67 pages • 2 hours read
Deep Water
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During Reading
Reading Questions & Paired Texts
Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.
CHAPTERS 1-6
Reading Check
1. How long does Julie’s father say she can stay at the bottom of the dive?
2. What happened to the anchor, causing Julie’s father to become separated from the group?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Despite some challenging conditions, why do Julie and her father continue with the dive?
2. What are some ways the Jordans ignore safety rules and what is a consequence?
3. How did the Malzon tanks affect Julie’s father and consequently the whole family?
CHAPTERS 7-19
Reading Check
1. What is Shane’s reaction when he surfaces and the boat is gone?
2. When Shane’s father surfaces, what is his physical condition?
3. What are sea lice?
4. What are some fears Julie shares with Shane when they see a storm on the horizon?
5. When sharks arrive, what happens to Mr. Jordan?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. How does Julie try to help Shane and his father survive?
2. Why can’t the three characters drink the rain at first, and how do they finally get fresh water to drink?
3. How does Shane and Julie’s relationship change as they struggle to survive in the open water?
4. How does Julie lose the spear gun?
Paired Resource
- National Geographic presents an article about shark anatomy, behavior, and more and a short video about the odds of a shark attack. (An email address may be needed to access this article.)
- Information in this resource provides a chance to discuss the theme of The Unyielding Force of Nature.
- What increases the odds that Julie, Shane, and Mr. Jordan will be attacked by sharks?
CHAPTERS 20-27
Reading Check
1. How is the cold affecting Julie and Shane?
2. When they see a red light flashing, what do they realize it must be?
3. What supplies does Julie find?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. As the sun sets the day after their dive, what does Julie realize about her shifting feelings about Shane?
2. How does Julie get herself and Shane out of the water?
Paired Resource
“For Kids, Self-Control Factors Into Future Success”
- NPR’s article, with a 4-minute audio option, examines the importance of self-control and ways to teach it.
- This article connects to the theme Resilience and Discipline.
- How does Julie demonstrate discipline and self-control, and how does Shane show growth in this area?
CHAPTERS 28-38
Reading Check
1. How long do the two deduce the oil rig has been abandoned?
2. What do they realize about the canned food and electronics?
3. What do they do to the fish they catch to make it more edible?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why don’t Julie and Shane leave the rig in a lifeboat?
2. In what ways have Julie and Shane shifted roles?
Paired Resource
“Stranded at Sea? Follow this 7-Step Survival Guide”
- CNN’s article offers advice for those stranded at sea.
- This resource’s tips connect to the themes Resilience and Discipline and The Unyielding Force of Nature.
- Which of these steps do Julie and Shane try? Which do not apply to their situation and why?
CHAPTERS 39-50
Reading Check
1. What makes both Shane and Julie sick?
2. How does Shane get injured?
3. What prevented Julie’s father from finding her after the dive?
Short Answer
Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.
1. Why do Shane and Julie break the red light?
2. How are Julie and Shane rescued?
3. How does Julie feel about scuba diving at the end of the book?
Paired Resource
“Improving Family Relationships With Emotional Intelligence”
- This resource from HelpGuide.org includes reasons to practice emotional intelligence with family and skills that can help families achieve this goal.
- The article connects to the theme of Family Relationships.
- How does Julie’s family incorporate emotional intelligence strategies?
Recommended Next Reads
Alabama Moon by Watt Key
- When Moon is 10, his survivalist father dies, leaving Moon to live alone. Moon sets out for Alaska as his father instructed but faces conflict from those who do not understand his survival skills and isolated lifestyle.
- Shared themes include Resilience and Discipline, The Unyielding Force of Nature, and Family Relationships.
- Shared topics include nature, friendship, survival, growing up, difficult decisions, and fear.
- Alabama Moon on SuperSummary
I Am Still Alive by Kate Alice Marshall
- Jess moves to the Canadian wilderness to live with her father, but when her father is killed, she must face the power of nature, including bitter cold and insidious hunger, on her own.
- Shared themes include Resilience and Discipline, The Unyielding Force of Nature, and Family Relationships.
- Shared topics include family, adolescence, danger, fear, nature, survival, and determination.
