I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic

Social studies: Geography, world history

Social-emotional learning: Social awareness (empathy); responsible decision-making (analyzing situations, identifying problems, solving problems); relationship skills (relationship building, teamwork)

Cause and effect, key details, making inferences, plot, compare and contrast, figurative language, drawing conclusions

Set a Purpose for Reading / Explore Text Features (5 minutes)

• Look at pages 20 and 21 with the class. Point to the labels “Play” and “Read-aloud historical fiction.” Explain that historical fiction is a story based on real events and people in history.
• Read aloud the title and subtitle. Then point to the illustration on pages 20 and 21. Read the caption with the class. How does the illustration help students understand the disaster that George faces?
• Direct students to the photos and captions on pages 22-25. Ask students to compare the before and after photos of the Titanic on page 23. What might it have been like to eat in the first-class dining room?
• Explain that the photo on page 25 shows a real headline and article from a 1912 American paper.
• Explain that the Titanic sailed from Southampton, a city in England, and traveled to New York City. Point to each location on a map. What ocean did the Titanic travel across to reach New York?
• Call on volunteers to read aloud the Think and Read box on page 21. Ask students to look for details as they read about why the Titanic sank and how the disaster affected different characters in the play.

Introduce Vocabulary (15 minutes)

• There is a Vocabulary Skill Builder online that you can project or distribute. You may also play our Vocabulary Slideshow, where images and audio help students with comprehension and fluency. The slideshow will help students understand the concept of first-class and third-class. This distinction is important in order to fully appreciate the significance of the events in this play.
• Highlighted terms: elegant, first-class, third-class, suite, iceberg, panicked, bow

Bridging Decoding and Comprehension

• Storyworks Jr. plays provide a perfect opportunity for students to build fluency.
• Point out that the words in parentheses after a character’s name are stage directions. These words tell a reader or an actor how to say a line or perform an action in the play. Then point to the phrases half asleep and rubbing her eyes in column 2 on page 22. Read aloud the dialogue with appropriate expression or action. Have students repeat after you.

Reading and Unpacking the Text

• Before reading: Point out the Characters box on page 20. Explain that this is a list of all the characters in the play. After each name is a short description of the character. The narrators describe some of the actions and events in the play.
• Direct students to the scene headings on pages 20 and 22. Ask: When does Scene 2 on page 22 take place?
• First read: Read the play as a class.
• Second read: Project or distribute the Close-Reading Questions. Discuss them as a class, rereading lines or scenes as necessary.
• Separate students into groups to discuss the Critical-Thinking Questions. Then have groups share their answers with the class.

Close-Reading Questions (30 minutes)

• In Scene 1, what do the narrators tell you about the Titanic? (key details) It has almost completed its trip from Southampton, England, to New York City in four days. It’s the most elegant and the safest ship in the world. It’s unsinkable.
• In what ways are George and Enzo alike? How are they different? (compare and contrast) They’re both boys traveling on the Titanic. George is a first- class passenger from America. Enzo is a third-class passenger from Italy.
• In Scene 2, why does water pour through holes in the side of the Titanic? (cause and effect) Water pours through because the ship hit an iceberg.
• In Scene 3, what do you imagine when you read “The ship groans and tips forward. People fall like dominoes”? (figurative language) The ship made a loud noise like a person groaning in pain. It was impossible for passengers to remain standing .
• Why doesn’t anyone warn the third-class passengers there is a serious problem with the ship? (making inferences) No one warns them because third-class passengers aren’t considered as important as first-class passengers.
• What happens when Marco and George try to get into a lifeboat? (plot) Officers refuse to let them in the lifeboats because the boats are only for women and children. The officers probably think that George is a grown man because he’s tall.
• In Scene 5, why does George say to Marco, “They’re all safe, Marco! And so are we”? (drawing conclusions) He knows the rescue ship Carpathia, which has saved their family members and other Titanic passengers, will save them too.

Critical-Thinking Question (10 minutes)

• How did the sinking of the Titanic affect first-class and third-class passengers in different ways? (cause and effect) A steward told first-class passengers to go on deck with their life vests. There they were loaded into lifeboats so they could get away safely. Because no one warned third-class passengers about the danger, they panicked when their rooms flooded with seawater. A door to the deck was locked, making it harder to escape. When they reached the deck, they had to wait for lifeboats. Many passengers died because there weren’t enough lifeboats.

Cause and Effect (30 minutes)

• Have students complete the Cause and Effect Skill Builder. They should also write a response to the Think and Write question on page 25.