Class Clown SuperBurp.Book550L.1 · are made from seashells or feathers,” Sage said as she gave her report to the class on Monday morning. She had a lei around her neck. “When

George Brown, Class Clown: Super Burp! By: Nancy Kruik

1 George’s family moved a lot, which meant going to new schools and making new friends. Everyone loved George at his last school. He was famous for being the funny kid, the class clown. George decided that things were going to be different at his new school. No more class clown. And no more getting in trouble.

2 Walking home from school was really, really lonely. “Just me, myself, and I,” George said. There was no one else to talk to.

3 Later, when his mom asked how everything went, George said, “Okay.” But his mom probably could tell it hadn’t been the greatest day of his life because after dinner his parents took him out for a special first-‐day-‐of-‐school treat. They went to a place called Ernie’s Ice Cream Emporium. It was the biggest ice cream parlor George had ever seen. It took up half the block! 4 Ernie’s was a really cool place. Outside, there were small, metal tables set up. Each had a cheery, red and white striped umbrella that was open even though it was nighttime and it wasn’t raining. Inside, there were booths with bright red, leather benches. 5 “Can we sit outside?” George asked. “I want to be able to see the sky. 6 That wasn’t the real reason. The real reason was Louie. When they had gotten out of the car, George had spotted him walking inside with a bunch of older guys. 7 “So, how’d it go?” his dad asked as they sat down at a table. 8 The last thing George wanted was a long talk about trying to “adjust.” He just wanted to enjoy his ice cream. So he was glad that before he could answer, a girl in a black sweater and a red and white polka-‐dot skirt roller-‐skated up to the table. George smiled in spite of himself. Roller-‐skating waitresses? Cool! 9 “Hi,” the waitress greeted George’s family. “What can I get for you, folks?” 10 George knew exactly what he wanted. It was the same thing he always wanted when he was bummed out. “I’ll have a root beer float,” he said. “With two scoops of chocolate ice cream.”

1 11 “I’ll have vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce,” George’s mother said. 12 “A double rocky road sundae for me,” his dad added. “With three cherries.” 13 “Okay, I’ll get your order for you right away,” the waitress promised. 14 As the waitress skated off, George began to feel a little better. There was nothing a root beer float couldn’t cure.

15 And his parents didn’t ask any more questions, either. His mom was talking about her store – ordering glass beads, needlepoint kits, and patterns for knitting afghans. George didn’t even know what an afghan was. He didn’t want to find out. 16 As his mom and dad talked, George sneaked another look inside Ernie’s. Louie was sitting in a window booth with three older boys. One of them looked a lot like Louie, only taller. Maybe it was his brother. 17 George couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it was clear that it was funny because they were all laughing really, really hard. Just the way George’s friends at his old school used to laugh whenever George said something funny. Which was pretty much all the time. 18 But that was the old George. The new George didn’t joke around like that. Of course, the new George didn’t have any friends, either. 19 “It’s not fun not being funny,” he whispered to himself. 20 Just then, the waitress skated over to George’s table with the tray of ice cream. “Here you go,” she said as she placed a huge mug of root beer and chocolate ice cream on the table. Then she passed his mom and dad their sundaes. 21 “Thanks,” George said. “I really needed this.” 22 He wrapped his lips around the straw and took a huge gulp of the fizzy, sweet root beer. “Yum!” 23 Just then, George’s dad poked him. “Whoa!” he shouted. “Look up, son!” 24 George did, just in time to see a bright yellow star shoot across the night sky. 25 “It’s a shooting star! Quick! Make a wish,” his mom said. “And make it a good one because wishes on shooting stars come true.” 26 George thought for a moment. “I want to make kids laugh but not get into trouble.” He whispered. That wasn’t such a big wish. It was the kind of wish that could come true, maybe. 27 George took another big gulp of his root beer float. And then another. He couldn’t drink that root beer fast enough. 28 He was slurping up the last bit of it through a straw when, suddenly, George began to hear strange gurgling noises coming from the bottom of his belly. It felt like there were hundreds of tiny bubbles bouncing around in there. 29 The bubbles bounced up and down and all around. They ping-‐ponged their way from his belly to his chest, and bing-‐bonged their way up into his throat. And then…

