Realistic
Fiction
The
Special Meal
by Paul Mason
illustrated by Courtney Autumn Martin
The Special Meal by Paul Mason illustrated by Courtney Autumn Martin
PAIRED
More About Mole
READ
STRATEGIES & SKILLS
Comprehension Content Standard
Strategy: Visualize Social Studies
Skill: Sequence Culture
Vocabulary
celebrate, courage,
disappointment, precious,
pride, remind, symbol,
tradition
Word count: 715**
**The total word count is based on words in the running text and headings only. Numerals and words in
captions, labels, diagrams, charts, and sidebars are not included.
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12 13 14 15 16 DOC 22 21 20 19 18 G
Genre Realistic Fiction
Essential Question
What can traditions teach you
about cultures?
The
Special Meal
by Paul Mason
illustrated by Courtney Autumn Martin
Table of contents
Chapter 1
The Change of Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Chapter 2
Kitchen Duties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Chapter 3
Making Mole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Chapter 4
The Best Part . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Respond to Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
PAIRED
READ More about Mole . . . . . . . . . . 17
Focus on Social Studies . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Chapter 1
The Change of Plans
Estela jumped out of bed and
dressed quickly. She was looking
forward to her friend Vicky’s pool
party. They were going to swim and
have a barbecue. All of her friends
were going to be there.
2
Estela ran downstairs. Then she
stopped. Her mom was putting
the best tablecloth on the dining
room table. It was the precious one
from Puebla. They only used it to
celebrate special events.
“You’re up early,” said her mother.
“That’s great. You can help me get
ready for the family feast.”
Estela’s face dropped.
3
“But I was going over to Vicky’s
today,” said Estela.
Mom shook her head. “I did remind
you yesterday that Aunt Carmen,
Uncle Felipe, and Grandpa and
Grandma are coming over.”
“Do I really have to be here?”
asked Estela.
“I know this a disappointment,”
Mom said. “But family comes first.
You’ll have to let Vicky know.”
4
“You can help Aunt Carmen in the
kitchen,” said Mom. “We are going
to have a big meal. There’s lots of
cooking to do.”
“I’d rather go to a pool party,”
Estela thought.
STOP AND CHECK
What is Estela’s problem?
5
Chapter 2
Kitchen Duties
Aunt Carmen and Uncle Felipe arrived.
They were carrying lots of bags.
Aunt Carmen gave Estela a big hug.
“You’ve grown so much!” she said.
Estela looked at her feet.
6
“We’ve got lots to do in the
kitchen,” said Aunt Carmen. “I’m
going to make mole poblano.
I’m going to need your help.”
Estela thought about the pool party.
She sighed.
7
Estela helped Aunt Carmen take
things out of the bags. She saw
chilies, nuts, onions, garlic, lots
of spices, and chocolate.
She also saw other things she
didn’t know.
There was so much. Estela
wondered how they could all
go into one sauce.
8
“How did you learn to make this
sauce?” asked Estela.
“This is a family recipe,” Aunt
Carmen said with pride. “I learned
it from my mother. She was a great
cook. I loved to help her in the
kitchen.”
STOP AND CHECK
What is special about the
dish they are making?
9
Chapter 3
Making Mole
Aunt Carmen put some spices
into a bowl. It was Estela’s job
to crush them.
“That was my job when I was
a girl,” Aunt Carmen said. “Every
Sunday, we had family dinners. It
was a tradition to make this sauce.”
She looked at Estela. “And I always
made a mess, too.”
She laughed.
So did Estela.
10
Soon the thick, brown sauce was
cooking. It smelled good. Aunt
Carmen took out a spoonful. She
gave it to Estela.
“Yum,” said Estela. “This tastes
delicious. Making mole is fun.”
11
The doorbell rang. Grandpa and
Grandma had arrived.
Grandpa put his head into the
kitchen. “That smells good,” he said.
“Did you help?” he asked Estela.
“She made most of it herself,”
Aunt Carmen said.
Estela smiled and blushed.
12
When they sat down to eat, the
table was full of food. There were
salads, beans, and plates of rice and
turkey. Everyone was smiling and
laughing. They were all happy to be
with one another.
STOP AND CHECK
How is Estela feeling now?
13
Chapter 4
The Best Part
“Where’s the mole poblano?” asked
Grandpa.
Estela wanted to bring in the mole
herself. But she didn’t have the
courage to carry the heavy dish.
“I’ll get it,” said Mom.
Estela watched them all spoon
the sauce onto their plates.
14
“Yum!” said Grandpa, as everyone
tasted it. The others all agreed.
Estela looked around the table. They
were all so happy. Estela was glad
she had stayed. This was better
than a pool party. She enjoyed
helping Aunt Carmen. And now she
knew how to make a dish that her
grandmother used to make. That
felt great!
STOP AND CHECK
What did Estela learn
that day?
15
Respond to
Reading
Summarize Character
Setting
Use details from the Beginning
story to summarize Middle
The Special Meal.
End
Text Evidence
1. How can you tell this story is
realistic fiction? Genre
2. What happens to Estela at the
beginning of the story? Sequence
3. Find delicious on page 11. What
words and phrases help you figure
out its meaning? Sentence Clues
4. Write about how Estela felt when
her family ate the mole.
Write About Reading
16
Genre Expository Text
Compare Texts
Read about mole sauce.
M ore
a bou t
Mole
Paired Read: More about Mole
Chocolate on chicken? Wouldn’t that
taste strange?
Well, chocolate is just one of the
things that go into mole. A mole
sauce also includes chili peppers,
Monkman/Photodisc/Getty Images
nuts, onion, tomatoes, garlic,
and spices. In fact, there can be
100 different ingredients in a mole.
17
Mole poblano is one of Mexico’s
most famous dishes and a symbol of
Mexican culture. But there are many
different recipes. Many families have
their own recipes. Parents teach the
recipe to their children.
chili
nuts
chocolate peppers
garlic
tomatoes
onion
Chocolate, which is
made from the cacao
plant, is not sweet
unless sugar is added.
18
It takes a long time to make mole
sauce. Many of the ingredients are
ground down to a fine powder
before they are added to the recipe.
The sauce cooks for many hours
before it is ready to eat.
Mole is often
eaten on special
days. It is served
(l to r, t to b) Image Source/PunchStock, Ingram Publishing/SuperStock, Stockbyte/Getty Images, Jupiterimages/FoodPix/Getty Images,
at weddings,
Burke Triolo Productions/Artville/Getty Images, D. Hurst/Alamy, Tetra Images/Getty Images, Author’s Image/PunchStock.
holidays, and
big celebrations.
Make Connections
How did reading about the tradition
of mole sauce help you understand
Mexican culture? Essential Question
What Mexican traditions did you learn
about from The Special Meal and
More About Mole? Text to Text
19
Focus on
Social Studies
Purpose To understand the place of
traditions in a culture.
Procedure
Step 1 Choose a special food that is
traditional to a culture you
know or can research.
Step 2 Make a poster that shows the
special food and the things
needed to make it.
Step 3 Write a short explanation of
when and how the food is
made. Explain why it is special
for the culture.
20
Literature Circles
Fiction
Thinkmark
Literature Circles Fiction Thinkmark
Setting
Where did The Special Meal take place?
What time did it take place?
Sequence of Events
What happened first, then, next, and
finally in The Special Meal?
Plot
What was the problem for Estela at
the beginning of the story?
What happened to make a change?
What was the result in the end?
Conclusions
What is the theme or message of
The Special Meal?
Traditions
GR K • Benchmark 20 • Lexile 380
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