Second Grade - ELA
1: Community
Unit 1: Communities Around the World
Lesson 1
Exploring a Community
Students label community buildings and write a sentence about why each building is important, using a word box or their own experiences (Activity 1). Students listen to or read The City Mouse and the Country Mouse and answer explicit comprehension questions about differences, events, and reasons (Activity 2). Students make lists of advantages for rural and urban living and write three sentences stating which place they would rather live and why (Activity 3). Students read a map, locate and read labels, and measure distances between buildings, using the map as a provided source of information (Activity 4).
Lesson 2
Roles of People in Communities
Activity 3 directs students to look through books or on the Internet to find jobs in other communities and to discuss differences, which has students gather information from provided sources. Activity 4 asks students to read about a chosen community worker in an encyclopedia or on the Internet and then write a paragraph about being that worker, requiring students to use gathered information to produce an answer. The lesson's Skills list explicitly names "Gather information from a variety of sources," and the opening Questions to Explore frame inquiry students can answer with recalled or gathered information.
Lesson 3
Goods and Services
Students are asked in Activity 1 to label items as goods or services, describe a time they have used each good or service, and say where a person would go to buy them, which requires recalling personal experience and using the illustrations as sources. In Activity 3 students read If You Give a Pig a Pancake and decide for each situation whether the pig is asking for a good or a service, recording examples on a two-column chart—this requires gathering information from a provided text to answer questions. The Wrapping Up prompts have students go through the house naming goods and saying where they might have been bought, and naming services the family paid for this week, which elicits recall from recent experience.
Lesson 4
Wants and Needs
Students list five wants and five needs from their own experience and answer reflective questions (Activity 1), which requires recalling information to compare and prioritize. Students gather pictures from catalogs, magazines, and newspapers to create 'Wants' and 'Needs' collages (Activity 2), which requires collecting information from provided sources and classifying it. In Activity 3 students use pictured locations/items on a worksheet to determine where Jessie could find water, food, clothing, or shelter, directly gathering and using provided information to answer the question of where needs can be met. Activity 4 directs students to look at pictures in books or on the Internet and discuss similarities and differences, which asks students to gather information from sources to address questions about living conditions.
Lesson 5
Money
Students are asked to use real coins and the "Values of Money" chart to write the value in each cell of a grid (Activity 2), which requires gathering information from a provided source to answer "how much" questions. In Activity 4 students count and arrange coins to show two different ways to make the same total and fill a table listing coin combinations for specified amounts, demonstrating using sources and computation to answer value questions. In Activity 3 students select price tags for toys and then use coins and the Values of Money sheet to add up totals, requiring them to gather and apply information to determine how much money is needed. The Wrapping Up prompts ask students to tell coin values and answer how many pennies equal a nickel or dime, which requires recall from experience or recent practice.
Lesson 6
Uses of Money
The lesson prompts students to recall experiences (e.g., asking where people get money and whether the child has ever saved anything) and to answer questions about those experiences. Students use provided sources such as the Flowchart of Money and the Page of Money when they sort items into wants and needs, choose purchases with a $20 budget, and perform addition to record prices. Students write responses on the "Giving Money" page, explaining where they would give money and why, and identify parts of sentences (subject noun/pronoun and predicate verb).
Lesson 7
Work and Money
Students conduct Activity 2 where they predict whether tasks will take longer or shorter with another person, time each task alone and together, record the data on a datasheet, and circle words describing the experiment's results. In Activity 3 students read scenarios and write about the choice they would make and why, providing written reasons. The lesson's skills list explicitly includes "Collect and record information," "Compare two or more sets of information," and "Draw conclusions and communicate findings," which guides students to gather and use information to answer questions.
Lesson 8
Customs and Holidays
Students are asked to name holidays they know and explain why they are celebrated, which requires recalling information from personal experience. In Activity 2 students must write the name and date of each holiday and are asked to find the date on a calendar, which requires gathering information from a provided source. The guidance to read texts from the Bible or children's books and to "read more about these holidays on the Internet" directs students to gather information from external sources. Activity 4 asks students to locate countries on a map, color and label the country, and write the holiday and date beneath, combining recall with gathering from provided sources.
Lesson 9
Different Communities
Students are instructed to read about a selected country in books or on the Internet and record information on the "Country Research" graphic organizer. Students use provided web links (NPR, Time) and are prompted to view the Hungry Planet images as sources of information. Students gather and organize facts by completing a Venn diagram, drawing and labeling goods/homes/foods on the "Similarities and Differences" page, and by writing an acrostic poem that uses information about the country. Students are asked to describe what they learned and to write five interview questions to ask someone from the country, showing use of recalled and gathered information to address questions.
Lesson 10
Communities Change
Students examine The Little House book and answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., What happened in the story? How did transportation change?), using details from the pictures and text. Students gather information from the book to complete tasks: they list and categorize natural and human resources, place cut-out items into the matching community type, and write sentences on the Changing Seasons Wheel based on the book's illustrations. Students also recall personal experiences and community changes when asked to share examples and relate events to their own life.
Lesson 11
Government and the People
Students tally and add family votes on the "Voting" activity page by making a list of options, recording tally marks for each family member, and totaling the votes to determine the outcome. In the "Adding Votes" activities, students use provided clues and manipulatives to determine numbers of votes, compare quantities, and answer questions such as which option won. On the "Government Flowchart" and "The Government Helps Citizens" pages, students locate country/state/city on maps, record leaders' names from those sources, and write sentences recalling how government services have helped them.
Lesson 12
Rules and Laws
Students are asked to name rules they follow at home and to describe consequences they have faced (Introduction; Activity 3), which requires recalling information from personal experience. In Activity 1 students read a Student Activity Page of directives and decide whether each is a rule or a law, using that provided text to answer classification questions. Option 2 asks students to write three rules and three laws and suggests helping the child research laws in the community or state, which directs students to gather information from external or provided sources to complete the task. Activity 2 prompts students to play a game without rules and then answer questions about differences, asking them to recall and compare the experience to the standard-play situation.
Final Project
Community Brochure
Students are prompted to describe things they have learned about communities and specifically asked if they can remember services provided by the government, which requires recall from experience. Students are directed to look over example brochures and are encouraged to locate pictures online or visit community buildings, which asks them to gather information from provided or real-world sources. The brochure organizer requires students to record sentences about goods and services, jobs, holidays, money, and changes over time, using gathered or recalled information to answer those guiding questions.
Unit 2: Citizenship
Lesson 1
A Good Citizen
Students are asked to write about times they demonstrated care, help, responsibility, and honesty (Activity 1 Option 2), which requires recalling information from personal experiences. Activity 4 ("To Tell the Truth") and Activity 8 (plan and carry out a community citizen project, then write about it and paste a photo) have students recall and report on their own experiences. Several activities (Activity 2: The Boy Who Cried Wolf; Activity 3: Scene by Scene; Activity 6: Communities Change) require students to gather information from provided texts and pictures and use that information to answer comprehension and sequencing questions.
Lesson 2
Decisions and Consequences
Students read Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., "What did Lilly do at the beginning of the story?" "What actions did Lilly take to make the situation better?") which requires recalling information from a provided source. On the "Lilly's Actions Chart" students read examples of Lilly's actions and write the consequences that occurred, directly gathering information from the text to respond. In the Actions and Consequences game and role-play activities, students match or act out actions and their outcomes and describe possible consequences from personal examples, which engages recall from experience and from provided cards.
Lesson 3
Diversity in the Community
Activity 4 directs students to read about a country in books or on the Internet, write five interview questions, conduct an interview with a person who lived in another country, review the interview responses, and then write short answers based on what the person said. Activity 3 has students watch videos and consult an atlas or online images to identify people from each continent, color and place figures on the world map, and transfer those figures onto a U.S. map to show immigration. The Skills list explicitly includes "Use text to locate important information," indicating students practice gathering information from provided sources.
Lesson 4
Living in America
Students are prompted to recall prior knowledge by being asked, "Ask your child what he knows about America." Students read provided informational pages (Facts and Definitions, The Flag, The Pledge, The Star-Spangled Banner) and use those sources to complete written items such as "There are 13 stripes because _________" and "There are 50 stars because _________." Students gather and check details from the activity pages by counting stars, coloring the flag, and answering follow-up "why" questions about the pledge and republic.
Lesson 5
Citizens Share and Help
Activity 1 asks students to think of times they have seen or heard about people sharing and to illustrate and explain those examples in three categories (resources, time, money). Activity 2 requires students to record a plan for helping, list who will help, and write what each person will do, which has students gather and record information from others to complete a task. The Student Activity Pages require written responses (illustrations with explanations and written plans) that use recalled experiences or collected information.
