Level V/60
Basic Heredity
Science Teacher’s Guide
Skills & Strategies
Anchor Comprehension
Strategies
• Evaluate author's purpose
Comprehension
• Ask questions
• Identify cause and effect
• Use text features to locate information
Word Study/Vocabulary
• Use context clues to determine word
meaning
Science Big Idea
• Genetic information is passed from
generation to generation by DNA, which
controls the traits of an organism.
Theme: The Human Body
• Basic Heredity
• Genetic Disorders
• Advances in Genetics
B
e n c h m a r k
E
d u c a t i o n
C
o m p a n y
Core Lesson Planning Guide
This five-day lesson plan shows one way to use the chapter book for explicit strategy instruction.
Activities
D ay
1
Page 3: Prepare to Read
• Build Content Background
• Introduce the Book
Pages 4–6: Model Strategies: Introduction–Chapter 1
2
3
4
5
• Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
• Comprehension Strategy: Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
• Use Context Clues to Determine Word Meaning: Direct Definitions
Pages 7–8: Guide Strategies: Chapter 2
• Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
• Comprehension Strategy: Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
• Use Context Clues to Determine Word Meaning: Direct Definitions
Pages 9–10: Apply Strategies: Chapter 3–Conclusion
• Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
• Comprehension Strategy: Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
• Use Text Features to Locate Information: Captions
Page 11: Synthesize Information
• Administer Ongoing Comprehension Assessment
• Evaluate Cause-and-Effect Relationships
Using Navigators Chapter Books
Explicit Strategy
Instruction
Use the complete guide to model,
guide, and support students as
they apply comprehension and
word-study strategies. Use portions
of the guide to scaffold reading
instruction for students who do
not need modeled instruction.
2
Small-Group Discussions
Independent Reading
Introduce the book and model
strategies. Have the group set a
purpose for reading based on
the introduction. Students read
the book, or parts of the book,
independently. Then have them
use the Small-Group Discussion
Guide as they discuss the book
together.
Have students select titles at
their independent reading levels.
After reading, have students
respond to the text in reader
response journals or notebooks.
Copyright © 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC. All rights reserved. Teachers may photocopy the reproducible pages for classroom use. No other part of the guide may be
reproduced or transmitted in whole or in part in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publisher.
ISBN: 978-1-4108-6286-0
Prepare to Read
E nglish L anguage Learners
Build Content Background
•Ask students if they know what heredity is. Explain that
heredity is the study of how genes and traits are passed from
one generation to the next, from parents to children.
•Make a three-column chart. Leave the headings blank. Ask
students to name traits (physical features, characteristics, or
abilities) that they have gotten or could have gotten from
their parents or grandparents. Prompt their thinking by offering your own ideas such as having the same shape nose as
your grandmother or being allergic to insect bites like your
dad.
•Write students’ ideas that are related to physical appearance
in the first column of the chart, those related to personality
in the second column, and those related to health in the
third.
•Have students look at the entries in the first column of the
chart. Ask: What do all these traits have in common?
(They are related to how a person looks.)
Help students classify the traits in the second column as being
related to how a person acts and the traits in the third column as being related to how a person feels.
•Ask students to think of headings for the three columns.
Appearance
Personality
Health
Show pictures of people who are
members of the same family. (You
might use your own family if members
share noticeable traits.) Ask students
what features these family members
have in common. (Examples: straight
or curly hair, brown or blue eyes,
shape of chin) Discuss with students
where these traits come from.
Write the words heredity, genetics,
genes, and DNA on the board. Ask
students to share what they know
about these words. Then have volunteers look up the words in the glossary and read aloud their meanings.
Encourage students to keep their
own lists of words and definitions.
Suggest that they add visual aids
whenever possible to help them
remember the meanings of these
words. For examples, for dominant
and recessive, they might draw a
large bold face and a small shy face.
Informal
Assessment Tips
(Possible answers: Appearance, Personality, Health)
1. Assess students’ ability to skim
for interesting pictures and to
offer reasonable explanations for
their choices.
