Name:
❑ I explain the relationships
between ideas based on specific information in the text.
❑ I compare and contrast the text structure of
information in two or more texts.
❑ I analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic
including important similarities and differences in the point of view.
Grades: 3-4
Use this text for:
Word Meaning, Cause/Effect, Timeline
The History of Mario is really the history of video games. Video game designers kept looking for new ways to improve the last game. They fix the failures, grow the successes, and improve the product each and every time a new Mario game is released.
A Star is Born
The character Mario didn’t even appear at first as ‘Mario’.
In fact, in 1981, the video game Donkey Kong was
released. The Mario character was named “Jump Man”. It was very different from major video games of that time.
In 1980, video games didn’t really feature ‘characters’. The game turned out to be a huge success.
His Own Game
Two years later (1983) Nintendo designer Miyamoto had an idea to feature “Mario” in his own game. Miyamoto and his team designed a two-player arcade game featuring Mario. The arcade game was Mario Bros, set in a the
myriad of pipes beneath New York City. The designers decided that to improve the game and make it more interesting, they added a second character so 2 players could play. This is the first time players discover Mario’s brother, Luigi. The game was a huge hit with audiences.
Mario in Your Home:
In 1985 Nintendo designers created their first home console gaming system – the Nintendo - and the game Super Mario Brothers. This game was an instant success.
Nintendo hit the jackpot and they realized that they had a great product. The designers quickly met to come up with a new game.
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Two Sequels
The amazing success of the Super Mario Brothers game led to
designers making two sequels in 1986: a Japanese version and an American version. The Japanese version was way too hard to play, so the American version was created to make it easier to play. This new game also featured new aspects for Mario including Mario’s ability to grow bigger when he eats a
mushroom and shoot fire when he finds a flower. Players loved it.
People began to love Mario again.
Mario Continues to Grow
Mario continues to evolve as technology does. With advances in innovation, Mario has kept up. The designers and creators of Mario continue to provide us with amazing games that are fun to play.
Part A: Based on the context clues in the sentence, what does hit the jackpot most likely mean?
Part B: Which group of words from the sentence gives the best clue to your answer in part A?
Word Meaning
Part A: Based on the context clues in the sentence, what can the reader infer that myriad most likely means?
Part B: Which text best provides support for your answer in part A?
What text best gives the reader an idea of what the word aspects means?
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Text Structure/ Organization
Explain how the author organized this text:
Discuss how this text organization benefits the reader’s understanding of the topic.
• Chronology (in order of sequence)
• Problem and Solution (ask a question, answer it)
• Cause and Effect (event and then the result)
• Comparison (compare two or more things)
CAUSE and EFFECT
Cause Effect
In 1981, the video game Donkey Kong was
released.
Two years later (1983) Nintendo designer Miyamoto had an idea to feature “Mario” in his own
game.
This is the first time players discover Mario’s brother,
Luigi.
Nintendo hit the jackpot and they realized that they had a great product.
The Super Mario Brothers game had amazing
success.
The Japanese version was way too hard to play.
The following statements are collected from the text.
Your task is to find the text evidence that is the ‘cause’ or the ‘effect’.
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Where did the idea for the arcade video game come from?
The idea for the first arcade games actually came from the military. Video games were used for training and instructional programs for soldiers. Some of these military games were shown to the public, and soon everyone wanted to ‘play’ them. The people wanted to play games, so games were created! Arcade games first hit stores and restaurants, then malls, then they were everywhere!
What was the first arcade game like?
In 1972, Al Alcorn created a version of a table tennis game as a practice project. Even though his creation was just a prototype, other designers thought that it was fun to play! Alcorn's version ended up being so fun that Atari decided to release it as Pong. This first arcade game was very simple and somewhat small. But, soon, everyone wanted to play Pong and announce to their friends that they held the higher score. Soon, Pong and other arcade games appeared in restaurants, stores, and convenience stores.
Where did arcades come from?