30 George let out a loud burp, a magic burp. He’d burped plenty of times before, but never one like this. The burp was so loud, it made the table shake. It was so loud, his parents clapped their hands over their ears. 31 The super burp was so loud that everyone sitting outside-‐and inside-‐Ernie’s stopped talking and stared at George. Then they started to laugh. Hearing people laugh sounded just like the old days. 32 Then something else really strange happened. Suddenly George’s hands reached across the table and grabbed two straws from the container. 33 It was like his hands had a mind of their own. George had no control over them. He watched as his hands shoved the straws up his nose. Then he jumped up on the table. It was like he was an old-‐fashioned puppet and someone had yanked him onto the table by his strings. 34 The next thing he knew, George’s hands were clapping together, pretending they were flippers. 35 “Look, I’m a walrus,” George shouted. 36 A bunch of kids shot up from their seats. 37 “Hey, check out that kid,” one of them said. He was laughing, too. 38 “George, get down from there!” his mother and father both shouted. 39 But George couldn’t get down. He couldn’t stop himself. Goofiness was just bubbling out of him. His parents’ sundaes went flying off the table. 40 “George!” his mother shouted. “You just got chocolate sauce all over my new blouse.” 41 George stuck his right foot in. He stuck his right foot out. He did the hokey pokey and he turned himself about. And then… 42 Whoooosh. It felt like a giant bubble popped inside George’s stomach. All the air rushed out of him. And so did the silliness. Suddenly George didn’t feel so funny anymore. He stopped dancing and looked around. 43 “What are you doing up there?” his father asked.

44 “Um….. the hokey pokey?” George answered. He didn’t know what else to say. He wasn’t sure why he’d jumped up on the table. He certainly hadn’t planned it. It had just happened. Right after he’d let out that giant burp. 45 I’m swearing off root beer floats for good,” he promised himself. “They’re too dangerous.”

Now answer questions 1 – 9 before reading “George Brown Trouble Magnet”

Dist. 186 Literacy Department, Grade 3, Grading Period 1; September 17. 2015

Name: ____________________________________________________________ Date:_______________________

Grade 3 STUDENT BOOKLET Literature Assessment, Grading Period 1

Use information from “George Brown Super Burp” to answer the following questions. Circle the correct answer for multiple-‐choice questions.

1. Which words best describe how George feels about his first day of school?

a. Carefree and Silly

b. Embarrassed and annoyed

c. Hopeful and excited

d. Sad and lonely

2. Why doesn’t George want to sit inside at the ice cream parlor?

a. He likes the warmth of the sun.

b. He wants to avoid seeing someone.

c. He wants to look up at the blue sky.

d. He likes to watch the skating waitresses.

3. Answer both parts of the question. Part A: What is the point of view of the other guests at the ice cream parlor when George does the hokey pokey on the table?

a. They think he is daring.

b. They think he is annoying.

c. They think he is funny.

d. They think he is embarrassing.

Part B: Provide one detail from the story that provides support for your answer to Part A. Tell the number of the paragraph where you found the detail. In paragraph ______, ________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________


4. Answer both parts of the question. Part A: What is George’s mother’s point of view when he does the hokey pokey on the table at the ice cream parlor?

a. She is upset with George.

b. She is confused by George.

c. She thinks George is funny.

d. She thinks George will get hurt.

Part B: Provide one detail from the story that provides support for your answer to Part A. Tell the number of the paragraph where you found the detail. In paragraph ______, ________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. What is your point of view when George does the hokey pokey on the table at the ice cream parlor? _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. Answer both parts of the question.

Part A: What does the phrase “the old days” mean as it is used in paragraph 31?

a. When George was at his last school

b. When George’s parents were in school

c. When George started at his new school

d. When George’s grandparents went to school

Part B: Which paragraph helps the reader understand the meaning of this phrase?

a. Paragraph 1

b. Paragraph 3

c. Paragraph 32

d. Paragraph 38



Part A: Based on information in the story, why does George want to stop being the class clown?

a. He wants to make more friends.

b. He does not want kids to laugh at him.

c. He does not want to get in trouble.

d. He wants people to think he is smart.

Part B: Which paragraph provides the best evidence for the answer to Part A?

a. Paragraph 2

b. Paragraph 6

c. Paragraph 17

d. Paragraph 26


Part A: Why does George want to continue being funny?

a. He wants kids at school to like him.

b. He does not care what people think.

c. He wants to make his parents proud.

d. He does not want to be shy any more.

Part B: Which paragraph provides the best evidence for the answer to Part A?

a. Paragraphs 2-‐3

b. Paragraphs 17-‐18

c. Paragraphs 25-‐26

d. Paragraphs 36-‐37


Part A: What lesson can the reader learn from this story?

a. Be courageous and face your fears.

b. Things usually are not as bad as they seem.

c. Be who you are, rather than who others tell you to be.

d. Be careful what you wish for because it might come true.

