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Time Machine,

Diving Into Danger

Find out what it’s like to be a member of the United States Coast Guard. 

By Alex Winnick
From the October/November 2024 Issue
Lexiles: 500-600L; Easier level
Featured Skill: Knowledge Building,

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The Coast Guard practices for a rescue mission.

Fierce winds whip through your hair. Terrifying 30-foot waves rise out of the sea. You’re flying in the back of a helicopter as it races over the ocean. 

Minutes earlier, you answered an emergency call. Someone is out in the open water. They’re alone and struggling to swim. Now you’re on a mission to save their life. 

Who are you? You’re a member of the U.S. Coast Guard. And you’re this person’s only chance of surviving. 

Strong winds blow through your hair. Scary 30-foot waves rise out of the sea. You’re in the back of a helicopter as it flies over the ocean.

A few minutes ago, you answered an emergency call. Someone is out in the open water. They’re alone and having a hard time swimming. Now you’re on a mission to save their life.

Who are you? You’re a member of the U.S. Coast Guard. And you’re this person’s only chance of surviving.

Grave Danger

Grave Danger

The Coast Guard is part of our country’s armed forces. Members of the Coast Guard have many responsibilities. Your job is to find and rescue people in danger at sea. 

Every year, thousands of people find themselves in an ocean emergency. Swimmers get swept away in powerful waves. Fishers can get caught in deadly storms. And deep-sea divers sometimes end up lost and far from their boats. Miles from land, these people are in grave danger.

That’s where you come in. Your team rides in helicopters and boats to help others when no one else can. 

The Coast Guard is part of our country’s armed forces. Members of the Coast Guard have many responsibilities. Your job is to find and rescue people in danger at sea. 

Every year, thousands of people end up in an ocean emergency. Swimmers get lost in strong  waves. Fishers can get caught in deadly storms in the ocean. And deep-sea divers sometimes end up lost and far from their boats. These people are miles from land. They are in grave danger.

That’s where you come in. Your team rides in helicopters and boats. You help others when no one else can.

Courtesy of La’Shanda Hawkins

Meet a Coast Guard Commander!  

Commander La’Shanda Hawkins has been a pilot in the Coast Guard for 19 years. “It’s a big, wide ocean out there,” she says. “It can be difficult and dangerous to find people, especially at night. But you put yourself at risk to make sure people make it back to their families safely.”

Long and Challenging

Long and Challenging

Luckily, you’re prepared for these kinds of situations. You went through an eight-week training program. It took place in Cape May, New Jersey. 

Your days were long and challenging. You swam for hours. You ran for miles. You practiced saving people from drowning and jumping out of helicopters. Most importantly, you learned to follow directions from your commander and work as a team.

Emergencies can happen at any time. That’s why the Coast Guard’s motto, Semper Paratus, is so important. It means “Always ready” in an old language called Latin.

Luckily, you’re prepared for these kinds of situations. You went through an eight-week training program. It took place in Cape May, New Jersey.

Your days were long and challenging. You swam for hours. You ran for miles. You practiced jumping out of helicopters and saving people from drowning. Most importantly, you learned to follow directions from your commander and work as a team.

Emergencies can happen at any time. That’s why the Coast Guard’s motto is so important. It is Semper Paratus. It means “Always ready” in an old language called Latin.

Stocktrek Images/Getty Images

Fast and Mighty 

The Coast Guard uses many types of ships and helicopters. Small boats called cutters zip through storms for rescues. The largest ships are called icebreakers. They chop up giant blocks of ice in the ocean so other boats can pass through.

Keeping Us Safe

Keeping Us Safe

Back in the helicopter, you’ve located the swimmer. But time is running out. The only way to save this person? You must jump 20 feet into the waves below! 

Shivers run down your spine as you gaze at the freezing water. You’ve trained for this though. You pull on your orange life vest. Then you leap! 

Wham! You hit the water. It feels like a brick wall. You gasp for air as you swim through the waves. You reach the swimmer just in time. They are barely keeping their head above water!

Seconds later, your teammates lower a rope for you. You clip it to your life vest and hold on to the swimmer. Then your team pulls you both up to the helicopter. Together you fly to safety. Phew! 

Serving in the Coast Guard is hard work. The ocean can be dangerous—and anything can happen. Luckily, members of the Coast Guard are there to keep us safe. As their motto says: They’re always ready. 

You’re back in the helicopter. You see the swimmer. But time is running out. The only way to save this person is to jump 20 feet into the waves below! 

Your body gets the chills. You look down at the freezing water. You’ve trained for this though. You pull on your orange life vest. Then you jump!  

Wham! You hit the water. It feels hard like a brick wall. You gasp for air as you swim through the waves. You reach the swimmer just in time. They are barely keeping their head above water!

