Illustration of a dog in the woods with a wooden building in the background
Art by Natacha Bustos
Fiction,

Following Boo

At a ghostly campsite, Nate discovers an adorable dog . . . and a magical secret.

By Bobbie Pyron | Adapted by Georgia Ball | Art by Natacha Bustos
From the December 2022/January 2023 Issue

Learning Objective: Students will make inferences about how events in the story affect Nate, the main character, and cause him to change. They will use both words and images in the graphic-novel-style story to support these inferences.

Complexity Factors
  • Levels of Meaning
    While camping with his family, a boy discovers that a mysterious lost dog has been drinking from the Fountain of Youth; taking the dog home with them will mean the dog will eventually die. The story offers the theme that a life well-lived, with love and family, is better even if it ends with death.
  • Structure
    The story is told in a graphic format. It is chronological with one flashback to the boy’s grandfather’s death.
  • Language
    The language is fairly simple.
  • Knowledge Demands
    Readers will need to be familiar with the Fountain of Youth. (A Background Builder slideshow is available for this purpose.)
Lexile: 400L-500L
Guided Reading Level: T
DRA Level: 50
Featured Skill: Inference,
Other Key Skills: visual literacy, tone, setting, key details, plot, key idea, how a character changes, supporting an opinion, theme
Standards
  • Common Core
    Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.3, R.4, R.7, W.3, SL.1, SL.2, L.4 Grade 4: RL.4.1, RL.4.2, RL.4.3, RL.4.4, RL.4.7, W.4.3, SL.4.1, SL.4.2, L.4.4 Grade 5: RL.5.1, RL.5.2, RL.5.3, RL.5.4, RL.5.7, W.5.3, SL.5.1, SL.5.2, L.5.4 Grade 6: RL.6.1, RL.6.2, RL.6.3, RL.6.4, RL.6.7, W.6.3, SL.6.1, SL.6.2, L.6.4
  • TEKS
    Grade 4: 4.1a, c, d; 4.3a, b, d; 4.6; 4.7b, c, g; 4.8a, b, c, d; 4.9a, f; 4.10c; 4.11; 4.12d Grade 5: 5.1a, c, d; 5.3a, b, d; 5.6; 5.7b, c, g; 5.8a, b, c, d; 5.9a, f; 5.10c; 5.11; 5.12d Grade 6: 6.1a, c, d; 6.2a, b, d; 6.5; 6.6b, c, g, h; 6.7a, b, c, d; 6.8a, f; 6.9c; 6.10; 6.11d
  • NCSS
    2. Time, continuity, and change

Presentation View
See Student View

Want to hear this story read aloud by a Storyworks writer? Find the audio read-aloud in your Resources tab. 

Want to hear this story read aloud by a Storyworks writer? Click here!

UP CLOSE: Inference

As you read, look for clues in the words and pictures to infer, or figure out, how the events of the story affect Nate.

Write to Win

Imagine you’re Nate at the end of the story. Write a letter to your family explaining what you’ve realized about Boo and why you eventually decided to keep him. Send your letter to “Boo Contest” by February 1, 2023. Five winners will each receive a copy of Allergic by Megan Wagner Lloyd. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.

This story was originally published in the December 2022/January 2023 issue.

Slideshows (1)
Audio ()
Activities (8)
Core Skills Workout
  • The Core Skills Workout is a series of skill-based activities that will help your students "bulk up" in the comprehension skills they need most to become strong, analytical readers. The Core Skills Workout comes with every issue and will support your reading program no matter what your scope and sequence.
Skills Activities
Quizzes (1)
Answer Key (1)
Slideshows (1)
Audio ()
Activities (8) Download All Activities
Core Skills Workout
  • The Core Skills Workout is a series of skill-based activities that will help your students "bulk up" in the comprehension skills they need most to become strong, analytical readers. The Core Skills Workout comes with every issue and will support your reading program no matter what your scope and sequence.
Skills Activities
Quizzes (1)
Answer Key (1)
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Download the Lesson Plan

