October/November 2020

News About Our Resources

We’ve bundled our stories, videos, and other assets onto easy-to-customize slide decks you can share directly with students. And we added lines back into our printable PDFs for your students!

Tricia Culligan Editor

Nonfiction

The Legend of the Lake Monster

Is there a giant beast living in Scotland’s largest lake?

Nonfiction

The Legend of the Lake Monster

Lexiles: Starter, 500-600L, 600L-700L

Story Includes: Activities, Quizzes, Video, Slideshow, Audio

Featured Skill: Text Features

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Fiction

Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

Oliver learns an important lesson from nature on telling the truth and making things right.

Fiction

Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

Lexile: 500L-600L, 600-700L

Story Includes: Activities, Quizzes, Slideshow, Audio

Featured Skill: How a Character Changes

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Play

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Washington Irving is one of the most famous authors in American history. He wrote this ghost story 200 years ago. Does it scare you today?

Play

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Story Includes: Activities, Quizzes, Slideshow, Audio

Featured Skill: Inference

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Paired Texts

The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

There are about 10,000 different species of birds. Meet two that will amaze you!

Paired Texts

The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

Lexiles: 500L-600L, 600L-700L

Story Includes: Activities, Quizzes, Slideshow, Audio

Featured Skill: Compare and Contrast

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Poetry

Carrying Our Words

Poet Ofelia Zepeda celebrates the power of the ocean’s sound.

Poetry

Carrying Our Words

Story Includes: Activities, Audio

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Time Machine

Welcome to Mars

Scientists wonder if humans could one day live there. What would that be like? Let’s take a trip to the future and find out.

Time Machine

Welcome to Mars

Lexiles: 400L-500L, 500L-600L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Audio

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Grammar

Fascinating Facts About Bones

Practice using contractions correctly while you learn about bones.

Grammar

Fascinating Facts About Bones

Story Includes: Activities

Featured Skill: Writing and Editing

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Idiomizer

The Idiomizer

Meet The Idiomizer—the superhero who turns simple words into powerful idioms.

Idiomizer

The Idiomizer

Story Includes: Activities

Featured Skill: Vocabulary

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Videos

Video Read Aloud: “The Legend of the Lake Monster"

Our nonfiction feature about the Loch Ness Monster comes to life! Your students will hear the story narrated as photos and video footage take them deeper into the mystery of this famous lake in Scotland.

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October/November 2020

Video Read Aloud: “The Legend of the Lake Monster"

Our Solar System

Watch a video to learn more about our outer space neighborhood.

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October/November 2020

Our Solar System

Watch a video to learn more about our outer space neighborhood.

Slideshows

Vocabulary Slideshow: The Legend of the Lake Monster

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: The Legend of the Lake Monster

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Background Builder: The Legend of the Lake Monster

You’ll be reading about a famous lake in Scotland, called Loch Ness. For more than one hundred years, people have believed that a giant monster lives in this lake. You’ll learn all about the people who have searched the waters of Loch Ness to search for this mysterious creature.

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Background Builder: The Legend of the Lake Monster

You’ll be reading about a famous lake in Scotland, called Loch Ness. For more than one hundred years, people have believed that a giant monster lives in this lake. You’ll learn all about the people who have searched the waters of Loch Ness to search for this mysterious creature.

Swipe to move between slides!

Where and when does the story take place?

● This story takes place in Scotland, a country in the United Kingdom.

● It focuses on the country’s biggest lake, Loch Ness. “Loch” is the Scottish term for lake.

● The events in this story happened over the last 90 years.

Swipe to move between slides!

Who are the people involved in this story?

● The story features several researchers who have explored Loch Ness to try and find proof that the monster exists.

● Over 1,000 people have claimed to see a giant creature living in the lake.

● People who search for fantastic or never-before seen creatures are called “cryptozoologists.”

Swipe to move between slides!

What is the Loch Ness Monster supposed to look like?

● The monster has been described as: enormous, with a long neck, and an oval-shaped body.

● People have searched for the monster by exploring the lake using boats, sonar, cameras, and scuba gear.

Swipe to move between slides!

What happens to the people in the story?

● Many people have tried to prove that the monster exists, but their evidence hasn’t convinced most experts.

● People continue to travel to Loch Ness in order to get a glimpse of the famous monster that might be lurking beneath the water.

● Read the story to find out more…

Swipe to move between slides!

Photo Credits

Vocabulary Slideshow: Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Read Story

Vocabulary Slideshow: Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Swipe to move between slides!

towers over

verb

is much taller than people or things

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wedged

verb

forced into a space

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clatters

verb

falls or bangs together noisily

Dominoes clatter to the floor

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suspiciously

adjective

in a way that shows doubt or distrust

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reluctantly

adjective

in an unwilling way

This puppy goes on a walk reluctantly

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thumping

verb

pounding

This gorilla is thumping its chest

Photo Credits

Shutterstock (6)

Vocabulary Slideshow: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Swipe to move between slides!

distracted

adjective

unable to pay attention

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chuckles

verb

laughs quietly to oneself

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overflowing

adjective

very full of something; so full there’s no room for anything else

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limbs

noun

arms and legs

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jealous

adjective

afraid that a person you love cares more for someone else than for you

This girl is jealous of her brother

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the supernatural

noun

things that can’t be explained by science and have to do with ghosts or magic

Photo Credits

Shutterstock (6)

Vocabulary Slideshow: The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Read Story

Vocabulary Slideshow: The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great audio and visual support.

Swipe to move between slides!

savannas

noun

flat, grassy plains with few or no trees

Swipe to move between slides!

predators

noun

animals that eat other animals

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adapted

verb

adjusted to conditions

Chameleons have adapted to be able to match their skin color to their surroundings

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hatched

verb

broke open from an egg

Swipe to move between slides!

flit

verb

move swiftly and lightly

Photo Credits

Shutterstock (5)

Audio

Nonfiction: The Legend of the Lake Monster

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Nonfiction: The Legend of the Lake Monster

Story Read Aloud: Magazine Version

(06:33)

Story Read Aloud: Lower-Lexile

(06:00)

Story Read Aloud: Beginner

(02:57)

Fiction: Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

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Fiction: Who Stole My Cactus Arm?

Story Read Aloud: Magazine Version

(10:59)

Paired Texts: The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

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Paired Texts: The Biggest and Smallest Birds in the World

Story Read Aloud: Magazine Version

(04:28)

Story Read Aloud: Lower-Lexile

(03:01)

Poetry: Carrying Our Words

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Poetry: Carrying Our Words

Poem: Carrying Our Words

(01:17)

Play: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

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Play: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Story Read Aloud: Magazine Version

(02:37)

Story Read Aloud: Lower-Lexile

(02:21)

Time Machine: Welcome to Mars

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Time Machine: Welcome to Mars

Story Read Aloud: Magazine Version

(04:30)

Story Read Aloud: Lower-Lexile

(02:52)

Play: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

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Play: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Play Read Aloud

(07:42)