TEACHER RESOURCE GUIDE
The Best Week Ever Eleanor Robins
Learning Activities for • Vocabulary • Initial Understanding • Developing Interpretation • Personal Reflection and Response • Demonstrating a Critical Stance
Table of Contents To the Teacher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Reading Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Vocabulary Word Sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 What’s the Rule? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Compound Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Write Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Synonyms and Antonyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Do It Yourself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Initial Understanding Prediction Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Identify Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Interpretation Making Inferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Your Turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Character Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Reflection What Do YOU Want? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Critical Response Be a Critic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Answer Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
SADDLEBACK EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING Three Watson, Irvine, CA 92618-2767, E-mail:
[email protected], Website: www.sdlback.com Copyright © 2004 by Saddleback Educational Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher. The purchase of this guide entitles the individual teacher to reproduce copies of the student pages for use in his or her classroom exclusively. The reproduction of any part of the work for an entire school or school system is prohibited.
ISBN 1-56254-678-3 Printed in the United States of America
To the Teacher The Carter High Chronicles Organization The Carter High Chronicles series introduces the students at the fictional Carter High School. Many of the same characters—students, teachers, and coaches—appear in more than one story. As in real life, their stories are intertwined. The books are not sequential and may be presented in any order. This teacher’s guide provides ideas and reproducible worksheets to support the book and extend students’ reading skills. The key at the end of this guide provides answers and example responses.
Different Ways to Present the Book Reading the book as an entire class might be helpful for lower-functioning readers. Students who are more confident may be encouraged to read the book on their own after reading one or two chapters as a class. If your students are familiar with the Carter High series, you might begin by having them review what they already know about various characters. Although most activities are designed for use after reading the book, some are best completed before students read. A few activities may be used during the reading. These activities were designed for a variety of teaching styles. You can distribute all of the activities at once or pick-and-choose the skills you want to reinforce.
How to Build Connections Each book gives more insight into the teen characters. Since some characters appear in subsequent stories, you may wish to create character webs and have students continue to add to them as you read the series together.
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Reading Strategies The activities in this Teacher’s Resource Guide focus on giving lower-level readers the tools to construct, extend, and examine the meaning of text. Included are essential elements in reading literacy as identified by the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Vocabulary Vocabulary skills include decoding words, using words correctly, understanding meanings, and extending the actual amount of words the students know. Increased competency with vocabulary increases fluency when reading both silently and aloud. As students decode or recognize words more easily, they will be able to determine and extend the meaning of entire passages more easily as well. Initial Understanding Initial understanding of text is the initial impression or unreflected understanding of what was read. Skills include identifying details and facts from text read, and recognizing aspects of literal text, such as sequence of events or main ideas. Without initial understanding, no reader would be able to comprehend the text on a higher level. Developing Interpretation Developing interpretation goes beyond the initial impression to develop a more complete understanding of what was read. The reader must distinguish between and compare separate concepts in a text to extend its meaning. Examples of interpreting skills include differentiating facts from opinions, making comparisons, summarizing, and identifying cause-effect relationships. Personal Reflection and Response Personal reflection and response requires readers to relate topics to their own experience. As students connect their own experiences with text, information becomes more clear. Having internalized ideas, readers can much more easily express their responses. Demonstrating a Critical Stance Demonstrating a critical stance requires readers to detach themselves from the text in order to consider and evaluate it. A critical response may include identifying the intended audience and critiquing the text.
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Word Sounds
What is interesting about these words? bag sing germ The g sound is different in each word. The letter g can stand for several different sounds. The g in bag and gap sounds like a hard g. The soft g in germ and bridge sounds like j and is spelled with -ge or -dge. The letter pair -ng as in sang and bring makes its own sound. Directions: Read aloud the g-words. Sort the words into three groups, then label each group. Words with more than one g may be sorted into more than one group. Add more g words to each group. girlfriend magic along
tangle rang going
anything gum again
game ledge edge
talking garage page
gem matching ring
huge giant tag
What’s the Rule? Look at each group of words above. Notice the sound the g in each word makes. Look carefully at the letters around the g. Directions: Choose a group. Write a rule to tell how to say the g sound in each word.
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Compound Words
A compound word is formed by two words that, when used together, have a different meaning than when they stand alone. anybody afternoon
ice cream firefly
one-half notebook
Directions: Form compound words by pairing words from the list below. Write at least 10 on the lines. to week foot
body home work
night end ball
no thing side
girl some any
one friend thing
mid any in
_
Write Sentences Directions: Write three sentences about the story The Best Week Ever using compound words you formed above.