Lesson 6
Leaders in the Community
Students read a provided biography and then answer specific questions about the person's name, where they grew up, events in their life, hardships, leadership characteristics, and how they helped the community. Students write five leadership characteristics on a graphic organizer and give examples from the biography and from family experiences. Students complete a structured biography book (fill-in templates or original sentences) and write a paragraph about a leader they know, using information recalled from experience or gathered from the biography.
Lesson 7
Inventors
Students go on an Invention Scavenger Hunt where they find five inventions in their house, draw each one, name it, and write one way their family uses each invention, directly gathering information from experience. In Activity 3 students read a short biography of an inventor and answer specific questions (e.g., What was the inventor's most famous invention? What did it do?), directly using provided source material to answer questions. In Activity 1 students complete sentence starters and write about how each invention helped people, recalling and elaborating on information discussed about famous inventors.
Final Project
Community Citizens Mobile
Students are asked to record specific information for each shape that requires recalling community knowledge: for the circle (Community Leader) they list name, characteristics, what the person does, and how the person helped the community; for the square (Inventor) they list name, characteristics, the invention, and how the invention helped/changed the community; for the triangle (You) they list name, where they live, characteristics, and how they have helped/changed their community. Students also identify and illustrate three things on the back of each shape that can be found in the community (recalling examples that match each geometric shape). The set of guiding questions at the start (e.g., What are the characteristics of a citizen? How do citizens influence the community?) frames the information students are to recall and report.
Unit 3: Plants and Animals
Lesson 1
Living and Nonliving
Students conduct a Living Things Scavenger Hunt in which they look inside and outside, record six items, answer specific questions about each object (Does it change? Does it move? Does it grow? Does it need food or water?), and decide if each item is living or nonliving. Students gather examples from provided sources in the Living and Nonliving Collage by searching magazines/catalogs and sorting pictures into living and nonliving categories. Students read and listen to Sylvester and the Magic Pebble and answer direct questions such as "Is Sylvester the donkey living? How do you know?," requiring them to recall information from the story to justify their answers. Students also select items from their hunt or collage and write descriptive words/phrases, using those observations to communicate about the objects.
Lesson 2
Animal Structure
Students are asked to write the four different body coverings from a provided word box and to think of example animals and similar-texture items, which requires recalling information from given materials. Multiple activities instruct students to locate pictures in books or online if they are unfamiliar with an animal, explicitly directing them to gather information from provided sources. In the Coverings Graph (Option 2) students label axes, place animals on a graph, and answer questions such as which covering had the most or least animals, requiring them to use gathered data to answer questions.
Lesson 3
Classifying Animals
Activity 3 directs students to "look on the Internet or in a book or in an encyclopedia to decide" whether each animal is a reptile or an amphibian, requiring them to gather information from provided sources. Activity 6 asks students to "peruse different books on a wide variety of animals" and to decide classifications, body coverings, and warm- or cold-blooded status based on what they read. Activity 1 and Activity 10 require students to use their observations and experiences (sorting and acting out animals) to answer classification questions.
Lesson 4
Animal and Plant Communities
Students are asked to recall animals from a real-world visit in Activity 5 (A Trip to the Zoo) where they write the names and draw pictures of animals they see. In Activity 2 (Rainforest Community and Graph) students gather information from a provided picture by locating and counting animals, then record those counts on a bar graph and answer questions about which groups have the most or fewest members. Activity 3 (The Woods) explicitly instructs students to read books or use the Internet to find animals if they need help, and Activity 1 asks students to identify habitats and record and classify animals from the provided habitat pictures.
Lesson 5
Animal Needs
Students draw items and write sentences describing how their community helps meet needs such as food, water, clothing, and shelter (Activity 1), recalling information from personal experience. Students select an animal, locate information about it, draw the animal in its habitat, and write the animal's name, habitat, and how its food, water, and shelter needs are met (Activity 2), which has them gather information to describe needs. Students write a descriptive zoo label for a created animal with prompts about habitat, diet, and shelter (Activity 4), using recalled or gathered details to inform others.
Lesson 6
Extinct and Endangered Species
Students read provided texts (e.g., "Read different theories about why the dinosaurs disappeared") and the puppet show script and are asked to use those texts in activities. Students are prompted at the end to answer questions such as what it means to be endangered or extinct and to give reasons why animals can no longer live and grow in their habitats. Students make puppet-show scripts by dictating at least two lines for each dinosaur after reading source material, showing use of gathered information to create responses.
Lesson 7
Plants
Students read the 'A Plant' page and label parts of the plant using information about each part, directly gathering information from the provided text. Students answer specific comprehension questions about 'Jack and the Beanstalk' (characters, setting, events, decisions), recalling details from the story to respond. Students conduct the plant experiment, measure growth, record measurements, compare results, and discuss why differences occurred—gathering data from an experience to answer questions about plant needs.
Lesson 8
The Role of Plants
Students go outside to create a nature journal and are instructed to "look on websites or in books to determine the names of any unfamiliar plants," which has them gather information from provided sources. After being read The Giving Tree, students are asked specific comprehension questions (e.g., "What did the tree give to the boy?") and are prompted to write a thank-you note mentioning specific items the tree gave, which requires recalling information from the story. Students explore home and community locations to find plant products and write sentences about how each plant product is used, which has them gather information from experience to answer use-related questions.
Lesson 9
Comparing Living Things
Students are asked to recall what they learned about a previously selected favorite animal and discuss similarities with themselves (Activity 1), which requires recalling information from a prior experience/lesson. In Activity 2 students use the provided "Comparing Living Things" sheets to check boxes for needs of plants, animals, and humans and then complete sentence prompts, which requires gathering information from the supplied chart to answer questions. Activity 3 asks students to draw what each pictured living thing needs to live and grow, and the Wrapping Up prompt asks students to describe ways plants, animals, and humans are alike and different, both of which ask students to use recalled or provided information to answer prompts.
Lesson 10
Life Cycles
Students are asked in Activity 1 to find pictures in books or on the Internet and then write names and number pictures in the correct life-cycle order, which has them gather information from provided sources and use it to answer sequencing questions. In Activity 2 students role-play life-cycle stages, recalling sensory and sequential details from an embodied experience. In Activity 4 students read written clues on a logic page and decide each animal's life-span, using provided information to answer a question about relative lengths of life-cycles.
Lesson 11
Community Members Depend on One Another
Students are asked to name a type of meat they have eaten and then trace back what that animal eats to the producer, creating a food chain with themselves at the top (Activity 4), which requires recalling information from personal experience. The lesson explicitly tells students that if they are unsure about an animal's diet they can read about the animal in an encyclopedia or on the Internet (Activity 1 note), and it asks students to read about an animal's food sources (Activity 4), which directs them to gather information from provided or external sources. Students label habitats and order organisms on the provided "Food Chains" activity pages (Options 1 and 2), using the lists and illustrations as provided sources to determine and record the sequence of organisms.
Final Project
Nature Guide or Habitat in a Box
The lesson asks students to select a habitat and create a Nature Guide or a Habitat-in-a-Box, requiring them to gather and record details (Name, Size, Body Covering, Diet) for multiple plants and animals. It explicitly tells students they can find pictures in magazines or on the Internet and to fill out pages describing life cycles, two food chains (with at least three parts), and one endangered species including why it is threatened. The Skills list includes "Ask and answer questions about organisms," and the Getting Started questions prompt students to explore how living things survive and depend on one another—questions students must answer through their project work.
2: Matter and Movement
Unit 1: States of Matter
Lesson 1
What Is the World Made Of?
Students read and listen to the book What Is the World Made Of? and answer explicit questions such as "What is the world made of?," "What are the three states of matter?," and "What is the difference between a solid and a liquid?". Students use the book to identify, label, cut out, and sort examples of solids, liquids, and gases (Option 1) or to draw and label three examples of each state from the book (Option 2). Students observe three balloons (air, water, frozen water), use their senses to decide which state is in each balloon, explain their reasoning, and write a sentence describing each balloon; students also complete a scavenger hunt gathering examples from their environment.
Lesson 2
Solids
Students are asked to reread pages 9–10 of What Is the World Made Of? and to identify the rock as a solid and explain why a pencil will not go through it, which requires recalling information from experience or the text. Students gather measurement data (weighing objects, ordering pictures from lightest to heaviest) and use those results to answer which solids are lighter or heavier. Students write responses: they label and order pictures, record measurements, draw and label containers and their contents as solid/liquid/gas, and write sentences describing solids using sensory observations.
