Unit 7: What`s Worth Fighting For? What`s Not?

Transcription

UNIT 7
The
BIG
Question
What’s Worth
Fighting For?
What’s Not?
“
It is easier to
fight for our
principles than to
live up to them.
”
—Alfred Adler (1870–1937),
Austrian psychiatrist and author of
Understanding Human Nature
Colin Bootman/The Bridgeman Art Library
LOOKING AHEAD
The skill lessons and readings in this unit will help you develop your own answer
to the Big Question.
UNIT 7 WARM-UP • Connecting to the Big Question
GENRE FOCUS: Persuasive Writing
A Letter to Senator Edwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 927
READING WORKSHOP 1
Skill Lesson: Distinguishing Fact from Opinion
Saving Water: Why Save Something That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth? . . . . . . . 934
by Marjorie Lamb
from The Measure of Our Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 944
by Marian Wright Edelman
WRITING WORKSHOP PART 1
Persuasive Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 952
READING WORKSHOP 2
Skill Lesson: Questioning
All Together Now . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 960
by Barbara Jordan
from Through My Eyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 968
by Ruby Bridges
READING WORKSHOP 3
Skill Lesson: Reviewing
The Trouble with Television . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 980
by Robert MacNeil
Teen Curfews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 988
by J. Todd Foster from Time
Persuasive Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 992
READING WORKSHOP 4
Skill Lesson: Clarifying
Rally for Better Food, student flyer and poster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1002
Stop the Sun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1008
by Gary Paulsen
READING ACROSS TEXTS WORKSHOP
Teens Tackle Pollution in Their Communities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1021
by Sara Steindorf
A Change in Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1027
by Emily Sohn
UNIT 7 WRAP-UP • Answering the Big Question
923
UNIT 7
WARM-UP
Connecting to
What’s Worth
Fighting For?
What’s Not?
Sometimes you want things to change, but it’s difficult to figure out how
you can change them. So you learn to sort out what really matters to you
and what doesn’t. You learn what’s worth fighting for and what’s not.
Then you decide how to act to make the change you want.
Real Kids and the Big Question
SAJITHA started a video games club at her school. There
are a lot of games to choose from, but one game is everyone’s
favorite. A few of the older kids won’t even let any of the
younger kids play it. As a result, some of the younger kids have
decided to leave the club. Sajitha is upset, but she is also a little
afraid of the older kids. What advice would you give Sajitha?
ALEJANDRO and his brother Pedro
are planning to paint their room. Pedro
insists that the room should be
green. Alejandro wants to
paint their room blue. Every
time Alejandro brings it
up, Pedro starts yelling,
and their mother tells
them to work it out.
What would you say to
Alejandro? What would
you say to Pedro?
Warm-Up Activity
In small groups, talk about the advice you would give Sajitha,
Alejandro, and Pedro. How and why might your advice help them?
924 UNIT 7 What’s Worth Fighting For? What’s Not?
(t) CORBIS, (b) CORBIS
UNIT 7 WARM-UP
You and the Big Question
Reading about what other people think is worth fighting for will
help you work out your own answer to 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.
Link to Web resources to further
explore the Big Question at
www.glencoe.com.
You’ll choose one of the following activities:
A. Make a Mural Make a poster-board mural honoring people who fought for
what they believed in.
B. Propose a Change Write a proposal for a project that will help you make
a change in your school or community.
• Start thinking about which activity you’d like to do, so you can focus your
thoughts as you go through the unit.
• Do you want to learn about people who stood up for their beliefs? Start making
a list of people and ideas.
• Is there a change you want to make in your school or community? Start thinking
about how to persuade people that the change is needed.
• In your Learner’s Notebook, write which 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 7. This diagram shows how it should look.
1. Use this Foldable for all of the selections in
this unit. On the top front flap, write the
unit number and the Big Question. Label
the bottom of each flap below with a title.
(See page 923 for the titles.)
2. Open each flap. Near the top of each flap,
write My Purpose for Reading.
3. Below each crease, write the Big Question.
Warm-Up 925
UNIT 7 GENRE FOCUS:
PERSUASIVE WRITING
The goal of persuasive writing is to convince readers to agree with an
opinion and, in some cases, act on it. Advertisements, critical reviews,
speeches, and editorials are all examples of persuasive writing.
Why Read Persuasive Writing?
Skillss Focus
• Keyy skills for reading
peeersuasive writing
•K
Key literary elements of
persuasive writing
SSkills Model
Reading persuasive writing lets you see what other people think about issues
and ideas. When you read persuasive writing, you do the following things:
• learn what other people think about an issue
• think about how you feel about an issue
• learn to distinguish fact from opinion
You will learn how to use the
key reading skills and literary
elements as you read
How to Read Persuasive Writing
• A Letter to Senator
Edwards, p. 927
These reading skills are useful tools for reading and understanding persuasive
writing. You’ll see these skills modeled in the Active Reading Model on pages
927–929, and you’ll learn more about them later in this unit.
■ Distinguishing fact from opinion To decide whether someone’s
arguments are trustworthy, you need to ask yourself, Are these someone’s
personal beliefs, or can they be proved? (See Reading Workshop 1.)
■ Questioning To make sure you understand a selection, ask yourself
questions while you read. (See Reading Workshop 2.)
■ Reviewing Stop from time to time to go over what you’ve already read
and to remember and organize important ideas. (See Reading Workshop 3.)
■ Clarifying Reread confusing parts, look up words you don’t know, and
ask questions about what you don’t understand. (See Reading Workshop 4.)
Key Reading Skills
Key Text Elements
Objectives
(pp. 926–929)
Reading Identify persuasive
writing • Distinguish fact from
opinion • Ask questions • Review
for important ideas • Clarify ideas
and text
Literature Identify literary
elements: persuasive appeals,
author’s bias, faulty reasoning
Recognizing and thinking about the following literary elements will help
you understand more fully what writers are saying.
■ Persuasive appeals: methods used to convince people to agree with
a position. An author who appeals through the use of reason presents
arguments based on facts and other kinds of evidence. An author who
appeals through the use of ethics tries to show why he or she is trustworthy. An author who appeals through the use of emotion tries to spark
strong feelings to get readers to care about an issue and take action. (See
“Saving Water,” The Measure of Our Success, and “All Together Now.”)
■ Author’s bias: an inability or unwillingness to look at all sides of an
issue (See “Teen Curfews.”)
■ Faulty reasoning: flawed thinking that leads to incorrect conclusions
(See Rally for Better Food, student flyer and poster.)
UNIT 7 GENRE FOCUS
A Letter
to Senator
Edwards
D
ear Senator Edwards:
I am writing to you about proposed Bill 347.9. As a
result of the accident rate for young drivers, our state is
thinking of issuing restricted driver’s licenses to young
drivers who break the traffic laws. Under Bill 347.9, a
driver under eighteen who is guilty of a moving violation
(for example, speeding or running a red light) would
get a restricted driver’s license. The license holder could
then drive only during daylight hours and with an
adult licensed driver. These restrictions would
remain in effect until the driver’s eighteenth
birthday. 1
Safe roads are everyone’s concern.
I doubt that anyone would oppose
reasonable measures to make streets
safer. The reasoning behind Bill
347.9 is admirable. The bill’s
purposes are to keep offending1
drivers off the roads, to provide
supervision for less-experienced
young drivers, and to make
the roads safer for all travelers.
However, as a young driver, I
urge you to vote against this
bill for two reasons. First, the
bill unfairly targets one group for
unusually harsh punishment. 2
The notes in the side columns
model how to use the reading
skills and text elements you
read about on page 926.
Persuasive Writing
ACTIVE READING MODEL
1 Key Reading Skill
Reviewing I need to reread
the introductory paragraph,
so I can really understand
Bill 347.9. I know it affects
young drivers, but I don’t
remember the details.
2 Key Reading Skill
Distinguishing Fact from
Opinion It’s a fact that the
bill targets one group. It’s
an opinion that the bill is
unfair.
1. Offending drivers break the law.
927
Plush Studios/Photographer’s Choice/Getty Images
UNIT 7 GENRE FOCUS
Second, the bill will make it difficult or even impossible
for many students to hold part-time jobs and participate
in after-school activities. 3
Bill 347.9 discriminates against young drivers. Don’t
licensed drivers over the age of eighteen also commit
moving violations? Yet no one is suggesting that they get
restricted licenses. There is no evidence that speeding or
running a red light is a greater safety danger when the
driver is under eighteen. People can be safe or reckless
drivers regardless of their age. They don’t automatically
become better drivers once they reach eighteen. The same
rules should apply to drivers of all ages. 4
Another factor to consider about Bill 347.9 is the effect it
will have on young people who depend on their driving
privileges in order to work and participate in after-school
activities. Many of my classmates hold part-time jobs.
Some work to save money for college. Others work to
Garry Gay/The Image Bank/Getty Images
3 Key Reading Skill
Questioning Why will the bill
make part-time jobs and afterschool activities impossible?
4 Key Text Element
Persuasive Appeals Here, the
writer appeals to readers’ sense
of reason by giving a logical argument in support of his opinion. He
doesn’t try to spark strong feelings
or prove that he is a trustworthy
expert on the subject.
UNIT 7 GENRE FOCUS
help out their parents. Anyone with a restricted license
cannot hold a job unless he or she can walk to work, get a
ride, or use public transportation. When these choices do
not exist, or are not safe, many students will be forced to
quit their jobs. Similar problems occur when students are
unable to drive to and from after-school activities, such
as music lessons, sport team practices, and games. If Bill
347.9 is passed, students will have to quit their afterschool activities simply because they have had a single
moving violation. 5
Some people will argue that special rules and
restrictions should apply to younger drivers, since they
lack the experience and judgment of older drivers. But
how will younger drivers ever gain the experience and
judgment they need if they aren’t allowed to drive by
themselves? If Mom or Dad is always in the car, playing
the role of “back-seat driver,” how will a young person
ever learn to drive independently out on the road? Laws
already exist to restrict, suspend,2 or take away the
license of any driver who is truly reckless or a threat to
public safety, regardless of age. Let’s enforce the laws that
already exist. Let’s not pass new laws that discriminate
against drivers under eighteen. 6
In closing, I would like to thank you for considering
my viewpoint. We young drivers of this state hope that
we can count on you to watch out for our interests,
as well as those of all citizens. In return, we will act
responsibly both on and off the roads. 7 ❍
2. Here, suspend means “to force to give up something for a period of time.”
5 Key Text Element
Faulty Reasoning In the
last sentence of this paragraph, the writer uses faulty
“either/or” reasoning. If the
bill passes, some students
will still be able to get to and
from activities by walking or
taking public transportation.
6 Key Reading Skill
Clarifying I’m not sure
about the difference between
“suspend” and “take away.”
I’ll read the footnote for help.
7 Key Text Element
Author’s Bias I think
the writer is a bit biased.
He bases his opinion on
personal experience. Since
the writer is a young driver,
he writes only about how
the bill will affect people
under eighteen.
Partner Talk With a partner, discuss your opinion of Bill 347.9. Do
you agree or disagree with the writer’s opinion? Explain.
Study Central Visit www.glencoe.com and
click on Study Central to review persuasive
writing.
Genre Focus: Persuasive Writing 929
READING WORKSHOP 1
Skills Focus
You will practice using these skills when you
read the following selections:
• “Saving Water: Why Save Something That
Covers Two-thirds of the Earth?” p. 934
• from The Measure of Our Success, p. 944
Reading
• Distinguishing fact from opinion
Skill Lesson
Distinguishing
Fact from Opinion
Informational Text
• Identifying persuasive appeals
Vocabulary
• Understanding connotation
and denotation
• Academic Vocabulary: ethical
Writing/Grammar
• Using colons correctly
Learn It!
What Is It? You can’t always assume that what
you read is true. It’s up to you to decide whether
to believe what a writer tells you. When you are
deciding, distinguish facts from opinions.
• A fact is a piece of information that can be proved
with supporting information.
• An opinion is a personal belief. Writers can
support their opinions with facts, but an opinion
cannot be proved.
ate, Inc.
Permission of King Features Syndic
© Zits Partnership. Reprinted with
Analyzing Cartoons
Objectives (pp. 930–931)
Reading Distinguish between
fact and opinion
930 UNIT 7
© Zits Partnership. Reprinted with Permission of King Features Syndicate, Inc.
These three friends can’t help but
share their thoughts about their
classmates. Are their comments
facts or opinions?
READING WORKSHOP 1 • Distinguishing Fact from Opinion
Why Is It Important? Distinguishing fact from opinion helps you
decide whether to trust information that you read.
How Do I Do It? To distinguish fact from opinion, ask yourself
these questions:
• Are sources available to prove this information is correct?
• Does this sound like the author’s view or belief?
• Is the writer an expert on this subject?
Study Central Visit www.glencoe
.com and click on Study Central
to review distinguishing fact from
opinion.
Below is part of a letter to the editor about improving schools. Read how one
student distinguished fact from opinion in the passage.
I attend a school that is being run by state officials
because of poor test scores. I think that a better way
to improve my school, along with other American
schools, is to imitate a successful school system, like
Japan’s. More than 99 percent of adults in Japan are
able to read and write. In Japan, students go to classes
five and one-half days per week, do more homework
than American students, and wear school uniforms.
I can do research to verify how many Japanese adults
can read and write. If the research proves that about
99 percent of Japanese adults are literate, that sentence
is a fact. There is no way to prove whether American
schools would be better if they imitated Japanese schools.
That’s the writer’s opinion.
Practice It!
Identify each of the following statements as fact or opinion.
• Of all the water on Earth, 97 percent is salt water.
• The best way to relax is a hot bath.
Use It!
Use a two-column chart in your Learner’s Notebook to distinguish facts
from opinions. Label the left-hand column Facts and the right-hand column
Opinions. As you read “Saving Water,” write key pieces of information in
the appropriate column.
Reading Workshop 1 Distinguishing Fact from Opinion 931
John Evans
Before You Read
Saving Water: Why Save Something
That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth?
Vocabulary Preview
M arj
orie La m b
Meet the Author
Marjorie Lamb’s parents
taught her that “you should
always save things, you
should always repair things,
you should pass things on to
the next person, and you
should do your best to be
kind to the planet in general.”
The following selection is
from Lamb’s book 2 Minutes
a Day for a Greener Planet.
Author Search For more
about Marjorie Lamb, go
to www.glencoe.com.
Reading Distinguish fact from opinion
• Make connections from text to self
Informational Text Identify literary
elements: persuasive appeals
Vocabulary Distinguish denotation
and connotation
municipal (myoo NIS uh pul) adj. having to do with a city or town or its
government (p. 935) Water treatment is only one of many important
municipal services that our local government oversees.
distribution (dis truh BYOO shun) n. division into shares or portions
(p. 936) There would be fewer problems if the distribution of water
were equal so that everyone had his or her fair share.
contamination (kun tam uh NAY shun) n. pollution (p. 936) Waste and
contamination are two problems that we can fix.
Partner Work In your Learner’s Notebook, use each vocabulary word
in a sentence. Find a partner and check each other’s sentences to make
sure each word is used correctly.
English Language Coach
Denotations and Connotations All words have denotations (dee noh
TAY shunz), or dictionary definitions. But some words also have connotations
(kon uh TAY shunz)—feelings, thoughts, and mental pictures that the words
bring to mind. Take, for example, the words thrifty and cheap. Both words
denote, or mean, “careful with money.” Yet most people would rather be
called “thrifty” than “cheap.” That’s because thrifty has positive connotations,
while cheap has negative connotations.
Not all words have clear-cut connotations. A word like the does not have
connotations, while a word like thin may have positive connotations for
a successful dieter and negative connotations for someone trying to gain
weight. Though connotations may differ, most are fairly clear. If you’re not
sure of a word’s connotations, check an unabridged (complete) dictionary.
Partner Work Each of the following groups of words has about the same
denotation but different connotations. With a classmate, classify the words
in each group as positive, negative, or neutral. Write the words in a chart
like the one shown. Use a dictionary if you need help.
• old, antique, decrepit
Positive
Neutral
Negative
soft-spoken
quiet
secretive
McClelland & Stewart
• spacious, big, overdone
Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Key Reading Skill: Distinguishing
Fact from Opinion
Connect to the Reading
As you read the article, ask yourself whether statements are facts or opinions. Remember that opinions
are not necessarily wrong. An educated person’s
opinion may have the force of fact.
On Your Own Which of the following statements
is an opinion? Why?
• George Washington was the first U.S. president.
He was also the best president.
Key Text Element: Persuasive Appeals
Writers may use a variety of techniques to persuade
readers to agree with their opinions or to take action.
The three major techniques, or appeals, are as follows:
• Appeal to reason: appeal to the “head” rather
than the “heart” through the use of logic, facts,
or other types of hard evidence
• Ethical appeal: appeal to the reader’s sense of
right and wrong or to the writer’s claim to be a
good and moral person who can be trusted
• Emotional appeal: appeal to the reader’s “heart,”
or emotions, in an effort to get the reader to care
about a problem or an issue
Partner Talk Discuss the following statements.
Decide which appeals to reason, which appeals to
ethics, and which appeals to emotions.
Vote for Jon Doe for U.S. senator because . . .
• he is a good family man and a regular churchgoer.
• he is tough on law and order, so you and your
family won’t have to live in fear.
• he is an experienced legislator who has served
two terms as a state senator.
Think about all the water that you use in a day. Then
think about where the water comes from and where
it goes when you have finished using it.
Whole Class Discussion Suppose that every water
source in your home had a meter. The meter would
measure how much water your family used and show
the total cost of using it. Would the meter change how
your family uses water? Why or why not?
Build Background
Not everyone takes clean water for granted.
• Roughly one-sixth of the world’s people do not
have enough drinking water.
• In some African and Asian countries, people must
walk nearly four miles to get water.
Set Purposes for Reading
Read “Saving Water: Why Save
Something That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth?” to
find out whether conserving fresh water is a cause
worth fighting for.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like
to learn from the article to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on the “Saving
Water” flap of Foldable 7.
Interactive Literary Elements Handbook
To review or learn more about the literary
elements, go to www.glencoe.com.
Keep Moving
Academic Vocabulary
ethical (ETH uh kul) adj. having to do with morals and
standards of acceptable behavior
Use these skills as you read the following
selection.
Saving Water: Why Save Something That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth? 933
READING WORKSHOP 1
Saving Water:
Why Save Something That
Covers Two-thirds of the Earth?
by Majorie Lamb
A
ll life on this planet is supported by a fixed quantity of
water. We use the same water over and over again, the same
water which our grandparents used for brickmaking, the
same water in which Shakespeare washed his feet, the same
water in which Moses floated in a basket through the
bullrushes, the same water the ancient Romans transported
through their aqueducts1 to support life in their city. In fact,
the water that you used to brush your teeth this morning is
over four billion years old. So have a little respect.
Of all water on our planet Earth, 97% is salt water. Only
3% is fresh water, and most of that is frozen in the polar
ice caps. Less than 1% of Earth’s water is available for our
use. 1
We can’t make new water, any more than we can make new
land. If we misuse the water we have, we can’t send out for
some fresh stuff. Water comes out of the tap in unlimited
quantities whenever we want it. We generally assume that we
have vast reserves of water available.
1. Aqueducts (AK wuh dukts) are canals, tunnels, or pipelines used to move water.
John A Rizzo/Photodisc/Getty Images
Practice the Skills
1
Key Reading Skill
Opinion Reread the boldface
paragraph. You could prove the
information is true by checking
science books or encyclopedias. So the statements in this
paragraph are facts.
READING WORKSHOP 1
And we generally assume that it’s free, or almost free.
But before clean water comes out of our taps, several things
have to happen. We have to find a source of water, build
machinery to pump it, piping to carry it, plants to treat it.
Thanks to our treatment of water, chlorine 2 has become
an acquired taste in millions of households. 2 We have to
elect politicians who will run our municipal affairs, and
look after our water treatment, and do the paperwork
involved in supplying us with water. Once we get the water
to our houses, we have to install pipes and valves and shutoffs and vents. We have to put in a separate line and a heater
to heat some of the water.
Once we’ve got water, what do we do with it? We put it
through our washing machines, toilets, sinks, dishwashers,
car washes and pesticide-filled lawns. We use it to wash our
windows, our sidewalks and streets. We spray it in the air for
pretty fountains. We put out fires with it. We clean wounds
with it. We make concrete with it. We use it in the production
of plastics, steel and paper. We hose down chemical spills and
industrial work sites with it. We clean paintbrushes in it. And
we drink it.
Practice the Skills
2
Key Reading Skill
Opinion It would be impossible to prove that “chlorine has
become an acquired taste in
millions of households.” In fact,
many people drink bottled water
because they dislike the taste of
tap water. Therefore, the author’s
statement is an opinion.
What if we had water meters beside our kitchen sink?
What if they read dollars and cents instead of gallons
or liters?
Then we have to deal with getting rid of it. We need to
build another whole network of drains to carry away our
dirty water and sewage. We need to build treatment plants,
and hire people to run them. And we need to elect politicians
who will vow to “do something” to clean up the water that
we’ve polluted.
The process costs billions of dollars worldwide, and still
people suffer and die in many parts of the world for want
of clean water, while we blithely open our taps and let our
most precious resource pour down the drain. 3
2. Chlorine (klor EEN), a green-yellow gas, is an element used to disinfect water.
Vocabulary
municipal (myoo NIS uh pul) adj. having to do with a city or town or
its government
3
Denotations and Connotations
Here, the word blithely means
“thoughtlessly.” In this context
blithely has negative connotations. It suggests we carelessly
throw away something precious.
Saving Water 935
READING WORKSHOP 1
Analyzing the Photo How does this photograph relate to what the writer says about the cycle of water use in the United States? Explain.
There’s not much we can do at home about the unequal
distribution of water in the world. But the other major
problems, contamination and waste, we can do something
about. Although most of the advice in this chapter has to do
with waste (we’ll deal with contamination in other chapters),
these two problems are connected in ways that might not
be obvious.
The more we process our water, the more chance it has to
become contaminated. That’s because we have one sewage
system for all purposes. We put our drinking water, our toilet
waste and commercially contaminated waters all down the
same system. We do our best to clean it up, then we pour it
all out into the same river, lake or stream, and then we drink
it again. 4
And of course, the more water we have to process, the more
bleach we have to produce (which isn’t a terrific thing to have
around—it is, after all, a poison), and, naturally, the more we
Vocabulary
distribution (dis truh BYOO shun) n. division into shares or portions
contamination (kun tam uh NAY shun) n. pollution
JW/Masterfile
Practice the Skills
4
Key Text Element
Persuasive Appeals What kind
of persuasive appeal is Lamb
using in this paragraph? (Hint:
She is using logic to counter,
or argue against, the idea that
water-processing plants have
solved the problem of water
pollution.)
READING WORKSHOP 1
have to pay our governments for looking after all this stuff
for us. So it’s not so easy to keep cleaning our water.
Yes, we could be drinking Shakespeare’s bathwater, but
more to the point, will our great grandchildren be able to
drink the water we used to hose down the dog? Will there
be any clean water left? 5
Does it make any sense for us to save water at home? Isn’t
our home usage just a drop in the bucket, compared to what
agriculture and industry uses?
Practice the Skills
5
Key Text Element
Persuasive Appeals On this
page Lamb makes a strong statement in order to spark strong
feelings. She points out that our
grandchildren may not have
clean water to drink. This statement is an emotional appeal.
Household usage is about 5% to 10% of total fresh water
used worldwide. Most of that is used in North America.
On average each of us consumes nearly 53 gallons of water
a day at home. Some citizens of water-poor countries survive
on as little as 4 gallons a day. We’ve grown used to seeing
water flow out of our taps and down the drains. What if we
had an automatic shut-off on our household water that limited
us to, say, 13 gallons of water a day?
What To Do
Turn the tap on briefly to wet your toothbrush, and turn
it off until it’s time to rinse.
In our house, the average toothbrushing time is about a
minute and 20 seconds. If we turn on the tap at the beginning
of that time and don’t turn it off until we’re finished, we will
have put down the drain approximately 2 gallons of water.
In our little household of three people, we could waste over
4000 gallons of water per year just in toothbrushing. 6
Take the test in your household. How long does it take you
to brush your teeth? Multiply that by the number of times
you brush your teeth each day, then multiply that by the
number of people in your household, and you’ll soon see that
you could have a terrific amount of water rushing uselessly
down the drains.
My sister, Elizabeth, spent a great deal of time traveling the
earth’s oceans on sailboats, where she learned to brush her
teeth with ¼ cup of water. The captain brushed without any
6
Key Text Element
Persuasive Appeals Which
persuasive appeal does Lamb
use in this paragraph? Hint: She
gives a lot of facts and figures:
• average toothbrushing time
• amount of water wasted in
that time
• amount of water wasted in
a year
Saving Water 937
READING WORKSHOP 1
water at all. We don’t need to go that far, but we could all use
less water than we do.
Keep a bottle of water in the fridge.
We use bottled water—from the tap. Have you ever let the
tap run for a minute to get an ice cold drink? About 15 years
ago, I filled an empty soft drink bottle with tap water and
stuck it in the fridge. That same bottle is still in our fridge
today. Of course it has different water in it. 7
Our water bottle has its own spot, in one of those bottle
hangers that goes under the fridge shelf (it’s been in the same
place for years, even when we’ve moved houses and changed
fridges), so that we never have to run the tap for a drink of
water. It’s always cold and handy. If you’re just starting this
system, be sure to label the bottle “Drinking Water.” Once,
years ago, when my Dad was visiting, he took a big swig
from the bottle in our fridge, only to discover that someone
had put a bottle of white rum in to cool.
Take a five minute shower instead of bathing.
Abandon the bathtub, and hit the showers. Sometimes it
just feels great to soak in the tub, but that tub holds between
nine and 33 gallons (40 to 150 liters) of water, depending on
how full we fill it. We’d have to shower for 15 minutes
before we used up the quantity of water it takes to fill
the tub. When we were kids, we used to share a bath.
We thought it was fun, but little did we know that our
smart parents were saving on water heating. My
daughter Caroline still enjoys a bath with her little
cousin, Lisa.
Learn the cold water hand wash.
If every time you wash your hands, you turn on
the hot tap and wait for the water to get warm,
you could run anywhere from a few cups to a
gallon or more of water down the drain. There
are two problems with that.
First, it’s water that has gone through the
entire system of our waterworks for nothing.
CORBIS
Practice the Skills
7
Key Text Element
Persuasive Appeals Here,
Lamb shows that she practices
what she preaches. This helps
make her appear trustworthy.
What kind of persuasive appeal
is she using?
READING WORKSHOP 1
It’s been pumped from the lake or river, using energy, it’s
been bleached, it’s been pushed through miles of pipes, and
then it just goes back down the drain to be processed all over
again with our sewage, having done nothing.
Second, it’s water that’s already been heated in your home
water heater, but has cooled before it gets to you. The energy
that was used to heat it, which you pay for, has been wasted.
I even wash my face in cold water every morning and
night. I’m trying to convince myself that cold water is kinder
to my skin than hot, but frankly, I know of no studies that
would back me up on this one. However, my partner, Barry,
tells me he once read that Paul Newman soaks his face in ice
water to stay young looking, so maybe I’m on to something
here. Masochistic 3 as it may sound, I find it refreshing to
start my day with a cold splash. I confess that so far I’ve
made very few converts to this theory, but I still swear by it. 8
Do you get as clean with cold water as with warm? The
answer is yes, although there are exceptions. If your hands
are greasy or oily, warm water will help to dissolve the
grease or oil more quickly than cold water. But for ordinary,
garden-variety dirt or stickiness, cold water works just as
well as warm.
What about germs? Ordinarily hand soap will take care
of whatever germs are washable. If you wanted to be totally
antiseptic, you would have to use boiling water, probably for
several minutes. I think most of us would opt for just plain
clean, thanks anyway.
Think of saving water this way: what if you had to carry home
all the water you needed every day—in jars on your head? 9 ❍
Practice the Skills
8
Key Reading Skill
Opinion Lamb says that
washing in cold water is “kinder
to . . . skin.” Is that statement
a fact or an opinion? How can
you tell?
