Family Times
Daily Questions
Prior Knowledge
Cause and Effect
Vocabulary
Context Clues
Predictions
Guided Comprehension
Author's Purpose
Fantasy in Science Fiction
Independent Readers
Crust, Mantle, Core
Additional Resources
Study Skills
 Genre:
Science Fiction
 Comprehension Skill: Cause and
Effect
 Comprehension Strategy:
Summarize
 Vocabulary: Context Clues
Question of the week
How do we explore the center of the Earth?
Daily Questions
What characteristics are important for an explorer to
have?
How would you feel if yours were the first human
eyes to see the ichthyosaurus and plesiosaurus?
What, to you, is the most interesting thing scientists
have learned about what lies below Earth’s
Surface?
Activate Prior Knowledge:
Brainstorm about what they would find if they could see a cross-section of the Earth.
Making
Predictions
Making
Observations
Carrying Out
Experiments
Comparing Results
This is the Scientific Method
Cause and Effect
A cause (why something happens) may have several effects.
An effect (What happens as a result of the cause) may have
several causes.
Sometimes clue words such as since, as a result, caused,
thus, therefore, and consequently are used to show causeand-effect relationships.
Cause
Cause
Cause
Effect
Effect
Effect
Summarize
Summarizing, telling what a story or
article is basically about, helps you
understand and remember what you
read. It helps you figure out main
ideas and find important supporting
details. It also helps you see
important causes and effects.
Write:
1. Read the selection “Earth.” Create graphic
organizers like the ones above to show any causes
and effects in the selection.
2. Write a summary of the selection “Earth.” Use your
graphic organizers to help you.
Introduce Vocabulary
Word
Armor
Synonym
Antonym
covering
Encases
encloses
Extinct
dead
Alive
Hideous
ugly
Beautiful
Plunged
fell
Soared
Serpent
snake
Armor
Any kind of protective covering
Encases
Covers completely; encloses
Extinct
No longer existing
Hideous
Very ugly; frightful; horrible
Plunged
Fell or moved suddenly downward
or forward
Serpent
Snake, especially a big snake
More Words to Know
Calculations Careful thinking; deliberate plans
Ichthyosaurus: A large fishlike reptile, now
extinct, that lived in the sea.
Pleisosaurus: Any of several large sea reptiles
that lived about 200 million years ago.
Practice Lesson Vocabulary
If a creature is hideous, is it clumsy or terrible-looking?
If a creature has armor, it is covered in strange hair or in a
tough shell?
If a creature is extinct, it is a huge eater or long dead?
Is it true that a shell encases a turtle?
Is a serpent a form of fish?
If a seagull plunged towards the ocean, would it be diving
downwards?
Vocabulary Strategy:
Context Clues:
As you read, you may come to a word you do not know. Look for clues in the
context or words and sentences around the word. They may help you figure out the
meaning of the unknown word.
1. Reread the sentence in which the unknown word appears. Does the author
include a synonym, antonym, or other clue to the word’s meaning?
2. If you need more help, read the sentences around the one with the unknown
word.
3. Put the clues together and thing of a logical meaning for the word. Does this
meaning make sense in the sentence?
As your read “The Land of Imagination,” use the context to help you figure out the
meanings of any unfamiliar words.
Genre: Science Fiction
Science fiction is imaginary writing
based upon scientific ideas. Notice
how the author uses vivid and
exciting sights and sounds to create
a make-believe world.
What strange animals
await the explorers at
the center of the Earth?
Preview and Predict
Read the title, look at the
illustrations, and predict how
the author might use facts in
the story. Use your vocabulary
in your discussion.
Guided Comprehension
What is the setting of this story?
Reread p. 588, paragraph 3. What causes the raft to be lifted out of the water and
thrown a distance?
How do you think the adventurers are feeling at this point? Imagine yourself in this
situation. How would you feel?
What do you think was Jules Verne’s purpose for writing this story?
