Module Lessons / Grade 3: Module 2: Unit 2: Lesson 5

Close Reading Guide: “The Glass Frog”

(For Teacher Reference)

RI.3.1, RI.3.3, RI.3.4, RI.3.5, RI.3.7, RI.3.8, L.3.1, L.3.4, L.3.1i, L.3.4b, L.3.4c, L.3.4d

Time: 50 minutes

Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
  1. Put your finger on the first sentence in this paragraph and read it out loud. According to the text, what is amazing about the glass frog’s body? (RF.3.4, RI.3.1)
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  • Pair up students. Throughout this close read, students will work in pairs to discuss answers to the questions you ask. Use various strategies to have them respond, such as cold calling, selecting volunteers, or responding chorally as a group.
  • Remind students that they read this text for gist in Lesson 4. Explain that today they will reread this section closely to learn what makes the glass frog unique. Read through “The Glass Frog” on pages 32–33 once aloud for the whole group. Tell students to read along silently in their heads.
  • Invite students to reread the text at the top of page 32 with their partner.
  • Ask:
“What is the title of this section? What do you notice about the way the words were printed in the title?” (Invite students to chorally respond by saying the title of the section. The word glass is outlined, and the words the and frog are printed in bold.)
“Think about what glass means. Why might the writers have decided to outline this word?” (to make it stand out from the other words in the title; to show that glass is something you can see through)
Look carefully at the photograph on this page. What is the connection between the frog in the photograph and the way the word glass is written? (They’re see-through.)
  • Ask Question 1. Invite students to chorally read the first sentence and find the sentence on their Close Reading: “The Glass Frog” note-catcher. Use a total participation technique to invite responses from the group. (their see-through body)

Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
  • Invite students to find the phrase see-through body on their note-catcher.
  • Ask:
“What does see-through mean? How do you know?” (to see in one side and out the other)
“What can you think of that is see-through?” (glass, clear plastic, window)
“Look at the picture on page 32. What can you see through the glass frog’s body?” (leaves, whatever the glass frog is on)
“What does blends in mean?” (looks like)
“What familiar word do you see in surroundings? What do you think surroundings are?” (surround; things that surround you, things all around you)
“What helps the glass frog blend in with its surroundings?” (its see-through body)
“How does being see-through help the glass frog blend in perfectly with its surroundings?” (It helps the glass frog look like whatever it is sitting on.)
  1. Put your finger on the second sentence in this paragraph and read it out loud. According to the text, what does the glass frog use to hang on to leaves? (RF.3.4, RI.3.1)
  2. What is unique about how the glass frog looks? (RI.3.1, RI.3.3)
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  • Ask:
“Reread the sentence silently. Why is the frog called the glass frog?” (Its body is see-through like glass.)
  • Ask Question 2. Invite students to find the sentence in their texts and chorally read it. Use a total participation technique to invite responses from the group. (tiny, round-ended toes)
  • Ask:
“Look at the picture on page 32. Put your finger on the glass frog’s tiny, round-ended toes. Describe what the toes look like on the leaf.” (It’s hard to see the toes; the toes blend in with the leaf.)
“Find the phrase seem almost to melt into the leaf surface. What things can you think of that melt? What happens when they melt?” (chocolate and cheese when they are heated become liquid rather than solid, plastic when it is heated)
Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
“Are the frog’s toes actually melting into the leaf? What words in the sentence make you think so?” (no; seem almost to)
“What does the phrase seem almost to melt into the leaf surface tell us about the frog’s toes?” (The toes look like they’re melting onto the leaf because they are so tiny and clear.)
“How might “blend[ing] in perfectly with its surroundings” and having toes that “seem almost to melt into the leaf surface” help the glass frog to survive?” (Glass frogs seem to melt into their surroundings because they blend in so well. This helps them survive because they are able to hide from predators by blending in.)
“In this section, what adjectives do the writers use to describe the glass frog?” (see-through body; tiny, round-ended toes) “What similarities do you notice in the adjectives see-through and round-ended? How could this help you to figure out what these words mean?” (They both have hyphens; you can think about what each word on either side of the hyphen means.)
“What do all of these adjectives help you understand?” (what the glass frog looks like)
“Add these words to the Words Describing the Glass Frog box on your note-catcher.”
  • Ask Question 3. (Its body is see-through like glass; this helps it to blend in with its surroundings.)
  • Invite students to find the box with “What is unique about how the glass frog looks?” on the second page of their note-catcher and to draw and label a picture showing this in this box.
  • Remind students that they are rereading this section closely to learn about what makes glass frogs unique.
  • Direct their attention to the circle on the bottom left corner of page 33, beginning with “Most glass frogs …,” and invite students to reread the text in the circle with their partner.
  • Ask:
“According to the text, where do most glass frogs live?” (the rain forest canopy)
Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
“What clues in the text can help you figure out what the rain forest canopy is like?”
High up: the words high, height, trees are covered with clouds, frogs must come down to lay eggs
Has tall trees: trees covered with clouds, the word forest in rain forest
Is wet: the word rain in rain forest, clouds, keeps the frogs’ skin moist
“Skim these pages. In what part of the world is the rain forest where most glass frogs live?” (Central and South America)
  • Display a map of the world and show students where Central and South America are. Point out where these continents are in relation to your school’s location. Ask:
“Think about these details. What is a rain forest canopy like?” (Rain forests are like jungles; there are a lot of trees and animals, and they get a lot of rain all year long; the canopy is the top layer of trees in the rain forest.)
  • Invite students to chorally read the sentence starting with “At such height ...” and then to find the sentence on their Close Reading: “The Glass Frog” note-catcher. Ask:
“Where might you split this sentence—draw a line to how the two parts of the sentence?” (before the word and)
  • Read the first part of the sentence aloud: “At such a height, the trees are covered with clouds all year round.” Ask:
“Underline the word that helps us understand why the trees are covered with clouds. Why are the trees covered with clouds?” (height; they are so high up)
“Read the second part out loud: ‘and the frogs’ skin is kept nice and moist.’ What is kept moist?” (the frogs’ skin)
“What keeps the frogs’ skin moist?” (the clouds)
“What do you know about clouds that would explain how they keep the frogs’ skin moist?” (They’re wet; rain comes from them.)
“Reread the sentence silently and then explain it to your partner.” (The trees where the frogs live are so tall, they are covered with clouds. The clouds are wet, so they keep the frogs’ skin moist all the time.)
Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
“Think back to the close reading we did during Lesson 2. Why is it important for frogs to keep their skin moist?” (They breathe through their skin if it is damp.)
  1. What is unique about where the glass frog lives? How does this help the glass frog to survive? (RI.3.1, RI.3.3)
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  • Ask Question 4. (It lives in the rain forest canopy, in the tops of the trees; this is unique because frogs need to live partly in water; the trees they live in are covered by clouds because they are so tall, and the clouds keep the frogs’ skin moist, which keeps them from drying out.)
  • Ask students to find the box with this question on the second page of their note-catcher and draw and label a picture showing this in this box.
  • Remind students that they are rereading this section closely to learn about what makes glass frogs unique.
  • Direct students’ attention to the yellow column on the right side of page 33. Invite them to look at the first picture and reread the text under it with their partner, starting with “Glass frogs are.…”

  1. Put your finger on the first sentence in this caption and read it out loud. According to the text, where do most glass frogs lay their eggs? (RF.3.4, RI.3.1)
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  • Ask:
“According to the text, glass frogs are more what from beneath? What do you think the word transparent might mean? What, in the text, makes you think so?” (transparent; transparent may mean “clear”; the picture shows what a glass frog looks like from underneath, and it looks clear or see-through)
  • Ask students to turn to the glossary on page 78, find the word transparent, and silently read the definition. (clear, see-through) Ask:
“Think about these details. What are other synonyms the writers used for the word transparent on these pages? Discuss your ideas with your partner.” (glass, see-through)
“Add transparent to the Words Describing the Glass Frog box on your note-catcher and to your vocabulary log.”
“Look at the vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart. What strategies did we use to figure out the meaning of the word transparent?” (used the context of the sentence, used the glossary, thought about synonyms for the word)
Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
  • Invite students to look at the second picture in the yellow column and reread the text under it with their partner, starting with “Glass frogs lay.…”
  • Ask Question 5. Invite students to chorally read the sentence, starting with “Glass frogs lay ...,” and then to find the sentence on their Close Reading: “The Glass Frog” note-catcher.
  • Invite students to think to themselves about where most glass frogs lay their eggs. Cold call students to share their responses. (on leaves that overhang running water)
  • Ask:
“What does the phrase running water tell us about the water?” (the water is moving, like in a stream or river)
  1. What familiar words do you see in overhang that can help you figure out its meaning? Put a line between them. (L.3.4c)
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  • Ask Question 6 and invite students to find the word overhang on their note-catcher. Ask students to think to themselves about what familiar words they see, and then cold call students to share their response. (over, hang)
  • Ask:
“Look at the vocabulary strategies on the Close Readers Do These Things anchor chart. Which strategy would be most effective in determining the meaning of the word overhang?” (breaking it into word parts; looking at the prefix for clues)
  1. Think about these details. Describe where the leaves glass frogs lay their eggs on are in relation to the water. (RI.3.3)
  1. According to the text, where are glass frogs before they lay their eggs? (RI.3.1)
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  • Point to the prefix over- and ask students to popcorn out any other words with this prefix (overlap, overcoat). Record the words on the board.
  • Use a total participation technique to invite responses from the group. Invite students to retrieve their affix lists if they need to:
“What do you think over- means based on how it is used in each of these words?” (above)
  • Record on a table drawn on the board as follows:

