Teacher Guide for FAST-R Passage: Two Poems
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading
At a Glance
Recommended
for Reading Levels: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Genre: Poetry
Topic: Relationship between people and trees
Author: Mindy Bingham and Sandy Stryker,
traditional Kwakiutl verse
Special Note: used on G4 MCAS 1999
Poetry
Difficulty Index: Considerate . . . . . . . . . . . . Challenging
Structure:
Purpose:
Richness:
Relationships:
Vocabulary:
Style:
Lexile Measure: 710L
It’s Up to People
It’s up to people to save all the trees
That still find a home in our woods.
Animals don’t wield the power we do,
Though they’d certainly help if they could.
Purpose: To compare the relationships between humans
and trees in each poem.
Vocabulary: The vocabulary may be unfamiliar, but it is
not essential to understanding.
We’d see warthogs and pigs
To save fiddleleaf figs;
Baby chicks cheeping
To keep willows weeping;
Cats with a shine
For the loblolly pine;
Polars and pandas
To save jacarandas;
Even queen bees and princesses
For photosynthesis.
But it’s up to people to save all the trees
That still find a home in our woods.
Animals don’t wield the power we do,
Though they’d certainly help if they could.
Relationships: The relationship between humans and
trees is defined by the idea that humans are the only
ones who can save the trees.
—by Mindy Bingham and Sandy Stryker
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
To the Cedar Tree
Look at me, friend!
I come to ask for your dress. . .
I come to beg you for this,
Long-life Maker,
For I am going to make a basket for
lily roots out of you.
I pray you, friend, not to feel angry . . . .
Richness and Style: The speaker in the poem addresses
the tree as though it is a living being with feelings,
callilng it “friend” and “ Long-life Maker.” Pesonfication
of the tree is also seen in the use of “dress” to descrive
the tree’s bark.
Relationships: In this poem, the speaker is asking the
tree for help. Students need to understand the deep
respect for nature that is present in this poem.
—Traditional Kwakiutl Verse
Spotlight On: the Kwakiutl
The Kwakiutl are a tribe from
northwestern British Columbia.
Before European settlers came to
the area, fishing was their primary
source of food. Wood was an
essential part of their livelihood
because it allowed them to build
canoes for work on the ocean.
Although animal hides were their
main material for clothing, the
Kwakiutl also used cedar bark for
robes, aprons, capes, and hoods.
Extended Activities
• Consider the poem “To the Cedar Tree,” and imagine it as
a conversation between a basket maker and a tree. Write
a dialogue noting when the tree is speaking and when the
basket maker is speaking.
• Draw a picture of what is happening in “To the Cedar
Tree.”
• Read the book “The Giving Tree,” and write a paragraph
comparing the speaker in the story and the speaker in “To
the Cedar Tree.”
• Based on the poem “It’s Up to People,” write a letter to
your principal explaining why/how it is important to save
trees.
Europeans first arrived in the late
18th century while mapping the
Pacific coast and soon began living
and trading in Kwakiutl territory.
Although relations between settlers
and the Kwakiutl were good natured
overall, the settlers brought
diseases which wiped out much of
the Kwakiutl population. Prior to
European contact there were over
8,000 Kwakiutl, but now only about
4,000 remain.
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
Teacher Guide for FAST-R Passage: Two Poems
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading
Poetry
The annotated answer key below highlights common reasons students might choose each answer, and the sidebar gives more
insight into the question types, to help you understand patterns of student responses. Always make time to follow up with students
in conferences or small groups to probe their thinking, teach in response to patterns, and help them apply effective reading and
thinking strategies to their everyday reading.
Note: You may find it helpful to refer to the “Types and Levels of Questions on FAST-R” sheet from your teacher resource
folder as you examine your students’ responses. The icon in the right-hand column, below, corresponds to that sheet’s more
detailed explanations of the kinds of thinking each type of question asks of readers.
