsTION: How do we overcome obstacles?

Author’s Purpose: Word Choice and Humor The main purpose of
Author’s Purpose: Word Choice and
humorous writing is to entertain readers. Authors may incorporate
elements of humorous writing into more serious writing in order to
Humor When authors use humor in their
express the lighter, human side of otherwise difficult situations. Some writing, they aren’t necessarily trying to get their
literary techniques that authors use to create humor are: readers to laugh aloud—but they are trying to
entertain them in some way. Writers can convey
LITERARY TECHNIQUE DEFINITION EXAMPLE a serious theme while incorporating humor, as
Aimee Mullins does in “A Work in Progress.”
HYPERBOLE intentional, sometimes describing a small patch of
outrageous, exaggeration ice as a “vast, frozen lake” Satire, limericks, farce, and humorous essays
for effect such as “A Work in Progress” are examples
of humorous writing. For more support, see
COMIC DICTION words chosen to make the “Letting the cat out of the
Analyze Craft and Structure: Humor.
reader laugh; these word bag is a lot easier than See possible responses in the chart on the
choices often include slang putting it back in.” student page.
and other informal language
Practice
INCONGRUITY when something is out of wearing bunny ears instead Responses will vary. Students should identify the
place or inappropriate for a of a veil with a bridal outfit
humorous parts of the passage they chose, add
situation or setting
humor to it, and then replace humorous wording
with non-humorous wording.

Reread “A Work in Progress.” Then, work with your group to analyze

the narrative. Use the chart to record your ideas. The first two rows have
identified humorous passages for you to analyze. In the last two rows,
identify the humorous passages on your own.
PARAGRAPHs HUMOROUs ELEMENT PURPOsE AND EFFECT

Comic diction in the choice of We would ordinarily say we
1: “But more importantly, I survived the slick
the word “survived” “walk” across a floor. By stating
marble floors that are all over this building.” she “survived the . . . floors” the
author makes us sympathetic to
her everyday challenges.

3: “I don’t have ankles, so I hit each step on Hyperbole in the image of a The author gives us a mental
“banana peel wipeout” image of an exaggerated
the stiletto, which makes the possibility of a accident such as a cartoon-
banana peel wipeout very likely.” character slipping, flipping in
the air, and falling down.
Comic diction in using The author chooses an
4–21 “. . . the nastiest shade of nuclear peach that “nuclear” with “peach” extreme term, “nuclear,”
you’ve ever seen . . . ” to exaggerate the intensity
of the peach tone of the
prosthetic foot.
Hyperbole in exaggerating The author explodes the idea
22–44 “And like all Internet-savvy
the intelligence most of us that five-year-old children
kindergarteners . . .”
assume in young children are completely innocent and
unaware of the larger world.
A Work in Progress 501 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

If students struggle to analyze the humor,
Personalize
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG_APP.indd 501 for Learning 4/18/16 10:16 AM
then guide them in doing so by directing their
attention to a specific passage and asking
English Language Support questions about it. For instance, you might direct
Using Hyperbole Have students think of a person Ask students to write a brief biography in which students’ attention to paragraph 9 and ask:
that they know or that they know of that they they use hyperbole to describe what the character “What effect does the information in brackets
can describe using hyperbole. For example, Marco looks like and what he or she can do. BRIDGING have on the reader? What happens that is
eats 42 bowls of cereal for breakfast. An expanded English Language Support unexpected or incongruous? What is ironic or
Have students write two sentences describing the Lesson on Hyperbole is available in the Interactive unexpected about the author’s thoughts in the
person. EMERGING Teacher’s Edition. last sentence of the paragraph?” For Reteach
Ask students to write a paragraph about the and Practice, see Analyze Craft and Structure:
person. EXPANDING Humor (RP).

FACILITATING Language DeveLopment
Conventions
Conventions Informal Grammar “A Work in Progress” is transcribed, or copied, from
Informal Grammar As you discuss Mullins’s use a speech that Aimee Mullins gave at the New York Public Library. While
of informal grammar with students, guide them speaking, Mullins chose informal grammar, or casual language rules, to
to understand the situations in which formal and connect with her audience. Some features of her spoken language include:
A WORK IN PROGRESS
informal grammar are considered appropriate.
• Colloquial Contractions Words such as gonna (going to), wanna
Discuss why most scholarly, legal, business, news (want to) and kinda (kind of) combine two words in a way that
and other professional informative writing uses imitates casual conversation.
formal grammar and how the effectiveness of
• Informal Transitions People often add casual words and phrases
informative writing might be altered if writers use such as man, I’m like, so there I was, and you know when they speak
more informal grammar. For more support, see to link ideas or create emphasis.
Conventions: Informal Grammar.
• Introductory Conjunctions Starting sentences with the
conjunctions and, but, or so can smooth the transition from one
Read It sentence into another in informal speech, even though they are
1. See possible responses in the chart on the discouraged in more formal writing.
student page.
Read It
2. Answers will vary. Students should identify
examples of how listeners’ connection with the 1. Work with your group to find two more examples of informal
speaker is greater if the speaker uses informal grammar in “A Work in Progress.” Then, rewrite each example of
grammar. informal grammar to follow standard English grammar rules.
 STANDARDS INFORMAL GRAMMAR FROM TEXT STANDARD GRAMMAR

Write It Speaking and Listening The only thought in my mind is, My
Paragraphs will vary but should be cogent and Engage effectively in a range of And all I’m thinking is, My parents are parents are going to be extremely angry
collaborative discussions with gonna kill me. with me.
understandable while using colloquial diction. diverse partners on grade 7 topics,
texts, and issues, building on
others’ ideas and expressing their This revelation is going to change my
This is a revelation, right? This is gonna life.
own clearly.
change my life.
a. Come to discussions prepared,
having read or researched
material under study; explicitly
A lifeguard did find me, and I’m sure
draw on that preparation by And a lifeguard did. And I’m sure he will he will need therapy to recover from
referring to evidence on the collect for therapy bills. You know? Like, the shock. This was not likely part of
topic, text, or issue to probe his training.
and reflect on ideas under they don’t show that on Baywatch.
discussion.
b. Follow rules for collegial He actually said that, even though it’s
For real, he said that. Wow. hard to believe

discussions, track progress
toward specific goals and I outed them (kinda mean, really). I exposed them, and when I think about
deadlines, and define individual it, I realize I was fairly mean.
roles as needed.
c. Pose questions that elicit
elaboration and respond to 2. Compare the impact of Mullins’s original words and the versions that
Formative Assessment others’ questions and comments follow standard grammar rules. What are the advantages of Mullins’s
with relevant observations and original language choices?
Conventions ideas that bring the discussion
back on topic as needed.
If students are having difficulty differentiating Language
Write It
between formal and informal grammar, then • Demonstrate command of the Notebook Write a paragraph that uses informal language to
have them observe peers’ casual conversation conventions of standard English
grammar and usage when writing tell about a funny incident that happened to you or someone you
and write down example sentences, word for or speaking. know. Imagine that you are sharing this story aloud with an audience,
word. Then have them mark the sentences by • Demonstrate command of the and writing down what you say as you are speaking. Use colloquial
circling any grammar they believe would need capitalization, punctuation, and contractions, informal transitions, and introductory conjunctions to
to be changed if it were written for an essay. spelling when writing. create a feeling of lively, spoken language.
For Reteach and Practice, see Conventions:
Informal Grammar (RP). 502 UNIT 5 • FacINg adversITy
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG_APP.indd Page 502 21/10/16 7:51 pm s-w-047

EffEctivE ExprEssion
Speaking and Listening Speaking and Listening

Assignment Explain that students will be discussing the
quotation’s significance in the selection, as well as
With your group, conduct a discussion in which you analyze one of
the following quotations from the selection.
what it means to them personally.
“And I had always been athletic, but it wasn’t until college that I started Organize Your Discussion Have groups
this adventure in Track and Field. I had gone through a lifetime of being record answers to all three discussion questions
given legs that just barely got me by. And I thought, Well, maybe I’m just in the chart. Then, have them formulate at
having the wrong conversations with the wrong people. Maybe I need least one more question of their own and
to go find people who say, ‘Yes, we can create anything for you in the add rows to the chart as necessary. Remind
space between where your leg ends and the ground.’” (paragraph 29) students to support their ideas with details from
“And the marvelous thing was that this six-year-old understood the text and from their own experience. For
something that it took me twenty-something years to get, but that we more support, see Speaking and Listening:
both did discover—that when we can celebrate and truly own what it
Group Discussion.
is that makes us different, we’re able to find the source of our greatest
creative power.” (paragraph 44)
Organize Your Discussion Assign roles for each member of your group.
 EVIDENCE LOG
Roles can include a group leader, who keeps the discussion on topic; a Evidence Log Support students in completing
Before moving on to a
timekeeper, who makes sure that the discussion takes no longer than 15
new selection, go to your their Evidence Log. This paced activity will
minutes; and a note-taker to record the group’s ideas. Once you have Evidence Log and record help prepare them for the Performance-Based
chosen a quotation, use these questions to guide your group’s discussion. what you learned from
Use a chart like this one to record ideas from your discussion.
“A Work in Progress.”
Here are some things to keep in mind as you hold your group discussion.
• Draw on the selection to explore and support ideas. Support
viewpoints with examples and details from the selection.
• Take turns speaking. Listen to other students’ ideas, and respond with
relevant observations and questions that prompt them to elaborate on
their thoughts.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS RESPONSES

1. What does the quotation mean? How could you

paraphrase it, or restate the ideas in your own
words?
2. What happens that causes the author to express Speaking and Listening
these ideas? What caused her to reach this If groups have difficulty organizing their
understanding? discussions, then assign roles and tasks to
group members. For Reteach and Practice,
3. Do you think it would help society if more people
see Speaking and Listening: Group
felt as this author feels? Why or why not? Discussion (RP).
Selection Test
Administer the “A Work in Progress” Selection
Test, which is available in both print and digital
A Work in Progress 503 formats online in Assessments.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B1_SG_APP.indd 503 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 15/04/16 3:34 PM
Strategic Support
Discussion Sensitivity The topic of the essay may be an emotional
one for some students. Provide an outlet for expressing feelings that
students might have in response to the essay or to the quotations
called out in the group discussion assignment. Some students might
be better able to complete the discussion assignment with a partner
rather than in a group.

PLANNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • from THE STORY OF MY LIFE
from The Story of My Life

Audio Summaries
Audio summaries of the excerpt
Summary
from The Story of My Life In this excerpt from Helen Keller’s autobiography, The Story of My
are available online in both Life, Keller describes a moment that changed her life forever. At
English and Spanish in the the age of seven, unable to see, hear, or speak, a new teacher,
Interactive Teacher’s Edition or Annie Sullivan, works with Helen to connect words and language
Unit Resources. Assigning these by signing words into the palm of Helen’s hand. It is a slow process
until one day, Helen makes the connection between the word being
spelled in her hand, “water,” and the cool liquid she feels. It’s at this
point that a new world opens up for Helen Keller.
their first read.
Insight
This selection helps students understand that apparently hopeless
challenges can be met with intelligence, courage, and compassion.
Essential Question:
obstacles? The Story of My Life provides a strong connection to the Essential
Question, “How do we overcome obstacles?” Helen Keller faced
enormous obstacles due to her inability to see, hear, or speak. However,
with the help of her teacher, she learned to overcome these obstacles
and live a remarkable life.
How do people face Small-Group Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
challenges in order to students will present an informative essay about how people face
overcome adversity? challenges to overcome adversity. This selection provides students
with examples of courage and compassion.
Assessment Unit Performance-Based Assessment As students work on the
How can people overcome assessment, they will need to support their response to the prompt
adversity in the face of with evidence about facing challenges. From the moment of her
overwhelming obstacles? revelation at the water pump, Keller faces a stunning challenge with
eagerness and courage.

DIGITAL
Lesson Resources
Making Meaning Language Development

Lesson First Read Concept Vocabulary
Instructional RI.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and
Standards nonfiction . . . multiple-meaning words and phrases . . .
L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and L.4.b Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes
multiple–meaning words and phrases . . . and roots . . .
L.4.a Use context as a clue . . .
RI.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases . . .
RI.6 Determine an author’s point of view . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online in the Selection Audio Word Network
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Read Guide: Nonfiction
Close-Read Guide: Nonfiction
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources
Audio Summaries Concept Vocabulary and Word Study
Interactive Teacher’s Annotation Highlights Conventions: Types of Dependent Clauses
EL Highlights E nglish Language Support
Lesson: Adverb and Adjective Clauses
from The Story of My Life: Text Questions
Analyze Craft and Structure: Autobiographical Writing
Analyze Craft and Structure: Autobiographical Writing (RP) Word Study: Greek Root -myst- (RP)
Interactive Teacher’s Conventions: Types of Dependent Clauses (RP)
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments

PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • from THE STORY OF MY LIFE
Reading Support
Text Complexity Rubric: from The Story of My Life

Lexile: 970 Text Length: 733 words
Knowledge Demands Background knowledge on Helen Keller’s life will help with understanding.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure The structure is simple and the excerpt is short.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity Conventional language and on-level vocabulary.

1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The story discusses education, learning, and disability, as well as Keller’s struggle to overcome a unique
1 2 3 4 5 obstacle to her own ability to learn.
DECIDE AND PLAN

Provide English learners with support for Provide students with strategic support Provide students who need to be challenged
knowledge and language as they read to ensure that they can successfully read with ideas for how they can go beyond a
the selection. the text. simple interpretation of the text.
Knowledge Discuss with students the era Knowledge Tell students to discuss the Text Analysis Challenge students to
in which Helen Keller lived. There were no epiphany Helen Keller had as a “misty investigate Helen Keller’s ability to learn
institutional mechanisms in place to help consciousness” came over her and she new things. Ask them whether, based on
people who were deaf, mute, and blind. began to understand the “mystery of their reading of the text, they believe that a
Talk about how she went on to write a language.” Tell them to consider how person who is deaf, mute, and blind has the
book, the one they read an excerpt from, Keller’s words in this excerpt help us to same access to all knowledge as one who
and to achieve many things while earning understand what it’s really like to learn is just deaf, or just blind. Then have them
the admiration of people across America. language for a person who cannot see reread the text and think about what the
Language Ask students if they know or hear. greatest obstacles were that Keller faced.
how Miss Sullivan is “spelling” words like Language Ask students what they think Written Response Suggest that students
“d-o-l-l” to Helen Keller. If any student has of Helen Keller’s writing style. How do they take the role of Miss Sullivan, from Helen
a deaf family member, or knows about think she “writes” so well if she cannot Keller’s excerpt. Ask them how they might
American Sign Language, have them see or hear? Use this discussion to segue go about teaching a young deaf or blind
talk about it in class. Discuss the severe into the idea that there are no obstacles to girl or boy, and what their tactics might
challenges of understanding the most learning to write well. Although we are all be to get messages across to them. Have
basic elements of language, starting from a different, ultimately it is possible to achieve them write this up and ask that they include
point, like Helen Keller, of absolute deafness clarity and beauty in writing. modern technology and conveniences that
and blindness. might help.
Teach
Read and Respond

Have the groups read the selection and complete the Making Meaning and Language Development
activities.

IDENTIFY NEEDS
Analyze results of the Beginning-
of-Year Assessment, focusing on
the items relating to Unit 5. Also DECIDE AND PLAN
take into consideration student
your observations of where
particular students struggle. • If students have done well on the Beginning-of-Year Assessment, then challenge them to
keep progressing and learning by giving them opportunities to practice the skills in depth.
• Use the Selection Resources listed on the Planning pages “from The Story of My Life” to
help students continually improve their ability to master the standards.
Instructional Standards: from The Story of My Life

Reading You may wish to administer the RI.6 Determine an author’s Challenge students to
ANALYZE AND REVISE Analyze Craft and Structure: point of view or purpose in discuss what purpose an
Autobiographical Writing a text and analyze how the autobiography may have other
• Analyze student work for (RP) worksheet to help author distinguishes his or her than to entertain.
students understand the tenets position from that of others.
evidence of student learning. of autobiography.
have met the expectations in Language You may wish to administer L.1.a Explain the function of Have students locate gerund,
the standards. the Conventions: Types of phrases and clauses in general participial, and infinitive
Dependent Clauses (RP) and their function in specific phrases in the selection.
• Identify implications for future worksheet to help students sentences.
instruction. Have students find other
understand adverb, relative and
L.4.b Use common, examples of Greek root words.
noun-dependent clauses.
grade-appropriate Greek or
You may wish to administer Latin affixes and roots as clues
the Word Study: Greek Root to the meaning of a word.
-myst -(RP) worksheet to help
students understand that the
root -myst- means “secret.”
TEACH
Implement the planned lesson,
and gather evidence of student
learning.

