Text Type:
Fiction / Narrative
Reading Level:
R
Word Count:
1,581
Pages:
26
Text Summary
Tom Terdle is always getting teased about his name. After getting in a fight, he is suspended from school. He goes to the beach, where he finds some turtle eggs and also finds a friend, the Turtle Lady. Together they spend time watching for the eggs to hatch. Their friendship causes Tom to overcome his sensitivity to his name. He grows up to become a marine biologist and always remembers the special gift he received from the Turtle Lady.
Suggested Lesson Focus
Literary Element Strategies
Discuss the interaction between the main characters' actions and the plot.
Word Skills
Provide synonyms for given words.
Phonics Skills
Identify and list words ending in consonant digraphs.
Grammar Skills
Identify and list nouns and verbs in sentences.
Targeted Vocabulary Words
violators, provoked, tarnation
Before Reading
Introducing the Book
Hand out the books and have children read the title and scan the illustrations to make an initial prediction about the setting, plot, and characters.
Ask: Where is this story set? What do you think this story is about? Who are the characters? What are they doing? Do you think the boy is called Turtle Tom? Why or why not?
Build Background
Discuss sea turtles.
Ask: What do you already know about sea turtles? Share what you know about where they lay their eggs. Have any of you ever seen signs warning that there are turtle nests on the beach? When the baby turtles hatch, what do they do? Who are predators of baby turtles?
Book Walk
Ask children to scan page 3 to find out the name of the main character.
Say and ask: Read the main character’s name aloud. What does it make you think of? Does it make you smile? How would you feel if you had a name like this? Would you expect to be teased about it? How does the name fit with the title? Can you see a connection?
Have children turn to page 8.
Ask: What is happening in this illustration? Read the first sentence to see if you are right. What do you think might happen to someone who continually fights with other kids at school?
Ask children to turn to page 9. Read the sentence, He said I was provoked.
Ask: Who knows the meaning of the word provoked? What does it mean to provoke someone? Who can use the word provoked in another sentence?
Have children read the last sentence on page 11.
Ask: What does this sentence mean? What else could the old woman have said that would have meant the same thing?
Ask children to turn to page 12 and read the last sentence.
Ask: What do you think this sentence means? What are violators? What does prosecuted mean? What does the phrase to the full extent of the law mean?
Have children turn to page 14. Discuss with them what you can keep a civil tongue means.
During Reading
Say: Read to the end of page 9 and then be prepared to discuss how what Tom did affects the plot
Ask them such questions as: What are the things that led up to Tom being suspended for three days? How could Tom have handled the situation differently? What else could the principal have done besides suspending Tom? Do you think that this will fix the problem?
Ask children to read to the end of 13 and then be prepared to discuss how what Tom did on the beach related to what happened in the plot.
Say: Tell the person next to you how the plot is unfolding and how what Tom does affects what happens in the story. What has happened in the story so far that has influenced Isaac’s WHAT?? NOTHING HERE? Before you continue reading, make a prediction about how the relationship between Tom and the old woman will develop actions. What do you think Tom will do next?
Have children read the rest of the book independently. Have them mark with a sticky note any word or phrase they did not understand or could not pronounce. You can clarify these later. During this time you may choose to work with another group. Alternatively, you may wish to work individually with some children to monitor their oral reading and comprehension of parts of the text.
Say: I want you to finish reading the book at your own pace. As you read, I want you to think about what Tom does and how his actions affect the plot. Jot these down on a piece of paper because we are going to discuss them later.
Using the Worksheet
Introduce the Worksheet. Have children start work on the Worksheet as they finish reading the text.
After Reading
Comprehending the Text
Draw the group together again and ask children to discuss the plot.
Ask: Who can summarize the plot? What happened first? How did that affect what happened next? What happened after Tom dug up the eggs? What did he and Turtle Lady do that night? What happened the next night? How does the story end?
Discuss the particular things that Tom did that determined the development of the plot.
Say and ask: Let’s now talk about what Tom did. Let’s start by discussing his actions at school when he was teased. Would he have met Turtle Lady if he hadn’t been suspended? Now think about Tom digging up the eggs. Would the plot have developed in the same way if he hadn’t dug up the eggs? Tom instantly liked Turtle Lady. What eventually happened because he liked her? What would have happened if he hadn’t liked her? How would the story have been different?
Discuss the images created by the sentences, There scuttling across the sand against the fluorescent foam from the surf were hundreds of crabs (page 21) and Starting like a trickle, then like a bigger wave, the little turtles began digging from the sandy nests and scurrying down to the surf (page 23).
Building Skills
Word Skills
Discuss synonyms with children. Write the word big on the board.
Ask: Who knows a synonym for the word big?
List children’s responses on the board.
Ask children to return to page 3 of Turtle Tom and read the first sentence. Ask them to suggest a synonym that the author could have used instead of the word worst. Explain that they may have to use two words—for example, most terrible. Have children complete the Worksheet by supplying synonyms for the words that are missing.
Phonics
Revise the consonant digraphs ch, sh, th, and ph with the students.
Ask: Who can tell me a word starting with a consonant digraph?
List children’s responses on the board.
Say: Some words end in consonant digraphs.
Write the word digraph on the board.
Say and ask: This word says digraph and it ends with the consonant digraph ph. Can anyone share another word they know that ends in a consonant digraph?
Write the consonant digraphs on the board. Have children scan page 3 in Turtle Tom to find a word that ends in a consonant digraph (which) .Write it under the appropriate heading. Have children scan through the rest of the text to find other words that end in consonant digraphs. Have them list the words under the appropriate digraph.
Grammar
Discuss nouns with the students.
Say and ask: A noun is a word that names a person, place, or thing. Turtle is a noun. Who can tell me another noun?
Discuss verbs.
Say: A verb is a word that shows action or being. Laugh and call are action verbs. Is and was are being verbs.
Ask children to give other examples of verbs. Have children turn to pages 17 and 18 in Turtle Tom and identify and list all the nouns and verbs.
Expand the Reading
Writing Connection
Altering the plot
Say: Work with a friend. I want you to think back to our discussion of the story. Then, reread page 18. Write a paragraph to show what Tom might have done if his folks had not allowed him to help the Turtle Lady.
Science Connection
Have children use the library and the Internet to find out more information on turtles. Have them present their information as a set of posters that could be displayed for the public to read near turtle nesting areas.
Social Studies Connection
Have children discuss ways in which they can protect some aspect of the environment in the area where they live. Have them share their ideas with the group.
Reading Independently
Invite children to reread the book, Turtle Tom, independently or with a partner. They could then look for and read other books about either turtles or about people who care for the environment. Children should also read each other’s paragraphs and posters.
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