3rd Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for organization of texts around topics for building students’ knowledge. All student reading materials and read-alouds are related by topic in each unit with supportive academic and core vocabulary words identified and emphasized throughout.

Examples of how Units are organized around topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

Unit 3: All of the texts in this unit focus on understanding how the skeletal, muscular, and nervous systems of the human body work. Students are exposed to learning about the various body parts and organs associated with each system. Students will also learn about the difficulties that arise when vision and/or hearing are impaired and how individuals learn to deal with these challenges.

Unit 4: All of the texts in this unit are centered on the topic of the Ancient Roman Civilization. Texts include non-fiction selections describing the historical events and culture of the Ancient Roman civilization, a legend about Romulus and Remus, myths about Roman gods and goddesses, a nonfiction report which is included as part of a fiction piece, a play about Androcles, and image cards showing what Rome looked like.

Unit 5: The nonfiction reader, Adventures in Light and Sound, consists of selections describing the science behind light and sound. Students will read about light sources, shadows, mirrors, reflection, refraction, lenses, and color. They will also learn about the human voice. Students will also read biographies about Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison.

Unit 10 centers around Colonial America and contains 16 lessons. The lessons are made up of historical fiction and informational texts. There is also a script for a “Guest Speaker” from this historical era, as well as poetry.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for containing sets of coherently sequenced questions and tasks that require students to analyze the language, key ideas, details, craft, and structure of individual texts. Similarly structured lessons consistently present core and academic vocabulary words that are analyzed and revisited throughout each unit. Read alouds paired with image cards and independent readings assist students in developing a deeper understanding of key ideas. Language lessons provide opportunities for students to explore word choices and text structure.

Examples from the program that demonstrate this include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Students are introduced to the title of the chapter, the image and caption, the definition of personification, and are asked to give examples of personification. (TG, Unit 1, p.354)
• During read aloud text, students are asked to identify the main idea and supporting details. (TG, Unit 4, p.13)
• After reading, students are asked to make an inference with the question, “The author uses a simile to describe Mercury. Why do you think the author uses fast as a flash to describe Mercury?” (TG, Unit 4, p.88)
• Students work on character descriptions: students share new information learned about their character, make predictions about the actions of their chosen character, and write a description of that character. (TG, Unit 6, p.85)
• Students will describe characters in “Etu, the Hunter” and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events. (TG, Unit 8, p.19)
• Students compare sentences to develop an understanding of sentence structure and variety. “Ask students to vote for the more interesting sentence.” (TG, Unit 9, p.182)
• “Students will determine the main idea of “Plantation Life”; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.” (TG, Unit 10, p 99)
• “Ask students to summarize “Food Chains. Apply: Ask students to identify three terms they have learned (sapling, protect, defense, predator, etc.) and write about one example not mentioned in the text for each of the terms. Extend: Ask students to create a brand new food chain using examples different from the ones in the text.” (TG, Unit 11, p36)

Instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet requirements for coherently sequenced sets of text-dependent questions and tasks that require students to analyze the integration of knowledge and ideas across both individual and multiple texts. Questions and tasks frequently require students to reference the text being studied, and promote students' integrating knowledge and ideas across individual or multiple texts. As evident in the examples below, many questions and tasks focus on recall of specific information. Some questions/tasks ask students to reflect and think more deeply, and some of those offer follow-up questions/activities that require students to cite evidence or justify and defend their thinking.

Examples of text-dependent questions and activities include:

Unit 1

• In “Check for Understanding” the teacher gives students two evaluative questions in the form of “think-pair-share.” The teacher is told that “Answers may vary, but may include the following: Mole and Rat wearing clothes…” The teacher is not given suggestions or direction on how to build on student responses or what key points students should include in their responses. The question addresses an individual text. (TG, Unit 1, p. 34)
• The teacher is given a set of questions to ask in the “Discussing the Read Aloud.” However, it is up to the teacher to evaluate the students’ analysis of the text during this discussion. The opportunity for every student to contribute to the discussion may be limited to time allocated in class.