9
Do you agree that conserving the
world’s water is a cause worth
fighting for? Explain. Write your
answer on the “Saving Water”
flap of Foldable 7. Your response
will help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
3. Lamb is making a little joke here. If someone is masochistic (mass uh KISS tik), he
or she doesn’t mind pain or suffering.
Saving Water 939
After You Read
Saving Water: Why Save Something
That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth?
Answering the
1. Has reading this article changed the way you think about what is
worth fighting for? Explain your answer.
2. Recall What is Lamb’s position, or stand, on the issue of water
conservation: Is she for it or against it? Support your answer by
quoting a sentence or two from the selection.
T IP Right There
3. List What are some changes that Lamb thinks readers should make
in the way they live? List at least three things that Lamb says people
should do.
T IP Think and Search
Critical Thinking
4. Compare and Contrast How is U.S. water use similar to that of
“water-poor” countries? How is it different?
5. Analyze On page 935 Lamb says, “We clean paintbrushes in [water].
And we drink it.” Why does she put these two uses of water next to
each other? What is the effect of organizing the water uses this way?
T IP Author and Me
6. Analyze Reread the first paragraph of the selection. What does Lamb
say to capture readers’ attention and make them want to read on?
T IP Author and Me
elements: persuasive appeals
and connotation
Writing Fact sheet: summarize
Grammar Use punctuation: colons
Write About Your Reading
Fact Sheet A fact sheet is a short, easy-to-read summary of key facts
about a subject. Use information from the selection to write a fact sheet
about water use—and waste—in the United States.
• Your readers: eighth-graders who have not read “Saving Water”
• Your purpose: to inform other students about people’s use and abuse of
water by giving them the most important facts. Do not include opinions.
• Your format: Make a list or lists of bulleted facts. Don’t write in paragraphs.
• The length: one page
Skills Review
Grammar Link: Colons to
Introduce Items
Fact from Opinion
7. Does Lamb rely mostly on facts or on opinions
in her article? Explain.
8. Quote two facts and two opinions Lamb gives.
Key Text Element: Persuasive Appeals
9. Which kind of persuasive appeal does Lamb
use most: reason, emotion, or ethics?
Vocabulary Check
Copy the sentences below on another sheet of paper.
Fill in each blank with the right vocabulary word.
municipal • distribution • contamination
10. The Red Cross allotted the same amount of food
of food
to each flood victim so that the
would be fair and equal.
11. The U.S. president is a member of the federal
government; the mayor of a city is a member of
a
government.
12. The beach was closed because of the accidental
of lake water.
13. English Language Coach Explain why you must
know the connotation of a word to understand its
full meaning. Support your explanation with an
example.
14. Academic Vocabulary If you say someone is
ethical, what are you saying about the person?
Web Activities For eFlashcards, Selection
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go
to www.glencoe.com.
A colon (:) is a punctuation mark used to introduce a
list or series of items at the end of a complete thought.
Sometimes the list or series is introduced by signal
words such as the following, these, or as follows.
• Jamil packed these supplies for the trip: a tent, a
lantern, sleeping bags, flashlights, clothes, and food.
• Bring the following items: a pen, paper, and
your book.
Look out! Do not use a colon right after a verb or
a preposition.
Wrong: The kids in my group are: Erin, Jim,
and Andre.
Right: The kids in my group are Erin, Jim, and Andre.
Wrong: My family and I traveled to: Germany,
France, and Austria.
Right: My family and I traveled to Germany, France,
and Austria.
Grammar Practice
Copy the following sentences on a separate sheet of
paper. Insert a colon in sentences that need one.
(Some sentences don’t need a colon.)
15. A variety of people traveled on the railroad the
poor, the well-off, students, and more.
16. Recycle these materials glass, paper, and plastic.
17. Some of the important steps in my mother’s life
were the following enrolling at Alabama State
University, joining CORE, and receiving a scholarship to Georgetown University.
18. The following students must report to the
principal Diane Larson, Manny Greene, and
Scott Freeman.
19. Many African Americans attended all-black
colleges Tuskegee, Morehouse, and Spelman.
20. My favorite foods include apples, chicken, and corn.
Writing Application Review your Write About Your
Reading activity. If you used colons in your fact sheet,
make sure that you correctly used them.
Saving Water: Why Save Something That Covers Two-thirds of the Earth? 941
John Evans
Before You Read
from The Measure of
Our Success
Vocabulary Preview
Ma
rian
W r ig h t E d e l m
an
Meet the Author
In 1963 Marian Wright
Edelman became the first
female African American
lawyer in Mississippi. By
1973 Edelman had relocated
to Washington, D.C., and
created the Children’s
Defense Fund, an organization that protects the
interests of poor, socially
disadvantaged children.
about Marian Wright Edelman,
go to www.glencoe.com.
Literature Understand ethical reasoning
strategies
Vocabulary Distinguish denotation and
connotation
persistence (pur SIS tuns) n. the act of refusing to give up (p. 947) The
whale watchers’ persistence paid off when they saw a blue whale.
corruption (kuh RUP shun) n. extreme immorality or wickedness (p. 947)
The government’s corruption became well known after a newspaper ran
a story about the scandal in city hall.
racial (RAY shul) adj. characteristic of a race of people (p. 948) Many
people would argue that racial prejudice is one of the toughest problems
the United States faces.
illiterate (ih LIT uh rit) adj. unable to read or write; uneducated (p. 949)
Although she was illiterate, Sojourner Truth spoke out powerfully in favor
of women’s rights and the abolition of slavery.
Partner Talk Take turns using each vocabulary word in a sentence.
Word Connotation in Persuasive Writing When an author’s purpose
is to persuade readers, he or she is careful to choose words with the right
connotations, or emotions that come to mind. If the author wants readers
to believe something is bad, he or she will choose words with negative
connotations. If the author wants readers to believe that something is good,
he or she will choose words with positive connotations.
Read the following ads for a car. Both describe the same car, but the words
have different connotations. Which ad gives a positive description of the car?
For sale: Vintage (1990) Arrow. The almost 100,000 miles on this
slightly weathered dream mobile prove that it is truly “Old Reliable.”
A real bargain for the mechanically inclined!
For sale: Aged (1990) Arrow. The almost 100,000 miles on this rusty
lemon prove it is truly “Old Yeller.” A real bargain if you don’t count
all the money it will take you to fix it!
Partner Talk With a classmate, compare and contrast the two ads. Which
words have positive connotations? Negative ones?
McClelland & Stewart
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Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Fact from Opinion
You will probably find more opinions than facts in the
speech you are about to read. That’s not necessarily a
bad thing. Think about whether the writer establishes
herself as an authority on the subject. On what does
she base her opinions? Can you trust her opinions?
Write to Learn As you read, use a two-column
chart to evaluate the writer’s opinions. List opinions
in the left-hand column. In the right-hand column,
list her support for each opinion.
Key Text Element: Appeal to Ethics
People rarely listen to someone they don’t trust. For
this reason, authors of persuasive writing try to show
that they are good, trustworthy people who know
what they are talking about and have readers’ best
interests at heart. Together, these qualities make up
an appeal to ethics. The ethical appeal is based on
making readers trust the writer and believe that his
or her position is the “right thing to do.” Ethical
appeals may include references to these things:
• community, family, home, parenthood
• religious or spiritual beliefs
• character, responsibility, or public service
• people whom audience members look up to
Whole Class Discussion What are some specific
ways that an author can show that he or she is a
good person? Well-informed? Concerned about
readers’ interests? As a class, discuss your ideas about
ways authors make an appeal to ethics.
What are some of the most important lessons that
your parents, family members, or guardians have
taught you: To work hard? To treat others with respect?
To value education? Think about what you’ve learned?
Write to Learn In your Learner’s Notebook, write a
paragraph about a person whose behavior and morals
you admire. What important “life lessons” have you
learned from this person?
Build Background
As founder and president of the Children’s Defense
League, Edelman is often asked to deliver commencement addresses (speeches for school graduations).
The selection you are about to read is from a speech
she made in 1992 in St. Louis, Missouri, for Washington
University’s spring graduation ceremony. The speech is
based on her book The Measure of Our Success:
A Letter to My Children and Yours. In the book and the
speech, Edelman talks about her parents, her upbringing in a close-knit African American community, and the
life lessons she learned. They are lessons she wants her
children—and all children—to know.
Read the selection from The
Measure of Our Success to find out what is worth
fighting for and what is not.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you
like to learn from the speech to help you answer
the Big Question? Write your own purpose on the
The Measure of Our Success flap of Foldable 7.
Your response will help you to complete the Unit
Challenge later.
Keep Moving
selection.
from The Measure of Our Success 943
READING WORKSHOP 1
from
THE MEASURE
OF
OUR SUCCESS
by Marian Wright Edelman
W
hen I was growing up in my little rural Southern
segregated1 town, service was as essential a part of my
upbringing as eating and sleeping. Caring black adults were
buffers 2 against the external world that told me I, a black girl,
was not important. But I did not believe it because my parents
said it wasn’t so. My teachers and preachers said it wasn’t so.
So the childhood message I internalized was that as a child of
God, no man or woman could look down on me and I could
look down on no man or woman. 1
1. If something is segregated (SEG ruh gay tid) , it is separated according to race or skin color.
Public facilities were segregated in the U.S. South until the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964.
2. Buffers are people or objects that “soften the blow,” or lessen the impact between
colliding forces.
AP/Wide World Photos
Practice the Skills
1
Key Text Element
Appeal to Ethics Edelman
refers to parents, teachers, and
preachers and calls herself a
“child of God.” These references
help establish her as a good,
trustworthy person. They are
part of the ethical appeal.
READING WORKSHOP 1
I could not play in segregated public playgrounds or sit at
drugstore lunch counters, so Daddy, a Baptist minister, built
a playground and canteen behind our church. Whenever he
and my mother saw a need, they tried to respond. There were
no black homes for the aged in my rural segregated town, so
my parents began one across the street, and all of our family
had to help out. I sure did not like it a whole lot at the time,
but that is how I learned that it was my responsibility to take
care of elderly family members and neighbors, and that
everyone was my neighbor.
Black church and community members were my watchful
extended parents. They applauded me when I did well and
they reported on me when I did wrong. Doing well meant
being helpful to others, achieving in school and reading. The
only time Daddy would not give me a chore was when I was
reading, so I read a lot.
Children were taught by example that nothing was too
lowly3 to do and that the work of our hands and of our heads
were both important. Our families and community made us
feel useful and important. And while life was often hard and
resources scarce, we always knew who we were and that the
measure of our worth was inside our heads and hearts, and
not outside in personal possessions or ambitions. 2
I was taught that the
world had a lot of problems,
that black folk had an extra
lot of problems, but that I
could struggle and change
them; that intellectual and
material gifts brought with
them the privilege and
responsibility of sharing
with others less fortunate;
and that service is the rent
that each of us pays for
living—the very purpose of
life—and not something you
do in your spare time or after
you have achieved your
personal goals. . . .
3. If something is lowly it is common or poor.
Practice the Skills
2
Key Text Element
Appeal to Ethics What references in this paragraph help
develop a strong ethical appeal?
Name at least two things.
Analyzing the Photo How does this photograph illustrate
the writer’s attitude toward community service?
Jeff Greenberg/PhotoEdit
READING WORKSHOP 1
The standard for success for too many Americans has
become personal greed rather than common good. The
3 Key Reading Skill
standard for striving and achievement has become getting
by rather than making an extra effort or helping somebody
Opinion In this paragraph
else. . . . 3
Edelman states opinions. You
. . . I also want to share a few lessons of life taken from a
may agree or disagree with
letter that I wrote my own three wonderful sons. Like them,
her, but you can’t prove that
I recognize that you can take or leave them, but you cannot
the “standard of success for too
say you were never told or reminded. Let me give you a few
many Americans has become
personal greed.”
of them.
The first lesson is, there is
no free lunch. Do not feel
entitled to anything you do
not sweat or struggle for.
Help our nation understand
that it is not entitled to world
leadership based on the past
or on what we say rather
than how well we perform
and meet changing world
needs. . . .
Remember not to be lazy.
Do your homework. Pay
attention to detail. Take care
and pride in your work.
Take the initiative 4 in
creating your own
opportunity and do not
wait around for other
people to discover you
or do you a favor. Do not
assume a door is closed;
push on it. Do not assume
if it was closed yesterday
that it is closed today. And
do not ever stop learning
and improving your mind,
because if you do, you and
Analyzing the Photo How does this young
woman illustrate Edelman’s “first lesson”?
America are going to be left behind.
Practice the Skills
4. Initiative (ih NISH uh tiv) is the action of taking responsibility for something.
CORBIS
READING WORKSHOP 1
Lesson two is, assign yourself. Daddy used to ask us
whether the teacher gave us any homework and if we said
no, he said, well, assign yourself some. Do not wait around
for somebody else to direct you to do what you are able to
figure out and do for yourself. Do not do just as little as you
can do to get by.
Do not be a political bystander or grumbler. Vote.
Democracy is not a spectator sport. Run for political office.
I especially want women to run for political office. We women
certainly cannot do a worse job than the men in power now. 4
But when you do run and when you do win, don’t begin to
think that you or your reelection are the only point. If you see
a need, do not ask why doesn’t somebody do something, ask
why don’t I do something. Hard work and persistence and
initiative are still the non-magic carpets to success for most
of us.
Lesson three: Never work just for money. Money will not
save your soul or build a decent family or help you sleep
at night. We are the richest nation on earth with the highest
incarceration5 and one of the highest drug addiction and
child poverty rates in the world.
Do not confuse wealth or fame with character. Do not
tolerate or condone6 moral corruption or violence, whether
it is found in high or low places, whatever its color or class.
It is not okay to push or to use drugs even if every person
in America is doing it. It is not okay to cheat or to lie even
if every public- and private-sector7 official you know does.
Be honest and demand that those who represent you
be honest. . . . 5
Lesson four: Do not be afraid of taking risks or being
criticized. If you do not want to be criticized, do not do
anything, do not say anything, and do not be anything. Do
not be afraid of failing. It is the way you learn to do things
right. It doesn’t matter how many times you fall down. All
Practice the Skills
4
Key Reading Skill
Opinion Is this statement a fact
or an opinion? (Hint: Can you
prove that “women certainly
cannot do a worse job than the
men in power now”?)
5
Word Connotation in
Persuasive Writing Notice all
the words with strong emotional
associations. Which of them have
positive connotations? Which
have negative ones?
5. Incarceration (in car ser AY shun) is the state of being imprisoned.
6. To condone (kuhn DOHN) is to forgive, pardon, or overlook.
7. A sector (SEK ter)is a particular part of society.
Vocabulary
persistence (pur SIS tuns) n. the act of refusing to give up
corruption (kuh RUP shun) n. extreme immorality or wickedness
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READING WORKSHOP 1
that matters is how many times you get up. Do not wait for
everybody to come along to get something done. It is always
a few people who get things done and keep things going. . . .
Lesson five: Take parenting and family life seriously,
and insist that those you work for and who represent you
do so. . . .
I hope that you will stress family rituals and be moral
examples for your children, because if you cut corners, they
will, too. If you lie, they will, too. . . . If you tell racial or
gender jokes or snicker at them, another generation will pass
on the poison that our adult generation still does not have the
courage to stop doing.
Lesson six is to please remember and help America
remember that the fellowship of human beings is more
important than the fellowship of race and class and gender
in a democratic society. Be decent and fair and insist that
others do so in your presence. . . .
Lesson seven: Listen for “the sound of the genuine” within
yourself. Einstein said, “Small is the number of them that see
with their own eyes and feel with their own heart.” Try to be
one of them.
Howard Thurman, the great black theologian,8 said, “There
is in every one of us something that waits and listens for the
sound of the genuine in ourselves, and it is the only true
guide you’ll ever have. And if you cannot hear it, you will
all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that
somebody else pulls.” 6
. . . I hope that you will learn to be quiet enough to hear
the sound of the genuine within yourself so that you can
then hear it in other people.
Lesson eight: Never think life is not worth living or that
you cannot make a difference. Never give up. I do not care
how hard it gets; and it will get very hard sometimes. An
old proverb9 reminds us that when you get to your wit’s end,
remember that is where God lives. . . .
Practice the Skills
6
Key Text Element
Appeal to Ethics Notice
Edelman’s reference to Howard
Thurman. Why does she mention Thurman? How does
quoting Thurman strengthen
Edelman’s ethical appeal?
8. A theologian (thee uh LOH jun) is an expert in religious studies.
9. A proverb is a short, traditional saying that expresses some obvious truth.
Vocabulary
racial (RAY shul) adj. characteristic of a race of people
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READING WORKSHOP 1
Practice the Skills
Analyzing the Photo What do Sojourner Truth’s facial expression and posture in this
photograph tell you about her? What might the writer have in common with Truth?
My role model was an illiterate slave woman, Sojourner
Truth, who could not read or write, but she could not stand
second-class treatment of women and she hated slavery. My
favorite Sojourner story came one day when she was making
a speech against slavery and she got heckled by a man who
stood up in the audience and said, “Old slave woman, I don’t
care any more about your antislavery talk than for an old
fleabite.” And she snapped back and said, “That’s all right.
The Lord willing, I’m going to keep you scratching.”
So often we think we have got to make a big difference and
be a big dog. Let us just try to be little fleas biting. Enough fleas
biting . . . can make very big dogs very uncomfortable. . . . 7 ❍
Vocabulary
illiterate (ih LIT uh rit) adj. unable to read or write; uneducated
7
For what cause did Sojourner
Truth fight? How is Edelman’s
fight similar to Sojourner Truth’s?
Write your answers on the
Measure of Our Success flap
of the Foldable for Unit 7. Your
responses will help you answer
the Unit Challenge later.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
After You Read
from The Measure of
Our Success
Answering the
1. Now that you have read the speech, what are your ideas about causes
that are worth fighting for?
2. Quote Copy an opinion with which Edelman wants you to agree.
T IP Right There
3. Recall Identify the eight lessons Edelman wants to teach readers.
Critical Thinking
4. Interpret What does Edelman mean when she says that ”service is the
rent each of us pays for living”? Put the statement in your own words.
T IP Author and Me
5. Analyze Think about the occasion for the speech—a university
graduation ceremony. What do you think the purpose of Edelman’s
speech is?
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Do you think Edelman’s lessons are still important and
relevant today? Explain.
T IP On My Own
Talk About Your Reading
Literature Understand ethical reasoning
strategies
connotation
Writing Speech: persuasive
Grammar Use punctuation: colons
Speech Write a short speech stating and describing two lessons that you
think are important for living a good, moral life. Be sure to answer these
questions in your speech:
• Why are these lessons important?
• How can people act on these lessons in their everyday lives?
• What sources support your opinions? Books? Articles? Real People?
Deliver your speech to a small group of classmates.
Skills Review
Fact from Opinion
7. Does Edelman include more facts or more
opinions in her speech? Why do you think
that she makes this choice?
Key Text Element: Appeal to Ethics
8. What information and sources does Edelman
mention to show readers that she is a good
example of how to lead a moral life?
Vocabulary Check
paper. Write T if a sentence is true or F if it is false.
Revise any false statement to make it true.
9. A person who gives up easily shows persistence.
10. Corruption is the opposite of goodness.
11. Someone who has racial pride is proud of his
or her race, ethnicity, or cultural heritage.
12. A student who reads and writes well is illiterate.
13. Academic Vocabulary What are some of
the ethical activities that Edelman’s parents
encouraged their children to do?
14. English Language Coach How does Edelman
use words with positive connotations to support
her opinions? Give at least two examples.
Grammar Link: Colons to
Separate Items
The colon (:) is used in expressions of time. Separate
the hour and the minutes with a colon when you use
numerals to write the time of day.
• The movie starts at 11:15 a.m. and ends at 1:45 p.m.
• We have to be at the bus station at 3:45 p.m. today.
• At 12:00 noon, we will leave for the field trip.
Never use a colon when the time of day is written out.
• I didn’t get home until one o’clock.
Also use a colon after the salutation of a business letter.
(Use a comma after the salutation of a personal letter.)
• Dear Sir:
• Dear Sir or Madam:
• Dear Ms. Korsakov:
• Dear Grandma,
Grammar Practice
The following sentences make up two business letters.
Copy the sentences on another sheet of paper. Add
colons where needed.
15. Dear Ms. Kozar
16. I will not be able to bring snacks to the French
Club meeting today at 400.
17. Mr. Fenton is tutoring me from 330 until 430.
18. Yours truly, Isabella
19. Dear Isabella
20. From 400 until 430 at today’s meeting, a guest
speaker will be talking about her travels to
France.
21. Try to get there by 445.
22. We will serve snacks after the question-andanswer session.
23. Sincerely, Ms. Kozar
to www.glencoe.com.
John Evans
Persuasive Essay
Prewriting and Drafting
ASSIGNMENT Write a
persuasive essay
Purpose: To make a case
for something you think is
worth fighting for
Audience: Your teacher,
your classmates, and
other people in your
community
Writing Rubric
As you work through this
writing assignment, you
should
• write about something you
feel strongly about
• write a clear position
statement
• support your main idea
with details and examples
• write a well-organized
persuasive essay
See pages 996—997 in Part 2
for a model of a persuasive
essay.
Writing Use the writing process:
prewrite, draft, organize • Use
persuasive techniques • Include
main ideas and supporting reasons
Grammar Use punctuation:
apostrophes
You probably already know what an essay is. It’s a paper that tells a true story,
explains a subject, or gives opinions. A persuasive essay also gives opinions,
but the writer’s goal is a little different. In a persuasive essay, the writer tries to
convince readers to agree with his or her opinions. For example, if you believe
that you and your classmates have too much homework, you might write a
persuasive essay trying to convince teachers to agree with you. You might also
go one step further and include a call to action, a statement asking readers to
act on your opinions. You might, for example, ask teachers to give shorter daily
assignments—ones that take no more than an hour to do.
For this workshop you may write either kind of persuasive essay. Writing a
persuasive essay will help you think about the Unit 7 Big Question: What’s
worth fighting for? What’s not?
Prewriting
Get Ready to Write
Your first step is to come up with a good topic. For this assignment you need
to think of an issue that has two sides. Pick something that matters to you.
The stronger your opinions, the easier it will be to write about them.
Gather Ideas
To come up with a good topic, ask yourself these questions:
• What do I strongly believe in? Why do I think it is worth standing up for?
• What are some issues, ideas, or people that matter to me?
• What stories in the news have made me want to take a stand?
• What changes would I like to see made in my neighborhood or community?
If you have trouble coming up with a topic, try looking through recent newspapers and magazines in the library or on the Internet. They often include
articles about controversial issues—problems that have at least two sides to
them. Or try freewriting for ten minutes about one of the issues that you think
interests you. Remember that when you freewrite you jot down your thoughts
quickly and freely. If you have trouble writing about the issue for ten minutes,
you may want to change topics.
Generate Supporting Reasons
Once you have a topic in mind, write a position statement to be your
main idea, or thesis. For your statement, write your opinion simply
and clearly. For example, if you believe in protecting the environment,
your position statement might be “I believe we must take steps to protect
the environment.” Then come up with a list of reasons why. A good way to
do this is to discuss your ideas with classmates.
Writing Models For models and
other writing activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.
Writing Tip
Group Discussion Follow these steps with a small group of classmates.
1. Read your position statement aloud to the group. Ask group members
whether your opinion is clear. If it isn’t, rewrite your position statement
together until it is clear.
2. Give at least two reasons why you believe your opinion is right. Discuss
each reason with your classmates. Ask them to help you develop your
reasons with facts, examples, or other types of details. Also ask group
members to add reasons of their own. Classmates who agree with your
opinion may have good reasons you have overlooked.
3. Take notes on your discussion. Be sure to include all the reasons you
and your group generated.
Supporting Reasons
Remember that your purpose
is to persuade your readers to
agree with you. So keep your
readers in mind when you
list reasons why they should
agree with your opinion. Your
reasons must convince your
readers, not just you.
It’s important that we protect the environment
because . . .
1. pollution threatens everyone’s health
2. it’s wrong to be wasteful
3. our children deserve a clean environment
Drafting
Start Writing!
Once you have a list of reasons, you’re ready to start writing your essay.
Don’t worry if you don’t have the whole essay worked out in your mind.
Ideas will come to you as you write.
Writing Tip
Organization Think about
the order in which you present
your reasons. Don’t just give
them in the order you thought
of them. Have a strategy.
For example, you might give
the least important reason
first and the most important
reason last. That way, your
essay ends on a strong note.
Writing Workshop Part 1
Persuasive Essay 953
Develop Your Draft
To make your essay easier to write, break it down into parts. There should
be three main parts to your essay: a beginning, a middle, and an end.
1. The beginning of your essay is the introduction—a paragraph that introduces your readers to your issue and your main idea, or thesis. Your
introduction should also try to capture readers’ attention and make
readers care about your issue.
Writing Tip
Introduction Usually an
introductory paragraph begins
with an attention-getting statement and ends with a main
idea, or thesis, statement.
In this case, the thesis is the
position statement.
Imagine a world without trees, flowers, or animals. It
could happen. Every day we pollute the air we breathe,
the water we drink, and the ground we grow our food
in. Slowly but surely we are ruining this planet. I believe
we must take steps to protect the environment, and you
should too.
2. The middle of your essay is the body. It is two or more paragraphs that
explain the reasons why your readers should agree with you. Limit
yourself to one reason in each paragraph. For each new reason, start
a new paragraph.
We need to start taking better care of the earth
because it is a healthier way to live. The environment
makes life possible. If we ruin the environment, we are
ruining our own bodies. Anything harmful that we put
into the earth eventually harms us. When we pollute the
ground where we grow our food, the pollution gets into
the food. When we eat the food, the pollution gets into
our bodies.
Writing Tip
Conclusion Do not give new
reasons in your conclusion.
Your conclusion should sum
up your position and the reasons you have already given.
3. The end of your essay is the conclusion. It is a paragraph in which
you wrap up what you have said—and, if you wish, give a call to action.
It’s not too late. We can still save our environment. I ask
you to stop polluting, stop wasting resources, and save
the planet for our children. You and future generations
will be glad you did.
Grammar Link
Apostrophes
What Is an Apostrophe?
An apostrophe (’) is a punctuation mark used in
possessive nouns, possessive indefinite pronouns,
and contractions.
To form the possessive of a plural noun that does
not end in s, use an apostrophe and –s (’s).
• The men’s soccer game was canceled for
the night.
• The mice’s nest was under the haystack.
Why Are Apostrophes Important?
Apostrophes show when a noun is possessive.
• Bill’s coat is on the bed.
(The apostrophe and s tell you that the noun Bill
possesses, or owns, a coat.)
Apostrophes also tell when—and where—letters are
missing from contractions, or shortened forms of
words and numbers.
• it is = it’s
• I will = I’ll
• you are = you’re
• is not = isn’t
• 1998 = ’98
How Do I Use Apostrophes?
To form the possessive of a singular noun, add an
apostrophe and –s (’s).
• The girl’s hat got lost on the bus.
• The dog’s toy was stuck under the couch.
To form the possessive of a plural noun that ends
in s, use an apostrophe after the final s.
• The boys’ essays are displayed on the bulletin
board.
• Both tables’ legs were slightly bent.
To form the possessive of an indefinite pronoun,
such as everyone, everybody, anyone, no one, or
nobody, use an apostrophe and –s (’s).
• The park was everybody’s to use on Saturday.
Look Out! Never use an apostrophe in the possessive personal pronouns ours, yours, his, hers, its,
and theirs.
• The park was just ours on Monday.
Write to Learn Read over your draft. Check to
make sure you have correctly used apostrophes.
Circle any possessive nouns or possessive indefinite
pronouns. Underline any contractions.
Looking Ahead
Part 2 of this Writing Workshop is coming up later. Keep the writing you
did here. In Part 2 you’ll learn how to turn it into an essay to be proud of.
