In the Name of Discovery

In the Name of Discovery
Level V

About the Book

Text Type: Fiction/Fantasy
Page Count: 24
Word Count: 2,662

Book Summary
In the Name of Discovery recounts another adventure for Miguel as he dives into one of the Great Gallardo's books. This time he travels into the story of Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne, becoming Professor von Hardwigg's nephew, Harry. He is faced with excitement and adventure as they explore the center of the earth. In the midst of mastodons and prehistoric beasts, Miguel is forced to decide just how far he is willing to go in the name of discovery. Illustrations support the text.

About the Lesson

Targeted Reading Strategy

Visualize

Objectives

Use the reading strategy of visualizing to understand text
Analyze characters in text
Identify compound sentences used in text
Identify similes

Materials

Book -- In the Name of Discovery (copy for each student)
Chalkboard or dry erase board
Dictionaries
Visualize, analyze characters, compound sentences, similes 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: apprehensive, armada, astounding, delirious, enchanted, mastodons, perceived, prehistoric, privateer, ultimate

Before Reading

Build Background

Ask students whether they have read any of Miguel's other adventures, such as In Huck's Shoes, Yellow Brick Roadies, or Sister Sleuth and the Silver Blaze. Discuss how they think Miguel is transported into the books he reads and becomes one of the main characters. Talk about the adventures that books can take readers on.
Write the word discovery on the board. Ask students to tell what they know about its meaning.

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, author's name, illustrator's name).
Preview the table of contents on page 3. Remind students that the table of contents provides an overview of what the book is about. Ask them what they expect to read about in the book based on what they see in the table of contents. (Accept any answers students can justify.)

Introduce the Reading Strategy: Visualize

Explain to students that good readers often visualize, or create pictures in their mind, while reading. Visualizing is based on the words used in the text and what a person already knows about a topic.
Read page 4 aloud to students. Model how to visualize.
Think-aloud: Whenever I read a book, I always pause after a few pages to create a picture in my mind of the information I've read. This helps me organize the important information and understand the ideas in the book. For example, on page 4, Miguel and his friends talk about the famous explorer Sir Francis Drake, a feared privateer and seaman. I pictured a rugged, towering man standing out on the bow of a huge ship heading out to sea. I envisioned mounds of treasure at his feet and gold necklaces glistening from his neck in the bright sunshine. I pictured how his crew shook in fear in his presence.
Reread page 4 aloud to students, asking them to use the words in the story to visualize. Introduce and explain the visualize worksheet. Have students draw what they visualized from the text on page 4 on the worksheet. Invite them to share their drawings.
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: Analyze characters

Explain to students that readers have many ways to learn about a character in a story. One way is to examine a character's words or thoughts. Another way is to examine the actions of the character. Explain to students that an author uses a character's words, thoughts, and actions to give the reader insight into a character's personality, relationships, motivations, and the conflicts he or she may face.
Read page 5 aloud as students follow along silently. Model how to analyze a character based on his words.
Think-aloud: As I read page 5, I found out that Miguel is very interested in learning about the exciting life of an explorer. He imagines being an explorer, which makes him feel taller than ever. However, I also read that Miguel realizes that the lives some of those men led are not considered appropriate today. Based on this understanding, Miguel appears to be an honest and empathetic character.
Introduce and explain the analyze characters worksheet. On the board, create a three-column chart with the headings Character, Trait, and Clues. Write Miguel under the Character heading, honest and empathetic under the Traits heading, and says that killing and stealing are wrong, says the explorers were dishonest and cruel under the Clues heading. Have students record the information from the discussion on their worksheet.
Have students read the first paragraph on page 6. Discuss what these actions reflect about Miguel's personality (insightful, contemplative, self-aware).

Introduce the Vocabulary

Write the following words from the content vocabulary on a large piece of paper and hang them up around the room: armada, mastodons, prehistoric, privateers. Read each word aloud with students.
Place students in small groups and assign a word to each group. Have them discuss what they know about the meaning of their word and write a definition on the paper. Have the groups post their definitions on chart paper.
Review each word and the information about the word that students wrote.
Invite students to locate the glossary at the back of the book. Have them read the definition for each of the four words in the glossary. Compare students' definitions with the glossary definitions. Use this comparison to modify the definition for each word on the chart paper.
Ask students to tell what they think the setting of the story might be based on these vocabulary words.
For tips on teaching word-attack strategies, click here.

Set the Purpose

Have students read to find out more about Miguel and his adventures. Remind them to stop after every few pages to visualize the most important information and then draw what they visualized on their worksheet. Ask students to think about the setting of the story and how it might affect the personality, relationships, and conflicts of characters in the story.

