Language and Grammar: Ask and Answer Questions

Role-Play With a group, act out a news conference with scientists who study animals. Some students ask questions as the reporters. Other students ask questions as scientists. Use different kinds of sentences when asking and answering questions. Trade roles.

How can sperm whales talk?

They use clicks and other sounds.

Writing and Grammar: Write About New Ideas

Study the Models When you write, you want to keep your readers interested. Use different kinds of sentences to do this.

Just Ok

Greg Marshall, the inventor of Crittercam, had problems attaching Crittercam to ocean animals. I wanted to know more about how Crittercam worked with other animals. I checked National Geographic’s Web site to learn how it was attached to a brown bear cub. With the camera, we can see what the bear sees and does. I even saw the bear catch a fish. I wonder why people study bears. Greg Marshall thinks that when we learn about animals, we work harder to protect them.

This writer only uses statements. The reader thinks: “This is really boring!”

Better

Greg Marshall, the inventor of Crittercam, had problems attaching Crittercam to ocean animals. How did it work with other animals? Check out National Geographic’s Web site to learn about how it was attached to a brown bear cub. It was a lot of work to get Crittercam on. But with the camera, we could see what the bear sees and does. I even saw the bear catch a fish! Why do people do so much work to study bears? Greg Marshall thinks that when we learn about animals, we work harder to protect them.

This writer uses different kinds of sentences. The reader thinks: “This is very interesting!”

Add Sentences Think of two sentences to add to the BETTER model above. Be sure to use different kinds of sentences.

Illustration of the pen icon WRITE ON YOUR OWN Write about something you learned about animals. Pay attention to the kinds of sentences you use.

    Remember

  • • Use a statement to tell something. It ends with a period.

  • • Use a question to ask something. It ends with a question mark.

  • • Use an exclamation to express a strong feeling. It ends with an exclamation point.

  • • Use a command to tell someone what to do. It ends with a period.