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Lina eats several "new" foods for breakfast including apricots, bread, and blackberry jam.

• Why do you think she has not had these foods before?

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Vocabulary Word of the Day

page 91 - She peeked in the medicine room once when the doctor was out and was amazed at the clutter in there-shelves and cupboards and tables piled with stuff in bottles and stuff in boxes and stuff in jars, all higgledy-piggledy.

Food Activity with Carrots

Excerpt from Page 83

     "Probably you haven't had pickled carrots, either," Martha said passing the dish around. "These are from my mother's recipe."

     "We did have carrots," said Mrs. Polster. "A nice pale orange, some of them fully four inches long."

     "Is that right," said Martha. "Ours are twelve inches usually."

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Vocabulary Word of the Day

page 102 -  Doon listened, but she saw his eyes veer back toward the group of boys.

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Read Chapter 8

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

• Why are carrots grown in Ember different from the ones grown in Sparks?

• Why do the people from Ember look different from the ones in Sparks?

• What was riding a bike for the first time like for you? Lina had to work for a while to "teach" herself how to ride. Why did learning to ride a bike seem difficult for Lina?

• The character Tick keeps emerging in the story. What do you think of Tick? Is Jeanne DuPrau using the technique of foreshadowing with this character? If so, what do you think Tick will do later in the book?

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 111 - "It's wonderful!" and Martha's mouth would crimp into a small, pleased smile.

jitter -

page 114 - Doon felt a jitter in his stomach.

Vocabulary Worksheet

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Read Chapters 9-10 (Audio Length Approximately -  34 minutes)

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

• Page 108 "Above the doors was a sign missing most of its letters. It was a long sign, so you could tell whatever it used to say was a long word, but now all it said was UPE ARK." What word could UPE ARK be?

• The people from Ember felt they were being starved. The people from Sparks felt they doing the best they could to feed 400 extra people. Which group do you feel is right? What are some solutions to this problem?

• Lina thought she was helping by removing the smelly goat and cow plops. The shopkeeper was angry because he thought she was throwing away the fertilizer. How could Lina or the shopkeeper have handled the situation differently?

• Chapters 9 and 10 are full of problems. Name them. How can the people work to solve these?

  • hard work in the heat for the Emberites who are not use to this with the people from Sparks thinking they are lazy

  • food sharing

  • Lina throws away the "fertilizer.

  • Lina feels she and Doon are growing apart.

  • Torren doesn't want Lina around.

• The books in Ember were smaller and not as sturdy as those in Sparks. Page 109 It was a book, yes. Not like the books of Ember-these were much bigger and sturdier, and had much  more writing. Why do you think there was a difference in the books from Ember and Sparks?

English - Lesson 5 - Subject/Verb Agreement - Irregular Verbs

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

exploits - An act or deed, especially a brilliant or heroic one; feat; daring acts

Page 144 - That night, Caspar talked a great deal about his exploits as a roamer.

jovial - Marked by hearty friendliness and good cheer; jolly; good-humored; fun-loving; cheerful

page 147 -  He spread them out and bent over them, and his jovial, boastful manner changed.

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Read Chapters 11-12 (Audio Length Approximately -  30 minutes)

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

Excerpt from Pages 137-138 One of Tick's ideas was to hoist the flag of Ember over the Pioneer Hotel. Lottie Hoover, who had worked in one of Ember's city offices, had rolled the flag up and tucked it into her bag just before she rushed down into the Pipeworks to leave. Doon didn't really see the point of flying Ember's flag over the hotel-everyone knew that it was the people of Ember who lived there-but he helped with the project, sawing the limbs off a tall, thin tree to make a flagpole. Soon the flag of the city of Ember, deep blue with a yellow grid, flapped above the Pioneer.

• Why do you think Lottie took the time to gather the flag of Ember before fleeing?

• What do you think the yellow grid signifies?

• Do you agree with Doon there was really no point in flying Ember's flag over the hotel? Why or why not?
   

• Page 142 gives the reader a hint that all is not right with Caspar. "Lina smiled politely at this stupid joke. Something about Caspar seemed to be slightly off, she thought.
  Page 146 "He's always been a bit odd," said the doctor.

