Core Skills Workout—LL
Summarizing
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Writing a Summary
A summary is a short retelling of the most important parts of an article. It should include
the information that someone would need to know to understand the article,
without minor details or your own opinion.
Directions: Complete the summary below, using the prompts in the margins to help you.
Summary of “The Volcano That Changed the World”
“The Volcano That Changed the World” is about _______________________________
2. Explain
WHAT
happened
and
WHERE it
happened.
____________________________________________________________________________________
On April 10, 1815, ________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________ Fire, ash, gas, and rock
exploded out of the mountain, with devastating consequences for the people living
4. Explain
what
happened
to weather
around the
world in 1816.
Include two
examples.
nearby. Effects included __________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
A year later, _______________________________________________________________________
1. Begin
with a topic
sentence
that tells
what the
article is
mainly about.
3. Give
two details
explaining
how the
eruption
affected
Sumbawa.
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
5. What
was the
cause of
these
strange
weather
events?
At the time, nobody knew that ____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Today, scientists understand that _________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
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6. Describe
what
scientists
now know
about the
connection
between
volcanoes
and climate.
Inference
Core Skills Workout—LL
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Making Inferences
An inference is something you can figure out from clues in a story,
even though the story doesn’t say it directly.
Directions: The chart below lists clues from “The Volcano That Changed the World” on the left and inferences
you can make from them on the right. Fill in the blanks on the chart with clues or inferences from the article.
Clues
Inferences
What can you infer about Mount Tambora’s effect on
the worldwide climate?
______________________________________________________
Consider these lines from the article:
1
• “Snowstorms and floods struck France, England,
Ireland, and Switzerland.”
• “There were droughts and floods in India and killing
frosts across China.”
• “It all started with a volcano called Mount
Tambora.”
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
Write two lines from the article that support the
inference on the right.
_____________________________________________________
2
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
You can infer that in 1816 most people
depended on their local resources for survival.
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
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Core Skills Workout—LL
Inference
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Making Inferences, p. 2
Clues
Inferences
What can you infer about how the scientific
understanding of climate has changed since 1816?
3
Consider these lines from the article:
_______________________________________________________
• “In 1816, not even the most brilliant scientists
would have believed that these weather problems
were somehow connected . . .”
_______________________________________________________
• “Today, scientists know that volcanoes can have a
major impact on weather worldwide.”
_______________________________________________________
• “Scientists monitored every phase of Pinatubo’s
eruption in June 1991.”
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
Write two lines from the article that support the
inference on the right.
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
4
_____________________________________________________
The eruption of Mount Tambora had a huge effect on
westward migration across America.
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
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Text Evidence
Core Skills Workout—LL
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Find the Evidence
Directions: Read each question below carefully. Some will ask you to select text
evidence—or details in the story—to support a statement. Others will ask you to
respond in your own words, supporting your ideas with text evidence.
1. As John Hoisington and his father watched the snowstorm in June 1816, they were very worried.
Circle the letter of the piece of text evidence that best shows what caused their concern:
a. “Summer was just two weeks away.”
b. “This storm would kill all their crops.”
c. “Snow destroyed thousands of other East Coast farms, from Virginia up to Maine.”
d. “Were witches to blame?”
2. In your own words, explain why the things the Hoisingtons grew were so important to them.
Use specific evidence from the text.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. On Sumbawa, no one expected Mount Tambora to erupt. Circle the letter of the piece of text evidence
that best explains why people were unprepared for the eruption:
a. “Looming over the northern side of the island was Mount Tambora, a quiet mountain dotted with villages
and rice farms.”
b. “The first eruption shook the island and sent up great plumes of fire and ash.”
c. “But that was nothing compared with what would come five days later, on April 10.”
d. “Like many volcanoes, Tambora looked like an ordinary mountain and had been dormant—quiet—for
centuries.”
4. Using evidence from the text, explain what a pyroclastic surge is.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Text Evidence
Core Skills Workout—LL
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Find the Evidence, p. 2
5. Circle the letter of the piece of text evidence that shows that people in different places around the world
were starving because of Mount Tambora’s eruption:
a. “In Paris, mobs of people broke into warehouses where grain was stored, risking their lives to steal
sacks of flour.”
b. “Somehow, the deadliest volcano in history was ignored by most of the world—and then forgotten.”
c. “Floods in India triggered an outbreak of a disease called cholera, which killed millions.”
d. “The eruption instantly killed at least 12,000 people living on and around Mount Tambora.”
6. Explain why so few people around the world heard about Mount Tambora’s eruption when it happened.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. Which piece of text evidence shows how eruptions like those of Mount Tambora and Mount Pinatubo
are different from other eruptions?
a. “Scientists monitored every phase of Pinatubo’s eruption in June 1991.”
b. “In 1816, not even the most brilliant scientists would have believed that these weather problems
were somehow connected.”
c. “ But in a very powerful eruption, the cloud rises so high that it mixes with water and other gases
in the stratosphere.”
d. “Tambora’s cloud would have been even bigger, its effects more devastating.”
8. Using text evidence, explain how Mount Tambora’s eruption affected migration in the United States.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Core Skills Workout
Text Features
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Discovering Text Features
Directions: Answer the questions below to help you explore the photos, captions, map,
and other text features in the nonfiction article “The Volcano That Changed the World.”
1. Look at the large headline on page 5. How does the color and shape of the word volcano help you understand
the story at a glance? ______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Based on the caption on page 6, what can you infer about how the eruption of Mount Tambora influenced author
Mary Shelley’s story Frankenstein? ____________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Read the paragraph on page 8 that starts “What people were paying attention to . . .” How does the map on
page 7 further illustrate the point made in that paragraph? _________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. According to the map on page 7, in what ways did Tambora’s eruption affect North America and the Arctic
region? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. What do the picture and caption on page 8 tell us about Tambora today? _______________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. What information does the picture on page 9 add to the article? ____________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Storyworks S-T-R-E-T-C-H How did the aftereffects of Tambora influence artist J. M. W. Turner’s painting of
Mount Vesuvius, on page 6? Why might artists have been interested in painting Mount Vesuvius? (Hint: Use the
graphic on pages 8-9 as a clue.) __________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Core Skills Workout
Text Structures
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Understanding Text Structures
Directions: Text structure is the way an author organizes information in a piece of writing.
Authors use different text structures to achieve different purposes. Common text structures
are listed in the boxes on the right. Use the information in these boxes to help you answer
the questions below about “The Volcano That Changed the World.”
