Summer inAntarcticaWritten by James Talia

AlphaWorld

Teacher Edition

How to use this bookHorwitz EducationA Division of HorwitzPublications Pty Ltd55 Chandos StreetSt Leonards NSW 2065Australia

Horwitz Gardner Limited168e High StreetEgham, SurreyTW20 9HPUnited Kingdom

Published edition © Eleanor Curtain Publishing 2005Text © Nicole di MarcoPhotographs © EleanorCurtain Publishing

First published 2005

Apart from any fair dealing forthe purposes of study, research,criticism or review, aspermitted under the CopyrightAct of Australia, no part of thisbook may be reproduced byany process, or transmitted inany form, without permissionof the copyright owner. Wherecopies of part or the whole ofthis book are made under PartVB of the Copyright Act, thelaw requires that records ofsuch copying be kept and thecopyright owner is entitled toclaim payment.

Developed by Eleanor Curtain PublishingText: Nicole di MarcoConsultant: Susan HillDesigned by Alexander StittProduction by Publishing Solutions

Printed in China

ISBN 0 7253 3085 6

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The AlphaWorld teacher editionssupport teachers as they guidechildren’s reading and thinkingduring one or more guided readingsessions. Teachers can observechildren as they read and choosefrom the given suggestions to suitindividual needs.

Before readingSetting the context, front coverand title page:The suggestions help teachers to setthe scene and prepare children forreading the book. Prompts help todetermine children’s priorknowledge. Where necessary,background information isprovided. Teachers are encouragedto check that children understandthe vocabulary listed and to discussthe meanings and/or the structuresof these words. Previousexperiences with similar text typesmay also be discussed.

During readingPredict, Read, Reflect:Questions encourage children toengage with the text by makingpredictions. The children then reada section of the text and reflect onwhat they have read. The focus ison the content, language and textfeatures of the book.

Observe and support:Prompts help teachers to focus onthe strategies children use as theyread. Teachers can then select fromand adapt the suggestions accordingto the needs of the individual child.The suggestions aim to develop achild’s reading abilities.Interruptions to the child’s readingshould be minimal.

After readingA selection of reading andwriting activities:The last pages of the teacher editionprovide follow-up activities andinclude the assessment focus.

Selected text features Vocabulary• Contents page• Conclusion and index• Colour photographs support the text

Antarctica, coast, cruise, icebergs, kilometres,krill, penguins, predators, seals, thawed-out

Setting the contextConstruct an ‘Agree or Disagree’ chartthat contains statements related to thebook. After reading and discussing eachone complete the first column of thechart. The chart could look like the onebelow.

Agree or Disagree

Background informationSummer in Antarctica describes andexplains the brief but dramatic changesto the world’s coldest and windiest placewhen summer arrives. As the snow andice melts all kinds of animals arrive inAntarctica to feed on the rich foodsupply. Others use the summerconditions to hatch their eggs or givebirth.

Front coverShow the front cover.This book is called Summer in Antarctica.What do you like to do in summer?What can you see on the front cover?What might an Antarctic summer be like?

Title pageTurn to the title page.Discuss features found on the title page.What can you see on the title page?Why is this information here?

Statement

Antarctica is the coldestplace on earth.Krill are small plants.

Before readingAgree/Disagree

After readingAgree/Disagree

Details from ‘Summerin Antarctica’

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 2–5

PredictThis is the contents page. Look at the photos.What do you think this book will be about?Let’s read through the contents page together.Discuss any words that the children find difficult.Turn to page 4.Antarctica is the coldest place on earth. For most of theyear it is dark and the seas around Antarctica are frozen.What could live in this cold, dark, windy place?

Read to the end of page 4.

ReflectHow many months of the year is Antarctica dark andgloomy? How do you know this?Why can very few animals and plants live in Antarctica fromApril to September?

Observe and supportCan the child demonstrate how to use a contentspage?How do you use a contents page?Can you show me how to find the section aboutseals and their pups? What would I find out abouton page 10?

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 6–9

PredictWhen spring arrives the sun begins to shine and there is alittle more daylight. As it gets warmer the frozen seas beginto melt.Look at the photos on this page. What might happen whenthe snow and ice melt?Turn to page 8.After spring, there is a short summer in Antarctica andmany things change. The snow and ice keep melting. It islight all day and for most of the night.What do you think happens during summer?

Read to the end of page 8.

ReflectWhat happens in Antarctica when spring arrives? Why arethe coasts and seas of Antarctica busy during the shortsummer?

Observe and supportAsk one child to read aloud to you while the otherchildren are reading silently.Can the child read the text fluently?Try to make it sound as if you were talking to someone.

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 10–11

PredictIn summer there are millions of krill in the seas aroundAntarctica. Krill are like small shrimp.Look at the photos on page 11. Why would krill be themost important animals in Antarctica?

