The lesson asks students to compare the two characters' points of view (it explicitly states readers can "compare how both characters view different events and what they learn from them"). Students complete a Character Development sheet that requires recording words or phrases describing Cody and Sophie across chapter ranges, supporting comparison of character changes over time. Reading questions require students to describe and explain characters and events (e.g., explain what Sophie's father calls her; describe Brian and Cody), prompting use of textual details.

Students are asked to analyze the author's choice of two narrators (Question #1) and to use examples from the book to support their answers (Question #3 explicitly: "Use examples from the book to support your answer"). Students record descriptive words and phrases on a Character Timeline from Chapters 8–14 and compare the distinct voices of Cody and Sophie by identifying who is speaking on a given page. The Read-Aloud activity that contrasts two sample passages (#1 and #2) requires students to compare writing approaches and explain which voice is more effective and why.

Students watch the film The City of Ember and are directed to pay attention to environment, characters, and plot. Students are asked to write or perform a movie review that describes characters, setting, plot, and how the setting plays an important role. The materials prompt students to think about how environment influences individuals and communities and how people adapt to their environment, connecting to thematic analysis.

Students read chapters 6–7 and answer questions that require them to identify causes and consequences (for example, explaining the Disaster and how revenge and misunderstanding lead to destruction). Students choose between creating a monument or writing a ballad that expresses the theme of peace and the history of the Disaster, and they read example ballads before composing their own. Students complete reflective questions (e.g., could a disaster like this happen today?) that prompt thematic analysis and interpretation.

Students are asked in Getting Started and the Wrap-Up to think about how the people and cities of Ember and Sparks are similar and different. Activity 2 directs students to create illustrations and a Venn diagram comparing Ember and Sparks and tells students to use their log from Lesson 3 and to "think back to the movie." Reading and Questions ask students to answer comprehension prompts in complete sentences about differences between the communities and characters.

Students answer text-dependent questions (e.g., describe relations between Ember and Sparks; evaluate which leader is more effective and explain why; interpret Doon's father's advice), requiring analysis of the chapters. Students use context clues from the novel and a thesaurus to determine vocabulary meanings and record the specific textual clues that informed their choices. In Activity 2 students compare the governance of Sparks with American city governments, prompting them to analyze features of a fictional community against real-world structures.

The Parent Plan includes discussion prompts that ask students to connect the novel's theme to other works: "Have you seen this in other books or movies? Does this seem to hold true in this novel? Explain." Students are also asked to summarize important events and sequence the plot, and to discuss causes of conflict and whether cycles of revenge can be reversed, which engages them in thematic analysis of the literature.

Students read two short stories—one fantasy and one science fiction—and are asked to think about how the natural environment plays an important role in many stories (Ideas to Think About). Activity 4 asks students to record phrases and sentences from the texts that describe each environment and to create a visual representation based on those textual descriptions. Discussion prompts explicitly ask students to consider why the natural environment is important to both stories and note similarities (Parent Plan Questions to Discuss).

The lesson asks students to analyze the two main characters in "The Dog of Pompeii" by listing actions and the character traits those actions reveal (Activity 1). Option 2 explicitly directs students to create a chart for a character from one of the other short stories in the unit ("The Good Deed," "Testing, Testing, 1...2...3," or "Follow the Water"), which requires students to work with more than one text. The Skills section also includes "Read a variety of literature and other text," indicating cross-text reading is expected.

Activity 4 asks students to read a poem version of "Rip Van Winkle" and to consider how it is different from the short story, asking questions such as "Which version did you enjoy more and why? How were they similar? How were they different?" Activity 5 has students rewrite a scene as a script, asking them to transform the story into another form and produce dialogue and stage directions. These tasks require students to engage with the story in multiple genres and note similarities and differences between forms.

Students are asked to reread the first page of each short story they have read so far and identify the narrator's point of view (first or third) and whether the narrator is omniscient, a detached observer, a protagonist, or an observer. Option 1 directs students to identify the different points of view found in multiple short stories and to decide which category applies to each story. The answer key explicitly labels several stories, including Zlateh the Goat, as third person omniscient, showing students practice applying reading concepts across texts.