Unit 2

• There are many examples in Unit 2 of text dependent questions that require students to analyze information. Because the unit centers around “Animal Classification” the text does circle back to previous lessons to build upon the understanding of how animals are classified. For example:
  • “Remind students that in the previous lesson they learned about vertebrates and invertebrates. Ask students what they recall about the lesson” (TG, Unit 2, p. 76)
  • “Review with students the section on Activity Page 3.2 that has been filled in during previous lessons, discussing the characteristics of each vertebrate group. If any spaces in the foldable are still empty, discuss with students what information can be filled in” (TG, Unit 2, p. 288)
• Much of the review takes place through discussion and does not necessarily require students to use their skills and resources to integrate the topic. The Activity book asks students to find main idea and provide supporting details from a reading passage “Choose one paragraph from the reading and complete the diagram.” (AB, Unit 2, p. 49)
• There are suggestions in the activity book to connect the learning, but it is suggested to be done at home and is optional. “Below are some suggestions for activities that you may do at home to reinforce what your child is learning about the classification of animals” (AB, Unit 2, p. 129)

Unit 3

• Each unit contains two “Pausing Points” lessons. During these lessons students are asked to complete one or more tasks that have them reflect and synthesize information that has been learned in several lessons. These lessons are a way for teachers to spend a day “reviewing, reinforcing, or extending the material taught thus far.” An example from Unit 3: “Tell students to look at the ‘W’ section and pick out one or two items they find the most interesting. Then have students write letters to Dr. Welbody and/or Ricardo, asking her/him for information or advice on their chosen items from the ‘W’ section. Students may also share with Dr. Welbody or Ricardo a fact or two they think is interesting about the human body.” (TG, Unit 3, p.162)
• After the read aloud students have to think, pair, share the prompt “Compare and contrast human lungs to fish gills.” (TG, Unit 3, p.21)
• After reading in the student reader, students have to answer the question “What are vertebrae and what do they protect?” (TG, Unit 3, p.53)

Unit 4

• In the student activity book students are asked text dependent questions and after each question students are required to provide the page number of where they found the answer. An example is “How long ago did Rome start growing? Page _____” (AB, Unit 4, p.3).
• After reading, students are asked to answer, “What key ideas did you learn about Roman life and the ancient Romans’ beliefs? What details in the story help support what you learned?” (AB, Unit 4, p.27)

Unit 5

• An optional “Pausing Point” activity for Unit 5 is “Give students a key domain concept or vocabulary such as energy. Have them brainstorm everything that comes to mind when they hear the words, such as physical power, needed by living things to exist, not unlimited, etc. Students will record their response in both words and pictures on the chart paper. Have students do a gallery walk of other groups’ charts.” (TG, Unit 5, p.171).
• In the student activity book students are asked text dependent questions and after each question students are required to provide the page number of where they found the answer. An example is “What determines whether or not you see light waves? Page _____” (AB, Unit 5, p.11).

Unit 6

• Students are given questions to answer in the Activity Book based on selected text. With “Sif’s Golden Hair,” students are asked basic questions (these questions do not support students’ analysis of knowledge and ideas) such as “Who are the main characters in this chapter?” and “Where does this chapter take place?”. The challenging questions include “Why does Odin blame himself for the problems with Loki?” and the students are given a compare/contrast chart to complete. (TG, Unit 6, p. 27)
• Students are given text dependent questions for “Loki’s Punishment.”Examples include “Why did the gods vow to hunt Loki down and punish him?” and “Describe the setting where the gods took Loki to punish him and tell why that setting is important to the chapter.” (TG, Unit 6, p. 91)

Unit 7

• Students are asked to complete a choice board. The choice board includes prompts such as “create a graphic organizer and compare and contrast two ideas in the text.”; “Describe how one of the images in the chapter helps you to understand the text.”; “Write a sentence describing the author’s purpose.”; “Write three new things you learned from the text.” The choice board activity does not provide a rubric. (AB, Unit 7, p. 162, TG, Unit 7, p. 303)
• The teacher is prompted to “Tell students they may use the notes they were taking on Activity Page 2.2 to help answer the questions.” Examples of these types of questions include “What is our solar system?”; “Which four planets form a group closest to the sun?”; “What characteristics do they share?” The teacher is given sample answers, and how the students respond is up to the teacher, whether in a group discussion, on paper or with partners. Student understanding of the text is dependent upon the delivery of the questions. (TG, Unit 7, p. 53)

Unit 8

• “Think-Pair-Share activities engage students in discussion that requires some analysis of the text being read. “Discuss the 5Ws, Who is the explorer in this reading? (Columbus), What is he looking for? (the East Indies), Where did he land? (on one of the islands in the Bahamas, off the coast of North America), When? (in 1492), Why? (to find gold and spices)” (TG, Unit 9, p.42).

