First Grade - ELA
1: Environment
Unit 1: Habitats and Homes
Lesson 2
What Is a Map?
The lesson includes multiple adult-child question-and-answer prompts (e.g., asking if the child has seen a map, the Me On the Map questions about country/state/town/address, and map-item questions like "What is beside the refrigerator?"). Several activities instruct adults to work "with your child" to identify important objects in the bedroom and to "walk him through" sounding out words, which implies interactive talk. The Mapping My Room activity requires parent and child to go through the bedroom together and decide which items to include on the map.
Lesson 4
Animals Live and Grow
The lesson repeatedly prompts oral discussion between child and adult (e.g., "Discuss how habitats provide...", "Ask your child what he learned...", and the guided Q&A after reading Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt). Activities ask the child to analyze living things and explain relationships (e.g., find an organism that provides food for another and discuss examples from each habitat), which requires spoken responses and follow-up interaction. Several prompts explicitly instruct the adult to ask follow-up questions based on the child's answers (e.g., if the child says plants need food, ask how they get food).
Lesson 5
Discovering Animal Habitats
The lesson repeatedly prompts interactive discussion: parents are instructed to "ask your child to give you some examples," to "discuss what you see," and to "ask her to identify and describe the animals" in Activity 1. Activity 2 provides a sequence of targeted questions about each habitat and directs adults to "look at the plants, animals, and natural resources" with the child, and Activity 3 asks follow-up questions about animals' food and water. The Animal Habitat Graph activity asks questions after data collection (e.g., "Which habitat had the most crackers?") that prompt back-and-forth discussion.
Lesson 6
Exploring Animal Habitats
The lesson has adults prompt the child to make predictions and record ideas before and after observing a habitat, and then asks the child follow-up questions (e.g., "Where are the plants? What animals do you see? What are they doing?"), which elicits responses and discussion. Activity 2 asks the child to tell a story about an animal, prompts follow-up questions about what the animal would do, and directs the adult to record the child's dictation and read it back with the child. The wrapping-up role-play and guessing extension asks the child to act and respond while other family members guess, creating back-and-forth exchanges.
Lesson 7
Tools in My Environment
The lesson includes multiple adult prompts that require student replies (e.g., 'Ask your child if she can think of anything...', 'Ask your child to tell you what she needs to live and grow', and scenario questions in the scavenger hunt). Activity 2 directs the child to explain each tool's use and how it works, prompting students to respond and justify choices while sorting tools. The wrapping-up prompts ask the child to tell what a tool is and which tools she used, encouraging verbal explanation and brief back-and-forth with an adult.
Lesson 8
Animal Care
The lesson repeatedly prompts an adult to ask the child open-ended questions (e.g., "Ask your child what the family does to take care of the pet," "Ask your child what else he would do for the animal if it were real"). During the read-aloud of The Salamander Room the child is asked a sequence of questions that require explanation and justification (e.g., "Could the boy give the salamander the kind of habitat... Why or why not?", "Would you keep it? Why or why not?"). The wrapping up and Life Application sections instruct the adult to "discuss with your child" and to ask follow-up questions about creating environments for animals, encouraging back-and-forth talk.
Lesson 9
Animal Designs
The lesson repeatedly prompts oral discussion (e.g., "Ask your child what animals need to live and grow" and various "ask your child" directions) so students answer questions and explain ideas aloud. In Activity 2 students are asked to analyze pictures, decide which animals do not belong, and explain why each animal would not live in the habitat, including researching and recording reasons with an adult. Activity 3 has students identify misplaced animals aloud using complete sentences and repeat the game multiple times, and Activity 4 asks students to tell a story aloud and then consider additions or changes after it is read back.
Final Project
Animal Research / My Environment
The introduction directs an adult to ask the child guided discussion questions (e.g., "Can you describe the environment in which you live?" and "What do habitats give to the animals that live in them?") and to provide hints and follow-up questions as needed. The wrapping-up step asks the child to explain each page of his book and to share the book with family, inviting further conversation. The project extension encourages singing or acting out pages with others, which creates opportunities for conversational exchanges with family members.
Unit 2: Weather
Lesson 1
Reading the Skies
Students are asked to talk about the story Whatever the Weather by predicting the topic and answering follow-up questions (e.g., What type of weather is best for playing outside? How does it make you feel when it rains?). Students discuss daily weather observations on a Weather Calendar and 'discuss what she should wear,' which requires back-and-forth talk with an adult. Activities prompt students to tell or dictate stories about their favorite weather and to describe pictures during wrap-up discussions.
