Suggested levels for Guided Reading, DRA,™

Lexile,® and Reading Recovery™ are provided

in the Pearson Scott Foresman Leveling Guide.

Comprehension
Genre Text Features
Skills and Strategy
Expository • Fact and Opinion • Captions
nonfiction • Author’s Purpose
• Monitor and Fix Up

Scott Foresman Reading Street 2.6.2

by Vita Richman

ISBN 0-328-13310-8

ì<(sk$m)=bd baj< +^-Ä-U-Ä-U

Reader Response
1. Uncle Sam is a symbol of the United States.
Would it be a fact or an opinion if we said he
Happy Birthday,
was a good symbol for the country?

America!
2. Reread the section about the Liberty Bell. In
your own words tell what you know about
this bell and what happened to it after it
by Vita Richman
was made. Draw a web like the one below
to show what you have learned about the
Liberty Bell.

The
Liberty
Bell

3. Why do you think the American flag has the

nickname “Stars and Stripes”?
4. Why do people celebrate the Fourth of July?

Editorial Offices: Glenview, Illinois • Parsippany, New Jersey • New York, New York
Sales Offices: Needham, Massachusetts • Duluth, Georgia • Glenview, Illinois
Coppell, Texas • Ontario, California • Mesa, Arizona
 What do you imagine when you think
about the Fourth of July? Is it the flags
waving in the wind? Is it the parade? Or the
marching bands? Is it the family barbecue and
the fireworks?

Every effort has been made to secure permission and provide appropriate credit for
photographic material. The publisher deeply regrets any omission and pledges to
correct errors called to its attention in subsequent editions.

Unless otherwise acknowledged, all photographs are the property of Scott Foresman,
a division of Pearson Education.

Photo locators denoted as follows: Top (T), Center (C), Bottom (B), Left (L), Right (R),
Background (Bkgd)

Opener: Getty Royalty; 1 Getty Royalty; 3 Getty Royalty, Fotosearch.com; 4 Comstock;

5 Getty Royalty; 6 Getty Royalty, Image Farm; 7 SuperStock; 8 Getty Royalty, Comstock;
9 Image Farm, Getty Royalty, Fotosearch.com; 10 Getty Royalty, Comstock;
11 Comstock; 12 Getty Royalty, Image Farm

ISBN: 0-328-13310-8

Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc.

All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication is
protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher
prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission
in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to: Permissions Department,
Scott Foresman, 1900 East Lake Avenue, Glenview, Illinois 60025.

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 V010 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05
3
 The Fourth of July is a great holiday in the
United States. It is a birthday party for our
country. It is on the day America decided to
be free from England. This happened more
than two hundred years ago, on July 4, 1776.
The first celebration of the Fourth of July
took place in Massachusetts in 1781. Now
you can see celebrations all over our country.
Bands play. Fireworks light up the sky.

4 5
 The flag is an important symbol of our
country. A symbol is an image used to
remind you of something. The flag reminds
us of the United States. One of its nicknames
is the Stars and Stripes.
Another symbol of our country is Uncle
Sam. He wears a top hat, a vest, and a long
jacket. He has stars on his hat. His trousers
are striped. Sometimes people dress up like
Uncle Sam in parades.

This man is dressed as

Uncle Sam. People also
draw Uncle Sam as a
cartoon.

6 7
 The Liberty Bell is a symbol of freedom.
It is in Philadelphia at Independence Hall.
The Liberty Bell was made in 1752. It
cracked when it was rung for the first time!
This bell had to be remade two more times.
The last bell was rung for the final time in
1846. It cracked too much to fix.
Liberty Bell
8 9
Parades are a big part of the Fourth of
July holiday. Marching bands, baton twirlers,
baseball teams, and fire trucks may all take
part in the parade. Many people cheer at the
parade. They also wave flags.
A Fourth of July parade in
Pittsfield, Massachusetts, USA
 After a parade, many people have a
picnic. Some people have a barbecue in a
park or on the beach. Fireworks light up the
sky in many towns. The fireworks can be the
same colors as the flag: red, white, and blue.
Families eat holiday
foods at the park.
10
Freedom is important for many countries
around the world. People in India celebrate
their country’s freedom on August 15. Mexicans
celebrate freedom on September 16.
11
 For people in the United States, the
Fourth of July is a very important date. Many
people worked very hard for America to be
free. The next time you see a Fourth of July
parade, remember what it is all about!
12
Reader Response
1. Uncle Sam is a symbol of the United States.
Would it be a fact or an opinion if we said he
was a good symbol for the country?
2. Reread the section about the Liberty Bell. In
your own words tell what you know about
this bell and what happened to it after it
was made. Draw a web like the one below
to show what you have learned about the
Liberty Bell.
The
Liberty
Bell
3. Why do you think the American flag has the
nickname “Stars and Stripes”?
4. Why do people celebrate the Fourth of July?