Guiding Comprehension

Visualize • Inferential

What details help you understand how the ants feel at the end of the story?

Possible responses: "Joyful sounds," "the two ants felt happier than they'd ever felt before," "their home," "where they were meant to be."

Character • Critical

Text to Self How do the ants feel at the end of the story? When have you felt the same way?

Although responses may vary, encourage students to draw connections between the ants' appreciation for their home and a similar experience in their own lives.

Summarize When students finish reading the selection, provide this prompt: Imagine that you want to tell a friend what Two Bad Ants is about. In four or five sentences, explain its important points.

STRATEGY SELF-CHECK

Visualize

Have students identify the main events from pp. 374–375, using the visualizing strategy to help them. Use Practice Book 3.2, p. 137.

SELF-CHECK

Students can ask these questions to assess their ability to use the skill and strategy.

Did I use my senses to visualize as I read?
Did I identify the solutions chosen to solve the ants' problems in the story?
Do I understand the events that happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story?

then… use the Reteach lesson on
p. 379b.

If… students are having difficulty visualizing the major plot events,

Plot

Practice Book 3.2 p. 137

with | without Answers

"Two Bad Ants"
by Chris Van Allsburg

Student Edition
Unit 6, pp. 358–375

An animal fantasy is a story with animal characters that behave like humans. What is unusual about these two ants?

The scout came back to the ant hole carrying a huge, white crystal. The queen ant tasted the sugar. It was sweet and delicious. The discovery of the crystal made her joyful. The scout said that to please her, he would take other ants with him to get more.
The ants prepared for the long journey, and the scout led them through a forest of grass. Then they came to a large mountain of bricks. The line of ants climbed up the wall to a large, rectangular opening and entered a strange place. They crossed a huge shiny land and came to the curved wall of a sugar bowl. Each ant climbed in, picked up a crystal, and headed back out. They would give their crystals to the queen. Their goal was to make her happy. When she was happy, the entire kingdom was happy. Two ants decided to stay behind. They liked the land of the crystals. They ate and ate the sweet-tasting stuff until they could eat no more.
They fell asleep and so were unaware that a huge scoop was digging into the bowl. They ended up on the scoop with some crystals and fell into an ocean of hot, brown water. The scoop stirred and stirred. Finally it stopped, and the ocean was lifted up. Some of the brown water poured into a huge mouth. They had to get out of the water! They climbed the walls of the cup and ran to hide in a slice of bread.
Oh, no! The bread was lifted and dropped into a slot. They saw a red glow, and the slot became very hot. Then they were popped up and into the air. They landed near a fast-running stream of water. They went over to get a drink and cool their feet. But they fell in, and the stream swirled them into a dark hole. Half-eaten food was everywhere. Then a grinding noise began, and the food began to spin and break up. The food bits disappeared as water washed the bits down into pipes below. Finally the spinning stopped.
Tired and sore, the two ants climbed the walls and once again saw light. They saw something else too. A long line of ants was heading toward the sugar bowl. The two ants went to the back of the line and pretended to have been there all along. Each grabbed a crystal and marched with the others back to the ant nest.
The two bad ants were happy to be safe at home again. They had had enough adventure!



	Close
	Fluency Read pp. 374–375 chorally with children. Before reading, model how to pause when reading sentences with dashes. PRACTICE LESSON VOCABULARY Have students provide oral responses to each question. The ants almost disappeared when the man drank his coffee. What is the meaning of disappeared? (Not appeared, vanished) What sounds did the ants hear that they thought were joyful? (Sounds from their ant home) What scoop were the ants afraid of? (A spoon) BUILD CONCEPT VOCABULARY Review previous concept words with students. Ask if students have come across any words today in their reading or elsewhere that they would like to add to the Concept Web.

"Two Bad Ants" by Chris Van Allsburg

"Two Bad Ants"
by Chris Van Allsburg