Guiding Comprehension

Sequence • Literal

What did the grandfather do after the steamship landed in the New World?

He explored North America by train and riverboat.

then… use the skill and strategy instruction
on p. 73.

If… students are unable to identify the sequence of events,

Sequence

Compare and Contrast
• Inferential

In what ways was North America different from the grandfather's village in Japan? How do you know?

Possible response: North America had deserts and huge cities of factories. I know these things were unfamiliar to the grandfather because the author says they amazed, bewildered, and excited him.

SKILLS

STRATEGIES IN CONTEXT

Sequence

TEACH

Remind students that sequence is the order in which things happen.
Explain that understanding the order of events in a story will help them to better understand the story.
Model identifying the sequence of events on pp. 72–73.

MODEL In the first sentence on p. 72, I learn that the grandfather has left his home in Japan. The next few paragraphs talk about his journey on a steamship. Then on the top of p. 73, I read that the grandfather explored North America by train and riverboat. The sentences that follow tell about all the things he saw.

PRACTICE AND ASSESS

For practice, ask students this question: Did the grandfather buy European clothes before or after he got on the steamship? (He had to buy the clothes before he got on the steamship because he wore them on the ship.)
To assess, have pairs write four important events from the story in the order in which they happened. (Possible response: Grandfather left home, he got on a ship, he traveled for three weeks, and he explored North America.)

"Grandfather's Journey"
by Allen Say

Student Edition
Unit 1, pp. 70–81

In historical fiction, which is set in the past, some details are factual while others are made up or are loosely based on history.

Grandfather left Japan when he was a young man. He took a steamship and did not see land for three weeks, until they docked in the New World. On his own, he traveled through the United States. He saw many beautiful sights. He was amazed by rocks in the desert that looked like enormous sculptures. He was bewildered and excited by huge cities with factories and towering buildings. He met many new people of all types.
He liked California best. He loved the sunlight, the mountains, and the seacoast. He returned to his homeland and married his childhood sweetheart. Together they moved near San Francisco Bay and had a baby girl. But, as she grew older, Grandfather began to think of his own childhood in Japan. He longed for the mountains and rivers of his childhood. Finally, when the daughter was nearly grown, the family moved back to Japan. They moved to a city near his childhood village.
The daughter fell in love, married, and had a son. When the boy was young, he loved to go to his Grandfather's house to hear his stories about California. Grandfather wanted to go back to visit the mountains and rivers he remembered.
But World War II came. The grandparents' city was bombed, and they returned to the village of their childhood. Grandfather died before he could go to see California.
When the grandson was a young man, he left Japan to see California for himself. He grew to love his new country and stayed until he had a daughter of his own. But then he began to miss the mountains and rivers of his own childhood. He went back to Japan, but now he lives in the United States. Sometimes, though, he cannot still his homesickness for Japan. When he returns there, he grows homesick for the United States. Now he feels that he understands his grandfather, and he misses him.



	Close
	California's Geography California is a state of great geographic diversity. Bordering the Pacific Ocean, it has almost 1,000 miles of coastline, including two enormous bays. California lays claim to Mount Whitney, the highest point in the continental United States, and the lowest, Death Valley. In the center of the state is the very productive farming region known as the Central Valley. This flat, fertile land extends for 400 miles and produces about 25% of America's foods. Build Background Explain that a long time ago, European explorers referred to the Americas as the "New World" (p. 72, paragraph 3), full of opportunity and adventure. Subsequently, some immigrants referred to the United States this way too. Sequence If students have difficulty understanding the sequence of events in this story, review pp. 72–73 and help them find events. Guide them to organize the events in the order in which they happened.

"Grandfather's Journey"by Allen Say

"Grandfather's Journey"
by Allen Say