The increasing popularity of arcade games gave Jules Millman the idea to create an arcade in a shopping mall in Harvey, Illinois, in 1969. The ‘arcade’ that Millman created was a safe environment where parents could feel safe leaving their older children while
browsing other stores in the mall. His idea was an instant hit. Kids didn’t have to go from store to store to play games – they were all in one place.
What were the most popular arcade games?
Because of the success of these games in America, Japanese designers began to create these video games as well. Tomohiro Nishikado decided to build on the popularity of the arcade game Breakout. He took the idea of that game and improved it by replacing the paddle in the game with a gun battery and the bricks in the game with rows of aliens. Taito released this game in 1978 as Space Invaders. Space Invaders sold a
record breaking
70,000 units!
What happened to the popularity of arcade games?
At the end of 1983, the arcade game industry experienced a severe
downturn
. Since arcade games cost a lot of money to design and create, it takes a lot of money to keep these companies in business. In 1983, people and businesses had a lot less money or even began to go broke. Stores were going out of business, people lost their jobs, and everyone suffered. Witharcade games no longer being produced, this was the
"crash"
of the video game industry.In 1980, a
new wave
of games appeared that focused on ‘characters’. Pac-Man was the first game where players had to take characters and navigate them through mazes or puzzles. Other popular games were Donkey Kong and Q*bert. That same year, Coleco returned to the video game market with a new console, the ColecoVision, that featured near-arcade-quality graphics and shipped with a port of the popular arcade game Donkey Kong. Coleco sold 550,000units in 1982. Did you know?
Donkey Kong launched the success of Nintendo and was the first game to feature “Mario”.
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Part A: According to this text, what does the phrase new wave most likely mean?
Part B: Which group of words from this text gives the best clue to your answer in part A?
Word Meaning
Part A: Reread this sentence from the text: Taito released this game in 1978 as Space Invaders. Space Invaders sold a
record breaking
70,000 units!What can the reader infer the phrase record breaking most likely means?
Part B: Which text best provides support for your answer in part A?
Which dictionary definition best matches the meaning of the word crash as it is used in this article?
A. collide violently with an obstacle
B. fall from the sky and violently hit the land C. fall disastrously in value
D. failure of technology
E. sudden loud noise as of something breaking or hitting another object
What text helped you to know this?
Text Structure/ Organization
How did the text organization help the reader understand this topic?
How is this text organization similar to the organization of the text “The History of Mario”?
• Chronology (in order of sequence)
• Problem and Solution (ask a question, answer it)
• Cause and Effect (event and then the result)
• Comparison (compare two or more things)
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CAUSE and EFFECT
Cause Effects
The idea for the first arcade games actually came
from the military.
Alcorn's version ended up being so fun that Atari decided to release it as Pong.
The increasing popularity of arcade games
gave Jules Millman the idea to create
an arcade
Sometimes, one cause can have two effects. The following statements are collected from the text. Fill in the empty boxes with text evidence that shows the cause or the effects.
CAUSE and EFFECT
Part A: According to this text, why did Japanese designers begin to create these video games?
Part B: What was the effect of your answer for part A?
What can you infer was the cause for the increased games that featured ‘characters’?
Using the article as evidence, explain how the arcade games lost popularity in 1983.
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1975:
The Atari video game company creates the first home console system. This ‘joystick’ and console system plugs into your tv. People could play games like Pong on their tvs.Home consoles were expensive – arcade games were cheaper. (Yes, Mr. Heath owned this – I liked playing the game Centipede.)
1983
: The economy crashed –businesses had a lot less money. This was the "crash" of the video arcade game industry. Arcade makers stop making games. (Mr. Heath was bummed because he liked playing Ms Pac Man.)1985
: The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) console was created. The NES was a cheaper more effective way to create a video game system for people. (Mr Heath had one, until it sadly got destroyed)1989:
People were now able to purchase games instead of entire systems. Nintendo, Sega, and Electronic Arts begin to grow as they earn more and more revenue. Two billion dollars in video game sales are made. (Mr. Heath had one, but in the year 1994 when they became out of date.)1989:
Nintendo's Game Boy, a portable handheld video game system had games – but with only black and white colors, 2D graphics and 35-hours battery life. (Mr. Heath never had one – sad face.)1991:
Super Mario Bros hits so Sega tried to createsomething just as popular -Sonic the Hedgehog. The "console war“ began between Sega and Nintendo. (Mr. Heath can beat you in Sonic – please don’t even try to argue this).