Introduce the Book
2. Document informal observations
in a folder or notebook.
color of eyes
color of hair
sense of humor
quick temper
asthma
nearsightedness
•Give students a copy of the book.
•Have them read the title and skim the table of contents.
Ask: Which chapter would you turn to if you wanted to know why
you have brown hair? Why would you turn to that chapter?
(Chapter 2; its title indicates that it will explain how people
get their physical characteristics.)
•Assign a chapter to pairs of students. Ask the partners to look
at the pictures in their chapter, choose a picture they think is
interesting, and explain to the group why they think that.
•To introduce Key Words and Text/Graphic Features found in
this book, use the book’s inside front cover.
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
3. Keep the folder or notebook at
the small-group reading table for
handy reference.
Meeting
Individual Needs
For students who struggle with
skimming for pictures, choose a chapter and model looking at the pictures
and making observations about them.
Explain why you think one picture is
more interesting than the others.
3
Model Strategies: Introduction–Chapter 1
ABOUT THE STRATEGY
Ask Questions
What? Readers ask questions about
unknown words, why something happens, how it happened, and what might
happen next. Some questions have
answers stated in the text, some
answers are implied in the text, and
some answers need further research.
Still other questions have no answers.
Why? Asking questions keeps read-
ers involved with the text and helps
them understand and remember what
they read.
When? Good readers ask questions
before reading to help set a purpose.
They ask questions during reading to
monitor and clarify their understanding.
They ask questions after reading to
help them analyze and synthesize what
they have read.
How? Good readers pause and wonder about the text. They keep track of
their questions in a journal or on selfstick notes. They try to answer questions during and after reading.
Before Reading
Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
•Say: Good readers ask questions as they read. This keeps them
focused on their reading and helps them understand and remember what they read. One thing they might ask a question about is
any unfamiliar word they come across as they read.
•Use a real-life example of asking questions while you read.
Say: When I come across an unfamiliar word, I stop and ask
myself what the word means. Sometimes unfamiliar words are
boldfaced, shown in dark print. Sometimes the author defines the
word right in the text, but other times I have to look for clues that
can help me figure out the meaning of the word.
•Say: Yesterday we previewed the book Basic Heredity. Today
we are going to ask questions about unknown words in the
Introduction and Chapter 1.
•Read pages 2–3 aloud while students follow along silently.
Say: The boldfaced words are unfamiliar, but they are defined
both in the text and in the glossary, so now I know what they
mean. However, on page 3, the text says that someday scientists
could cure diseases caused by faulty genes. I’m not sure about the
meaning of faulty, and it’s not directly defined in the text, but I
think it must mean “wrong or defective” if those kinds of genes
cause diseases. What do you think?
•Have students provide examples of any other unknown
words in the Introduction. Tell them to write the words on
self-stick notes and put the notes in their book.
During Reading
Set a Purpose for Reading
•Ask students to read pages 5–11 silently. Have them ask
questions about the unknown words they find and write their
questions on self-stick notes or in their journals. Remind
them to look for context clues to help them understand the
meaning of each unknown word.
4
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
After Reading
Discuss the Reading
•Ask students to share their unknown words from the
Introduction and Chapter 1. Remind them that some unknown
words have definitions right in the text while the meanings of
other words can be figured out using context clues.
Say: The word complex in the last paragraph on page 5 is
unknown to me, but I can use context clues to figure out its meaning. The sentences in that paragraph tell me that complex means
“having many parts.”
•Have students explain how they determined the meanings of
other unknown words.
Ask: Who wrote a question about the boldfaced word genome
in the second column on page 5? How did you find the meaning of
that word?
(Genome is defined in the text as “the sum total of DNA in
a living thing.”)
•Tell students to look for unfamiliar words as they read each
chapter. Remind them to write their questions on self-stick
notes or in their journals.
•Have students read the checkpoint on page 7. Explain that talking about what we read is one way to understand and remember the information. Have students talk about the prompt.
•For text-dependent comprehension practice, ask the questions for the Introduction and Chapter 1 found on the
Comprehension Through Deductive Reasoning Card for
this chapter book.
