This list contains the Reading and Writing activities for our Grade 6 English Language Arts course.
| Type | Lesson | Reading Title | Author | Category | Subcategory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texts | Introduction to Identity and Fitting In | “The All-American Slurp” | Lensey Namioka | Fiction | Short Story |
| Texts | Characters in Holes | (from) Holes | Louis Sachar | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Details in a Middle Schooler's Personal Narrative | “I’m Not Thirteen Yet” from Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk Middle School: 101 Stories of Life, Love, and Learning for Younger Teen | Amy Bernstein; Mark Victor Hansen, Jack Canfield, Valerie Howlett, and Madeline Clapps | Nonfiction | Personal Narrative |
| Texts | Setting in A Girl Named Zippy | (from) A Girl Named Zippy | Harven Kimmel | Nonfiction | Personal Narrative |
| Texts | Making Changes: Central Ideas in Immigrant Kids | “Coming Over” from Immigrant Kids | Russell Freedman* | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Text and Visual Details | Ellis Island National Monument Online: “The Workers of Ellis Island” | National Park Service | Nonfiction | Online Informational Text |
| Texts | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Cause-and-Effect Structure | Ellis Island National Monument Online: “Island of Hope, Island of Tears” | National Park Service | Nonfiction | Online Informational Text |
| Texts | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Asking Questions | Ellis Island National Monument Online: “Ellis Island Oral History Project” | National Park Service | Nonfiction | Online Informational Text |
| Texts | Bringing the 1930s to Life in Brighton Beach Memoirs | (from) Brighton Beach Memoirs | Neil Simon | Fiction | Play |
| Texts | That's Pretty Clever! Characters in The Number Devil | (from) The Number Devil | Hans Magnus Enzenberger | Fiction | Narrative |
| Texts | Making Predictions in a Mystery: "Object Lesson" | “Object Lesson” | Ellery Queen | Fiction | Mystery |
| Texts | Understanding Suspense in a Mystery: "Object Lesson" | “Object Lesson” | Ellery Queen | Fiction | Mystery |
| Texts | Author's Viewpoint in Bone Detective | (from) Bone Detective: The Story of Forensic Anthropologist Diane France | Lorraine Jean Hopping | Nonfiction | Biography |
| Texts | Synthesizing Information about the Apollo 11 Moon Landing | (from) Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon | Catherine Thimmesh | Nonfiction | Historical Text |
| Texts | Synthesizing Information about the Apollo 11 Moon Landing | (from) Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon | NASA | Nonfiction | Article |
| Texts | Perseverance and Making Sense: Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Figurative Language in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Making Inferences about Events in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Word Choice and Tone in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Characters in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Symbols in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Theme in Through the Looking Glass | (from) Through the Looking Glass | Lewis Carroll | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Building and Creating: Distinguishing Fact from Opinion in an Essay | “On Becoming an Inventor” from Heading Out: The Start of Some Splendid Careers | Dean Kamen and Gloria Kamen | Nonfiction | Memoir |
| Texts | Objective Language in a Speech about the Brooklyn Bridge | “Address of Hon. Seth Low, Mayor of the City Of Brooklyn” from Opening Ceremonies of the New York and Brooklyn Bridge, May 24, 1883 | Seth Low | Nonfiction | Speech |
| Texts | Figurative Language in a Poem about the Empire State Building | “Empire State Building” | J. Patrick Lewis | Nonfiction | Poem |
| Texts | Text Features in A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and Through the World of Art | (from) A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and Through the World of Art | Phillip Isaacson | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | Frida Kahlo: Word Choice in a Biography | “The Birth of an Artist” from Frida Kahlo | Hedda Garza | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | New Beginnings: Characters in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | (from) Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Mildred D. Taylor | Fiction | Historical Novel |
| Texts | Making Connections to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | (from) Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Mildred D. Taylor | Fiction | Historical Novel |
| Texts | Author's Craft in Wonder | (from) Wonder | R.J. Palacio | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Author's Craft in Wonder | “Wonder” | Natalie Merchant | Fiction | Poem/Song |
| Texts | Monitoring Understanding in Wonder | (from) Wonder | R.J. Palacio | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Character Development in Esperanza Rising | (from) Esperanza Rising | Pam Munoz Ryan | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Overcoming Obstacles: Word Choice in Heart of a Samurai | (from) Heart of a Samurai | Margi Preus | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Characterization in Heart of a Samurai | (from) Heart of a Samurai | Margi Preus | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Connecting to Text in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind | (from) The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind | William Kamkwamba Bryan Mealer | Nonfiction | Biography |
| Texts | Visual Text Features in Into the Unknown | (from) Into the Unknown: How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air | Stewart Ross | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | Understanding Mythology in Black Ships Before Troy | (from) Black Ships Before Troy | Rosemary Sutcliff | Fiction | Myth |
| Texts | Growing Up: Narrative Voice in The Jungle Book | (from) The Jungle Book | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Sensory Language in The Jungle Book | (from) The Jungle Book | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Plot Development in The Jungle Book | (from) The Jungle Book | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Theme in The Jungle Book | (from) The Jungle Book | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Responding to Theme and Character in a Narrative | (from) The Jungle Book | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Comparing Prose and Poetry: Rudyard Kipling's "If" | “If” | Rudyard Kipling | Fiction | Novel |
