Fountas-Pinnell Level M Historical Fiction

LESSON 4 TEACHER’S GUIDE

Champ of Hoover Dam by Alexandra Behr

Fountas-Pinnell Level M Historical Fiction Selection Summary Helen’s father works on the construction crew building the Hoover Dam. When Helen’s dog Champ barks too much, the landlord says she can’t keep him at home during the week. The mother of Helen’s friend Claudia agrees to keep him where she works at the worksite cafeteria. When Champ’s barking saves a life of a worker, the dog becomes a national hero.

Number of Words: 868

Characteristics of the Text Genre Text Structure

Content

Themes and Ideas

Language and Literary Features Sentence Complexity Vocabulary

Words Illustrations Book and Print Features

• Historical fiction • Third-person narrative • Organized chronologically • Problem presented in middle of story • Barking dog is a problem that friends help solve. • Dog becomes a hero by saving a worker’s life on Hoover Dam construction site. • Appearance of President Franklin Roosevelt • Friends can help you solve a problem. • Huge construction projects take a long time to build. • A bad habit in one setting can be a positive trait in another. • Conversational, colloquial language • Idioms and exaggeration • Simile: The desert heat made Helen feel like she was a pancake in a pan. • Compound and complex sentences. Example: If Champ hadn’t been there, Hank would have been a goner. • Some colloquial words such as goner, kid • Compound words such as worksite, pancake, landlord • Place names: San Francisco, Nevada, Colorado River, Boulder City • Some multisyllabic words that may be challenging. Examples: cafeteria, excitement, disappear, president • Realistic illustrations of children and adults in another time period support the text. • Fourteen pages of text with half-page illustrations on most pages

© 2006. 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 32819. Printed in the U.S.A. 978-0-547-30638-4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0940 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 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.

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Champ of Hoover Dam

by Alexandra Behr

Build Background Help students use their knowledge of rivers and dams. Ask questions such as: Do you know why dams are built? Explain that a dam is like a large wall meant to keep a river from flooding. Read the title and the author’s name and talk about the cover illustration, which shows the Hoover Dam during its construction. Tell students that this story is historical fiction, so the setting and some of the characters are based on real people— including a President of the United States!

Introduce the Text Guide students through the text, noting important ideas, and helping with unfamiliar language and vocabulary so that they can read the text successfully. Here are some suggestions: Page 2: Explain that this story happens in the 1930s, when the enormous Hoover Dam was being built in Nevada. The main characters are Helen, her dog Champ, and her new friend Claudia. Suggested language: Turn to page 2. Here are Helen and Champ in front of their new home. The last sentence reads: Her dad worked with a big crew of men building a giant dam across the Colorado River. Why do you think a project as big as the Hoover Dam would need lots of men working in crews, or teams? Where does it look like the crews and their families live? Page 4: Read the last sentence of paragraph 3: Champ barked and barked with excitement. What kinds of excitement might make a dog bark? Look at the picture. Helen and her family finally move into a house. Everyone is excited, especially Champ. Page 5: Explain that Helen tells her new friend Claudia about a problem she has: The landlord is kicking Champ out of the house because he barks too much and wakes up the workers. Look at the picture. Who has followed the two girls to school? Page 7: Call attention to the picture. Helen and Claudia try to find a home for Champ in town. Does it look like he is ready to live with other people? Now turn back to the beginning of the story and read to find out what happens to Champ at Hoover Dam.

Target Vocabulary balancing – keeping steady, p. 12

disappear– pass from sight, p. 9

clinging – sticking to or holding on tight, p. 10

excitement – feeling of great happiness, p. 4

crew – group of people doing work, p. 2

foggy – in a thick mist or low clouds, p. 2

Grade 3

2

stretched – extended or spread out, p. 10 tide – the rise and fall of the sea, p. 2

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Read

Have students read Champ of Hoover Dam silently while you listen to individual students read. Support their problem solving and fluency as needed. Remind students to use the Infer/Predict Strategy them figure out more about the selection.

to find clues to help

Discuss and Revisit the Text Personal Response

Invite students to share their personal responses to the story. Suggested language: What did you learn from the story about being a hero?

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

• Helen’s family moves to Nevada while her dad works on the construction of Hoover Dam.

• Friends can help you solve a problem.

• The ending is a surprise because President Roosevelt asks to meet Champ.

• Helen’s dog Champ barks a lot so the landlord kicks him out. • Helen and her new friend Claudia try to find a new home for Champ.

• Huge construction projects take a lot of people a long time to build. • There are different ways to be a hero.

• When the author has the president say that there would be no dam without Champ, she is using exaggeration.

• Champ moves near the dam and rescues a fallen worker by barking for help. © 2006. Fountas, I.C. & Pinnell, G.S. Teaching for Comprehending and Fluency, Heinemann, Portsmouth, N.H.

Choices for Further Support • Fluency Invite students to choose a passage from the text to act out, such as page 14, which has both narrative and dialogue. Remind them to pay attention to punctuation and to make the speech sound as natural as possible. • 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. Lead students to recognize that adding the prefix dis- to the word appear makes a new word with the opposite meaning. Explain that knowing the shorter words may help readers to understand the meaning of the new word. Invite students to figure out the meanings of disconnect, disobey, and discontinue.

