LESSON 10 TEACHER’S GUIDE
The Life of Jackson Pollock
by Barbara Weldon
Fountas-Pinnell Level S
Biography
Selection Summary
Jackson Pollock pursued his passion for art in high school and at
the Art Students League in New York. He studied the work of artists
he admired and eventually developed his own style of abstract art.
Pollock received recognition from gallery owners, critics, other
artists, and the public.
Number of Words: 1,155
Characteristics of the Text
Genre
Text Structure
Content
Themes and Ideas
Language and
Literary Features
Sentence Complexity
Vocabulary
Words
Illustrations
Book and Print Features
• Biography
• Narrative text organized in five short chapters
• Full-page timeline summarizes the selection
• Abstract art
• How Pollock became an artist
• Reactions to an artist’s work
• Artists can be inspired by their surroundings.
• An artist’s work communicates his own thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
• Abstract art appeals to some, but not all, viewers.
• Descriptive language
• Conversational tone
• Longer complex sentence structures with imbedded phrases and clauses
• Sentences with parenthetical material
• Many art terms, some of which might not be familiar to English language learners,
such as watercolor, mural, canvas, artist, studio. Cultural references such as the Great
Depression (p. 7).
• Many multisyllable words: photographer, triangles, luckily
• Phonetic pronunciation provided
• Photographs with captions
• Twelve pages of text
• Table of contents with easy to read chapter headings; text box
© 2006. Fountas, I.C. & Pinnell, G.S. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Heinemann, Portsmouth, N.H.
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The Life of Jackson Pollock
by Barbara Weldon
Build Background
Help students use their knowledge of art, and in particular painting, to visualize the
biography. Build interest by asking a question such as the following: What types of
paintings do you enjoy looking at? Read the title and author and talk about the cover
illustration. Point out the chapter heads and the timeline. Tell students that this selection is
a biography, so it describes events in a real person’s life, and is written by another person.
Frontload Vocabulary
Some everyday words may be unfamiliar to English learners. Before reading, check
understanding of the following words: life, barn, paint, farmer, desert, high school, money,
art, job, color.
Introduce the Text
Guide students through the text, reading the captions, noting important ideas, and helping
with unfamiliar language and vocabulary so they can read the text successfully. Call their
attention to any important labels. Here are some suggestions:
Page 3: Explain that this is a biography of Jackson Pollock, a well-known artist.
Suggested language: Turn to page 3 of this book. This is a photograph of Jackson
Pollock. Read the caption under the photograph. What is Pollock doing?
Page 4: Explain that Pollock’s early experiences likely inspired his interest in art.
Pollock grew up near the Grand Canyon, which is shown in this photograph. It
says that he loved the desert, because it seemed to have no end, or border. Ask:
What about the Grand Canyon might have inspired Pollock?
Page 5: Tell students that Pollock moved to Los Angeles with his family. He was
firm or stubborn about moving to New York to become an artist.
Pages 5–6: Read the caption on page 6. Tell students that Jackson went to study
in New York and made his entrance, or debut as an artist.
Page 7: Read the caption. Cultural Support: Provide some background on the
Great Depression
Now turn back to the beginning of the biography and read to find out about the life
and career of Jackson Pollock.
Target Vocabulary
border – boundary or edge, p. 4
mournful – sad and serious p. 7
debut – a performer’s first public
experience, p. 5
permission – being allowed to do
something, p. 13
discouraged – feeling hopeless
or disappointed, p. 4
stubborn – lasting and not easily
changed, p. 5
toured – took a trip through a
place, p. 9
towered – stood above
something else, p. 9
triumph – a victory or success, p. 9
hauling – pulling or carrying, p. 5
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Read
Have students read silently while you listen to individual students read aloud. Support their
understanding of the text as needed.
Remind students to use the Analyze/Evaluate Strategy
carefully about the text in order to form an opinion about it.
and to think
Discuss and Revisit the Text
Personal Response
Invite students to share their personal responses to the biography.
