Teacher Guide for FAST-R Passage: FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading Nicole s Nose Knows Fiction At a Glance Approximate Grade Range: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Genre: Fiction Topic: Throughout her day, Nicole plays a guessing game based on smells, and later, sounds. Author: Beth Thompson Source: Highlights for Children magazine Difficulty Index: Considerate............ Challenging Structure: Purpose: Richness: Relationships: Vocabulary: Style: Lexile Measure: 660L We use our senses to know the world. If you lost one of your senses for a while, wouldn t you be excited to have it back again? That is what happens to Nicole in this story. Read the story and answer the questions that follow. Nicole s Nose Knows by Beth Thompson Purpose: To entertain the reader with a story about a girl and the game that she plays using her senses. See especially: Questions 1, 9, 10 When Nicole followed her nose, it led her to pancakes, perfume, and pickles. 1 Pancakes! And crispy bacon! 2 Nicole woke up sniffing, but today it wasn t because she had a cold. She had had a bad cold and a stuffy nose for a week, and she hadn t been able to smell anything. But this morning she could smell pancakes and bacon. 3 Nicole grinned. This was a great way to wake up. She pulled on her clothes and hurried to the kitchen. 4 Good morning! Mother said as Nicole hugged her. Mother s perfume smelled like the little white flowers on the lemon bush. 5 She hugged Dad, too. His smell was different. Shaving cream, a smell that reminded her of salty ocean air, and peppermint from his toothpaste. 6 This was a neat game. She decided to see how many things she could recognize just by using her nose. 7 After breakfast Nicole grabbed her lunch sack and yellow raincoat. She smelled the strong rubber odor. 8 Bye, Mom and Dad, she called, opening the door to the cool, fresh smell of a rain-washed morning. 9 Bye, Sampson, she said as she hugged her shaggy dog. She could smell the wet, woolly smell of his coat and the meaty smell of his breakfast as he licked her cheek. 10 As she walked to school, Nicole let her nose explore her lunch sack. She opened the bag, closed her eyes, and sniffed. Relationships: The major relationship is between Nicole and all the objects and people she experiences through her sense of smell (and later, sound). See especially: Questions 2, 4, 7 Vocabulary: There are some challenging words in this text many of them descriptive terms related to the various smells that will either help or hinder students understanding. See especially: Questions 2, 4, words underlined in text In addition, the author uses a less-familiar meaning of the familiar word coat to describe the dog s fur in paragraph 9. See especially: Question 5 Continued on next page
11 What are you doing, Nicole? she heard her friend Charlie ask. Your nose is wiggling like a rabbit s. 12 I m trying to guess what s in my lunch using only my nose, Nicole said. She told him about the game. 13 Charlie leaned over and sniffed. Smells like cherries. And bananas. 14 Nicole laughed. That means a sandwich with Aunt Lucy s homemade cherry jam, and a banana for dessert. Let s try your lunch, Charlie. 15 They sniffed the open sack. Oh, that s easy, said Nicole. Tuna! 16 But what else? insisted Charlie. There s more in the bag. 17 Nicole took a huge sniff. Chocolate and something else, something that made her lips pucker. Pickles! 18 A tuna sandwich, pickles, and chocolate chip cookies, she guessed. 19 Charlie looked in the bag. Close, he said. A brownie, not cookies. But you re pretty good at this. 20 At school Nicole s nose explored some more. It guessed that Julia s colored marker was lime scented. It recognized the funny chemical smell of the purple-printed ditto papers Mrs. Conway handed out. Nicole s sharpened pencil smelled like wooden boards after Dad sawed them. 21 RINNGGGG! It was the recess bell. As Nicole put on her raincoat, she smelled a new smell: popcorn! It reminded her of circuses and movies. Mrs. Conway announced that the PTA was selling popcorn to raise money for new climbing bars. Style: The author uses sensory language and descriptive adjectives so that students can visualize and experience the story. Paragraphs 21-24 also use onomatopoeia to help students visualize and hear the second game. See especially: Questions 2, 3, 4, 7, 8 22 Nicole reached into her raincoat pocket, hoping she had some money. She pulled out ten coppery-smelling pennies. Let s go! she called to Charlie. 23 Nicole and Charlie walked across the playground munching popcorn. As they finished the last kernel, Nicole crumpled up the bag to throw it away. 24 Rustle, rustle went the bag as Nicole crumpled it, then whoosh, thunk as she tossed it into the trash can. 25 Nicole grinned at Charlie. Did you hear that? Three different sounds! Come on. Let s play a guessing game using just our ears!
