Illustrations by Charles Lehman

Interview With the American Flag

Hi! I’m Question Mark.

I like to ask Who, What, When, Where, Why . . . and sometimes How.

By Roland Smith

From the Special Preview Issue

Lexile: 490L

Guided Reading Level: M

DRA Level: 20-24

Hi! I’m Question Mark.

I like to ask Who, What, When, Where, Why . . . and sometimes How.

David Evison/Shutterstock.com

Question Mark: Wow! I am here with the American flag. I have so many questions.

American Flag: I am not surprised, young man. I am very important.

QM: Where can I see the American flag?

AF: Just look around! You can see me in schools and at sports games. You can see me on the White House. That is where the president lives.

QM: Cool! Why do you have stars and stripes?

AF: I am happy to tell you. But first you must know something. Our country started as 13 colonies. They were ruled by England. My red and white stripes stand for those 13 colonies. Go ahead. Count my stripes.

QM: What are the stars for?

AF: Today our country is made up of 50 states. Each star stands for one state!

Mike McDonald/Shutterstock.com

QM: Who made the first American flag?

AF: Many people say that a woman named Betsy Ross made the first flag. No one really knows for sure. And I’ll never tell!

QM: When were you first made?

AF: I was first made back in 1776. I’ve changed a bit over the years. But I think I’ve never looked better.

QM: Why are you also called the Star-Spangled Banner?

AF: That is my favorite nickname. Long ago, a man named Francis Scott Key wrote a poem about me. That poem became our country’s song, or anthem. It is called “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

QM: How should I act when I meet an American flag?

AF: Dear boy, I am a symbol of the United States of America. When you see me, you think of our country. So if I pass by in a parade, put your right hand on your heart.

QM: Thank you, American flag. May you wave forever.

Think and Write

Complete this crossword puzzle.

Ready to try Storyworks 2?

First issue free. Cancel anytime.

video (1)

Activities (1)

Social Studies Focus

Civic ideals and practices; American symbols

Social-Emotional Learning Focus

Cooperation (partner reading)

1. Before Reading

Introduce Question Mark and Pair Up Kids (10 minutes)

Introduce kids to Question Mark, our character on page 22. Ask a volunteer to read his voice bubble.
Share that Question Mark will be appearing in every issue of Storyworks 2. His interviews will give kids great practice in reading fluency. And they’ll learn important knowledge to boot!
Partner kids up. One partner should be Question Mark, and the other should be the American flag. You may choose to give higher-level readers the part of the flag, which is more challenging. Or kids can choose their parts themselves.

Get Kids Ready to Read (5 minutes)

Tell kids that they are going to practice reading fluency with this interview. That means they are going to read the interview out loud a few times, and they should try to read with expression and feeling. They should look out for punctuation to help them know how to read each sentence.
The child who reads the part of Question Mark could use a pencil or crayon as a microphone.

2. Read the Interview (15-30 minutes)

Partners should quietly read their parts out loud to each other.
The first read can be used to get the meaning and the feel of the interview.
The next read can be to read with expression. It’s a good idea for the same students to read their part at least twice to practice fluency. If you have some kids who already show excellent fluency, they can switch parts on the second read to mix it up.
NOTE: On our website, you can find this interview read aloud with each word high-lighted along the way. Kids can listen to it to hear fluent reading modeled for them.

3. After Reading

Activity/Craft: Dress Up and Read! (20 minutes)

To give this activity a little more pizzazz, you can have a few pieces of red, white, and blue clothing that the kids playing the American flag can wear.
Kids can also make microphones from balls of tinfoil and toilet paper rolls. Just stuff the tinfoil ball into the toilet paper roll. The kids playing Question Mark can use these as a prop!

Social Studies Extension: Play the National Anthem Video (15-20 minutes)

The American flag tells Question Mark about the national anthem in the interview. Explain that we can often hear this song before sports games, during the Olympic Games, and all sorts of other important times.
Play the song for the class! We’ve created a video of the national anthem being sung just for you.

ELA Focus: Comprehension and Vocabulary (15-20 minutes)

We created a crossword puzzle as a super-fun way to test comprehension after reading.
Doing the puzzle gives kids more practice with the social studies content of the interview.