Suggested language: Imagine that you are an art critic. What do you see, think, or feel
when you look at Jackson Pollock’s paintings? Do you think that the critics who didn’t like
his work were wrong? Why or why not?
Ways of Thinking
As you discuss the text, help students understand these points:
Thinking Within the Text
Thinking Beyond the Text
Thinking About the Text
• Jackson Pollock studied art in
school and on his own.
• Artistic expression is personal.
• The style and color of the
chapter headings fits with the
theme of artistic expression.
• Jackson Pollock noticed, and
was inspired by, the natural
world around him.
• While an artist wants others
to like his work, he must first
please himself.
• Jackson Pollock became known
for his unique style of abstract
painting.
• The descriptive language helps
the reader “see” what the author
describes.
• The author includes phonetic
pronunciations to help readers
pronounce difficult names.
© 2006. Fountas, I.C. & Pinnell, G.S. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Heinemann, Portsmouth, N.H.
Choices for Further Support
• Fluency Invite students to participate in a readers’ theater. Encourage them to
use punctuation and content as signals for pausing, and to read at a pace that is
appropriate to the text and purpose.
• Comprehension Based on your observations of the students’ reading and discussion,
revisit parts of the text to clarify or extend comprehension. Remind students to go
back to the text to support their ideas.
• Phonics/Word Work Provide practice as needed with words and word parts, using
examples from the text. Remind students that longer many words have Greek or Latin
roots. The prefix ab- in the word abstract on page 5 is also a Latin word that means
“away from.” Other words that use this prefix include absent and absorb.
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Writing about Reading
Critical Thinking
Have students complete the Critical Thinking questions on BLM 10.10.
Responding
Have students complete the activities at the back of the book, using their Reader’s
Notebook. Use the instruction below as needed to reinforce or extend understanding of the
comprehension skill.
Target Comprehension Skill
Author’s Purpose
Remind students that they determine an author’s
purpose for writing a biography by examining details from the text. Model how to add
details to the Graphic Organizer, using a “Think Aloud” like the one below:
Think Aloud
On page 9, the author writes that Pollock sold fifteen oil paintings
and several works on paper for between $25 and $750 at Peggy
Guggenheim’s show. On page 11, she writes that an article in an art
magazine mentioned Pollock along with Picasso, a very famous artist.
These details support the author’s purpose of showing that Pollock was a
great artist.
Practice the Skill
Have students share their examples of another biography in which the author’s purpose
was to show readers how important that person was.
Writing Prompt: Thinking Beyond the Text
Have students write a response to the prompt on page 6. Remind them that when they
think beyond the text, they use their personal knowledge to reach new understandings.
Assessment Prompts
• The main purpose of this biography is to _______________________________.
• Which sentences from the biography show that moving to The Springs was good for
Pollock and his work?
• What words from the first paragraph on page 12 help describe the reaction to
Pollock’s show?
Grade 4
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English Language Development
Reading Support Give English learners a “preview” of the text by holding a brief
small-group discussion with them before reading the text with the entire group.
Cultural Support The biography includes references to locations in the United
States, such as the Grand Canyon and East Hampton, as well as events, such as the
Great Depression. Provide background information for these locations and events to help
students understand the purpose for each reference.
Oral Language Development
Check student comprehension, using a dialogue that best matches your students’
English proficiency level. Speaker 1 is the teacher, Speaker 2 is the student.
Beginning/Early Intermediate
Intermediate
Early Advanced/ Advanced
Speaker 1: Who is this biography
about?
Speaker 1: How is abstract art different
from realistic art?
Speaker 2: Jackson Pollock
Speaker 2: Abstract art focuses on form
and colors instead of real things.
Speaker 1: Who, or what,
influenced Jackson Pollock as a
painter?
Speaker 1: What did Jackson Pollock
like to do?
Speaker 2: paint
Speaker 1: How did Jackson Pollock
put paint on a canvas?
Speaker 1: What is one way that
Guggenheim helped Pollock?
