Seal Surfer by Michael Foreman

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Seal Surfer by Michael Foreman

• Theme 4

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Awards

• Alabamas Emphasis on Reading Award Master List
• SLJ Best Book

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Genre Realistic Fiction

• A realistic story is about realistic (could
  happen in real life, but they arent real)
  people, things, and events.
• The plot-including events, problem, solution-is
  made up (fictional).

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Summary

• Although he is on crutches, Ben enjoys going to
  the beach with his grandfather. One day, they
  watch a seal being born. Over the next few
  seasons, Ben develops a special bond with this
  seal, a bond that Ben knows will last through all
  the summers to come.

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Background Information

• Seals are mammals that live in and near the
  water. This story takes place at the seashore,
  where the water meets the land. That is how the
  seal and Ben, the main character, meet. In this
  story, the sea shore is very rocky like the shore
  line in the authors home country of England.

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Key Concept

• the seashore

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Key Vocabulary

• basked
• buffeted
• horizon
• quay
• surf
• swell
• swooped

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basked
rested in pleasant warmth
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buffeted
struck against powerfully
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horizon
the line where the sky seems to meet the earth
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quay
A dock where ships are loaded and unloaded
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surf
to ride on the waves, often on a surfboard
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swell
a long wave that moves along without breaking
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swooped
moved with a sudden, sweeping motion
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Summarize

• You will use this strategy after reading to wrap
  up what youve read.
• When you summarize, think about
• the characters
• where and when the story takes place
• the problem in the story
• how the problem was solved
• the beginning, middle, and end of the story

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Strategy Focus Summarize
Lets try it!

• Read pages 48-50. Tell a partner a summary of
  Spring.

or
Summarize the first half of the story (pages
48-55) for a friend.
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Comprehension Skill Focus Compare and Contrast

• To compare two characters, places, or events is
  to find details that are the same about each.
• Seals and dogs are both mammals.
• To contrast two characters, places, or events is
  to find details that are different and/or unique
  about each.
• Seals live in the ocean, but dogs live with their
  owner family.

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Graphic Organizer
Fill in the organizer with details from the story.
You
Ben
Alike
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Meet the Author and Illustrator

• Michael Foreman was born in an English fishing
  village. His mother ran the
• village shop. While he never had children's
  books, he did get to read the
• newspapers and magazines sold in the shop.
  At the age of fifteen, Michael Foreman began to
  study art. His first children's book was
  published while he was still a student. Since
  then he has written and/or illustrated many, many
  children's books. He has also worked on
  magazines, book jackets, animated films, and TV
  ads. He even worked for the police, sketching
  criminals described by witnesses.
• Many of Michael Foreman's own books are
  based on his real-life experiences. But he also
  likes the challenge of illustrating other
  writers' books. Their subjects are new to him, so
  he must do research to learn about those
  subjects. "This is another kind of journey and
  can be just as rewarding," he says.
• Michael Foreman's London house is 300
  years old. Some of its beams were
• once ships' timbers. He has wondered
  about the stories those old beams
• could tell. On his trips around the
  world, Michael Foreman has traveled by plane,
• train, bus, snow scooter, and mule. He
  even rode a sled pulled by
• reindeer! (from www.eduplace.com)

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Link to Houghton Mifflin

• If you enjoyed reading Seal Surfer and would
  like to check out some more information and
  activities, click below to go to
  www.eduplace.com, Houghton Mifflins web site.

Click Here!