When Axel and his family take a rafting trip down the swift Salmon River, they sense little risk when smoke appears in the quiet, dry wilderness, but suddenly, orange flames flash dangerously near, and Axel isn't so sure of their safety anymore. Before long, they are caught in a blazing forest and must search for a safe hideout and eventually, Axel and his family make the right call before the roaring fire gets too close. (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt StoryTown, 2008)

This lesson was created as part of the Basal Alignment Project, during which teachers created CCSS-aligned lessons for existing literary and information texts in basal readers. All page numbers and unit/week designations found in this lesson relate to the edition of the basal reader named above. If you are using a trade book or different edition of this title, the page/unit/week references in this lesson will not match. Consult the content referenced in the body of the lesson to determine appropriate page numbers for your text.