Reading Strategies Mentor Texts
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Leveled comprehension questions
Teach Teks has hundreds of books for various mentor text purposes. Check it out!
Retelling/Determining Importance
Some Making Connections Mentor Texts
Choose texts on topics that students are likely to have background knowledge of.
Consider texts on familiar topics, so students are more likely to connect new information to what they already know to construct meaning.
RELATING NEW INFORMATION TO KNOWN INFORMATION.
TEXT-TO-TEXT, TEXT-TO-SELF, TEXT-TO-WORLD.
A Day’s Work by Eve Bunting / Grade(s): 3-5 / Summary: A boy and his grandfather work as day laborers. After making a mistake and seeing his grandfather’s reaction, the boy learns a lesson. Teaching Points: text-to-world connections; see also making inferences Level K
Advice to a Frog by Alice Schertle / Grade(s): 3-5 / Summary: Fourteen poems about animals, many with environmental overtones. Teaching Points: text-to-world connections (environmental issues); see also creating sensory images. Level O
Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki / Grade(s): 4-5 / Summary: Narrative story of a boy’s family’s move to and time in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. It carries the reader through a time when baseball unified the group and offered an opportunity for personal growth. Teaching Points: text-to-self connections (teasing, feelings of inferiority), text-to-world connections (Pearl Harbor, immigration issues) Level O
The Basket Moon by Mary Lyn Ray / Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: The story of a young boy whose father makes baskets in a rural community and travels to town to sell them. Teaching Points: text-to-text connections with Ox-Cart Man by Donald Hall; see also creating sensory images; cross-curricular links to social studies Level O
The Cello of Mr. O by Jane Cutler /Grade(s): 4-5 /Summary: First-person narrative of a girl’s life during wartime in a devastated city. The music from her neighbor, “Mr. O,” inspires and gives her courage. Teaching Points: text-to-self connections (fear, worry, perceptions of elderly); text-to-text connections (Old Henry, other war stories); text-to-world connections (no power/ice storm, perceptions of elderly) Level M
Come On, Rain by Karen Hesse/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A young girl and her mother endure the heat of a summer day and wait for the rain to bring relief. Teaching Points: text-to-self connections; see also sensory images Level P
Dad, Jackie, and Me by Myron Uhlberg/ Grade(s): 3-5/Summary: Narrative told from a young boy’s perspective about Jackie Robinson and the integration of baseball. Teaching Points: text-to-text connections with Jackie’s Bat by Marybeth Lorbiecki (different views of the same historical event) Level R
My Ol’ Man by Patricia Polacco/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Patricia and her brother spend the summer with their father and grandmother. When the father loses his job, the family finds hope in a magical rock and later realizes that the magic is always inside them. Teaching Points: text-to-self/world connections (loss of job, struggle to maintain hope) Level N
Every Living Thing by Cynthia Rylant/ Grade(s): 3-5/Summary: Various short stories about animals inspire many connections. For example, in “Papa’s Parrot,” Harry Tillian stops visiting his father’s candy shop as he grows up. Mr. Tillian buys a parrot named Rocky to keep him company. After Mr. Tillian becomes ill, Harry learns an important lesson. Teaching Points: text-to-self/text/world connections Level R
Granddaddy’s Gift by Margaree King Mitchell/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Set in Mississippi in the 1960s, an African-American grandfather volunteers to register to vote. Despite the dangers, he longs for his granddaughter’s life to be better and for her to have more significant opportunities./ Teaching Points: text-to-text connections (use with other books about struggles of African-Americans); see also synthesizing Level O
The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: A young girl is cared for by her grandparents. The family has a special window where she is greeted and waves goodbye. This book demonstrates how special family experiences can create memories that last forever. Teaching Points: text-to-self connections Level K
Lightning by Seymour Simon/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: Lightning is explored through dramatic photographs and vivid descriptions. Kids love this book! Teaching Points: text-to-self/world connections; see also creating sensory images; cross-curricular links to science Level P
The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: The story of relatives visiting from Virginia. Teaching Points: text-to-self connections Level K
Under the Quilt of Night by Deborah Hopkinson and James Ransome/ Grade(s): 4-5/Summary: Beautifully illustrated story about a slave girl who escapes on the Underground Railroad. Teaching Points: text-to-world connections; see also creating sensory images; cross-curricular links to history/social studies Level N
The Wall by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A boy and his father go to the Vietnam Memorial to see their grandfather’s name. Teaching Points: text-to-self/world connections (losses of war, memorial items, wounded veterans, gravestone rubbings) Level N
MORE….
