Illustration of a ship sailing through ice
Allan Davey
Nonfiction,

Escape From the Ice

The true story of a daring explorer and how he rescued his men from the coldest place on Earth.

By Erin Kelly
From the December 2022/January 2023 Issue
Lexiles: 550L (Escape From the Ice), 250L (Your Turn to Read)
Guided Reading Level: J (Escape From the Ice), I (Your Turn to Read)
Featured Skill: Main Idea, Key Details,
Vocabulary: endurance, ice floes, lifeboat, cheerful, exhausted, whoop
Topic: Social Studies,
Common Core Standards
  • RI.1.1 Key details RI.1.4 Vocabulary RI.1.5 Text features RI.1.7 Use visuals SL.1.1 Discuss grade-1 texts SL.1.2 Ask and answer questions about key details L.1.4.a Use sentence-level context as a clue to a word’s meaning
TEKS Standards
  • Social Studies
    (12) Citizenship. The student understands characteristics of good citizenship as exemplified by historical figures and other individuals. The student is expected to: (A) identify characteristics of good citizenship by educating oneself about the issues, respectfully holding public officials to their word, and voting. (15) Science, technology, and society. The student identifies individuals who created or invented new technology and understands how technology affects daily life, past and present. The student is expected to: (B) describe how technology has affected communication, transportation, and recreation.
  • Health
    (10) Influencing factors. The student understands factors that influence the health of an individual. The student is expected to: (B) describe ways in which a person’s health may be affected by weather and pollution.

Magazine View
See Student View
Listen and Think

As you listen, think about how Shackleton and the crew survived in the cold.

ADOC-PHOTOS/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES

More than 100 years ago, Ernest Shackleton had a dream. He wanted to be the first explorer to cross the frozen land of Antarctica. 

But first he had to get there. That meant sailing across a dangerous, icy sea. 

Shackleton had a ship named the Endurance and a crew of 28 men. They were excited to go, even though the extreme cold would not be easy. 

PAUSE AND THINK:  How would Shackleton get to Antarctica?

GEORGE RINHART/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES

The ship sank into the cold, dark water under the ice.

Trapped in Ice

SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

As the ship got close to Antarctica, there was a problem. The sea was filled with ice floes—big pieces of floating ice. They looked like pieces of a giant jigsaw puzzle.

Shackleton sailed between the pieces. But soon the ship was trapped! 

Shackleton decided to wait until the ice loosened. To pass time, the crew played chess. They sang songs and gave each other silly haircuts.

But the ice didn’t loosen. It pressed harder and harder against the ship until one day—crack! The wood was breaking. Cold water poured in.  

Shackleton and his men grabbed food, sleeping bags, and three small lifeboats. They dragged them onto the ice. Then they watched as the Endurance slowly sank into the sea.

The ship was lost. How could Shackleton save his crew?  

PAUSE AND THINK:  What happened to the ship?

HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES

The crew dragged each lifeboat across the ice.

Waiting for a Break

The men camped on the ice for months. They were waiting for the ice to break. Then they could put the lifeboats in the water and row away.

Shackleton tried to keep them cheerful. Playing soccer helped, but the time went slowly.

Finally, the ice started to crack. One man slipped through in his sleeping bag! Shackleton yanked him out of the water. 

As the ice broke up more, Shackleton rushed the men to the lifeboats. For six days, they rowed with very little sleep or food. At last, they reached a tiny island. 

The men were exhausted. Icicles froze on their beards. But Shackleton knew he had to keep going. This island had no people and not much to eat.  

PAUSE AND THINK:  Why were the men exhausted?

FRANK HURLEY/ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY VIA GETTY IMAGES

They camped on the ice for months.

Going for Help

He chose five men to row with him to another island, where fishermen lived. The rest of the crew would wait for him to return with help.

 Shackleton told them, “I will make it or die trying.”

Huge waves crashed over their tiny boat. They could hardly see. But they kept going.

PAUSE AND THINK:  Why did Shackleton keep going?

PA IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES

The crew cheered! Shackleton had come back to save them.

All Are Well

Finally, they got to the fishermen. Now Shackleton could borrow a big boat and rescue the rest of the crew.  

As he made his way back to the little island, Shackleton worried. Time had passed, and the men had been waiting in the cold with hardly any food. What if some of them didn’t make it? 

When he finally got close, he saw the men on the beach. 

He shouted, “Are all well?”

The men whooped and cheered, “We are all well, boss!” Every single one survived. 