1. What is the main purpose of the article? ___________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Which text structure does the author use overall in the article to achieve
Description
includes details to help
you picture or get to know
a person, place, thing, or
idea.
this purpose? _________________________________________________
2. Reread the first section. Which text structure does the author mainly use
in this section? Explain your answer using examples. _________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Cause and Effect
explains why something
happened (cause) and
what happened as a result
(effect).
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Why do you think the author uses this text structure? ________________
Problem and Solution
presents a problem and
explains how it is solved.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
3. Which text structure does the author mainly use in the section “Ignored
and Forgotten”? Explain your answer using examples. ________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Compare and Contrast
presents the similarities
and/or differences between
two items, such as events,
time periods, or places.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Why do you think the author uses this text structure? ________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Sequence of Events
describes events in the
order in which they
happen. This is also called
chronological order.
Continued on next page >
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Core Skills Workout
Text Structures
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Understanding Text Structures, p. 2
4. W
hich text structure does the author mainly use in the first three paragraphs of “Solving a Mystery”?
Explain your answer using examples. _______________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Why do you think the author uses this text structure? ______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. L
ook at the chart at the top of pages 8 and 9. Imagine the author put this information into a paragraph
rather than a chart. Which text structure would she most likely use? Why? _________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
You be the author! Write a paragraph with the information contained in the “Comparing Volcanoes”
chart. Use your answer to question No. 5 to help you.
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Domain-Specific Vocabulary
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Vocabulary Eruption
I. BEFORE READING: In the article “The Volcano That Changed the World,”
you will find a number of words having to do with volcanoes and their effects.
As you come across words in bold, ask yourself if you know them or
if you can figure them out from context. Then check their meanings here.
1. climate: “Little was known about climate or volcanoes.” (p. 8)
Meaning: the usual weather in a place
2. dissipate: “Most volcanic clouds quickly dissipate—break apart and fade away.” (p. 8)
Meaning: to separate into parts and scatter or vanish
3. dormant: “Like many volcanoes, Tambora looked like an ordinary mountain and had been dormant—
quiet—for centuries.” (p. 7)
Meaning: inactive; used to describe a volcano: not active at the moment, but capable of erupting again
4. droughts: “There were droughts and floods in India and killing frosts across northern China.” (p. 6)
Meaning: long spells of very dry weather
5. m
igrations: “It was one of the biggest migrations in U.S. history.” (p. 9)
Meaning: long journeys to a new home in another country or region
6. plumes: “The first eruption shook the island and sent up great plumes of fire and ash.” (p. 7)
Meaning: feathers, or things that have fluffy, feathery shapes
7. pyroclastic surge: “This pyroclastic surge devastated everything in its path.” (p. 7)
Meaning: a quickly flowing mixture of gas and hot pieces of rock that come out of a volcano during a
violent eruption
8. stratosphere: “But in a very powerful eruption, the cloud rises so high that it mixes with water and
other gases in the stratosphere.” (p. 8)
Meaning: an upper portion of the sky where clouds rarely form and the air is cold and thin
Continued on next page >
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Domain-Specific Vocabulary
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Vocabulary Eruption, p. 2
II. AFTER READING: Now that you have read these vocabulary words in context,
check your understanding by using them to answer the questions below.
Directions: Use the correct term from the word box to answer each question below.
WORD BOX
climate
dissipates
dormant
drought
migrations
plumes
pyroclastic surge
stratosphere
1. What do you call a long period with little or no rain? ____________________________________
2. Mount Fuji has not erupted for 306 years. Which word could you use to describe the volcano?
____________________________________
3. What word might describe a group of feathers decorating a hat? ____________________________________
4. As astronauts blast off into space, they go through the upper layer of sky, where the air is thin and cold.
What is this layer called? ____________________________________
5. Monarch butterflies and humpback whales travel hundreds of miles every year from one area to another.
What word describes their journeys? ____________________________________
6. One of the most dangerous parts of a volcanic eruption is not the lava, but the wave of gas and hot rock that
bursts from the volcano. What is that wave called? ____________________________________
7. If you are describing what the weather is generally like someplace, you are talking about
its ____________________________________ .
8. After a fire, the smoke eventually breaks up and disappears. In other words,
it ____________________________________ .
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Cause and Effect
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
A Volcano’s Effects
Directions: Use the chart below to help you understand how one cause—the eruption of Mount
Tambora—had many effects. Answer the questions in the boxes, using details from the article.
Cause:
Mount Tambora erupted
with tremendous force.
effects:
1. Lava and flames rushed down
the mountain.
A. What happened instantly as a result of the
lava and flames?
2. A huge cloud of ash and gases
rose high into the sky.
A. How did the huge cloud affect Earth’s
climate?
B. How did the lava affect food on the island
of Sumbawa?
B. W
hat weather events occurred as a result
of the changed climate?
C. What happened to people on Sumbawa
after the food supply was affected?
C.How did these weather events affect
people in different places?
Write Now! Imagine you could send a letter through time, explaining to the Hoisingtons what caused the
strange weather of 1816. In your letter, tell them how Tambora affected people around the world.
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Video Discussion
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Video Discussion Questions
Part I—After Viewing the Video
Directions: Watch the video “Behind the Scenes: The Volcano That Changed the World.”
Make sure to listen for what the video says about primary sources. Then answer the questions below.
1. According to the video, what is a primary source? Based on this definition, what other
examples of primary sources can you name?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. A
llison says in the video that looking at primary sources is the most interesting part of the
research process. Why might this be the case?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. W
hy do you think Lauren Tarshis wanted to include the story of a real family in her article
“The Volcano That Changed the World”?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Video Discussion
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Video Discussion Questions, p. 2
Part II—After Reading the Article
Directions: Think about what you learned about primary sources in the video. How does it apply to the
article “The Volcano That Changed the World”? Match each article excerpt in the left column with the
source in the right column that the piece of information most likely came from.
Article Excerpt
1. “Ten-year-old John Hoisington stared in
shock out the window of his family’s Vermont
farmhouse. It was June 8, 1816. Summer was
just two weeks away. Yet outside, a wild winter
snowstorm was raging.” (p. 5)
Source of Information
a. French newspaper article from 1816
b. Diary of Sabrina Hoisington
SOURCE: ________
2. “The eruption of Tambora in 1815 was the
most deadly and powerful eruption in human
history.” (p. 7)
SOURCE: ________
3. “Most volcanic clouds quickly dissipate—break
apart and fade away. But in a very powerful
eruption, the cloud rises so high that it mixes
with water and other gases in the stratosphere.
