Adventure in London U

Focus Question:
What does Erik learn about London?
Book Summary
Text Type: Fiction/Adventure
Erik is disappointed when he finds out his weekend plans with his mom have to be postponed.
Little does he know that he and his Aunt Isa will have an epic weekend regardless. In Adventure
in London, readers join Erik and Isa as they tour the amazing city and explore different
landmarks. Colorful illustrations and unexpected twists will keep students engaged. Students
will learn how to connect to prior knowledge as well as determine the author’s purpose.

Guiding the Reading

Lesson Essentials
Before Reading
Instructional Focus
Connect to prior knowledge to better Build Background
understand text • Write London on the board, and read it aloud to
students. Display a map of the world and locate
Determine author’s purpose
England on the map. Ask students to think about
Describe information provided how the location of London might make this city
by illustrations different from their hometown. Invite volunteers
Recognize and use prepositional phrases to share their answers with the class.
Identify and use synonyms and antonyms • Invite students to share what they may already
know about London. Point out that London is the
Materials capital of England and has a rich history and many
Book: Adventure in London famous landmarks.
(copy for each student) Introduce the Book
Author’s purpose, prepositional phrases, • Give students their copy of Adventure in London.
synonyms and antonyms worksheets Guide them to the front and back covers, and read
Discussion cards the title. Have students discuss what they see on
Book quiz the covers. Encourage them to offer ideas as to
what type of book it is (genre, text type, and so on)
Retelling rubric
and what it might be about.
Vocabulary • Show students the title page. Discuss the information
on the page (title of book, author’s name).
Boldface vocabulary words also appear
in a pre-made lesson for this title on Introduce the Reading Strategy:
VocabularyA–Z.com. Connect to prior knowledge
• Words to Know Explain to students that effective readers make
Story critical: chime (n.), coincidences (n.), connections between what they already know and
energetic (adj.), Parliament (n.), new information they read, which is called connecting
to prior knowledge. Remind them that thinking about
tourists (n.), trinket (n.)
what they already know about the events, characters, or
Enrichment: clockwork (n.), setting of a story will help them better understand what
double-decker bus (n.), monarch (n.), they read. Read the title of this story, and ask students
prime minister (n.), turnstile (n.), turrets (n.) to look at the front and back covers. Invite volunteers
• Academic vocabulary: appreciate (v.), to share what they already know about London and
connect it to the title and cover illustrations.
compare (v.), debate (v.), despite (prep.),
plan (n.), probably (adv.) Introduce the Comprehension Skill:
Author’s purpose
• Explain to students that authors have a purpose, or
reason, for what they write. Explain that sometimes
authors write books to entertain, or amuse, the
reader. Other times, authors write books to inform
the reader, or give the reader more information
about a subject. Provide examples of texts that

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 Adventure in London U

Guiding the Reading (cont.) • How is Westminster Palace different from the
other landmarks? (level 3) multiple pages
amuse readers, such as comic books and fiction • What is significant about the trinket Erik receives?
stories. Provide examples of informational texts, (level 2) pages 11 and 13
such as newspapers and magazine articles. Invite • Which part of Erik and Isa’s adventure did you
partners to contrast writing that was written to enjoy reading about the most? Why? (level 3)
amuse with writing that was written to inform. multiple pages
Invite volunteers to share whether they think
• Do you think that Erik’s mother believed the
this story was written to inform or to entertain.
story about his trip? Why or why not? (level 3)
• Point out that a story can inform and entertain. multiple pages
Ask students to think about why an author would
choose to do this. Explain that the reader should Text Features: Illustrations
pay special attention to important ideas that Have students review the illustration on page 13.
are repeated in the words or illustrations to help Point out that illustrations, or pictures drawn by
determine the author’s purpose. Have students an illustrator, are included in the story to help
work in small groups to discuss what information readers better understand what they are reading.
is in both the illustrations and the text. Ask students: How does this illustration help you
to better understand key vocabulary? How does it
Vocabulary
help you to better understand the characters? What
Have students turn to the “Words to Know” box on can you see in the illustration that was not written
the copyright page. Discuss each word with students. in the text? Have students work in groups to review
Then, have students turn to the glossary on page 16. other illustrations in the book and discuss how the
Explain that the glossary provides definitions for the illustrations provide important details and help the
vocabulary words in the book. Point out the use of reader to better understand and remember the story.
each content word and academic vocabulary word Ask students to identify other details that could be
in the book, and then use each word in a different added to the illustrations and explain why.
model sentence. Have students work in groups to
create posters for these words. Have them include Skill Review
on each poster the word and its part of speech, the • Model for students how you connect with prior
definition, the word in an example sentence, and knowledge as you read. Share what you have read
a picture illustrating the meaning of the word. or know about the famous historical and political
people and places in the story. Ask volunteers to
Set the Purpose
share their connections with the class.
• Have students read to find out what Erik learns
• Review with students that an author can have one
about London. Write the Focus Question on the
or multiple purposes for writing a story. Point out
board. Invite students to look for evidence in the
that details and clues in the text and illustrations
book to support their answer to the question.
help the reader determine the author’s purpose.
• Have students make a small question mark in their
• Model how to evaluate details to determine the
book beside any word they do not understand or
author’s purpose.
cannot pronounce. These can be addressed in a
Think-aloud: Earlier, we studied the text and
future discussion.
illustrations to try to determine the reason the
author wrote this story. As I read, I pause often to
During Reading consider the details and clues in the story that help
Text-Dependent Questions me figure out the author’s purpose or purposes.
As students read the book, monitor their understanding On page 10, I notice that the author included
with the following questions. Encourage students to a detail about Erik and Aunt Isa sneaking past
support their answers by citing evidence from the book. a dozing watchman to climb to the top of Big
• How is Aunt Isa different from Erik’s mom? Ben. This detail is exciting and entertained me
How are they similar? (level 2) pages 4 and 5 as a reader. On the same page, the author wrote
about why the tower was important to the city
• Why is Erik surprised that the turnstile let them
and mentioned how old the clockwork was. These
through? (level 1) page 6
details lead me to believe that the author also
• What makes the Globe Theatre an important wanted to inform readers about this remarkable
landmark? (level 1) page 9 landmark. As I read on, I ask myself: What details
• Why is climbing to the top of Big Ben a wild idea? do I see over and over again? What does the author
Why do you think Erik wanted to climb it? (level 2) want me to remember? How do the words and
pages 10 and 11 illustrations in the story inform me about London
and entertain me?