I nformal
Assessment Tips
1. Watch students as they write questions on self-stick notes or in their
journals.
2. In a folder or notebook, jot down
what you see each student doing.
3. Students should be asking questions
about unknown words as they read.
Document students who are and
who are not using this monitorreading strategy.
Meeting
Individual Needs
For students who struggle with this
activity, model the strategy again and
remind them that asking questions about
unknown words as they read will help
them better understand the material.
Rapid readers can use context clues,
the glossary, or a dictionary to find the
meanings of words they don’t know.
Have them write the words and their
definitions in their journals.
Comprehension Strategy:
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
•Say: When authors write, they have a reason, or purpose, for
writing. When I read, I look for clues to the author’s purpose. If
the author tries to convince me to agree with something, he or she
is writing to persuade. If the author gives information, he or she is
writing to inform. If the author tells a story, he or she is writing to
entertain. Recognizing the author’s purpose for writing helps me
better understand what I’m reading.
•Pass out the graphic organizer “Evaluate Author’s Purpose
and Point of View” (blackline master, page 14). You may want
to make a chart-size copy of the graphic organizer or use a
transparency.
•Explain that as students read, they will complete the first four
rows together. They will complete the last two rows in pairs
or independently.
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
5
Introduction–Chapter 1 (continued)
Page
6
Author’s Purpose
to inform
10–11 to inform
Evidence
Author gives information about genes:
made of long
stretches of DNA;
responsible for
traits; tell cells how
to make proteins.
Author gives information about kinds
of traits: physical
traits (feet size, hair
color), behavioral
traits (sense of
humor, quick temper),
increased chances
of getting some
diseases.
Reader Response
What is the difference between mitosis
and meiosis? What can you do to help
you remember these processes? Write
a response in your journal and share
your thoughts with a group member.
6
Comprehension Strategy:
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View (cont.)
•Have students return to Chapter 1 and follow along as you
model how to evaluate the author’s purpose and point of view.
Write the information on the graphic organizer as you find it.
Read page 6 aloud and say: On this page, the author tells us about
genes. He says that genes are made of long stretches of DNA. He
explains that genes are responsible for traits and that genes tell cells
how to make proteins. I’ll write these facts in the Evidence column.
The author isn’t writing to entertain or to persuade. He is writing to
inform. I’ll write that in the Author’s Purpose column.
•Read pages 10–11 aloud and say: The author tells about the kinds
of traits people can inherit and gives examples of each kind. I’ll write
these facts in the Evidence column. If an author gives information,
what is the author’s purpose for writing? He is writing to inform. I’ll
write to inform in the Author’s Purpose column.
•Say: We’ll continue evaluating the author’s purpose and point of
view as we read the rest of the book.
Use Context Clues to Determine Word Meaning:
Direct Definitions
•Read aloud the fourth sentence of the second paragraph on
page 4. Explain that the author gives a direct definition to help
the reader understand the meaning of the word bases.
Say: Look at the sentence that contains the word bases. The next
sentence begins with A base is. These words tell me that the rest of
the sentence will define the word base. After reading this sentence, I
see that the meaning of base is “a special chemical.”
•Call students’ attention to the word traits in the second sentence on page 10.
Say: This sentence ends with the word traits. The next sentence
begins with A trait is. These words tells me that the rest of the sentence will define the word trait. After reading the sentence, I see
that the meaning of trait is “a special quality or feature.”
•Tell students that they will continue to use context clues to
determine the meanings of unknown words as they read Basic
Heredity. Finding and learning the definitions of these words will
help them understand the other new information in the book.
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Guide Strategies: Chapter 2
Before Reading
Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
•Have students look at their journals to review questions they wrote
yesterday.Ask them if the Introduction and Chapter 1 answered
any of their questions about unknown words, and discuss their
responses. Remind students that asking questions is what good
readers do to understand and remember what they have read.
•Say: Today we are going to ask the questions who, what, why, and
how.