Do you think Caspar will become an important character in the story? What do you think will happen? What could Caspar be deciphering at the end of Chapter 12?

English - Lesson 6 - Subject/Verb Agreement - Irregular Verbs

Flashcard Activity with Verbs

Activity

The flag of the city of Ember was deep blue with a yellow grid. What do you think this means? Design a flag for the city of Ember or the village of Sparks. What symbols would you place on your flag? What do these symbols mean?

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 154  - Doon frowned. He thought of his father, looking with dismay last night at he scanty contents of his dinner parcel.

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Read Chapter 13 (End of Part 1)

English - Lesson 7 - Troublesome Verbs

Finish flags.

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Vocabulary Word of the Day

page 158 - It was a risky journey she was embarking on.

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Read Chapter 14

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

Page 152 He made his way into the woods, to a thicket of vines all woven together like thorny ropes. Little lumpy fruits, some red and some black, grew on these vines. Doon had already discovered that the red ones were hard and sour, but if left to ripen they turned black and sweet. He had been checking the vines regularly; each day there were more and more of the black ones. Today, he saw, there were more black berries than red. He began picking them. Some he ate right from the vine-they were sweet and juicy. How would Doon know it was safe to eat this berry? Why did he not tell the others in the Pioneer Hotel that he had found berries that he was watching and waiting for them to ripen? Why did he show Tick the berries? Why do you think Doon gave the berries he had picked to Tick?

• What do you think Lina will find as she goes to the city?

• Torren was so jealous that he destroyed two crates of tomatoes, then blamed Doon. Have you ever felt jealousy? What action would have been a better way for Torren to have dealt with his emotions?

Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 174 - She smiled. It wasn't an unfriendly smile, but there was a quirk in it that seemed to say, What a situation.

page 189 -  She managed to wrench the whip out of his hand.

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Read Chapters 15-16 (Audio Length Approximately -  30 minutes)

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

The setting of the story is described as Lina travels to the city. Where might this be? gently rolling covered with brown-gold grass - dry weeds low, dark green, mushroom-shaped trees with dusty leaves and trunks thick and gnarled wolves yipping they went uphill hour after hour heat terrible only water at bottom of a deep ravine bay with green trees covering the ground and hills rising beyond Name some places this might be. Remember caves are also nearby. Note: Another clue is given in Chapter 21 when the people from Ember get poison oak which is a North American plant.

• Page 192 - You turned a crazy old guy into an enemy in less than two minutes. You did it. You've done it over and over, I've seen you: you approach people like an enemy and bam!, they turn into one, whether they were to begin with or not. . . . If you ask me, making friends is a better defense than making enemies.

  Do you agree or disagree with Maddy? Why or why not? What might have happened if Caspar gave the roamer the cakes he asked for?

English - Lesson 8 - Sentence Problems

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 199 - He stretched his arms as far apart as they would go. "It's a gargantuan task."

myriad - Constituting a very large, indefinite number; innumerable; numerous; many

page 211 -  "A city is bug," Lina said, remember the myriad streets and building of Ember.

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Read Chapters 17-18 (Audio Length Approximately -  27 minutes)

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

We, the readers, know the truth behind the tomato incident, yet the other characters, with the exception of Torren, in the story do not. Why do you think the truth is not revealed to the characters? How does this incident affect the people of Sparks? The people from Sparks are torn between believing Doon is innocent of wasting the tomatoes and guilty of smashing two crates of tomatoes against the wall of the shed. What can Doon do to prove his innocence?

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What do you think of Caspar's logic? Do you think a treasure is hidden in the city? If so, how would you go about finding it? What type of treasure would this be?

English - Lesson 9 - Combining Choppy Sentences

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 220 -  It was the first time Doon had seen that Tick, too, suffered from the bites and scrapes that plagued the rest of them.

injustice

1. Violation of another's rights or of what is right; lack of justice.
2. A specific unjust act; a wrong; injury, wrong, grievance
    

pages 219, 220 - The unfairness of it, the tremendous injustice, felt like a stone in his heart.
This is an injustice all of us feel.

