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6 Thwap! A lump of potatoes and gravy hits me square in the center of my chest. All conversation stops as the entire lunchroom gawks, my face burning into their retinas.
I will be forever known as “that girl who got nailed by potatoes the first day.” The Basketball Pole apologizes and says something else, but four hundred people explode in laughter and I can’t read lips. I ditch my tray and bolt for the door.
7 I motor so fast out of the lunchroom the track coach would draft me for varsity if he were around. But no, Mr. Neck has cafeteria duty. And Mr. Neck has no use for girls who can run the one hundred in under ten seconds, unless they’re willing to do it while holding on to a football.
8 Mr. Neck: “We meet again.”
9 Me:
10 Would he listen to “I need to go home and change,” or “Did you see what that bozo
did”? Not a chance. I keep my mouth shut.
11 Mr. Neck: “Where do you think you’re going?” 12 Me:
13 It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say.
14 Mr. Neck makes a note in his book. “I knew you were trouble the first time I saw you. I’ve taught here for twenty-four years and I can tell what’s going on in a kid’s head just by looking in their eyes. No more warnings. You just earned a demerit for wandering the halls without a pass.”
Second Read
• Reread the narrative to answer these text-dependent questions.
• Write any additional questions you have about the text in your Reader/Writer Notebook.
1. Key Idea and Details: Who is narrating the story? What textual evidence supports your answer?
The narrator is a girl who is a freshman in high school. Textual evidence includes “I know enough not to bring lunch on the first day of high school.” and “I will be forever known as ‘that girl who got nailed by potatoes the first day.’” RL.9–10.1
2. Key Ideas and Details: The narrator’s observations are sarcastic and humorous. Do they reflect her true feelings about others? What evidence in the text supports your answer?
The narrator feels isolated and distrustful. She scans the cafeteria “for a friendly face or an inconspicuous corner”; she thinks she could sit across from a new girl or “crawl behind a trash can; and when she is confronted by Mr. Neck, she says nothing aloud, but thinks to herself, “Shut your trap, button your lip, can
it ... Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say.” RL.9–10.1
3. Craft and Structure: What effect does the use of dashes in paragraph 4 have?
The dashes surrounding “people I used to think were my friends” set apart and therefore emphasize the author’s wry comment reflecting her feeling of isolation at school. RL.9–10.4
WORD CONNECTIONS
Etymology
The word bizarre comes from
a French word meaning “odd.” However, it may have originally meant “handsome or brave.” An alternate origin is the Italian word bizarro, meaning “angry and fierce.”
GRAMMAR USAGE
Compound Sentences
A compound sentence
is two or more simple sentences joined by a
comma and a coordinating conjunction—and, or, but,
so, or yet. The parts of a compound sentence—called independent clauses—can also be joined by a semicolon.
The lock sticks a little, but I open it.
The lock sticks a little; I open it.
Reread paragraph 6. Find the compound sentence formed from three independent clauses.
My Notes
ACTIVITY 1.3
continued
Unit 1 • Coming of Age 11
TEACHER
ACTIVITY 1.3 continued
6 As students are reading, monitor their progress. Be sure they are engaged with the text and annotating words or phrases that create voice. Evaluate whether the selected reading mode is effective.
7 Based on the observations you make during the first reading, you may want to adjust your reading mode. For example, you may decide for the second reading to read aloud certain complex passages, or you may group students differently.
8 SECOND READ: During the second reading, students will be returning to the text to answer the text- dependent comprehension questions. You may choose to have students reread and work on the questions in a variety of ways:
• independently
• in pairs
• in small groups
• together as a class
9 Have students answer the text-dependent questions. If they have difficulty, scaffold the questions by rephrasing them or breaking them down into smaller parts. See the Scaffolding the Text Dependent Questions boxes for suggestions.
TO TEACHER
Consider using a Google Form in which students can answer the text-dependent questions, which
will allow you to display answers collectively. The class can then easily discuss and evaluate answers.
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SCAFFOLDING THE TEXT-DEPENDENT QUESTIONS
3. Craft and Structure (RL.9–10.4) What effect does the use of dashes in paragraph 4 have? Read paragraph 4. Does the narrator have many friends? Do you think she is popular or isolated?
4. Key Ideas and Details (RL.9–10.4) Melinda (the protagonist) has a vivid inner voice. What is significant, then, about the fact that she
never actually speaks in this passage? Read paragraphs 3 and 13. Does the narrator use her interior or exterior voice to express herself in either situation? Why or why not? What part does the narrator’s age play relative to her voice?
Unit 1 • Coming of Age 11
© 2017 College Board. All rights reserved.
© 2017 College Board. All rights reserved.