It turns into a foam and remains high in the
sky.” (p. 8)
c. Encyclopedia entry about Mount Tambora
d. Scientific journal article about the relationship
between volcanoes and climate
SOURCE: ________
4. “In Europe, farmers grew desperate. In Paris,
mobs of people broke into warehouses where
grain was stored, risking their lives to steal
sacks of flour.” (p. 8)
SOURCE: ________
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions
Directions: After reading “The Volcano That Changed the World,”
go back and reread sections to answer the questions below.
1. Read the first four paragraphs. What problem do the Hoisingtons face?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. In
the sixth paragraph, why does the author ask the question “Were witches to blame?”
referring to the strange weather?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. On
page 7, what does the author mean when she says, “Tambora woke up”?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. What happened to the island of Sumbawa and its people as a result of the eruption?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions, p. 2
5. Why didn’t people around the world know about the eruption?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. In “Solving a Mystery,” why does the author explain what happened when Mount Pinatubo
erupted? What is the main idea of the section?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. What happened to the Hoisingtons? How is this similar to what happened to many
others?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Critical-Thinking Questions, p. 3
8. W
hat can you conclude from this article about how a change in the climate can affect the
planet? Use text evidence in your answer.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. S
cientists have only recently discovered that disasters around the world were caused
by one event—Tambora’s eruption. What do you think is one reason this discovery is
important?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading “The Volcano That Changed the World,” go back and reread sections
to answer the questions below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
Close-Reading Questions:
1. Read the first four paragraphs. What problem do the Hoisingtons face?
2. I n the sixth paragraph, why does the author ask the question “Were witches to blame?”
referring to the strange weather?
3. On page 7, what does the author mean when she says, “Tambora woke up”?
4. What happened to the island of Sumbawa and its people as a result of the eruption?
5. Why didn’t people around the world know about the eruption?
6. In “Solving a Mystery,” why does the author explain what happened when Mount
Pinatubo erupted? What is the main idea of the section?
7. W
hat happened to the Hoisingtons? How is this similar to what happened to many
others?
Critical-Thinking Questions:
8. W
hat can you conclude from this article about how a change in the climate can affect the
planet? Use text evidence in your answer.
9. S
cientists have only recently discovered that disasters around the world were caused
by one event—Tambora’s eruption. What do you think is one reason this discovery is
important?
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LL
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
“The Volcano That Changed the World”
Directions: Read the article “The Volcano That Changed the World” in the September 2014 issue of
Storyworks. Then fill in the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. Which sentence below best states the main
idea of the article?
A The Hoisington family moved to Ohio.
B Volcanoes can dramatically affect the weather.
C Mount Tambora killed many people on
Sumbawa.
D Any mountain can turn into a volcano.
2. Which line from the article supports the
answer to question 1?
A “This storm would kill all of their crops.”
B “Were witches to blame?”
C “But today, scientists know that volcanoes
can have a major impact on weather
worldwide.”
D “It was not as powerful as Tambora.”
3. Based on the article’s introduction, how was
John Hoisington feeling in June 1816?
A excited
C sleepy
B proud
D worried
4. Which of the following statements is
true?
A Mount Tambora is no longer a volcano.
B Mount Tambora’s eruption killed a total of
about 90,000 people around the world.
C Mount Tambora is history’s most famous
volcano.
D Mount Pinatubo erupted in 1991.
5. According to the map on page 7, how
did Mount Tambora’s eruption affect the
Ohio Valley?
A Many New England farmers moved there.
B Crops failure caused famine there.
C Massive floods ruined farms.
D An outbreak of cholera killed many people.
6. What does unearthed mean in the
caption “Artifacts like these pieces of
pottery have been unearthed from the
ruins on Tambora’s slopes”? (p. 9)
A bought
C dug up
B created
D stolen
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, answer each question in at least two well-written sentences.
Make sure you support your answers with information and details from the article.
7. According to the article, a volcanic cloud
can lead to lower temperatures around
the world. How does this happen?
8. Think about the article’s title. Write
one way in which Mount Tambora
“changed the world.”
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Tambora Contest
My name:
Teacher’s name:
School name:
School address:
School phone:
(Remember to include your city, state, and ZIP code!)
See page 9 of the September 2014 Storyworks for more information about this contest.
My Respo n se
Imagine you could send a letter through time, explaining to the
Hoisingtons what caused the strange weather of 1816. In your letter,
tell them how Tambora affected people around the world.
Entries will be judged on...
a a clearly stated main idea
proper use of supporting details
a
a good organization
a grammar, spelling, and punctuation
Please continue on another piece of paper if you need more room.
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Core Skills Workout—LL
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Summarizing
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Writing a Summary
A summary is a short retelling of the most important parts of an article.
It should include the information that someone would need to know
to understand the article, without minor details or your own opinion.
Directions: Complete the summary below, using the prompts in the margins to help you.
Summary of “Talen’s Got Talent” and
“The Incredible Power of Speech”
“Talen’s Got Talent” is about ________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
1. Who is the
article mainly
about? What
problem does
he face?
__________________________________________________________________ Stuttering makes
2. What is
stuttering?
How did it
make Talen
feel?
it difficult for Talen to _____________________________________________________________
In the past, this made him feel _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________ But Talen’s life began to change when
___________________________________________________________________________________
4. Give two
examples of
what Talen
does at SAY.
SAY gave him a chance to ________________________________________________________
Now, ______________________________________________________________________________
the article
explain about
humans’ ability
to speak?
“The Incredible Power of Speech” explains that ______________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Because many parts of the body are involved in the speech process, _____________
____________________________________________________________________________________
8. What do
scientists
and people
with speech
disorders
hope?
organization
did Talen
join?
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
6. What does
3. What
But recent breakthroughs give hope that __________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
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5. How
has Talen
changed?
7. How
has this
affected
scientists
who study
speech?
Core Skills Workout—LL
Main Idea and Supporting Details
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
What’s the Main Idea?
The main idea of a story is an important idea that holds the whole piece together.
Supporting details give examples or explanations of the main idea.
Directions: Read the main idea in the box below. Then find the details in “Talen’s Got Talent” and
“The Incredible Power of Speech” to support the main idea. We’ve given you some hints.
Main idea: Human speech is so complex that scientists can’t yet
cure stuttering, but many stutterers, like Talen, can grow more confident
when given the chance to express themselves.
