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Copywork
About This Passage
This is dramatic irony: the reader knows what the men cannot. White spends a long sentence on the men's effort, then a careful sentence naming the hidden rat and spider, and finally a short, flat sentence, 'They saw only a pig', that lands the whole gap between what is there and what is seen. Copying it shows how a short closing sentence can carry a big idea.
Then, using all their strength, the men picked up the crate and heaved it aboard the truck. They did not know that under the straw was a rat, and inside a knothole was a big grey spider. They saw only...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
In your own words, tell the story of this chapter. What were the most important moments, from Charlotte's decision to go to Wilbur's faint, and how do you know they mattered most?
Discussion Questions
- On the same morning the family bustles with holiday excitement, Wilbur faints at the thought of becoming ham and bacon. Why does the author set the people's eager fun right beside Wilbur's terror? Use the details of the preparations and of Wilbur's faint to explain how you know.
- Charlotte decides to leave her web and hide in the crate so she can go to the Fair with Wilbur. Why does Charlotte give up her own comfort and safety to go along? Use Charlotte's words about why she is going to explain how you know.
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Vocabulary
Item 1
Shining brightly with light; the word in Charlotte's web.
Item 2
Someone who hides aboard to travel secretly.
Item 3
In a careful, watchful way.
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Critical Thinking
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