1. A character is a person or animal in a story. The author of a story can tell you what characters are like in different ways. The author may use words to tell you what a character is like. The more you know about why characters think, feel, speak, and act the way they do, the better you can understand and enjoy the story. That is why analyzing character is an important reading skill. Task] The New Pillow Hector sat at the other end of the big table. He had one eye on his book and the other eye on his sister. Maria was using her mother's sewing machine. Maria had just learned to sew straight lines. She was making a pillow for her bed. It was called a body pillow. It was as tall as Maria. "How is that machine working?" asked Hector. "It's okay," said Maria. "Do you want me to try it?" asked Hector. "Maybe I could make it run better." "It's fine the way it is," said Maria. "Maybe I should get Dad in here," said Hector. "We could take part that machine. Then we could put it back together again. It would work even better. We did that with the lawn mower." "I'm telling you, it works fine," said Maria. "Here, try it yourself. Sew one side of my pillow." Hector smiled. He jumped out of his chair, and in a minute he was sitting in Maria's chair. Hector stepped on the foot pedal. He almost sewed his hand to the cloth! Then he slowed down and made a straight line of sewing. Hector did not even realize it, but he had a big grin on his face. "You should sew a body pillow," said Maria. "Boys don't sew," said Hector. "That's not true," Maria said. "They can make suits for men and women. Some men are dress designers. They make clothes for models to wear. They charge a lot of money for their sewing." "Maybe I will make a different pillow," said Hector. He got two long pieces of cloth and sewed three sides together. He stuffed the pillow with cotton and sewed up the last side. Then he drew animals all over it with magic marker. "I'm good," he said to himself. "And so is my pillow."

2. Making Inferences When you find a word you don't know, you can figure out what the word means by reading the words and sentences around it. Then the words and the sentences give you clues to the meaning of the unknown word. And you have to infer meaning from context clues. To figure out the meaning of an unknown word, see how the word is used in the sentence and in the whole passage. Look for clues that will help you guess the meaning of that word. To check the meaning, read the sentence with the word you have chosen in place of the unknown words. See if it fists and makes sense. Picture and other visual aids give you clues, too. Photographs or sketches for articles and stories help you figure out what's going on. Maps and graphs provide other clues. They help you to see information you are reading about in an organized way. Making an inference is not just making a wild guess. You need to make a judgment that can be supported, just as you could reasonably infer there is a baby in a stroller, but not reasonably infer that there are groceries, even though both would technically be a "guess." [Reading Taks for Making Inferences] All's Fair at the Fair The third, fourth, and fifth grades were have a contest. Each class was making little clay dinosaurs to be sold at the school fair. One day of the fair, the number of dinosaurs sold was counted. Tyler made a graph. The key for the graph showed one picture of a dinosaur for every four that were sold. At the end of the day, the winner was announced. It was the third grade. Ana scanned the graph. "Wait a minute! There is a fallacy," said Ana. Ana was right, and a new winner was announced.

3. Summarizing After you read a story or an article, it is a good idea to think about the most important ideas you want to remember. When you tell the main ideas of what you have read in your own words, you are summarizing. A summary of a story tells the most important events that happened. A summary of an article tells the most important ideas. Summarizing is helpful when you want to remember what a story or an article is about or an article is about or when you want to tell someone else about it. [Reading Taks for Summarizing] Basketball is one of the most popular sports in the United States today. This sport may be popular because it is simple, and it can be played almost anywhere. All that is needed is a basketball, a hoop, and a smooth, hard surface. Teams can play against each other, or two friends can play a game of one-to-one. Many great athletes have played the game. As young people watch superstars like Shaquille O'Neal and Rebecca Lobo, they get excited. They want to learn the game and do their best to play like superstars, too.

4. The reason why something happen is the cause. What happens is the effect. A cause always happens before an effect. But in a story, the writer does not always tell you the cause before you read about the effect. Clue word like because, since, so, and that's why can help you recognize cause and effect. Task ] Ugly Duckling Deep in a lovely forest, a mother duck watched as three of the eggs in her nest cracked open. Three little ducks came out. There was a fourth egg in the nest. It was larger than the others, and it was still unopened. "That might be a turkey egg that got into your nest," said the old grandmother duck when she came to visit. "After it opens, you will know if this big egg holds a turkey. A baby turkey will not go into the pond. Turkeys are afraid of water." After two days, the big egg cracked. The new baby quickly went into the pond with other ducklings. So the mother duck knew right away that her baby was not a turkey. But it was bigger and different from the other ducklings. The other ducklings didn't care that this new baby was their brother. They pecked at him and bit him. "You are so ugly and we are all so good-looking," they quacked. They called him "the ugly duckling". One day the ugly duckling could bear their abuse no longer. He left the pond and struck out on his own. But everywhere he went, he was chased away. So the ugly duckling was frightened and lonely. Winter was coming on. Snow and icy rain fell on the duckling. He was so cold, he thought he would die. But then a farmer took him home. At first, the ugly duckling was happy. But then, as spring came, he heard the farmer talking about fattening him up. The farmer would probably kill and eat him any day now. When the farmer left the door open, the ugly duckling flew away. The ugly duckling's wings were bigger and stronger now. He flew and flew until he saw a lovely lake. He was tired, so he landed at the edge of the lake to rest. The ugly duckling could not believe what he saw. .

5. Distinguishing Fact and Opinion When you read, you need to know the difference between statements of fact and statements that tell an author's opinion. A statement of fact tell something that can be proved true of false. You can check it by reading, observing, or asking an expert. A statement of opinion tells how a person feels, believes or thinks. These statements cannot be proved true or false. [Reading Task for Distinguishing Fact and Opinion] Hi, Zack! Are you coming to my birthday party? It will be a different kind of party. Everyone thinks it will be fun. Almost everyone is bringing a pet. - Brianna Hi, Brianna! Can I bring my pet salamander? - Zack Salamanders are reptiles. All reptiles are slimy and ugly. I don't want a salamander at my party. Only cats and dogs are invited. - Brianna What are you talking about? Salamanders are amphibians. They are born as tadpoles in water. - Zack So how would you bring a salamander? You can't bring an aquarium to my birthday party. - Brianna My salamander is 13 inches long. He is no tadpole. And he does not need an aquarium. - Zack I still think salamanders are ugly. Oh well, bring him anyway. - Brianna Thanks for the invitation. We will be there. - Zack