• Reading selections are followed by a series of questions that encourage students to analyze the texts. Questions focus on individual texts.
  • “COMP. Inferential. What do you learn about Alemeda on these first pages? How would you describe her external and internal traits?” (TG, Unit 8, p.129)
  • “COMP Inferential. How would you describe Alemeda now? Use words and/or sentences from the text to support your answer.” (TG, Unit 8, p.130)
  • “VOC Evaluative. Why does the author include information about the village? What makes it noteworthy?” (TG, Unit 8, p.130)

Unit 9

• Some writing activities require referencing and analyzing the text. “Opinion Writing: Life as a Sailor- Assignment: Pretend to be a sailor on board John Cabot’s ship. Write a paragraph giving your opinion of whether or not the hardships you face are worth the adventure or glory. Use the examples from the passage that you recorded on Activity Page 9.1A.” (AB, Unit 9, p.96)
• Numerous activities require that students cite examples from an individual text.
  • “Tell students that as they read this chapter, they should record five facts about ‘El Castillo de San Marcos.’” (TG, Unit 9, p.97).
  • “...Ask students to find details from the text describing a Spanish mission in North America from the late 1500s to the 1700s.” (TG, Unit 9, p.176)
  • “Ask students to work together and use the text to write facts about John Cabot and/or Christopher Columbus that could go under the ‘Both’ and/or ‘John Cabot’ headings of the graphic organizer.” (TG, Unit 9, p.202).

Unit 10

• The Unit 10 activity book asks questions directly related to the text and they are required to write the page number of where they found the evidence (AB, Unit 10, p. 27) In many sections in Unit 10 students are also required to list the main idea and find supporting details and examples in the passages (AB, Unit 10, p. 59), (AB, Unit 10, p. 151)
• Many questions are asked during class discussion. Although they are text dependent, they do not consistently require students to cite their evidence. Examples include:
  • “Ask students to read pages 10 and 11 to themselves to find out why the Queen of England and Sir Walter Raleigh wanted the English people to go to the New World” (TG, Unit 10, p. 34)
  • “Have students read pages 26–31 to themselves to find the answer to the question: “What crop did John Rolfe introduce to the colony and why was it important?”(TG, Unit 10, p. 51)

Unit 11

• Unit 11 features an anticipation guide that asks for students to identify true or false statements and then record the page numbers when they research the answers in text; “Anticipation Guide for Living Things and Their Habitats” (AB, Unit 11, p. 1) and one for “Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers” (AB, Unit 11, p. 37)
• There are examples of text dependent questioning happening in the class, but it is unclear if the work is recorded, written or simply discussed in group. It falls under the heading of “Reading Discussion.”
  • “Ask students to read pages 18–19 to themselves to find out the definition of a food chain. (a relationship of living things as food sources for other living things” (TG, Unit 11, p. 35)
  • “What do all living things need to survive? Find the text evidence for this answer” (TG, Unit 11, p. 36)

Instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for questions and tasks that support students’ ability to complete culminating tasks in which they demonstrate their knowledge of a topic through integrated skills (e.g., combination of reading, writing, speaking, listening). Questions within lessons consistently align with or support culminating tasks. Most writing tasks do provide an opportunity for students to integrate thinking and learning from primary texts. Student presentation opportunities are offered, if planning time allows.

Examples of culminating activities include (but are not limited to) the following:

• The culminating task in Unit 2 requires students to write an informational paragraph based upon all of the information they have learned and gathered on Animal Classification. Students complete “animal” webs throughout each lesson and culminates into a written activity at the end of the unit. “Tell students that they have collected a lot of information that is now available to help them with this informational paragraph. Point out the many helpful sources of information: The Animal Classification Foldable (Activity Page 3.2), Brainstorming webs, and Field Journal responses.” (TG, Unit 2, p. 276) In addition to the webs they’ve completed there are other activities throughout the lessons that allow for information to be gathered and ready to use for the culminating paper. “Have students gather their animal papers: animal foldable, animal webs, field journal, and Activity Page 13.3. • Remind students that they have completed the planning and drafting step of the writing process and that today they are going to complete the revising step” (TG, Unit 2, p. 296) “If time permits, have students present their informative writing pieces” (TG, Unit 2, p. 297)
• In Unit 3, a unit assessment serves as a culminating activity. The unit assessment consists of a reading skills assessment where “students will complete an assessment by reading two selections during one sitting and answering comprehension, grammar, morphology, and spelling questions that follow each selection. Students will not read out of their Reader, but rather from Activity Page 14.1, where the selections have been printed.”(TG, Unit 3, p.310) It also includes a fluency assessment and a writing assessment where students “will have an opportunity to reflect on a chapter and system they read about in their book.” (TG, Unit 3, p.314) With this reflection students will be completing Activity Page 14.3 where they have to provide the chapter title, “a description of this system”, “how this system works with other systems”, “a drawing of the system”, and “My star rating-the chapter was…”(AB, Unit 3, p.121-122). Finally, the assessment contains a language portion where “students have to decide what form of the verb is needed and write the correct spelling on their assessment.” (TG, Unit 3, p.314)
• In Unit 4, students must use what they have read throughout the unit to complete the culminating activity. In the culminating activity “students will use their Roman history knowledge to crack the cases listed in this lesson. Students will write extended responses to a prompt that asks them to write opinions about whether architecture or Latin was Rome’s greatest lasting contribution, and will support the opinion with reasons.” (TG, Unit 4, p.314) With this activity the teacher can choose an option to have students complete. In option A “students discuss the passage” with questions like “What is the author’s opinion about the greatest contribution of the Roman Empire? How can you tell?” (TG, Unit 4, p.315) and in option B “students complete a graphic organizer” using activity page 14.3 (TG, Unit 4, p.315).
• For the culminating activity in Unit 5, students write “newspaper articles on either the invention of the telephone or the invention of the incandescent light bulb.” (TG, Unit 5, p.319) To complete this task, students conduct research and use information from their Student Readers, which they have been reading throughout the unit. Additionally, “students will present their newspaper articles in a group setting, speaking clearly and at an appropriate pace, and then answer questions from group members.” (TG, Unit 5, p.324)
• The culminating activity in Unit 10 is writing a narrative story using dialogue. “Explain that to develop characters in a story, writers focus on a description of the characters, their actions, dialogue, and how they interact with other characters.
  • On the board, write the word Description. Explain that descriptions of the character(s) focus on their external characteristics: their outside looks.
  • On the board, write the word Action. Explain that writers explain what characters are doing through their actions. Are they walking to their friend’s house, reading, skiing, or jumping? These are all actions.
  • On the board, write the word 'Interact'. Explain that writers will include multiple characters in a story. The writer can describe a character by writing about how the character acts when with other characters. • Next, write the word dialogue on the board. Explain that we will learn about including dialogue in later writing lesson.
  • Say: ‘Today we are going to focus on description and action.’
  • With a partner, have students work on developing their characters by adding additional information to their description and to the action in the story” (TG, Unit 10, p. 25)
• There is no static culminating task in Unit 11 that brings together all the learning in the lessons, rather instead there are lessons that present a culminating task over several days’ worth of learning: “In this unit, students will create Ecology journals with a partner to summarize, respond to, and apply the knowledge they learn from the readers for the first seven days of the unit. For the last five days, students will work in groups, using information from their journals, to create a presentation on solutions to problems in the environment” (TG, Unit 11, p. 10) “Each journal entry will have three components: ◦ Summarize: Students will be asked to summarize the chapter. You may want to review writing a summary with students. ◦ Apply: Students will be asked to apply concept(s) from the reading to examples from their lives or research” (TG, Unit 11, p. 21)

Instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for a cohesive, year-long plan for students to interact and build key academic vocabulary words in and across texts. A rationale for “maximizing vocabulary acquisition through contextualized, content-based, and constant exposure” is provided in the Program Guide and some recurring strategies supporting vocabulary development are provided throughout the program. While the selected vocabulary words appear to be of value to build knowledge, information about the process and rationale for the selection academic vocabulary words is not provided.

