Glencoe Literature Reading With Purpose Course 1 Unit 3

UNIT 3
2
The
BIG
Question
What’s Fair and
What’s Not?
“ It’s not fair to

ask of others what
you are not willing
”
to do yourself.
—Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady,
human rights activist, and diplomat
Dave Bartruff/CORBIS
LOOKING AHEAD
The skill lessons and readings in this unit will help you develop your own answer
to the Big Question.
UNIT 3 WARM-UP • Connecting to the Big Question

GENRE FOCUS: Persuasive Writing
And Ain’t I a Woman? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
by Sojourner Truth
READING WORKSHOP 1 Skill Lesson: Distinguishing Fact
and Opinion
Preserving a Great American Symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
by Richard Durbin
Looking for America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
by Elizabeth Partridge
WRITING WORKSHOP PART 1 Persuasive Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
READING WORKSHOP 2 Skill Lesson: Clarifying
Two Advertisements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
Stray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
by Cynthia Rylant
READING WORKSHOP 3 Skill Lesson: Inferring
Dressed for Success? from TIME FOR KIDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
by Melanie Bertotto
Eleven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
by Sandra Cisneros
WRITING WORKSHOP PART 2 Persuasive Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
READING WORKSHOP 4 Skill Lesson: Identifying Problems
and Solutions
from 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
by The EarthWorks Group
Greyling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
by Jane Yolen
COMPARING LITERATURE WORKSHOP

The Scholarship Jacket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
by Marta Salinas
The Circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
by Francisco Jiménez
UNIT 3 WRAP-UP • Answering the Big Question
253
UNIT 3 WARM-UP
What’s Fair and
What’s Not?
Connecting to
You’ve seen it happen. Or maybe it has happened to you. Someone is
treated differently from others. Somebody gets to do something you
don’t. A decision or rule doesn’t make sense. What do you do when you
think something’s unfair? In this unit, you’ll read about people in various
situations that they thought were unfair. You’ll learn how they felt and
how they reacted.
Real Kids and the Big Question

JODI knows that any player who misses three soccer prac-
tices is off the team. Because Jodi has to walk her little brother
home after school, she has already missed two practices. If she
misses another practice, she can’t play on the soccer team.
What advice would you give Jodi?
HECTOR heard students laughing in

the cafeteria. When he walked into the
cafeteria, he realized that they were
laughing at his new neighbor,
Stella. Whenever she got
close to a table, suddenly
there was no room
to sit there. Hector
remembered what it
was like to be the new
kid. What would you do
if you were Hector?
Warm-Up Activity
In a small group, talk about how you would feel and what you
would do if you were Jodi or Hector. Then tell about a situation
you experienced that was unfair. Describe how you felt and what
you did.
254 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

UNIT 3 WARM-UP
You and the Big Question

The question of what’s fair or unfair comes up in many situations. Big Question Link to Web resources
to further explore the Big Question at
As you read the selections in this unit, think about how you would www.glencoe.com.
answer the Big Question.
Plan for the Unit Challenge

At the end of the unit, you’ll use notes from all your reading to complete the
Unit Challenge.
You’ll choose one of the following activities:

A. TV Call-In Show With members of your group, you’ll write questions and
answers about what’s fair and what’s not for a television call-in show that your
group will present.
B. A Rap or Song You’ll write a rap or song about something you feel is unfair
and what you think can be done about it.
• Start thinking about which activity you’d like to do so that you can focus your
thoughts as you go through the unit.
• In your Learner’s Notebook, write your thoughts about the activity you’d like to
do.
• Each time you make notes about the Big Question, think about how your ideas
will help you complete the Unit Challenge activity you chose.
Keep Track of Your Ideas
As you read, you’ll make notes about the Big Question. Later, you’ll
use these notes to complete the Unit Challenge. See pages R8–R9 for
help with making Foldable 3. This diagram shows how it should look.
1. Use this Foldable for the selections in this 4. Halfway down the inside page, write the
unit. Label the stapled edge with the unit label The Big Question. You’ll write your
number and the Big Question. thoughts about the Big Question below
2. Label each flap with a selection title. (See this label.
page 253 for titles.)
3. Open each flap. Label the top of the inside
page My Purpose for Reading.
You will write your purpose for reading
the selection below this label.
Warm-Up 255
UNIT 3 GENRE FOCUS:
PERSUASIVE WRITING
In persuasive writing, a writer tries to persuade the reader to share a cer-
tain point of view or take a particular action. Persuasive writing can take
many forms, including speeches, editorials, billboards, and advertisements.
Skillss Focus Why Read Persuasive Writing?

• Keyy skills for reading and
peeersuasive writing Discovering what makes effective persuasive writing is a great way to
•KKey literary elements of develop your thinking skills. You’ll learn how an author feels about a sub-
persuasive writing ject, how you feel about a subject, and what you think is fair and what’s
not fair.
SSkills Model
You will see how to use the How to Read Persuasive Writing
key reading skills and literary
elements as you read
Key Reading Skills
• “And Ain’t I a Woman?” These key reading skills are useful tools for reading and understanding
p. 257 persuasive writing. You’ll see them modeled in the Active Reading Model
on pages 257–259, and you’ll learn more about them in this unit.
■ Distinguishing fact and opinion A fact can be proved. An opinion is
different; it’s what someone thinks or feels about something. Learn to
tell them apart. (See Reading Workshop 1.)
■ Clarifying Figure out confusing words, phrases, or ideas by using the
text and other resources. (See Reading Workshop 2.)
■ Inferring Figure out information the author doesn’t give you by using
what he or she does give you and your own knowledge and experience.
(See Reading Workshop 3.)
■ Identifying problems and solutions Learn to spot problems and
solutions presented by the author. (See Reading Workshop 4.)
Key Literary Elements

Recognizing and thinking about the following literary elements will help
you understand more fully what the author is telling you.
■ Style: a form of expression in writing, just as in music and fashion
(See “Preserving a Great American Symbol.”)
■ Bias: being for or against something or a preference for one side of an
Objectives (pp. 256–259)
Reading Distinguish fact and argument (See “Two Advertisements.”)
opinion • Monitor comprehension:
■ Argument: the case a writer presents for or against something (See
clarify • Make inferences • Identify
problems and solutions “Dressed for Success?”)
Literature Identify literary
■ Mood: the feeling that writing creates in the reader (See “from
elements: style, author’s bias,
argument, mood 50 Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth.”)

UNIT 3 GENRE FOCUS
The notes in the side columns

model how to use the skills
and elements you read about
on page 256.
Personal and Persuasive Text

ACTIVE READING MODEL
by Sojourner Truth
Address to the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention, 1851 1 Key Literary Element
Argument I can see that
T hat man over there says that women need to be
helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have
Truth is giving very effective
examples to back up her
argument that women are
the best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into equal to men.
carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best 2 Key Reading Skill
place! And ain’t I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm. Distinguishing Fact and
I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, Opinion The number of
and no man could head1 me! And ain’t I a woman? I children that a person has is
a matter of fact, not opinion.
could work as much and eat as much as a man—when
I could get it—and bear the lash as well! And ain’t I a 3 Key Literary Element
Style Repeating the
woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen them
question “And ain’t I a
most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with woman?” reminds me of
my mother’s grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain’t I preaching. I think Truth has
a woman? 1 2 3 kind of a “preaching” style.
1. In this speech, head means “to do something better than someone else.”
Genre Focus: Persuasive Writing 257

Hulton Archive
UNIT 3 GENRE FOCUS

Then they talk about this thing in the head; what’s
this they call it? [Intellect,2 someone whispers.] That’s 4 Key Literary Element
it, honey. What’s that got to do with women’s rights or Bias Truth obviously prefers one
Negroes rights? If my cup won’t hold but a pint, and side of the argument about
yours holds a quart, wouldn’t you be mean not to let me women’s rights. So, her speech is
have my little half-measure full? 4 5 biased in favor of women’s
rights.
2. A person’s intellect (IN tuh lekt) is his or her intelligence

5 Key Reading Skill
Inferring Truth doesn’t say it
directly, but I think that she
means what’s in a person’s
head, or intellect, doesn’t
have anything to do with
having equal rights.
In Sojourner Truth I Fought for the

Rights of Women as Well as Blacks,
1947. Elizabeth Catlett. Linocut.
15 x 22.5 cm. Private Collection.
Analyzing the Art Sojourner Truth
looks very determined in this picture.
What other qualities does she seem to
have, based on this picture? Explain
your answer.

Hampton University Museum, Hampton, VA/©Elizabeth Catlett/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
UNIT 3 GENRE FOCUS
6 Key Reading Skill

Clarifying I’ll have to read
this paragraph again more
This photograph was taken in Belton, South Carolina, in 1899. These women did not have slowly. I didn’t get what
the right to vote, and their husbands and sons were denied their legal rights, too.
Truth was saying.
Then that little man in black there, he says women 7 Key Reading Skill
Identifying Problems and
can’t have as much rights as men, ’cause Christ wasn’t a Solutions According to
woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did Truth, the problem is that
your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man women don’t have the same
had nothing to do with Him. 6 rights as men. The solution
If the first woman God ever made was strong enough is for men to give women
equal rights.
to turn the world upside down all alone, these women
together ought to be able to turn it back, and get it right 8 Key Literary Element
Mood Reading this makes
side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men
me feel sad about what
better let them. Truth went through but also
Obliged3 to you for hearing me, and now old Sojourner respectful of her. I’ll bet the
ain’t got nothing more to say. 7 8 ❍ people who heard her give
the speech felt like working
hard for women’s rights.
3. Obliged (uh BLYJD) is another word for “grateful.”
Whole-Class Discussion Give some examples of common stereotypes.

Talk about how bias leads to forming stereotypes about people.
Write to Learn Write in your journal an example of persuasive writing
or speaking that you have read or heard recently. Did it persuade you to
change your thoughts or to do something? Explain your answer.
Study Central Visit www.glencoe.com and click on Study Central

to review persuasive writing.
Genre Focus: Persuasive Writing 259

Female servants using brooms of bambusa on Latimer’s plantation, Belton, South Carolina, 1899 (b/w photo), American Photographer, (19th century) / Private Collection, Peter Newark American Pictures; / Bridgeman Art Library
READING WORKSHOP 1
Skills Focus
You will practice using these skills when you Skill Lesson
read the following selections:
• “Preserving a Great American Symbol,” p. 264
• “Looking for America,” p. 270
Distinguishing
Reading Fact and Opinion
• Distinguishing fact and opinion
Literature
Learn It!
What Is It? A fact is something that can be proved.
• Identifying an author’s style An opinion is what someone believes is true.
• Explaining how style affects Opinions are based on feelings and experiences;
the reader they cannot be proved. When deciding whether to
believe what a writer has written, you’ll have to
Vocabulary distinguish fact from opinion. Writers can support
their opinions with facts, but an opinion is something
• Understanding hyperbole
that cannot be proved.
• Academic Vocabulary:
Fact: Beijing is the capital of China.
distinguish
Opinion: China is the best place to vacation.
Writing/Grammar You could prove that Beijing is the capital of China. It’s
a fact. But not everyone would agree that China is the
• Identifying and using best place for a vacation. That’s someone’s opinion.
adjectives and adverbs
reserved.
Reprinted with permission. All rights
UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE.
POOCH CAFE © 2005. Dist. by
Analyzing Cartoons
Is the larger dog presenting a fact or
an opinion? How do you know? How
does the smaller dog feel about this
bit of information?

Reading Distinguish fact from
Academic Vocabulary
opinion distinguish (dih STING gwish) v. to know the difference between, tell apart
260 UNIT 3
POOCH CAFE © 2005 Dist. by UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
READING WORKSHOP 1 • Distinguishing Fact and Opinion
Why Is It Important? As you read, ask yourself, Is this a fact or an opin-

ion? Opinions can be useful, but sometimes opinions are based on prejudice or
feelings you don’t share. Before you accept something as true, you need to find
out if it’s fact or opinion. Study Central Visit www.glencoe
.com and click on Study Central
to review distinguishing fact and
How Do I Do It? To tell fact from opinion, ask: Can this be proved?
opinion.
• What is the source of the statement? The source is where the information
came from. An encyclopedia is one trustworthy source.
• Is the author an expert on the subject? An expert on that topic would
usually know a lot of proven facts about it.
• Are there numbers or dates with the statement? Numbers and dates could
prove the time, the place, how much, or how many.
Take a look at how one student distinguished between facts and opinions
in a newspaper article about a supposed UFO sighting.
Recorded calls to the station-house indicate that
the policeman radioed in the sighting on April 4,
1997 at 2:48 AM. “You’re not going to believe this,” he
said, “But I think I saw a UFO! The engine died on
my car, and the radio started going haywire! All of
the sudden I saw red, white, and green lights
flashing from behind the trees!” Weather reports
prove that there were no thunderstorms that
evening, but the policeman was near a swamp.
Sometimes, people mistake swamp gas for a UFO.
They have a recording of the policeman with the date and

time saying that he saw a UFO, so I know he saw something.
It’s a fact that he called in on his radio; that can be proven.
But I wonder what he saw? He said he thinks he saw a UFO,
but that doesn’t make it a fact—just an opinion.
Practice It!
Look at articles in a newspaper. Find a sentence that tells a fact and a sen-
tence that tells an opinion. Copy the examples in your Learner’s Notebook.
Explain why you think the example is a fact or an opinion.
Use It!
Remember what you’ve learned about facts and opinions as you read
“Preserving a Great American Symbol.”
Reading Workshop 1 Distinguishing Fact and Opinion 261

John Evans
Before You Read Preserving a Great

American Symbol
Vocabulary Preview
condemn (kun DEM) v. to express a strong feeling against something
(p. 264) Don’t condemn a person for making a bad choice.
endure (en DUR) v. to put up with (p. 264) When Emilio moved from
Florida to New York he found the winters hard to endure.
indignities (in DIG nuh teez) n. insulting treatment (p. 264) The new
R ic h members had to suffer many indignities before they were accepted into
ard D ur bin
the club.
Meet the Author forsake (for SAYK) v. to give up something or someone (p. 265) When
Y-Ming became famous, she refused to forsake her old friends.
Richard Durbin has been a
member of Congress since
1983. Today he represents Fill in the Blank Write a sentence for each word. Put a blank in each
the people of Illinois in the sentence where the word should appear. Trade sentences with a partner.
United States Senate. Senator Then fill in the blanks in each other’s sentences with the correct words.
Durbin makes many
speeches. Most are about English Language Coach
more serious issues than sav- Hyperbole “When I lost my new scarf, I almost died!” Have you ever said
ing the baseball bat. anything like that? Did you really mean your life was in danger? Of course
Education, for instance, is an not. You were exaggerating. That kind of extreme exaggeration is called
issue Durbin takes very seri- hyperbole. People may use it to express strong feelings or to emphasize a
ously. He sees education as point. Sometimes, people use it to be funny. Hyperbole uses exaggerated
“the key to opportunity.” words and exaggerated comparisons. As a reader, you’re expected to
understand that it is not the exact truth.
Partner Work Read the sentences below to each other. Then discuss
which ones you think use hyperbole. Talk about what your reasons are.
Author Search For more
about Richard Durbin, go to 1. I’m so tired I could sleep for a year.
www.glencoe.com. 2. You could put his common sense in a thimble and have room left over
for the Great Lakes.
3. When I lost my homework, I was quite worried.
4. Bella has told that same joke a million times.
5. Cafeteria workers faced a tragedy today when they ran out of
tortilla chips.

Reading Distinguish fact and opinion
• Make connections from text to self
Literature Identify literary elements:
style, symbol, hyperbole
Vocabulary Understanding hyperbole

Courtesy of Richard Durban
Skills Preview Get Ready to Read

Key Reading Skill: Connect to the Reading
Distinguishing Fact and Opinion A symbol is an object that stands for a big idea. For
Sometimes it’s difficult to tell a fact from an opinion, example, a lion is often a symbol for courage. People
especially when the writer is being funny. After all, often have strong feelings about symbols, such as the
most humor is not written for the purpose of giving flag and even wooden baseball bats. What symbol has
information. And yet, sometimes a writer uses humor special meaning for you? Why is it important to you?
to make a point. Then, facts may be scattered in
among the jokes and exaggerations. Whole-Class Discussion Name a symbol that
means something special to you. Explain its meaning,
As you read “Preserving a Great American Symbol,” and talk about its importance. How would you feel
look for statements that can be proved. Ask yourself without it?
whether these facts help support the writer’s opinions.
Build Background
Write to Learn In your Learner’s Notebook, write In this selection, Richard Durbin argues that the
one way in which you can tell facts and opinions apart. wooden baseball bat is a part of the baseball tradition
that must be saved.
Key Literary Element: Style • Baseball is often called our “national pastime”
You probably know all about style when it comes to because so many Americans enjoy the sport.
fashion and music. You might dress in a certain style or like
• Professional baseball players must use wooden bats.
a particular style of music. Style is just a particular way of
Aluminum bats are not allowed.
doing something. A writer’s style is his or her own way of
putting words and sentences together. • Wooden bats are made either from one piece of wood
or from layers of wood that are pressed together.
One style of writing is sometimes called “mock
seriousness.” (Mock means “pretend, not real.”) The Set Purposes for Reading
writer chooses a subject that isn’t very important and Read the selection “Preserving a
writes about it as if it were. There is usually some Great American Symbol” to find out why Richard
hyperbole in the mock serious style. This style can be Durbin thinks replacing wooden bats with metal ones
very funny. It can also help the author make a point. would harm the tradition of baseball.
Partner Talk With a partner choose an unimportant Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
subject. Then work together to make up a mock to learn from the reading to help you answer the Big
serious sentence about it. Question? Write your purpose on the “Preserving a
Great American Symbol” page of Foldable 3.
Keep Moving
Interactive Literary Elements Handbook
To review or learn more about the literary Use these skills as you read the following
elements, go to www.glencoe.com. selection.
Preserving a Great American Symbol 263

READING WORKSHOP 1
by Richard Durbin
M r. Speaker, I rise to condemn the desecration1 of a

great American symbol. No, I am not referring to
Practice the Skills
1 Key Literary Element
flagburning; I am referring to the baseball bat. 1 Style Look at the footnote for
Several experts tell us that the wooden baseball bat is desecration at the bottom of the
doomed to extinction, that major league baseball players page. Do you think this word is
usually used for things a lot more
will soon be standing at home plate with aluminum bats
important than a baseball bat?
in their hands. What clue does that give you
Baseball fans have been forced to endure countless about the style of this selection?
indignities by those who just cannot leave well enough
alone: designated hitters,2 plastic grass, uniforms that look
like pajamas, chicken clowns dancing on the base lines, and,
1. A desecration is an act that shows disrespect for something sacred.

2. A designated hitter bats in place of the pitcher.
Vocabulary
condemn (kun DEM) v. to express a strong feeling against something
endure (en DUR) v. to put up with
indignities (in DIG nuh teez) n. insulting treatment

Taxi/Getty Images
READING WORKSHOP 1
of course, the most heinous sacrilege,3 lights in Wrigley Practice the Skills
Field.4 2 3
Are we willing to hear the crack of a bat replaced by the 2 Key Reading Skill
dinky ping? Are we ready to see the Louisville Slugger5 Distinguishing Fact and
replaced by the aluminum ping dinger? Is nothing sacred? Opinion Is it a fact that fans of
Please do not tell me that wooden bats are too expensive, baseball have to put up with the
things listed in this paragraph?
when players who cannot hit their weight are being paid
Is it a fact that these things
more money than the President of the United States. are indignities, or insulting
Please do not try to sell me on the notion that these metal treatment? Explain.
clubs will make better hitters.
What will be next? Teflon6 baseballs? Radar-enhanced 3
gloves? I ask you. Durbin thinks that a change from
I do not want to hear about saving trees. Any tree in wooden to metal bats would be
America would gladly give its life for the glory of a day at unfair to baseball fans. What
other changes in the sport does
home plate. 4
he think have been unfair to
I do not know if it will take a constitutional amendment to fans? Record your answers on
keep our baseball traditions alive, but if we forsake the great the “Preserving a Great American
Americana of broken-bat singles and pine tar,7 we will have Symbol” page of Foldable 3.
certainly lost our way as a nation. 5 ❍ These notes will help you com-
plete the Unit Challenge later.

Style What is there about this
paragraph that might be thought
of as mock serious in style?
5 English Language Coach

Hyperbole What example or
examples of hyperbole can you
find in this paragraph?
3. A heinous sacrilege is the act of misusing something that is sacred in an unusually shocking
way. Here the statement is meant to be dramatic.
4. Chicago’s Wrigley Field is one of the oldest baseball fields in the United States. No night games
were played there until 1988, when the field finally got lights.
5. The wooden baseball bat known as the Louisville Slugger was first made in Louisville,
Kentucky, in 1884. Today it is the official bat of major league baseball.
6. Teflon is the name for a tough, waxy material that is very hard to damage.
7. Americana includes anything that has something to do with American culture. When a batter
breaks a bat while hitting but gets safely to first base, the play is called a broken-bat single.
Pine tar is a sticky substance that batters use to get a tight grip on a wooden bat.
Vocabulary
forsake (for SAYK) v. to give up something or someone

After You Read Preserving a Great

American Symbol
Answering the
1. Do you agree with the author that changing from wooden bats to metal
bats would be unfair to baseball fans? Explain.
2. Recall Name three things that the writer says baseball fans have been
forced to endure.
T IP Right There
3. Recall What does Durbin call “the most heinous sacrilege”?
T IP Right There
4. Summarize What are some of the reasons Durbin prefers wooden
bats to aluminum?
T IP Think and Search
Critical Thinking
5. Infer Do you think Richard Durbin is a baseball fan? Explain.
T IP Author and Me
6. Analyze Which details in the final paragraph show that this speech is
not meant to be serious?
T IP Author and Me
7. Evaluate What effect do you think this speech had on its audience?
T IP On My Own
Talk About Your Reading

Think about these statements in Durbin’s speech:
I do not want to hear about saving trees. Any tree in America would gladly
give its life for the glory of a day at home plate.
This is Durbin’s opinion. How would you feel if you were the tree? With a
partner, take turns making your own speech, but pretend that you are the
Objectives (pp. 266–267) tree. Include facts and opinions of your own. Before you begin, take a few
Reading Distinguish fact and opinion moments to jot down at least three points you’d like to make in your
Literature Identify literary elements: speech. Do you think it would be fair to be turned into a baseball bat?
style, hyperbole
Grammar Identify parts of speech:
Would you favor aluminum bats instead, or is Durbin right? Would you
adjectives “gladly” give your life “for the glory of a day at home plate”?

Taxi/Getty Images
Skills Review Grammar Link: Adjectives

Key Reading Skill: Distinguishing Fact As you know, different kinds of words do different
jobs in a sentence. Words that are used to describe
and Opinion
nouns or pronouns are adjectives. Adjectives answer
8. In your Learner’s Notebook, answer the following these questions:
questions about the selection.
• What kind?
• What was the subject of the speech?
• Which one?
• What was the speaker’s opinion on the subject?
• How many
• What facts did he use to support his opinion?
The adjectives in the sentences below are in bold type.
Key Literary Element: Style The nouns they describe are underlined.
9. Write down two words or phrases that you think Deb found a young squirrel under a tree.(What kind?)
might be “mock serious” in the selection. Explain She fed it with this bottle. (Which one?)
why you think they are. Careful treatment helped the lonely squirrel.
10. Do you think the big words in the selection help (What kind? What kind?)
make it funny? Explain why or why not. Deb has helped several animals. (How many?)
11. Do you think the style of the selection helped the
Sometimes a word that you think of as a noun does
author make his point? Why or why not?
the job of an adjective. Then, the word is an adjective.
Deb found a baby squirrel under an oak tree.
Vocabulary Check Most adjectives come right before the noun they
Look over the vocabulary words from the story: describe. Some come after a linking verb. As you
condemn endure indignities forsake learned before, a linking verb shows a condition or
state of being.
Then come up with as many answers as you can to
these questions. Write the questions and the answers The tornado was huge and dark.
on a separate sheet of paper. You may be “mock Suddenly, the sky looked green.
serious” if you like.
12. What would you condemn? Grammar Practice
13. What do you have to endure? Copy the sentences below on another sheet of paper.
14. What indignities have you suffered in your life? Underline each adjective.
18. Bees gather a sweet liquid from flowers.
15. Who or what would you never forsake?
19. One bee may visit five hundred flowers in one
16. Academic Vocabulary Which pair of things
trip.
below might be difficult to distinguish from each
other? Explain the reason for your choice. 20. Each flower has powder called pollen that is yellow.
apple and orange 21. Pollen gets on the busy bee.
glass and plate 22. She leaves some powder on another flower.
moth and butterfly
17. English Language Coach What makes the
sentence below an example of hyperbole? What
point is the writer making?
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection
The bell rang, shattering our ear drums. Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.

