From Me to You

Genre Realistic Fiction

O LEVEL
ON
LEV

Text Complexity Range for Grades 45

Lexile

GR U
Word Count 2,658

740

1010

810
Text Evaluator

23

51

APPROACHING

What Makes This Text Complex?

W

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

Specific Vocabulary
Students may be challenged by the use of similes, such as like a frisky
puppy (page 7) and like a Christmas stocking (page 10). Other challenging
expressions may include in a snap (page 11) and then the coin drops
(page 15). Students may also need assistance with unfamiliar terms, such as
lip-read (page 2), traction and anesthetic (page 3), superheroes (page 5),
and beachcomber (page 8).

Sentence Structure
The use of several different verb tenses within a paragraph (as on page 7),
as well as the use of punctuation (including ellipses and dashes as on
pages 3 and 13) may be a challenge for students.

Connection of Ideas
Students will need to make inferences, for example about why Gina is
fearful of Joshs traction. Students will also need to connect details, such as
the objects used in the mobile and the memories they represent, to
understand the story.

Level Up Approaching to On

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Suggested Pacing
for Close Reading

CLOSE READING

From Me to You
Assess/Evaluate Before beginning the Level Up lesson,
read the first page of the book together to determine
how challenging the higher level will be for students.

Day 1 Read
From Me to You (pp. 2-15)
Days 2-3 Reread
From Me to You (pp. 2-15)
Day 4 Read and Reread
Dear Gina
(pp. 17-19)
Day 5 Write About Text

Getting Started
IF
THEN

students read the On level fluently

Read the Text Have students read each chapter independently.

Takes Notes Have students take notes using the Take Notes reproducible
(page 7).

Reread and Discuss

Reread each chapter together, using the prompts on

pages 4 and 5 to guide the discussion. Use the Stop and Check questions to
assess students comprehension as they read.

Write About Reading

Have students respond to the reading using the writing

prompt on page 5 and the Write About Reading reproducible on page 8.

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

IF
THEN

students have difficulty reading the On level

Read the Text

Provide more support for students by having them partner

read with a more proficient reader, or read along with the ebook. You may
also wish to read the book aloud and have students follow along.

Takes Notes

Have students take notes using the Take Notes reproducible

(page 7).

Reread and Discuss

Reread each chapter together, using the prompts on

pages 4 and 5 to guide the discussion. Use the Stop and Check questions to
assess students comprehension as they read.

Write About Reading

Have students respond to the reading using the writing

prompt on page 5 and the Write About Reading reproducible on page 8.

Level Up Approaching to On

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Read From Me to You

Take Notes

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do you express something that is

important to you?

Model Note Taking

Have students read the text and use the Take

Notes reproducible on page 7. Explain to students that they should
take notes as they read. Remind them to record:

As you read, write down your

questions, ideas, and unfamiliar
words.
Read pages 2 and 3

Ginas friend Josh has

broken his leg. Gina will visit
him in the hospital.

ideas they think are important

words or phrases that are difficult or unfamiliar
sections of text that are unclear or confusing

Model for students how to take notes as they read.

Think Aloud On pages 2 and 3, I read that Gina is upset because her friend, Josh, fell off his
skateboard and broke his leg. She will be visiting him in the hospital. I think these are important
details in the plot, so I will make a note about them.

Reread
Collaborative Conversations

As students reread the text, encourage partners to use

the frames below to structure their conversations. Have them practice until the frames
become routine. Remind students to take notes as they reread.

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

COLLABORATE

Skill

Prompt Frames

Response Frames

Elaborate and Ask Questions

to Request Clarification

Can you tell me more about it?

I think it means that.

How/why is that important?

Its important because.

Support Ideas with Text

Evidence

What clues can you find in the text

to support your idea?

The text says that .

Build On or Challenge
Partners Idea

What do we know so far?

I can add this to your idea

Im not sure that was clear.

Another way to look at it is

Paraphrase

Tell in your own words what

happened when.

So, you are saying that

What are the key details that we

can share?

We can say that

Determine Main Idea and

Supporting Details

According to.

Let me see if I understand you.

The main idea seems to be

What do these details have in

common?

