1 B e n c h m a r k e d u c a t i o n c o m p a n y Skills and Strategies Anchor Comprehension Strategies • Summarize information • Evaluate author’s purpose Genre Study • Recognize genre features • Analyze genre texts • Make text-to-text genre connections Tier Two Vocabulary • See book’s glossary Word Study • Heterographs Fluency • Read with varied speed/pacing Writing • Writer’s tools: Hyperbole • Write a science fiction story using writing-process steps Homework from the Future The Encouragement App TEACHER’S GUIDE Level U/50 Unit at a Glance Day 1 Prepare to Read Day 4 Reread “The Encouragement App”* Day 2 Read “Homework from the Future”* Day 5 Literature Circle Discussion/Reinforce Skills* Day 3 Read “The Encouragement App”* Days 6–15 Write a science fiction story using the writing-process steps on page 10 *While you are meeting with small groups, other students can: • read independently from your classroom library • reflect on their learning in reading response journals • engage in literacy workstations Genre: SCIENCE FICTION
Writing• Writer’s tools: Hyperbole• Write a science fiction story using
writing-process steps
Homework from the Future
The Encouragement App
Teacher’S Guide
Level U/50
Unit at a Glance
Day 1 Prepare to Read Day 4 Reread “The Encouragement App”*
Day 2 Read “Homework from the Future”*
Day 5 Literature Circle Discussion/Reinforce Skills*
Day 3 Read “The Encouragement App”* Days 6–15 Write a science fiction story using the writing-process steps on page 10
*While you are meeting with small groups, other students can:• read independently from your classroom library• reflect on their learning in reading response journals• engage in literacy workstations
week, we will come back to this anchor chart. We will look for how these features appear in each story we read.
• Ask students to turn to pages 5–7. Say: Some authors are well-known for the classic science fiction stories they wrote. Let’s read about some of these authors.
• Have a student read aloud the background information while others follow along.
• Say: Several of these authors describe encountering frightening forces such as alien races while exploring outer space. What can you infer, or tell, from this? Allow responses. Prompt students to understand that science fiction describes fears common to many people.
Introduce the Tools for Readers and Writers: Hyperbole• Read aloud “Hyperbole” on page 4. • Say: Many writers use hyperbole to add humor
to their writing. In science fiction, hyperbole helps lighten the tone of a story that might otherwise be dark and threatening. The stories in this book have examples of hyperbole. Let’s practice identifying hyperbole so we can recognize it in the stories we read.
• Model Identifying Hyperbole: The first sentence exaggerates the size of a turkey by comparing it to the size of a small car. Hyperbole makes the description more vivid and interesting than simply saying, “The turkey was very large.”
• Ask students to work with a partner or in small groups to identify the examples of hyperbole in several more sentences, complete three sentences using hyperbole, and write their own examples of hyperbole.
• Bring the groups together to share their findings. Point out that two of the descriptions are literal rather than exaggerations so are not considered hyperbole.
• Ask the groups to read one of the sentences they completed. Use the examples to build students’ understanding of how and why writers use hyperbole. Remind them that hyperbole can bring a lighter, more humorous tone to a science fiction story that may have an overall dark, sinister quality.
• Ask the groups to hand in their sentences. Transfer student-completed and student-written sentences to chart paper, title the page “Hyperbole,” and post it as an anchor chart in your classroom.
Prepare to ReadBuild Genre Background• Write the word genre on chart paper. Ask: Who
can explain what the word genre means? Allow responses. Say: The word genre means “a kind of something.” Dramas and comedies are different kinds, or genres, of television programs. Each program genre has its own characteristics that we can use to identify it. In the same way, we can identify literary genres by their characteristics. As readers, we pay attention to the genre to help us comprehend. Recognizing the genre helps us anticipate what will happen or what we will learn. As writers, we use our knowledge of genre to help us develop and organize our ideas.
• Ask: Who can name some literary genres? Let’s make a list. Allow responses. Post the list on the classroom wall as an anchor chart.
• Draw a concept web on chart paper or the chalk-board. Write Science Fiction in the center circle of the web.
• Say: Science fiction is one example of a literary genre. Think of any science fiction stories you know. How would you define what science fiction is?
• Turn and Talk. Ask students to turn and talk to a classmate and jot down any features of science fiction they can think of. Then bring students together and ask them to share their ideas. Record them on the group web. Reinforce the concept that all science fiction stories have certain common features.
