Lesson Plans for American Disaster Unit

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Day 1

Vocabulary Words of the Day

Chapter 1  -  poncho - A blanketlike cloak having a hole in the center for the head; cloak, cape, wrap

Chapter 2  -  rail - A bar extending horizontally between supports, as in a fence; banister

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Read Tonight on the Titanic Chapters 1 - 2

Answer comprehension questions.

Activity

1. Make a portrait. Choose one of these ideas:
   • Draw Jack and Annie in the clothes that they are wearing on the front cover of the book Tonight on the Titanic.
   • Choose 1 real person who was on the Titanic and draw his/her picture.
   • Ask your parents for a photo of one of your family members such as a great-great grandparent who lived in 1912. Use the photo as a guide to copy or scan the photo using your computer and use the scanned photo for this project.

   Remember in 1912 cameras only took black and white photos. If you wish for your portrait to look like a photo, use only your pencil to draw this portrait.

2. Make a frame for this portrait.
   • Draw a pattern for your frame in a square, rectangle, or oval shape approximately 1 ½ inches larger than your portrait.
   • Cut 2 of these shapes out of yellow poster board.
   • Take 1 of the two pieces cut a hole for the portrait to show through. This hole is  approximately 2 inches smaller than the full frame or ½ inch smaller than your portrait.
   • To put the frame together  sandwich the portrait between the two pieces of poster board.
   • Glue the pieces together around the edges.
   • So your portrait will stand cut a rectangle piece of poster board that is approximately half as tall as your finished frame. Glue only the top of this rectangle to  your frame in the very center of the back. Pull the bottom of the rectangle away from the frame for a stand.
   • You may decorate your frame with glitter.

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Day 2

Vocabulary Words of the Day

Chapter 3  -  radio operator  - One who operates a machine or device, worker, machinist

Chapter 4  -  furious furiously  - Full of or characterized by extreme anger; raging OR energetically, feverishly, frantically, desperately, at high speed

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Read Tonight on the Titanic  Chapters 3 - 4

Answer comprehension questions.

Online Activities

1. Learn about Morse Code. Then write your own Morse Code message.

Random House Worksheet on Morse Code  http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/magicth/pdf/titanic.pdf

ThinkQuest Morse Code  http://library.thinkquest.org/5493/morsecode.htm

Morse Code Translator http://www.scphillips.com/morse/index.html

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Day 3

Vocabulary Words of the Day

Chapter 5  -  emergency - A serious situation or occurrence that happens unexpectedly and demands immediate action, crisis, disaster

Chapter 6  -  yelp - To utter a short, sharp bark or cry, yap

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Read  Tonight on the Titanic Chapters 5 - 6

Answer comprehension questions.

Activity

Watch portions of the movie Titanic or the documentary version Titanic from PBS to see what the inside of the Titanic looked like. Play attention to the places mentioned in the book Tonight on the Titanic,  OR visit the website http://www.titanicmovie.com/past/tour_index.html

• Grand Staircase
• Exercise Room
• Communication Room
• Library
• First Class Cabin
• Third Class Cabin
• Staterooms

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Day 4

Vocabulary Words of the Day

Chapter 8  -  panic - A sudden, overpowering terror, often affecting many people at once, fright, terror, fear

Chapter 8  -  church hymn  - A song of praise or joy

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Read  Tonight on the Titanic Chapters 7 - 8

Answer comprehension questions.

Activity

1. Make a pocket watch like the one that is given to Jack and Annie. You can print out this pattern or make one of your own.

2. Jack keeps a close check on the time. He knows that the Titanic is going to sink at 2:20 A. M. Jack reminds us how much time he has before he must return to the tree house. Could you do the same thing? Use your pocket watch practice these problems. With a little practice you can tell time as good as Jack could.

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Day 5

Vocabulary Words of the Day

Chapter 10  -  shudder - shuddered -To shiver convulsively, as from fear or revulsion; to vibrate; quiver; shake; tremble; quake

Chapter 10  -  perish - perished    To die or be destroyed, especially in a violent or untimely manner

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Read  Tonight on the Titanic Chapters 9 - 10

Answer comprehension questions.

Timeline http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading16/titanic_timeline.htm

Take AR Test.

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Day 6

Vocabulary Words of the Day

compartment - screened-off area, section, cubicle, booth, stall, partition
Page 9 The lowest part of the Titanic is divided into sixteen watertight compartments.

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Read The Titanic Lost . . . and Found

Complete The 5 W's http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading16/graphic_organizer.htm (Print on 8 1/2 by 14)

Take AR Test.

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Day 7

Vocabulary Words of the Day

pioneer - One who goes before, as into the wilderness, preparing the way for others to follow

pioneer - Page 6 - Trains crossed the prairie after the pioneers came.

Page 7 - "So we must be going to pioneer time," said Annie

billow - 1.  A great swell or surge, cloud, swirl, puff     2.  To swell out or bulge

billow Page 10 - Huge clouds of black smoke billowed into the gray sky.

Page 11 - Their white coverings billowed in the breeze.

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Read Twister on Tuesday Chapters 1 - 2

Answer comprehension questions.

