Overview

Summary Background Information

Planet Patrol: Rain Forest Adventure is an The Amazon River is the

adventure story about four
students who travel to the
Rain Forest Amazon rain forest to study
the river dolphins that live in
world’s mightiest river. It
spans a distance of 4,020
miles. The Amazon basin has
the longest stretch of rain

Rain Forest Adventure

the Amazon River. These four
Adventure students all bring different
skills to their study of the
dolphins. The students work
By Rebecca L. Johnson with Dr. Vicki Diaz who helps
them understand the ways of
the dolphins. The group
collects recordings of the
sounds the dolphins make to
communicate and to
echolocate, or find their way
underwater. The experience
becomes especially exciting
when the students discover
that two poachers are
planning to capture some of
the dolphins to sell to
someone in another country.
Vicki, her assistant Jaime, and
the four students make a plan
to scare the poachers off, and
they save the dolphins.
forest in the world. It is
considered one of the world’s
greatest natural treasures. This
is due to the level of biological
diversity it contains. In 1982,
Pacaya-Samiria National
Reserve was established to
preserve the beauty and
biological richness of this
area. The name of the
reservation comes from the
names of two rivers that run
through it: the Pacaya and the
Samiria. The area is outlined
by the Ucayali and Marañon
Rivers and is home to
thousands of species of
animals and plants. Over
45,000 Peruvian people also
call the rain forest of the
Pacaya-Samiria National
Reserve home.

Learning Objectives
Genre Features
Fiction
• Realistic fiction
• Chapter titles
• Table of contents
• Illustrations
• Boldface vocabulary words
and definitions
Nonfiction
• Nonfiction expository
• Map
• Photographs
Reading Skills Writing Skills Science Skills
Skill Focus Writing Focus • Explain how dolphins communicate
• Recognize cause-and-effect • Write a report through echolocation
relationships (expository) • Understand the ways the rain
• Use word origins forest supports the plants and
Supporting Skills
• Identify elements of animals that live there
• Prewrite
foreshadowing • Identify ways that scientists help
• Collaborate with other
Supporting Skills protect endangered animals
writers
• Identify sequence of events • Identify the tools scientists use to
• Conduct research
• Summarize study dolphins
• Make connections • Understand that the rain forest is a
• Draw conclusions fragile environment
• Paraphrase
• Identify main idea and details
• Make judgments