Introduce the Book• Distribute a copy of the book to each student. Read
the title aloud. Ask students to tell what they see on the cover and table of contents.
• Ask students to turn to pages 2–3. Say: This week we are going to read science fiction stories that will help us learn about this genre. First we’re going to focus on this genre as readers. Then we’re going to study science fiction from a writer’s perspective. Our goal this week is to really understand this genre.
• Ask a student to read aloud the text on pages 2–3 while others follow along. Invite a different student to read the web on page 3.
• Point to your Science Fiction web on chart paper. Say: Let’s compare our initial ideas about science fiction with what we just read. What new features of this genre did you learn? Allow responses. Add new information to the class web.
• Post this chart in your classroom during your science fiction unit. Say: As we read science fiction this
Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Write one or more of the following
questions on chart paper. What is a literary genre, and how can understanding
genres help readers and writers? What did you learn today about the science fiction
genre? How can readers recognize the technique of
hyperbole? Ask partners or small groups to discuss their ideas
and report them back to the whole group as a way to summarize the day’s learning.
Management Tips• Throughout the week, you may wish to use
some of the Reflect and Review questions as prompts for reader response journal entries in addition to Turn and Talk activities.
• Have students create genre folders. Keep blackline masters, notes, small-group writing, and checklists in the folders.
• Create anchor charts by writing whole-group discussion notes and mini-lessons on chart paper. Hang charts in the room where students can see them.
Before ReadingIntroduce “Homework from the Future”• Reread the Science Fiction anchor chart to review
the features of science fiction.• Ask students to turn to page 8. Ask: Based on the
title and illustrations, what do you predict this story might be about? Allow responses.
• Invite students to scan the text and look for the boldfaced words (petal, pedal, hue, wreak, reek, hew). Say: As you read, pay attention to these words. Try to use clues in the surrounding text to help you define them. We’ll come back to these words after we read.
Set a Purpose for Reading• Ask students to read the story, focusing on
the genre elements. They should also look for examples of hyperbole and think about how the author’s use of hyperbole helps them better understand the setting, plot, and characters.
Read “Homework from the Future”• Place students in groups based on their reading
levels. Ask them to read the story silently, whisper-read, or read with a partner.
• Confer briefly with individual students to monitor their use of fix-up strategies and their understanding of the text.
Management TipAsk students to place self-stick notes in the margins where they notice examples of hyperbole or features of the genre.
After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Summarize Information• Discuss the “Analyze the Characters, Setting, and
Plot” and “Focus on Comprehension” questions on page 16. Then, use the following steps to provide explicit modeling of how to summarize information in a science fiction story.
• Explain: We learned yesterday that science fiction is a genre that imagines the effects of science and technology on people and society. It is often useful to summarize, or create a short retelling, of the story’s plot. Write down important events and details, being as brief and to-the-point as possible. Do not write characters’ exact words. Instead, record the main ideas of their dialogues. Summarizing will help you
words in this question do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I’m looking for the word hologram. On page 9, I read “You’re a talking, thinking, feeling, three-dimensional hologram.” The words talking, thinking, feeling, and three-dimensional answer the question.
• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Find It! questions.
Focus on Vocabulary: Heterographs• Explain/Model. Read aloud “Heterographs” on
page 4. Say: Heterographs sound alike but have different spellings and meanings. They are easy to confuse. In this story, the author uses the word beach. Beach (a sandy area by water) and beech (a kind of tree) are heterographs. However, the context makes it clear which hetero graph the author is using. Analyzing how a hetero graph is used helps readers figure out which word and meaning an author intends.
• Practice. Ask students to find additional words in the science fiction story that have heterographs, such as to/two/too, where/wear, weight/wait, real/reel, there/their/they’re, hear/here, horse/hoarse, and knew/new. List the pairs or sets on the board.
• Ask: What can you do if you don’t know what the boldfaced words in the story mean? You can look for clues in the text. Understanding the context in which the heterograph is used will help you decide which word and meaning is correct.
• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the “Focus on Words” activity on page 17 using BLM 3. Explain that they should read the sentences around the boldfaced word to find clues to its meaning, state the word’s meaning in their own words, and identify the clues they found in the text.