Lesson 3
Liquids
Students read pages 12-13 of What Is the World Made Of? and are asked to describe what a liquid is, using information from that text. Students identify three times during the day they use liquids and draw/label them, recalling personal experiences. Students make predictions, record them, perform experiments (dissolving solids, mixing liquids, measuring volumes and weights), and record observations to answer directed questions about which materials dissolve, which liquids mix, and which is lightest or heaviest.
Lesson 4
Bartholomew and the Oobleck
After the read-aloud, students are asked specific factual questions (e.g., "How did Bartholomew stop the oobleck?") that require recalling story details. In the Story Quilt activity, students list or draw characters, setting, three important events, the problem, and the solution, which requires summarizing and recalling information from the book. The True or False activities ask students to decide whether statements match the story and to rewrite false statements as true, explicitly using information from the text. In Making Oobleck, students perform an experiment, observe properties, answer whether the mixture is a solid or liquid, and write three sentences describing their observations, which requires gathering information from an experience and reporting it.
Lesson 5
Comparing Matter
Students label images as solids, liquids, or gases and draw molecule arrangements after participating in the molecule demonstration (Activity 1). Students count clusters of dots, write numerals and number words for each scenario on the Counting Molecules sheet (Activity 4). Students choose adjectives from a provided list, draw nouns, and write sentences describing a solid and a liquid using those adjectives (Activity 3), and are asked to explain how molecules differ (Wrapping Up).
Lesson 6
Changes in States of Matter
Students are asked to "tell you everything he knows about water," prompting recall from experience. In Activity 1, students observe ice, water, and steam, draw each state, and write a sentence about each picture based on their observations. Activity 3 and Activity 4 have students collect melting-time data, plot a bar graph, and answer questions (Which took longest/shortest/closest), using gathered experimental data to answer questions. Activity 5 directs students to read the JELL-O box and measure water, requiring gathering information from a provided source to complete the task and answer state-change questions.
Lesson 7
Exploring Solids and Liquids
Students read What's the Matter in Mr. Whiskers' Room and write three sentences describing three things that happened in the book, directly practicing recall from a provided source. Students use the Natural Resources sheet to identify and circle items found in nature and color-code solids and liquids, gathering information from a provided resource to answer classification questions. In the Dancing Raisins and Dissolving activities, students make hypotheses, run experiments, observe outcomes, and record results to answer specific questions from their hands-on experiences.
Lesson 8
Our Bodies and Our World
Students label items on the 'The Body' diagram as solids, liquids, or gases, using the provided page as a source to classify body materials. Students perform the coffee-filter experiment and observe that liquids pass through while solids remain, gathering evidence to explain absorption. Students read a short story and answer questions about characters and events, circle states of matter in the text, and complete scenario pages where they choose which state (solid/liquid/gas) is needed. Students are asked to share real-life scenarios and to write their own short story that includes specified numbers of solids, liquids, and a gas, drawing on personal experience and the provided materials.
Final Project
States of Matter
Students are prompted to locate information from previous activities to discover answers when they miss items on the 'States of Matter Test'. Students gather pictures from magazines, catalogs, newspapers, and the Internet to create solids and liquids collages, selecting examples from provided sources. Students identify pictures as solid, liquid, or gas and write sentences beneath liquids describing what each is used for, using recalled or gathered information to answer classification and usage prompts.
Unit 2: Earth
Lesson 1
Our Planet Earth
Students label continents and oceans on the "Land and Water" map and answer specific location questions (e.g., which ocean is west of North America). Students read You're Aboard Spaceship Earth and locate examples of living things and solids/liquids/gases, then answer comprehension questions (e.g., why the author calls Earth a "spaceship," how water is recycled). Students use the book as a provided source to write a letter to an alien and to write three sentences summarizing the book.
Lesson 2
Matter on the Planet
Students are prompted to name examples of solids, liquids, and gases and to cut out and sort pictured Earth materials into those categories. Students are asked to go outside to identify solids, liquids, and gases in their environment and to read pages 17–19 of a provided book to answer whether the air we breathe is a solid, liquid, or gas and where oxygen comes from. Students perform breathing demonstrations and list examples of solids, liquids, and gases in a wrap-up, and they select objects and describe them using adjectives and comparisons.
Lesson 3
Digging Into Dirt
Students read assigned pages from You're Aboard Spaceship Earth and are asked to describe dirt, providing a text-based source to recall information. In Activity 2 students gather information from three provided soil samples using magnifying glasses and compare similarities and differences in particle size, color, and living contents. In Activity 5 students analyze soil samples from labeled locations, decide where the coin was lost, and write two or three sentences explaining how they solved the case. In Activity 7 students make written predictions, carry out a seed-growing experiment with three soil types, observe results, and record their findings.
Lesson 4
From the Earth
Students are directed to read provided online sources about gems, granite, oil, and natural gas and to record in a journal where each resource is found and how it is used. Students label pictures on the "Everything We Need" page and describe how each item helps meet needs, then identify which natural resources are used to make each item. Students play the "Where Did It Come From?" game and point out objects around the room, describing the Earth resources used for those objects.
Lesson 5
Rocks
Students go outside to collect rocks and are asked to use their senses and prior knowledge to describe where rocks are found and what they are used for. Students use a magnifying glass to examine rocks and identify minerals, and they record observations on the "Rocks All Around" chart by finding and listing items made from glass, metal, and concrete. Students read Everybody Needs a Rock and answer comprehension questions about the story, and they are prompted at the end to explain why rocks are an important natural resource.
Lesson 6
Water, Water Everywhere
Students are asked to name bodies of water and animals from experience in the Introduction, which requires recalling information. Activity 1 directs students to look up unfamiliar plants or animals online so they can label and color animals at different ocean depths, which requires gathering information from provided sources. Activity 3 (Option 2) tells students they may need to read about wetland animals to draw examples and then write a sentence comparing freshwater and ocean environments, directly asking them to gather and use information to answer a question. Activity 8 asks students to look at pictures or internet resources and then write a short paragraph describing where a newly imagined creature is found, what it eats, and its features, requiring use of gathered or recalled information to respond.
Lesson 7
Taking Care of the Earth
Students are asked to make predictions and record answers in Activity 6 (they predict what happens when oil is dumped into water, perform the experiment, and compare results), which shows recall from experience and gathering evidence to answer a question. In Activity 5 and Activity 7, students examine provided pictures and lists and identify or circle examples of pollution and actions to prevent air pollution, gathering information from the provided sources. In Activity 4 and the accompanying worksheet, students cut out item images with weights, sort items into recyclable/trash bins, and calculate total weights to determine which bin is heaviest, using provided sources to answer which items are recyclable and quantify results.
Final Project
Earth Exhibit
Students are asked to reread You're Aboard Spaceship Earth and to spend time at a museum to observe exhibits, providing experiences and sources to draw from. Students complete planning pages that prompt explicit answers to questions such as "Where it is found" and "What it is used for," requiring them to recall or gather information. Students collect real materials and write two sentences for each item on exhibit cards describing where the material comes from and why it is important, then display and explain their work to visitors.
Unit 3: Balance and Motion
Lesson 1
What Is Balance?
Students read a provided book about balance and answer specific questions about how a seesaw and balance scale work (Activity 1). Students perform hands-on experiments with a balance and gram weights to determine amounts that balance, record the different combinations that balance the scale (Activities 3, 4, 6, 7), and total weights to decide whether sides are equal (Activity 5). Students write two or three sentences describing the main idea and write step-by-step directions for using a balance, then have someone follow their directions (Activity 1 and Activity 9).
Lesson 2
What Can Be Balanced?
Students are prompted to recall prior experience with balancing objects and to review what they learned in a previous lesson and a dictionary definition of balance. Students gather information from provided sources in Activity 1 by examining the MyPlate image, using the KidsHealth link, drawing a MyPlate meal, and optionally tracking what they eat to determine whether their diet is balanced. Students are asked in Activity 4 to look for examples on the Internet and write a paragraph about an example they read about, explicitly gathering information from provided/external sources to respond in writing.
Lesson 3
Symmetry
Students decide for each pictured object whether it has a vertical, horizontal, both, or no line of symmetry by examining provided shapes and folding/cutting them to test symmetry. Students draw lines of symmetry on shapes and complete/produce symmetrical images, using observation of the provided figures as evidence. Activity 3 asks students to create a symmetrical picture and then write three sentences about that picture, and the Life Application game has students ask yes/no questions to identify a symmetrical figure.