Read pages 12–13 while students follow along. Ask the following questions as you read:
How do genes determine whether you are male or female?
What other symptoms or side effects might Maria Patino and
other people like her have because of their genetic mutation?
•Point out that the first question is answered in the book
while the second question is not.
Ask: How can I answer my second question?
(Possible answers: Ask an expert. Research using reference
books or the Internet.)
•Have students write who, what, why, and how questions on
self-stick notes or in their journals as they read pages 14–15.
During Reading
Set a Purpose for Reading
•Have students finish reading Chapter 2. As they read, they
should ask who, what, why, and how questions. For example,
they might ask how chromosomes affect the way traits are
passed down to children from their parents.
E nglish L anguage Learners
Carefully watch ELL students as
they complete the assignment. If
they are not writing questions, it
may be because they do not understand the text. If they are writing
questions, make sure the questions
apply to the text.
Meeting
Individual Needs
For students who struggle with this
strategy, model it again. Have them
read one page at a time and ask one
question per page. Ask them if the
question is answered in the text or not.
If not, ask them where they might find
the answer to the question.
Rapid readers can review their questions. With a partner, they can choose
one question and use research materials to find an answer. Then they can
share their answer with others.
After Reading
Discuss the Reading
•Have students share their questions and talk about why they
asked particular questions. Help them identify questions that
are answered in the text and questions that need additional
research. Spend a few minutes on questions that are not
answered in the text.
•Say: The title of Chapter 2 is “Why Do You Look Like You Do?”
How does the text in the chapter answer this question?
•For text-dependent comprehension practice, ask the questions for Chapter 2 found on the Comprehension Through
Deductive Reasoning Card for this chapter book.
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
7
Chapter 2 (continued)
Page
Author’s Purpose
Evidence
to inform
Author gives
information about
genotypes and
phenotypes:
genotype is actual
genetic makeup of
organism;
phenotype is
physical traits of
certain thing; people
share 99.9% of same
genetic material.
18–19 to inform
Author gives
information about
Mendel’s laws of
heredity: Mendel
studied pea plants
to find out about
forms of genes and
how genes affect
physical traits, such
as height and color.
16
Reader Response
A child has one parent with brown eyes
and one parent with green eyes. Which
is the child more likely to have: brown
eyes or green eyes? Why? Write a
response in your journal and share your
thoughts with a group member.
Comprehension Strategy:
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
•Review the “Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View”
graphic organizer, and remind students that by looking for
clues, or evidence, they can evaluate an author’s purpose and
point of view.
•Have students reread page 16 to find the author’s purpose and
evidence for that purpose. Write both on the graphic organizer.
•Follow the same procedure for pages 18–19. Provide support
for students who are struggling with this strategy.
•Use the completed graphic organizer on this page for suggested answers. Although their wording may vary, make sure that
students have included the facts shown.
Use Context Clues to Determine Word Meaning:
Direct Definitions
•Remind students that sometimes they can figure out the meanings of unfamiliar words by reading other nearby words or sentences.
•Have students locate the word mutation in the third paragraph on page 12.
Say: This word is in boldfaced type, so I could find its meaning in
the glossary. However, the next sentence begins with A mutation
is. These words signal that this sentence will give the meaning of
mutation. After reading the sentence, I know that a mutation is a
change in a gene.
•Ask students to find the term sex-linked trait in the last sentence of the second paragraph on page 14.
Say: Here, the definition of the term sex-linked trait comes
before the term. It is signaled by the words is called a that appear
just before sex-linked trait. By going back to the beginning of that
sentence, I find out that the meaning of sex-linked trait is “a
gene found only on the X chromosome.”
•For additional practice, have students complete the blackline
master on page 16.
1. forensic science the use of scientific ideas and tools to solve crimes
2. contours
outlines used to classify fingerprints
3. whorls
lines that circle around a central point
4. dactyloscopy the method of obtaining fingerprints
5. impressionthe pattern that is made when a hard object is
pressed onto a softer material
8
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Apply Strategies: Chapter 3–Conclusion
Before Reading
Monitor-Reading Strategy: Ask Questions
•Remind students that they have practiced asking questions
about unknown words and about who, what, why, and how.
