2.13 Finding a Structure to Let Writing Grow Into

CONNECTION Goldfish tank size

TEACHING POINT Today I want to teach you that there are many ways of structuring writing in informational books

TEACHING Could start with questions and then answer them Could start with misconception Could start with dramatic scene and then go back and work toward it

TEACHING What works for our Erie Canal section? The Erie Canal connected the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Erie. Before the Erie Canal was built, boats could travel from New York City in the south to Albany in the north using the Hudson River. The Erie Canal added a long branch to the Hudson River going west, which meant that people could travel over 350 miles from Buffalo to Albany on the canal. Now boats could travel from New York City to other big cities like Syracuse and to Buffalo in the west. Now boats could travel clear across New York and up and down New York! For passengers, it could cost $3.50 to travel from Schenectady to Utica—that was a lot of money in 1836!

TEACHING QUESTION STRUCTURE How does the Erie Canal work? How did the Erie Canal help settlers? What other events in Westward Expansion are similar to the Erie Canal? .

TEACHING MISCONCEPTION STRUCTURE You might think that Westward Expansion was mostly about people moving west, but actually, it was also about transportation moving west. The Erie Canal and Transcontinental Railroad were each very big parts of Westward Expansion Some people think the hardest part about the trip west were attacks by Indians, but actually the hardest challenges were from the rivers, the mountains, and the seasons.