READING WORKSHOP 2
Skills Focus
• “All Together Now,” p. 960
• from Through My Eyes, p. 968
Skill Lesson
Reading
Questioning
• Asking questions while reading
Literature
Learn It!
• Identifying persuasive appeals
• Understanding point of view
What Is It? Questioning is having a running conversation with yourself as you read. Just as you might
ask yourself questions while watching a movie (Why
did he do that? What’s the significance of that door
they keep showing?), you should ask questions while
you read. By asking questions, you become involved
in the selection and make sure that you understand it.
Feel free to question anything! For example, you might
ask yourself questions like these:
• What just happened?
• Is this argument valid ?
Vocabulary
• Understanding extended
definitions
• Understanding denotation
• Academic Vocabulary: valid
Writing/Grammar
• Using semicolons correctly
rights reserved.
RSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All
Reprinted with permission of UNIVE
STONE SOUP © 1996 Jan Eliot.
Analyzing Cartoons
Here’s a question to ask yourself to
test your understanding of the cartoon:
What do the girls’ questions show
about their knowledge of jobs?
Reading Ask questions
Academic Vocabulary
valid (VAL id) adj. based on correct information; logical; sound
956 UNIT 7
STONE SOUP © 1996 Jan Eliot. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved.
READING WORKSHOP 2 • Questioning
Why Is It Important? Asking questions while you read is an important
part of understanding a text. To make sure you understand, ask yourself
“5Ws and an H” questions: Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How?
How Do I Do It? Here are some sample questions you can ask yourself:
• How does this event relate to other events in the text?
• What is this person doing and why?
• Why has the writer included this word, description, or piece of information?
Below is a selection from The Measure of Our Success. Read how a student
asked questions about the text.
.com and click on Study Central to
review questioning.
Black church and community members were my
watchful extended parents. They applauded me when I
did well and they reported on me when I did wrong.
Doing well meant being helpful to others, achieving in
school and reading. The only time Daddy would not
give me a chore was when I was reading, so I read a lot.
Children were taught by example that nothing was
too lowly to do and that the work of our hands and of
our heads were both important. Our families and our
community made us feel useful and important. And
while life was often hard and resources scarce, we
always knew who we were and that the measure of
our worth was inside our heads and hearts, and not
outside in personal possessions or ambitions.
Why does the writer say that the church and
community members were “extended parents”? They
must have played a very important role in her childhood.
Why does she mention that she read a lot? Reading may
have something to do with the person she is today.
Practice It!
Reread the selection from The Measure of Our Success above. Then write
down two additional questions that you could ask about the selection.
Use It!
As you read “All Together Now,” ask yourself 5Ws and an H questions.
Answer each question before going on.
Reading Workshop 2 Questioning 957
Kevin Peterson/Getty Images
Before You Read
All Together Now
Vocabulary Preview
B ar b
a ra J or da n
Meet the Author
Barbara Jordan was the first
African American woman
elected to the Texas Senate.
When she was elected to the
U.S. House of Representatives,
she became the first African
American woman to represent
a former Confederate state in
Congress. Jordan was also the
first African American woman
to give the keynote speech at
a political convention.
about Barbara Jordan, go to
www.glencoe.com.
harmonious (har MOH nee us) adj. getting along well together; friendly
(p. 960) We are all striving toward a more harmonious community.
indispensable (in duh SPEN suh bul) adj. absolutely necessary (p. 962)
Tolerance and kindness are indispensable values.
incurable (in KYOOR uh bul) adj. not likely to be changed or corrected
(p. 963) Racism is far from incurable; there are plenty of ways to stop it.
optimist (OP tuh mist) n. a person who has a positive or cheerful outlook
(p. 963) If you are an optimist, those around you will think positively too.
Write to Learn In your Learner’s Notebook, write a short paragraph in
which you correctly use each vocabulary word at least once.
Extended Definition If you look up the word tolerance in the dictionary,
you will find a definition similar to this one: “the willingness to let others
hold opinions or follow practices that are different from one’s own.” This
is the denotation of the word. In “All Together Now,” Jordan gives her own
definition of what tolerance means. Because she refers to civil rights and
race relations to provide a longer, more specific definition of tolerance,
you might say that she gives the word an extended definition.
Small Group Discussion With a small group of classmates, write an
extended definition of tolerance. To begin, each group member should
explain what he or she thinks tolerance means. The explanation could be
a definition or an example. As each group member gives a definition or
example, record it on a word web like the one pictured. Then use the word
web to write a one- or two-paragraph extended definition of tolerance.
Reading Ask questions • Make
connections from text to self
Literature Identify literary elements:
persuasive appeals
Vocabulary Use vocabulary references:
dictionary, extended meanings
tolerance
Let others hold
opinions different
from yours.
Don’t make fun of
people who are
different from you.
Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Key Reading Skill: Questioning
“All Together Now” is a speech Jordan made in the
1990s. As you read the speech, ask yourself 5 Ws and
an H questions to make sure you understand.
How tolerant are you of other people’s opinions?
When you disagree with someone, are you able to
“agree to disagree,” or do you continue to try to
convince the other person to adopt your position?
Partner Talk Jordan’s speech is about the need for
tolerance in the United States. What kinds of questions
do you think you might ask yourself as you read the
speech? Brainstorm a list with a classmate.
Key Text Element: Appeal to Emotions
Facts and figures can be very persuasive. If a writer
wants to convince readers to agree with an opinion,
presenting objective evidence is a good way to do so.
But if the writer wants to move readers to take action,
he or she may “put a human face” on facts and
figures and appeal to readers’ emotions.
Sometimes a writer relies only on an emotional
appeal. That method is appropriate when the writer
knows that readers agree with him or her but need to
be persuaded to take action. Suppose, for example,
that you belong to a school music club that sells
candy to raise money. To move club members to sell
as much as possible, you might try to inspire them
with an emotional appeal. Usually, however, a writer
uses all three appeals, giving facts (appeal to reason),
showing why he or she is trustworthy (appeal to ethics), and trying to make readers care about the issue
(appeal to emotions).
Whole Class Discussion Imagine that you want to
persuade people to be more tolerant of others. As a
class, think of emotional appeals you might make to
move people into taking the right actions.
Partner Talk With a partner, find a topic about
which you disagree, such as the best subject to study
in school or which performer in a musical group is
best. Take turns presenting your opinions on the topic.
Monitor your feelings and behavior. Can you listen to
your partner’s opinion calmly, or do you find yourself
wanting to jump in and argue your position? Explain.
Build Background
The 1960s were a busy time for the civil rights movement in the United States.
• In June of 1963, President John Kennedy proposed
civil rights legislation, but Congress failed to act.
• In August of 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., led a
march on Washington, D.C., where he delivered his
famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
• In July of 1964, at the urging of President Lyndon
B. Johnson, Congress adopted the Civil Rights
Act, which ended legalized segregation in the
United States.
Read “All Together Now” to find
out whether creating a society that is tolerant in action
as well as in law is a cause worth fighting for.
Question? Write your own purpose on the “All
Together Now” flap of Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
All Together Now 959
READING WORKSHOP 2
by Barbara Jordan
On August 6, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson celebrated signing the Voting Rights Act into law with
a group including (from left) Ralph Abernathy; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Clarence Mitchell.
W
hen I look at race relations today I can see that some
positive changes have come about. But much remains to be
done, and the answer does not lie in more legislation. We
have the legislation we need; we have the laws. Frankly, I
don’t believe that the task of bringing us all together can be
accomplished by government. What we need now is soul
force—the efforts of people working on a small scale to build
a truly tolerant, harmonious society. And parents can do a
great deal to create that tolerant society. 1
We all know that race relations in America have had a
very rocky history. Think about the 1960s when Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., was in his heyday and there were marches
and protests against segregation and discrimination.
The movement culminated1 in 1963 with the March on
Washington.
1. Culminated (KUL muh nay tid) means reached the highest point or climax.
Vocabulary
harmonious (har MOH nee us) adj. getting along well together; friendly
CORBIS
Practice the Skills
1
Key Reading Skill
Questioning A good question
to ask yourself here is, What is
Jordan’s main idea?
READING WORKSHOP 2
Following the enactment of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, African
Americans in Alabama wait in line to vote.
Following that event, race relations reached an all-time
peak. President Lyndon B. Johnson pushed through the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, which remains the fundamental piece of
civil rights legislation in this century. The Voting Rights Act
of 1965 ensured that everyone in our country could vote. At
last, black people and white people seemed ready to live
together in peace.
But that is not what happened. By the 1990’s the good
feelings had diminished. Today the nation seems to be
suffering from compassion2 fatigue, and issues such as race
relations and civil rights have never regained momentum.3
Those issues, however, remain crucial. As our society
becomes more diverse, people of all races and backgrounds
will have to learn to live together. If we don’t think this is
important, all we have to do is look at the situation in Bosnia4
today. 2
2. Compassion (kum PASH un) is sorrow for the sufferings or trouble of another.
3. Momentum is a strength or force that keeps growing.
Practice the Skills
2
Key Reading Skill
Questioning What situation
is Jordan referring to? (See the
note at the bottom of the page.)
4. In the early 1990s civil war erupted in Bosnia (BOZ nee uh) between the Serbs and the Croats.
After a few months of fighting, the Serbs controlled most of the area. They attacked Sarajevo
with the intent of killing all non-Serbs, a process known as ethnic cleansing.
Flip Schulke/CORBIS
READING WORKSHOP 2
How do we create a harmonious
society out of so many kinds of people?
The key is tolerance—the one value
that is indispensable in creating
community.
If we are concerned about
community, if it is important to us that
people not feel excluded, then we have
to do something. Each of us can
decide to have one friend of a
different race or background in our
mix of friends. If we do this, we’ll be
working together to push things
forward.
One thing is clear to me: We, as
human beings, must be willing to
accept people who are different from
ourselves. I must be willing to accept
people who don’t look as I do and
don’t talk as I do. It is crucial that I
am open to their feelings, their inner
reality. 3
What can parents do? We can put
Analyzing the Photo How does this photograph illustrate
our faith in young people as a
Jordan’s belief in the importance of cross-cultural friendships?
positive force. I have yet to find a racist
baby. Babies come into the world as
blank as slates and, with their beautiful innocence, see others
not as different but as enjoyable companions. Children learn
3 English Language Coach
ideas and attitudes from the adults who nurture them. I
Extended Definition In this
absolutely believe that children do not adopt prejudices
paragraph and the one before,
Jordan explains what she means
unless they absorb them from their parents or teachers.
by the word tolerance. Two
The best way to get this country faithful to the American
parts of her extended definition
dream of tolerance and equality is to start small. Parents can
are as follows:
actively encourage their children to be in the company of
• “[making] people not feel
people who are of other racial and ethnic backgrounds. If a
excluded”
child thinks, “Well, that person’s color is not the same as
• “decid[ing] to have one friend
mine, but she must be okay because she likes to play with
of a different race or back-
Practice the Skills
ground”
Vocabulary
indispensable (in duh SPEN suh bul) adj. absolutely necessary
Rosebud Pictures/Taxi/Getty Images
How else does she define the
word? Quote another part of
her definition.
READING WORKSHOP 2
the same things I like to play with,” that child will grow up
with a broader view of humanity.
I am an incurable optimist. For the rest of the time that I
have left on this planet I want to bring people together. You
might think of this as a labor of love. Now, I know that love
means different things to different people. But what I mean is
this: I care about you because you are a fellow human being
and I find it okay in my mind, in my heart, to simply say to
you, I love you. And maybe that would encourage you to love
me in return. 4
It is possible for all of us to work on this—at home, in
our schools, at our jobs. It is possible to work on human
relationships in every area of our lives. 5 ❍
Practice the Skills
4
Key Text Element
Appeal to Emotions Notice
that Jordan uses the word love
four times. What feeling is she
trying to spark in her audience?
How will that help her fulfill her
purpose?
5
Do you agree that a tolerant
society is worth fighting for?
Explain. Write your answer on
the “All Together Now” flap
of Foldable 7. Your response
will help you answer the Unit
Challenge later.
Vocabulary
incurable (in KYOOR uh bul) adj. not likely to be changed or corrected
optimist (OP tuh mist) n. a person who has a positive or cheerful outlook
© Bryan F. Peterson
After You Read
All Together Now
Answering the
1. After reading Jordan’s speech, what are your thoughts about what is
worth fighting for and what is not?
2. Recall Which does Jordan think is a more important force for bringing
about good race relations: the government or parents? Explain.
T IP Right There
3. Recall According to Jordan, what is the most important civil rights
law of the 20th century and why?
T IP Right There
Critical Thinking
4. Interpret What does Jordan mean when she says that the U.S. has
“compassion fatigue”? Explain in your own words.
T IP Author and Me
5. Infer Why does Jordan think that people should put their faith in
children? Support your answer with examples from the selection.
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Do you think Jordan’s ideas about increasing tolerance are
good ones? Explain why or why not.
T IP Author and Me
Reading Ask questions • Make connections
from text to self
persuasive appeals
Vocabulary Use vocabulary references:
dictionary, extended meanings
Grammar Use punctuation: semicolons
Small Group Discussion Jordan says that parents can encourage their
children to have friends from other ethnic or cultural backgrounds. What do
you think students and schools should do to promote a tolerant society? With
a small group of classmates, come up with at least three specific ways that
the students in your school can support tolerance toward others. Remember
that having special awareness days and visual displays are good tools for
celebrating different cultures. But also think about what students can do to
bring about long-term change that lasts and makes a real difference.
Skills Review
Grammar Link: Semicolons
You do not always have to use a coordinating conjuction to form a compound sentence. You can use
a semicolon (;) to join two independent clauses or
simple sentences to form a compound sentence.
7. Did you find it helpful to ask questions as you
read? Explain your answer.
Key Text Element: Appeal to Emotions
8. Which persuasive appeal does Jordan use
most often?
9. Was this type of persuasive appeal appropriate
for the selection? Should Jordan have included
other types of persuasive appeals? Explain.
Vocabulary Check
Match each vocabulary word on the left with its
definition on the right.
10. harmonious
a. a person who has a
positive or cheerful
outlook
11. indispensable
b. not likely to be changed
or corrected
12. incurable
c. getting along well
together; friendly
13. optimist
d. absolutely necessary
14. Academic Vocabulary Are valid arguments
logical or illogical? Explain.
15. How does Jordan’s extended definition of tolerance differ from the word’s dictionary definition?
16. Write an extended (one- or two-paragraph)
definition of one of these abstract words: love,
success, beauty. Be sure to include specific
examples in your definition of the word.
Compound with conjunction: I like to play video
games, and my brother likes to play music.
Compound with semicolon: I like to play video
games; my brother likes to play music.
A semicolon alone works well in the example compound sentence above because the sentences are short
and almost the same. When you join long or contrasting sentences, use a comma and a conjunction rather
than a semicolon. A conjunction helps readers see the
logical relationship between ideas.
Confusing: He takes my CDs without asking; I don’t
really mind. (You expect the speaker to mind, so you
are surprised when he says that he doesn’t.)
Better: He takes my CDs without asking, but I don’t
really mind. (The conjunction but warns you that the
next idea will contrast with the first.)
Look out! Remember not to join two sentences with
just a comma. You must use a semicolon or a comma
and coordinating conjunction.
Grammar Practice
Copy the sentences below on another sheet of paper.
Add semicolons or commas and conjunctions where
they are needed.
17. We want to see a movie we can’t find one we like.
18. I want to see a comedy I like to have a good laugh.
19. Renting videos is fun you can relax more at home.
20. Ogemageshig’s father is Native American his
mother is half white and half Latino.
Writing Application Using semicolons, combine
two short, closely related sentences from the extended
definition that you wrote for item 16.
to www.glencoe.com.
Before You Read
from Through My Eyes
Vocabulary Preview
R u b y B ri d g e s
Meet the Author
In 1960 six-year-old Ruby
Bridges became the first
African American student to
enroll in a white elementary
school in New Orleans after
segregation was outlawed
there. Her attendance
sparked large protests.
Bridges says, however, that
this experience taught her
that “schools can be a place
to bring people together—
kids of all races and
backgrounds.”
about Ruby Bridges, go to
www.glencoe.com.
Reading Ask questions • Make
point of view
connotation: word choice
taunts (tawnts) n. hurtful or mocking remarks (p. 968) The taunts of
the opposing team did not distract him as he took his free throw.
barricades (BAIR uh kaydz) n. barriers put up to separate or to provide
defense (p. 969) The peaceful protesters did not try to tear down the
barricades that surrounded the political meeting.
integrated (IN tuh gray tid) v. ended the separation of racial and ethnic
groups, form of the verb integrate (p. 971) The Supreme Court decision
Brown v. Board of Education integrated schools across the country.
Think-Pair-Share In your Learner’s Notebook, write a sentence for
each of the vocabulary words. Use context clues in each sentence to
help show what the word means. Trade sentences with a classmate.
Check each other’s work to see if it is right.
Denotation and Word Choice Word choice can provide important
information about a narrator or speaker. For example, a narrator who is
a child might choose words with simple denotations, or definitions.
In the selection from Through My Eyes, the narrator describes an
experience she had when she was six years old. Even though the author
was an adult when she wrote this autobiography, she uses simple words
with simple definitions to show that she saw things through a child’s eyes.
Read the two sentences below. Think about which one sounds more like
a description that a child might give.
• “The U.S. federal marshals arrived to escort us to school and accompany
EL us throughout the day.”
• “They had come to drive us to school and stay with us all day.”
The second sentence sounds like something a six-year-old would say.
The narrator’s word choice helps you understand what she is like.
Partner Talk With a partner, take turns reading aloud the first two
paragraphs of the selection from Through My Eyes. After you have read
the paragraphs, make a list with your partner of the words that help show
that the narrator is looking back at an experience from her childhood.
Wally McNamee/CORBIS
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Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Reading Skill: Questioning
Have you ever been listening to a speech or a talk
and wished that you could stop the speaker to ask
questions? When you read, you can ask all the
questions you want.
• Basic questions such as Who? What? When? Where?
Why? How? will help you follow what is happening.
• Asking yourself why an author includes certain
information and whether a detail is important will
make your reading more meaningful.
Think about your first day of school. What were your
feelings as you entered the building and found yourself
surrounded by strangers? Was the classroom friendly?
Write to Learn As you read, use a two-column
chart to ask questions about the selection. In the lefthand column, write any questions that you have. Write
the answer to each question in the right-hand column.
Literary Element: Point of
View in Nonfiction
Point of view in nonfiction is the perspective from
which a real-life story is told. In the first-person
point of view, an author calls himself or herself
“I” or “me” and describes real events that he or
she took part in or observed. In the third-person
point of view, the author does not refer to himself
or herself. He or she is a nameless voice that tells
what happened. To identify point of view in nonfiction, ask yourself this question:
• Does the author refer to himself or herself as
“I” or “me” (first person), or is the author a
nameless voice (third person)?
Whole Class Discussion Through My Eyes includes
different points of view of the same story. It begins with
a newspaper story about what happened. Then Ruby
Bridges tells what happened from her point of view.
Finally, Ruby’s teacher tells what happened from her
point of view. What differences might you expect to find
between the newspaper version of the story and Ruby
Bridges’s? Between Ruby Bridges’s and her teacher’s?
Write to Learn In your Learner’s Notebook, write
about your first day of school or your first day in a
new school. Include descriptions about how you felt.
Build Background
As you read the selection, you may wonder how Ruby
Bridges was chosen to be the first African American
student at a newly integrated school.
• African American kindergarteners in New Orleans
were tested in the spring of 1960 to determine
which students would go to integrated schools in the
fall. From this testing, six children were chosen to go
to integrated schools.
• Two of the children decided not to go, and three of
the children were sent to another school. Ruby Bridges
alone enrolled in William Frantz Public School.
Read the selection from Through
My Eyes to discover other people’s ideas about what
is worth fighting for and what is not.
Question? Write your own purpose on the Through
My Eyes flap of Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
from Through My Eyes 967
READING WORKSHOP 2
from
Through
My Eyes
by Ruby Bridges
— The New York Times, November 15, 1960 Today, hundreds
of city policemen began to assemble in the mixed white and Negro
residential districts of the two schools as the sun burned away the
haze from the Mississippi River.
Black squad cars cruised slowly through the narrow streets
between modest white frame dwellings set among palms, oleanders,
and crepe myrtle. Patrolmen in gold-striped uniforms, black boots,
and white crash helmets dismounted from motorcycles to direct
traffic. Police officials and detectives stationed themselves around
the school buildings and inside the halls. Deputy federal marshals1
wearing yellow armbands made a final check and drove to the homes
of the four pupils. . . . 1
Some 150 whites, mostly housewives and teenage youths,
clustered along the sidewalks across from the William Frantz School
when pupils marched in at 8:40 a.m. One youth chanted, “Two,
four, six, eight, we don’t want to integrate; eight, six, four, two, we
don’t want a chigeroo.”
Forty minutes later, four deputy marshals arrived with a little
Negro girl and her mother. They walked hurriedly up the steps
and into the yellow brick building while onlookers jeered and
shouted taunts . 2
1. The U.S. Department of Justice maintains a law enforcement agency made up of
federal marshals (FED er ul MAR shulz). Among other tasks, the marshals are charged with
putting into action federal and district court orders.
Vocabulary
taunts (tawnts) n. hurtful or mocking remarks
Bettmann/CORBIS
Practice the Skills
1
Literary Element
Point of View in Nonfiction
Like most newspaper stories,
this story is told in the thirdperson point of view. You can
tell because the narrator is
a nameless voice describing
what happened.
2
Denotation and Word Choice
You can tell that an adult is
describing what happened.
Does he or she use simple
words or sophisticated ones?
Give examples.
READING WORKSHOP 2
The girl, dressed in a stiffly starched white dress with a white
ribbon in her hair, gripped her mother’s hand tightly and glanced
apprehensively toward the crowd. 3
Practice the Skills
3
Questioning Did you
understand the newspaper story?
To make sure, ask yourself 5Ws
and an H questions. Answer
these sample questions:
November 14, 1960
My mother took special care getting me ready for school.
When somebody knocked on my door that morning, my
mother expected to see people from the NAACP.2 Instead,
she saw four serious-looking white men, dressed in suits and
wearing armbands. They were U.S. federal marshals. They
had come to drive us to school and stay with us all day. I
learned later they were carrying guns. 4
I remember climbing into the back seat of the marshals’ car
with my mother, but I don’t remember feeling frightened.
William Frantz Public School was only five blocks away, so
one of the marshals in the front seat told my mother right
away what we should do when we got there.
“Let us get out of the car first,” the marshal said. “Then
you’ll get out, and the four of us will surround you and your
daughter. We’ll walk up to the door together. Just walk
straight ahead, and don’t look back.” 5
When we were near the school, my mother said, “Ruby,
I want you to behave yourself today and do what the
marshals say.”
We drove down North Galvez Street to the point where it
crosses Alvar. I remember looking out of the car as we pulled
up to the Frantz school. There were barricades and people
shouting and policemen everywhere. I thought maybe it was
Mardi Gras,3 the carnival that takes place in New Orleans
every year. Mardi Gras was always noisy.
As we walked through the crowd, I didn’t see any faces. I
guess that’s because I wasn’t very tall and I was surrounded
by the marshals. People yelled and threw things. I could see
the school building, and it looked bigger and nicer than my
Key Reading Skill
• Who is the little girl in the
white dress?
• What is going on?
• Where is it happening?
• When is it happening?
• Why has a crowd gathered?
• How does the little girl feel?
4
Literary Element
Point of View in Nonfiction
Who is speaking? What is the
narrative point of view? Use
these clues to answer:
• The narrator says her mother
helped her get ready.
• The narrator calls herself “I.”
5
Denotation and Word Choice
Reread the marshal’s directions.
Notice that he uses words with
simple denotations. From his
word choice, what do you think
the marshall is like?
2. The NAACP, or National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, began in
1909 with the goal of getting equal rights for African Americans.
3. Mardi Gras (MAR dee GRAH) is a French expression that means “Fat Tuesday.” It is the name
given to the celebration held the day before the fast that takes place during the Christian season
of Lent.
Vocabulary
barricades (BAIR uh kaydz) n. barriers put up to separate or to provide defense
READING WORKSHOP 2
Practice the Skills
Escorted by three Deputy U.S. Marshals, Ruby Bridges enters her
newly integrated public school.
Analyzing the Photo How does this photograph show the risks
Ruby took to help integrate Frantz?
old school. 6 When we climbed the high steps to the front
door, there were policemen in uniforms at the top. The
policemen at the door and the crowd behind us made me
think this was an important place.
It must be college, I thought to myself.
The First Day at William Frantz
Once we were inside the building, the marshals walked us up
a flight of stairs. The school office was at the top. My mother
and I went in and were told to sit in the principal’s office. The
marshals sat outside. There were windows in the room where
we waited. That meant everybody passing by could see us. I
remember noticing everyone was white.
AP
6
Key Reading Skill
Questioning What does Ruby’s
description of the school tell
you about the school system
back in 1960?
READING WORKSHOP 2
All day long, white parents rushed into the office. They
were upset. They were arguing and pointing at us. When
they took their children to school that morning, the parents
hadn’t been sure whether William Frantz would be
integrated that day or not. After my mother and I arrived,
they ran into classrooms and dragged their children out of
the school. From behind the windows in the office, all I saw
was confusion. I told myself that this must be the way it is
in a big school. 7
That whole first day, my mother and I just sat and waited.
We didn’t talk to anybody. I remember watching a big, round
clock on the wall. When it was 3:00 and time to go home, I
was glad. I had thought my new school would be hard, but
the first day was easy.
Practice the Skills
7
Key Reading Skill
Questioning How did Ruby
explain away the confusion
she saw?
Going Home
When we left school that first
day, the crowd outside was even
bigger and louder than it had
been in the morning. There
were reporters and film
cameras and people everywhere. I guess the police
couldn’t keep them behind the
barricades. It seemed to take us
a long time to get to the
marshals’ car.
Later on I learned there had
been protestors in front of the
two integrated schools the
whole day. They wanted to be
sure white parents would
boycott 4 the school and not let their
children attend. Groups of high school
boys, joining the protestors, paraded
In this November 14, 1960, photo, a crowd protests Ruby’s attendance
at William Frantz Public School.
Analyzing the Photo How would you describe the people in this
crowd? How would you feel about the crowd if you were Ruby?
4. To boycott means to protest against something, such as an organization or a company,
by refusing to do business or interact with it.
Vocabulary
integrated (IN tuh gray tid) v. ended the separation of racial and ethnic groups
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READING WORKSHOP 2
up and down the street and sang new verses to old hymns.
Their favorite was “Battle Hymn of the Republic,”5 in which
they changed the chorus to “Glory, glory, segregation, the
South will rise again.” Many of the boys carried signs and
said awful things, but most of all I remember seeing a black
doll in a coffin, which frightened me more than anything
else. 8
After the first day, I was glad to get home. I wanted to
change my clothes and go outside to find my friends. My
mother wasn’t too worried about me because the police
had set up barricades at each end of the block. Only local
residents were allowed on our street. That afternoon, I taught
a friend the chant I had learned: “Two, four, six, eight, we
don’t want to integrate.” My friend and I didn’t know what
the words meant, but we would jump rope to it every day
after school. 9
My father heard about the trouble at school. That night
when he came home from work, he said I was his “brave
little Ruby.”
My First White Teacher
On the second day, my mother and I drove to school with the
marshals. The crowd outside the building was ready. Racists
spat at us and shouted things. One woman screamed at me,
“I’m going to poison you. I’ll find a way.” She made the same
threat every morning.
I tried not to pay attention. When we finally got into the
building, my new teacher was there to meet us. Her name
was Mrs. Henry. She was young and white. I had not spent
time with a white person before, so I was uneasy at first. Mrs.
Henry led us upstairs to the second floor. As we went up, we
hardly saw anyone else in the building. The white students
were not coming to class. The halls were so quiet, I could
hear the noise the marshals’ shoes made on the shiny
hardwood floors.
