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The Spelling Bee CHARACTER AND PLOT 5.1.1PRIOR KNOWLEDGE SUMMARY The story is about Kate, a fifth grader with dyslexia.. LESSON VOCABULARY acquainted assignment essential expanded gua

The Spelling Bee CHARACTER AND PLOT 5.1.1

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

SUMMARY The story is about Kate, a fifth

grader with dyslexia After being tested and

diagnosed, Kate had to give up going to camp

with her friends over the summer, and instead

worked on improving her reading Her effort

paid off when she excelled at the school

spelling bee

LESSON VOCABULARY

acquainted assignment

essential expanded

guaranteed procedures

reputation worshipped

INTRODUCE THE BOOK

INTRODUCE THE TITLE AND AUTHOR Discuss

with students the title and the author of The

Spelling Bee Based on the title, ask students

what kind of information they think this book

will provide If students know what a spelling

bee is, ask them to share what they know

Ask why the author might have given the book

this title

BUILD BACKGROUND Ask students if they’ve

ever been frustrated or had a hard time with

something How did they feel? How did they

handle this challenge? Did they come up with

a plan to make things better? How well did it

work? Discuss with students the meaning of

the word courageous How might courage help

us when we face challenges?

PREVIEW/USE TEXT FEATURES Invite students

to look at the pictures in the book Ask: Who

is the main character? Have students look

on pages 12–13 Ask: What is the main

character doing? Why does she seem sad?

Have students look through to the end of

the book Ask them how they think this story

will end

READ THE BOOK

SET PURPOSE Have students set a purpose

for reading The Spelling Bee You may guide

students by suggesting that they think about questions they have about the main character

or about the title itself

STRATEGY SUPPORT: PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

As students read the book, encourage them

to connect the text to their own lives For example, after reading page 3, you may say:

“This reminds me of a time I got in trouble for talking in class.” Making these connections can help students better understand the characters in a story and their motivations

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS PAGES 3–7 What did you learn about Kate’s character through her interactions with Mr

Harper? (She’s a chatterbox; she has trouble

following rules; she wants to try hard; she’s worked hard this year.)

PAGES 12–13 How did you feel when you read about Kate having to stay home from camp?

(felt bad that Kate couldn’t be with her friends)

PAGE 16 Think about challenges in your own life How does this help you understand what

Kate was going through? (Possible response:

Students may suggest, that like Kate, they’ve felt frustrated, nervous, excited.)

PAGE 19 What do you think the climax, or high point, of the story is? The resolution, or

outcome? (Climax: When Kate is asked to spell

“pneumonia.” Resolution: After the first round when Kate feels that she can do anything she puts her mind to.)

To help reinforce comprehension, invite students to retell the story in their own words

The Spelling Bee

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REVISIT THE BOOK

READER RESPONSE

1 He is strict but caring; contributed by

emphasizing that Kate can overcome her

reading difficulties if she didn’t become

distracted

2 Know: Dyslexia is a disorder that causes

people to have difficulty reading; Want to

know: Possible response: Whether scientists

are working to find a cure for it

3 Assign is a verb; assignment is a noun

Assign means “to give as a share; allot,”

while assignment means “something

assigned.” Sentences will vary

4 Possible responses: Kate will do well,

because of all her hard work Or: Her

dyslexia may cause her to lose

EXTEND UNDERSTANDING Tell students that

when a story starts in the present and then

looks back to something that happened

previ-ously, it is called a flashback Ask students

what happens on page 9 Ask students where

the flashback sequence ends (Page 16)

What did students learn in the flashback that

helped them understand more about Kate and

her challenges?

RESPONSE OPTIONS

WRITING AND SPEAKING Use the vocabulary

words from the book and hold a class spelling

bee Afterward, have students write how they

felt about the experience Were they nervous

performing in front of the class?

WORD WORK Look up the word essential in the

dictionary What is its base? Have students

look at the definition of essence (The qualities

of a thing that give it its identity; indispensable

properties.) Ask students to think about things

that are essential to them Are these things

part of their essence, or identity? How?

SOCIAL STUDIES

CONNECTION

Watch a portion of the

documentary movie,

Spellbound, to learn more about the

national spelling bee and how contestants

prepare for the challenge

TEACH/REVIEW VOCABULARY

Review the vocabulary words with students

Have them write the words and underline

the base word in each word except essential

Ask students how the meaning of the word

essential is similar to the concept of a base

word

TARGET SKILL AND STRATEGY CHARACTER AND PLOT Remind students

that the plot is the pattern of events in

the story As they read the story, have them create story maps to track the events in the story Make sure students understand that there is a shift in time, or flashback, that begins on page 9

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Remind students

that prior knowledge is what they already

know about a topic Tell students that when they read a story, they can think about how it connects to their lives to help them understand more about the characters and the plot Have students brainstorm and write down notes about challenges that they, friends, or characters in other books have faced Invite students to share their findings

ADDITIONAL SKILL INSTRUCTION GRAPHIC SOURCES Remind students that

graphic sources can include charts, maps,

drawings, posters, and diagrams They can

be used to help their understanding of the character and the plot As students read, have them create two character webs, one for Kate and one for Mr Harper

Skill Work

The Spelling Bee 13

Character and Plot

• The plot is an organized sequence of events

• A character is a person who takes part in the events of a story

1 Name some main characters in The Spelling Bee.

2 How does The Spelling Bee begin?

3 What is the problem in the story?

4 What do we learn in flashback?

5 What is the climax?

6 What is the resolution?

The Spelling Bee

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Vocabulary

Directions In each of the following sentences, underline the synonym for the vocabulary word in ( )

Note: Some synonyms may include more than one word

Check the Words You Know

acquainted essential guaranteed reputation

assignment expanded procedures worshipped

1 Our teacher said it was necessary to bring our coats on the hike (essential)

2 Paulo was friendly with all his neighbors (acquainted)

3 Alice adored her new puppy (worshipped)

4 “The project our teacher gave out yesterday was easy!” exclaimed Jasper (assignment)

5 He had a good opinion of people about him (reputation)

6 The two recipes showed different processes for making the same cookies (procedures)

7 I made sure I had a chance for a good grade by studying hard (guaranteed)

8 Reading that book stretched my horizons (expanded)

Directions Select two vocabulary words and use each in a sentence below.

9

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The Spelling Bee