Overview

Lesson Procedure

55-65 minutes of class time across 5 phases.

1. Warm-Up5-10 minutes
2. Direct Instruction15 minutes
3. Guided Practice15 minutes
4. Independent Practice15 minutes
5. Closure5-10 minutes

1. Warm-Up5-10 minutes

   Warm-Up Prompt

   "Read the short article below. Give each of its four paragraphs a label of one or two words that names its job. Then decide: what would a reader miss if paragraph 2 were cut?"

   1Every school morning last fall, about 60 students rode bikes to Hillview Middle School, but the rack by the front door held only 24 bikes. Late riders locked their bikes to the fence, the flagpole and even the stair railing, and on rainy days the front hallway filled with wet tires.

   2The seventh-grade student council decided to find out why the problem kept growing. A survey of 120 students showed that many had started riding after the city painted a new bike lane on Oak Street in September.

   3The council tried two fixes. First, they asked riders to park bikes head to tail, which fit only four more bikes. Then they wrote a letter to the principal and the parent club asking for a second rack beside the gym.

   4In January, the parent club paid for a 40-bike rack. Now every bike has a spot, the railing is clear, and the council has a new goal: a roof over both racks before next winter.

   Collect labels on the board. Students usually arrive at something like problem, cause, fixes, result. Tell them this is a structure: the plan an author uses to organize a text. Each paragraph here is also a section, a part of the text with one job. Then ask about paragraph 2. Without it, the article still makes sense, but the reader never learns why there were suddenly too many bikes, so the fixes in paragraph 3 look like guesses instead of a plan. That is the question RI.7.5 asks about every section: what does it add to the whole, and what would the reader lose without it?

2. Direct Instruction15 minutes

   Teach six terms and leave them on the board:

   • Structure: the way an author organizes a whole text. Common structures are chronological (time order), compare and contrast, cause and effect, problem and solution, and claim and examples (Diagram 2).
   • Major section: a large part of a text that does one job. A section can be one paragraph or several; in a text without headings, look for a change in time, place, topic or purpose.
   • Signal words: transitions that show how parts connect, such as "the next morning" (time), "because" (cause) or "for example" (an example).
   • Contribute to the whole: what a section adds that the text needs. Test it by imagining the text without that section.
   • Development of ideas: how an idea grows or changes from section to section, for example from a simple belief to a deeper one.
   • Reflection: a moment when the writer steps outside the events to say what they mean.

   Introduce the text. Louis Agassiz (1807-1873) was a Swiss-born scientist who taught at Harvard University and started its Museum of Comparative Zoology. Samuel H. Scudder (1837-1911) arrived in his laboratory in the late 1850s wanting to study insects, and he later became a leading American expert on them. In 1874, the year after Agassiz died, Scudder wrote this account of his first days as a student. Words to know for Passage 1: laboratory (a room for scientific work), natural history (the study of plants and animals), antecedents (background), zoology (the study of animals), purposed (intended), specimens (animals or plants kept for study), haemulon (a kind of fish, often called a grunt), explicit (clear and exact), naturalist (a scientist who studies nature), stoppers and corks (plugs for jars), begrimed (made dirty), entomology (the study of insects), ichthyology (the study of fishes), infectious (catching, spreading to others), aversion (dislike), sacred precincts (holy grounds; Scudder is joking), commend itself (appeal), ardent (eager) and eau-de-Cologne (a perfume). "A very ancient and fishlike smell" is a line from Shakespeare's play The Tempest.

   1It was more than fifteen years ago [from 1874] that I entered the laboratory of Professor Agassiz, and told him I had enrolled my name in the Scientific School as a student of natural history. He asked me a few questions about my object in coming, my antecedents generally, the mode in which I afterwards proposed to use the knowledge I might acquire, and, finally, whether I wished to study any special branch. To the latter I replied that, while I wished to be well grounded in all departments of zoology, I purposed to devote myself specially to insects.

   2'When do you wish to begin?' he asked.

   3'Now,' I replied.

   4This seemed to please him, and with an energetic 'Very well!' he reached from a shelf a huge jar of specimens in yellow alcohol.

   5'Take this fish,' said he, 'and look at it; we call it a haemulon; by and by I will ask what you have seen.'

   6With that he left me, but in a moment returned with explicit instructions as to the care of the object entrusted to me.

   7'No man is fit to be a naturalist,' said he, 'who does not know how to take care of specimens.'