Supporting Detail 1: (Hint: Why is human speech so difficult to study?)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Supporting Detail 2: (Hint: According to scientists, why do some people stutter?)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Supporting Detail 3: (Hint: What challenges do many stutterers face when trying to communicate with others?)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Supporting Detail 4: (Hint: How does the organization SAY aim to help children who stutter?)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Supporting Detail 5: (Hint: How has Talen’s life changed since he joined SAY?)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Synthesizing
Core Skills Workout
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Putting It All Together
Directions: To synthesize means to combine parts from different sources. Answer the questions
below to synthesize information from the article “Talen’s Got Talent” (TGT) and the informational
text “The Incredible Power of Speech” (IPS). We’ve indicated where you can find each answer.
1. How is human communication
different from that of other
animals? (IPS)
2. What is stuttering? (TGT)
3. Approximately how many
people in the United States
stutter? (TGT)
4. In what ways does stuttering
affect the lives of stutterers?
(TGT)
5. What do scientists believe may
be the causes of stuttering?
(both texts)
6. Why is it so challenging for
scientists to find a cure for
stuttering? (IPS)
7. How have some people dealt
with stuttering? (TGT)
Write Now! Use your answers above to help you respond to the writing prompt at the bottom of page 13.
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Vocabulary
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Thinking About Words
I. Directions: Below are vocabulary words from the paired texts “Talen’s Got Talent” and
“The Incredible Power of Speech.” We’ve put them into three groups. Read the sentences
in which the words are found, along with their meanings, to figure out what the words
in each group have in common. We’ve done the first one for you.
• bellow: “Sea lion mothers bellow to call their babies home.” (p. 13)
Meaning: to shout or roar
• uttered: “By the end of life, the average person will have uttered approximately 370 million words.” (p. 13)
Meaning: spoke or made some sort of sound
“Bellow” and “uttered” are both ways of
A. What do these words have in common? ____________________________________________________________________
_________________________________
talking or communicating.______________________________________________________
• disorder: “Stuttering is a speech disorder that makes it hard to say words out loud.” (p. 10)
Meaning: a physical or mental condition that is not normal
• inherited: “Many experts think stuttering is likely inherited.” (p. 10)
Meaning: passed down to children from their parents
• tendency: “They believe some people are born with a tendency to develop stuttering.” (p. 10)
Meaning: likelihood
B. What do these words have in common? ______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
• humiliated: “By first grade, the problem bothered him so much that he rarely spoke in class for fear he
would be humiliated.” (p. 12)
Meaning: made to feel foolish or embarrassed
• self-conscious: “. . . it has helped him feel less self-conscious.” (p. 12)
Meaning: feeling like people are looking at you and worrying about what they think
C. What do these words have in common? ______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Vocabulary
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Thinking About Words, p. 2
II. Directions: Review the words you just learned by choosing the
correct word from the Word Bank to complete the sentences below.
word bank
bellow
disorder
humiliated
inherited
self-conscious
tendency
uttered
1. Jack was standing in left field, but he heard his coach _____________________________ his name all the
way from the first-base dugout.
2. Ellie _____________________________ her mom’s blue eyes and her dad’s height.
3. After getting the new haircut, I got the sense that people were chuckling at me. It made me feel
_____________________________ about how I looked.
4. Sophia has a _____________________________ to stay away from other people so she can block out all
distractions when she’s studying for a big, challenging test.
5. I felt _____________________________ when I forgot the words in the middle of my song during the
school talent show.
6. My mother’s sleep _____________________________ makes it difficult for her to feel rested in the morning.
7. I _____________________________ my frustration under my breath when I became annoyed at people
talking loudly in the library.
III. Directions: In each line of words below, circle the word that doesn’t belong.
8. tendency
habit
disorder
routine
9. embarrassed
uncomfortable
self-conscious
confident
whimper
bellow
bark
10. scream
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions
Directions: After reading “Talen’s Got Talent” and “The Incredible Power of Speech,” go back and
reread sections to answer the questions below.
1. What impression do you get of Talen from the first paragraph? Which words give you this
impression?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. I n the section “A Puzzling Problem,” what two main challenges does Talen face because of
his stutter?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Why does the author describe Talen’s life at home?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions, p. 2
4. What is the goal of SAY? What evidence shows that the group has met its goal with
Talen?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. W
hat is the tone of Talen’s quote at the end of the article? What does the quote tell you
about Talen?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. Based on the section “Key to Survival,” how is communicating different from speaking?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. What parts of the body are used in speech? What does this tell you about why speech
problems can be hard to solve?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Critical-Thinking Questions, p. 3
8. T
alen advises that listeners should “wait patiently for a person who stutters to finish.”
Why do you think this is the best thing to do?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. According to the informational text, what happened in 2013? How might this affect kids
like Talen?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Talen’s Got Talent”
September 2014
Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading “Talen’s Got Talent” and “The Incredible Power of Speech,” go back and
reread sections to answer the questions below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
Close-Reading Questions:
1. W
hat impression do you get of Talen from the first paragraph? Which words give you this
impression?
2. I n the section “A Puzzling Problem,” what two main challenges does Talen face because of
his stutter?
3. Why does the author describe Talen’s life at home?
4. What is the goal of SAY? What evidence shows that the group has met its goal with Talen?
5. W
hat is the tone of Talen’s quote at the end of the article? What does the quote tell you
about Talen?
6. Based on the section “Key to Survival,” how is communicating different from speaking?
7. W
hat parts of the body are used in speech? What does this tell you about why speech
problems can be hard to solve?
Critical-Thinking Questions:
8. Talen
advises that listeners should “wait patiently for a person who stutters to finish.”
Why do you think this is the best thing to do?
9. A
ccording to the informational text, what happened in 2013? How might this affect kids
like Talen?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
LL
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
“Talen’s Got Talent” Quiz
Directions: Read the paired texts “Talen’s Got Talent” and “The Incredible Power of Speech” in the
September 2014 issue of Storyworks. Then fill in the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. Which of the following is a main idea of the
article “Talen’s Got Talent”?
A People who stutter often face big challenges.
B Animals communicate in many different ways.
C SAY was created in 2001.
D Several parts of the body are involved in speech.
2. Which line from the article supports the
answer to question 1?
A “The causes of stuttering are not well
understood.”
B “Sometimes people grow impatient when Talen
speaks and say, ‘Spit it out.’ ”
C “The goal is to build kids’ confidence.”
D “Plus, he’s made friends.”
3. What does Taro Alexander have in common
with Talen?
A They both work at SAY.
B They both started stuttering at age 5.
C They’re both professional actors.
D Neither one likes his singing voice.
4. Which fact can be found in both “Talen’s
Got Talent” and “The Incredible Power
of Speech”?
A About 3 million Americans stutter.
B The average person says about 370 million
words in a lifetime.
C Scientists don’t fully understand stuttering
yet.