Level Up Approaching to On

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Reread From Me to You

Chapter 1 Pages 24
Specific Vocabulary

Point out the

words traction and anesthetic on page 3.
Explain that these words help describe how
Josh is treated for a painful broken leg bone.
Ask: How does Joshs mom explain traction?
(A pin is put through his femur. The leg is up
in a sling and traction lines are attached to
the pin.) Why does Josh get anesthetic
before the procedure? (to ease pain)
Have partners discuss details in
COLLABORATE Chapter 1 that describe Ginas
friendship with Josh. (live next to each other;
like a brother; shared memories; were
babies together and in same class all
through school)

Sentence Structure

Point out the ellipsis

on page 3. Reread the dialogue aloud. Ask:
What does the ellipsis show? (Ginas mom
stops talking to ask Gina if shes all right.)
Why did she stop talking? (She saw that
Gina was pale. It makes her upset to hear
about Joshs injury.)
Ask: Why does Gina
decide to make a gift for Josh? Cite text
evidence. (She knows that people bring gifts
when they visit someone in the hospital, and
her parents say that gifts you make are
more meaningful than those you buy.) Have
students share their notes with the class.

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

STOP AND CHECK

Chapter 2 Pages 56
Specific Vocabulary

Point out
superheroes in the third paragraph on
page 5. Ask: What is a superhero? (a
character who has special powers and helps
people) How can superheroes be a game?
(Kids each pick a superhero to be and then
act out a story.)

Level Up Approaching to On

Connection of Ideas

Ask: Why do you

think Gina isnt telling readers what items
she is collecting for the mobile? (Readers will
be surprised later when she gives it to Josh.)
STOP AND CHECK Ask: What does Gina find
out each time she talks to someone about
what they like to do with Josh? (She finds
out that she and Josh also like to do the
same activity.)

Pages 78

Specific Vocabulary

Remind students that

a simile is a comparison using like or as. Ask:
In the last paragraph on page 7, what does
Gina compare herself to? (a frisky puppy)
How does this simile help you picture how
she runs? (She dashes from place to place
like an energetic puppy does.)

Sentence Structure

Have students reread

the first paragraph on page 7, pointing out
the various verb tenses used to describe
actions. Ask: Which part of the text
describes what happened earlier than
anything else? (My paintings used to be
boring) Which part describes what
happened next? (since Josh pushed me to
use my imagination, theyve come alive and
are bursting with color) Which part
describes what happens in the present? (I
take a good look at the paintings)

Specific Vocabulary

Point to the
compound word beachcomber in the second
paragraph on page 8. Explain that comb
can mean to search for something. Ask:
What does a beachcomber do on a beach?
(looks for things in the sand)
Ask: On page 8, what is
Gina expressing in the mobile? Why is it
important to her? (memories that she and
Josh share; Josh is her good friend)
STOP AND CHECK

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Chapter 3 Pages 911

Connection of Ideas

Ask: Why does

Gina ask Joshs dad for help? (She wants to
include skateboarding on the mobile, but
she isnt sure.) What does Joshs dad say?
(Yes, because he knows Josh will be back on
his skateboard as quickly as he can.)

Pages 1415

Have partners discuss clues on

pages 10 and 11 that help them
predict what Gina found. (in a box of old
skateboard parts, she finds something large;
she wraps the second present, so it wont be
on the mobile.)

Connection of Ideas

COLLABORATE

Ask: How is the hospital

ward different from what Gina imagined?
Cite text evidence. (It is not a quiet place
with sick children. Most of the children are
out of bed, and some are running around.)
Have students share their notes with the class.
STOP AND CHECK

Chapter 4 Pages 1213

Connection of Ideas

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

cannelloni: learning to cook pasta;

paintbrush: Joshs advice to Gina; snail shell:
hunting for bugs)

Have students
reread the first two paragraphs on page 12.
Ask: When Gina says, I paste on a smile,
how does she feel? (She is uncomfortable
looking at the broken leg, but smiles
anyway.) From Chapter 1, how did you know
she would be uncomfortable? (In Chapter 1,
she didnt want to know the details of
traction.)