• Transfer Through Oral Language. Ask groups of students to share their findings. Then challenge individual students to use one of the heterographs in a new sentence that includes context clues to make the meaning of the word clear. Have students take turns saying the sentences as their classmates listen carefully, identify the heterograph, and explain what context clues helped them define the word.
• Ask students to save their work in their genre studies folders to continue on Days 3 and 4.
Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Ask partners or small groups to
reread the “Features of Science Fiction” web on page 3 and decide whether all of these features are present in “Homework from the Future.” Ask groups to share and support their findings.
Fluency: Read with Varied Speed/Pacing• You may wish to have students reread the story with
a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on varying the speed or pacing of their reading to reflect the attitudes of the characters and
Day 2 (cont.)remember what happens in the story.
• Distribute copies of BLM 2 (Summarize Information) and/or draw a chart like the one below.
Page(s) Summary
9 Gif McCoy lives in the year 2512. For a homework assignment, Gif creates a boy from the 21st century, calling him 21-CK. He plans to show him around after they do some chores.
10–11 21-CK is surprised when they go to the beach in a horse-drawn wagon. Gif explains that people in 2512 do have high-tech inventions but also use low-tech inventions from before the Industrial Revolution.
12–13 Gif describes the Hot Ages, caused by 21st-century people. They knew the planet was heating up, which would cause rising seas, but did nothing to stop it.
14–15 Gif explains that people now live in very small areas of land left after most of the world was flooded. He sadly recalls the achievements of the 21st century that are now under water. Perhaps one of the class’s virtual kids will grow up to save the world from the Hot Ages. 21-CK disappears.
• Model: To summarize “Homework from the Future,” I need to think about the first important idea or event in the story. For example, the first page introduces the situation, the two main characters, and their relationship. We could summarize this part of the story as follows: “Gif McCoy lives in the year 2512. For a homework assignment, Gif creates a boy from the 21st century, calling him 21-CK. He plans to show him around after they do some chores.” I have summarized the first part of the story without using dialogue. I have used my own words to briefly state what happens.
• Guide Practice. Work with students to practice summarizing by pausing at the end of each listed page or pages, reflecting on the most important ideas and events, and thinking of ways to restate them in as few words as possible.
• Have students keep BLM 2 in their genre studies folders.
Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment• Remind students that when they answer questions
on standardized assessments, they must be able to support their answers with facts or clues and evidence directly from the text.
• Use the Comprehension Question Card to practice answering text-dependent questions.
• Say: Today we will learn how to answer Find It! questions. The answer to a Find It! question is in the book. You can find the answer in one place.
• Model. Read the first Find It! question. Say: When I read the question, I look for important words that tell me what to look for in the book. What
emphasize the story’s details. For example, a faster pace can show excitement, and a slower pace can give emphasis to important facts or events. Ask students to read aloud page 9. Suggest that Gif’s half of the dialogue might be read at a slower pace to make sure readers understand what is happening in the story. The 21-CK’s half of the dialogue might be read at a faster pace to show his surprise and casual attitude.
Page Word Part of Speech
Definition Text Words That Help Determine Meaning
9 petal noun the colorful part of a flower
“. . . checking every petal on every flower . . . ”
10 pedal verb to use pedals, as when riding a bicycle
“. . . we also have bicycles, which we pedal the same way you did.”
11 hue noun gradation of color
“. . . the soft white hue . . .”
11 wreak verb to cause; to bring about
“. . . started using fossil fuels in a way that would later wreak havoc . . .”
11 reek verb to give off a strong, unpleasant odor
“. . . having all these animals around makes the future kind of reek.” . . . “a little barnyard smell . . .”
12 hew verb to conform “Some people . . . hew to the idea that the Hot Ages are the fault of the people of your time.”
Note Regarding This Teacher’s GuideEach book provides an opportunity for students to focus on an additional comprehension strategy that is typically assessed on state standards. The strategy is introduced on page 4 (the third item in the “Tools for Readers and Writers” section) with text-specific follow-up questions found on the Reread pages. Some Reread sections also introduce an advanced language arts concept or comprehension strategy, such as protagonist/antagonist, perspective, or subtitles, because students at this level should be able to consider more than one comprehension strategy per text.
Before ReadingIntroduce “The Encouragement App” • Ask students to turn to page 18. Say: This story is
written in a different format from the other story we read. Notice the notes in the margins. First, we will read to understand the story, focusing on the characters, plot, and dialogue. Tomorrow, we will read this story like a writer and think about how the notes in the margins can help us write our own science fiction stories.
