Wild Bird and other stories of adventure Book Summary This collection of three stories has the theme of adventure – at sea, in the air, and underground. Each adventure involves children taking part in unusual and exciting activities – living on a yacht, making a tandem parachute jump, and exploring caves to look for treasure.
Features of the Book • Three stories by the same author and photographer
• The settings – sea, air, and underground • The range of typefaces • Bold text for effect • Specialized vocabulary – jumpsuit, harness, tandem
• The theme of challenge and adventure • Design features – frames, overlapping photographs
Purpose Wild Bird and other stories of adventure can be used to introduce and reinforce the following skills: S discussing the genre of adventure; S exploring different texts by the same author; S comparing and contrasting ideas; S looking at root verbs and their endings; S using the text as a model for students’ own
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The Guided Reading Lesson S Discussing the genre of adventure S Exploring different texts by the same author Introducing the text
Talk to the students about having an adventure. – What does the word “adventure” mean to you? – Has anyone had an adventure they would like to share with the group? – Have you read any adventure stories?
Discuss the way that an adventure usually involves doing something out of the ordinary. This can happen by chance or be planned. Look at the cover of the book together and discuss the title. – Where else on the cover can you see words from the title? (on the yacht)
Point out the child climbing the rigging on the yacht. Read the blurb on the back cover together and look at the photograph. This gives the students further information and allows them to predict some of the content of the book. Then look at the contents page and ask the students to find the first story, “Wild Bird.” Discuss the subtitle for the story. – What kinds of adventures could you have at sea? – What kinds of danger might there be?
Read the introductory paragraph on page 4 together. This short summary explains how the story came to be written.
Revisiting the Text The suggested activities below can be used immediately after the guided reading lesson if appropriate or could be taken as a mini-lesson at a later time.
Ask the students to quickly write down a question about the “unusual lifestyle” that is mentioned. For example:
S Comparing and contrasting ideas
Reading and discussing the text
– How do Wendy and Rita go to school? – What happens in very bad weather?
Ask the students to read up to page 7 independently. – As you read, mark the answers to any of your questions.
After the reading, the students may wish to discuss the meaning of vocabulary used in this first section, such as “shipshape” or “the call of the sea.” The students can now read the rest of the first story independently. Set a purpose for the rest of the reading, for example: – As you read, think about the ways this family does things differently from the way you do them at home.
The students could make brief notes or use sticky notes to mark these points. When the students have finished reading, ask them for their responses to the purpose-setting question. Some responses might be: – – – – –
The amount of food they buy all at once. How they keep their food fresh. Where they take a shower! Where they all sleep. How the children do their schoolwork.
Discuss the differences between a day on a yacht and a day at home. The students can now read the other stories in the book independently. Encourage them to make comparisons between the settings for the adventures and the actions and feelings of the characters.
Adventures often involve a mix of feelings, such as exhilaration and fear. In two of these stories, the children express a range of emotions. They like some aspects of their adventure but don’t feel so good about others. However, in “Fly Like a Bird,” Mark seems to enjoy every moment of his challenge. Ask the students to reread “Wild Bird” and to make two lists, one showing the things that Wendy and Rita like about their lifestyle on the yacht and the other showing the aspects they are not so fond of. They can use the blackline master on page 78 to record their comparison. – Do you think Wendy would prefer to continue living at sea or to swap places with you? S Looking at root verbs and their endings
Review the addition of endings to a range of root verbs. Ask the students to skim through “Fly Like a Bird” and “The Pink Boot Challenge” to look for variations on the word “scare” (scary, scared, and scares). – What endings have been added to the root verb? – Have any letters been taken from the root verb? – What other endings can you add to this word? (-ing)
Look at the forms of other verbs, both regular and irregular (fly, buy, keep, whisper, swing). Discuss the endings that can be added and whether the root form needs to change in any way. S Using the text as a model for students’ own
writing The students could use any of these three adventures as models for writing an adventure story of their own – one that has really happened or one that they have imagined. Before they begin, discuss the way that the author has built up tension in her writing. – What kinds of language has she used to make you read on? (look at the titles and the descriptions of feelings)
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