Students compare two literary texts by completing a Venn diagram that contrasts Sylvia (from "A White Heron") and Widow Carey, explicitly asking them to identify similarities and differences in character and theme. Students write a short story critique that requires specific references to the text and to state what the author was trying to communicate, and parent guidance and skills explicitly call for making reasonable assertions supported by accurate citations. Reading comprehension questions for "The Widow Carey's Chickens" ask students to cite concrete story details (e.g., how the widow survived), requiring drawing evidence from the text to answer.

The Theme & Conflict activity directs students to identify a major theme and provide examples from the text that support that theme, requiring them to cite text-based evidence. The Plot Diagram, Main Character and Setting, and rubric activities require students to identify the central problem, key events, character actions that reveal traits, and setting details — all tasks that have students locate and use specific textual elements to support analysis of plot, character, and theme. The rubric also asks students to ensure the natural environment plays an important role and to provide important details that further the plot, prompting students to point to textual evidence for those claims.

Students read and analyze multiple historical texts (primary diaries and a POW journal) and secondary accounts about the Battle of Bull Run (Activities 4 and 5). The Skills list instructs students to determine the importance of author's word choice and focus, summarize author's purpose and stance, distinguish fact and opinion, and explore bias—skills that require drawing evidence from texts. Parent prompts ask students to compare the points of view of the diary and journal accounts and to identify facts and opinions in both letters.

Students read the picture book Pink and Say and separate primary-source "Civil War Letters," and Activity 5 directs students to identify the writers, recipients, sides, and opinions in those letters. The Wrapping Up discussion includes the explicit question, "How are the Civil War letters similar to the book Pink and Say? How are they different?" Activity 2 has students rewrite a passage from another point of view, which has them consider how narrative approach changes presentation of events.

Students read the novel Bull Run presented from multiple points of view and are asked to summarize each account and explain the perspective of each character. Students complete Activity 2 by reading a Civil War speech and examining propaganda images, recording factual versus opinion statements and identifying possible propaganda aimed at swaying audiences. Students map characters' home states and note North/South affiliations, which requires tracking differing perspectives and affiliations across texts and characters.

Students read pages 21–40 of Bull Run and answer comprehension and interpretive questions that require citing details (e.g., identifying the note found in a shirt and explaining a doctor's statement). Students analyze characters and relationships (Lily and Patrick) and reflect on themes such as propaganda and the Civil War as a battle over power through discussion prompts. Students plan and create a Civil War propaganda poster using historic posters from provided archival websites, deciding audience, message, images vs. text, and considering which posters would have influenced characters from the novel.

Activity 1 directs students to reread Toby's accounts and "Cite evidence from the book to support your ideas." The skills and parent plan sections ask students to explain character roles, examine reasons for actions, and reflect on changes in perspective. Activity 2 and the Character Quilt require students to reread character accounts, analyze personality traits and perspectives, and represent character details with supporting descriptions.

Students read the biography introduction to Albert Einstein and answer comprehension questions, and the Skills section explicitly lists reading a variety of biographies. In Activity 1, students research Isaac Newton and use their notes to write a bio-poem, which requires them to transform informational material about a scientist into a poetic form. The Activities also ask students to generate questions about Einstein and seek answers in the text, engaging with informational texts.

The lesson's skills list asks students to "identify the speaker and recognize the difference between first-and third-person narration (for example, autobiography compared with biography)," and the Activity 1 text defines and contrasts biography and autobiography. Students read biographical chapters about Einstein, summarize events for a timeline, and complete a "Biography Web" which asks them to categorize life events by stage. The conflict activity and journal prompt ask students to reflect on themes (personal conflict) within the single biographical text.

Students read Chapters 5 and 6 of the book and watch two videos about Einstein, taking notes on important ideas and information. The lesson includes a prompt asking students to compare the book and the video: "Both the book and the video cover Einstein's 'miracle year.' How are the two accounts similar? In what ways do they differ?" Students are asked to use their notes to write a video summary and to discuss which account gave a better understanding.