Prefix / Root
over-
(above) / hang
Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
  1. Reread the sentence silently. In your own words, where do glass frogs lay their eggs? (RI.3.1)
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  • Ask:
“What does the word overhang mean?” (hang above)
  • Ask Question 7 (The leaves hang above the water.)
  • Ask:
“Describe the second picture in the yellow column. How does this picture add to your understanding of glass frogs?” (It shows a glass frog sitting by eggs; it shows how the frog and eggs are transparent and blend in with the leaf they are on.)
  • Ask Questions 8 and 9:
Question 8: (in the canopy; they come down from the canopy to lay their eggs)
Question 9: (Glass frogs lay their eggs on leaves that hang above moving water.)
  • Invite students to find the box with the question “Where do glass frogs lay their eggs?” on the second page of their note-catcher and to draw and label a picture showing this in this box.

Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
LANGUAGE DIVE / Throughout the Language Dive:
  • Encourage rich conversation among students about the meaning of each of the sentence strip chunks, what the academic phrases within each chunk mean, and how they relate to the sentence and the text overall. Monitor and guide conversation with total participation techniques and Conversation Cues.
  • After asking questions, provide students up to one minute of think time to reflect, depending on the complexity of the question. Alternatively, invite partners to discuss, providing an allocated time for each student.
  • Record and display student responses next to or underneath the target language for visual reference.
  • Where possible, consider placing sketches, pictures, or illustrations above key nouns and verbs in the chunks after discussing their meanings. This will allow students to quickly access the content of each chunk as they work with the structures in the sentence as a whole.

  1. “What is the meaning of this sentence?”
  1. “How does this sentence add to your understanding of the guiding question?”
/ Deconstruct
  • Invite students to place their fingers by the sentence:
When the tadpoles hatch, they drop down into the water.
  • Invite students to chorally read the sentence aloud with you, then ask them to turn to a partner and take turns reading the sentence aloud.
  • Ask questions #10 and #11. (Responses will vary.)

  1. What is this sentence about?
  1. Is this word a verb or a noun? Why do you think that?
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  • Display and read aloud the following sentence strip chunk: the tadpoles
  • Ask question #12. (tadpoles; polliwogs; the babies of the glass frog)
  • Ask:
“How do you know it is the tadpoles of the glass frog and not another kind of frog?” (It says the, and that means it is the same ones we read about before.)
  • Focus students on the Parts of Speech anchor chart and ask question #15 (Noun. It is a thing)
  • Record this noun in the “Example” column on the Parts of Speech anchor chart. See Parts of Speech anchor chart (example, for teacher reference)
  • Students can wiggle like tadpoles.

Directions and Questions / Teaching Notes
  1. What do the tadpoles do?
  1. Is this word a verb or a noun? Why do you think that
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  • Display and read aloud the following sentence strip chunk: hatch,
  • Ask questions #14–15. (They hatch, or come out of their eggs. Hatch is a verb. I know because it is an action, and verbs are words for actions.)
  • Record this verb in the “Example” column on the Parts of Speech anchor chart. See Parts of Speech anchor chart (example, for teacher reference).
  • Students can put their hands together and pretend they are eggs, then pretend to make them hatch

  1. Can you figure out why the author uses the word when at the beginning of the sentence?
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  • Display and read aloud the following sentence strip chunk, placing it before the first two chunks in the sequence of the sentence: When
  • Ask Question 16. (to tell us about time; the author is going to tell us something else that happens around the same time.)
  • Ask:
“What will the word when tell us about the tadpoles hatching?” (It will tell us about the time that they hatch.)