Connect Reading and Writing

Vocabulary

  • evacuated

  • fortunate

  • future

  • hurricanes

  • levees

  • necessity

  • severe

  • untouched

Critical Thinking

  • 1. SUM IT UP Make a Sequence Chain to show what happens to Samantha and her family before, during, and after the hurricane. Use your Sequence Chain to sum up the selection.

    Sequence Chain

    Sequence Chain

  • 2. Paraphrase In your own words, describe what Samantha sees in her home after the storm. How severe is the damage?

  • 3. Analyze A special object is left untouched by the storm. What does it represent?

  • 4. Draw Conclusions Samantha feels fortunate and thinks about the future. What do her thoughts tell you about her personality?

Reading Fluency

Expression Read the passage on page 575 to a partner. Assess your fluency.

  • 1. I read

    • a. great

    • b. OK

    • c. not very well

  • 2. What I did best in my reading was _______.

Reading Strategy

Make Connections

What connections did you make during reading? Share one with a partner.

Vocabulary Review

Oral Review Read the paragraph aloud. Add the vocabulary words.

All ______ develop in the ocean. Cities on the coast are damaged by some of these storms but ______ by others. In 2005, New Orleans was hit by Hurricane Katrina. Many people left, or ______, but others were not so ______. New Orleans is in a low area of land, with water all around. The city has wall-like structures, or ______, to keep water out. These structures are a real ______! In 2005, flood water broke through and did ______ damage. Engineers will make the levees stronger in the ______.

Written Review Suppose you had to evacuate. Write a paragraph about one thing you would take that was not a necessity. Use four vocabulary words.

Illustration of a pen icon Write About the Guiding Question

Explore Natural Forces

Why was the impact of Hurricane Katrina more severe than other natural events in recent U. S. history? Write your opinion. Use examples from the text to support your ideas.