Students are asked to look up an encyclopedia entry on Albert Einstein and compare its style and content to the biography they read and the videos they watched (Activity 2: Forms of Media). They answer directed questions about purpose, enjoyment, emotional response, and situations in which each medium is useful, and then explain orally how each source contributed to their understanding and the benefits and limitations of each. The Parent Plan and Skills section explicitly state that students will synthesize and make logical connections across two or three texts representing similar or different genres.

Students are directed to use a biography web, timeline, and multiple sources (including printed Internet photographs) to find information about Einstein, and the Skills section explicitly names "Integrate main idea and supporting details from multiple sources to expand understanding of texts." Students produce work in multiple genres/forms (an imagined letter, a journal entry, an award/certificate, quotes, memorabilia) and are told the media for the scrapbook will be different from other media they have analyzed.

Students read the historical fiction novel Number the Stars and provided informational texts about World War II and Denmark (including the "Denmark for Kids" e-book). The Parent Plan lists a skill for students to "interact with the text before, during, and after reading... by making connections with previous experiences, information, and ideas," and activities ask students to use background information to understand characters and complete a map/chart classifying countries.

Students read Chapters 3 and 4 and select passages to read aloud and discuss, which has them identify important literary passages. In Activity 2, students analyze multiple propaganda posters, summarize the message of each poster, and create their own poster to influence attitudes. The "Finding Symbols" activity has students identify and reflect on symbolic language in a paragraph.

Students read Chapters 5 and 6 and take the role of discussion director, writing four open-ended questions that target the book's big ideas and then discussing their answers with a parent, which requires them to analyze and reflect on the literary text. Students complete a Problem and Solution activity that asks them to describe three problem/solution situations from the chapters and explain how characters solved each problem, drawing directly on events in the text. Students research Jewish culture and religion using external sources to fill in a menorah graphic organizer, which engages them in gathering informational evidence related to the book's context.

Students read Chapters 9–10 of a novel and select two or three passages to read aloud and explain why they chose them, which requires attention to literary elements and themes. Students also read an informational biography about Barbara Rodbell and retell her story to a parent and answer a journal question about how her message "You always have to think for yourself" applied in WWII and today. The lesson's listed skills state that students should "respond to literary or expository texts and provide evidence from the text to demonstrate understanding."

Activity 2 asks students to brainstorm historical figures who made sacrifices and to choose one to compare/contrast with Annemarie using a Venn diagram, including listing differences and similarities. The lesson's "Ideas to Think About" prompts focus on sacrifices and consequences, and parent prompts encourage students to explain their Venn diagram and discuss examples from history and the text. The compare/contrast task explicitly connects the theme of sacrifice in the novel to figures from other historical contexts.

Students read Chapters 14–17 of the novel and two different historical versions of "Little Red Riding Hood," and are asked to decide which version is most similar to Annemarie's story. Students complete a graphic organizer that explicitly asks them to list similarities and differences between Annemarie's story and Little Red Riding Hood. Students are told that the author parallels Annemarie's journey with Little Red Riding Hood and are prompted to record connections and explain how elements (traits, problems, solutions) align across the works.

Students are directed to read the Afterword of Number the Stars to discover which parts of the story were based on historic fact and to use that information in their writing. Students are asked to conduct additional research using provided informational websites and to include quotations and pictures with source information. The parent plan skills and rubric explicitly state that students should "write responses to literary or expository texts and provide evidence from the text to demonstrate understanding," and students must integrate facts and quotes into an expository article.

Students are prompted to discuss the novel as an "earthbound fantasy" and to identify elements of fantasy versus earthbound fantasy (compare realistic setting vs alternate worlds and magical elements). The Parent Plan lists the skill to "Identify the forms of fiction and describe the major characteristics of each form," and the Introducing the Lesson guidance asks students to contrast earthbound fantasies with other fantasy examples. Students also consider a major theme (how interactions and experiences shape who we are) through the Everlasting Life activities.