The Pain and the Great One, Judy Blume Level N
Going Home, Eve Bunting Level K
Roxaboxen, Barbara Cooney Level M
Oliver Button is a Sissy, Tomie de Paola Level J
When I Was Your Age: Original Stories About Growing Up, Amy Ehrlich Level U
Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge, Mem Fox Level K
Baseball, Snakes, and Summer Squash: Poems about Growing Up, Donald Graves Level P
Owen, Kevin Henkes Level K
Wemberley Worried, Kevin Henkes Level H
Julius, Baby of the World, Kevin Henkes Level K
Chrysanthemum, Keven Henkes Level L
Amazing Grace, Mary Hoffman Level J
Boundless Grace, Mary Hoffman Level M
My Great Aunt Arizona, Gloria Houston Level M
The Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats Level J
Hey World, Here I Am! Jean Little Level S
Frog and Toad series, Arnold Lobel Level K
All the Places to Love, Patricia MacLachlan Level M
Chicken Sunday, Patricia Polacco Level N
Some Birthday! Patricia Polacco Level M
The Keeping Quilt, Patricia Polacco Level M
Thank You, Mr. Falker! Patricia Polacco Level M
When I Was Young in the Mountains, Cynthia Rylant Level K
Amos and Boris, William Steig Level L
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst Level L
The Tenth Good Thing About Barney, Judith Viorst, Level L
Ira Sleeps Over, Bernard Waber Level L
William’s Doll, Charlotte Zolotow Level L
Also see Inference titles under Literary Devices: Mentor Texts for Literary Devices.
Choose texts that contain some ambiguity in which all information/details are not explicitly stated. Fictional texts with thought-provoking characters and themes work well.
Consider texts that encourage the reader to think about what they know and merge their thinking with clues in the text to infer and deepen their understanding. Wordless picture books work well, too!
COMBINING KNOWN INFORMATION, CLUES FROM THE TEXT, AND THINKING AHEAD TO MAKE A JUDGMENT AND SPECULATE ABOUT WHAT IS TO COME.
A Day’s Work by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A boy and his grandfather work as day laborers. After making a mistake and seeing his grandfather’s reaction, the boy learns a lesson. Teaching Points: text-to-world connections; see also making inferences Level K
A Picnic in October by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 3-5/Summary: A boy and his family make an annual trip to Battery Park to celebrate the anniversary of his grandparents’ immigration to America. Teaching Points: making inferences, especially about characters’ actions and unspoken words; cross-curricular connections to social studies (immigration) Level P
Crickwing by Janell Cannon/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Tired of being bullied, a cockroach with a twisted wing begins picking on smaller creatures. The smaller creatures are not as harmless as they seem, but Crickwing becomes an unlikely hero when they are threatened. Teaching Points: making inferences – character change/development, theme; see also synthesizing Level P
The Dot by Peter Reynolds/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: A girl who thinks she can’t draw makes a single dot. Gradually, her confidence grows, and she becomes more and more successful as an artist. Finally, she shares her wisdom with another child. Teaching Points: making inferences – predicting, character development/change, theme Level K
Dreaming of America: An Ellis Island Story by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 4/Summary: Annie Moore and her younger brothers are separated from their parents when traveling to America. Includes details about immigration through Ellis Island Teaching Points: making inferences; cross-curricular connections to social studies (immigration) Level N
The Gardener by Sarah Stewart/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: During the Great Depression, a young girl leaves her home and lives with her grumpy uncle in the city. She brings a love and knowledge of plants and flowers that transform her city dwelling. In the process, her uncle is changed as well. The story is told entirely through letters sent between the girl and her family. Teaching Points: making inferences – drawing conclusions, character traits/development, using background knowledge to support inferences Level L
