Spelling Words:

Essential Question:
How do traditions
connect people?

The Game of Silence

Unit 6 Week 1

Words with en/in/on

shaken
sunken
eleven
woven

Comprehension Strategy:

Genre:

widen

Reread

Historical Fiction

ridden

Good readers reread sentences or paragraphs

that they do not understand. Stop and think
about what you already know and make
connections as you reread the text. When you
encounter new and challenging information, reread
that section. You may need to reread more than
once to make sure you understand. Rereading
will also help you remember the most important
ideas and details in a historical fiction text.

- takes place in the

past
- includes realistic
characters, events, and
settings
- may include real people
and actual events
- includes dialogue

proven

Comprehension Skill:

Writing:

Theme

Word Choice

The theme is the central message or lesson

that an author wants readers to understand.
The theme is often implied rather than
stated directly. To identify the theme, pay
close attention to what characters say and
feel and how they resolve problems. Keep
track of important ideas, messages, or
lessons and explain how they are conveyed
through the details in the text.

Good writers use

strong, descriptive
words to make their
writing interesting and
clear. Strong words
help the reader picture
what is happening.
They show the action
rather than tell.

often
robin
cousin
raisin
muffin
penguin
button
reason
cotton
wagon
dragon
common
skeleton
Review Words:
uncle
double
paddle

Grammar:
Adverbs

An adverb is a word that tells more

about a verb. Adverbs tell when,
where, or how an action takes place.
Adverbs can be written before or after
the verbs they describe. Many adverbs
end in ly. Adverbs that end in ly
tell how. Adverbs that tell when
include soon, often, usually, and never.
Adverbs such as up, down, here, and
there tell where.

Good vs. Well

Good is an adjective and should be

used only to modify nouns. Well is an
adverb when it is used to modify
verbs.

Vocabulary Strategy:

Connotation & Denotation

The words you read often have
meanings or effects beyond the
definitions listed in dictionaries.
A words denotation is the literal
definition of a word that you
would find in a dictionary. A
words connotation is the feeling
of a word or the effect that it
has on the reader. It is related
to the words literal meaning but
often comes from the way in
which the word has been used in
the past.

Challenge Words:
toughen
vitamin

Vocabulary Words:
ancestors
despised
endurance
forfeit
honor
intensity
irritating
retreated

Spelling Words:

Essential Question:
Why is it important
to keep a record of
the past?

Valley of the Moon

Unit 6 Week 2

Words with en/in/on

root
route
tail
tale

Comprehension Strategy:

Genre:

Reread

Historical Fiction

Good readers reread paragraphs and sections

that they do not understand. They stop and
think about the information. If they are still
unsure about what they are reading, they
reread again. When you encounter unfamiliar
facts and information, you can reread that
section to improve your understanding.
Rereading will also help you remember the most
important ideas and details.

- takes place in the past

- includes realistic
characters, events, and
settings
- usually includes real people
and places and may include
events that actually
happened
- is sometimes told as a
series of diary entries

Writing:

Comprehension Skill:
Theme

Organization

The theme is the overall message or lesson

about life that an author wants to
communicate to the reader. The theme is
often implied rather than stated directly. To
identify the theme, pay close attention to
the characters words and actions and what
happens to them. Ask yourself, What
message does the author want to get across
to the reader?

Good writers organize

story events in a logical
way so that the
sequence of events
unfolds naturally and
makes sense to the
reader. Sequence words
and phrases help readers
understand when story
events occur.

wade
weighed
prince
prints
doe
dough
moose
mousse
weve
weave
whos
whose
bolder
boulder
patience
patients
Review Words:
cotton
muffin
eleven

Grammar:
Comparing with Adverbs

Vocabulary Strategy:

Adverbs can be used to compare two

or more actions. Add er or est to
most short adverbs to compare
actions.
Ex: fast faster fastest

Homophones are words that

sound alike, but are spelled
differently and have different
meanings. Homophone pairs, such
as there, their, and there, or your
and youre, are easily confused.
While you are reading, pay
attention to the way a
homophone is used. You can use
context clues to help you
understand the meaning of a
homophone in a text.

Use more and most with long adverbs

to compare actions.
Ex: more patiently
To compare two or more actions
using the adverb well, use better and
best. To compare two or more
actions using the adverb badly, use
worse and worst.

Homophones

Challenge Words:
straight
strait

Vocabulary Words:
depicts
detested
discarded
eldest
ignored
obedience
refuge
treacherous

Spelling Words:

Essential Question:
How have our energy
resources changed
over the years?

Prefixes

Energy Island

discourage

Unit 6 Week 3

disappoint
disbelief
distrust

Comprehension Strategy:

Genre:

Ask and Answer Questions

Narrative Nonfiction

disloyal
misnumber

Good readers ask questions about something

they do not understand and then look for
answers. When you encounter a difficult
section of text, ask a question that might help
you understand it. You may need to reread to
find an answer to the question. Often you
will find that asking and answering questions
will improve your comprehension of
informational texts.

- tells a story

mislabel

- presents facts and

information about a
topic
- includes text features,
such as headings,
photographs, and speech
balloons

mislead

Comprehension Skill:

Writing:

Main Idea & Key Details

Word Choice

The main idea is the most important point

that an author makes about a topic in a
paragraph or section of text. To find the
main idea, first review the key details, or the
information the author presents, and decide
which details are the most important. Then
decide what these details have in common, or
how they are connected. This will help you
determine the main idea.