D Only humans can speak.
5. Taro Alexander says that performing
“helps kids come out of their shells
in a brilliant way.” In this statement,
brilliant means ______.
A very clean
C very smart
B wonderful
D sparkly
6. The author’s tone at the end of “The
Incredible Power of Speech” is ______.
A hopeful
C nervous
B humorous
D surprised
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, answer each question in at least three well-written sentences.
Make sure you support your answers with information and details from the articles.
7. Both articles show that communication is
important. Give three examples from the
texts that show why it matters.
8. Talen says he feels like “a new person”
even though he still stutters. How has
he changed?
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Vocabulary
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Silverman City”
September 2014
Pick Your Own Vocabulary Words
Directions: We’ve given you the definitions of five important words from this issue’s
story “Silverman City.” Look for them as you read. Then pick out three more words that
are new to you. Write their definitions, using context clues or a dictionary to help you.
WORD
page
no.
it means . . .
1. brooch
17
a piece of jewelry that can be pinned to clothes
2. burly
16
strong and with large muscles
3. prospered
17
was successful
4. vagrant
17
a person who has no steady job and wanders from
place to place
5. widowed
16
having had a husband or wife who died
My own words:
6.
7.
8.
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Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Silverman City”
September 2014
Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading “Silverman City,” go back and reread sections to answer the questions below.
1. Which details suggest that the legend of the silverman is real?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why does the silverman help Danny?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. I n real life, magical people with arrows don’t help us out with bullies. Why do you think
the author made this happen in the story?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Silverman City”
September 2014
Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading “Silverman City,” go back and reread sections to answer
the questions below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
Critical-Thinking Questions:
1. Which details suggest that the legend of the silverman is real?
2. Why does the silverman help Danny?
3. In real life, magical people with arrows don’t help us out with bullies. Why do you think
the author made this happen in the story?
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Problem and Solution
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Silverman City”
September 2014
Danny’s Big Problem
Directions: Answer the questions in the chart below to help you understand the problems and
solutions in the fiction story “Silverman City.” Be sure to use details from the story.
What is Danny’s problem?
Two characters help Danny. Who are they?
How does this character help Danny?
How does this character help Danny?
Why does this character help Danny?
Why does this character help Danny?
Write Now! Use the information above to help you respond to the writing prompt on page 20: Write one
paragraph explaining Danny’s main problem, who helps him solve it, and why.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
LL
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
“Silverman City” Quiz
Directions: Read the short story “Silverman City” in the September 2014 issue of Storyworks. Then fill in
the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. What is Danny’s biggest problem?
A Danny can’t find the silverman.
B Danny is being bullied.
C Danny doesn’t have any friends.
D Danny loses his silver rose pin.
2. What does burly mean in the sentence “The
girl looked back at the burly young man,
who lifted his hand and said hi”?
A big and strong
C hairy
B grumpy
D skinny
3. Why does Danny feel safe when Joel is
around?
A Joel is the silverman.
B Joel looks strong, which scares
Aaron’s gang.
C Joel fought a gang of 10 people in his old town.
D Joel can outsmart Aaron’s gang.
4. Which of the following best describes
Rose?
A afraid
C silly
B shy
D kind
5. Which line from the story best supports
your answer in question 4?
A “ ‘Do you believe in the silverman?’ Rose
asked Danny.”
B “On the following Monday, though, Rose
was alone.”
C “She gathered up Danny’s pens and cleaned
his bloody knee with a tissue.”
D “She began to unpin the brooch.”
6. How do you think Danny feels at the end
of the story?
A happy
C upset
B wise
D angry
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, write your answer to each question in at least three well-written
sentences. Make sure you support your answers with details from the story.
7. How does Danny treat the silverman?
How is that different from the way Aaron
treats the silverman? Be sure to use
examples from the story in your answer.
8. B
y the end of the story, what does
Danny learn about accepting help
from others?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Silverman Contest
My name:
Teacher’s name:
School name:
School address:
School phone:
(Remember to include your city, state, and ZIP code!)
See page 20 of the September 2014 Storyworks for more information about this contest.
My Respo n se
Danny usually faces problems on his own. But in this story, he gets some help. Write one
paragraph explaining Danny’s main problem, who helps him solve it, and why.
Entries will be judged on...
a a clearly stated main idea
aproper use of supporting details
a good organization
a grammar, spelling, and punctuation
Please continue on another piece of paper if you need more room.
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Vocabulary
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Mythology Words
Directions: The play Pandora’s Box contains vocabulary you might often come across in Greek myths. As you
read, look for the words in the ovals below. Figure out their meanings from context or use a dictionary or our
Whole-Issue Glossary to help you. Write their meanings in the ovals.
1. Mount Olympus
p. 23
8. bearable
2. defy
p. 26
p. 24
7. hideous
3. eternity
p. 26
p. 24
Greek
Myths
6. chariot
4. urn
p. 24
p. 24
5. exceptional
p. 24
Your turn! On a separate sheet of paper, do one of the tasks below. Use at least four of the words above in your task.
• Imagine yourself as a Greek god or goddess and write a diary entry describing what you did last Friday evening.
• Imagine yourself as a travel agent in ancient Greece. Design a flyer advertising a local tourist attraction.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions
Directions: After reading the play Pandora’s Box, go back and
reread sections to answer the questions below.
1. In the prologue, Zeus refuses to share fire with humans. Why? What does this tell you
about him?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. In Scene 1, Zeus says, “But it’s the least that I could do. And exactly what you deserve!”
What does Zeus mean by this?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. W
hich lines from Scene 1 show that Zeus is trying to trick Pandora into opening the box?
Use examples from the text in your answer.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Close-Reading Questions, p. 2
4. Reread the beginning of Scene 2. Why does the author repeatedly start Pandora’s lines
with “It can’t hurt just to . . . ?”
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Why does Pandora open the box? Do you think she could have resisted?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. Why does Pandora help Hope fly off into the world? How is Hope important?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. Look at the “Myth Talk” article. What do the last two figures of speech mean?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
Critical-Thinking Questions, p. 3
8. W
hat does this myth explain?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. W
hat is the theme of Pandora’s Box?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading the play Pandora’s Box, go back and reread sections to answer
the questions below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
Close-Reading Questions:
1. In the prologue, Zeus refuses to share fire with humans. Why? What does this tell you
about him?
2. In Scene 1, Zeus says, “But it’s the least that I could do. And exactly what you deserve!”
What does Zeus mean by this?
3. W
hich lines from Scene 1 show that Zeus is trying to trick Pandora into opening the box?
