Dear Mrs. LaRue

1. Dear Mrs. LaRue Unit 4, Week 1 Mrs. Murray’s 4th Grade eMINTS Classroom

2. Vocabulary • obedience- behaving properly and respectfully as asked • risks- chances of harm or loss; dangers • appreciated- understood the value of something • desperate- reckless because of having no hope • bluffing- fooling people by pretending • endured- put up with • misunderstood- understood someone or something incorrectly • neglected- gave too little care or attention to • endured- put up with Vocabulary Matching (Quia)Vocabulary Cloze (Quia) Vocabulary Matching (Quia)

3. Vocabulary: Words in Contextobedience risks appreciated desperate bluffing endured misunderstood neglected • My puppy was _____ because his old owners did not take very good care of him. • When I first saw him at the animal shelter he looked _____ to get a new home. • My mom _____ my pleadings, and finally told the worker that we would take the anxious puppy. • The puppy _____ us as his new owners and he eagerly licked my face. • We soon realized he would need ____ classes because he did not listen very well. • I knew that he was jus _____. He was only a puppy after all. • We took some _____ in adopting an active puppy, but I would be bluffing if I said he was not already a special and loved member of our family.

4. Vocabulary: Story Words • behavioral- having to do with the way a person or animal acts • canine- having to do with dogs • misconceptions- incorrect ideas or beliefs • melodramatic- n tending to exaggerate the importance of bad or unpleasant things • nightmare- a very bad dream or experience

5. Vocabulary: Content Words • intelligent- another word for smart • impressive- something that causes people to be amazed • demonstrated- when something is shown how to be done • exposure- the act of making something known or understood. • phrases- words put together to express ideas.

6. Vocabulary/Word Work: Prefixes • A prefix placed before a base word will modify the meaning of the word. By knowing the meaning of prefixes can help you figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words. • mis- means badly or wrongly Prefix BuilderPrefix Towers Practice Using Prefixes Prefixes Say Plenty

7. Phonics: Inflected Endings • Inflectional endings ed and ing can be added to verbs to create new verb forms and tenses. In some cases, the final consonant is doubled before adding he inflectional ending, as in skipped and skipping. In other cases, the final e is dropped before adding the inflectional ending, as in lived and living.

8. Fluency: Punctuation • Paying close attention to punctuation wll help you with proper intonation and expression. Words in capital letters should be read with emphasis.

9. Fluency: Punctuation 239 Grassland Road Willard, MO 65894 January 5, 2009 Dear Mrs. LaRue, How could you do this to me? This is a PRISON, not a school! You should see the other dogs. They are BAD DOGS, Mrs. LaRue! I do not fit in. Even the journey here was a horror. I am very unhappy and may need something to chew on when I get home. Please come right away! Sincerely, Ike

10. Comprehension: Author’s Purpose • Authors write to entertain, inform, or persuade. Deciding which of these purposes an author has in writing a story can help the you make judgments. • You can use your own judgment and experience to help you evaluate and author’s purpose. Author’s Purpose Quiz

11. Comprehension: Generate Questions • Good readers generate questions about a text before, during, and after reading. • By asking yourself what is happening and what might happen next in a story, you can improve your understanding of the plot characters, and theme.

12. Comprehension: Draw Conclusions • Good readers use clues that the author provides and knowledge they may already have to draw conclusions, or make logical decisions, about the text. • This skill is needed because the author may not directly tell the reader what is important. • As you look for clues, ask yourself questions that help you reason logically. • Example: What happened before this? Why would the character react this way? Drawing Conclusions- CowsDrawing Conclusions Interactive: Sarah, Plain and Tall

13. Comprehension: Draw Conclusions

14. Comprehension: Conflict & Resolution • A conflict is a struggle between two forces. The conflict in a story can be between two characters or between a character an another force, such as nature or society. When a conflict is brought to an end, we say that there has been a resolution. Usually a story has one main conflict, but it might also include multiple small ones. Conflict Resolution Practice

15. Text Feature: Line Graph • Labels up the left-hand side and across the bottom explain what the points on the line mean. • The slope of the line shows how quickly or slowly change happens. A steep slope shows change that happens quickly. A gradual slope shows a slight change over time. Create your own line graphLine Graphs

16. In which year did Sammy’s Shrimp Company catch 60 tons of fish? What was the most fish caught in one year? What is the difference in the number of fish caught in 1998 and 2000? Text Feature: Line Graphs

17. Reflections: Day 1 • What does the word desperate mean as used on page 413? What information from the story supports your answer? • Generate three questions by looking at the illustrations on pages 412-413.

18. Reflection: Day 2 • What information can you find on page 416 lets you know this story is a fantasy and not true-to-life? • On page 419, what conclusion can you draw about Ike from his letters? • Reread Ike’s letter on page 420. What conflict does Ike hint at? Which characters are involved in it? • In Ike’s letter on page 420, he does not mention any resolution to this particular conflict. Do you think the conflict was resolved? If so, how was it?

19. Reflections: Day 3 • On page 427, find the sentence that contains the word risks. Use risks in another sentence that shows its meaning. • Is the newspaper story about Ike’s escape true-to-life or a fantasy? How do you know? • On page 431, find the sentence that contains the word endured. What are some words or phrases that mean the opposite of endured? • Has Ike’s experience at obedience school and afterward changed him? Explain your answer.

20. Reflections: Day 4 • Do you think Mrs. LaRue misunderstood Ike? Why or why not? • Reread pages 420-421. Why do you think the cats were on the fire escape in January? Use story details in your answer. • Sometimes people exaggerate a lot, they way Ike does. Why do you think people do this?

21. Reflection: Day 5 • Look at the line graph on page 439. About how many words does a 4-year-old understand? • If you were a scientist, what other animals would you test for language skills? How would you do that?