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Synonyms and Antonyms
How are these words related? good - great
good - bad
The first pair of words are synonyms, or words that mean the same–or almost the same thing. The second pair are antonyms, or opposites. Directions: For each pair of words, write A if the words are antonyms or S if the words are synonyms. 1. someone – nobody
6. interest – bore
2. chef – cook
7. yard – lawn
3. study – learn
8. unsure – certain
4. remember – forget
9. throw – catch
5. stop – rest
10. hurried – rushed
Do It Yourself Directions: For each word, write one synonym and one antonym. Synonyms
Antonyms
1. easy 2. win 3. shut 4. friend 5. work 6. rise 7. watch 8. help
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Prediction Guide
We make predictions all the time. A prediction is a guess about the future based on what we already know. Directions: Complete the prediction guide as you read the book The Best Week Ever. Before reading each chapter, write a phrase or sentence telling what you think will happen next. After reading the chapter, write a phrase or sentence telling what actually happened. Chapter BEFORE Reading the Chapter
AFTER Reading the Chapter
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
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The Carter High Chronicles—The Best Week Ever
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Identify Structure
The following sentence describes a cause-and-effect relationship. Because Deb studied hard with her friends, she earned a good grade on her history test. Directions: Use the following abbreviations to show how the ideas are related. MI/D= main idea and details, C/E= cause and effect, SOE= sequence of events, C/C= compare/contrast 1. Deb studied with Val and Tess. They met at Val’s house. Val and Tess read aloud. Then each girl explained what she thought the book meant. 2. The friends Deb and Val were very alike in some ways, but different in others. They both liked tennis and clothes. Val was a good reader but not great at math. On the other hand, Deb was good at math but not at reading. 3. Deb’s mom let her study with her friends. Because she earned a good grade on the test, Deb’s mom would probably let Deb study that way again. 4. First, Deb offered to rake Mrs. Clark’s leaves. Then, Val called Deb to set up a double date, which Deb accepted. When Deb told her mom about her plans, her mom reminded her about Mrs. Clark. Deb would have to choose. 5. Deb told Val that she liked Ben, Steve’s friend. So Val talked Steve into setting up a double date. But when Deb backed out of the date, Val didn’t think Ben would try again. 6. It seemed that there was always confusion about the two Bens. When Ed told Deb his name, she thought that he might be Ben’s cousin. 7. Deb felt differently about each of her classes. Because she was good with numbers, Deb liked math class. But because she couldn’t read well, she didn’t like history as much as math. 8. On Saturday, Deb started raking Mrs. Clark’s leaves. She took a break for lunch. Then, Deb finished raking with Ed’s help. Later, she went to the football game with Ed and Val. The Carter High Chronicles—The Best Week Ever
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Plot
The plot of a story is the pattern of events that take the reader from beginning to end. Directions: Complete each statement about the story The Best Week Ever. Then, go back and write the order each main event happened during the plot of the story. Use 1 for the first event, 2 for the second, and so on. Ed helped Deb rake Mrs. Clark’s leaves. They got along well, so he __________ _________________________________________________________ Deb earned a B on her
_________________ ___________________________________
Deb found out that she had a history test that week. She decided that it was ____________________________________ _________________ Deb decided that what she thought would be a bad week turned out to be ___________________________________
_
_________________ Deb tried studying with
________________ _________________
Because she had planned to rake her neighbor’s leaves, Deb had to turn down ____________________________________ When raking, Deb meets
________________ ____________________________________
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Making Inferences
Did Deb like Ed? The book never stated that she did, but you know from her actions and her words that she did. One clue is that she thought Ed was cute. Also, she accepted the date with Ed. And, Deb seemed excited about her date with Ed at the end of the story. Use clues in the story to decide what is not directly stated. This is making an inference. Directions: Match each clue with an inference. Be careful – there are more inferences than clues! A. Deb was lazy. 1. Miss Brent asked Val to wait in the hall. B. Miss Brent wanted to make sure this was 2. Val asked why Deb thought what Deb really wanted to do. she might not want to study C. Girls don’t study well together. together. D. It didn’t matter to Val that Deb was not 3. Deb did her homework right a good reader. away. Deb studied hard. E. Deb was a good student. 4. It took Deb a long time to F. Mrs. Clark had a lot of leaves in her yard. rake the leaves.
Your Turn Directions: Use the clues in the book to make your own inferences. 1. What makes a real date according to Val and Deb?
2. How did Ben feel about Deb?
3. What clues help make the inference that Ed liked Deb before that Saturday?
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Character Web
What kind of person is Deb? Think of all the information you know about Deb – how she looks, what she does, what she is like. Some things you know because the book tells you. Other information you know from making inferences based on what she said and did. Directions: Write all the information you know about Deb on the web. Add more lines as needed.
DEB
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What Do YOU Want?
Ed thought that Deb would not want to date him after finding out about his grades in school. Deb felt the same way about Ed. Are grades important when choosing a friend? What is important to you? Directions: List things that are important to you in a date and in a friend. Would you date someone because he or she looks a certain way? Gets certain grades? Does well at something? Is not good at something? Things I Would Like in a Date
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Things I Would Like in a Friend
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Be a Critic
A critic reads a book to decide how good it is. Then, he or she writes a review telling if they think others should read it and why. Good critics support their opinions with evidence from the book. Directions: Write a review of The Best Week Ever. Begin your review with a brief statement naming the book and its author. Then tell your opinions about it. End by telling if you would recommend the book, and who would or would not enjoy it.