Part B: Which detail does the author use to help the reader learn this lesson?

a. George went to a new school.

b. George had a challenging first day.

c. George burped a magic burp.

d. George danced on top of the table.

Now read: “George Brown Trouble Magnet” before answering questions 10 – 22.

George Brown Class Clown: Trouble Magnet By Nancy Krulik

46 “Okay, this guy can go over here,” Alex said. He put an action figure near the base of the volcano he and George had built. It was Saturday morning. They were putting the finishing touches on their Hawaii project for school. 47 “You’re putting R2D2 in a Hawaiian village?” George asked Alex. “He’s a robot.” 48 “But he’s broken, so I don’t care if he gets messed up,” Alex said. 49 “I guess it will work,” George said. 50 “Once the volcano erupts, you won’t be able to see him or any of that village.” 51 “That’s kind of a bummer,” Alex said. “We worked so hard on it this week.” 52 George nodded. They had done lots of research on Mauna Loa, the largest volcano in the world. Building the volcano and village hadn’t been easy. But at least George had been burp-free. 53 “Erupting is what volcanoes do,” George told Alex. “They explode and destroy. Kapow!” 54 “Kapow!” Alex repeated. “You’re sure about how much baking soda and cherry Jell-O powder to pour into the vinegar?” 55 “Exactly half of this bag,” George said, holding up a plastic bag filled with Jell-O powder and baking soda. “Any less and it won’t explode. Any more, and we’ll make a major mess.” 56 “This is going to be so cool,” Alex said. “I can’t wait until Monday morning!” 57 George nodded. “When this volcano erupts, everyone is going to totally freak.”

58 “Some leis are made from flowers. Others are made from seashells or feathers,” Sage said as she gave her report to the class on Monday morning. She had a lei around her neck. “When someone gives you a lei it is supposed to show that they like you.” 59 George put his hand over his mouth and tried to hide a yawn. Sage’s report was boring. Louis’s report on ukuleles hadn’t been much better. 60 In fact, so far, the only report that had been even kind of cool was Julianna’s about poi. Poi was this soupy, pudding-y mush that was made of the root of some plant. Julianna had made enough for everyone to try. And the way you ate it was by scooping it up with your fingers. It didn’t taste bad for something that looked pretty nasty. 61 George thought the poi looked a little like the “George soup” he used to make during lunchtime at his old school – especially the kind where he mixed up fruit punch,

vanilla pudding, and salad dressing. When he was really goofing off, he used to stick some of his action figures in the George soup and pretend they were stuck in quicksand. Good times. 62 Today, those same action figures were really going to get it when the volcano exploded! 63 Finally, it was George and Alex’s turn. They carried their volcano to the front of the room. George placed it on the table and stood back. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out the container of secret erupting powder. At the end of Alex’s report on the Mauna Loa volcano, George was going to pour half of the powder into the bottle of vinegar that was hidden inside the volcano, and make it erupt.

64 “The Hawaiian islands were all created by volcanoes,” Alex said. “They started from hot spots deep in the earth. A stream of super hot rock, called lava, was forced up from the hot spot. This caused volcanoes to form.” 65 George stood there quietly, listening to Alex speak. Suddenly, he felt something weird in the bottom of his belly. It was a fuzzy feeling. Like a million soda bubbles were bouncing around in there. 66 Oh no! Not the super burp! He’d been burp-less for a week! How could this be happening now? 67 “This volcano is called Mauna Loa, which means Long Mountain in Hawaiian,” Alex read from his paper. “It’s the largest volcano on our planet…” 68 George couldn’t pay attention to what Alex was saying. He couldn’t pay attention to anything but the burp swelling inside him – the super burp. It was back, and it wanted to come out. Already the bubbles were bing-bonging in George’s belly, and ping-ponging their way up into his chest. 69 “Mauna Loa has erupted thirty-nine times since 1832,” Alex continued. “Its most recent eruption was in 1984. And scientists say it’s sure to erupt again…” 70 George had to stop that burp. He just had to. He shut his lips tight and held his nose. Then he swallowed really hard, trying to force the burp back down his throat. 71 But the super burp was strong. It had been kept down for too long. It needed to break free.