   8I was to keep the fish before me in a tin tray, and occasionally moisten the surface with alcohol from the jar, always taking care to replace the stopper tightly. Those were not the days of ground-glass stoppers and elegantly shaped exhibition jars; all the old students will recall the huge neckless glass bottles with their leaky, wax-besmeared corks, half eaten by insects, and begrimed with cellar dust. Entomology was a cleaner science than ichthyology, but the example of the Professor, who had unhesitatingly plunged to the bottom of the jar to produce the fish, was infectious; and though this alcohol had 'a very ancient and fishlike smell,' I really dared not show any aversion within these sacred precincts, and treated the alcohol as though it were pure water. Still I was conscious of a passing feeling of disappointment, for gazing at a fish did not commend itself to an ardent entomologist. My friends at home, too, were annoyed, when they discovered that no amount of eau-de-Cologne would drown the perfume which haunted me like a shadow.

   • Overall structure: chronological order

     Passage 1 moves from Scudder's arrival (paragraph 1) to the question "'When do you wish to begin?'" and his answer "'Now,'" to the jar of specimens, to Agassiz leaving and coming back "in a moment." How is the account organized, and what signals it?

     Result: The account is chronological: it tells the lesson in the order it happened. The signals are small time moves between paragraphs: the question and the answer, "With that he left me," "in a moment returned." Naming the structure is only step one; RI.7.5 then asks what each part does.

   • The job of a section: setting a starting point

     Paragraph 8 ends Passage 1: "gazing at a fish did not commend itself to an ardent entomologist," and the smell "haunted me like a shadow." What does this paragraph contribute to the whole account?

     Result: It sets a starting point. Scudder wants to study insects, the fish smells, and he is disappointed. A reader who knows where he starts can measure every later change in his attitude. Without this paragraph, the account would lose the before in its before-and-after.

   • How a section begins an idea

     In paragraph 7, Agassiz says, "'No man is fit to be a naturalist,' said he, 'who does not know how to take care of specimens.'" What idea does Section 1 begin to develop?

     Result: The first section introduces the idea that becoming a scientist is a discipline, not a quick look: it starts with patient care for one object. Scudder does not yet know what the fish will teach him, and neither does the reader. The later sections build on this idea step by step.

   • A different structure: problem and solution

     The bike rack article (warm-up) has four paragraphs: too many bikes, a survey that finds the cause, two fixes, and a new rack. How does its order develop its idea?

     Result: The structure is problem and solution, with a cause section in the middle. The order makes the idea clear: the council solved the problem because it studied the cause first. Moving the new rack to the first paragraph would give away the ending and hide how the students worked it out.

   Structure, section, contribution, development. Show Diagram 1, the structure map, and fill in the first box of the bottom row together. Model the four moves: name the structure, mark where each section starts, say what the section adds to the whole, and say how the idea has changed by the end of it. Give students one sentence frame: "Section ___ (paragraphs ___) shows ___. Without it, the reader would not know ___, and the idea that ___ would not develop." Keep Diagram 2 posted as a reference for signal words.

3. Guided Practice15 minutes

   Read Passages 2 and 3 aloud. They follow Passage 1 directly. Words to know: resuscitate (bring back to life), fainting-fit (a faint), steadfast (steady), mute (silent), loathsome and hideous (disgusting, ugly), ghastly (horrible), despair (loss of hope), interdicted (forbidden), rehearsal (retelling), gill-arches (the curved bones that hold a fish's gills), operculum (the flap that covers the gills), lateral line (a line of sense organs along a fish's side), spinous (spiny), compressed (flattened), conspicuous (easy to notice), piqued (annoyed), mortified (embarrassed), with a will (with determination), just (fair), disconcerting (upsetting), perplexities (puzzles) and distracted (unable to think clearly).

   1In ten minutes I had seen all that could be seen in that fish, and started in search of the Professor--who had, however, left the Museum; and when I returned, after lingering over some of the odd animals stored in the upper apartment, my specimen was dry all over. I dashed the fluid over the fish as if to resuscitate the beast from a fainting-fit, and looked with anxiety for a return of the normal sloppy appearance. This little excitement over, nothing was to be done but to return to a steadfast gaze at my mute companion. Half an hour passed--an hour--another hour; the fish began to look loathsome. I turned it over and around; looked it in the face--ghastly, from behind, beneath, above, sideways, at a three-quarters' view--just as ghastly. I was in despair; at an early hour I concluded that lunch was necessary; so, with infinite relief, the fish was carefully replaced in the jar, and for an hour I was free.