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Day 8

Vocabulary Words of the Day

sod - The ground, especially when covered with grass

sod - Page 18 - Since the prairie did not have many trees, wood was hard to find. So pioneers often made their houses out of sod bricks, which were blocks of earth cut out of the prairie.

modestly - Having or showing a moderate estimation of one's own talents, abilities, and value; humbly, discretely

modestly - Page 25 - "Not exactly the best," Jack said modestly.

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Read Twister on Tuesday Chapters 3 - 4

Answer comprehension questions.

Activity - Design a poster with tornado safety information.  http://www.fema.gov/kids/knw_tor.htm

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Day 9

Vocabulary Words of the Day

hover - To remain or linger in or near a place, linger, hang around

hovered - Page 30 - The dark clouds still hovered in the distance.

heed - To pay attention to; listen to and consider, notice, take note of, regard

 heed - Page 38

"Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try again;
If at first you don't succeed,
Try, try again.

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Read Twister on Tuesday Chapters 5 - 6

Answer comprehension questions.

Activity - Make an edible grasshopper.  http://www.fromdebbieskitchen.com/Grasshopper.htm OR Bug Craft http://www.crafts4kids.com/projects/upright_insects.htm

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Day 10

Vocabulary Words of the Day

funnel - a conical shape with a wider and a narrower opening at the two ends, cone

funnel - Page 47 - In the distance, twisting black clouds had dropped out of the storm clouds. They swirled into a funnel shape.

barreling -  To move at a high speed or rate of progress

barreling -  Page 56 - It sounded like a train barreling right through the schoolhouse!

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Read Twister on Tuesday Chapters 7 - 8

Answer comprehension questions.

Build a tornado in a bottle http://www.easyfunschool.com/article1205.html

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Day 11

Vocabulary Words of the Day

destruction - To ruin completely; spoil; to tear down or break up; demolish, ruin, damage

destruction -  Page 58 - The twister had cut a wide path of dirt and destruction across the prairie.

territories - A subdivision of the United States that is not a state and is administered by an appointed or elected governor and elected legislature.

territories Page 72 - Most were headed for the territories of Oregon and California.

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Vocabulary Worksheet http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading43/vocabulary_practice.htm

Read Twister on Tuesday Chapters 9 - 10

Answer comprehension questions.

Take AR Test.

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Day 12

Vocabulary Words of the Day

crept   -  /'krEp/

• to go timidly or cautiously so as to escape notice

Page 3  Then he grabbed his backpack and crept out into the hall.

cobblestone  /'kä-b&l-"stOn/

• a naturally rounded stone larger than a pebble and smaller than a boulder; especially : such a stone used in paving a street or in construction

Page 10 - 11  -  Painted wooden houses and gaslights lined a quiet cobblestone street.

Page 13  -  They started up the cobblestone street.

Page  16   -  The whole street began to move. The cobblestones rolled like waves on the ocean.

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Read Earthquake in the Early Morning Chapters 1 - 2

Answer comprehension questions.

Online Activities

Check out the earthquakes that have occurred in the last 24 hours at:

http://aslwww.cr.usgs.gov/Seismic_Data/telemetry_data/map_sta_eq.shtml
(This site which is updated every 30 minutes contains a world map that points out the locations of recent earthquakes. The clickable map points to additional information.)

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Day 13

Vocabulary Words of the Day

rubble  /'r&-b&l/

• broken fragments (as of rock) resulting from the decay or destruction of a building

Page 26  -  He and Annie started waling through the rubble. They stepped over piles of bricks, chunks of concrete, and broken glass.

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Read Earthquake in the Early Morning Chapters 3 - 4

Answer comprehension questions.

Online Activities

View photos from the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906 http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/seg/hazard/slideset/2/2_thumbs.shtml

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Day 14

Vocabulary Words of the Day

pavilion  /p&-'vil-y&n/

• a part of a building projecting from the rest : one of several detached or semidetached units into which a building is sometimes divided

Page 35  -  "I'm moving all the rare books to the Pavilion," the man said.

Page 38  -  When the Pavilion building caught fire, all the books burned.

sympathetically    sympathetic      /"sim-p&-'the-tik/

• given to, marked by, or arising from sympathy, compassion, friendliness, and sensitivity to others' emotions <a sympathetic gesture>

Page 43  -  "We are, too," said Annie sympathetically.

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Read Earthquake in the Early Morning Chapters 5 - 6

Answer comprehension questions.

Earthquake Word Search Puzzle http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/magicth/pdf/wordsearch.pdf

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Day 15

Vocabulary Words of the Day

firestorm    /'fIr-"storm/

• a large usually stationary fire characterized by very high temperatures in which the central column of rising heated air induces strong inward winds which supply oxygen to the fire

Page 50  -  The firestorm raged from building to building, from street to street. Firestorm, Jack thought. The word sounded terrible.

messengers   messenger     /'me-s^&n-j&r/

• one who bears a message or does an errand

Page 60  -  "I told him that two special messengers would soon arrive.".

courage    /'k&r-ij, 'k&-rij/

• mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty:  firmness of mind and will in the face of danger or extreme difficulty

Page 70  -  "We had to give four special writings to King Arthur so he could get his hope and courage back and save Camelot."

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Read Earthquake in the Early Morning Chapters 7 - 10

Answer comprehension questions.

Take AR Test.  http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading16/vocabulary_test.htm

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