1. According to the poem “It’s Up to People,” what needs “saving”?
A. woods (OOP1)
B. animals (OOP2)
 C. trees
D. endangered species (OOB)
FE1: Identify evidence
explicitly stated in the text
2. Who can save the trees in the poem “It’s Up to People”?
A. Nobody can save the trees. (OOP2, sounds like the question, so students who didn’t read
or understand the poem may choose this one)
B. warthogs and pigs (OOP1, these animals appear in the text, but because “animals don’t
wield the power we do” they cannot save trees)
 C. humans (found in the title and in both the first and last stanzas)
D. Mother Nature (OOB, not in poem, but students who have heard of “Mother Nature”
may make a connection between trees and nature)
FE2: Recognize the explicit
meaning from varied wording
in the text
3. Which of the following words is the best synonym for the word “wield” in the first
stanza of “It’s Up to People”?
A. help (OOP2)
 B. control
C. save (OOP1)
D. neglect (OOB)
MI5: Interpret meaning by
using an understanding of
literary concepts
4. The speaker in “It’s Up to People” believes that the animals
A. can save humankind (OOB)
 B. would save the trees if they could
C. want more power (OOP1)
D. are destroying trees (OOP2)
FE2: Recognize evidence
explicitly stated at multiple
locations or with varied
wording in the text
5. What is the MAIN theme of the poem “It’s Up to People”?
A. Some animals are losing their favorite trees. (OOB, students may have prior knowledge
about habitat loss, but it’s not the main theme)
B. Trees are valuable for people to use. (OOP1, the poem clearly implies that trees are
valuable and worth saving, but “use” of them is not the main theme)
 C. People have the power to save trees. (can be inferred from the title of the poem, as
well as the first line of both the first and last stanzas)
D. Animals should have more power. (OOP2, “animals don’t wield the power we do,” but
the poet doesn’t imply that they ought to)
MI2: Interpret a singular
meaning from the sum total of
a particular paragraph
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
Grades 4-5 • Poetry • Two Poems
6. In the poem “To the Cedar Tree,” who is the “Long-life Maker”?
 A. the tree
B. the basket weaver (OOP1)
C. the speaker (OOB)
D. lily roots (OOP2)
MI1: Determine implicit
meaning from words in context
7. In the first stanza “To the Cedar Tree,” the word “dress” refers to
A. a girl’s skirt. (OOB, assumes common usage)
B. the speaker’s clothes. (OOB, assumes less common but plausible usage)
 C. the bark of a tree.
D. where the friend lives. (OOP2, misread of “dress” as “address”)
MI1: Interpret implicit
meaning from words in context
8. According to the poem, “To the Cedar Tree,” why might the tree be angry?
A. The speaker is begging. (OOP1, true, but not why the tree would be angry)
B. The tree has lily roots. (OOP2, students often struggle to make sense of the complex
pronouns and prepositions of this abstract poem)
C. Animals are living in the tree. (OOB, students may have not noticed that this question
refers to the second poem)
 D. The tree will be made into a basket.
MI1: Interpret implicit
meaning from words in context
9. According to the poem, “To the Cedar Tree,” what will be made from the tree?
A. a dress (OOP1, the word “dress” is found in the first stanza of the poem, but is a euphemism for the tree’s bark)
B. a cedar chest (OOB, students may correctly presume that cedar chests are made from
cedar trees, but the text does not support this answer)
 C. a basket (found in final stanza of poem)
D. lily roots (OOP2, these words are found in the last stanza of the poem, but do not answer the question)
FE1: Identify evidence
explicitly stated in the text
10. In “To the Cedar Tree,” the person in the poem talks to the tree as if it were
A. a tribal chief. (OOB, students may find this choice appealing because the speaker addresses the tree in a formal tone, or because they infer that the speaker is of the Kwakiutl
tribe)
 B. a living thing with feelings. (can be inferred from the fact that the speaker calls the tree
“friend,” and believe that it can “feel angry”)
C. a basket. (OOP2, the tree’s bark may become a basket, but it isn’t yet...plus, it’s unclear
what kind of tone one would take while talking to a basket)
D. a life-long maker. (OOP1, the speaker refers to the tree as “Long-life Maker” in the
poem)
MI1: Interpret implicit
meaning from words in context
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
FAST-R
+
Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading
Name
“It’s Up to People” and “To the Cedar Tree” • Poetry
Date
Teacher/Class
The following poems are about trees. Read them and then answer the questions that follow.
It’s Up to People
To the Cedar Tree
It’s up to people to save all the trees
That still find a home in our woods.
Animals don’t wield the power we do,
Though they’d certainly help if they could.
Look at me, friend!