Lesson 4
Force and Motion
Students read the informational book Move It! and answer comprehension questions about pushes, pulls, and motion (Activity 1). Students conduct experiments (Activity 2), measure and record distances for throws (Activity 5), and record actions they observe on a walk (Activity 7), gathering data from experiences and sources. Students also classify illustrations as push or pull and write sentences or a short paragraph describing motion (Activities 3, 4, and Spelling), using recalled or gathered information to respond to prompts.
Lesson 5
Gravity
Students are asked in Activity 4 to write a short paragraph (three to four sentences) about what life would be like without gravity, which requires producing an answer in writing. Students read books such as Move It! and Forces Make Things Move and complete a True/False activity where they read statements about forces and gravity, providing sources of information. Students perform demonstrations and investigations (table/object, mobile, center of gravity activities) that give experiential information they could recall or use when answering questions in writing.
Lesson 6
Friction
Students push a toy vehicle and are asked to explain why it stopped, using their observation to recall that friction causes stopping. Students read specified pages in Move It and Forces Make Things Move and then set up and carry out a ramp experiment, measuring how far a car travels on different surfaces to determine which surface creates the most friction. On the Skating activity page students decide the placement order of skaters based on different surfaces, applying gathered observations about friction to answer who would place where. The Wrapping Up prompts ask students to explain what friction is and give examples, prompting recall from experience and gathered results.
Final Project
A Wordless Skit
The lesson gives explicit Questions to Explore (e.g., How can a state of balance be found?) that students are prompted to address. Students are asked to reread books on balance and motion and look for pictures on the Internet or in books to gather ideas for acting out vocabulary (Balance, Push, Pull, Gravity, Friction). The Student Activity Pages require students to record actions and props for each concept, and the Reflection section asks students to state what they have learned and how they know, prompting recall from prior activities.
3: Culture
Unit 1: Geography
Lesson 1
Using Maps and Globes
Students are instructed to read about armadillos in an encyclopedia or on the Internet and to reread The Armadillo from Amarillo aloud, which requires gathering information from provided sources. They answer explicit comprehension questions (Where was Armadillo at the beginning? What state did Armadillo live in? Where did the eagle take Armadillo? What did Armadillo learn?) that require recalling information from the text. Students are also directed to chart Armadillo's journey on a Texas map using the book to locate city names and to complete a "Where in the World Am I?" page that asks them to identify their home, town, state, country, and continent from their own knowledge.
Lesson 2
Cardinal Directions
Students answer four specific map questions on the Treasure Map activity (e.g., "What is north of Death Valley?"), which requires gathering information from the provided map to form answers. In Activity 3, students follow compass-based step directions in the yard to locate hidden treasure, recalling and applying directional steps from given directions. In Activity 5, students compose a pirate journal entry and are required to include all four cardinal directions, prompting written use of gathered or recalled directional information.
Lesson 3
Landforms and Bodies of Water
Students read specified pages in The Usborne Children's Picture Atlas and are asked to read more about unfamiliar bodies of water in books or on the Internet, showing gathering from provided sources. Students match pictures to definitions and complete the 'Life Near the Water' activities that ask them to name a body of water, list positive and negative aspects, and choose which body of water they would like to live near. Students are asked to write a paragraph to someone deciding where to move and to discuss visits to local bodies of water, using recalled experiences and gathered information to support their responses.
Lesson 4
Natural Resources
Students are asked in Activity 3 to select a natural resource, locate information in books or on the Internet (with help), and record answers on the "Researching Resources" sheet (e.g., Where is it found in the U.S.? How is it made? How is the resource used?). Activity 5 asks students to take a field trip to explore a natural resource in their community and talk about how the resource is used and related jobs, which requires recalling information from experience. The Skills list explicitly states students should "use a variety of materials to gather information about a topic," and the Wrapping Up prompts ask students to describe ways they use natural resources and explain their importance.
Lesson 5
Habitats and Geography
Students are asked to read pages 14–21 of The Usborne Children's Picture Atlas and answer four specific questions comparing habitats, which requires recalling and using that information. Activity 2 (Option 2) directs students to read about habitats in a book or on the Internet and locate information about a plant or animal used by people, then write a sentence explaining its importance. Activity 3 directs students to read information about a local animal in an encyclopedia or online, draw it in its habitat, and write a poem using that information; the skills list also includes "Record or dictate knowledge on topics."
Lesson 6
Geography, Weather and Natural Disasters
Students are prompted in the Introduction and Activity 5 to describe and recall the weather in their environment and to read a current weather forecast to write sentences about today's weather. In Activity 3 students write a question for each pictured natural disaster, view provided pictures and read about each disaster, and then find answers to their own questions from those sources. Activity 1 and Activity 2 ask students to imagine or discuss habitats and weather effects, which requires recalling sensory details and experiences to answer location or effect questions.
Lesson 7
The Seven Continents
Students read Discover the Seven Continents and use the world map to answer specific factual questions (e.g., Which continent has the Sahara Desert?), with explicit instructions to look back at the page if they do not remember. Students use pictures and words on the atlas and map to locate the equator, identify warm and cool regions, and match animals to continents by pointing to the correct page. Students complete activity pages where they label continents, order them by size, and fill in 'My Favorite Animal' with the animal name and continent, recording information gathered from the provided sources.
Lesson 8
People Change Geography
Students are asked in Activity 1 to walk or drive around their neighborhood and think about how the land is different because people live on it, recalling firsthand experiences (recall from experience). In Activity 2 students find items in the house, read ingredient/material lists, and look on the Internet or in books for pictures and descriptions of farms, then write a sentence about each crop/farm (gather information from sources). In Activity 5 students use provided numbers on the 'Weight of Trash' worksheet to determine which house produced the most and least trash and explain why, using given data to answer a question.
Final Project
Geography of a Continent
Students are instructed to use Discover the Seven Continents as a starting source and to look for additional information in other books and on the Internet to learn about a chosen continent. Students complete the provided "About the Continent of" research page by filling in specific prompts (bordering oceans, major landform, natural resource, how people use the water, etc.). Students then use the gathered information to create a poster or prepare a presentation with props and a costume to teach others about the continent.
Unit 2: People Around the World
Lesson 1
Exploring Culture
Students read pages 10–13 of The Usborne Children's Picture Atlas and answer targeted questions (Activity 1) that require gathering information from a provided source. Students conduct an interview with a community member from a different cultural background, take notes or record responses, and fill in answers on the Interview page (Activity 4). Students also recall and write about examples from their own community on the "Looking at My Culture" page and use guided comparison questions to answer how cultures are similar or different (Wrapping Up).
Lesson 2
Traditions
In Getting Started and Activity 8, students are prompted to think of and write about family activities and their favorite holiday, requiring them to recall information from personal experience. Activities 1 and 5 ask students to read provided holiday descriptions and a book (Christmas Around the World) and then draw, write sentences about the holiday's importance, and answer comparison questions, requiring them to gather information from provided sources. Activity 3 has students examine labeled foods, draw them, discuss their significance, and help prepare foods while explaining meanings, further asking students to use provided information and experience to explain cultural significance.
Lesson 3
Different Religions
Students use provided descriptions of holidays (Activity 1) to match each holiday to its religion and symbol, demonstrating gathering information from the text. Students take a table of responses (Activity 2), create a bar graph from that provided data, and answer specific questions about which religion is most/least common and numerical comparisons. Students recall and describe their family's beliefs in writing (Activity 4) and are prompted to name examples of religious holidays and ask questions they would use to learn from a friend of a different religion, showing use of personal experience and planned information-gathering.
Lesson 4
Homes and Culture
Students are asked to write about a tradition in their home (Activity 1), which requires them to recall information from personal experience and answer prompts about when and why the tradition occurs. Activity 5 directs students to take a walk or drive and record materials of homes they see, then make a tally and graph — gathering observational information from community sources. Introduction and Activity 4 ask students to explain the purpose of rooms and describe how family members use rooms, prompting recall of experiences and observations to answer questions.
Lesson 5
Transportation in Culture
Students are asked to write about a time they took a form of transportation (Activity 1), which requires recalling information from personal experience. Students are instructed to read more about transportation-related jobs in a book or on the Internet and then write 'My Day as a ___' (Activity 3), which requires gathering information from provided sources. Students are directed to use The Usborne Children's Picture Atlas to identify places and to decide which vehicles carry goods between continents or within a continent (Activity 4), which requires gathering and using information from a provided source. The Life Application asks students to plan and take an actual bus/subway/taxi ride, giving them direct experience to recall and report.
