1. Unit 1, Week 2 A Walk in the Desert
O’Neal Elementary
4th Grade

2. Vocabulary shimmer: to shine with a faint, wavering light; glimmer
eerie: strange in a scary way
lurk: to lie hidden
swallow: small birds having a slender body and a forked tail
climate: the average weather conditions of a place or region through the year
silken: made of silk; a silk like appearance
lumbering: moving in a slow, clumsy way

3. Vocabulary: Words in Context
shimmer, eerie, lurk, swallows, climate,
silken, and lumbering
The lizard eyes the insect, chews it, then _____ it.
The desert _____ can be hard on plants and animals.
We heard the _____ call of the coyote in the night.
As we took a nocturnal walk, we sensed that animals could ____ in the nearby shrubs.
At dawn, the sunlight made the clouds ____.
Weighted down by our packs, we began our _____ walk across the landscape.
The dew-covered spider web had a _____ look.

4. Vocabulary: Context Clues
Sometimes the meaning of an unfamiliar word can be found by looking at surrounding words in the same sentences. The meaning of those surrounding words can be clues.

5. Vocabulary Context Clues: Surrounding Words
Find the clue in each sentence that helps define the underlined words.
The nest protects the wood rat from foxes, hawks, and other predators.
Many desert animals are nocturnal and come out of their shelters when the sun goes down.
The flickering light of the campfire casts unsteady shadows around camp.
In some climates, land becomes so drenched in summer that grassy areas turn into swamps.

6. Vocabulary: Story Words
biome: a community of living things
survival: life
saguaro: a type of cactus that is tall and has few branches
nocturnal: staying awake at night and sleeping during the day
crevices: narrow cracks

7. Fluency Repeated Reading: Tempo
Choral reading is a good way to practice tempo.
Tempo is appropriate to use when reading a passage where there may be unfamiliar words.
Let’s practice moderately slow tempo with the passage below:
Sunbeams are flickering over the landscape as the sun rises. A kit fox heads for her den as another day in the desert begins.
Deserts are surrounded by other kinds of landscapes. Scientists call these different land zones biomes.

8. Phonics Decode Words with Long a
In words with long /a/ sounds, the long /a/ sound can be spelled several different ways. Examples of words with long /a/ spelled with a-consonant-e include face. Words with long /a/ spelled as ay include clay. Words with long /a/ spelled ai include sail.
Read the following word aloud then underline the spelling for long /a/.
pale claim crate clay bail stray

9. Phonics Sort Decode Words with Long a
Sort the following words by how the long /a/ sound is spelled: interface, mistakes, replay, remain, giveaway, proclaim, and fabricate
a-consonant-e ay ai

10. Phonics Games Decode Word Long a
a-consonant-e
Ice Cream Cake ay
A Birthday on Monday ai
Daisy the Brainy Snail

11. Comprehension Summarize
A summary is a retelling of the most important facts, ideas, and events in a text. A summary should be in your own words.
Summarize as You Read

12. Comprehension Main Idea and Details
Main Idea is the most important point of a paragraph or entire nonfiction text. Supporting details are statements that help prove the point or explain the main idea.
Main Idea
Main Idea and Supporting Details

13. Reflection: Day 1
What is the meaning of silken? What context clues from Living in Alaska helped you define the word? Use two details or examples from the story to support your answer.

14. Reflection: Day 2
Read the title and preview the illustrations to A Walk in the Desert. What different kinds of desert creatures will be discussed? Predict what you think A Walk in the Desert will be about. How does the illustrations help you understand the story?

15. Reflection: Day 3
Use details from the A Walk in the Desert to retell the main idea and important details.

16. Reflection: Day 4
List some things you learned from reading A Walk in the Desert. How might this information help you in the future?

17. Reflection: Day 5
Write a Cinquain to describe an animal. Think about how the animal survives. Choose colorful words that paint a picture.
Features of a Cinquain
It contains five lines.
It states the subject on line one in two syllables.
It describes the subject on line two in four syllables.
It has action words on line three in six syllables.
It concludes on line five in two syllables.

18. Home to School Connection
The desert is a very interesting environment. This week our class is reading A Walk in the Desert. The main idea is how different plants and animals make the desert their home. Details, or facts, tell me all about the main idea. Did you know that a cactus can live 200 years?