   2On my return, I learned that Professor Agassiz had been at the Museum, but had gone, and would not return for several hours. My fellow-students were too busy to be disturbed by continued conversation. Slowly I drew forth that hideous fish, and with a feeling of desperation again looked at it. I might not use a magnifying-glass; instruments of all kinds were interdicted. My two hands, my two eyes, and the fish: it seemed a most limited field. I pushed my finger down its throat to feel how sharp the teeth were. I began to count the scales in the different rows, until I was convinced that that was nonsense. At last a happy thought struck me--I would draw the fish; and now with surprise I began to discover new features in the creature. Just then the Professor returned.

   3'That is right,' said he; 'a pencil is one of the best of eyes. I am glad to notice, too, that you keep your specimen wet, and your bottle corked.'

   1With these encouraging words, he added:

   2'Well, what is it like?'

   3He listened attentively to my brief rehearsal of the structure of parts whose names were still unknown to me: the fringed gill-arches and movable operculum; the pores of the head, fleshy lips and lidless eyes; the lateral line, the spinous fins and forked tail; the compressed and arched body. When I had finished, he waited as if expecting more, and then, with an air of disappointment:

   4'You have not looked very carefully; why,' he continued more earnestly,' you haven't even seen one of the most conspicuous features of the animal, which is as plainly before your eyes as the fish itself; look again, look again!' and he left me to my misery.

   5I was piqued; I was mortified. Still more of that wretched fish! But now I set myself to my task with a will, and discovered one new thing after another, until I saw how just the Professor's criticism had been. The afternoon passed quickly; and when, toward its close, the Professor inquired:

   6'Do you see it yet?'

   7'No,' I replied, 'I am certain I do not, but I see how little I saw before.'

   8'That is next best,' said he, earnestly, 'but I won't hear you now; put away your fish and go home; perhaps you will be ready with a better answer in the morning. I will examine you before you look at the fish.'

   9This was disconcerting. Not only must I think of my fish all night, studying, without the object before me, what this unknown but most visible feature might be; but also, without reviewing my new discoveries, I must give an exact account of them the next day. I had a bad memory; so I walked home by Charles River in a distracted state, with my two perplexities.

   Pairs work through four questions on the structure map, one at a time. Share the teacher note after pairs have tried:

   1. Where does Section 2 begin, and how do you know? Teacher note: at "In ten minutes I had seen all that could be seen in that fish" (Passage 2, paragraph 1). Agassiz has left, the setting is the same, but the time jumps and a new stage starts: Scudder alone with the fish. The sentence also states a belief that the rest of the section will prove wrong.
   2. What is the turning point of Section 2? Teacher note: "At last a happy thought struck me--I would draw the fish; and now with surprise I began to discover new features in the creature" (paragraph 2). Before it, every sentence is about boredom and disgust; after it, Scudder discovers things. Agassiz's reply, "a pencil is one of the best of eyes" (paragraph 3), names the method.
   3. How does the pace of time change from Section 2 to Section 3, and why? Teacher note: in Section 2, time crawls while Scudder is bored and disgusted ("Half an hour passed--an hour--another hour"). Later, in Section 3, "The afternoon passed quickly." The time signals do more than keep order: their pace shows how his attitude toward the task has changed.
   4. How has the idea of looking changed by the middle of Section 3? Teacher note: Scudder's answer, "'I see how little I saw before'" (paragraph 7), shows a new idea: seeing well starts with knowing what you have missed. In Section 1 looking seemed simple; now it is hard work. Agassiz calls this answer "next best."
4. Independent Practice15 minutes

   Students read Passages 4 and 5 on their own. They follow Passage 3 directly and end the account. Words to know: cordial (warm and friendly), reassuring (comforting), discoursed (talked at length), ventured (dared), devices (plans; "left to my own devices" means left to work alone), catalogue (a list), artificial aid (a tool such as a magnifying glass), injunction (an order), entomological (about insects), subsequent (later), legacy (something handed down), inestimable (too great to measure), outlandish (very strange), mortal combat (a fight to the death), hydra-headed (many-headed, like a monster from Greek myth), grotesque (strange and ugly), bidden (told), resemblances (ways things are alike), legion (a huge number), dissection (cutting an animal open to study it), frame-work (skeleton), exhortation (strong urging), general law (a rule that explains many facts) and reluctance (unwillingness).