Shackleton never crossed Antarctica. But he saved his entire crew. And that is one of the greatest stories of survival and bravery the world has seen.

ROBERTHARDING/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

This is the island where Shackleton rescued the crew.

Your Turn to Read!: Frozen Ship Found!

For years, no one could find Shackleton’s lost ship. At last, this scientist found it!

James Blake and Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

Where did he find it?

He took a big new ship. He went back to the icy sea where the old ship sank.

Esther Horvath and Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

The robot

How did he find it?

He used a robot. The robot went underwater. It sent back pictures.

Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

Little sea animal

 

The Endurance

What did he find?

Look! It is the old ship. It is on the bottom of the sea. Now little sea animals live on it.

What does your class think?

Would you visit the Titanic?

Please enter a valid number of votes for one class to proceed.

Would you visit the Titanic?

Please select an answer to vote.

Would you visit the Titanic?

0%
0votes
{{result.answer}}
Total Votes: 0
Thank you for voting!
Sorry, an error occurred and your vote could not be processed. Please try again later.
video (2)
video (2)
Slideshows (1)
Activities (3)
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
video (2)
video (2)
Slideshows (1)
Activities (3) Download All Quizzes and Activities
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)

More About the Article

Science Focus

Earth science, climate and weather

Social Studies Focus

History, geography

Vocabulary

endurance, ice floes, lifeboat, cheerful, exhausted, whoop

Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Download the Lesson Plan

ESSENTIAL QUESTION

The essential question of this issue is What happens in cold places? The articles below connect to this theme.

  • Picture This: “Grandma Shark,” p. 2
  • Background Builder: “The Coldest Place,” p. 8
  • Big Read-Aloud: “Escape From the Ice,” p. 10 
  • Mini History: “The True Story of Popsicles,” p. 30
  • Poetry: “Snow Mail,” p. 32

Through the above genres, students will discuss:

  • Have you ever been to a cold place?
  • What do people need to survive in the cold?
  • What are snow and ice like?
  • What happens in cold places?

IMPLEMENTATION SUGGESTIONS

Read-Aloud

  • Nonfiction read-alouds give children access to more complex written text that is on their listening level. Use it to develop children’s comprehension, knowledge, vocabulary, and understanding of nonfiction text.

Paired Text

Background Builder

  • Pair your read-aloud with “Background Builder: The Coldest Place” (p. 8). This is a lower-level nonfiction article that gives children background knowledge before they encounter the Big Read-Aloud. It features simple headings and chunked text. Use it during small-group reading time. Then children can read it again with a partner.

Technology time

Video Read-Aloud

  • Kids can hear the article read aloud and see the imagery come to life. This online resource models fluent reading. The footage helps solidify comprehension—and kids will be fascinated!

1. BEFORE READING

Show Video (10 minutes)

  • Tell your students they are going to watch a video about cold places. (This video also goes with other stories in the issue). As they watch, ask them to think about the essential question: “What happens in cold places?”
  • After watching, ask the question again. Have children turn and talk to a partner and then volunteer their answers. Write students’ ideas on chart paper.

Preview Vocabulary (3-5 minutes)

  • Play the online vocabulary slideshow. This issue features rich vocabulary including: endurance, ice floes, lifeboat, cheerful, exhausted, and whoop.

Preview the First Pages and Set a Purpose for Reading (5-10 minutes)

  • Now tell students they are going to hear a true story about an explorer who got stuck in Antarctica, the coldest place on Earth! As they listen, they can think about how he survived (stayed alive) in the extreme cold.
  • Open your magazines to “Escape From the Ice.” Children will be excited by the images! Let them take a picture walk. What do they notice? (You may want to point out that most of the photos of the ship and crew are in black and white. At the time, most cameras could take only black-and-white photos.)
  • You can also review some of the nonfiction text features in the story so children can follow along. Point out the headline, subheadings, and photo captions.

2. READ ALOUD (15-30 minutes)

  • Read each article section, modeling expressive, fluent reading. Check comprehension as you read together with the Pause and Think questions.
  • Turn to the sidebar at the end of the article, “Your Turn to Read!: Frozen Ship Found!” It is written at a lower level, so children can practice reading text on the same topic as the main article.

3. AFTER READING: FOCUS ON SKILLS

ELA Focus: Key details (10 minutes)

  • The Reading Checkpoint printable provides an opportunity to assess students’ understanding of key concepts from the article.

ELA Focus: Text Features (15 minutes)

  • The Feature Finder activity allows children to engage with text features from the article.

Text-to-Speech