Kamishibai Man by Allen Say/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: After retiring for many years, an old Kamishibai Man (Japanese street performer and storyteller) returns to his city to perform again. Teaching Points: making inferences – change in time/flashback Level N
The Lily Cupboard: A Story of the Holocaust by Shulamith Levey Oppenheim/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A young Jewish girl is sent to the country for safety during World War II. Teaching Points: making inferences – character traits/motivation Level N
Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman by Alan Schroeder and Jerry Pinkney/Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A fictionalized account of Harriet Tubman’s childhood. The facts about eight-year-old “Minty” are actual, but the author created some specific scenes. Teaching Points: making inferences – character traits/motivation Level P
Mirette on the High Wire by Emily Arnold McCully/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A girl in London in the 1800s meets a high wire walker and learns to walk the high wire herself. Teaching Points: making inferences – character traits/actions/motivation Level P
Mr. Lincoln’s Way by Patricia Polacco/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A young boy who acts like a bully due to racist views expressed in his home learns to accept and celebrate differences thanks to the intervention of a caring African-American principal and some unique birds. Teaching Points: making inferences – character development, theme Level M
Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna/ Grades(s): 3-5/ Summary: A boy sees his baseball coach take an apple without paying for it and spreads the rumor that his coach is a thief. Once it becomes clear that the coach has not stolen the apple, the boy attempts to undo the harm done by his hasty and false judgment. Teaching Points: making inferences – character traits, theme; see also asking questions Level N
The Royal Bee by Frances Park and Ginger Park/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A young boy wants to learn to read and write, but he must overcome challenges to accomplish this because of his family’s status in Korean culture his goal. Teaching Points: making inferences – the difference between predicting/inferring, meanings of unknown words, theme; see also asking questions Level M
Tight Times by Barbara Shook Hazen/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A young boy whose family struggles financially wishes for a pet dog. Teaching Points: making inferences; see also asking questions Level K
The Wretched Stone by Chris VanAllsburg/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A captain’s record of an extraordinary journey to sea and back. The crew begins as avid readers, musicians, and storytellers, but the wretched stone they find seems to change them. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading; see also making inferences Level L
MORE…
A Table Where Rich People Sit, Byrd Baylor Level O
Dandelion, Eve Bunting Level N
Fly Away Home, Eve Bunting Level M
Oliver Button is a Sissy, Tomie dePaola Level J
Teammates, Peter Goldenbock Level N
Fireflies, Julie Brinkloe Level K
Bull Run, Paul Fleischman Level Y
Creatures of the Earth, Sea, and Sky, Georgia Heard Level L
Fables, Arnold Lobel Level N
George and Martha series, James Marshall Level L
The Rag Coat, Lauren Mills Level N
Tar Beach, Faith Ringold Level P
Where are You Going, Manyoni?, Catherine Stock Level N
Jumanji, Chris Van Allsburg Level M
Zathura, Chris van Allsburg Level M
June 29, 1999, David Weisner Level L
Something Beautiful, Sharon Dennis Wyeth Level L
Choose texts that spark genuine wonder and inquiry. Wordless books work well, too.
Consider texts with an element of ambiguity or texts/topics for which readers lack schema or background knowledge.
ASKING QUESTIONS OF THEMSELVES, THE AUTHOR, AND THE TEXTS TO CLARIFY UNDERSTANDING AND MAKE MEANING. THIS IS THE STRATEGY THAT PROPELS THE READER FORWARD.
