Reading Response #8

12/13/2015

Informational texts should be an important part of our reading diet. We can read about history, science, economics, art, music, news, people, and much more. Informational texts, such as news articles, are an important part of adults' daily reading.

News articles inform us about the world we live in. They shape our views, increase our intelligence, and enhance our ability to think about other people's perspectives. Plus, they help us learn!

This Week's Prompt:
Find a full news article to read. It can be about any topic, but it should be recent (within the past month). Write a summary of what the news article was about. Your summary should recap the main ideas, not retell the whole article.

Then share 2-3 insightful questions or wonderings that you have after reading the article.

Here are some websites with kid-friendly news articles:

1. News ELA: https://e.newsela.com/
We have a log in for NewsELA.
Username: first name + last initial + 5k. So, merik5k. Password: pinehill
2. Time For Kids: http://www.timeforkids.com/news
3. StudentNews.net: https://www.studentnewsnet.com/

I look forward to reading your responses to the news!

52 Comments

Julia

12/14/2015 07:31:29 am

I read the news article The Case For...Simone Biles. Simone Biles is a gymnast, but she hasn't been to her first Olympics yet. I wonder why this is true because in the article reads: "Biles, 18, also doesn't do second place. She hasn't lost the all-around competition since March 2013," so it clearly states that she is a really good gymnast. Also, the text reads: "The expected success in Rio makes Biles a likely candidate for Sportswoman of Next Year," I don't know what that is, so I would like to find out, to see if I agree with this statement. Lastly, at the end of the article, it reads: "Biles has won a truckload of medals since then, but she doesn't revel them. Her mother puts them in a safe, and Biles doesn't know the combination." I don't really get why Simone's mom would do that.
Sincerely,
Julia

Ben

12/22/2015 03:59:34 pm

Dear Julia,
Great job on this. A part That I really love is how you added evidence from the text to talk more realistic details about what you read. I also wonder why Biles mother puts Biles medals in a safe. I also find it weird how Biles doesn't know what the combination is. Also What does "Doesn't do second place mean." Something that you could do better is adding paragraphs. I think that I could also do that better too.

Sincerely,
Ben

Trisha

12/14/2015 04:24:21 pm

Dear Class,
This week I read about "aliens" on Mars. It says that aliens on Mars might not exist but there is little life on Mars. Pareidolia is a phenomenon which causes people to see things that really aren't there. It comes from our ability to recognize patterns, Which is why NASA, and a few scientists think that Aliens are not real.
Here are few questions I have. Is there actually aliens on Mars? And why does Pareidolia make us see what we don't actually see?
Sincerely,
Trisha

August

12/14/2015 07:22:58 pm

Dear Trisha,
I do think that aliens are real. Why does Pareidolia make us see what we don't actually see? I like your response so much I want to read the real article. What category is it in? War and Peace, Science, Kids. Money, Law, Health, Arts, or Sports?
Sincerely,
August

August

12/21/2015 04:16:49 pm

Dear Trisha,
I love you questions. They are really simple but have a lot of meaning. I like your response so much I want to read the real article. What category is it in? War and Peace, Science, Kids. Money, Law, Health, Arts, or Sports?When I read your response I was what Pareidolia means and what it has to do with that?
I do think that aliens are real. But why does Pareidolia make us see what we don't actually see, I am also wondering?
Sincerely.
August

Trisha

12/22/2015 06:28:09 pm

Dear August,
I do not do know why pareidolia makes us see things. That was actually one of my question!
By the way, the article is in science.
Sincerely,
Trisha

August

12/29/2015 09:08:12 am

Dear Trisha,
Thank you
Sincerely,
August

August

12/14/2015 07:13:58 pm

Dear Class,

I read Beijing Skies Are So Dirty, City Tells People To Stay Home. It says the skies of Beijing are so dirty that the government is telling People to stay home. The government is closing factories and telling people to stop driving there cars. The article gave one example of a girl that is happy to leave and gave one example of a man that liked having dirty skies. One question I have is the article was published on 12,11,15 and the article said it would take three days to fix it and it is 12,14,15 today, So have they fixed the skies yet? And do more people like the skies dirty or do more people like the skies clean?

Sincerely,
August

DeAngi

12/16/2015 05:32:28 pm

Dear August,

It is true that Beijing skies are getting dirty. And um, do you think people like the skies dirty. It pollutes the crops and makes people sick. I think that person is crazy if he likes dirty skies.And with Beijing's booming population, ( more than a billion people) they might shut down little factories, but not the big guns. To answer your question,(so have they fixed the skies yet?) I will give you a clue. Vitamin D is scarce around here.

