1) The passage discusses the importance of reading and education. It states that reading leads to knowledge, which leads to staying in school longer and earning more diplomas. This in turn leads to higher incomes and longer lifespans. 2) The passage also discusses the negative effects of less reading, such as less knowledge, dropping out of school earlier, lower incomes, and higher chances of incarceration. 3) The word of the day activities provide exercises on the Latin prefixes "dis-", "di-", and "dif-", which mean "apart" or "not". Students are asked to complete tasks involving applying these prefixes to words and analyzing their meanings.

1. Word of the Day @ The Garden October 4 – October 10, 2011

2. Reading is the single most important social factor in American life today The more you read, the more you know. The more you know, the smarter you grow. The smarter you are, the longer you stay in school. The longer you stay in school, the more diplomas you earn and the longer you are employed—thus the more money you earn in a lifetime. The more diplomas you earn, the higher your children’s grades will be in school. The more diplomas you earn, the longer you live. Jim Trelease, The Read-Aloud Handbook

3. The opposite is also true. The less you read, the less you know. The less you know, the sooner you drop out of school. The sooner you drop out, the sooner and longer you are poor. The sooner you drop out, the greater your chances of going to jail.

4. Latin Prefixes Dis-, di-, dif- “apart, in different directions” and “not” October 4, 2011

5. October 4, 2011 “Divide & Conquer” Directions: Write the prefixes and bases in the blanks. Write the meaning of the whole word in the last blank.

6. Latin Prefixes Dis-, di-, dif- “apart, in different directions” and “not” October 5, 2011

7. October 5, 2011 “Combine & Explore” Directions: Complete each of the following sentences with the dis-, di-, dif- word that best fits the context. You may add suffixes to the words. Diversity c. Distended d. Dissect Digressions e. Disruptive I am so squeamish that I don’t know if I will be able to _____________ any frogs or mice in Biology lab next year. The speaker made so many __________________ in his lecture that I found it impossible to take notes. His __________________ belly, which would hang over his belt, was the result of years of malnutrition. The unruly student was suspended for a full week for his __________________ behavior in class. With such a ____________________ of opinions expressed at this meeting, I doubt we will reach a consensus.

8. Latin Prefixes Dis-, di-, dif- “apart, in different directions” and “not” October 6, 2011

9. October 6, 2011 “Read & Reason” Directions: Read the following passage, paying special attention to the words beginning with the prefixes dis, di,dif. Then answer the questions that follow. 1. Which of the solutions outlined in this article could you do? Will you do them? Why? 2. What might be the long-term effects of water pollution?

10. Latin Prefixes Dis-, di-, dif- “apart, in different directions” and “not” October 7, 2011

11. October 7, 2011 “Extend & Explore” Directions: Select a word from the following list. And make a pyramid for each. You can use dictionaries if necessary. 1.Diffident 3. Dismantle 4. Dissonance 2.Discordant 5. Dissolution

12. Latin Prefixes Dis-, di-, dif- “apart, in different directions” and “not” October 10, 2011

13. October 10, 2011 “Go for the Gold” Directions: Match each word in the first column with the appropriate context in the second column. Write the correct letter on the lines provided.