Treasure Found
Level R 

About the Book 

Text Type: Nonfiction/Informational
Page Count: 16
Word Count: 801

Book Summary
Treasure Found is a book about different types of treasures found throughout time. It names famous treasure hunters and their finds, such as Howard Carter and the tomb of King Tut and Mel Fisher, who found underwater treasures worth millions of dollars. Photographs and maps support the text.

About the Lesson

Targeted Reading Strategy

  • Ask and answer questions

Objectives

  • Use the reading strategy of asking and answering questions to understand text
  • Identify author's purpose
  • Identify and understand the use of pronouns
  • Recognize and form compound words

Materials

  • Book -- Treasure Found (copy for each student)
  • Chalkboard or dry erase board
  • KWL, pronouns, compound words worksheets

    Indicates an opportunity for student to mark in the book. (All activities may be completed with paper and pencil if books are reusable.)

Vocabulary

  • Content words: cargo, clues, historians, markings, metal detectors, museums, shipwreck, sonar, treasure, valuable

Before Reading 

Build Background

  • Ask students if they have something they think is valuable. Point out that it does not need to be worth a lot of money to be valuable--something that brings back good memories can be valuable in a different way. Invite students to share their personal treasure.
  • Ask students if they have ever seen photographs or visited a museum that displays gold and gems from a lost treasure. Invite them to tell what they know.
  • Create a KWL chart on the board and hand out the KWL worksheet. Introduce and explain the worksheet. Review or explain that the K stands for information we know, the W stands for information we want to know, and the L stands for information we learned. As various topics are discussed, fill in the first column (K) on the board with information students know about the topic.
  • Ask students what they would like to know about treasures found. Write their questions on the board under the second column (W).

Preview the Book

Introduce the Book

  • Give students their copy of the book. Guide them to the front and back covers and read the title. Have students discuss what they see on the covers. Encourage them to offer ideas as to what type of book it is and what it might be about.
  • Show students the title page. Discuss the information on the page (title of book, author's name, illustrator's name).

Introduce the Reading Strategy: Ask and answer questions

  • Discuss with students how asking questions about a topic before reading and looking for answers as they read will help them understand and remember what they read.
  • Direct students to the table of contents. Remind them that the table of contents provides an overview of the information in a book and how it is organized.
  • Model how to use the table of contents to ask questions.
    Think-aloud: I can use the table of contents to think of questions I'd like to have answered about treasures found. For example, one chapter is titled "Sunken Treasure." This makes me wonder where sunken treasures have been found, and how they were sunk. I think this is a good question. I'll write it in the middle column of the KWL chart.
  • Have students look at the other chapter titles. Write any questions they have based on the covers and table of contents in the W column of the class KWL chart.
  • Have students preview the rest of the book, looking at illustrations, photos, and captions. Show students the glossary. Have them write any questions they have on their KWL worksheet.
  • As students read, encourage them to use other reading strategies in addition to the targeted strategy presented in this section. For tips on additional reading strategies, click here.

Introduce the Comprehension Skill: Author's purpose

  • Write the following terms on the board: inform, entertain, persuade. Invite students to share what they already know about the meaning of each of the words.
  • Define each word for students and write the definitions on the board (inform means to give someone information about something; entertain means to amuse someone; persuade means to try to make someone think the same way you do).
  • Model each purpose for writing by reading a brief passage from a social studies book; a fictional story with a moral, such as The Fox and the Crow; and an advertisement from a newspaper or magazine.
  • Think-aloud: Authors write for different reasons. Some write to provide facts about something. For example, the passage from the social studies book provided me with information about ________. However, the purpose of the advertisement was to make me think that I need to have this item. The purpose was not to teach me something. Advertisements like this use words and pictures to persuade me to buy something. Sometimes authors intend more than one purpose for their writing. In The Fox and the Crow, readers are entertained by the story of how the fox tricks the crow into dropping the piece of cheese in her mouth. However, the author also uses the story to inform readers of a moral, or lesson, at the end: do not trust flatterers.
  • Encourage students to share examples of stories they know that entertain, persuade, and inform readers.