Specific Vocabulary

Ask: On page 15, what

does Gina mean when she says, Josh stares
some more, and then the coin drops? (He
realizes that he is supposed to paint the
skateboard while he is in the hospital.)
Ask: How do you
know that Josh likes his mystery gift? (He
grins and is clutching it when everyone
leaves.) How will it help him? (It gives him
something artistic to do, and makes him look
forward to skateboarding.)
Ask: What message does
the author of the story use Ginas gifts to
show? (Memories are an important part of
friendship.)
STOP AND CHECK

Respond to Reading
Have students answer the questions on
page 16. See www.connected.mcgraw-hill.com
for answers to the Respond to Reading
questions.
Ana
Analytical
W
Writing

Write About Reading

How does Gina show that her friendship

with Josh is important to her?

Have partners discuss how Josh

COLLABORATE helps Gina face her fears. (He shows
and tells her how his leg is being treated.)

PLAN Use the Write About Reading

reproducible (page 8) to help students
plan and organize their writing.

Sentence Structure

WRITE Have students write a response

to the question using their notes on the
reproducible.

Ask: What information

do you learn after the dash in the last
paragraph on page 13? (Josh understands
what memory the false teeth represent.)
Ask: Cite text evidence.
What does each item on the mobile
represent? (superhero: game they play; false
teeth: weird things found on the beach;
STOP AND CHECK

Level Up Approaching to On

SHARE Have students share their

answers with the class.
See Answer Key at Teacher Resources:
www.connected.mcgraw-hill.com

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Paired Read: Dear Gina

What Makes This Text Complex?
W
Genre

Connection of Ideas

Students may find the combination of a

poetry and letter format challenging.

Students will need to connect the poem with

the story they have just read to understand
the topic of the poem and who the speaker is.

Read

Page 19

Have students read Dear Gina

independently or with a partner. They
should take notes on the Take Notes
reproducible (page 7) as they read. Remind
them of the Essential Question.

Have partners discuss why the false

teeth on the mobile make everyone
laugh. (Josh tells the doctor, nurse, and
other patients that he and Gina collect
strange things from the beach. They all
agree that the false teeth are strange.)

Reread
Page 17

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

Connection of Ideas

Remind
students of the story they just read. Explain
that feeling blue is an expression that
means feeling sad. Ask: Why would Josh
feel blue? (Hes in the hospital with a broken
leg in traction.) When he says a part of me,
a part of you, what is he referring to? (the
memories he and Gina share)

Genre

Ask: In what way is Dear Gina a

letter? (It is addressed to Gina.) In what way
is it a poem? (It is written in lines and
stanzas.)

Page 18

Genre

Ask: Why do you think the line,

Thank you, my friend is repeated three
times? (Possible answer: The poem has three
sections that discuss three aspects of what
Josh is grateful to Gina for, and he is
thanking her for each.)

Level Up Approaching to On

COLLABORATE

STOP AND CHECK Ask: What is Josh

thanking Gina for when he writes, Thank
you, my friend? Cite text evidence. (for the
mobile and the memories, for making him
laugh and feel better when he is blue, for
being his friend)
Ana
Analytical
W
Writing

Write About Reading

Why is it important for friends to help

each other, especially when one is sick?
PLAN Use the Write About Reading
reproducible (page 8) to help students
plan and organize their writing.
WRITE Have students write a response
to the question using their notes on the
reproducible.
SHARE Have students share their
answers with the class.
See Answer Key at Teacher Resources:
www.connected.mcgraw-hill.com

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

Level Up

Read pages 9-11.

Read pages 2-4.

Read pages 12-15.

Read pages 5-6.

As you read, write down your questions, ideas, and unfamiliar words.

Take Notes

Name __________________________________________________________

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5

Read pages 17-19.

Read pages 7-8.

Write About Reading

Name _________________________________________
Write about the text you read. First, answer the questions using text evidence. Then
use your answers as you write a paragraph about the text.
From Me to You
How does Gina show that her friendship with Josh is important to her?
What is Joshs problem?

Text Evidence, page ____

What does Gina do to
express how she feels about
Josh?

Text Evidence, page ____

Dear Gina

Copyright McGraw-Hill Education

Why is it important for friends to help each other, especially when one is sick?
How does Josh feel about
Ginas gift in the story? How
can you tell?

Text Evidence, page ____

How does Josh express his
feelings in the poem?

Text Evidence, page ____

Level Up

Grade 5 Unit 4 Week 5