   1The cordial greeting from the Professor the next morning was reassuring; here was a man who seemed to be quite as anxious as I that I should see for myself what he saw.

   2'Do you perhaps mean,' I asked, 'that the fish has symmetrical sides with paired organs?'

   3His thoroughly pleased 'Of course! of course!' repaid the wakeful hours of the previous night. After he had discoursed most happily and enthusiastically--as he always did-upon the importance of this point, I ventured to ask what I should do next.

   4'Oh, look at your fish!' he said, and left me again to my own devices. In a little more than an hour he returned, and heard my new catalogue.

   5'That is good, that is good!' he repeated; 'but that is not all; go on;' and so for three long days he placed that fish before my eyes, forbidding me to look at anything else, or to use any artificial aid. 'Look, look, look,' was his repeated injunction.

   6This was the best entomological lesson I ever had--a lesson whose influence has extended to the details of every subsequent study; a legacy the Professor has left to me, as he has left it to many others, of inestimable value, which we could not buy, with which we cannot part.

   1A year afterward, some of us were amusing ourselves with chalking outlandish beasts on the Museum blackboard. We drew prancing starfishes; frogs in mortal combat; hydra-headed worms; stately crawfishes, standing on their tails, bearing aloft umbrellas; and grotesque fishes with gaping mouths and staring eyes. The Professor came in shortly after, and was as amused as any at our experiments. He looked at the fishes.

   2'Haemulons, every one of them,' he said; 'Mr.---- drew them.'

   3True; and to this day, if I attempt a fish, I can draw nothing but haemulons.

   4The fourth day, a second fish of the same group was placed beside the first, and I was bidden to point out the resemblances and differences between the two; another and another followed, until the entire family lay before me, and a whole legion of jars covered the table and surrounding shelves; the odor had become a pleasant perfume; and even now, the sight of an old, six-inch, worm-eaten cork brings fragrant memories.

   5The whole group of haemulons was thus brought in review; and, whether engaged upon the dissection of the internal organs, the preparation and examination of the bony frame-work, or the description of the various parts, Agassiz's training in the method of observing facts and their orderly arrangement was ever accompanied by the urgent exhortation not to be content with them.

   6'Facts are stupid things,' he would say, 'until brought into connection with some general law.'

   7At the end of eight months, it was almost with reluctance that I left these friends and turned to insects; but what I had gained by this outside experience has been of greater value than years of later investigation in my favorite groups.

   On the handout, students (1) mark every time signal in Passages 4 and 5; (2) find one event that is not told in time order and write the two signal words that show it; (3) draw a line where they think Section 4 ends and Section 5 begins, and write one sentence defending the choice; (4) write one sentence for each passage that begins "This section adds ..." The quiz uses Passages 2-5.

5. Closure5-10 minutes

   Exit ticket: (1) In one sentence, explain the difference between naming a text's structure and analyzing it. (2) Choose one section of Scudder's account and finish the frame: "Without this section, the reader would not know ___."

   Teacher note on the text and its people: Scudder wrote this account about fifteen years after the events, so the dialogue is his memory of what was said, not a record. The bracketed words "[from 1874]" in the first sentence were added by the editor, Lane Cooper, to date the story; they are not an omission. The fish was a museum specimen kept in alcohol. Agassiz is honored here as a teacher of observation, but he also held views that science has rejected. He opposed Darwin's theory of evolution, and he promoted polygenism, the false idea that human races had separate origins, which he used to argue that some races were superior to others. These passages do not touch those topics, but students who research him will meet them. The account is often retold as "Look at Your Fish"; students may find other versions online that change or shorten the wording, so they should quote only from the passages on this page.

   For homework: students read Passage 6, printed below. It is part of a letter that Addison Emery Verrill (1839-1926), another of Agassiz's students who later taught zoology at Yale, wrote to Lane Cooper for the same book. It describes Agassiz's teaching in a different way. Words to know: methods of instruction (ways of teaching), destitute (completely without), a soft snap (old slang for an easy job), mull over (think about slowly), unfit (not suited), individualistic (fitted to each person), mounted (prepared for display), anatomy (the structure of a body), mutilated (badly damaged), loon (a diving water bird), heron (a tall wading bird), vicinity (the nearby area), incubated (kept warm so they develop), embryos (young animals developing inside eggs) and embryology (the study of embryos). Hyatt is Alpheus Hyatt, a fellow student who became a scientist of fossils.

