One way you can make certain you understand the information in a text is to ask and answer questions about it.

Review the questions in the Ask and Answer Questions anchor chart.

A question you can ask before reading is:

• What do I think the text will be about?

To answer the question: I read the title and look for details on the cover. The clues or details in the text and pictures that help you answer the question are evidence.

Why is it helpful to ask questions when you read?

Sometimes you might have trouble paying attention to what you read or don’t understand what you are reading. By asking yourself questions and finding evidence in the text, it will help you think about what you are reading.

Read Aloud: Student Instructions

To practice identifying the central idea, read Clark the Shark (in your online textbook, click Module 1, then click the Contents menu at the top left of your browser, and click the book title).

Before you begin, PREVIEW the text and PREDICT what the text will be about. You may write your prediction down (optional). As you read the story, you can then confirm or reject your prediction.

Read Aloud Steps

• Step 1: Read each question aloud. Pause after each of the page numbers to think about your answer.
• Step 2: Answer the questions aloud with someone. You do not need to write or turn in the answers for this section.

Parent/Guardian: Check the student's responses with the answer key

, Reading: Ask and Answer Questions (1.1.3).

1. p. 17:
1. What is Clark doing in this picture?
2. Why do you think the author wrote the word loved in a different way than the other words in the text?
2. p. 19: The author shows the words Clark says in a different way than other words. Why does the author do this?
3. p. 20:
1. What problem does Clark have?
2. How do you think Clark might solve his problem?
4. p. 22: What is different about how the word starving appears? Why do you think the author shows the word this way?
5. p. 23:
1. How does Clark decide to follow Mrs. Inkydink’s advice?
2. Why does he decide to do this? What does this tell you about Clark?
6. p. 25: How do you know that Clark’s plan is working? Find evidence in the text and pictures that help you answer the question.
7. p. 28: How are Clark and the new kid alike?
8. p. 30: How do Clark’s classmates feel about him now? What evidence shows this?
9. p. 31: What does Clark mean when he tells his mother that there is a time and a place for everything?

Once you have read the whole story, use details from Clark the Shark to answer these questions aloud to someone.

1. What questions did you ask yourself about Clark before, during, and after reading? How did your questions help you understand the story?
2. Why do Clark’s friends stop playing with him? How do you think that makes him feel? Use details in the text and pictures to explain your ideas.
3. Choose one of Clark’s rhyming rules. Explain how it helps him to be a good citizen.