Reading Questions Answer Key
CHAPTERS 1-6
Reading Check
1. 20 minutes (Chapter 2)
2. The anchor detaches from the tank, allowing the boat to drift. (Chapters 3-4)
Short Answer
1. Mr. Jordan, Shane’s father, has agreed to pay more than the usual amount for this dive, and Julie’s father needs the money for bills and for his business. Despite misgivings, they continue the dive. (Chapters 1-2)
2. The Jordans bring extra air tanks, staying on the dive longer than they should. They also do not wait for their dive guide, Julie. Since they are so far away, she cannot let them know of the danger with the anchor. (Chapter 2-3)
3. Julie’s father followed the instructions not to record the coordinates. When the only person who knew the coordinates dies, Julie’s father became obsessed with finding the tanks. He allowed his business to become financially unstable, eventually he and Julie’s mother divorce. Now, anxiety, financial stress, and diabetes contribute to Mr. Sims’s poor health. (Chapters 1, 5)
CHAPTERS 7-19
Reading Check
1. He panics. (Chapter 7)
2. He has the bends; he cannot move, his nose is bleeding, and he is coughing. (Chapter 7)
3. Baby jellyfish (Chapter 13)
4. Hypothermia, lightning, sharks, death (Chapter 14)
5. He panics, cuts his BCD, and sinks. (Chapter 19)
Short Answer
1. Julie relies on her training and discipline to help herself and the Jordans. She gets their BCDs inflated and ties them together so they do not get separated. She helps Mr. Jordan breathe through an air tank so he does not swallow saltwater. Julie also tracks their position. When the sharks come, Julie makes the plan to kick them if they get near, and she warns against the use of their knives so they do not cut their BCDs. (Chapters 7-19)
2. If they drink the rain with the worst of the wind and waves, they will drink too much seawater, which will make them sick and more dehydrated. They finally collect enough rainwater in their diving goggles for drinking water. (Chapters 9, 14)
3. As they drift, Julie and Shane begin to work together. Also, they share about their lives, which builds increased understanding and trust between the two. (Chapters 7-19)
4. After the shark attack, while trying to put Shane’s fins on his feet, Julie drops the speargun. It is another example of a time Shane could have helped them more. (Chapter 19)
CHAPTERS 20-27
Reading Check
1. They are getting stiffer, with decreasing ability to swim well. (Chapter 20)
2. The safety light on an oil rig (Chapters 23-24)
3. Blankets, water, a first aid kit (Chapter 27)
Short Answer
1. She disliked Shane before the dive and immediately after. She now considers him more of a friend, desperately wants them both to survive, and knows it will take the two of them helping one another to succeed. She dreads the idea of being alone at sea. (Chapter 21)
2. After securing an unconscious Shane to the attached rope, Julie climbs up the side of the oil rig, getting injured by sharp barnacles. She then finds a crank, so she can pull Shane up. (Chapters 24-26)
CHAPTERS 28-38
Reading Check
1. 5 years (Chapter 29)
2. The canned food is spoiled, and the electronics don’t work. (Chapter 31)
3. Cut it into thin strips and dry it in the sun. (Chapter 38)
Short Answer
1. They decide that leaving in a lifeboat is too risky. They have seen the harshness of the open ocean and do not know how far they are from land. (Chapter 32)
2. While Julie has taken charge and helped Shane to survive, Julie’s hands are now injured, and Shane helps her take care of them. He also becomes more encouraging as Julie shifts toward feeling more hopeless, doubting when Shane talks about being rescued. (Chapters 28-38)
CHAPTERS 39-50
Reading Check
1. Mold (Chapters 39-40)
2. Shane climbs to the top of the derrick to break the light. On his descent, about 20 feet from the deck, he falls. (Chapter 44)
3. He went into a coma. (Chapter 47)
Short Answer
1. Shane remembers learning that lights like the one on top of the rig are required for monitoring and deduces that if they break it, someone will have to come repair it. They hope the broken light will lead to rescue. (Chapter 43)
2. Workers arrive to repair the light. They radio the Coast Guard, who sends a helicopter to bring them home. (Chapters 46-47)
3. Though her father says he understands if she does not want to dive again, she decides she will not allow her ordeal to keep her from diving, an activity she treasures. She views diving with hope. (Chapter 50)
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