Unit 6: Exploration

Find the central idea
 Being a clown isn't all fun and games.  Rodeo clowns expose themselves to great danger every time they perform.  When cowboys dismount or are bucked off of bulls at riding competitions, rodeo clowns jump in front of the bulls and motion wildly to get their attention.  In this way rodeo clowns provide an alternate target, and in doing so protect the rider.  So you see, sometimes clowning around can be serious business

• Being a clown isn't all fun and games.
• Rodeo clowns protect cowboys by putting themselves in danger.
• Rodeos are exciting.
• Clowns are good at riding bulls.

Tags

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer. Soccer players learn how to dribble and pass the ball. They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score. Most importantly, soccer players learn how to work together with their teammates.
What is the central idea?

• They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score.
• Soccer players learn how to dribble.
• Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.2

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

What is the Central Idea of the passage?
What's that humming sound?  Could it be hummingbird, the only bird capable of backward flight?  Hummingbirds have many unique flight habits that distinguish them from other birds.  Most birds flap their wings up and down to fly, but the hummingbird moves its wings forward and backward very rapidly in a figure eight pattern.  This allows the hummingbird to hover in position, fly upside down, and move about very rapidly.  And while other birds have to push off with their feet to begin flying, and work their ways up to their top speeds, the hummingbird can both start flying at maximum speed and stop flying instantaneously.  After you've seen a hummingbird in flight, it's unlikely that you'll mistake them for another bird.

• Birds and hummingbirds are very different.
• Hummingbirds make a humming sound.
• Hummingbirds wings fly in figure eight patterns.
• The hummingbird flys in a totally unique and unusual way.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.2

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

What text structure would a Venn Diagram go with?

• Description and List
• Cause and Effect
• Question and Answer
• Compare and Contrast

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.5

CCSS.RI.5.5

CCSS.RI.6.5

CCSS.RI.7.5

CCSS.RI.8.5

Ice-cream is a delicious frozen treat that comes in a many different colors and flavors.  Two of my favorite flavors are strawberry and chocolate.  Though both of these flavors are delicious, strawberry may contain pieces of fruit while chocolate usually will not.  Even though more chocolate ice-cream is sold across the country annually than strawberry, each flavor tastes great inside of a milk shake. 

• Cause and Effect
• Chronological
• Problem solution
• Compare/Contrast

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.5

CCSS.RI.5.5

CCSS.RI.6.5

CCSS.RI.7.5

CCSS.RI.8.5

Wild chimpanzees are rapidly disappearing. Some people are trying to solve this problem. Otherwise, chimpanzees may one day exist only in zoos. People are trying to save the rain forests and woodlands where the chimps live from being cut down. It will take many people working together to solve this problem

• Compare/Contrast
• Chronological
• Problem/Solution
• Sequence/Order of Importance

Tags

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.6.3

CCSS.W.6.2A

When Americans settled the Midwest, they were challenged by tough soils that resisted their cast iron plows. The Midwest contains some of the richest soil in the world, yet many settlers concluded that the soil was unsuitable for farming because they couldn't break ground. John Deere's steel plow changed all of that. Deere's plow was stronger and lighter than the iron plows people had used up until then. This allowed settlers to open up the tough but rich soil in the Midwest and unlock its agricultural potential. His invention became known as "The Plow that Broke the Plains," and it helped American farmers feed the world.

• Cause/Effect
• Problem/Solution
• Sequence/Order of Importance
• Compare/Contrast

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.5

CCSS.RI.5.5

CCSS.RI.6.5

CCSS.RI.7.5

CCSS.RI.8.5

You may not know who Mark Zuckerberg is but I bet you know about Facebook. Zuckerberg and his roommates launched Facebook from their college dormitory at Harvard. Facebook started off as just a "Harvard thing," but Zuckerberg and roommates spread it to other universities like Stanford, Dartmouth, and NYU. As Facebook grew in size and popularity, Zuckerberg took investments but resisted buyout offers. The founders maintained control and in 2012 Facebook became a publically traded company. Today Facebook is one of the world’s most popular websites and Zuckerberg is the CEO. Facebook has over one billion users and Zuckerberg is one of the 25 richest people in America. That’s not too bad for a college dropout. 

• Chronological
• Sequence/Order of Importance
• Cause/Effect
• Problem/Solution

Tags

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.6.3

Pop out (remove) the egg yolks to a small bowl and mash with a fork. Add mayonnaise, mustard powder, vinegar, salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Fill the empty egg white shells with the mixture and sprinkle lightly with paprika.  Cover lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to one day before serving.  What s the text structure?

• Sequence
• Cause and Effect
• Chronological
• Problem and Solution

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.3

CCSS.RI.6.3

CCSS.RI.6.5

CCSS.RI.7.3

CCSS.RI.7.5

"My mom got upset with me because I was up past my bedtime"
How many prepositions are there? 

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 0

Tags

CCSS.L.1.1G

CCSS.L.3.1H

CCSS.L.5.1A

CCSS.L.5.1E