"Community Meeting" is a one page, fictional reading passage about the needs of a community and how they need to work together to meet those needs. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide...

"I Like Plants" is a one page, realistic fiction, reading passage about a person who loves plants and became a botanist; now she teaches her college students about plants and ecology. It is followed by constructed-response questions...

"My New Brother" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about child whose mother has just had new baby boy. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it includes:...

"My New President" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about an African-American teen who learned about the government by working in Barack Obama's campaign office on Saturdays. It is followed by constructed-response questions...

"My New President" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about an African-American teen who learned about the government by working in Barack Obama's campaign office on Saturdays. It is followed by constructed-response questions...

"My Painting" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about a Russian immigrant student who is making a painting to show how she feels about her new homeland and the people here. It is followed by constructed-response questions which...

"Pigeon Express" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about a man who had carrier pigeons and sent messages to his sister on the other side of town everyday. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to...

"After the Chicago Fire" is a one page, non-fiction, reading passage about how Chicago was rebuilt after the great fire. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it...

"Animal Studies" is a one page, non-fiction, reading passage about studying the behaviors of animals including the sawfly and the poppy-bee. They learn about animals by observing them. It is followed by constructed-response questions...

"A Garden in Lawndale" is a one page, non-fiction, reading passage about an eighth grade class who planted a garden in a vacant lot by their school and maintained it to improve their neighborhood. It is followed by constructed-response...

"Prairie Ecology Questions and Activities" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage about prairie ecology the interdependence of its plants and animals. It is followed by questions which require students to provide evidence from the...

"Prairie Keepers with Questions/Activities" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage about the efforts to restore the praire. It is followed by questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it includes:...

Teachers will learn about the close reading strategy, QtA, Questioning the Author. Teachers will learn how to implement QtA; measure progress with QtA; and find research to support the use of QtA. A QtA graphic organizer is provided.

"My New Brother" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about child whose mother has just had new baby boy. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it includes:...

"A Better Community" is a one page, fictional reading passage that focuses on recycling. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it includes skills such as sequencing,...

"Changing Our Street" is a one page, realistic fiction, reading passage about how the problem of people driving too fast in a neighborhood was solved. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide...

"Changing Transportation Routes" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about how the problem of public transportation could be solved through the process of surveying the community, developing a workable solution, and presenting it...

"Flying" is a one page, realistic fiction, reading passage about someone set a goal to be a pilot and worked hard to accomplish that goal. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from...

"See Our Progress" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about students who turned a vacant lot into a prairie garden and then were interviewed and shown on the television news. It is followed by questions which require students to...

"Spring is Coming" is a one page, fictional, reading passage about a family of settlers who had survived the winter, but needed food. Their Native American neighbors showed them onions growing and gave them new hope. It is followed by...

"A New Park" is a one page, non-fiction, reading passage about how a school in need of a playground got a city park instead. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from the story; it...

"Changing the Ecosystem: Q & A" is a one page, nonfiction, reading passage about how the loss of the prairie to farming and population growth impacts the ecosystem. It is followed by questions which require students to provide...

"A Great Digger: A North American Fable" is a one-page fable about Benny the Badger who dug holes for all the other animals in the plains. It is followed by constructed-response questions which require students to provide evidence from...

"Frederick Douglass on Women's Suffrage," a one page, non-fiction, reading passage, is an excerpt from a persuasive speech delivered by Frederick Douglass to the International Council of Women in Washington, D.C., April 1888 in support...