I’m Sad by Michael Ian Black

Three charming characters (a girl, a flamingo, and a talking potato) are thoughtful, helpful, and wisecracking as they deal with sadness in color-coded dialogue.

Comprehension

• Check for understanding.
• Back up and reread. Because if it were any other way, then that would be the way it is, and it’s not that way. It’s this way.
• Use prior knowledge to connect with text.

Accuracy

• Use the pictures . . . Do the words and pictures match?

Fluency

• Use punctuation to enhance phrasing and prosody. There are many opportunities to use punctuation, italics, and varied font sizes as clues to read with expression.
• Read text as the author would say it, conveying the meaning or feeling.

Expand Vocabulary

• Tune in to interesting words and use them in speaking and writing—sigh, old-fashioned, cheering, and soil.