Comparing Text to Media

In this lesson, you will compare a passage from
Jump Start from THE STORY OF

Helen Keller’s autobiography with a scene from
“How Helen Keller Learned to Talk.” First, complete
HOW HELEN KELLER
the first-read and close-read activities for the
First Read Can you imagine not having the MY LIFE
excerpt from The Story of My Life. The work
LEARNED TO TALK
ability to see, hear, or speak, or even knowing you do with your group will help prepare you to
that language exists? Engage students in a compare the excerpt and the video.
discussion about the importance of language
that sets the context for reading the excerpt
from The Story of My Life. As students share
their thoughts, guide them to identify specific
About the Author
factors that affected their responses.
Concept Vocabulary
As you perform your first read of the excerpt from The Story of My Life,
you will encounter these words.
Have you ever struggled to learn a new skill? imitate mystery barriers
What are some of the obstacles that come A serious illness left Helen
between a dim understanding and true Keller (1880–1968) blind Context Clues If these words are unfamiliar to you, try using context
and deaf before she was clues to help you determine their meanings. There are various types of
knowledge? Modeling questions readers might
two years old. When context clues that you may encounter as you read.
ask as they read this excerpt from The Story of Keller was nearly seven,
My Life brings the text alive for students and her family hired Anne
connects to the Small Group Performance Task Synonyms: With the help of her teacher, she was able to
Sullivan, a teacher from
comprehend or understand new ideas.
question. Selection audio and print capability are the Perkins School for the
available in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition. Blind, to help her learn Restatement of an idea: There were many obstacles on her path,
to communicate. Keller but she would not let them block her progress.
and Sullivan developed a
Concept Vocabulary remarkable teacher-student
Have groups discuss the different types of relationship as well as a Apply your knowledge of context clues and other vocabulary strategies to
context clues illustrated on the student page. For unique friendship. determine the meanings of other unfamiliar words you encounter during
each word used in the examples (comprehend, your first read.
obstacles), encourage groups to come up with a
First Read NONFICTION
definition based on the clues provided. Ask group
members if they can think of any other types of Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.

context clues.
 STANDARDS
FIRST READ Reading Informational Text
By the end of the year, read and NOTICE the general ideas of ANNOTATE by marking
comprehend literary nonfiction in the text. What is it about? vocabulary and key passages
Have students perform the steps of the first the grades 6–8 text complexity band Who is involved? you want to revisit.
proficiently, with scaffolding as
read independently. needed at the high end of the range.
Language
NOTICE: Encourage students to notice each Determine or clarify the meaning
instance of Miss Sullivan attempting to teach of unknown and multiple–meaning
Helen Keller something. words and phrases based on CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
grade 7 reading and content,
the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
ANNOTATE: Remind students to mark passages choosing flexibly from a range
of strategies. already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
showing Helen’s reaction to the obstacles she a. Use context as a clue to the have already read. the selection.
faces in trying to understand what Miss Sullivan is meaning of a word or phrase.
teaching her.
CONNECT: Have students compare Helen’s
struggle to understand language with their
own struggles to learn new skills—or with the
struggles of other people with physical disabilities FACILITATING SMALL-GROUP CLOSE Reading
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG.indd 504 15/04/16 4:41 PM
about whom students have read or heard.
CLOSE READ: Autobiography Circulate among thoughts and feelings about events as they
groups as they perform their close read, offering happen. However, autobiography also includes
support as needed. the author’s reflections, as an older person, on
Point out to students that while they will always • Remind students that when reading an the significance of the events.
complete the Respond step at the end of the autobiography, they should look for traditional • As they read, suggest that students try to
first read, the other steps will probably happen narrative elements such as characters, setting, distinguish between the thoughts and feelings
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print and key events. Helen recalls having about events at the time
copies of the First-Read Guide: Nonfiction for • Written from the first-person point of view, they took place and her reflections on those
students to use. autobiographical writing includes the author’s events as a mature adult.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY EXCERPT
from The Story

of My Life
Helen Keller
BACKGROUND
In this excerpt from her autobiography, Helen Keller describes her first SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA
experience with language at the age of six. The Story of My Life was
published in 1903, when Keller was 23 years old.
T he morning after my teacher came she led me into her room

and gave me a doll. The little blind children at the Perkins
Institution1 had sent it and Laura Bridgman had dressed it; but I
NOTES
did not know this until afterward.

Mark context clues or indicate
2 When I had played with it a little while, Miss Sullivan slowly
spelled into my hand the word “d-o-l-l.” I was at once interested helped you determine meaning.
in this finger play and tried to imitate it. When I finally succeeded imitate (IHM uh tayt) v.
in making the letters correctly I was flushed with childish pleasure MEANING:
1. Perkins Institution The Perkins School for the Blind, founded in 1829 in Boston.
from The Story of My Life 505
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG.indd 505 16-04-01 10:23 AM

VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT
Word Forms Have students find Kathryn learned the dance step by The mysterious valentine was signed “an
another form of the word imitate in imitating her big sister. (Possible response: admirer.” (Possible response: adjective
paragraph 2. Then model other forms present participle meaning “following the meaning “causing curiosity while difficult
of the words imitate and mystery in model of or copying”) to identify”)
sentences. Challenge students to identify There is no comparison between imitation Gabriel only smiled mysteriously when
the part of speech and definition of chocolate and the real thing. (Possible I asked where he had been. (Possible
each form. response: noun meaning “artificial or response: adverb meaning “in a way that
manufactured”) is difficult to understand or interpret”)

FACILITATING
and pride. Running downstairs to my mother I held up my hand
Concept Vocabulary NOTES and made the letters for doll. I did not know that I was spelling a
word or even that words existed; I was simply making my fingers
IMITATE If groups are struggling to define the
go in monkey-like imitation. In the days that followed I learned to
word imitate (paragraph 2), point out that they
spell in this uncomprehending way a great many words, among
can use context clues to infer the meaning. Draw
them pin, hat, cup, and a few verbs like sit, stand, and walk. But my
their attention to the context clue succeeded
teacher had been with me several weeks before I understood that
in making . . . correctly. Point out that this is a
everything has a name.
context clue that restates an idea. Have students
3 One day, while I was playing with my new doll, Miss Sullivan
use this context clue to define the word.
put my big rag doll into my lap also, spelled “d-o-l-l” and tried
Possible response: In this context, imitate means to make me understand that “d-o-l-l” applied to both. Earlier
“to follow as a model” or “to copy.” in the day we had had a tussle over the words “m-u-g” and
MYSTERY If groups need help defining the word “w-a-t-e-r.” Miss Sullivan had tried to impress it upon me that
mystery (paragraph 4), point out that they can “m-u-g” is mug and that “w-a-t-e-r” is water, but I persisted in
use context clues to infer the meaning. Draw confounding the two. In despair she had dropped the subject
their attention to the context clue revealed. Point for the time, only to renew it at the first opportunity. I became
out that this is a cause-and-effect context clue impatient at her repeated attempts and, seizing the new doll, I
because it relates the target word (mystery) to its dashed it upon the floor. I was keenly delighted when I felt the
result (revealed). Have students use this context fragments of the broken doll at my feet. Neither sorrow nor regret
clue to define the word. followed my passionate outburst. I had not loved the doll. In the
still, dark world in which I lived there was no strong sentiment or
Possible response: In this context, mystery
means “something hidden” or “something difficult tenderness. I felt my teacher sweep the fragments to one side of
to know.” the hearth, and I had a sense of satisfaction that the cause of my
discomfort was removed. She brought me my hat, and I knew I
BARRIERS To help groups struggling to define was going out into the warm sunshine. This thought, if a wordless
barriers (paragraph 4), draw their attention to sensation may be called a thought, made me hop and skip
the context clue set [my soul] free. There were with pleasure.
barriers still, it is true . . . Have students restate 4 We walked down the path to the well-house,2 attracted by
the second part of this clue (possible response: the fragrance of the honeysuckle with which it was covered.
Although there were still barriers) to more clearly Someone was drawing water and my teacher placed my hand
show the contrast it draws to the first part of the under the spout. As the cool stream gushed over one hand she
clue (set [my soul] free). Help students see that a spelled into the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly.
barrier must be something that contrasts with or I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her
prevents something from being free. Mark context clues or indicate
fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something

Possible response: In this context, barriers helped you determine meaning. forgotten—a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the
means “obstacles.” You may want to point out mystery (MIHS tuh ree) n. mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that
that a barrier can also mean fence, but in this MEANING: “w-a-t-e-r” meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing
case the word is used more generally, to refer to over my hand. That living word awakened my soul, gave it light,
Helen’s disabilities. barriers (BAR ee uhrz) n. hope, joy, set it free! There were barriers still, it is true, but barriers
MEANING: that could in time be swept away.
5 I left the well-house eager to learn. Everything had a name, and
each name gave birth to a new thought. As we returned to the
house every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life.

is available in the Interactive Teacher’s 2. well-house small building containing a well.
Edition.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG.indd 506 16-04-01 10:23 AM

Understanding Verb Tense Help students events occurred before the incident Suggest that students begin by identifying
analyze the sequence of events in being described. These earlier events are the specific events being described.
paragraph 1 in order to better understand expressed in the past perfect tense, which Possible response: Perkins students sent
the role that verb-tense shifts play in is formed with had + past participle of a doll. / Laura Bridgeman dressed it. /
narrative writing. Have students create a the verb. The past perfect tense expresses Helen’s teacher came. / Miss Sullivan led
timeline of the events described on this events that occurred before a specific time Helen to her room. / She gave Helen a doll.
page. Help students understand that some in the past, which appear in the past tense. / Later Helen learned where it came from.
EMERGENT

That was because I saw everything with the strange, new sight
that had come to me. On entering the door I remembered the doll NOTES
CLOSER LOOK
I had broken. I felt my way to the hearth and picked up the pieces.
I tried vainly to put them together. Then my eyes filled with
tears; for I realized what I had done, and for the first time I felt
Analyzing Figurative
repentance and sorrow. Language
6 I learned a great many new words that day. I do not remember Circulate among groups as students conduct
what they all were; but I do know that mother, father, sister, teacher their close read. Suggest that groups read
were among them—words that were to make the world blossom paragraph 5. Encourage them to talk about
for me, “like Aaron’s rod, with flowers.”3 It would have been the annotations they mark. If needed, provide
difficult to find a happier child than I was as I lay in my crib at the the following support.
close of that eventful day and lived over the joys it had brought
ANNOTATE: Have groups mark details in
me, and for the first time longed for a new day to come. ❧
paragraph 5 that Keller uses to describe her
3. “like Aaron’s rod, with flowers” in the Old Testament of the Bible, the staff of Aaron
reaction to what she learned in paragraph 4;
miraculously gives forth buds and flowers. then have them highlight phrases within
these details where she uses words in an
unusual, non-literal way. Groups may work
independently, or you may work with small
groups as you highlight them together.
Question: Ask, “What effect does the
author create with these expressions?” Accept
student responses.
Possible response: “Gave birth” and “quiver
with life” both suggest a new world that has
opened up for Helen Keller now that she has an
understanding of language.
CONCLUDE: Help students to formulate
conclusions about the importance of these
figures of speech in the text. Ask students
why the author might have included
these details.
Possible response: Keller wants the reader
to understand how this new understanding is

opening up a world for her of which she was
previously unaware.
Remind students that writers use figurative
language to make unusual comparisons. The
figures of speech Keller uses here include the
following:
• personification, in which inanimate
objects are given human characteristics
(“each name gave birth to a new thought”;
“every object . . . seemed to quiver
with life”)
• metaphor, in which the author states
or implies that two dissimilar things are
alike. (When Keller says “I saw . . . with a
strange, new sight” she compares her new
understanding to seeing.)
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG.indd 507 15-12-14 12:12 PM

FACILITATING

Possible responses: details with your group.
1. The smell of honeysuckle
2. The sense of touch 1. What attracts Keller and her teacher toward the well-house?
3. She felt a desire to learn the name of everything
she came into contact with.
4. Helen’s teacher gives her a doll and then writes
“d-o-l-l” in Helen’s hand. Helen is able to copy
this and other words spelled into her hand, but
she does not understand how these sensations
relate to the things they name. Helen and her
teacher walk to the well-house, where someone
2. Through which sense does Keller experience the water?
is pumping water. Helen’s teacher holds Helen’s
hand under the water, while spelling the word
water in the other hand. Helen realizes that the
word represents the things she feels on her hand.
This helps her to understand language and brings
her great joy and hope.
Research
Research to Clarify If groups struggle to narrow 3. Once Helen Keller learns the word for water, what is she eager to do next?
their research topic, suggest the following
narrower research topics: early life, experience
at the Perkins School for the Blind, or experience
working with Helen Keller. Whichever topic
students choose, encourage them to use reliable
research sources and explain how what they
learned sheds light on the excerpt from The Story
of My Life. 4. Notebook Confirm your understanding of the excerpt by writing a brief
summary of it.
Research to Explore Suggest that students

focus on Helen’s life after the moment described
in the excerpt. If students have trouble narrowing
their topics, suggest they explore her continued RESEARCH
work with Annie Sullivan, her formal education, Research to Clarify Research an unfamiliar detail in the excerpt. For example, you
or her work on behalf of people with disabilities. might want to learn more about Helen Keller’s teacher, Anne Sullivan. In what way
Remind students to connect their research with does the information you learned shed light on the excerpt? Share your findings with
the excerpt. your group.
Research to Explore Choose something from the text that interested you. For
example, you might want to learn more about how blind people learn to read. How
does this information deepen your understanding of the text? Share your findings with
your group.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG.indd 508 Personalize for Learning 16-04-01 10:24 AM
Challenge
Research Why did Annie Sullivan write into Helen’s hand? Did she
invent this method or did she learn it? Was she writing out alphabet
letters as we know them? Did Sullivan and Helen Keller change the way
people like Helen are educated? Have students look for the answers to
one or more of these questions as they research methods for teaching
people with profound vision and hearing loss. Suggest that they present
their information chronologically, to show how methods have changed
over time. Ask students to share their findings with the class.

MAKING MEANING
Close Read the text

With your group, revisit sections of the text you marked
during your first read. annotate details that you notice. Jump Start
What questions do you have? What can you conclude?
Close Read Ask students to consider
from THE STORY OF MY LIFE the following prompt: How would you
Cite textual evidenCe teach someone who cannot see or hear to
analyze the text to support your answers.
communicate? As students discuss the prompt
notebook Complete the activities. in their groups, have them consider what
1. Review and Clarify With your group, reread the excerpt. How does obstacles they and their student would face.
GROUP DISCUSSION
the author use imagery, or words and phrases that appeal to the five
When you work in your
senses? How does her use of imagery affect the reader?
group to answer the
2. Present and discuss Now work with your group to share the Analyze the Text questions,
be sure to direct listeners to
Close Read the Text
passages from the text that you found especially important. Take turns
specific words, sentences, If needed, model close reading by using
presenting your passages. Discuss what you noticed in the text, the
questions you asked, and the conclusions you reached.
and paragraphs in the the Annotation Highlights in the Interactive
selection. Teacher’s Edition.
3. essential Question: How do we overcome obstacles? What Remind students to use Accountable Talk in
has this excerpt taught you about how people overcome obstacles? their discussions and to support one another as
Discuss with your group. they complete the close read.
language development Analyze the Text

1. Possible response: Keller appeals to the senses of
Concept vocabulary smell (“fragrance of the honeysuckle”) and touch
(“cool stream”). She expresses joy and hope.
imitate mystery barriers
2. Passages will vary by group. Remind students
to explain why they chose the passage they
Why these Words? The concept vocabulary words from the text are
 WoRd netWoRK presented to group members.
related. With your group, determine what the words have in common.
Write your ideas and add another word that fits the category.
Add interesting words 3. Responses will vary by group.
related to facing adversity
from the text to your Word
Network. Concept Vocabulary
Practice
Why These Words? Possible response: In this
notebook Confirm your understanding of these words from  STandaRdS selection, all three words relate to overcoming
the text by using them in sentences. Be sure to use context clues that Reading Informational Text
Determine the meaning of words hardship, especially the struggle to understand
demonstrate your understand of the meaning of each word.
and phrases as they are used something.
in a text, including figurative,
connotative, and technical
meanings; analyze the impact of a Practice
Word Study specific word choice on meaning Possible response: Helen learned to imitate writing
and tone.
Greek Root: -myst- The Greek root -myst- means “secret.” In the Language
by making the same symbols in her hand that
selection, Helen Keller describes how the mystery, or “secret,” of Determine or clarify the meaning Miss Sullivan had. Even though Helen could copy
language was revealed to her through her experience with water at of unknown and multiple-meaning the letters in her hand, their meaning remained a
words and phrases based on grade
the well-house. Identify another word you know with the Greek root 7 reading and content, choosing mystery. When Helen finally understood that the
-myst-, and use it in a sentence that shows your understanding of the flexibly from a range of strategies. letters were names for things, she overcame a huge
word’s meaning. b. Use common,
grade-appropriate Greek or
barrier to communication.
Latin affixes and roots as clues
to the meaning of a word.
Word Network
Possible responses: succeeded, uncomprehending,
tussle, confounding, attempts, vainly
Word Study
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG_APP.indd 509 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT Concept Vocabulary 4/18/16 10:18 AM
Analyze the Text If students fail to see the connection among the Word Study.
If students struggle to close read the text, then vocabulary words, then create a concept map
graphic organizer with each word radiating Possible response:
provide from The Story of My Life: Text
from a circle in the middle, to be filled in mystical: having a spiritual meaning that can’t be
Questions available online in the Interactive
with the thematic connection of the words. understood by senses or thought (Visiting the shrine
Teacher’s Edition or Unit Resources. Answers
Help students see that the common theme is of my ancestors was an almost mystical experience.)
and DOK levels are also available.
overcoming adversity or struggling to learn. For
Reteach and Practice, see Word Study: Greek
Root -myst- (RP).