Lesson 6
American Culture
Students are asked to find pictures in an encyclopedia or on the Internet and to locate the Liberty Bell and Statue of Liberty on a map (Activity 1), which requires gathering information from provided sources. Students read short biographies on the "Leaders in America" page, cut out cards, and match each leader to his or her contribution (Activity 2), which requires recalling or extracting information to answer the matching task. Students go on a "culture hunt" in the community, draw or photograph observations, and later discuss findings, and they are asked to write a letter explaining important cultures and tips for living in America (Activity 5 and Wrapping Up), which require recalling experiences and gathering information to answer questions about culture.
Lesson 7
History of America
Students read provided sources (Three Young Pilgrims, The Usborne Children's Picture Atlas, timeline and activity pages) and then answer specific comprehension questions about the Pilgrims (e.g., Why did the Pilgrims leave England? Who helped them?). Students locate and trace explorers' routes on maps and use the atlas to identify countries and landing places. Students gather information from a Thanksgiving foods sheet and record food groups, and they create a Venn diagram and write about three ways culture has changed.
Lesson 8
Asian Culture
Students read the provided book Explore Asia and answer guided questions about habitats, resources, clothing, and activities (Activity 1). Students gather information from Explore Asia and other sources (encyclopedia, Internet) to complete a multi-page "Guidebook to Asia" (Activity 2) and to record facts on the Giant Panda worksheet (Activity 5). Students use information from the Chinese Zodiac sheets to identify family birth years and read descriptions, and they write a paragraph about living in Asia and three tips to help a child from Asia adapt to America (Activity 8).
Lesson 9
African Culture
Students read Africa Is Not a Country and answer targeted questions about clothing, activities, land, and similarities/differences (Activity 2), using details from the text and pictures. Students record foods mentioned in the book and tally family taste-test votes, explicitly extracting information from the provided source (Activity 3). Students fill in a "Guidebook to Africa" using information from the book and are directed to look for additional information on the Internet or in an encyclopedia if needed (Activity 5).
Lesson 10
South American Culture
Students are asked to read Explore South America and answer factual questions (e.g., name the Andes Mountains and the Amazon River) that require recalling information from the book. Activities instruct students to reread specific pages and use the book to answer questions about jobs, food, activities, and homes, explicitly allowing the book as a source. Students are directed to use web links and other research to complete the "A South American Animal" sheet and to use information from books and additional sources to create a "Guidebook to South America."
Unit 3: Stories Around the World
Lesson 1
Fiction or Nonfiction
Students look through 15–20 books to determine whether each is fiction or nonfiction (Activity 1), using book covers and titles as provided sources to make decisions. Students read two fiction storybooks and write the title, author, a one-sentence description of each story, and an explanation of whether they liked the story and why (Activity 2), recalling information from their reading experience. Students examine pictured book covers and read titles to decide fiction or nonfiction and create their own fiction and nonfiction covers and titles (Activity 3). Students locate authors' last-name initials on real books and arrange books alphabetically, gathering bibliographic information from the books themselves (Activity 5).
Lesson 2
Character
Students read a story and record descriptive words and examples of what a character thinks, says, and does (Activity 1 and Activity 2), explicitly gathering information from the provided text. Students listen to a spoken description and draw and tell a story about the character, requiring them to recall and use details from the oral source (Activity 4). Students respond in-role to scenario questions about a character and create a Venn diagram comparing characters, using information from texts and personal experience to answer prompts (Activity 5 and Wrapping Up).
Lesson 3
Story Setting
The Skills section explicitly asks students to "Gather information from pictures, print, and people," and Activity 1 has students look through 10–12 books, identify and describe settings, sort the books into setting categories, and create a graph answering labeled questions about which category had the most or least books. Activity 3 has students listen to or read a picture book set in a foreign country and provide specific examples from the text and illustrations to show how culture is reflected in the setting. Activity 4 requires students to listen to a story without illustrations, recall descriptive words about the setting, draw the setting from those details, and then compare their drawing to the book's illustrations.
Lesson 4
Plot
Students read provided texts (Jack and the Beanstalk; The Ugly Duckling) and are asked to identify the story problem, three or more events, and how the problem was solved. Students cut out and sequence events from the Jack and the Beanstalk passage and fill a 'Writing Events in a Story' chart with story title, problem, three main events, and the solution. Students also use a 'Creating the Plot of a Story' organizer to record a problem, events, and solution and then tell or write the story.
Lesson 5
Folktales and Fairy Tales
Students answer specific who/what/when/where/why/how questions after listening to and rereading folktales (Activity 1 and the Yeh-Shen worksheet). Students locate continents on a world map and use illustrations to infer cultural information (Activity 1 and Activity 4). Students gather and organize story details by sequencing events on sentence strips (Activity 2) and by completing comparison charts that require pulling examples from text and pictures (Activity 5). The Skills list explicitly identifies retelling, summarizing, and answering questions as student actions.
Lesson 6
Cinderella Stories Around the World
Students are asked to retell what they remember about a fairy tale at the start and to "reread Yeh-Shen" and make connections, requiring recall of prior experience. After each reading, students answer direct questions (e.g., "Who is the main character? Describe her... What did you learn about the culture?") that require gathering information from the provided texts and pictures. Students complete a Cinderella Elements Chart and a Venn diagram by locating story elements across Yeh-Shen, The Egyptian Cinderella, and The Irish Cinderlad, synthesizing details from multiple provided sources. Students also locate Egypt on a map and use the map plus the book to answer cultural/location questions.
Lesson 7
Theme
Students read fables and are asked to explain the lesson/theme in their own words and to describe how they can use that lesson in their past or future life (Activity 2), which requires recalling information from experience. Students read information about animals they select for a story and are encouraged to update their story to integrate facts they learned (Activity 5), which requires gathering information from provided sources. Students read race times and logic clues on the activity page and use those provided details to determine which animal was fastest, slowest, and in each place (Activity 3).
Lesson 8
Myths and Legends
Students read the myth "How Rabbit Brought Fire to the People" and answer explicit comprehension and personal-experience questions (e.g., "What did the people want?" "How would your life be different without fire?"), requiring recall from the story and from their own lives. In Activity 3 students write two things from the Paul Bunyan story that could be true and two that are fiction, which asks them to gather details from the provided text to support answers. In Activity 4 students use details about Paul Bunyan's journey to plot and color states on a U.S. map, gathering information from the provided narrative to complete the map task. The Wrapping Up prompts ask students to describe myths and legends and explain why they chose a favorite story, requiring them to recall and synthesize information from the day's readings.
Lesson 9
Poetry
Students read A Child's Calendar and answer specific text-based questions (e.g., identify rhyming words in "February," which picture reminds them of their own life, which month was their favorite and explain why). In Activity 2 students select six months, answer targeted questions about activities, homes, clothing, and landscapes, and fill a "Life in America" chart using examples from the text and pictures. Activity 4 asks students to read nursery rhymes from other countries and state what they learned about those cultures from the rhymes. Activity 5 has students count words and syllables in lines of nursery rhymes, using the text as the source for their answers.
Final Project
A New Cinderella
Students are prompted to answer specific story-element questions on the "Organizing My Story" page (e.g., Who is your hero or heroine? What does he/she do? What is the setting? What will be lost and found?), and they are instructed to write each response in a sentence. Students are read an example Cinderella story at the end of the lesson and are asked to reread and compare and contrast that example with their own version, providing a provided source to consult. Students are also asked to produce a final book and read it aloud to family, which requires them to recall details from their draft when creating the final copy.
4: Relationships
Unit 1: Living Things and Their Environment
Lesson 1
Relationships Among Organisms
Students watch two short videos and use the content to complete the "Inheritance Vocabulary" matching page, using the videos as provided sources for definitions. Students collect and record family trait data on the "Shared Traits" chart by listing names and marking traits, which requires gathering information from their own experiences or observations. Students categorize items as inherited or learned on the activity sheet and describe shared and differing traits between parents and offspring (Activities 3, 5, and Day 3), and the Wrapping Up prompt asks students to describe three inherited traits they have and explain the difference between inherited and learned traits.
Lesson 2
Heredity Lab
Students build Generation 1 organisms and then create Generation 2 and Generation 3 offspring by selecting which parent traits to pass on, which requires them to gather information from the created parents. Students record and organize trait information by coloring the Generations of Species activity page and naming the species. Students are asked to discuss and explain how the generations differ and to answer the wrap-up question about what they learned about traits and heredity.
