Guiding Comprehension

Ask Questions • Literal

What is a hawkmoth?

A small moth.

Draw Conclusions

• Inferential

On p. 340, it says that Lily
bends "quietly" to look at
the hawkmoth. Why do you
think she does this?

If she moves quickly or makes
a loud noise, she might scare
the hawkmoth away before she
can look at it.

then… use
the skill and
strategy
instruction
on p. 341.

If… students
do not arrive at
the conclusion
that Lily tries
not to scare
the moth,

Draw Conclusions

Find information about moths
(and hawkmoths in particular).

SKILLS
STRATEGIES IN CONTEXT

Draw Conclusions
Ask Questions

TEACH

Remind students that when we
draw a conclusion, we look at
facts and details and make a
decision about them.
Sometimes we also use what
we already know about
something to draw a conclusion.
Explain that asking questions
as you read often helps you
understand what you are
reading so you can make
decisions about it.
Model asking questions to
draw a conclusion about the
facts and details on p. 340.

MODEL Lily bends quietly
to see a hawkmoth. I
wonder why she does this. I know that hawkmoths can fly away. Lily does not want to be loud because then the hawkmoth might fly away.

PRACTICE AND ASSESS

Have students read p. 341 and
write one or two questions about
what they have read to draw a
conclusion. To assess, make sure
that students' questions lead them
to a conclusion about what they
have read.

"Night Letters"
by Palmyra LoMonaco

Student Edition
Unit 3, pp. 334–349

Realistic fiction has settings that can seem real, but the stories are made up. What details in this Snapshot make the setting realistic?

When evening comes, before the light fails and darkness falls, Lily runs outdoors. This is her time to look at nature before all the creatures settle in for the night. Lily takes her notepad so she can record everything she sees and hears. She imagines that all the creatures and things in nature write her letters, telling her about their day.
First there are the ants. A line of them marches back to their hill. What would their letter say? It would thank Lily for the bread crumbs that fell from her lunch today. She writes this onto her notepad.
Lily watches a hawkmoth flutter from flower to flower, drinking in each one's nectar. The moth would tell her that it visits only the fully opened blossoms, not the small budding ones. Lily writes this on her notepad.
She looks at the large, cracked rock in the tomato patch. She writes that today the rock touched drops of dew and a spider web. Tonight it will look for stars.
Soon Lily sees a blinking light, first on a blade of grass and then in the bushes. Then more and more lights blink on and off. The fireflies are inviting Lily to catch them. She writes their message on her notepad. "Catch us if you can!"
Lily sits under her favorite tree in the backyard. The big old sycamore has many stories to tell. It has told her about buds that burst into green leaves in the spring. It has told her about birds that sing as they build comfortable nests in its branches, and about how silent the tree is when the birds fly south. The old sycamore has told Lily of the winter, when evenings are too cold and dark for a nature walk. But this summer evening, as the sky fades, Lily writes what she hears the tree say to her now. "Dear Lily, Please climb me tomorrow."
She gets up from her seat against the tree's huge trunk. She stands and looks back at the sycamore. She is ready to go indoors now and think about the day and what she will write back to her backyard friends.
Lily is ready to write one more night letter about this day.



	Close
	Explorers Early explorers of North America gained much information by observing nature. Two of the most important writers of their observations were Lewis and Clark, who set out to find an all-water route to the Pacific Ocean in 1804. Lewis and Clark discovered many new species of both animals and plants; some of the names and descriptions that they wrote are still used today. Natural landmarks were particularly useful as place markers for their quite detailed directions to and descriptions of places. Indeed, many of the same landmarks that the explorers recorded can be seen today on the Lewis and Clark Trail.

"Night Letters" by Palmyra LoMonaco

"Night Letters"
by Palmyra LoMonaco