FACILITATING LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Author’s Purpose: Autobiographical Writing Autobiographical
Author’s Purpose: Autobiographical
writing is a form of nonfiction narrative writing in which the author
Writing Remind students that in addition provides true accounts of events which he or she directly experienced.
to writing to entertain or inform, there are Autobiographical writing relates the author’s thoughts, feelings,
from THE STORY OF MY LIFE
other important purposes for writing. One and reflections on the events he or she describes in the narrative.
is to persuade; argument, like that found in In autobiographical writing, the author is the narrator and uses the
newspapers’ editorial pages, is an example of  STANDARDS first-person point of view because he or she takes part in the
this type of writing. Another purpose writers Reading Informational Text events described.
may have is to express themselves—for example, • Determine the meaning of
words and phrases as they are In an autobiographical work, an author may have many purposes,
to explore their feelings or express an emotion. used in a text, including figurative, or reasons for writing. For example, a comedian might write an
Journal writing, much poetry, and many forms connotative, and technical
autobiography to both entertain readers with humor and to inform them
meanings; analyze the impact of a
of personal writing have an expressive purpose. specific word choice on meaning about the events surrounding his or her experiences. You can determine
Make sure students understand that much writing and tone. an author’s purpose by analyzing the author’s word choice and the
• Determine an author’s point
combines two or more of these general purposes. of view or purpose in a text author’s tone, or his or her attitude toward the subject and audience.
and analyze how the author
Help students understand how they can infer distinguishes his or her position
purpose from word choice and tone. In the from that of others.
first sample response provided, for example,
draw students’ attention to the word monkey- CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE
like: This word reveals the author’s tone, or Practice to support your answers.
attitude toward her younger self (frank and
Reread the excerpt from The Story of My Life.
unsparing), and it helps her to explain each
step in the long road to understanding. For more Notebook Use the chart to identify specific sentences or passages from the
support, see Analyze Craft and Structure: selection that contribute to the author’s purpose. Make inferences, or educated
guesses, about the ways in which the author’s tone and word choice in these sections
Autobiographical Writing.
suggest her purpose for writing.
Practice See possible responses in the chart on
the student page. SELECTION DETAIL POSSIBLE PURPOSE
“I did not know that I was spelling a word or even To explain (what Helen did and did not understand
that words existed; I was simply making my fingers go at that time)
in a monkey-like imitation.” (paragraph 2)
“Neither sorrow nor regret followed my passionate To explain (in frank words what Helen’s inner world

outburst. I had not loved the doll. In the still, dark was like), to express (the young Helen’s feelings)
world in which I lived, there was no strong sentiment
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT or tenderness.”(paragraph 3)
Analyze Craft and Structure “I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the To explain (how Helen came to understand language);
If students have difficulty determining the motion of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty to express (how that gradual recognition felt, and the
author’s purpose through the passages they consciousness as of something forgotten—a thrill mystery of the moment her understanding “clicked”)
of returning thought, and somehow the mystery of
identified, then have them look for a striking language was revealed to me.” (paragraph 4)
word or phrase within those passages and
then ask themselves, What is the author’s tone
When you have finished, share your ideas with your small group. Work together to
here? Provide students with some possible tone determine Helen Keller’s purpose or purposes for writing. List several details from the
descriptors, such as awed, frank, frustrated, excerpt that support your inferences about Keller’s purpose. Then, answer the following
determined, sentimental, unsentimental. For what question: How does Helen Keller use autobiographical writing to effectively express her
purpose is this tone best suited? To entertain, purpose and unique point of view?
express a feeling, explain, or persuade? For
Reteach and Practice, see Analyze Craft and
Structure: Autobiographical Writing (RP). 510 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG_APP.indd 510 19/04/16 9:48 AM
English Language Support Describe the associations the word has: here, it
Connotations Connotations can relate to suggests strength and stubbornness. Connect this
an author’s purpose by suggesting emotions tone to a possible purpose: the tone suggests the
associated with a word. Draw students’ attention writer wants to express what it felt like before she
to the word tussle (paragraph). Tussle means “a had language. ALL LEVELS
physical contest or intense struggle.”

Language DeveLopment
Types of Dependent Clauses Good writers use a variety of clauses to
Types of Dependent Clauses In order to
enliven their writing and to provide detail.
complete the Read It and Write It activities,
A clause is a group of words with its own subject and verb. An students may need additional explanation of
independent clause, or main clause, can stand alone as a complete dependent clauses. As necessary, provide the
sentence. A dependent, or subordinate, clause also has a subject and
following instruction:
a verb, but it cannot stand alone as a complete sentence.
• Some adjective clauses begin with relative
Dependent clauses are classified according to how they function in adverbs, such as when or where (e.g., “the
a sentence.
village where I grew up). Any adjective clause,
• An adverb clause acts as an adverb in a sentence. It begins with a whether it begins with a relative pronoun or
subordinating conjunction, such as although, if, when, or because. a relative adverb, answers the question what
• A relative, or adjective, clause acts as an adjective. It usually begins kind, which one, or how many about a noun
with a relative pronoun, such as who, whom, whose, which, or that. or pronoun in another clause.
• A noun clause acts as a noun. It begins with a word such as what, • Sometimes the word introducing a relative
whatever, when, where, how, or why.
clause or a noun clause is not expressed but
In the examples in this chart, each type of dependent clause is is understood.
underlined.
Examples: The pants [that] I like best
TYPE OF CLAUSE ExAmPLE have pleats. I know [that] you can hear me.
Adverb Clause Because Keller could not see or hear, she struggled to For more support, see Conventions: Types of
understand language. Dependent Clauses.
(acts as an adverb, modifying the verb struggled)
Read It
Relative Clause Anne Sullivan, who was her teacher, helped Keller break
Possible responses:
through the barriers that challenged her.
a. There were barriers still, it is true, but barriers
(acts as an adjective, modifying Anne Sullivan)
that could in time be swept away.
Noun Clause Keller made the connection between the feel of the water b. adjective clause modifying barriers
and what Sullivan was writing on her hand.
c. When I had played with it a little while, Miss
(acts as a noun, the object of the
Sullivan slowly spelled into my hand the word
preposition between)
“d-o-l-l.”
Read It d. adverb clause modifying spelled
Work with your group to identify examples of dependent clauses in e. I did not know that I was spelling a word or
the excerpt. Write your examples in the chart, and label the type of even that words existed; I was simply making
dependent clause shown in each example. my fingers go in a monkey-like imitation.
f. noun clauses acting as the compound object of
ExAmPLE FROm THE TExT TYPE OF DEPEnDEnT CLAUSE
the verb know
a. See possible responses in Teacher’s Edition b.
c. d.
e. f.
Write It
Notebook Write a paragraph describing a time you overcame a
barrier to learning. Use specific sensory details to help readers see, hear,
smell, and feel the experience. In your paragraph, correctly use at least
one adverb clause, one relative clause, and one noun clause.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B2C_SG_APP.indd 511 Personalize for Learning 15/04/16 3:38 PM
Conventions
English Language Support If students have difficulty distinguishing
Using Adverb and Adjective Clauses Have Ask students to write a few paragraphs about between dependent clauses and phrases in a
students research additional information about what they learned from their research and if they sentence, then make sure they understand
a part of Helen Keller’s life and then ask them to were surprised by what they learned. BRIDGING that any clause must contain both a subject
write about what they learned using adverb and
An expanded English Language Support and its predicate, or verb. Make sure students
adjective clauses.
Lesson on Adverb and Adjective Clauses is understand that -ing forms of verbs are
Ask students to write three sentences about what available in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition. verbals, and not verbs themselves. For Reteach
they learned from their research. EMERGING
and Practice, see Conventions: Types of
Ask students to write a paragraph about what Dependent Clauses (RP).
they learned. EXPANDING
PLANNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • How Helen Keller Learned to Talk
How Helen Keller Learned to Talk

Audio Summaries
Audio summaries of “How
Summary
Helen Keller Learned to Talk” In the video “How Helen Keller Learned to Talk,” Anne Sullivan
are available online in both describes the process she used to teach Helen Keller how to speak.
English and Spanish in the While Sullivan talks, Keller demonstrates the same actions Sullivan
Interactive Teacher’s Edition or is describing. First, Sullivan describes that when they first met, Keller
Unit Resources. Assigning these
had almost no means of communicating. The two women then
summaries prior to reviewing
demonstrate that when Keller placed her hand on Sullivan’s face in a
the video may help students
particular position, she could feel the different types of vibrations of
knowledge and set a context for human speech. After much teaching and practice, Helen learned to
their first review. say her first word, “it,” and later her first sentence.
Insight
This selection helps students understand that challenges that
may seem hopeless can be met with intelligence, courage, and
perseverance.
Essential Question:
obstacles? Helen Keller faced great obstacles in her life. Students may see that until
she can grasp the concept of language, the rest of the world remains
out of her reach. Anne Sullivan’s actions and dedication model one
response to the Essential Question.
How do people face
Small-Group Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
challenges in order to
students will present an informative essay to show the steps and actions
overcome adversity?
people take to overcome adversity. This video provides students with
a vivid demonstration of the steps Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan took
Assessment together to overcome adversity.
How can people overcome Unit Performance-Based Assessment As students work on the
adversity in the face of assessment, they will need to support their response to the prompt with
overwhelming obstacles? support about facing challenges. From this video, students can easily
infer the countless hours of work Helen Keller endured to overcome the
obstacles she faced.

DIGITAL
LESSON RESOURCES

Lesson First Review Concept Vocabulary Writing to Compare
Close Review Word Study
Analyze the Text
Instructional RI.10 By the end of the year, read and L.6 Acquire and use accurately RI.7 Compare and contrast a text . . .
Standards comprehend literary nonfiction . . . grade-appropriate general W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts . . .
academic and domain-specific W.2.a Introduce a topic clearly . . .
L.6 Acquire and use accurately
words and phrases . . . W.2.b Develop the topic . . .
grade-appropriate general academic
W.9 Draw evidence . . .
and domain-specific words and
W.9.a Apply grade 7 Reading standards . . .
phrases . . .
SL.1 Engage effectively . . .
SL.1.b Follow rules for collegial discussions . . .
SL.2 Analyze the main ideas . . .
SL.5 Include multimedia components . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online in the Selection Audio
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Review Guide: Media: Video
Close-Review Guide: Media: Video
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources Audio Summaries Media Vocabulary Writing to Compare: Multimedia
Presentation
Interactive Teacher’s
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments
Media Complexity Rubric: How Helen Keller Learned to Talk

Format and Length: video of 3 minutes, 4 seconds
Knowledge Demands Prior knowledge of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan will be required to understand the clip.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure The clip’s structure is simple, as Anne narrates and Helen demonstrates their process.
1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity Anne Sullivan’s language is clear and easily accessible.
1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The concepts of education and disability and are not hard to grasp.
1 2 3 4 5

v
Comparing Text to Media

You will now watch”How Helen Keller Learned
Jump Start from THE STORY OF MY LIFE

to Talk,” an interview that shows Keller with her
teacher, Anne Sullivan. As you watch the video,
HOW HELEN KELLER
consider the differences in how Helen Keller’s
First Review Use the following prompt LEARNED TO TALK
experience is portrayed in her autobiography
to start a discussion in groups: How might a
and in the interview.
dramatic story like Helen Keller’s lend itself to
both text and film? As students discuss, urge
them to also share moments in books and
movies that have moved them deeply—and why. About Anne Sullivan
This video shows Helen How Helen Keller Learned to Talk
Keller with her teacher,
Media Vocabulary
Anne Sullivan
How Helen Keller Learned (1866–1936). Sullivan These words will be useful to you as you analyze, discuss, and write
herself was visually impaired, about the video.
to Talk and in her early years she
long shot: camera shot in • Long shots are often used to show something
What would it be like to touch a person’s face lived in a home for the poor
following the death of her which the entire subject is happening in the background behind the
and feel vocal vibrations for the first time? visible as well as some of subject.
mother. She rose from these
Modeling a question like this will help students the background around • Filmmakers will sometimes use a long shot to
conditions to become a
connect to “How Helen Keller Learned to Talk” legendary teacher. Her first the subject establish the setting of a scene.
and to the Small-Group Performance Task. step was finding an opening medium shot: camera shot • A medium shot is useful for showing two
as a student at the Perkins
Project the video in class, ask students to open in which the subject is seen characters engaging in dialogue.
School for the Blind when from a medium distance,
the video in their interactive textbooks, or have she was 14. At age 21,
• Medium shots are often used in the transition
usually from the waist up between a long shot and close-up shot.
students scan the BouncePage icon with their she became Helen Keller’s
phones to access it. teacher. close-up shot: camera • A close-up shot is often used to show the
shot in which the subject facial expression of a character.
Media Vocabulary is shown at close range;
typically the subject’s head
• Close-up shots can also be used to show a
detail on a prop or what characters are doing
Encourage groups to discuss the media and shoulders are shown, with their hands.
vocabulary. Have they seen the terms in texts with no background visible
before? Do they use any of them in their speech
and writing?
Ask groups to look closely at the three terms First Review MEDIA: VIDEO
and ask how they might relate to scenes they Study the video and take notes as you watch.
have scene in movies and on television. For more

support, see Media Vocabulary.
H
TC
 STANDARDS
WA
Reading Informational Texts WATCH who speaks, what they NOTE elements that you find
FIRST REVIEW By the end of the year, read and say, and how they say it. interesting and want to revisit.
Have students perform the steps of the first the grades 6–8 text complexity band
proficiently, with scaffolding as
review independently: needed at the high end of the range.
WATCH: Remind students to pay close attention Language CONNECT ideas in the RESPOND by completing
Acquire and use accurately grade- video to other media you’ve the Comprehension Check
to how the two women interact with each other. appropriate general academic and
domain-specific words and phrases; experienced, texts you’ve read, at the end.
NOTE: Encourage students to note any parts they gather vocabulary knowledge or images you’ve seen.
may want to revisit during their close review. when considering a word or phrase
CONNECT: Encourage students to make expression.
connections beyond the video. If they cannot

make connections to their own lives, have them 512 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY
consider people they know or have read about
who faced extraordinary challenges.
RESPOND: Students will answer questions and LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG.indd 512 15/04/16 4:37 PM
first review, the other steps will probably happen
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print
copies of the First-Review Guide: Media:
Video for students to use.

MEDIA | INTERVIEW
How Helen Keller Learned to Talk Closer REVIEW
Helen Keller, with Anne Sullivan Analyze Close-Up Shots

their close review. Suggest that groups close
review 1:19–1:37 and 2:47–3:04 in the
film. Encourage them to talk about what
they note. If needed, provide the following
support.
NOTE: Have students note details in the film
that show the effect of the close-up shots,
or work with small groups to have students
participate while you note them together.
QUESTION: Guide students to consider what
these details might tell them. Ask what a
viewer can better understand and infer from
these close-up shots, and accept student
responses.
Possible response: The close-up shots show
the people’s faces in greater detail. The viewer
can see the exact position of Helen’s fingers on
Anne’s face. The viewer can infer that it took a
great deal of work for them to succeed. In the
BACKGROUND
close-up of Helen, the viewer sees a big change
SCAN FOR
as she speaks—an expression of joy comes
This video interview with Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan was made in 1928. In MULTIMEDIA
across her face.
the interview, Sullivan demonstrates and explains how Keller learned to talk by
feeling the vibrations that are made in a person’s mouth and throat when he or CONCLUDE: Help students to formulate
she is speaking. conclusions about the importance of these
details in the video. Ask students why the
director might have included these details.
NOTES Possible response: Because Helen learned to
speak by close physical contact with Anne’s face,
the director wanted viewers to see the faces

clearly. Using close-up shots allows viewers to
gain a vivid understanding of her achievement.
Remind students that close-up shots are just
one of many techniques film directors use in
both documentary (nonfiction) and fictional
films to help viewers better understand
the story.
How Helen Keller Learned to Talk 513
LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG.indd 513 FACILITATING SMALL-GROUP LEARNING 16-04-01 10:31 AM
CLOSE REVIEW: Film As groups perform the • If the group is confused by the process
close review of this video, circulate and offer described by Anne Sullivan, suggest that
support as needed. they feel the vibrations on themselves as they
• Remind groups that this is a documentary, speak by holding a finger to their throat, lips,
or nonfiction, film and that the people in the and nose.
scene are the actual Helen Keller and Anne • Challenge groups to come up with their own
Sullivan, not actors portraying them. paraphrase of what happened in the scene.

FACILITATING Making Meaning

Complete the following items after you finish your first review.
Possible responses:
1. Helen was six years and eight months old. 1. How old was Helen Keller when Anne Sullivan first met her?
2. Helen placed her thumb on her larnyx (throat),
one finger on her lips, and one finger on the side
of her nose.
3. “I am not dumb now.”
2. In what position on her teacher’s face did Keller have to place her hand in
order to feel the vibrations of the spoken word?
3. What does Keller say at the end of the interview?

LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG_APP.indd 514 16-04-01 10:36 AM

MAKING MEANING
Close Review
Watch the film clip again. Record any new observations
that seem important. What questions do you have? Jump Start
What can you conclude?
Close Review Ask students to consider the
HOW HELEN KELLER LEARNED following prompt: If you were a filmmaker
TO TALK
trying to show this interview from Helen’s
Analyze the Media point of view, how would you go about it? As
Notebook Complete the activities.
students discuss the prompt in their groups,
have them consider possible approaches—such
1. Present and Discuss Choose the section of the video you find as using some combination of camera angles
most interesting or powerful. Share your choice with the group, and
and sound to convey Helen’s perspective.
discuss why you chose it. Explain what you noticed in the section, the
questions it raised for you, and the conclusions you reached about it.
2. Review and Synthesize With your group, review the video interview.
How does the video deepen your understanding of the challenges Close Review
Helen Keller faced? How does it highlight her triumphs? Explain. If needed, model close reviewing by using
3. Notebook Essential Question: How do we overcome the Closer Review note in the Interactive
obstacles? What have you learned about overcoming obstacles and Teacher’s Edition.
facing adversity from the interview? Remind students to use Accountable Talk in
their discussions and to support one another as
LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT they complete the close review.
Media Vocabulary Analyze the Media

Use the vocabulary words in your responses to the items. Encourage groups to discuss their decisions about
the scene using specific reasons for their choices.
long shot medium shot close-up shot 1. Responses will vary by group. Remind students
to review their notes from the first review to
get details that support their assertions before
1. What type of shot is used at the very beginning of the video? Why do
discussing with the group.
you think the director used that shot?
2. Responses will vary by group. Groups should
provide details and evidence to enhance their
descriptions.
3. Responses will vary. Students should cite how
2. What type of shot is used as Anne Sullivan is introducing Helen Keller
Helen Keller’s traumatic struggle and eventual
at the beginning of the video?
success suggests both the difficulty and the
possibility of overcoming obstacles.
 STANDARDS Media Vocabulary

3. What type of shot is used when Sullivan is demonstrating how Keller Language
placed her hand on Sullivan’s face? What does the shot enable the Acquire and use accurately grade- For more support, see Media Vocabulary.
appropriate general academic and
director of the video to show? domain-specific words and phrases; Possible responses:
gather vocabulary knowledge 1. medium shot
when considering a word or phrase
important to comprehension 2. a long shot
or expression.
3. a close-up
How Helen Keller Learned to Talk 515
LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG_APP.indd 515 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT 19/04/16 10:02 AM
Analyze the Media Media Vocabulary

If students struggle to close review the film If students struggle to identify the kind of shot
clip, then provide the How Helen Keller at the beginning of the film clip, then have
Learned to Talk: Media Questions available them review the definitions of the three shots.
online in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition or Unit
Resources. Answers and DOK levels are also
available.

FACILITATING EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION
Writing to Compare Writing to Compare

Both the The Story of My Life and “How Helen Keller Learned to Talk”
Planning and Prewriting show the sense of triumph that Keller experiences from overcoming
Compare the Text and Video If groups have challenges with language through the help of her teacher, Anne Sullivan.
trouble making these comparisons, urge them
from THE STORY OF MY LIFE
to define and clarify what is relevant in the
two selections—the filmed interview and the Assignment
autobiography. For example, have them compare Create a multimedia presentation about Keller’s life and education
who tells the story in each selection and how in which you compare and contrast the text and the video. In your
presentation, explain how the written account and the video portray
the medium helps determine that aspect. Also
the subject, Helen Keller, in different ways. Choose from these options:
urge them to consider what elements must be
included for the basic message of the selections an instructional booklet illustrating Sullivan’s lessons to Keller
to be expressed, whether in print or on film. HOW HELEN KELLER LEARNED
TO TALK an informational Web site about Keller and her education
Possible responses:
1. The description of coming to understand a museum guide for an exhibit about Keller and her education
language by feeling water flowing shows that
Keller was curious and eager to learn. The video
shows one ingenious way that Keller was able to Planning and Prewriting
learn something with Sullivan’s help. Compare the Text and Video Using a chart, such as the one shown,
2. The text explains how Keller came to understand work with your group to analyze the ways in which the text and video
the concept of language; the video explains one portray the subjects of Keller and Sullivan as well as Keller’s educational
way she learned to use it. process.
3. The text depicts Keller in her own words but is
AUTOBIOGRAPHY SIMILARITIES AND
limited to written expression. The video shows PORTRAYAL VIDEO INTERVIEW
EXCERPT DIFFERENCES
how Keller could learn things despite her
Keller is an articulate writer who Keller is silent but then In the text, Keller’s thoughts are
disabilities, but it is limited to the perspective of Keller describes scenese and show the speaks, first only sounds evident. The film can’t show
Sullivan. reader her inner struggles and and words. Finally, she thought. Her personality comes
accomplishments. triumphantly speaks an entire through in both.
See possible responses in chart on student page. sentence.
Sullivan Sullivan’s thoughts are less Sullivan describes the work The text is told from Keller’s
prominent. The reader gets a of breaking through. Her perspective. The video gives
sense of her perseverance. facial expressions convey her more information about
feelings. Sullivan.
The reader gains an The viewer witnesses how The video shows Keller’s
Educational Process
understanding of Keller’s first, Keller learned an amazing learning achievements far

emerging sensations of sound, technique that allowed her to after the event in the text.
words, and meanings. use language.
Notebook Respond to the following items.

1. What details in the text help readers to understand Keller’s thoughts
and experiences? Does the video enable viewers to gain the same
understanding of Keller’s personality?
2. How does the portrayal of Sullivan and Keller in the video expand your
 STANDARDS understanding of them from the text?
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT Compare and contrast a text to an
3. Briefly summarize the strengths and weaknesses of each medium’s
audio, video, or multimedia version portrayal of Keller.
Prepare to Compare of the text, analyzing each medium’s
If students are unable to compare the film scene portrayal of the subject.
with the text, then have them write a brief
summary of what happens in each. 516 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG_APP.indd 516 19/04/16 10:07 AM
Strategic Support
Support for Making Comparisons Students may elements in the clip, particularly how the body
require support in locating relevant information is used, and compare them to descriptions of
for making comparisons between the text and the body and physical sensations in the book
the video. Suggest to students that they compare excerpts. Students can also compare the voice
and contrast the content of each selection—what of the selections’ subject, Helen Keller—her
Helen is shown learning in the book excerpt and narrator’s voice in the text and her speaking voice
in the video. Explain that because film is a visual in the video.
medium, students should look at the key visual

eSSeNTIAl queSTION: How do we overcome obstacles?
Assign Tasks Make a list of tasks you will have to accomplish in order to
finish your presentation. Assign the tasks to individual group members. Assign Tasks
Adapt this list to suit the needs of your group. Guide groups to work cooperatively in assigning
tasks to individual group members. Make sure all
TASK LIST
 evidence log group members are active and engaged.
Research the Topic: Decide whether you need more background
new selection, go to your Drafting
information on Keller and Sullivan. If you do, research and gather Evidence Log and record
the information. Determine Your Central Idea Remind students
what you’ve learned from
that their thesis statement should clearly state
Assigned To: the text excerpt from
The Story of My Life and their point of comparison between the treatment
Locate Media: Find multimedia elements—audio, video, and the video “How Helen of the content in the two media, text and video.
images—that will highlight the information in your presentation Keller Learned to Talk.” In the drafting phase, students should be flexible
and engage your audience. to possible changes in the central idea they
Assigned To: decide at the outset of the project.
Gather Quotes and Details: Identify details from both selections that  STANDArDS
Include Comparisons of Text to Video Remind
support and clarify your central ideas. Note direct quotations that Writing students to provide examples and evidence from
will strengthen the support for your main points. • Write informative/explanatory texts both text and the video sources when describing
Assigned To: concepts, and information through their comparisons. Examples should be concise;
the selection, organization, and text and dialogue should be quoted directly or be
Make a Rough Outline: Organize a sequence for your content so analysis of relevant content.
accurately paraphrased.
that the text and multimedia elements complement each other. You
can change the sequence as you develop your presentation. organize ideas, concepts, and
information, using strategies Reviewing, Revising, and Editing
Assigned To: such as definition, classification, Guide students to include attributions to title
comparison/ contrast, and cause/
effect; include formatting, graphics, and author for all sources of content in their
and multimedia when useful to presentations. As a new source is introduced it
Drafting aiding comprehension.
can be easily attributed in transitional language.
Determine Your Central Idea Write a one-sentence thesis in which you b. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete details, Subsequent references to sources do not need
state your central idea. quotations, or other information to be fully attributed but do need to be clearly
and examples.
Thesis: • Draw evidence from literary or
identified to avoid audience confusion. For more
informational texts to support support see: Writing to Compare: Multimedia
analysis, reflection, and research. Presentation
Work with your group to incorporate the media so that it supports your b. Apply grade 7 Reading
standards to literary nonfiction. Evidence Log Support students in completing
central idea.

• Engage effectively in a range of
Include Comparisons of Text to Video Use your notes from the collaborative discussions with diverse help prepare them for the Performance-Based
analysis you did earlier to create a script that explains how the text and partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and
issues, building on others’ ideas and
the video contribute in different ways to your understanding of Helen expressing their own clearly.
Keller and her education. b. Follow rules for collegial
discussions, track progress toward
Reviewing, Revising, and Editing specific goals and deadlines, and
define individual roles as needed.
Before presenting your finished work to the class, check to be sure that • Analyze the main ideas and
all the media and text you have chosen to include add value to the supporting details presented in
diverse media and formats and
presentation. If necessary, revise the arrangement of content so that the explain how the ideas clarify a topic, FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
text and multimedia elements transition more smoothly. text, or issue under study.
• Include multimedia components Writing to Compare
and visual displays in presentations
to clarify claims and findings and If students are unable to find an observation
emphasize salient points. for each medium in each category in the chart,
then have them fill in only the sections they feel
from The Story of My Life • How Helen Keller Learned to Talk 517 confident about.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B3C_M_SG_APP.indd 517 Digital perspectives 18/04/16 9:35 AM
Enriching the Text To give students a different dramatic retelling, students can compare and
perspective on the same content, locate online contrast Keller’s own account of the scene in
clips from the 1962 film version and the 1979 her autobiography to filmmakers’ dramatized
and 2000 TV movie versions of The Miracle adaptations of the same events. To extend this
Worker, and show the water pump scene that activity, students can also locate the script to the
corresponds to the autobiography excerpt. stage play The Miracle Worker for an additional
Because filmed versions are based on Helen point of comparison.
Keller’s autobiography but are adapted for a

PLANNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • A YOUNG TINKERER BUILDS A WINDMILL
A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill,

Audio Summaries
Audio summaries of “A Young
Summary
Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Sarah Childress’s news article “A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill,
Electrifying a Nation” are Electrifying a Nation,“ tells the story of an African teenager who had
available online in both English a big impact on his family and his country. William Kamkwamba was
and Spanish in the Interactive just a teenager whose family couldn’t afford the $80 a year it cost in
Teacher’s Edition or Unit Malawi to keep him in school. So he helped out on the family farm
Resources. Assigning these
and read the books donated to the local library. In one of them he
saw a windmill, and that was the beginning of a remarkable story.
William began to build his own windmill and, even though it looked
knowledge and set a context for silly and was noisy, it gave his family electricity for the first time.
their first read. Soon, the outside world learned about the windmill in the small
village of Masitala, and William’s life started to change.
Insight
The inspiring story of William Kamkwamba shows how determination
and ingenuity can not only build a windmill but change a life.
Essential Question:
obstacles? The challenge in William Kamkwamba’s life is how to get an education
and help his family. He begins the process of educating himself by
reading, and that leads him to an endeavor that improves his family’s
life. His innovation and persistence were noticed by people who paid
for him to continue his education, and his TED talks brought his story
to a wider audience.
How do people face Small-Group Learning Performance Task In this Performance Task,
challenges in order to students will present an informative essay about how people face
overcome adversity? challenges to overcome adversity. This selection provides students with
examples of ingenuity and determination.
Assessment Unit Performance-Based Assessment William Kamkwamba is a young
How can people man with a desire for education, but his family cannot afford to pay
overcome adversity in the for it. Students should consider that, while Kamkwamba had some
face of overwhelming remarkable luck later in his story, he begins with actively pursuing
obstacles? knowledge by reading books from the local library. One of those books
presented him with the idea that changed the course of his life and the
knowledge to pursue it.

DIGITAL
LESSON RESOURCES

Lesson First Read Concept Vocabulary Writing to Sources
Instructional RI.10 By the end of the year, read and L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of W.2.a Introduce a topic
Standards comprehend literary nonfiction . . . unknown and multiple-meaning words clearly . . .
and phrases . . .
L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of W.2.b Develop the topic . . .
unknown and multiple-meaning words L.4.b Use common, grade-appropriate
W.7 Conduct short research
and phrases . . . Greek or Latin affixes and roots . . .
projects . . .
L.4.a Use context as a clue . . . L.2 Demonstrate command of the
W.8 Gather relevant
conventions . . .
RI.1 Cite several pieces of textual evidence . . . information . . .
RI.3 Analyze the interactions between
individuals . . .
RI.5 Analyze the structure an author uses . . .
STUDENT RESOURCES
Available online in the Selection Audio Word Network Evidence Log
Interactive Student
Edition or Unit Resources First-Read Guide: Nonfiction
Close-Read Guide: Nonfiction
TEACHER RESOURCES
Selection Resources
C riting to Sources:
W
Word Study How-to-Essay
Edition or Unit Resources Conventions: Capitalization
EL Highlights
Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill: Text
A
Questions
E nglish Language Support Lesson:
Personal Interviews
A
Biographical Writing
A Word Study: Etymology (RP) riting to Sources:
W
Biographical Writing (RP) How-to-Essay (RP)
Interactive Teacher’s Conventions: Capitalization (RP)
Assessment
Selection Test
Available online in
Assessments
My Resources

PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING SMALL- GROUP LEARNING • A YOUNG TINKERER BUILDS A WINDMILL
Reading Support
Text Complexity Rubric: A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Electrifying a Nation

Knowledge Demands Students may need an introduction to African issues, culture, and economic struggles, but otherwise
1 2 3 4 5 the story is straightforward.
Structure The story is a short journalistic piece with a conventional structure.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity The language is simple and conventional, very clear, and easy to read.
1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The true story works as an inspirational piece and as a kind of short primer on Africa, development,
1 2 3 4 5 and entrepreneurialism.
DECIDE AND PLAN

knowledge and meaning as they read the to ensure that they can successfully read with ideas for how they can go beyond a
Knowledge Ask students to think about Knowledge Ask students to reread the Text Analysis Ask students to take this
what they learned from the short article by text and make a list of interesting topics, information and write their own one-page
Sarah Childress. Ask language learners to ideas, and words in Sarah Childress’s article. article with it. Challenge them to use
consider the facts and interesting ideas they Then have them point out Malawi on a William Kamkwamba’s story and frame it,
took from the piece, and then have them world map and discuss the climate and the like a journalist would, in their own way.
discuss with each other how the article countries surrounding it. In doing this, they Then, discuss the differences in perspective
challenged them to think differently about can understand that learning comes not between their work and the work of other
Africa and its people. just from reading an article, but also from classmates.
Meaning Discuss with students the reading around a topic, in other books and Written Response Ask students to
different lessons they can take from the resources. consider what their own community, school,
article. Talk about what might happen
Meaning Encourage students to consider or family needs and to write a proposal for
in their own communities if they built
how this article perhaps challenges certain making it happen. If it requires research,
an electricity-producing windmill today.
stereotypes that Americans may have about encourage them to visit a library or to go
Would the community use or appreciate
African cultures. Ask them how the article online to study what they would have to
it? The topic of jealousy in the article is
made them think differently about life in a do in their own communities to achieve the
very interesting. Encourage students to
country like Malawi. kind of thing William Kamkwamba has.
think about why it came up as an issue for
William Kamkwamba.
TEACH
Read and Respond

Have the class do their first read of the selection. Then, have them complete their close read. Finally,

IDENTIFY NEEDS
• Use the Selection Resources listed on the Planning pages for “A Young Tinkerer Builds a
Windmill, Electrifying a Nation” to help students continually improve their ability to master
the standards.
Instructional Standards: A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Electrifying a Nation

Reading You may wish to administer the RI.5 Analyze the structure Challenge students to consider
ANALYZE AND REVISE Analyze Craft and Structure: an author uses to organize a other ways an author might
Biographical Writing (RP) text, including how the major structure a biography.
• Analyze student work for worksheet to help students sections contribute to the whole
understand the elements of and to the development of
evidence of student learning.
biographical writing. the ideas.
have met the expectations in Writing You may wish to administer W.2.b Develop the topic with Take the assignment to the next
the standards. the Writing to Sources: relevant facts, definitions, level by challenging students
How-to Essay (RP) worksheet concrete details, quotations, to make their own “How-To”
• Identify implications for future to help students understand or other information and videos.
instruction. the tenets of autobiography. examples.
Language You may wish to administer the L.2 Demonstrate command of Have students locate capital
Conventions: Capitalization the conventions of standard letters in the selection.
(RP) worksheet to help English capitalization,
Have students find other
students understand that punctuation, and spelling when
suffixes they recognize in
capital letters signal the writing.
the text.
beginning of a sentence or
L.4 Determine or clarify the
quotation and identify proper
TEACH meaning of unknown and
nouns and proper adjectives.
multiple-meaning words and
You may wish to administer the phrases based on grade 7
Implement the planned lesson, Word Study: Transitions (RP) reading and content, choosing
and gather evidence of student worksheet to help students flexibly from a range of
learning. understand that both single strategies.
words (such as “because” and
“since”) and phrases (such
as “for that reason”) can be
transitions.

