Lesson Plan - Ship of Doom

Watch a Video
Watch the video “Searching for the Titanic.” Discuss: Why do you think it took so long for scientists to locate the wreckage? 

Preview Words to Know
Project the online vocabulary slideshow and introduce the Words to Know.

• luxurious
• iceberg
• preserve

Set a Purpose for Reading
As students read, have them think about why people find the Titanic so fascinating.

1. What caused interest in the Titanic to rise in 1985?
Interest in the Titanic rose in 1985 because that is when explorer Robert Ballard located the shipwreck underwater.
^{(RI.3.3 Cause and Effect)}

2. Why does the article state that “there’s not much time left” to study the Titanic? 
The article says that there is not much time left to study the Titanic because what is left of the ship might be gone in 20 years. The article explains, “Ocean currents and tiny living things called bacteria are eating away at the sunken ship.” 
^{(RI.3.1 Text Evidence)}

3. What is the purpose of the sidebar “From Ship to Wreck”? 
The purpose of this sidebar is to show a timeline of what experts think happened to the Titanic from the time it hit the iceberg to the time it landed on the ocean floor.
^{(RI.3.5 Text Features)}

FEATURED SKILL: Summarizing
Use the skill builder “A Super Summary” to have students complete a cloze-style summary of the article. Discuss how nonfiction summaries focus on main ideas and key details and avoid giving personal opinions.
^{(W.3.2 Main Idea and Key Details)}