Use examples from the text in your answer.
4. R
eread the beginning of Scene 2. Why does the author repeatedly start Pandora’s lines
with “It can’t hurt just to . . . ?”
5. Why does Pandora open the box? Do you think she could have resisted?
6. Why does Pandora help Hope fly off into the world? How is Hope important?
7. Look at the “Myth Talk” article. What do the last two figures of speech mean?
Critical-Thinking Questions:
8. W
hat does this myth explain?
9. What is the theme of Pandora’s Box?
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Theme
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Pandora’s Box
September 2014
What’s the Theme?
Directions: A theme is the big idea in a story. In Pandora’s Box, one event leads to another—which
eventually leads to the theme. Answer the questions below to help you determine the theme.
1. Why is Zeus angry? What does he plan to do?
2. Where does Pandora come from? What character traits does she have?
3. What happens when Pandora opens the box? What comes out?
4. What is the effect of Pandora’s decision to open the box? How does the myth end?
State the theme in one sentence.
Write Now! What does the mythology play Pandora’s Box explain about humans? On a separate sheet
of paper, write one paragraph to answer this question, using the theme you wrote above to help you.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
LL
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
Pandora’s Box Quiz
Directions: Read the play Pandora’s Box in the September 2014 issue of Storyworks.
Then fill in the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. Myths are stories that offer answers to
questions about the world. What question
does this one answer?
A Why do bad things happen in our lives?
B Why is fire so important to humans?
C Why do alligators have such big teeth?
D Why do people give wedding gifts?
2. Which line from the play supports the answer
to question 1?
A “That takes care of Prometheus.”
B “Down on the floor, one creature remains.”
C “You must believe me, Pandora.”
D “When Pandora turned that key, she set all kinds
of horrors free.”
3. What do Prometheus and Pandora have in
common?
A They’re both gods.
B They’re both very curious.
C They both disobey Zeus.
D They both like dogs.
4. Another name for the character Deceit
could be ______.
A Dishonesty
B Fear
C Greed
D Laziness
5. Epimetheus is described as being “a
little slow.” Another problem he has is
that he’s too ______.
A selfish
C shy
B talkative
D trusting
6. What is the tone of the final lines “We’re
just happy that she knew/To let Hope out
the window too”?
A angry
C sad
B relieved
D shocked
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, answer each question in at least three well-written sentences.
Make sure you support your answers with information and details from the play.
7. It’s clearly dangerous to disobey Zeus.
Why does Prometheus take such a risk?
How do you know?
8. B
ased on this myth, how might the
world be different today if Pandora
had not let Hope out the window?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Opinion Writing
“Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Write an Opinion Essay
Directions: Read the article “Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?” in the September 2014 issue
of Storyworks. Fill in the chart on page 29. Then follow the steps below to write an opinion essay.
Step 1: Choose your side
An opinion essay is all about expressing a view and using evidence to try to convince your readers to agree
with you. First step? Decide where you stand. Should parents help kids with homework? Check the box
next to the point of view you will support in your essay.
Yes! Nowadays, kids need a boost!
No! Homework is for kids alone!
Step 2: WRITE A TOPIC SENTENCE
The topic sentence is where you tell your readers what the essay is going to be about. In an opinion essay,
it’s where you state your opinion—strongly! Write your topic sentence on the lines below, stating
whether or not you think parents should help kids with homework.
Your topic sentence: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Step 3: Summarize the issue
Let the readers know a little about the topic you will be writing about. This is not your opinion; it’s just a
very brief summary of the issue. In this case, you will be discussing whether parents helping with homework
is useful to kids or prevents them kids from learning.
Your summary of the issue: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Opinion Writing
“Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Write an Opinion Essay, p. 2
Step 4: Find your support
Guess what? You’ve already done most of this part! Your three supporting points are listed in either the
“Yes” or the “No” column on page 29. Copy your three points on the numbered lines below. In the next
paragraph of your essay, you will state your three supporting points. After each one, you should add details
that back up that point. Write down one detail related to each point on the “Detail” lines below.
1. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Detail: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Detail: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Detail: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Step 5: MENTION THE OTHER SIDE
Pick one of the strongest points from the other side of the argument. Then think about why you believe that idea
is wrong or flawed. Write two to three sentences explaining the point and why you believe it is wrong.
Argument against the other side: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Step 6: Write a conclusion
The last paragraph of your essay is the conclusion. You should write two to three sentences restating your
main points—but don’t add any new ideas. Remember, this is the last thing your readers will see, so make
sure to remind them why you believe your argument is correct.
Step 7: Start writing
Now that you have the key ingredients for your essay, you are ready to start writing. Ask your teacher for the
Storyworks “Opinion Essay Checklist” on our website to guide your writing and help you edit your work.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Opinion Writing
Name:____________________________________ Date:_____________
Opinion Essay Checklist
Directions: Use this guide to write and check your own opinion essay. Or exchange papers with a classmate and
use the list to check each other’s essays. Circle any sentence in which you find a mistake or the ideas are unclear.
Introduction
3 Does the first paragraph provide a good idea of what the essay is about?
3 Does the first paragraph include a topic sentence that strongly and clearly states the writer’s
opinion? Does the topic sentence tell the reader which side the essay will support?
Supporting Details
3 Are there three points that support the topic sentence?
3 Are there details to further explain the three supporting points?
The Other Side
3 Does the writer give an argument for the other side—a point that argues against the topic
sentence—and explain why that opinion is weak or flawed?
Conclusion
3 Does the last paragraph remind the reader of the main points of the essay?
3 Is the conclusion free of any new information (like another supporting point)?
General
3 Does the whole essay read smoothly?
3 Do the details relate to the topic sentence?
3 Does everything make sense?
3 Are the grammar, punctuation, and spelling correct?
3 Is the essay convincing?
3 Does the essay keep the reader interested?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
“Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?” Quiz
Directions: Read the debate “Should Parents Help Kids With Homework?” in the September 2014 issue of
Storyworks. Then fill in the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. The phrase “swooped in to save her,” in
paragraph 1, means the same as ______.
A flew down to take her away
B arrived to help out
C took her to the doctor
D brought a broom to clean up
2. The article suggests that parents help with
homework for all of the following reasons
except:
A They feel it’s their duty.
B Kids are busy with many other activities.
C Homework takes a long time to complete.
D Parents enjoy doing homework.
3. According to the article, how has homework
changed in most U.S. schools?
A Most homework requires using PowerPoint.
B It is more time-consuming and stressful.
C Teachers expect parents to do it all.
D Many schools no longer assign homework.