Teacher Guide for FAST-R Passage: FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading Nicole s Nose Knows Fiction The annotated answer key below highlights common reasons students might choose each answer, and the sidebar gives more insight into the question types, to help you understand patterns of student responses. Always make time to follow up with students in conferences or small groups to probe their thinking, teach in response to patterns, and help them apply effective reading and thinking strategies to their everyday reading. Note: You may find it helpful to refer to the Types and Levels of Thinking Assessed on FAST-R sheet from your teacher resource folder as you examine your students responses. The icon in the right-hand column, below, corresponds to that sheet s more detailed explanations of the kinds of thinking each type of question asks of readers. 1. When the story begins, how does Nicole know that her cold is getting better? A. She can smell pancakes and bacon. ( 2) B. She doesn t feel like going to school. (OOP2, a sign of getting sick; in fact, she was excited to go to school) C. Her temperature went down. (OOB, from their own experience being sick, students may associate this with getting better) D. She wants to play a new game. (OOP1, 6, her game is possible because of her recovery, but isn t how she knows she s better) 2. When Nicole hugged her dad, the smell of his shaving cream reminded her of A. little white flowers on the lemon bush (OOP1 4) B.. ice cream (OOB) C. Aunt Lucy s homemade cherry jam (OOP2, 14) D. salty ocean air and peppermint toothpaste ( 5) 3. Reread paragraph eight. When Nicole opens the door, what can she tell from the way the air smells? A. Her neighbors cooked bacon. (OOP2, bacon is mentioned in 1-2, but not in 8) B. The trees are in bloom. (OOB, none are mentioned in this story, though students may be imagining something she could smell) C. Sampson had gotten wet. (OOP1, 9, Sampson is wet in 9, but when she opened the door in 8, she smelled the rain) D. It had just rained. ( 8, the smell of a rain-washed morning ) 4. Who in this story smells woolly? A. Julia s marker (OOP2, 20 it s a what, not a who, and is lime) B. Sampson ( 9) C. Dad (OOP1, 5, dad smells of salty ocean air and peppermint) D. Nicole s sheep (OOB, students may know that sheep have wool, relying on prior knowledge rather than the text) MI1: Determine implicit meaning from ideas in context FE1: Identify evidence explicitly stated in the text FE2: Recognize the explicit meaning from varied wording in the text FE2: Recognize the explicit meaning from varied wording in the text 5. In paragraph nine, what does the word coat mean? A. to cover with paint (OOB, students may know coat of paint ) B. a rubber raincoat (OOP1, 7, Nicole s raincoat is mentioned in 7, but it s not connected to Sampson s coat in 9) C. Sampson s fur ( 9, can be inferred from descriptions of Sampson s coat: shaggy and having a wet, woolly smell ) D. a wool sweater (OOP2, there s no sweater in the story; students are confusing wool with the woolly smell of Sampson s coat) MI1: Determine implicit meaning from words in context
6. Which of the following was NOT in Charlie s lunch sack? A. a tuna sandwich (OOP1, 15, 18) B. pickles (OOP1, 17-18) C. chocolate chip cookies ( 19, Nicole guesses this, but Charlie tells her he has a brownie, not cookies; this is the one choice NOT in his bag) D. a brownie (OOP1, 19) 7. In paragraph 20, what was the FIRST thing Nicole smelled when she got to school? A. wooden pencils (OOP1, end of 20) B. tuna (OOP2, 15, smelled in Charlie s lunch on the way to school) C. cafeteria food (OOB, plausible from experience, but not from the text) D. Julia s lime-scented marker (start of 20) 8. Reread paragraph 25. Which of these will Nicole and Charlie MOST LIKELY notice as they walk together in the playground during recess? A. the smell of bacon cooking (OOP2, Nicole has changed the game in 25 from using their noses to only using their ears) B. the sound of birds singing (reasonable to notice with their ears) C. the sight of a sunset (OOB, a sunset can be seen, but they are only using their ears at the end) D. the sound of bacon cooking (OOP1, a noise they could notice with their ears, but one that occurred at home, not on the playground) 9. Which sentence best describes the reason why the story is called, Nicole s Nose Knows? A. Nicole loved the smell of bacon and pancakes. (OOP1, 1-2, too specific to be the reason for the title) B. Nicole was trying to find out what everything smelled like. (general and applies to whole story; Nicole plays this game throughout) C. Nicole did a study of noses and knew a lot about them. (OOB) D. Nicole learned that she didn t like the smell of pickles. (OOP2, 17, too specific to answer the question, even if it were