Mrs. Henry took us into a classroom and said to have a
seat. When I looked around, the room was empty. There were
rows of desks, but no children. I thought we were too early,
but Mrs. Henry said we were right on time. My mother sat
5. The “Battle Hymn of the Republic” was written by Julia Ward Howe after a visit to a Union
army camp during the Civil War. Howe actively supported ending slavery.
Practice the Skills
8
Key Reading Skill
Questioning Why do you think
Bridges describes the singing and
chanting that she heard?
9
Key Reading Skill
Questioning Why do you think
Ruby and her friend jump rope
and chant these words?
READING WORKSHOP 2
down at the back of the room. I took a seat up front, and Mrs.
Henry began to teach. 10
I spent the whole first day with Mrs. Henry in the
classroom. I wasn’t allowed to have lunch in the cafeteria
or go outside for recess, so we just stayed in our room. The
marshals sat outside. If I had to go to the bathroom, the
marshals walked me down the hall.
My mother sat in the classroom that day, but not the next.
When the marshals came to the house on Wednesday
morning, my mother said, “Ruby, I can’t go to school with
you today, but don’t be afraid. The marshals will take care of
you. Be good now, and don’t cry.” 11
I started to cry anyway, but before I knew it, I was off to
school by myself.
Ruby’s Teacher’s Comments
— Barbara Henry, Ruby’s First-Grade Teacher Leaving the
school each day seemed even more frightening than arriving in
the morning.
I always drove to work and kept my car on the playground behind
the school building. The police had turned the playground into a
parking lot because it was the only area they could protect.
On leaving school in the afternoon—even with a police escort—
you were always fearful of how the people gathered along the
sidewalks might choose to protest that day as you drove past them.
The New Orleans police were supposed to be there to help us, but
they very much disliked being the ones to enforce integration, so you
never could be confident of their support and cooperation. ❍
Practice the Skills
10
Key Reading Skill
Questioning Why is the classroom almost empty? Where are
the other children?
11
Why is equality among races
worth fighting for? How does
society benefit by having equal
treatment for all citizens? Write
your answers on the Through
My Eyes flap of Foldable 7. Your
response will help you complete the Unit Challenge later.
After You Read
from Through My Eyes
Answering the
1. After reading the selection, what are your thoughts about what is
worth fighting for?
2. Recall Why did federal marshals accompany Ruby to school?
T IP Right There
3. Recall What did Ruby do in class her first day of school?
T IP Right There
Critical Thinking
4. Analyze How did Ruby’s age and inexperience protect her from some
of the bad things that happened? Support your answer with examples.
T IP Author and Me
5. Infer How did Ruby’s teacher feel about going to school during that
difficult time? How can you tell?
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate In your opinion, was it wise to ask a six-year-old child to
take part in such a dangerous and historic event? Explain.
T IP On Your Own
Reading Ask questions • Make connections
from text to self
Literature Identify literary elements: point
of view
connotation: word choice
Writing Write a scene for a play
Grammar Use punctuation: semicolons
Scene from a Play With a partner, choose one of the following scenes
from Ruby’s story and rewrite it as a script for a play.
• Ruby and her mother at home the morning of November 14, 1960,
getting ready to go to William Frantz Public School for the first time.
• Ruby, her mother, and the federal marshals arriving at William Frantz Public
School on the morning of November 14, 1960, and entering the building.
• Ruby, her mother, and the federal marshals leaving William Frantz Public
School on the afternoon of November 14, 1960.
To write your script, use details from the newspaper story and Ruby’s story.
Use your imagination to write dialogue for the characters, but make the
dialogue true to what the people say they thought, saw, and felt.
Skills Review
7. How did asking yourself questions as you read
make the selection more meaningful for you?
Literary Element: Point of
View in Nonfiction
Ne
8. Compare and contrast the newspaper version
of events and Ruby’s version. In what ways
are they similar? Different? Put your ideas on
a Venn diagram like the one pictured below.
er
pap
s
w
Both
Rub
y
Vocabulary Check
Choose the vocabulary word that best completes
each sentence.
taunts • barricades • integrated
shake her self9. She refused to let their
confidence.
10. Public schools in New Orleans were not
until 1960.
11. The
did not keep the enemy’s forces out
of the castle for long.
12. English Language Coach How does the
narrator’s use of words with simple denotations
help you better understand her character?
to www.glencoe.com.
Grammar Link: Semicolons
with Conjunctive Adverbs
When you join two independent clauses, or simple
sentences, with a conjunctive adverb, put a semicolon (;) before the conjunctive adverb and a
comma after it.
Conjunctive Adverbs
therefore, thus,
consequently
however, otherwise, still
besides, furthermore,
moreover
What They Express
cause and effect,
conclusion, result
contrast, alternative
additional information
• Ina wrote the best essay in the contest; therefore,
she deserves the first place award.
• I definitely need to study the science worksheet
tonight; otherwise, I won’t get a good grade.
• Alika is most qualified to be student council
president; furthermore, she is well liked.
Grammar Practice
Copy each sentence on a separate sheet of paper.
Insert one of these conjunctive adverbs in the blank:
consequently, besides, furthermore, however, still,
therefore, thus. Correctly punctuate the sentence.
13. The teacher gave us material from Chapter 4
it wasn’t covered in class.
on the test
14. Terry upset his father
his father left
the room.
15. Jorge found great artwork for the group project
he put it together in a colorful collage.
16. Businesses require people to have computer
skills
schools teach them to students.
17. I want some fresh air, so I’m going to walk the
dog instead of going shopping
shopping
would be fun.
Writing Application Review your Write About
Your Reading activity. Combine two sentences using
a semicolon, a conjunctive adverb, and a comma.
READING WORKSHOP 3
Skills Focus
• “The Trouble with Television,” p. 980
• “Teen Curfews,” p. 988
Skill Lesson
Reading
• Reviewing what you read
Reviewing
Informational Text
Learn It!
• Recognizing bias
Vocabulary
• Understanding semantic
slanting
• Academic Vocabulary:
concepts
Writing/Grammar
What Is It? If you’ve ever studied for a test, you’ve
probably reviewed. Reviewing is going back over
what you’ve already read to find important concepts
and to organize ideas so you’ll recall them later. You
probably review various subjects in school every day.
You review what you learned yesterday or last week
so that you can remember important facts and ideas.
Reviewing when you read helps you learn in the
same way.
• Using quotation marks with
direct quotations
of King Features Syndicate.
Reprinted with permission
Analyzing Cartoons
The little girl knows that reviewing will
help her remember important ideas and
information. What do you need to review
from the last Reading Workshop?
Reading Review for important ideas
Academic Vocabulary
concepts (KON septs) n. ideas; organized thoughts
976 UNIT 7
Reprinted with permission of King Features Syndicate.
READING WORKSHOP 3 • Reviewing
Why Is It Important? Reviewing is especially helpful when you come
across a lot of new information. When you review, you get the chance to
find the most important ideas and organize your thoughts. Then you can
think about those ideas and ask yourself, What’s this selection all about?
review reviewing.
How Do I Do It? As you read, pause every now and then to review.
Ask yourself questions to make sure you understand what you’ve read.
Take notes on the important points. Here’s how a student reviewed the
passage “November 14, 1960” from Through My Eyes on pages 969–970.
This selection is about Ruby’s experience as one of the
first African American children to attend an all-white
school in the South, so it’s important to remember the
events and understand how she felt at the time. I’ll use
a graphic organizer to help me organize my notes.
Topic/Event
Ruby’s first
day at the
all-white
school—the
trip to the
school
Ruby’s Feelings
unafraid, confused
(She thought
the protest was
a Mardi Gras
celebration and
the school was
a college.)
Main Idea
Ruby was too
young to
understand that her
attendance at the
school would upset
people. This helped
her stay calm.
Practice It!
Make a chart like the one above. Then review the passage “The First Day at
William Frantz” on pages 970–971. Fill in the chart using your own words.
Use It!
As you read “The Trouble with Television” and “Teen Curfews,” stop
every now and then to think about what you’ve read. Then review.
Take notes on the important ideas.
Reading Workshop 3 Reviewing 977
Kevin Peterson
Before You Read
The Trouble with
Television
Vocabulary Preview
Rob
e r t M a c N e il
Meet the Author
Robert MacNeil was born
and raised in Canada. His
career in journalism began
when he moved to London,
England, after college
to work for the Reuters
News Agency. In 1975 he
cofounded “The MacNeil/
Lehrer NewsHour,” a news
program that discusses a
single issue each night. In
1995, after twenty years as
co-anchor of the show,
MacNeil retired.
about Robert MacNeil, go to
www.glencoe.com.
perpetual (pur PEH choo ul) adj. continuing forever (p. 981) Television is
a perpetual display of moving images.
passively (PAS iv lee) adv. not actively (p. 981) Instead of passively watching television, you could exercise your brain by reading a book.
strain (strayn) v. stretch to the limit; overwork (p. 981) Television
programmers do not want to strain your attention, so they keep
programs short.
virtually (VUR choo uh lee) adv. nearly (p. 983) Virtually everyone, or
almost the entire nation, watches television every day.
skeptically (SKEP tik uh lee) adv. with doubt (p. 983) The author looks
at TV skeptically and questions its value to society.
Semantic Slanting In persuasive writing, authors use word connotation
to try to convince readers to do or believe something. When they use very
positive or negative words or phrases to describe things, this is called
semantic slanting. The example below shows how a word with a strong
positive or negative connotation can slant a text.
Sentence
Denotation of
italicized word
or phrase
Connotation of
italicized word
or phrase
Nicole is nosy
and likes to
ask a lot of
questions.
nosy = curious
negative: bother- suggests that Nicole
some
is rude and does
not have the right
to ask questions
Semantic Slanting
If you think that an author is using semantic slanting, try to paraphrase his
or her words using words with neutral connotations.
author’s bias
Vocabulary Identify semantic slanting
Think–Pair–Share Find the negative word in each sentence. Share
your results with a partner. Then discuss how the use of semantic slanting
affects what you think of Andrea and “the driver of the other car.”
1. Andrea likes to gossip about her neighbors.
2. As I was backing out, the driver of the other car smashed into my bumper.
Don Perdue/The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and MacNeil Lehrer Productions
0976-0979_U7RW3APP-845478.indd 978
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Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Key Reading Skill: Reviewing
When you read persuasive writing, it’s important to
understand the main points of the writing. As you read
“The Trouble with Television,” stop to review the author’s
ideas and the information he gives to support them.
How often do you watch television? Take a moment
to think about how many hours per week you sit in
front of the TV. Do you spend as many hours doing
more important activities, like homework?
On Your Own Copy this chart and use it to take notes.
On Your Own Make a list of your favorite activities.
Calculate how much time you spent on each activity
last week. What did you spend the most amount of
time doing? What did you spend the least amount of
time doing? Is there anything you would like to spend
more time doing? If so, how will you find the time?
Main Point
Supporting Details
Build Background
Key Text Element: Author’s Bias
In persuasive writing, “one-sidedness” is known as
author’s bias. Having a firm opinion is not the same
as being biased. The purpose of persuasive writing is
to “take sides” and argue one position over another.
Bias happens when writers close their minds to opinions or viewpoints different from their own. To identify
bias, ask yourself these questions. If your answer to
them is “yes,” the writer may be biased.
• Does the writer fail to admit that there are two
sides to the story, or issue?
• Does the writer overgeneralize, or make broad
statements without including exceptions to the rule?
• Does the writer work for or belong to a group that
might make him or her biased?
Whole Class Discussion It’s almost election time.
You have to decide who gets your vote for president—
Joe Doe of Party A or Moe Doe of Party B. What
resources would you look into to find unbiased information about each candidate?
In 1950 only 9 percent of U.S. households owned a
TV. Today, over 98 percent of U.S. households have
at least one TV. Viewers with cable or satellite TV
may have access to more than 200 channels.
In the United States, one hour of network television
usually contains between fifteen to twenty minutes of
commercials advertising products and services.
Read “The Trouble with
Television” to learn why the author thinks people
should reduce the number of hours they spend
watching television.
Set Your Own Purpose What would you like to
learn from the selection to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on “The Trouble
with Television” flap of Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
The Trouble with Television 979
READING WORKSHOP 3
The Trouble
with Television
by Robert MacNeil
I
t is difficult to escape the influence of television. If you fit
the statistical averages,1 by the age of 20 you will have been
exposed to at least 20,000 hours of television. You can add
10,000 hours for each decade you have lived after the age of
20. The only things Americans do more than watch television
are work and sleep. 1
Calculate for a moment what could be done with even
a part of those hours. Five thousand hours, I am told, are
what a typical college undergraduate spends working on a
bachelor’s degree .2 In 10,000 hours you could have learned
enough to become an astronomer or engineer. You could
have learned several languages fluently. If it appealed to
you, you could be reading Homer in the original Greek or
Dostoyevski3 in Russian. If it didn’t, you could have walked
around the world and written a book about it.
The trouble with television is that it discourages
concentration. 2 Almost anything interesting and rewarding
1. Statistical averages tell you about a typical person’s behavior.
2. Undergraduates are students at a college or university who do not yet have a degree. A
bachelor’s degree is awarded to undergraduates who complete a four-year program of study.
3. Homer was a Greek poet who is believed to have lived around 800 b.c. Fyodor Dostoyevski was
a Russian novelist who lived from 1821–1881.
ThinkStock LLC/Index Stock Imagery
Practice the Skills
1
Semantic Slanting The
opening sentence could be paraphrased as follows: It’s hard not
to be affected by television. What
is the author trying to persuade
you of by using the phrase
escape the influence, which has
a negative connotation? Explain.
2
Key Reading Skill
Reviewing Here, MacNeil
states his main idea, or position:
“The trouble with television is
that it discourages concentration.” Write the main idea on
your chart so you remember it.
READING WORKSHOP 3
in life requires some constructive, consistently applied effort.
The dullest, the least gifted of us can achieve things that
seem miraculous to those who never concentrate on anything.
But television encourages us to apply no effort. It sells us
instant gratification. It diverts4 us only to divert, to make the
time pass without pain. 3
Television’s variety becomes a narcotic, not a stimulus. Its
serial, kaleidoscopic exposures5 force us to follow its lead.
The viewer is on a perpetual guided tour: thirty minutes at
the museum, thirty at the cathedral, then back on the bus to
the next attraction—except on television, typically, the spans
allotted are on the order of minutes or seconds, and the
chosen delights are more often car crashes and people killing
one another. In short, a lot of television usurps6 one of the
most precious of all human gifts, the ability to focus your
attention yourself, rather than just passively surrender it. 4
Capturing your attention—and holding it—is the prime
motive of most television programming and enhances its role
as a profitable advertising vehicle.7 Programmers live in
constant fear of losing anyone’s attention—anyone’s. The
surest way to avoid doing so is to keep everything brief, not
to strain the attention of anyone but instead to provide
constant stimulation through variety, novelty, action and
movement. Quite simply, television operates on the appeal
to the short attention span.
It is simply the easiest way out. But it has come to be
regarded as a given, as inherent in the medium itself; as an
imperative, as though General Sarnoff, or one of the other
Practice the Skills
3
Key Text Element
Author’s Bias MacNeil overgeneralizes and shows bias
when he says TV “diverts us
only to divert, to make the time
pass without pain.” How about
serious news programs such as
the one he coanchored? Those
shows aren’t just entertainment,
are they? What other exceptions
can you think of?
4
Key Reading Skill
Reviewing Look back at what
you have already read. What
evidence does the author give
to support his arguments? Write
your answer on your chart.
4. Instant gratification is immediate satisfaction. Divert means “distract.”
5. A narcotic is a substance that soothes. Serial kaleidoscopic exposures (SEER ee ul
kul ide uh SKAHP ik ek SPOH zherz) are continuous and constantly changing images.
6. Usurps (yoo SERPS) means “takes by force or without right.”
7. The author writes that the prime motive (goal) of television is to enhance (improve the
value of) its role as a profitable advertising vehicle (a moneymaker for companies that
broadcast advertisements).
Vocabulary
perpetual (pur PEH choo ul) adj. continuing forever
passively (PAS iv lee) adv. not actively
strain (strayn) v. stretch to the limit; overwork
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READING WORKSHOP 3
august pioneers of video, had bequeathed8 to
us tablets of stone commanding that nothing in
television shall ever require more than a few
moments’ concentration.
In its place that is fine. Who can quarrel with
a medium that so brilliantly packages escapist
entertainment as a mass-marketing tool? But I
see its values now pervading9 this nation and
its life. It has become fashionable to think that,
like fast food, fast ideas are the way to get to a
fast-moving, impatient public.
In the case of news, this practice, in my view,
results in inefficient communication. I question
how much of television’s nightly news effort is
really absorbable and understandable. Much of
it is what has been aptly described as “machine
gunning with scraps.” I think the technique
fights coherence. I think it tends to make things ultimately
boring and dismissible10 (unless they are accompanied by
horrifying pictures) because almost anything is boring and
dismissible if you know almost nothing about it. 5
I believe that TV’s appeal to the short attention span is not
only inefficient communication but decivilizing as well.
Consider the casual assumptions that television tends to
cultivate: that complexity must be avoided, that visual
stimulation is a substitute for thought, that verbal precision
is an anachronism.11 It may be old-fashioned, but I was taught
that thought is words, arranged in grammatically precise ways.
There is a crisis of literacy in this country. One study
estimates that some 30 million adult Americans are
“functionally illiterate” and cannot read or write well enough
to answer a want ad or understand the instructions on a
medicine bottle.
8. Here, august (aw GUST) means “honored.” Bequeathed (bih KWEETHD) means “handed down.”
9. The author compares television to a mass-marketing tool, a device used to sell products
to a large number of people. Pervading means “spreading through all parts of.”
10. Aptly means “correctly and accurately.” Coherence is the quality of fitting together in a way
that makes sense. Something that is dismissible is easily put out of one’s mind.
11. Decivilizing is getting rid of knowledge, good taste, and social skills. Assumptions are
beliefs that have not been proven to be true. To cultivate something is to encourage it to
grow. An anachronism is something that is out of place in the present time period.
Robert Daly/Stone/Getty Images
Practice the Skills
5
Key Text Element
Author’s Bias Remember that
MacNeil was once an anchor on
an hour-long news program that
focused on only one issue. How
might this background bias him?
READING WORKSHOP 3
Literacy may not be an inalienable human right, but it is
one that the highly literate Founding Fathers might not have
found unreasonable or even unattainable.12 We are not only
not attaining it as a nation, statistically speaking, but we are
falling further and further short of attaining it. And, while
I would not be so simplistic as to suggest that television is
the cause, I believe it contributes and is an influence. 6
Everything about this nation—the structure of the society,
its forms of family organization, its economy, its place in the
world—has become more complex, not less. Yet its
dominating communications instrument, its principal form
of national linkage, is one that sells neat resolutions13 to
human problems that usually have no neat resolutions. It is
all symbolized in my mind by the hugely successful art form
that television has made central to the culture, the thirtysecond commercial: the tiny drama of the earnest housewife
who finds happiness in choosing the right toothpaste.
When before in human history has so much humanity
collectively surrendered so much of its leisure to one toy, one
mass diversion? When before has virtually an entire nation
surrendered itself wholesale14 to a medium for selling?
Some years ago Yale University law professor Charles L.
Black, Jr., wrote: “. . . forced feeding on trivial fare is not itself
a trivial matter.” I think this society is being force-fed with
trivial fare, and I fear that the effects on our habits of mind,
our language, our tolerance for effort, and our appetite for
complexity are only dimly perceived. If I am wrong, we will
have done no harm to look at the issue skeptically and
critically, to consider how we should be resisting it. I hope
you will join with me in doing so. 7 ❍
12. An inalienable human right is a basic right that cannot be taken away. Unattainable
means “unable to be obtained.”
13. Dominating means “commanding the most attention.” Resolutions are answers or solutions.
14. In this paragraph, the author asks if there has been another time when humanity (the entire
human race) has collectively (together as one) given up so much of its free time to one mass
diversion (source of amusement), or surrendered itself wholesale—given itself up
completely to a medium for selling.
Practice the Skills
6
Key Reading Skill
Reviewing Review the last two
paragraphs to make sure you
understand what literacy and
illiteracy mean. Then write the
main point of these paragraphs
on your chart.
7
What does the author ask
you to join him in fighting for?
Write your answer on “The
Trouble with Television” flap
of Foldable 7. Your response
will help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
Vocabulary
virtually (VUR choo uh lee) adv. nearly
skeptically (SKEP tik uh lee) adv. with doubt
After You Read
The Trouble with
Television
Answering the
1. Do you agree with the author that TV is harmful? Explain.
2. Recall By the age of twenty, how many hours of television has the
average person watched?
T IP Right There
3. Recall According to MacNeil, what are two negative effects of TV?
Critical Thinking
4. Analyze Why do you think MacNeil starts his article with statistics
about the number of hours people spend watching TV? Use details
from the selection to support your answer.
T IP Author and Me
5. Analyze In the conclusion, MacNeil quotes Charles L. Black Jr. Why
do you think he chose to quote Black?
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Do you think MacNeil argues his position well? Explain.
T IP Author and Me
author’s bias
quotation marks
Small Group Discussion Get together with a small group of classmates
and debate the pros and cons of TV. Guide your discussion with these
questions:
• MacNeil says TV “discourages concentration.” What examples does
he give to back up his position? Is this evidence persuasive? Explain.
• MacNeil argues that TV is too simple a form of communication for
today’s complex world. Do you agree? Explain.
• Are there good things to be said for TV? If so, what are they?
Skills Review
7. How did reviewing help you understand this
selection? Give examples.
8. Imagine that you’re doing research to see
whether television viewing harms people’s
ability to concentrate. To avoid bias, what
other sources of information might you look
into besides “The Trouble with Television?”
Vocabulary Check
paper. Fill in each blank with the correct word.
perpetual • passively • strain • virtually • skeptically
9. Turn on the light while you read so that you don’t
your eyes.
10. After the party,
all the snacks were gone.
11. The doctor knew the little girl was pretending to
be ill.
, he examined her throat.
12. A person who is constantly on the go is in
motion.
13. Don’t sit there
watching television; get
out and do something productive!
14. English Language Coach Quote an example
of semantic slanting from the selection. Does
the word or phrase you quoted have positive
connotations or negatives ones? Explain.
15. Academic Vocabulary List a few concepts you
have recently studied in English class.
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.
Grammar Link:
Quotation Marks
Quotation marks (“ ”) are punctuation marks used to
enclose the exact words of a speaker. When a speaker’s
words are not interrupted, opening quotation marks (“)
are placed before the quotation and closing quotation
marks (”) after it. The quotation may come at the end of
a sentence or at the beginning.
• After they lost their lawsuit, the young women said,
“We are still proud that we stood up for our beliefs.”
• The reporter asked, “What will you do now?”
• “What will you do now?” asked the reporter.
A direct quotation states word for word what a
speaker said. An indirect quotation does not repeat
a person’s exact words. It should NOT be enclosed
in quotation marks.
Direct: Ms. Bosco said, “Mars has two moons.”
Indirect: Ms. Bosco said that Mars has two moons.
Grammar Practice
paper. Add quotation marks where needed.
16. Please, Katelyn, would you wear white socks
rather than black ones, her gym teacher said.
17. But all my socks are black, Katelyn complained.
18. The waiter apologized, We’re all out of meatloaf.
19. One councilman growled, They are just taking
up our precious time.
20. A student said that she thought they were brave.
21. Another student in the community said, We are
grateful that the young women were willing to
fight for our rights.
22. My sister said that she thinks the whole issue
is ridiculous.
23. What is to be gained from all this fighting? she
asked me.
24. The newspaper agrees with me that there is
nothing to be gained.
Kevin Peterson
Before You Read
Meet the Author
J. Todd Foster began his
journalism career in 1978 as
a teenage sports editor in
Winchester, Tennessee. Since
then he has reported on
medicine, the environment,
politics, crime, and humaninterest stories for various
publications, including
People magazine. In 2003
Foster became managing
editor of The News Virginian,
a newspaper based out of
Waynesboro, Virginia, where
he lives with his family.
about J. Todd Foster, go to
www.glencoe.com.
Teen Curfews
Vocabulary Preview
convictions (kun VIK shunz) n. strong beliefs or values (p. 988) The
young people were willing to take a risk because of their convictions.
controversial (kon truh VUR shul) adj. causing disagreement (p. 988) The
new law was so controversial that the state’s supreme court decided to
hear the case and decide whether it was constitutional.
violating (VY uh lay ting) v. breaking or disregarding a law or rule; form
of the verb violate (p. 988) The police arrested more than fifty kids who
they suspected were violating the law.
Write to Learn
1. List and briefly explain a few of your convictions.
2. Name a controversial topic you might examine in a persuasive essay
for your English class.
3. What is an antonym for violating ?
Semantic Slanting Remember that using words with strong positive or
negative connotations can sway readers in one direction or another. The
following two paragraphs argue for and against school uniforms. Notice
the semantic slanting in each.
In favor of wearing School uniforms free kids from being forced to
choose a different outfit each day. Kids aren’t
school uniforms
pressured to think about whether their clothes
meet the approval of their peers. They don’t have
to break the bank and fork out ridiculous amounts
of money for expensive fads.
Against wearing
school uniforms
elements: author’s bias
School uniforms deny kids the right to make up
their own minds about what they want to wear.
Kids enjoy the challenge of creating outfits that
earn the admiration of their peers. Trendy clothes
help kids express their individuality.
Small Group Work Form a group with a few other students. Identify
the words and phrases in the paragraphs above that have strong positive
or negative connotations. Discuss how they slant the texts.
Don Perdue/The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and MacNeil Lehrer Productions
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Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
As you read the selection, take time to pause and
review. Check your understanding of information
and reread to look for anything you’ve missed.
Do you think teenagers should be home by a certain
time in the evening? Is it safe for teens to be out at
late hours in your town?
Write to Learn “Teen Curfews” is a news article
about a series of events that takes place in Charleston,
West Virginia. You probably already know that the
important points to remember in a news article are
Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. Make a
graphic organizer to keep track of this information.
Small Group Discussion Form a group with three
other students. Discuss what teenagers in your town
like to do in the evenings. Do you think they should
be required to be home by a certain time at night?
Remember that an author who unfairly slants a story
is guilty of author’s bias. To evaluate an article for
bias, it’s important to consider whether the author
favors one side of a story over others. Ask yourself:
• Does the author have a special interest in putting
someone in a positive or negative light?
• Is the author’s evidence reliable?
• What are the author’s sources?
• Does the author stereotype, generalize, or exaggerate?
• What information is the author leaving out? Why?
Write to Learn Write a short news article describing
an event that caused a disagreement between you
and another person. For example, you could write
about a time when you wanted something that you
couldn’t have or when a parent set a new rule in your
home. Try to be completely neutral. Leave out your
personal feelings and give a fair explanation of what
happened. Switch papers with a partner and ask the
person to check to see if your writing shows bias.
Build Background
A curfew is an enforced time when people must be
out of public places.
• Many parents give their teenagers curfews to
ensure that their children will be home at a
reasonable hour.
• Some cities have curfew laws for teenagers. These
laws are intended to keep young people safe as
well as to stop teens from committing crimes.
• Teens are not the only targets of curfews. Members
of the armed forces have to obey curfews. Some
colleges have curfews too—even for students over
18. During times of war and civil unrest, governments may enforce curfews to protect all citizens,
regardless of age, during evening hours.
Read the article “Teen Curfews”
to see how three teenagers responded to a law that
limited when they could be out in public at nighttime.
learn from the article to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on the “Teen
Curfews” flap of Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
Teen Curfews 987
ce
Ton
yP
ea
r
READING WORKSHOP 3
Teen CURFEWS
Are teens unfairly targeted?
By J. TODD FOSTER
“Parents should bring up their kids,”
says Katelyn Kimmons, “not the
establishment. I was brought up to
stand up for myself.”
W
hen Katelyn Kimmons was 6 years old, the
precocious youngster1 announced to her family
that she was “The Woman in Black” and that
from then on she planned to wear nothing
but black. Later, in high school, she aced chemistry but failed
physical education for refusing to wear the required white socks.