Lesson 3
Sun, Moon, and Stars
Students read the book Does the Sun Sleep? and then answer five direct questions about where the Sun is at noon, why night occurs, whether the Moon shines by itself, why the Moon's shape changes, and when stars shine, demonstrating recall from a provided source. Students perform a day/night simulation with a ball and flashlight and then shade a world map to show temperature patterns, using that experience to explain and represent information. Students use provided web links and videos (about hot/cold habitats, stars, and constellations) to find images or facts and then draw three animals/plants for hot and cold habitats and color/label stars according to temperature, showing gathering of information from sources.
Lesson 4
Seasons and Living Things
Students are asked to name the four seasons in order and to discuss how seasons affect living things, which requires recall from experience. Students read Sunshine Makes the Seasons and answer four explicit factual questions (e.g., day length, Earth's rotation, tilt, and season timing). Students label the "Seasons on Earth" diagram using information from pages 20-25 and sequence animals from Bear Snores On in the order they entered the cave, showing they gather and recall details from provided texts. Students are also instructed to make and observe bird feeders and record how many birds visit in different seasons, which requires gathering information from direct observation.
Lesson 5
Rivers
Students are asked to recall prior knowledge about habitats at the start by naming habitats they know. After reading Life Cycles: River, students answer specific questions (e.g., difference between ponds and rivers) and use the book's Contents to locate where animals live for the Animal Sort. Students gather information from the provided video and book to label freshwater sources, list producers and consumers, draw life-cycle stages in their own words, and construct a river food chain using plants and animals found in the book.
Final Project
Investigating the Environment
Students spend at least an hour exploring a chosen habitat, take detailed photographs, and write questions and journal notes about what they observe, which reflects recalling information from direct experience. Students plan and carry out two investigations (for example, counting ants or measuring temperature), collect data with tools (tally charts, balances, thermometers), and record and organize that data using pictures, numbers, and words. Students research a selected plant or animal, create a food chain and a life cycle diagram, and list traits of parents and offspring based on that research, which demonstrates gathering information from sources to answer questions about the organism.
Unit 2: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Lesson 1
Relationships
Students read Chapters 1 and 2 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and are asked four explicit comprehension questions (How did Abilene feel about Edward? How did Edward feel about himself? What incidents happened in Chapter 2? What emotion did Edward experience at the end of Chapter 2?), which require recalling information from the text. Activity 2 asks students to describe the relationship between Edward and Abilene and to relate it to their own experience with a stuffed animal, prompting them to recall and use personal experience to answer questions. The vocabulary activity has students use sentence-level context to select and write definitions, which requires gathering meaning from provided textual sentences.
Lesson 2
Point of View
Students read Chapters 3 and 4 aloud and then answer specific comprehension questions (for example, Question #1 asks, "What was the name of the ship they were going to sail on?" with the answer "The Queen Mary"). Students are asked to retell the story Pellegrina told Abilene and Edward (Question #3) and to retell the tale in their own words during the Wrapping Up. In Activity 2 students create a Venn diagram listing at least two similarities and two differences between Edward and the princess, requiring them to gather character details from the text.
Lesson 3
The Queen Mary
In the Introduction students are asked to recall a time they rode on a boat and to describe their favorite experience, directly requiring recall from personal experience to answer a question. In the Reading and Questions section students answer specific questions about Chapters 5 and 6 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, requiring them to gather details from the text to respond. In Activity 2 students use the provided Queen Mary websites and fill in a "Queen Mary Research" sheet with targeted factual questions (e.g., first sail date, wartime transformation, nickname, final cruise, current location), requiring them to gather information from provided sources.
Lesson 4
Pronouns
Students read Chapters 7–9 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and answer direct comprehension questions that require recalling details from the text (e.g., what Edward thought, who found him, whom he blamed). Students are asked to look at chapter illustrations and point out significant details, using information gained from illustrations and words to demonstrate understanding of characters, setting, or plot. Students reread specified pages and describe how Edward's attitude changes, comparing relationships using textual evidence.
Lesson 5
Emotions
Students read Chapters 10–12 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane aloud and are asked to answer specific questions about the text, including factual recall (e.g., "What two words did Edward's heart say…?") and comprehension/inference questions. The activity includes reading quoted passages from the book and asking students to use those quotes to infer Edward's feelings. Students then write a goodbye note pretending to be Edward, using information gathered from the provided quotes and chapters to show his emotions.
Lesson 6
Irregular Verbs
Students listen to Chapters 13–14 read aloud and answer specific comprehension questions that require recalling details (e.g., whether Edward liked Bull and Lucy, what Bull called Edward, what happened on the freight car). Students are prompted to remember repeated references to stars and to explain why stars might be an important symbol, which asks them to recall information from the story. Students watch a provided video about constellations and follow a pictured diagram to create a Big Dipper, which requires gathering information from a provided source and using it to complete a task.
Lesson 7
Figurative Language
Students read Chapters 15 and 16 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and answer specific comprehension questions such as "What did the old lady use Edward for? What did she call him?," which requires recalling information from the text. Students examine quoted passages and discuss literal meanings versus author intent, using the book as a provided source to interpret and answer questions. Students are asked to skim other books to find examples of figurative language, which requires gathering information from provided texts.
Lesson 8
The Falling Star
Students are asked to listen to Chapters 17 and 18 of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and then answer five specific comprehension questions (e.g., Who is Sarah Ruth? What did Bryce make Edward do?). The questions require students to recall factual details from the read-aloud text (names, relationships, actions) and provide a written or oral answer. The activity sequence (read, then answer labeled questions) makes students retrieve information directly from the provided source.
Lesson 9
Apostrophes
Students read Chapters 19–21 and answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., Where does Bryce take Edward? Who did Edward think he saw?), requiring recall of story details. Students discuss how Edward changed and explain what they believe happened, prompting them to recall and reflect on events. In Activity 2, students are given the Neal's Diner menu and specific dollar amounts and must use that provided source to determine which combinations of items they can afford.
Lesson 10
Illustrations
Students are asked to answer specific comprehension questions (Questions #1–#3) about Chapters 22–24 that require recalling details from the text (e.g., Edward's vision, where he woke up, why Bryce left him). The Skills statement and Activity 2 ask students to use information from illustrations and words to retell the story and to identify who, what, when, and where for a chosen illustration. The introduction prompts students to describe a personal experience (something important that broke) and the Wrapping Up asks students to describe environments in chronological order and explain which family they preferred, all requiring recall from experience or the book.
Lesson 11
Building Sentences
Students read Chapters 25-27 and the Coda and answer four specific comprehension questions (Q1–Q4) that require recalling details from the text (e.g., naming who loved Edward, identifying the 100-year-old doll, who came for Edward). Students locate and analyze a quoted passage at the beginning of the book and explain how it applies to Edward's journey, demonstrating gathering information from the provided source. In Activity 4, students identify, describe in simple sentences, and sequence Edward's relationships on a timeline, which requires pulling information from the book and organizing it to answer prompts about change over time.
Final Project
Chalkboard Presentation
The slide-by-slide directions ask students to think about and dictate a sentence that describes their opinion of the story and explains why (Slide 1). Students are prompted to identify their favorite part and favorite relationship, select images to represent those parts, give titles, and dictate explanatory sentences about why they chose them (Slides 2 and 3). Part 2 asks students to select their favorite paragraph(s) from the text, practice reading them aloud, and record the reading, which requires students to recall specific information from the story and gather text selections as evidence for their presentation.
Unit 3: Connecting with the Past
Lesson 1
Studying History
Students create a "Timeline of Your Life" by recalling and labeling events from their own experience, showing direct use of personal recollection. Students classify items as primary or secondary sources using provided descriptions, gathering information from those provided sources to decide P or S. Students use provided vocabulary definitions and watch linked videos to gather information needed to complete vocabulary fill-ins and timeline activities.
Lesson 2
Colonization and the Revolution
Students read informational texts and watch videos (e.g., Your Life as a Settler in Colonial America, The History of Colonial America video, Biography of George Washington) and answer explicit comprehension questions (Question #1–#3) based on those sources. Students gather dates and facts from those sources to place events on a timeline (Jamestown 1607, Plymouth/Thanksgiving 1621, Declaration of Independence 1776, Washington presidency) and fill in short written responses (George Washington fill-in-the-blank page). Students use maps and a map key to identify and color the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies and list two things we enjoy today because of the colonists and the Revolution, demonstrating gathering information to answer prompts.
Lesson 3
Slavery and the Civil War
Students watch assigned videos and read specified book pages, then find and add dates, pictures, and descriptions to a timeline for Harriet Tubman and Abraham Lincoln, demonstrating gathering information from provided sources. Students listen to Henry's Freedom Box being read and list five character traits, explaining each trait with evidence from the book as they write. Students complete fill-in-the-blank pages about Harriet Tubman and Abraham Lincoln and finish the sentence "Because the Civil War was fought, today ________," showing they recall or gather information to answer prompts.