accurate) 10. What is the main idea of this story? A. There are a lot of exciting things to explore with your senses. (broadest choice that covers the whole story) B. Stuffy noses clear up. (OOP1, Nicole s did at the start, but this is too specific to be the main idea of the whole story) C. Lunch sometimes smells bad. (OOB, students may think so, but the text does not suggest it) D. Sometimes the nose knows more than the brain. (OOP2, title, students may relate this to the title of the story, but in fact Nicole s fun comes from using her nose and her brain together) FE2: Recognize the explicit meaning from varied wording in the text MI3: Determine implicit meaning by understanding the organization of information in the text MI4: Determine new meaning and apply it beyond the passage MI3: Determine implicit meaning by understanding the organization of information in the text MI2: Determine a singular meaning from the sum total of a particular paragraph
Teacher Guide for FAST-R Passage: FAST-R: Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading Nicole s Nose Knows Fiction A Note to Grade 2 Teachers Although this question set is designed for G2 students, the passage and a few of the questions are from the 2003 G3 MCAS ELA test. Thus, you may wish to consider several options for implementation, depending on the time of year and what you hope to learn about your students as readers and thinkers. One way to focus on students thinking skills rather than their decoding skills would be to read the passage aloud, as a class or one on one, and then have students answer the full set of questions on their own. This would be less similar to the testing conditions students will experience when taking MCAS in G3, but is probably more similar to students day-to-day reading and comprehension experiences. You could also read the questions and answer choices to some or all students. A second option would be to administer the test to students a few at a time, perhaps during your guided reading time. As you watch students reading and answering the questions, you will notice which questions they are succeeding or struggling with, and may notice reading strategies that students are using or could benefit from learning. Jot your observations in your conferring notes so you can use them as the focus for future instruction. (This way of administering the test could be used whether you read the passage out loud or have students read it independently.) Keep in mind: The first five questions of the question set (three finding evidence, two making inferences ) are connected to the first nine paragraphs of the story. The last five questions are connected to paragraphs 10 to 25 and to the story overall. If you notice students doing better on the early questions than the later ones, a lack of reading stamina may be an issue. Consider teaching students strategies for pausing to check their own comprehension and refocus their attention, then re-testing with the same passage later in the school year.
FAST-R + Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading Name Nicole s Nose Knows Fiction Date Teacher/Class We use our senses to know the world. If you lost one of your senses for a while, wouldn t you be excited to have it back again? That is what happens to Nicole in this story. Read the story and answer the questions that follow. Nicole s Nose Knows by Beth Thompson When Nicole followed her nose, it led her to pancakes, perfume, and pickles. 1 Pancakes! And crispy bacon! 2 Nicole woke up sniffing, but today it wasn t because she had a cold. She had had a bad cold and a stuffy nose for a week, and she hadn t been able to smell anything. But this morning she could smell pancakes and bacon. 3 Nicole grinned. This was a great way to wake up. She pulled on her clothes and hurried to the kitchen. 4 Good morning! Mother said as Nicole hugged her. Mother s perfume smelled like the little white flowers on the lemon bush. 5 She hugged Dad, too. His smell was different. Shaving cream, a smell that reminded her of salty ocean air, and peppermint from his toothpaste. 6 This was a neat game. She decided to see how many things she could recognize just by using her nose. 7 After breakfast Nicole grabbed her lunch sack and yellow raincoat. She smelled the strong rubber odor. 8 Bye, Mom and Dad, she called, opening the door to the cool, fresh smell of a rain-washed morning. 9 Bye, Sampson, she said as she hugged her shaggy dog. She could smell the wet, woolly smell of his coat and the meaty smell of his breakfast as he licked her cheek. 10 As she walked to school, Nicole let her nose explore her lunch sack. She opened the bag, closed her eyes, and sniffed. 11 What are you doing, Nicole? she heard her friend Charlie ask. Your nose is wiggling like a rabbit s. The story continues on the next page.
