What do you know or think about dogs? What do you think about pet owners? Respond to these questions and to the Reader’s Journal question on page 780. Discuss your responses with a few of your classmates. Keep these ideas in mind as you read the selection.
1. Using sticky flags or small sticky notes, code this story. You will mark places in the text where you are reminded of events in your own life (text-self), places that remind you of other stories (text-text), or places that remind you about what you know about the world (text-world).
2. Practice coding the beginning of the story with your class. Continue reading on your own. Keep adding flags and notes about the connections you make. Do not worry about using each of the three codes equally.
If you are having trouble making connections to the selection, try using the Guided Reading Questions. These questions will help you focus on the main ideas of the selection. As you encounter a Guided Reading Question, stop and read the question. Then read the lines around the question to find the answer.
How did connecting your life to the text help your reading? How did connecting the text to another text help your reading? How did connecting the text to what you know about the world help your reading? Discuss these questions with a partner.