72 The biggest burp in the world erupted. A supercolossal, Mauna Loa-size burp. A burp so loud, it could probably be heard all the way across the Pacific Ocean in Hawaii! 73 Alex stopped talking and stared at George. The kids all started laughing. Mrs. Kelly stood up. 74 “Quiet, class,” she said. “I’m sure George didn’t mean to do that.” 75 That was sure the truth. 76 George opened his mouth to say, “Excuse me.” But nothing came out. Instead, his hands started moving. It was like they had a mind of their own. They popped off the top of the container they had been holding. There was no way to stop them from pouring all of the secret erupting powder into the vinegar. 77 “George!” Alex shouted. “What are you doing? You’re only supposed to put in half of the powd—“ 78 Alex never finished his sentence. 79 The volcano began to shake. It began to tremor. And then… 80 KAPOW! The volcano erupted. Ruby red “lava” gel shot way up in the air!

81 Now George’s feet wanted to have some fun. They began to leap up and down like they were on fiery coals. 82 “Hot! Hot!” George’s mouth shouted out. “Hot lava!” 83 George began to roll on the floor under the shower of vinegar, Jell-O and baking soda lava. “Oh no! I’m being buried by lava!” he shouted. 84 “George! What are you doing?” Mrs. Kelly scolded. She pulled a tissue out from her sleeve, and wiped lava splatters from her glasses. “This is a science project, not the talent show.” 85 But George couldn’t stop himself. He wasn’t in charge of his own body. The super burp was. And the super burp wanted George to roll around on the floor.

86 “Hot lava!” he shouted. “Help!” 87 Whoosh! Suddenly, George felt something pop in his belly. It was kind of like a balloon being punctured with a needle. All the air rushed right out of him. The super burp was gone. 88 But George was still there. In front of the classroom. On the floor. With red lava all over the place. He opened his mouth to say, “I’m sorry.” And those were exactly the words that came out. 89 “What were you thinking?” Mrs. Kelly asked. 90 She didn’t sound angry. She sounded disappointed. That was worse. 91 George knew he’d better not say that he wasn’t thinking. That was the kind of answer that could get a kid in even more trouble. So instead, he said, “I guess I was trying to show how sometimes volcanoes can erupt without warning. I didn’t mean to mess up the classroom.” That was the truth. He hadn’t. 92 Mrs. Kelly sighed. “It’s true that volcanoes can erupt suddenly. But I don’t think what you did was the best way to demonstrate that.” 93 “I’m really sorry, Mrs. Kelly,” George said. He looked down at the gooey, red mess in front of him. 94 Mrs. Kelly looked puzzled and shook her head. “That’s a start,” she told him. “Shouldn’t you also tell Alex you’re sorry? After all, he worked hard on this project.” 95 “I’m really sorry, dude,” George said to Alex. “I didn’t mean to ruin everything.” 96 Alex didn’t answer. George could tell he was really mad. Nothing George could say or do was going to make this better right now. 97 Sadly, George looked up at Mrs. Kelly. “I guess I’ll go find Mr. Coleman and get a mop,” he told his teacher. 98 “It’s going to take a while to clean up this mess.” Mrs. Kelly shook her head again. “I honestly don’t know why you do these things, George.” 99 George knew why. But he didn’t know why the super burp picked him of all kids in the world as the victim. It wasn’t fair. Not at all. 100 George skated home later that day. He was really lonely. Even people on the street seemed to move far away from him. Of course that was probably because they didn’t want him to crash into them. Or maybe because he smelled nasty—like old salad dressing, from the vinegar and Jell-O that had been in his hair. 101 As George turned the corner and skateboarded onto his block, he spotted Chris and Alex tossing a ball around on Alex’s front lawn. George could tell they both

saw him. He could also tell from Alex’s face that he didn’t want anything to do with George right now. 102 “Yo, George,” Chris called out. “Want to throw a ball around with us?” 103 George looked over at Alex. “Okay with you?” he asked. 104 Alex just shrugged. “Whatever.” 105 “I really am sorry about today,” he said. It was about the tenth time he’d said it. 106 “You said you knew how much stuff to put in. And why didn’t you wait until I was done talking?” Alex wanted to know. “That was the plan. You were supposed to surprise everyone else but not me.” 107 George tried to explain. “It was just something that came over me.” 108 Now Alex laughed. “It came over you all right.” He was looking at the big red stains on George’s T-shirt. “All over you!” 109 “Oh yeah,” George agreed. “My mom’s going to freak.” 110 Chris held up the baseball. “You want to practice some killer ball moves? Maybe we can finally beat Louis’s team.” 111 “Sure,” George said. “I’ll be ‘it’ and try to tag you with the ball.” He stopped for a minute, “I mean if that okay with you guys.” 112 “It’s cool,” Alex said. “I’ll be ‘it’ after you.” 113 “And then me,” Chris agreed. 114 “We’re definitely getting better at this game,” Alex said as he started to run away from the ball. 115 “Yeah, we are,” George agreed. And now that he and Alex were talking again, he was feeling a lot better, too.