| Texts | Caretakers of the Earth: Examining the Legend of "The Chenoo" | (from) When the Chenoo Howls | Joseph and James Bruchac | Fiction | Legend |
| Texts | Narrative Point of View in Seedfolks | (from) Seedfolks | Paul Fleischman | Nonfiction | Essays |
| Texts | Evaluating an Argument on Healthy Eating | “Healthy Eating: Small Changes Can Equal Big Results” | Jenny Staletovich | Nonfiction | Article |
| Texts | Connecting to an Informational Text: Steve and Bindi Irwin | (from) Steve and Bindi Irwin | Amy Breguet | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | Text Structure in "A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change" | “A Student’s Guide to Global Climate Change” | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | Nonfiction | Informational Text |
| Texts | What's Out There: Exploring a Science Text in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Understanding Complex Information in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Cause-and-Effect Structure in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Analyzing Descriptions in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Making Connections in A Black Hole Is Not a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Questioning in A Black Hole Is Not a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Drawing Conclusions in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | (from) A Black Hole is Not a Hole | Carolyn Cinamini DeCristofano | Nonfiction | Science Text |
| Texts | Making Tough Choices: Exploring Graphic Treatment in Citizenship | (from) Citizenship | Jason Skog | Nonfiction | Graphic Text |
| Texts | Connecting to a Fight against Bullying | “Taking on Bullying: Jaylen Arnold Brings His Message to Polk County Schools” | Clifford Parody | Nonfiction | News Article |
| Texts | Connecting to a Fight against Bullying | Florida Kid Helps Other Kids Say, “Bullying No Way!” | Linda Ellerbee | Nonfiction | News Article |
| Texts | Conveying Theme through an Interview | “Florence Griffith-Joyner” The Hero Project | Robert Hatch and William Hatch | Nonfiction | Interview |
| Texts | Retelling History through Biography | (from) Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice | Phillip Hoose* | Nonfiction | Biography |
| Texts | Exploring Tone in Poetry | “Madam and the Rent Man” | Langston Hughes* | Fiction | Poem |
| Texts | Understanding Others: Analyzing Conflict in "Eleven" | “Eleven” | Sandra Cisneros | Fiction | Short Story |
| Texts | Wordplay in The Phantom Tollbooth | (from) The Phantom Tollbooth | Norton Juster | Fiction | Fantasy Novel |
| Texts | Characters' Perspectives in The Phantom Tollbooth | (from) Blanca Flor | Norton Juster | Fiction | Fantasy Novel |
| Texts | Structure of a Drama: Blanca Flor | (from) Blanca Flor | Angel Vigil | Fiction | Play |
| Texts | Exploring Theme and Purpose in Blanca Flor | (from) Blanca Flor | Angel Vigil | Fiction | Play |
| Essay Prompts | Writing a Personal Narrative about Fitting In | Write a personal narrative to share with a group of students who are slightly younger than you are. Describe a time when you struggled to fit in and the way in which you resolved the situation. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Informative Essay about the Immigrant Experience | Write an informative essay on the topic of immigration. Your essay will use research to describe the changes and challenges that today's immigrant children experience. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Analysis of Poetry | Write an essay that analyzes the use of poetry in Through the Looking-Glass. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Argument about a National Landmark | Write an argumentative essay for or against using public money to maintain national landmarks, such as the gateway Arch in St. Louis. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Analysis of Literary Characters | Write a compare-and-contrast analysis of how culture shapes the heroes in Heart of a Samurai and Black Ships Before Troy. Use transition words in your draft to help clarify relationships of ideas. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Argumentative Essay about a Tradition | Write an argumentative essay for or against maintaining traditional coming-of-age ceremonies, such as a bar mitzvah or a quinceañera. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Informative Essay about Nature | Write an informative essay that explains a natural phenomenon such as the Pitch Lake in Trinidad or the aurora borealis. | |||
| Essay Prompts | Writing an Argumentative Essay about an Injustice | Write a research-based argumentative essay for or against the importance of standing up to an injustice such as bullying. | |||
| Projects | Creating a Yearbook Page | In this assignment, you will create a yearbook page about a person from a text. The purpose of the project is to provide the audience with a greater understanding of the character or real person, as well as to entertain the audience using multimedia. | |||
| Projects | Creating a Blog | In this assignment, you will create a multimedia blog. The purpose of the project is to present your viewpoint on a social issue and support it with a solid argument. Review these points before you begin. ■You will be provided with a guide for creating your multimedia blog. ■You will have the option to use a starter word-processing file. You can also set up your own file. ■You will be provided with a rubric for your blog. Review the rubric before you begin. ■Before you begin, ask your teacher where you should save your blog. | |||
| Projects | Creating a Multimedia Presentation | Write a plan for your presentation that explains the steps you’ll take to convince your peers to volunteer at their local senior center. | |||
| Projects | Creating a Public Service Advertisement | Create a video public service advertisement about a community issue. Make a compelling visual presentation with facts and details to support the issue. Be sure to state your issue in the form of a claim, explain why it is important and what people need to know about it, and provide reasons and evidence. Finally, create a print form of your ad to accompany the video. | |||