4. Which is an example of a parent helping
with homework rather than doing it?
A pointing out math mistakes
B completing a PowerPoint presentation
C providing answers to a vocabulary
worksheet
D all of the above
5. Many teachers say that kids who can’t do
their homework should ______.
A have their parents do it for them
B let their pets help out
C ask their teachers for extra help
D ask their teachers for easier assignments
6. What does extensive mean in the phrase
“extensive homework help”?
A limited
C incorrect
B a great deal of
D incomplete
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, write your answer to each question in a well-organized paragraph.
Make sure you support your answers with information and details from the debate.
7. The author claims that “part of
growing up is learning to balance
outside activities and the demands of
schoolwork.” What does this mean?
8. Why do you think that kids who
managed homework on their own
scored higher on standardized tests?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Capitalization
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Grammar Cop”
September 2014
Grammar in Context
Rules About Capitalization
1. Capitalize names of places and adjectives made from them—like America and American.
• Example: “About 3 million Americans—or 1 percent of the population—stutter.” (page 10)
2. Capitalize the first, last, and other important words in a title.
• Example: “A recent study by two university professors, called The Broken Compass:
Parental Involvement With Children’s Education, found that kids . . .” (page 29)
3. T
he first word inside quotation marks should be capitalized.
• Example: “ Sometimes I stutter and sometimes I don’t, but I don’t care anymore. I feel like
a new person.” (page 12)
Directions: Fix the capitalization mistakes in this passage. Be sure to look at the rules above for help.
“why don’t you share your summer with the
class?” my new teacher asks me.
I think for a moment, remembering my
awesome summer.
people from all over the world. One of my
camp friends was australian, and another came
from china. I asked them, “how did you end
up in an american camp in the middle of
This year, I went to overnight camp for the
first time. It was tons of fun, but nothing like
the movie the parent trap.
My camp was located in a small county
called wayne, in pennsylvania, but I met
nowhere?” They both replied that they had
relatives who had gone to camp dougall.
We did lots of activities, like tennis,
swimming, hiking, and art. I starred in the
camp play, peter pan, and got to swing in a
Continued on next page >
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Capitalization
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Grammar Cop”
September 2014
Grammar in Context
harness above the crowd. I shaped a bowl on
My teacher calls my name and wakes me
the pottery wheel, learned to water ski, and
from my daydream. “how was your summer?”
even contributed to our camp newspaper, the
she repeats.
I smile, thinking it’s just too hard to
dougall bugle.
At lunch two days before camp ended, my
canadian friend started shouting, “oh no, we
explain how amazing overnight camp is.
“my summer was outstanding,” I say with a
won’t go!” We all joined in, and soon the
grin. “it’s truly the best summer I’ve ever had,
whole camp was chanting.
and I can’t wait for next year!”
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“A Punctuation Story”
September 2014
Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading “A Punctuation Story,” go back and
reread sections to answer the questions below.
1. What mainly happens in this poem?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. What are some things the punctuation-mark characters do in the poem?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. H
ow do the punctuation marks’ activities make them seem human?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. W
hat is the tone of the poem? How do you think the poet feels about punctuation?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Close Reading & Critical Thinking
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“A Punctuation Story”
September 2014
Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions
Directions: After reading the poem “A Punctuation Story,” go back and reread
to answer the questions below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
1. What mainly happens in this poem?
2. What are some things the punctuation-mark characters do in the poem?
3. How do the punctuation marks’ activities make them seem human?
4. What is the tone of the poem? How do you think the poet feels about punctuation?
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Personification
“A Punctuation Story”
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Punctuation Personification
How do writers make their words come alive? One way is by using personification: giving
human qualities to an object or an idea. In this activity, you will identify how Rebecca Kai Dotlich
personifies punctuation marks in her poem “A Punctuation Story.”
Directions: Fill in the chart below. When creating your own examples of personification in the last column, think about
the shape of the punctuation mark and what its function is in a sentence. We’ve done the first row for you.
What is personified?
an exclamation point
Draw it
here.
What human activity does
it do in the poem?
“starts your day,
steers the way”
How else could you
personify it?
shouts at you
jumps up and down
Write Now! Write your own punctuation-personification poem using the words you wrote in the fourth
column above. You can illustrate your poem with punctuation-mark people!
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Assessment
September 2014
Name:
Date:
Teacher e-mail (optional):
“A Punctuation Story” Quiz
Directions: Read the poem “A Punctuation Story” in the September 2014 issue of Storyworks.
Then fill in the bubble next to the best answer for each question below.
1. Why does the poem start with the phrase
“Wake up! ”?
A to get the reader’s attention
C to introduce the first punctuation of the poem:
an exclamation mark
B to signal that it’s the beginning of the day in the
poem’s story
D all of the above
3. Which punctuation represents stopping
to sleep at the end of the day?
A a period
C a question mark
B dashes
D ellipses
4. From reading the poem, you can tell the
poet feels ____ about punctuation.
A confused
C enthusiastic
B saddened
D cranky
2. You can infer that ellipses are which of the
following?
A—
C?
B ...
D“ ”
Constructed Response
Directions: On a separate piece of paper, write your answer to each question in a well-organized paragraph.
Make sure you support your answers with details from the poem.
5. What is the basic storyline of “A
Punctuation Story”? Hint: Describe the
daily events the punctuation marks take
you through.
6. H
ow do the illustrations help you
better understand the poem?
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Guided Writing
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
“Your Very Own Pet Rat!”
September 2014
Rockin’ Rats!
Directions: Read the infographic on page 32 of the September 2014 issue of Storyworks.
Then complete the activity below to help you write a paragraph supporting an argument.
A. Read the headline of the infographic and the short paragraph below it. Look at the central image and the
light-green sidebar. What is this infographic mainly about? _________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Use your answer to write a topic sentence for your paragraph. ______________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
B. Three sections branch off from the central image, giving supporting details. Copy the purple section labels
below, then write a sentence in your own words summarizing the details of each section.
1. Label: __________________________________
Sentence: _______________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Label: __________________________________
Sentence: _______________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Label: __________________________________
Sentence: _______________________________________________________________________________________________
C. Study the light-green sidebar. How does the sidebar relate to the main idea? ________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
D. Summarize the three key details in the sidebar. Write one sentence for each.
1. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________
E. Look over the whole infographic again. Write a concluding sentence that summarizes your ideas.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
F. You’re ready to write! Use your topic sentence, key details, and conclusion to write a paragraph to convince
your mom to let you get a pet rat.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Pet Rat Contest
My name:
Teacher’s name:
School name:
School address:
School phone:
(Remember to include your city, state, and ZIP code!)