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo/Grade(s): 4-5/Summary: A colorful cast of characters surrounds a girl and her new dog. Themes include friendship, self-realization, and maturity. Teaching Points: asking questions, especially generating questions while reading about the setting, the characters’ pasts, and character interactions Level R
Granddaddy’s Gift by Margaree King Mitchell/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Set in Mississippi in the 1960s, an African-American grandfather volunteers to register to vote. Despite the dangers, he longs for his granddaughter’s life to be better and for her to have greater opportunities. Teaching Points: asking questions, especially about character motivation; see also making connections, asking questions, inferring, synthesizing Level O
How Many Days to America? A Thanksgiving Story by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: A Caribbean island family is forced to leave their homeland to escape the war. They sail on an overcrowded fishing boat to America. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading – good for modeling this strategy Level S
I Can Hear The Sun by Patricia Polacco/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: An orphaned boy meets and comes to be loved by a group of lonely people at a bird sanctuary. He begins to care for the geese and has a unique ability with them. Eventually, he “flies away” with them, leaving those left behind filled with hope and wonder. Teaching Points: asking questions about what happened in the story; opportunities for students to debate the powerful but unclear ending and cite evidence from the text to support their ideas . Level P
Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A Native American story about a grandfather who retells the circumstances surrounding his grandson’s birth and early life. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading Level M
The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A young Vietnamese girl saves a lotus seed to remember a brave emperor and her homeland. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading Level N
Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna/ Grades(s): 3-5/ Summary: A boy sees his baseball coach take an apple without paying for it and spreads the rumor that his coach is a thief. Once it becomes clear that the coach has not stolen the apple, the boy attempts to undo the harm done by his hasty and false judgment. Teaching Points: asking questions, especially about truth, reputation, and forgiveness Level N
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: This book follows two teenage boys during the Civil War and is based on a true story. Their friendship blossoms as they deal with injuries, fear, and death. Teaching Points: asking questions about the storyline and language Level S
The Royal Bee by Frances Park and Ginger Park/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A young boy wants to learn to read and write, but he must overcome challenges to accomplish this because of his family’s status in Korean culture his goal. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading Level M
Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: Marty finds a mistreated dog. He cares for the dog in secret but finally deals with the abusive owner to work for him in exchange for the dog. Teaching Points: asking questions, especially about character behavior and motivation Level R
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson/ Grade(s): 4-5/Summary: A young slave girl sews a quilt that shows the Underground Railroad and the route to freedom in the North. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading; see also making inferences; cross-curricular connections to social studies Level S
Tight Times by Barbara Shook Hazen/ Grade(s): 4-5/Summary: A young boy whose family struggles financially wishes for a pet dog. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading; see also making inferences Level K
The Wretched Stone by Chris VanAllsburg/ Grade(s): 3-5/Summary: A captain’s record of an extraordinary journey to sea and back. The crew begins as avid readers, musicians, and storytellers, but the wretched stone they find seems to change them. Teaching Points: asking questions before, during, and after reading; see also making inferences Level L
MORE…
Charlie Anderson, Barbara Abercrombie Level K
Amelia’s Road, Linda Altman Level M
Fly Away Home, Eve Bunting Level M
The Wall, Eve Bunting Level N
The Wednesday Surprise, Eve Bunting Level K
Going Home, Eve Bunting Level K
Honey, I Love, Eloise Greenfield Level M
The Day of Ahmed’s Secret, Florence Parry Heide, and J.D. Gilliland Level M
UFO Diary, Satoshi Kitamura Level J
The Librarian Who Measured the Earth, Kathryn Lasky Level S
The Wise Woman and Her Secret, Eve Merriam Level P
Baseball Saved Us, Ken Mochizuki Level O
An Angel for Solomon Singer, Cynthia Rylant Level P
All I See, Cynthia Rylant Level M
Brave Irene, William Steig Level S
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, William Steig Level N
The Trumpet of the Swan, E.B. White Level R
Dear Napolean, I Know You’re Dead. . .But, Elvira Woodruff Grades 3-5
Choose dense texts packed with information and complex ideas.
