Warm-up – 7 minutes
Write a one paragraph response to the question.
Why are some people drawn to risk
and adventure?
from Into Thin Air
Introducing the Story
Click on the title to start the video.
from Into Thin Air
Introducing the Story
Jon Krakauer climbed to heights that few humans
will ever reach.
He spent five
minutes at
the top of the
world, . . .
from Into Thin Air
Introducing the Story
. . . knowing that a minute longer could cost him
his life.
Meanwhile, the other
climbers in his group were
still ascending Mount
Everest.
Would they make it
down alive?
[End of Section]
from Into Thin Air
Vocabulary
1. deteriorate v.: get worse.
2. benign adj.: not dangerous.
from Into Thin Air
Vocabulary
The word deteriorate means “to worsen or
decline.”
Our school is building a new stadium because
the old one is beginning to deteriorate.
from Into Thin Air
Vocabulary
Which neighborhood below looks likely to
deteriorate?
deteriorate
• verb
• definition: worsen
example sentence: His
health will deteriorate
as his cancer
progresses.
YOUR SENTENCE: ____
will deteriorate if I don’t
___________________.
from Into Thin Air
Vocabulary
Benign is used to describe someone or something
that is harmless or not life threatening.
The smooth waves appear
to be benign, but the
strong currents beneath
the surface can be deadly.
from Into Thin Air
Vocabulary
Which of the following words is the opposite of
benign?
a. malignant
b. kindly
c. malice
benign
• adj
• definition: harmless
example sentence: It
turned out that the
tumor was benign.
He has a benign habit
of biting his nails.
She turned out to be a
very friendly and
benign person.
YOUR SENTENCE: I hope
that ____ is benign
because_________
3. innocuous
• adj
• definition: harmless
example sentence: The
clouds appeared to
be innocuous.
YOUR SENTENCE: It turned
out that ____ was
innocuous even though
I had feared
___________________.
4. notorious
• adj
• definition: famous for
a bad reasons
example sentence:
Jimmy Hoffa was
notorious because of
his mafia activity.
YOUR SENTENCE: ____
could be described as
notorious because
__________________.
5. apex
• noun
• definition: highest
point; top
example sentence: The
mountain climbers
couldn’t wait to reach
the apex.Tragically,
she died at the apex
of her career. The
excitement was about
to reach its apex
YOUR SENTENCE: It was
hard to reach the apex
because ___________.
Summit – noun
top of the mountain
balcony – noun
projection of the rock
shale – noun
a rock that splits easily
gangrene – noun
decay resulting from tissue with lack of blood
supply
frostbite – noun
injury caused to the body by freezing
corniced fin
regulator – device that controls oxygen
flow
Play the Setting: “Into Thin Air”
• EXPOSITION notes: read 1st page
of story
1. Setting (time + place)
2. Background (important
information)
3. Characters
C. Notes “Into Thin Air”
• Background – List three important facts (new:p.10261027)
• Irony – How does Krakauer feel after achieving
something he has been fantasizing for months?
(old:p.353, new: p. ___)
• Why is this ironic? old:p.353, new: p. ___)
• Cause and effect What caused the narrator to be
exhausted? Flow map
• Irony – Why is it ironic that the clouds appeared
innocuous to Krakuer? (old:p.354, new: p.___)