Before Reading
Set a Purpose
With a few of your classmates, discuss your response to the Reader's Journal question. As you read, look for the speaker's ideas about the secret of life.
During Reading
Read with a Purpose in Mind
1. Listen as your teacher reads the first stanza. Write down what the speaker is saying about the secret of life.
2. As you read, continue to take notes on the speaker's ideas about the secret of life.
Fix-Up Idea: Read Aloud
If you are having trouble focusing on the purpose, try reading the poem aloud. Since sentences run together between stanzas, try to get the meaning of the whole sentence as you read. After you have read through the poem once, try to summarize what happens and what the author is trying to say.
After Reading
Share Your Connections
With your group from the Before-Reading activity, go over notes that you took during reading. Do you agree with the speaker's ideas about the secret of life? Why, or why not?