Read to the end of page 10.

ReflectWhat would krill look like?Why are krill the most important animals in Antarctica?

Observe and supportCan the child use information in the photographsand text to understand new vocabulary?What are krill? What helped you work that out?

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 12–15

PredictMillions of penguins raise their chicks during the shortAntarctic summer. Some penguins walk up to 60 kilometresover the ice and snow to reach their nesting places. Whywould they do this? How would they make their nests?Turn to page 14.Look at the photos on this page. The chicks grow veryquickly. How do you think they are fed?

Read to the end of page 14.

ReflectHow far would 60 kilometres be? How long would it take totravel 60 kilometres in a car?Tell me what you found most interesting about penguinsand their chicks?

Observe and supportCan the child interpret what the author might mean?Why do penguin chicks need to grow quickly?

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 16–19

PredictDuring the Antarctic summer many birds build nests onrocks and ledges near the coast. Many different birds canbe seen, including shags, terns, petrels and gulls.Why would the birds live near the coast?Turn to page 18.Many types of seals come to Antarctica to raise their youngpups in summer. Do you think the seal pups grow quickly?Why?

Read to the end of page 18.

ReflectWhat would the nesting sites be like? What would you see?What would you hear?What happens to the seal pups after their mother stopsfeeding them?

Observe and supportCan the child understand the literal meaning of thetext?What do seal mothers feed their pups? Where did youfind that out?

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 20–21

PredictWhales visit Antarctica during the summer. They eat most oftheir food during this season. What would they eat? Howmuch would they eat? Why would they need to eat somuch?

Read to the end of page 20.

ReflectWhy do whales travel long distances to Antarctica?

Observe and supportCan the child understand the inferences in the text?Why don’t whales have their young in Antarctica?

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Summer in Antarctica Pages 22–24

PredictThis is the conclusion. It sums up the information in thebook. What information about Antarctica do you expect tofind in the conclusion?Turn to page 24.This is the index. When would it be useful to have an index?What pages contain information about penguins?

Read to the end of page 24.

ReflectWhat did you find most interesting about what we have justread? Why?

Observe and supportCan the child explain the information found in thetext?What changes does summer bring to Antarctica?Why do the birds and animals travel north once again?

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After reading

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Being a meaning makerEncourage the children to supporttheir answers with evidence fromthe book as they discuss thesequestions:What are some of the ways thatAntarctica changes in the summer?What is the same about all of theanimals mentioned in the book?What is different?Why would people travel toAntarctica?Would you like to go there? Why?

Being a code breakerExplore the following languagefeatures:• The prefix ‘kilo’: kilometres• The digraph /th/: thawed-out,the, their, then, there, they, through• Common noun families (adultsand their young): penguin andchick, seal and pup

Being a text userWhat kind of book is this?You may like to return to the chartbegun prior to reading.Have the children consider thestatements listed.Do you agree or disagree with thesestatements? Which do you want tochange?What have we learned from readingthis book?

Being a text criticHow has the author organised theinformation in the book?What has he left out?What would you change if you werewriting a book like this?

Responding to text

The children could construct a 3Dice cube out of cardboard. On each

face of the cube they could write aninteresting fact about summer inAntarctica that they learnt from thebook.

The children could complete asequencing activity constructed from asection of the book. They could shareand justify their positioning of sentencesbefore comparing their own with theoriginal.

Discuss the word kilometres. Whatdoes kilo mean?What does metres mean? How can we findout?What other words do we know like this?How can knowing how to spell kilometreshelp us spell other words?

Writing links

Prepare a large copy of a picture of oneof the animals in the book, for example,krill on page 9. Model writing a briefdescription of it. Use the followingquestions as a guide.What are krill?What do they look like?What do they eat?How do they move?

The children could write their own briefdescription of an animal from the book.

Possible assessment focusCan the children:• use the contents page?• give examples of other words with the prefix ‘kilo’?• use adjectives of comparison: cold, colder, coldest?

whole text activity sentence activity word activity

Summer in Antarctica

Topic: Animal Kingdom/Environment/

Weather

Curriculum link: Natural Science

Text type: Report/Description

Reading level: 23

Word count: 789

Vocabulary: Antarctica, coast, cruise,

icebergs, kilometres, krill, penguins,

predators, seals, thawed-out

Possible literacy focus:• Using the prefix ‘kilo’.• Using the contents page.• Using adjectives of comparison: cold, colder,

coldest.

ESL possibilities:• Discussing key words in the title prior to

reading, and suggesting vocabulary thatcould be expected in the text.

• Paying attention to correct intonation whenreading aloud.

ISBN 0- 7253- 3085- 6

9 780725 330859

AlphaWorld

SummaryThis book describes the many changes thatoccur during the brief Antarctic summer.Changes on the land and in the seas allow someanimals to breed while others make the most ofthe food that is available.