About the Author

Sarah Childress (b. 1980)
A Young Tinkerer Builds a
Jump Start is a Senior Reporter at
Frontline, PBS’s investigative
Windmill, Electrifying a Nation
First Read Use the following prompt to journalism series. Childress Concept Vocabulary
has also written articles for
start a group discussion: Have you ever taught Newsweek and The Wall
As you perform your first read of “A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill,
yourself a difficult skill? Engage students in a Street Journal. Electrifying a Nation,” you will encounter these words.
discussion about the potential and limitations
of self-teaching that sets the context for scarcity desire attempts
reading “A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill,
Electrifying a Nation.” As students share their Context Clues If these words are unfamiliar to you, try using context
clues to help you determine their meanings. There are various types of
thoughts, guide them to identify specific factors
context clues that you may encounter as you read.
that affected their responses.
Synonyms: Due to the insufficiency, or lack, of electricity, he was
inspired to come up with a solution to power his home.
A Young Tinkerer Builds Restatement of an Idea: More power supplies are needed for the
a Windmill, Electrifying expansion of the electrical grid, which will lead to the proliferation
of the home use of electric appliances.
a Nation Contrast of Ideas and Topics: He strived to make his invention
Can a self-taught child help a nation develop? work, but he eventually had to quit.
Modeling questions that readers might ask as
they read “A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Apply your knowledge of context clues and other vocabulary strategies to
Electrifying a Nation” brings the text alive for determine the meaning of other unfamiliar words you encounter during
students and connects to the Small Group your first read.
Performance Task question. Selection audio and
print capability are available in the Interactive
Teacher’s Edition. First Read NONFICTION
Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
Concept Vocabulary opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.
Ask groups to look closely at the three types of
context clues—synonym, restatement of an idea,
and contrast of ideas and topics—and have group NOTICE the general ideas of ANNOTATE by marking

members take turns explaining how the example the text. What is it about? vocabulary and key passages
illustrates the context clue in each case. Who is involved? you want to revisit.
 STANdArdS
FIRST READ By the end of the year, read and
the grades 6–8 text complexity band
Have students perform the steps of the first read proficiently, with scaffolding as CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
needed at the high end of the range. the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
independently:
Language already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
NOTICE: Encourage students to notice details Determine or clarify the meaning have already read. the selection.
about William Kamkwamba and the people in his words and phrases based on
life—family members, villagers, teacher. grade 7 reading and content,
choosing flexibly from a range of
ANNOTATE: Remind students to mark passages strategies.
a. Use context as a clue to the
showing William’s thoughts and actions and the meaning of a word or phrase.
reactions of the people around him.
CONNECT: Compare William’s activities to those 518 UNIT 5 • FACINg ADvERSITY
of other inventors or innovators you know, have
read about, or have seen in the media.
FACILITATING SMALL-GROUP CLOSE LEARNING
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 518 15/04/16 3:40 PM
Point out to students that while they will always CLOSE READ: News Article Circulate among • Point out that since this story focuses
complete the Respond step at the end of the groups as they perform their close read, offering on a particular person, it has features of
support as needed. a biography, a narrative form. Remind
• Remind students that when reading a students to look for narrative techniques, like
somewhat concurrently. You may wish to print characterization.
copies of the First-Read Guide: Nonfiction for newspaper article, they should expect to find
answers to the 5W-how? questions in the early • Remind students to look for hallmarks of
students to use. paragraphs. informative texts as well, such as main ideas
and supporting evidence—facts, examples,
and anecdotes.

NEWS ARTICLE
CLOSER LOOK
Analyzing Description
their close read. Suggest that groups close
read paragraph 2. Encourage them to talk
about the annotations they mark. If needed,
provide the following support.
ANNOTATE: Have groups mark descriptions
of the tallest windmill and people’s reaction to
it in paragraph 2.
A Young Tinkerer Question: Ask, “What does this description
Builds a Windmill, help the reader to understand?” Accept

student responses.
Electrifying a Nation Possible response: 39 feet is very tall—taller

than a telephone pole, I think. The house
Mr. Kamkwamba lives in doesn’t have many
Sarah Childress appliances compared to what I am used
to—in fact, I wouldn’t even consider lightbulbs
appliances!
BACKGROUND CONCLUDE: Help students to formulate

Malawi is a landlocked country in southeastern Africa, one-fifth of SCAN FOR conclusions about the importance of these
MULTIMEDIA
which is taken up by the enormous Lake Malawi. Malawi’s economy is details in the text. Ask students why the
mostly farming-based, and most of its citizens live in rural areas. Only a author might have included these details.
small number of the almost seventeen million Malawians have access to
Possible response: The windmill must have
electricity, which is typically limited to large cities. been tricky for one person to build, especially
using trees and spare parts. Mr. Kamkwamba
1
M asitala, Malawi—On a continent woefully short of

electricity, 20-year-old William Kamkwamba has a dream:
to power up his country one windmill at a time.
NOTES
must be quite resourceful. Apparently it takes a
very tall windmill to power just a few appliances.
And yet this tall windmill is a local attraction,
2 So far, he has built three windmills in his yard here, using so it must be unusual in this area to have any
blue-gum trees and bicycle parts. His tallest, at 39 feet, towers power at all. Mr. Kamkwamba’s village must be
over this windswept village, clattering away as it powers his very poor, very remote, or both.
family’s few electrical appliances: 10 six-watt light bulbs, a TV set, Remind students that description in a
and a radio. The machine draws in visitors from miles around. newspaper article includes facts, examples,
3 Self-taught, Mr. Kamkwamba took up windmill building after statistics, quotations from interviews with
seeing a picture of one in an old textbook. He’s currently working people involved, and direct observations.
on a design for a windmill powerful enough to pump water from Journalists try to present these facts
wells and provide lighting for Masitala, a cluster of buildings objectively, without judgment or bias.
where about 60 families live.
4 Then, he wants to build more windmills for other villages
across the country. Betting he can do it, a group of investors are
putting him through school.
A Young Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Electrifying a Nation 519
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 519 Digital perspectives 16-04-01 10:38 AM
Illuminating the Text Before or after their first final column (I Learned). Then have groups share
reading of the text, ask each group to create a what they learned, and as a class try to resolve
K-W-L chart about windmills, and then have them any unanswered questions from the middle
fill out the first two columns (I Know; I Want to column. Be sure to preview the online resource
Know). Show a brief video or other concise online before sharing it with the class. (Research to
resource explaining how windmills work. After Clarify)
reviewing sources, have students complete the

FACILITATING
5 “I was thinking about electricity,” says Mr. Kamkwamba,
Concept Vocabulary NOTES explaining how he got hooked on wind. “I was thinking
about what I’d like to have at home, and I was thinking,
SCARCITY If groups are struggling to define the
‘What can I do?’”
word scarcity in paragraph 8, point out that they
6 To meet his family’s growing power needs, he recently
can use context clues to infer the meaning. Draw
hammered in a shiny store-bought windmill next to the big one at
their attention to the context clue energy poverty,
his home and installed solar panels. He has another windmill still
which is defined in the text as “the scarcity of
in its box that he’ll put up at a house 70 miles away in the capital,
modern fuels and electrical supplies in poor parts
Lilongwe, where he now goes to school.
of the world.” Have students use this context clue
7 A few years ago, he built a windmill for the primary school
to define the word.
in Masitala. He used it to teach an informal windmill-building
Possible response: In this context, scarcity means Mark context clues or indicate
course. Lately, he has offered to help the village handyman down
“lack” or “shortage.” helped you determine meaning. the road build his own machine.
scarcity (SKAYR suh tee) n. 8 “Energy poverty”—the scarcity of modern fuels and electrical
MEANING: supplies in poor parts of the world—is a subject of great interest
to development economists. The windmill at the Kamkwamba
family compound, a few brick buildings perched on a hill
overlooking the village, has turned it into a stop for the curious:
People trekking across Malawi’s arid plains drop by. Villagers
now regularly make the dusty walk up the hill to charge their
cellphones.
9 The contraption causing all the fuss is a tower made from
lashed-together blue-gum tree trunks. From a distance, it
resembles an old oil derrick.1 For blades, Mr. Kamkwamba used
flattened plastic pipes. He built a turbine from spare bicycle parts.
When the wind kicks up, the blades spin so fast they rock the
tower violently back and forth.
10 Mr. Kamkwamba’s wind obsession started six years ago. He
wasn’t going to school anymore because his family couldn’t afford
the $80-a-year tuition.
11 When he wasn’t helping his family farm groundnuts and
soybeans, he was reading. He stumbled onto a photograph of a
windmill in a text donated to the local library and started to build
one himself. The project seemed a waste of time to his parents and

the rest of Masitala.
12 “At first, we were laughing at him,” says Agnes Kamkwamba,
Additional English Language Support is his mother. “We thought he was doing something useless.”
available in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition.
13 The laughter ended when he hooked up his windmill to a thin
copper wire, a car battery, and a light bulb for each room of the
family’s main house.
14 The family soon started enjoying the trappings of modern
life: a radio and, more recently, a TV. They no longer have to buy
paraffin for lantern light. Two of Mr. Kamkwamba’s six sisters
stay up late studying for school.
1. derrick (DER ik) n. metal framework used in oil drilling.
HOW LANGUAGE WORKS

LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 520 16-04-01 10:38 AM
Transitions Call student attention to the earliest events, first. Draw students’ (a) William Kamkwamba built windmills for
the shift in time between paragraphs 6 attention to transitions his home. (b) William saw a picture of a
and 7. Some students may be confused that appear in this article, such as so windmill in a book. (c) William is working
by the way this article jumps around in far (paragraph 2), then (paragraph 4), on a windmill to light and pump water for
time. Although biographies often proceed recently (paragraph 6), and years ago Masitala. (d) William built a windmill for
chronologically, the newspaper format of (paragraph 7). Then, ask students to use a primary school in Masitala. (e) William
this article demands that the author put transitions in the text to help them place stopped going to school.
the most important ideas, rather than the following events in time order: Possible response: e, b, a, d, c

15 “Our lives are much happier now,” Mrs. Kamkwamba says.
16 The new power also attracted a swarm of admirers. Last NOTES
November, Hartford Mchazime, a Malawian educator, heard

about the windmill and drove out to the Kamkwamba house
with some reporters. After the news hit the blogosphere, a
group of entrepreneurs scouting for ideas in Africa located
Mr. Kamkwamba. Called TED, the group, which invites the likes
of Al Gore and Bono to share ideas at conferences, invited him to a
brainstorming session earlier this year.
17 In June, Mr. Kamkwamba was onstage at a TED conference in
Tanzania. (TED stands for Technology Entertainment Design.) “I
got information about a windmill, and I try and I made it,” he said
in halting English to a big ovation. After the conference, a group
of entrepreneurs, African bloggers, and venture capitalists2—some
teary-eyed at the speech—pledged to finance his education.
18 His backers have also showered him with new gadgets,
including a cellphone with a hip-hop ringtone, a laptop, and
an iPod. (Kelly Clarkson’s “Breakaway” is his current favorite
tune.) They rewired his family’s house, replacing the homemade
switches he made out of flip-flop parts.
19 They’re paying for him to attend an expensive international
academy in the capital, Lilongwe, for children of expatriate
missionaries and aid workers. But his teacher, Lorilee MacLean,
sometimes worries about his one-track mind and about all the
attention he’s getting.
20 “I don’t want him to be seen as William the windmill maker,”
said Mrs. MacLean one day recently. While Mr. Kamkwamba
quietly plowed through homework, his classmates were busy
gossiping and checking their Facebook profiles.
21 Mr. Kamkwamba has taught his family to maintain the
windmill when he’s away at school. His sister Dolice and cousin
Geoffrey can quickly scamper up the tower, as it sways and
clatters in the wind, to make repairs.
A steady stream of curiosity seekers make the trip to the
22
Kamkwamba compound—mostly unannounced. The visits are

unsettling for the reserved family.
23 One afternoon, a pair of Malawian health workers came by
to get a closer look and meet Mr. Kamkwamba. The family
scattered, leaving the pair—dressed in shirts and ties for the
occasion—standing awkwardly in the yard.
24 “We have heard about this windmill, and so we wanted to
see it for ourselves,” one finally spoke up. Mr. Kamkwamba
2. venture capitalists n. people who provide money to small companies in exchange

for partial ownership of those companies. If the companies grow, venture capitalists
make money.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 521 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 15-12-14 12:30 PM

Cultural Concepts Call students’ attention to speakers on the TED stage today. English-
the description of TED in paragraph 16. TED is language learners may find inspiration in
a nonprofit group founded in 1984 to spread viewing William Kamkwamba’s first and
innovative ideas through short, powerful talks. Its second talks and witnessing his growth as a
popularity has exploded along with the growth of public speaker. The first talk, filmed in 2007, is
the Internet, and hundreds of millions of people about 4 minutes long and accessible through
worldwide have viewed “TED Talks” on the TED’s website. The second talk, from 2009, is
organization’s website. The T in TED stands for about the same length. ALL LEVELS
“technology,” which is the topic for most of the

FACILITATING
came around to shake hands, then quickly moved away to show
Concept Vocabulary NOTES another visitor around.
25 Jealousy is a social taboo in these parts, but Fred Mwale, an
DESIRE If groups are struggling to define the Mark context clues or indicate
educator who works in Wimbe, the area that includes Masitala,
word desire in paragraph 26, point out that they another strategy you used that
helped you determine meaning. says the family’s new prosperity is causing some tensions.
can use contrasting context clues to infer the
desire (dih ZY uhr) v. 26 “People do desire what is happening here. They come, and
meaning. Draw their attention to causing some
MEANING: admire,” he says. “They think that they might get the same
tensions in the sentence before admire, and to
support if they build a windmill.”
desire in the following sentence. Have students
27 Down the hill, the village handyman started building his
contrast the meanings of causing tension and
own windmill after secretly studying Mr. Kamkwamba’s.
admire. Have students use these clues to define
attempts (uh TEMPTS) n. A gust of wind blew the blades off the man’s first few attempts.
the word.
MEANING: Mr. Kamkwamba offered to help him rebuild, but got no reply.
Possible responses: In this context, desire is a verb 28 “I’m waiting to see if he’s serious,” Mr. Kamkwamba says. ❧
meaning “to want something they admire or think
is good.”
ATTEMPTS If groups are struggling to define the
word attempts in paragraph 27, point out that
they can use context clues to infer the meaning.
Draw their attention to the context clues started
building his own and help him rebuild, which
appear before and after the word in the same
paragraph. Have students use these clues to
define the word.
Possible responses: In this context, attempts is a
noun meaning “tries, or efforts; steps taken to get
something done.”

VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 522 4/4/16 9:55 AM
Multiple Meanings Review paragraph 2. She only reads serious novels. (requiring Guide students to identify which meaning
28. Tell students that the word serious has great effort to create or understand) is used in the sentence from the text.
multiple meanings. Have students reread 3. People who are serious about acting Discuss how to use context clues to define
the last sentence in the article and discuss should audition. (feeling sincere, a word with multiple meanings.
the following sentences. wholehearted, or committed)
1. The congregation grew serious when 4. Chocolate can cause serious health
the minister asked them to reflect on problems for dogs. (significant because
the past year. (thoughtful, solemn) of risk or danger)

details with your group. Possible responses:
1. He was thinking about electricity and what
1. What inspired William Kamkwamba to build a windmill? he’d like to have at home. He saw a photo of a
windmill in a library book.
2. blue gum trees, bicycle parts, plastic pipes
3. the scarcity, or lack, or modern fuels and electrical
supplies in the developing world
4. A young, self-taught man from Malawi named
William Kamkwamba built windmills to power his
home. His windmills were discovered and reported
on and he attracted many admirers, including
2. What materials did Kamkwamba use to build his first windmill? the TED group and other powerful supporters.
Kamkwamba, who is now receiving an education
at a private school in Malawi’s capital, has other
windmill projects underway in other parts of his
village as well as in the capital. He has inspired
others to build windmills to help improve access
to energy in the region.
Research
Research to Clarify If students have difficulty
3. What is “energy poverty”?
choosing a detail to investigate further, suggest
that they look more deeply into windmills,
focusing either on how a windmill can be rigged
to generate electricity or how they were used
originally in the various cultures where they
emerged. Remind students to explain how their
findings shed light on the text.
Research to Explore Suggest that students
4. Notebook Confirm your understanding of the article by writing a brief interested in looking into renewable energy
summary of it. projects look at the websites of international
aid and development groups like the Center
for Global Development, or groups focusing on
RESEARCH energy development like the International Energy
Agency. Students may want to investigate the
Research to Clarify Research an unfamiliar detail in the article. In what way does the
state of Africa’s power grids—the systems of
information you learned shed light on the article? Share your findings with your small
group.
wires, switches, and substations that connect
energy producers to consumers.
Research to Explore Research other ways that energy poverty is being addressed in
poor parts of the world. Share your findings with your group.
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG.indd 523 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 16-04-01 10:38 AM
Challenge
Research Groups researching energy poverty • How might the development of African nations
in Africa may want to investigate how climate affect climate change?
change could be affected as African nations • What is the relationship between the amount
continue to develop their electrical grids. For of fossil fuels extracted from African nations
example, students may want to pursue these lines and people’s access to energy in those nations?
of investigation:
Ask groups to share their findings with the class.
• Which renewable energy sources are being
developed in Africa?