   1In regard to the methods of instruction of Agassiz I must say that so far as I saw and experienced he had no regular or fixed method, except that his plan was to make young students depend on natural objects rather than on statements in books. To that end he treated each one of his new students differently, according to the amount of knowledge and experience that the student had previously acquired, and often in line with what the student had done before. Not infrequently young men came to him who were utterly destitute of any knowledge or ability to study natural science, or zoology in particular, but had an idea that it would be a 'soft snap,' as the boys say. In such cases he often did give them a lot of mixed stuff to mull over, to see what they could do, and also to discourage those that seemed unfit. [...] In fact, his treatment was highly and essentially individualistic.

   2In my own case, he questioned me closely as to what I had previously done and learned. He found I had made collections of birds, mammals, plants, etc., and had mounted and identified them for several years, and in that way was not a beginner exactly. [...] He had an idea, of course, that though I had collected and mounted birds, and knew their names and habits, I probably knew little about their anatomy. At any rate the first thing he did was to give me a badly mutilated old loon, from old alcohol, telling me to prepare the skeleton. This I did so well and so quickly that he expressed regret that he had not given me some better bird with unbroken bones. He gave me next a blue heron, but it being spring, I 'went collecting' in the vicinity, following my usual inclination, before breakfast and after laboratory hours, and brought in a number of incubated birds'-eggs. When Agassiz came into the laboratory, I was extracting and preserving the embryos, being interested in embryology. He at once exclaimed that he was delighted, and told me to put aside the skeletons and go right on with collecting and preparing embryo birds, and making drawings, etc. [...]

   3In the case of Hyatt, who went there just before I did, I think he was kept working over a lot of mixed fish skeletons, more or less broken, to 'see what he could make of them.' [...] Hyatt, however, had never done anything in zoology or botany before he went to Agassiz and he found it hard to get a beginning, and so lost time. I mention these cases to show how different his methods were in different cases.

Differentiation Strategies

Assessment Guidance

1. Question 1 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   A student's report on volcanoes has three sections: what a volcano is, why volcanoes erupt, and what happens to nearby towns after an eruption. What does the middle section contribute to the whole report?

   AIt gives the dates of famous eruptions in time order. BIt explains the causes, linking the definition to the effects. CIt compares volcanoes with earthquakes and floods. DIt states the writer's own opinion about living near volcanoes.

2. Question 2 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Which question helps a reader analyze how a section contributes to the development of the ideas, rather than only summarize it?

   AHow many paragraphs and sentences does this section have? BWhich new words appear in this section? CWhat happens first in this section? DWhat new part of the main idea does this section add?

3. Question 3 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   A science article begins, "Many people think bats are blind." It then gives three examples of how bats see and hunt, and ends, "Bats are not blind at all." Which structure does it use?

   AA claim followed by examples that test it BChronological order from morning to night CProblem and solution in a laboratory DCause and effect about a disease

4. Question 4 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   In Passage 2, paragraph 1, Scudder finds his fish "dry all over" and dashes "the fluid over the fish as if to resuscitate the beast from a fainting-fit." How does this small event connect to other sections?

   AIt shows that the fish was still alive, which Agassiz explains to him later. BIt proves that Scudder had already lost interest in science. CIt calls back the care rules of Passage 1 and sets up Agassiz's praise. DIt explains why Agassiz left the Museum for several hours.

5. Question 5 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Passage 2, paragraph 2, says, "My two hands, my two eyes, and the fish: it seemed a most limited field." What does this sentence do in the structure of Section 2?

   AIt ends the section by stating the lesson Scudder has finally learned. BIt states the limit that his idea of drawing is about to overcome. CIt starts a flashback to Scudder's childhood interest in fish. DIt changes the account from time order to compare and contrast.

6. Question 6 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   In Passage 3, paragraph 3, Scudder gives a long list of the parts he reported, from "the fringed gill-arches" to "the compressed and arched body." Why does the length of this list matter to the section?

   AIt proves that Scudder already knew the names of every fish part. BIt shows that Agassiz was tired of listening to his students. CIt lets the reader skip the dull details of the first day. DIt makes the reader expect praise, so the criticism lands harder.

7. Question 7 of 20 · Short Answer

   Reread the last paragraph of Passage 3 ("This was disconcerting ..."). Explain how this paragraph ends Section 3 and what it adds to the idea of learning to look.

