Trapped

TRAPPED

How The World Rescued 33 Miners From 2,000 Feet Below The Chilean Desert

Marc Aronson

CBC/NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book

Atheneum Books For Young Readers

Copyright 2011

144 Pages

Inspirational, Enlightening, Motivational, Community, Hope

Trapped by Marc Aronson is an easy reading non-fiction text that discusses the Chilean mine collapse that captivated the world in 2010. The book takes the unique perspective of including what was happening both underground as well as above ground in order to help the 33 men trapped. The text is written in a chronological format and provides a great deal of facts about the tragedy. The objective outsider view that is taken by Aronson allows the reader to understand the sheer magnitude of the problem while maintain a grasp on the difficulties of solving the problem. Students will be able to sympathize with the miners as you learn that they were only able to eat a capful of food every three days at one point, as well as the fact that they had no way of taking a bath or shower until help arrived. Although the miners were ultimately able to escape, the adversity that those men faced is something students can use as motivation in their own life when times get tough.

Reading Level

Ages 10-14, Lexile Measure: 1070L

Suggested Delivery

Read Aloud, Group Read

Electronic Resources

This non-fiction selection is great for producing an interactive electronic infographic using a site such as piktochart.com. Below is an example of an inforgraphic that can be created using a timeline format and incorporating the important facts and/or events that occur throughout the book.

Another useful resource is the youtube video found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW6Rtv9S8-k that shows the first miner exiting the mine through the Phoenix capsule. Using this in unison with the final chapter in the text is a phenomenal way to harness excitement and motivation for learning more about Chilean mine disaster. This video subtly shows just how emotional the rescue was for everyone involved while also showing just how ingenious the solution truly was.

Vocabulary

(Complete glossary in back matter)

·      Powerlessness – Having no control or power

·      Antagonize – Cause someone to become hostile

·      Bore – The inside diameter of a hole or drill bit

·      Feldspar – Mineralized rock often made as lava flow cools

·      Percussion – Loud sounds

Teaching Strategies

            Before – Using a KWL before reading Trapped by Marc Aronson is a great way to gain an understanding of what students already know about the San Jose mine collapse, what students want to learn about the disaster, and after reading, what the students have learned from the text. This comprehension strategy forces students to ask questions before reading and then monitor their comprehension during reading by ensuring that they answer those questions. This would be a great time to teach a mini-lesson on split page note taking in unison with modeling the KWL.

            During – While reading the text, model split page note taking using important dates and events throughout the text as a foundation for the left column. On the right provide supporting details that are found directly from the text in order to create a cohesive and focused note taking experience. After modeling the split page note taking strategy, divide students into small groups and allow them to read independently to create their own split page notes. After students have read a selection, allow them to share what they have within their group in order to add details.

            After – Students can participate in collaborative conversations by taking the point of view of reporters, trapped miners, or the rescue team. The three groups will converse with each other using their split page notes on ways to solve the mine collapse. By allowing students to take a role in the rescue of the miners they will be forced to use recall and schema thus increasing comprehension of the text.

Writing

Students can participate in creating an email to one of the parties involved in rescuing the miners. This can be directed towards a mining company, NASA, drill companies etc. Students will use the notes that were taken during reading to help them draft, revise, edit and finally publish (the teacher can even create fake email addresses to send the emails to and respond) their work.