1995:
The technology company Sony (who made radios, computers, and tv) joined in on the video game craze to create the PlayStation. Having more and more competition, Nintendo experimented with optical media formats and increasing the game quality – thus, the SNES was created.Players can experience 3D characters in game cartridges like Star Fox. (Mr Heath couldn’t afford it).
1995:
With better graphics and 3D characters came new ideas for video games. This caused the release of better quality crashes, more violent fight games, and scarier action games. The home video game industry matured into a more mainstream form of entertainment in the especially in games of Mortal Kombat. Companies began rating video games to inform the public which games were appropriate for which audiences. (Mr Heath’s mom wouldn’t allow this game- bummersville.)1996:
Home video game consoles such as the Sega Saturn, PlayStation and Nintendo 64 became capable of having 3D graphics. People spent money on console games rather than pumping coins into arcades. (Mr Heath didn’t get a chance to play Nintendo 64 until he was in college).1998:
By the end of this period, Sony had become the leader in the video game market. Sega dropped in popularity because it produced the game system The Saturn, which was a failure. Sony remained on top.(Mr Heath bought the games that were on sale).
2000s:
The battle of the home consoles continues. Each video game company competes to outdo the other in video game quality and success. Designers constantly seek to improve on their last product OR the product of the competition. (Mr Heath’s favorite console is the Gamecube – because the games are easy but interesting).TeachHeath.com
Text Structure/ Organization
How does this timeline organization help you to understand the information in this text?
How is this text organization different to the organization of the text “Arcade Games”?
This text is structured in chronological order. It is organized in a TIMELINE . Timelines are VISUAL ways to organize
events and information. Timelines include facts in chronological order. These facts are organized on a line
(number line) usually by date (day, month, year).
Which one out of the 3 texts (History of Mario, Arcade Games, and Console Timelines) is the easiest to read and understand? WHY?
CAUSE and EFFECT
Name two effects that occurred because the “The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) console was created.”
According to the passage, what was the cause for the SONIC game to be created?
What can the reader infer was the cause for the Gameboy to be invented?
Fill in this chart with text evidence.
Games had better graphics
and 3D characters.
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Text Structure/ Organization
TIMELINE!
Timelines are VISUAL ways to organize events and information. Timelines include facts in chronological order. These facts are organized on a line (number line) usually by date (day, month, year).
This is an example of a TIMELINE:
If the author chooses to structure text in a timeline, how is this beneficial to the reader?
The selection “Console Timeline” is written in a timeline structure. How is this text different to read than the “History of Mario” text?
TASK:
Your group is tasked with creating a timeline usingALL THREE passages
:“History of Mario”, “Arcade Games”, and “Console Timeline”.
• Your timeline must look like the timeline pictured above.
• Your timeline must include events IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER.
Manage your time carefully so that you can:
• Plan your essay
• Write your essay
• Revise and edit for a final draft
How your essay and presentation will be scored:
1. Statement of Purpose/Focus—how well you clearly state and maintain your controlling idea or main idea
2. Organization – how well the ideas progress from the introduction to the conclusion using effective transitions and how well you stay on topic throughout the essay
3. Elaboration of Evidence – how well you provide evidence from sources about your topic and elaborate with specific information
4. Language and Vocabulary – how well you effectively express ideas using precise language that is appropriate for your audience and purpose 5. Conventions – how well you follow the rules of usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling.
Your Writing Assignment
You read about, watched videos, and had discussions that taught you facts about video game history. Create an essay that highlights the key events in the history of video games.
Include details from multiple texts. Your essay must have 5- 10 key events in it.
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