RW.3.2.3.c.iii

Description: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies. Use knowledge of word relationships to identify antonyms or synonyms to clarify meaning.
Maps to Reading Plus skills: 4A, 4A, 4B, 4B

Exemplars

4A: Interpreting Word Meaning

4A: Interpreting Word Meaning

Description: Interpreting Word Meaning

SeeReader
✓ standard met

Selection: C-6

C-6

Grade level: 3
Word count: 1273 words
Author: Madeline Arroyo
Synopsis: Baseball is known as an American game, but it got its start on the other side of the world.
Excerpt: In the 1920s and 1930s, power players like Ruth were hugely popular with the fans. They made the sport even more of a hit.

Question: Read this part of the selection. Based on how it is used, what does the word "hit" mean?
  1. big success
  2. score a point
  3. knock something over
  4. home run

Writing
✓ standard met

Writing prompt: Choose a selection that included some unfamiliar vocabulary. Replace the unfamiliar words with synonyms that are easier to understand yet still convey the same meaning.

Evaluator

Organization: Certica Solutions

4B: Interpreting Analogies

4B: Interpreting Analogies

Description: Interpreting Analogies

SeeReader
✓ standard met

Selection: C-27

C-27

Grade level: 3
Word count: 1335 words
Author: R. Bender
Synopsis: The resources available to Native Americans often played an important role in the kinds of shelters they built.
Excerpt: Some Native Americans in the far north used snow in an unusual way. They used snow to keep their dwellings warm. How did they do this? First, the dwellings were built from whale bones and animal skins. Then the Native Americans would pile snow around the outside of the dwelling. This snow acted like a blanket. The piles of snow helped to keep heat inside the dwelling.

Question: The author of this selection compares the snow piled around a Native American dwelling in the far north to a
  1. blanket, because the snow keeps the dwelling warm.
  2. blanket, because the snow is colorful and soft.
  3. tent, because the snow was easy to set up.
  4. tent, because the snow was easy to carry around.

Writing
✓ standard met

Writing prompt: List five words in a selection that helped you form a picture in your mind. Do additional research to find a synonym and antonym for each word, and use the word in a sentence.

Evaluator

Organization: Certica Solutions

4A: Interpreting Word Meaning

4A: Interpreting Word Meaning

Description: Interpreting Word Meaning

SeeReader
✓ standard met

Selection: C-50

C-50

Grade level: 3
Word count: 1203 words
Author: R. Bender
Synopsis: How can an artist's picture and a mirror teach a lesson about the meaning of texts? Read on to find out.
Excerpt: However, after a few days there was a noticeable return of interest.

Question: Read this sentence from the selection. Which of the following words most closely means "noticeable"?
  1. obvious
  2. tiny
  3. hidden
  4. confusing

Writing
✓ standard met

Writing prompt: Choose a selection that included some unfamiliar vocabulary. Replace the unfamiliar words with synonyms that are easier to understand yet still convey the same meaning.

Evaluator

Organization: Certica Solutions

4B: Interpreting Analogies

4B: Interpreting Analogies

Description: Interpreting Analogies

SeeReader
✓ standard met

Selection: C-24

C-24

Grade level: 3
Word count: 1323 words
Author: Michael H. Levitt
Synopsis: Was the stranger telling the truth? Did he even EXIST?
Excerpt: The darkness seemed to close around me like a big, black glove. I thought, "I'm sure glad I'm not outside this evening. I had better make sure the light is working, because this would be the worst time for it to fail."

Question: What does the boy mean when he says, "The darkness seemed to close around me like a big, black glove"?
  1. It was so dark that the boy could not see anything.
  2. The boy thought he could touch the darkness with his hand.
  3. The darkness warmed the boy's hands.
  4. The darkness made the boy feel safe and happy.

Writing
✓ standard met

Writing prompt: List five words in a selection that helped you form a picture in your mind. Do additional research to find a synonym and antonym for each word, and use the word in a sentence.

Evaluator

Organization: Certica Solutions