Reinforce Comprehension
SKILL AUTHOR’S PURPOSE Have students tell what the author’s
purpose is. (the reason an author writes something) If necessary, review the meaning of author’s purpose and provide a model. An author writes for a reason. This reason is the author’s purpose. The purpose may be to persuade you, inform you, entertain you, or tell you the author’s ideas or feelings. Recall the Leveled Reader Growing Vegetables. That story told about a group of kids who worked to make a vegetable garden. The kids divided the work, sold the vegetables, and had a lot of fun. I think the author’s purpose was to inform us about the hard work and rewards of a garden.
Read aloud the article “Farming” on p. 227. Ask students to choose the author’s purpose from the following: The author wanted to entertain us with a funny story about farmers. The author wanted to persuade us to become farmers. The author wanted to inform us about how hard farmers work.
BEFORE READING Have students retell what happened in the story so far. Ask: Based on what you have read, would you predict the author’s purpose in writing this story was to persuade or entertain us? Remind students to check this prediction about author’s purpose and to make other predictions as they read the rest of Tops & Bottoms.
STRATEGY Predict
DURING READING Follow the Guiding Comprehension routine on
pp. 238–245. Have students read along with you while tracking the print or do a choral reading. Stop every two pages to ask students what has happened so far. Prompt as necessary.
- What happened when Hare gave Bear the bottom parts of the second crop? Why?
- What happened when Hare gave Bear the tops & bottoms of the last crop? Why?
AFTER READING How does this story show the importance of taking responsibility for your own life? Reread with students for comprehension as needed. Tell them that tomorrow they will read “The Hare and the Tortoise,” a fable that also teaches a lesson.
Extend Comprehension
SKILL AUTHOR’S PURPOSE Discuss with students how an author often has more than one purpose in mind for a piece of writing. Recall the Leveled Reader The Magic of Coyote. Have students note details, events, and sections of the book and tell whether the author’s purpose for each was to persuade, to inform, to entertain, to tell ideas or feelings, or some other purpose.
STRATEGY PREDICT Point out that students can predict what an author’s purpose will be, but they can also use their knowledge of
author’s purpose to predict what will happen next. Ask questions
such as:
- Based on what you have read so far, what kinds of events do you think will happen in the rest of the story—funny? serious? informative?
BEFORE READING Have students recall what has happened in the
story so far. Remind them to identify the author’s purpose or purposes
and to make predictions as they read the remainder of the story.
CREATIVE THINKING Have students read pp. 238–245 independently.
Encourage them to think creatively. For example, ask:
- Why do you think the author chose the animals that she did for the characters?
- Would the story have worked if Bear were the hardworking trickster and Hare were the lazy one?
AFTER READING Have students complete the Strategy Response Log activity (p. 244). Then have students think about what kinds of animals they would choose for certain types of characters. For example, what kind of character might be represented by a lion? Why? What about a monkey? Have students list five different animals and, next to each one, several personality traits. Give students an opportunity to meet with you to discuss their lists.
AudioText
Tops & Bottoms, pp. 238–245
Tops & Bottoms, pp. 238–245