The Parent Plan explicitly lists making connections within and between texts by recognizing similarities and differences based on a common lesson, theme, or message. The Things to Review section asks the child to explain one or two themes found in the novel and to say whether she has read other books with similar themes. Activity 2 asks students to identify and explain the theme of cycles and change and to connect that theme to observations in the natural world.

Activity 2 directs students to read two Norse myths and a historical legend (Ponce de León) and to compare those stories with the novel by writing three similarities and three differences. The prompt explicitly asks students to consider these other texts alongside the novel, which requires comparing texts in different forms/genres (myth/legend vs. novel). Wrapping-up prompts (e.g., thinking about how discovery led to change) focus students on shared themes (magic waters, discovery) to compare across texts.

Students are asked to watch the Disney movie Tuck Everlasting and then record three ways the movie differed from the book and three things they would have done differently, which requires comparing the book (literary text) to a film (different form). The lesson also prompts students to predict similarities between the movie and book beforehand and to answer reflective questions such as which they enjoyed more and why. The 'Ideas to Think About' and Activities (symbols/similes, quote selection) prompt students to consider themes and character changes, providing material they could use in comparison.

Students read the novel Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry and complete a "Recognizing Discrimination" organizer to record examples of how Black characters are treated in specified chapters. Students watch a primary-source Civil Rights Movement video and write a three- or four-sentence journal response guided by questions about feelings, noteworthy events, surprises, and differences between past and present communities. Students also discuss comprehension questions about injustices and vocabulary tied to the text.

Students read Chapter 2 of the novel and answer specific comprehension questions about characters and events, demonstrating engagement with the literary text. Students research Mississippi using provided informational websites and complete a "Mississippi Facts" organizer or create a brochure, drawing factual information about climate, history, and resources. Students use the Dialect Guide to interpret regional speech and connect those meanings to character and setting, and they answer comparison prompts on the organizer about how Mississippi is similar to and different from their own state.

A skills bullet asks students to "Critique the credibility of characterization and the degree to which a plot is contrived or realistic," which directs students to analyze characters and plot. Students read Chapter 4 and answer targeted questions (e.g., why Stacey is upset; whether he should have gone to the Wallace store) that require explaining character motives and actions. Students are prompted to track instances of discrimination on a "Recognizing Discrimination" page and discuss themes such as how Cassie's family obtained land and responses to injustice.

Students read Chapter 5 and answer comprehension and interpretive questions about events and discrimination (e.g., why Big Ma parked at the back; whether Cassie should apologize). Students are asked to watch an informational video on Jim Crow laws and discuss it with a parent, linking historical context to the chapter. The parent/skills section explicitly lists "Connect and clarify main ideas by identifying their relationships to other sources and related topics," which invites relating the literary text to an informational source.

Students read Chapter 7 and answer text-based comprehension questions (e.g., explaining why Stacey gave T.J. his coat and what Mr. Jamison offered), which requires citing details from the literary text. Activity 2 (A Southern Christmas) directs students to use specific page ranges (pages 145-147 and 153-154) to identify the author's descriptions and complete a Venn-diagram style compare-and-contrast organizer comparing the Logans' Christmas with their own family's celebration. The lesson also asks students to read words in context for vocabulary and to review selected passages, practices that require applying reading skills to the literary text.

Students read Chapter 8 of the novel (literary text) and also read the "Integrated Bus Suggestions" flyer and a linked video about the Montgomery Bus Boycott (informational texts). Students are asked to underline three suggestions on the flyer and explain their selections to a parent, and to explain what they learned about the Montgomery Bus Boycott and discuss the boycott described in the story. Students are prompted to consider whether the Logans' boycott will pressure the Wallaces and to discuss boycotts they have heard of or participated in.

Students read Chapter 9 of a novel (a literary text) and are directed to watch an informational video about sharecropping. Students are asked to incorporate information from their reading or research when revising sentences and to explain the system of sharecropping to a sibling or parent using a diagram or a picture and quote. The activities require students to draw on content from both the chapter and the video to create explanatory products.