Consider texts that require students to get the gist, put information in their own words, and sift out the most important ideas from a sea of facts and information.
Always Remember Me: How One Family Survived World War II by Marisabina Russo/ Grade(s): 5/ Summary: Based on the author’s family history, this book chronicles the events of a Jewish family before, during, and after World War II. Many recreations of primary source materials are included. Teaching Points: summarizing the timeline of events in the main character’s family; using primary source materials Level S
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett/ Grade(s): 3/ Summary: The story of a town where food falls from the sky three times a day. Teaching Points: summarizing – clear sequence and story elements; see also creating sensory images Level M
Diary of a Worm (or Spider) by Doreen Cronin/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A humorous diary of a worm’s experiences. Teaching Points: Summarizing – telling the “gist” of the worm’s experiences as revealed through the diary entries; see also synthesizing Level K
Jumanji by Chris VanAllsburg/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A young boy and girl find a board game. As they begin playing, the events of the game come to life. Teaching Points: summarizing story events Level M
The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq by Jeanette Winter/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: The true story of a librarian’s struggle to save the books in her library from the ravages of war. Teaching Points: summarizing – the difference between retelling and summarizing, elements of a summary Level L
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein /Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: The true story of Philippe Petit’s tightrope walk between the World Trade Center towers in 1974. Teaching Points: summarizing – the difference between retelling and summarizing, elements of a summary Level L
My Name is Georgia by Jeanette Winter /Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A biography of painter Georgia O’Keefe, told from her perspective. Teaching Points: summarizing – text includes clear beginning, middle, and end Level L
Rare Treasure by Don Brown/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A biographical account of the life of paleontologist Mary Anning. Told as a narrative, this nonfiction book follows the life of a woman scientist ahead of her time. Teaching Points: summarizing – the difference between summarizing and retelling; see also synthesizing Level N
Choose texts in which the writer “paints a picture with words.”
Consider texts that include active verbs and specific nouns to show rather than merely tell the story or information.
MAKING PICTURES IN YOUR MIND USING DIFFERENT SENSES ENHANCES UNDERSTANDING.
The Basket Moon by Mary Lyn Ray/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: The story of a young boy whose father makes baskets in a rural community and travels to town to sell them. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; see also making connections; cross-curricular connections to social studies Level O
Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: A classic story of friendship and the circle of life on Zuckerman’s farm. Teaching Points: rich, descriptive language and mature vocabulary for creating sensory images Level P
A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams/ Grade(s): 3/ Summary: A young girl, mother, and grandmother save their spare coins to buy a special chair. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; the text is also helpful for teaching story elements and retelling Level M
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett/ Grade(s): 3/ Summary: The story of a town where food falls from the sky three times a day. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language, images of food are very accessible for students; see also summarizing Level M
Eleanor by Barbara Cooney/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Eleanor Roosevelt’s childhood story. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language about family activities and history Level S
Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz Ryan/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: A young girl spends the day at the beach and uses her five senses to describe her experience. Scientific information is incorporated into the rhyming text./ Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language that appeals to all five senses Level N
