CHARLES LEHMAN
Hi! I’m Question Mark.
Before you read, practice saying these words:
- invented
- sugary
- icicles
- Epperson
- Epsicles
- Popsicle
Illustrations by Jeff Harvey
Interview With an Ice Pop
Question Mark learns more about this tasty snack.
From the May / June 2021 Issue
Lexiles: 560L
Guided Reading Level: L
DRA Level: 20-24
Vocabulary: invented, sugary, icicles, Epperson, Epsicles, Popsicle
Topic:
English Language Arts,
Common Core Standards
1) Question Mark: I am here with an ice pop! I have so much to ask you.
Ice Pop: Sweet! Let’s go, bro!
2) QM: Who invented the first ice pop?
IP: The story goes that in 1905, a young dude named Frank Epperson invented the first ice pop when he was 11 years old. It was an accident!
3) QM: Really? How did he do it?
IP: Frank mIxed some sugary soda powder with water. Then he left the sweet liquid outside in the cold all night by mistake. When he went for it the next day, it was frozen! So he picked it up by the wooden stick he had used to stir it. He licked his frozen drink. It was cold, sweet, and yummy!
National Archives
Years ago, you could buy an ice pop for one nickel!
4) QM: Wow! What did Frank do with his invention?
IP: When Frank became a grown-up, he started selling his ice pops at the park. He called them “Epsicles,” which is his last name and the word “icicles” smushed together. Years later, he gave his ice pop invention a brand-new name. He called it the “Popsicle.” That name is still popular today!
5) QM: Do you go by any other names, Ice Pop?
IP: In England, they sometimes call me an “ice lolly.” I’ve been called a “freezer pop” too.
6) QM: When is the best time to eat an ice pop?
IP: I’m a great treat for when the weather is hot and the sun is shining. Just be sure to finish before I melt!
Arina P Habich/Shutterstock.com
7) QM: Thank you for your time, Ice Pop! You’re really cool!
IP: You are too, bud!
Activities
(1)
Skills Activities
More About the Article
Social Studies Focus
American symbols; Economics
Social-emotional Learning Focus
Cooperation (partner reading)
In-Person Lesson Plan
1. BEFORE READING
Preteach Vocabulary (3-5 minutes)
- Play the online vocabulary slideshow. This article’s featured words are invented, sugary, icicles, Epperson, Epsicles, and Popsicles.
2. PRETEACH NAVIGATING THE PAGE (3 MINUTES)
- Point out the numbers in the interview. Explain that kids will read the questions and answers in the order of the numbers. It will be important to pay attention to this when they get to the end of a column.
3. READ THE INTERVIEW MULTIPLE TIMES (15-30 MINUTES)
- If you live in a district where kids can partner up, pair kids up to read the interview a few times out loud.
- Tell kids that they should read with expression. How should questions sound when you read them out loud? What are the personalities of the characters?
- First Read: Each partner should quietly read the interview to himself or herself. This is to get the meaning and the feel of the interview.
- Second Read: Now the pairs will read their parts out loud to each other. The child playing Question Mark can hold a pencil like a microphone (with the eraser end up) while asking questions.
- Third and Fourth Reads: Kids will be amazed at how much more fluently they read this each time. They just got so much practice with reading fluency!
NOTE: On our website, you can hear this interview read aloud, with each word highlighted along the way. Kids can listen to it to hear fluent reading modeled for them.
- If you live in a district where kids can’t be partners right now, you can be Question Mark, and you can call on different students to play the Ice Pop in small-group instruction. Ideally, each student will get a chance to read a part more than once.
Remote-Learning Lesson Plan
1. BEFORE READING
Assign Vocabulary Slideshow (10 minutes)
- Assign students the online vocabulary slideshow to preview independently. This article’s featured words are invented, sugary, icicles, Epperson, Epsicles, and Popsicles.
2. READ THE INTERVIEW
Here are three ways to use this feature if you are doing remote learning.
Remote Option A: Live Synchronous Instruction (15-30 minutes)
- Share the article on your screen. Point out the numbers in the interview. Explain that kids will read in the order of the numbers.
- You can play the part of Question Mark, using your pencil as a microphone. Call on different students to read Ice Pop’s answer.
Remote Option B: Family Fluency Activity (15-30 minutes)
- Have kids practice reading the interview aloud with a family member several times.
- When they are ready, they can read the interview out loud with their family member and record a video of it on a phone. The person playing Question Mark should hold a pencil as a microphone.
- Then they can each post their interview to the learning management system you use. For a fun way to build your classroom community, have kids watch each other’s interviews.
- Kids can also email you their filmed interviews.
Remote Option C: Family Fluency Activity (15-30 minutes)
- Assign kids partners and roles (one child is Question Mark, the other child is the Ice Pop). Give them a week for partners to Zoom with each other and practice reading their parts multiple times. They can film the final time and share it with you.
- This would take more coordination with caregivers, but it would also be a fun project and a sweet way to offer kids a social connection during this isolating remote time.
Both In-Person and Remote
After Reading ELA Focus: Vocabulary (15 minutes)
- Have students complete the “Ice Pop Crossword Puzzle” skills sheet to reinforce the vocabulary words used in this article.
- You can distribute the printed sheet if you’re in school and assign the online page if you are remote.
Craft Extension: Make a Microphone (20 minutes)
- We will have a Question Mark interview in every issue. Kids can make microphones from balls of tinfoil and toilet paper rolls to use for the interview. Just stuff the tinfoil ball into one end of the toilet paper roll. You can keep these all year long!
Enrich the Learning: Paired Text Opportunities (time amount varies)
- Making text-to-text connections builds knowledge and comprehension. We layer Storyworks 2 with many ways for your students to make connections.
Pairable Text Poem,“Ice Pops, Ice Pops” (page 32)
Text-to-Speech