Grade 3

3

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Writing about Reading Critical Thinking Have students complete the Critical Thinking questions on BLM 4.8.

Responding Have students complete the activities at the back of the book. Use the instructions below as needed to reinforce or extend understanding of the comprehension skill.

Target Comprehension Skill Compare and Contrast Remind students that recognizing how one character is alike or different from another will help them to understand why those characters think or behave as they do. Model the skill, using a “Think Aloud” like the one below: Think Aloud

When I look at the Venn diagram on page 15, I see that both girls want to help Champ, so that information appears under “Both.” I know that Helen doesn’t know too many people yet, so she’s kind of shy. I’ll put that information under her name. Claudia isn’t shy and speaks up when she needs to. That’s what I’ll put that under her name.

Practice the Skill Have students share an example of another story in which they were able to compare and contrast the way two characters think and behave.

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 what they know and their own experience to think about what happens in the story.

Assessment Prompts • On page 10, find the word that means “holding on tight.” • On page 12, what is the first paragraph mainly about? • Complete this sentence in your own words. This story has a happy ending because ________________________________________________________________.

Grade 3

4

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English Language Development Reading Support Pair English-speaking and English language learners so that they can check their understanding with each other. Idioms Explain any idioms students might find unfamiliar, as on page 5, Champ tagged along; and on page 8, Helen and Champ shot out of the car.

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 name of Helen’s dog?

Speaker 1: Why does the family move from the tent home they were living in?

Speaker 2: Champ

Speaker 2: They are going to live in a real house.

Speaker 1: Why does President Roosevelt come to the Hoover Dam?

Speaker 1: Where does the story take place? Speaker 2: at the Hoover Dam Speaker 1: Why is the family there?

Speaker 1: What does the landlord think about Champ? Speaker 2: He thinks the dog barks too much.

Speaker 2: Helen’s dad is working on the Hoover Dam.

Speaker 2: Hoover Dam is about to be finished. Speaker 1: Why does the President praise Champ? Speaker 2: Champ is a hero because he saved a man’s life.

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Lesson 4

Name

Date

BLACKLINE MASTER 4.8

Champ of Hoover Dam

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking

Read and answer the questions.

1. Think within the text Why does Helen’s family move from San Francisco to the desert? Helen’s dad has a job building a giant dam across the Colorado River.

2. Think within the text What problem does the landlord have with Champ? Champ barks too much and keeps people awake at night.

3. Think about the text Think about a story you have read or heard about an animal that acted in a heroic way. Describe what happened. Responses will vary.

4. Think beyond the text Do you agree with President Roosevelt when he says there would be no dam without Champ? Explain your answer. Possible response: No, I don’t agree. I think people would have built the dam even without Champ’s help.

Making Connections Have you or has someone you know ever adopted a pet from an animal shelter? Tell a story about the pet and its new home. Write your answer in your Reader’s Notebook. Read directions to students. Critical Thinking

10

Grade 3, Unit 1: Good Citizens

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Grade 3

5

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Name

Date

Champ of Hoover Dam Thinking Beyond the Text Think about the questions below. Then write your answer in one or two paragraphs. A reporter from a local paper heard about Champ and wrote a story about him. Suppose you had to write a news story about Champ. What kinds of information would you include? Write a headline and a short news story.

Grade 3

6

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Lesson 4

Name

BLACKLINE MASTER 4.8

Date

Champ of Hoover Dam

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking

Read and answer the questions.

1. Think within the text Why does Helen’s family move from San Francisco to the desert?

2. Think within the text What problem does the landlord have with Champ?

3. Think about the text Think about a story you have read or heard about an animal that acted in a heroic way. Describe what happened.

4. Think beyond the text Do you agree with President Roosevelt when he says there would be no dam without Champ? Explain your answer.

Making Connections Have you or has someone you know ever adopted a pet from an animal shelter? Tell a story about the pet and its new home. Write your answer in your Reader’s Notebook. Grade 3

7

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Student

Lesson 4

Date

BLACKLINE MASTER 4.12

Champ of Hoover Dam • LEVEL M page

12

Selection Text

Champ of Hoover Dam Running Record Form

Errors

Self-Corrections

Accuracy Rate

Total SelfCorrections

Champ loved being with the workers. He liked balancing on rocks, like a mountain goat. Best of all, he ate like a king every day at the worksite’s cafeteria. Claudia’s mother made sure of that. Of course, Helen got to see Champ on the weekends when he came home. In the summer, Dad even took her to the worksite to visit Champ.

13

By the next September, the dam was almost built. People in Boulder City were buzzing with excitement. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was coming to the dam! Everyone in town turned out to hear President Roosevelt. Helen’s family stood right in front.

Comments:

(# words read correctly/102 × 100) %

Read word correctly

Code ✓

cat

Repeated word, sentence, or phrase

®

Omission

— cat

cat

Grade 3

Behavior

Error 0 0 1

8

Substitution

Code cut cat

1

Self-corrects

cut sc cat

0

Insertion

the

1

Word told

T cat

cat



Error

1414038

Behavior

1

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