Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | First Americans Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “First Americans” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with interesting facts about the history of the first people who lived in North America, some more than 40,000 years ago. They lived here long before Spanish and other European explorers “discovered” America. “Gathering Firewood” The fiction story tells about two Native American brothers and their first sighting of the big ships that would forever change their way of life. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 320 and 370 words and is written at a 3.8 to 5.1 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Equal Rights Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Equal Rights” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with interesting facts about the history of trying to gain equal rights for all citizens, especially African-Americans. “Being Mermaids Together” The fiction story tells about the friendship between two young girls – one Black and one white – and their simple desire to be able to swim together in the same pool at the same time. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 335 and 372 words and is written at a 3.1 to 4.0 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Transcontinental Railway Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Transcontinental Railway” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with historical facts about the difficulties, danger, and destruction, as well as the exciting advantages, that came along with connecting the East Coast with the West Coast of America by a transcontinental railroad. “An Exciting Journey” The fiction story tells about the beginning of a young man’s thrilling adventure into the unknown on the transcontinental railway. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is about 340 words and is written at a 3.3 to 5.0 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Gold Rush Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Gold Rush” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with interesting facts about the thousands of people who came to California hoping to strike it rich by finding a gold mine. “Moving On” The fiction story tells about a family that experiences the “boom” and “bust” associated with the California gold rush. They started with a successful business and ending up with nothing and having to move on. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is about 345 words and is written at a 3.3 to 4.6 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Ellis Island Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Ellis Island” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with fascinating facts about the flood of immigrants that came to America through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1954. “Coming to America” The fiction story tells about the experience of a 12-year-old boy and his father who are on a long, arduous boat trip to America to make a better life for their family. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 328 and 377 words and is written at a 3.1 to 5.2 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Dust Bowl Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Dust Bowl” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with facts about what caused the long drought in the Midwest, during the 1930s, that created the “dust bowl” and the effects it had on the farmers. “A Wall of Dust” The fiction story tells about a group of school children that get trapped with their teacher in the schoolhouse during a fierce dust storm. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is about 340 words and is written at a 2.5 to 3.8 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Early 20th Century Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Turn of the Century” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with historical facts about significant events that marked the end of the 19th Century and the beginning of 20th Century. “Going to School” The fiction story tells about two boys who get to have the experience of leaving long hours of working in a factory to the luxury of getting to go to school! Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 336 and 369 words and is written at a 3.6 to 4.8 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Revolutionary War Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Revolutionary War” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with historical facts about the reasons for and the outcome of the Revolutionary War. “The Fight for Freedom” The fiction story tells about a dramatic incident known as the “Boston Massacre” that helped trigger the colonists to wage a war against Britain and fight for freedom. Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 316 and 341 words and is written at a 3.8 to 5.1 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Reading Comprehension | Social Studies | Fiction/Nonfiction Pairing | Trail of Tears Supports Best Practices in Reading by Pairing History-Based Nonfiction Stories with Fiction Stories on the Same Topic! Each exciting and fact-filled story is accompanied by a dynamic, colorful, realistic illustration that brings the story to life and enhances the content. The nonfiction story gives a detailed, historic explanation of the topic. The matching fiction story makes the topic relatable to everyday life. Reading Skills Follow-up questions and activities help build important comprehension skills and strategies shared by and unique to nonfiction and fiction stories. By reading the stories and completing the accompanying activities, students will have a much greater understanding of these two key genres of reading. “Trail of Tears” The nonfiction story sets up the fiction story with historical facts about the removal of the Cherokee people from their homeland by the U.S. Military. And their horrific 1,200-mile march from Georgia to Oklahoma. “Leaving Home” The fiction story makes the historical facts personal by telling about a Cherokee family as they begin their journey on the “Trail of Tears.” Questions & Activities Each story is followed by who, what, when, where, why, and how type questions. Additional skill-specific questions for each story include: Main Idea, Locating Information, Fact or Opinion, Sequencing, Cause & Effect, Conclusion, Inference, Summarizing, and Picture Interpretation. Vocabulary activities include: vocabulary matching, word search, and context. Details: Each short story is between 328 and 351 words and is written at a 3.2 to 4.6 reading level according to the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Scale. The interest level is grades 4 and up. Contents Include: • 2 high-interest, illustrated, short stories • 10 pages of questions and activities • Glossary • Answer Key • 18 total pages

Use these paired texts to test your students' understanding of level 3 social studies! Students will also be assessed on their ability to evaluate and draw reasonable conclusions about the text.