Good writers use

transition words to
organize a sequence of
events or to move from
one idea to another. In
opinion writing, writers
use transition words to
link opinions and ideas.
Some transition words
include because, also, and
however.

misplace
misstep
nonfat
nonfiction
nonstop
nonsense
unable
uncertain
uncomfortable
unclean
uncover
unplug
Review Words:
prince
weighed
bolder

Grammar:
Negatives

Vocabulary Strategy:

Challenge Words:
mishap

A negative is a statement that means

no, or the opposite of its regular
meaning. Most statements can be
changed to a negative form. If a
sentence has a form of be or have as
a main or helping verb, just add not to
make it negative. Many helping verbs
followed by not can be made into
contractions: havent, doesnt. Some
contractions have special spellings: will
not/wont, cannot/cant. Other
negative words include never, no one,
and nothing. Never use two negatives
in one sentence! This error is called a
double negative.

Latin & Greek Prefixes

Knowing the meanings of common

Latin and Greek prefixes can help
you figure out the meanings of
unfamiliar words that contain
those prefixes. Remember, a
prefix is a word part added to
the beginning of a base word that
changes the words meaning. Two
common Latin prefixes are non-,
meaning not, and pre-, meaning
before. Two common Greek
prefixes are hyper-, meaning
excessive, and micro-, meaning
small.

unravel

Vocabulary Words:
coincidence
consequences
consume
converted
efficient
incredible
installed
renewable

Spelling Words:

Essential Question:
What has been the
role of money over
time?

The Big Picture of Economics

Unit 6 Week 4

Suffixes
wireless
sunny
furry
really

Comprehension Strategy:

Genre:

Ask and Answer Questions

Expository Text

When you read an informational text, you can

ask and answer questions to help you
understand unfamiliar facts and remember the
information. You can ask questions before,
during, and after reading. You may need to
reread to find answers to your questions.
Often you will find that asking and answering
questions will improve your comprehension of
informational texts.

barely

- explains facts and

tasteless

information about a
topic
- may includes text
features, such as
headings, glossaries,
diagrams, maps, and
time lines

handful

Writing:

Comprehension Skill:

hairy

Main Idea & Key Details

Word Choice

The main idea is the most important point that

an author makes in a paragraph or section of
text. To find the main idea, first review the
key details, or the information the author
presents, and decide which details are the
most important. You may find that rereading
will help you identify important details. Then
decide what these details have in common, or
how they are connected. This will help you
determine the main idea.

Good writers use

content words to explain
a topic. Content words
are specific words
related to an area of
study, such as science,
history, or social studies.
Content words help the
reader learn about a
topic.

lifeless
fitness
hopefully
happiness
fullness
sorrowful
gently
sickness
joyfully
aimless
breathless
certainly
Review Words:
disappoint
nonfat
misnumber

Grammar:
Prepositions

Vocabulary Strategy:

A preposition shows the relationship

between a noun or a pronoun and
another word in a sentence. The
noun or pronoun that follows a
preposition is the object of the
preposition. A prepositional phrase
is a group of words that includes a
preposition, the object of the
preposition, and any words in
between. When a pronoun is the
object of a preposition, it should be
an object pronoun, such as me, you,
him, her, it, us, and them.

Proverbs and adages are common

sayings or expressions that get
passed on over time. In
expository text, proverbs and
adages are sometimes used to
help illustrate a point about the
topic. Proverbs and adages
usually explain a general truth or
observation. They are found in
every culture around the world.
Use paragraph clues to find the
meaning of an unfamiliar proverb
or adage.

Proverbs & Adages

Challenge Words:
superbly
successfully

Vocabulary Words:
currency
economics
entrepreneur
global
invest
marketplace
merchandise
transaction

Spelling Words:

Essential Question:
What shapes a
persons identity?

The Drum; Birdfoots Grampa;

My Chinatown
Unit 6 Week 5

Prefixes & Suffixes

unchanged
unnamed
restate
reverse

Literary Elements:

Genre:

Imagery and Personification

Free Verse Poetry

Imagery is the use of specific language, such as

sensory words and descriptive details, to create
a picture in a readers mind.
Personification is giving human qualities to a
non-human thing such as an animal, object, or
idea. An animal character that is personified
talks, thinks, feels, behaves, and interacts with
other characters in the same way a person
would.

- does not have a

rhyme scheme or a
metrical pattern
- may have irregular
lines

invisible
prepaid
displease
action
oversized
prejudge
interstate
intersect

Comprehension Skill:

Writing:

The theme of a poem is the main

message or lesson a poet wants to
communicate to the reader. To identify
the theme, pay attention to the narrators
or characters words and actions. Think
about what happens as a result of these
actions. Ask yourself, What message
does the poet want to get across to the
reader?

Good writers use

supporting details to give
more information.
Supporting details include
description, information,
and examples that help
readers understand the
topic. In a poem,
descriptive details help
readers form a clear
picture in their minds.

Ideas

Theme

infrequent

establishment
deflate
semiweekly
happily
kindness
finally
fearful
Review Words:
really
handful
happiness

Grammar:
Using Prepositions

Vocabulary Strategy:

Two or more simple sentences that

contain prepositional phrases can
sometimes be combined into one
sentence. Prepositional phrases can
convey location (in the corner), time
(at noon), and direction (to the
right). They provide more details in
a sentence. A prepositional phrase
may be placed at the beginning, in
the middle, or at the end of a
sentence. A comma is often used
after a prepositional phrase if the
phrase begins a sentence.

Writers often use figurative

language in poetry. A
metaphor is a type of
figurative language. It
compares two unlike things
without the use of like or as.
To find a metaphor in a poem
or other section of text, look
for two unlike things that are
being compared.
Ex: A bumpy, rocky road of a
nose

Figurative Language

Challenge Words:
transplant
superhuman

Vocabulary Words:
gobble
individuality
mist
roots
free verse
imagery
metaphor
personification