Sincerely,

DeAngi

Kate

12/14/2015 08:18:01 pm

Dear Mrs.Kimball,

I read Experts have sneaky plan to fight dangerous bugs with other bugs. In the story the bug scientist, Stephen Dobson, is using boy mosquitos because boys don't bite and some boy mosquitos have a disease called Wolbachia. He is making boy and girl mosquitos mate to make other eggs, but the eggs that the other girl makes won't hatch because the boy has wolbachia. Witch makes the girls eggs no hatch.
- kate

Caitlin

12/15/2015 08:25:48 pm

Dear Kate,
I really liked your summary. It really gave me the main reason of the story.
Why do you think the other bugs are dangerous? Also how does the eggs not being able to hatch help kill the dangerous bugs?
Sincerely,
Caitlin

Caitlin

12/14/2015 08:52:28 pm

Dear Class.
I read about the pollution in Bejjing and I am going to summarize the article. In Bejjing their is a problem with the pollution their was a red alert which is really bad. Some schools were shut done because of the pollution. Also the people of Beijjing are only alowed to drivetrain heir cars every other day. Also one resident moved from Beijjing because of the pollution.
Some questions that I have are will Beijjing be a place were no one can live because of the pollution? Also will the pollution in the air spree to other places in the world?
Sincerely,
Caitlin

August

12/15/2015 05:11:20 pm

Dear Caitlin,
I also did the one about Beijing skies. Would you like having dirty skies and stay in Beijing or would you go some where else?

I really liked the way you summarized the article.

Sincerely,
August

Anthony

12/15/2015 05:12:37 pm

Dear Classmates,
I have chosen an article that is about electrical eels and I am going to summarize what it said.
Electrical eels are electrical and are very harmful. They zap fish to knock them out, and when they are weak, they swallow them whole. They could have a chance to kill you. A scientist has discovered something that helps the eels make their electricity more stronger.

Eels bend their bodies, which makes this electrical eel stronger. Younger eels have less power, so they use this strategy more than grownups do. The scientists tests his idea and see that when it attacks the fish, it curls up, and sometimes it does not. But one thing that scientists did not know was how do they stay safe.

To conclude this, it had a lot of facts and told me a lot of things about electrical eels in an easier way.

Kate

12/16/2015 06:17:48 pm

Dear Anthony,
How do you think electric eels get stronger by eating fish? Also do electric eels hide then attack there prey or do they just go and attack them? My last question I have is do they go after people?

- Kate

Anthony

1/4/2016 08:27:46 am

Dear Classmates,
I totally forgot to ask questions for the article I read. One question I have is when the electric curl up, where do their power from. The sun?
Another question I have is, " Do the grownups leave their eels to hunt on their own once they've hatched?" And I always wanted to know how eels hunted.
Sincerely
Anthony

Whitney

12/15/2015 08:58:51 pm

Dear Ms.Kimball,
I read the article about bears. The article is about how bears are coming closer to humans to look for food. It states that since the weather is dryer, the bears don't have as much food as usual. This means that bears are coming closer to towns. People are actually shooting bears and banging pots to scare the bears off. Some people think that the people shooting the guns are actually trying to kill the bears. Others believe that they're not killing them since there would be dead bears everywhere. Going back to the food problem, this could be really bad for the bears since it's almost winter and they need to hibernate. To hibernate, they need to pack on weight to get them through hibernation. If they don't get enough food they won't hibernate. David Graber says "If they don't hibernate, they die,". I really hope the bears don't die.
Sincerely,
Whitney

cordy

12/21/2015 06:23:23 pm

Dear Whitney

I really like how you put your opinion in the responds. how ever I think you could put more evidence from the text in. And why do you think that people "banding pots to scare the bears off"?

