Characteristics of the Text Genre Nonfi ction Text Structure Third-person narrative divided into seven short chapters Content Growing a garden

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1 LESSON 15 TEACHER S GUIDE Squash in the Schoolyard by Susan Blackaby Fountas-Pinnell Level N Nonfiction Selection Summary Growing a garden at school is a good way to learn about ecology. It doesn t take a large space to grow different types of vegetables. This book tells students how to get started in growing their very own vegetables. Number of Words: 1,145 Characteristics of the Text Genre Nonfi ction Text Structure Third-person narrative divided into seven short chapters Content Growing a garden Themes and Ideas Language and Literary Features Sentence Complexity Learning about the environment Responsibility It takes hard work to be a successful gardener. Growing your own food is a rewarding experience. Descriptive language A mix of short and complex sentences Items in a series Vocabulary Names of vegetables, some of which may be familiar, such as carrots, turnips, lettuce, and broccoli Words Multisyllable words: organisms, radiation, overturned Illustrations Full-color photographs Book and Print Features Twelve pages of text, photographs on all pages Full-sentence captions Labels Fountas, I.C. & Pinnell, G.S. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Heinemann, Portsmouth, N.H. Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner unless such copying is expressly permitted by federal copyright law. Permission is hereby granted to individual teachers using the corresponding (discipline) Leveled Readers to photocopy student worksheets from this publication in classroom quantities for instructional use and not for resale. Requests for information on other matters regarding duplication of this work should be addressed to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, Attn: Contracts, Copyrights, and Licensing, 9400 SouthPark Center Loop, Orlando, Florida Printed in the U.S.A If you have received these materials as examination copies free of charge, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company retains title to the materials and they may not be resold. Resale of examination copies is strictly prohibited. Possession of this publication in print format does not entitle users to convert this publication, or any portion of it, into electronic format. 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 1 11/4/09 10:16:09 AM

2 Squash in the Schoolyard by Susan Blackaby Build Background Help students use their knowledge of gardens to visualize the selection. Build interest by asking questions such as the following: Do have a garden where you live? What types of vegetables are your favorite? Read the title and author and talk about the cover illustration. Explain that growing a vegetable garden is something that everyone can enjoy doing. Introduce the Text Guide students through the text, noting important ideas and nonfiction features. Help with unfamiliar language and vocabulary so they can read the text successfully. Give special attention to target vocabulary. Here are some suggestions: Page 3: Explain that this selection is about how to grow and take care of a school vegetable garden. Suggested language: Turn to page 3. Look at the picture. Ask: What are these children doing? Point out the tools the students are using in the picture, such as a watering can and gloves. Pages 4 5: Point out that captions can give clues about information in the text. Suggested Language: People enjoy eating a variety of vegetables. Name a variety of vegetables that you like to eat. Look at the tools on these pages. Ask: Why do you think the right tools are necessary when you plant and grow a garden? Page 6: Read the captions. Read the paragraph. Ask: What do you think species means? Corn and beans are different species of plants. Page 7: What does this caption tell you? Explain the Three Sisters. Explain that it is good to have the beans grow directly onto the corn stalks. Pages 11 13: Read the captions. Discuss with students the many different organisms that could impact a vegetable garden. Now turn back to the beginning of the selection and read to fi nd out about how students can grow their own vegetable gardens. affect to cause a change in something, p. 6 banned against the rules or the law, p. 11 directly happens right away with nothing or no one in between, p. 7 habitats natural areas where certain kinds of plants and animals live and grow, p. 10 organisms living things, p. 11 radiation invisible transfer of energy, p. 12 species a group of organisms that produces organisms of the same kind, p. 6 traces signs, clues, or evidence that something was there, p. 11 variety several, or more than one kind, p. 4 vast extremely large in amount, size, or area, p. 4 2 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 2 7/28/09 4:24:03 PM

3 Read Have students read silently while you listen to individual students read aloud. Support their understanding of the text as needed. Remind students to use the Monitor/Clarify Strategy what is confusing as they read and to find ways to understand it. and to notice Discuss and Revisit the Text Personal Response Invite students to share their personal responses to the selection. Suggested language: Do you think growing a garden is a good way to learn responsibility? Which vegetables do you think you would enjoy growing the most? Ways of Thinking As you discuss the text, help students understand these points: Thinking Within the Text Thinking Beyond the Text Thinking About the Text Gardens can be grown just about anywhere. Growing a garden can help people learn about the environment. Growing a garden helps teach responsibility. It takes hard work to be a successful gardener. Growing your own food is a rewarding experience Fountas, I.C. & Pinnell, G.S. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Heinemann, Portsmouth, N.H. The Table of Contents gives readers an idea of what each chapter will be about. Captions help to explain the photos. The photos contain a lot of visual information. Choices for Further Support Fluency Invite students to participate in choral reading. Remind them to pay careful attention to punctuation and pausing. Tell them that a comma requires a brief pause, while periods and exclamations require a full stop. Comprehension Based on your observations of the students reading and discussion, revisit parts of the text to clarify or extend comprehension. Remind students to go back to the text to support their ideas. Phonics/Word Work Provide practice as needed with words and word parts, using examples from the text. Remind students that longer words are sometimes made up of two shorter words put together. Examples of compound words in this selection include strawberries (p. 4), yourself (p. 9), and overturned (p. 13). Understanding the meaning of the shorter words that make them up can help with fi guring out the meaning of compound words. 3 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 3 11/4/09 10:16:37 AM