   Show model answer

8. Question 8 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Which sentence from Passage 3 marks the point where Scudder's attitude toward the task changes from hurt feelings to effort?

   A"But now I set myself to my task with a will" B"He listened attentively to my brief rehearsal" C"'Well, what is it like?'" D"'That is next best,' said he, earnestly"

9. Question 9 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Passage 4, paragraph 2, gives Scudder's answer: "that the fish has symmetrical sides with paired organs." What does this answer do for the structure of the account?

   AIt begins a new topic that has nothing to do with the first day. BIt proves that Agassiz had asked an unfair question. CIt answers the question left open at the end of Section 3. DIt moves the account back to the day Scudder first arrived.

10. Question 10 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Agassiz's command appears as "look again, look again!" (Passage 3), "Oh, look at your fish!" (Passage 4, paragraph 4) and "'Look, look, look'" (Passage 4, paragraph 5). How does this repetition help the structure?

    AIt shows that Agassiz forgot what he had told Scudder the day before. BIt ties the stages together and keeps the main idea in front of the reader. CIt marks the exact moment when each day of the lesson ended. DIt shows that the account is organized as a numbered list of Agassiz's sayings.

11. Question 11 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Passage 4 ends with a paragraph that begins, "This was the best entomological lesson I ever had." Why is this reflection placed right after the three days of looking?

    AIt gives a new event that the reader needs before the fourth day. BIt shows that Scudder was still angry about the long days of work. CIt explains how the Professor chose the haemulon for new students. DIt steps out of the story to state the value of what just ended.

12. Question 12 of 20 · Short Answer

    Passage 4, paragraph 6, calls the fish lesson "the best entomological lesson I ever had." Using a detail from Passage 1, explain why that phrase is surprising and how it connects the end of this section to the beginning of the account.

    Show model answer

13. Question 13 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    In Passage 5, the blackboard story happens "A year afterward" but is told before "The fourth day." What is the effect of placing it there?

    AIt shows at once how deeply the lesson stuck, before the story goes on. BIt shows that the lesson ended in failure after one year of work. CIt shows that the students had stopped looking at real specimens. DIt shows that Scudder forgot the order of events when he wrote it.

14. Question 14 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Which detail in Passage 5 answers the complaint about the smell in Passage 1?

    A"grotesque fishes with gaping mouths and staring eyes" B"a whole legion of jars covered the table" C"the odor had become a pleasant perfume" D"the preparation and examination of the bony frame-work"

15. Question 15 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Passage 5, paragraphs 4 and 5, move from one fish to "the resemblances and differences between the two" and then to "the whole group of haemulons." How does this part develop the idea of the account?

    AIt shows that Agassiz gave up on the method of looking at one fish. BIt shows that Scudder had to start over because he failed the first test. CIt shows that more jars made the laboratory harder to work in. DIt shows looking at one object growing into comparing many of them.

16. Question 16 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Near the end of the account, Agassiz says, "'Facts are stupid things,' he would say, 'until brought into connection with some general law.'" What does this quotation add to the development of the ideas?

    AIt shows that Agassiz thought careful observing was a waste of time. BIt adds a last step: facts matter only when they are connected. CIt repeats the exact lesson from the first morning in Passage 1. DIt shows that Scudder disagreed with his teacher in the end.

17. Question 17 of 20 · Short Answer

    Explain how the last paragraph of Passage 5 works as a conclusion to the whole account. Connect it to at least one detail from an earlier section.

    Show model answer

18. Question 18 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    The account opens, "It was more than fifteen years ago," and its last sentence says the fish lesson was worth more "than years of later investigation." What do this opening and this ending do for the structure of the whole account?

    AThey show that the lesson with the single fish lasted fifteen years. BThey frame the story as a look back by a Scudder who knows its value. CThey show that Scudder wrote down each part on the day it happened. DThey turn the account into a comparison between two different teachers.

19. Question 19 of 20 · Short Answer

    Scudder could have ended his account with the reflection at the end of Passage 4. Explain what Passage 5 adds that the account would lose without it. Use at least two quotations from Passage 5.

    Show model answer

20. Question 20 of 20 · Short Answer

    Why is chronological order a good structure for the idea Scudder wants to develop? Explain, using evidence from at least two sections.

    Show model answer

These standards connect to RI.7.5: prerequisites to review first, parallel standards at the same level, and next steps that build on it.

Standard text: Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy. © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.