See page 32 of the September 2014 Storyworks for more information about this contest.
My Respo n se
Write one paragraph to convince your mom to let you get a pet rat, using the information
in the infographic to show that pet rats are different from wild rats.
Entries will be judged on...
a a clearly stated main idea
a proper use of supporting details
a good organization
a grammar, spelling, and punctuation
Please continue on another piece of paper if you need more room.
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Vocabulary
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Word Nerd’s Word Workout
Flex your vocab muscles with Word Nerd’s 10 favorite big, bad words from this issue!
Directions: Try saying each word aloud. To help you do this, look at how the word is split into syllables;
the stressed syllable is in uppercase letters. Read the sentence, which shows how Word Nerd’s word appears
in the magazine. Write the definition of the word, or a synonym for it, on the next line. Finally, complete
each sentence we’ve started for you, making sure the meaning of the vocabulary word is clear.
• burly (adjective) BUR-lee
“The girl looked back at the burly young man, who lifted his hand and said hi. ” (p. 16)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Antonio, my grandma’s burly nurse, could carry ____________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• defy (verb) di-FYE
“How dare you defy me!” (p. 24)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: “Everyone drop and do one hundred push-ups!” the sergeant shouted at the
soldiers. “If you defy my orders, I will _____________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• droughts (noun) DROUTS
“There were droughts and floods in India and killing frosts across northern China.” (p. 6)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: The drought has made it impossible for Greta’s crops to grow because ______
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Vocabulary
September 2014
Name: __________________________________ Date: _____________
Word Nerd’s Word Workout, p. 2
• hideous (adjective) HID-ee-uhss
“A swarm of hideous creatures fly wildly around the room.” (p. 26)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Dana’s party invitation said, “Wear something crazy! A prize will be given to
the person wearing the most hideous sweater.” We all agreed that Chrissy should win because __________
______________________________________________________________________________________
• inherited (adjective) in-HARE-it-ehd
“Many experts think stuttering is likely inherited.” (p. 10)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Nora’s inherited red hair probably came from ___________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• migrations (noun) mye-GRAY-shuns
“It was one of the biggest migrations in U.S. history. ” (p. 9)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Before winter, many birds go on migrations from _____________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• plumes (noun) PLOOMZ
“The first eruption shook the island and sent up great plumes of fire and ash.” (p. 7)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: The many plumes on Tariq’s hat reminded me of ________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Continued on next page >
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Vocabulary
September 2014
Name:____________________________________ Date:_____________
Word Nerd’s Word Workout, p. 3
• prospered (verb) PROSS-purd
“[A new city] prospered, but every place has those who are unfortunate.” (p. 17)
Definition/Synonym: _____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Jamil’s prospered after winning The Voice, and he was finally able to
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• uttered (verb) UHT-urd
“By the end of life, the average person will have uttered approximately 370 million words.” (p. 13)
Definition/Synonym: _____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: Piper often utters weird things during lunch. Yesterday, she __________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• vagrant (noun) VAY-grant
“His mother had told him that long, long ago, when Silverman City was just a cluster of shacks, a stranger had
appeared—a vagrant in a big black hat. ” (p. 17)
Definition/Synonym: ____________________________________________________________________________________
Complete the sentence: The vagrant sitting outside the subway station was holding a sign that read
“___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Word Whole-Issue
Nerd’s Vocabulary
2011-12
Glossary
September 2014
“THE VOLCANO THAT CHANGED THE
WORLD”
climate: the usual weather in a place
tendency: likelihood
uttered: spoke or made some sort of sound
dissipate: to separate into parts and scatter or
vanish
“SILVERMAN CITY”
dormant: inactive; used to describe a volcano:
not active at the moment, but capable of
erupting again
burly: strong and with large muscles
brooch: a piece of jewelry that can be pinned
to your clothes
droughts: long spells of very dry weather
prospered: was successful
migrations: long journeys to a new home in
another country or region
vagrant: a person who has no steady job and
wanders from place to place
plumes: feathers, or things that have fluffy,
feathery shapes
widowed: having had a husband or wife who
died
pyroclastic surge: a quickly flowing mixture
of gas and hot pieces of rock that comes out
of a volcano during a violent eruption
PANDORA’S BOX
stratosphere: an upper portion of the sky
where clouds rarely form and the air is cold
and thin
bearable: possible to put up with
chariot: a small vehicle pulled by a horse, used
in ancient times in battles or for racing
defy: to refuse to obey a person or rule
“TALEN’S GOT TALENT”
eternity: time that goes on forever
bellow: to shout or roar
exceptional: outstanding or rare
disorder: a physical or mental condition that
is not normal
hideous: ugly or horrible
humiliated: made to feel foolish or
embarrassed
Mount Olympus: the highest mountain peak
in Greece; the home of the gods in Greek
mythology
inherited: passed down to children from their
parents
urn: a vase with a base, used as an ornament or
a container
self-conscious: feeling like people are looking
at you and worrying about what they think
1
Word Nerd Contest
My name:
Teacher’s name:
School name:
School address:
School phone:
(Remember to include your city, state, and ZIP code!)
Visit the Storyworks website to find the official rules for this contest.
My Word Nerd Exclamation
My Entry:
Translation:
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
Wild Word Contest
My name:
Teacher’s name:
School name:
School address:
School phone:
(Remember to include your city, state, and ZIP code!)
Visit the Storyworks website to find the official rules for this contest.
Directions: Think of a word that can be used at least three different ways. Then write three fabulous
sentences, each using a different meaning of that word. The winner will receive a Storyworks prize, and
his or her entry may appear in a future issue.
My Wild Word:
Sentence 1.
______________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Sentence 2.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Sentence 3.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
© 2014 Scholastic Inc. Teachers may make copies of this page to distribute to their students.
activity
Create a Character Contest
My name: ________________________________________________________________________ Age: ___________
Teacher’s name: ________________________________________________________________ Grade: ___________
School: _____________________________________________________________________________________________
School address: _____________________________________________________________________________________
School phone number: __________________________ Home phone number: __________________________
(Remember to include your area code and ZIP!) See page 14 of the September Storyworks for rules for this contest.
My Character
1. My character’s name: ________________________________________________ Age: ________
2. Where my character lives: __________________________________________________________
3. My character’s hobbies, skills, and dreams: __________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
4. The biggest problem my character has ever faced, and how he, she, or it solved it:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
5. How my character might grow in the story: _________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
6. What my character looks like: ______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
7. Other information you should know about my character: ___________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Please continue on another piece of paper if you need more room.
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