| Projects | Group Discussion | Describe a time in the discussion when you asked or answered a question by using information you learned while you were preparing for the discussion. Describe a time in the discussion when you learned something new and changed or added to the idea with your own thoughts. Describe a time in the discussion when you defended your view because someone disagreed with you. Describe a time in the discussion when someone made a really good point and backed it up with strong reasons and evidence. Describe a time in the discussion when someone used reasons or evidence that did not support his or her point. Describe a time in the discussion when you asked a follow-up question to get more information. What rules were created for the discussion? Were they followed? How did you make sure that your language was appropriate to the topic and audience of the discussion? Was it formal or informal language? 9. What kinds of hand gestures and facial expressions did you and other people use to match what was being said? 10. Describe how you made sure you were listening carefully to what other people said and how you let other people know that you understood their ideas. 11. How did you use eye contact, the volume of your voice, or other means to connect with others during the discussion? | |||
| Projects | Creating a Text Trailer | In this assignment, you will create a multimedia trailer about a text that you have read in its entirety or over multiple lessons. The purpose of the project is to inform viewers about the text and to use multimedia components to entertain viewers and convince them to read the text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Characters in Holes | Read this passage…..Even though Stanley had been wrongly accused of a crime, ""he smiled."" What does this tell you about Stanley's character? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Characters in Holes | Based on what you know about Stanley's family, environment, and beliefs, what can you tell about his identity? (Use Evidence) | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Narrative Structure in Holes | Reread this lullaby. How do the words “if only, if only” help connect the two timelines in the story? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Details in a Middle Schooler's Personal Narrative | Read this passage. What do details in the passage tell you about how the narrator feels? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Details in a Middle Schooler's Personal Narrative | Think about the central idea of fitting in, which is evident in the personal narrative. Why do you think the writer chose to focus on this idea? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Responding to Word Choice in a Narrative | Read this passage. Explain how the writer’s choice of words helps readers see that the Gleasons were not used to eating like Chinese people. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Context Clues and Multiple-Meaning Words | In one or two sentences, write how you would give a friend advice on finding the meaning of an unknown word. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Changes: Central Ideas in Immigrant Kids | Read the passage. Paraphrase the central idea. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Text and Visual Details | Describe how details from this photograph help you understand what the job of a clerk at Ellis Island might have been like. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Cause-and-Effect Structure | Read this passage. In a few sentences, describe one thing that happens and why it happens. Use a signal word or phrase in your answer. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Ellis Island National Monument Online: Asking Questions | How did the changes that newcomers to this country experienced help them feel like they belonged in their new home? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Responding to Quotations in an Informational Text | In one or two sentences, explain what you look for when you respond to the use of quotations in a text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Responding to Quotations in an Informational Text | Read the passage. Write one paragraph reflecting on how the author’s use of a quotation makes the informational text stronger. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Bringing the 1930s to Life in Brighton Beach Memoirs | Explain Eugene's perspective on what's happening in this scene. Support your response with details from the text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Bringing the 1930s to Life in Brighton Beach Memoirs | For this assignment, you will view a scene from a film adaptation of Brighton Beach Memoirs. Then, you will write to compare the filmed scene with the original play. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Sentence Patterns | Write a compound sentence about immigrants based on what you’ve read. Remember that a compound sentence contains both a comma and a conjunction. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | That's Pretty Clever! Characters in The Number Devil | Practice reading text fluently. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | That's Pretty Clever! Characters in The Number Devil | Explain how the number devil helps the author convince readers that mathematics is fun. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Predictions in a Mystery: "Object Lesson" | Make a prediction about what might happen next in “Object Lesson.” Support your prediction with details. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Suspense in a Mystery: "Object Lesson" | How is the clock used to create suspense and pacing in the story? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Author's Viewpoint in Bone Detective | Read this passage. What do the descriptions, actions, and quotations tell you about the subject? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Analyzing a Text by Comparing and Contrasting | Use signal words to rewrite these three sentences so that the ideas transition more smoothly. Apples and oranges taste good. You bite into an apple. You segment an orange to eat it. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Analyzing a Text by Comparing and Contrasting | Write a paragraph in which you compare and contrast how Diane France and the Number Devil might solve a problem. Use at least three signal words in your paragraph. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Synthesizing Information about the Apollo 11 Moon Landing | Read the two passages. Describe what the different perspectives help you learn. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Synthesizing Information about the Apollo 11 Moon Landing | Read the two passages. Describe what the different perspectives help you learn. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Denotation and Connotation | Read this passage and describe the tone it expresses. How does the author’s choice of words express the tone? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Perseverance and Making Sense: Through the Looking Glass | This section of the story ends just before someone enters. Use what you know along with details from the text to make a prediction about him or her. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Perseverance and Making Sense: Through the Looking Glass | You have read "Jabberwocky" and listened to an audio recording of the poem. Compare and contrast what it was like to read the poem to what it was like to listen to it read aloud. Explain your experience in two to three sentences. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Figurative Language in Through the Looking Glass | The chessboard is like a roadmap Alice must follow. When we leave Alice at the end of Part 2, she has taken the train to the Fourth Square. Read the passage. What question could you ask about what will happen next on Alice’s journey? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Word Choice and Tone in Through the Looking Glass | Read this passage. Then paraphrase it in your own words. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Characters in Through the Looking Glass | Describe one way the passage shows that Alice’s character has grown or changed. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Symbols in Through the Looking Glass | Explain what this passage might symbolize about Lewis Carroll and the real Alice. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Theme in Through the Looking Glass | Choose one of these themes from Through the Looking-Glass. Write about an experience that connects to the theme. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Building and Creating: Distinguishing Fact from Opinion in an Essay | Read this passage. Use details from the text to explain how Kamen supports his opinion that making things out of metal was enjoyable. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Objective Language in a Speech about the Brooklyn Bridge | Read this passage and identify the purpose that subjective language serves. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Objective Language in a Speech about the Brooklyn Bridge | Write an objective summary of this excerpt from Seth Low’s speech. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Figurative Language in a Poem about the Empire State Building | Why do you think J. Patrick Lewis used personification in his poem? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Figurative Language in a Poem about the Empire State Building | Read these lines from the poem. Describe the historical event the poem is referring to. What connections can you make to this part of the poem? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Responding to Facts in an Informational Text | Read this passage and identify the opinion Kamen expresses. How does he support his opinion? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Text Features in A Short Walk Around the Pyramids and Through the World of Art | Write one sentence telling how the photograph supports an idea in the text. Then, write one sentence telling what additional information the photograph provides. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Frida Kahlo: Word Choice in a Biography | Why does the author think that Kahlo’s friendship with Tina Modotti was significant? Use details from the text to support your answer. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Frida Kahlo: Word Choice in a Biography | Based on the text you read in this lesson, what is your opinion of Frida Kahlo? Use details from the text to support your opinion. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Group Discussion | Based on what you have read about Frida Kahlo, prepare a point you would make in a group discussion. Write two to three sentences to explain what you would say to the group about how her creativity helped her persevere. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Group Discussion | To prepare for a discussion, read about when Frida Kahlo showed her art to Diego Rivera. In a group discussion, a participant says, ""Frida Kahlo would never have given up on art."" How would you respond to share your viewpoint? Write three sentences. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Group Discussion | For this assignment, you will engage in a range of discussions and then write about your experience. ■A discussion evaluation will help you judge how well your discussion went. ■It is a good idea to look over the items on the guide before you begin. ■Ask your teacher for assistance as you complete and submit the assignment. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Group Discussion | In a group discussion, a participant says, "Frida Kahlo would never have given up on art." How would you respond to share your viewpoint? Write three sentences. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing an Argument about a National Landmark | Write an argumentative essay for or against using public money to maintain national landmarks, such as the gateway Arch in St. Louis. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | New Beginnings: Characters in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Read the passage. Then describe what effect it has on the plot of the story. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Connections to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | How might Stacey feel when T. J. comes to the Logan house in the middle of the night? Describe a connection that helps you answer the question. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing a Strong Conclusion | Write a conclusion to the story. Remember to resolve the conflict in a satisfying way and to use details and transitions in your paragraph. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing a Strong Conclusion | Connect the ideas below with at least two transitional words or phrases that show the order of events or the passage of time. ■Sakura walked her dog. ■Sakura did her homework. ■Sakura watched TV. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Monitoring Understanding in Wonder | Use the details in this passage to visualize the scene. Then explain why August might find the surroundings strange. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Character Development in Esperanza Rising | Describe Esperanza, based on the reading. What is she like? Give details from the reading to explain. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Pronouns | Describe one way you persevered to complete a school assignment. Use at least three pronouns in your response, including one personal pronoun and one reflexive pronoun. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Creating a Text Trailer | In this assignment, you will create a multimedia trailer about a text that you have read in its entirety or over multiple lessons. The purpose of the project is to inform viewers about the text and to use multimedia components to entertain viewers and convince them to read the text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Overcoming Obstacles: Word Choice in Heart of a Samurai | Explain why an author might choose precise words over vague words. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Characterization in Heart of a Samurai | Read the passage. What does it help you understand about how Manjiro’s character has developed? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Connecting to Text in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind | Based on Kamkwamba’s memoir, describe one trait that makes him a hero. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Ordering Events in a Personal Narrative | Write a paragraph that describes how a positive or negative attitude helped or hindered you during a particular situation. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Visual Text Features in Into the Unknown | Describe an important idea from the text that this visual helps you understand. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Mythology in Black Ships Before Troy | What do these details convey about the theme of the story? Write your response. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Punctuation and Capitalization | Retype the passage, correcting errors in capitalization and punctuation. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Growing Up: Narrative Voice in The Jungle Book | Describe the narrative point of view that is used in “Mowgli’s Brothers.” Use details from the text to support your answer. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Growing Up: Narrative Voice in The Jungle Book | Describe the importance of the narrator in understanding the thoughts of Father Wolf. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Sensory Language in The Jungle Book | How does the imagery in this passage help you understand what is happening in the scene? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Plot Development in The Jungle Book | Explain how the ending of the passage creates tension and might lead to a conflict. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Theme in The Jungle Book | Briefly explain why "growing up involves facing tough situations" is a good theme for the story. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Responding to Theme and Character in a Narrative | Read parts of the text about the law of the jungle. Then write a paragraph analyzing how the law of the jungle affects one character in The Jungle Book. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Comparing Prose and Poetry: Rudyard Kipling's "If" | How is the title of Kipling's poem "If" also an example of repetition? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Caretakers of the Earth: Examining the Legend of "The Chenoo" | How does the description of the Chenoo support the theme of the legend? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Caretakers of the Earth: Examining the Legend of "The Chenoo" | Write a short summary of "The Chenoo." | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Narrative Point of View in Seedfolks | Explain why each of the narrators in the story thinks the garden is important. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Evaluating an Argument on Healthy Eating | Describe how the author develops her argument in this part of the article. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Evaluating an Argument on Healthy Eating | Evaluate the author's argument. Discuss how she supports her claim. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Analyzing Procedural Text | Explain how you might revise your recipe to include granola. How would you add it to the process? How would it make the recipe better? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Analyzing Procedural Text | Write your own recipe for a mixed berry and yogurt parfait. Remember to include a list of the ingredients, and to clearly describe the process for preparing it. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Connecting to an Informational Text: Steve and Bindi Irwin | Read the text, and make a connection to your own life. Explain how the connection helps you understand the text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Text Structure in "A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change" | Explain why the author uses a problem-solution text structure to discuss climate change with readers. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Text Structure in "A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change" | Choose the goal you would be most interested in setting. List the resources you would need to accomplish the goal. Then describe one action you would take to get started. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Exploring Word Relationships and Figurative Language | Identify the figurative language used in the passage and explain its literal meaning. Then describe how it helps you understand the passage. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | What's Out There: Exploring a Science Text in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Based on the introduction, why do you think the author wants readers to know the information she will present in this book? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | What's Out There: Exploring a Science Text in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | The author used this website to do a lot of research. Visit the site yourself, then explain why the author found the site reliable. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Complex Information in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Using context clues from the passage, explain what the technical term singularity means. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Cause-and-Effect Structure in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Describe the cause-and-effect relationships in this passage that lead to the formation of a star. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Cause-and-Effect Structure in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Explain one way the video added to your understanding of what you’ve learned about black holes so far. Then, explain one new idea you learned from the video. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Analyzing Descriptions in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Evaluate the author’s use of description in this passage. How does she help you understand what a light second is? Support your answer with evidence from the text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Connections in A Black Hole Is Not a Hole | Explain why science writers show connections between subjects and ideas within a science text. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Connections in A Black Hole Is Not a Hole | Read the passage, then explain the connection between reading the text and watching the video. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Questioning in A Black Hole Is Not a Hole | Explain why questioning is an important strategy for both readers and scientists to practice. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Drawing Conclusions in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Based on this passage, draw a conclusion about what Einstein was like as a scientist. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Drawing Conclusions in A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole | Use the central ideas to write a summary of the last chapter of A Black Hole Is NOT a Hole. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing an Informative Essay about Nature | Write an informative essay that explains a natural phenomenon such as the Pitch Lake in Trinidad or the aurora borealis. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Tough Choices: Exploring Graphic Treatment in Citizenship | Open this page from Citizenship to reread the captions and voice bubbles, as well as look at the graphics. Explain how the combination of text and graphics shows the author’s purpose. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Making Tough Choices: Exploring Graphic Treatment in Citizenship | Reflect on the central ideas and key details you learned from the graphic text. Then write two or three sentences describing a choice you would like to make to become a better citizen. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Connecting to a Fight against Bullying | Read the excerpts from the two articles. Then, explain what you understand better by connecting the details in the two texts. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Connecting to a Fight against Bullying | Read the excerpts from the two articles. Then, explain what you understand better by connecting the details in the two texts. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing for Your Audience | Consider the theme, “Making Tough Choices.” From the point of view of a principal who made school uniforms mandatory, write a one-paragraph letter to parents explaining your decision. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing for Your Audience | Again, consider the theme, “Making Tough Choices,” and pretend you are the principal who made school uniforms mandatory. Write a brief letter to students explaining your choice. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Conveying Theme through an Interview | Explain William Hatch’s purpose for interviewing Florence Griffith-Joyner | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Retelling History through Biography | Read the excerpt. Based on the excerpt and the rest of the text you read earlier, write two to three sentences explaining why it was important for the author to include first-person point of view when telling Claudette’s story. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Exploring Tone in Poetry | How does “Madam and the Rent Man” reflect its historical setting? Explain your answer. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Greek and Latin Affixes and Roots | Using the dictionary definition, write one to two sentences explaining the meaning of “papyrus” as it is used in this sentence: “These included government officials, doctors, and priests, as well as the scribes who did the actual writing on papyrus and stone.” | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Others: Analyzing Conflict in "Eleven" | Read the passage. In a paragraph, describe the conflict and explain what it tells you about Rachel. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Understanding Others: Analyzing Conflict in "Eleven" | Based on what you have learned about Rachel, explain why you think she cries after putting on the sweater in class | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Writing a Thank-You Letter | Write the body of a formal thank-you letter to Sandra Cisneros, the author of “Eleven.” Explain why you are grateful that she wrote the story. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Wordplay in The Phantom Tollbooth | Describe the wordplay that occurs in this passage. In what ways is the author using the word expectations? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Wordplay in The Phantom Tollbooth | In this passage, the word wheels has a literal meaning and an idiomatic meaning. Explain how the meanings differ. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Characters' Perspectives in The Phantom Tollbooth | Read the passage, then explain the point Alec makes about perspective. In what way does he support his ideas? | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Structure of a Drama: Blanca Flor | Read these lines from the play again, then rewrite them as they might appear in a novel. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Structure of a Drama: Blanca Flor | Make a prediction about what you think will happen in the next scene of the play. Use text evidence to support your prediction. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Exploring Theme and Purpose in Blanca Flor | Do you think “love conquers all” is a valid theme for the play? Explain why or why not. | |||
| Short-Response Writing | Exploring Theme and Purpose in Blanca Flor | Describe how the theme “it is necessary to take risks” connects to a purpose of telling a folktale. |