Have them review the questions they have already asked and
written on self-stick notes or in their journals. Tell them to
continue asking who, what, why, and how questions as they
read.
•Read pages 22–23 aloud while students follow along.
Say: My question is, “What diseases run in families?” This question
is not answered in the text. What can I do?
Have students offer possible ways to answer the question.
 Teaching Tips
After discussing the reading, have students remove the self-stick notes from
their books and place them in their
journals on a page titled “Ask
Questions.” Use this page to review
asking questions throughout the year.
During Reading
Set a Purpose for Reading
•Have students read the rest of the book silently. Encourage
them to ask who, what, why, and how questions as they read.
Have them write their questions on self-stick notes or in their
journals.
After Reading
•Have students share the questions they have asked while reading.
•Ask: Which questions were you able to answer from the book?
Which questions need additional research? How can you find
answers to these questions?
•Have students read the checkpoint on page 28. Explain that
reading more about a topic can help them answer questions
that may have come up as they read the text. Have pairs of
students work on the prompt together.
•For text-dependent comprehension practice, ask the
questions for Chapter 3 and the Conclusion found on the
Comprehension Through Deductive Reasoning Card for this
chapter book.
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
9
Chapter 3–Conclusion (continued)
Comprehension Strategy:
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
Page
Author’s Purpose
Evidence
to inform
Author gives information about role of
genes in health:
people may have
genetic disorders;
certain diseases can
run in families.
26–27 to inform
Author gives information about genes
and role in behavior:
exact role unknown,
but twins raised in
different environments often share
common traits.
23
•Review the graphic organizer that students have been completing. Explain that they will evaluate the author’s purpose and
point of view in Chapter 3 in pairs or independently. Students
should reread page 23 and 26–27 and write both the evidence
and the author’s purpose for those pages.
•Ask if students have any questions before they begin. Monitor
their work and intervene if they are having difficulty. Discuss
students’ responses together.
•For more practice with evaluating author’s purpose and point
of view, have students complete the blackline master “Evaluate
Author’s Purpose and Point of View” on page 15.
Passage
Informal
Assessment Tips
1. Watch students as they evaluate
author’s purpose and point of view.
Ask yourself:
How have students progressed with this
strategy? What problems are they still
having?
2.Watch students as they complete the
graphic organizer. Ask yourself:
Who is still struggling with this strategy?
How can I help them?
3. Jot down your thoughts in your folder or notebook. For students who
struggle with evaluating author’s purpose, review the strategy using the
Comprehension Strategy Poster:
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point
of View.
Reader Response
Which do you think plays a bigger part
in shaping someone’s personality: genes
or environment? Why? Write a
response in your journal and share your
thoughts with a group member.
10
Author’s
Purpose
Evidence
1
to persuade
Author argues that despite genetics, reader
can try to prevent diseases, such as skin
cancer; tells actions to do; speaks directly
to reader (you); uses persuasive words
(should, everyone, most importantly).
2
to entertain
Author includes characters (Aaron, Dad,
Mom), plot (Aaron and Dad visit Mom in the
hospital to see new babies) in which events
are told in order, and dialogue, all of which
are elements of a story.
Use Text Features to Locate Information: Captions
•Ask students to tell what a caption is. (a sentence placed near a
picture that tells about the picture) Explain that in addition to telling about a picture, a caption often gives information that is not
in the main text.
•Have students skim Chapter 3 to find and read the captions.
Ask: What information is provided in the caption under the picture
on page 23?
(People with albinism cannot adapt to bright sun. The sun could
injure them.)
Does this information add to what is told about albinism in the main
text on this page? If so, how?
(Yes; the main text gives information about what albinism is,
while the caption adds information about how albinism affects
the person who has it.)
•Have students find and discuss other captions in Chapter 3. For
each caption, ask these two questions: What does the caption tell
us? How does this information support or add to the information in
the main text?