Lesson 4
Immigration
Students read pages of Ellis Island and answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., Who was Annie Moore? What did immigrants see?) using information from the provided book. Students listen to recorded oral histories and are asked to describe surprises, identify a favorite recording, and retell one of the stories, recalling details from the interviews. Students examine primary-source photographs, answer guided questions about people in the photos, and add dated entries and descriptions to a class timeline using information from the book and sources.
Lesson 5
Civil Rights
Students read The Story of Ruby Bridges and answer explicit comprehension questions (e.g., describing Ruby's family and explaining why people protested her attendance). Students watch provided videos about Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks, view photo collections, and then place dates/descriptions on a timeline, showing they gather information from those sources. Students complete 'Famous Americans' and 'Civil Rights' pages and are asked to explain the Civil Rights Movement in their own words and write how it impacted life today.
Final Project
Preparing Projects
Students are prompted to gather all the "Connecting with the Past" pages and assemble them in chronological order, which has them collect and organize provided materials. The unit includes the explicit question "How do historical events impact the present?" and asks students to practice presenting their poster and explain how past events continue to impact life today. Students are directed to share the timeline, book, and poster with family, inviting them to read the book and look over the timeline as part of the presentation.
6: Reading
Unit 1: Semester 1
Lesson 1
Word Families and Long Vowel Review
Students are asked specific comprehension questions about the Shared Reading message (e.g., identify vowel sounds in words like "read," "week," "sun," and "know") and prompted to answer them. After reading Reader #1 (Fun and Then Cake), students are asked factual questions about the story (e.g., what Jade did while Cash rode bikes, the color of the cake, what Jade wanted to do next). The lesson also asks students to find short and long vowel words in their environment, which prompts them to gather examples from provided texts and real-world sources.
Lesson 2
Vowel Teams Review
Students read or listen to provided texts and answer explicit questions (Activity 1.1 shared reading and Activity 5.2 reader), where they are asked who the characters are and what happens. Students watch a provided video and then sort words by long i spellings (Day 2), and they use the vowel-team box to fill in missing letters on the Fill in the Blanks pages (Activity 4.2). Multiple activities ask students to read word lists or word-search pages and then answer questions such as "In what ways is the long a sound spelled?" which requires gathering information from the provided pages.
Lesson 3
Complex Consonants Review
Students read a grade-level passage (Reader #3) and answer specific comprehension questions (Who are the children? What is wrong with the restaurant? etc.), demonstrating recall of information from a provided source. Students listen to a passage and fill in missing words in the Fill in the Blanks activity, using information they heard to complete the text. Students search a book or magazine to find consonant blends and digraphs (Life Application) and sort/categorize words on the 'Ending with ng' and 'Silent Starts' pages, gathering information from provided word lists and pictures.
Lesson 4
R-Controlled Vowels Review
Students listen to a short riddle in Activity 1.1 and answer the question identifying the letter 'r'. In Activities 1.2, 2.1–2.3, 3.1–3.3, and 4.1–4.3 students watch linked videos and read word lists or passages, then use that information to classify words (coloring short vowel vs. r-controlled, sorting words into ar/er/ir/or/ur columns) and to answer comprehension questions. In Activity 3.3 and the Word Search, students locate words in a provided text grid and then read/show them aloud as evidence of having gathered information from that source.
Lesson 5
More R-Controlled Vowels
Students read the reader All About Storms on their own and then answer specific content questions (e.g., Why does it rain? What is hail? What might you see or hear during a thunderstorm?). During the reading, students are encouraged to point to words and then respond to the prompted questions about the text. The activities require students to locate and use information from the provided reader to respond to those questions.
Lesson 6
Other Vowel Sounds
Students read the reader If Fish Could Talk and then answer direct comprehension questions (e.g., Why does Meg go down to the brook? Why does the fish thank Meg?), which requires recalling information from a provided text. Students are prompted to use context to determine word pronunciation and meaning (Activity 3.3), practicing gathering clues from surrounding text to answer questions about unknown words. Students also answer targeted questions about vowel spellings (e.g., "What letters make these sounds?" and "Where does aw fall in each word?"), using printed words as sources of information.
Lesson 7
More Long Vowel Spellings
Students answer specific comprehension questions about Reader #7 (e.g., How many kids are in the Stripes family? What scares Ned?) which requires recalling information from the story. In Activity 1.1 students use the written words "minute," "moment," and "year" to identify a letter in common as a hint for the riddle, and are directed to find the riddle answer in the lesson conclusion, which requires locating information in a provided source. In Activity 4.2 and several sorting tasks students locate and read words in word searches or on activity pages to complete tasks that require gathering printed information.
Lesson 8
Vowel Sounds Review
Students are directed to reread provided readers (Activity 2.1: Word Hunt #1 and Activity 3.1: Word Hunt #2) and then write words from those texts into columns organized by vowel sound. Instructions tell students to read the directions, find words in the reader, and record at least five words per column (or specified numbers), which requires gathering information from the provided source. The activities also permit students to dictate words if they need writing support, showing that students are expected to collect and record information from the reading.
Lesson 9
Complex Consonants: dge vs. ge
Students watch a short instructional video and write words they hear into the correct "dge" or "ge" columns (Activity 1.2), and they sort printed words into groups based on vowel sounds using a provided word list (Day 2 Activity 2.1). Students read the reader Moose on the Loose and answer direct comprehension questions such as "How did the moose escape the cage?" and "Why do you think it is a problem that a moose is on the loose?" (Day 4–5). Students are also asked to explain the spelling rule about when to use dge versus ge after writing and grouping words (Activity 3.1).
Lesson 10
Complex Consonants: tch vs. ch, ck vs. k
Students answer explicit comprehension questions after reading The Egg at the Lake (e.g., What snacks do Rick and Claire have? What comes out of the egg?), requiring them to recall details from the text. Students sort and classify words into columns (tch vs. ch; ck vs. ke vs. k) and point to correct endings on index cards, using vowel sounds and word features they gather from the provided word lists. Students complete activity pages (Fill in the Blanks, Spelling Pictures, Rhyming Words) that require them to identify pictures or words and supply correct spellings, collecting information from the page or images to produce answers.
Lesson 11
Final e: ce, ve, ze, se
Students read Aesop's Fables (Activity 4.2 and Day 5 Activity 5.1) and answer specific comprehension questions about plot details and morals (e.g., "What was your favorite fable?", "How did the dog lose his bone?", "What does the moral say?"). In Activity 3.2 (Word Finding) students read a short passage and identify and mark words that end in ce, ve, and ze, gathering information from the text to complete the task. Several activities prompt students to point to, read, and verbally respond to questions about the texts they have read.
Lesson 12
Homophones
Students read a short reader (The Knight and the Night Ride) and are asked comprehension questions such as "Why do you think the people needed their king?" and "What food do you like as much as the king likes these pies?" (Activity 5.1). Students gather information from that reader to find and write homophone pairs (e.g., knight/night, rode/road, their/there) on a laminated sheet. In other activities students watch provided videos and use sentence contexts to choose and write the correct homophone (To/Two/Too page), demonstrating gathering information from given sources to answer which word fits.
Lesson 13
Making Plurals
Students gather information from provided word lists and activity pages to determine singular and plural forms (Activity 2.1: "Adding s and es Sort" and Activity 3.1: "Building Plurals"). Students search for plural words in a provided puzzle (Activity 4.1: Plurals Word Search) and read short texts to identify plural forms (Shared Reading and Reader #13). The Life Application asks students to go on a word hunt in books and magazines and make a list of words that become plural with -es, which requires gathering information from external provided sources.
Lesson 14
Uncommon Plurals
Students are asked to recall prior rules orally (Activity 1.1) when prompted to state the plural rules they have already learned. Students gather information from provided sources and use it to write answers in multiple places: they complete the "Fill in the Blanks" page by selecting words from a word box and writing them into sentences, and they complete the "Write the Plural" page by writing plural forms under pictures. Students also use provided videos, word cards, and readers to identify patterns and place singular/plural pairs on rule charts, demonstrating gathering information from those sources to form correct plurals.
Lesson 15
Words Ending with ed and ing
Students are asked to describe something they did yesterday and write a short sentence about it (Activity 1.2), directly recalling information from their own experience. Students read The Red-Eyed Tree Frog and answer explicit comprehension questions (Day 5, Activity 5.1), gathering information from a provided source to answer questions about plot and details. Students are also prompted orally in Activity 1.1 to state what they did last week, what they are doing now, and what they hope to do later, reinforcing recall of experiences to answer questions.
