Marian Anderson
Frida Kahlo
Biographies of Two 20th-Century Artists
Marian Anderson
Vocabulary
Level R/40
Find It! Level 1 Comprehension
others
believed
in her
felt she
deserved
a chance
people
raised
money
for her
• Use description to determine word meaning: What does the word fee mean in
this book? Let’s look for a clue for the meaning of this word on page 8. (Answer:
payment for doing something; Clues/Evidence: Boghetti’s fee high, though: $1
per lesson)
• Identify facts and details: When did Marian start singing? (age six, page 7)
• Identify facts and details: Who invited Marian to sing in the White House?
(President and First Lady Roosevelt, page 11)
able to
continue
lessons
Look Closer! Level 2 Comprehension
• Identify cause and effect: How was Marian able to continue voice lessons when
she was turned away from music school? Use a cause-and-effect chart for help in
answering the question. (many others believed in Marian; they felt she deserved
a chance; friends and church members often raised money for her; she was able
to continue her voice lessons, page 8)
• Identify sequence of events: First Marian was turned away from Constitution
Hall in Washington, D.C., and then . . . (the public was in an uproar; Mrs.
Roosevelt protested; a new concert location was selected, page 11).
Prove It! Level 3 Comprehension
• Analyze character: Marian Anderson was a talented singer. What clues on page 9
tell you this? (she outshone 300 vocalists; she won first prize in a singing contest;
she got to perform with the world-famous New York Philharmonic Orchestra;
the concert was a sensation; critics praised her performance.)
• Make inferences: What clue on page 11 tells you that the concert at Lincoln
Memorial was a success? (a record-setting crowd came to support Marian.)
Take It Apart! Level 4 Comprehension
• Analyze text structure and organization: The author uses description to tell
about the concert at the Lincoln Memorial. Find this on page 6. (it was Easter
morning 1939; a sea of 75,000 people stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial; a hush came over the crowd)
• Evaluate author’s purpose: Why does the author probably use the quote, “There
seemed to be people as far as the eye could see,” on page 11? (to give readers an
idea of how large the crowd was at the concert)
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Frida Kahlo
Vocabulary
• Use direct definitions to determine word meaning: What does the word polio
mean in this book? Let’s look for clues for the meaning of this word on page 15.
(Answer: a disease, Clues/Evidence: Frida came down with polio; the disease
made her right leg thin and weak.)
Find It! Level 1 Comprehension
• Identify facts and details: When was Frida Kahlo born? (July 6, 1907, page 15)
• Identify facts and details: Today, La Casa Azul is a . . . (museum, page 20) Look Closer! Level 2 Comprehension
factories and
skyscrapers
both express
her feelings
flowers
and ruins
• Identify cause and effect: What caused Frida’s life to change forever when
she was 18? (she was riding home from school; her bus crashed into a streetcar; the accident shattered bones all over her body, page 16)
• Compare and contrast: How were the two sides of Frida’s painting Self-Portrait
on the Border Line the same? How were they the different? Use a Venn diagram
for help in answering the question (they both express her feelings, on one side
are the smoky factories and skyscrapers of New York; the other side shows the
colorful flowers and ruins of Mexico, page 18)
Prove It! Level 3 Comprehension
• Make inferences: What clue on page 20 supports the inference that the Mexican
people were proud of Frida and her work? (Mexico honored her with a national
prize for her work.) • Analyze character: What clues on page 20 tell you that Frida was determined to
continue her work no matter what happened to her? (she was sick but she would
not miss the event; she hosted the show from a four-poster bed set up in the
gallery; though her body was becoming weaker, her spirit was still strong.)
Take It Apart! Level 4 Comprehension
Readers’ & Writers’ Genre Workshop
©2011 Benchmark Education
Company, LLC. All rights reserved.
This card may be photocopied for
classroom use only.
• Evaluate author’s purpose: Why did the author probably include the information
on page 14? (to get readers interest in the person they will be reading about)
• Analyze text structure and organization: The author uses sequence of events to
tell about Frida’s life. Find the words on page 15 that tell you this. (was born on
July 6, 1907; when she was six; in high school)
Based on the Comprehension
Through Deductive Reasoning Model
developed by Margaret Kilgo.
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