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AFTER READING
OBJECTIVES
  • Formulate an inquiry question that is connected to this week's lesson focus.
  • Effectively and efficiently find, evaluate, and communicate information related to an inquiry question using electronic sources.
New Literacies
Synthesize
Analyze
Communicate
Navigate/Search
Identify Questions
Day 5
Day 4
Day 3
Day 2
Day 1
OBJECTIVES
  • Review terms related to a dictionary or glossary.
  • Find words in a dictionary or glossary.
Practice Book
Practice Book 3.1 p. 60
with | without Answers
NEW LITERACIES
Internet Inquiry Activity
EXPLORE ANIMAL ADAPTATIONS
Use the following 5-day plan to help students conduct this week's Internet inquiry activity
on animal adaptations. Remind students to follow classroom rules when using the Internet.
DAY 2
DAY 4
DAY 3
Identify Questions Discuss the lesson focus question: How have animals adapted to solve the problems of their environments? Brainstorm ideas for specific inquiry questions about animal adaptations. For example, students might want to find out how animals change the way they look or where they live when adapting to changes in their environment. Have students work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to write an inquiry question they want to answer.
Navigate/Search Review how to begin a simple Internet search using a student-friendly search engine. Remind students that when they search by keyword, they will get a list of Web sites related to that word. Have students determine appropriate keywords related to their inquiry questions. Students can type keywords and then read the short descriptions of the Web sites to find those that contain information best suited to their inquiry questions.
Analyze Have students explore the Web sites they identified on Day 2. Tell them to scan each site for information that helps answer their inquiry questions. Students may need to do additional searching if more information or different information is needed to answer inquiry questions completely. They can print out or take notes about relevant information.
Synthesize Have students organize the information from Day 3. Remind them that when they organize, they pull information together and arrange it in an orderly functional way. Organizing information helps students develop answers to their inquiry questions.
Communicate Have students share their inquiry results. They can use a word processing program to create a short essay on animal adaptations.
DAY 5
DAY 1
RESEARCH/STUDY SKILLS
Dictionary/Glossary
TEACH
Ask students how they find the meaning of an unfamiliar word. Students should mention looking up words in a dictionary or glossary. Have all students look at the same word in a dictionary as you define these features.
  • Two guide words are shown in large dark type and appear at the top of each dictionary page. They show the first and last words on the page. Entry words are arranged alphabetically on the page. They are usually in dark type and divided into syllables.
  • The pronunciation is a group of letters and symbols that appear in parentheses after each word. It shows how to pronounce the word. Syllables with a dark accent get the most force. Syllables with a light accent get less force than one with a dark accent, but more than one with no accent.
  • The part of speech tells how the word is used. A dictionary uses abbreviations, such as v, for verb and n, for noun.
  • The definition tells the meaning. Many words have more than one definition. Some words can be used for different parts of speech. If so, there is a definition for each part of speech.
Give pairs of students a dictionary. Have them find an unknown word and write it on a
piece of paper along with the guide words for the page on which they found it. Partners pronounce the word and discuss the definition. Finally, they write the word in a sentence.
As a group, discuss these questions:
  1. Would the entry word attribute appear before or after adaptation? (after)
  2. Acute is one of the guide words on the page where adaptation is located.
    Is it the first or last word on the page? Explain.     (It is the first word since
    alphabetically it comes before     adaptation.)
ad•ap•ta•tion (ad' ap t sh n) n.
  1. an adapting or being adapted
  2. something resulting from adapting
  3. a change in form, structure, or function that allows an animal to live better in its environment
Dictionary/Glossary
ASSESS
As students use a dictionary, check that they know how to use the pronunciation. Make
sure they can identify the parts of speech and find the appropriate definition to match the
use of a word.
For more practice or to assess students, use Practice Book 3.1, p. 60.