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Synthesize Information
Administer Ongoing Comprehension
Assessment
•Have students take Ongoing Assessment #13 on pages 62–63 in
the Comprehension Strategy Assessment Handbook (Grade 6).
Evaluate Cause-and-Effect Relationships
•Point out to students that the book Basic Heredity tells about
many causes and effects. For example, it tells about the effects of
genes on inherited traits. It also tells about the effects of mitosis
and meiosis on heredity.
•Ask students to skim Chapter 2 looking for causes and effects.
Have them write down the causes and effects they find on a
chart like the one below.
•When they have completed their charts, have students discuss
the information they recorded. Give them the opportunity to
share their causes and effects.
•To check students’ grasp of the concept, have volunteers read
aloud effects from their charts and ask the rest of the group to
give the cause. Let the volunteers tell whether the responses are
correct or not.
Cause
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
1. Score assessments and determine if
more instruction is needed for this
strategy.
2. Keep group assessments in a smallgroup reading folder.
3. Look closely at students’ responses.
Ask yourself: Why might this student
have answered the question in this manner? For in-depth analysis, discuss
responses with individual students.
4. If needed, reteach this strategy and
administer the second Ongoing
Assessment #14 on pages 64–65 in
the Comprehension Strategy
Assessment Handbook (Grade 6).
5. Use ongoing assessments to document growth over time, for parent/
teacher conferences, or for your
own records.
Effect
A child inherits an X chromosome The child will be a female.
from its mother and an X
chromosome from its father.
Identical twins—two babies with
A fertilized egg cell divides.
the same genetic information—form.
A child has two parents with
brown eyes.
I nformal
Assessment Tips
The child will most likely have brown
eyes too.
E nglish L anguage Learners
Make sure students understand the
meanings of cause and effect by discussing a few simple examples. For
example, the effect of sleeping late
might be caused by a broken alarm
clock. Help students complete the
chart by discussing each row individually. Ask them to read aloud the
first cause on the chart. Help them
find the part of the text that discusses this topic. Invite them to reread
that section aloud. Then have them
suggest how they would summarize
the information for the chart.
11
Reading/Writing Connections
Write a Personal Response
 Teaching Tips
Transfer personal response prompts to
a piece of large chart paper and hang it
in the room. Students can refer to the
list throughout the year.
Scoring Rubric
4
The prompt is well developed.
There is strong evidence of focus,
organization, voice, and correct
conventions.
3
The prompt is developed. There
is adequate evidence of focus,
organization, voice, and correct
conventions.
2
The prompt is somewhat developed. There is minimal evidence
of focus, organization, voice, and
correct conventions.
1
The prompt is weakly developed.
There is little evidence of focus,
organization, voice, and correct
conventions.
Invite students to respond to the book in a way that is meaningful
to them. The prompts below provide a variety of alternatives.
•Compare this book about heredity to other books, articles, or
stories you have read about heredity and genetics. (text-to-text)
•Why do you think it is important for people everywhere to
understand basic heredity and genetics? (text-to-world)
•What did you think about while reading this book? (make
connections)
•Did any part of this book confuse you? What was confusing?
How could it have been clearer? (self-monitor)
•Which of your traits do you think came from heredity?
Which do you think came from environment? (personal
response)
•Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why
not? (evaluate)
•Which parts of this book did you think were well-written?
Which parts seemed less well-written? Why? (evaluate)
•What important ideas were discussed in this book that you
think you should remember? (synthesize information)
Write to a Text Prompt
Use the prompt below as a timed writing activity. Students have a
maximum of one hour to draft, revise, and edit a response. Use
the rubric provided in the sidebar to score students’ writing.
Why are you a human being and not a pea plant? How
are you and pea plants similar in terms of genetics and
heredity? Use information from the book to support
your answer.
Write to a Picture Prompt
Use the following picture prompt to develop students’ visual
writing abilities.
Look at the picture on page 2. How do these people look
alike and different? Why? Write a response in your journal
and share your thoughts with a group member. Use details
from the picture to support your answer.