Students are asked to build Slide 2 using examples of discrimination "based on what you learned from the story as well as what you learned about the Jim Crow laws and other related video and text presented in the unit," which requires drawing evidence from both literary and informational sources. The presentation rubric and parent prompts require students to "articulate an understanding of important ideas communicated by the literary work" and to "support opinions with detailed evidence," which asks students to use textual evidence when explaining themes. The end-of-unit test includes questions that mix novel comprehension with historical/informational items (e.g., Jim Crow laws, Civil Rights Movement), reinforcing use of multiple text types to answer analysis questions.

Students read Chapters 7 and 8 and answer specific comprehension questions that require locating facts (e.g., punishment, Asher's mistake, Jonas's assigned job). Students record words or phrases that describe Jonas on a timeline, collecting textual evidence about his character. Students identify euphemisms used in the community and write the actual meanings or predictions, and they are asked to consider Jonas's qualities (intelligence, integrity, courage, wisdom) in discussion.

Students identify and explain symbolism using an activity that lists symbols from multiple books (e.g., The Giver - the color red; Harry Potter - blue potion; Tuck Everlasting - eternal life) and are asked to think of two other examples of symbolism in books they have read. Students respond to comprehension and discussion questions about Jonas, record character details on a Character Timeline, and discuss thematic questions such as how societal changes can have positive and negative outcomes. Students are also prompted to describe symbolism in their own words and provide examples aloud during wrap-up.

Students read finish-the-novel tasks that require them to analyze how Jonas changed using a "Character Timeline" and answer text-based questions about plot and character actions. Students read Lois Lowry's Newbery Acceptance Speech (multiple pages provided) and are prompted to discuss and relate the memories she shares to The Giver. For the final project, students must explain which of Lowry's memories inspired the story (Option 1) or keep Jonas' character changes in mind when composing a 3–5 page final chapter (Option 2), connecting author intent and theme to the novel.

Students read both the historical-fiction novel Esperanza Rising and the informational book What Was the Great Depression and are asked explicitly to compare them (Question #5 asks how the purpose or viewpoint of the novel will differ from the informational book). Discussion prompts ask students to compare primary-source photos and the secondary-source book in terms of usefulness for understanding the time period. Students also examine multiple first‑hand accounts and are directed to record cultural details as a Cultural Commentator, supporting comparison of perspectives across genres and source types.

The Parent Plan lists a skill to "analyze, make inferences, and draw conclusions about the author's purpose...and provide evidence from the text to support understanding," which directs students to use textual evidence. The Wordsmith activity has students locate and record passages they deem important and then read and discuss those passages with a parent, prompting students to select evidence and explain its significance. The Phoenix activity asks students to read a myth/poem and either describe how the phoenix could serve as a symbol for Esperanza or write a poem inspired by the phoenix, which requires students to connect a theme/symbol across different literary forms (myth/poem and novel).

Students read the chapter "Los Melones" (literary text) and are asked to trace settings, give page locations, and explain how setting drives the story's conflict. Students also read pages 82–89 of What Was the Great Depression? (informational text), watch documentary clips, record quotes about the Dust Bowl, estimate migration distances on a map, and create a poster synthesizing informational sources. These activities show students collecting textual evidence from both a novel and informational sources about closely related topics (migration, Dust Bowl, migrant workers).

The Cesar Chavez activity directs students to choose a Chavez quote, write it down, explain its meaning in their own words, and explain how it relates to Esperanza's story, which asks students to connect an informational text (quotes/biography) to the novel. The Line Locator task asks students to find three to five lines or short passages from the chapter, copy them or record locations, and explain why they are examples of good writing or important to the story, requiring students to draw evidence from the literary text.

Students are asked to write a four- or five-sentence summary of the chapters, which requires identifying main events and supporting details from the novel. The "On Strike!" activity directs students to examine reasons workers might strike and to record examples from the book that support each reason, including page numbers. Students also listen to two primary-source interviews (informational texts) about migrant camps and discrimination to learn more about historical context.