Lightning by Seymour Simon/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: Lightning is explored with dramatic photographs and vivid descriptions. Kids love this book! Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; see also making connections; cross-curricular connections to science Level P
Old Black Fly by Jim Aylesworth/ Grade(s): 3/ Summary: Alphabet book about a pesky black fly. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from playful and vivid descriptions Level J
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: One winter night, a father and daughter go out “owling.” Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language that appeals to several senses Level O
Song and Dance Man by Karen Ackerman/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A grandfather tells his grandchildren about his life when he worked in Vaudeville. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language Level O
A Symphony of Whales by Steve Schuch/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: In the winter of 1984-1985, nearly 3,000 beluga whales were trapped in a strait in Siberia. The main character, Glashka, hears the cries of the whales. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; cross-curricular connections to social studies/other cultures Level O
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt/ Grade(s): 5/ Summary: The Tuck family gains eternal life after drinking from a magic spring. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language, prologue, and chapter 1, including examples of figurative language. The text is also helpful for teaching setting (time/place/environment); see also synthesizing Level V
Under the Quilt of Night by Deborah Hopkinson and James Ransome/ Grade(s): 4-5/Summary: Beautifully illustrated story about a slave girl who escapes on the Underground Railroad. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; see also making connections; cross-curricular connections to history/social studies Level N
Who Came Down That Road? By George Ella Lyon/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: A mother and child look at a path near their home and consider the various groups that may have used that path throughout history. Teaching Points: creating sensory images from descriptive language; cross-curricular connections to history/social studies Level N
MORE…
I’m In Charge of Celebrations, Byrd Baylor, Level N
Fireflies, Julie Brinkloe Level K
The Stories Julian Tells, Ann Cameron Level N
Wild, Wild Sunflower Child, Nancy White Carlstrom Level M
James and the Giant Peach, Roald Dahl Grades 3-5
Good Dog Carl, Alexandra Day wordless book
Footprints and Shadows, Anne Westcott Dodd Level M
Home Place, Crescent Dragonwagon Level M
Baby Whale’s Journey, Jonathan London Level P
Dream Weaver, Jonathan London Level N
Hurricane, Jonathan London Level L
The Salamander Room, Anne Mazer Level L
Night in the Country, Cynthia Rylant Level K
Turtle in July, Marilyn Singer Level O
The Napping House, Audrey Wood Level I
All The Small Poems, Valerie Worth Grades 3-5
The Seashore Book, Charlotte Zolotow Level O
Retelling/ Determining Importance
When we Retell, we DETERMINE IMPORTANCE.
Here are some mentor texts for Determining Importance.
Choose a text packed with details so that readers have to sift out the most important information. Children’s magazine articles work well, too!
Consider texts with features such as subheadings to help students locate information quickly.
GOOD READERS DECIDE WHAT INFORMATION IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER AND IS IRRELEVANT TO THE OVERALL MEANING OF THE TEXT.
Through My Eyes, Ruby Bridges Level W
Animal Dazzlers: The Role of Brilliant Colors in nature, Sneed Collard Level U
Mr. Lincoln’s Way, Patricia Polacco Level M
The Graves Family, Patricia Polacco Level P
Chicken Sunday, Patricia Polacco Level N
Mrs. Katz and Tush, Patricia Polacco Level P
Teammates. Peter Goldenbock Level N
Some Synthesizing Mentor Texts
Choose dense texts packed with information and complex ideas.
Consider texts that require students to get the gist, put information in their own words, and sift out the most important ideas from a sea of facts and information.
COMBINING NEW INFORMATION WITH KNOWN INFORMATION TO FORM A NEW INTERPRETATION OR A NEW IDEA.