Before You Read Looking for America
Meet the Author

Vocabulary Preview
architect (AR kuh tekt) n. a person who designs buildings (p. 271) The
Elizabeth Partridge grew up
architect designed a famous house made of glass.
in a large family. During the
summers, her family often cicadas (sih KAY duz) n. large insects, also called locusts; males make a
traveled across the country in shrill buzzing sound (p. 271) You could hear cicadas buzzing in the trees.
an old Cadillac limousine, beckoned (BEK und) v. signaled someone to come closer; form of the verb
usually not returning until beckon (p. 272) Her mother beckoned her to the table.
after school had started. As a buffet (BUF it) v. to strike with force (p. 275) The strong wind will buffet
writer, Partridge believes that the kids as they walk to school.
it is important to “offer our
young adults examples of
Write to Learn Write the vocabulary word that each clue describes.
critical listeners and critical
thinkers. We need . . . to let • This describes what a storm can do to the branches of a tree.
them know that they, too, • If you did this, a waiter would come take your order.
can have a voice.” • This person might draw plans for a skyscraper.
• You might see these (and hear them) in the summertime.
Author Search For more English Language Coach

about Elizabeth Partridge, Word Choice You might sometimes wonder why writers use uncommon
go to www.glencoe.com.
words instead of the plainest, simplest ones. There’s often a good reason.
Maybe he or she writes, “Suki ambled by.” Why? Well, ambled is a really
good verb. It doesn’t just mean “walked.” It means “walked in a slow, easy
way, usually without an important goal.”
Even if you know the definition of a word a writer chooses to use,

sometimes you need to think about it. In “Looking for America,” Elizabeth
Partridge says, “[In] Yellowstone, we were drenched by Old Faithful.” She
doesn’t say “got wet” because that’s not what she means. She means that
they were soaked, wet clear through, dripping.
Partner Work With a partner, look up one of the verbs below. If

possible, use more than one dictionary. (Make sure you look for the verb
definition.) Find out all you can. Then talk about why a writer might choose
to use it.
sprawl zigzag shepherd

Literature Identify literary elements: style
Vocabulary Understand word choice
266-269_U3_RW_845476.indd 268 3/9/07 10:36:46 AM


Key Reading Skill: Distinguishing Fact Connect to the Reading
and Opinion As a little girl, Elizabeth Partridge saw that laws were
As you read “Looking for America,” think about facts not the same for everyone. What reasons did people
you already know about segregation, or the separa- give for making unfair rules and laws? Were those
tion of races, in America’s history. For example, it is a reasons based on facts or opinions? Can you think of
fact that African Americans and whites were separated any rules or laws we have now that we will say were
in the South at the time Partridge had the experience unfair one day?
she writes about. Think about the opinions that led to
racial separation. Partner Talk With a partner, talk about a time when
it seemed as though one set of rules applied to you
Group Talk In a small group, discuss this question: and another set of rules applied to others. Was this
How can unfair opinions lead to the unfair treatment of fair treatment? Is it ever fair to have different rules for
people? different people?
Key Literary Element: Style Build Background

Style is personal. You dress a certain way, and you like The events in Elizabeth Partridge’s essay take place in
certain colors. Style is what makes one writer’s work the summer of 1963 in Atlanta, Georgia.
unlike the work of any other. Style is made up of all • In the American South at that time, laws kept African
the ways the writer uses language to express feelings Americans segregated—or separated—from whites.
and attitudes. Use these tips to help you learn about These laws were known as Jim Crow laws.
Elizabeth Partridge’s style in “Looking for America.” • It was against the law for African Americans and
• What kind of language does the author use and whites to eat at the same restaurants, sit together on
how is memory part of the author’s style? buses or trains, or go to school together.
• What are the sentence patterns? How important • It was also against the law for African Americans to
are conversations to the selection? use bathrooms or drinking fountains labeled
• How does the author feel about this subject? “Whites Only.” Bathrooms or drinking fountains for
African Americans were not always available.
Write to Learn Authors have their own style; so do
you! What kind of style do you have when you tell a Set Purposes for Reading
story? Do you use humor when you tell a story? Are Read the essay “Looking for
you serious? Do you use facts or opinions? Are you America” to find out what Elizabeth Partridge learned
dramatic? Do you exaggerate details or stretch the about fairness.
truth? In your Learner’s Notebook, write about your
storytelling style. Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
to learn from the story to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on the “Looking
for America” page of Foldable 3.

To review or learn more about the literary
elements, go to www.glencoe.com. Keep Moving
Use these skills as you read the following
selection.
Looking for America 269

READING WORKSHOP 1
by Elizabeth Partridge
W hat I hated most was how people stared at us. I didn’t

mind so much while we were driving, and I would see
Practice the Skills
people’s mouths drop open as we flew by. But I hated it when

we pulled into a campground or a gas station. As soon as my
father rolled down the window, someone would stick his
head in, look us over, and ask, “Where’re you folks from?”
“California,” my dad would say. They’d nod, like that
explained it.
But it didn’t, of course. It didn’t begin to explain why our
family was driving across the country in the summer of 1963,
in an old Cadillac limousine painted a bright, metallic gold.
The five of us kids didn’t sit tidily in a row like regular kids
Style Do most stories begin like
but instead were sprawled on a double bed mattress that my
this? Do you feel as though
dad had spread across the back. My parents called it “looking someone just started talking to
for America.” I thought it was more like being looked at by you? That’s a clue to the artist’s
America. 1 style.

Photodisc Red/Getty Images
READING WORKSHOP 1
My dad was a freelance photographer,1 and to fund our

trip he’d arranged to photograph buildings and parks all
over the United States. We ranged in age from my seventeen-
year-old sister, Joan, to baby Aaron. I was eleven, smack in
the middle of the pack, with my brother Josh three years
older and my sister Meg two years younger.
We threaded our way through national and state parks,
zigzagging toward New York City. In the Southwest we
climbed rickety wooden ladders up a cliff into old Pueblo
Indian houses; in Yellowstone we were drenched by
Analyzing the Photo Read the second
Old Faithful; 2 in Kansas we rolled out of bed at five A.M. paragraph on this page and footnote 2.
to watch a farmer milk his cows. 2 What place does this photo show? What is
a geyser?
“Look at it!” my father would say, throwing his arms out.
“Just look at it all.” With off-the-cuff comments3 by my father,
and more thoughtful views from my mother, we took in the
Practice the Skills
rhythms and lives of other Americans. “We’re lucky to be 2 English Language Coach
alive,” my father said. “Right now, right here!” Word Choice Think about the
By late August we had made it to New York, camped our verbs the author uses in this
way down the Great Smoky Mountains,4 and were headed for paragraph—threaded, zigzagging,
Atlanta, Georgia. drenched, and rolled. Think
about why she chose those
An architect my father knew, Mr. McNeeley, had designed
particular verbs.
his own house in Atlanta. We were invited to stay while my
father photographed the house. I was excited—after weeks
of smoky fires and pit toilets, we were going to stay in a real
house. Maybe they’d even have a TV in their rumpus room5
and we could spread out on a comfortable couch and watch
something like The Wonderful World of Disney.
We hit the Deep South just as a hot spell struck. The air
was thick and steamy and smelled like mildew. The buzz of
cicadas filled my ears.
1. A freelance photographer is a photographer who works on his or her own for many different
employers.
2. The Pueblo Indians are a group of Native Americans living mainly in New Mexico and Arizona.
Yellowstone is a park in Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana; it is famous for a hot spring known as
Old Faithful that sprays water and steam from the ground.
3. To make an off-the-cuff comment is to say something without thinking carefully about it.
4. The Great Smoky Mountains are mountains on the border between North Carolina and Tennessee.
5. A rumpus room is a play room or family room.
Vocabulary
architect (AR kuh tekt) n. a person who designs buildings
cicadas (sih KAY duz) n. large insects also called locusts; males make a
buzzing sound

Stone/Getty
READING WORKSHOP 1
My mother insisted we stop for the night at a campground Practice the Skills
outside of Atlanta, so we could clean up. After dinner she
handed out towels and shepherded us into the public
showers, a squat cement building with huge spiders in the
corners and black beetles scuttling across the wet floors.
Washing my hair, I discovered a big knotted tangle in the
back, but it hurt too much when I tried to brush it out so I
just left it. At least my hair was clean.
Late the next morning when we arrived at the McNeeleys’,
I saw that my mother had been right to tidy us up. Their new
house was perfect. Every surface was shiny clean, nothing out
of place. Built around a courtyard filled with plants, floor to
ceiling glass windows let a dappled6 green light into every
room. Antique Persian rugs7 covered the smooth cement
floors, and modern sculptures made of glass and ceramic
L perched on back-lit shelves. There wasn’t a rumpus room in
sight. Mrs. McNeeley wore bright red lipstick and white
slacks with a crisp linen blouse. I was painfully aware of the
big snarl in my hair.
Mrs. McNeeley showed my sisters and me into a guest room
with its own bathroom loaded with huge, fluffy towels and
sweet-smelling soap, then left us, saying she needed to speak
with the cook about lunch arrangements.
I stood on one foot and stared out into the courtyard. Our
mother was right to be concerned: we didn’t fit in. “How long
do you think we’re staying here?” I asked
Meg nervously. 3 3 Reviewing Skills
At lunchtime my mother beckoned me Connecting Have you ever
to take the chair next to Aaron. A tall black been in a situation in which you
woman wearing a starched apron came in weren’t sure how to act? In your
Visual Vocabulary Learner’s Notebook, explain C
through a swinging door. She carried a
A casserole is a baked what happened.
food with many types casserole with a heavy silver spoon laid
of ingredients inside. across the top.
“Thank you, Annie,” said Mrs. McNeeley. I
stared at my mother, frozen. What were we supposed to do
6. Something dappled is marked with spots or patches of color.

7. Antique Persian rugs are rugs made in an early period of Iran’s history. The rugs are very
expensive.
Vocabulary
beckoned (BEK und) v. signaled someone to come closer

Michael Alberstat/Masterfile
270-275_U3_SEL_845476.indd 272 3/9/07 10:37:47 AM

READING WORKSHOP 1
now? Did we dip the spoon in the casserole and serve Practice the Skills
ourselves? Did we get served? Annie stood next to my
mother, the casserole in her outstretched arms. My mother
looked uncomfortable and busied herself with tucking a
napkin into the neck of Aaron’s shirt. My stomach twisted.
Even my mother wasn’t sure what to do. 4 4 Key Literary Element
“Please,” said Mrs. McNeeley to my mother, “help yourself.” Style Here the author asks
When Annie stood next to me I just looked at her helplessly, many questions. How are the
afraid I would spill casserole all over my lap from the big questions a part of her style?
silver spoon. She winked at me so quickly I wasn’t sure she Do they make you feel as if
you know her and what she’s
had, and put a spoonful of casserole on my plate. feeling?
After lunch my father started shooting interiors8 of the
house. The rest of us were shepherded to the courtyard. My
mother and Mrs. McNeeley sat under a big umbrella, and
Annie brought out a pitcher of iced tea and tall glasses full
of clinking ice cubes.
Meg and I played hopscotch on the flagstones, while Joan
challenged Josh to a game of rummy.9 Aaron sat and banged
on a metal pail. The heat fell down on us, heavy and moist,
and the whiny buzz of the cicadas set my teeth on edge. Aaron
smashed his hand under the pail and started screaming.
Suddenly my head felt like it was exploding with noise and
heat and an anxious worry.
I had to get away from my sisters and brothers, away from
Mrs. McNeeley sitting stiffly with a tight smile. I slipped 5 English Language Coach
inside, crossed the dining room, and bolted through the Word Choice Look at the verbs
in the second sentence of this
swinging door, right into the kitchen. Annie stood with her
paragraph—slipped, crossed, and
back to me, working at the sink. 5 bolted. How do they describe the
“Yes, Ma’am?” she said, turning around. “Oh,” she said, narrator’s trip from the backyard
surprised to see me. I stood awkwardly, ready to dash out to the kitchen?
again. Maybe I wasn’t allowed in the kitchen. The cook tipped
her head toward a small pine table.
“Sit, honey,” she said. I tried to ease graciously into the
chair but managed to knock my funny bone on the edge of
the table and let out a yelp.
“You must be growing,” the cook said. “Skinny as all get
out, and don’t know where your body’s at.”
I didn’t want to tell her I was always banging myself on
something. She put two sugar cookies and a tall, cold glass
8. If a photographer is shooting interiors, he or she is taking pictures inside.

9. Flagstones are paving stones, and rummy is a card game for two or more players.

READING WORKSHOP 1
of milk in front of me. As I ate, I watched her wash the lunch

dishes. Steam rose from the sink, and moisture beaded up
on her forehead. When she finished she filled a quart-size
canning jar with cold water and drank. I was grateful for her
quiet company.
When Aaron woke up from his nap we walked to a nearby
city park. Though the sun was low, the air still felt like we
were walking in a huge oven, with more heat radiating10 up
from the cement. My mother sat on a bench next to the
sandbox and plunked Aaron down in the sand.
I spotted a drinking fountain and ran over, guzzling the
water in great big gulps. Meg thumped into my back.
“My turn!” she said. I clung tight to the faucet and jabbed
backward at her with my elbows until my stomach was full.
When I stood up, water slid down my neck and under
my shirt. Over the fountain was a sign I hadn’t noticed:
“Whites Only.” Practice the Skills
“Mom,” I yelled back across the playground. “What does
‘Whites Only’ mean?”
My mother flung her hand out. “Sh. . . .” she said. “Come
over here.”
I stood next to my mother, who leaned in close. “Negroes
aren’t allowed to drink from the same fountains as whites in
the South, or use the same bathrooms.”
I stared at my mother, disbelieving.
“Are those rules?”
“More than rules,” she said sadly. “Laws.”
I walked all around the playground, but I didn’t see any
other drinking fountain. 6 6 Key Reading Skill
Distinguishing Fact and
Opinion Is what the narrator’s
T he next morning as my parents were packing the car,
I slipped back into the kitchen.
mother tells her here a fact or an
opinion? Could what she says be
proved?
“We’re leaving,” I said to Annie.
“I know, honey,” she said. “You have a good trip now, you
hear?”
The breakfast dishes were sitting in the rack drying, carrots
and potatoes lay on the counter, next to her half-full jar of
water. I wanted to ask Annie what she did when she got
10. Here radiating means that the heat was coming up from the sidewalk.

READING WORKSHOP 1
thirsty at the park. But it seemed like too big a

question. I searched for something I could ask,
something that was small and not tangled up.
“Why do you drink from a jar?” I blurted out.
She looked at me, considering. Her eyes were
full of a lot of things I couldn’t read.
“I get mighty thirsty,” she finally said. “Those
glasses aren’t big enough for me.”
I didn’t understand. She was by the sink all
day where she could easily refill her glass.
I heard my father call out, “Let’s go!” and I
spun out of the kitchen through the swinging
door. We drove away from the house of clean U.S. Highway 1, Number 5, 1962.
rooms and dappled green light and extra-good behavior. Allan D’Arcangelo. Gift of Mr. and Mrs.
Herbert Fischbach. The Museum of
Away from the park and kitchen and rules—laws—I didn’t Modern Art, New York.
understand.
Analyzing the Art Study this painting.
In no time we were out on the highway, my father Does it help you understand why
whistling with the joy of being back on the open road. I Elizabeth’s father was “whistling with
the joy of being back on the open
leaned over the front seat and asked my mother, “Why did road”? Explain your answer.
Annie drink out of a jar?”
My mother didn’t look at me but spoke softly to her hands
resting in her lap. “She probably wasn’t allowed to drink from
the glasses the family used.”
Practice the Skills
I lay back on the mattress and thought about that. The cook
prepared all their food, washing, peeling, chopping, and
serving. She set the table, touching every dish. Why couldn’t
she drink out of their glasses?
My mother must have felt me thinking behind her, because
she turned around and said gently, “Some things just don’t
make sense.” 7 7
She turned back, discomfort settling on her shoulders like Do you agree with the author’s
an old sorrow. It was all too big, too complicated, even for her. mother that “Some things just
I still didn’t understand. Why would everyone go along don’t make sense,” when it
comes to what’s fair and what’s
with something that didn’t make any sense? I rolled down
not? Explain. Are there ways to
my window and let the hot air buffet my face, hoping it change things that are unfair?
would blow away some of the helplessness I felt. ❍ Write your answers on the
“Looking for America” page of
Foldable 3. Your response will
help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
Vocabulary
buffet (BUF it) v. to strike with force

Digital Image The Museum of Modern Art/Licensed by SCALA / Art Resource, NY
After You Read Looking for America
Answering the
1. If you were the narrator, how would you respond to the unfair situation
that Annie faced?
2. Recall How does Annie help the narrator at lunch?
T IP Right There
3. Recall List three places the narrator visited that summer.
Critical Thinking
4. Infer Why is the narrator uncomfortable at the McNeeleys’ house?
T IP Author and Me
5. Infer a) What question does the narrator want to ask Annie? b) Why
doesn’t she ask this question?
T IP Author and Me
6. Analyze At the end of the essay, why does the narrator feel helpless?
T IP Author and Me
Write About Your Reading

Suppose that you are the narrator. Write two postcards. Write the first post-
card to a friend. Describe an event from the beginning of the trip, such
as the trip through New York City or the scene at Old Faithful. Then write a
second postcard to the same person after the visit to the McNeeleys’.

style
Vocabulary Understand word choice
adverbs
Writing Respond to literature: postcard

Photodisc Red/Getty Images
Skills Review Grammar Link: Adverbs

Key Reading Skill: Distinguishing Fact Adverbs describe verbs by giving information that
answers how, when, or where questions. The adverbs
and Opinion
in the sentences below are in bold type. The words
7. Which of the following statements from the story they describe are underlined.
are statements of opinion?
• She spoke quietly. (How?)
• “We’re lucky to be alive.”
• He jogged yesterday. (When?)
• “Their new house was perfect.”
• They danced there. (Where?)
• “Aaron smashed his hand under the pail and
started screaming.”
Another job adverbs have is to describe adjectives.
• “But it seemed like too big a question.”
• She was very tired.
8. List three things mentioned in the story that are
• The sky was pale blue.
statements of facts.
Adverbs also describe other adverbs.
Key Literary Element: Style
• We’ll arrive late tomorrow.
9. How would you describe the author’s style in
“Looking for America”? You can choose one or • I absolutely never do that.
more of the words below or use your own.
Many adverbs end in -ly, especially those that answer
formal chatty personal dramatic
the question How?
colorful simple funny complicated
Grammar Practice
Reviewing Skills: Connecting Rewrite each sentence. Circle each adverb. (Hint: Look
10. The narrator is upset by the way Annie is treated for the types of words adverbs can describe, and see if
by the McNeeleys. Describe a time when you saw they are described.) The number after each sentence
a person being treated unfairly. How did you feel? tells how many adverbs you should find.
17. Suzanne and Joel danced gracefully. (1)
18. We gradually stopped taking the bus. (1)
Vocabulary Check 19. Geoff reads very quickly. (2)
Which of these sentences using vocabulary words 20. The car is bright red, and it runs well. (2)
makes sense? Which do not? 21. He was barely awake and yawned deeply. (2)
11. We sat in the shade of the cicada.
12. She beckoned me to come over. Writing Application Look back at the postcards you
13. The waves began to buffet the boat. wrote. See if you can add adverbs to describe any of
your verbs.
14. The bus broke down, so we called an architect.
15. Academic Vocabulary What are two things that
you find it difficult to distinguish between?
16. English Language Coach Rewrite the following
sentence with a more descriptive verb. Use a Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection
thesaurus if necessary. Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.
• I drove into the door of the garage.

WRITING WORKSHOP PART 1
Persuasive Essay
Prewriting and Drafting
An effort to persuade someone usually involves arguing for or against some-

ASSIGNMENT Write a thing. In this workshop, you will identify a problem you think is unfair and
persuasive essay persuade your readers to take action.
Purpose: Write an essay
that argues either for or Prewriting
against a specific issue
Audience: You, your Get Ready to Write
teacher, and classmates
You should choose a topic that you are already familiar with and have strong
feelings about.
Writing Rubric • What problem do I care most about?
As you work through this • Can I think of a possible solution?
assignment, you should • What about this problem is unfair?
• write your opinion about
a topic Choose a Topic
• include evidence to
Explore different topics by making an idea tree like the one below. Choose a
support your opinion
problem from your idea tree to be the subject of your persuasive essay.
• write a five paragraph
essay that includes an Problems
introduction, a body,
and a conclusion
Endangered High-priced movie
• address arguments that School dress code
manatee tickets
oppose your own views
See page 316 in Part 2 for a School
model of a persuasive essay. Kids can’t conflicts with
Uncomfortable Careless Overdeveloped
Too expensive afford movie lower,
clothes boaters shoreline
tickets daytime ticket
prices
Take a Stand
Now that you have chosen a problem, think about what makes it unfair. In
Objectives (pp. 278–281) your Learner’s Notebook, freewrite a short paragraph describing your prob-
Reading Use the writing process:
prewriting, drafting • Write persua- lem and why you think it is unfair.
sively • Include main ideas and sup-
porting details • Write with fluency
and clarity
Grammar Understand function of I think having a dress code at school is unfair. Students
modifiers • Identify parts of speech:
adjectives, adverbs should be able to express themselves through the clothes
they choose to wear. No two students look alike, so why
should we have to dress alike?

Consider Other Views Writing Tip

When you write persuasively, you should be prepared for people who do Prewriting Each main point
not agree with you. In your Learner’s Notebook, make a pro and con chart should be developed in a sep-
arate paragraph. The strongest
to determine how others may argue against your position.
point of the argument should
be either first or last.
Position: End the school dress code
Pros + : Cons – :
Jeans and sneakers are more Students focus more on school and less
comfortable on clothing
Dress code clothing is too expensive Students learn how to dress for a job
Students get to express their Nice clothing will increase self-esteem
individuality
Make a Plan
• Your essay should be divided into five paragraphs: the introduction, three
main paragraphs, and the conclusion.
• Pick three reasons from your “pros” list to write about; these are your
main points.
• Provide facts, examples, and reasons to support your position.
Introduction: The school dress code is unfair because it requires students

to wear clothing that is uncomfortable and expensive.
Main Point I. Dressy clothes are uncomfortable
Evidence A. Girls should be allowed to wear jeans instead of skirts,
especially in cold weather
B. Sneakers are more supportive than dress shoes. Writing Tip
Main Point II. Dress clothes are expensive Drafting Get your reader’s
Evidence A. Many students have families living on tight budgets attention by using a real life
example in your introduction,
B. Jeans and sneakers cost less than dress pants and shoes
“Last week Jimmy Albert
Main Point III. Increase self esteem sprained his ankle during
Evidence A. Students should be allowed to express themselves morning recess. The sprain
B. Students have more self respect when they choose their own clothes was caused by playing basket-
ball in dress shoes that did not
Conclusion: A dress code does not help students focus on learning. Students have enough support for such
are capable of choosing both comfortable and appropriate school clothes. activities . . .”
Drafting
Start Writing!
Writing Models For models
By now your views about this topic are clear and you are ready to start per- and other writing activities, go to
suading. Begin by stating your topic and why you think it is unfair. Keep your www.glencoe.com.
Learner’s Notebook nearby and follow your plan.
Writing Workshop Part 1 Persuasive Essay 279

Applying Good Writing Traits

Transitions can also link ideas in the same sentence.
Sentence Fluency Even though connects the dog to the father’s anger.
Have you ever put on your favorite pants, your
favorite shirt, your favorite sweater and your favor- Use this transition chart to improve sentence
ites shoes . . . and realized the outfit looked terrible? fluency.
Each piece was just fine, but they didn’t work
together. Sentences can be just like that. Sentence Type Transition Words
and Phrases
What Is Sentence Fluency? Locate above, below, beside,
Fluency is a fancy word for flow. When you’re writ- Students cheered inside in the distance,
ing, your sentences should flow. Your writing should the gymnasium. around the corner,
help the reader go from one sentence to the next to underneath, inside
the next. Here are some problems to watch out for: Sequence first, next, when, later,
• short, choppy sentences We waited and waited. finally, meanwhile,
Finally my sister arrived then, after
• long, rambling sentences
at the restaurant.
• confusing word order
Importance First, most
• sentences that don’t lead to the next one More importantly, she importantly, mainly,
brought the birthday primarily, above all
Why Is Sentence Fluency cake.
Important? Compare also, like, just as, just
Skippy digs holes just like, similarly, similar
Fluent sentences make your writing easier to
like the terrier down to
understand and more enjoyable to read. Which
the street.
example below is fluent and which is not?
A. There are lots of holes in my backyard. My dog Contrast But, even so, however,
Skippy likes to dig. Skippy is a terrier. Terriers are However, Skippy’s unlike
known for digging in the ground. My dad gets holes are much deeper.
angry at Skippy for digging holes in the ground.
Write to Learn Use transitions to make these
B. My dog Skippy likes to dig. As a result, there sentences more fluent.
are lots of holes in my backyard. Even though
Skippy is a terrier, a type of dog known for 1. Sal and I rode our bikes to the park. We played
digging, my dad gets angry at him. soccer and went home.
2. Marcia plays the harmonica well. Her sister
does not.
How Do I Do It?
3. Skippy plays in the yard, runs through the
Transitions help. Transitions are words or phrases house, jumps on my neighbor, digs a hole,
that connect ideas from one sentence to another. eats dinner, and goes to sleep.
In the example above, the writer used the transi-
tions as a result to link two sentences about the
same topic.

Grammar Link
Warning! Warning! Warning! Beware of words
Adjectives and Adverbs that look like verbs! Sometimes a word that you
What Are Adjectives and Adverbs? think is a verb might really be a modifier (or even
a noun).
Remember, you can tell what part of speech a word • That smiling man is my Uncle Albert. (Even
is by what it does in the sentence. One word can be though smiling can be a verb, here it is an
many different parts of speech. adjective describing man.)
Adjectives and adverbs do similar things. They are
both modifiers. They modify, or tell more about, Why Are Adjectives
other words. As you know, adjectives modify and Adverbs Important?
nouns or pronouns. Adverbs modify verbs,
Adjectives and adverbs combined make your
adjectives, or other adverbs.
writing more interesting.
Adjectives may come before or after the word
they modify. He’s a nice boy, sweet and friendly. How Do I Use Adjectives
When a linking verb is used, the adjective comes and Adverbs?
afterwards.
Use an adjective to tell more about a person, a
• The music was loud and clear. (Was is a linking
place, a thing, or an idea. Use an adverb to tell
verb. Loud and clear describe the music.)
how, when, or where things are done.
• bullet>This sandwich tastes salty. (Tastes is a
linking verb. Salty describes the sandwich.)
Grammar Practice
It is easy to tell if a word is acting as an adverb if it Copy the sentences. Then underline the adjectives
comes right after the verb or if it ends in -ly. and circle the adverbs.
• The child waited patiently. (Patiently tells how Every player is waiting eagerly.
the child waited. It modifies the verb.)
The final game will start soon.
But not all adverbs are so easy to spot! The bright red uniforms are very colorful.
• Bob never pets strange dogs. (Never tells when Our excellent band will play loudly and well.
Bob pets strange dogs. It modifies the verb.)
• I shop here for clothes. (Here tells where I shop. Writing Application Review your draft to
It modifies the verb.) see if you should add any modifiers to make your
• The unusually ugly cat was sleeping. (Unusually writing more clear and interesting.
modifies the adjective ugly.)
• She talks too loudly. (Too modifies the adverb
loudly.)
Looking Ahead
Keeping the writing you did here. In Part 2, you’ll learn how to turn it
into a solid, persuasive essay.