Introduce the Vocabulary

  • Write the following words from the content vocabulary on the board: cargo, shipwreck, sonar, treasure.
  • Give groups of students several pieces of blank paper. For each word, have them write or draw what they know about the word. Have groups discuss and create a definition for each word using prior knowledge.
  • Review or explain that the glossary and dictionary contain a list of vocabulary words and their definitions.
  • Model how students can use the glossary or a dictionary to find a word's meaning. Have students locate the glossary at the back of the book. Invite a volunteer read the definition for cargo in the glossary. Have students compare the definition with their prior knowledge of the word. Then have students follow along on page 7 as you read the sentence in which the word cargo is found to confirm the meaning of the word. Repeat the exercise with the remaining vocabulary words.
  • Show students the illustration on page 7. Have the groups use the vocabulary words on the board to create a story about the ship. Have each student use one vocabulary word to add on to the story. Repeat the activity after reading the book to check for student understanding of the vocabulary.
  • For tips on teaching word-attack strategies, click here.

Set the Purpose

  • Have students read the book to find answers to their questions about treasures that have been found. Have them write what they learned in the L column of their KWL worksheet.

During Reading 

Student Reading

  • Guide the reading: Have students read to the end of page 8. Remind them to read for information that will answer questions on their KWL worksheet. Encourage those who finish before others to reread the text.

    When they have finished reading, have students circle any questions on their KWL chart that were answered and underline the information in the book that answers those questions. Have them add to their KWL worksheet any additional questions they generated as they read.

  • Model answering a question and writing the answer in the third column (L) on the class KWL chart.
    Think-aloud: I wanted to know where sunken treasures have been found and how they were sunk. I read that Kip Wagner found coins that he knew came from a shipwreck. He searched the ocean floor and found treasure worth millions of dollars. I'll write what I learned in the L column of my KWL chart. I also read that several Spanish ships sank near the Florida Keys during a big storm. Spain found a cannon from one of the ships but none of the gold, silver, coins, and gems the ships carried. This made me wonder if someone will find the treasure. I will write this question in the W column of my KWL chart.
  • Create a three-column chart on the board with the labels to entertain, to inform, and to persuade at the top of the columns. Review the events that happened so far in the story. Discuss what might be the author's purpose for writing the story. Write the examples on the board as students share them. (For example: the book entertains through the description of the alluring treasures; the story informs readers by providing information about treasures and the dates when they were found.)
  • Check for understanding: Have students write answers they found and additional questions they had while reading under the appropriate headings on their KWL worksheet. Invite them to share the information they learned and the additional questions they generated as they read the book.
  • Review the events of the chapter. Discuss how the events of the chapter support one or more of the three purposes for writing a story. Write the examples on the board as students share them. (For example: the story entertains readers by telling about the people's dreams of finding certain treasures, and so on; the story informs readers by providing information about the locations and names of the treasures found.)
  • Have students read the remainder of the book. Remind them to look for answers to their questions and use information learned to identify the author's purpose. Encourage students to add new questions they might have to their KWL worksheet as they read.

    Have students make a question mark in their book beside any word they do not understand or cannot pronounce. Encourage them to use the strategies they have learned to read the word and figure out its meaning.

After Reading 

Reflect on the Reading Strategy

  • Ask students what words, if any, they marked in their book. Use this opportunity to model how they can read these words using decoding strategies and context clues.
  • Think-aloud: I wanted to know whether someone found the treasure from the sunken Spanish ships. I found out that Mel Fisher and his crew found the Atocha, one of the sunken ships, after nearly 25 years of searching. The treasure they found included gold and silver worth millions of dollars. I also read that he gave part of the treasure to the state of Florida and gave some of the treasure to museums. The Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society and Museum in Florida showcases many of the beautiful things he found.
  • Ask students to share questions they had while reading, and ask them what questions were answered (or not answered) in the text. Have students write answers they found while reading under the appropriate heading on their KWL worksheet.
  • Reinforce that asking questions before and during reading, and looking for the answers while reading, keeps them interested in the topic. It also encourages them to keep reading to find the answers to their questions and helps them understand and remember what they have read.

