Go to page
BEFORE READING
Tech Files ONLINE
Students can find out more about
record-breaking natural sites by searching the Internet. Have them use a student-friendly search engine and keywords such as world's driest places, world's longest rivers, and world's tallest mountains.
ELL
Build Background Use ELL Poster 17 to build background and vocabulary for the lesson concept of why nature's record holders fascinate us.
ELL Poster 17
ELL Poster 17
Lesson Vocabulary
WORDS TO KNOW
Tested Word average the quantity found by
dividing the sum of all the quantities by the number of quantities
Tested Word depth the distance from the top
to the bottom
Tested Word deserts dry, sandy regions
without water and trees
Tested Word outrun to run faster than
someone or something else
Tested Word peak the pointed top of a
mountain or hill
Tested Word tides the rise and fall of the
ocean about every twelve hours
Tested Word waterfalls streams of water
that fall from a high place
MORE WORDS TO KNOW
extreme much more than usual; very great
precipitation the water that falls to the earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail
temperature how hot or cold something is
Tested Word = Tested Word
Practice Book
Practice Book 3.2 p. 14
with | without Answers
Build Background
ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
BEGIN A WEB about rivers.
  • Write "Rivers" inside the web's center oval. Then ask small groups of students to write the names of as many rivers as they can think of. Allow about five minutes for them to do so.
  • List each group's responses on the board. Then compile the list, and write the name of each river in a connecting oval.
  • Discuss with students which river they think is the longest. Tell them to look for the answer as they read the selection.
Graphic Organizer 15
Graphic Organizer 15
BACKGROUND BUILDING AUDIO This week's audio discusses the Guinness Book
of World Records. After students listen, have them share what they thought were the
most interesting facts.
Audio CD Background Building Audio
Introduce Vocabulary
WORD RATING CHART
Create a word rating chart using the categories Word, Know, Have Seen, and Don't Know.
Read each word to students and have them place a check mark in one of the three
columns: Know (know and can use); Have Seen (have seen or heard the word; don't
know meaning); Don't Know (don't know the word).
Activate Prior Knowledge
Have students share where they may have seen some of these words. Point out that
some of this week's words are compound words (outrun, waterfalls), and students may
learn new definitions for these words. (For additional practice with compound words,
see p. 59c.)
Word Structure • Compound Words
Check charts with students at the end of the week and have them make changes to
their ratings.
Discuss the meanings of some of the vocabulary words with students. Ask the following
questions to help clarify word meaning.
  • Why must you be a good swimmer to swim in water whose depth is over your head?
  • What might you see on a hike in the desert?
  • If the cheetah is the fastest animal on Earth, can it outrun an elephant?
Use the Multisyllabic Word Routine on p. DI•1 to help students read multisyllabic words.