Table of Contents

1. Preparing to Read

2. Reading and Discussing

Close Reading, Critical Thinking

3. Skill Building and Writing

4. Differentiate and Customize

Striving Readers, Advanced Readers, Multilingual Learners

5. Can’t-Miss Teaching Extras

1. Preparing to Read

Build Background Knowledge, Preview Vocabulary, Set a Purpose for Reading

 

  • Graphic novels have increasingly been used in the classroom over the past decade. Like traditional prose, they offer opportunities to think about literary elements like character, plot, and theme. The visual presentation can make a story more accessible and engaging, while also challenging readers to make inferences based on what they see—or don’t see. Our Can’t Miss Teaching Extras provide links to resources for teaching graphic novels. Ask students if they have read a graphic novel before. Have students share some of their favorite titles.
  • Before reading, show the Background Builder Slideshow to build background knowledge about the Fountain of Youth; this information is important to understanding the story
  • Distribute or assign our Vocabulary Skill Builder to discuss words related to the graphic fiction format. Students will be able to add other unfamiliar words from the story as well. Vocabulary terms include graphic, panel, border, speech bubble, thought bubble.
  • Have a volunteer read aloud the Up Close box on page 15 for the class. As students read the story, prompt them to look for how the main character, Nate, feels, based on both the words and pictures.

 

2. Reading and Discussing

First Read: Get to Know the Text (20 minutes)

  • Have students read the stories independently or in small groups. They can also listen to our Read-Aloud, in which a Storyworks editor reads the story.

Second Read: Unpack the Text (30 minutes)

  • Put students in small groups. Ask them to discuss the close-reading questions. Go over the critical-thinking questions together as a class.

Close-Reading Questions

 

  • Based on the beginning of the story on page 16, how do the pictures and words make the appearance of a dog seem mysterious? (tone) The campground looks foggy, which creates an eerie feeling. Maggie thinks the dog is “a ghost,” and there are no other campers around who could be the dog’s owner. These elements make the dog seem mysterious.
  • How does Nate most likely feel in the panel at the bottom right of page 16? How do you know? What can you infer about why he feels this way? (inference/visual literacy) Nate most likely feels grief-stricken and sad because his sister’s words in the previous panel reminded him that his grandfather has died. In the picture, Nate is covering his face and running away. His sister, Maggie, is apologizing to him, and his dad says Nate needs some time alone.
  • Where are Nate and Boo on page 17, when Nate realizes that Boo’s limp and his own cut are healed? Think about why this setting might later be important in the story. (setting) Nate and Boo are in the water at the Eternal Springs Resort in the Ponce de León campground in St. Augustine, Florida.
  • What surprising thing does the vet say about Boo on page 18? Why is it surprising? (key details) The vet says that Boo’s dog tag is from 1947. This is surprising because it would make Boo more than 70 years old, and dogs do not live that long.
  • What realization does Nate make in the panel at the bottom of page 18? (inference) Nate realizes that the water he and Boo were wading in has healing powers and is likely the Fountain of Youth. It healed his cut and cured Boo’s limp. It has helped Boo stay alive for much longer than dogs typically live.
  • Why does Nate yell at Boo on page 19? (inference) Nate yells at Boo to leave because he loves Boo and does not want him to die. He knows that if Boo leaves his home near the magical springs, there will be nothing keeping him young and alive anymore. Nate would rather Boo live than have him as a pet.
  • How do Nate and Boo feel in the panel at the bottom of page 19? (inference/visual literacy) Nate and Boo both feel sad. They want to be together, but it does not seem possible. Nate does not want to risk Boo’s life, and after Nate yells at Boo to leave, Boo probably feels like Nate does not want him anymore.
  • How is the setting important to the story? (setting) The setting is important to the story because St. Augustine, Florida, is the site of the famed Fountain of Youth. In legends, this spring can give eternal youth or keep someone young forever. In “Following Boo,” the water near the Eternal Springs Resort keeps Boo young and healthy.
  • How does Nate’s memory of Grandpa Lou on page 20 change his mind about Boo? How does the artist show that Nate is remembering his grandpa? (plot/visual literacy) Nate’s memory of Grandpa Lou helps him realize that a long life is not necessarily a happy life if it is not filled with love. The artist shows that this is a memory by using different color tones.
  • What does Nate decide at the end of the story on page 21? (inference) Nate decides to welcome Boo into his family. He opens his heart to the dog even though he knows Boo will not live forever.
  • How does Nate change throughout the story? (how a character changes) Nate changes by learning to accept that death is a part of life. Though he misses Grandpa Lou, he realizes Grandpa Lou lived a long and happy life, filled with love. Though he wishes Boo could live forever, he accepts that Boo would rather age surrounded by the people he loves.