Rain Forest Adventure 33

 Focus on Reading
Before Reading
Activate Prior Knowledge
Encourage students to share
what they know about rain
forests by asking questions
such as:
What is the climate in a rain
forest?
What are some of the plants and
animals that live in a rain forest?
How is a rain forest different
from where you live?
Write students’ ideas in a
K-W-L chart on the board. Ask
students to name some of the
facts they know about rain
forests. Write these ideas in the
K column of the chart. Then
ask students what they want to
know about rain forests. Write
these questions in the W
column of the chart. Students
can copy the information from
Correlation to National Standards
Language Arts/Reading
• Read to build an understanding of the
climate and animals of the Amazon
rain forest
• Apply a wide range of strategies to
comprehend and interpret texts
• Use the writing process
• Conduct research
the first two columns of the
chart into their notebooks.
After reading the story,
students can write what they
have learned about rain forests
in the third column.
Preview
Give students time to preview
the book and point out the
features they notice, such as the
character and setting pages,
photographs, boldface words,
and definitions. Read the title
of the story. Have students read
the chapter titles and review
the illustrations. Ask:
What do you think this story is
about?
What is one important event in
this story? How do you know?
Encourage students to ask
questions they may have about
the content of the book or how
it is organized.
Science
• Science as inquiry (K–4)
• Characteristics of organisms (K–4)
• Life cycles of organisms (K–4)
• Organisms and their environments
(K–4)
• Abilities of technological design
(K–4)
• Science and technology (K–4)
• Types of resources (K–4)
• Changes in environments (K–4)
• Science as a human endeavor (K–4)
Vocabulary Strategy:
Use Word Origins
Activity Master, Page 38
Explain that many words in the
English language come from
words in other languages. The
meanings of some words can
Rain Forest Adventure
be figured out by using the
word’s origin. Have students
use the word origins on the
Activity Master on page 38 to
determine the meaning of each
word. Students can then use
the glossary definitions in the
student book to check the
meaning of each word.
Students will use the following
words:
echolocation
fuse
hydrophone
poach
State/Local
See Standards Chart
on page 59.
Rain Forest Adventure 34
Focus on Reading (continued)
Before Reading (continued)
The Characters
Student Book, Pages 4–5
Have students turn to pages 4
and 5. Explain that these pages
offer information about the
story, as well as the main
characters in the story.
Read aloud the title and
introductory text. Ask:
What makes this EcoAware trip
sound interesting to you? Would
you like to go on this trip? Why
or why not?
Point out the illustrations of
each main character. Ask:
Look at the illustrations.What
can you tell about the characters
from their pictures?
Next read aloud the character
descriptions. Ask:
What skills do you think each
character will bring to the work
in the rain forest?
Encourage students to predict
the experiences of the
characters in the story.
The Setting
Student Book, Pages 6–7
Have students turn to pages 6
and 7. Explain that these pages
offer nonfiction information
about the setting for the story
in the book. Remind students
that the setting is the time and
place in which a story occurs.
Point out that everything on
these two pages helps to
explain something about the
setting.
Read the title of the section:
The Setting—The Amazon
River. Mention that the text on
page 6 explains where the
story takes place. Discuss the
photos. Then read aloud the
text and have students follow
along silently. Ask students:
What is the Amazon River
like?
Why is the Amazon rain forest
in danger?
Then point out the map on
page 7. Mention the parts of
the map: labels, scale, compass
rose, and locator. Discuss what
can be learned about the
Amazon River Basin by
reviewing the map. Ask:
What countries are a part of the
Amazon River Basin?
What rivers flow into the
Amazon River?
Using the mileage scale, measure
the distance along the Ucayali
River.
During Reading
Read Strategically: Recognize
Cause-and-Effect Relationships
Activity Master, Page 39
Assign each chapter of the
Rain Forest Adventure
book as independent reading.
As students read the story, they
can use the Activity Master on
page 39 to answer questions
about why events happened in
the story. Remind students that
the effect is what happens and
the cause is why it happens.
Some cause-and-effect
relationships have more than
one cause or more than one
effect. To model the process,
you might want to work
through the first cause-and-
effect relationship on the
Activity Master.
Meeting
Individual Needs
For specific strategies on
meeting individual needs, see
pages 51–56.
Rain Forest Adventure 35
Focus on Reading (continued)
After Reading
Responding: Setting, Characters,
and Plot
Initiate a class discussion to
assess reading comprehension.
Encourage students to use
examples from the story to
support their answers. Use
questions such as:
CHAPTER 1:
Why are the interns traveling to
the Amazon River?
(plot/summarize)
How would you describe the
environment of the Amazon
River Basin? (setting/paraphrase)
What steps did the interns have
to go through before arriving at
their camp? (plot/identify sequence of
events)
What did the interns find
interesting about the river
dolphins? (characters/draw
conclusions)
CHAPTER 2:
What do you think it would be
like to be in a canoe on the
Amazon River? (setting/make
connections)
Why do the interns use
hydrophones when they study
the dolphins? (plot/summarize)
CHAPTER 3:
Why is poaching a problem for
the dolphins? (plot/summarize)
Why do people try to capture
river dolphins? (plot/draw
conclusions)
What did the Ribereños do to
make the interns feel welcome?
(plot, characters/paraphrase)
CHAPTER 4:
How do the dolphins recognize
each other underwater?
(plot/identify main idea and details)
What do the interns do to get
ready to save the dolphins? (plot,
characters/identify sequence of events)
CHAPTER 5:
What is the plan the interns
have for stopping the poachers?
Do you think this is a good
plan? (plot/make judgments)
Plot is what happens to the
characters and why. Choose four
events that help tell the plot of
the story. (plot/summarize)
Students may continue
this discussion in pairs or
small groups using the Story
Map on the Activity Master on
page 40.
Reader’s Response
Ask students to read over the
notes they took as they read.
Then have each student write a
response to the book in his or
her notebook using the
following guidelines. In their
response, students should
include examples from the
story to support their opinions.
Students should
✓ identify what they think is the most
exciting part of the story.
✓ tell what they think the story is
mostly about.
✓ tell what they learned about rain
forests that was new and
interesting.
✓ give their ideas about the
characters or tell how they related
to the characters.
✓ give their opinion about the ending
of the story.
Rain Forest Adventure
✓ tell what they think was real or not
real in the story.
✓ list what else they may want to
learn about rain forests.
Literary Focus: Identify
Elements of Foreshadowing
Activity Master, Page 41
Explain that each author has a
certain style of writing. Style is
how an author chooses to tell
the story. Part of an author’s
style is how he or she keeps
the reader interested in the
story. Authors can use elements
of foreshadowing by giving
hints and clues about what
might happen later in the story.
Sometimes the author leads the
reader to think something is
going to happen that actually
does not.
Next distribute the Activity
Master on page 41, which lists
selections from the student
book that use elements of
foreshadowing. Students will
gain insight into how the
author leads the reader to think
something is going to happen.
You might want to complete
the first exercise with students
to model the process.
Rain Forest Adventure 36
Extend and Assess
Focus on Science
Read, Research, and Write: Report
to Dr. Bender
Student Book, page 63
The interns in the story kept
journals so they would be able
to write a report to Dr. Bender
and EcoAware. Have students
turn to page 67 in their books.
Read aloud page 67. Summarize
the text by explaining that
students will write their own
report to Dr. Bender about
what they have learned about
the Amazon rain forest. Have
students organize their
information about the Amazon
on a cause-and-effect chart.
Students will then use this
information to write a report
to Dr. Bender.
Extend Your Reading
Student Book, page 64
This book focuses on the river
dolphins in the Amazon River
and the efforts scientists are
making to protect these
animals. Have students find out
more about the Amazon. Ask
students to focus on the
climate and wildlife in the
Amazon River Basin, as well as
what scientists are learning
about endangered species in
the Amazon rain forest.
Provide a selection of
nonfiction books about the
Amazon, as well as some
guiding questions that students
can use as they read these
books.
Students might enjoy books
about
• Scientists and their work studying
the river dolphins
• Animals that live in the Amazon
• Why animals become endangered
• Various types of dolphins
Guiding Questions include
1. What is the climate of the Amazon
rain forest?
2. What types of wildlife are found in
the Amazon rain forest?
3. Why might people chop down the
trees in the Amazon rain forest?
4. Why might people try to save the
Amazon rain
forest?
Assessment Options
Use the following assessment
options to assess students’
understanding of Rain Forest
Adventure.
Questions
Rain Forest Adventure
During individual conferences,
ask the following questions, or
ask students to write the
answers independently.
1. Why did the students travel to the
Amazon?
2. What is the climate like in the rain
forest?
3. Why was Vicki working with the
river dolphins?
4. How do dolphins use echolocation?
5. What are some of the dangers that
river dolphins face in the Amazon
River?
Multiple-Choice Test
See the multiple-choice test on
page 67.
Rain Forest Adventure 37
 Name __________________________________________ Planet Patrol: Rain Forest Adventure