The Alphabet Tree by Leo Lionni/ Grade(s): 3-4/ Summary: The creation of the alphabet from letters to words to sentences told through nature. Teaching Points: synthesizing – tracking changes in thinking Level K
An Angel for Solomon Singer by Cynthia Rylant/ Grade(s): 5/ Summary: A man who lives in New York longs for the things he can’t have and places from his past. One night he enters a café “where all your dreams come true.” He eventually begins to appreciate and enjoy the things in his life. Teaching Points: synthesizing – changes in thinking Level P
Crickwing by Janell Cannon/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: Tired of being bullied, a cockroach with a twisted wing begins picking on smaller creatures. The smaller creatures are not as harmless as they seem, but Crickwing becomes an unlikely hero when they are threatened. Teaching Points: synthesizing – noticing character change/development; see also making inferences Level P
Diary of a Worm (or Fly or Spider) by Doreen Cronin/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A humorous diary of a worm’s experiences. Teaching Points: Synthesizing – using background knowledge to understand humor; see also summarizing Level K
Gleam and Glow by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: The story of a family forced to flee their war-torn country. The family’s beloved goldfish are left behind, but when they are reunited and return home, they find that the goldfish, like the family, have survived. Teaching Points: synthesizing – finding symbolism Level S
Goin’ Someplace Special by Patricia McKissack/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: Set in segregated Nashville in the 1950s, young Tricia Ann is frustrated by the Jim Crow laws that exclude her from many public places. She is welcome at the public library. Teaching Points: synthesizing – changes in thinking about the importance of libraries/reading, effects of segregation Level M
Granddaddy’s Gift by Margaree King Mitchell/ Grade(s): 3-5/ Summary: Set in Mississippi in the 1960s, an African-American grandfather volunteers to register to vote. Despite the dangers, he longs for his granddaughter’s life to be better and for her to have greater opportunities. Teaching Points: synthesizing – tracking changes in the reader’s understanding of the “gift” as the story unfolds; see also making connections, asking questions, inferring Level O
The Man Who Kept His Heart in a Bucket by Sonia Levitin/ Grade(s): 5/Summary: A young man who keeps his heart in a bucket to protect it from being broken loses his heart in a stream to a beautiful maiden and must figure out how to get it back. He learns that it is useless to him when his heart is in a bucket. Teaching Points: synthesizing – tracking changes in thinking Level S
The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A story of friendship across a racial divide. Teaching Points: synthesizing – finding symbolism as the fence grows in significance, especially in the last line of the text Level M
Rare Treasure by Don Brown/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: A biographical account of the life of paleontologist Mary Anning. Told as a narrative, this nonfiction book follows the life of a woman scientist ahead of her time. Teaching Points: synthesizing – the last page of the book demonstrates that synthesis goes beyond the content of the piece when the reader adds their thoughts or opinions; see also summarizing Level N
Rules by Cynthia Lord/ Grade(s): 5/ Summary: Catherine’s brother David is autistic, and their family revolves around his needs. She is often frustrated and embarrassed by her brother and creates “rules” for him to live by. Teaching Points: good interactive read-aloud to model using multiple comprehension strategies and synthesizing thinking, especially about the author’s message/theme/point of view Level R
Smoky Nights by Eve Bunting/ Grade(s): 4-5/ Summary: The story of a family’s experiences during the Los Angeles riots. Teaching Points: synthesizing – tracking changes in thinking Level P
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt/ Grade(s): 5/ Summary: The Tuck family gains eternal life after drinking from a magic spring. Teaching Points: synthesizing – changes in thinking about living forever; see also creating sensory images Level V
MORE…
Charlie Anderson, Barbara Abercrombie Level K
The Table Where Rich People Sit, Byrd Baylor Level O
The Story of Ruby Bridges, Robert Coles Level O
Oliver Button is a Sissy, Tomie dePaola Level J
The Alphabet Tree, Leo Lionni Level K
Frederick’s Fables, Leo Lionni Level L
Fables, Arnold Lobel Level N
The Rag Coat, Lauren Mills Level N
Tar Beach, Faith Ringgold Level P
Tea With Milk, Allen Say Level O
The Giving Tree, Shel Silverstein Level J
The Story of Jumping Mouse, John Steptoe Level P
Zathura, Chris Van Allsburg Level M
The Wretched Stone, Chris Van Allsburg Level L
Jumanji, Chris Van Allsburg Level M
Two Bad Ants, Chris Van Allsburg Level P
The Devil’s Arithmetic, Jane Yolen Level X
Edited on 08/20/2024
Reference
Book suggestions with paragraph descriptions came from the Wachusett Regional School District when I Googled “Mentor Texts for Reading Strategies.”
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