Now answer questions 10 – 22 and complete the reader response


Use information from “George Brown Trouble Magnet” to answer the following questions. Circle the correct answer for multiple-‐choice questions. 10. Write three questions that are answered in this story.

Question: ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Question: ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Question: ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 11. Answer both parts of the question.

Part A: In paragraph 76, what does the phrase “a mind of their own” mean?

a. They are dependable.

b. They appear to be smart.

c. They cannot be controlled.

d. They are stronger than normal.

Part B: Which phrase in paragraph 76 helps the reader understand the meaning of “a mind of their own”?

a. “nothing came out”

b. “his hands started moving”

c. “popped off the top”

d. “no way to stop them”


Part A: What happened when George burped in class?

a. The students laughed.

b. The teacher got upset.

c. George got embarrassed.

d. Alex kept giving the report.

Part B: What did George do as a result of burping?

a. He apologized.

b. He stopped talking.

c. He tried not to burp again.

d. He poured in too much powder.


13. Answer both parts of the question. Part A: Which words best describe the character traits George demonstrates in paragraphs 76 – 86?

a. Fun and adventurous

b. Impatient and forgetful

c. Goofy and thoughtless

d. Creative and entertaining

Part B: Tell one thing George did and one thing George said that shows one of these traits. Did: _____________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Said: ____________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14. Answer both parts of the question. Part A: Which words best describe the character traits George demonstrates in paragraphs 93 – 97?

a. Clever and careful

b. Foolish and disrespectful

c. Hopeless and doubtful

d. Polite and helpful

Part B: Tell two things George said that shows each of these traits. Said: ____________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Said: ____________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________


15. Which quality does the teacher demonstrate in paragraphs 92 – 98?

a. Friendly

b. Patient

c. Rude

d. Unforgiving 16. Answer both parts of the question.

Part A: What is Alex’s point of view when George rolls in the lava?

a. He thinks George is funny.

b. He is upset with George.

c. He thinks George is cool.

d. He is embarrassed of George.

Part B: Which paragraph provides the best evidence for the answer in Part A?

a. Paragraph 73

b. Paragraph 78

c. Paragraph 96

d. Paragraph 108

17. What is your point of view when George rolls in the lava?

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

18. What does George mean in paragraph 107 when he says something “came over” him?

a. George was covered with red lava.

b. George suddenly had a brilliant idea.

c. Something was hanging above George’s head.

d. Something seemed to take over George’s body.


19. What does Alex mean in paragraph 108 when he says something “came over” George?

a. George was covered with red lava.

b. George suddenly had a brilliant idea.

c. Something was hanging above George’s head.

d. Something seemed to take over George’s body.

20. Why is George feeling better at the end of the story?

a. George was finished with the report.

b. George knew Alex had forgiven him.

c. George met Chris and became friends.

d. George got to play baseball after school.


Part A: What lesson can the reader learn from this story?

a. Hard work pays off in the end.

b. Do not be afraid to face your fears.

c. Do what you want whether others like it or not.

d. It is okay to be funny unless it hurts others.

Part B: Which detail does the author use to help the reader learn this lesson?

a. George and Alex worked hard on their project.

b. George and Alex gave their report in front of the class.

c. George splattered red lava on Mrs. Kelly’s glasses.

d. George used a robot in the village when Alex did not want to.

Use information from “George Brown Super Burp” and “George Brown Trouble Magnet” to answer the following question. 22. How are the settings in the two stories alike and different?

a. Both stories take place on a school day, but one is during school and one is after school.

b. Both stories take place inside, but one is at school and the other is in an ice cream parlor.

c. Both stories take place at school, but one is in the morning and the other in the afternoon.

d. Both stories take place outside, but one is at school and the other is at an ice cream parlor.


Name: _______________________________________________________________ Date:_________________________

Reader Response: Compare and contrast the plots in “George Brown Super Burp” and “George Brown Trouble Magnet.” Refer to examples from both passages in your response. Be sure to clearly identify which story you are referring to when discussing details from one of the stories in your response.

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Documents

Class Clown SuperBurp.Book550L.1 · are made from seashells or feathers,” Sage said as she gave her report to the class on Monday morning. She had a lei around her neck. “When