Grade 3
2013 Summer Reading Activity Packet
Blair Mill Elementary School
Name: ______
To be completed at home during the summer 2013 and submitted to grade 4 teacher by September 12, 2013
Take the Stone Fox Challenge!
How many of these activities can you complete?
Read Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner and complete at least one activity from each section: chapters 1-3, chapters 4-6, chapters 7-10.
The character analysis and vocabulary activities are required to be completed, in addition to the activity choices.
Student Name: ______
Parent Signature: ______
Section 1: required to complete one of the three activities, along with vocabulary.
Chapters 1-3: You will meet and learn about Little Willy, his dog Searchlight, and Grandfather. Two important characters and the major problem of this book will be introduced.
Before reading chapters 1-3, complete the vocabulary definitions below.
1. harmonica, p. 7 ______
______
2. palomino, p. 7 ______
______
3. irrigation, p. 12 ______
______
4. harvest, p. 13 ______
______
5. mare, p. 16 ______
______
6. mature, p. 18 ______
______
7. outskirts, p. 24 ______
______
8. errands, p. 24 ______
______
9. deposited, p. 26 ______
______
10. city slickers, p.26 ______
______
11. whereabouts, p. 27 ______
______
12. gully, p. 27 ______
______
13. enabled, p. 27 ______
______
14. exhausted, p. 29 ______
______
15. impatiently, p. 29 ______
______
Section 1 choices: you must complete at least one
Looking at Wyoming
Potato Parts
Getting Ready for Winter
Looking at Wyoming:
Little Willy and his grandfather lived in Jackson, Wyoming. Use an atlas or Google Maps (USA) to find and label the following states:
Colorado / Kansas / North DakotaSouth Dakota / Montana / Nebraska
Idaho / Utah / Wyoming
Potato Parts:
Little Willy know just about everything there was to know about potatoes. For example, he knew that the fleshy, fat part of the potato's stem is a tuber, the part of the potato plant we eat.
1. Label the five parts of the potato plant below. Write each word on the line which points to that part.
2. Did you know that potatoes were first grown by the Inca Indians of Peru? Find Peru on a map. On what continent is Peru located? ______
Getting Ready for Winter:
With his grandfather sick in bed, it was up to little Willy to get everything ready for winter on the farm. Think about the kinds of things someone might have had to do to get ready for a hard, cold Wyoming winter long ago.
Read the "to do" list. For each item, circle YES if it is something that little Willy might do to prepare for winter. Circle NO if the item describes something that would need to be done. Then give reasons for your answers.
1. YES NO
Because ______
______
2. YES NO
Because ______
______
3. YES NO
Because ______
______
4. YES NO
Because ______
______
5. YES NO
Because ______
______
6. YES NO
Because ______
______
7. YES NO
Because ______
______
8. YES NO
Because ______
______
Section 2: you must complete at least one of the following, in addition to the vocabulary activity.
Pretend you are Clifford Snyder
Poster Time
Venn Diagram
Chapters 4-6: In this part of the story you will find out the reason Grandfather, anxious and overwhelmed, has given up. Willy plans to enter a race to get the money he needs to pay the taxes. He hears about a man named Stone Fox who is also going to race.
Complete the chart for each vocabulary word listed below:
Pretend you are Clifford Snyder:
When you returned home later that evening you think about what happened that day at Willy's house. You remember what you were like when you were ten years old and you feel very sorry for the way you scared Willy. Although you still want the taxes, you wish you had done things differently. Write a letter of apology to Willy. Explain why you are sorry and describe how the situation could have been different.
Poster Time:
Little Willy found out about the National Dogsled Races when he read a poster in Lester's General Store. Create your own version of the poster in the space below. Be sure to include important information about the race - the date, time, location, prize offered, entry requirements, and so on. Add a drawing to your poster as well.
Venn Diagram:
Complete the Venn Diagram to compare and contrast Stone Fox and Willy. Use facts you have learned while reading. Make some inferences based on the information about Stone Fox, too.
Stone Fox Willy
Section 3: you must complete at least one of the following, in addition to the vocabulary activity.
Art Ideas
Writer's Choice
What Do You Think?
Chapters 7-10:
Ø The Meeting
Ø The Day
Ø The Race
Ø Finish Line
Vocabulary, Chapters 7-10
Across
3. come near
6. sudden
7. not trying hard
10. large and heavy
11. not to be trusted
12. get back to; reach again
13. a short look; very brief view
Down
1. leave
2. not moving
4. chase
5. close tightly together
6. side by side
8. move forward
9. in a steady manner; firmly
Art Ideas:
Share your thoughts and feeling about Stone Fox by creating one or more of the works of art suggested below.
Writer's Choice:
Choose one of the writing activities below to help you further explore Stone Fox.
Cinquain
What Do You Think?
Read each of the situations described in the boxes below. Think about what happened in each situation. Then answer the questions next to each box.
16
Character Analysis: Required Activity
Stone Fox is a very complex character. Fill out the chart below to identify the character's description, behavior and beliefs from the beginning, the middle and at the end of the story. Use this information to write a paragraph about Stone Fox's motivation and reason to win the race. Make sure to include how and why Stone Fox changed later in the story.
Character: Stone FoxBeginning of the story events / Middle of the story events / End of the story events
descriptive
words about
the character
how the character behaved
his beliefs and values
16
Write a paragraph that explains Stone Fox's motivation and reason about winning the race. Make sure to include how and why Stone Fox changed later in the story.
______
16