Reflect on the Comprehension Skill

  • Discussion: Ask students to explain how identifying the author's purpose helped them understand and remember different parts of the story. Review the three different purposes from their worksheet (to inform, to entertain, to persuade).
  • Ask volunteers to provide examples from the book where the author informed readers. (In 1922, Howard Carter found gold and gems in the tomb of ancient Egypt's King Tutankhamen, and so on.) Ask students to give examples of places where the author entertained readers. (As a boy, Mel Fisher read Treasure Island and wanted to find a lost pirate treasure like the boy did in the book, and so on.) Ask students if they were persuaded to do something as a result of the story.
  • Independent practice: Have students choose which purpose they believe to be the author's main intent for this book. Have them write a paragraph to persuade someone of their opinion, using examples from the book to support their idea. As time allows, meet with students individually to discuss their answers.
  • Enduring understanding: In this story, you learned about many different treasures found all around the world and the people who found them. Now that you know this information, why do you think people dream of finding lost treasures?

Build Skills 

Grammar and Mechanics: Pronouns

  • Write the following on the board: People finally found the treasure. Replace the words the treasure with a pronoun. (People finally found it.) Ask students to tell what the word it refers to (the treasure). Explain or review that a pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.
  • Ask students to turn to page 9. Write the following sentence from the book on the board: Luckily, he liked diving under the sea. Ask students to identify the pronoun (he) and underline it on the board. Ask them which words he stands for (Mel Fisher). Have a volunteer repeat the sentence using the proper nouns Mel Fisher in place of the pronoun he. (Luckily, Mel Fisher liked diving under the sea.) Write that sentence under the first example. Point out to students that the pronoun and the nouns it replaces are interchangeable within the sentence.
  • Write the pronouns him and them on the board. Ask students which one represents one person (him) and which one represents more than one person (them). Write the following sentence on the board: The story of Treasure Island intrigued him. Point out to students that readers know the pronoun him refers to one person only. Write the following sentence on the board: Mel asked them to help find the treasure. Point out students that readers know that the pronoun them refers to more than one person, so we know that more than one person helped Mel find the treasure.
  • Have students use the words him and them in oral sentences. Discuss the reason authors use pronouns in the place of nouns (to make the writing flow better, to avoid repeating words, to make the paragraph sound better, and so on).
  • Write the following pronouns on the board: her, she, they. Discuss the appropriate use of each word and have students use them in oral sentences.

  Check for understanding: Have students work with a partner to locate and circle all the pronouns in the book and underline the word(s) to which each pronoun refers. When they have finished, discuss their responses.

  • Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the pronouns worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.

Word Work: Compound words

  • Write the word shipwreck on the board. Ask students which two words they see in shipwreck (ship and wreck). Explain to them that this word is called a compound word. A compound word contains two words that make up one word meaning. Explain to students that the definitions of the two separate words can help students figure out the meaning of the bigger word (a ship that has wrecked).
  • Have students turn to page 5. Read the first sentence aloud as they follow along: Treasure is anything that someone thinks is valuable. Have students identify the two compound words in the sentence (anything and someone). Ask them which two words are joined together to form the word anything (any and thing) and the word someone (some and one).

  Check for understanding: Have students turn to page 10 and reread the section titled Do You Know? Have them identify and underline the compound words in the second paragraph (mailbox and seafloor). Ask students to circle the two words contained in each compound word.

  • Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the compound words worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.

Build Fluency 

Independent Reading

  • Allow students to read their book independently or with a partner. Encourage repeated timed readings of a specific section of the book.

Home Connection

  • Give students their book to take home to read with parents, caregivers, siblings, or friends. Have them share with someone at home the author's purpose(s) for writing the story and explain their thinking.

Extend the Reading 

Narrative Writing Connection
Have students bring in a personal treasure and write why it's a treasure to them. Have them write about how they got it, how long they have had it, and why it is so valuable to them. Allow time for students to read their story aloud and to show their treasure to the class.

Social Studies Connection
Have students use the Internet to learn more about treasures that have been found. Post a large class timeline featuring all of the discovered treasures mentioned in the book. Invite students to add treasures found to the timeline, noting the date, location found, and the name of the person who discovered it.

Assessment 

Monitor students to determine if they can:

  • consistently ask relevant questions about the topic prior to and during reading; locate answers to their questions in the text and understand that not all answers are found in one source
  • analyze the author's purpose during discussion
  • understand and use pronouns in a discussion and on a worksheet
  • correctly identify and form compound words during discussion and on a worksheet

Comprehension Checks



Go to "Treasure Found" main page