Text Type: Fiction/Historical
Page Count: 24
Word Count: 2,717

Book Summary
This story follows young Tom as he and his parents visit the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904. His mother wants him to learn a lot while he is there, but he is only interested in The Apache Village, where he can have his picture taken with the infamous Chief Geronimo. Little does his mother know that when Tom leaves the exhibit, he has learned much more than expected. Photographs, maps, illustrations, and nonfiction features support the fictional text.

About the Lesson

Targeted Reading Strategy

• Visualize

Objectives

• Use the reading strategy of visualizing to understand text
• Sequence events
• Understand the use of a dash
• Identify and fluently read abbreviations

Materials

• Book -- The Apaches (copy for each student)
• Chalkboard or dry erase board
• Dictionaries
• Visualize, sequence events, dashes, abbreviations worksheets
• Discussion cards

      Indicates an opportunity for students to mark in the book. (All activities may be demonstrated by projecting book on interactive whiteboard or completed with paper and pencil if books are reused.)

Vocabulary

• Content words: attractions, dismantle, hostages, implacable, inaugural, infamous, patron saint, prisoner of war, promenade, renegade, spectacle, wickiups

Build Background

• Ask students to tell what they know about Native American culture and traditions. Show pictures that help to illustrate Native American life, such as dwellings, clothing, spirituality, and artwork. Explain to students, that when discussing Native Americans, it is important to know that there were thousands of Native American groups and each had its own traditions. Talk about the definition of the word native, and ask students to discuss how they think the term Native American originated.

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).
• Explain that while this is a fictional story, historical elements are included throughout. Point out the nonfiction features (Apache Religion, page 13 and the Afterword, page 23).

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.
• Ask students to close their eyes and listen carefully. Read page 4 aloud to them. 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, the author tells about the World's Fair. I pictured the darkening September evening sky and electric lights casting a warm glow on the fairground. I pictured the huge lagoon at the center of the grounds with boats gliding by, filled with laughing people.
• 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 students 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: Sequence events

• Review or explain that writers present the events of a story in a particular order. Signal words are often provided to help readers identify the order of the events. Ask students to identify examples of signal words (today, first, next, then, last, finally, and so on).
• Model how to sequence events.
  Think-aloud: I know that stories, like many activities, have a sequence of events, or an order in which things happen. For example, when I call someone on the phone, first I lift the receiver off the hook. Next, I dial the number using the number pad on the phone. Then, I hold one end of the receiver to my ear. Last, I speak into the other end of the receiver.
• Ask students to name the words in the story that signaled, or told them the order of events.
• Have volunteers explain the order of a simple process, such as making a sandwich or getting ready for school. Use time and order words (first, next, and so on) to write the steps on the board.
• Show students an example of a timeline. Explain that timelines are created as events are listed in order. Tell students that they will be creating a timeline of the events that are included in this book.

Introduce the Vocabulary

• Cut out the illustration from page 4.
• Write the following words from the content vocabulary on large pieces of paper and hang them up around the room: spectacle, attractions, and promenade. Read each word aloud with students.
• Place students in three groups and assign each group to a word. Have them discuss what they know about the meaning of their word and write a definition on the paper. Rotate the groups until each group has visited every word.
• Show students the illustration from page 4. Invite students to describe what they see. Ask students if they know a word that means people, things, or types of entertainment that people like (attractions). Point to the word on the board and say it aloud with students. Ask them to identify what looks like an attraction in the illustration from page 4. Have a volunteer read the definition from the glossary or a dictionary, and invite students to compare the meaning of the word with their prior knowledge definition.
• Write the following sentence from page 4 on the board: The 1904 St. Louis World's Fair was a spectacle almost beyond belief. Ask students to compare their prior knowledge definition of spectacle with what they can gather from the context clues in the sentence. Have a volunteer read the definition for spectacle from the glossary or a dictionary, and have them compare that definition with the one they created from prior knowledge.
• Show students the illustration from page 4 again. Point to the family walking along the crowded promenade, and invite students to describe what else they see. Ask if they know a word that means a public place for walking that is for pleasure or to be seen by others (promenade). Point to the word on the board and practice saying it aloud with students. Have a volunteer read the definition from the glossary or a dictionary, and invite students to compare the meaning of the word with the definition they came up with from their prior knowledge.
• For tips on teaching word-attack strategies, click here.

