“Two Days in May” by Harriet Peck Taylor Theme 2 – City Wildlife

Genre: Realistic Fiction A realistic story is about realistic (could happen in real life, but they aren’t real) people, things, and events. The plot-including events, problem, solution-is made up (fictional). This story is based on a real incident.

Summary Sonia and her father, together with a group of their neighbors, launch a peaceful protest to help five deer that have wandered into the city in search of food.

Background Information Deer are wild animals that eat grasses and berries to survive. As more and more buildings and roads are being built, the deer have fewer places to live and find food.

Key Concept protecting animals

Key Vocabulary does bucks territory relocates organization population

does female deer

bucks male deer

an area belonging to a group territory an area belonging to a group

moves to a different place relocates moves to a different place

a group; association; society organization a group; association; society

The total number of inhabitants of a given area population The total number of inhabitants of a given area

Asking Questions You will use this strategy while you are reading to help you focus your attention on what you are reading. This strategy will engage you in deeper understanding of: themes concepts ideas

Strategy Focus: Asking Questions Let’s try it! Strategy Focus: Asking Questions Read pages 73-78. Who are the main characters so far? ~or~ Why is Papa taking charge of this problem?

Comprehension Skill Focus: Cause and Effect When you identify cause and effect you decide what causes events to happen or what causes characters to behave in certain ways, which helps readers put together logical explanations in the text. The effects are what happened and the causes explain why it happened. Writers use clue words, called casual indicators to establish their relationships: - because - therefore - since - so

Graphic Organizer Problem: The deer are in the city. Fill in the organizer with details from the story. Problem: The deer are in the city. Do you agree with how the characters solve the problem? Yes, when…. No, when... _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________

Meet the Author Harriet Peck Taylor is both a writer and an artist. Her special interests are animals and Native American folklore. As a result, her children's books are often Native American folktales about animals. Since college, Harriet Peck Taylor has been an artist. Her batik artwork is shown in galleries as well as in public locations. She has done the art for greeting cards, T-shirts, wallpaper, fabrics, and CD covers. This author/illustrator loves the outdoors. On hikes in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, her two dogs often walk with her. For a while, a young coyote would follow them on their walks. It would sometimes stop to howl, and Harriet Peck Taylor began to howl back. Their "chats" went on for several months. Once, the coyote even got near enough to touch noses with the dogs! Tracking animals is one of Harriet Peck Taylor's hobbies. She never bothers the animals, but watches them simply for the joy it brings her. She tracks bears in summer and fall, and mountain lions and other animals in winter. "The snow always has a story to tell," she says. (from www.eduplace.com)