I Love Guinea Pigs Genre: Expository Nonfiction Author’s Purpose: Inform Skill: Text Structure Compiled by Terry Sams, Piedmont By: Dick King-Smith

Summary   Guinea pigs aren't pigs, although the males are called boars and the females are called sows.  These chubby rodents, originally from South America, make great pets.  They live a long time (for rodents) and they're not fussy.  They eat and "talk" a lot.  And if you treat them well, they can become fond of you.  Are they the perfect pet?  Dick King-Smith, the author of I Love Guinea Pigs, sure thinks so!

Genre: Expository Nonfiction Nonfiction is writing that is based on fact instead of on imaginary events. It is a type of literature that deals with real people, events, and experiences. It explains the nature of something, or tells what something is like. It uses definitions, examples, classifications, and comparisons.

Comprehension Skill - Text Structure Knowing how a piece of text is organized helps the reader to make better sense of the information. Fiction is often organized in the order things happen. Nonfiction can be organized by patterns such as sequencing, cause and effect, fact and opinion, compare and contrast, and main ideas and details.

Comprehension Skill – Review Fact and Opinion A fact is a true statement. Some facts never change. But some facts can change. A fact that can change: The food is hot An opinion is a statement that tells what someone thinks. Opinions also can change.

Practice Text Structure – Fact and Opinion TE 195b Facts Opinions Personal Experience Guinea are pigs rodents. Guinea pigs are such sensible animals. I’ve had hundreds of guinea pigs over the last 50 yeas. They have special front teeth that are great for gnawing. They’re awfully easy to keep, because they aren’t fussy. I used to give my guinea pigs lots of others kings of foods.

Now you Practice – Fact and Opinion TE 195b Statement Fact or Opinions? How Do You Know? They don’t like the cold, of course, or the damp. . . (p.187) Guinea pigs need plenty of food. (p. 189)

Vocabulary Skill - Homographs Homographs are words that are spelled the same and sound the same. They can be pronounced differently. Examples – read – read record present sow – sow record present Homophones (homonyms) are spelled differently but pronounced the same. there – their – they’re your – you’re too – to - two

Literary Device – Onomatopoeia TE 195i Words that imitate the sounds they describe are called onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia makes meaning clearer. Onomatopoeia makes writing livelier and more interesting. Examples: Compare guinea pigs make noises with guinea pigs say putt, chut, and tweet.

Practice Onomatopoeia Go to page 191 to locate words that imitate the sounds guinea pigs make.

Research Skills – Charts/Tables TE 195j When doing research you may find information in charts or tables. Charts and tables show information “at-a-glance” rather than with words. Charts organize information in a way that is easy to follow. A table is a kind of chart that presents information in rows and columns.

Weekly Fluency Check Go to pages 188-189 “I once had a . . .” or Go to page 191, “Another nice. . .” Read with Accuracy – Use your knowledge of word structure to pronounce words correctly. The word cauliflower can be broken down into 4 parts and sounded out. Look for and decode any difficult or many syllabled words in the passage as you read. (The teacher will listen to you read.)

Review How are guinea pigs and pigs alike and different? What does the author think about guinea pigs? How does the author know so much about guinea pigs?

Review 2 What does an owner need to do to make his guinea pig friendly and tame? What does the author want you to remember the most about guinea pigs? Why will the author never forget King Arthur and Beach Boy?

Writing Assignment Write a paragraph explaining what you have learned about guinea pigs from this selection. Be sure to proofread for correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar. You may use the information on the table on Workbook p. 79-80 for information.

More Good Stuff Guinea Pigs Reading Test Spelling Test Interesting Facts More About Guinea Pigs Guinea Pigs Reading Test Spelling Test ABC Spelling Words

Say It! boars fond gnawing sow varieties

More Words to Know ancestors cavy conversation guinea pig rodents

fond loving and liking

boars male pigs or hogs

gnawing biting and wearing away

varieties different kinds, types, or sorts

sow a fully grown female pig

ancestors persons from whom one is directly descended

conversation friendly talk

cavy any of the family of South American rodents

guinea pig a small, fat animal with short ears and a short tail or no tail

rodents any of a group of animals with large front teeth used for gnawing

The dog was gnawing on the shoe.

The dog was gnawing on the shoe.

There are so many varieties of guinea pigs to choose from.

There are so many varieties of guinea pigs to choose from.

These rodents are from the cavy from South America.

These rodents are from the cavy from South America.

The guinea pig males are called bears.

The guinea pig males are called boars.

The ancestors of the guinea pig came from Dutch Guiana many years ago.

The ancestors of the guinea pig came from Dutch Guiana many years ago.

Rats and mice are also rodents.

Rats and mice are also rodents.

The guinea pigs like for you to have a friendly conversation with them.

The guinea pigs like for you to have a friendly conversation with them.

A sow can have babies several times a year.

A sow can have babies several times a year.

Have you ever had a guinea pig for a pet?

Have you ever had a guinea pig for a pet?

Terry is fond of her guinea pig.

Terry is fond of her guinea pig.

Spelling Words Compound Words classroom anyway newspaper something sometimes baseball basketball upstairs myself highway

Spelling Words Compound Words softball weekend classmate doorbell driveway chalkboard earrings nighttime motorcycle downstairs

This Week’s Word Wall Words Click and type your own words for this week:

Let’s review our words. Watch carefully because they will flash on the screen for just a moment. We will clap as we spell the word.

baseball

basketball

upstairs

myself

highway

classroom

anyway

newspaper

something

sometimes

chalkboard

earrings

nighttime

motorcycle

downstairs

softball

weekend

classmate

doorbell

driveway

GREAT JOB!