READING WORKSHOP 2
Skills Focus
• “Two Advertisements,” p. 286
• “Stray,” p. 292
Clarifying
Reading
Learn It!
• Clarifying
What Is It? As you know by now, you can learn
Literature skills that will help you better understand what you
read. One of these skills is clarifying. That means
• Identifying author’s bias “making things clear.” When you’re reading, you
• Identifying point of view sometimes come to a word, a sentence, or a
paragraph that you don’t really understand. When
Vocabulary you stop and try to figure it out, you’re clarifying.
Not all readers do that, but really good readers do.
• Identifying semantic slanting
• Understanding denotation Why Is It Important? Authors often build ideas
and connotation one on another. If you don’t clear up a confusing
passage, you may not understand main ideas or
Writing/Grammar information that comes later.
• Comparative and
superlative adjectives
• Comparative and
superlative adverbs
es Syndic ate.
with Permission of King Featur
© Patrick McDonnell. Reprinted
Analyzing Cartoons
When the crab said, “Let’s do lunch,”
what did he mean? How could he clarify
what he said?

Reading Monitor comprehension:
clarify
282 UNIT 3
READING WORKSHOP 2 • Clarifying
How Do I Do It? Go back and read a confusing section slowly. Look up

words you don’t know, and read any footnotes. Ask questions about what
you don’t understand. Sometimes you may want to read on to see if fur-
ther information helps you clarify. Study Central Visit www.glencoe.
com and click on Study Central
to review clarifying.
Here is how one student clarified a hard section from his science book.
The earth’s surface seems solid and stable. The
outer layer of our planet, however, is split into large
pieces called plates. Plates are like pieces of a puzzle—
an enormous jigsaw puzzle in which the pieces slowly
move together, apart, and past one another. Where
the edges of the plates bump together, as they do in
the region around Mexico, earthquakes can occur.
It looks like the main point of this paragraph is about

how the moving plates cause earthquakes in Mexico, but
I’m not sure I understand this part about the plates. It’s
clearer when the author compares the moving plates to
moving jigsaw puzzle pieces. That makes more sense to me.
I think I’ll read it again and look up the word “enormous.”
Practice It!
In your Learner’s Notebook, write down the point that Richard Durbin is
making in this sentence from “Preserving a Great American Symbol.”
Please do not tell me that wooden bats are too expensive, when players
who cannot hit their weight are being paid more money than the President
of the United States.
Use It!
Use the following questions to help you clarify hard sections of a text.
• Do I understand all the words?
• Is there some information missing?
• Is there a chance that this will make more sense to me if I read
on further?
Reading Workshop 2 Clarifying 283

Getty Images
Before You Read Two Advertisements
Reading an
Vocabulary Preview
envy (EN vee) n. jealousy; desire to have something someone else has (p.
Advertisement
286) Kori’s new sweater filled Maria with envy.
“Buying this product will
make you a happier person!” well-being (wel BEE ing) n. good physical and mental condition (p. 286)
Torrance had a feeling of well-being after his workout at the gym.
That’s the idea behind a lot
of advertisements, or ads. nutrition (noo TRISH un) n. the process by which living things use food V
This method is called an emo- (p. 287) Fresh fruit is a good source of nutrition.
tional appeal. Advertisers use unique (yoo NEEK) adj. having no like or equal (p. 287) You are a unique
emotional appeals to persuade person.
you to buy things. Would any
of these appeals persuade you Write to Learn Use each vocabulary word in a sentence.
to buy a product?
• Your friends will feel English Language Coach
jealous. Semantic Slanting “Semantic” means the study of words. “Slant” means
• You will get a feeling of to present a certain view in order to favor one side over another. Semantic
well-being. slanting means using words so only one side of an argument or issue is
• This product is made bet- presented favorably. Positive things are said about one side, and negative
ter than similar products. words are used against the other.
• This product will give you
the energy to keep up Here’s Carlos’s argument for why the family should get a dog.
with your busy schedule.
• This product contributes to Why We Should Get a Dog
better health. Dogs make the best pets. They’re loyal, they protect the house,
Think about these appeals as and they do what you tell them. Cats, on the other hand, are
you read the two advertise- unfriendly, lazy, and they never come when you call them.
ments on pages 286–287.
Carlos’s words for dogs Carlos’s words against cats
loyal unfriendly
protect lazy
do what you tell them never come when you call them
Did Carlos say anything good about having a cat as a pet? He presented
Objectives (pp. 284–287) only his view of the issue and carefully chose his words. Be sure you
Reading Monitor comprehension:
clarify • Make connections from text recognize semantic slanting when you hear it and try to hear both sides.
to self
Literature Identify literary elements: Write to Learn Write two short paragraphs about hip-hop or rock music.
author’s bias Give one a positive semantic slant and the other a negative slant.
Vocabulary Identify semantic slanting
284 UNIT 3 What’s Fair or What’s Not?
282-285_U3_RW_845476.indd 284 3/9/07 10:39:48 AM


Key Reading Skill: Clarifying Connect to the Reading
If you read something that doesn’t make sense, take a Have you ever wanted people to be jealous of you
minute to clarify. Clarifying is clearing up confusing or and wish they had what you have? Have you ever been
difficult passages. To clarify an advertisement, make particularly proud of something you owned? Could
sure you understand not only the words, but also any someone get you to do something or buy something
illustrations and the writer’s purpose. Ask yourself by telling you it would give you that feeling?
these questions.
• What is the purpose of this ad? Write to Learn Think about your answers to the
questions above. Jot down your thoughts on a sepa-
• What is the ad trying to persuade me to do, and rate piece of paper.
how is it trying to do that?
• What emotions does the ad appeal to? How are Build Background
words and images used for that purpose? Advertisers use certain writing “tricks” to get their
messages across. Understanding advertisers’ tricks
Key Literary Element: Bias helps readers make better choices about what they
A bias is a tendency to be in favor of something or believe and what they buy.
against it. Use these tips to find each writer’s bias as
you read “Two Advertisements.” The car advertisement you will read, uses a “picture
• Think about the writer’s purpose. of success.”
Is the author trying to persuade, entertain, inform? • It shows smiling, well-dressed, successful-looking
people using the product.
• Think about the writer’s opinions.
• The message is that you will also be smiling, well
How many sides of the story does the writer give— dressed, and successful if you use the product.
more than one? Or do you just see the writer’s side?
Does the writer use facts to prove points? Set Purposes for Reading
• Pay attention to word choice. Read “Two Advertisements” to
decide whether these ads use fair methods to get
How do the writer’s words make you feel about
readers to buy their products.
the subject?
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
Partner Talk Remember that bias is a tendency to to learn from the reading to help you answer the
be for or against something. Think about a conversa- Big Question? Write your purpose on the “Two
tion you’ve had recently in which one person showed Advertisements” page of Foldable 3.
a bias, or favoritism. Tell your partner about that con-
versation. What was the person’s bias? How were you
able to recognize that bias?
Interactive Literary Elements Handbook Keep Moving

elements, go to www.glencoe.com. Use these skills as you read the following
selections.
Two Advertisements 285

READING WORKSHOP 2
Practice the Skills
New 1951 Packard Convertible—one of nine all-new models

1 1 1 Key Literary Element
Pride of Possession is Standard Equipment
Bias Does every advertisement
How can we put a price tag on Like the exclusiveness2
of writer have a bias in favor of the
product? Do you expect to see all
your neighbors’ look of envy Packard beauty—and the
the facts in an advertisement?
. . . or on your own feeling of years–ahead superiority3 of What words in the ad show the
well-being . . . as you drive Packard engineering4—you writer’s bias? List them in your
your new 1951 Packard home can’t buy a new 1951 Packard Learner’s Notebook.
for the first time? without it. And you never
We can’t, of course. So— can match it—no matter how 2 Key Reading Skill
Pride of Possession is Standard much you may be willing Clarifying As you read, ask
Equipment. to pay—in any other car! 2 3 yourself questions to help you
clarify the claims made in the ad.
It’s more than a car . . . it’s a
In your Learner’s Notebook,
PACKARD write a question of your own
about one of the claims in
ASK THE MAN WHO OWNS ONE this ad.
1. Here, possession (puh ZEH shun) means ownership—the state of having or owning something. 3 English Language Coach
2. Exclusiveness (eks KLOO suv niss) is the quality of belonging only to a small group. Semantic Slanting What
3. Superiority (suh PEER ee OHR uh tee) is the quality of being better than others. examples of semantic slanting
4. Engineering (en juh NEER ing) is the planning, building, and workmanship involved in creating can you find in this advertise-
a product. ment? Explain why you think
they are semantic slanting.
Vocabulary
envy (EN vee) n. jealousy; desire to have something that someone else has
well-being (wel BEE ing) n. good physical and mental condition

Gaslight Advertising Archives, Inc
READING WORKSHOP 2
Practice the Skills

4
Bias What words or phrases in
5 this ad show the writer’s bias?
List them in your Learner’s
Notebook.
5 Key Reading Skill

Clarifying Reread these first
three lines. What do the lines
tell you about the audience the
ad is aimed at? What is the writer
saying with these three lines?
Why do you think the writer
used fragments rather than
complete sentences?
EL
6 6
Each ad uses emotional appeals.
The writer of the car ad uses
words like pride of possession,
envy, and superiority. The writer
of the juice ad says things like,
So now you have no excuses. Is
it fair that writers use emotional
appeals to persuade readers to
BQ
buy products? Why or why not?
Write your response on the
“Two Advertisements” page of
Foldable 3. Your response will
help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
Vocabulary
nutrition (noo TRISH un) n. the process by which living things use food
unique (yoo NEEK) adj. having no like or equal
286-287_U3_SEL_845476.indd 287 3/9/07 10:40:22 AM

After You Read Two Advertisements
Answering the
1. Do you think it’s fair to use emotional appeals to win arguments or sell
things? Why or why not?
2. Recall What kind of car is the first ad trying to sell?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize According to the Jiffy Juice ad, why should you drink
Jiffy Juice?
Critical Thinking
4. Draw Conclusions Would you buy Jiffy Juice? Why or why not?
T IP Author and Me
5. Infer What audience do you think the car ad is aimed at? Explain
your answer.
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Which of the two ads works better to make the product seem
appealing? Explain.
T IP On My Own

Think about a product you own or would like to own. Using the ads you’ve
just read as models, write a one-page ad for that product. In your ad, be
sure to
• tell what the product is and what it does
• tell readers why they should buy the product
Objectives (pp. 288–289) • use emotional appeals to persuade readers to buy the product
Reading Monitor comprehension: If you need help, look through magazines to see some other ads
clarify
Literature Identify literary elements: and use those as models.
author’s bias
Vocabulary Identify semantic slanting
Writing Use persuasive techniques to
write an ad
comparative and superlative adjectives
• Use comparative and superlative
adjectives correctly

Gaslight Advertising Archives, Inc
Skills Review Grammar Link:

Key Reading Skill: Clarifying Comparative and
7. In your Learner’s Notebook, write at least one
method you used to clarify a section of “Two
Superlative Adjectives
Advertisements.” Use the comparative (kum PAIR uh tiv) form of an
adjective to compare two persons, places, things,
Key Literary Element: Bias or ideas.
8. Give an example of how the writer’s word choice • Most adjectives of one syllable are made into the
reveals bias in favor of the 1951 Packard. comparative by adding -er to the adjective.
9. Do the writers’ emotional appeals make you feel Joan is older than Elizabeth.
a bias for or against either product? Explain. • Most adjectives with more than one syllable add
10. The Packard ad is more than half a century old. more or less before the word.
In what ways are today’s car ads similar to the This week was less exciting than last week.
1951 ad?
Use the superlative (soo PUR luh tiv) form of an
11. Since you are a kid, do you feel that you relate
adjective to compare more than two persons, places,
to the Jiffy Juice ad? Does that mean you have
things, or ideas.
a bias? Explain.
• Most adjectives of one syllable are made into the
superlative by adding -est to the adjective.
Vocabulary Check Aaron is the youngest of the five children.
Answer the following questions about the vocabulary • Most adjectives with more than one syllable add
words. most or least before the word.
envy well-being nutrition unique Who is the most helpful person you know?
12. Would you rather have a feeling of envy or of • Do not use both the -er/-est ending and more/less
well-being? or most/least together in a sentence.
13. Are things made in a factory usually unique? WRONG: He was the most smartest student in
the class.
14. Does good nutrition help you have a feeling of
well-being? RIGHT: He was the smartest student in the class.
15. English Language Coach Both ads put a
positive slant on their product. For each ad, Grammar Practice
list one way it uses semantic slanting. Rewrite each sentence below, choosing the correct
form of the adjective in parentheses.
16. The Partridges were the (most unusual/more
unusual) of all the families on their street.
17. Hayden was (faster/fastest) than Mitchell.
18. Elizabeth was (more tired/most tired) than Meg.
19. Dawson’s car was (more nicer/nicer) than the
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection car we rented.
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.

Before You Read Stray
Vocabulary Preview
abandoned (uh BAN dund) v. given up or left behind; form of the verb
abandon (p. 292) Their plan to go camping was abandoned once it
started to rain.
timidly (TIM ud lee) adv. fearfully (p. 292) The child was shy, and she
entered the playground timidly.
Cy nt grudgingly (GRUJ ing lee) adv. unhappily, unwillingly (p. 293) Chloe didn’t
hia R yla nt
want to sit beside Amy on the bus, but she did it grudgingly.
Meet the Author distress (dis TRES) n. pain or suffering (p. 294) It caused her distress to
see a pet without a home.
When Cynthia Rylant was
four years old, her parents
Group Work With a few other students, make up a very short story about
separated. She went to live
an old, empty house. Use all the vocabulary words in it.
with her grandparents in
West Virginia. She lived with English Language Coach
them for nearly four years,
and her experiences from Denotation and Connotation All words have a denotation (dee noh TAY
that time are an important shun), a meaning found in the dictionary. Many words also have a connotation
part of the stories she tells. (kawn noh TAY shun), which is a feeling associated with that word.
Rylant writes to make the
world a better place, saying, Look at the words house and home, for example. They have the same dic-
“Every person is able to add tionary meaning, or denotation. But the word home also has a connotation.
beauty.” See page R5 of the • Denotation for house and home: A place where people live
Author Files in the back of • Connotation for home: A familiar place where people feel safe and
the book for more on comfortable
Cynthia Rylant.
Think-Pair-Share Each of the words below has a strong connotation.
Copy each word and write down some notes about what it suggests
to you. Then share the words and connotations with a partner. Do your
Author Search For more connotations match?
about Cynthia Rylant, go to
www.glencoe.com.
family chef rat

Reading Clarify ideas and text • Make
connections from text to self
Literature Identify narrator
• Understand point of view
Vocabulary Understand denotation
and connotation

courtesy Blue Sky Press

Key Reading Skill: Clarifying Connect to the Reading
Before you read “Stray,” plan your strategy for clarify- Have you ever deeply wanted something, even though
ing confusing sections. Be sure to there were plenty of good reasons against it? As you
• reread confusing sections slowly and carefully read “Stray,” think about what Doris wants. Think about
why her parents want something different. What would
• look up unfamiliar words
you do if you were in Doris’s situation?
• ask yourself questions about what you don’t
understand Partner Talk With a partner, talk about a time when
you did not get something you wanted. What was it?
Write to Learn As you read “Stray,” list any Why didn’t you get it? How did you react?
unfamiliar words that make the selection hard to
understand. Also, list any questions you ask yourself Build Background
to help clarify what you read. • Animal shelters—often called pounds—take in 6 to 8
million dogs and cats each year.
Literary Element: Point of View
• These shelters try to find new homes for many of
As you know, in first-person point of view, a the animals, but some cats and dogs cannot be
narrator who is “I” tells the story. The reader knows adopted. They may be too sick, they may have
only what that narrator actually sees, hears, thinks, or behavior problems, or there may just not be
feels. In third-person point of view, the narrator is enough people willing to adopt them.
not named and is not a character in the story. That
narrator is outside the story, not involved in it.
Set Purposes for Reading
There are two major kinds of third-person point Read “Stray” to find out how
of view. one family struggles to make a fair decision about a
• Many stories are written from a point of view called stray animal.
third-person limited. In this type of narration, the
writer doesn’t use an “I” narrator, but he or she Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
limits the story to what the main character sees, to learn from the reading to help you answer the Big
hears, thinks, and feels. Question? Write your purpose on the “Stray” page of
Foldable 3.
• A few stories use a point of view called third-
person omniscient. In these stories, the narrator
reveals what many or all of the characters see, hear,
think, and feel.
As you read “Stray,” notice what the narrator reveals To review or learn more about the literary
to you, the reader. See if you can tell what point of elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
view the story is being told from.
Think-Pair-Share Think about stories you see on

TV and in movies. What point of view is used? What
would a movie be like if it showed things from just Keep Moving
one character’s point of view? Discuss with a class- Use these skills as you read the following
mate how a movie like that might work. selection.
Stray 291
READING WORKSHOP 2
by Cynthia Rylant
I n January, a puppy wandered onto the property of Mr. Amos

Lacey and his wife, Maggie and their daughter, Doris. Icicles
Practice the Skills
hung three feet or more from the eaves1 of houses, snowdrifts

swallowed up automobiles, and the birds were so fluffed up
they looked comic. 1 2 1 English Language Coach
The puppy had been abandoned, and it made its way down Denotation and Connotation
the road toward the Laceys’ small house, its tail between its The puppy wandered into
legs, shivering. the Laceys’ yard. Why do you
suppose the author used the
Doris, whose school had been called off because of the
word wandered instead of
snow, was out shoveling the cinder-block front steps when walked or strolled?
she spotted the pup on the road. She set down the shovel.
“Hey! Come on!” she called. 2 Key Reading Skill
The puppy stopped in the road, wagging its tail timidly,
Clarifying The first paragraph
trembling with shyness and cold. describes a snowy January day.
Doris trudged through the yard, went up the shoveled Think about the statement that
drive and met the dog. “snowdrifts swallowed up auto-
“Come on, pooch.” mobiles, and the birds were so
fluffed up they looked comic.”
“Where did that come from?” Mrs. Lacey asked as soon as
What does the author mean? How
Doris put the dog down in the kitchen. could you clarify those words?
1. Eaves (eevz) are the lower edges of roofs.
Vocabulary
abandoned (uh BAN dund) v. given up or left behind
timidly (TIM ud lee) adv. fearfully

Rommel/Masterfile
READING WORKSHOP 2
Mr. Lacey was at the table, cleaning his fingernails with his Practice the Skills
pocketknife. The snow was keeping him home from his job at
the warehouse. 3 Literary Element
“I don’t know where it came from,” he said mildly, “but I Point of View What do you
know for sure where it’s going.” know about the point of view of
Doris hugged the puppy hard against her. She said nothing. the story so far? Is the narrator
first-person or third-person?
Because the roads would be too bad for travel for many
Is the narrator a character in
days, Mr. Lacey couldn’t get out to take the puppy to the the story?
pound in the city right away. He agreed to let it sleep in the
basement, while Mrs. Lacey grudgingly let Doris feed it table 4
scraps. The woman was sensitive about throwing out food. Why do Mr. and Mrs. Lacey want
By the looks of it, Doris figured the puppy was about six to get rid of the dog? Do you think
months old and on its way to being a big dog. She thought it getting rid of the dog is fair? Write
might have some shepherd in it. your answers on the “Stray” page
of Foldable 3. Your response
Four days passed and the puppy did not complain. It never
will help you complete the Unit
cried in the night or howled at the wind. It didn’t tear up Challenge later.
everything in the basement. It wouldn’t even follow Doris
up the basement steps unless it was invited. Analyzing the Photo Would you keep
this puppy if you found it abandoned in
It was a good dog. the snow? Why or why not?
Several times Doris had opened the door
in the kitchen that led to the basement, and
the puppy had been there, all stretched out,
on the top step. Doris knew it had wanted
some company and that it had lain
against the door, listening to the
talk in the kitchen, smelling the
food, being a part of things. It
always wagged its tail, eyes all sleepy,
when she found it there. 3
Even after a week had gone by, Doris
didn’t name the dog. She knew her parents
wouldn’t let her keep it, that her father
made so little money any pets were out
of the question, and that the pup would
definitely go to the pound when the weather
cleared. 4
Still, she tried talking to them about the
dog at dinner one night.
Vocabulary
grudgingly (GRUJ ing lee) adv. unhappily, unwillingly
Stray 293
Pat Doyle/CORBIS
READING WORKSHOP 2
“She’s a good dog, isn’t she?” Doris said, hoping one of Practice the Skills
them would agree with her.
Her parents glanced at each other and went on eating.
“She’s not much trouble,” Doris added. “I like her.” She
smiled at them, but they continued to ignore her.
“I figure she’s real smart,” Doris said to her mother.
“I could teach her things.”
Mrs. Lacey just shook her head and stuffed a forkful of
sweet potato in her mouth. Doris fell silent, praying the
weather would never clear.
But on Saturday, nine days after the dog had arrived, the
sun was shining and the roads were plowed. Mr. Lacey
opened up the trunk of his car and came into the house.
Doris was sitting alone in the living room, hugging a pillow
and rocking back and forth on the edge of a chair. She was
trying not to cry but she was not strong enough. Her face was
wet and red, her eyes full of distress.
Mrs. Lacey looked into the room from the doorway.
“Mama,” Doris said in a small voice. “Please.”
Mrs. Lacy shook her head.
“You know we can’t afford a dog, Doris. You try to act
more grown-up about this.” 5 5 Literary Element
Doris pressed her face into the pillow. Point of View Have you noticed
Outside, she heard the trunk of the car slam shut, one of more about the narrator? Does the
the doors open and close, the old engine cough and choke narrator reveal what Doris feels
and thinks? Does the narrator
and finally start up.
reveal what Mr. and Mrs. Lacey
“Daddy,” she whispered. “Please.” feel and think?
She heard the car travel down the road, and though it was
early afternoon, she could do nothing but go to her bed. She
cried herself to sleep, and her dreams were full of searching
and searching for things lost.
It was nearly night when she finally woke up. Lying there,
like stone, still exhausted, she wondered if she would ever in
her life have anything. She stared at the wall for a while. 6 6 Reviewing Skills
But she started feeling hungry, and she knew she’d have to Connecting How do you think
make herself get out of bed and eat some dinner. She wanted Doris feels about not keeping the
not to go into the kitchen, past the basement door. She wanted puppy? Think of a time you
wanted something like a pet,
not to face her parents.
clothes, or a bike, but knew you
couldn’t have it. Why couldn’t
Vocabulary you have it? How did you feel?
distress (dis TRES) n. pain or suffering

READING WORKSHOP 2
But she rose up heavily. Practice the Skills

Her parents were sitting at the table, dinner over, drinking
coffee. They looked at her when she came in, but she kept her
head down. No one spoke.
Doris made herself a glass of powdered milk and drank it
all down. Then she picked up a cold biscuit and started out of
the room.
“You’d better feed that mutt before it dies of starvation,”
Mr. Lacey said.
Doris turned around.
“What?” 7
“I said, you’d better feed your dog. I figure it’s looking Do you think Mr. Lacey makes a
for you.” fair decision in the end? Do you
Doris put her hand to her mouth. think the reason he gives for
“You didn’t take her?” she asked. keeping the dog is the only rea-
son he decides to let the dog
“Oh, I took her all right,” her father answered. “Worst-looking
stay? Write your response on the
place I’ve ever seen. Ten dogs to a cage. Smell was enough to “Stray” page of Foldable 3. Your
knock you down. And they give an animal six days to live. response will help you complete
Then they kill it with some kind of a shot.” the Unit Challenge later.
Doris stared at her father.
“I wouldn’t leave an ant in that place,”
he said. “So I brought the dog back.”
Mrs. Lacey was smiling at him and
shaking her head as if she would
never, ever, understand him.
Mr. Lacey sipped his coffee.
“Well,” he said, “are you
going to feed it or not?” 7 ❍
Analyzing the Photo Does this

picture fit in well with the ending
of the story? Why or why not?
Stray 295
Photodisc Red/Royalty Free/Getty Images
After You Read Stray
Answering the
1. Do you think people sometimes feel forced to do things that seem
unfair because they have no choice? Explain. Use the situation in
“Stray” as an example.
2. Recall Why did Doris’s parents let the dog stay at first?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize How do you know that the stray is a friendly, good dog?
Critical Thinking
4. Infer Do you think the author wants readers to like Mr. and Mrs. Lacey?
Explain.
T IP Author and Me
5. Infer a) Why doesn’t Doris name the dog when it arrives?
b) How would naming the dog change Doris’s feelings about it?
T IP Author and Me
6. Synthesize At the end of the story, why doesn’t Doris want to face
her parents?
T IP Author and Me

Make a comparison chart to show how Mr. Lacey felt at the beginning of the
story, and how he felt at the end. Explain his reasons at the beginning, and
explain what changed his feelings. Use quotes and examples from the story.
Reading Monitor comprehension: clar-
Mr. Lacey
ify • Make connections from text to self BEGINNING: END:
Literature Identify narrator
How did he feel about the stray in the How did he feel about the stray by the end
• Understand point of view
beginning? of the story?
Vocabulary Understand denotation
and connotation Use a quote: Use a quote:
Writing Make a comparison chart
Grammar Identify parts of speech: com-
parative and superlative adverbs Why did he feel this way? Why did his feelings change?
• Use comparative and superlative
Give an example or a quote: Give an example or a quote:
adverbs correctly

Rommel/Masterfile

Key Reading Skill: Clarifying Comparative and
7. Did you need to use your clarifying strategies to
understand any parts of this story? Explain.
Superlative Adverbs
• Use the comparative form of an adverb to compare
Literary Element: Point of View two actions. For one-syllable adverbs, form the
8. Was the narrator of this story a first-person comparative by adding -er to the end of the word.
narrator or a third-person narrator? How could Use the word more or less before adverbs that
you tell? end in -ly:
9. Was the information you received limited to the The dog ran faster than Doris.
experiences of one character? If so, which one? The stray dog behaved more timidly than the
other dog.
Reviewing Skills: Connecting • Use the superlative form of an adverb to compare
10. When you were reading “Stray,” were you able to more than two actions. For short adverbs, form the
understand Doris’s feelings? Had you ever felt superlative by adding -est. Use the word most or
any of the things she felt? Explain. least for adverbs that end in -ly:
Of all the dogs at the pound, the black one barked
loudest.
Vocabulary Check
The toy varieties of poodles are my least favorite.
Write a sentence that answers each of the following
questions. Use the vocabulary word in your answer. • Do not use both the -er/-est ending and more/less
11. What is one thing you do grudgingly? or most/least.
12. What is one place you might enter timidly?
Grammar Practice
13. What would you feel like if you were abandoned
by your friends? Rewrite each sentence below, choosing the correct
form of the adverb in parentheses.
14. What is one thing that might cause you distress?
16. By afternoon, the snow began to pile up (most
15. English Language Coach For each word below quickly/more quickly) than it did in the morning.
write its denotation and its connotation.
17. On Saturday, Doris got up (earlier/more earlier)
exhausted trudged mutt than usual.
18. Mr. Lacey acted (more calmly/most calmly)
than Doris.
19. Doris waited (more patiently, most patiently)
than her mother.
Writing Application Look back at your comparison

chart and make sure you used adverbs correctly.
Circle comparative adverbs and underline any
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection superlative adverbs.
www.glencoe.com.
Stray 297
READING WORKSHOP 3
Skills Focus
• “Dressed for Success?” p. 302
• “Eleven,” p. 308
Inferring
Reading
Learn It!
• Making inferences
What Is It? When you infer, you use your knowl-
Literature edge, reasoning, and experiences to guess what a
writer does not come right out and say.
• Understanding elements
of argument Without realizing it, you make inferences every day.
• Recognizing repetition For example, you arrive at the bus stop a little later
than usual. No one is there. You say to yourself, “I’ve
Vocabulary missed the bus.” You may be wrong, but you’ve used
the evidence (you’re late; no one’s there) to make an
• Identifying balanced language inference (you’ve missed the bus).
• Academic Vocabulary: infer
Many times in a piece of writing the author does not
Writing/Grammar come right out and say every little thing about every
character or event. To really understand what is
• Identifying demonstratives going on, you have to make inferences.
• Identifying articles
ion. All rights reserved.

