The Garden of Abdul Gasazi - Unit 3 Week 4 - Reading and Discussion Questions

Oct 16, 2026

Uploaded by Rizky

Unit 3, Week 4 instructional guide for the reading “The Garden of Abdul Gasazi,” including suggested timing, Common Core ELA standards alignment, and teacher directions. It outlines big ideas that “things are not always what they seem,” provides a synopsis of the plot, and gives step-by-step classroom procedures for independent reading, read-aloud support, re-reading, discussion, and text-dependent questioning. It also lists vocabulary supports, close-reading prompts, and a culminating task focused on theme and evidence.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatDOC

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Teacher Instructions

Before Teaching

During Teaching

Text Dependent Questions

Vocabulary

Culminating Task

Unit 3/Week 4 Title: The Garden of Abdul Gasazi Suggested Time: 5 days (45 minutes per day) Common Core ELA Standards: RL.3.1, RL.3.2, RL.3.3, RL.3.4, RL.3.7, RL.3.10; RF.3.3, RF.3.4; W.3.1, W.3.4; SL.3.1; SL.3.2, SL.3.6; L.3.1, L.3.2, L.3.4 Teacher Instructions Refer to the Introduction for further details. Before Teaching Read the Big Ideas and Key Understandings and the Synopsis. Please do not read this to the students. This is a description for teachers, about the big ideas and key understanding that students should take away after completing this task. Big Ideas and Key Understandings * Things are not always what they seem Synopsis A little boy loses his neighbor’s dog inside the mysterious garden of Abdul Gasazi. Gasazi tells the little boy that he has turned the dog into a duck but when the boy returns home he finds the dog waiting for him on the porch. Gasazi was just tricking the boy-or was he? Read entire main selection text, keeping in mind the Big Ideas and Key Understandings. Re-read the main selection text while noting the stopping points for the Text Dependent Questions and teaching Vocabulary. During Teaching Students read the entire main selection text independently. Teacher reads the main selection text aloud with students following along. (Depending on how complex the text is and the amount of support needed by students, the teacher may choose to reverse the order of steps 1 and 2.) Students and teacher re-read the text while stopping to respond to and discuss the questions and returning to the text. A variety of methods can be used to structure the reading and discussion (i.e.: whole class discussion, think-pair-share, independent written response, group work, etc.) Text Dependent Questions Text Dependent Questions Answers Reread page 398. What evidence from the text can you cite to defend the idea that Alan takes pet-sitting Fritz seriously? He won’t let Fritz out of his sight He keeps Fritz from chewing furniture Reread the last sentence on page 398 when Alan hides his hat under his shirt. This is an example of foreshadowing. Where in the story does Alan’s hat reoccur? Pg 408- the duck steals Alan’s hat Pg 412- Fritz has the hat when he is waiting for Alan on the porch Reread page 400. Based on the first paragraph, how can you tell that Alan has no control over Fritz? Fritz bites Alan Frtiz drags him out of the house Fritz leads him across the bridge On page 400, the author uses all capital letters on the sign. Why do you think the author did this? How would the mood be different if the author did not do this? Capital letters often denote yelling or intense feelings or emotions. Chris Van Allsburg wants the reader to notice that Fritz is out of control. What words or phrases on page 400 does the author use to portray Fritz in this light? Fritz has to be dragged out of the house Fritz gives a tremendous tug Fritz snaps out of his collar Fritz bolts straight ahead How is the author using the illustrations and word choice to create suspense in this story? (Pg. 402) Gasazi’s house is dark and castle-like Lots of shadows used Capital letters used The pages all end on a cliffhanger or leading sentence In the second paragraph, Gasazi states that he “detests” dogs. Using contextual clues what do you think “detest” means? (Pg. 406) Gasazi lists all the bad things that dogs do He uses all capital letters on his warning sign He bellows “I TURN THEM INTO DUCKS!” Why is Alan concerned that Mr. Gasazi might have captured Fritz? (Pg. 400) The threatening sign Alan’s knowledge of Fritz’s misbehavior The knowledge that Fritz had gone into the forbidden area Reread pages 404-405. What details does that author use to make Mr. Gasazi seem frightening and mysterious? The house is dark and large The door opens before Alan knocks Mr. Gasazi stands in the shadows Reread pages 400-406. How does the author make sure that the reader knows that Gasazi really does not like dogs? Gasazi’s voice sounds like a growl The author

FAQs

What is the big idea and theme focus for this lesson?

The lesson emphasizes that things are not always what they seem, using evidence from the story to support theme choices.

What classroom steps are suggested during the reading?

Students read independently, the teacher reads aloud with students following, then both re-read and stop to respond to and discuss questions using methods like whole-class discussion and think-pair-share.

What kind of evidence do the text-dependent questions ask students to provide?

Students cite specific details such as actions, dialogue, illustrations, and recurring objects (like the hat) to explain character seriousness, foreshadowing, suspense, and meaning of vocabulary in context.

Oct 16, 2026

Uploaded by Rizky