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Answer Key p. 5 Word Sounds hard g words: girlfriend, game, gum, garage, going, again, tangle, tag soft g words: gem, huge, magic, ledge, garage, giant, edge, page -ng words: anything, talking, rang, matching, going, ring p. 5 What’s the Rule? Hard g is made when it ends a word or if it is followed by a, u, or o. Soft g is made when spelled -dge or if it is followed by e or i. -ng always sounds the same. p. 6 Compound Words tonight, weekend, football, midnight, nobody, nothing, inside, anyone, someone, somebody, homebody, homework, footwork, girlfriend, something, anything, someone p. 6 Write Sentences Sentences will vary. p. 7 Synonyms and Antonyms 1. A, 2. S, 3. S, 4. A, 5. S, 6. A, 7. S, 8. A, 9. A, 10. S p. 7 Do It Yourself Sample responses given (synonym then antonym). easy – simple, hard win – beat, lose shut – close, open friend – pal, enemy work – labor, relax rise – climb, fall watch – look, ignore help – aid, hold up p. 8 Prediction Guide Predictions will vary.
p. 10 Plot Sample responses given. Order should not vary. 1. Deb found out that she had a history test that week. She decided that it was going to be a bad week. 2. Deb tried studying with her friends. 3. Deb earned a B on her history test. 4. Because she had planned to rake her neighbor’s leaves, Deb had to turn down a double date with Ben, Val, and Steve. 5. When raking, Deb meets Ed. 6. Ed helped Deb rake Mrs. Clark’s leaves. They got along well, so he asked her out. 7. Deb decided that what she thought would be a bad week turned out to be the best week ever. p. 11 Making Inferences 1. B, 2. D, 3. E, 4. F p. 11 Your Turn 1. A real date is when a boy picks up a girl. 2. Ben liked Deb, but he didn’t have special feelings for her. 3. Ed offered to help with the leaves right away. Ed said that he had noticed Deb at school. Ed seemed to be asking questions to see if Deb was dating someone already. p. 12 Character Web Sample responses: pretty, likes tennis, good at math, nice, helpful, not a good reader, embarrassed about her reading, likes to stay busy, good student p. 13 What Do YOU Want? Responses will vary. p. 14 Be a Critic Responses will vary.
p. 9 Identify Structure 1. MI/D, 2. C/C, 3. C/E, 4. SOE, 5. C/E, 6. MI/D, 7. C/C, 8. SOE
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Carter High Chronicles Eleanor Robins
Back-Up Quarterback
The Best Week Ever
Dan has worked hard for three years to earn the quarterback slot on the football team. But Clay, a new boy who has moved to the area, is better and threatens to take the slot from him. Coach asks Dan to help Clay learn plays. Dan faces the dilemma of doing what is best for him and doing what is best for the team.
Deb has reading problems and is selfconscious about it. She doesn’t think smart boys will like her. But she’s hardworking, helpful, and a girl of her word. Deb turns down a date to rake her sick neighbor’s leaves. Ed, smart and handsome, comes by to give her a hand and—perhaps—ask her out.
Too Late
One Date Too Many
Matt’s always late, but doesn’t think it’s important until he loses his girlfriend and angers his history teacher and best friend. Will Matt miss out on the big game because of his attitude?
Paz has a date with Juan, but would rather go out with Cruz. Griff and Marge try to meddle as usual, but Paz knows she has made a commitment to Juan. Will she stick with her commitment?
The Fastest Runner
It Is Not a Date
Ben has a dilemma because he’s failed math but wants to go out for track. The coach checks all the grades, but Ben’s grades are confused with Ed’s because they both have the same last name. Should Ben tell the truth about his grades and miss out on the chance to run track?
Kirk dates Claire, but is asked by his boss to give his niece, Gail, a tennis lesson. Claire is upset that Kirk may actually be dating Gail. So how can Kirk prove to Claire that he’s faithful? Can Beth, his eight-year-old sister, help?
Boy of Their Dreams The Easy Way Laine is the best shooter on the girls basketball team, but she only wants to do what she’s good at. Laine doesn’t want to work hard at sports or school. Laine is fortunate to have three friends who help her understand the value of working hard to achieve your goals.
The Right Kind of Win Is it OK to win because the other team forfeits, or should you bend the rules a bit and play the game, letting the best team win? Cruz wants to take the easy way out, but his teammates want to play fair and square.
Kim and her best friend, Fran, are both interested in a new boy at school, but they don’t realize that it’s the same boy! Kim figures it out first, and has to decide if she is willing to risk her friendship with Fran.
Don’t Blame Me June has a hair-trigger temper and it gets her in trouble on the volleyball court. Coach Dale kicks her off the team, and her boyfriend breaks up with her. Her friends, Rose and Kim, try to help.