Illustrations by Charles Lehman

Interview With the American Flag

Hi! I’m Question Mark.

I like to ask Who, What, When, Where, Why . . . and sometimes How.

By Roland Smith

From the Special Preview Issue

Lexile: 490L

Guided Reading Level: M

DRA Level: 20-24

Hi! I’m Question Mark.

I like to ask Who, What, When, Where, Why . . . and sometimes How.

David Evison/Shutterstock.com

Question Mark: Wow! I am here with the American flag. I have so many questions.

American Flag: I am not surprised, young man. I am very important.

QM: Where can I see the American flag?

AF: Just look around! You can see me in schools and at sports games. You can see me on the White House. That is where the president lives.

QM: Cool! Why do you have stars and stripes?

QM: What are the stars for?

AF: Today our country is made up of 50 states. Each star stands for one state!

Mike McDonald/Shutterstock.com

QM: Who made the first American flag?

AF: Many people say that a woman named Betsy Ross made the first flag. No one really knows for sure. And I’ll never tell!

QM: When were you first made?

AF: I was first made back in 1776. I’ve changed a bit over the years. But I think I’ve never looked better.

QM: Why are you also called the Star-Spangled Banner?

AF: That is my favorite nickname. Long ago, a man named Francis Scott Key wrote a poem about me. That poem became our country’s song, or anthem. It is called “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

QM: How should I act when I meet an American flag?

AF: Dear boy, I am a symbol of the United States of America. When you see me, you think of our country. So if I pass by in a parade, put your right hand on your heart.

QM: Thank you, American flag. May you wave forever.

Think and Write

Complete this crossword puzzle.

Ready to try Storyworks 2?

First issue free. Cancel anytime.

Multimedia

video (1)

The National Anthem

We’ve created a video of the national anthem being sung just for you.

Story

The National Anthem

We’ve created a video of the national anthem being sung just for you.

Activities (0)

Crossword Puzzle

Story

Crossword Puzzle

On Level

More About the Article

Social Studies Focus

Civic ideals and practices; American symbols

Cooperation (partner reading)

1. Before Reading

Introduce Question Mark and Pair Up Kids (10 minutes)

Introduce kids to Question Mark, our character on page 22. Ask a volunteer to read his voice bubble.
Share that Question Mark will be appearing in every issue of Storyworks 2. His interviews will give kids great practice in reading fluency. And they’ll learn important knowledge to boot!
Partner kids up. One partner should be Question Mark, and the other should be the American flag. You may choose to give higher-level readers the part of the flag, which is more challenging. Or kids can choose their parts themselves.

Get Kids Ready to Read (5 minutes)

Tell kids that they are going to practice reading fluency with this interview. That means they are going to read the interview out loud a few times, and they should try to read with expression and feeling. They should look out for punctuation to help them know how to read each sentence.
The child who reads the part of Question Mark could use a pencil or crayon as a microphone.

2. Read the Interview (15-30 minutes)

Partners should quietly read their parts out loud to each other.
The first read can be used to get the meaning and the feel of the interview.
The next read can be to read with expression. It’s a good idea for the same students to read their part at least twice to practice fluency. If you have some kids who already show excellent fluency, they can switch parts on the second read to mix it up.
NOTE: On our website, you can find this interview read aloud with each word high-lighted along the way. Kids can listen to it to hear fluent reading modeled for them.

3. After Reading

Activity/Craft: Dress Up and Read! (20 minutes)

To give this activity a little more pizzazz, you can have a few pieces of red, white, and blue clothing that the kids playing the American flag can wear.
Kids can also make microphones from balls of tinfoil and toilet paper rolls. Just stuff the tinfoil ball into the toilet paper roll. The kids playing Question Mark can use these as a prop!

Social Studies Extension: Play the National Anthem Video (15-20 minutes)

The American flag tells Question Mark about the national anthem in the interview. Explain that we can often hear this song before sports games, during the Olympic Games, and all sorts of other important times.
Play the song for the class! We’ve created a video of the national anthem being sung just for you.

ELA Focus: Comprehension and Vocabulary (15-20 minutes)

We created a crossword puzzle as a super-fun way to test comprehension after reading.
Doing the puzzle gives kids more practice with the social studies content of the interview.