May/June 2023

Reading Takes You On Adventures

Explore the theme of adventures through these stories: The Great Octopus Escape, Mouse on the Moon, and Vacation in Space: Fun or Foolish?

The Editors of Storyworks 1

Picture This

Picture This: The Tallest Sandcastle

Take a closer look at the tallest sandcastle ever.

Picture This

Picture This: The Tallest Sandcastle

Lexiles: 370L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Key Details

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Silly Decodable

Why Cry, Silly Baby?

Have fun reading words with y-as-a-vowel.

Silly Decodable

Why Cry, Silly Baby?

Lexiles: 270L

Story Includes: Activities, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Fluency, Vocabulary

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Background Builder

Weird and Wonderful Octopuses

Find out about octopuses with these five wild facts.

Background Builder

Weird and Wonderful Octopuses

Lexiles: 410L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Main Idea, Vocabulary

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Nonfiction

The Great Octopus Escape

Inky the octopus lived in an aquarium in New Zealand. How did he go missing?

Nonfiction

The Great Octopus Escape

Lexiles: 560L (The Great Octopus Escape), 280L (Your Turn to Read)

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Main Idea, Key Details

Read Story Resources Lesson Plan
Mini Graphic

My Way

Enjoy a mini graphic novel about working together.

Mini Graphic

My Way

Lexiles: 490L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Main Idea

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Paired Texts

Could You Be a LEGO® Master?

Read two articles that can help you become a LEGO® Master.

Paired Texts

Could You Be a LEGO® Master?

Lexiles: 490L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Comparing Texts

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Fiction

Mouse on the Moon

Read a story about a mouse who longs for adventure.

Fiction

Mouse on the Moon

Lexiles: 460L

Story Includes: Activities, Video

Featured Skill: Main Idea

Read Story Resources Lesson Plan
What Do You Think

Vacation in Space: Fun or Foolish?

What do you think? Go online to write what you think!

What Do You Think

Vacation in Space: Fun or Foolish?

Lexiles: 400L

Story Includes: Activities, Video, Slideshow

Featured Skill: Main Idea, Writing

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Poetry Kit

What Do You Need?

Enjoy a poem about making your own adventures.

Poetry Kit

What Do You Need?

Story Includes: Activities, Video

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Word Play

Nosey at the Beach

Choose the correct conjunction to complete each sentence.

Word Play

Nosey at the Beach

Featured Skill: Vocabulary

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Find It

Be a Feature Finder

Look back in your magazine. Check off each feature you find.

Find It

Be a Feature Finder

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Slideshows

Vocabulary Slideshow: Could You Be a Lego Master?

Unlock challenging vocabulary words and build listening-comprehension skills for all learners.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: Could You Be a Lego Master?

Unlock challenging vocabulary words and build listening-comprehension skills for all learners.

Swipe to move between slides!

model (MAH-dl)

A smaller copy of a real thing. This model car is made of LEGO bricks.

Can you say model?

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train (trayn)

To practice and learn how to do something. The students train so they can play tennis.

Can you say train?

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base (bayss)

The bottom part of something, such as a building or LEGO tower.

Can you say base?

Photo Credits

Levent Konuk/Shutterstock.com (Model);

pixdeluxe/Getty Images (Train);

iStockPhoto/Getty Images (Base)

My Way

Read this month’s mini graphic!

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My Way

Read this month’s mini graphic!

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1. Jill and Tom are best friends.

Teacher: Pick a partner for science time.

Jill: Tom, let’s be partners!

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2. They must build a tower that will not fall over.

Teacher: Work together to build your towers!

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3. Tom has a plan.

Tom: We should make it as tall as we can.

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4. Jill has a different plan.

Jill: No. We need to make the base wide. Then it will not fall.

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5. They don’t agree.

Tom: Towers need to be tall!

Jill: It will just fall over.

Credits:

Art by Elio

Vocabulary Slideshow: The Great Octopus Escape

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: The Great Octopus Escape

Our interactive vocabulary slideshows help unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

Swipe to move between slides!

aquarium (uh-KWA-ree-uhm)

A place that shows water animals and plants. People go to the aquarium and look at the animals and plants.

Can you say aquarium?

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tentacles (TEN-tuh-kuhlz)

Long, thin parts that some animals have. Tentacles can touch and hold things.

Can you say tentacles?

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predator (PREH-duh-tuhr)

An animal that hunts other animals for food. Owls are predators that hunt small animals like mice.

Can you say predator?

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prey (pray)

An animal that is hunted by other animals for food. Animals like mice are prey for owls.

Can you say prey?

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escape artist (uh-SKAYP AHR-tist])

Someone who is good at escaping or breaking free. This dog is an escape artist.

Can you say escape artist?

Photo Credits

Sergii Figurnyi/Shutterstock.com (Aquarium);

Wirestock Creators/Shutterstock.com (Tentacles);

BlackBoxGuild/Shutterstock.com (Predator, Prey);

alexei_tm/Shutterstock.com (Escape Artist)

Vocabulary Slideshow: Weird and Wonderful Octopuses

Unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: Weird and Wonderful Octopuses

Unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

Swipe to move between slides!

tentacles (TEN-tuh-kuhlz)

Long, thin parts that some animals have. Tentacles can touch and hold things.

Can you say tentacles?

Swipe to move between slides!

suction cups (SUHK-shuhn kups)

Round parts of some animals that stick to things. Octopuses hold on to fish with suction cups.

Can you say suction cups?

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predator (PREH-duh-tuhr)

An animal that hunts other animals for food. Owls are predators that hunt small animals like mice.

Can you say predator?

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ink (ink)

A liquid that is black or another color. A marker has ink in it. Octopuses also make ink. They spray it if they feel afraid.

Can you say ink?

Photo Credits

Wirestock Creators/Shutterstock.com (Tentacles);

Jeff Rotman/NPL/Minden Pictures (Suction Cups, Ink - Octopus);

BlackBoxGuild/Shutterstock.com (Predator);

Maryna Pleshkun/Shutterstock.com (Ink - Pen)

Vocabulary Slideshow: Picture This!

Unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

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Vocabulary Slideshow: Picture This!

Unlock challenging vocabulary words with great visual and audio support.

Swipe to move between slides!

sky-high (SKEYE-heye)

If something is sky-high, it is very tall. This building is sky-high.

Can you say sky-high?

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base (bayss)

The bottom part of something, such as a building or sandcastle.

Can you say base?

Swipe to move between slides!

carve (kahrv)

To make something by cutting wood, stone, or another material. This artist is carving wood.

Can you say carve?

Photo Credits

Matej Kastelic/Shutterstock.com (Sky High);

iStockPhoto/Getty Images (Base);

On the road again/Shutterstock.com (Carve)

Word Sounds Slideshow: Y as a Vowel

Our interactive word sounds slideshows help unlock challenging word sounds and build listening-comprehension skills for all learners. Boost this story's featured phonics skill and phonological awareness

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Word Sounds Slideshow: Y as a Vowel

Our interactive word sounds slideshows help unlock challenging word sounds and build listening-comprehension skills for all learners. Boost this story's featured phonics skill and phonological awareness