SYNDICATE. Reprinted with permiss
on. Distributed by UNIVERSAL PRESS
Calvin and Hobbes © 1990 Watters
Analyzing Cartoons
What happens in the first two panels
of this cartoon? In the next two panels,
Calvin makes an inference. Do you
agree with his inference? Why or
why not?
Reading Make inferences Academic Vocabulary
infer (in FUR) v. to use reason and experience to figure out what an
author does not say directly
298 UNIT 3
Calvin & Hobbes 1990 Watterson. Dist. By Universal Press Syndicate. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
READING WORKSHOP 3 • Inferring
Why Is It Important? Making inferences will help you to find meaning

in what you read. Inferring helps you understand characters, find the
theme of a selection, and stay involved with what you are reading.
Study Central Visit www.glencoe
How Do I Do It? Inferring uses many of the skills you have learned in .com and click on Study Central to
review inferring.
the previous units, such as activating prior knowledge, connecting, and
predicting. In order to make inferences, pay attention to details. They give
you the clues you need. But be careful. Making inferences does not mean
guessing without thinking! Here’s how one student used inferring to
understand the passage below:
Everything was all set—the balloons, the presents
and the cake. Darla nervously glanced out the
window. Things must go as planned! Darla had
worked for weeks on the details for the party,
everything from the colors to the strawberry filling
in the cake. She hoped her brother would get this
one thing right—picking their grandmother up from
the station. “Please let him do this!” thought Darla.
“I knew I should have gone myself!”
This must be an important party since it’s taken Darla

weeks to plan it and she’s nervous. I think she doesn’t trust
her brother. He’s probably messed up before.
Practice It!
You can often tell when a person is upset by how he or she acts and what
he or she says . . . or doesn’t say.
Grandmother said the taxi driver was very nice. Darla fumed for
the rest of the party.
What can we infer here? Remember who was supposed to pick up

Grandmother. What probably happened?
Use It!
As you read “Dressed for Success?” and “Eleven,” notice the clues the
authors provide. In your Learner’s Notebook, use these clues to make
inferences.
Reading Workshop 3 Inferring 299

John Evans
Before You Read Dressed for Success?
Meet the Writer

Vocabulary Preview
adopt (uh DOPT) v. to accept and put into effect (p. 303) Our middle
Melanie Bertotto was born
school will adopt a student dress code for the new school year.
in 1992 and is on the 2004–
2005 team of kid reporters discipline (DIS uh plin) n. self-control; the obeying of rules (p. 303)
for TIME FOR KIDS. Supporters claim that uniforms and dress codes improve discipline and
Bertotto’s other stories increase student achievement.
are “Book Review: Wolf individuality (in duh vij oo AL uh tee) n. the combined qualities or
Brother Chronicles of characteristics that make one person or thing different from another
Ancient Darkness” and “Meet (p. 303) Some people argue that dress codes take away from a
Ming-Na, Voice of Mulan.” student’s individuality.
As you read “Dressed for
Success?” you’ll notice that Write to Learn Write the vocabulary word that each clue describes:
the writer interviewed several • A strict teacher might believe in this.
people for the article, including
• A person might wear unusual clothes to express this.
a school principal, a student,
a deputy superintendent, and • Members of a city council would vote to decide whether to do this to
a lawyer. Interviewing different a new law.
people is one way that jour-
nalists present different view- English Language Coach
points on a topic. Balanced Language In persuasive writing, the way the writer makes
his or her argument is very important. You have learned how writers
use semantic slanting and hyperbole. In addition, they may make
generalizations, which are broad statements about a large group. “Snakes
Author Resources For more
are dangerous” and “Big cars use a lot of gas” are both generalizations—
on Melanie Bertotto, go to
www.glencoe.com. true in many, but not all, cases.
However, other writers will be very careful not to make generalizations or

to exaggerate. They remind the reader that they are simply giving their
view. These writers try to use balanced language. Recognizing the use of
balanced language will help you decide if you want to be persuaded, and
whether you can believe what the writer is saying. To see if a writer is using
balanced language look for words such as I think, in my opinion, probably,
possibly, generally, many, some, often, and sometimes.
Partner Up Together, rewrite the statement below, adding at least two of

the words listed above. Then discuss whether this changes your opinion of
Objectives (pp. 300–303) the statement.
Reading Make inferences • Make Individuality is less important than discipline. Dress codes will give
Literature Understand characteristics
students the discipline they need.
of argument
Vocabulary Identify balanced language


Key Reading Skill: Inferring Connect to the Reading
Writers don’t always say what they want you to know. This article talks about the pros and cons of uniforms
Sometimes they give clues. Details in a piece of writing and dress codes in public schools. Does your school
can help the reader infer, or figure out, information that have a dress code or require uniforms? What do you
is not stated directly. As you read “Dressed for Success?” think about this? If your school does not have a dress
you will probably need to make inferences. Think about code, do you think it would be a good idea?
what you know about the writers’ arguments and
whether they have stated those things directly. Partner Talk With a partner, discuss whether school
dress codes or uniforms are a good idea.
Write to Learn Write down what you are inferring
in your Learner’s Notebook. Build Background
• Most schools have some type of dress code, and
Key Literary Element: Argument many are now requiring uniforms.
In writing, an argument is the reason or reasons a • The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a
writer uses to support his or her opinion. Let’s say group of lawyers who act to protect the rights of
your teacher wants you to learn some new spelling people in the United States.
tricks, and you ask why. Your teacher might say, “You
• The ACLU has been involved in a number of famous
aren’t doing well in spelling. You need to get better.
“test cases,” or cases that test whether certain laws
These tricks have helped lots of other students spell
are against the Constitution. For example, ACLU
better. They’re easy to learn and will help you. Then
lawyers helped end school segregation in the 1950s.
you’ll pass the tests and get better grades in English.”
Those are good reasons, and using them makes a
good argument for learning the spelling tricks! Set Purposes for Reading
Read the selection “Dressed for
The article “Dressed for Success?” presents the reader Success?” to think about whether dress codes are fair.
with two arguments—one on each side of the issue of
dress codes and school uniforms. By doing so, it pro- Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
vides a fair and balanced view of the subject. As you to learn from the article to help you answer the Big
read, look at the arguments presented in favor of and Question? Write your own purpose on the “Dressed
against dress codes and uniforms. Do the deputy for Success” page of Foldable 3.
superintendent and the lawyer give good reasons for
their views?
Write to Learn Imagine that you need to create an

argument for or against the use of uniforms at your
school. Make a list of reasons that you would use to To review or learn more about the literary
support your opinion. elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
Keep Moving
selection.
Dressed for Success? 301

READING WORKSHOP 3
What should students wear to class?
By MELANIE BERTOTTO
A
t my school in Lemoyne, Pennsylvania, Principal
Joseph Gargiulo follows the latest styles. But his
interest has nothing to do with a love of fashion.
He is just trying to back up Lemoyne Middle
School’s dress code.
Lemoyne does not let students wear flip-flops and pajama
pants. “Pajamas are for sleeping in,” says Gargiulo. “School
is a student’s job. You don’t go to your job in pajamas.”
Seventh-grader Leah Hawthorn disagrees. She says that
wearing whatever she likes helps her do good work at school.
“You worry less about how you look,” she says. “So you are
more focused on what you’re doing in class.”
Pennsylvania is one of 28 states that has given school
districts1 the power to decide what students can wear to class.
Many who are in charge of education believe that dress codes 1 Key Reading Skill
are good for students. They point to places such as the Long Inferring Remember that
Beach Unified School District in California to prove it. In 1994, inferring is using reasoning to fig-
that school district became the first public school system to ure out what a writer doesn’t say
outright. When this school district
order elementary and middle school students to wear uniforms.
made students wear uniforms,
Soon after, the school district found that fewer students had fewer students were absent and
been absent and fewer had been put out of school than before. 1 fewer students were put out of
school. What inference can you
1. A school district is an area of public schools that are managed together. make from this statement?

HEART OF THE CITY, Mark Tatulli. Dist. By UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. Reprinted with permission
READING WORKSHOP 3
Some people say that dress codes and uniforms go against

the right of freedom of expression. The American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed lawsuits for parents and
students who say that school dress codes are unfair.
—From TIME FOR KIDS, February 4, 2005
Should schools be able to tell students what to wear?

YES! Dress codes can play a major role
Courtesy Long Beach Unified School District
in helping schools fulfill one of their

[main] responsibilities: keeping students
safe. Dress codes help schools [set]
standards of behavior. This results in safe
and orderly classrooms. Most important,
dress codes require that all students be
held accountable for maintaining a
Dorothy Harper was school climate that encourages learning.
the deputy of the Long Schools that successfully adopt dress
Beach Unified School codes are generally safer, have more 2 English Language Coach
District.
positive climates, and have a stronger Balanced Language Why do
sense of school pride. That’s a lot to gain without having to you think Dorothy Harper uses
give up much at all. 2 such words and phrases as
“generally” and “more positive”?
NO! The Supreme Court has said that How would her argument have
students do not leave their constitutional changed if she used “always”
rights at the schoolhouse door. Yet some instead of “generally”? What if
she had used “most positive”
schools’ dress codes restrict students’
Courtesy Allen Lichtenstein
instead of “more positive”?

freedom of expression. Supporters Would that change what you
claim that uniforms and dress codes thought of her argument?
improve discipline and increase
student achievement. But there is little
Allen Lichtenstein is an evidence to support this. Codes stifle
ACLU lawyer in Nevada. individuality. While no one supports
Argument Have the writers
stated their arguments? If so,
allowing clothing that is dangerous,
which sentence in each half of
disruptive, or too revealing, many codes go too far. America the boxed section states that
has always prided itself on the individual’s right to self- writer’s main argument?
expression. That respect should extend to student clothing. 3 4
4
Is it fair for schools to decide
Vocabulary what students wear to school?
Record your answer on the
adopt (uh DOPT) v. to accept and put into effect “Dressed for Success” page of
discipline (DIS uh plin) n. self-control; the obeying of rules Foldable 3. Your response will
individuality (in duh vij oo AL uh tee) n. the combined qualities or characteristics help you complete the Unit
that make one person or thing different from another Challenge later.

(t) Courtesy of Long Beach Unified School District, (b) Courtesy of Allen Lichtenstein
After You Read Dressed for Success?
Answering the
1. After reading this article, are you for or against school dress codes or
uniforms? Do you feel dress codes are fair to students?
2. Recall What does Leah Hawthorn say about how clothing affects
schoolwork?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize What does Dorothy Harper say about dress codes?
Critical Thinking
4. Synthesize Why might a dress code affect school attendance
and suspensions?
T IP On My Own
5. Infer Harper says that schools have more to gain than give up in
regard to dress codes. What would schools be giving up if they adopted
a dress code?
T IP On My Own
6. Evaluate Is student clothing a form of self-expression? Explain.
T IP On My Own
Talk About Your Reading

Suppose that your local school district is thinking about making students
wear uniforms. Based on the arguments in “Dressed for Success?” discuss
whether or not you agree or disagree with this decision, and explain
Reading Make inferences your reasoning. For help, use a graphic organizer like the one below.
Literature Understand characteristics
of argument
Vocabulary Identify balanced language
Should students wear uniforms?
Grammar Identify parts of speech: Agree Disagree
demonstrative adjectives, demonstrative Reasons: Reasons:
pronouns


Key Reading Skill: Inferring Demonstratives
7. When Dorothy Harper writes that a school’s The words this, that, these, and those are called
major responsibility is keeping students safe, demonstratives. They “demonstrate,” or point out,
can you infer anything about her experiences people, places, or things.
with schools? • This and these point out people or things near to
you. That and those point out people or things at
Key Literary Element: Argument a distance from you.
8. Which writer (Harper or Lichtenstein) do you
• This and that are singular demonstratives. Each
think makes a better argument? Why?
refers to one thing. These and those are plural
demonstratives. Each refers to more than one thing.
Vocabulary Check Demonstrative adjectives This, that, these, and
9. Fill in the blanks with the correct vocabulary words. those are called demonstrative adjectives when they
describe nouns. They are followed by nouns.
adopt individuality discipline
• That bridge is unusual. (That describes bridge.)
Our school has strict and rules.
• Look at those DVD players. (Those describes DVD
Last school year, our school decided to a players.)
dress code.
Demonstrative pronouns This, that, these, and
Some kids feel it stifles their , but I don’t
those are called demonstrative pronouns when they
mind the dress code.
take the place of nouns and point out something.
10. Academic Vocabulary Your friend tells you
• This is a glass dome. (This takes the place of the
that the drama club meeting starts at 7:00. When
noun dome and points it out.)
you arrive, no one is there. What can you infer
from this? • Those are large windows. (Those takes the place of
the noun windows and points them out.)
11. English Language Coach Review “Dressed for
Success?” and find words or phrases that are
examples of balanced language. Write down two Grammar Practice
sentences from the article that contain such Identify whether each demonstrative is an adjective or
words and underline the example or examples of a pronoun.
balanced language in each. 12. That skirt does not follow the dress code.
13. This is mine.
14. These shirts are acceptable, but those are not.
Write the correct demonstrative adjective below.
15. (This, These) coats are the latest style.
16. (This, These) picture shows proper clothes to
wear at school.
17. (This, That) girl down the hall wrote an editorial
in favor of a dress code.
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection 18. (This, That) leaflet I’m holding tells about the
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to school dress code.
www.glencoe.com.

Before You Read Eleven
English Language Coach

Denotation and Connotation As you know, some words have a
connotation—an extra meaning suggested by a word.
Some words have a positive connotation. For example, slender can

suggest an appearance that is more attractive than thin. Some words have
a negative connotation. For example, cheap often suggests something more
Sa n negative than inexpensive.
d ra Cisn e ro s
Positive Negative
Meet the Author
Sandra Cisneros lives in San young childish
Antonio, Texas. She often plump fat
writes about Latino children daring reckless
living in the United States.
“Eleven,” Cisneros said, “was
Many connotations are neither positive nor negative. They’re just feelings
my story except . . . it didn’t
or ideas we associate with certain words. For example, the word warrior
happen at eleven (I was
suggests an extra meaning that soldier doesn’t have. It makes us think of a
nine), . . . But I did cry. . . .
brave and mighty fighter from the past.
Why did they pick me out?
Because I was the one that The words in this web are ways of looking, but each word has a different
looked like I belonged to connotation. For example, when someone stares at you, it can be upsetting.
something that shabby?” See
page R2 of the Author Files
in the back of the book for gaze stare
more on Sandra Cisneros.
look

about Sandra Cisneros, go to observe glance
www.glencoe.com.
Partner Talk With a partner, talk about what each word says about ways
of looking.
Reading Make inferences • Make
repetition • Understand effects of
repetition
Vocabulary Understand denotation and
connotation • Identify uses of connotative
meaning in semantic slanting

M. Toussant/Liaison/Getty Images

Key Reading Skill: Inferring Connect to the Reading
Sometimes people don’t always say what they’re Have you ever been afraid to speak up for yourself?
thinking. It can be the same way in a story. Everything Have you ever been embarrassed in front of the whole
about a character isn’t always stated. You’ll see this in class? As you read “Eleven,” think of what you might
“Eleven.” When you learn to draw inferences, reading do if these things happened to you.
becomes more interesting. You’re more involved in
the story. You will dig deeper into the characters Write to Learn Write about a time when you should
and the plot. have stood up for yourself, but you didn’t. To help you
organize your thoughts use the bullets below:
Quick Write In your Learner’s Notebook, write • What happened:
about a time—either at school, home, or elsewhere— • What I did:
when you kept your true feelings to yourself. What
did you show outwardly and what did you hold • What the result was:
inside you? • What I should have done:
• What would have been the result:
Literary Element: Repetition
Repetition is the frequent use of words or phrases in Set Purposes for Reading
a story or poem for emphasis. A writer may use repe- Read “Eleven” to find out if what
tition to emphasize an idea or a feeling. For example, happens to Rachel is fair or not.
in the book “Millions of Cats” by Wanda Gag, the
phrase “hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
and billions and trillions of cats” is repeated through- to learn from the selection to help you answer the Big
out the book. Question? Write your own purpose on the “Eleven”
page of Foldable 3.
As you read “Eleven,” use these tips to help you
understand repetition:
• Watch for the words and phrases that are repeated
in the story.
What do these particular words or phrases have
to do with the story? What do they mean to
the character?
• Pay attention to when repetition shows up in
the story.
What is going on in the story when you see the
words and phrases? What is the character going Interactive Literary Elements Handbook
through and feeling at that point? elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
• Pay attention to the sound or rhythm of the
repeated words.
How do they make you feel? Do they remind you Keep Moving
of anything? Use these skills as you read the following
selection.
Eleven 307
READING WORKSHOP 3
by Sandra Cisneros
W hat they don’t understand about birthdays and what

they never tell you is that when you’re eleven, you’re also ten,
Practice the Skills
and nine, and eight, and seven, and six, and five, and four,
and three, and two, and one. And when you wake up on your
eleventh birthday you expect to feel eleven, but you don’t. 1 Key Reading Skill
You open your eyes and everything’s just like yesterday, only Inferring The narrator explains
it’s today. And you don’t feel eleven at all. You feel like you’re that “underneath” eleven you
are also ten, nine, eight, and so
still ten. And you are—underneath the year that makes you on. She also says that you expect
eleven. 1 to feel different when you wake
Like some days you might say something stupid, and that’s up on your birthday, but you
the part of you that’s still ten. Or maybe some days you might don’t. How do you think the nar-
need to sit on your mama’s lap because you’re scared, and rator feels when she wakes up
on her eleventh birthday?
that’s the part of you that’s five. And maybe one day when
you’re all grown up maybe you will need to cry like if you’re
three, and that’s okay. That’s what I tell Mama when she’s sad
and needs to cry. Maybe she’s feeling three. 2 2 Reviewing Skills
Because the way you grow old is kind of like an onion or Connecting Can you think of a
like the rings inside a tree trunk1 or like my little wooden time when you were expected to
dolls that fit one inside the other, each year inside the next act your age, but you wanted to
act as though you were younger?
one. That’s how being eleven years old is.
Do you agree or disagree with
the narrator’s thoughts about
1. If something is like the rings inside a tree trunk, it has layers that show its age. Each ring in a age? Explain.
tree trunk is a layer of wood added during a single growth period.

Glencoe/McGraw Hill
READING WORKSHOP 3
You don’t feel eleven. Not right away. It takes a few days, Practice the Skills
weeks even, sometimes even months before you say Eleven
when they ask you. And you don’t feel smart eleven, not until
you’re almost twelve. That’s the way it is.
Only today I wish I didn’t have only eleven years rattling
inside me like pennies in a tin Band-Aid box. Today I wish
I was one hundred and two instead of eleven because if I
was one hundred and two I’d have known what to say when
Mrs. Price put the red sweater on my desk. I would’ve known
how to tell her it wasn’t mine instead of just sitting there with
that look on my face and nothing coming out of my mouth.
“Whose is this?” Mrs. Price says, and she holds the red
sweater up in the air for all the class to see. “Whose? It’s been
sitting in the coatroom for a month.”
“Not mine,” says everybody. “Not me.” “It has to belong to
somebody,” Mrs. Price keeps saying, but nobody can remember.
It’s an ugly sweater with red plastic buttons and a collar and
sleeves all stretched out like you could use it for a jump rope.
It’s maybe a thousand years old and even if it belonged to me 3 Key Reading Skill
I wouldn’t say so. Inferring What can you infer
Maybe because I’m skinny, maybe because she doesn’t like from the sentence “An ugly
me, that stupid Sylvia Saldívar2 says, “I think it belongs to sweater like that . . . but Mrs.
Price believes her.”
Rachel.” An ugly sweater like that, all raggedy and old, but
Mrs. Price believes her. Mrs. Price takes the sweater and puts
it right on my desk, but when I open my mouth nothing 4 English Language Coach
comes out. 3 4 Denotation and Connotation
The denotation of skinny is
“That’s not, I don’t, you’re not . . . Not mine,” I finally say in
“very thin.” What do you think
a little voice that was maybe me when I was four. the connotation of skinny is? Do
“Of course it’s yours,” Mrs. Price says. “I remember you you think that the narrator is
wearing it once.” Because she’s older and the teacher, she’s suggesting that she likes the way
right and I’m not. she looks or not?
Not mine, not mine, not mine, but Mrs. Price is already
turning to page thirty-two, and math problem number four. 5 Literary Element
I don’t know why but all of a sudden I’m feeling sick inside, Repetition There are three
like the part of me that’s three wants to come out of my eyes, examples of repetition in this
only I squeeze them shut tight and bite down on my teeth paragraph. What are they? Why
do you think the author repeated
real hard and try to remember today I am eleven, eleven.
these words and phrases? When
Mama is making a cake for me for tonight, and when Papa you read them does it make you
comes home everybody will sing Happy birthday, happy think of anything? Does it remind
birthday to you. 5 you of anything?
2. Saldívar (sa DEE var)
Eleven 309
READING WORKSHOP 3
But when the sick feeling goes away and

I open my eyes, the red sweater’s still
sitting there like a big red mountain. I
move the red sweater to the corner of my
desk with my ruler. I move my pencil and
books and eraser as far from it as possible.
I even move my chair a little to the right.
Not mine, not mine, not mine.
In my head I’m thinking how long till
lunchtime, how long till I can take the red
sweater and throw it over the schoolyard
fence, or leave it hanging on a parking
meter, or bunch it up into a little ball and
toss it in the alley. Except when math
period ends Mrs. Price says loud and in
front of everybody, “Now, Rachel, that’s
enough,” because she sees I’ve shoved the red sweater to the
tippy-tip corner of my desk and it’s hanging all over the edge Practice the Skills
like a waterfall, but I don’t care.
“Rachel,” Mrs. Price says. She says it like she’s getting mad.
“You put that sweater on right now and no more nonsense.”
“But it’s not—”
“Now!” Mrs. Price says.
This is when I wish I wasn’t eleven, because all the years
inside of me—ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two,
and one—are pushing at the back of my eyes when I put one
arm through one sleeve of the sweater that smells like cottage
cheese, and then the other arm through the other and stand
there with my arms apart like if the sweater hurts me and it
does, all itchy and full of germs that aren’t even mine. 6 6 Literary Element
That’s when everything I’ve been holding in since this Repetition What is the repeti-
morning, since when Mrs. Price put the sweater on my desk, tion here in this paragraph? Why
finally lets go, and all of a sudden I’m crying in front of do you think the writer decided
everybody. I wish I was invisible but I’m not. I’m eleven and it’s to reemphasize the ages again?
How is Rachel feeling right now?
my birthday today and I’m crying like I’m three in front of
everybody. I put my head down on the desk and bury my face
in my stupid clown-sweater arms. My face all hot and spit
coming out of my mouth because I can’t stop the little animal
noises from coming out of me, until there aren’t any more tears
left in my eyes, and it’s just my body shaking like when you
have the hiccups, and my whole head hurts like when you
drink milk too fast.