With strong convictions like these, Katelyn surprised no one
when, at 16, she took her city to court—and brought a controversial
youth curfew program to a grinding halt for more than a year.
Katelyn was a junior at George Washington High School
in Charleston, West Virginia, when the city council passed
the Youth Protection Ordinance 2 in December 1997. The
ordinance stated that individuals under 18 could not be in
public places after 10 p.m. on weekdays or after midnight
on weekends. Officially, there were exceptions, such as for
emergencies and after-school jobs—but police officers could
stop anyone they thought might be violating the ordinance. 1
Katelyn and classmates Anna Sale, then 18, and Lealah
Pollock, then 15, agreed that the curfew violated their
constitutional rights. With assistance from the West Virginia
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), in March 1998 they
1
Key Reading Skill
Reviewing Review what you
have read so far. Take notes on
your graphic organizer.
1. A precocious youngster is a child who acts like an adult.
2. An ordinance is a law.
Vocabulary
convictions (kun VIK shunz) n. strong beliefs or values
controversial (kon truh VUR shul) adj. causing disagreement
violating (VY uh lay ting) v. breaking or disregarding a law or rule
988 UNIT 7 What’s Worth Fighting For? What’s Not
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READING WORKSHOP 3
filed a lawsuit to overturn the city ordinance, claiming it
discriminates against teenagers because of their age. “Kids
are being unfairly targeted, scapegoated,” 3 says Lealah. “If
someone commits a crime, then arrest them for that.” 2
As the protest got under way, it churned up controversy
in Charleston. Anna’s parents got calls from friends and
neighbors who complained about how much money the city
was spending to defend itself against Anna’s lawsuit. And
many believed the curfew was necessary and important
to make Charleston a better place by curbing delinquent
behavior by juveniles.4 “Parents tell me they can use this law
to get their kids to come in at night,” says Frederick Snuffer,
the city council member who introduced the ordinance.
However, Katelyn, Anna, and Lealah stood their ground, and
the city of Charleston decided to put the curfew on hold until
a judge could rule on it. On July 15, 1998, the three teenagers
walked past a crowd of reporters, supporters, and protesters to
testify before the county circuit court about their lawsuit and
the discriminatory effect of the city curfew ordinance. Mike
Carey, a lawyer on the opposing side, grilled each of them for
several minutes. “I was fired up and excited,” recalls Katelyn.
“It bothers me when people in authority positions treat me as
if I’m not worth as much because I’m younger.”
But Katelyn’s enthusiasm was short-lived: Less than a year
later, the court ruled against the girls and upheld the curfew law.
Since then, more than 50 Charleston kids have been arrested
or were issued warnings and sent home to their parents. “Why
does the city have the right to overrule parents?” asks Lealah.
The girls appealed to the West Virginia Supreme Court of
Appeals. In July 2000, the West Virginia Supreme Court voted
4–1 to uphold the law.
“This [perspective] bothers me,” Anna says. “There’s this
thinking that kids are predators,5 that we are to be feared. Of
course, I want to cure society’s ills, but not by creating a law
that says if you’re under 18, then we don’t trust you.” 3 4
2
Semantic Slanting The word
discriminates (dis KRIM uh
nayts) means “shows preference
for.” It is often used to highlight
unfair treatment and has a negative connotation.
3
Key Text Element
Author’s Bias This article is
from Teen People, a magazine
whose audience is primarily teenagers. Do you think the writer had
a special interest in putting one
side of the story in a more positive
light than the other? Explain.
—Updated 2005, from Teen People, February 2004
3. To be scapegoated is to be blamed for what someone else has done.
4. Curbing delinquent behavior by juveniles means “limiting illegal behavior by teenagers.” To
curb is to hold back or control. Delinquent, as an adjective, refers to breaking the law or not
following the rules. Juveniles, in its general meaning, refers to all children and young people.
Most states define juveniles as being people under 18, but the age varies from state to state.
5. Among animals, a predator is one that kills and eats other animals. Among humans, a predator
gets what he or she wants by stealing from or harming others.
4
What would Katelyn and her friends
say is worth fighting for? Write your
answer on your Foldable. Your
response will help you complete the
Unit Challenge later.
Teen Curfews 989
After You Read
Teen Curfews
Answering the
Tony
Pear
c
e
1. Would you fight a curfew for teens in your community? Why or
why not?
2. Recall What made Katelyn stand out as an individual during her high
school physical education class?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize Sum up the teens’ argument against the curfew.
Critical Thinking
4. Analyze What does the author do to capture readers’ attention at the
beginning of the selection?
T IP Author and Me
5. Interpret What does Lealah mean when she says that the city
shouldn’t have the right to “overrule” parents?
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Do you think teenagers should have the right to sue their
city if they disagree with its laws? Explain.
T IP On My Own
elements: author’s bias
Writing Respond to literature: letter to
the editor
quotation marks
Letter to the Editor With a small group of classmates, discuss the
possible pros and cons of the teen curfew law described in the selection.
Take notes on what group members have to say. Decide where you stand
on the issue of teen curfews—either for or against. Then, on your own,
write a “letter to the editor” trying to persuade readers to agree with your
position. Imagine that you’re writing to the editor of your community newspaper and that your audience is grownups, not kids.
Skills Review
7. Using your notes, summarize the article in a
paragraph. Then review the selection to make
sure you included all the important information.
8. The author tries to give a balanced view by
including the opinions of people who disagree
with Katelyn, Anna, and Lealah. What “opponent”
of theirs does the author quote? What is this
person’s opinion?
Vocabulary Check
Answer true or false to the following statements.
9. A person with convictions doesn’t know what
he or she values.
10. A controversial topic causes people to disagree.
11. Violating the law could land you in jail.
12. English Language Coach The teens in the
selection are sometimes guilty of semantic slanting. Scan the article and reread the parts that
directly quote the teens. Find at least two examples of semantic slanting in the quotations. Write
the examples on a chart like the one pictured.
Then complete the chart by filling in the blanks.
Word
or Phrase
Denotation
(Meaning)
Connotation
(Associations)
Grammar Link: More
Quotation Marks
Put quotation marks around both parts of a split
quotation. A split quotation occurs when an
explanatory phrase divides a quotation.
• “Today,” explained Mei, “is a busy day for me.”
(The explanatory phrase “explained Mei” splits
the quotation “Today is a busy day for me.”)
If a quotation ends with a period, the period always
goes inside the quotation marks. If a quotation ends
with a question mark or an exclamation point, the
end mark goes inside the quotation marks.
• Mei whined, “The bus broke down.”
• Wanda said, “Couldn’t you call?”
• Mei said, “I did call!”
If a quotation appears within a question or exclamation,
the question mark or exclamation point goes outside
the quotation marks.
• Are you sure that Mei said, “Meet me at 3 p.m.”?
Also put quotation marks around the titles of short
works, such as poems, stories, and articles. (The titles
of longer works, such as plays and novels, are italicized. If the writer does not have access to italics,
underlining is used instead.)
• Read the poem “One Day” in Ten Poems.
(The poem title is in quotation marks; the title of
the book in which the poem appears is italicized.)
Grammar Practice
Put quotation marks where needed in each sentence.
13. I wonder, Lil said, if the ice has begun to melt.
14. Joe screamed, The ice is too thin for skating!
15. Did you read the article Teen Curfews?
to www.glencoe.com.
Teen Curfews 991
Kevin Peterson
Persuasive Essay
Revising, Editing, and Presenting
ASSIGNMENT Write a
persuasive essay
Purpose: To make a case
for something you think is
worth fighting for
Audience: Your teacher,
your classmates, and other
people in your community
Revising Rubric
In Writing Workshop Part 1, you developed your ideas and an early draft of
your essay. Now it’s time to head back to the workshop to finish your essay.
Revising
Make It Better
Revising is an important step in the writing process. It’s when you figure out
how to make your draft better. You may spend more time revising than you
did writing the first draft. That’s normal! Your goal is to make your writing as
clear and strong as you can.
Your revised essay should
have these elements:
Use the following checklist to revise your first draft. For every question you
answer “No,” revise until you can answer “Yes.”
• a clear position statement
• a well-developed introduction, body, and conclusion
• clear reasons and supporting details and examples
• strong sentence fluency
• correct punctuation
(including use of
apostrophes), grammar,
and spelling
Revising Checklist
Objectives
(pp. 992–997)
Writing Revise your writing
for key elements, organization,
fluency, and word choice
• Present your writing
Grammar Edit for grammar,
punctuation, mechanics
Listening, Speaking, and Viewing
Recognize and distinguish persuasive
techniques
Yes No
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
❑
Introduction
1. Is the introduction at least one paragraph long?
2. Does it begin with an attention-grabber and end with a
clear position statement?
Body
3. Are there at least two paragraphs?
4. Does each paragraph clearly state a supporting reason
and details?
5. Are the reasons and details likely to convince your readers?
Conclusion
6. Is the conclusion at least one paragraph long?
7. Does the conclusion sum up main ideas?
8. Did you remember to include a call to action if you want
readers to take action?
You’ve checked to make sure the organization of your essay is clear and all
of the important details are in place. Now revise your essay to strengthen
the language. Make changes like these:
• reorder the paragraphs to make the essay easier to follow
• add transitions such as even though, in addition, and however between
sentences and paragraphs
• avoid repetition by deleting unneeded words or sentences
• substitute lively, precise words for dull, unclear ones
Writing Models For models
and other writing activities, go
to www.glencoe.com.
Editing
Finish It Up
Don’t let mistakes take away from the persuasive power of your essay.
Before you make your final copy, read your essay one sentence at a time
and use the Editing Checklist to help you spot errors. Use the proofreading
symbols on the inside back cover of this book to mark needed corrections.
Editing Checklist
❑
❑
❑
❑
Writing Tip
Sentences are complete. There are no fragments or run-ons.
All words are correctly used.
Spelling and capitalization are correct.
Apostrophes and other punctuation are used correctly.
: our
Many of us take too many things for granted. Our right
to drive a big car that uses a lot of gas and our right
to use as much water and power as we want. We think
we don’t have to be responsible for what we do. Soon
breathe
, no clean water to
we will have no clean air to breath
drink , and no clean soil to grow our food in.
Proofread Backwards If
you are having trouble proofreading because you are so
familiar with your essay, read
it backwards, from the last
paragraph to the first. That will
help you focus on individual
words rather than ideas.
Presenting
Show It Off
Once you have made your essay as good as you can, hand it in and share it
with your audience. Be sure to keep a copy of your essay in your portfolio.
That will help you and your teacher measure your progress.
Applying Good Writing Traits
Fluency
You know what it feels like to read something that
is choppy. It is confusing and boring. You probably
also know how pleasant it is when writing moves
smoothly from one sentence to the next.
What Is Fluency?
Fluency describes how sentences “flow” in a piece
of writing. One way to think about fluency is to
think about how the writing sounds. Does it sound
graceful, almost musical? That’s fluency!
Sentences are the main ingredient in fluency.
In good writing, sentences have different lengths.
They move from one idea to the next. They should
be a pleasure to read!
Why Is Fluency Important
in My Writing?
How Do I Do It?
• Use different sentence lengths—combine and
divide sentences when needed.
• Begin sentences in different ways—try writing
a sentence in several different ways before
choosing the structure you want to use.
• Use transitions to connect ideas and sentences—
include words such as then, after, nevertheless,
next to move the reader smoothly.
• Avoid too much repetition—find other ways to
emphasize ideas.
Write to Learn Look back at your persuasive
essay. Read it aloud to yourself. Do the paragraphs
hold together? How do the flow and rhythm sound?
Are they choppy? If so, smooth out your writing by
revising some of your sentences.
Sentences that flow rhythmically interest readers
and keep their attention. Choppy sentences can be
confusing and distracting.
inted
© Zits Partnership. Repr
Features Syndicate, Inc.
with Permission of King
Analyzing Cartoons
When a sentence is fluent, it
sounds smooth. How could you
change the last sentence in the
cartoon to be more fluent?
Listening, Speaking, and Viewing
Understanding Persuasive Techniques
You see or hear advertisements all the time—on TV
or the radio, on Web pages, on billboards, and in
magazines and newspapers. These ads were made
to persuade you—the viewer or listener—to do
something. Usually the ads try to persuade you to
buy something, but they may try to make you think
a certain way. For example, they may try to get you
to vote for someone.
What Are Persuasive Techniques?
Persuasive techniques are the methods advertisers
and others use to convince you to agree with their
opinions and take the actions they want you to take.
Why Is It Important to Understand
Persuasive Techniques?
Some persuasive techniques are based on facts. For
example, an ad may list the standard features on a
particular model of car. Other persuasive techniques
bend the truth. If you can learn to figure out how
those less-than-honest persuasive techniques work,
you will make better decisions.
Analyzing Cartoons
What advice would you give Curtis
to help him recognize questionable
persuasive techniques?
How Do I Recognize Them?
The best way to recognize questionable persuasive
techniques is to become familiar with them. Here
are several common techniques:
• Appeal to emotions: The ad tries to get an
emotional response from people, such as fear,
anger, or happiness, to move the people to
do something.
• Testimonial: A famous or important person
says that he or she uses a particular product, so
viewers and listeners should too—regardless of
whether the product is good.
• Transfer: The ad connects the product to ideas
that make the audience feel good but that don’t
necessarily have much to do with the product.
• Repetition: The ad repeats an idea or phrase
over and over so that it sticks in the viewer’s or
listener’s head.
• Exaggeration: The ad overstates a point.
• Bandwagon: The ad talks about how many other
people use a product or act a certain way, making the viewer want to be part of the “in crowd.”
Activity Bring an ad from a magazine or newspaper to school. With a small group of classmates,
analyze each group member’s ad. Which persuasive
techniques were used?
icate.
n of King Features Synd
Reprinted with permissio
Active Writing Model
The essay begins with an
attention-getter and ends with
a clear position statement.
This paragraph gives the
first reason that supports the
position statement.
In this paragraph and throughout the essay, the writer gives
details to support his point.
The writer uses an emotional
appeal to persuade readers to
care about the environment.
Writer’s Model
Save Our Planet; Save Ourselves!
Imagine a world without trees, flowers, or animals.
It could happen. Every day we pollute the air we breathe,
the water we drink, and the ground we grow our food
in. Slowly but surely we are ruining this planet. I believe
we must take steps to protect the environment, and you
should too.
Many of us take too many things for granted: our
right to drive a big car that uses a lot of gas and our
right to use as much water and power as we want. We
think we don’t have to be responsible for what we do.
Soon we will have no clean air to breathe, no clean water
to drink, and no healthy soil to grow our food in.
We need to start taking better care of the earth
because it is a healthier way to live. The environment
makes life possible. If we ruin the environment, we are
ruining our own bodies. Anything harmful that we put
into the earth eventually harms us. When we pollute the
ground where we grow our food, the pollution gets into
the food. When we eat the food, the pollution gets into
our bodies.
We should also remember that the world does not
belong just to us. It belongs to all people, even those not
yet born. We should take care of the planet so that we
can pass on a healthful environment to all future generations. Isn’t that an important thing to provide for our children and grandchildren? And if we don’t, there may not
be any future generations.
I believe the environment is the most important thing
we have as human beings. If we don’t have a healthful
environment, we don’t have anything, because we need a
healthy environment to survive. There is so much that can
be done to save our environment. Each of us can consider
his or her actions instead of being selfish. We can start by
doing simple things like these:
Active Writing Model
• Recycling newspapers and glass, aluminum, and plas-
tic containers we don’t want anymore instead of just
throwing them away in the garbage
• Buying products that are made of recycled materials,
like paper towels made from recycled paper
• Using less water by taking shorter showers, turning
off the tap while we brush our teeth, and not watering the lawn every day during warm months
The writer gives readers specific
examples of how they can help.
• Buying smaller cars that use less gas
• Carpooling or using public transportation instead of
driving large vehicles with only one or two passengers
• Turning off lights and appliances when we aren’t
using them
We can all make better choices in the way we live
today to ensure a safe and healthy tomorrow. It’s not too
late. We can still save our environment. Please join me in
doing so.
The conclusion sums up what
was said before and ends with
a call to action.
READING WORKSHOP 4
Skills Focus
• “Rally for Better Food,” student flyer
and poster, p. 1002
• “Stop the Sun,” p. 1008
Skill Lesson
Clarifying
Reading
• Clarifying ideas and text
Informational Text
• Recognizing faulty reasoning
• Identifying the story climax
Vocabulary
• Understanding connotation
and denotation
• Academic Vocabulary: clarify
Learn It!
What Is It? To clarify is to make something clear
and understandable. To clarify as you read is to clear
up confusing or difficult passages. Sometimes a word,
R a sentence, an idea, or even a whole selection of
text can be confusing. When you don’t understand
something you’re reading, you need to clarify what
it means so that you don’t get “lost.”
Writing/Grammar
• Using dashes and
parentheses correctly
Analyzing Cartoons
What is clarified for the
mother in the cartoon?
.
TE. All rights reserved
AL PRESS SYNDICA
permission of UNIVERS
Amend. Reprinted with
FOXTROT © 1998 Bill
Reading Clarify ideas and text
Academic Vocabulary
clarify (KLAIR uh fy) v. make clear
998 UNIT 7
FOXTROT © 1998 Bill Amend. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved.
0998-1001_U7RW4APP-845478.indd 998
3/14/07 12:12:37 PM
READING WORKSHOP 4 • Clarifying
Why Is It Important? Writers often build ideas on other ideas. If you
don’t clear up a confusing passage as you’re reading, you may not understand main ideas or information that comes later.
How Do I Do It? First, figure out why you find the passage hard to
understand. Then apply a strategy that will help you clear up the difficulty.
Here are some ideas to get you started.
• Unfamiliar words: Find definitions in a dictionary or through context
clues. Plug them in and reread the passage.
• Long, complicated sentences: Find the main ideas by looking for
subjects and verbs. Put the ideas in your own words.
• Too many unfamiliar concepts: Find basic information by doing a quick
Internet search. Or grab an encyclopedia to find basic information about
the concepts.
review clarifying.
Here’s how a student clarified a difficult sentence in “The Trouble with
Television” to better understand it.
Capturing your attention—and holding it—is the
prime motive of most television programming and
enhances its role as a profitable advertising vehicle.
First, I reread the sentence. Then I looked up the word
“vehicle,” which refers to both a form of transportation
and the means by which something is expressed. I realized
that the author meant that television is a means by which
advertising is expressed. Finally, I put the sentence in my
own words: “Holding people’s attention is important to TV
programmers because TV makes money by getting people
to watch commercials.”
Practice It!
Clarify the following sentence from “The Trouble with Television” by putting
the sentence in your own words: “Forced feeding on trivial fare is not itself
a trivial matter.”
Use It!
As you read the selections, note parts that need clarifying. Analyze
why they are hard to understand; then strategize.
Reading Workshop 4 Clarifying
file photo
999
Before You Read
Did You Know?
Freedom of speech and
freedom of assembly are two
of the five parts of the First
Amendment to the United
States Constitution. They are
basic rights in a democracy.
• Freedom of speech gives
people the right to express
themselves freely.
• Freedom of assembly is the
freedom to join with or
organize any group, club,
or organization.
You can see examples of
these rights every day in the
United States.
Rally for Better Food,
student flyer and poster
Vocabulary Preview
bogus (BOH gus) adj. bad; not real or genuine (p. 1002) The bogus money
is worthless, even though it looks real.
nutritious (noo TRIH shus) adj. containing or giving nourishment (p. 1003)
The students wanted their cafeteria to serve more nutritious food.
Write to Learn Write a sentence correctly using each vocabulary word.
Denotation and Slang Some words have both formal and informal
definitions. Take the word bookmark. Its formal denotation is “a marker
for holding a place in a book.” But it also has a slang meaning. If you say
to someone that you’ll “bookmark” him or her, you’re saying you’ll save
the person’s telephone number or email address.
Did you know the slang meaning of bookmark? If not, don’t feel bad. The
slang meaning may no longer be in use. Most slang words go in and out
quickly. In fact, one of the points of using slang is to show you’re “in”—up
to date and in the know.
Writers are aware of slang’s power and may use it to their advantage. If
a writer wants readers to see him or her as part of their group, the writer
might use slang terms the group uses. If a writer has a general audience,
however, he or she usually avoids slang so as not to leave anyone out.
Partner Talk With a classmate, find the slang terms in the following ad.
Together, identify what age group you think the writer is trying to reach
and why.
Are You a Star?
Reading Clarify ideas and text • Make
faulty reasoning
connotation: slang
Show them who you are. Be a star. Wear Star shoes.
They come in all of today’s styles.
They’re all that and a bag o’ chips!
Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Key Reading Skill: Clarifying
Skim the student cafeteria flyer and poster to see if
there are any words you don’t know. List them in your
Learner’s Notebook. Then try to clarify their meanings
by looking for context clues.
Have you ever felt so strongly about something that
you wanted to convince others of your ideas?
Partner Talk Describe the cause of your feelings
and any actions you took to persuade others.
Write to Learn Jot down definitions for the words on
your list. As you read, see if your definitions make sense.
Build Background
Key Text Element: Faulty Reasoning
Faulty reasoning is flawed thinking, or thinking that
has errors in it. You may find faulty reasoning in any
form of persuasion such as commercials and ads,
political speeches, and letters to the editor.
Though faulty reasoning may be accidental, advertisers and others may use it on purpose. That’s
why it’s important to recognize errors in thinking.
Here are some common examples:
Either/Or Fallacy: saying there are only two
choices when there are actually more.
• Example: America—love it or leave it.
(Ask yourself, Is there really no middle ground?)
Faulty Cause and Effect: believing that because
one event came before another, the first event
caused the second event to happen
• Example: The last two games we won, I wore my
favorite ring. That ring must be lucky.
(Ask yourself, Did the ring actually cause the wins?)
Bandwagon: thinking something’s right because
it’s popular and “everybody’s doing it.”
• Example: Everybody’s voting for Ed! Don’t vote
for Nancy. You’ll just waste your vote.
(Ask yourself, Is it true that everybody’s doing it?
And is something right just because it’s popular?)
Whole Class Discussion Brainstorm examples of
each of the types of faulty reasoning. Are there other
types you want to add to your list?
The student flyer and poster are examples that could
have been written by eighth graders who wanted to
fight for more healthful and nutritious food in their
school cafeteria.
Nutrition has a major impact on your body and your
mind. It can affect your health, your growth, and your
ability to learn. Studies show that many school-aged
children are not getting the nutrients they need.
Their diets are high in sugar and fats, which can cause
obesity. The number of overweight kids between the
ages of six and seventeen has increased greatly in the
United States in the last thirty years. This has become
a serious issue because being overweight can increase
the risk of illness.
Read the student flyer and
poster to learn how some students might urge others
to fight for more nutritious food in their school.
Set Your Own Purpose What would you like to learn
from the student flyer and poster to help you answer
the Big Question? Write your own purpose on the “Rally
for Better Food” page of your Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
Rally for Better Food 1001
READING WORKSHOP 4
FRIENDS DON’T LET FRIENDS
INFORMATIONAL TEXT
FLYER AND POSTER
Practice the Skills
EAT THE CAFETERIA FOOD!
We demand fresher, healthier,
and better-tasting food!
Come to a rally after school
on March 15, 2006,
outside the cafeteria to boycott the
BOGUS grub we are being served!
Reasons to attend:
Either you protest NOW, or you
suffer for the rest of your
school days! 1
1
Faulty Reasoning This is an
example of “either/or thinking.”
Students want to persuade others
to join the rally by claiming
there are only two choices—
joining the rally or suffering.
Aren’t there other courses of
action? Explain your answer.
Being healthy will make you
happy, popular, and successful!
EVERYONE will be there! 2
2
REMEMBER, YOU ARE
WHAT YOU EAT!
Vocabulary
bogus (BOH gus) adj. bad; not real or genuine
Key Text Element
Key Text Element
Faulty Reasoning The
writer of this flyer is trying to
persuade others to join the
rally by claiming, “Everyone
will be there!” What type of
faulty reasoning is this?
READING WORKSHOP 4
FOOD FIGHT
Practice the Skills
3
3
Clarifying This attentiongrabbing phrase has two
meanings in this context. Can
you explain them both? If the
answer is “no,” reread the
flyer to clarify the meaning.
Junk the Junk
&
Come to a rally for
more nutritious food
March 15, 2006
outside the cafeteria after school
4
Vocabulary
nutritious (noo TRIH shus) adj. containing or giving nourishment
Denotation and Slang What
is the slang meaning of bogus?
Of grub? What audience do
these words appeal to?
NO MORE BOGUS GRUB! 4
It’s your life, and you’re the only
one who’s going to live it! 5
Key Reading Skill
5
Some of the students are
unhappy with the food in
their cafeteria. Do you think
persuading others to participate
in a rally is an effective way
to get better food? Write your
answer on the “Rally for Better
Food” page of Foldable 7. Your
response will help you answer
the Unit Challenge later.
nk the
Junk
&
AfterforYou Read
e to a rally
nutritious food
Rally for Better Food,
student flyer and poster
Answering the
1. Do you think fighting for healthier food in the cafeteria is a worthy
cause? Why or why not?
2. Recall What reasons does the author of the flyer give to try to
persuade the students to “protest now”?
T IP Right There
3. Summarize In your own words, summarize the message of the
student flyer and poster.
Critical Thinking
4. Analyze Why is being healthy important to the students who
created the flyer?
T IP Author and Me
5. Interpret What does “junk the junk” mean? Put it in your own words.
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Do you think the author’s reasons to rally are strong or
weak? Explain your answer.
T IP Author and Me
faulty reasoning
connotation: slang
Writing Create a persuasive poster
Grammar Use punctuation: dashes
Persuasive Poster What issue do you feel strongly about? Take a stand
and make a persuasive poster. Follow these guidelines:
• Make the issue—and your stand on it—clear.
• Use words and pictures to capture people’s attention and make them
care about the issue.
• Make every word count. Don’t try to squeeze too many words onto your
poster. People should be able to read it easily from several feet away.
• Avoid faulty reasoning.
• Avoid semantic slanting.
Skills Review
Grammar Link: Dashes
A dash (—) is used in pairs to set off a long explanatory
phrase or sudden break in thought.
• The books I read—Great Aviators of the United
States, What Happened to Amelia Earhart? and
Famous Women of the 20th Century—made me
feel that Amelia Earhart was truly brave.
• I was confused—I had, after all, missed two days of
school—so I asked my teacher for help.
7. Clarify the expression “You are what you eat”
by putting it in your own words.
Key Text Element: Faulty Reasoning
8. What form of faulty reasoning is used in this
sentence: “Being healthy will make you happy,
popular, and successful”?
9. What information could have been included in
the flyer and poster to avoid faulty reasoning?
Vocabulary Check
Fill in each blank with a vocabulary word from the list.
bogus • nutritious
10. Fruits and vegetables are
food.
11. It was easy to tell that the money was
because it was printed on the wrong color paper.
12. English Language Coach What are some slang
terms you and your friends use? How would you
define the words? Make your own slang dictionary
by choosing five slang terms and writing definitions
for them. Use a chart like the one below.
Slang Word
Part of Speech
Definition
13. Academic Vocabulary Explain three ways that
you can clarify the meaning of something you
read.
In the first example the explanatory phrase that names
the three books is set off with dashes because it is
very long.
In the second example the clause I had, after all,
missed two days of school is set off because it
shows a sudden shift in thought.
Grammar Practice
Copy each of the following sentences on a separate
sheet of paper. Add dashes wherever they are needed.
14. The rainforest a place I definitely hope to visit
someday with my family is home to some amazing animals.
15. Flying frogs they glide through the air rather than
fly, incidentally can be found in Africa.
16. There were only 30 seconds left in the game the
team was down by one point when Jaquil took a
jump shot and saved the day.
17. Your new shoes not the red denim sneakers but
the blue leather ones are the most interesting I’ve
ever seen!
Writing Application Look back at the persuasive
poster you made. If you used dashes, make sure that
you correctly used them. Also look for sentences that
might need dashes.
