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Gertrude Ederle
Below-Level Reader
The English Channel
The English Channel
Unit 4 Week 4
Target Skill FACT AND OPINION
Target Skill MONITOR AND FIX UP
LESSON VOCABULARY celebrate,
continued, current, drowned, medal,
stirred, strokes
SUMMARY This nonfiction reader tells about attempts to swim the English Channel and highlights record holders.
INTRODUCE THE BOOK
BUILD BACKGROUND Have volunteers talk about where they like to swim. Tell students to describe what they like most and least about swimming in these places.
ELLHave ELL students describe favorite swimming places in their home countries.
PREVIEW/USE TEXT FEATURES Explain that the selection is about a body of water called the English Channel. Have students look at the maps on pages 3 and 6. Discuss what conditions in the Channel might be like.
TEACH/REVIEW VOCABULARY Write a sentence for each word on the board. Have volunteers make educated guesses about the meanings of the words using context clues. Then have other students look up each word in the dictionary and tell the class the definition.
TARGET SKILL AND STRATEGY
Target Skill FACT AND OPINION Explain that a statement of fact can be proved true or false. A statement of opinion, on the other hand, is a person's beliefs or ideas. Give examples and discuss how to distinguish each. Then tell students to look for one statement of fact and one opinion in the reader.
Target Skill MONITOR AND FIX UP Review with students that they should monitor their reading, or check their understanding. Remind students that when they don't understand something, they can use a strategy to fix up their reading. Explain that using monitor and fix up strategies may help them find facts and opinions in the text.
READ THE BOOK
Use the following questions to support comprehension.
PAGES 8 AND 9 Monitor your understanding of these pages. What fix-up
strategy can you use? (Possible response: I reread the pages and saw that
Ederle broke the men's record of her period, not Matthew Webb's old record.)
PAGE 10 Find a statement of fact. (Possible response: Others are part of a
team of two or more swimmers.)
PAGE 12 Find a statement of opinion in the first paragraph on this page and
tell how you know it is an opinion. (Possible response: That difficult task
seems like something to celebrate; it's an opinion because it's the author's
belief.)
TALK ABOUT THE BOOK
READER RESPONSE
  1. Possible responses: Facts: (p.3) The English Channel is a narrow body
    of water. (p.4) Many kinds of goods are carried through the Channel each
    day. Opinions: (p.7) Some swimmers see these wild waters as a
    challenge. (p.9) That was an awesome feat!
  2. The Channel is more than 21 miles across. (p.4) The waters are rough
    and choppy. (p.6) The currents are very strong. (p.7)
  3. Stir may also mean "to mix." Possible responses: The wind stirred the
    leaves gently. She stirred the cake batter until it was smooth.
  4. Student responses will vary.
RESPONSE OPTIONS
WRITING Have students write out a plan to prepare for an amazing feat.
CONTENT CONNECTIONS
Time for SOCIAL STUDIESSOCIAL STUDIES/GEOGRAPHY Have students research other famous channels and write reports about them.
 
   
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Fact and Opinion
Fact and Opinion
Vocabulary
Vocabulary