Dave Robertson/Masterfile
READING WORKSHOP 3
I wish I was invisible but I’m not. Practice the Skills

But the worst part is right before the bell rings for lunch.
That stupid Phyllis Lopez, who is even dumber than Sylvia 7
Saldívar, says she remembers the red sweater is hers! I take it What would Rachel say about
off right away and give it to her, only Mrs. Price pretends like what’s fair and what’s not? Record
everything’s okay. your response on the “Eleven”
page of Foldable 3. Your answer
Today I’m eleven. There’s a cake Mama’s making for
will help you complete the Unit
tonight, and when Papa comes home from work we’ll eat it. Challenge later.
There’ll be candles and presents and everybody will sing
Happy birthday, happy birthday to you, Rachel, only it’s too
late.
I’m eleven today. I’m eleven, ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five,
four, three, two, and one, but I wish I was one hundred and
two. I wish I was anything but eleven, because I want today
to be far away already, far away like a runaway balloon, like a
tiny o in the sky, so tiny-tiny you have to close your eyes to
see it. 7 ❍
Analyzing the Art Do you think this

painting expresses the narrator’s
feelings in the story’s last sentence?
Explain your answer.
Eleven 311
Andrew Judd/Masterfile
After You Read Eleven
Answering the
1. Do you think that Rachel is treated fairly? Explain.
2. Recall Why does the teacher think the red sweater belongs to Rachel?
T IP Right There
3. Recall What does the teacher make Rachel do?
T IP Right There
Critical Thinking
4. Infer Why does Rachel move the sweater to the edge of her desk with
a ruler and move her belongings away from the sweater?
T IP Author and Me
5. Connect Early in the story, the narrator says that a birthday party at
home later should make her feel better. Do you think it will? Would it
make you feel better if you were in her situation?
T IP Author and Me

Use the RAFT system to write about “Eleven.” A RAFT assignment provides
four details:
R is for your role as a writer—who or what you must
pretend to be as you write.
A stands for your audience—the person or group who
will read what you write.
F means format—the form for your writing, such as
Objectives (pp. 312–313) a letter or a speech.
Reading Make inferences • Make
T means topic—what your writing should be about.
Literature Identify literary elements: Role: Write as if you were Mrs. Price, Sylvia Saldívar, or Phyllis Lopez.
repetition • Understand effects of
repetition Audience: Write to yourself.
Vocabulary Understand denotation and Format: A journal entry
connotation
Writing Use the RAFT system: respond Topic: Rewrite what happened about the sweater from your point of view
to literature (first-person). Remember that when you use the first-person point of view,
definite and indefinite articles
the narrator is speaking and using the pronoun I.

Glencoe/McGraw Hill
Skills Review Grammar Link: Articles

Key Reading Skill: Inferring The words a, an, and the make up a special group of
adjectives called articles.
6. On page 309 Rachel says “the part of me that’s
three wants to come out of my eyes . . .” What • A and an are called indefinite articles. They refer
can you infer is happening to Rachel? to any one item of a group of people, places, things,
or ideas.
7. At the end of the story Mrs. Price “pretends like
everything is okay.” What can you infer about She bought a ticket.
what Rachel wanted Mrs. Price to do? • Use a before words that begin with a consonant
sound.
Literary Element: Repetition a pilot a space ship
8. Rachel believes that people are made up of every
• Use an before words that begin with a vowel sound.
age they have ever been. She thinks, “when
you’re eleven, you’re also ten, and nine, and an hour an astronaut
eight, and seven, and six, and five, and four, and • The is a definite article. It indicates that the noun is
three, and two, and one.” What does the repeti- a specific person, place, or thing.
tion of ages tell you about Rachel? She liked the movie.
9. Find another example of repetition in “Eleven.”
Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on
Tell what that example adds to the story.
the moon.
Reviewing Skills: Connecting
10. Do you agree that your younger ages still live Grammar Practice
inside of you? Explain. On a separate sheet of paper, tell whether the bolded
articles are indefinite or definite.
13. The way you grow old is like an onion.
Vocabulary Check 14. The hat’s been left in the coatroom for a month.
11. Academic Vocabulary You see your friend after 15. The red sweater’s still sitting there, like a big
his or her basketball game. He or she looks sad red mountain.
and angry. What can you infer about the results 16. Your smile is the part of you that I like best.
of the game?
12. English Language Coach The denotation of Now write each word or group of words with the
snake is “a scaly, legless reptile.” Its connotation correct indefinite article—a or an.
might involve something sneaky or wicked. In 17. birthday
your Learner’s Notebook write the denotation of 18. onion
kitten. Then write its connotation.
19. tree trunk
20. wooden doll
21. ugly sweater
22. eraser
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection Writing Application Look back at the RAFT
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to assignment you wrote. Make sure that the definite
www.glencoe.com. and indefinite articles you used are correct.
Eleven 313
Persuasive Essay
Revising, Editing, and Presenting
You’ve already chosen a topic, organized your ideas, and written the first
ASSIGNMENT Write a draft of your essay. Great work! Now it’s time to revise your draft and share
persuasive essay your work with an audience.
Purpose: Write an essay
that argues either for or Revising
against a specific issue
and persuade others to Make It Better
agree with you
Audience: You, your Revising is your chance to make changes to your writing. You may need
teacher, and classmates to write more in places where your draft seems unclear. Or, you may
need to delete parts of your draft that repeat or are unnecessary.
Revising Rubric Check Your Draft

Your revised essay should Read over your draft and add missing information. The questions below will
have help you decide what to revise.
• evidence to support your • Does the introduction explain the unfair situation?
opinion • Is your position stated clearly?
• responses to possible • Does the body of your essay have three main paragraphs?
counterarguments
• Does each paragraph include a main point about why the topic is unfair?
• five paragraphs that
include an introduction, a • Does each paragraph have evidence to support your main points?
body, and a conclusion • Is your evidence in the best and most persuasive order?
• transitions to improve sen- You probably answered “no” to some of the questions. That’s okay! Drafts
tence fluency are not supposed to be perfect. You may need to think of more evidence to
• adjectives and adverbs support your main points or write a stronger introduction to interest readers.
used correctly Go back and make the necessary improvements to your essay.
Say It Like You Mean It

Your persuasive essay should be about an issue that you feel strongly about.
Use words that express your emotions or personal views. Use detailed argu-
Objectives (pp. 314–317) ments. If your readers feel that you really know and care about the issue, they
Writing Write persuasively • Revise
writing for key elements, style, and
will be more willing to listen to your argument. Consider these examples.
word choice • Present writing
Listening, Speaking, and
Viewing Speak effectively • Use Following a dress code makes students feel like robots.
persuasive techniques After a few weeks we get tired of seeing the same
colors and outfits every day.

Students should not have to wear the same clothes.

Following a dress code is a bad idea.
Writing Models For models
and other writing activities, go to
The first example is more persuasive because it is more descriptive. It lets www.literature.glencoe.com.
www.glencoe.com.
the reader know not only that the writer thinks that dress codes are a bad
idea but also why they are a bad idea. The use of descriptions such as “feel
like robots” puts some emotion into the writing as well. Writing Tip
Proofreading Make sure
Editing that you have used the correct
forms of superlative and
Finish It Up comparative adjectives and
adverbs.
Now you are ready to edit your persuasive essay. Read your essay and look
for errors in grammar, punctuation, and usage. Follow the editing checklist
to spot your errors.
Editing Checklist
✓ All sentences end with correct punctuation.
❑ Writing Tip
✓ Each paragraph begins on a new line.
❑ Proofreading The normal
✓ All names are capitalized.
❑ way to form an adverb is
✓ Commas and apostrophes are used correctly.
❑ to add -ly, as in commonly,
✓ Spelling is correct.
❑ slowly, or nervously. However,
there are exceptions: If the
word already ends -ll, just
Finally, take one last look at the language of your essay. Does the writing
add -y (for example, fully).
sound like you really mean what you’re saying? Could you add an adjective
or adverb to make a sentence stronger? Double check that you used the
most persuasive language and chose the most effective words.
Presenting
Show It Off
Writing Tip
Read your essay to a small group of classmates. As you read, make sure to
Spelling Break long words
vary the volume and pitch of your voice to emphasize the main points of
into small parts to help you
your essay. You have spent a lot of time writing your essay, now is your
remember how they are
chance to persuade a real audience. Read with enthusiasm to show your
spelled. For example, you could
classmates that you really care about this topic.
break the following words:
busi/ness
to/mor/row

Active Writing Model Writer’s Model
The Hope Middle School dress code caused student

The introduction grabs the Jimmy Albert to spend his Friday night at the emergency
reader’s attention. room. Jimmy sprained his ankle playing basketball during
afternoon recess. His sprain was caused because the
dress shoes he was wearing did not provide enough
support for basic recess activities. Jimmy’s injury is one
The writer states the issue
of several reasons why it is unfair for students to have to
and proposes a solution. follow a dress code. I suggest the school dress code be
changed to allow jeans and sneakers.
According to our principal, the dress code prevents
The writer responds to distractions and helps students focus on learning. I
counterarguments to help
convince readers the dress
disagree. Dressy clothes are distracting because the
code is unfair. pants are itchy and dress shoes cause our feet to hurt.
As a result, uncomfortable clothes actually distract
students from schoolwork.
The second reason the dress code is unfair is because
dress clothes are expensive. Many families at our school
The writer provides live on a tight budget and don’t have money to invest on
evidence to support clothes that are only worn at school. This expense is
a point. unfair to parents who are struggling to make ends meet
and students who can’t afford to buy other clothes. Blue
This transition word jeans are a practical alternative because they don’t wear
increases the fluency out quickly and they are easy to clean.
of the essay. Finally, wearing a uniform makes students feel like
robots. After a few weeks we get tired of seeing the
same outfits and colors every day. Students should be
This transition phrase allowed to express themselves through the clothes they
links two sentences choose to wear. In fact, making students conform to a
about the same topic.
Transition phrases make
dress code shows disrespect for the student’s ability to
writing more fluent. make decisions.
A dress code does not help students focus on learning.
Ending the essay with Students like Jimmy shouldn’t have to worry about
an emotional appeal hurting themselves during recess. I propose allowing
helps persuade jeans and sneakers to be part of the school dress code
readers to agree with immediately, before another student gets hurt.
the writer’s argument.

Listening, Speaking, and Viewing

2. Face
Effective Speaking • Keep your head up! Look at your audience,
You don’t always persuade other people in writ- and move your eyes from person to person.
ing. Sometimes you have to persuade using your
• Use facial expressions. Smile, raise an eye-
voice and body language. Effective speaking is an
brow, or roll your eyes to express emotions
important part of sharing your ideas and opinions
that are conveyed in your speech.
with others.
3. Body
What Is Effective Speaking? • Make gestures with your hands and arms to
help describe what you are saying. Words
Effective speaking is being able to communicate like huge and tiny, and phrases like over
your thoughts and ideas clearly through the there, I have an idea, and come here can
spoken word. easily include a gesture.
• Keep your audience’s attention by standing
Why Is Effective Speaking up and acting out parts of your passage as
Important? you speak.
Sometimes you have to speak for more important
reasons, like giving directions, explaining a pro- Don’t forget to practice your reading a few times
cess, or making a speech. In these situations, it is before presenting it to your group—the more you
important that you express yourself to your listen- practice, the better you will sound!
ers as clearly as possible. Effective speakers use
more than just their voice to express themselves—
they also use their eyes, arms, hands, and feet.
How Do I Do It?
To practice effective speaking, choose a
passage or paragraph from a Unit 3 reading
selection and read it aloud to your classmates. Analyzing the Photo
What does the “thumbs up”
Once you have chosen a passage, read it gesture mean? What might
silently to yourself. Then follow the tips below you be speaking about
for reading it aloud to a small group. when you use this gesture?
1. Voice
• Speak loudly enough to be heard easily
by the rest of your group.
• Speak clearly so that each word you say
is distinct.
• Keep a steady tempo—don’t speak too slowly
or too fast.
• Match the tone of your voice to the tone of
your passage.

READING WORKSHOP 4
Skills Focus
You will practice using these skills when Skill Lesson
you read the following selections:
• “from 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do
to Save the Earth,” p. 322 Identifying
• “Greyling,” p. 328
Problems and
Reading
• Identifying problems and
Solutions
solutions
Literature Learn It!

What Is It? What will happen to Richelle who is
• Understanding mood
sick and can’t keep up with her homework? How
Vocabulary will Safa make friends in a new school where no one
speaks her language? How will Sean get home if his
• Understanding synonyms and bike has a flat tire? What will Dippy, the Talking Dog,
shades of meaning do when she is attacked by an angry ostrich?
Problems make stories interesting. Some problems
Writing/Grammar are very serious and some may be humorous. When
identifying problems and solutions in a text, you
• Identifying prepositions need to figure out what the obstacles or conflicts are
• Identifying interjections and how they are overcome. Authors may use words
such as need, attempt, help, problem, or obstruction
when they write about
• fights, disagreements, or arguments.
• challenges or obstacles.
• questions or mysteries.
ed.
with permission. All rights reserv
PRESS SYNDICATE. Reprinted
Watterson. Dist. By UNIVERSAL
CALVIN AND HOBBES © 1993
Analyzing Cartoons
Do you think that Calvin has found a
good solution to his problem? Explain.
Reading Identify problems and
solutions
318 UNIT 3
CALVIN & HOBBES ©1993 Watterson. Dist. by UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
READING WORKSHOP 4 • Identifying Problems and Solutions
Why Is It Important? Finding the problems and solutions in a selection

will help you understand what’s happening and why. If you know that a
story is about a girl searching for her missing parents, you’ll know which
events are key parts of the story. Understanding problems and solutions Study Central Visit www.glencoe
.com and click on Study Central
may even help you solve your own problems.
to review identifying problems and
solutions.
How Do I Do It? As you read, ask questions to help identify the main
problems. For instance, you might ask, “What challenge does the narrator
face?” or “What are these characters arguing about?” Then you can pick
out the parts of the story that move these problems toward their solutions.
Also, notice how story elements such as setting and characters affect prob-
lems and their solutions.
Here’s how a student looked at the problem/solution structure in “Stray.”

Even after a week had gone by, Doris didn’t name
the dog. She knew her parents wouldn’t let her keep
it, that her father made so little money any pets
were out of the question, and that the pup would
definitely go to the pound when the weather cleared.
I can see the problem. Doris is attached to the stray

dog, but she knows that she can’t keep it unless she
convinces her parents to let it stay. I’ll read on to find out
what she did. I’ll also think about whether her solution
could be used for any problems that I have.
Practice It!
As you read “from 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth” and
“Greyling,” look closely to pick out important problems or conflicts. Ask
yourself, “What are these problems about? What is causing them?” Then
pay attention to the solutions.
Use It!
Make notes as you answer these questions, and refer to them later.
• What is the problem or conflict?
• Who is involved?
• What is the cause of the problem or conflict?
• What solutions are tried?
• What is the final outcome?
Reading Workshop 4 Identifying Problems and Solutions 319

Rubberball/SuperStock
Before You Read from 50 Simple Things Kids

Can Do to Save the Earth
English Language Coach
The EarthWorks Group is
dedicated to helping to save Synonyms and Word Choice As you know, writers carefully choose the
the environment. Here’s words they will use. Sometimes a writer uses a certain word because of its
what one EarthWorks connotation. Sometimes, though, it’s a matter of choosing among syn-
member says about the onyms to get the exact right word.
book 50 Simple Things Kids
Can Do to Save the Earth: Because synonyms rarely mean exactly the same thing, it matters which
one a writer chooses. There is a difference between frightened and
“I guess a lot of kids don’t
terrified. There is a difference between run and scamper. The differences
really think they can make
may be small, but they’re important.
a difference in saving the
Earth. They think they don’t Choosing just the right word is especially important in persuasive writing.
have the power. The following choices all involve the use of synonyms:
“But they’re wrong.
• Would you choose a health bar described as chewy or one described as
“Kids have a lot of power. . . .
leathery?
This book is full of things you
can do to help protect our • Would you rather walk on a gloomy trail or a shady path?
planet. A lot of them are fun. • Would you prefer to be greeted by a fragrance or met by an odor?
Some take work. Some give
you a chance to teach your The words below in dark type are all synonyms for eat. Although they have
parents, instead of the other similar meanings, the differences are important.
way around. But all of them
will show you that you can consume: eat devour: eat
make a difference. And that is up completely hungrily
the power to save the Earth.”
eat
gorge: eat snack: eat

greedily lightly
Word Webs Make your own word webs, like the one above, for any two
of the following words. (You do not need to include the definitions.) Use a
dictionary or thesaurus if you need help.
• fear
• beautiful
Objectives (pp. 320–323) • laugh
Reading Identify problems and solutions
Literature Identify literary elements: • difficult
mood
Vocabulary Understand synonyms:
• run
shades of meaning • say


Key Reading Skill: Identifying Problems Connect to the Reading
and Solutions How do you feel about forests and trees? Do they make
Think about a TV show you’ve seen in which the main you feel peaceful and happy? Do you think they are
character had a problem. Think about beautiful? Or do you not think about them much at all?
• what the problem was and what caused it
Partner Talk Talk about whether you think it’s
• what actions were taken to solve it important to save the trees and forests of the Earth.
• what the solution was
Build Background
Key Literary Element: Mood This selection is from 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do
The mood of a piece of writing is the feeling it creates to Save the Earth.
in the reader. We often talk about the mood created by • The selection is about recycling paper products.
a story or play, but nonfiction writing can also have a Recycling is the process of using waste materials, or
mood. A newspaper article might create a mood of trash, to make new objects.
sympathy or anger or even joy. A letter to the editor can • More than 500,000 trees are cut down every year
make a reader feel determined or, perhaps, amused. just to create the paper for newspapers.
Persuasive writing always involves an attempt to make • Today about half of the used paper in this country is
the reader react. In good persuasive writing, the sent for recycling.
attempt is often successful, and the reaction may well
involve emotions of one sort or another. Set Purposes for Reading
Read “50 Simple Things Kids
As you read, use these tips to help you understand the Can Do to Save the Earth” to find out whether it’s fair
selection’s mood. for people to waste paper.
• Pay attention to the feelings you get as you read.
Do you have an emotional reaction to what you’re Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
reading? Do you feel, for example, hopeless or to learn from the reading to help you answer the Big
encouraged? Question? Write your own purpose on the “50 Simple
Things” page of Foldable 3.
• Is the writer trying to make you feel a particular
way? Is this successful?
Does the author try to reach out to you as a reader,
to get you to react?

Partner Talk Think about something you’ve read To review or learn more about the literary
that excited you, surprised you, made you laugh, or elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
affected you in some other noticeable way. Tell your
partner about what you read and how you reacted.
Keep Moving
selection.
from 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth 321

READING WORKSHOP 4 INFORMATIONAL TEXT
BOOK
50 Simple Things Kids Can
Do to Save the Earth
by The EarthWorks Group
Take a Guess.
If you stacked up all the paper an average American uses
in a year, the pile would be as tall as . . .
A) A car B) An elephant’s eye C) A two-story house
I t takes years for a tree to grow enough to be made into

paper. And it takes many forests to make all the paper we
Practice the Skills
use . . . and throw away.

Wouldn’t it be great if old paper could be turned back into
new paper? Then we’d have more trees and a greener world.
We can make that happen—there is a way. We can recycle
our paper. 1 Key Literary Element
Does that really work? You bet! 1 Mood What mood is created by
these opening paragraphs?
Did You Know?
• Americans use millions of tons of paper every year.
• To make all that paper, we use more than a billion trees! 2 2 Key Reading Skill
• How much is that? The paper that four people use in a Identifying Problems and
year weighs as much as a big car. Solutions What problem is the
• If everyone in the U.S. recycled their newspapers writer presenting here? Write
the problem on your problem-
(including the comics), we’d save hundreds of thousands
and-solution chart.
of trees every week.
• How is paper recycled? It’s shredded and mashed into a
glop called pulp, which is then turned back into paper.
Answer: C. Believe it or not, as high as a two-story house!

READING WORKSHOP 4
What You Can Do Practice the Skills

• You can recycle all kinds of paper—cereal boxes, note
3 Key Reading Skill
paper, bags, newspaper, and so on. 3
• To start recycling in your house, first find a place where
Solutions The writer proposes
you can put a pile of newspapers and a box for collecting one big solution—recycling.
other types of paper. Write that on your problem-
• Whenever you empty a cereal box, or get ready to toss out and-solution chart. Continue
a piece of paper, put it in the box instead of the garbage. reading to find out what smaller
solutions the writer suggests to
If you get a newspaper at your house, stack it neatly on
help kids recycle paper. Write at
the pile every day. least three of those on your chart
• Don’t put shiny paper or paper with plastic attached to it also.
in your box—you can’t recycle that stuff.
• Ask a parent to find out where the nearest recycling center 4 English Language Coach
is. Maybe your neighborhood has a curbside recycling Synonyms and Word
program. That would really make it easy! Choice The word recycle is
• Every week or two, tie the newspapers into small bundles familiar to most people. What
and take them (and other paper) to the recycling center or about its synonym, reuse? Does it
put them on the curb for pickup. have a different connotation than
recycle?
• Extra Tip: Don’t use just one side of a piece of paper—use
the other side for scrap paper. That’s recycling, too. 4 5 ❍
5
Do you think it’s fair to expect
people to follow the writer’s
suggestion and try to save the
world’s trees? Or do you think
it’s too much trouble? Explain
your answer on the “50 Simple
Analyzing the Photo Study the
photo. What ideas does it give you
Things” page of Foldable 3. Your
about ways to conserve paper at answer will help you complete
home? Explain. the Unit Challenge later.

Jose Luis Pelaez, Inc./CORBIS
After You Read from 50 Simple Things Kids

Can Do to Save the Earth
Answering the
1. The writer of this selection creates a cheerful, “can-do” mood about
recycling, partly by telling only about easy ways to recycle. Do you think
this writer is being fair in using these methods to get kids to recycle?
Why or why not?
2. Recall How many trees does it take to make all the paper that
Americans use in a year?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize What does the writer want readers to do, and why?
Critical Thinking
4. Infer Do you think this writer is suggesting that kids should “take
charge” of recycling in their families? Explain.
T IP Author and Me
5. Draw Conclusions Imagine that you have decided to ask your family
to start recycling paper. Based on this selection, what one main reason
would you give them to recycle?
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Does this writer seem qualified to write about this subject?
Does the writer show a bias, or favoritism, toward one opinion or
another? Explain your answers.
T IP On My Own

Imagine that you want to start a paper recycling program at your school.
Using the selection as a model, create a bulleted list of at least five activities
students can do at school as part of the recycling program.
Literature Identify literary elements: If you need help thinking of activities, review the bulleted list under “What
mood You Can Do” in the selection and write your list so the activities can apply
Vocabulary Understand synonyms: to your school.
shades of meaning
Writing Write a list
prepositions, prepositional phrases

Jose Luis Pelaez, Inc./CORBIS

Key Reading Skill: Identifying Problems Prepositions
and Solutions • A preposition is a word that shows the relationship
7. Do you think the solutions that the writer sug- of a noun or pronoun to some other word in the
gests can really solve the problem? Explain your sentence.
answer. • Prepositions include the following: about, above,
among, before, behind, below, between, by, in,
Key Literary Element: Mood into, near, of, to, through, under.
8. Describe the mood of this selection. The troll hid under the bridge.
9. How does the writer create a mood in the The preposition under shows the relationship
selection? between troll and bridge.
10. It would certainly be possible to create a mood of • A preposition is always part of a prepositional
hopelessness while writing about the environ- phrase. A prepositional phrase begins with a prepo-
ment. Why do you think this writer might have sition and ends with a noun or pronoun.
wanted to avoid creating that mood?
Preposition
11. English Language Coach All the words below
are synonyms for the word walks. Think about Ramona left the recycling bag on the sidewalk.
which one best communicates the kind of walking
suggested by each sentence. Then copy the sen- Prepositional phrase
tences and fill in the blanks.
Preposition
totters struts trudges strolls creeps
• Roger is so stuck-up, he like a rooster! The boy with my brother is our new next-door neighbor.
• The silent tiger through the jungle. Prepositional phrase
• Tired after a hard day, Peter home.
• I watch the baby as she a few steps before Grammar Practice
losing her balance. Underline the preposition in each of the following
• Every summer evening, Mr. Hu around the sentences.
neighborhood to relax. 12. Aggie tucked the coupon into her tablet.
13. The leader of the band waved her baton.
14. Nobody on her street used house numbers.
15. The bat bounced in the dirt.
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection 16. The ball sailed over the fence.
www.glencoe.com. Writing Application Look back at the list of recy-
cling activities you wrote. Add one prepositional
phrase to a sentence on your list.