How does the illustration help you understand the text on pp.590-591?
What caused the monsters to come close to the raft, then turn away.
Summarize the main events on p. 593, paragraphs 1 and 2.
To what does the narrator compare the size of the ichthyosaurus’s flaming red
eyes?
Guided Comprehension Continued
Use context clues to determine the meaning of extinct on p. 595.
What information in the story seems to be based on scientific information?
Summarize the end of the story on pp. 596-597.
In the last sentence, the narrator wonders whether the ichthyosaurus will come
back to destroy them. What do you predict will happen? Give your reasons.
Do you think the events in this story could happen in the real world? Give reasons
to support your answers.
Author’s Purpose
There are four common reasons why authors write:
to persuade, to inform, to entertain, and to express
an idea.
So far, the story has been exciting and suspenseful.
It makes me want to keep reading to find out what
will happen next. This makes me think that Jules
Verne wrote this story mainly to entertain readers.
Why might Jules Verne chose to tell this story in the
form of a diary?
Fantasy in Science Fiction
Science fiction stories are a kind of fantasy because they tell about
events that couldn’t happen or that haven’t happened yet.
Science fiction often contains scientific information that makes the
fantasy elements more believable.
The elements of fantasy in science fiction have to do with technology
rather than magic.
Reread the introductory paragraph on p. 587 and explain why this story is
considered science fiction.
1. Does it tell about events that couldn’t happen or haven’t happened
yet?
2. Does it contain scientific information that makes the fantasy
believable?
SUMMARY
In this story, Mrs. Cieco’s class learns about the
layers of the Earth during a field trip to Mount
Randall. Three students, Toby, Kenny, and Maria,
travel through the Earth in a scientist’s machine,
experiencing Earth’s layers first-hand.
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
PAGE 4 Why is it a special day?
PAGE 7 What are the five layers of the Earth?
PAGE 9 Why do the rock plates under the
continents move?
PAGE 10 What keeps the Earth’s inner core solid?
PAGE 13 What happened when Kenny and Toby
climbed to the top of the volcano?
SUMMARY
For centuries, scientists have been puzzling over
the composition of our planet. From Aristotle—who
thought the Earth was solid—to the recent findings
of scientists today, this book tells the story of the
discovery of the Earth’s layers.
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
PAGE 4 What did Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, believe
about the Earth?
PAGE 5 What did maps from the mid-16th century reveal?
PAGE 8 What did Neptunists believe?
PAGE 15 Why did German scientist Alfred Wegener believe
that Africa and South America were once connected?
PAGE 16 What happened when scientists explored an
underwater mountain chain?
PAGE 21 What happens when two tectonic plates collide?
SUMMARY
The planet Earth today consists of seven continents
separated by the world’s oceans. Evidence suggests,
however, that hundreds of millions of years ago, the
continents were all connected. This book explains
plate tectonics, the force that moves continents, and
the ways that mountains are formed.
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
PAGE 4 What is the meaning of Pangaea?
PAGE 5 What is the name for the theory that explains
how the continents shift and move?
PAGE 6 What made Alfred Wegener believe that South
America and Africa might once have been connected?
PAGE 7 What caused scientists in the 1950s to change
their understanding of how the Earth’s surface moves?
PAGE 13 What happens when an ocean floor pushes
toward a landmass? Why?
Text features:
In textbooks, diagrams are
sometimes used to explain
important information.
Genre: Textbook
Textbooks are used in
classrooms to teach facts, give
information, and offer explanations
in a specific subject area.
The information has been
researched for accuracy.
The material in textbooks is
deigned to help students learn and
do well on tests.
Captions in pictures and
diagrams add information.
How can a diagram help a reader understand the
text?
What purpose do captions in diagrams and
illustrations serve?
How do the diagram’s captions help you summarize?
Notice that causes and effects are clearly stated.
Additional
Resources
Jefferson County Schools
Earth's Layers- game