Sincerely,
Cordy

Whitney

12/21/2015 08:39:34 pm

Dear Ms.Kimball,
Here are my 2 questions. 1. Why do bears NEED to hibernate? and 2. Why aren't people doing something if they think the bears are getting shot? Sorry!
Sincerely,
Whitney

Liana

12/15/2015 10:01:49 pm

Dear class,
I read "More whales getting caught in fishing gear; California tries to help" by Assosiated Press. The summary of the story is that many whales in California are getting caught in fishing gear. The reason is that the food whales eat are coming to warmer water, closer to wear people are, and the whales are following. This is causing them to get caught in fishing gear because they are very close to wear fishermen are catching crabs. Also, there seems to be less whales than there were the years before. Fishermen, and the other citizens of California, are trying to sort out this problem. They are studying more about whales so they help rescue them. One question I have is how are they going to help the whales? How are they going to stop this horrible problem? Another question I have is another question I have is will this problem spread? Will more whales around the world get caught in fishing gear? My final question is will the news about the whales spread? Will more people in other states or even counries soon know about this problem?
Sincerely,
Liana

Emily

12/21/2015 04:48:57 pm

Dear Liana,
I like your summary and how you really described whales getting caught in fishing gear is like. I think it is sad they are getting caught. But it s great people are trying to rescue them.But you added "Another question I have is another question I have." I think you didn't mean to but remember to check it over. But you did a great job!!
Sincerely
Emily

Liana

12/24/2015 07:42:28 pm

Hi Emily,
Yea, reading it over, I realized that I did make that error. But thank you for your thoughtful compliments and feedback!
Sincerely,
Liana

Tommy

12/16/2015 04:24:36 pm

Dear 5K,

I just read an article on robots in Japan. The population is getting older fast. Toyota had an idea to help the older people in Japan by making a robot. The robot mainly helps older people grip the things they need to grasp or get a hold of. For example, they don't have to drive a car anymore because of the hardness of gripping the steering wheel. The robot does the driving for them. Also, the robot will be helping them by opening curtains. Obviously, they don't have to open the curtains anymore with the help of the robot's.

But the downside is, it's not for sale YET. Toyota is still working with 10 Japanese Universities to develop the robot to make it standard. They say the robot will not be available until 2020.

Sincerely, Tommy

Tommy

12/18/2015 05:01:59 pm

My questions were:

How long does the coding and computer science take to make the robot grip and control stuff?

I thought Toyota was a car company. How did they build a robot?

P.S. Sorry for the late notice!

Ryan

12/20/2015 10:36:49 am

Dear Tommy,
That sounds like an interesting article you read. I have a few questions about it though. When you talk about the robots helping people, are they testing the robots or are they actually helping real people? My other question is why can't they sell to the public yet? Is it because the robots are malfunctioning, or am I wrong?

Sincerely,
Ryan

Ryan

12/21/2015 03:27:42 pm

Dear Tommy,
I am so sorry that I forgot a compliment. My compliment is I like how you organized your writing into paragraphs. I think it adds more to your piece.

Sincerely,
Ryan

Ben

12/16/2015 04:33:54 pm

Dear 5K,
I read about Toyota Motor Corp and how they wanted to make a robot. this is my summary,
Last month they bought a company in California that would help make there robot, then Akifumi Tamaoki talked about how the robot works, then Toyota fond out that they had a competition. Now Toyota is working with 10 colleges in Japan that will help people.
In the story it never said what year the robot would come out, so thats my question. Another question is I wonder who else is helping Toyota Motor Corp.

Sincerely,
Ben

Maggie

12/22/2015 04:41:31 pm

Dear Ben,
I liked your summery a lot. You told the point of the story in a very clear way.
I think that you could work on your editing. For instance you said " I wonder who else is helping Toyota motor corp," but you didn't put an ? on the end.
You could go through your story and look for misspellings.
from,
Maggie

Jansyn

12/22/2015 09:56:28 pm

Dear Ben
I liked how you talked about the robots but why did the Toyota company use them for maybe you should explain that. Did other Toyota companies use the robots. I suggest that you could maybe put one more detail in there.

Henry

12/17/2015 02:30:39 pm

Dear ms kimball
I read an article about beijing's smog and pollution. Most people in beijing took a vacation because the pollution reached red alert. Schools closed factories stopped their work and half of the cars were kept off the road. Smog is a mixture of fog and pollution. It comes from years of fast growth and china has been building new cites and factories at great speed.
Sincerely,
Henry

Henry

12/21/2015 02:59:35 pm

Dear ms kimball
One question that I have is why don't people stop polluting?
Another question is why doesn't the police step in and stop it?
Also why don't people demolish the factories that are causing it?
Sincerely,
Henry

Caitlin link

12/21/2015 03:54:49 pm

Dear Henry,
You did a awesome job just telling us the main ideas of the pollution in Beijing. Also, why do you think China's factories are making lots of pollution but are factories in the USA are not making as much pollution as China's factories? A suggestion I have to make your summary even better is you can make sure you capitalize every proper noun.
Sincerely,
Caitlin

DeAngi

12/22/2015 04:41:56 pm

Dear Henry,

I really like how you unpacked the word smog. I really didn't know what it meant, even though I've been to china before. One thing that you could work on is give more examples. My curious question is if the government does shut down all the factories, how would china get all of it's resources.