Quick Checks, and other Web activities, go to
www.glencoe.com.
file photo
Before You Read
Stop the Sun
Vocabulary Preview
G a r y Pa u l s e n
Meet the Author
Gary Paulsen, a young adult
novelist, writes survival
stories. Paulsen credits his
own survival in many ways
to books. Never a dedicated
student, Paulsen developed
a passion for reading at an
early age. As a young man
he met a librarian, who
changed his life. “When she
handed me a library card,
she handed me the world,”
he says. See page R5 of
the Author Files for more
on Paulsen.
about Gary Paulsen, go to
www.glencoe.com.
plot, climax
and connotation
syndrome (SIN drohm) n. a group of symptoms that point to a certain
disease (p. 1008) Terry’s father was not the only one to suffer from the
terrible effects of Vietnam syndrome.
dry (dry) adj. dull or boring; not interesting (p. 1009) The history books
may have made a dry history of the war, but there was nothing boring
about it to Terry’s father.
foundered (FOWN durd) v. broke down; collapsed; form of the verb
founder (p. 1012) Terry almost foundered when he saw how much his
father did not want to discuss Vietnam.
inert (in URT) adj. without power to move or act; lifeless (p. 1013)
The father’s hands lay inert on the table as he told the horrible story.
Write to Learn Create a crossword puzzle using the vocabulary. For
clues write fill-in-the-blank sentences. Exchange puzzles with a classmate.
Connotation and Denotation Denotation is the literal meaning of a
word. Its connotations are the thoughts, feelings, and mental pictures
that the word brings to mind.
What do you picture when you hear the word clever? Does that picture
change when you hear the word sly? Both words have about the same
denotation. Yet the connotations of clever and sly are very different.
Clever has positive connotations, and sly has negative ones.
On Your Own Copy the chart onto a separate sheet of paper. Then
complete it using words with the opposite connotation. The first one has
been done for you.
Positive Connotation
Negative Connotation
playful
silly
unique
carefree
Skills Preview
Get Ready to Read
Before you read the selection, make three columns in
your Learner’s Notebook, and fill them in as you read:
• one for new vocabulary
• one for phrases or ideas that you don’t know
• one for questions you have as you read
Have you ever had trouble communicating with a good
friend or with a member of your family? How did you
feel? Think of several words or phrases to describe
that feeling. As you read “Stop the Sun,” ask yourself
whether Terry shares some of the feelings you had.
Partner Talk With a partner, discuss what you
know about the Vietnam War. Using resources like
the Internet, find out why the war was fought.
Literary Element: Climax
The climax of a story is the point of highest interest
or suspense in the plot. It is the moment at which the
central, or most important, conflict comes to a head.
Often the climax is the moment when a main character makes an important realization or decision that
affects how—or whether—the conflict is resolved. The
ending of a story is dependent upon what happens
during the climax.
To identify the climax of “Stop the Sun,” ask yourself
these questions:
• Who is the most important character in the story?
• What conflict is the main character experiencing?
• At what point does the character make a decision
or have a realization that affects the outcome of
the conflict?
Partner Talk With a partner, review a story you read
in another unit of this book. Skim the story to refresh
your memory of it. Discuss what you think the climax
of the story is and why.
Whole Class Discussion As a group, list some of
the reasons why family members might have trouble
communicating at times.
Build Background
“Stop the Sun” takes place during the 1980s, but
Terry’s father cannot forget his experiences as a
soldier during the Vietnam War.
• From 1965 to 1973, U.S. troops fought in Vietnam
alongside the South Vietnamese against Communist
North Vietnam.
• Many young Americans protested the war, believing
it was a war that the U.S. had no business fighting.
• In 1973 all American troops were pulled out
of Vietnam.
• Many soldiers returning from Vietnam suffered
from physical or psychological problems as a
result of their experiences during the war.
Read “Stop the Sun” to find
out what a teenage boy and his father believe is
worth fighting for.
learn from the story to help you answer the Big
Question? Write your own purpose on the “Stop the
Sun” flap of Foldable 7.
Keep Moving
selection.
Stop the Sun 1007
READING WORKSHOP 4
by Gary Paulsen
Con Thien Run, 1967. H. Avery Chenowith. Acrylic, 31⁄ 2 x 21⁄ 2 ft.
United States Marine Corps Art Collection.
T
erry Erickson was a tall boy, 13, starting to fill out with
muscle but still a little awkward. He was on the edge of being
a good athlete, which meant a lot to him. He felt it coming
too slowly, though, and that bothered him.
But what bothered him even more was when his father’s
eyes went away.
Usually it happened when it didn’t cause any particular
trouble. Sometimes during a meal his father’s fork would stop
halfway to his mouth, just stop, and there would be a long
pause while the eyes went away, far away. 1
After several minutes his mother would reach over and
take the fork and put it gently down on his plate, and they
would go back to eating—or try to go back to eating—
normally.
They knew what caused it. When it first started, Terry had
asked his mother in private what it was, what was causing
the strange behavior.
“It’s from the war,” his mother had said. “The doctors at
the veterans’ hospital call it the Vietnam syndrome .” 1
1. Vietnam syndrome refers to physical and psychological problems that many Vietnam veterans
have because of their experiences in the war. Symptoms of the psychological problems include
anger, nervousness, and nightmares.
Vocabulary
syndrome (SIN drohm) n. a group of symptoms that point to a certain disease
Courtesy of H. Avery Chenowith and the United States Marine Corps Art Collection
Practice the Skills
1
Key Reading Skill
Clarifying What happens when
the father’s eyes “go away”? If
you’re not sure, read on.
READING WORKSHOP 4
“Will it go away?”
“They don’t know. Sometimes it goes away. Sometimes it
doesn’t. They are trying to help him.”
“But what happened? What actually caused it?” 2
“I told you. Vietnam.”
“But there had to be something,” Terry persisted.
“Something made him like that. Not just Vietnam. Billy’s
father was there, and he doesn’t act that way.”
“That’s enough questions,” his mother said sternly. “He
doesn’t talk about it, and I don’t ask. Neither will you. Do
you understand?”
“But, Mom.”
“That’s enough.”
And he stopped pushing it. But it bothered him whenever it
happened. When something bothered him, he liked to stay with
it until he understood it, and he understood no part of this.
Words. His father had trouble, and they gave him words
like Vietnam syndrome. He knew almost nothing of the war,
and when he tried to find out about it, he kept hitting walls.
Once he went to the school library and asked for anything
they might have that could help him understand the war and
how it affected his father. They gave him a dry history that
described French involvement, Communist involvement,
American involvement. But it told him nothing of the war.
It was all numbers, cold numbers, and nothing of what had
happened. There just didn’t seem to be anything that could
help him. 3
Another time he stayed after class and tried to talk to Mr.
Carlson, who taught history. But some part of Terry was
embarrassed. He didn’t want to say why he wanted to know
about Vietnam, so he couldn’t be specific.
“What do you want to know about Vietnam, Terry?” Mr.
Carlson had asked. “It was a big war.”
Terry had looked at him, and something had started up in
his mind, but he didn’t let it out. He shrugged. “I just want to
know what it was like. I know somebody who was in it.”
“A friend?”
“Yessir. A good friend.”
Practice the Skills
2
Reviewing Skills
Predicting Do you think
Terry’s father’s episodes will
“go away” or get worse as the
story progresses? Why?
3
Key Reading Skill
Clarifying Reread this paragraph to understand what kind
of information Terry finds when
he tries to research the effects
of the war on veterans. Are
there terms that you are unfamiliar with? Write them in your
Learner’s Notebook.
Vocabulary
dry (dry) adj. dull or boring; not interesting
Stop the Sun 1009
READING WORKSHOP 4
Mr. Carlson had studied him,
looking into his eyes, but didn’t
ask any other questions. Instead
he mentioned a couple of books
Terry had not seen. They turned
out to be pretty good. They told
about how it felt to be in combat.
Still, he couldn’t make his father
be one of the men he read about.
And it may have gone on and
on like that, with Terry never
really knowing any more about it
except that his father’s eyes
started going away more and
more often. It might have just
War & Peace, 1990. Tsing-Fang Chen. Acrylic on canvas,
66 x 96 in. Lucia Gallery, New York.
gone the rest of his life that way except for the
Analyzing the Painting How does the artist depict
shopping mall.
opposing ideas—war and peace—in this painting?
It was easily the most embarrassing thing that
ever happened to him.
It started as a normal shopping trip. His father had to go to
the hardware store, and he asked Terry to go along.
When they got to the mall they split up. His father went to
the hardware store, Terry to a record store to look at albums.
Terry browsed so long that he was late meeting his father
at the mall’s front door. But his father wasn’t there, and Terry
looked out to the car to make sure it was still in the parking
lot. It was, and he supposed his father had just gotten busy,
so he waited.
Still his father didn’t come, and he was about to go to the
hardware store to find him when he noticed the commotion.
Or not a commotion so much as a sudden movement of
4 Reviewing Skills
people. 4
Later, he thought of it and couldn’t remember when the
Predicting What do you think
the commotion is? Give reasons
feeling first came to him that there was something wrong.
for your prediction.
The people were moving toward the hardware store and that
might have been what made Terry suspicious.
There was a crowd blocking the entry to the store, and he
couldn’t see what they were looking at. Some of them were
laughing small, nervous laughs that made no sense.
Terry squeezed through the crowd until he got near the
front. At first he saw nothing unusual. There were still some
Practice the Skills
1010
UNIT 7
Lucia Gallery, New York City
What’s Worth Fighting For? What’s Not?
READING WORKSHOP 4
people in front of him, so he pushed a crack between them.
Then he saw it: His father was squirming along the floor on
his stomach. He was crying, looking terrified, his breath
coming in short, hot pants like some kind of hurt animal.
It burned into Terry’s mind, the picture of his father down
on the floor. It burned in and in, and he wanted to walk away,
but something made his feet move forward. He knelt next to
his father and helped the owner of the store get him up on
his feet. His father didn’t speak at all but continued to make
little whimpering sounds, and they led him back into the
owner’s office and put him in a chair. Then Terry called his
mother and she came in a taxi to take them home. Waiting,
Terry sat in a chair next to his father, looking at the floor,
wanting only for the earth to open and let him drop in a
deep hole. He wanted to disappear. 5
Words. They gave him words like Vietnam syndrome, and
his father was crawling through a hardware store on
his stomach. 6
When the embarrassment became so bad that he would
cross the street when he saw his father coming, when it ate
into him as he went to sleep, Terry realized he had to do
something. He had to know this thing, had to understand
what was wrong with his father.
When it came, it was simple enough at the start. It had
taken some courage, more than Terry thought he could find.
His father was sitting in the kitchen at the table and his
mother had gone shopping. Terry wanted it that way; he
wanted his father alone. His mother seemed to try to protect
him, as if his father could break.
Terry got a soda out of the refrigerator and popped it open.
As an afterthought, he handed it to his father and got another
for himself. Then he sat at the table.
His father smiled. “You look serious.”
“Well . . .”
It went nowhere for a moment, and Terry was just about to
drop it altogether. It may be the wrong time, he thought, but
there might never be a better one. He tightened his back, took
a sip of pop.
“I was wondering if we could talk about something, Dad,”
Terry said.
Practice the Skills
5
Literary Element
Climax The incident in the
hardware store intensifies Terry’s
need to understand his father.
This is the rising action leading
to the climax.
6
Connotation and Denotation
An older term that means about
the same as “Vietnam syndrome”
is shell shock. Which of the two
terms sounds more negative?
Why?
Stop the Sun 1011
READING WORKSHOP 4
His father shrugged. “We already did the bit about girls.
Some time ago, as I remember it.”
“No. Not that.” It was a standing joke 2 between them.
When his father finally got around to explaining things to
him, they’d already covered it in school. “It’s something else.”
“Something pretty heavy, judging by your face.”
“Yes.”
“Well?”
I still can’t do it, Terry thought. Things are bad, but maybe
not as bad as they could get. I can still drop this thing.
“Vietnam,” Terry blurted out. And he thought, there, it’s
out. It’s out and gone.
“No!” his father said sharply. It was as if he had been
struck a blow. A body blow.
“But, Dad.”
“No. That’s another part of my life. A bad part. A rotten
part. It was before I met your mother, long before you. It has
nothing to do with this family, nothing. No.”
So, Terry thought, so I tried. But it wasn’t over yet. It wasn’t
started yet.
“It just seems to bother you so much,” Terry said, “and I
thought if I could help or maybe understand it better. . . .” His
words ran until he foundered , until he could say no more.
He looked at the table, then out the window. It was all wrong
to bring it up, he thought. I blew it. I blew it all up. “I’m
sorry.” 7
But now his father didn’t hear him. Now his father’s eyes
were gone again, and a shaft of something horrible went
through Terry’s heart as he thought he had done this thing
to his father, caused his eyes to go away.
“You can’t know,” his father said after a time. “You can’t
know this thing.”
Terry said nothing. He felt he had said too much.
“This thing that you want to know—there is so much of it
that you cannot know it all, and to know only a part is . . . is
too awful. I can’t tell you. I can’t tell anybody what it was
really like.”
2. A standing joke is one that continues to be told or shared over time.
Vocabulary
foundered (FOWN durd) v. broke down; collapsed
1012
UNIT 7
Practice the Skills
7
Key Reading Skill
Clarifying When Terry “foundered,” what did he do? Clarify
what he did and why by putting
it in your own words.
READING WORKSHOP 4
It was more than he’d ever said about Vietnam, and his
voice was breaking. Terry hated himself and felt he would
hate himself until he was an old man. In one second he had
caused such ruin. And all because he had been embarrassed.
What difference did it make? Now he had done this, and he
wanted to hide, to leave. But he sat, waiting, knowing that it
wasn’t done.
His father looked to him, through him, somewhere into
and out of Terry. He wasn’t in the kitchen anymore. He wasn’t
in the house. He was back in the green places, back in the hot
places, the wet-hot places. 8
“You think that because I act strange, that we can talk and
it will be all right,” his father said. “That we can talk and it
will just go away. That’s what you think, isn’t it?”
Terry started to shake his head, but he knew it wasn’t
expected.
“That’s what the shrinks say,” his
father continued. “The psychiatrists tell
me that if I talk about it, the whole
thing will go away. But they don’t
know. They weren’t there. You weren’t
there. Nobody was there but me and
some other dead people, and they can’t
talk because they couldn’t stop the
morning.”
Terry pushed his soda can back and
forth, looking down, frightened at what
was happening. The other dead people,
he’d said, as if he were dead as well. Couldn’t stop the morning.
“I don’t understand, Dad.”
“No. You don’t.” His voice hardened, then softened again,
and broke at the edges. “But see, see how it was. . . .” He
trailed off, and Terry thought he was done. His father looked
back down to the table, at the can of soda he hadn’t touched,
at the tablecloth, at his hands, which were folded, inert on
the table.
“We were crossing a rice paddy in the dark,” he said, and
suddenly his voice flowed like a river breaking loose. “We
Practice the Skills
8
Key Reading Skill
Clarifying Where are the green
places? How can you tell?
Analyzing the Image Here, farmers
harvest rice in a Vietnamese paddy.
What can you learn from this image
about the place where Terry’s father
fought?
Vocabulary
inert (in URT) adj. without power to move or act; lifeless
Stop the Sun 1013
Ernest Manewal/FPG
READING WORKSHOP 4
were crossing the paddy, and it was dark, still dark, so black
you couldn’t see the end of your nose. There was a light rain,
a mist, and I was thinking that during the next break I would
whisper and tell Petey Kressler how nice the rain felt, but of
course I didn’t know there wouldn’t be a Petey Kressler.”
He took a deep, ragged breath. At that moment Terry felt
his brain swirl, a kind of whirlpool pulling, and he felt the
darkness and the light rain because it was in his father’s eyes,
in his voice. 9
“So we were crossing the paddy, and it was a straight
sweep, and then we caught it. We began taking fire from
three sides, automatic weapons, and everybody went down
and tried to get low, but we couldn’t. We couldn’t get low
enough. We could never get low enough, and you could hear
the rounds hitting people. It was just a short time before they
brought in the mortars3 and we should have moved, should
have run, but nobody got up, and after a time nobody could
get up. The fire just kept coming and coming, and then
incoming mortars, and I heard screams as they hit, but there
was nothing to do. Nothing to do.”
“Dad?” Terry said. He thought, maybe I can stop him.
Maybe I can stop him before . . . before it gets to be too much.
Before he breaks.
“Mortars,” his father went on, “I hated mortars. You just
heard them wump as they fired, and you didn’t know where
they would hit, and you always felt like they would hit your
back. They swept back and forth with the mortars, and the
automatic weapons kept coming in, and there was no radio,
no way to call for artillery. Just the dark to hide in. So I
crawled to the side and found Jackson, only he wasn’t there,
just part of his body, the top part, and I hid under it and
waited, and waited, and waited.
“Finally the firing quit. But see, see how it was in the dark
with nobody alive but me? I yelled once, but that brought fire
again, so I shut up and there was nothing, not even the
screams.”
His father cried, and Terry tried to understand, and he
thought he could feel part of it. But it was so much, so much
and so strange to him.
3. Mortars are small, portable cannons that fire explosive shells.
1014
UNIT 7
Practice the Skills
9
Key Reading Skill
Clarifying How can darkness
and rain be in the father’s eyes
and voice? Explain in your own
words what the author means.
READING WORKSHOP 4
“You cannot know this,” his father repeated. It was almost
a chant. “You cannot know the fear. It was almost dark, and
I was the only one left alive out of 54 men, all dead but me,
and I knew that the Vietcong were just waiting for light.
When the dawn came, ‘Charley’4 would come out and finish
everybody off, the way they always did. And I thought if I
could stop the dawn, just stop the sun from coming up, I
could make it.” 10
Terry felt the fear, and he also felt the tears coming down
his cheeks. His hand went out across the table, and he took
his father’s hand and held it. It was shaking.
“I mean I actually thought that if I could stop the sun from
coming up, I could live. I made my brain work on that
because it was all I had. Through the rest of the night in the
rain in the paddy, I thought I could do it. I could stop the
dawn.” He took a deep breath. “But you can’t, you know. You
can’t stop it from coming, and when I saw the gray light, I
knew I was dead. It would just be minutes, and the light
would be full, and I just settled under Jackson’s body, and hid.”
He stopped, and his face came down into his hands. Terry
stood and went around the table to stand in back of him, his
hands on his shoulders, rubbing gently.
“They didn’t shoot me. They came, one of them poked
Jackson’s body and went on and they left me. But I was dead.
I’m still dead, don’t you see? I died because I couldn’t stop the
sun. I died. Inside where I am—I died.”
Terry was still in back of him, and he nodded, but he didn’t
see. Not that. He understood only that he didn’t understand,
and that he would probably never understand what had truly
happened. And maybe his father would never be truly
normal.
But Terry also knew that it didn’t matter. He would try
to understand, and the trying would have to be enough.
He would try hard from now on, and he would not be
embarrassed when his father’s eyes went away. He would not
be embarrassed no matter what his father did. Terry had
knowledge now. Maybe not enough and maybe not all that he
would need.
But it was a start. 11 ❍
4. The Vietcong were the Communist forces. American soldiers often referred to them as Charley.
Practice the Skills
10
Literary Element
Climax During the climax of
a story, a main character
usually comes to an important
realization. What does the
father realize here?
11
Why does Terry believe it’s so
important to get his dad to
talk about Vietnam? Write your
answer on the “Stop the Sun”
flap of your Foldable. Your
response will help you complete the Unit Challenge later.
Stop the Sun 1015
After You Read
Stop the Sun
Answering the
1. Would you fight for a better relationship with a close family member?
Why or why not?
2. Recall What event caused Terry’s father’s problems?
T IP Right There
3. List List three ways Terry goes about trying to find the cause of his
father’s problems.
Critical Thinking
4. Analyze Why do you think Terry’s father insists that Vietnam has
“nothing to do with this family”? Do you agree? Explain.
T IP Author and Me
5. Interpret What does the following sentence about Terry mean?
“When something bothered him, he liked to stay with it until he
understood it, and he understood no part of this.”
T IP Author and Me
6. Evaluate Is “Stop the Sun” a good title for this story? Why or why not?
Explain your answer by giving details from the story.
T IP Author and Me
Reading Clarify ideas and text
plot, climax
connotation
Grammar Use punctuation: parentheses
1016
UNIT 7
Small Group Discussion Form a group of three or four students.
Discuss the following questions. There is no right answer. Talk about
the reasons behind your answers.
• How do Terry’s feelings for his father change throughout the story?
• How might knowing about a family member’s past affect how others
feel about the person?
• What have you learned about the ways world events can affect
ordinary families?
Skills Review
7. What skills did you use to clarify as you read?
Which ones were most helpful and why?
Which ones were least helpful and why?
Literary Element: Climax
8. What does Terry understand, and not understand,
about his father after the climax occurs?
9. How does the action of the characters at the
climax affect the outcome of the story?
Reviewing Skills: Predicting
10. How do you think Terry’s experiences with his
father will affect Terry as he grows up? What do
you think he will learn from them? How do you
think they will shape him as a person?
Vocabulary Check
Answer each question with the best word from the list.
Some words will be used more than once.
syndrome • dry • foundered • inert
11. Which word suggests an activity that comes to
a stop?
12. Which word relates to a medical condition?
13. Which word means “unable to move”?
14. Which word could you use to describe a topic
that doesn’t appeal to you at all?
15. Which TWO words could be antonyms for lively?
16. English Language Coach Explain why the term
Vietnam syndrome is confusing to Terry.
Grammar Link:
Parentheses
Parentheses ( ) are punctuation marks used to set off
words that define or explain another word. You can
replace commas with parentheses to separate words
more clearly from the rest of the sentence. Use them
to include a) extra information about a subject, b) a
reflection, or c) an afterthought.
• Marian Wright Edelman, the founder of the
Children’s Defense Fund, has fought for the civil
rights of young Americans for more than 30 years.
• Marian Wright Edelman (the founder of the
Children’s Defense Fund) has fought for the civil
rights of young Americans for more than 30 years.
• Neil Armstrong took his first step on the moon
(who could have imagined it was possible?) on
July 20, 1969.
• Spinach helps prevent anemia (as do kidney beans)
because it is an excellent source of iron.
Grammar Practice
Rewrite each sentence, adding parentheses where
they are needed.
17. Edelman’s father a Baptist minister taught his
children the importance of taking care of others.
18. Edelman’s essay originally a letter to her sons
gives many important life lessons we can all
adopt.
19. Soccer a national sport in the United Kingdom
has gained popularity in this country.
20. Violets are very hardy and beautiful, for I’ve seen
them growing out of a crack in the sidewalk.
21. It must have been exciting although a bit scary to
have traveled with Columbus in 1492.
22. Neil Armstrong the first astronaut to walk on the
moon said, “One small step for man, one giant
leap for mankind.”
to www.glencoe.com.
Stop the Sun 1017
file photo
Teens Tackle
POLLUTION
in Their Communities
by Sara Steindorf
&
A CHANGE IN
CLIMATE
Skills Focus
You will use these skills as you read and
compare the following selections:
• “Teens Tackle Pollution in
Their Communities,” p. 1021
• “A Change in Climate,” p. 1027
Reading
• Comparing and contrasting
elements in different texts
Informational Text
• Recognizing and analyzing
persuasive appeals
Writing
• Writing to compare and
contrast
Reading Compare and contrast:
persuasive appeals
1018
UNIT 7
by Emily Sohn
Writers often write with a single purpose: to convince their
readers to think, feel, or act in a certain way. This type of
writing is called persuasive writing. And it’s everywhere—in
advertisements, in letters to the editor, and in articles like
some of the ones you’ve read in this unit.
How to Compare Literature: Persuasive Appeals
As you read “Teens Tackle Pollution in Their Communities”
and “A Change in Climate,” ask yourself the questions in the
chart below to help yourself recognize persuasive appeals.
Does the writer make . . .
an appeal to reason? an emotional appeal? an ethical appeal?
Does the writer
clearly state a thesis
or main point?
Does the writer
use words or images
that make you feel
strong emotions, such
as anger, sadness,
sympathy, or alarm?
Does the writer
seem knowledgeable
and trustworthy?
Is he or she fair to
opponents?
Does the
writer support
his or her main point
with facts, examples,
statistics, or
quotations?
Does the writer appeal
to your belief in certain
ideas, such as freedom,
love, patriotism, or
justice?
Does the writer
appeal to your
values and beliefs?
Does he or she
appeal to your sense
of right and wrong?
Do the writer’s points Does the writing make
make sense?
you feel strongly?
Is the writer trustworthy?
Get Ready to Compare
As you read, keep track of examples of the three persuasive appeals in a chart like the one below.
You will use the notes in this chart to compare the selections later.
Persuasive Appeals Comparison Chart
Appeals to Reason
Appeals to Emotion
Appeals to Ethics
“Teens Tackle Pollution”
Writer’s Position:
“A Change in Climate”
Writer’s Position:
Use Your Comparison
Have you ever tried to avoid doing chores at home,
or to convince your parents to buy you something? If
so, you probably used basic principles of persuasion.
When you’re finished, use the checklist below to revise
your paragraph.
Look at the list below. Pick one statement with which
you strongly agree or disagree. Write a paragraph
that persuades a friend to think or feel the way you
do about the topic you chose. Be creative! Use at least
one appeal to reason and one appeal to emotion to
make your case.
• Students should not use cell phones at school.
• Video games have educational value.
• People should be able to download music from
the Internet for free.
• Schools should ban junk food from cafeteria
vending machines.
✓ Did I state my opinion in a clear
❑
thesis statement?
✓ Did I support my position with facts
❑
and examples?
✓
❑ Did I include opposing viewpoints to
avoid bias?
✓ Did I conclude with a summary of my
❑
argument, a strong appeal, or a call
to action?
Reading Across Texts Workshop 1019
Before You Read
Did You Know?
Did you know that nearly
1.5 billion people worldwide
lack safe drinking water?
That’s 25 percent of the
planet’s population! Did you
know that every year, more
than 500 million people die
of waterborne diseases? Do
you think you can take fresh
water for granted in this
modern age? Unfortunately,
you may have to think again.
Teens Tackle Pollution
Vocabulary Preview
emit (ee MIT) v. to give off (p. 1023) Cars emit dangerous chemicals
from their tailpipes.
buoyed (BOO eed) adj. supported or uplifted (p. 1023) Ruiz felt buoyed
by his friends’ good wishes.
Denotation and Connotation A word’s denotation expresses its literal,
or dictionary, definition. When a word has implied meanings or associations
in addition to its dictionary meaning, it has a connotation. Writers often use
words with connotative meanings to influence readers’ attitudes.
Look at the examples of denotation and connotation in the chart below.
Word
Denotation
Connotation
yellowed
made yellow in color
old, worn
nestled
drawn close
safe, snug
Get Ready to Read
Think of a time when you solved a problem to make a positive difference
in your world. Who or what motivated you to take action?
Build Background
Check out the list below for tips on how to make your routine more green.
• Recycle! Buy recycled products and products with less packaging.
• Bring your lunch in reusable containers.
• Carpool with friends to get to and from school and practice.
persuasive appeals • Make connections
from text to self
and connotation
Read to see how people are fighting for the
environment.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like to learn from this
selection to help you answer the Big Question? Write your own purpose
on your Foldable 7.
READING ACROSS TEXTS
by Sara Steindorf
I
bet you don’t recycle your family’s dryer lint. You
probably don’t reduce waste by reusing tuna cans as cookie
cutters, either.
That’s okay. The earth is packed full of plenty of areas
that could stand a little improving. Take a look in your
community—perhaps the pollution needs patrolling, or the
sea turtles need saving. There’s bound to be at least one
environmental cause you find interesting and worthwhile.
To celebrate this year’s Earth Day,1 we thought you might
enjoy reading about some inspiring young environmentalists.
Not only did they realize the powerful effects of a little
perseverance and passion, but they also proved to the
government, businesses, and even their own critics that kids
must be seen and heard. 1
Barbara: Putting used oil in its place
When Barbara Brown of Victoria, Texas, was 11, her friend
Kate noticed her father pouring used motor oil on a fencepost
to kill weeds.
