Exploring the Titanic
By Robert Ballard
Before Reading: Connect to Your Life
 Take out your LNb and label the next available page
“Exploring the Titanic.”
 Answer the following questions:
 What do you know about exploration beneath the surface of the
ocean?
 What do you know about the voyage of the Titanic?
 When you finish answering the questions, read Build
Background on page 658 in your literature book.
Before Reading: Understand Vocabulary
 Using context clues can help you to define unfamiliar words.
 Often, unknown words are restated in familiar or easier
language.
 Restatements may be set off by commas, dashes, or
parentheses, or introduced by the word or.
 Read the sentences on the next slide and determine the
definition of each bold-faced word. Write these definitions in
your LNb. Watch for restatements.
Before Reading: Understand Vocabulary
 The passengers were intrigued by the novelty of sending
messages– something completely new to them.
 They thought of a fitting tribute, a perfect way to honor him.
 Most passengers were dazzled, or amazed, by the ship’s
splendor.
 The ship started to list from side to side, tilting first one way
and then the other.
 The crew worked feverishly, with intense nervous energy, to
try to prevent disaster.
Reading 1: Distinguish between Fact and
Opinion
 Fact: a statement that can be proved
 Opinion: a statement of personal belief that cannot be
proven
 Identify the following statements as either fact or opinion:
 In 1907, nearly ten years after The Wreck of the Titan was written,
two men began making plans to build a real titanic ship.
 The two men certainly dreamed on a grand scale.
 As we read “Exploring the Titanic,” record examples of facts
and opinions on the worksheet in your packet.
Group Discussion Questions
 What design elements were supposed to make the Titanic
unsinkable?
 What details early in the selection foreshadow the upcoming
disaster?
 What factors contributed to the Titanic hitting the iceberg?
 Why was the loss of life so great?
 Why do you think this disaster still captures people’s
attention?
Reading 2: Sources and Setting
 Primary sources: original, firsthand accounts and graphics of
events, including diaries, newspapers, photographs, and
other documents.
 Why would Robert Ballard have needed primary sources to write
“Exploring the Titanic”?
 What primary sources can you identify from the selection?
Reading 2: Sources and Setting
 Secondary sources: an account of a story based on the writings or
evidence of people other than the author.
 Authors of secondary sources usually have not observed or
participated in the events being described.
 What type of source is being described in each example below?
 A book written about the Titanic by a historian using quotes from
the diary of a survivor.
 A diary written by someone who sailed on the Titanic and survived.
 What type of source is our selection?
 Complete the Setting and Sources worksheet with your
partner.
Reading 3: Accurate and Reliable Sources
 Writers of nonfiction need to use sources that are accurate,
meaning they conform exactly to fact.
 Sources should also be reliable, meaning they have a
reputation for being trustworthy.
 Why do you think accuracy is important?
 What would happen if a writer used sources that were not
accurate?
 How can you tell if the sources used in a piece of nonfiction
are accurate?
Reading 3: Accurate and Reliable Sources
 Sources that are generally thought to be reliable are things
such as news stories in newspapers and periodicals
(magazines), photographs, quotations, and accounts from
eyewitnesses.
 Why would these sources be considered reliable?
 Complete the Accurate and Reliable Source worksheet with
your partner.