Lesson 02 — Ch. 2 'Cow Loon's Lost Altruism'
Lesson context
- Review units held for downstream; Workshop focus stays on new-stem application this phase.
Spark · 5 min
- Connect: how does this connect to what you already knew — from earlier chapters, other texts, or your own experience?
- Extend: what new ideas extended or pushed your thinking in new directions?
- Challenge: what's still confusing or surprising — what doesn't quite fit yet?
Guided Reading · 12–15 min
- What does Cow Loon do when the animals break for lunch? 24 — "Suddenly, in a low grrrrrg that did not sound like him at all, Cow Loon croaked, "Me first!" and he flapped ahead of everyone, stomped into the lunch circle and scooped all—all!—of the sargasso cakes into his wings, hunched over them, and began gobbling"
- What does Mud notice about Cow Loon at the end of the chapter? 27 — "As the talk wore on, Mud watched Cow Loon carefully. He noticed a slight green tinge at the edges of Cow Loon's beak, a slight green glint in his eye, a subtle green shade in his toes, and a new green tone in the rainbow-glow of his wing feathers."
- Why does the chapter emphasize that altruism was automatic for the animals before this moment? 22 — "Helping an animal in need or coming to an animal's assistance was something automatic. There was no decision to make. There was no pause-filled either-or, such as "Well, if I go to help Click, uh, I might not finish my supper" or "If I join the search for Morgan the baby turtle, mm, I might lose my night off." No, there was no hesitation."
- What does the green coloring suggest about what is happening to Cow Loon? 28 — "Mud did not like it, this green. Not one bit. He kept an eye on Cow Loon."
The Workshop · 15–18 min
This unit introduces the Latin stem SUPER (over) through example words, a dialogue where Super contrasts with Sub and De, and a closeup of supervise (super + vis). The unit includes a Spanish cognate (superar), a poem exercise, and a simile exercise, building etymological independence through creative application.
Application: Trace SUPER through three example words from the unit — superb, supervise, superstition — noting how 'over' shapes each word's meaning.
Extension: Find a word from today's chapter that could have SUPER in it if you changed the meaning slightly. Explain your choice.
Application: Write a four-line poem using at least three SUPER words from the unit. The unit's example poem uses superstitious, superficial, and supernatural — you may use those or choose others.
Extension: Write a simile using a SUPER word. The unit's example: 'A superstition is like falling for a trick.' Explain why your simile works.
Application: Compare SUPER (over) with SUB (under) using the unit's dialogue on page 103. How does the dialogue show the stems' opposite meanings through the characters' emotions?
Extension: Write a short dialogue between SUPER and another stem you've learned — DE, PRE, BI — where their meanings contrast. Keep it to 4-6 lines.
Student-Formed Conclusion · 7 min
- Connect: how does today's lesson connect to what you already knew — from earlier chapters, prior units, or your own experience?
- Extend: what new idea extended your thinking today?
- Challenge: what's still confusing or surprising from today — what doesn't quite fit yet?
Wrap-Up & Preview · 5 min
Workshop recap: Students traced SUPER through supervise's etymology and composed four-line poems using SUPER words from the unit.
Next lesson preview: Chapter 3 continues the green mystery as more animals show strange behavior.