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 Adventure in London U

Guiding the Reading (cont.) near, of, off, on, out, outside, over, since, through,
throughout, to, toward, under, until, up, upon,
• Model how to complete the author’s purpose with, within, without. As students find the words,
worksheet. have them use the preposition written on the card
in a sentence.
After Reading • Create a chart on the board with the headings time
Ask students what words, if any, they marked in and location. Have students sort their words into
their book. Use this opportunity to model how they the categories. Explain to students that these are
can read these words using decoding strategies and common prepositions, and invite volunteers to add
context clues. to the lists.
• Explain that a phrase is a short group of words and
Skill Review that a prepositional phrase is a group of words
Graphic Organizer: Author’s purpose beginning with a preposition and ending with the
object of the preposition. Refer to the sentence: Now
Review the author’s purpose worksheet that students
we’re beneath London Bridge. Ask students to identify
completed. Have students share their work in groups.
the prepositional phrase (beneath London Bridge).
Invite volunteers to share the details they recorded
on the worksheet. Engage students in a discussion • Check for understanding: Have students work with
about how the book might have been different if the a partner to reread the story and identify and circle
author’s purpose were to persuade the reader or if at least five prepositional phrases. Invite volunteers
the author had not included details that entertained to share their findings with the class.
the reader. • Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have
students complete the prepositional phrases
Comprehension Extension worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.
Discussion cards covering comprehension skills and
strategies not explicitly taught with the book are Word Work: Synonyms and antonyms
provided to be used for extension activities. • Write the word energetic on the board. Ask
students to suggest a word that means almost
Response to Focus Question the same thing (lively, frisky, active, perky, bouncy,
Have students cite specific evidence from the book tireless, and so on). Review or explain that a word
to answer the Focus Question. (Answers will vary. that means the same or almost the same thing as
Answers should include the landmarks Erik and Isa another word is called a synonym.
visit or important people they learn about. Sample: • Ask students to suggest a word that means the
Erik learns about some important places and people opposite of energetic (lazy, tired, inactive, and so
in London. Erik learns about Big Ben, Westminster on). Review or explain that a word that means the
Palace, the Tower Bridge, and the Globe Theatre. opposite of another word is called an antonym.
Erik learns about different types of transportation • Have students turn to page 8 to find the word that
in London and learns about Parliament.) describes the boatman’s face (familiar). Ask students to
Comprehension Checks share one synonym and one antonym with a partner.
Use a thesaurus to look up the entry word familiar,
• Book quiz • Retelling rubric
and show how the thesaurus is used. Give students
a thesaurus. Ask them to find the word familiar, and
Book Extension Activities have them confirm the synonyms suggested. If the
thesaurus lists antonyms, have them find antonyms for
Build Skills the word. Explain to students that some dictionaries
also list synonyms and antonyms for words.
Grammar and Mechanics: Prepositional phrases
• Check for understanding: Write the word monarch
• Write the following sentence on the board: Now
on the board. Explain to students that they will clap
we’re beneath London Bridge. Circle the word
for synonyms and boo antonyms. Say the following
beneath. Point out that the word beneath is a
synonyms and antonyms: king, peasant, prince,
preposition. Explain or review that prepositions are
queen, commoner, ruler. Repeat the process with
words that show a relationship between things.
the words adventure, tourist, and brilliant.
Discuss how they provide information about where
and when something happens. • Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have
students complete the synonyms-and-antonyms
• Write some of the following words on cards,
worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.
and place them around the room: above, across,
after, against, along, among, around, at, before, Connections
behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, • See the back of the book for cross-curricular
by, down, during, for, from, in, inside, into, like, extension ideas.

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