Up a Tree

1. pre-reading
vocabulary: quizlet

2. comprehension questions

• Did the author like the new environment? / What did he/she think about the new school? / What was his/her consolation in addition to books? (lines 1-17)
• Who was Rhonda? / What was her invitation? (lines 18-33)
• Where were Rhonda and the author headed for? / How was the journey? / Where did they go in the end? / What did Rhonda want to do out there? (lines 33-54)
• How was the tree climbing? Did the author follow Rhonda all the way to where Rhonda was headed for? (lines 55-70)
• What happened to Rhonda when she got over the white birch? (lines 71-83)
• Was Rhonda OK? (lines 84-91)

3. phrases

• the property we live on (12)
• along with (12)
• go horseback riding (23)
• slide off (35)
• hit me in the face (35)
• gallop at full speed (39)
• alert to the forest (42)
• round a corner (44)
• pull out some gum (46)
• sit in the shade (51)
• break the silence (53)
• layers of branches (61)
• swing herself into the tree (63)
• take hold of a branch (64)
• work her way (71)
• wave at me (75)
• connected to (78)
• separate from (78)
• grab at it (79)
• hang on (79)
• a tangle of branches (81)
• let go of the branch (85)
• a sharp intake of breath (86)
• a sigh of relief (87)
• in disbelief (87)
• roll over onto her side (88)

4. usage and grammar

• These country people ... were very different from my beach friends ... (7-9)
• I spent all my free time reading library books ... (9-10)
• She ... and asked if I wanted to ... (22-23)
• I had the feeling that her mother had forced her ... (23-24) / I got Gunther ... where she had suggested ... (26) / I was beginning to wish I had stayed home ... (36) / ... she said she had taken her sister's horse ... (47) / The gum I had been chewing fell straight down ... (84)
• ... looked as scary as she did. (28)
• Looking up at her, I suggested she lead the way. (28)
• ... emerged from the cool showy road into bright hot sunlight (44)
• Then pushing her hair ..., she eased her foot ..., carefully shifting her weight ... (72-73)
• Barely connected to the trunk ..., it slowly separated from the tree. (78)
• She was laughing too hard to speak. (90)

My Invisible Garden

1. pre-reading:

• vocabulary
• If you had a chance to keep a garden, would you like to grow plants? 

2. comprehension

• How did the author engage himself/herself in talking about his/her garden? What did he/she talk about? (lines 1-14)
• How did the friend react when the author talked about the garden? (lines 15-21)
• How did the author take care of the parsley? (lines 22-31)
• What did the author think about weeding? (lines 32-45)
• How come the author did not seem to pay attention to the friend's talking? (lines 46-60)
• How did the friend feel about the way the author talked about his/her garden? (lines 61-73) 

3. phrases

• lose track of (2) 
• trail off (8)
• nod at (16)
• settle for buying some plants (29)
• in exchange for (33)
• think of (38)
• go about (44)
• smile at (46)
• take the perfect picture (62)
• passionate about things (65)
• bring up little details (67)

4. usage and grammar

• ... wonder if marsh hay was too salty ... (4)
• ... I tell them from the weeds. (13)
• I'd wandered by ..., intending to give ... (26)
• ... as big as a flea (34)
• ... keep bringing up little details (67)