Speaker 2: She hosted his first art show.
Speaker 2: Painters such as
Pablo Picasso and Diego Rivera
influenced Pollock’s style. His
wife, Lee Krasner, influenced how
he labeled his work. The natural
world also influenced his work.
Speaker 2: He dripped it.
Lesson 10
Name
BLACKLINE MASTER 10.10
Date
Critical Thinking
The Life of
Jackson Pollock
Critical Thinking
Read and answer the questions. Possible responses shown.
1. Think within the text What other artists influenced Jackson
Pollock?
His teachers and other artists like Pablo Picasso, Diego Rivera, and Navajo Indian
sand painters of the American Southwest all influenced Pollock’s work.
2. Think within the text How did Pollock work on large abstract
pieces of art?
He placed the canvas on the floor and worked on it in all directions. He even
poured paint right on the canvas. He seemed to dance around as he worked.
3. Think beyond the text Pollock often used the ideas of other
artists in his own paintings. What other artists do you know of?
Do you like their art?
I’ve seen some of Picasso’s paintings. I don’t like his pictures of people shown as
geometric shapes.
4. Think about the text How does the author show that it might
be hard to be an artist?
The author explains that Jackson had to take jobs like painting posters to make
enough money to work on his own art. Also, sometimes people did not have the
money to buy art, and some art experts did not like Jackson’s art.
Making Connections Some people really liked Jackson Pollock’s work. Other
people did not. What advice would you give an artist if people did not like his art?
Write your answer in your Reader’s Notebook.
12
Critical Thinking
Grade 4, Unit 2: Do You Know What I Mean?
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Name
Date
The Life of Jackson Pollock
Thinking Beyond the Text
Think about the questions below. Then write your answer in one or two
paragraphs.
Remember that when you think beyond the text, you use your personal
knowledge to reach new understandings.
On page 12, the author writes that people had both good and bad things to
say about his show. Why do you think the reviews were both positive and
negative? What might this say about Pollock’s artwork? What might it say
about the art world in the 1940s? Explain your answer, giving examples
from the biography.
Grade 4
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Lesson 10
Name
Date
Critical Thinking
BLACKLINE MASTER 10.10
The Life of
Jackson Pollock
Critical Thinking
Read and answer the questions.
1. Think within the text What other artists influenced Jackson
Pollock?
2. Think within the text How did Pollock work on large abstract
pieces of art?
3. Think beyond the text Pollock often used the ideas of other
artists in his own paintings. What other artists do you know of?
Do you like their art?
4. Think about the text How does the author show that it might
be hard to be an artist?
Making Connections Some people really liked Jackson Pollock’s work. Other
people did not. What advice would you give an artist if people did not like his art?
Write your answer in your Reader’s Notebook.
Grade 4
7
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Student
Lesson 10
Date
BLACKLINE MASTER 10.14
The Life of Jackson Pollock
The Life of Jackson
Pollock
Running Record Form
LEVEL S
page
12
Selection Text
Errors
Self-Corrections
Accuracy Rate
Total SelfCorrections
People had both good and bad things to say about Pollock’s
show the following year. Some thought his work was
wonderful. Others said his paintings were messy, unplanned,
and ugly.
In the 1940s, Pollock started to number his paintings. He did
not give them names. Krasner, now his wife, said that numbers
made people look only at the painting without thinking too
much about the name. Pollock’s paintings still showed his
feelings, his ideas, and how he thought about the world around
him.
One art expert gave Pollock a mean nickname—“Jack the
13
Dripper.” Others, however, liked his work.
Comments:
(# words read
correctly/99 × 100)
%
Read word correctly
Code
✓
cat
Repeated word,
sentence, or phrase
®
Omission
—
cat
cat
Grade 4
Behavior
Error
0
0
Substitution
Code
cut
cat
1
Self-corrects
cut sc
cat
0
Insertion
the
1
cat
Error
1413979
Behavior
ˆ
Word told
1
8
T
cat
1
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