I come to ask for your dress. . .
We’d see warthogs and pigs
To save fiddleleaf figs;
Baby chicks cheeping
To keep willows weeping;
Cats with a shine
For the loblolly pine;
Polars and pandas
To save jacarandas;
Even queen bees and princesses
For photosynthesis.
But it’s up to people to save all the trees
That still find a home in our woods.
Animals don’t wield the power we do,
Though they’d certainly help if they could.
—by Mindy Bingham and Sandy Stryker
I come to beg you for this,
Long-life Maker,
For I am going to make a basket for
lily roots out of you.
I pray you, friend, not to feel angry . . . .
—Traditional Kwakiutl Verse
Spotlight On: the Kwakiutl
The Kwakiutl are a tribe from
northwestern British Columbia. Before European settlers came to
the area, fishing was their primary
source of food. Wood was an
essential part of their livelihood
because it allowed them to build
canoes for work on the ocean.
Although animal hides were their
main material for clothing, the
Kwakiutl also used cedar bark for
robes, aprons, capes, and hoods. Europeans first arrived in the late
18th century while mapping the
Pacific coast and soon began living
and trading in Kwakiutl territory. Although relations between settlers
and the Kwakiutl were good natured
overall, the settlers brought
diseases which wiped out much of
the Kwakiutl population. Prior to
European contact there were over
8,000 Kwakiutl, but now only about
4,000 remain.
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
FAST-R
+
Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading
Name
Date
“It’s Up to People” and “To the Cedar Tree” • Poetry
Teacher/Class
Directions: Answer the following questions by filling in the circle with the best answer on your
answer sheet.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
According to the poem “It’s Up to People,” what needs “saving”?
A. woods
B. animals
C. trees
D. endangered species
Who can save the trees in the poem “It’s Up to People”?
A. nobody
B. warthogs and pigs
C. humans
D. Mother Nature
Which of the following words is the best synonym for the word “wield” in the first stanza
of “It’s Up to People”?
A.
help
B. control
C.
save
D.
neglect
The speaker in “It’s Up to People” believes that the animals
A.
can save humankind
B.
would save the trees if they could
C.
want more power
D.
are destroying trees
What is the MAIN theme of the poem “It’s Up to People”?
A.
Some animals are losing their favorite trees.
B.
Trees are valuable for people to use.
C.
People have the power to save trees.
D.
Animals should have more power.
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
In the poem “To the Cedar Tree,” who is the “Long-life Maker”?
A.
the tree
B.
the basket weaver
C.
the speaker
D.
lily roots
In the first stanza “To the Cedar Tree,” the word “dress” refers to
A.
a girl’s skirt.
B.
the speaker’s clothes.
C.
the bark of a tree.
D.
where the friend lives.
According to the poem, “To the Cedar Tree,” why might the tree be angry?
A.
The speaker is begging.
B. The tree has lily roots.
C.
Animals are living in the tree.
D.
The tree will be made into a basket.
According to the poem, “To the Cedar Tree,” what will be made from the tree?
A.
a dress
B.
a cedar chest
C.
a basket
D.
lily roots
In “To the Cedar Tree,” the person in the poem talks to the tree as if it were
A.
a tribal chief.
B.
a living thing with feelings.
C.
a basket.
D.
a life-long maker.
Open Response Prompt:
Using evidence from both poems, tell how the poets have similar feelings about trees.
FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading. The passages and Q2 come from the Spring 1999 Grade 4 MCAS test; Q5 is adapted
from the same test. All other materials are Copyright 2007 by the Boston Plan for Excellence.
Teachers: Please duplicate and use this answer sheet only for students for whom you did not receive a pre-printed answer sheet!
FAST-R Answer Sheet
Name
School Date
Grade
Passage Title
Teacher Name
Completely fill the circle
for the correct answer.
1.
A
B
C
D
2.
A
B
C
D
3.
A
B
C
D
4.
A
B
C
D
5.
A
B
C
D
6. A
B
C
D
7.
A
B
C
D
8.
A
B
C
D
9.
A
B
C
D
10.
A
B
C
D
Class
Write your answer to the open response prompt in the lined space below
if your teacher directs you to do so.
OFFICE USE ONLY
RESEARCH:
Y
N
OPEN RESPONSE: 1 2 3
4