• Say: Let’s look at the title and illustrations of this story. What do you predict it might be about?
• Ask students to scan the text and look for the boldfaced words (birth, berth, assistance, assistants, pique, peek). Ask: What do you notice about these words? Why do you think they appear in boldfaced type? (The words are heterographs.)
• Say: As you read, try to figure out the meanings of these words. Look for words in the text that give clues to each boldfaced word’s meaning. After we read, we will talk about how you used context clues provided by the author.
Set a Purpose for Reading• Ask students to read the story, focusing on how
the characters and plot combine scientific fact and science fiction. Encourage them to notice the author’s use of hyperbole.
Read “The Encouragement App”• Place students in groups based on their reading
levels. Ask them to read the story silently, whisper-read, or read with a partner.
• Confer briefly with individual students to monitor their use of fix-up strategies and their understanding of the text.
After ReadingBuild Comprehension: Summarize Information• Say: Yesterday we summarized “Homework from
the Future.” By stating what happened in our own words, we will better understand and remember the story. What are the most important ideas and events in today’s story? How can we retell these in a few words? Record responses on a whole-group chart like the one below.
• Discuss Summarizing Information Across Texts. Lead a discussion using the following questions: How is the plot of “The Encouragement App” similar to the plot of “Homework from the Future”? How is it different? How are the stories’ themes, or big ideas, similar and different?
Is the author’s purpose for writing the first story similar to or different from his purpose for writing
and spells the heterograph based on the context of the sentence. Ask pairs to share some of their sentences with the class.
Page Word Part of Speech
Definition Text Words That Help Determine Meaning
18 birth noun the act of being born
“This was the application chosen to be added to the E.T., or Everything Tech, that people lived with from birth.”
19 berth noun a place to sleep on a ship
“Would you like a nap? Voila! Here’s a little houseboat with a berth just for you!”
21 assistance noun aid; the act of helping
“He got called . . . to give some assistance to the E.T. programming assistants who were installing the Encouragement Patch.”
21 assistants noun people who help
“He got called . . . to give some assistance to the E.T. programming assistants who were installing the Encouragement Patch.”
22 pique verb to arouse curiosity
“For a while, because it was new, the Encouragement Patch did pique people’s interest.”
22 peek verb to look at briefly; to glance
“The E.T. would immediately peek at the person’s vital signs. . .”
Reflect and Review • Turn and Talk. Ask partners or small groups to
discuss the following questions and report their ideas to the whole group. Do you agree that the Encouragement Patch should have been turned off? Why or why not? Think of a computer app that you would like to invent. How would it help people?
Fluency: Read with Varied Speed/Pacing• You may wish to have students reread the story
with a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on varying the pace of their read-ing to reflect the attitudes of the characters. For example, ask students to read aloud the dialogue on pages 20–21. Encourage them to vary the speed at which they read aloud to reflect Benzo’s stiff, formal tone (a slower pace) and Plexi’s sarcastic, informal tone (a faster pace).
Day 3 (cont.)the second story? Explain your answer. Where has the author used hyperbole in these stories? How do these examples of hyperbole add to the tone of the stories?
Page(s) Summary
18–19 Plexi’s best friend Benzo wins the App of the Year contest. It will be added to the E.T., or Everything Tech, which gives people everything they need.
20–21 The app, called the Encouragement Patch, encourages people to do the right things and won’t take no for an answer. Benzo gets a cash prize.
22–23 At first, people like the app because it helps them be more healthy and productive. Then they grow tired of being told what to do. The E.T. Commission decides to uninstall the app, but no computer expert can do it since the app argues against its removal.
24–25 Benzo realizes that Plexi is even more stubborn than the machine and requests her help. Plexi frustrates the E.T. with her sarcasm and stubbornness.
26–27 The E.T. overheats and uninstalls the app. Benzo gets to keep his prize money, and Plexi becomes more cooperative.
Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment • Use the Comprehension Question Card to practice
answering text-dependent questions.• Say: Today we will learn how to answer Look Closer!
questions. The answer to a Look Closer! question is in the book. You have to look in more than one place. You find the different parts of the answer. Then you put the parts together to answer the question.