Lesson 2
Types of Precipitation
The lesson includes multiple read-aloud discussion prompts (e.g., after reading Oh Say Can You Say What's the Weather Today? the adult asks questions about habitats, characters' reactions, and what was learned) that require the child to respond. Activities ask the child to make a prediction about the rain experiment, state that prediction, perform the experiment, and then check and describe what happened, creating a back-and-forth exchange. Several items direct the adult to "discuss" precipitation types, dangerous weather, and review questions (e.g., "Ask your child why precipitation is an important part of our environment"), which prompts conversational responses.
Lesson 4
Simulating Weather
Students are asked to name three things the wind can move and then discuss what those things have in common, which prompts spoken back-and-forth with an adult. Students are prompted to go outside and identify things the wind is moving and to explain observations (e.g., what happens when they squeeze or release the bottle), which elicits responses and follow-up questions. Students sing the Weather Song aloud, point to words, and answer teacher prompts about specific words, creating short exchanges about content and vocabulary.
Lesson 5
Fall
The lesson includes repeated prompts for spoken responses (e.g., "Ask your child if she knows what kinds of things happen in the fall," "Ask her how her outside environment in the fall is similar to the one in the picture and how it is different"). Several activities prompt follow-up discussion questions (e.g., graph questions: "Which color has the fewest leaves? Which color has the most leaves? Do any colors have the same number of leaves?"). The wrapping up section asks the child to explain what she enjoys and what happens to the weather, encouraging extended answers.
Final Project
Weather Games
Students are prompted to report a weather forecast to the whole family for three mornings (Activity 4), with opportunities to practice, receive prompts, and be asked follow-up questions. Activity 3 has students look out the window and answer multiple teacher/parent questions about temperature, wind, precipitation, and suitability for outdoor activities. Activity 2 allows taking turns with the adult or parent during the Weather Memory game, providing at least simple conversational exchanges.
Unit 3: Community
Lesson 2
My Community Environment
Students are prompted to discuss each place on the community map and trace paths while talking about locations and purposes, creating opportunities for back-and-forth talk. Students are asked to prepare questions and conduct a short interview with a community worker, which involves asking questions and listening to responses. Students are also prompted in wrap-up and life-application activities to describe places, answer why questions, and ask questions of people they visit.
Lesson 4
Goods and Services in the Community
The lesson repeatedly asks the child to discuss community places (e.g., "ask her how the place helps the people") and to "discuss" ideas such as money, bartering, and fair trades, which requires verbal exchanges. The bartering simulation directs family members to trade objects and "discuss what a 'fair' trade would be," creating opportunities for back-and-forth negotiation. Wrapping up and life-application prompts ask the child to describe goods and services and to explain why people have jobs, prompting conversational responses with an adult or family members.
Lesson 6
A Good Community Citizen
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to explain decisions (e.g., deciding whether actions demonstrate good citizenship and explaining how she made her decision) and to provide other examples of good and bad citizenship. It asks the child to describe how family members exhibit good citizenship and to dictate observations while an adult records them. The wrapping up and badge activities prompt the child to talk about what it means to be a good citizen and to discuss why she earned the badge.
Lesson 7
A Citizen with Character
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to respond to an adult's questions (e.g., predict what will happen next in "A Lesson in Honesty," answer comprehension and moral questions, and explain why they scored pictures in the "Kindness Award"). Activities ask the child to describe actions and consequences (Activity 6) and to explain how they show respect or responsibility (Activity 1 and 2), which requires the child to reply and justify choices. Several places ask the child to explain reasoning (why a picture is kind/unkind, why a job was or was not done well), prompting back-and-forth explanation with an adult.
Lesson 8
Rules and Laws
The lesson asks the child to answer and explain questions (e.g., "Ask your child what a rule is," "Ask her why she thinks she has rules at home," and "Ask your child which rule she thinks is most important and why"), which requires verbal responses and justification. The activity directs the child to read items aloud and decide whether each is a rule or a law, prompting spoken decisions. The lesson explicitly asks the child to "discuss the new rules with other family members and see if they agree," which invites back-and-forth conversation with others.
Final Project
I Can Make A Difference
Adults are prompted to ask the child for examples of how people can make communities better and to help the child select and plan a project, allowing the child to dictate ideas while the adult records them. The plan sheet prompts the child to state sequential steps and to check off steps while carrying out the plan, which requires dialogue about progress. Wrap-up prompts ask the child what she learned, what she enjoyed, and whether she has ideas for future actions, inviting follow-up responses.