Before You Read Greyling
Vocabulary Preview
grief (greef) n. unhappiness or suffering, often about the loss of something
(p. 329) The death of the fisherman would add to his wife’s grief.
stranded (STRAN did) adj. left helpless in a difficult place (p. 329) The seal
was stranded on a sandbar.
sheared (sheerd) v. cut off sharply; form of the verb shear (p. 329) The
cliffs sheared off into the sea.
J a n e Yo l e n
kin (kin) n. family or relatives (p. 329) The seal pup was not old enough
Meet the Author to find its kin.
Born in 1939, Jane Yolen is an tended (TEN did) v. cared for; kept in working order; form of the verb tend
author, songwriter, teacher, (p. 330) Greyling tended his father’s boat.
and storyteller. She has
become well known for her Write to Learn Write a short paragraph that correctly uses all of the
fairy tales and folktales. “I vocabulary words.
don’t care whether the story
is real or fantastical. I tell the English Language Coach
story that needs to be told,” Synonyms and Word Choice Synonyms are words that have the same—
she says. See page R7 of the or similar but not the same—meanings. The right word can help you create
Author Files for more on a clear picture in your mind. By paying attention to synonyms, you can
Jane Yolen. clearly imagine what a character is like or how an author feels about a
topic. Compare these two sentences:
Jamal hung up the phone.
Author Search For more Jamal slammed down the phone.
about Jane Yolen, go to • The words hung up and slammed down describe the same action, but
www.glencoe.com. slammed down lets you know how Jamal felt.
Synonym Chart Copy the chart in your Learner’s Notebook. For each
word, write a synonym that has a more precise meaning. Next to each syn-
onym, write the feeling or idea that the word creates.
Synonym Feeling or Idea

walk
huge
Objectives (pp. 326–333) pretty
Reading Identify problems and solutions difficult
mood
Vocabulary Understand synonyms:
shades of meaning

Jason Stemple

Key Reading Skill: Identifying Problems Connect to the Reading
and Solutions You probably have felt at times that it’s hard to be fair.
Before you read the story, think about the following: Maybe something that you did made one friend
• Have you ever put off dealing with a problem you happy, but upset another friend. The characters in this
knew you’d have to solve eventually? story find themselves in a similar situation and have to
make tough decisions. As you read “Greyling,” think
• Why didn’t you want to solve this problem right away?
about what you would do in their places.
• How did you feel when you finally solved the problem?
Small Groups In small groups, talk about fair and
Write to Learn Write your answers to these ques- unfair solutions to the following problem:
tions in your Learner’s Notebook. Think about these
responses as you read the story. Your parents told you that you can invite two friends
to go to a concert for your birthday. Four of your
Key Literary Element: Mood friends have told you that they love the band that is
The feeling or atmosphere created in a story is called playing and hope you will chose them to go with you.
the mood. Word choice, settings, and characters all
help create mood. Think about how these different Build Background
descriptions create different moods: This story tells of a fisherman and his wife who take in
a selchie (SELL kee) that the fisherman finds stranded
“It was a dark and stormy night.”
on a sandbar. The selchie grows up to become a
“It was a beautiful evening of cool rain.”
young man named Greyling.
• A selchie is an imaginary creature often described in
As you read “Greyling,”
Celtic myths. Selchies live as seals in the ocean and
• Think about how the story is making you feel. as humans on land.
• What details in the story are helping to create the • Seals are mammals that live in the ocean and have
mood? fins or flippers instead of feet.
• Does the mood stay the same?
Partner Talk Talk about the scariest or saddest Read “Greyling” to find out
books you ever read. List some ways in which the more about how people respond to situations that
author set the mood in one of those books. seem unfair.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like

to learn from the story to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on the “Greyling”
page of Foldable 3.
elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
Keep Moving
selection.
Greyling 327
READING WORKSHOP 4
Greyling by Jane Yolen
O nce on a time when wishes were aplenty,1 a fisherman

and his wife lived by the side of the sea. All that they ate
Practice the Skills
1 Reviewing Skills
came out of the sea. Their hut was covered with the finest Activating Prior Knowledge
mosses that kept them cool in the summer and warm in the You have probably read many
winter. And there was nothing they needed or wanted except stories that begin with the similar
words “Once upon a time.” What
a child. 1 2
do you know about stories that
Each morning, when the moon touched down behind the begin with these words?
water and the sun rose up behind the plains, the wife would
say to the fisherman, “You have your boat and your nets and 2 English Language Coach
your lines. But I have no baby to hold in my arms.” And
Synonyms and Word Choice
again, in the evening, it was the same. She would weep and What kind of house is a hut?
wail and rock the cradle that stood by the hearth.2 But year in Why might the writer have used
and year out the cradle stayed empty. this word instead of one of its
synonyms, such as shack or
cottage?
1. When something is aplenty, a large amount of it can be found.
2. A hearth is the area in front of a fireplace.

The Image Bank/Getty Images
READING WORKSHOP 4
Now the fisherman was also sad that they had no child. But Practice the Skills
he kept his sorrow to himself so that his wife would not
know his grief and thus double her own. Indeed, he would
leave the hut each morning with a breath of song and return
each night with a whistle on his lips. His nets were full but
his heart was empty, yet he never told his wife. 3 3 Key Literary Element
One sunny day, when the beach was a tan thread spun Mood To figure out the mood,
between sea and plain, the fisherman as usual went down to look at the words that the writer
his boat. But this day he found a small grey seal stranded on uses. In this paragraph, the writer
the sandbar, crying for its own. uses the words sad, sorrow,
grief, and empty. What mood
The fisherman looked up the beach and down. He looked
do those words create?
in front of him and behind. And he looked to the town on the
great grey cliffs that sheared off into the sea. But there were
no other seals in sight.
So he shrugged his shoulders and took off his shirt. Then
he dipped it into the water and wrapped the seal pup
carefully in its folds.
“You have no father and you have no mother,” he said.
“And I have no child. So you shall come home with me.”
And the fisherman did no fishing that day but brought the
seal pup, wrapped in his shirt, straight home to his wife.
When she saw him coming home early with no shirt on,
the fisherman’s wife ran out of the hut, fear riding in her
heart. Then she looked wonderingly at the bundle which he
held in his arms.
“It’s nothing,” he said, “but a seal pup I found stranded in
the shallows and longing3 for its own. I thought we could
give it love and care until it is old enough to seek its kin.”
The fisherman’s wife nodded and took the bundle. Then
she uncovered the wrapping and gave a loud cry. “Nothing!”
she said. “You call this nothing?”
The fisherman looked. Instead of a seal lying in the folds,
there was a strange child with great grey eyes and silvery
grey hair, smiling up at him.
3. Longing for something means really wanting it.
Vocabulary
grief (greef) n. unhappiness or suffering, often about the loss of something
stranded (STRAN did) adj. left helpless in a difficult place
sheared (sheerd) v. cut off sharply
kin (kin) n. family or relatives
Greyling 329
READING WORKSHOP 4
The fisherman wrung his hands. “It is a selchie,” he cried.

Practice the Skills
“I have heard of them. They are men upon the land and seals
in the sea. I thought it was but a tale.”
“Then he shall remain a man upon the land,” said the
fisherman’s wife, clasping the child in her arms, “for I shall
never let him return to the sea.”
“Never,” agreed the fisherman, for he knew how his wife
had wanted a child. And in his secret heart, he wanted one,
too. Yet he felt, somehow, it was wrong. 4 4
“We shall call him Greyling,” said the fisherman’s wife, “for Do you think that keeping the
his eyes and hair are the color of a storm-coming sky. selchie was fair when the fisher-
Greyling, though he has brought sunlight into our home.” man had a feeling that it was
wrong? Explain your answer.
And though they still lived by the side of the water in a hut
covered with mosses that kept them warm in the winter and
cool in the summer, the boy Greyling was never allowed into
the sea.
He grew from a child to a lad. 5 He grew from a lad to a 5 English Language Coach
young man. He gathered driftwood for his mother’s hearth Synonyms and Word
and searched the tide pools for shells for her mantel.4 He Choice What does the word lad
mended his father’s nets and tended his father’s boat. But mean or suggest to you? Why do
you think the author used that
though he often stood by the shore or high in the town on word instead of boy?
the great grey cliffs, looking and longing and grieving in
his heart for what he did not really know, he never went
into the sea. 6 6 Key Reading Skill
Then one wind-wailing morning just fifteen years from Identifying Problems and
the day that Greyling had been found, a great storm blew Solutions What problem does
up suddenly in the North. It was such a storm as had never Greyling face as he grows up?
Think about possible solutions.
been seen before: the sky turned nearly black and even the
fish had trouble swimming. The wind pushed huge waves
onto the shore. The waters gobbled up the little hut on the
beach. And Greyling and the fisherman’s wife were forced
to flee to the town high on the great grey cliffs. There they
looked down at the roiling, boiling,5 sea. Far from shore they
spied the fisherman’s boat, its sails flapping like the wings of
4. A mantel is a shelf above a fireplace.

5. Roiling and boiling mean “bubbling” and “churning.”
Vocabulary
tended (TEN did) v. cared for; kept in working order

READING WORKSHOP 4
a wounded gull. And clinging to the broken mast6 was the Practice the Skills
fisherman himself, sinking deeper with every wave. 7
The fisherman’s wife gave a terrible cry, “Will no one save 7 Key Literary Element
him?” she called to the people of the town who had gathered Mood A key event such as a
on the edge of the cliff. “Will no one save my own dear storm often adds mood to a
husband who is all of life to me?” story. What mood does the
author create with this storm?
But the townsmen looked away. There was no man there
who dared risk his life in that sea, even to save a drowning
soul.
“Will no one at all save him?” she cried out again.
“Let the boy go,” said one old man, pointing at Greyling
with his stick. “He looks strong enough.”
But the fisherman’s wife clasped Greyling in her arms and
held his ears with her hands. She did not want him to go into
the sea. She was afraid he would never return.
“Will no one save my own dear heart?” cried the Analyzing the Art How does this
picture make you feel? Does it create
fisherman’s wife for a third and last time. a mood? If it does, does that mood
match the mood of the story? Explain
your answer.
6. The mast of a ship is the tall pole to which the sail ties.
Sunset Over the Sea, 1887. George
Inness. Oil on panel, 22 1/16 x 36 1/8 in.
Brooklyn Museum of Art, NY.
Greyling 331
Brooklyn Museum of Art/CORBIS
READING WORKSHOP 4
David Job/Getty Images

But shaking their heads, the people of the town edged to Practice the Skills
their houses and shut their doors and locked their windows
and set their backs to the ocean and their faces to the fires
that glowed in every hearth.
“I will save him, Mother,” cried Greyling, “or die as I try.”
And before she could tell him no, he broke from her grasp
and dived from the top of the great cliffs, down, down, down
into the tumbling sea.
“He will surely sink,” whispered the women as they ran
from their warm fires to watch.
“He will certainly drown,” called the men as they took
down their spyglasses7 from the shelves.
They gathered on the cliffs and watched the boy dive down
into the sea.
As Greyling disappeared beneath the waves, little fingers of
foam tore at his clothes. They snatched his shirt and his pants
and his shoes and sent them bubbling away to the shore. And
8 Key Reading Skill
as Greyling went deeper beneath the waves, even his skin
seemed to slough off8 till he swam, free at last, in the sleek
Solutions How is the storm a
grey coat of a great grey seal. solution to Greyling’s problem?
The selchie had returned to the sea. 8
Analyzing the Photo Do you think this
is what Greyling looks like at the end of
7. Spyglasses are objects that help people see things that are far away. the story? Explain your answer using
8. To slough off is to shed or get rid of something. details from the selection.
332 UNIT 3
READING WORKSHOP 4
But the people of the town did not see this. All they saw Practice the Skills
was the diving boy disappearing under the waves and then,
farther out, a large seal swimming toward the boat that
wallowed9 in the sea. The sleek grey seal, with no effort at all,
eased the fisherman to the shore though the waves were wild
and bright with foam. And then, with a final salute, it turned
its back on the land and headed joyously out to sea.
The fisherman’s wife hurried down to the sand. And
behind her followed the people of the town. They searched
up the beach and down, but they did not find the boy.
“A brave son,” said the men when they found his shirt, for
they thought he was certainly drowned.
“A very brave son,” said the women when they found his
shoes, for they thought him lost for sure.
“Has he really gone?” asked the fisherman’s wife of her
husband when at last they were alone.
“Yes, quite gone,” the fisherman said to her. “Gone where
his heart calls, gone to the great wide sea. And though my
heart grieves at his leaving, it tells me this way is best.”
The fisherman’s wife sighed. And then she cried. But at last
she agreed that, perhaps, it was best. “For he is both man and
seal,” she said. “And though we cared for him for a while,
now he must care for himself.” And she never cried again. So
once more they live alone by the side of the sea in a new little
hut which was covered with mosses to keep them warm in
the winter and cool in the summer. 9 9
Yet, once a year, a great grey seal is seen at night near the Was it fair of the fisherman and
fisherman’s home. And the people in town talk of it, and his wife to keep Greyling from
wonder. But seals do come to the shore and men do go to the the sea? Why or why not? Write
your answer on the “Greyling”
sea; and so the townfolk do not dwell upon it very long.
page of Foldable 3. Your
But it is no ordinary seal. It is Greyling himself come response will help you answer
home—come to tell his parents tales of the lands that lie far the Unit Challenge later.
beyond the waters, and to sing them songs of the wonders
that lie far beneath the sea. 10 ❍ 10 Key Reading Skill
Solutions Not every solution to
a problem has a happy ending.
How is the main problem in
“Greyling” finally solved? Do you
think this is the best solution?
9. Wallowed means “tossed or rolled about in something.”
Greyling 333
After You Read Greyling
Answering the
1. Was it fair for Greyling’s parents to keep him out of the sea? Explain.
2. Recall What did the fisherman think he was bringing home at the
beginning of the story?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize What is Greyling’s life like as a young boy? Write your
answer in your own words.
Critical Thinking
4. Contrast How was Greyling’s childhood different from your own?
T IP Author and Me
5. Draw Conclusions After reading about his actions in the story, what
kind of person do you think the fisherman is?
T IP Author and Me
6. Interpret What does the author mean by saying that Greyling “grieved
in his heart for what he did not really know”?
T IP Author and Me
7. Infer Why do you think the fisherman’s wife cried once after losing
Greyling and then never cried again?
T IP Author and Me

What do you think of the author’s solution to Greyling’s problem? Can you
think of a different ending for the story? Write a new ending from the point
Objectives (pp. 334–335) at which Greyling dives into the sea.
• Include details and description when you tell what happens.
mood • Include dialogue with quotation marks and characters’ names to show
Vocabulary Understand synonyms: who is speaking.
shades of meaning
Writing Respond to literature: write a
story ending
interjections

The Image Bank/Getty Images

Key Reading Skill: Identifying Problems Interjections
and Solutions • An interjection is a word or phrase that shows
8. Think about your own experiences with problems feeling, such as surprise, or attracts attention. An
and solutions as you answer the questions below. interjection often appears before the beginning of a
• What is Greyling’s main problem? sentence.
• How do Greyling’s parents react when his prob- Hooray! We won!
lem is finally solved? Oh, thank you.
Hey, watch it!
Key Literary Element: Mood • Sometimes an interjection stands by itself.
9. How would you describe the overall mood of the Ouch!
story? Explain your answer.
Yikes!
10. Does the mood of the story help you better
understand it? Would you have enjoyed the story • An exclamation point follows an interjection that
more if the mood were different? shows very strong feeling. A comma appears after
an interjection that isn’t as strong.
Reviewing Skills: Activating Prior Wow! You won the spelling bee!
Knowledge Yes, you may go to the concert.
11. What did you already know about seals before
you read the story? How would having seen a live Grammar Practice
seal help the reader understand Greyling? Rewrite each of the following sentences, using one of
these interjections to show your feelings.
hey wow uh-oh oops
Vocabulary Check 18. Watch where you’re going.
Choose the best word from the list to match each defi- 19. I didn’t study enough for the test.
nition below. Rewrite the correct words and definitions
20. You got an A on that test.
on a separate sheet of paper.
21. Maria broke the vase.
sheared grief stranded kin tended
12. left helpless in a difficult place Writing Application Add two interjections that
13. cared for; kept in working order show how the characters felt in the new ending you
wrote for “Greyling.”
14. cut off sharply
15. family or relatives
16. unhappiness or suffering, often about the
loss of something
17. English Language Coach The word gobble can Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection
mean “eat.” It means something a little different Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.
than just “eat,” however, and it has a strong con-
notation! Think of three other synonyms for eat.
Make sure each means or suggests something a
little different, and use each in a sentence.
Greyling 335
The
Scholarship
Jacket & Circuit The
by Marta Salinas
What You’ll Learn

• How to compare two pieces of Whenever you’ve decided between two outfits or
literature sandwiches or solutions to a problem, you’ve had to make
• How to identify external and comparisons. You can make comparisons in literature, too.
internal conflict Comparing the similarities and differences in two stories
can help you understand both stories better.
What You’ll Read
How to Compare Literature: Conflict
• “The Scholarship Jacket,”
p. 339 In the next two selections you will look at the similarities
and differences between the conflicts in two stories.
• “The Circuit,” p. 347
In life or in literature, a conflict is a struggle between two
Point of Comparison people or forces or feelings. Most stories contain a conflict,
• Conflict and usually more than one. Conflict is the gas that keeps
the engine of the story running. It makes stories interesting
Purpose because you ask the question, “Who or what will win?”
• To compare conflict in There are two main types of conflict:

two texts
External conflict
• conflict between two people, such as a race or an
election or a difference of opinion
• conflict between a person and nature, in the form of
storms or animals and so forth
• conflict between a person and society, such as a
struggle to be yourself while fitting in with the community
you live in
Internal conflict
• a conflict within a person, such as having to make a
Reading Compare and contrast difficult choice
across texts: conflict
external conflict, internal conflict
336 UNIT 3
Get Ready to Compare

To figure out the conflicts in a story, pay attention to whether someone is
happy or unhappy. (Happy people generally are not in conflict with some-
thing or someone.) Remember that one story can have many conflicts and
many different kinds of conflict.
When you think about a story’s conflicts, remember these terms:

• Forces are not living things, but they create conflicts. They are problems
such as poverty or prejudice or the weather.
• Obstacles are any problems that make it hard for a person to get what
he or she wants. They can be physical, such as a fence or ocean, or not
physical, such as fear or ignorance.
Use Your Comparison

To help yourself find and keep track of the conflicts in the two stories you
are about to read, use conflict charts like the one below.
Conflict Chart
“The Scholarship Jacket”
Who is the main character?
Who does he or she have
problems (conflicts) with?
What forces is he or she in
conflict with?
Is there an obstacle to overcome?
What is it?
What internal conflicts does he
or she have?
Do other characters have similar
conflicts?
Is the main character’s main
conflict resolved? How?
Now copy and fill in the conflict chart for each story you’ll read in this
workshop.
Comparing Literature Workshop 337

Before You Read The Scholarship Jacket
Meet the Author

Vocabulary Preview
coincidence (koh IN sih dens) n. a situation in which two events that seem
Marta Salinas is the author
unrelated accidentally occur at the same time (p. 341) It was a lucky
of many short stories. Her
coincidence when we both won tickets for the same show.
short story “The Scholarship
Jacket” was first published in dismay (dis MAY) n. a feeling of disappointment or unpleasant
Cuentos Chicanos: A Short surprise (p. 341) She felt dismay that the room was such a mess.
Story Anthology. “Cuentos muster (MUS tur) v. to find and gather together; collect (p. 342) We’ll
Chicanos” means “stories need to muster our courage to face the champions in this game.
by Americans of Mexican withdrawn (with DRAWN) adj. shy, quiet, or unsociable (p. 344) He
descent.” Her work has also seemed unusually withdrawn at the dance.
appeared in the Los Angeles
Herald Examiner and in vile (vyl) adj. very bad; unpleasant; foul (p. 344) A vile odor leaked from
California Living magazine. the lunch bag they found in the closet.
Get Ready to Read

about Marta Salinas, go to Connect to the Reading
www.glencoe.com. How would you feel if you were in a contest and the rules were changed
just so someone else could win? How would you feel if the rules were
changed so you could win?
Build Background
• This story takes place in a small town in Texas.
• The word valedictorian comes from the Latin word valedicere, which
means “to say farewell.” The valedictorian has gotten the highest grades
in the class and often gives a speech at the graduation.

Read to find out how the main character dealt with
an unfair situation.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like to learn from the story
to help you answer the Big Question? Write your own purpose on “The
Scholarship Jacket” page of Foldable 3.
Reading Compare and contrast across
texts: conflict • Make connections from
text to self
external conflict, internal conflict

The
Scholarship
Jacket by Marta Salinas
T he small Texas school that I attended carried out a tradition

every year during the eighth grade graduation; a beautiful gold
Practice the Skills
and green jacket, the school colors, was awarded to the class
valedictorian, the student who had maintained the highest
grades for eight years. The scholarship jacket had a big gold S
on the left front side and the winner’s name was written in
gold letters on the pocket.
My oldest sister Rosie had won the jacket a few years back
and I fully expected to win also. I was fourteen and in the
eighth grade. I had been a straight A student since the first
grade, and the last year I had looked forward to owning
that jacket. My father was a farm laborer who couldn’t earn
enough money to feed eight children, so when I was six I was
given to my grandparents to raise. We couldn’t participate in
sports at school because there were registration fees, uniform
costs, and trips out of town; so even though we were quite
agile and athletic, there would never be a sports school jacket
for us. This one, the scholarship jacket, was our only chance. 1 1
In May, close to graduation, spring fever struck, and no one Because the narrator’s family
paid any attention in class; instead we stared out the windows was poor, she couldn’t partici-
and at each other, wanting to speed up the last few weeks of pate in sports at school. Do you
feel this is fair or not? Explain
school. I despaired every time I looked in the mirror. Pencil your answer.
The Scholarship Jacket 339

Masterfile (Royalty-Free Div.)
thin, not a curve anywhere, I was called “Beanpole” and Practice the Skills
“String Bean” and I knew that’s what I looked like.
A flat chest, no hips, and a brain, that’s what I had. That really
isn’t much for a fourteen-year-old to work with, I thought, as I
absentmindedly wandered from my history class to the gym.
Another hour of sweating in basketball and displaying my
toothpick legs was coming up. Then I remembered my P.E. shorts
were still in a bag under my desk where I’d forgotten them. I had
to walk all the way back and get them. Coach Thompson was a
real bear if anyone wasn’t dressed for P.E. She had said I was a
good forward and once she even tried to talk Grandma into
letting me join the team. Grandma, of course, said no. 2 2 Comparing Literature
I was almost back at my classroom’s door when I heard angry Conflict Who is the main
voices and arguing. I stopped. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop; I just character? Are there any forces or
hesitated, not knowing what to do. I needed those shorts and I people stopping her from doing
something? If so, write this down
was going to be late, but I didn’t want to interrupt an argument
in your conflict chart.
between my teachers. I recognized the voices: Mr. Schmidt, my
history teacher, and Mr. Boone, my math teacher. They seemed
to be arguing about me. I couldn’t believe it. I still remember the
shock that rooted me flat against the wall as if I were trying to
blend in with the graffiti written there.

Mark Burnett
“I refuse to do it! I don’t care who her father is, her grades Practice the Skills
don’t even begin to compare to Martha’s. I won’t lie or falsify
records. Martha1 has a straight A plus average and you know it.”
That was Mr. Schmidt and he sounded very angry. Mr. Boone’s
voice sounded calm and quiet.
“Look, Joann’s father is not only on the Board, he owns the
only store in town; we could say it was a close tie and—”
The pounding in my ears drowned out the rest of the words,
only a word here and there filtered through. “. . . Martha is
Mexican. . . . resign. . . . won’t do it. . . .” Mr. Schmidt came
rushing out, and luckily for me went down the opposite way
toward the auditorium, so he didn’t see me. Shaking, I waited a
few minutes and then went in and grabbed my bag and fled
from the room. Mr. Boone looked up when I came in but didn’t
say anything. To this day I don’t remember if I got in trouble in
P.E. for being late or how I made it through the rest of the
afternoon. I went home very sad and cried into my pillow that
night so grandmother wouldn’t hear me. It seemed a cruel
coincidence that I had overheard that conversation. 3 3 Comparing Literature
The next day when the principal called me into his office, Conflict What conflict has been
I knew what it would be about. He looked uncomfortable and introduced to the story in the last
unhappy. I decided I wasn’t going to make it any easier for few paragraphs? Add it to your
conflict chart.
him so I looked him straight in the eye. He looked away and
fidgeted with the papers on his desk.
“Martha,” he said, “there’s been a change in policy this year
regarding the scholarship jacket. As you know, it has always
been free.” He cleared his throat and continued. “This year
the Board decided to charge fifteen dollars—which still won’t
cover the complete cost of the jacket.” 4 Comparing Literature
I stared at him in shock and a small sound of dismay Conflict Do you think the prin-
escaped my throat. I hadn’t expected this. He still avoided cipal has an internal conflict? If
so, add it to your conflict chart. Is
looking in my eyes. 4
Martha faced with a new conflict?
“So if you are unable to pay the fifteen dollars for the If so, add it to your conflict chart.
jacket, it will be given to the next one in line.” 5
1. The main character is called “Martha” at school and “Marta” at home. Martha is an English 5
version of the main character’s Spanish name.
In your opinion, why did the
Vocabulary board change the rules for
winning the scholarship jacket?
coincidence (koh IN sih dens) n. a situation in which two events that seem Do you believe that changing the
unrelated accidentally occur at the same time
rules was fair? Write your answers
dismay (dis MAY) n. a feeling of disappointment or unpleasant surprise in your Learner’s Notebook.