Lesson 16
Words Ending with er and est
Students use hands-on experiences (Legos/blocks) to build shapes, place them in height order, and answer targeted comparison questions (Which shape is the tallest? Which is shorter than the one in the middle?). Students gather information from provided text and word banks when they complete the "Comparing Two Things" page and the "Missing Words" chart, filling blanks with comparative and superlative forms. Students read the reader Bug Game Day and answer comprehension questions (e.g., Why aren't the worms hungry?), using information from the text to respond.
Lesson 17
Semester Review
In Activity 2.2 students are instructed to reread Reader #14: The Storm at the Barn and to write plural words from that reader into columns, requiring them to gather information from a provided text. In Activity 3.2 students cut out or read a provided list of words and place each word into the blank in a sentence, using the provided source words to answer which word fits. In Activity 5.1 students use picture and word clues to identify and write specific words, gathering information from the clues to produce correct answers.
Unit 2: Semester 2
Lesson 1
Compound Words
Students read A Color of His Own and answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., how the chameleon is different; what he did at the beginning and whether it worked), requiring them to recall details from the story. In Activity 4.2 students search the book to find and check off occurrences of target words (own, color, green, etc.), gathering information directly from the provided text. The lesson also asks an opinion/experience question (What is your favorite color?), prompting students to recall information from their own experience.
Lesson 2
The Six Syllable Types
Students search A Color of His Own to find and check off listed words on the "Finding Words in the Text" page and then write which three seasons are named in the book. Students answer direct comprehension questions after rereading the book (for example, "What color is the pig?" and "What color is the parrot?"). Students read clues on the "What Animal Am I?" page and fill in animal names using the theme word card or the book as a provided source.
Lesson 3
Open and Closed Syllables
Students are asked to find specific words in the book Mouse Soup by searching pages 6–21 and checking off each occurrence (Activity 4.2: "Finding Words in the Text"). Students fill in missing body-part words on the "Mouse Body Parts" page and are told they may refer to the book as needed (Activity 4.1). Students are asked and expected to answer comprehension questions about the story (e.g., "How do you know this story is fiction?", "Why did the weasel catch the mouse?") that require recalling information from the text.
Lesson 4
Syllables with R-Controlled Vowels
Students answer explicit comprehension questions about Mouse Soup (Questions #1–#3) that require retrieving details from the text (e.g., what the stones sent, why bird and mouse saw different things, what kept the mouse awake). Students complete a Plot Diagram for "The Crickets," writing the sequence of events and identifying the problem and solution from the story. Students search pages of "Two Large Stones" to locate and check off specific words and to list words with r-controlled vowels, demonstrating gathering information from a provided source. Question #4 asks students to recall a personal experience (being kept awake) and describe how it made them feel, prompting recall from experience.
Lesson 5
Two-Syllable Words Ending in y
Students are asked to locate and record story ingredients by referring to the book (Activity 4.1 asks them to write the soup ingredient added after each story and refers them to page 53). Students search the text to find specific words and list at least four two‑syllable words ending in y from the reading (Activity 4.2). Students answer comprehension questions about events in the story (the Reading and Questions section lists Q1–Q4 that require recalling story details). Students also recall personal experiences by listing things that make them happy on the "A Yellow Rose" page (Activity 3.1).
Lesson 6
Possessives
Students read Chapters 1 and 2 of Penny and Her Marble and answer five specific comprehension questions (e.g., What did Penny find in Mrs. Goodwin's front yard? Why did Penny hide behind the curtain?). Students complete the "Finding Words in the Text" activity, locating specified words in Chapter 1 and writing the page numbers, and answer follow-up text-based questions (e.g., What is the marble between? On p. 7, find a noun that owns or possesses something). Students also examine a real marble (Activity 3.1) and generate words and phrases from that direct experience to answer prompts about the object.
Lesson 7
Contractions
Students are asked to finish reading Penny and Her Marble and then answer five comprehension questions about events in the story (e.g., why Penny's stomach was hurting; what she dreamed about; where she took the marble). Students complete a "Finding Words in the Text" activity in which they look through specified chapters to locate listed words and record page numbers. Students draw and write about how Penny felt before and after an event and write the theme of the story, demonstrating recall of story details and use of text evidence to support answers.
Lesson 8
Two-Syllable Words with Silent e
Students are asked to read the story "Down the Hill" and answer explicit comprehension questions (e.g., "What season was it in the story? How did you know?"). In Activity 4.2 students look through the story to find specific words and write down the page numbers where each word appears. Students are also asked personal-experience questions ("Do you like winter? Why or why not?") and to give an oral summary of the story, requiring them to recall information from the reading.
Lesson 9
Vowel Teams
Students read Frog and Toad stories and answer explicit comprehension questions (e.g., What did Frog finally find? What happened to Toad?) that require recalling details from the text. Students use an online weather site to inspect a forecast and select words from the theme list that apply to chosen days, gathering information from a provided source. Students search specified pages of Frog and Toad to find and record target words and then write three two-syllable words with vowel teams, and students record daily weather words on a five-day Weather Conditions chart from their own observations.
Lesson 10
Consonant Teams
Students answer comprehension questions about Frog and Toad All Year (e.g., Q1 asks what season a story takes place in and how they know), which requires gathering details from the text to support an answer. Students locate words in the story and record page numbers (Activity 4.2), and they answer aloud what they learned from a linked video (Activity 3.1), which shows gathering information from provided sources. Students also write seasonal and holiday names and complete a back-page sentence about a holiday their family celebrates (Activity 2.1), which requires recalling personal experience to produce a response.
Lesson 11
Consonant + le Syllables
Students locate specific words in Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse and record page numbers on the "Finding Words in the Text" page, explicitly gathering information from a provided source. Students answer comprehension questions about pages 1-19 (e.g., why Alexander was screamed at, what Alexander found in Annie's room), using the text to support answers. Students use the "Making an Inference" page, which provides quoted evidence from the story and asks them to draw inferences based on that information. Students complete the "Feeling Words" page by recalling personal experiences to fill sentence prompts about emotions.
Lesson 12
Suffixes
Students answer explicit comprehension questions (Q1–Q4) about Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse that require recalling details (e.g., colors of pebbles, where Alexander found the purple pebble). Students complete the "Finding Words in the Text" activity by reading the passage, filling in blanks with theme and sight words, and underlining a word that ends in -ly, which directs them to gather information from the provided text (pp. 22–24) if needed. Students also complete the Story Elements flower organizer by identifying characters, setting, problem, solution, and sequence (beginning/middle/end) from the story text.
Lesson 13
Prefixes
Students are asked to recall prior experience in the Reading and Questions section (e.g., QUESTION #2 asks whether they had ever heard any of the poems and to remember where). In Day 4 Activity 4.2 (Finding Words in the Text) students are instructed to search Part I of Book of Poems and Verses to find specific words and prefixes and to record them, including answering "What do you think the prefix over means?" Activity 2.2 has students gather information from a video and match prefixes to their meanings, and multiple Student Activity Pages require students to locate, check off, and write answers based on the provided texts.
Lesson 14
Words Starting with q or a
Students locate specified words in poems and record page numbers in Activity 4.2, directly gathering information from provided texts. In Activity 4.1, students read lines from a poem and write guesses for underlined word meanings using context clues from the text. In Activities 2.1 and 5.1, students recall calendar knowledge (yesterday, today, tomorrow; order of days) and write/copy days of the week onto a calendar.
Lesson 15
Semester Review
Students are asked to rewatch the syllable-types video and use the Syllable Division Rules Flowchart and posters to divide multi-syllable words (rectangle, radio, volcano), showing they gather information from provided sources to answer where to split words. Students are asked at the end to name which book was their favorite and explain why, which requires recalling reading experiences to answer a question. In the Contractions and Possessives activity students select contractions from a provided word box to complete sentences and then state what each contraction is short for, demonstrating recall and use of provided sources. In the Prefix and Suffix activity students read provided definitions and then build words from given prefix/suffix/base-word cards, using those sources to form and explain word meanings.
Final Project
Write Your Own Story
Students are asked to use readers from Semester 1 as a guide and to look through theme word lists and sight word cards for inspiration, which requires gathering information from provided sources. The Brainstorm Story Ideas and Story Idea planning page have students think about characters, setting, and events (including a suggested "day in the life" of real people), which invites recalling real experiences. Students are instructed to record and organize words and ideas on the Story Idea page and to cross off words as they use them, showing use of gathered material in a task.