Close Read the text

Jump Start With your group, revisit sections of the text you marked
during your first read. What do you notice? What
questions do you have? What can you conclude?
CLOSE READ Ask students to consider the
following prompt: Can one young person A YOUNG TINKERER BUILDS
A WINDMILL, ELECTRIFYING
drive a nationwide change? Do you dream of A NATION Cite textual evidenCe
changing your community, and how would you analyze the text to support your answers.
do it? As students discuss the prompt in their notebook Complete the activities.
groups, have them consider what obstacles they
1. Review and Clarify Review the selection with your group. How did
might face. GROUP DISCUSSION
the lack of modern conveniences inspire William Kamkwamba to be
When you work in your
innovative? What were the results of his innovations?
group to answer the
Analyze the Text questions,
Close Read the Text be sure to direct listeners to
2. Present and discuss Now, work with your group to share the
passages from the text that you found especially important. Take turns
If needed, model close reading by using the specific words, sentences,
and paragraphs in the story.
presenting your passages. Discuss what you noticed in the text, the
Annotation Highlights in the Interactive questions you asked, and the conclusions you reached.
Remind students to use Accountable Talk in 3. essential Question: How do we overcome obstacles? What has
their discussions and to support one another as this selection taught you about how people overcome obstacles?
they complete the close read.
 WoRd netWoRK language development
Analyze the Text

Add interesting words
related to facing adversity
Concept vocabulary
1. Possible response: Because his family had no from the text to your Word scarcity desire attempts
electricity, Kamkwamba figured out how to make Network.
a windmill, which changed his life and perhaps Why these Words? The concept vocabulary words from the text are
the lives of many other people. related. With your group, determine what the words have in common.
2. Passages will vary by group.  STANDARDS Record your ideas, and add another word that fits the category.
3. Responses will vary by group. Reading Informational Text
• Cite several pieces of textual
evidence to support analysis of Practice
Concept Vocabulary what the text says explicitly as
well as inferences drawn from notebook Confirm your understanding of these words by using
Why These Words? Possible response: In this the text.
them in sentences containing context clues.

• Analyze the interactions
selection, all three words relate to poverty, limited between individuals, events, and
technology, and efforts to relieve it. ideas in a text.
Word Study
• Analyze the structure an
author uses to organize a text,
Practice including how the major sections
etymology The etymology of a word is its origin. Etymologies show
contribute to the whole and to the how words enter the English language and how they change over time.
Possible responses: development of the ideas. Check a dictionary for a guide to the symbols and abbreviations used
• Kamkwamba has responded to the scarcity Language in etymologies. Desire comes from Middle English desiren < Old French
of power by building windmills to produce Determine or clarify the meaning
desirer < Latin desiderare, which means “from the stars.” Knowing this,
electricity. words and phrases based on you can gain a better understanding of the meaning of desire (“to wish
grade 7 reading and content, for”).
• Kamkwama’s success created a desire for more choosing flexibly from a range
windmills in the region. of strategies.
With your group, look up the etymology of at least three other words in
b. Use common, grade-
• Kamkwamba’s neighbor’s first attempts at appropriate Greek or Latin the selection. Describe how knowing each etymology helps you better
building his own windmill failed. affixes and roots as clues to the understand the words.
meaning of a word.
Word Network
Possible words: self-taught, poverty, jealousy,
taboo, tensions, rebuild
Word Study Formative Assessment

LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG_APP.indd Page 524 21/10/16 7:56 pm s-w-047

Analyze the Text the context in which the words were used in the
Word Study. article.
If students struggle to close read the text,
Responses will vary, but students should explain
then provide the A Young Tinkerer Builds Word Study
how knowing the words’ etymologies influences
a Windmill: Text Questions available online If students are unable to use other transitions
their understanding of the words’ meanings.
in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition or Unit while describing a process, then have them
Resources. think of synonyms to transitions on the student
Concept Vocabulary page.
If students fail to see the connection between For Reteach and Practice, see Word Study:
the vocabulary words, then have them revisit Etymology (RP).
essential question: How do we overcome obstacles?

Text Structure: Biographical Writing When a nonfiction text tells a
Biographical Writing To help students grasp
story, it is a work of narrative nonfiction. Biographical writing is
a type of narrative nonfiction in which the author tells about events in
the concept, have them think of how they could
another person’s life. The elements of biographical writing include: apply the elements of biographical writing to
someone they know very well. For instance, a
• a real-life person who is the subject of the biography
student might think of his or her best friend
• factual information about the setting and context
and ask and answer questions to work through
• details and descriptions that help develop the subject’s character the elements of biographical writing: What’s
• direct quotations, a person’s exact words, from the subject and his or her name? (the subject of the biography),
other people that have a relationship with or significant knowledge Where does he or she live? (factual information
of the subject, such as a close friend or a historian about the setting), and so on. You might wish
• the use of narrative pacing, which is the way an author shapes the to provide an example to model the process
flow of information in a text—how much information readers receive and apply the elements of biography. For more
in a given section of text and the order in which they receive it
support, see Analyze Craft and Structure:
Biographical Writing.
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE Student responses will vary but should show how
Practice to support your answers. authors structure information to develop ideas.
Work with your group to analyze the elements of biographical writing
in the article and the ways the author structures information to effectively
develop her ideas. Model your analysis on the example in the chart, using
the blank rows to capture the information you find.
eleMents oF BioGRaPHiCal ContRiBution to DeVeloPMent

PaRaGRaPH
WRitinG oF iDeas
8 • relevant facts • The definition of “energy

• information about the setting poverty” and the facts about the
setting show why the windmill is
• descriptive details important.
• The descriptive details enable
the reader to picture the setting.
If groups have difficulty identifying and analyzing
elements of biographical writing, then have them
refer to the T-chart created in the teaching note
above, or instruct them to create a similar chart.
The chart will help them see the relationship
between each element and its contribution to
the text’s development. For Reteach and Practice,
see Analyze Craft and Structure: Biographical
Writing (RP).
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG_APP.indd 525 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 16-05-28 8:12 AM
English Language Support their list and then have them explain why they
Writing Interview Questions Have students write want to ask them. EXPANDING
a list of people that they would like to interview Have students write two closed questions and
to find out more about Mr. Kamkwamba. three open-ended questions for a person on
Have pairs of students write two open-ended their list. Have students explain the kinds of
questions for one of the people on their list. information they would want to gather from their
EMERGING questions. BRIDGING
Have students write three open-ended questions An expanded English Language Support
and one closed question for one of the people on Lesson on Personal Interviews is available in the
Interactive Teacher’s Edition.
FACILITATING Language deveLopment
Capitalization Capital letters signal the beginning of a sentence or
Capitalization Remind students of some of
quotation and identify proper nouns and proper adjectives. Learning to
the important instances when capitalization use correct capitalization will ensure that your writing looks professional
is needed: names, titles, days of the week and authoritative.
A YOUNG TINKERER BUILDS
and months of the year, countries, cities, and A WINDMILL, ELECTRIFYING
so on. For more support, see Conventions: A NATION Proper nouns include the names of people, geographic locations,
Capitalization. specific events and time periods, organizations, languages, historical
events and documents, and religions. Proper adjectives are derived
from proper nouns, as in French (from France) and Canadian (from
Read It
Canada). Here are some examples taken from the selection you have
Answers will vary. just read:
Write It
Sentence beginning: The contraption causing all the fuss . . .
Possible responses:
Quotation: “. . . I was thinking, ‘What can I do?”
1. William Kamkwamba [proper noun: name of
person] is only twenty years old [not proper Proper nouns: His sister Dolice and cousin Geoffrey . . .
adjective or noun], but he has built a windmill Proper adjectives: One afternoon, a pair of Malawian health
[not a proper noun] to provide electricity to his workers . . .
family in Malawi [proper noun: name of country].
2. William’s [first word of sentence, proper noun:
name of person] windmill [not a proper noun] Read It
has brought a lot of attention to the small [not Work with your group to identify examples of correct capitalization
a proper adjective] village [not a proper noun] in the selection. Find two examples in the selection for each of the
of Masitala where the Kamkwamba [proper following items.
adjective] family [not a proper noun] lives.
1. a sentence beginning 3. a person’s name
Possible Response: Students’ paragraphs will vary,
but they should use at least three proper nouns, one 2. a proper adjective 4. a quotation
proper adjective, and one quotation.
Write It
Identify the errors in capitalization in each sentence, and note the reason
each word should or should not begin with a capital letter. Then, revise
each sentence to correct the capitalization.

1. William kamkwamba is only Twenty Years Old, but he has built a
Windmill to provide electricity to his family in malawi.
2. william’s Windmill has brought a lot of attention to the Small Village of

Masitala, where his kamkwamba Family lives.
Conventions
 STANDARDS Notebook Finally, write a biographical paragraph in which you
If students have difficulty identifying words Language briefly describe a person you admire. In your paragraph, use at least
that should NOT be capitalized in the Write It Demonstrate command of the
three proper nouns, one proper adjective, and a quotation. Reread your
activity, then remind them that most nouns and capitalization, punctuation, and paragraph to confirm that you have used correct capitalization.
adjectives are common because they do not spelling when writing.
name particular things. For Reteach and Practice,
see Conventions: Capitalization (RP). 526 UNIT 5 • FacINg adversITy

LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG_APP.indd 526 15/04/16 3:40 PM

Capitalization English language learners may Spanish. (To show the correct responses, letters
need to be reminded that capitalization rules are whose cases are incorrect appear in boldface.)
different for different languages. In Spanish, for 1. when i read the article about
example, the first-person pronoun, yo; months William kamkwamba, i was inspired.
of the year; days of the week; languages; and
2. Many african nations struggle with Energy
nationalities (inglés, español) are NOT capitalized.
Poverty.
Marking capitalization errors in the following
sentences will benefit all of your students, 3. in Malawi, the main language is chichewa.
particularly those whose home language is ALL LEVELS

EffEctivE ExprEssion
Writing to sources Writing to Sources

A how-to essay is a written, step-by-step explanation of how to make Conduct Research Direct students to keep
or do something. a record of all the sources they use to find
information.
Assignment
Work with your group to write a how-to essay in which you address Windmill: Suggest that students watch any of
one of the following topics: many do-it-yourself windmill-building videos on
How to make a windmill. What do you need to make a windmill?
channels like YouTube. Advise students to refer
What steps should you take? How can it be designed and to printed articles as well, however, so they can
connected to make it a source of electric power? quickly refer to the process in general, the order
of steps, and the technical vocabulary.
Where is Masitala, Malawi? Is it close to the capital of Malawi?
Travel: Suggest that students writing directions
What directions would you give someone who wants to travel
from Malawi’s capital to Masitala? to Matisala include landmarks that would help
 EvidEncE Log
travelers find this remote location, such as river
crossings. Many online satellite maps will let users
new selection, go to your
Evidence Log and record
switch between satellite view and street-map
Conduct Research Work with your group to find the information you
what you learned from views. Suggest students review travel websites to
will need to write your essay. Consult multiple print and digital sources,
and evaluate the credibility of each source you use. Take notes on each “A Young Tinkerer Builds find various travel options—rental car, bus, hired
source so that you can cite your sources accurately in a Works-Cited list,
a Windmill, Electrifying a car, etc.—and the costs and benefits of each.
Nation.”
or bibliography, at the end of your essay. Organize Your Essay Suggest students devote
Organize Your Essay Use chronological organization, or step-by-step
a half-page to each numbered step. Then, as
organization, when you write your how-to essay. A reader needs clear, they continue to gather information, they will
well-organized directions in order to complete a task successfully. If the have room to add notes and sketches to the
steps are out of order, or if they are unclear, he or she will have a difficult appropriate step.
 StandardS
time following your directions. Use Clarifying Transitions Remind students
Writing
Use Clarifying Transitions Be sure to use transitions that indicate time • Introduce a topic clearly, that not all transitions in a how-to essay must
and sequence as you write your essay. Transitions, such as first, next, organize ideas, concepts, and emphasize chronological order. There are
until, and meanwhile will help you to organize and clarify the steps in information, using strategies instances when transitions will be needed to
your essay. comparison/contrast, and cause/
demonstrate clarification, comparison, causes and
effect; include formatting, effects, and to signal summary and conclusion.
Format Your Essay To help readers follow your directions include graphics, and multimedia when
headings, illustrations, and graphics in your essay. Place headings before useful to aiding comprehension. Format Your Essay Provide students with
• Develop the topic with relevant

each section of your essay, and place graphics and illustrations in the facts, definitions, concrete details,
examples of appropriate styles for headings
section of your essay that describes the step the image shows. quotations, or other information that are noticeable and not distracting. Guide
and examples. them on the wording of headings so they help
• Conduct short research projects
to answer a question, drawing on readers with navigation of the text and are not
several sources and generating too lengthy. For more support, see Writing to
additional related, focused
questions for further research and Sources: How-to Essay.
investigation.
• Gather relevant information Evidence Log Support students in completing
from multiple print and digital their Evidence Log. This paced activity will
sources, using search terms
effectively; assess the credibility help prepare them for the Performance-Based
and accuracy of each source; and Assessment at the end of the unit.
quote or paraphrase the data
and conclusions of others while
avoiding plagiarism and following
a standard format for citation.
Writing to Sources
If students have trouble explaining a particular
step, then suggest that they break it down into
LIT17_SE07_U05_B4_SG_APP.indd Page 527 29/10/16 1:24 AM f-0223 /140/PE02830/MYPERSPECTIVES_ENGLISH_LANGUAGE_ARTS_SE_and_TE/NA/SE/2017/G1/XXXXXXXa... series of smaller steps. Encourage students
Strategic Support to exchange their papers with partners in their

Graphic Organizers As they plan their how-to essays, students
groups to check the clarity of their how-to
may benefit from organizing their steps in a flow chart, especially processes. For Reteach and Practice, see Writing
if they have branching options for completing the process. Some to Sources: How-to Essay (RP).
word-processing programs provide flow charts that users can Selection Test
type into directly, and flow charts can be arranged horizontally or
vertically. Students may add as many boxes to their charts as needed. Administer the Selection Test for “A Young
Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Electrifying a Nation,”
which is available in both print and digital formats
online in Assessments.

FACILITATING PERfORmanCE TaSk: SPEakInG anD LISTEnInG fOCUS

SOURCES
• A Work in Progress
Before groups begin work on their projects, have • from The sTory of Assignment
them clearly differentiate the role each group My Life Review the selections you have just read and viewed. Work in your
member will play. Remind groups to consult the small group to present a series of multimedia profiles, in which you
• hoW heLen keLLer
schedule for Small-Group Learning to guide their address this question:
LeArneD To TALk
work during the Performance Task. How do people overcome enormous challenges?
Students should complete the assignment • A young Tinkerer
using presentation software to take advantage of BuiLDs A WinDMiLL,
text, graphics, and sound features. eLecTrifying A nATion

Plan with Your Group
Analyze the Text With your group, review the selections you have read
Plan With Your Group in this section. Discuss the people, the challenges they faced, and the
Analyze the Text Remind students that they will strengths and qualities that enabled them to overcome these obstacles.
Use this chart to organize your ideas.
need to include specific details and quotations
from the selections in their explanations. As they
fill in the chart to analyze what the selections say sTrengThs or
chALLenge(s)
seLecTion Person quALiTies PossesseD ouTcoMe
about how people overcome challenges, groups fAceD
By The Person
should note paragraph numbers of quotations
and details they might want to refer to or include
in their presentations. Taking the time to record
A Work in Progress
this information as they plan will save them time
when they begin to gather evidence.
Gather Details and Media Discuss how
from The story
students can use multimedia to support their of My Life
explanations. Remind students they might want
to use audio clips from “A Work in Progress” and
film clips or stills from “How Helen Keller Learned how helen keller
to Talk.” An Internet search will yield photographs Learned to Talk
and other visual aids to accompany “A Young
Tinkerer Builds a Windmill, Electrifying a Nation.”
A young Tinkerer
Builds a Windmill,

electrifying a nation
Gather Details and Media Each member should draft a brief

 sTAnDArDs informative profile about one of the people described in one of the
Writing selections. The profile should be able to stand alone as a section of the
• Write informative/explanatory texts group presentation. Then, find relevant multimedia to include in your
report. Be sure to sequence the multimedia elements so that they clarify
the selection, organization, and and emphasize your important points.
analysis of relevant content.
• Draw evidence from literary or Organize Your Ideas As a group, decide how you will transition from
informational texts to support one section to the next and from one speaker to the next.
AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE Ernest Morrell, Ph.D.

LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SG_PT.indd 528 15/04/16 3:41 PM
Digital Speech Since “a picture is worth a • Keep It Simple: Choose one striking image should have no more than six words across and
thousand words,” help students find and use rather than several smaller ones. Position the six lines down of text.
effective images for oral presentations. Remind visual carefully, allowing “white space” to make • Choose Color and Font Carefully: Cool colors
students to give full credit to visual sources, as they the image stand out. (blues, greens) work best for backgrounds; warm
would for print ones. Teachers can guide students • Go for Quality: Choose clear, high-quality colors (orange, red) work best for objects in the
to create rhetorically powerful digital presentations images or take high-resolution photos. foreground. Use a simple, standard font such as
such as slideshows, blogs, and online forums using Arial or Helvetica.
these suggestions: • Limit Bullet Points and Text: The most effective
slideshows have limited text. Suggest that slides Last, teachers can help students create a rubric
to assess presentations.

essential question : How do we overcome obstacles?
Rehearse with Your Group Rehearse With Your Group

Practice with Your Group Before your presentation, rehearse as a
Practice With Your Group Suggest that
group. Plan the ways in which you will present your multimedia elements,
and prepare to begin any necessary equipment. Ensure that each member
students practice using any multimedia
uses a formal tone, appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear equipment they will need to use in the
pronunciation. presentation. They should make sure they know
how to use the equipment and that it is working
As you deliver your portion of the presentation, use this checklist to
evaluate the effectiveness of your group’s rehearsal. Then, use your
correctly.
evaluation and the instruction that follows to guide your revisions to Improve Your Use of Media Remind students
the presentation. that any media they include should directly relate
to, clarify, and support their ideas. In addition,
PResentation
Content use oF MeDia media should be suited to the purpose and
teCHniques
audience. For instance, students should avoid
The presentation The presentation Presenters music that conveys the wrong tone for their
clearly responds includes a variety of speak loudly
presentation.
to the prompt. multimedia. and clearly.
The presentation Brush Up on Your Presentation Techniques
The multimedia Presenters
includes relevant Remind groups to make sure that all members
emphasizes and maintain eye
details from
clarifies key points. contact.
know the order in which they are presenting.
the texts. Practicing the transition from one speaker to the
The sections of Equipment next will ensure the presentation flows smoothly.
the presentation functions properly.
are logically
organized. Present and Evaluate
Before beginning the presentations, set the
Fine-Tune the Content To make your presentation stronger, you may expectations for the audience. You may wish to
need to go back into the texts to find more details to support your main have students consider these questions as groups
ideas. Work with your group to identify key points that are not clear to present:
listeners. Find another way to word these ideas.
 stanDaRDs • What was the presenting group’s main idea
Improve Your Use of Media Be sure to sequence your multimedia so Speaking and Listening about each selection?
that each piece relates directly to a key point in your presentation and Engage effectively in a range of
helps your audience to better understand the information. collaborative discussions with diverse • Which supporting details were most effective?
partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and
Brush Up on Your Presentation Techniques Practice delivering issues, building on others’ ideas and • Which multimedia best supported the
explanation?
expressing their own clearly.

your presentation several times as a group so you are comfortable.
a. Come to discussions prepared,
Give one another feedback and encouragement to improve and polish having read or researched material • In which presentation skills did this group
your presentation. under study; explicitly draw on excel?
that preparation by referring to
evidence on the topic, text, or issue As students provide feedback to the presenting
to probe and reflect on ideas under
Present and Evaluate discussion.
group, remind them that compliments are just as
• Present claims and findings, valuable as constructive criticism.
Remember that you must work as a team to make your presentation emphasizing salient points in a
effective. Give all classmates your full attention when they are presenting. focused, coherent manner with
pertinent descriptions, facts, details,
As you listen to other groups, consider their content, use of media, and
and examples; use appropriate eye
presentation techniques. Ask questions to clarify your understanding of contact, adequate volume, and clear
the information presented in other classmates’ presentations. pronunciation.
• Include multimedia components
and visual displays in presentations
to clarify claims and findings and
emphasize salient points.
Performance Task: Present Multimedia Profiles 529
LIT17_SE07_U05_B_SG_PT.indd 529 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 15/04/16 3:41 PM
Strategic Support
Check-In As groups finalize their presentations, intended when it needs to, and is practical
circulate among them and check in to ensure that (or could be replaced with a simpler method
each group member has a role in the presentation of presentation that might be more effective).
and is prepared for his or her part. You may also Remind groups that they should have an idea of
wish to review the media students plan to use, how long their presentation will take to deliver so
determining whether it is appropriate for the that it doesn’t seem too short or run too long.
classroom setting, is reliable and will function as

OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW: INDEPENDENT LEARNING
INDEPENDENT LEARNING ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

Sometimes people feel overwhelmed by life’s problems. The selections you read
obstacles? are about people who faced big problems and managed to overcome them. In
Encourage students to think carefully about what this section, you will complete your study of facing adversity by exploring an
they have already learned and what more they additional selection related to the topic. You’ll then share what you learn with
want to know about the unit topic of facing classmates. To choose a text, follow these steps.
adversity and overcoming obstacles. This is a key Look Back Think about the selections you have already studied. What more do
first step to previewing and selecting the text they you want to know about facing adversity?
will read in Independent Learning.
Look Ahead Preview the selections by reading the descriptions. Which one
Independent Learning seems the most interesting and appealing to you?
Strategies Look Inside Take a few minutes to scan through the text you chose. Choose a
different one if this text doesn’t meet your needs.
explain that as they work through Independent
Learning they will develop strategies to work on Independent Learning Strategies
their own. Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you will
• Have students watch the video on Independent need to rely on yourself to learn and work on your own. Review these strategies
and the actions you can take to practice them during Independent Learning.
Learning Strategies.
Add ideas of your own for each category.
STRATEGY ACTION PLAN
Students should include any favorite strategies Create a schedule • Understand your goals and deadlines.
that they might have devised on their own during
• Make a plan for what to do each day.
Whole-Class and Small-Group Learning. For
example, for the strategy “Create a schedule,” •
students might include:
• Understand the goals and deadlines.
• Make a schedule for what to do each day.
Practice what you • Use first-read and close-read strategies to deepen your understanding.

have learned • After you read, evaluate the usefulness of the evidence to help you understand
Block Scheduling the topic.
Each day in this Pacing Plan represents a • Consider the quality and reliability of the source.
40–50-minute class period. Teachers using
•
their class schedule. In addition, teachers may
revise pacing to differentiate and support core Take notes • Record important ideas and information.
instruction by integrating components and • Review your notes before preparing to share with a group.
•
SCAN FOR
Pacing Plan
Introduce
Whole-Class
LIT17_SE07_U05_C_INO.indd 530 19/04/16 10:11 AM
Learning
Performance Task
Media: The
Unit Introduction Dust Bowl from The Grapes of Wrath The Circuit
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

CONTENTS
Choose one selection. Selections are available online only.
PERSONAL NARRATIVE
Contents
The Girl Who Fell from the Sky Selections Encourage students to scan and
Juliane Koepcke preview the selections before choosing the
Can a teenage girl survive in the rain forest one they would like to read. Suggest that they
all by herself? consider the genre and subject matter of each
one before making their decision. You can use
the information on the following Planning pages
to advise students in making their choice.
NOVEL EXCERPT Remind students that the selections for

Independent Learning are only available in the
Four Skinny Trees Interactive Student Edition. Allow students
from The House on Mango Street
who do not have digital access at home to
Sandra Cisneros
preview the selections or review the media
A young girl finds inner strength in an selection(s) using classroom or computer lab
unexpected place. technology. Then either have students print
the selection they choose or provide a printout
for them.
SHORT STORY
Performance Based-Assessment Prep
Rikki-tikki-tavi Review Evidence for an Informative
Rudyard Kipling Essay Point out to students that collecting
Can one little mongoose protect the people and evidence during Independent Learning is the
animals around him from two deadly cobras? last step in completing their Evidence Log. After
they finish their independent reading, they will
synthesize all the evidence they have compiled in
the unit.
The evidence students collect will serve as the
MEMOIR primary source of information they will use to
complete the writing and oral presentation for
from Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai
the Performance-Based Assessment at the end
on the African Savanna
of the unit.
Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton
Sometimes life forces a person to step way outside of

“the comfort zone.”
PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP

Review Evidence for an Informative Essay
Complete your Evidence Log for the unit by evaluating what you have learned
and synthesizing the information you have recorded.
SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA Independent Learning 531
Introduce Introduce
LIT17_SE07_U05_C_INO.indd 531 16-04-01 10:43 AM Performance
Learning Learning
Task
Performance-Based
Assessment
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
INDEPENDENT LEARNING
Independent Learning 531

PLANNING INDEPENDENT LEARNING
The Girl Who Fell from the Sky

Summary Insight
In “The Girl Who Fell from the Sky,” Juliane Koepcke tells her From this selection, students can
amazing story of survival. As a teenager, Juliane lives for two years learn that some knowledge and a
with her parents at the research station they run in the Peruvian mighty will to live can be enough
SELECTION RESOURCES to save a life. Juliane spends
rainforest. Then she moves back to Lima to finish high school. She
irst-Read Guide:
F and her mother board a plane to fly back to visit her father and the 11 days in the jungle before
Nonfiction plane crashes. Juliane, still strapped into her seat, falls 10,000 feet to reaching a shelter from which
she is rescued. She is the only
the ground and survives. This narrative describes how she stays alive,
lose-Read Guide:
C survivor of LANSA Flight 508.
Nonfiction
finds a tiny river and follows it, and finally finds people many days
after the crash.
he Girl Who Fell from
T
the Sky: Text Questions
Audio Summaries
Connection to Essential Question
This selection connects directly to the Essential Question—How do we
Selection Audio overcome obstacles?—by showing a young woman who overcomes
Selection Test almost unimaginable adversity.
Connection to Performance-Based Assessment

In this assessment, students will be called upon to write an informative
essay responding to this question: “How can people overcome
adversity in the face of overwhelming obstacles?” The story of
Juliane Koepcke’s survival will help them discuss the personal qualities
adversity can evoke in a person.
Text Complexity Rubric: The Girl Who Fell from the Sky
Knowledge Demands Mostly familiar situations. The story is exciting, true, and somewhat exotic, but no prior knowledge is
1 2 3 4 5 absolutely necessary.
Structure Structure is simple, straightforward, and conventional.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity The syntax and sentence structure are easy to understand. Vocabulary is largely on-level, with a few
1 2 3 4 5 regionalisms included.
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The meaning of Koepcke’s work touches on family, biology, courage, wilderness survival, fortune,
1 2 3 4 5 and youth.

DIGITAL
Audio Video Document Annotation EL Online
PERSPECTIVES
Four Skinny Trees

Summary Insight
The speaker in Sandra Cisneros’s “Four Skinny Trees” describes four From this selection, students can
skinny trees, surviving in the city. The trees seem to have an inner learn that there are sources of
strength. They just keep on going and reaching into the sky, no inspiration in unlikely places.
SELECTION RESOURCES
matter what. The speaker says when she needs help and strength,
First-Read Guide: Fiction she turns to them for inspiration.
our Skinny Trees: Text

F Connection to Essential Question
Questions This selection connects directly to the essential question How do we
Audio Summaries overcome obstacles? by talking about finding comfort and inspiration in
our environment.
Selection Audio
Selection Test
In this assessment, students will write an informative essay responding
to this question: “How can people overcome adversity in the face
of overwhelming obstacles?” This poem provides students with one
element that can be used in answering that question.
Text Complexity Rubric: Four Skinny Trees

Lexile: 690 Text Length: 196 words
Knowledge Demands Beyond the idea of trees growing in urban settings, this prose does not require previous knowledge.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure Structure is simple, straightforward, and conventional.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity The syntax and sentence structure are easy to understand. Vocabulary is on-level.
1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The meaning of Cisneros’s work is very personal and impressionistic. Most readers will see the metaphor
1 2 3 4 5 of the trees and their strength.
Independent Learning 532B

PLANNING INDEPENDENT LEARNING
Rikki-tikki-tavi
Summary Insight
Rudyard Kipling’s short story “Rikki-tikki-tavi” describes the This selection explores how
adventures of a young mongoose in India. He adopts a family and determination, cleverness, and
becomes their guardian. In the family’s garden, he meets Darzee, a agility can overcome enemies
SELECTION RESOURCES with great power.
tailorbird who has lost a baby bird to Nag, a cobra in the garden.
First-Read Guide: Fiction The cobra has also frightened the family’s son, Teddy. Nag terrorizes
the other animals and threatens the family’s safety. Rikki-tikki-tavi
resolves to get rid of the five-foot-long poisonous snake.
ikki-tikki-tavi: Text
R
Questions
Audio Summaries Connection to Essential Question

This selection connects directly to the essential question How do we
Selection Audio
overcome obstacles? by showing an example of a small animal that
Selection Test does just that.

In this assessment, students will write an informative essay
responding to this question: “How can people overcome adversity
in the face of overwhelming obstacles?” They will be able to use
examples of the little mongoose’s determination and intelligence in
his battle against Nag.
Text Complexity Rubric: Rikki-tikki-tavi

Knowledge Demands “Rikki-tikki-tavi” is a familiar children’s story. Some knowledge of cobras and mongeese is helpful.
1 2 3 4 5
Structure Structure is conventional and straightforward.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity The syntax and sentence structure are not difficult, though the register is somewhat elevated and some
1 2 3 4 5 vocabulary is above-level.
Levels of Meaning/Purpose This is an exciting story for children with a straightforward conclusion.
1 2 3 4 5

DIGITAL
Audio Video Document Annotation EL Online
PERSPECTIVES
from Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai

on the African Savanna
Summary Insight
In this excerpt from Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai on the This selection helps students
SELECTION RESOURCES African Savanna, Kenyan leader Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton describes understand that even great
the hardships he faced to get an education. His family had a farm poverty can be overcome with
irst-Read Guide:
F with cows and they had sold several of the cows to allow him to courage and persistence.
Nonfiction go to an elite boarding school. As a very poor boy among wealthy
lose-Read Guide:
C students, he felt out of place and often did not know how to act. He
Nonfiction studied very hard and was determined to succeed. But the hardest
part of his school days was actually the trip back home on holidays.
acing the Lion: Growing
F
Up Maasai on the African
Savanna: Text Questions Connection to Essential Question
Audio Summaries In this selection, Joseph Lekuton gives one answer to the essential
Selection Audio
question How do people overcome obstacles? He relied on himself and
worked diligently to keep his grades up.
Selection Test
When students write an informative essay in response to the question,
“How can people overcome adversity in the face of overwhelming
obstacles?” they can refer to the difficulties faced by Joseph Lekuton.
His memoir describes fighting the feelings that he was an outsider,
focusing on studying and learning, and navigating difficulties just to
get to and from school during school vacations.
Text Complexity Rubric: from Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai on the African Savanna
Knowledge Demands Students will need background information on Africa, Kenya, and nomadic life. Students may need
1 2 3 4 5 background on boarding schools.
Structure Structure is a conventional story told in a memoir style.

1 2 3 4 5
Language Conventionality and Clarity The syntax and vocabulary are easy to understand, but there are a few regionalisms.
1 2 3 4 5
Levels of Meaning/Purpose The real-life story touches on the nature of education, poverty, and cultural marginalization in an
1 2 3 4 5 African setting.
Independent Learning 532D

ADVISING INDEPENDENT LEARNING
First-Read Guide Tool Kit

You may wish to direct students to use the First-Read Guide and
generic First-Read and Close-Read Guides Use this page to record your first-read ideas.
Model Annotation
in the Print Student Edition. Alternatively, you
may wish to print copies of the genre-specific Selection Title:
First-Read and Close-Read Guides for students.
These are available online in the Interactive
Student Edition or Unit Resources.
NOTICE new information or ideas you ANNOTATE by marking vocabulary and key
learn about the unit topic as you first read passages you want to revisit.
First Read this text.
Students should perform the steps of the first

read independently.
NOTICE: Students should focus on the basic
elements of the text to ensure they understand
what is happening.
ANNOTATE: Students should mark any passages
they wish to revisit during their close read.
CONNECT: Students should increase their
understanding by connecting what they’ve read
to other texts or personal experiences.
RESPOND: Students will write a summary to
demonstrate their understanding.
first read, the other steps will probably happen CONNECT ideas within the selection to RESPOND by writing a brief summary of
other knowledge and the selections you the selection.
somewhat concurrently. Remind students that
have read.
they will revisit their first-read annotations during
the close read.
After students have completed the First-Read

Guide, you may wish to assign the Text

Questions for the selection that are available
in the Interactive Teacher’s Edition.
Anchor Standards
In the first two sections of the unit, students
worked with the whole class and in small
groups to gain topical knowledge and
greater understanding of the skills required
by the anchor standards. In this section, they
are asked to work independently, applying  STANDARD
what they have learned and demonstrating Reading Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
increased readiness for college and career.
532 UNIT 5 • FacING adveRsITy
LIT17_SE07_U05_C_INO.indd 532 Personalize for Learning 15/04/16 3:41 PM
Challenge
Additional Questions To help students reflect on their first read
and prepare for the close read, encourage them to think about what
more they would like to know about a text. Ask students to write
two to three questions they have about the text. Then, students can
meet in small groups with others who have read the same text. Each
group can share First-Read Guides and their additional questions
before proceeding to the close read.

Close-Read Guide Tool Kit

Close-Read Guide and
Model Annotation
CLOSE READ
Use this page to record your close-read ideas.
Students should begin their close read by
Selection Title: revisiting the annotations they made during their
first read. Then, students should analyze one
of the author’s choices regarding the following
Close Read the Text Analyze the Text
elements:
Revisit sections of the text you marked during Think about the author’s choices of patterns, • patterns, such as repetition or parallelism
your first read. Read these sections closely structure, techniques, and ideas included in
and annotate what you notice. Ask yourself the text. Select one, and record your thoughts
• structure, such as cause-and-effect or
questions about the text. What can you about what this choice conveys. problem-solution
conclude? Write down your ideas. • techniques, such as description or dialogue
• ideas, such as the author’s main idea or claim
Make it Interactive
Group students according to the selection they
have chosen. Then, have students meet to discuss
the selection in-depth. Their discussions should be
guided by their insights and questions.
QuickWrite
Pick a paragraph from the text that grabbed your interest. Explain the power of this passage.
 STANDARD
Reading Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
LIT17_SE07_U05_C_INO.indd 533 PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING 26/02/16 1:52 PM
Challenge
Group Review Have students who have read members should revise and edit the writing for
the same text collaborate to write a group review coverage of the entire text, and make sure ideas
of the entire text. The review should include a are logically organized and expressed clearly. They
summary and excerpts from each group member’s can use signal words and transitions to connect
Close-Read Guide. Group members should agree the ideas and writing of all the contributors. After
on contributions, the order in which the excerpts editing and proofreading, the completed reviews
will appear, and how the excerpts will fit into may be posted in a blog or printed and distributed
paragraphs within the review. Together, group to the class.