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Discussion

Why is Chapter 19 called "Unfairness, and What to Do About It"? How do you feel about the way Doon has been treated? Why do you think Chugger gave Doon the job of cleaning the fountain?

Lina sees the city for the first time in Chapter 20. The city is nothing like she imagines it will be. She senses the destruction and says it is no more than a "ghost of a city". Do you think anyone will ever rebuild the city? If given the chance should people rebuild the city? The disaster gives people the chance to start over again. What changes should they make?

At the end of Chapter 20 Maddy shows a lot of wisdom in her comments. Pages 227-228      "Maybe it can be stopped at the beginning," Maddy said. "If someone sees what's happening and is brave enough to reverse the direction."      "Reverse the direction?"      "Yes, turn it around."      "How would you do that?"      "You'd do something good," said Maddy. "Or at least you'd keep yourself from doing something bad."      "But how could you?" said Lina. "When people have been mean to you, why would you want to be good to them?"      "You wouldn't want to," Maddy said. "That's what makes it hard. You do it anyway. Being good is hard. Much harder than being bad." What do you think of Maddy's comments? Do you feel she is right or wrong? Explain. If Doon took Maddy's advice and tried to do something good to the people that are treating him poorly, could he change the situation he is in?

English - Lesson 10 - Combining Choppy Sentences

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Vocabulary Word of the Day

page 253 - After the rampage in the plaza, the three town leaders went up to the tower room for an urgent meeting.

dire - urgent; desperate; extreme; serious; severe; critical; desperate

page 254 "That's right," said Ben. "We have it for situations of dire emergency. I think we have an emergency now."

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Read Chapter 21 - 22 (Audio Length Approximately -  36 minutes)

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

• What do you think of Tick supervising all the tasks that need to be done yet doing none of the work himself?

• Poison Oak A North American shrub or vine that has compound leaves with three leaflets, small green flowers, and whitish berries and that causes a rash on contact. Do you think Torren is the person who spread the trash and poison oak in front of the hotel?

• The third town meeting was held to determine if the people of Ember should go or stay. Do you feel that the three town leaders should make this decision for the town? Should the people from Sparks have some say in this decision? Do you side with Mary or Ben? Why do you choose this side?

English - Lesson 11  -  Correcting Run-on Sentences

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 257 - People wept and shouted and moaned. In the lobby, Doon encountered a group of people embroiled in a huge argument.

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 272 - Her name rang out over the hubbub.

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Read Chapters 24-25

Answer Comprehension Questions

Discussion

Doon, Doon's father, and Edward have a discussion about the terrible weapon. They can't imagine what could kill 400 people.   Page 258 "....My guess is that it's something very large that could be made to fall on us and crush us."      "But where could they hide it, if it's that large?" asked Doon. "It would have to be as big as a mountain."

     "It could be an animal," said Doon's father. "They might have it in a cage in the basement of the town hall. Something very fierce that they would let loose on us."

     "Or it might be something like the poison oak, only worse," said Doon. "Some sort of poison that they could spray at us."

What do you think this weapon might be?

Lina and Doon had a conversation about war. Page 282 - "Instead of getting back at the other side with something just as bad as they did to you-or something worse-you do something good. Or at least you keep yourself from doing something bad." Do you agree or disagree with Lina's words? Why or why not?

 Vocabulary Game to Practice Words

English - Catch up and/or Review for Test

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

page 292 - "This is your last chance," he shouted at the crowd. "Disperse! Or take the consequences."

turbulent - Violently agitated or disturbed; tumultuous; rowdy; unruly; riotous; quarrelsome

page 298 - When she heard his voice, she tried to make her way toward him, but the crowd was so dense and turbulent that she couldn't get through.

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Vocabulary Words of the Day

prosperity - The condition of being prosperous; having good fortune; successfulness; affluence; riches; success

deprivation - The act or an instance of depriving; loss; withholding of something needed; scarcity; deficit

page 319 -  We were almost on the edge of prosperity. We feared that you would push us back into deprivation.

Vocabulary Practice

Answer Comprehension Questions

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Day 19

Vocabulary Test

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