From the Program Guide:

• “In 3rd–5th grade the teacher remains central to vocabulary acquisition—fostering structured and informal discussions and helping students become accustomed to using complex vocabulary in a scaffolded and supported context. These conversations are combined with increasingly independent exposure to complex text. This combination allows students to build up an internal web of vocabulary which has both a common foundation and is unique to the individual. We continue learning words throughout our lives by linking to vocabulary we already understand. The coherent and systematic sequence of knowledge domains gives student a mental encyclopedia of vocabulary and understanding they can access and build upon throughout their lives." (Grades 3-5 Program Guide, p.26)

The words for each unit are unique to that unit’s topic. For example, words in unit 3 are all related to the body and include words such as circulate, appendages, and membrane. The words in unit 4 are all related to ancient Rome and include words such as boisterous, mercenary, and feud, while the words in unit 5 are all centered around the topics of light and sound and include words such as opaque, ultraviolet, and incandescent. The majority of the words on these lists are tier 3 words. They are content and domain specific and critical to understanding the texts. However, one unit does not consistently build upon the next.

Recurring vocabulary instruction information/support:

Each unit begins with a list of “academic and core” vocabulary words (TG, All Units). Throughout the lessons, there are vocabulary charts that point out the tier 2 and tier 3 words with columns for vocab, multiple meanings, and sayings/phrases: (TG, Unit 2, p. 102), (TG, Unit 10, p. 55), (TG, Unit 11, p. 13)

Each lesson introducing vocabulary words provides a brief explanation such as: “The following are core vocabulary words used in this lesson. Preview the words with the students before the lesson. Students are not expected to be able to use these words immediately, but with repeated exposure throughout the lessons they will acquire a good understanding of most of the words. Students may also keep a ‘domain dictionary’ notebook along with definitions, sentences, and/or other writing exercises using these vocabulary words.” (TG, Unit 8, pp.11, 37, 171, 227) While the instructions outline the program goals, no details are provided for the teacher about how to “preview” the words. Some lessons introduce vocabulary with only a list of the words with their definitions. (TG, Unit 9, pp.36, 72, 140, 195, 238, 300)

Excerpt from the Teacher Guide:

• “In this unit, students will focus on two academic vocabulary terms: decide and recommend. By academic vocabulary, we mean words that support reading comprehension and may appear across a variety of materials in language arts and in content areas. These words can be found in textbooks, assignment directions, and assessments. Understanding academic vocabulary may contribute to improved performance on assignments and assessments, as these words appear often in directions to students. These words may appear on end-of-year assessments that third graders may take. Where applicable, we use the words throughout the unit, not just as they might refer to reading selections but also with regard to spelling, grammar, morphology, and comprehension. They may also appear in directions, assessments, spelling lists, and discussion questions, among other places” (TG, Unit 11, p. 4)

While the directions and intent indicate a structure for students to learn, there is little support to implement and support any misconceptions and track growth.

Instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for supporting students’ increasing writing skills over the course of the school year, building students’ writing ability to demonstrate proficiency at grade level at the end of the school year. Most units focus on a specific type of writing and do provide opportunities to incorporate writing skills from previous units. Some opportunities for students to integrate skills through writing are provided through optional activities (Pausing Points). With the exception of rubrics provided for formal written pieces, it is not always clear how teachers are supported to monitor and assess students' writing skill development. While there are many opportunities for students to informally share written responses during lessons, including small-group and partner sharing. Some multi-lesson written projects do provide students with resources and tools for gathering information and rubrics for ensuring that all the key elements of effective writing are addressed.

Examples of writing activities include:

• In Unit 1, students are asked to write an alternative ending to a story from the text. Probing questions to give the students ideas are provided; “…what they think would have happened if it had been summer instead of winter. Would Mole and Rat have gotten lost?” The teacher is told to divide the students into groups and to make sure that each group has a scribe; and the option of having the student include illustrations. The teacher is not instructed to model the expectations. If a student who lacks writing experience is in this class, the student would have misconceptions. (TG, Unit 1, p. 105)

• In Unit 3, lessons build so that by the end of the unit students are able to complete an independent formal writing piece. Specific writing instruction is taught in lessons 1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11. The unit culminates when students are asked to write a short informative/explanatory reflection piece about a chapter “they read in this unit that described the systems of the body” (TG, Unit 3, p.314). With this piece students have to include a “title, description of this system, how this system words with other systems, a drawing, and my star rating” (AB, Unit 3, p.121-122).