ADVISING INDEPENDENT lEarNINg
Share Your Share Your Independent Learning

Prepare to Share
Independent Learning  evIdence Log
Go to your Evidence Log How do we overcome obstacles?
Prepare to Share and record what you learned Even when you read something independently, your understanding
Explain to students that sharing what they from the text you read. continues to grow when you share what you have learned with others.
learned from their Independent Learning selection Reflect on the text you explored independently and write notes about its
provides classmates who read a different selection connection to the unit. In your notes, consider why this text belongs in
with an opportunity to consider the text as a this unit.
source of evidence during the Performance-Based
Assessment. As students prepare to share, remind
them to highlight how their selection contributed
to their knowledge of the concept of facing
adversity as well as how the selection connects to
the question How do we overcome obstacles?
Learn From Your Classmates

As students discuss the Independent Learning
selections, direct them to take particular note of
how their classmates’ chosen selections align with Learn From Your Classmates
their current position on the Performance-Based Discuss It Share your ideas about the text you explored on your
Assessment question. own. As you talk with your classmates, jot down ideas that you learn
from them.
Reflect
Students may want to add their reflection to their
Evidence Log, particularly if their insight relates to
a specific selection from the unit.
Make it Interactive
With students, create a game of “Concentration”
by naming obstacles that people face in life and
how the obstacles can be overcome. Make up
fifteen 3-by-5-inch index cards with an obstacle

or a way to overcome an obstacle written on Reflect
each card. Then, make a matching set of cards. Review your notes, and mark the most important insight you gained from
(You will have 30 cards altogether.) Shuffle all these writing and discussion activities. Explain how this idea adds to your
of the cards. Place the cards face down in five understanding of the topic of facing adversity.
rows of 6 each. Each person then takes one turn,
turning over two cards. If they match, the cards
remain right side up. If they do not match, they
are placed face down again, and the next person
 StandardS
takes a turn. The game continues until all of the
cards are matched and face up. Engage effectively in a range of
collaborative discussions with diverse
Evidence Log Support students in completing partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and
their Evidence Log. This paced activity will issues, building on others’ ideas and
expressing their own clearly.
help prepare them for the Performance-Based
Author's Perspective LIT17_SE07_U05_C_IN_PT.indd

Ernest Morrell, 534 Ph.D. 18/04/16 9:40 AM
Powerful Speaking in Small Groups 1. Earn credibility. Speakers who are words that convey their precise meaning.
Explain to students that learning how to prepared with evidence tailored to their Further, effective speakers avoid “loaded
speak with confidence, without over- audience’s needs will sway their audience words” that attempt to sway an audience
compensating, will help them make and/or with the power of their proof. As a result, by appealing to stereotypes.
defend an argument and point of view in a these speakers will have no need to try to 3. Be audible, not loud. Speakers who
small group. Point out that their goal is to harass or intimidate their listeners. avoid shouting convey their point with
be convincing, but not argumentative. To 2. Choose words carefully. Effective greater confidence than those who do
help build this skill, provide students with speakers use the exact words they need, raise their voices
the following guidelines:

PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP
Review Evidence for an Informative Essay Review Evidence for an

At the beginning of this unit, you expressed your ideas about the
following question:
Informative Essay
Evidence Log Students should understand
How can people overcome adversity in the face
that their informative essay can evolve as they
of overwhelming obstacles?
learn more about the subject and are exposed
to additional points of view. Point out that just
 EvIdEncE log
because students identified three things about
Review your Evidence Log and your QuickWrite from the beginning of the unit. how we overcome obstacles for the question
Did you learn anything new?
How can people overcome adversity in the face
NOTES of overwhelming obstacles? doesn’t mean that
those three things can’t change after careful
Identify at least three things that you learned about how we overcome obstacles.
consideration of their learning and evidence.
1.
Evaluate the Strength of Your Evidence
Encourage students to keep in mind that their
informative essay should include evidence. Their
2. evidence should support the viewpoint and
perceptions that they write about. Evidence may
include facts such as statistics, physical details,
anecdotes (personal experience of the student or
3. others), and expert opinion. The evidence that
they provide in their essay should support and
strengthen their viewpoint.
Identify a real-life experience that illustrates one of your ideas about how
we overcome obstacles.
 STaNdardS
Writing
Write informative/explanatory texts

Develop your thoughts into a topic sentence for an informative essay. to examine a topic and convey ideas,
Complete this sentence starter: concepts, and information through
As events and details in analysis of relevant content.
show, people can overcome obstacles by previewing what is to follow;
organize ideas, concepts, and
comparison/contrast, and cause/
Evaluate the Strength of Your Evidence Consider your ideas about effect; include formatting, graphics,
overcoming obstacles. How did the texts you read affect your ideas? aiding comprehension.
Identify relevant details in the texts that deepened your understanding b. Develop the topic with relevant
of the ways in which people overcome obstacles. Also, note specific facts, definitions, concrete details,
passages in the texts that gave you key insights or changed your ideas quotations, or other information
and examples.
about facing adversity.
Performance-Based Assessment Prep 535
LIT17_SE07_U05_C_IN_PT.indd 535 15/04/16 3:41 PM
Performance-Based Assessment Prep 535
ASSESSING performance-based assessment
sources Part 1
Writing to Sources: • Whole-class selections Writing to sources: Informative essay
Informative Essay
• small-group selections In this unit, you read about people who overcame various obstacles. You
Students should complete the Performance-Based will now write an informative essay in which you explore the topic of
Assessment independently, with little to no input • independent-learning
facing adversity as illustrated by the selections in this unit.
selection
or feedback during the process. Students should
use word processing software to take advantage
Assignment
of editing tools and features. Write an informative essay in response to the following question:
Prior to beginning the assessment, ask students
to think about obstacles they have faced and  Word NetWork How can people overcome adversity in the face
of overwhelming obstacles?
overcome, and how they did it. As you write and revise
your essay, use your Word Develop a clear thesis in response to the prompt. Your thesis for this
Review the Elements of an Effective Network to help vary your informative essay should make a generalization about ways in which
Informative Essay Students can review the word choices. people persevere as they struggle to overcome adversity.
work they did earlier in the unit as they complete
the Performance-Based Assessment. They may Then, use specific examples and quotations from the selections to
support your response. Your ideas should be logically organized,
also consult other resources such as:
and your essay should include transitions to show the relationships
• the elements of an informative essay, including between ideas. Use precise vocabulary and a formal tone in your
relevant facts, descriptions, and examples writing. Be sure to include a conclusion that follows from and supports
that illustrate causes and effects, and detailed the information in your essay.
explanations that show cause-and-effect
relationships, available in Whole-Class Learning
Reread the Assignment Review the assignment to be sure you fully
• their Evidence Log understand it. The assignment may reference some of the academic
• their Word Network words presented at the beginning of the unit. Be sure you understand
Although students will use evidence from unit each of the words given below in order to complete the assignment
selections for their informative essays, they may correctly.
need to collect additional evidence, including
relevant facts, details, and quotations from Academic Vocabulary
the text.
deviate determination tradition
persevere diversity

 standards
Writing
• Write informative/explanatory texts Review the Elements of an Effective Informative Essay Before
to examine a topic and convey ideas, you begin writing, read the Informative Essay Rubric. Once you have
the selection, organization, and completed your first draft, check it against the rubric. If one or more of
analysis of relevant content. the elements is missing or not as strong as it could be, revise your essay
• Produce clear and coherent to add or strengthen that component.
writing in which the development,
organization, and style are
appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience.
• Draw evidence from literary or
informational texts to support
• Write routinely over extended time
frames and shorter time frames for
a range of discipline-specific tasks,
purposes, and audiences.
LIT17_SE07_U05_U_PAS.indd 536 15/04/16 3:42 PM

essential question: How do we overcome obstacles?
Informative Essay Rubric Informative Essay Rubric

Focus and Organization Evidence and Elaboration Conventions As you review the Informative Rubric with
The introduction is engaging and Details, examples, and The essay consistently students, remind them that the rubric is a
includes a clear thesis. quotations from the selections adheres to standard English resource that can guide their revisions. Students
are specific and relevant. conventions of usage and
The thesis is supported by specific mechanics. should pay particular attention to the differences
details, examples, and quotations from The style and tone is formal between an essay that includes transitions that
the selections. and objective.
show the relationships among ideas (a score of 3)
Ideas are logically organized so that Words are carefully chosen
4 and transitions that clearly show the relationships
the explanation is easy to follow. and suited to purpose and
audience. among ideas (a score of 4).
Transitions clearly show the
relationships among ideas.
The conclusion supports the

information in the essay and offers
fresh insight into the topic.
The introduction includes a clear Details, examples, and The essay mostly adheres to
thesis. quotations from the selections standard English conventions
are relevant. of usage and mechanics.
The thesis is supported by details,
examples, and quotations from the The style and tone is mostly
selections. formal and objective.
3 Ideas are organized so that the Words are generally suited to

information is easy to follow. purpose and audience.
Transitions show the relationships

among ideas.
The conclusion supports the

information in the essay.
The introduction states the thesis. Some details and examples The essay contains some
from the selection are mistakes in standard English
The thesis is supported by some relevant. conventions of usage and
details, examples, and quotations from mechanics.
the selections. The style and tone is
2 occasionally formal and
Ideas are vaguely organized, with a few objective.
transitions to orient readers.
Words are somewhat suited to
The conclusion relates to the purpose and audience.
information in the essay.
The thesis is not clearly stated. There is little or no relevant The essay contains many
support. mistakes in standard English
The thesis is not supported by details, conventions of usage and
examples, and quotations from the The style and tone is informal. mechanics.
selections.
Words are not appropriate to
1
Ideas are disorganized and the purpose or audience.
explanation is difficult to follow.
The conclusion does not include

relevant information.
Performance-Based Assessment 537
LIT17_SE07_U05_U_PAS.indd 537 4/4/16 10:03 AM

ASSESSING performance-based assessment
Part 2
Speaking and Listening:
Speaking and Listening: Oral Presentation
Oral Presentation
Students should annotate their written Assignment
informative essay in preparation for the oral After completing your informative essay, use it as the foundation for a
presentation, marking the important elements  StandardS brief multimedia presentation. Record your presentation and post
(thesis, quotations drawn from text) as well as Writing it on a class or school Web site so you can watch the presentations
any supporting facts or statistics. Use technology, including the outside of class and respond and interact digitally.
Internet, to produce and publish
Remind students that the effectiveness of an writing and link to and cite sources
oral informative essay relies on how the speaker as well as to interact and collaborate
with others, including linking to and Use these tips to make your presentation engaging:
establishes credibility with his or her audience. citing sources.
If a speaker comes across as confident and Speaking and Listening • Review your essay, and mark the most important ideas and
authoritative, it will be easier for the audience to • Present claims and findings, supporting details from your introduction, body paragraphs, and
emphasizing salient points in a
give credence to the speaker’s presentation. focused, coherent manner with conclusion.
pertinent descriptions, facts, details, • Use appropriate eye contact, and speak with clear pronunciation and
Review the Oral Presentation Rubric As and examples; use appropriate eye
you review the Oral Presentation Rubric with contact, adequate volume, and clear adequate volume.
pronunciation. • Include well-sequenced multimedia that emphasizes key points.
students, remind them that it is a valuable tool • Include multimedia components
that can help them plan their presentation. They and visual displays in presentations
Review the Oral Presentation Rubric Before you deliver your
to clarify claims and findings and
should strive to include all of the criteria required emphasize salient points. presentation, check your plans against this rubric.
to achieve a score of 3. Draw their attention to
some of the subtle differences between scores Content Organization Presentation Techniques
of 2 and 3.
The introduction states the thesis The speaker uses time effectively. The speaker maintains
in a compelling way. effective eye contact and
Ideas progress logically, with clear speaks clearly and with
The presentation includes specific transition among ideas. adequate volume.
3 examples, quotations, and
multimedia elements. The timing of the images matches
the timing of the explanation.
The conclusion offers fresh insight
into the topic.
The introduction states a thesis. The speaker uses time effectively, The speaker sometimes
spending the right amount of time maintains effective eye
The presentation includes on most parts. contact and speaks somewhat
examples, quotations, and clearly and with adequate
2 multimedia elements. Ideas progress logically with some

volume.
transitions among ideas. Listeners
The conclusion offers some insight can mostly follow the speaker’s
into the topic. explanation.
The introduction does not clearly The speaker does not use time The speaker does not
state a thesis. effectively. maintain effective eye contact
or speak clearly with adequate
The presentation does not Ideas do not progress logically. volume.
1 include examples, quotations, or
multimedia elements.
The conclusion does not restate

important information.
DIGITAL PERSPECTIVES
LIT17_SE07_U05_U_PAS.indd 538 16-04-04 2:02 PM
Preparing for the Assignment To help students make each speaker successful (gesture, pacing,
understand what an effective oral presentation tone, and so on). Suggest that students record
of an essay looks and sounds like, find examples themselves presenting their informative essays
on the Internet of students or adults reading from so they can practice incorporating some of the
their own work. Project the examples for the elements in the examples you showed them.
class, and have students note the techniques that

unit
5 reflection
Reflect on the Unit Reflect on the Unit

Now that you’ve completed the unit, take a few moments to reflect on
• Have students watch the video on Reflecting
your learning.
on Your Learning.
Reflect on the Unit Goals • A video on this topic is available online in the
Look back at the goals at the beginning of the unit. Use a different
colored pen to rate yourself again. Think about readings and activities
Reflect on the Unit Goals
that contributed the most to the growth of your understanding. Record
your thoughts. Students should re-evaluate how well they met
the unit goals now that they have completed
the unit. You might ask them to provide a
written commentary on the goal they made the
most progress with as well as the goal they feel
warrants continued focus.
Reflect on the Learning Strategies

Discuss It If you want to make this a digital
activity, go online and navigate to the Discussion
Reflect on the Learning Strategies
Board. Alternatively, students can share their
Discuss It Write a reflection on whether you were able to improve learning strategies reflections in a class discussion.
your learning based on your Action Plans. Think about what worked,
what didn’t, and what you might do to keep working on these strategies. Reflect on the Text
Record your ideas before a class discussion. Consider having students share their text
reflections with one another.
MAKE IT INTERACTIVE
Have students prepare one slide using
presentation software that summarizes their
reflection.
Collate student slides into a presentation that
can be viewed by the class. Students should be
Reflect on the Text prepared to give a 30-second oral summary for
Choose a selection that you found challenging and explain what made their slide.
it difficult.
Unit Test and Remediation

After students have completed the
Performance-Based Assessment, administer
Describe something that surprised you about a text in the unit.
the Unit Test. Based on students’ performance
on the test, assign the resources as indicated
on the Interpretation Guide to remediate.
Students who take the test online will be
Which activity taught you the most about facing adversity and automatically assigned remediation, as
overcoming obstacles? What did you learn?
warranted by test results.
SCAN FOR
MULTIMEDIA Unit Reflection 539
LIT17_SE07_U05_U_PAS.indd 539 16-04-01 10:45 AM

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442 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

How do we overcome obstacles? MODEL

can people overcome adversity in the face of

ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY MEDIA: INTERVIEW SHORT STORY

Unit Introduction 443

Review the goals with students and explain that

© by Savvas Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Author’s Perspective LIT17_SE07_U05_UOP.indd

444 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

Academic Vocabulary: Informative Text Academic Vocabulary:

Related words: divergent, diversified, diversify

Unit Introduction 445

English Language Support

Unit Introduction 445

LAUNCH TEXT | INFORMATIVE MODEL

Purpose of the Launch Text This selection is an example of an

Launch Text: Informative Model

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446 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

radical move: He’d ditch the plane in the Hudson River—despite

 WORD NETWORK FOR FACING ADVERSITY

Vocabulary A Word Network

is a collection of words related

Against the Odds 447

LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 447 Author’s Perspective Elfrieda Hiebert, Ph.D. 15-12-14 5:55 PM

Against the Odds 447

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Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree

• As a class, discuss what makes someone a hero.

448 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 448 15-12-14 5:55 PM

448 UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

Title of Text: Date:

LIT17_SE07_U05_LT.indd 449 Personalize for Learning 23/02/16 5:50 PM

English Language Support

Against the Odds 449

WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

How do we overcome How do we overcome obstacles?

• Review all of the notes you have taken so far

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Each day in this Pacing Plan represents a

Media: The Dust

450 UNIT 5 • Facing ADVERSITY

preference. Students can return to this poll

ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY

Why does a cardboard box fill the narrator

Overview: Whole-Class Learning 451

Whole-Class Learning 451

The Dust Bowl

Whole-Class Learning Connection to Performance Tasks

452A UNIT 5 • FACING ADVERSITY

Making Meaning Language Development

Media Complexity Rubric: The Dust Bowl

Format and Length: Approximately 10.5 minute video excerpt

Levels of Meaning/Purpose Concepts are historical but not difficult to understand.

Whole-Class Learning 452B

Comparing Media to Text

Jump Start The DusT BoWl

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