The lesson asks students to compare What Was the Great Depression (informational) and Esperanza Rising (literary) by prompting: "How were their approaches similar? Different? How did each text help you better understand the time period?" It also asks students to consider how Esperanza's life changed over the course of the novel, which requires analysis of character development across the text.

Students are asked to compare and contrast books and plays when prompted to explain the difference between a novel and a play and to discuss how movies or plays based on books are similar and different from the books. Activities ask students to analyze similarities and differences between the original Esperanza Rising text and its dramatic adaptation (readers' theater and creating a script) and to include major themes (adjusting to a new culture, social class) when writing a trailer. The skills list explicitly includes "Analyze the similarities and differences between an original text and its dramatic adaptation."

Students are asked to compare poem structures (Question #2: "How is the structure of 'Tunnels' different from the other poems you read today?") and to reread and compare three versions of the poem "from March '79" (Question #4). Activity 1 requires students to identify stanza counts and label rhyme patterns across multiple poems (e.g., 'If They Spoke' and 'You and I'), which has students analyze similarities and differences in poetic form. The parent-introduction prompts discussion about how poets and scientists approach investigating the natural world, inviting comparative thinking about different modes of expression.

Students read a section of poems about the sea and answer comprehension and analysis questions (e.g., which poem they enjoyed most and why, identifying the rhyming pattern of 'Snail'). Students locate and record metaphors and personification from the poems on a Student Activity Page and match inanimate objects with human traits. Students are asked to write their own poem using at least one metaphor and one example of personification, and parents are prompted to encourage finding 3–5 examples of personification as evidence.

Students read multiple poems and identify specific textual elements: they record a simile from "Earthworm," two metaphors from "Rainforest," and the rhyme scheme of "The Tortoise in Eternity." Students locate lines with dashes in specified poems and explain how the dashes function, and they answer reflective questions about how language makes them feel and what imagery the author uses. Students also create a found poem and cite or rearrange source text, which requires selecting and using textual language as evidence for poetic meaning.

Students are asked to identify poetic devices and cite words/phrases from "Earth's Bondman" to explain tone and meaning, which requires drawing evidence from text. Activity 4 asks students to create a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting two buffalo poems, prompting students to analyze similarities and differences in content and focus. The Skills section explicitly directs students to compare and contrast the stated or implied purposes of different authors writing on the same topic, and Activities 5–6 have students locate poems by a chosen poet and identify poetic language in those poems.

Students create and assemble a variety of poem forms (haiku, narrative, lyric, found, shape, pop-up, accordion) and arrange them in a lapbook around a common nature theme. The lesson asks students to read through all their poems, answer reflective questions (e.g., "How do the poems in your lapbook reflect systems, cycles, and patterns in nature?"), and the parent-plan skills explicitly state making connections within and between texts by recognizing similarities and differences based on a common theme.

Students read Chapters 1 and 2 of the story and answer comprehension questions about character actions and setting. Students are instructed to explore Incan culture using specified informational websites and to record important information on an "Elements of Incan Culture" chart. The directions explicitly say that exploring ancient Incan culture will give better context for the story and help students understand how the past plays a role in the characters' lives.

Students reread the minstrel's songs in Chapters 3 and 4 and are asked to identify figurative language (simile) in the text. Students choose between retelling a family or historical event as a 3–4 verse lyric poem and use a graphic organizer to divide the story into stanza events. Students discuss how minstrels and oral songs served as entertainment and how technological advances changed traditions, comparing past oral storytelling to modern entertainment.

The lesson includes an Inca creation myth presented as a video and an Aztec creation myth presented as a written passage, so students interact with texts in different forms. Students are asked to retell the Incan creation myth (practice oral narrative and use of visual aids) and to analyze the Aztec passage by underlining time/sequence transitions. The Ideas to Think About and wrapping-up questions prompt consideration of belief systems and meanings, which relate to themes across cultural myths.