You can support struggling readers and English learners by using alternate versions of texts, especially for guided reading or small-group instruction. Cover stories published since September 2016 have a lower-level version available in the toolbar to the left of the text. All articles published since September 2016 are available in Spanish if you click “Open Magazine View” and then “Open Spanish View.”

When using texts to teach students about popular curricular topics in whole-group instruction, play a video from the text set to build students’ knowledge before they read. You can give students an active listening task. After watching the video once, play it again and pause to discuss key ideas and check for understanding.

Each text set includes three skills sheets specific to that set.

• Words to Know: Before reading, have students define and practice using domain-specific vocabulary they can use to discuss and write about the topic.

• Write About It!: Explore essential questions and prepare students for standardized tests by guiding them to write an informative paragraph.

• Close-Reading Questions: After reading, have students answer text-dependent questions by rereading and citing text evidence.

Choose from six skills sheets that can be used with any text set. Encourage students to compare various text types, such as articles, videos, and charts.

• What Are They All About?: Use this chart to identify main ideas and important details and then summarize the main idea of all the texts.

• Write the Quiz!: This graphic organizer challenges students to write text-dependent questions and is perfect for partner discussions.

• Take Note!: This two-column organizer will help students take notes as they read.

• Same and Different: A Venn diagram supports students in comparing two texts from a set.

• What Do You Know?: Use this K-W-L-S chart to track knowledge and questions before and after reading.

• Make a Word Web: Have students identify and define important terms as they read.

Help students understand features of nonfiction texts. Point out the dateline at the beginning of each article that shows when it was published. Explain how students can use that information to understand relative dates, such as “this month,” “last December,” and “by the end of this summer.”

After the class explores a text set, guide students to reflect on it. Lead a discussion by asking questions such as:

• What surprised or confused you?

• What did the author think you already knew?

• What changed the way you think about something?

• What made you want to learn more?

• What do you still wonder about?

Use text sets as a springboard to launch research projects. Have students develop questions they want to explore based on their reading. Then guide students to find credible sources, take notes, organize information, and present their findings to the class with a poster, report, video, podcast, or slideshow.