• Model. Read the first Look Closer! question. Say: This question asks me to compare and contrast. I know because it has the clue word different. Now I need to look for other important information in the question. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I need to find how people’s feelings about the Encouragement Patch changed. On page 22, I read that for a while the Encouragement Patch did pique interest, but after a few weeks, people started getting tired of it. I have found the answer in the book. I looked in several sentences to find the answer.
• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Look Closer! questions.
Focus on Vocabulary: Heterographs• Ask students to work with a partner to complete the
“Focus on Words” activity on page 29 using BLM 3. Have groups of students share their findings.
• Transfer Through Oral Language. Have pairs of students takes turns using and identifying the heterographs. One partner makes up a sentence using one of the words. The other partner identifies
Before ReadingSet a Purpose for Rereading• Have students turn to page 22. Say: Until now, we
have been thinking about science fiction from the perspective of the reader. Learning the features of science fiction has helped us be critical readers. Now we are going to put on a different hat. We are going to reread “The Encouragement App” and think like writers. We’re going to pay attention to the annotations in the margins. These annotations will help us understand what the author did and why he did it.
Reread “The Encouragement App”• Place students in groups based on their reading
levels. Ask them to reread the story silently or whisper-read.
• Confer briefly with individual students to monitor their use of fix-up strategies and their understanding of the text and annotations.
After ReadingAnalyze the Mentor Text• Explain to students that the text they have just read
is a mentor text. A mentor text is a text that teaches. This text is designed to help them understand what writers do to write a science fiction story and why they do it.
• Read and discuss each mentor annotation with students. Encourage them to comment on the writer’s style, character and plot development, and use of literary techniques such as hyperbole.
Practice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment • Use the Comprehension Question Card with small
groups of students to practice answering text-dependent questions.
• Say: Today I will help you learn how to answer Prove It! questions. The answer to a Prove It! question is not stated in the book. You have to look for clues and evidence to prove the answer.
• Model. Read the first Prove It! question. Say: I will show you how I answer a Prove It! question. This question asks me to analyze a character. I know because I must find clues to support a statement about Plexi. Now I need to look for other important information in the question. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I need to find out what Plexi says about Benzo. On page 20, Plexi says, “He really should have asked me for advice. I would have told him what to say. And that shirt he’s wearing is ridiculous.” These statements show that Plexi thinks she knows more than Benzo. I have located the clues I need.
• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Prove It! questions.
Analyze the Writer’s Craft• Ask students to turn to page 30. Explain: Over
the next few days, you will have the opportunity to write your own science fiction stories. First, let’s think about how the author wrote “The Encouragement App.” When he developed this story, he followed certain steps. You can follow these same steps to write your own stories.
• Read step 1. Say: The first thing you’ll do is think of an idea for the story. This idea should include a time, place, and plot idea. Let’s recall the main ideas of the science fiction stories we read. One story describes what Earth is like in 2512. The other story describes a new technology that begins to take over people’s lives. What futuristic times, places, and problems can we think of? Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.
• Read step 2. Say: In the stories we read, the main characters must deal with developments that occur because of science or technology. Their responses reveal their particular character traits. What could our characters be like? Let’s make a list of characters and their traits. Allow responses. Write down students’ ideas on chart paper.
• Read step 3. Say: Before you’re ready to write, you need a setting and plot. One story we read takes place far in the future. The other story takes place in a middle school in a distant time and/or place. These settings are perfect for the theme of the unexpected consequences of technology. When you write your story, think about what setting is right for your characters. What plot, or actions, will help you develop the idea of your science fiction story? Choose one of the story ideas and some of the characters the class has brainstormed, and work as a group to construct a possible setting and plot.
Build Comprehension: Evaluate Author’s Purpose• Explain: Authors always have a specific purpose
for writing a text, such as to inform, entertain, or persuade. They may also have more than one purpose. When we read a story, we pay attention to the details an author gives to determine his or her purpose.
• Model: In “The Encouragement App,” the author explains that Benzo has invented an app that encourages people to behave well and won’t take no for an answer. The author doesn’t create this futuristic invention in his story to inform or persuade readers. Instead, he wants to entertain. At the same time, he makes us think. How would WE feel if someone or something continually nagged us to do the right thing?
Analyze & SynthesizePractice Text Comprehension Strategies for ELA Assessment • Use the Comprehension Question Card with small
groups of students to practice answering text-dependent questions.
• Say: Today I will help you learn how to answer Take It Apart! questions. To figure out the answer to a Take It Apart! question, you must think like the author.