Standing with all the dignity I could muster, I said, “I’ll speak Practice the Skills
to my grandfather about it, sir, and let you know tomorrow.” I
cried on the walk home from the bus stop. The dirt road was
a quarter of a mile from the highway, so by the time I got
home, my eyes were red and puffy.
“Where’s Grandpa?” I asked Grandma, looking down at the
floor so she wouldn’t ask me why I’d been crying. She was
sewing on a quilt and didn’t look up.
“I think he’s out back working in the
bean field.”
I went outside and looked out at the
fields. There he was. I could see him
Visual Vocabulary walking between the rows, his body bent
Mesquite (mes KEET) over the little plants, hoe in hand. I walked
is a small, thorny tree.
Its pleasant-smelling
slowly out to him, trying to think how I
wood is a favorite could best ask him for the money. There
barbecue fuel in the
Southwest.
was a cool breeze blowing and a sweet
smell of mesquite in the air, but I didn’t
appreciate it. I kicked at a dirt clod. I wanted that jacket so
much. It was more than just being a valedictorian and giving
a little thank you speech for the jacket on graduation night.
It represented eight years of hard work and expectation. I
knew I had to be honest with Grandpa; it was my only
chance. He saw me and looked up.
He waited for me to speak. I cleared my throat nervously
and clasped my hands behind my back so he wouldn’t see
them shaking. “Grandpa, I have a big favor to ask you,” I said
in Spanish, the only language he knew. He still waited
silently. I tried again. “Grandpa, this year the principal said
the scholarship jacket is not going to be free. It’s going to cost
fifteen dollars and I have to take the money in tomorrow,
otherwise it’ll be given to someone else.” The last words came
out in an eager rush. Grandpa straightened up tiredly and
leaned his chin on the hoe handle. He looked out over the
field that was filled with the tiny green bean plants. I waited,
desperately hoping he’d say I could have the money. 6 6 Comparing Literature
He turned to me and asked quietly, “What does a Conflict Is Martha facing a new
scholarship jacket mean?” conflict now? If so, add it to your
conflict chart.
Vocabulary
muster (MUS tur) v. to find and gather together; collect

Walter H. Hodge/Peter Arnold - Inc.
I answered quickly; maybe there was a chance. “It means Practice the Skills
you’ve earned it by having the highest grades for eight years
and that’s why they’re giving it to you.” Too late I realized the
significance of my words. Grandpa knew that I understood
it was not a matter of money. It wasn’t that. He went back to
hoeing the weeds that sprang up between the delicate little
bean plants. It was a time consuming job; sometimes the small
shoots were right next to each other. Finally he spoke again.
“Then if you pay for it, Marta, it’s not a scholarship jacket, 7
is it? Tell your principal I will not pay the fifteen dollars.” Martha was angry with her
I walked back to the house and locked myself in the grandfather for refusing to pay
the fifteen dollars, but she still
bathroom for a long time. I was angry with grandfather even believed he was right. Why did
though I knew he was right, and I was angry with the Board, she feel he was right? Do you
whoever they were. Why did they have to change the rules feel he was being fair or unfair
just when it was my turn to win the jacket? 7 to Martha? Explain.
New Mexico Peon, 1942.

Ernest L. Blumenschein. Oil on
canvas, 40 x 25 in. Gerald Peters
Gallery, Santa Fe.
Analyzing the Painting Does the
person in the painting remind you
of anyone in the story? Explain.

Gerald Peters Gallery, Santa Fe NM
It was a very sad and withdrawn girl who dragged into the Practice the Skills
principal’s office the next day. This time he did look me in the eyes.
“What did your grandfather say?”
I sat very straight in my chair.
“He said to tell you he won’t pay the fifteen dollars.”
The principal muttered something I couldn’t understand
under his breath, and walked over to the window. He stood
looking out at something outside. He looked bigger than usual
when he stood up; he was a tall gaunt3 man with gray hair, and
I watched the back of his head while I waited for him to speak.
“Why?” he finally asked. “Your grandfather has the money.
Doesn’t he own a small bean farm?” 8 8
I looked at him, forcing my eyes to stay dry. “He said if I How do you think the principal
had to pay for it, then it wouldn’t be a scholarship jacket,” felt when Martha told him her
I said and stood up to leave. “I guess you’ll just have to give grandfather refused to pay for
the jacket? Do you think he
it to Joann.” I hadn’t meant to say that; it had just slipped out.
wanted the other girl to get the
I was almost to the door when he stopped me. jacket? Do you think the principal
“Martha—wait.” felt he was being fair? Explain
I turned and looked at him, waiting. What did he want why or why not.
now? I could feel my heart pounding. Something bitter and
vile tasting was coming up in my mouth; I was afraid I was
going to be sick. I didn’t need any sympathy speeches. He
sighed loudly and went back to his big desk. He looked at me,
biting his lip, as if thinking.
“Okay. We’ll make an exception in your case. I’ll tell the
Board, you’ll get your jacket.” 9 9 Comparing Literature
I could hardly believe it. I spoke in a trembling rush. “Oh, Conflict Is Martha’s conflict
thank you sir!” Suddenly I felt great. I didn’t know about resolved? If so, how? Is the prin-
adrenalin4 in those days, but I knew something was pumping cipal’s conflict resolved? If so,
how?
through me, making me feel as tall as the sky. I wanted to
yell, jump, run the mile, do something. I ran out so I could
cry in the hall where there was no one to see me. At the end
of the day, Mr. Schmidt winked at me and said, “I hear you’re
getting a scholarship jacket this year.”
3. A gaunt person is thin and bony.

4. Adrenalin (uh DREN uh lin) is a chemical released into the blood in times of stress or
excitement. It increases the body’s energy.
Vocabulary
withdrawn (with DRAWN) adj. shy, reserved, or unsociable
vile (vyl) adj. very bad; unpleasant; foul

His face looked as happy and innocent as a baby’s, but I Practice the Skills
knew better. Without answering I gave him a quick hug and
ran to the bus. I cried on the walk home again, but this time
because I was so happy. I couldn’t wait to tell Grandpa and
ran straight to the field. I joined him in the row where he
was working and without saying anything I crouched down
and started pulling up the weeds with my hands. Grandpa
worked alongside me for a few minutes, but he didn’t ask
what had happened. After I had a little pile of weeds between
the rows, I stood up and faced him.
10
“The principal said he’s making an exception for me, Grandpa,
For Martha to win the jacket, the
and I’m getting the jacket after all. That’s after I told him what principal had to bend or break
you said.” the new rule that the school
Grandpa didn’t say anything, he just gave me a pat on board had made. When is it
the shoulder and a smile. He pulled out the crumpled red fair to break a rule? Record
handkerchief that he always carried in his back pocket and your answer on “The Scholarship
Jacket” page of Foldable 3. Your
wiped the sweat off his forehead.
response will help you complete
“Better go see if your grandmother needs any help with the Unit Challenge later.
supper.”
I gave him a big grin. He
didn’t fool me. I skipped and
ran back to the house whistling
some silly tune. 10 ❍
Analyzing the Photo How do you think

the girl in this picture is feeling? Explain
your answer.

Tom Stewart/CORBIS
Before You Read The Circuit
Vocabulary Preview
sharecropper (SHAIR krop ur) n. a farmer who works land owned by
someone else and shares the crop or the money from its sale with the
landowner (p. 347) The sharecropper worked thirteen hours a day dur-
ing the harvest.
acquired (uh KWY urd) v. obtained, got, received; form of the verb acquire
Fra (p. 349) He acquired the old car from another farmer.
n ci s c o Ji m é n e z
drone (drohn) n. steady, low, humming sound (p. 351) I could hear the
drone of the truck engine across the field.
Meet the Author
instinctively (in STINK tiv lee) adv. in a way that comes naturally, without
Born in Mexico, Francisco
thinking (p. 351) Jerome instinctively ducked as the bee flew toward
Jiménez came to the United
his face.
States when he was four years
old. At the age of six, he savoring (SAY vur ing) v. taking great delight in; form of the verb savor
became a farm laborer like (p. 352) We were still savoring the chicken when my father brought in
others in his family. Jiménez is the pie.
now a professor of literature at hesitantly (HEZ uh tunt lee) adv. in a way that shows uncertainty or fear
Santa Clara University in (p. 353) We boarded the battered old bus hesitantly.
California, and the author of
many books and stories. “The
Circuit” is based on journal
notes that Jiménez wrote while
Get Ready to Read
in college. See page R4 of the Connect to the Reading
Author Files for more on Think about something that you really want or have wanted. Is anything
Francisco Jiménez. keeping you from getting this thing? How much control do you have over
this obstacle? In “The Circuit,” the narrator faces obstacles that keep him
from what he wants.
about Francisco Jiménez,
Build Background
go to www.glencoe.com. Migrant workers travel from farm to farm to pick vegetables and fruit.
• They follow the harvest, moving to another farm after each type of crop
is harvested.
• Traveling from farm to farm is sometimes called traveling “the circuit.”

Read to learn about what’s fair and what’s not.
Reading Compare and contrast across
texts: conflict Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like to learn from the story
Literature Identify literary elements: to help you answer the Big Question? Write your own purpose on ”The
external conflict, internal conflict Circuit” page of Foldable 3.

San Jose Mercury News photographer: Eugene Louie
I t was that time of year again. Ito,1 the strawberry

sharecropper, did not smile. It was natural. The peak of the
Practice the Skills
strawberry season was over and the last few days the workers,
most of them braceros,2 were not picking as many boxes as
they had during the months of June and July.
As the last days of August disappeared, so did the number
of braceros. Sunday, only one—the best picker—came to work.
I liked him. Sometimes we talked during our half-hour lunch
break. That is how I found out he was from Jalisco,3 the same
state in Mexico my family was from. That Sunday was the last
time I saw him.
When the sun had tired and sunk behind the mountains,
Ito signaled us that it was time to go home. ”Ya esora,”4 he
yelled in his broken Spanish. Those were the words I waited
for twelve hours a day, every day, seven days a week, week
after week. And the thought of not hearing them again
saddened me. 1 1 Comparing Literature
Conflict Who is the main
1. Ito (EE toh) character? Do you know a name?
2. Braceros (brah SAY rohs) are Mexican farm laborers. If not, write “narrator” in your
3. Jalisco (hah LEES koh) conflict chart.
4. Ya esora Ito is trying to say “Ya es hora” (yah es OH rah), which means “It is time.”
Vocabulary
sharecropper (SHAIR krop ur) n. a farmer who works land owned by someone
else and shares the crop or the money from its sale with the landowner
The Circuit 347

Ed and Chris Kumler
As we drove home Papa did not say a word. With both Practice the Skills
hands on the wheel, he stared at the dirt road. My older
brother, Roberto, was also silent. He leaned his head back
and closed his eyes. Once in a while he cleared from his
throat the dust that blew in from outside.
Yes, it was that time of year. When I opened the front door to
the shack, I stopped. Everything we owned was neatly packed
in cardboard boxes. Suddenly I felt even more the weight of
hours, days, weeks, and months of work. I sat down on a box.
The thought of having to move to Fresno5 and knowing what
was in store for me there brought tears to my eyes. 2 Comparing Literature
That night I could not sleep. I lay in bed thinking about
Conflict Has a conflict been
how much I hated this move. 2 introduced to the story yet? If so,
A little before five o’clock in the morning, Papa woke enter it into the right place on
everyone up. A few minutes later, the yelling and screaming your conflict chart.
of my little brothers and sisters, for
whom the move was a great adventure,
broke the silence of dawn. Shortly, the
barking of the dogs accompanied them.
While we packed the breakfast dishes,
Papa went outside to start the
“Carcanchita.”6 That was the name Papa
gave his old ‘38 black Plymouth. He
bought it in a used-car lot in Santa Rosa
in the winter of 1949. Papa was very
proud of his little jalopy. He had a right
to be proud of it. He spent a lot
of time looking at other cars before
buying this one. When he finally chose
the “Carcanchita,” he checked it
thoroughly before driving it out of the
car lot. He examined every inch of the
car. He listened to the motor, tilting his
head from side to side like a parrot,
trying to detect any noises that spelled
car trouble. After being satisfied with
the looks and sounds of the car, Papa
then insisted on knowing who the original owner was. Trabajadores, 1950. Castera Bazile. Oil on
canvas, 27 x 191/2 in. Private collection.
He never did find out from the car salesman, but he
Analyzing the Art Trabajadores (trah
hah bah DOHR ays) means “workers” in
5. Fresno is a city in one of California’s main farming regions. Spanish. Do you think it is the beginning
6. Carcanchita (kar kahn CHEE tah) or the end of the workers’ day?

Trabajadores, 1950. Castera Bazile. Oil on canvas, 27 x 191/2 in. Private collection.
bought the car anyway. Papa

figured the original owner must
have been an important man
because behind the rear seat of
the car he found a blue necktie.
Papa parked the car out in front
and left the motor running.
”Listo,”7 he yelled. Without saying
a word, Roberto and I began to
carry the boxes out to the car.
Roberto carried the two big boxes
and I carried the two smaller
ones. Papa then threw the
mattress on top of the car roof
and tied it with ropes to the front
and rear bumpers. 3
Everything was packed except
Mama’s pot. It was an old large
galvanized pot she had picked up
at an army surplus store in Santa
María the year I was born. The
pot had many dents and nicks,
and the more dents and nicks it
acquired the more Mama liked it.
”Mi olla,”8 she used to say proudly. Despedida, 1941. Hector Poleo. Oil on
linen, 60 x 50 cm. Private collection.
I held the front door open as Mama carefully carried out Analyzing the Art Despedida (dehs pay
her pot by both handles, making sure not to spill the cooked DEE dah) means “departure” in Spanish.
beans. When she got to the car, Papa reached out to help her Does the mood of the painting remind
you of anything in the story? Explain.
with it. Roberto opened the rear car door and Papa gently
placed it on the floor behind the front seat. All of us then
climbed in. Papa sighed, wiped the sweat off his forehead Practice the Skills
with his sleeve, and said wearily: ”Es todo.”9
3
As we drove away, I felt a lump in my throat. I turned
Is it fair that the narrator and his
around and looked at our little shack for the last time
family have to move? Is it fair
that Roberto had to carry two
7. Listo (LEES toh) means “Ready.”
bigger boxes? Explain why or
8. Mama’s favorite olla (OH yah) is a galvanized (GAL vun yzd) pot, an iron pot with a thin
coat of zinc. She got it at an army surplus store, which sells goods no longer needed by the
why not.
U.S. military.
9. Es todo (es TOH doh) means “That’s everything.”
Vocabulary
acquired (uh KWY urd) v. obtained, got, received
The Circuit 349

Despedida, 1941. Hector Poleo. Oil on linen, 60 x 50 cm. Private collection.
At sunset we drove into a labor camp near Fresno. Since Practice the Skills
Papa did not speak English, Mama asked the camp foreman
if he needed any more workers. “We don’t need no more,”
said the foreman, scratching his head. “Check with Sullivan
down the road. Can’t miss him. He lives in a big white house
with a fence around it.”
When we got there, Mama walked up to the house. She
went through a white gate, past a row of rose bushes, up the
stairs to the front door. She rang the doorbell. The porch light
went on and a tall husky man came out. They exchanged a
few words. After the man went in, Mama clasped her hands
and hurried back to the car. “We have work! Mr. Sullivan said
we can stay there the whole season,” she said, gasping and
pointing to an old garage near the stables. 4 4 Comparing Literature
The garage was worn out by the years. It had no windows. Conflict What conflict was
The walls, eaten by termites, strained to support the roof full introduced in the first paragraph
of holes. The dirt floor, populated by earth worms, looked on this page and resolved in
like a gray road map. the second? Add this conflict to
your conflict chart. What does
That night, by the light of a kerosene
this tell you about the life of
lamp, we unpacked and cleaned our new the narrator?
home. Roberto swept away the loose dirt,
leaving the hard ground. Papa plugged the
holes in the walls with old newspapers and
tin can tops. Mama fed my little brothers
and sisters. Papa and Roberto then brought
in the mattress and placed it on the far
corner of the garage. “Mama, you and the
Visual Vocabulary little ones sleep on the mattress. Roberto,
This lamp can burn Panchito, and I will sleep outside under
kerosene, a liquid fuel
made from petroleum. the trees,” Papa said.
Early next morning Mr. Sullivan showed
us where his crop was, and after breakfast,
Papa, Roberto, and I headed for the vineyard to pick.
Around nine o’clock the temperature had risen to almost
one hundred degrees.
I was completely soaked in sweat and my mouth felt as if
I had been chewing on a handkerchief. I walked over to the
end of the row, picked up the jug of water we had brought,
and began drinking. “Don’t drink too much; you’ll get sick,”
Roberto shouted. No sooner had he said that than I felt sick to
my stomach. I dropped to my knees and let the jug roll off my
hands. I remained motionless with my eyes glued on the hot

Index Stock Imagery
sandy ground. All I could hear was the drone of insects. Slowly Practice the Skills
I began to recover. I poured water over my face and neck and
watched the dirty water run down my arms to the ground.
I still felt a little dizzy when we took a break to eat lunch.
It was past two o’clock and we sat underneath a large walnut
tree that was on the side of the road. While we ate, Papa jotted
down the number of boxes we had picked. Roberto drew
designs on the ground with a stick. Suddenly I noticed Papa’s
face turn pale as he looked down the road. “Here comes the
school bus,” he whispered loudly in alarm. Instinctively,
Roberto and I ran and hid in the vineyards. We did not want
to get in trouble for not going to school. The neatly dressed
boys about my age got off. They carried books under their
arms. After they crossed the street, the bus drove away.
Roberto and I came out from hiding and joined Papa. ”Tienen
que tener cuidado,”10 he warned us. “You have to be careful.” 5 6 5 Comparing Literature
After lunch we went back to work. The sun kept beating Conflict What conflict has been
down. The buzzing insects, the wet sweat, and the hot dry dust introduced in this paragraph?
made the afternoon seem to last forever. Finally the mountains Make a note of it in your conflict
chart.
around the valley reached out and swallowed the sun. Within
an hour it was too dark to continue picking. The vines blanketed
6
the grapes, making it difficult to see the bunches. ”Vámonos,”11
The boys have to hide so they
said Papa, signaling to us that it was time to quit work. Papa
won’t get in trouble for not going
then took out a pencil and began to figure out how much we to school. Why can’t they go to
had earned our first day. He wrote down numbers, crossed school? Do you think it’s fair that
some out, wrote down some more. ”Quince,”12 he murmured. they can’t go to school? How do
When we arrived home, we took a cold shower underneath you think the boys feel about it?
a water-hose. We then sat down to eat dinner around some Explain.
wooden crates that served as a table. Mama had cooked a

special meal for us. We had rice and tortillas with carne con
chile,13 my favorite dish.
10. Tienen que tener cuidado (TYEH nen kay tay NAIR kwee DAH doh)
11. Vámonos (VAh moh nohs) means “Let’s go.”
12. Quince (KEEN say) means “fifteen.”
13. A tortilla (tor TEE yuh) is made from corn or wheat meal and baked on a griddle so that it
resembles a very flat pancake. Carne con chile (KAR nay kohn CHEE lay) is meat cooked
with red peppers and beans.
Vocabulary
drone (drohn) n. steady, low, humming sound
instinctively (in STINK tiv lee) adv. in a way that comes naturally, without thinking
The Circuit 351

The next morning I could hardly move. My body ached all Practice the Skills
over. I felt little control over my arms and legs. This feeling
went on every morning for days until my muscles finally got
used to the work.
It was Monday, the first week of November. The grape season
was over and I could now go to school. I woke up early that
morning and lay in bed, looking at the stars and savoring the
thought of not going to work and of starting sixth grade for the
first time that year. Since I could not sleep, I decided to get up
and join Papa and Roberto at breakfast. I sat at the table across
from Roberto, but I kept my head down. I did not want to look
up and face him. I knew he was sad. He was not going to school
today. He was not going tomorrow, or next week, or next month.
He would not go until the cotton season was over, and that was
sometime in February. I rubbed my hands together and watched
the dry, acid stained14 skin fall to the floor in little rolls. 7 7 Comparing Literature
When Papa and Roberto left for work, I felt relief. I walked Conflict What conflict has been
to the top of a small grade next to the shack and watched the solved for the narrator? What
“Carcanchita” disappear in the distance in a cloud of dust. new conflict does he have? What
about Roberto? Does he have a
Two hours later, around eight o’clock, I stood by the side of
conflict? If so, what is it? Write
the road waiting for school bus number twenty. When it your answers in your conflict
arrived I climbed in. Everyone was busy either talking or chart.
yelling. I sat in an empty seat in the back.
When the bus stopped in front of the school, I felt very
nervous. I looked out the bus window and saw boys and girls
carrying books under their arms. I put my hands in my pant
pockets and walked to the principal’s office. When I entered I
heard a woman’s voice say: “May I help you?” I was startled.
I had not heard English for months. For a few seconds I
remained speechless. I looked at the lady who waited for an
answer. My first instinct was to answer her in Spanish, but I
held back. Finally, after struggling for English words, I
managed to tell her that I wanted to enroll in the sixth grade.
After answering many questions, I was led to the classroom.
Mr. Lema, the sixth grade teacher, greeted me and assigned
me a desk. He then introduced me to the class. I was so nervous
and scared at that moment when everyone’s eyes were on me
14. The narrator’s hands are acid stained by grapes.
Vocabulary
savoring (SAY vur ing) v. taking great delight in

that I wished I were with Papa and Roberto picking cotton. Practice the Skills
After taking roll, Mr. Lema gave the class the assignment for the
first hour. “The first thing we have to do this morning is finish
reading the story we began yesterday,” he said enthusiastically.
He walked up to me, handed me an English book, and asked me
to read. “We are on page 125,” he said politely. When I heard
this, I felt my blood rush to my head; I felt dizzy. “Would you
like to read?” he asked hesitantly. I opened the book to page
125. My mouth was dry. My eyes began to water. I could not
begin. “You can read later,” Mr. Lema said understandingly.
For the rest of the reading period I kept getting angrier and
angrier with myself. I should have read, I thought to myself. 8 8 Comparing Literature
During recess I went into the restroom and opened my Conflict What conflicts does the
English book to page 125. I began to read in a low voice, narrator face when he goes to
pretending I was in class. There were many words I did not school? Are they external or
internal conflicts, or both? Add
know. I closed the book and headed back to the classroom.
them to your conflict chart.
Mr. Lema was sitting at his desk correcting papers. When I
entered he looked up at me and smiled. I felt better. I walked
up to him and asked if he could help me with the new words.
“Gladly,” he said.
The rest of the month I spent my lunch hours working on
English with Mr. Lema, my best friend at school.
One Friday during lunch hour Mr. Lema asked me to take
a walk with him to the music room. “Do you like music?” 9 Comparing Literature
he asked me as we entered the building. Conflict When the narrator
“Yes, I like corridos,”15 I answered. He then picked up a opens the door to his home at
trumpet, blew on it, and handed it to me. The sound gave the end of the story, what new
conflict does he face? Does that
me goose bumps. I knew that sound. I had heard it in many
tell you anything about the major
corridos. “How would you like to learn how to play it?” he asked. conflict of this story? Do you
He must have read my face because before I could answer, he think the conflict will be
added: “I’ll teach you how to play it during our lunch hours.” resolved? At the end of your con-
That day I could hardly wait to get home to tell Papa and flict chart, make a few notes
Mama the great news. As I got off the bus, my little brothers and about this.
sisters ran up to meet me. They were yelling and screaming. I
thought they were happy to see me, but when I opened the door 10
to our shack, I saw that everything we owned was neatly packed How do you think the main
character of “The Circuit” would
in cardboard boxes. 9 10 ❍ answer the Big Question about
what is fair and what is not?
15. Corridos (koh REE dohs) are songs, especially slow, romantic ones. Record your answer on “The
Circuit” page of Foldable 3. Your
Vocabulary response will help you complete
hesitantly (HEZ uh tunt lee) adv. in a way that shows uncertainty or fear the Unit Challenge later.
The Circuit 353

After You Read

The
Scholarship
Jacket
Vocabulary Check
&Circuit The
For items 1–11, choose the best vocabulary word from the list to fill each
blank. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
The Scholarship Jacket

coincidence dismay muster withdrawn vile
1. The sticky cough medicine caused me to wrinkle my nose because of its
taste.
2. I ran into my cousin twice in one day: once at the grocery store and
once at the doctor’s office. What a !
3. I felt when I saw the amount of work we had to finish before
dinner.
4. With all the courage that I could , I marched into the store and
demanded that my money be returned.
5. On the boy’s first day of school, he was shy and .
The Circuit
sharecropper acquired drone instinctively savoring hesitantly
6. The of the lawnmower woke me.
7. Most mother animals protect their babies .
Objectives (pp. 354–355) 8. I knew that our neighbor wasn’t very friendly, so I rang the doorbell
Reading Compare and contrast across .
texts: conflict
Literature Identify literary elements: 9. The gave the landowner part of the money he earned from crop
external conflict, internal conflict sales.
10. I some skill in carpentry when I worked in my uncle’s shop.
11. I was the taste of hot, cheesy pizza.