• Unit 5 contains specific writing instruction in lessons 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14, 15, and 16. Each of these lessons reinforces a writing skill that was taught in a previous unit. For example, students “will be writing a letter to their partner explaining what they learned in the chapter and what they still need help understanding” (TG, Unit 5, p.132). This activity provides students with additional practice in writing informative/explanatory texts. The formal writing assignment in this unit consists of students creating a “newspaper article on the invention of the telephone or the incandescent light bulb” (TG, Unit 5, p.282). This activity is scaffolded so that students first learn about the parts of a newspaper, then plan for their article, and finally write their article.

• In Unit 6, students begin the drafting stage of a short narrative piece. The teacher is instructed to “ask students to describe the main elements of the paragraph…” The teacher then is instructed to have the students to begin their draft.” The teacher is asked to “Remind them that a paragraph includes a topic sentence, details to support the topic sentence, and a concluding sentence.” No instructions are provided for the teacher for addressing students who do not have an understanding of topic and concluding sentences. (TG, Unit 6, p. 118)

Instructional materials reviewed for Grade 3 meet expectations for including a progression of research activities that support the Grade 3 standards. The structure of units focusing on one topic each does support enhanced student understanding and knowledge development around the unit materials. Text materials, however, are typically only those provided as read-alouds, provided in the student reader, and provided in the student activity book. Other materials are sometimes referenced, but it is typically left to the teacher to procure those resources. There is inconsistent guidance for teachers to identify where and how students may struggle and support for what they can do next, although the component practices students engage in over the year meet the expectations of research for Grade 3. Pausing Point lessons frequently provide additional activities including research elements, but those activities are optional.

Examples of activities involving aspects of research include (but are not limited to) the following:

“The formal writing piece for the Animal Classification unit is a short, informational writing piece that focuses on organizing and communicating characteristics and classification of one specific vertebrate. Students learn to introduce a topic, group related information together, and provide supporting ideas, facts, and details. The project can be done with or without the use of technology, but having students use computers to research, write, and publish their projects is highly recommended” (TG, Unit 2, p. 3)

“For the ‘W’ section, you may choose to allow students to conduct research to answer some of the questions they have about the human body that have not been answered. Refer to the list of recommended resources provided in the Introduction” (TG, Unit 3, p.161).

At the end of the unit, students are writing opinion essays and they can support “the opinion with reason and facts gathered from reading and/or research during the unit” (TG, Unit 4, p.324).

Students are reading their student reader and “conducting research and recording information in their Activity Page 7.1 Lab Notes like real scientists do” (TG, Unit 5, p.142). This research practice comes from their student reader, not from outside source materials.

“If possible, students should spend at least one class session in a computer lab to find information for their research writing project…If you cannot secure computer time, students may find information in Adventures in Light and Sound and in additional classroom resources and materials you gathered from your school library” (TG, Unit 5, p.298)

Students are sometimes asked to consider multiple sources, but sources are typically only those provided in the program materials, such as in the following example: “Tell students that they will be creating an expedition log to help them remember important information they learn in this domain. Tell students that page 1 of the journal will be about Christopher Columbus and his voyages. Have students use the information heard in the first two read-alouds and the images from the read-aloud to help them remember details about Christopher Columbus and answer the questions on Activity Page 3.1 independently.” (TG, Unit 9, p.71)

Optional Pausing Point activities provide more structure, practice, and application of research skills. Some examples include:

“Give students the opportunity to research how they can take care of their bodies. They may research what a well-balanced diet should consist of, and the types of exercises they can do on their own. Allow students the time to share their findings within a group or to the class. Refer to the recommended resources in the introduction” (TG, Unit 3, p.307).

“Remind students that they heard that the Native American people in the southwest had to find ways to grow crops in an arid climate. Using a globe or map, ask students to identify other regions or countries in the world where farmers also have to irrigate their crops in order to grow them. Have students use an encyclopedia, textbook, or computer with Internet access to research and write a paragraph about how people in that region or country find ways to overcome the shortage of water. Students may also be asked to draw a map of the region or country they choose to write about.” (TG, Unit 8, p.160)