“The weeds did die, but we wanted to know: What
happened to the oil?” says Barbara, who is now 17.
What Barbara and her friends Kate Klinkerman and Lacy
Jones found out was that the toxic oil seeped into the soil—
and eventually into the water supply. “What we were doing
Practice the Skills
1
Reading Across Texts
Appeal to Ethics The powerful
language in this sentence appeals
to the readers’ sense of right and
wrong. To what values or beliefs
does the writer appeal here?
1. Earth Day is a day set aside each spring to celebrate the Earth and its resources. The first
Earth Day was in 1970.
Teens Tackle Pollution in Their Communities 1021
Practice the Skills
These teens hand out information—and recycling containers—at a used oil recycling booth.
Why might efforts like this be especially important in farm communities?
on our land was possibly contaminating2 our own water,”
Barbara says. 2
So the trio set out to clean up their own backyards—
literally. “We knew that we were just sixth-graders, but
that didn’t stop us from doing what we believe is right,”
Barbara says.
In 1998, they formed the program Don’t Be Crude, and
began educating their community about the dangers of using
motor fluids as weed and insect killers. (This is a common
practice in rural areas like Victoria, especially since many
folks live far from car-maintenance locations, which recycle
used oil.)
They also got support from the government and businesses
to set up five do-it-yourself recycling units in Victoria County.
Today, Don’t Be Crude has 18 units in seven counties—
and protects thousands of acres of groundwater from
contamination through improper fluid disposal, says Barbara.
In addition, the girls speak to audiences across the nation
(some as large as 1,500 people) to encourage young people to
get involved in protecting the earth. 3
Sometimes, Barbara says, that involves getting rid of
stereotypes.3
2. If something is contaminated, it has been poisoned or polluted.
3. A stereotype is an oversimplified or untrue notion about someone or something.
Tony Freeman/PhotoEdit
2
Appeal to Reason A logical
appeal uses facts, examples, or
statistics to build a case. What
fact about groundwater pollution
do you learn here?
3
Appeal to Reason Think about
the writer’s position on the topic
of teen activism. How does she
support her position that young
environmentalists are proving
that kids must be seen and
heard? Take notes on your chart.
“In Texas, you’re labeled a tree hugger if you do something
to help the environment—but I think that’s just because people
aren’t very educated about the environment,” she says. 4
The team also tries to teach others that there’s much more
to protecting the planet than recycling cans. “People usually
know about recycling,” she says. “But they often simply don’t
realize how much more they could be doing.”
Practice the Skills
4
Connotation The term tree
hugger refers to environmentalists. Do you think its connotations are positive or negative?
Amir: Reducing school-bus pollution
In December 2001, Amir Nadav was in his junior year of
high school when he decided he wanted to do something
more to help the environment. So he wandered into a local
Sierra Club 4 meeting. There, they were discussing new
reports on the harmful effects of school-bus idling.
“I thought, this is really cool. I ride a school bus, I have
friends who ride school buses, so this is an issue that clearly
affects me,” says the Eagan, Minn., teen. 5
School buses emit diesel exhaust, and when a driver stops
the bus but leaves the engine on, it creates a lot of pollution
that could be easily avoided, he says.
So Amir and two friends wrote a petition calling for
reduced idling and increased maintenance inspections (a
well-maintained vehicle pollutes less). Then they told fellow
classmates about their petition—and to their surprise, they
got 500 signatures on the first day.
“I was a really shy person, and I didn’t have the guts to just
go up and approach people,” Amir says. “But I felt really
empowered because it was something I really believed in.” 6
Buoyed by their success, the petition writers and several
Sierra Club members drafted a state bill calling for
minimized idling of school buses.
Then they testified before the state legislature. When they
ran into opposition, Amir and his co-leaders organized a rally
of 150 students on the steps of the state capitol.
5
Appeal to Ethics One way a
writer establishes credibility is
by citing knowledgeable sources.
As you read about Amir Nadav,
think about why the writer chose
to tell his story.
6
Appeal to Emotions What
personal characteristic did Amir
overcome to get the 500 signatures? Why do you think the
writer chose to share this detail
with readers?
4. The Sierra Club is an environmental organization that works to protect both local communities
and the planet as a whole.
Vocabulary
emit (ee MIT) v. to give off
buoyed (BOO eed) adj. supported or uplifted
It was a success. They gained not only media attention, but
key support from the Senate majority leader. He had walked
down to check out the rally, and was impressed with the
students’ knowledge of the topic, along with the 1,000
signatures on the petition.
Last May, the bill finally became a law.
“If you had told me a few days before I attended that Sierra
Club meeting what it would amount to, I would’ve laughed.
It’s unbelievable what can happen,” he says.
Another lesson Amir learned is the importance of
researching a cause he felt strongly about. “It’s easy to go
out and say, ‘I want cleaner buses,’” he says. “But I had to
know stuff like: retrofits are things you can do to engines to
minimize pollution. Oxidation catalysts are parts you can add
to buses to reduce pollution. . . . And diesel exhaust accounts
for 75 percent of soot emitted from all vehicles,” he says. 7
Such knowledge helped him feel empowered, especially in
the beginning when people basically told him: “What you do
won’t matter—you don’t even have the right to vote!” he says.
This year, the high school senior leads the
Sierra Club’s anti-idling campaign for students.
In his free time, he travels the United States
helping students get similar laws passed in
their states (only about a dozen states already
have bans on idling).
Practice the Skills
7
Appeal to Ethics and Reason
Amir shows here that he really
“knows his stuff.” How does this
make him a credible source?
What facts and statistics does
he use to support his position
on the need for cleaner buses?
Make notes on your chart.
Gina: Paving roads with trash
Three years ago, Gina Gallant was driving
with her family in Cash Creek, British
Columbia—known locally as “Trash Creek”
because of an overflowing landfill site nearby.
Suddenly, inspiration struck: Why not use
garbage to pave roads?
So the 13-year-old from Prince George,
British Columbia, who has been inventing
since first grade, took on the challenge.
Gina, now 15, already had some knowledge
of road-building, thanks to a job at the asphalt
division of Husky Oil. But she still needed to
do a lot of research.
H. Scheibe/zefa
Consider the number of plastic bottles you use each
week. Can you, like Gallant, think of any other uses for
these landfill-bound containers?
Glass and rubber waste, Gina
found, had already been tried in
roads in the U.S. The materials
hadn’t worked well. So she
turned to plastic—which takes
up a whopping one-third of all
landfill space around the world.
(Just think of all the milk jugs,
laundry-detergent containers,
and water bottles that can pile
up over time.) 8
“I thought that since both
plastic and asphalt are
petroleum-based,5 they might
be compatible,” Gina says.
Analyzing the Photo A red maple sapling grows in recycled rubber chips. How
Bingo.
might this image—and the possibilities it represents—symbolize hope for the future?
Gina’s new paving material,
dubbed PAR for PolyAggreRoad, mixes ground-up plastic
bottles with stone material and liquid asphalt. To take the
8 Reading Across Texts
product out of the lab and onto the streets, she tracked down
companies willing to grind the plastic to her specifications
Appeal to Reason Facts
and examples strengthen any
and mix up enough of the compound to pave an actual road.
argument. What fact or example
“At first, some of [the companies] didn’t take me seriously
does the writer give here? How
because they thought, you know, a 13-year-old can’t do
does it help you understand the
something like this,” Gina says. “But they finally realized I
pollution problem? Use your
knew what I was talking about.”
chart to take notes.
Finally, last October, the mayor allowed her to test PAR on
a 160-foot strip of a local road. Now she’s just waiting to see
how her road holds up through freezes and thaws, and abuse
from cars. Engineers already suspect the PAR will be able to
withstand more movement without cracking than regular
roads, Gina says.
“My ultimate goal is for a company to pick up my product,” 9
How do the teens in this article
she says, “and to see it go all the way around the world to
demonstrate—and fight for—
reduce garbage in landfill sites.”
their beliefs? Would you fight
Her advice to others? “Believe in yourself and follow your
for clean air and water the way
heart, because if you can think of these ideas, you can do
these young people did? Why
them.” 9 ❍
or why not? Write your answer
Practice the Skills
5. Petroleum is oil. If something is petroleum-based, its major component is oil.
on the “Teens Tackle” page of
Foldable 7. Your response will
help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
Photographer’s Choice/Getty Images
Before You Read
A Change in Climate
Vocabulary Preview
accumulate (uh KYOO myuh layt) v. gather or build up (p. 1029) If you
don’t clean your house regularly, dust will accumulate on your tabletops.
vulnerable (VUL nur uh bul) adj. exposed to danger (p. 1030) Many
species, large and small, are vulnerable to climate change.
E m il y S o h n
Meet the Author
Emily Sohn is a writer for
Science News for Kids, a
Web site on science news
for young people. She writes
about a variety of sciencerelated topics, including
archaeology, anthropology,
astronomy, animals, plants,
environmentalism, and more.
about Emily Sohn, go to
www.glencoe.com.
Denotation and Connotation Context clues can help you understand
a word’s connotative meaning. In each sentence below, determine the
boldface word’s denotative and connotative meanings. Then use context
clues to decide whether the connotations are positive or not.
• Some people like the aroma of freshly brewed coffee.
• The dry, wilted flowers produced a strange aroma.
Get Ready to Read
Try to imagine what your community would be like if it were five degrees
warmer every day. In what ways might the change in temperature affect
the animals and plants in the area?
Build Background
The term global warming refers to an average increase in the earth’s temperature. It is the result of human activities that cause pollution. For example, the
earth has warmed by one degree Fahrenheit over the past 100 years. One
degree doesn’t sound like much, but it has already caused significant climate
change in some places. Scientists fear the effects of global warming because
a warmer Earth may lead to changes in rainfall patterns, a rise in sea level,
and serious consequences for plants, wildlife, and people.
from text to self
and connotation
Read to find out how global warming is affecting
plant and animal life around the world.
Set Your Own Purpose What else would you like to learn from this
selection to help you answer the Big Question? Write your own purpose
on your Foldable 7.
Courtesy of Emily Sohn
1026-1026_U7RAT_APP-845478.indd 1026
3/12/07 6:06:46 PM
by Emily Sohn
F
rom one day to the next, weather can have a big effect on
your life. When it rains, you have to stay indoors or carry an
umbrella. When it’s cold, you have to bundle up.
Over the course of hundreds, thousands, and millions of
years, weather trends affect life on Earth in more dramatic
ways. Ice ages or long droughts, for example, can wipe out
certain types of plants and animals. Although many species
manage to survive such extreme, long-term climate shifts,
their living conditions also change.
There’s lots of evidence of drastic changes in climate
occurring in the distant past. Earth today may again be in
the midst of such a climate change. In the last 100 years,
studies show, global temperatures have risen an average of
0.6 degrees C.
That might not sound so bad. After all, what difference
does half a degree make?
A growing number of studies suggest, however, that such
an increase could have a big impact on life. 1
Biologists1 and ecologists1 are discovering, often by
accident, that climate change is forcing some plants and
animals into new habitats. Others are becoming extinct.
Sometimes, scientists show up at a site they’ve studied for
years, only to discover that the organisms they’ve been
tracking are no longer there. What’s more, it now looks like
this redistribution of life on Earth is sometimes happening
at an alarmingly fast pace. 2
1. Biologists study plants and animals. Ecologists study living things and their environments.
Practice the Skills
1
Persuasive Appeals Writers
of persuasive pieces take a position on an issue and then support that position with evidence.
What is the writer’s position on
the issue of climate change?
2
Appeal to Reason The writer
gives two examples of the effects
of climate change on some
animals and plants. Note these
examples on your chart.
A Change in Climate 1027
(t) Miles/zefa/CORBIS
“These little pieces of information are all warning signs
that stuff is going on,” says Erik Beever. He’s a research
ecologist with the United States Geological Survey in
Corvallis, Ore. “Our world is changing more rapidly than
we have observed in the recent past,” he says.
Practice the Skills
Tree line
One place to look for changes in plant and animal life that
may be caused by a climate shift is in the mountains.
As the globe warms up, mountaintops get warmer, too.
Trees start growing at higher altitudes than before. The tree
line shifts upward.
In the Alps, a mountain range in Europe, records from
the last 80 to 100 years show that plants have been working
their way upward at a rate of about 4 meters2 every decade.
Researchers from the University of Vienna found this trend
in two-thirds of the sites they checked.
In one recent study in Nevada, Beever discovered that a
type of tree called the Engleman spruce had moved its habitat
upslope a dramatic 650 feet in just 9 years. “The site at the
lowest elevation went from 41 individuals to just six,” he says.
At higher elevations, numbers increased. 3
“When I first saw the results,” Beever says, “I had a really
hard time believing it because it’s just too fast.”
Beever’s analysis of the data suggests
that global warming is mainly
responsible for the shift. Studies in
mountain ranges from New Zealand
to Spain reveal similar trends.
3
Appeal to Reason What evidence does the writer give to
support her assertion about the
shifting tree line? Does it help
build her case in a logical way?
Global warming
What’s causing today’s increased
temperatures?
Many scientists say that human
activities, such as burning coal, oil, and
other fossil fuels,3 are largely to blame.
These activities release heat-trapping
gases, such as carbon dioxide, into the
2. Four meters is about 13 feet.
3. Fossil fuels are fuels that come from the remains of organisms
preserved in rocks in the earth’s crust.
CORBIS
Analyzing the Photo Smoke from a fossil-fuel refinery billows
into the atmosphere. How do scientists explain the relationship
between air pollution and global warming?
atmosphere. The more these gases accumulate in the
atmosphere, the hotter things get on Earth. 4
Some experts remain skeptical. They point out that
natural causes may be playing an important role in today’s
global temperature increases. The same factors that caused
ice ages, extreme heat waves, and massive droughts 4 in the
past before human activities were important could still be
at work now.
In the case of rising tree lines, they say, trees may still be
recovering from an unusually cool period, known as the
Little Ice Age,5 which lasted from the 1300s into the middle
of the 1800s. It’s even possible that efforts to put out fires
allow plants to move into new habitats. 5
Practice the Skills
4
explains the relationship between
human activities and today’s
increased temperatures. How
does this explanation provide
support for her position?
5
Appeal to Ethics Persuasive
writers can make an ethical
appeal by acknowledging opposing arguments in a fair and
respectful way. Does the writer
do this? Explain.
Mountain islands
Scientists predict that average temperatures may go up
another 1.4 to 5.8 degrees in the next 100 years. If it occurs,
such a rapid increase wouldn’t give plants and animals much
time to adapt to new conditions. 6
Organisms that live on mountains may face the grimmest
future. That’s because mountaintops are, in many ways, like
islands. They’re isolated clearings that poke up above the
tree line.
Although it’s too cold for trees to grow at such heights,
these alpine environments are ideal habitats for some
animals, which have become highly specialized to live there.
“A lot of populations are just little frostings on peaks,”
says James Brown. Brown is a population ecologist at the
University of New Mexico, who was recently quoted in the
journal Science. 7
Like animals on islands, these mountaintop creatures have
no escape if conditions change.
6
Appeal to Reason How
do the facts in this paragraph
provide logical support for the
writer’s position? Make notes
on your chart.
7
Connotation What does the
word frosting connote in this
context?
4. A drought (drowt) is a shortage of water.
5. During the Ice Age, glaciers covered a large part of the earth’s surface.
Vocabulary
accumulate (uh KYOO myuh layt) v. gather or build up
1027-1031_U7RATSEL-845478.indd 1029
3/14/07 12:25:40 PM
Scientists say that plants and animals that live on mountain tops like these are among
the first affected by global warming. Why might this be?
Pick a pika
One of the most direct and dramatic demonstrations of the
impact of global warming, Beever says, comes from a furry
little creature called the pika.
Hands down, pikas are among the most
adorable animals you’ll ever see in the
wild. Though related to rabbits, they look
like furry little gerbils. “Even as a male, I
can say they’re cute,” Beever says. “They’re
Visual Vocabulary
pretty nifty little guys.” 8
A pika is a small gray
To see pikas, you have to go high up on
mammal that lives in
the mountains.
a mountain because they can’t survive
warm weather. In a famous study in the
1970s, a scientist put pikas in cages at low elevations to see
what would happen. Many of the animals died, even in the
shade. It was just too hot for them. 9
Their habits make pikas particularly vulnerable to
increased temperatures. “They don’t move a lot,” Beever
Vocabulary
vulnerable (VUL nur uh bul) adj. exposed to danger
(t) CORBIS, (b) George D. Lepp/CORBIS
Practice the Skills
8
Appeal to Emotions
Emotional appeals can be serious or playful. What words
here describe the pika? Does a
description like this appeal to
your head or your heart? Why?
9
Appeal to Emotions How
might this paragraph also appeal
to your emotions? How might it
provoke sympathy for the pika
and for the writer’s position?
says. “A 1-mile migration for a pika would be a huge, huge
deal, and a pretty rare event, as far as we know.” In other
words, when conditions change, pikas can’t do much about
it. 10
For more than 10 years, Beever has been surveying pika
populations in the mountain states of the U.S. West. By
the end of 1999, he had confirmed that seven out of 25
populations that he had originally surveyed were gone.
More recently, Beever found that two more populations
have disappeared. 11
Early warning
Not all species are threatened by rising temperatures.
Some plants and animals like it hot and dry. Others can
move or adapt to get the cold or moisture they need to
survive.
Pikas are different. “Pikas are an early warning sign,”
Beever says. “They are very clearly vulnerable to high
temperatures.”
So, the case of the disappearing pikas is reason enough to
wake up and take notice, he says. Something in the weather
is changing, and the trends look alarming.
But, Beever says, there are things that you can do that may
help. Choices you make every day—such as walking instead
of going in a car—can add up. By reducing the levels of
carbon dioxide and other “greenhouse” gases6 in the air, we
may be able to slow the warming trend.
If nothing else, do it for the pikas. The world could always
use a little extra cuteness. 12 ❍
Practice the Skills
10
Appeal to Emotions
Innocent pikas, stranded on
broiling mountaintops—how
does this image appeal to the
feelings you might have about
cute, furry animals? Do you find
this appeal effective?
11
makes a logical appeal when
she cites Beever’s work. Make
notes about this appeal on your
chart. Is this appeal more or
less effective than her previous
appeals to your emotions?
12
What does the writer fight
for in “A Change in Climate”?
What does she fight against?
Write your answer on the
“Change in Climate” page of
Foldable 7. Your response will
help you complete the Unit
Challenge later.
6. A “greenhouse” gas is an atmospheric gas, such as methane or carbon dioxide, which
contributes to the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect occurs when Earth’s atmosphere
traps solar radiation.
After You Read
Teens Tackle
POLLUTION
&
A CHANGE IN
CLIMATE
Vocabulary Check
Copy the words below on a separate sheet of paper. Circle the word
or phrase that most nearly means the opposite of the boldface word.
1. emit
give off, reduce, take in
2. buoyed
held under, supported, took away
3. accumulate
build up, lose, set alongside
4. vulnerable
safe, open to, excited
Now copy the sentences below. Fill in each blank with the correct
vocabulary word.
emit buoyed accumulate vulnerable
from text to self
connotation
Writing Compare and contrast across
texts: persuasive appeals
powerful rays.
5. A microwave can
6.
to increasing temperatures, many plants and animals
are forced to migrate.
7. Gino felt
by her family’s kindness.
8. Don’t let your homework
, Salwa’s teacher warned.
9. What does the word toxic connote?
Reading/Critical Thinking
Answer the following questions.
Teens Tackle POLLUTION
10. Why is a cleaner environment important to
Barbara, Amir, and Gina? How do they stand up
for their values and beliefs?
11. Recall Why does Amir Nadav decide to join the
Sierra Club?
T IP Right There
12. List List the three main sources of pollution
discussed in the article.
A Change in Climate
13. Recall In what two ways have mountains been
affected by changes in global temperatures?
14. Connect How might global warming affect
plants and animals in your community?
T IP On My Own
15. Interpret What does Beever mean when he
says that pikas are an “early warning sign”?
T IP Author and Me
Writing: Reading
Across Texts
Use Your Notes
As you prepare to write about “Teens Tackle Pollution
in Their Communities” and “A Change in Climate,”
think about how the writer of each selection uses different persuasive techniques to convince you to think,
feel, or act a certain way.
As you review the notes in your chart, ask yourself
the following questions about each selection:
• Did the writer state her position clearly?
• Did she back up her position with facts, statistics,
examples, and quotations?
• Did she appeal to readers’ emotions in an
effective way?
• Did she address opposing viewpoints?
• Did she appeal to my values?
16. Follow these steps to use the notes on your
Comparison Chart to compare the appeals to
reason, emotions, and ethics in “Teens Tackle
Pollution in Their Communities” and “A Change
in Climate.”
Step 1: Look at the notes you made for “Teens
Tackle Pollution.” Circle one appeal to reason that
you found persuasive.
Step 2: Underline one effective appeal to
emotions.
Step 3: Draw a box around one strong appeal
to ethics. Does the example you chose rely on
the writer’s credibility, or does it appeal to
your values?
Step 4: Look at the notes you made for
“A Change in Climate.” Repeat steps 1–3.
Get It on Paper
To compare what you’ve learned about persuasive
appeals in “Teens Tackle Pollution” and “A Change
in Climate,” answer the questions below.
17. Which article appealed most effectively to your
sense of reason? Use examples from your chart
to support your answer.
18. Which article contained more emotional appeals?
Use examples from your chart to support your
answer.
19. Which article contained more ethical appeals?
Use examples from your chart to explain your
answer.
20. How can you fight against pollution—and for
clean air and water—in your community? Why
is it so important to fight for the things you
care about?
Reading Across Texts Workshop 1033
UNIT 7
WRAP-UP
Answering
What’s Worth
Fighting For?
What’s Not?
As you read the selections in this unit, you thought about what’s worth fighting for and what’s not.
Now use what you’ve learned to complete the Unit Challenge.
The Unit Challenge
Choose Activity A or Activity B and follow the directions for that activity.
A. Group Activity: Make a Mural
With three classmates, design a mural that honors people who took a stand for what they
believed in. You won’t paint your mural on a
wall, but you’ll use poster board and other crafts
to create something just as meaningful.
1. Discuss the Assignment Choose a group
member to take notes about your discussion.
Then talk about people who have stood
up for what they thought was right. Discuss
people who have fought against unfair treatment, ideas, or events. The notes you made
on your Foldable will help you get started.
For example, think about how Ruby Bridges
and her mother stood up to segregation.
Maybe you have a friend, parent, or neighbor who fought for what he or she believed
by not giving in or giving up.
2. Make a List Write a list of the people you
discussed. Then use textbooks, encyclopedias, and the Internet to add more people to
your list. Your list might look like this one.
3. Create Your Mural Work together to make
a mural that honors people on your list.
• As a group, choose the people from your
list that you want to include on your mural.
• Create a sketch (a rough idea) of what
your mural will look like. Decide how you
want to represent the people and their
beliefs—drawings or paintings, pictures
from magazines or newspapers, names
and descriptions, or a combination of
these. Be creative!
• Gather all the materials you’ll need (poster
board, paint and paint brushes, markers,
etc.). When you all agree on an idea,
divide the work among group members.
4. Present Your Mural Make sure all the
people you want to honor are in your mural.
Finish all the artwork. Then hang your mural
in your classroom or school so other students can view it and learn from it.
People Who Stood Up for Their Beliefs
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Susan B. Anthony
Cesar Chavez
Gandhi
George Washington
Sitting Bull
Rosa Parks
Uncle Frank
UNIT 7 WRAP-UP
B. Solo Activity: Propose a Change
Change starts with you! Write a proposal for a
change you would like to see in your school or
community. A proposal is a piece of writing that
suggests an idea and explains to readers why
that idea is important.
1. Brainstorm Ideas For 10 to 15 minutes,
write about your school and community.
What do you like about them? What would
you like to be different? Your Unit 7 Foldable
notes will help you think of ideas. Make a
list of things you would like to change
and reasons why you would like them to
be different.
2. Choose a Change Once you have your list,
choose one thing that is most important to
you. Think about how you can help change it.
Make a list of other people who can help you
change it. Then think about any obstacles
that you might face as you push for change.
3. Organize Your Ideas Make a brief outline
of your ideas. Your outline should have three
main sections:
I. Introduce your idea for change
II. Explain how the change can happen
III. Describe how the change will help
4. Write a Proposal Using your outline and
the ideas in your head, write about the
change you think is important. Make sure
your proposal answers the following
questions:
• What do you want to change?
• Why is the issue important? Why is change
necessary?
• What steps can you and other people take
to make the change happen?
• Is there anything that will get in the way?
How will you deal with any obstacles?
• How will your school or community benefit
from the change?
5. Perfect and Present Your Proposal
Read and revise your proposal. Make sure
that your ideas are clear. Correct any spelling
or grammar mistakes. When your proposal is
ready to present, read it to your class. With
your classmates, discuss other ideas that may
help you make the change. What is the
next step?
Wrap-Up 1035
UNIT 7
Your Turn: Read and Apply Skills
Wa
lt e r D e a n M y e r s
Meet the Author
Walter Dean Myers grew up
in Harlem, a section of
Manhattan in New York City.
He had a speech problem as
a young man, so one of his
teachers encouraged him to
write. Writing and reading
gave Myers a whole new life.
He says, “Books took me, not
so much to foreign lands and
fanciful adventures, but to a
place within myself that I
have been exploring ever
since . . .” See page R4 of the
Author Files for more on
Walter Dean Myers.
about Walter Dean Myers, go to
www.glencoe.com.
by
Walter Dean Myers
T
he dark sky, filled with angry swirling clouds, reflected
Greg Ridley’s mood as he sat on the stoop1 of his building.
His father’s voice came to him again, first reading the letter
the principal had sent to the house, then lecturing endlessly
about his poor efforts in math.
“I had to leave school when I was 13,” his father had said,
“that’s a year younger than you are now. If I’d had half the
chances that you have, I’d. . . .”
Greg had sat in the small, pale green kitchen listening,
knowing the lecture would end with his father saying he
couldn’t play ball with the Scorpions. He had asked his father
the week before, and his father had said it depended on his next
report card. It wasn’t often the Scorpions took on new players,
especially 14-year-olds, and this was a chance of a lifetime for
Greg. He hadn’t been allowed to play high school ball, which he
had really wanted to do, but playing for the Community Center
team was the next best thing. Report cards were due in a week,
and Greg had been hoping for the best. But the principal had
ended the suspense early when she sent that letter saying Greg
would probably fail math if he didn’t spend more time studying.
“And you want to play basketball?” His father’s brows
knitted over deep brown eyes. “That must be some kind of a
joke. Now you just get into your room and hit those books.”
1. A stoop is one or more steps at the entrance of a building that lead up to a raised platform or porch.
Courtesy Harper Collins Publishers
YOUR TURN: READ AND APPLY SKILLS
That had been two nights before. His
father’s words, like the distant thunder that
now echoed through the streets of Harlem,
still rumbled softly in his ears.
It was beginning to cool. Gusts of wind
made bits of paper dance between the
parked cars. There was a flash of nearby
lightning, and soon large drops of rain
splashed onto his jeans. He stood to
go upstairs, thought of the lecture that
probably awaited him if he did anything
except shut himself in his room with his
math book, and started walking down the
street instead. Down the block there was
an old tenement that had been abandoned
for some months. Some of the guys had
held an impromptu2 checker tournament
there the week before, and Greg had
noticed that the door, once boarded over,
had been slightly ajar.
Pulling his collar up as high as he could,
he checked for traffic and made a dash
across the street. He reached the house just
as another flash of lightning changed the
night to day for an instant, then returned
the graffiti-scarred building to the grim
shadows. He vaulted over the outer stairs
and pushed tentatively3 on the door. It was
open, and he let himself in.
The inside of the building was dark
except for the dim light that filtered through
the dirty windows from the streetlamps.
