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Read Chapters 22-26; Complete Student Packet Worksheets for Chapters 22-26

Read aloud the following scenario. Instruct students to think about what would come next in the scenario.

As the seventh-grader walked down the hall on her first day in her new school, she could feel fifty pairs of eyes staring at her. “Just keep your head up and quickly get to your homeroom,” she kept telling herself. She was used to this torture; with her mom in the military, Dana changed schools nearly every year. But this time, things felt different. From across the hall, she spotted one student pointing her way. You could tell this seventh-grader was popular. The jacket, the shoes, the cool hair—everything spelled perfection. Suddenly, Dana found herself surrounded by the popular kid and a group of equally slick students. “Oh, great,” Dana thought. “Here we go.” As Dana prepared for what was to come, “cool hair” scrambled through the group and stepped in front of her.

Ask students to predict what will happen next. Give students five minutes to continue writing this scenario. After time has passed, ask a few students to share their predictions with the class. Prompt students with questions about what helped them think about their prediction for what comes next in the story. Ask, "What did you think about when making your prediction to what comes next in the story?" Ask students to identify information about character, setting, or plot that helped them develop their prediction for the story.

Engage students in a discussion about prior knowledge or experience they accessed in order to make their prediction. Encourage students to share their reasons why they chose to continue the story in the way they did. Note: You may want to write the scenario on chart paper and post so that students can refer to it when they are writing.

will explain that just like we made a prediction in our short scenario, readers can predict what will happen next in a book. It is important that readers make meaningful predictions or predictions that will help them to better understand the text. While readers can often make predictions at most places in a text, it is important to make sure the predictions have a purpose and are done at a point in the text when it is most appropriate. I will explain that just like we saw in our scenario, readers can also predict what will happen next in a story. I will chart four steps to making a good and sound prediction.

• Step 1:Determine when there’s a big event or a cliffhanger and stop reading.
• Step 2:Ask yourself specific questions about what could happen next.
• Step 3:Access prior knowledge or experience to think about what could happen next.
• Step 4:Make a meaningful prediction using text evidence.

I will read aloud the prologue (Before the Story) to Maniac Magee, looking for a big event or cliffhanger. I will record my notes on Predictions Chart 1. Note: See Predictions Chart 1 for specific examples. At the end of this section, Maniac doesn’t go to school and runs all night. This is a big event. I will record this under the first column on Predictions Chart 1, “Identify a big event or cliffhanger.” 

Next, I will ask myself specific questions about what could happen next. The author tells us that Maniac often runs at night and is a good runner, but not much more information is given. So, I will ask, “Why does Maniac run? Why does he run at night? Why doesn’t he go to school?” I’ll record my questions under the second column on Predictions Chart 1, “Ask specific questions about what could happen next.” Now, I need to use prior knowledge to think about the answers to these questions. Because I’ve already done some Pre-reading work (for example, I’ve read the back cover of the book), I know that Maniac was living with his Aunt and Uncle after his parents died and he was unhappy. He ran away from them. I’ll record this information under the third column on Predictions Chart 1, “Think about your prior knowledge or experience. 

Finally, I will make a meaningful prediction based on the information I have recorded on Predictions Chart 1. I will use the information about the event and my prior knowledge from the information on the back cover. I predict that Maniac enjoys running and he runs to “run away from his problems.” I will record my prediction under the fourth column on Predictions Chart 1, “Make a meaningful prediction using text evidence. I will explain that predictions can change as you read further into a story and gather additional details and information. I will revisit Predictions Chart 1 to adjust my predictions and to make additional predictions as I read.

Ask: "How do I make a meaningful prediction about what’s coming up next in a story?" Students should respond that there are four steps to making a sound prediction. First, you identify a big event or cliffhanger. Second, you ask yourself specific questions about what might happen next. Third, you access prior knowledge and experience, as well as text evidence to think about what could happen next. Finally, you make a meaningful prediction using text evidence.

will read aloud Chapter 22 of Maniac Magee. We will look for big events or cliffhangers that we can make predictions about. We will ask ourselves specific questions about what could happen next. Then, we will access prior knowledge and experience to answer our questions. Finally, we will make a meaningful prediction for each event or cliffhanger and we will support our predictions with details from the text. We will record this information on Predictions Chart 2.

After we have read Chapter 22 and recorded our predictions for Chapter 22, we will read aloud Chapter 23. We will look for big events or cliffhangers that we can make predictions about, ask questions about these events, and record details from the text and use our prior knowledge to make a prediction. We will record this information on Predictions Chart 2. Note: See Predictions Chart 2 for sample responses. As your class takes turns reading the chapter aloud, encourage students to raise their hands when they feel they’ve encountered an event they can make a prediction about. Some examples for the Predictions Chart include: Maniac will be rescued at the zoo, Maniac will die at the zoo, Grayson will turn Maniac into the police, Grayson will become friends with Maniac, etc.

will work with a partner to reread Chapters 24-26. You will complete the Predictions Chart Worksheet in your Student Packet for Chapters 24-26. (See pages 20-21 in the Student Packet. You will follow the 4-Step Process when making your predictions. You and your partner will make an overall prediction about what will happen next in the book. You will record this prediction on the Coming up Next . . . TV Screen. (See page 22 in the Student Packet.) Sign your names to the bottom of the screen.

will each share one prediction we made while reading Chapters 24-26 with the class and we will discuss the 4-Step process used to make our predictions. We will return to our predictions as we read further into the book to check them or change them according to new events or what we have read. We will share the predictions that we recorded on our Coming up Next . . . TV Screens with the class. Each partner pair will discuss their reasoning for making their prediction. We will display our Coming up Next . . . TV Screens on our class bulletin board. When we finish reading the book, we will check our predictions to see which are correct.

As we continue reading, we will make additional predictions and record them on the Predictions Chart Worksheet in the Student Packet. You may be asked to share your predictions with the class as we continue to read the book.