Critical-Thinking Questions

  • In your opinion, does Nate make the right choice for Boo in the end? Why or why not? (supporting an opinion) Answers will vary. Sample answer: Yes, Nate makes the right choice for Boo in the end. By allowing him to join his family, Nate is giving Boo the thing that makes life worth living: love.
  • Compare and contrast how Maggie and Nate react to the death of Grandpa Lou and the idea of leaving Boo. What point is the author most likely trying to make through these contrasting characters? (theme) Answers will vary. Sample answer: Maggie and Nate react differently to the death of Grandpa Lou and the idea of leaving Boo. For example, Maggie names the dog they find after Grandpa Lou while Nate runs off to be alone when he thinks of Grandpa Lou. Maggie gets sad and cries at the thought of leaving Boo. Nate yells at Boo to go away because he would rather be without Boo than for Boo to die. The author is most likely trying to make the point that people deal with grief and other feelings in different ways.

 

3. Skill Building and Writing

Featured Skill: Inference
  • Distribute or digitally assign the Inference Skill Builder, which will help students analyzethe inferences in the story.
  • Ask students to respond to the writing prompt at the end of the story. Encourage them to submit their responses to our writing contest!

Differentiate and Customize
For Striving Readers

There are many instances in the story in which Nate says or does one thing but thinks and feels something else. For example, in the middle of page 19, Nate yells for Boo to "Go home!" and "Get out of here!" as if he is mad and doesn’t want the dog anymore; he actually feels conflicted and is trying to protect Boo. Pause at these places. Discuss with students what Nate is saying and doing. Then talk about how he feels. Help students make inferences about why Nate’s words and actions conflict with his thoughts and feelings in each of these places.

For Advanced Readers

Invite readers to rewrite “Following Boo” in the structure of prose with sentences and paragraphs. Then encourage them to discuss the similarities and differences of these two structures, both in appearance and reader experience.

For Multilingual Learners

Point out the panel with the Eternal Springs Resort on page 17. Discuss the meaning of the word eternal. Then point out the water in the background of this same panel. Tell students that springs are places where water from underground flows to the surface. Talk about why the resort might be called the Eternal Springs Resort and how this might affect the story. As you read, pause to help students understand the implications of an eternal spring.

Can't-Miss Teaching Extras
Teaching With a Graphic Novel

This Scholastic site is chock-full of ideas for using graphic novels in the classroom and will give you some creative ideas for making them part of your teaching practices. This Reading Rockets site also offers graphic-novel teaching ideas, as well as book lists, links to other articles, and interviews with authors of graphic novels. (Note: The Reading Rockets web page has ads.)

Explore the Storyworks Archive

Check out another fiction story in graphic format, “A Recipe for Disaster” by Jerry Kraft from our May/June 2020 issue, and a poem in the same format, “My Inner Weather Report” by Georgia Heard from our February 2021 issue.

Write a Comic

Creating comic strips is a wonderful way for your students to combine creativity and writing. Guide students through the process of creating a comic strip using this printable template.

Dive Deeper into the Fountain of Youth

This webpage from Wonderopolis delves into the history of explorer Ponce de León’s search for restorative water and explains how St. Augustine, Florida, became the site of the Fountain of Youth National Archaeological Park.

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