• Model. Read the second Take It Apart! question. Say: This question asks me to analyze text structure and organization. I know because I must find a specific structure in the story. Now I need to look for other important information in the question. What information do you think will help me? Allow responses. Say: Yes, I need to reread the part where the author tells about people using the Encouragement Patch. On page 22, the author says people lost weight and learned foreign languages. Kids got their homework done. Everyone was buying healthy food and getting paperwork done on time. These are examples of how people used the Encouragement Patch. Thinking about text structures helped me figure out the answer.
• Guide Practice. Use the Power Tool Flip Chart to help you develop other Take It Apart! questions.
Summarize & Make Connections Across Texts• Engage students in a discussion about the two science
fiction stories in this book. Invite a different student to summarize each story. Encourage other students to add their ideas and details.
• Ask students to turn to the inside back cover of the book. Say: Good readers think about how literary works are related. We know, for example, that both of these stories share certain features. They both imagine how science and technology will affect people in the future. They both include scientific facts. What else do they have in common? Allow responses. Say: Today we will think about the story elements of both science fiction stories and what we can learn from them.
• Ask students to work individually or in small groups to complete BLM 4 (Make Connections Across Texts).
• Class Discussion or Literature Circles. Facilitate a whole-class discussion or keep students in their small groups for a literature circle discussion. If you choose to conduct literature circles, share the rules for good discussion below. Each group should discuss and be prepared to share its ideas about the following prompts. How are the settings alike and different? Which main character do you most identify with? Why? Which story’s plot do you find most entertaining? Most frightening? Why?
• Guide Practice. Invite students to work in small groups to evaluate the author’s purpose or purposes in other aspects of the two stories. Ask the groups to share their ideas and explain how determining author’s purpose(s) helps them better understand what the author wants readers to get out of the stories.
Reflect and Review • Ask and discuss the following questions.
How is thinking about a science fiction story as a reader different from thinking about it as a writer? How is it similar? What new words have you added to your vocabulary this week? Which is your favorite? Which character do you find most interesting and why? How can you use heterographs and hyperbole as a writer?
Fluency: Read with Varied Speed/Pacing• You may wish to have students reread the story
with a partner during independent reading time. Have them focus on varying the speed at which they read to match what the text is saying. As students read dialogue, remind them that varying the pace will make the speaker’s words sound more like real conversation. Ask students to read aloud the dialogue on pages 24–25. Have them consider how they might adjust their pace to reflect Plexi’s and the E.T.’s attitudes.
• One student should volunteer to write the correct heterograph to complete the sentence. If the student writes the correct word, he or she writes the next sentence. Continue until all words have been used.
Reread for Fluency: Oral Reading Performance• Discuss the various tones the author
communicates in the science fiction stories.• Say: Both science fiction stories include humorous
elements as well as serious ideas. When you read the stories aloud, you can demonstrate your understanding of their humor through your expression. This helps your listeners better appreciate and understand the stories.
• Invite individual students to read a section of one of the stories that is humorous or amusing. Encourage them to read with expression that communicates this tone.
• Encourage students to have fun with their readings and to make them as dramatic as possible.
• As a whole class, discuss each reader’s interpretation. Think about alternate ways to interpret the stories’ humor.
Review Writer’s Tools: Hyperbole• Ask students to look for other examples of
hyperbole in titles from your classroom library or the school’s library. Each student should select one title at his or her independent reading level. Ask students to read pages specifically to find an example of hyperbole.
• Invite students to share their examples with the class. Encourage students to discuss how the hyperbole creates humor and increases their enjoyment of the stories. Point out that not all students will have found examples in the books they chose. Hyperbole is not a tool all writers use all of the time.
• Tell students that at the end of their discussion, you will ask them to share the important text-to-text, text-to-world, and text-to-self connections they have made.
• While each small group of students discusses the book, confer with individual or small groups of students. You may wish to revisit elements of the genre, take running records, or model fluent reading skills.
Directions: Use the chart to compare and contrast the two science fiction stories.
Homework from the Future
The Encouragement App
Point of View
third person third person
Setting near present-day Denver in the year 2512
Andromeda Central Middle School in the future
Main Characters
Gif McCoy; 21-CK Benzo, Plexi
Important Scientific Fact
Earth is heating up due to inventions people have used since the Industrial Revolution. The heat will change Earth’s climate and oceans.