There was a room a few feet from the door,
and from where he stood at the entrance,
Greg could see a squarish patch of light on
the floor. He entered the room, frowning at
the musty4 smell. It was a large room that
might have been someone’s parlor at one
time. Squinting, Greg could see an old table
on its side against one wall, what looked
like a pile of rags or a torn mattress in the
corner, and a couch, with one side broken,
in front of the window.
He went to the couch. The side that wasn’t
broken was comfortable enough, though
a little creaky. From this spot he could see
the blinking neon sign over the bodega5
on the corner. He sat awhile, watching the
sign blink first green then red, allowing his
mind to drift to the Scorpions, then to his
father. His father had been a postal worker
for all Greg’s life, and was proud of it, often
telling Greg how hard he had worked to
pass the test. Greg had heard the story too
many times to be interested now.
For a moment Greg thought he heard
something that sounded like a scraping
against the wall. He listened carefully, but
it was gone.
Outside the wind had picked up, sending
the rain against the window with a force that
shook the glass in its frame. A car passed, its
tires hissing over the wet street and its red
tail lights glowing in the darkness.
Greg thought he heard the noise again.
His stomach tightened as he held himself
still and listened intently.6 There weren’t
any more scraping noises, but he was sure
he had heard something in the darkness—
something breathing!
He tried to figure out just where the
breathing was coming from; he knew it
2. Impromptu (im PRAHM too) means “made or done
on the spur of the moment, without preparation.”
4. A musty smell is stale or moldy.
3. As used here, vaulted means “jumped.” Tentatively
(TEN tuh tiv lee) means “hesitantly or uncertainly.”
5. The Spanish word bodega (boh DAY guh) can refer to a bar,
a restaurant, a shop, or a pantry.
6. Intently means “with concentration.”
Your Turn: Read and Apply Skills 1037
was in the room with him. Slowly he stood,
tensing. As he turned, a flash of lightning
lit up the room, frightening him with its
sudden brilliance. He saw nothing, just the
overturned table, the pile of rags and an
old newspaper on the floor. Could he have
been imagining the sounds? He continued
listening, but heard nothing and thought
that it might have just been rats. Still,
he thought, as soon as the rain let up he
would leave. He went to the window and
was about to look out when he heard a
voice behind him.
“Don’t try nothin’ ’cause I got a razor
here sharp enough to cut a week into
nine days!”
Greg, except for an involuntary tremor7
in his knees, stood stock still. The voice
was high and brittle, like dry twigs being
broken, surely not one he had ever heard
before. There was a shuffling sound as the
person who had been speaking moved a
step closer. Greg turned, holding his breath,
his eyes straining to see in the dark room.
The upper part of the figure before him
was still in darkness. The lower half was in
the dim rectangle of light that fell unevenly
from the window. There were two feet, in
cracked, dirty shoes from which rose legs
that were wrapped in rags.
“Who are you?” Greg hardly recognized
his own voice.
“I’m Lemon Brown,” came the answer.
“Who’re you?”
“Greg Ridley.”
“What you doing here?” The figure
shuffled forward again, and Greg took a
small step backward.
“It’s raining,” Greg said.
7. A shaking movement is called a tremor.
“I can see that,” the figure said.
The person who called himself Lemon
Brown peered forward, and Greg could see
him clearly. He was an old man. His black,
heavily wrinkled face was surrounded by a
halo of crinkly white hair and whiskers that
seemed to separate his head from the layers
of dirty coats piled on his smallish frame.
His pants were bagged to the knee, where
they were met with rags that went down to
the old shoes. The rags were held on with
strings, and there was a rope around his
middle. Greg relaxed. He had seen the man
before, picking through the trash on the
corner and pulling clothes out of a Salvation
Army box. There was no sign of the razor
that could “cut a week into nine days.”
“What are you doing here?” Greg asked.
“This is where I’m staying,” Lemon
Brown said. “What you here for?”
“Told you it was raining out,” Greg said,
leaning against the back of the couch until
he felt it give slightly.
“Ain’t you got no home?”
“I got a home,” Greg answered.
“You ain’t one of them bad boys looking
for my treasure, is you?” Lemon Brown
cocked his head to one side and squinted one
eye. “Because I told you I got me a razor.”
“I’m not looking for your treasure,” Greg
answered, smiling. “If you have one.”
“What you mean, if I have one,” Lemon
Brown said. “Every man got a treasure.
You don’t know that, you must be a fool!”
“Sure,” Greg said as he sat on the sofa
and put one leg over the back. “What do
you have, gold coins?”
“Don’t worry none about what I got,”
Lemon Brown said. “You know who I am?”
“You told me your name was
orange or lemon or something like
that.”
“Lemon Brown,” the old man said,
pulling back his shoulders as he
did so, “they used to call me Sweet
Lemon Brown.”
“Sweet Lemon?” Greg asked.
“Yessir. Sweet Lemon Brown. They
used to say I sung the blues so sweet
that if I sang at a funeral, the dead
would commence8 to rocking with the
beat. Used to travel all over Mississippi
and as far as Monroe, Louisiana, and
east on over to Macon, Georgia. You
mean you ain’t never heard of Sweet
Lemon Brown?”
“Afraid not,” Greg said. “What . . .
what happened to you?”
“Hard times, boy. Hard times always
after a poor man. One day I got tired,
sat down to rest a spell and felt a tap
on my shoulder. Hard times caught up
with me.”
“Sorry about that.”
“What you doing here? How come you
didn’t go home when the rain come. Rain
don’t bother you young folks none.”
“Just didn’t,” Greg looked away.
“I used to have a knotty-headed boy just
like you.” Lemon Brown had half walked,
half shuffled back to the corner and sat
down against the wall. “Had them big
eyes like you got. I used to call them moon
eyes. Look into them moon eyes and see
anything you want.”
“How come you gave up singing the
blues?” Greg asked.
Music Lesson #1, 2000. Colin Bootman. Oil on canvas.
Private Collection.
Analyzing the Painting What qualities might this
man share with Lemon Brown?
“Didn’t give it up,” Lemon Brown said.
“You don’t give up the blues; they give you
up. After a while you do good for yourself,
and it ain’t nothing but foolishness singing
about how hard you got it. Ain’t that right?”
“I guess so.”
“What’s that noise?” Lemon Brown
asked, suddenly sitting upright.
Greg listened, and he heard a noise outside.
He looked at Lemon Brown and saw the old
man was pointing toward the window.
Greg went to the window and saw
three men, neighborhood thugs, on the
stoop. One was carrying a length of pipe.
8. Commence (kuh MENS) means “to begin.”
Bridgeman Art Library
Greg looked back toward Lemon Brown,
who moved quietly across the room to
the window. The old man looked out,
then beckoned frantically for Greg to
follow him. For a moment Greg couldn’t
move. Then he found himself following
Lemon Brown into the hallway and up
darkened stairs. Greg followed as closely
as he could. They reached the top of the
stairs, and Greg felt Lemon Brown’s hand
first lying on his shoulder, then probing
down his arm until he finally took Greg’s
hand into his own as
they crouched in the
darkness.
“They’s bad men,”
Lemon Brown
whispered. His breath
was warm against
Greg’s skin.
“Hey! Rag man!” A
voice called. “We know
you in here. What you
got up under them rags?
You got any money?”
Silence.
“We don’t want to
have to come in and
hurt you, old man, but
we don’t mind if we have to.”
Lemon Brown squeezed Greg’s hand in
his own hard, gnarled9 fist.
There was a banging downstairs and
a light as the men entered. They banged
around noisily, calling for the rag man.
“We heard you talking about your
treasure,” the voice was slurred. “We just
want to see it, that’s all.”
9. Lemon Brown’s fist is rough, twisted, and knotted (gnarled ),
like a tree branch.
H. Scheibe/zefa/CORBIS
“You sure he’s here?” One voice seemed
to come from the room with the sofa.
“Yeah, he stays here every night.”
“There’s another room over there; I’m
going to take a look. You got that flashlight?”
“Yeah, here, take the pipe too.”
Greg opened his mouth to quiet the
sound of his breath as he sucked it in
uneasily. A beam of light hit the wall a few
feet opposite him, then went out.
“Ain’t nobody in that room,” a voice said.
“You think he’s gone or something?”
“I don’t know,” came
the answer. “All I know
is that I heard him
talking about some
kind of treasure. You
know they found that
shopping bag lady
with that money in her
bags.”
“Yeah. You think he’s
upstairs?”
“HEY, OLD MAN,
ARE YOU UP THERE?”
Silence.
“Watch my back, I’m
going up.”
There was a footstep
on the stairs, and the beam from the
flashlight danced crazily along the peeling
wallpaper. Greg held his breath. There
was another step and a loud crashing
noise as the man banged the pipe against
the wooden banister. Greg could feel his
temples throb as the man slowly neared
them. Greg thought about the pipe,
wondering what he would do when the
man reached them—what he could do.
Then Lemon Brown released his hand
and moved toward the top of the stairs.
Greg looked around and saw stairs going
up to the next floor. He tried waving to
Lemon Brown, hoping the old man would
see him in the dim light and follow him
to the next floor. Maybe, Greg thought,
the man wouldn’t follow them up there.
Suddenly, though, Lemon Brown stood at
the top of the stairs, both arms raised high
above his head.
“There he is!” A voice cried from below.
“Throw down your money, old man, so I
won’t have to bash your head in!”
Lemon Brown didn’t move. Greg felt
himself near panic. The steps came closer,
and still Lemon Brown didn’t move. He
was an eerie10 sight, a bundle of rags
standing at the top of the stairs, his shadow
on the wall looming over him. Maybe, the
thought came to Greg, the scene could be
even eerier.
Greg wet his lips, put his hands to his
mouth and tried to make a sound. Nothing
came out. He swallowed hard, wet his lips
once more and howled as evenly as he could.
“What’s that?”
As Greg howled, the light moved away
from Lemon Brown, but not before Greg
saw him hurl his body down the stairs
at the men who had come to take his
treasure. There was a crashing noise, and
then footsteps. A rush of warm air came in
as the downstairs door opened, then there
was only an ominous11 silence.
Greg stood on the landing. He listened,
and after a while there was another sound
on the staircase.
“Mr. Brown?” he called.
10. Something that is eerie (EER ee) is weird and frightening.
11. Ominous (AH muh nus) means “threatening harm or evil.”
“Yeah, it’s me,” came the answer. “I got
their flashlight.”
Greg exhaled in relief as Lemon Brown
made his way slowly back up the stairs.
“You O.K.?”
“Few bumps and bruises,” Lemon
Brown said.
“I think I’d better be going,” Greg said,
his breath returning to normal. “You’d
better leave, too, before they come back.”
“They may hang around outside for a
while,” Lemon Brown said, “but they ain’t
getting their nerve up to come in here
again. Not with crazy old rag men and
howling spooks. Best you stay awhile till
the coast is clear. I’m heading out West
tomorrow, out to east St. Louis.”
“They were talking about treasures,”
Greg said. “You really have a treasure?”
“What I tell you? Didn’t I tell you every
man got a treasure?” Lemon Brown said.
“You want to see mine?”
“If you want to show it to me,” Greg
shrugged.
“Let’s look out the window first, see
what them scoundrels be doing,” Lemon
Brown said.
They followed the oval beam of the flashlight into one of the rooms and looked out
the window. They saw the men who had
tried to take the treasure sitting on the
curb near the corner. One of them had his
pants leg up, looking at his knee.
“You sure you’re not hurt?” Greg asked
Lemon Brown.
“Nothing that ain’t been hurt before,”
Lemon Brown said. “When you get as old
as me all you say when something hurts
is, ‘Howdy, Mr. Pain, sees you back again.’
Then when Mr. Pain see he can’t worry you
none, he go on mess with somebody else.”
Greg smiled.
“Here, you hold this.” Lemon Brown
gave Greg the flashlight.
He sat on the floor near Greg and carefully
untied the strings that held the rags on his
right leg. When he took the rags away, Greg
saw a piece of plastic. The old man carefully
took off the plastic and
unfolded it. He revealed
some yellowed
newspaper clippings
and a battered
harmonica.
“There it be,”
he said, nodding his
head. “There it be.”
Greg looked at the old man, saw the
distant look in his eye, then turned to
the clippings. They told of Sweet Lemon
Brown, a blues singer and harmonica
player who was appearing at different
theaters in the South. One of the clippings
said he had been the hit of the show,
although not the headliner. All of the
clippings were reviews of shows Lemon
Brown had been in more than 50 years
ago. Greg looked at the harmonica. It was
dented badly on one side, with the reed
holes on one end nearly closed.
“I used to travel around and make
money for to feed my wife and Jesse—
that’s my boy’s name. Used to feed them
good, too. Then his mama died, and he
stayed with his mama’s sister. He growed
up to be a man, and when the war come
he saw fit to go off and fight in it. I didn’t
have nothing to give him except these
things that told him who I was, and what
he come from. If you know your pappy
did something, you know you can do
something too.
Christopher Cormack/CORBIS
“Anyway, he went off to war, and I went
off still playing and singing. ’Course by
then I wasn’t as much as I used to be, not
without somebody to make it worth the
while. You know what I mean?”
“Yeah,” Greg nodded, not quite really
knowing.
“I traveled around, and one time I come
home, and there was this letter saying
Jesse got killed in the war.
Broke my heart, it
truly did.
“They sent back
what he had with
him over there,
and what it was is
this old mouth fiddle and these clippings.
Him carrying it around with him like that
told me it meant something to him. That
was my treasure, and when I give it to him
he treated it just like that, a treasure. Ain’t
that something?”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Greg said.
“You guess so?” Lemon Brown’s voice
rose an octave as he started to put his
treasure back into the plastic. “Well, you
got to guess ’cause you sure don’t know
nothing. Don’t know enough to get home
when it’s raining.”
“I guess . . . I mean, you’re right.”
“You O.K. for a youngster,” the old man
said as he tied the strings around his leg,
“better than those scalawags what come here
looking for my treasure. That’s for sure.”
“You really think that treasure of yours
was worth fighting for?” Greg asked.
“Against a pipe?”
“What else a man got ’cepting what he
can pass on to his son, or his daughter,
if she be his oldest?” Lemon Brown said.
Analyzing the Art How does this picture capture the spirit of Lemon Brown’s treasure?
“For a big-headed boy you sure do ask the
foolishest questions.”
Lemon Brown got up after patting his rags
in place and looked out the window again.
“Looks like they’re gone. You get on out of
here and get yourself home. I’ll be watching
from the window so you’ll be all right.”
Lemon Brown went down the stairs behind
Greg. When they reached the front door the
old man looked out first, saw the street was
clear and told Greg to scoot on home.
“You sure you’ll be O.K.?” Greg asked.
“Now didn’t I tell you I was going to east
St. Louis in the morning?” Lemon Brown
asked. “Don’t that sound O.K. to you?
“Sure it does,” Greg said. “Sure it does.
And you take care of that treasure of yours.”
“That I’ll do,” Lemon said, the wrinkles
about his eyes suggesting a smile. “That
I’ll do.”
The night had warmed and the rain
had stopped, leaving puddles at the curbs.
Greg didn’t even want to think how late it
was. He thought ahead of what his father
would say and wondered if he should tell
him about Lemon Brown. He thought about
it until he reached his stoop, and decided
against it. Lemon Brown would be O.K., Greg
thought, with his memories and his treasure.
Greg pushed the button over the bell
marked Ridley, thought of the lecture
he knew his father would give him, and
smiled. ❍
Russell Leach
UNIT 7
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
are challenging to you.
Fiction
Animal Farm
To Kill a
Mockingbird
by George Orwell
by Harper Lee
In Animal Farm, animals work to set up a free
society, only to be oppressed by a select group
of animals. Read to see how deception can make
you confused about what is worth fighting for.
A young girl faces racism in her own town when her
father—an attorney—defends an African American man
who has been wrongfully accused of a crime. Scout,
the young girl, learns what is worth fighting for in a
deeply divided community.
Jump Ship to
Freedom
by James Collier
and Christopher Collier
Daniel Arabus and his mother are slaves in the house
of Captain Ivers during the Revolutionary War. Daniel’s
father, a soldier in the war, earns enough soldiers’
notes to free his family, but his father dies and Mrs.
Ivers takes the notes. Daniel must decide how to fight
for freedom for himself and his mother.
(tl) Eclipse Studios, (tr) Eclipse Studios, (bl) Eclipse Studios, (br) Eclipse Studios
Before We
Were Free
by Julia Alvarez
After Anita de la Torres’s aunts, uncles, and cousins suddenly leave the Dominican Republic for the
United States, Anita becomes aware that her family is
involved in the resistance against the Trujillo dictatorship. When Anita’s father and uncle are arrested, she
and her mother go into hiding.
UNIT 7 READING ON YOUR OWN
Nonfiction
Through
My Eyes
by Ruby Bridges
In 1960 Ruby Bridges was
the first black student to attend an all-white New
Orleans public elementary school. Nearly 40 years
later, Bridges published her memoir about this historic
and life-changing event. Read to find out more about
the fight for civil rights.
Ryan White:
My Own Story
by Ryan White
and Ann Marie
Cunningham
The young AIDS activist tells the story of his own life,
including how he got AIDS and how he fought for
the right to attend school. This moving book shares
the voice of a young man who faced terrible circumstances and still stood up for tolerance.
Freedom Rides
Abraham Lincoln:
The Freedom
President
by James Haskins
by Susan Sloate
In the 1960s, civil rights activists began standing up to
racial segregation. The Freedom Riders were a group
of individuals—some African American, some white—
who fought segregation by riding buses together.
In this fascinating book, one of the freedom riders
describes his experiences.
Abraham Lincoln grew up in a poor family, but
through hard work he eventually became the
President of the United States. This book shows
how this freedom-loving president believed in and
stood up for equality.
Reading on Your Own 1045
(tl) Eclipse Studios, (tr) Eclipse Studios, (bl) Eclipse Studios, (br) Eclipse Studios
UNIT 7 SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT
Test Practice
Part 1: Text Elements
Read the passage. Then write the numbers 1–6 on a separate sheet of paper. For
the first five questions, write the letter of the right answer next to the number for
that question. Next to number 6, write your answer to the final question.
Baby Deer Do Need Your Help
by Nate Tripp
1
2
3
4
5
People and deer live in overlapping worlds where they frequently
encounter each other. This can lead to various problems for both deer and
people.
One problem is when fawns are saved by well-meaning people when they
do not need to be saved. We need people to spread the word that lone fawns
are not abandoned and should not be touched.
During the first few weeks of its life a fawn is protected by being
camouflaged, scentless and still. They are what we call “hiders.” Hiders have
used hiding as their primary means of survival for thousands of years. The
doe assists in her fawn’s protection by staying away most of the time. She
makes contact with the fawn only for a few brief periods each day to nurse
and groom it. The fawn usually moves at least a short distance between
visits. By staying away, the doe does not attract a predator near her fawn by
either her sight or scent.
If a doe has two or more fawns, she keeps them separated for their first
few weeks—usually by a distance of at least 100 yards. During these first
two weeks, siblings are rarely found together. By six weeks of age, however,
siblings are found fairly close together nearly 80 percent of the time.
This “hider” pattern of behavior works well most of the time. But with
about 200,000 fawns born each year in New
York State, and with a human population of
17 million, approximately 200 or more
fawns get found each year.
Objectives
persuasive appeals, author’s bias, faulty
reasoning
Unit Assessment To prepare for the Unit
Test, go to www.glencoe.com.
SKILLS AND STRATEGIES ASSESSMENT
6
7
UNIT 7
To us, fawns are cute and helpless. And if we don’t see a mother deer
around, we assume the fawn is abandoned. Even the most hard-hearted person
has an immediate empathetic response, and being unaware of the basic normal
pattern of deer behavior we just have to “save” the fawn. However, if not
returned immediately, a “captured” fawn is unlikely to become a normal deer.
So remember, If You Care, Leave Them There! And help spread the word
to other well-meaning people:
• It is normal for fawns to be alone.
• Do not disturb a fawn—take a quick look and leave.
• If you know of somebody else who saves a fawn, explain why the person
should return it to the wild immediately.
1. Which of the following statements from the
passage uses reason to persuade the reader?
A. “If you care, leave them there!”
B. “To us, fawns are cute and helpless.”
C. “Even the most hard-hearted person has an
immediate empathetic response, . . . ”
D. “We need people to spread the word that lone
fawns are not abandoned and should not be
touched.”
2. Which of the following statements from the passage
uses an ethical appeal to persuade the reader?
A. “To us, fawns are cute and helpless.”
B. “ . . . approximately 200 or more fawns get
found each year.”
C. “During the first few weeks of its life a fawn
is protected by being camouflaged, scentless
and still.”
D. “However, if not returned immediately, a ‘captured’ fawn is unlikely to become a normal deer.”
3. Which of the following statements from the passage
uses an emotional appeal to persuade the reader?
4. Which of the following statements shows bias?
A.
B.
C.
D.
It is normal for fawns to be alone.
Fawns are protected by camouflage.
Deer don’t matter; people are more important.
About 200,000 fawns are born each year
in New York.
5. The following statements are based on information
in the passage. Which statement uses faulty
reasoning?
A. Because they are hidden, fawns are safer if
left alone.
B. The camouflage protects the fawn by keeping
it hidden.
C. Either the fawn hides or it will be killed by
a predator.
D. Fawns are not helpless, so we should not
assume they need to be saved.
6. Write a statement persuading people to leave
fawns alone. In your statement, try to persuade
readers by appealing to them emotionally.
A. “If you care, leave them there!”
B. “It is normal for fawns to be alone.”
C. “This ‘hider’ pattern of behavior works well
most of the time.”
D. “People and deer live in overlapping worlds
where they frequently encounter each other.”
Skills and Strategies Assessment 1047
UNIT 7
Part 2: Reading Skills
Read the passage. Then write the numbers 1–6 on a separate sheet of paper. For
the first five questions, write the letter of the right answer next to the number for
that question. Next to number 6, write your answer to the final question.
Take the Junk out of Marketing Food to Kids
Detroit Free Press, January 18, 2005
by Sheila Globus
1
2
3
The food pyramid is a great guide for adults who can understand it. But
for young people, the information they get about food is more likely to come
from the halls of school or the advertisements they see on TV.
That’s why a proposal to limit the marketing of junk food to kids makes
so much sense. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) wants
food manufacturers voluntarily to stop the marketing of low-nutritional
drinks and step up marketing of water, low-fat milk and drinks offering
at least 50 percent fruit juice. The nonprofit health research group—often
called the food police for ruining people’s unhealthful fun—favors
allowing companies free range in marketing healthy foods but banning
the prominent placement of ads for foods with high fat content in movies
or other programs designed for kids.
With the huge profits food manufacturers have reaped from targeting
children, they have the resources to think smarter about them. It’s true that
the companies don’t put junk in young people’s mouths. But their marketing
messages, to the tune of $15 billion a year, have added to the reasons so
many children find it impossible to say no.
Objectives
Reading Identify persuasive writing • Distinguish
fact from opinion • Ask questions • Review for
important ideas • Clarify ideas and text
4
5
6
UNIT 7
About half of the commercials targeted at children every
day entice1 young people with foods that make them fat, CSPI
researchers estimate. The fact that vending machines in a
growing number of school districts now feature as much milk
and water as sugar-loaded soda is proof companies can still profit
from being more responsible.
Only in a perfect world, manufacturers would swallow these
limitations easily. They’ll resist. But parents and other outraged
citizen groups should press that much harder to make their views
known to the food companies.
They need to get the firm message: Stop playing with children’s
health.
1. Entice means “to attract by making (something) seem desirable” or “to tempt.”
1. Which of the following statements from the
passage is a fact?
A. The food pyramid is a great guide for adults
who can understand it.
B. . . . a proposal to limit the marketing of junk
food to kids makes so much sense.
C. But parents and other outraged citizen groups
should press that much harder to make their
views known . . .
D. The Center for Science in the Public Interest
wants food manufacturers voluntarily to stop
marketing low-nutritional drinks . . .
2. If you had never heard of the Center for Science
in the Public Interest, which paragraph would help
you clarify what it does?
A.
B.
C.
D.
paragraph 1
paragraph 2
paragraph 3
paragraph 5
4. Reread paragraph 3. Which of the following best
clarifies the meaning of this sentence?
It’s true that the companies don’t put junk in
young people’s mouths.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Young people like eating junk food.
Junk food companies target young people.
Companies put junk food in adults’ mouths.
Companies don’t force young people to eat
junk food.
5. Answering which of the following questions would
help readers understand paragraph 3?
A.
B.
C.
D.
What are examples of junk food?
How do adults feel about junk food?
How do children feel about junk food?
How do food manufacturers target children?
6. Reread the article and list three of the
writer’s opinions.
3. The best way to make sure you understand this
article would be to pause now and then to
A.
B.
C.
D.
review
preview
look for opinions
visualize the food pyramid
UNIT 7
Part 3: Vocabulary Skills
On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–8. Next to each number, write the letter
of the right answer for that question.
Write the letter of the word or phrase that means
about the same as the underlined word.
6. The words and phrases below describe a person
who is smart. Which has a positive connotation?
1. virtually impossible
A. almost
B. absolutely
C. never
D. totally
2. the same convictions
A. facts
B. sentences
C. beliefs
D. decisions
3. violating the rules
A. making
B. breaking
C. disliking
D. enforcing
4. to emit
A. take in
B. give off
C. confess
D. open up
5. perpetual love
A. special
B. temporary
Choose the right answer for each question.
C. perfect
D. everlasting
Objectives
connotation
Grammar Use punctuation: apostrophes,
colons, semicolons, quotation marks, dashes
A.
B.
C.
D.
nerd
genius
bookworm
teacher’s pet
7. The phrases below are from house-for-sale ads.
Which description makes you NOT want to buy
the house?
A.
B.
C.
D.
a run-down shack!
a cozy fixer-upper!
a handyman’s dream!
a rare find and a steal!
8. Which sentence is an example of semantic slanting?
A. Scientists state that there are many pollutants
in the soil.
B. Scientists state that there are many pollutants
in the earth.
C. Scientists say that many people are polluting
the environment.
D. Scientists warn that careless people are
poisoning our planet.
UNIT 7
Part 4: Grammar and Writing Skills
On a separate sheet of paper, write the numbers 1–8. Next to each number, write
the letter of the right answer for that question.
1. What change should be made to the sentence
below?
Bill has had many pets a dog, two cats,
a turtle, three guinea pigs, and an iguana.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Insert a colon after had.
Insert a colon after pets.
Insert a comma after pets.
Insert a semicolon after pets.
2. Which of these sentences is written correctly?
A. Mrs. Blithe our gym teacher starts class
at 9:25 a.m.
B. Mrs. Blithe (our gym teacher) starts class
at 925 a.m.
C. Mrs. Blithe (our gym teacher) starts class
at 9:25 a.m.
D. Mrs. Blithe, (our gym teacher), starts class
at 9;25 a.m.
A.
B.
C.
D.
I dont think Steve’s brother works there.
I dont think Steves’ brother works there.
I don’t think Steves brother work’s there.
I don’t think Steve’s brother works there.
4. In the sentence below, which word should go
in the blank?
farm is in South Dakota, where
My
they grew up.
A.
B.
C.
D.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Saul’s cat is friendly; his dog is mean.
Saul’s cat is friendly, his dog is mean.
Saul’s cat is friendly; and his dog is mean.
Saul’s cat is friendly, however, his dog is mean.
6. What change or changes should be made to the
sentence below?
Julie broke her ankle, as a result, she has
to wear a cast.
7. What change should be made to the sentence
below?
“Be quiet!”Connie yelled. “you’re talking too
loudly!”
A. Change you’re to You’re.
B. Remove the period after yelled.
C. Put the exclamation points outside of the
quotation marks.
D. No change is needed.
8. What change should be made to the
sentence below?
By the time the movie ended, it was four hours
long, many people in the theater were asleep.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Remove the commas.
Change the commas to dashes.
Change the commas to semicolons.
Change the commas to quotation marks.
grandparents
grandparent’s
grandparents’
grandparents’s

Unit 7: What`s Worth Fighting For? What`s Not?

Transcription

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