4 Writing about Reading Vocabulary Practice Have students complete the Vocabulary questions on BLM Responding Have students use their Reader s Notebook to complete the vocabulary activities on page 15. Remind them to answer the Word Teaser on page 16. (Answer: traces) Reading Nonfiction Nonfiction Features: Captions and Sidebars Remind students that nonfiction has many features to help readers find and understand important information. Captions and sidebars are two of these features. Explain that captions can be short phrases or longer sentences, as in this book. Captions tell what a photo or map or diagram is about. Reading the captions in a nonfiction book is a good way to preview the book before reading the main text. Have students rewrite one of the captions from this text. Sidebars are another important source of information. They often add information that is not in the text. Have students look at the sidebar on page 11. Ask students to explain what information the sidebar provides (explains the pesticide DDT and why it was banned). Ask students to create another sidebar to go with this text. Writing Prompt: Thinking Beyond the Text Have students write a response to the prompt on page 6. Remind them that when they think beyond the text, they use their personal knowledge to reach new understandings. Assessment Prompts What words on page 4 help you to understand the meaning of vast? One idea present in this selection is that. The author organizes the selection by. 4 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 4 11/4/09 10:16:55 AM

5 English Language Development Reading Support Pair advanced and intermediate readers to read the story softly, or have students listen to the audio or online recordings. Cognates The text includes many cognates. Explain the English words and their Spanish equivalents: affect (afectar), habitat (hábitat), organisms (organismos), radiation (radiación), and species (especie). Oral Language Development Check student comprehension, using a dialogue that best matches your students English proficiency level. Speaker 1 is the teacher, Speaker 2 is the student. Beginning/Early Intermediate Intermediate Early Advanced/ Advanced Speaker 1: What is the first step in planning a schoolyard vegetable garden? Speaker 2: Talk to the principal. Speaker 1: What three things does a garden need? Speaker 2: sunshine, water, and good soil Speaker 1: Which plants are known as the Three Sisters? Speaker 2: Corn, beans, and squash are known as the three sisters. Speaker 1: Why is it important to weed a garden on a regular basis? Speaker 2: Weeds can get out of control if they are not picked regularly. Speaker 1: How do the Three Sisters help each other? Speaker 2: The beans grow up the corn stalks. The bean s roots produce nitrogen, which helps the corn. The leaves of the squash provide shade and shelter from pests. Name Date Lesson 15 BLACKLINE MASTER 15.1 Choose the word that best matches the phrase below. Vocabulary Squash in the Schoolyard organisms directly affect traces vast habitats variety species banned radiation Which word describes all living things? organisms 2. something very large and spread out? vast 3. something not allowed? banned 4. signs or evidence showing that something is there? traces 5. many different kinds of things? variety 6. a whole group of similar living things? species 7. producing a change in something else? affect 8. when something happens right away with nothing in between? directly 9. the natural places where living things live? habitats 10. the energy given off by the sun? radiation. All rights reserved. 3, Unit 3: Natural Encounters 5 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L15_squashschoolyard.indd 5 1/12/10 5:32:25 PM

6 Name Date Squash in the Schoolyard Thinking Beyond the Text Think about the questions below. Then write your answer in one or two paragraphs. Remember that when you think beyond the text, you use your personal knowledge to reach new understanding. What are the steps for growing a vegetable garden? What tools do you need to assist you? What type of responsibilities does a garden require? How did the photographs and captions help you to understand these steps and responsibilities? 6 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 6 7/28/09 4:24:06 PM

7 Name Date Lesson 15 BLACKLINE MASTER 15.1 Choose the word that best matches the phrase below. Squash in the Schoolyard Vocabulary organisms directly affect traces vast habitats variety species banned radiation Which word describes all living things? 2. something very large and spread out? 3. something not allowed? 4. signs or evidence showing that something is there? 5. many different kinds of things? 6. a whole group of similar living things? 7. producing a change in something else? 8. when something happens right away with nothing in between? 9. the natural places where living things live? 10. the energy given off by the sun? 7 Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L15_squashschoolyard.indd 7 1/12/10 5:32:51 PM

8 Student Date Squash in the Schoolyard LEVEL N Lesson 15 BLACKLINE MASTER Squash in the Schoolyard Running Record Form page Selection Text Errors Self-Corrections 3 Planning and taking care of a schoolyard garden is a good way to learn ecology. In a garden, you can study plants, insects, wildlife, and weather. You can study all of these subjects while you grow your own lunch. 4 To get started, ask the principal where you can set up your garden. You do not need a vast, empty space. If there isn t room for a big fenced plot, you can use large pots, tubs, troughs, and barrels. These containers are great for growing tomatoes, potatoes, strawberries, and peas. If you do have space, you can prepare the beds for a variety of crops. Comments: Accuracy Rate (# words read correctly/ ) % Total Self- Corrections Behavior Code Error Read word correctly cat 0 Repeated word, sentence, or phrase Omission cat 0 cat 1 Behavior Code Error Substitution cut cat 1 Self-corrects cut sc cat 0 Insertion the 1 Word told T 1 cat Lesson 15: Squash in the Schoolyard 4_308081_BL_VRTG_L015_squashschoolyard.indd 8 7/28/09 4:24:07 PM