Set the Purpose

• Have students read to find out more about the Apaches. Remind them to stop after every few pages to visualize the most important information in the story and draw on their worksheet what they visualized about it.

Student Reading

• Guide the reading: Have students read to the end of page 8. Have them draw what they visualized during one or more events of the story on their visualize worksheet. If they finish before everyone else, have them go back and reread.
• Model visualizing.
  Think-aloud: On page 6, I read about the re-creation of an Apache settlement. I pictured Apache men and women in full tribal dress, quietly going about their everyday business. I pictured the women sewing buckskins and tending to pots of food simmering over small fires. I pictured the men sitting on buffalo robes making arrows and grooming their horses.
• Invite students to share their pictures of what they visualized while reading. Have them explain their drawings aloud.
• Review the following facts from page 8 with students: The Apache people originally lived in Canada. After the year 1000, they moved south along the east side of the Rocky Mountains. By the 1400s, they were living in what is now Texas and eastern New Mexico. They numbered about 5,000. The Apaches called themselves the Inday--the People. The name Apache comes from a Zuni Indian word, apachu, which meant enemy. Spanish soldiers rode on horseback and wore metal helmets and armor.

      Explain that these are nonfiction details of the history of the Apaches that are included in a fictional story about Tom visiting the World's Fair. Discuss and have students circle the events that are the most important to correctly tell the story.

• Review with students the purpose of a timeline. Then point out the events that are the most important to correctly depict the history of the Apaches. (First, Apaches lived in Canada. Then they moved south. By the 1400s, they lived in what are now Texas and New Mexico.) Record the information on the board.
• Ask students to tell what the book is mostly about so far (the history of the Apaches). Review the sequential information on the board. Point out that the book also includes details that make the story interesting but are not important to the sequence of the history of the Apaches. Explain that details are not included in a timeline--only the most important information is listed in the most concise wording possible.
• Check for understanding: Have students read to the end of page 12. Have them visualize the information in the text as they read. Ask students to draw what they saw in their mind on their visualize worksheet. Invite students to share what they drew on their worksheet.

      Ask students to circle additional events in the book. Discuss the events as a class and write on the board those that would be most important to include on a timeline. (The Spanish began settling in the Americas in the 1500s. The Apaches obtained horses from the Spaniards, and they became nomadic hunters. Spanish settlers established towns and Catholic missions in the 1600s. The Apaches didn't want to become "mission Indians" and battled with the Spanish, Mexicans, and Americans for 300 years. In the 1700s, the Comanches in Texas pushed many Apaches farther west. Apaches began settling in New Mexico and Arizona. In 1858, Goyathlay lived in Arizona.) Allow students to make corrections to their 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 the important events of the story 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 each word and figure out its meaning.

• 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.

Reflect on the Reading Strategy

• Think-aloud: On page 17, I read about the Chiracahuas losing their valuable land on the beautiful Apache reservation. I pictured their new reservation with nothing but hot and desolate sand for as far as the eye could see. I pictured the Apaches sadly sitting in the dry, scorching desert land. I pictured a look of anger on some faces and a look of emptiness and defeat on other faces.
• Ask students to explain how the strategy of visualizing helped them understand and enjoy the story.
• Have students complete the visualize worksheet. Have volunteers discuss their pictures aloud after students finish.

Reflect on the Comprehension Skill

• Discussion: Review the sequence of events that was identified and written on the board. Practice restating the events using sequencing words (first, next, then, after that, and so on). Point out to students that it is important to use their own words to write about each event.
• Ask students to share additional story events important to the historical timeline of the Apaches that they circled in the book. Discuss the important events as a class and write them in order on the board. (Goyathlay became Geronimo. 1861-1871, Cochise was on the warpath against the Americans. 1871, Cochise surrendered, asking for a reservation in Arizona. General Howard consented, and all the Chiracahuas--including Geronimo--went to live on the Apache reservation. 1874, The Chiracahuas were forced to move to desolate San Carlos Reservation. Most stayed, but Geronimo and other Chiracahua leaders escaped. The army and the Apaches fought relentlessly. 1886, Geronimo surrendered--he and 350 other Chiracahuas were taken to Florida as prisoners of war. Transferred to Alabama, many died. 1894, surviving Chiracahuas sent to Oklahoma--still prisoners of war there today.)
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the sequence events worksheet. If time allows, discuss their answers.
• Enduring understanding: In this book, you learned about Geronimo's lifelong fight to reclaim what was once his. Now that you know this information, how does it make you feel about the American government forcing Native Americans to live on reservations? Do you think Geronimo and the Apaches were right to fight back?