During Reading

Student Reading

Guide the reading: Review the events so far in the story. Have students read from page 6 to the end of page 12. Encourage those who finish early to reread these pages. Have students draw what they visualized during one or more events of the story on their visualize worksheet.
Model visualizing.
Think-aloud: On page 11, I read about Miguel spotting the mastodons with enormous trunks and tusks, and branches cracking under their heavy feet. I pictured the hairy, oversized elephants slowly moving the land, clearing a path as they crushed bushes and small trees beneath them.
Invite students to share the pictures of what they visualized while reading. Have them explain their drawings aloud.
Discuss personality traits of the characters. Ask students to explain how they would describe the professor and why (adventurous; he wants to get closer to what he sees, he has a wild look in his eyes, he is excited about what he sees and wants to discover more.) Have students record the information from the discussion on their analyze characters worksheet.
Check for understanding: Have students read page 13. Have them visualize the information from the page as they read. Ask students to draw what they pictured on their visualize worksheet. Invite students to share what they visualized.
Ask students to identify other personality traits that Miguel has displayed (cautious, level headed) and write this information on their analyze characters worksheet. Have students identify clues that support their answers from the text ("We aren't strong enough to battle those prehistoric beasts!", "You can't defend yourself against a giant!", "But it isn't worth risking your life.", and so on). Have students record the information from the discussion on their analyze characters worksheet.
Have students read the remainder of the book. Encourage them to continue to visualize as they read the rest of the story. Remind them to continue thinking about character traits as they read.

Have students highlight words that helped to create strong visual images as they read. Additionally, 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 each 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: On page 14, I read how the gigantic prehistoric man noticed Miguel and the professor, and thrashed his staff in the air as he quickly ran toward them. I pictured the giant rushing forward, thrashing leaves and branches out of the way with his huge staff. I envisioned the giant man scooping up the tiny professor with his massive hands and easily tossing him over his shoulder like a rag doll.
Ask students to explain how the strategy of visualizing helped them understand and enjoy the story.
Have students complete the visualize worksheet. If time allows, invite them to share their pictures.

Reflect on the Comprehension Skill

Discussion: Review the characteristics of Miguel and the professor that students have identified and written in their worksheet (Miguel: honest, insightful, contemplative, self-aware, cautious, level headed; professor: adventurous).
Ask students to review the words and actions of the professor on page 14. Ask what other character traits the professor displayed (blinded by discovery, impulsive, and so on).
Independent practice: Have students complete the analyze characters worksheet. If time allows, discuss their responses.
Enduring understanding: In this story, Miguel witnessed first hand how dangerous and overwhelming the power of discovery could be. Now that you know this information, how might you react differently when you discover something new?

Build Skills

Grammar and Mechanics: Compound sentences

Write the following sentence on the board: Miguel read more, but the words jittered on the page. Ask students to identify two separate sentences within this longer sentence. (Miguel read more. The words jittered on the page.)
Point out that the original sentence is an example of a compound sentence. Review or explain to students that a compound sentence is a sentence consisting of two or more simple sentences separated by a comma and a conjunction. A simple sentence contains its own subject and verb.
Review with students examples of conjunctions (and, but, for, or, so, and yet). Write these examples on the board. Ask students to identify the conjunction that joined the two parts of the original sentence on the board (but).
Discuss why the author chose to join two sentences of similar content (compound sentences with conjunctions help writers make their writing more fluent).
Have students turn to page 17 and read the first sentence of the last paragraph: Then Miguel remembered that Hans didn't speak English, so he motioned for the man to follow him. Have students point to the conjunction in the sentence (so). Ask a volunteer to identify the two sentences the conjunction connects. (Then Miguel remembered that Hans didn't speak English. He motioned for the man to follow him.)

Check for understanding: Have students turn to page 13 to find and underline the compound sentence. (The giant human being had some of the features of a man, but his head was the size of a buffalo's.) Have them circle the conjunction that connects the two sentences (but). Check students' books for individual understanding.

Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the compound sentences worksheet. If time allows, discuss their responses.

Word Work: Similes

Have students turn to page 5. Read the following sentence aloud: It made his real life feel as boring as watching paint dry.
Write the following phrase on the board: as boring as watching paint dry. Have students explain what is being compared in this sentence (his real life to watching paint dry).
Review or explain that a simile makes a comparison by using the words like or as. Write the words like and as on the board. Tell students that these words are often signals that they are reading a simile.
Have students turn to page 13. Read the first paragraph aloud while students follow along silently. Ask students to identify two similes. Write the following on the board: like a buffalo's and like a staff. Have students tell what is being compared in these similes (the man's hair to a buffalo's; the tree branch to a staff). Have them identify the signal word (like).
Check for understanding: Have students work in pairs to create their own simile. Have them write it on a separate piece of paper to share with the class.
Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the similes worksheet. If time allows, discuss their responses.

Build Fluency

Independent Reading

Allow students to read their book independently. Additionally, allow partners to read parts of the book with each other.

Home Connection

Give students their book to take home to read with parents, caregivers, siblings, or friends. Have students visualize the story with someone at home and then compare the pictures they created in their mind.

Extend the Reading

Social Studies Connection
Supply books and links to Internet websites for students to learn more about famous explorers such as Drake, Magellan, Lewis and Clark, and Cortez. Have students find out about the feats they accomplished and the lands they explored.

Narrative Writing Connection
Have students imagine they are on an adventure with one of the explorers they read about in the Social Studies Connection. Have them write a story that tells about their adventure, including which explorer they went with, where they went, why they went there, and what they did.

Assessment

Monitor students to determine if they can:

consistently use the strategy of visualizing to comprehend text during discussion and on a worksheet
analyze the words, thoughts, and actions of the main characters during discussion and on a worksheet
recognize and understand compound sentences during discussion and on a worksheet
identify similes in the book and tell what is being compared during discussion and on a worksheet

Comprehension Checks

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