Main Idea 1

                          Deadly Trip

"I'm ready," I said and tucked the tent in the canoe next to my three-year-old brother, Jimmy.

"Thirty percent chance of severe thunderstorms in the late afternoon," the radio announcer said.

Dad clicked off the radio. "We'll beat the storm. Now get in the canoe, Scott." As we left, a gust of numbing wind hit my face. It seemed colder than yesterday. Gray clouds hung above the pines along the river.

Dad said, "Paddle! We want to be done before the storm hits."

I watched little ripples swirl around the canoe. I imagined a thunderstorm whipping the water into a frenzy. Dark waves washed Jimmy into the whirling water. His orange life preserver bobbed down stream. Then I remembered Dad had canoed this river hundreds of times.

By noon, the river grew faster and deeper, and the sky grew blacker and blacker. Then the rain started. "Dad!" I shouted. I imagined a black cloud swirling down the river whipping trees and rocks into the canoe.

"It's nothing but a little drizzle," he said. "Keep paddling."

Then we hit the rapids. White water splashed over the bow, and the current bounced us from one side of the river to the other. "I'm steering, Scott," Dad shouted. "Just paddle hard. Jimmy watch for rocks."

Then Jimmy shouted, "Go right! No left! Watch out!"

"Dig in on the left," Dad shouted.

I pushed hard against the white water that splashed my face.

"Right side," Dad shouted.

Terrified, I obeyed as the canoe hurtled forward between jagged rocks and white waves.

"Paddle left. We're almost there," Dad shouted.

Then the white water slowed to a brown swirl. Boulders became pebbles. A sign read, "White Water Campground." We were saved.

 

1. Before Reading                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Set a Purpose by Predicting                                                                                                                                                                                                                       First, read the title. Second read the first three paragraphs. Third, predict how dangerous the trip will be.                                                                                     Circle one: deadly       mildy deadly             not dangerous

2.  What details support your prediction? ____________________________________________________________________

3. During Reading                                                                                                                                                                                                                Ask a Question to Set Purpose:                                                                                                                                                                                                                Use the title to create a question. How deadly will the trip be? As you read, write out the details that help the reader know how deadly the trip will be.