Plot Elements
Plot Elements
Plot Elements
there was just one spot left to fill, which caused Tameka
Then Ms. Spira turned to Tameka and Kai to ask, “Who’s next?”
“Both of us—we’ve become a team!” they responded. The friends chattered as they went
onto the stage. “May we please have a few moments to warm up?” Tameka politely asked.
Literary Passages: Close Reading (Grade 5)
© Scholastic Inc. 1
Do More Name Date
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2 Two words that could describe everyone auditioning for the talent show are . . .
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3 Why did Tameka ask Ms. Spira for a few moments to warm up?
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4 What inferences can you make about Kai based on his idea?
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Literary Passages: Close Reading (Grade 5)
© Scholastic Inc. 2
Teaching Routine for Close Reading and Purposeful Text Marking
Any text can become more accessible to readers who have learned to bring various strategies, such
as purposeful text marking, to the reading process. Here is one suggested routine that may be
effective in your classroom.
Preview
44 Engage prior knowledge of the topic of the piece and its genre. Help students link it to similar
topics or examples of the genre they may have read.
44 Identify the reading skill for which students will be marking the text. Display or distribute
the Comprehension Skill Summary Card that applies to the passage. Go over its key ideas.
(See Comprehension Skill Summary Card, page 4, for more.)
Model (for the first passage, to familiarize students with the process)
44 Display the passage using an interactive whiteboard, document camera, or other resource,
and provide students with their own copy. Preview the text with students by having them read
the title and look at any illustrations or other graphic elements.
44 Draw attention to the markingsstudents will use to enhance their understanding of the piece.
Link the text marking box to the Comprehension Skill Summary Card for clarification.
44 Read aloud the passage as students follow along. Guide students to think about the skill and
to write any questions they may have on sticky-notes.
44 Mark the text together.Begin by numbering the paragraphs. Then discuss the choices you
make when marking the text, demonstrating and explaining how the various text elements
support the skill. Check that students understand how to mark the text using the various icons
and graphics shown in the text marking box.
Read
44 Display the passage for a shared reading experience. Do a quick-read of the passage together
to familiarize students with it. Then read it together a second time, pausing as necessary to
answer questions, draw connections, or clarify words as needed. Then read the passage once
more, this time with an eye to the text features described in the text marking box.
44 Invite students to offer ideas for additional markings. These
might include noting unfamiliar
vocabulary, an idiom or phrase they may not understand, or an especially interesting, unusual,
or important detail they want to remember. Model how to use sticky-notes, colored pencils,
highlighters, question marks, or check marks.
Respond
44 Have students read the passage independently. This fourth reading is intended to allow
students to mark the text themselves. It will also prepare them to discuss the piece and offer
their views about it.
44 Have students answer the questions on the companion Do More page. Depending on the
abilities of your students, you might read aloud the questions to them, and then have them
answer orally. Model how to look back at the text markings and other text evidence for
assistance. This will help students provide complete and supported responses.
Literary Passages: Close Reading (Grade 5)
© Scholastic Inc. 3
Comprehension Skill Summary Card
To help students review the reading-comprehension skill this lesson addresses and the
specific terms associated with the skill, have them use the reproducible Comprehension
Skill Summary Card (page 6). The boldface terms on the card are the same ones students
will identify as they mark the text.
You might duplicate, cut out, and distribute the Comprehension Skill Summary Card
before assigning the passage. Discuss the elements of the skill together to ensure that
students fully grasp it. Encourage students to save their card, which they can use as a
reading aid whenever they read any type of literary text. Or display the card in a reading
center in your classroom that is available at all times.
ComprCharacter
ehension Skill Point of View Comprehen
PoinCt oont
fV xtwClues
eie sion Skill
These materials also address language standards, including skills in the conventions of standard
English, knowledge of language, and vocabulary acquisition and use. In addition, students meet
writing standards as they answer questions about the passage, demonstrating their ability to
convey ideas coherently, clearly, and with support from the text.
44 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when
drawing inferences from the text.
44 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how
characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem
reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.
44 Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama,
drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).
44 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative
language such as metaphors and similes.
44 Explain how a series of chapters, scenes, or stanzas fit together to provide the overall
structure of a particular story, drama, or poem.
44 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry,
at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Source: © Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices
and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.
Literary Passages: Close Reading (Grade 5)
© Scholastic Inc. 5
Comprehension Skill
and Kai to glance nervously at each other across the 2. C; Sample answer: I read both of those words in the
room. Tameka, a talented dancer, hoped to show off first paragraph, and understood that both described kids
her technique and style in the show, while Kai, a gifted
hoping to be chosen for the talent show.
pianist, dreamed of becoming a professional musician
Then Ms. Spira turned to Tameka and Kai to ask, “Who’s next?”
“Both of us—we’ve become a team!” they responded. The friends chattered as they went
onto the stage. “May we please have a few moments to warm up?” Tameka politely asked.
Literary Passages: Close Reading (Grade 5)
© Scholastic Inc.