Sincerely,

DeAngi

Ryan

12/17/2015 04:36:07 pm

Dear Ms. Kimball,
I read an article about hoverboards bursting into flames. The article is about the owner, Johnny Zhu and his company Swagway. Zhu claims the hoverboards that keep exploding and catching on fire are safe and continues to defend himself and the safety of the boards, and says you should not be scared to use the product. However, Zhu hides in his mansion in Indiana and does not reply or respond to the public. Finally, in the past, Zhu was sued by his former business partner and was now recently sued in a class action suit. My first question is why or how does the hoverboard explode? My second question is why would his business partner sue him if they were partners?

Sincerely,
Ryan

Trisha

12/21/2015 03:56:36 pm

Dear Ryan,
I like how you stayed on topic and didn't go off course with the summary. You should try to tell a little more about how Zhu thinks that you should not be afraid of the product. A question I have for you is, what does Zhu not respond to the public. Is he afraid he is going to be humiliated?
Sincerely,
Trisha

DeAngi

12/17/2015 05:50:46 pm

Dear class,

I read about fighting Mosquitoes with Mosquitoes. I did the level MAX. A group of scientists want to fend off back yard mosquitoes. The population of mosquitoes have grown tremendously though the years. Experts want the male mosquitoes, who don't bite because they don't need the blood to make eggs, to have a disease. They say it bumps back the mosquito population while not using as much pesticide. The disease is called Wolbachia. Here is the process.

The males find a mate. The female mosquito now has Wolbachia. When she lays her eggs, they simply just do not hatch. But, if a male and a female mosquito has Wolbachia, the process is considered normal.

Sincerely,

DeAngi

Tommy

12/22/2015 06:56:45 pm

Dear DeAngi,

Great post! I really like how you intrigued the reader by beginning by saying "fighting mosquitos with mosquitos". THat interested me though. My question for you is how is that possible? And my suggestion for you is your last sentence in your first paragraph, could be cleaned up a little better. Instead of saying "Here is the process." you could say that in the beginning of the 2nd paragraph, it could just sound more clear.

Good responce, Tommy

cordy

12/17/2015 06:51:16 pm

Dear 5k
I read about "Sea slugs" and how they live. Theses slugs are also called Sacoglossan. The slugs feed and live off Chloroplasts. Also the slugs are green from the chlorophyll, witch is in chloroplasts. The interesting thing is that the Sacoglossan can save its food for 55 days. They can do this by technically changing the skin color to green from the chlorophyll. If you keep a baby fro eating algae for seven days it will stop growing.

Sincerely,
Cordy

cordy

12/20/2015 12:17:59 pm

Dear 5k
Hear are some of my questions. How do the slugs stay green while they're sleeping for 55 days? How dose the slug contain the chlorophyll?

Sincerely,
Cordy

Julia

12/21/2015 05:22:05 pm

Dear Cordy,
I really liked your response! One particular thing that I liked about it was that you included the names for all of the food that sea slugs eat and for the other name for the slugs. When they don't include any names for topics in writing, it makes it very difficult to understand for the reader, so thank you.
Even though your response was awesome, I think that one thing that you could work on is elaborating more and really zooming in on important details so that the reader can follow a little bit better. For example, you wrote: "If you keep a baby from eating algae for seven days it will stop growing." I think you could have gone into more details and explained that a little bit more because it seems like an interesting fact, and I would like to know more.
One thing that I would like to know more about was what exactly are Chloroplasts? Is it like a plant, or a chemical? This looks like an interesting fact, so I want to know more! Also, how does the chlorophyll help to change the sea slug's skin color? This also relates to my previous question, if I knew what Chloroplasts were, maybe I would know.
Your response was very good, and I hope that you can reply back soon.
Sincerely,
Julia

Henry

12/22/2015 02:41:56 pm

Dear Cordy
I like your post but where can you find these slugs? Also I loved how you zoomed in on their detail of how long they can save their food. One thing I think you could work on is telling more about how the baby slugs stop growing.
Sincerely,
Henry

Maggie

12/17/2015 06:52:30 pm

Dear class,
I read an article on Orcas (Killer whales) called "Sea World will end orca shows, but some say the park shouldn't keep the whales". The article is about how Seaworld in San Diego is stopping there orca shows but some people want them to just let them go into the wild. Seaworld's business went downhill when a movie called "Black fish" was made. It was about how the whales were being treated awful and an instructor was killed by one of the whales. People tried to make Sea world let the whales go but they would not lose their precious whales.