Seconds later, your teammates lower a rope for you. You clip it to your life vest and hold on to the swimmer. Then your team pulls you both up to the helicopter. You fly to safety together. Phew! 

Being a Coast Guard member is hard work. The ocean can be dangerous. Anything can happen. Luckily, members of the Coast Guard are there to keep us safe. As their motto says: They’re always ready. 

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Special Tools 

Coast Guard members use life vests to help people float during a rescue. Radios allow them to communicate with each other. And if an emergency happens in the dark? They use night-vision goggles to see!

THINK AND WRITE

Imagine you’re a member of the Coast Guard. Using details from the article, write a letter describing a search and rescue mission.

THINK AND WRITE

Imagine you’re a member of the Coast Guard. Using details from the article, write a letter describing a search and rescue mission.

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Can't Miss Teaching Extras

Meet other women with incredible jobs in “Journey Inside a Volcano” and “A Day in Death Valley.” In these Time Machine articles, you’ll meet a volcanologist and a park ranger! 

Go on another daring mission—except instead of the ocean, you’re heading to space! Read “Mission to the Moon!” to learn about what it would be like to be a member of NASA. 

For another thrilling adventure out at sea, read “Don’t Pet This Shark,” a Mini Read about a woman who gets dangerously close to sharks in an effort to save them. 

Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
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Table of Contents

1. Preparing to Read

2. Close Reading

3. SEL Focus

4. Skill Building and Writing

5. Differentiate and Customize

Struggling Readers, Multilingual Learners, Advanced Readers, Creative Writing

1. Preparing to Read

Set a Purpose for Reading

  • Ask students to predict what this article will be about based on the headline and subhead on page 16 and the images on pages 16-17. Review the predictions after reading.

  • To provide your students with helpful background information about veterans and the armed forces, play the video “Thank You, Veterans!” 

Preview Text Features and Vocabulary

  • Before reading, point out the terms fierce (strong), struggling (having a very difficult time doing something), grave (extremely serious), commander (a person in charge of a group or team), and gaze (look at something for a long time) and review their definitions. Go over any other vocabulary terms that may be challenging for your students.
  • Point out the illustration on pages 16-17. Ask students to call out any details they notice about this image. 

2. Close Reading

  • Read the article as a class or have students follow along as they listen to the audio Read-Aloud.
  • Project or assign the Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions.
  • You may challenge students to either underline or highlight any details that are specific (or unique) to the particular time or place visited in the Time Machine.

Close-Reading Questions

  • Read the opening section. Where are you and why? You are in the back of a helicopter as it flies over the ocean. You’re there because you’re a member of the U.S. Coast Guard. You just responded to an emergency call and are going to try to save someone who is struggling to swim. (setting)
  • What is the Coast Guard? Describe one of its jobs. The Coast Guard is part of our country’s armed forces. One of its jobs is to find and rescue people in danger at sea. (main idea)
  • Read the section “Long and Challenging.” Explain how members of the Coast Guard train for ocean emergencies. Members of the Coast Guard train for ocean emergencies by going to an eight-week training program in Cape May, New Jersey. They have long days where they swim and run for hours. They practice jumping out of helicopters. They learn to save people from drowning and follow directions from a commander. (key details)
  • Read the section “Keeping Us Safe.” How do you help the struggling swimmer? You help the struggling swimmer by jumping out of the helicopter into the ocean 20 feet below you. You hold on to the swimmer as your teammates lower a rope for you. You clip the rope to your life vest. Your teammates pull you both safely up to the helicopter. (problem and solution)
  • Read the photo caption “Meet a Coast Guard Commander!” Why do you think the author included this information in the article? Answers will vary but may include: The author included this information to show a real member of the U.S. Coast Guard. The quote helps me understand what it would be like to rescue people at sea and fly a helicopter. (text features, author’s purpose)
  • Read the photo caption “Fast and Mighty.” Compare and contrast the two Coast Guard ships mentioned. Cutters are small ships that can move quickly through storms. Large ships called icebreakers can chop up giant blocks of ice in the ocean so other boats and ships can travel. Both of these are used by the Coast Guard for important missions. (compare and contrast, text features)

Critical-Thinking Question

  • Would you want to visit a U.S. Coast Guard search and rescue mission? Use details from the article to support your answer. Answers will vary. Sample responses: Yes, because it would be very exciting. I would get to see Coast Guard members use their training to try to save someone’s life. No, because it would be extremely dangerous. I might have to travel in dangerous storms or jump out of a helicopter. (supporting an opinion)

3. Skill Building and Writing

Featured Skill: Knowledge Building

  • Discuss the writing assignment in the Think and Write box on page 18. Our online skill builder will show students how to complete the paragraph.
  • Distribute our Where Should We Go Next? Skill Builder and have students complete it in class or for homework.

Text-to-Speech