Grammar and Mechanics: Dash

• Review or explain to students that a dash (--) is a punctuation mark used to indicate an interruption, emphasize information, or introduce a list of items. It is also used to clarify information within a sentence.
• Direct students to page 6 in the book. Write the following sentence on the board: "We'll meet you back here in an hour--eight o'clock sharp." Ask students how the dash is used in this instance (to clarify what time to meet back).
• Direct students to page 18. Write the following sentence on the board: He asked the lieutenant about his fellow Chiracahuas in other renegade bands--how were they faring? Ask students how the dash is used in this instance (to indicate a break in the sentence).
• Review or explain that hyphens are used in compound adjectives, such as dome-shaped on page 6 in the book. Point out that hyphens are shorter in length and are used to connect two words. Remind students not to confuse a dash with a hyphen.
• Direct students to page 17 in the book. Write the following sentences on the board: "So, where were we?--San Carlos." Ask a volunteer to come to the board and circle the dash (after the word we). Ask students how the dash is used in this instance (to indicate a break in the sentence).
• Ask a volunteer to explain how he or she knows that it is a hyphen and not a dash. Ask them to further explain the diffence between a hyphen and a dash and how they are used.

      Check for understanding: Have students find and circle the dashes on page 16. In the margins, have them write how they are used.

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

Word Work: Abbreviations

• Have students turn to page 4. Ask them to find the name St. Louis. Ask a volunteer to tell what the letters St. stand for (Saint). Review or explain that an abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase, such as Jan. for January. Ask why they think the author uses the abbreviation for St.
• Have students turn to page 5 and find two other abbreviations (Mr. and Mrs.). Ask volunteers to identify what each abbreviation is short for (Mister and Missus). Ask students why the author might have used the abbreviations for these words.
• Check for understanding: Have students turn to page 18. Ask them to identify other abbreviations from the text (U.S., Nelson A. Miles, Mr.). List them on the board. Have students use prior knowledge to identify the words or phrases they are short for (United States, Mister). Point out the A. in the middle of the name is an abbreviation for the man's middle name, perhaps short for Alexander.
• Independent practice: Introduce, explain, and have students complete the abbreviations worksheet. If time allows, discuss their responses.

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 students practice visualizing the story with someone at home and then compare the pictures they created in their minds.

Historical Fiction Writing Connection
Provide print and Internet sources for students to find out more about another Native American tribe of their choice. Have them write a story about a young man or woman learning about the tribe, finding out about many of its customs and traditions. Citing information from their research, have students include at least two informational nonfiction boxes. Instruct students to include at least three different chapters, and encourage them to add illustrations or photographs to their report. Require an error-free final copy as well as a front and back cover.

Visit Writing A-Z for a lesson and leveled materials on narrative writing.

Social Studies Connection
Have students review the text, highlighting all of the locations noted (St. Louis, Canada, France, and so on). Supply copies of world maps, and have small groups of students write each location on their maps. Facilitate a class discussion about the movement of the Apache tribe, asking such questions as: What would life for the Apaches have been like if they had stayed in Canada? Do you think the U.S. government should have kept their word to Cochise and allowed the Apaches to keep their reservation in southeastern Arizona? Discuss their opinions, and ask them to back up their ideas by referring to the text.

Skill Review
Discussion cards covering comprehension skills and strategies not explicitly taught with the book are provided as an extension activity. The following is a list of some ways these cards can be used with students:

• Use as discussion starters for literature circles.
• Have students choose one or more cards and write a response, either as an essay or a journal entry.
• Distribute before reading the book and have students use one of the questions as a purpose for reading.
• Cut apart and use the cards as game cards with a board game.
• Conduct a class discussion as a review before the book quiz.