Name: ___________________________________________________ Date: __________________
Close Reading
NONFICTION: “The Pigeon Hero of World War I,” pages 4-9
March 2019
®
THE LANGUAGE ARTS MAGAZINE
©2019 BY SCHOLASTIC INC. TEACHERS MAY PROJECT OR MAKE COPIES OF THIS PAGE TO DISTRIBUTE TO STUDENTS.
Close-Reading Questions
“The Pigeon Hero of World War I”
1. What is the main purpose of the sections “Incredible Powers” and “Brutal Battles”?
(text structure)
2. In the section “Fear and Rats,” Tarshis explains how difficult conditions were for soldiers in
the trenches. Why is this information important to the story of Cher Ami?
(text structure)
3. What made carrier pigeons an important method of communication in battle? What were
some drawbacks to using pigeons?
(key ideas)
4. On page 9, Tarshis writes, “The sky was a storm of bullets.” What figurative language is she
using here? What does it help you understand?
(figurative language)
PAGE 1 OF 2