12 I m trying to guess what s in my lunch using only my nose, Nicole said. She told him about the game. 13 Charlie leaned over and sniffed. Smells like cherries. And bananas. 14 Nicole laughed. That means a sandwich with Aunt Lucy s homemade cherry jam, and a banana for dessert. Let s try your lunch, Charlie. 15 They sniffed the open sack. Oh, that s easy, said Nicole. Tuna! 16 But what else? insisted Charlie. There s more in the bag. 17 Nicole took a huge sniff. Chocolate and something else, something that made her lips pucker. Pickles! 18 A tuna sandwich, pickles, and chocolate chip cookies, she guessed. 19 Charlie looked in the bag. Close, he said. A brownie, not cookies. But you re pretty good at this. 20 At school Nicole s nose explored some more. It guessed that Julia s colored marker was lime scented. It recognized the funny chemical smell of the purple-printed ditto papers Mrs. Conway handed out. Nicole s sharpened pencil smelled like wooden boards after Dad sawed them. 21 RINNGGGG! It was the recess bell. As Nicole put on her raincoat, she smelled a new smell: popcorn! It reminded her of circuses and movies. Mrs. Conway announced that the PTA was selling popcorn to raise money for new climbing bars. 22 Nicole reached into her raincoat pocket, hoping she had some money. She pulled out ten coppery-smelling pennies. Let s go! she called to Charlie. 23 Nicole and Charlie walked across the playground munching popcorn. As they finished the last kernel, Nicole crumpled up the bag to throw it away. 24 Rustle, rustle went the bag as Nicole crumpled it, then whoosh, thunk as she tossed it into the trash can. 25 Nicole grinned at Charlie. Did you hear that? Three different sounds! Come on. Let s play a guessing game using just our ears!
FAST-R + Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading Name Nicole s Nose Knows Fiction Date Teacher/Class Mark your choices for each question by filling in the circle with the best answer. 1. When the story begins, how does Nicole know that her cold is getting better? A She can smell pancakes and bacon. B She doesn t feel like going to school. C Her temperature went down. D She wants to play a new game. 2. When Nicole hugged her dad, the smell of his shaving cream reminded her of A little white flowers on the lemon bush. B ice cream. C Aunt Lucy s homemade cherry jam. D salty ocean air and peppermint. 3. Reread paragraph eight. When Nicole opens the door, what can she tell from the way the air smells? A Her neighbors cooked bacon. B The trees are in bloom. C Sampson had gotten wet. D It had just rained. 4. Who in this story smells woolly? A Julia s marker B Sampson C Dad 5. In paragraph nine, what does the word coat mean? A to cover with paint B a rubber raincoat C Sampson s fur D a wool sweater 6. Which of the following was NOT in Charlie s lunch sack? A a tuna sandwich B pickles C chocolate chip cookies D a brownie 7. According to paragraph 20, what was the FIRST thing Nicole smelled when she got to school? A wooden pencils B tuna C cafeteria food D Julia s lime-scented marker There are more questions for you to answer on the next page. D Nicole s sheep
Name Date School Teacher/Class 8. Reread paragraph 25. Which of these will Nicole and Charlie MOST LIKELY notice as they walk together in the playground during recess? A the smell of bacon cooking B the sound of birds singing C the sight of a sunset D the sound of bacon cooking 9. Which sentence best describes the reason why the story is called, Nicole s Nose Knows? A Nicole loved the smell of bacon and pancakes. B Nicole was trying to find out what everything smelled like. C Nicole did a study of noses and knew a lot about them. D Nicole learned that she didn t like the smell of pickles. 10. What is the main idea of this story? A There are a lot of exciting things to explore with your senses. B Stuffy noses clear up. C Lunch sometimes smells bad. D Sometimes the nose knows more than the brain.