S
Flashback
Four: The
Lincoln Project
by Dan Gutman
In The New York Times
bestselling author Dan
Gutman’s all-new series,
which blends fascinating
real history with an actionpacked and hilarious
adventure, four very different kids are picked by a
mysterious billionaire to travel through time and
photograph some of history’s most important events.
This time, the four friends are headed to 1863 to catch
Abraham Lincoln delivering his famous Gettysburg
Address. They’ll have to work together to ask the right
questions, meet the right people, and capture the
right moment. And most important—they must not get
caught! Back matter separating fact from fiction and
real black-and-white photographs make Flashback Four
the perfect mix of true history and uproarious fun.
MEET THE AUTHOR
Dan Gutman is The New York Times
bestselling author of the Genius Files series. He is
also the author of the Baseball Card Adventure series,
which has sold more than 1.7 million copies around the
world, and the My Weird School series, which has sold
more than 10 million copies. Thanks to his many fans who
voted in their classrooms, Dan has received nineteen state
book awards and 92 state book award nominations. He
lives in New York City with his wife, Nina.
You can visit him online
at www.dangutman.com.
Common Core State Standards
In this activity, students work on Common Core reading standards
related to setting and author’s purpose. They also practice Common
Core writing skills related to opinion and informative writing and
research skills. Specific standards are listed in parentheses at the end
of each part of the activity.
ETTING THE STAGE: Prepare students
to get the most out of this fun tale by doing some
prereading research. First, review with students that
a story’s setting is the time and place of the action.
Explain that much of the action of this book is set
around a specific historic event. Then divide the class
into small research teams. Assign one of the topics listed
below to each team. Challenge each team to research
its topic and list on a sheet
of chart paper the five most
• Battle of Gettysburg
important facts it found.
• Gettysburg Address
Provide time for teams to share
• Abraham Lincoln
their charts. Post the charts
• Tad Lincoln
and refer to them as students
• slave catchers
• John Wilkes Booth
read the book. (RL.4.3; RL.5.3;
W.4.7; W.5.7; W.6.7)
A
CTIVITY: Give each student several copies of the
graphic organizer. Explain that authors write for different
reasons and that it is important to understand why a piece
was written. Review with the class the three reasons listed
on the graphic organizer. Then divide students into groups.
Challenge each group to list on a separate piece of paper
examples of types of pieces written for each purpose. (For
example, newspaper editorials and campaign ads try to
persuade, mysteries and joke books entertain, and biographies
and nonfiction texts inform.) Have students share their lists.
Then ask, “Can an author have more than one purpose?” After
a brief discussion, have students fill in the blank at the top
of the graphic organizer with their first reading assignment
for the book. Then have them read the assignment and
complete the page. Repeat this throughout the reading of the
book. At the end of the book, have each student review the
completed organizers and write a paragraph to give his or her
opinion about author Dan Gutman’s purpose for the book.
(RL.3.10; RL.4.10; RL.5.10; RL.6.10; W.3.1; W.4.1; W.5.1; W.6.1)
WRITING ABOUT THE TEXT: In this book, the author
combines historic information with a fun, fictional plot.
Students will be eager to read the next adventure of the
Flashback Four. But where in history will they travel next?
Challenge each student to review the history topics your
class has recently studied or read about in other texts.
Then have each student select the historic event he thinks
is the best setting for the Flashback Four’s next mission.
Direct the student to write a letter to Dan Gutman in
which he suggests the event, shares three or more facts
about it, and gives at least three reasons to support his
choice. Provide time for students to share their letters
with the class or in small groups; then send the letters
to HarperCollins Publishers, Author Dan Gutman,
195 Broadway, 21st Floor, New York, NY 10007.
(W.3.1, 2; W.4.1, 2; W.5.1, 2; W.6.1, 2)
©2016 HarperCollins. Text and design by The Education Center, LLC
Name
Reading literature
Flashback Four: The Lincoln Project
by Dan Gutman
What’s the Author Up To?
In the left column, fill in the blank with the author’s purpose and finish the sentence
with the reasons for your answer.
In the right column, list two or three clues from the text that support your answer.
Keep in mind that sometimes an author may have more than one purpose.
Reading assignment: ____________________________
Author’s Purpose
To persuade: to convince the reader to think the way an author does about an issue or topic
To inform: to give the reader facts or information
To entertain: to amuse the reader or give the reader enjoyment
Author’s Purpose
Text Clues
I think the author’s purpose in this section is to
______________________________ because
©2016 HarperCollins. Text and design by The Education Center, LLC