Scott Foresman Reading Street

Cross-Curricular Centers

Scott Foresman Reading Street Centers Survival Kit
Use the How My Family Lives in America materials
from the Reading Street Centers Survival Kit
to organize this week's centers.

MATERIALS
CD player, headphones,
AudioText CD, Student Edition

Listen to How My Family Lives in America and "Communities Celebrate Cultures" as you follow or read along in your book. Listen for facts and opinions in How My Family Lives in America.

If there is anything you don't understand, you can listen again to any section.

MATERIALS
Collection of books for
self-selected reading,
reading log

Select a book you have already read. Record the title of the book in your reading log. You may want to read with a partner.

You may choose to read any of the following:

Leveled Readers
ELL Readers
Stories written by classmates
Books from the library
How My Family Lives in America

TEN IMPORTANT SENTENCES Read the Ten Important Sentences for How My Family Lives in America. Then locate the sentences in the Student Edition.

BOOK CLUB Discuss why people are interested in reading nonfiction, such as How My Family Lives in America. Read another nonfiction book about kids from other cultures and share it.

MATERIALS
Copy of eight words
below, thesaurus

Read the boxed words below.
Think of a synonym for one of the words. Use a thesaurus if you need help.
Sitting in a circle, each person says a different synonym for the word. When you run out of possibilities, the next player gives a synonym for the next boxed word.
Continue until you have worked with all the words.

gorgeous	sorrowful	glossy
celebration	journey	intelligent
injure	effortless

EARLY FINISHERS Write a sentence using each boxed word.

MATERIALS
Writing materials, Student
Edition

Write a short play based on one of the people you read about.

Choose one of the families from How My Family Lives in America and write a short play based on what you know about the family.
Plan an interesting or funny plot and divide it into scenes.
Identify and describe all characters.
Place background information, such as descriptions of scenes and actions, in parentheses as needed.
Reread each character's lines to be sure the play flows naturally.

EARLY FINISHERS Write descriptions of costumes for all your characters. Look through the pictures in the selection for ideas. Drama

MATERIALS
Books about Senegal, Puerto
Rico, and Taiwan; Internet
access; writing and art
materials

Make a book about another country.

Research Senegal, Puerto Rico, or Taiwan to find information about family life, climate, culture, food, and clothing. Each group member should research a different topic to include in a book.
Title the page you are writing and list information you find.
Draw colorful illustrations for the information.

EARLY FINISHERS Create a colorful cover for the book you worked on. When all the book pages are complete, either staple or bind the pages together for display in your classroom.

MATERIALS
Computer, printer, pencils

Write an e-mail to a person you read about.

Choose one of the children you met in the book How My Family Lives in America.
Write an e-mail to him or her. Ask questions and make comments about his or her life in America.
Create an e-mail address for the boy or girl and enter it in the address box.
Enter a subject line to identify the content of your e-mail.
Use a letter format to begin and end your message.

EARLY FINISHERS Print out and proofread your e-mail. Correct any mistakes and insert sentences you'd like to add.