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Copywork
About This Passage
This is the exact sentence where Brian makes fire with his hatchet for the first time. Paulsen gives us the whole discovery in two clear sentences — the swing, the exploded rock, the sparks flying onto the sand, and Brian's smile. Copying this passage lets scouts-age readers feel how carefully Paulsen builds up to the moment of success, and how one small smile can be the biggest thing in a whole chapter.
He swung harder, held the hatchet so it would hit a longer, sliding blow, and the black rock exploded in fire. Sparks flew so heavily that several of them skittered and jumped on the sand beneath the ...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell chapter eight in your own words. Start with Brian waking up in the dark and smelling something awful. Then tell about the porcupine and the quills in Brian's leg. Then tell about Brian crying and learning that feeling sorry for yourself does not work. Then tell about the dream with Brian's father and Terry. Finally tell about how Brian figured out that the hatchet could make fire.
Discussion Questions
- What in the story makes Brian so scared when he wakes up in the dark shelter? How can you tell he is really, really scared before he finds out it is a porcupine?
- How do you know Brian has learned something important when he says that feeling sorry for yourself does not work? What in the story makes this the biggest lesson of the chapter?
+ 2 more questions in the complete study guide
Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
A small axe with a short handle, used with one hand.
Item 2
Tiny bits of glowing fire that fly up when two hard things hit each other.
Item 3
Hot burning light and heat that makes things warm and can cook food.
+ 5 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
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