(t) Masterfile (Royalty-Free Div.), (b) Eising FoodPhotography/Stockfood America
21. Interpret At the end of the story, how do you

Reading/Critical Thinking think the boy feels when he sees the packed
On a separate sheet of paper, answer the following boxes?
questions. T IP On My Own
12. Was Grandpa being fair when he said he

wouldn’t pay the fifteen dollars? Explain.
Writing: Compare the
Literature
The Scholarship Jacket
13. Recall Why did Martha deserve to receive the Use Your Notes
scholarship jacket more than Joann? 22. Follow these steps to use the notes in your
T IP Right There Conflict charts to compare the conflicts in “The
Scholarship Jacket” and “The Circuit.”
14. Recall What were Mr. Boone and Mr. Schmidt Step 1: Look at your charts and make notes
arguing about? about what you think is the main conflict in
T IP Think and Search each story.
Step 2: Write down the total number of conflicts
15. Interpret What does Grandpa mean when he in each story. Also, make notes about whether
says, “If you pay for it, Marta, it’s not a scholar- only the main character faced conflicts or if other
ship jacket, is it?” characters in the story had conflicts as well.
T IP Author and Me Step 3: Look at the charts and make notes
about the different kinds of conflicts in each story.
16. Infer Did the principal want Martha to receive Were there more external or internal conflicts? If
the jacket? there were external conflicts, make notes about
T IP Author and Me what kind they were. Were they between two
people? Were they between a person and a force
17. Evaluate Did you find this story realistic and outside the person?
believable? Explain why or why not?
T IP On My Own
Get It on Paper
The Circuit To compare the conflicts in “The Scholarship Jacket”
18. Recall What does the narrator mean when he and “The Circuit,” answer these questions on a sepa-
says in the first sentence, “It was that time of year rate sheet of paper.
again”? 23. Is the main conflict different or the same in the
T IP Right There two stories? Explain your answer.
24. How many conflicts did you find in “The
19. Interpret At the beginning of the story, how did
Scholarship Jacket”? What kind were they?
the main character feel about moving to Fresno?
T IP Author and Me 25. How many conflicts did you find in “The Circuit”?
What kind were they?
20. Interpret Why do you think the narrator spent 26. Was the main conflict resolved in both stories?
recess practicing his reading? Did this affect the way you felt about each story?
T IP On My Own
Comparing Literature Workshop 355

UNIT 3 WRAP-UP
What’s Fair and
What’s Not?
Answering
You’ve just read several different selections and you thought about what’s fair and what’s not. Now
use what you’ve learned to do the Unit Challenge.
The Unit Challenge

Choose Activity A or Activity B and follow the directions for that activity.
A. Group Activity: TV Call-In Show

With five other students, imagine that you 3. Write a Script Work together to write a
produce a TV show in which people call in script for the show. When you write a script,
with questions about a topic. The topic today you write down what the people who are
is “What’s fair and what’s not?” participating will do and say.
• Decide what the host will say about the
1. Discuss the Assignment Brainstorm with topic at the beginning and end of the
members of your group to come up with show.
unfair situations. The notes you made on your
• For each caller, write a description of the
Foldable will give you some ideas from the
situation and finish with a question about
selections in the unit. Choose a member of the
what is unfair in that situation.
group to record the group’s ideas. You can
also share ideas from your own experience. • Discuss how each situation should be
resolved. Then write an answer for the
expert to give to each caller’s question.
2. Plan the Show Discuss the ideas on the
list. Choose three situations to feature on the • Organize the script in the order in which
show. Then decide what each group member the different parts will be used in the show.
will do. Each member of the group should have a
copy of the final script.
• Choose one member to act as the host.
• Choose group members who will call the
4. Practice the Show As a group, practice
show with questions.
reading your parts. Change the script as
• Choose another member to act as the needed to clarify questions or answers and
show’s expert, or person who answers the to help the show run more smoothly.
callers’ questions.
5. Present the Show Now you’re ready to
present your show to the class. At the end of
the show, ask your audience to share their
ideas about what’s fair and what’s not in the
situations you presented.

UNIT 3 WRAP-UP
B. Solo Activity: A Rap or Song Rap or Song

Musicians write raps and songs about things that Topic:
they think are unfair. Think about a situation or
issue that you think is unfair. You’ll write a rap
or song to get others to see the situation as
you do.
Title:
1. Choose Your Topic Think about possible
topics for your rap or song. Look through
your Foldable notes for ideas. Think of
experiences that you or someone close to
you has had that seemed unfair. List all of
your ideas in your Learner’s Notebook. Rap or song to pattern
mine after:
2. Select a Song Think of a rap or song
whose beat, rhyme pattern, or tune you like.
You’re going to use that rap or song’s beat,
rhyme pattern, or tune to write lyrics (words Lyrics:
to a song) about a topic you think is unfair.
3. Start Writing Keep your audience in

mind and the message you want them to
understand. Write down the topic of your
rap or song. 4. Give It Some Shape Now it’s time to go
• Tell the story of the topic you chose. back and revise your rap or song.
Include your thoughts and feelings about • If you need to, read over your sentences
it. Explain what is unfair and what should and separate them into “lines.” Now look
be done about it. at each line. Does it say what you want it
• Make your words fit the same beat, rhyme to? Can you make it shorter and clearer?
pattern, or tune as the song or rap you Can you change the last words of lines so
chose. that they rhyme?
• If you are having trouble writing the story • Review your song or rap to make sure it
in song or rap form, don’t worry! Just write makes sense.
the story in sentences first.
• Think of a catchy title for your rap or song. 5. Say It! When you are ready, present your
Your title should draw attention to the rap or song to the members of your class.
topic and make people want to hear your Discuss with your classmates whether or
message. not they got your message about
your subject, or if they agree
or disagree.
Wrap-Up 357
UNIT 3
Your Turn: Read and Apply Skills
R ay B b ur y
ra d
Meet the Author

Ray Bradbury was born in
Illinois. He is best known for his
science fiction and fantasy sto-
ries. He has published more by Ray Bradbury
than 30 books, including a col-
lection of short stories, poems,
essays, and plays. His most
popular books include The
Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit
451, and Something Wicked
This Way Comes. In his writing,
Bradbury offers warnings
against the dangers of uncon-
trolled technological develop-
“R EADY?”
“Ready.”
ment. Bradbury has won “Now?”
numerous awards for his sci- “Soon.”
ence fiction writing. See page
R1 of the Author Files for
“Do the scientists really know? Will it happen today, will it?”
more on Ray Bradbury. “Look, look; see for yourself!”
The children pressed to each other like so many roses,
so many weeds, intermixed, peering out for a look at the
hidden sun.
about Ray Bradbury, go to
It rained.
www.glencoe.com. It had been raining for seven years; thousand upon
thousands of days compounded and filled from one end to
the other with rain, with the drum and gush of water, with
the sweet crystal fall of showers and the concussion1 of
1. Here, concussion refers to a violent shaking or pounding.

(l) Satelight/Gamma Liaison, (r) Michael Prince/CORBIS
YOUR TURN: READ AND APPLY SKILLS
storms so heavy they were tidal

waves come over the islands.
A thousand forests had been
crushed under the rain and
grown up a thousand times to
be crushed again. And this was
the way life was forever on the
planet Venus, and this was the
schoolroom of the children of
the rocket men and women who
had come to a raining world to
set up civilization and live out
their lives.
“It’s stopping, it’s stopping!”
“Yes, yes!”
Margot stood apart from them,
from these children who could
never remember a time when
there wasn’t rain and rain and
rain. They were all nine years old, Analyzing the Photo How would you describe the feeling you get
from this photo? Is it similar to the feeling you get from the story?
and if there had been a day, seven years ago, Explain.
when the sun came out for an hour and
showed its face to the stunned world, they
was, and how hot. And they had written
could not recall. Sometimes, at night, she
small stories or essays or poems about it:
heard them stir, in remembrance, and she
knew they were dreaming and I think the sun is a flower,
remembering gold or a yellow crayon or a That blooms for just one hour.
coin large enough to buy the world with.
She knew they thought they remembered a That was Margot’s poem, read in a quiet
warmness, like a blushing in the face, in the voice in the still classroom while the rain
body, in the arms and legs and trembling was falling outside.
hands. But then they always awoke to the “Aw, you didn’t write that!” protested one
tatting drum, the endless shaking down of of the boys.
clear bead necklaces upon the roof, the “I did,” said Margot. “I did.”
walk, the gardens, the forests, and their “William!” said the teacher.
dreams were gone. But that was yesterday. Now the rain was
All day yesterday they had read in class slackening,2 and the children were crushed
about the sun. About how like a lemon it in the great thick windows.
2. When the rain was slackening, it was beginning to stop.
Your Turn: Read and Apply Skills 359

Freeman Patterson/Masterfile
“Where’s teacher?” last the sun came out and had long since
“She’ll be back.” forgotten the color and heat of it and the
“She’d better hurry, we’ll miss it!” way it really was. But Margot remembered.
They turned on themselves, like a “It’s like a penny,” she said once, eyes
feverish wheel, all tumbling spokes. closed.
Margot stood alone. She was a very frail “No it’s not!” the children cried.
girl who looked as if she had been lost in “It’s like a fire,” she said, “in the stove.”
the rain for years and the rain had washed “You’re lying, you don’t remember!” cried
out the blue from her eyes and the red from the children.
her mouth and the yellow from her hair. But she remembered and stood quietly
She was an old photograph dusted from an apart from all of them and watched the
album, whitened away, and if she spoke at patterning windows. And once, a month
all her voice would be a ghost. Now she ago, she had refused to shower in the
stood, separate, staring at the rain and the school shower rooms, had clutched her
loud wet world beyond the huge glass. hands to her ears and over her head,
“What’re you looking at?” said William. screaming the water mustn’t touch her
Margot said nothing. head. So after that, dimly, dimly, she sensed
“Speak when you’re spoken to.” He gave it, she was different and they knew her
her a shove. But she did not move; rather difference and kept away.
she let herself be moved only by him and
nothing else.
Analyzing the Photo Does the person in this picture remind you
They edged away from her, they would of Margot in the story? Why or why not?
not look at her. She felt them go away. And
this was because she would play no games
with them in the echoing tunnels of the
underground city. If they tagged her and
ran, she stood blinking after them and did
not follow. When the class sang songs
about happiness and life and games her
lips barely moved. Only when they sang
about the sun and the summer did her
lips move as she watched the drenched
windows.
And then, of course, the biggest crime of
all was that she had come here only five
years ago from Earth, and she remembered
the sun and the way the sun was and the
sky was when she was four in Ohio. And
they, they had been on Venus all their lives,
and they had been only two years old when

Trinette Reed/CORBIS
There was talk that her father and mother throwing herself against it. They heard her
were taking her back to Earth next year; it muffled cries. Then, smiling, they turned
seemed vital3 to her that they do so, though and went out and back down the tunnel,
it would mean the loss of thousands of just as the teacher arrived.
dollars to her family. And so, the children “Ready, children?” She glanced at her
hated her for all these reasons of big and watch.
little consequence.4 They hated her pale “Yes!” said everyone.
snow face, her waiting silence, her thinness, “Are we all here?”
and her possible future. “Yes!”
“Get away!” The boy gave her another The rain slackened still more.
push. “What’re you waiting for?” They crowded to the huge door.
Then, for the first time, she turned and The rain stopped.
looked at him. And what she was waiting It was as if, in the midst of a film
for was in her eyes. concerning an avalanche, a tornado, a
“Well, don’t wait around here!” cried the hurricane, a volcanic eruption, something
boy savagely. “You won’t see nothing!” had, first, gone wrong with the sound
Her lips moved. apparatus,6 thus muffling and finally
“Nothing!” he cried. “It was all a joke, cutting off all noise, all of the blasts and
wasn’t it?” He turned to the other children. repercussions7 and thunders, and then,
“Nothing’s happening today. Is it?” second, ripped the film from the projector
They all blinked at him and then, and inserted in its place a peaceful tropical
understanding, laughed and shook their slide which did not move or tremor. The
heads. “Nothing, nothing!” world ground to a standstill. The silence
“Oh, but,” Margot whispered, her eyes was so immense and unbelievable that you
helpless. “But this is the day, the scientists felt your ears had been stuffed or you had
predict, they say, they know, the sun . . .” lost your hearing altogether. The children
“All a joke!” said the boy, and seized her put their hands to their ears. They stood
roughly. “Hey, everyone, let’s put her in a apart. The door slid back and the smell of
closet before teacher comes!” the silent, waiting world came in to them.
“No,” said Margot, falling back. The sun came out.
They surged5 about her, caught her up It was the color of flaming bronze and it
and bore her, protesting, and then pleading, was very large. And the sky around it was
and then crying, back into a tunnel, a room, a blazing blue tile color. And the jungle
a closet, where they slammed and locked burned with sunlight as the children,
the door. They stood looking at the door released from their spell, rushed out,
and saw it tremble from her beating and yelling, into the springtime.
3. Something that is vital is very important. 6. An apparatus is something created or invented for a particular
4. Consequence is importance. purpose.
5. When the children surged, they pushed or moved forward with a 7. Repercussions are echoes or vibrations.
force like a wave.

“Now, don’t go too far,” called the teacher motion. They looked at everything and
after them. “You’ve only two hours, you savored everything. Then, wildly, like
know. You wouldn’t want to get caught out!” animals escaped from their caves, they ran
But they were running and turning their and ran in shouting circles. They ran for an
faces up to the sky and feeling the sun on hour and did not stop running.
their cheeks like a warm iron; they were And then—
taking off their jackets and letting the sun In the midst of their running one of the
burn their arms. girls wailed.
“Oh, it’s better than the sun lamps, isn’t it?” Everyone stopped.
“Much, much better!” The girl, standing in the open, held out
They stopped running and stood in the her hand.
great jungle that covered Venus, that grew “Oh, look, look,” she said, trembling.
and never stopped They came slowly to look at her opened
growing, tumultuously,8 palm.
even as you watched it. In the center of it, cupped and huge, was
It was a nest of octopi, a single raindrop.
clustering up great arms She began to cry, looking at it.
of fleshlike weed, They glanced quietly at the sky.
wavering, flowering in “Oh. Oh.”
Visual Vocabulary
Octopi is the plural this brief spring. It was A few cold drops fell on their noses and
form of octopus. An the color of rubber and their cheeks and their mouths. The sun
octopus is a sea
creature that has eight ash, this jungle, from the faded behind a stir of mist. A wind blew
arms. many years without sun. cool around them. They turned and started
It was the color of stones to walk back toward the underground
and white cheeses and ink, and it was the house, their hands at their sides, their
color of the moon. smiles vanishing away.
The children lay out, laughing, on the A boom of thunder startled them and
jungle mattress, and heard it sigh and like leaves before a new hurricane, they
squeak under them, resilient9 and alive. tumbled upon each other and ran.
They ran among the trees, they slipped and Lightning struck ten miles away, five miles
fell, they pushed each other, they played away, a mile, a half mile. The sky darkened
hide-and-seek and tag, but most of all they into midnight in a flash.
squinted at the sun until tears ran down They stood in the doorway of the
their faces, they put their hands up to that underground for a moment until it was
yellowness and that amazing blueness and raining hard. Then they closed the door
breathed of the fresh, fresh air and listened and heard the gigantic sound of the rain
and listened to the silence which suspended falling in tons and avalanches, everywhere
them in a blessed sea of no sound and no and forever.
8. Tumultuously means “in a wildly excited or confused way.”
9. Something that is resilient is capable of springing back into shape
or position after being bent, stretched, or pressed together.

Glencoe/McGraw Hill
Sunrise, 1887. George Inness.
“Will it be seven more years?” They looked at their hands and feet, their
“Yes. Seven.” faces down.
Then one of them gave a little cry. “Margot.”
“Margot!” One of the girls said, “Well . . . ?”
“What?” No one moved.
“She’s still in the closet where we locked “Go on,” whispered the girl.
her.” They walked slowly down the hall in the
“Margot.” sound of cold rain. They turned through
They stood as if someone had driven the doorway to the room in the sound of
them, like so many stakes, into the floor. the storm and thunder, lightning on their
They looked at each other and then looked faces, blue and terrible. They walked over to
away. They glanced out at the world that the closet door slowly and stood by it.
was raining now and raining and raining Behind the closet door was only silence.
steadily. They could not meet each other’s They unlocked the door, even more
glances. Their faces were solemn and pale. slowly, and let Margot out. ❍

Brooklyn Museum of Art/CORBIS
UNIT 3
Reading on Your Own
To read more about the Big Question, choose one of these books from your
school or local library. Work on your reading skills by choosing books that
challenge you.
Fiction
High Elk’s Treasure The True

by Virginia Driving Confessions
Hawk Sneve of Charlotte Doyle
by Avi
Joe High Elk learns the
importance of family and The only passenger
cultural heritage in this tale aboard an 1832 sailing ship,
of exploration and adven- thirteen-year-old Charlotte
ture. Read for more details must decide whether she
about Joe and the South will side with a tyrannical
Dakota reservation on which he lives. captain or a crew ready for mutiny. Dive right
in to this tale of adventure on the high seas!
The Cat Ate

Lucy’s Wish My Gymsuit
by Joan Lowery Nixon by Paula Danziger
In 1886, Lucy is a ten-year- At first, Marcy Lewis

old orphan on the streets just wants to fit in.
of New York. She finds hope She is overweight and
when the Children’s Aid overlooked—convinced
Society sends her to a new she’ll never get asked
home out West…but her out. Then Marcy stands up for
new family is far from perfect. one of her teachers, a woman whose courage and
conviction Marcy admires. Read to find out what
Marcy learns afterward about her own convictions.

(tl) Eclipse Studios, (tr) Eclipse Studios, (bl) Eclipse Studios, (br) Eclipse Studios
UNIT 3 READING ON YOUR OWN
Nonfiction
Oh, Freedom!: Words That

Kids Talk About Built a Nation:
the Civil Rights A Young Person’s
Movement with Collection of
the People Who Historic American
Made It Happen Documents
by Casey King, by Marilyn Miller
Linda Barrett Osborne
Discover for yourself the Declaration of
This collection of oral histories about the civil rights Independence or the beauty of a Chief Joseph
movement includes 31 interviews, all conducted by speech. Read this collection of 39 original documents
students. Don’t miss these profiles in courage—read and speeches to learn more about history, language,
to find out more about real people’s lives during and and the force of big ideas.
after segregation.
When I Was Beyond the Limits

Your Age: by Stacy Allison and
Original Stories Peter Carlin
About Growing Up
Edited by Amy Ehrlich Stacy Allison sets out with
three other climbers to
This collection of stories scale Mt. Everest—something no
by ten popular writers other woman had yet succeeded in doing. Read
includes fiction and nonfiction. Read it to yourself, to find out more about her amazing adventure.
or read it aloud—either way, these short pieces about
growing up will give you something to think about.
Reading on Your Own 365

(tl) Eclipse Studios, (tr) Eclipse Studios, (bl) Eclipse Studios, (br) Eclipse Studios
UNIT 3 SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT
Test Practice
Part 1: Literary Elements
On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–4. For the first three
questions, write the letter of the correct answer next to the number for that
question. Then, next to number 4, write your answer to the question.
1. What is the most important part of your writing Use the following passage to answer questions 3
“style”? and 4.
A. whether you spell correctly
B. whether you print or use cursive writing The child of today is the adult of tomorrow.
C. how you put words and sentences together What a scary thought! I mean, just think
D. how many reasons you give for your opinions about today’s kids! If they’re inside, they’re
watching some junk on TV. They have no
Use the following passage to answer question 2. interest in the educational shows they could
be watching. Or maybe they’re “instant
messaging” their pals, as if that was the only
Rena’s rowboat moved gently on the lake.
thing a computer could be used for. If they’re
The sun was warm on her face, and a slight
outside, are they playing sports or doing
breeze moved her hair. From the nearby
something useful? Not a chance! They’re
shore came the faint rustle of chipmunks
spray painting slogans on a garage or
moving among the trees. A single, feathery
crowding old people off the sidewalk. The
cloud moved lazily, high in the blue sky.
whole time, of course, they’re blasting idiotic
pop music at an eardrum-cracking volume.
2. The mood of this passage could best be Now, can you imagine what our country will
described as be like when these people are running it?
A. sad C. peaceful
B. angry D. enthusiastic
3. Which of the following is something the writer has
a negative bias about?
A. television C. pop music
B. computers D. old people
Objectives (pp. 366–367) 4. What makes the writer’s argument a bad one?
Literature Identify literary elements: style, (Think about what you learned about such
bias, mood • Understand characteristics of
argument things as “support for a view,” “generalizations,”
Reading Distinguish fact and opinion and “bias.”)
• Monitor comprehension: clarify • Make
inferences • Identify problem and solution

SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT UNIT 3
Part 2: Reading Skills
On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–4. Next to numbers 1–3,
write the letter of the right answer. Next to number 4, write your answer to
the question.
1. Which of the following is often a helpful way to 2. What can you infer from the students’ response to
clarify confusing text? the news that there would be new rules?
A. Reread it more carefully. A. They feared Mr. Wang.
B. Skip the parts that are unclear. B. They were unhappy about it.
C. Concentrate on the parts you understand. C. They did not intend to obey the rules.
D. Ignore any words that are unfamiliar. D. They understood that rules were necessary.
Read the following passage and answer the questions 3. Which of the following is a statement of opinion?
that follow it.
A. The bell rang, ending Mr. Wang’s class.
B. One boy hit his head hard enough to raise a
The bell rang, ending Mr. Wang’s class,
large lump.
and the students raced for the door. Three
C. “I have new rules for this class.”
who were trying to get through the
D. “That’s not funny, Fritz.”
doorway at the same time ended up on the
floor. One boy hit his head hard enough to
raise a large lump. 4. What is the problem described in this passage,
Mr. Wang began class the next day with and what effort is made to solve it?
an announcement. “I have new rules for
this class,” he said. He paused until the
sound of groans died down. “The first
requires everyone to form a single line in
order to leave class. Do you understand?”
Fritz raised his hand. “Sure,” he said.
“When we want to leave class, we form a
line.” He stood up. “OK, everybody, let’s
line up and get out of here!”
Mr. Wang had to work hard not to laugh. Unit Assessment To prepare for the Unit test,
go to www.glencoe.com.
“That’s not funny, Fritz,” he said sternly.
Skills and Strategies Assessment 367

UNIT 3 SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT
Part 3: Vocabulary Skills

On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–10. Next to each number,
write the letter of the correct answer for that question.
For questions 1–5, write the letter of the word or phrase 6. Which of the following synonyms best communi-
that means about the same as the underlined word. cates the idea that a wound is a really bad one?
1. feelings of distress A. gash C. cut
A. anger C. delight B. scrape D. scratch
B. misery D. jealousy
7. Which of the following synonyms best communi-
2. to have to endure it cates the idea of looking at something quickly
and briefly?
A. bear C. leave
A. gaze C. view
B. finish D. correct
B. watch D. glance
3. a vile remark
8. Which of the following synonyms has the most
A. loud C. horrible negative connotation?
B. funny D. embarrassing A. funny C. ridiculous
B. amusing D. humorous
4. if we forsake them
A. notice C. enjoy 9. Which description is an example of semantic
B. annoy D. desert slanting?
A. The room was a cluttered mess.
5. the child’s individuality B. The room contained many objects.
A. success C. shyness C. A large variety of things filled the entire
B. loneliness D. personality room.
D. There was a lot of furniture as well as other
items in the room.
10. Which statement shows an awareness of the

Objectives (pp. 368–369) connotation of words?
Vocabulary Learn and use new vocabulary
• Identify semantic slanting • Understand A. It’s more rectangular than square.
connotation • Understand synonyms: shades B. Do you call root beer pop or soda?
of meaning
Grammar Identify parts of speech: adjectives, C. I would say I’m selective, not fussy.
adverbs, demonstrative pronouns, prepositions, D. That dog is really a spaniel, not a terrier.
interjections

SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT UNIT 3
Part 4: Writing Skills
On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–8. Next to each number,
write the letter of the correct answer for that question.
1. In the sentence below, which word is an adjective? 5. Which word or phrase best fills in the blank in the
sentence below?
I heard a nervous voice loudly call my name.
Our pitcher is the player on the team.
A. nervous
B. voice A. taller
C. loudly B. tallest
D. my C. most tall
D. most tallest
2. In the sentence below, which word is an adverb?

6. In which sentence is the demonstrative that used
The whole family often goes to a nearby beach. as a pronoun?
A. whole A. That was mean.
B. often B. That dog is mine.
C. goes C. Is that movie any good?
D. nearby D. Could I borrow that jacket?
3. Which word or phrase best fills in the blank in the 7. In the sentence below, which word is a preposition?
sentence below?
If you like lakes, mountains, or both, you will
Ray responded than I did. like the view around the bend.
A. happier A. If
B. happily B. or
C. happilier C. around
D. more happily D. the
4. In the sentence below, which word is an article? 8. Which sentence contains an interjection?
A. Stop right there!
Wow, that was such a good movie! B. Gee, I thought so.
A. Wow C. What a beautiful day!
B. such D. Remember, Jake said he’d be late.
C. a
D. movie
Skills and Strategies Assessment 369

Glencoe Literature Reading With Purpose Course 1 Unit 3

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UNIT 3

“ It’s not fair to

UNIT 3 WARM-UP • Connecting to the Big Question

COMPARING LITERATURE WORKSHOP

UNIT 3 WRAP-UP • Answering the Big Question

Real Kids and the Big Question

HECTOR heard students laughing in

254 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

You and the Big Question

Plan for the Unit Challenge

You’ll choose one of the following activities:

Keep Track of Your Ideas

Skillss Focus Why Read Persuasive Writing?

Key Literary Elements

256 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

The notes in the side columns

Personal and Persuasive Text

Genre Focus: Persuasive Writing 257

ACTIVE READING MODEL

2. A person’s intellect (IN tuh lekt) is his or her intelligence

In Sojourner Truth I Fought for the

258 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

ACTIVE READING MODEL

6 Key Reading Skill

Whole-Class Discussion Give some examples of common stereotypes.

Study Central Visit www.glencoe.com and click on Study Central

Genre Focus: Persuasive Writing 259

Objectives (pp. 260–261)

Why Is It Important? As you read, ask yourself, Is this a fact or an opin-

They have a recording of the policeman with the date and

Reading Workshop 1 Distinguishing Fact and Opinion 261

Before You Read Preserving a Great

Objectives (pp. 262–265)

262 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

Skills Preview Get Ready to Read

Preserving a Great American Symbol 263

M r. Speaker, I rise to condemn the desecration1 of a

1. A desecration is an act that shows disrespect for something sacred.

264 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

4 Key Literary Element

5 English Language Coach

Preserving a Great American Symbol 265

After You Read Preserving a Great

Talk About Your Reading

266 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

Skills Review Grammar Link: Adjectives

Preserving a Great American Symbol 267

Before You Read Looking for America

Meet the Author

Author Search For more English Language Coach

Even if you know the definition of a word a writer chooses to use,

Partner Work With a partner, look up one of the verbs below. If

sprawl zigzag shepherd

268 UNIT 3 What’s Fair and What’s Not?

266-269_U3_RW_845476.indd 268 3/9/07 10:36:46 AM

Skills Preview Get Ready to Read

Key Literary Element: Style Build Background

Interactive Literary Elements Handbook

Looking for America 269