Also, a few questions I have are: why doesn't the head of Seaworld care about the whales? And are people having riots agenst Seaworld?
From,
Maggie

Whitney

12/21/2015 08:36:14 pm

Dear Maggie,
I really liked how you used paragraphs and kept the post organized and neat! One thing you could do is maybe explain more about how Sea World treats the Orcas. One question I have is why doesn't Sea world let the whales go if so many people want that? I really liked your post!
Sincerely,
Whitney

Liana

12/23/2015 05:22:36 pm

Dear Maggie,
You hade a great response! I really liked how you didn't retell the whole article, but just did a summary. Also, I thought your questions were pretty specific, not random. Some feedback I have is maybe put yourself in it. Maybe talk about what you think should happen. A question I have is do you think that the orcas should be let free into the wild, or do you think Sea World should keep the Orcas?
Sincerely,
Liana

Emily

12/17/2015 09:14:07 pm

Dear class,
I'm reading an article about people cutting down trees. And that many wolves are disappearing becuase of there habbit getting knocked down. In the article the" loggers" are the people that are cutting the trees down. Wolves are disappearing becuase there homes are getting destroyed.About 20 years ago 300 wolves died.This is located on Tongass,the biggest forest in the U.S.Tongass is on prince whale island.A wild life server is still deciding if wolves are in "Dangernt" and should help save them or let the cutters keep cutting. I wonder if they will keep the cutters from cutting? Or I wonder if they can save the wolves?
Sincerely
Emily

jansyn

12/17/2015 09:34:33 pm

dear 5k

I am reading an article about Chinese pigs. It talks about how a lot of artist have pigs. For example Miley Cyrus has a pig that she all most can not pick up. Why dose Miley Cyrus have a pig? Does Miley rid the pig if it is that big.

DeAngi

12/18/2015 03:57:51 pm

Dear class,

I forgot about the questions. How does Wolbachia work? How does it prevent the females eggs from hatching? Also, What is there progress so far?

Sincerely,

DeAngi

Sofia

12/18/2015 09:12:45 pm

Dear Ms.Kimball,

While re-visiting your website, I couldn't help but look at all the reading response blogs and get a bit of nostalgia...
But the reason I'm on here is to wish you a happy birthday and a happy holiday season!
Middle school is going great so far (Although, my brother has warned me about a 4-month "grace" period, which, if I've calculated correctly, should end soon!) and I got good term grades (all A's!).

How's Heman? I also heard you got a new puppy!

Hope to hear from you soon!
From your student in 2015's #BCE class,
Sofia

Tommy

12/22/2015 06:46:26 pm

Dear Mrs.Kimball,
Who's herman?

Ms. Kimball

12/27/2015 11:36:58 am

Dear Sofia,

It's so nice to hear from you!! Thank you very much for the Happy Birthday wishes! Happy Belated Birthday to you as well! I remember we were only a day off from each other. Yours was the 19th, right? Hooray!

I am so happy to hear that middle school is treating you well. Congrats on your stellar scores! I hope you are getting plenty of intellectual stimulation and are making new friends as well as cherishing old ones. I miss reading your stunning writing --never give that up! You have a gift.

He-Man is fabulous and Xena, new puppy, is an absolute joy. Nothing is better than watching the two of them play together. I'll have to walk Xena more often in the neighborhood so you can possibly meet her sometime. She's very friendly and utterly adorable.

Thanks again for keeping in touch, Sofia! I always love hearing about your adventures. I miss the BCE and hope we can someday have a reunion :-)

Keep on rockin!
Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Kate

12/21/2015 06:55:41 am

Sorry i didn't do my 2-3 question,

I have two questions my first question is how did scientist find a way to kill baby mosquitos, and will they find away to vanish all mosquitos.

-Kate

Kate

12/21/2015 06:54:24 pm

Dear Jansyn,

I think that you could go deeper of what the article you read was about. for example you could tell the detail about what happened in the article then telling the main idea about the whole article. I like how you included the detail that Miley cyris has a pig. The question I have is why does Miley have a pig.

- Kate

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Reading Response Blog​For​Ms. Kimball's Grade 5 At Pine Hill, 2015-2016

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Ms. Kimball's Grade 5 At Pine Hill, 2015-2016