12
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Name _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Small-Group Discussion Guide
Directions: Use this sheet to talk about the book.
Word Study:
Write words you did not know. Discuss the
meanings with your group. Use the text to clarify the
meanings.
Date____________
Rules for a
Good Discussion:
1. Be prepared.
2. P
ay attention to
the person who is
talking and do not interrupt him or her.
3. T
hink about what
others are saying so you
can respond.
4. Use inside voices.
5. L et everyone in
the group have a
turn to speak.
6. B
e respectful of
everyone’s ideas.
Questions:
Write two or three questions you had while reading this
book. Discuss the questions and answers.
Adapted from Guiding Readers and Writers
(Grades 3–6):Teaching Comprehension,
Genre, and Content Literacy, Irene C.
Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell (Portsmouth,
NH: Heinemann Publishing Co., 2001).
Ways to Make
Connections
Make Connections:
Write three connections you made with the text.
Discuss them with your group.
Adapted from Literature Circles: Voice and Choice in the Student-Centered Classroom, Harvey
Daniels (Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 1994).
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Text-to-Self:
This reminds me of a
time when I . . .
Text-to-World: What’s
going on in this book is
like what’s happening
right now in . . .
Text-to-Text:
This book reminds me of
another book I read
called . . . . It was about . . .
Name__________________________________________ Date____________________
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
Page
Author’s Purpose
Evidence
6
10–11
16
18–19
23
26–27
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Name__________________________________________ Date____________________
Evaluate Author’s Purpose and Point of View
Directions: Read the passages. Write the author’s purpose in the second column and
the evidence in the third column.
Fighting Genetics
Scientists aren’t exactly sure why, but some diseases, such as cancer, run
in families. Does that mean that if someone in your family has cancer, you
will get it? Not necessarily. You should still take steps to prevent the disease.
For example, everyone can do something to help prevent skin cancer. Avoid
the sun, especially between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. When you are in the sun,
wear a hat and a sunblock with an SPF of at least 30. Most importantly,
check your skin regularly and tell your doctor if you see anything unusual.
You can’t change your genetics, but following these simple rules will help
keep you and your precious skin healthy.
Surprise
Aaron wasn’t sure if he should be worried. He knew things would
change. Still, he was excited by the idea of having someone to play with.
However, that would take a while. After all, a newborn baby can’t play
baseball!
As Aaron and his father walked into his mother’s hospital room, Aaron
noticed a strange grin on Dad’s face. Maybe he had mixed feelings, too.
Aaron smiled. “So, Mom, can I see my baby brother?”
“Actually, Aaron, this is your baby sister.” Aaron tried not to look
disappointed. Then his mother added, “The nurse is holding your baby
brother!”
Twins! Mom and Dad had known all along, but it was a surprise
to Aaron.
Passage
Author’s Purpose
1
2
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC
Evidence
Name__________________________________________ Date___________________
Use Context Clues to Determine
Word Meaning: Direct Definitions
Directions: Read the passage. Look for direct definitions of the boldfaced words.
Fingerprints
No two people in the world have the same fingerprints. Even identical
twins, who share the same DNA, have different fingerprints. That’s why
fingerprints are so important in forensic science. Forensic science is the
use of scientific ideas and tools to solve crimes.
Fingerprints are classified by their shapes and outlines. These outlines
are called contours. Fingerprints are also classified by ridges and whorls.
Whorls are lines that circle around a central point. The Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) uses eight different patterns to classify fingerprints.
The method of obtaining fingerprints is called dactyloscopy. It involves
cleaning and drying the fingers and then rolling the tip of each finger over
a glass surface coated with printer’s ink to create a light gray impression.
An impression is the pattern that is made when a harder object is pressed
onto a softer material.
The FBI and other law-enforcement agencies have millions of sets of fingerprints on file. These fingerprints have been used to solve many crimes.
Directions: Write the definitions of the boldfaced words. Use the passage to help you.
1. forensic science _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. contours _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
3. whorls _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
4. dactyloscopy _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
5. impression _____________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
© 2011 Benchmark Education Company, LLC