Vocabulary: Use Word Origins

English has many words that come from other languages.You can use parts of these
words to figure out the meaning of an English word. The words or word parts in the
first column of the chart below come from different languages. Identify the vocabulary
word that matches the words in the first column. Write the vocabulary word in the
second column. Use the meaning of the word or word parts to write a meaning for the
vocabulary word. Then write the glossary definition of the word.

Origin Word My Meaning Glossary Definition

eche–(Greek) sound

locare–(Latin)
to place

-acioun–(Middle
English) action

fusus–(Latin) poured
or melted

hydor–(Greek) water

-phonos–(Greek)
sounding
© 2006 National Geographic Society

poken–(Middle
English) to poke

Vocabulary Activity Master 38

 Name ____________________________________________ Planet Patrol: Rain Forest Adventure

Reading: Recognize Cause-and-Effect Relationships

As you read Rain Forest Adventure, think about what happens in the story and what
causes those things to happen. Complete the chart below.

What Happens? (Effect) Why Does It Happen? (Cause)

Dolphins are able to find food and keep

from running into things.

People collect rare animals, such as river

dolphins, to keep in museums.

Juan is able to make a plan for how Vicki

and the interns can save the dolphins.

The poachers are frightened and run away.

The interns play a really loud dolphin squeal

from the recording.
© 2006 National Geographic Society

Think of something that happened in the story (effect). Then think about why it happened (cause).
Write the cause and effect in the chart below.

What Happens? (Effect) Why Does It Happen? (Cause)

Reading Strategies Activity Master 39

 Name __________________________________________ Planet Patrol: Rain Forest Adventure

Vocabulary:
Story Map Use Context Clues
Fill in the chart below with information from the story.

Title and Author

Setting

Characters (Main and Supporting)

Problem

Events
© 2006 National Geographic Society

Solution

Plot Activity Master 40

 Name __________________________________________ Planet Patrol: Rain Forest Adventure

Vocabulary:
Literary UseIdentify
Focus: ContextElements
Clues of Foreshadowing
When you read, sometimes the words give you hints and clues about what might
happen later in the story. The way the author uses words to make you predict something
is called foreshadowing. The sentences below are from Rain Forest Adventure. Read each
passage and then write what you think might happen later. Then write the words that
gave you a hint or a clue.
1. As Juan sat down, he noticed a coil of rope in the bottom of the canoe. He poked it cautiously
with his paddle.
“What’s the problem, Juan?” Vicki asked curiously, raising an eyebrow. “Is there something wrong
with the rope?”
“Just checking for snakes,” Juan answered nervously. “There are lots of snakes in rain forests,
right?”(p. 16)

What do you think might happen?____________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

What hints and clues did the author give you?__________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________
Is this what really happens? Explain. _________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

2. But something on the ground caught his eye. There were two candy wrappers lying near a patch
of moss. Next to the wrappers was a boot print.
From this spot, Juan had a clear view of the river through the trees. A shiver ran up his spine.

“Someone was standing here, watching us out on the river,” he said softly to himself. (p. 32)

What do you think might happen?____________________________________________________

© 2006 National Geographic Society

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

What hints and clues did the author give you?__________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________
Is this what really happens? Explain. _________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

Literacy Skill Activity Master 41