Computer programmers have created amazing applications that can do many things for people.
Situation Gif’s teacher’s homework assignment is to create a virtual 21st-century kid and show the kid what has happened to Earth since the 21st century.
Benzo wins a big prize for creating the Encouragement Patch, which forces people to behave well. People get tired of the app and want to uninstall it, but programmers are unable to do so.
Ending Gif thinks sadly about the wonderful achievements destroyed during the Hot Ages; the 21-CK disappears.
Plexi succeeds in uninstalling the patch with her stubbornness and sarcasm.
Rules for Good Discussion• Pay attention to the person who is talking
and do not interrupt him or her.
• Think about what others are saying so you can respond and add to their ideas.
• Allow and encourage everyone in the group to speak.
• Be respectful of everyone’s ideas.
Reinforce SkillsIf time permits, choose from the following activities to reinforce vocabulary and fluency.
Reinforce Vocabulary: Guess the Heterograph• Place students in small groups. Have them take turns
writing an original sentence that contains one of the target heterographs, leaving a blank space where the heterograph belongs.
Write a Science Fiction Story• Use the suggested daily schedule to guide
students through the writing-process steps. Allow approximately 45 to 60 minutes per day. As students work independently, circulate around the room and monitor student progress. Confer with individual students to discuss their ideas and help them move forward. Use the explicit mini-lessons, conferencing strategies, and assessment rubrics in Using Genre Models to Teach Writing for additional support.
• Before students begin planning their stories, pass out copies of BLM 5 (Science Fiction Checklist). Review the characteristics and conventions of writing that will be assessed. Tell students that they will use this checklist when they complete their drafts.
• This daily plan incorporates the generally accepted six traits of writing as they pertain to science fiction.
Days 6–7: Plan • Ask students to use BLM 6 (Science Fiction Planning
Guide) to brainstorm the characters, setting, and plot for their stories.
• Encourage students to refer to the “Features of Science Fiction” web on page 3 and to the steps in “The Writer’s Craft” on pages 30–31 of the book.
• Confer with individual students and focus on their ideas. Did students begin their stories with an idea based on science and technology in mind? Did they include important scientific facts?
Days 8–9: Draft • Tell students that they will be using their completed
Science Fiction Planning Guides to begin drafting their stories.
• Say: Remember that when writers draft their ideas, they focus on getting their ideas on paper. They can cross things out. They can make mistakes in spelling. What’s important is to focus on developing your characters, setting, and plot. You will have an opportunity to make corrections and improvements later.
• Confer with students as they complete their drafts. Use the Science Fiction Checklist to draw students’ attention to characteristics of the science fiction genre that they may have overlooked. Focus on how students have organized their ideas and the voice of the writer. Did students introduce their characters at the beginning of the story? Did they set up a problem and solution revolving around a science fiction idea? Does the story have a strong voice? Will the voice keep readers interested?
• Pair students for peer conferencing.
Days 10–11: Edit and Revise • Based on your observations of students’ writing,
select appropriate mini-lessons from Using Genre Models to Teach Writing.
• Remind students to use the Science Fiction Checklist as they edit and revise their stories independently.
• Confer with students focusing on sentence fluency, word choice, and conventions. Did students include both long and short sentences? Do the sentences read smoothly? Have students used interesting words and phrases? Did they use examples of hyperbole? Did they use appropriate spelling, punctuation, and grammar?
• You may want students to continue their editing and revision at home.
Days 12–13: Create Final Draft and Illustrations • Ask students to rewrite or type a final draft of their
stories.• Invite students to illustrate their final drafts with one
or more drawings that depict specific characters or events in their stories.
• Confer with students about their publishing plans and deadlines.
Days 14–15: Publish and Share• Explain: Authors work long and hard to develop
their works. You have worked very hard. And one of the great joys of writing is when you can share it with others. Authors do this in many ways. They publish their books so that people can buy them. They make their work available on the Internet. They hold readings. We can share our writing, too.
• Use one or more of the ideas below for sharing students’ work:
Make a class display of students’ completed science fiction stories.
Hold a class reading in which students can read their stories to one another and/or to parents.
Create a binder of all the stories and loan it to the library so that other students can read them.
Create a binder of all the stories for your classroom library.
Focus on HeterographsDirections: Reread each story. For each heterograph listed below, write its part of speech and definition. Then record the text words that help determine its meaning.
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