2: Similarities and Differences
Unit 1: Amazing Attributes
Lesson 1
Describe It
Activity 1 (Guess What's in the Bag) has a caregiver describe objects while the child responds by guessing, and then the child takes a turn describing while the caregiver guesses, creating a back-and-forth exchange. The Getting Started introduction asks the child to tell as much as she can about an object and to respond to questions about similarities and differences in Activity 2, prompting spoken responses to prompts. The Life Application directs the adult to point to objects and ask the child to describe them and explain how pairs are similar or different, which produces interactive verbal responses.
Lesson 2
Animal Attributes
The lesson repeatedly prompts an adult to ask the child to explain or describe (e.g., asking the child to explain how two stuffed animals are alike and different, to describe how he knows which objects are living, and to discuss how animals use different body parts). Several activities instruct the adult and child to "discuss" or to "ask him to describe" outcomes (e.g., reviewing ways animals are alike and different and discussing body parts and their uses). The activities include interactive prompts that require the child to respond verbally to adult questions.
Lesson 3
Size, Shape, and Color
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to engage in discussion: an adult asks the child to describe an object's size, shape, and color and to discuss the terms she used. Activity 1 asks the child to explain and justify how she organized objects and then reorganize them after discussion, prompting follow-up exchanges. Activity 3 asks the child what color mixtures produce and asks her to describe what she learned about mixing colors and the shapes she examined, encouraging verbal responses and explanation.
Lesson 4
How Does It Feel?
Students are asked to describe blindfolded objects and then respond when an adult or partner guesses (Getting Started). Activity 1 has the child describe a secretly chosen object while another person guesses, and then participants are directed to "discuss" whether the descriptions were sufficient. Wrapping Up and Life Application prompt the child to name texture words and answer questions about hypothetical scenarios, generating short back-and-forth talk with an adult.
Lesson 5
How Old?
The activities prompt students to answer adult questions and discuss observations (e.g., parents are instructed to ask the child how old she is, to ask which picture goes with which age, and to ask follow-up questions like whether the world is more interesting because people have different ages). Students are asked to decide which question they would ask each illustrated person and to record additional questions, encouraging them to generate conversational turns. Several prompts ask students to describe what they looked at to determine age and to explain their reasoning, which elicits responsive talk between the child and the adult.
Lesson 6
The Measure of Things
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to answer questions, explain reasoning, and participate in discussions (e.g., "Ask what a doctor measures... Ask your child how much he weighs... Ask him how he knows these measurements"). Several activities require follow-up responses and explanations (e.g., ask the child to explain why an estimate is the same or different for milk vs. sugar; ask why two finger measurements differed and discuss the need for a standard). Activities instruct the adult to "discuss" and to "ask" guiding questions and to "guide him, as needed" during interactive balance play, which creates opportunities for back-and-forth exchanges.
Lesson 10
Earth Materials: Rocks, Soil, and Water
The lesson includes a Skills bullet that says students should "Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood." Multiple activities prompt the child to respond to adult questions (e.g., Activity 1: describe and compare soil samples and explain why one might grow plants better; Day 2: compare books and answer follow-up questions). Activity 5 asks the child to complete sentences and "experiment with different prepositions" after making a sentence, encouraging the child to revise or extend an initial response.
Lesson 11
Using Earth Materials
Students are prompted to describe the three Earth materials and to discuss their ideas with an adult. Students keep a water-use log that involves family members and may record or dictate others' uses, and they are asked to go on a scavenger hunt and discuss discoveries. Students garden or work in soil and are asked to discuss soil properties and the importance of plants aloud with an adult or family member.
Unit 2: Senses
Lesson 1
My Five Senses
The lesson prompts an adult to ask the child to describe objects and then to ask how she figured out the attributes, which creates follow-up exchanges. After reading My Five Senses, the adult asks multiple targeted questions (e.g., Which body part do you use? Can you think of a time when you use more than one of your senses?), encouraging back-and-forth discussion. Activity 3 (Option 2) has the child dictate four sentences and then the adult reads each sentence back and discusses its parts, creating repeated conversational turns.
Lesson 3
Smelling and Tasting
Activity 1 asks the child which of two senses she uses and asks her to describe situations, then uses follow-up questions (e.g., asking how smell helped her decide and whether smells matched tastes), which prompts multiple back-and-forth exchanges between the child and an adult. Activity 1 also has the child make guesses while blindfolded and respond to prompts about liking/disliking smells and tastes. Activity 2 has the child conduct a survey of four people, asking them to taste foods and recording Y/N responses, creating opportunities for the child to ask questions and record peers' answers.
Lesson 4
Hearing and Seeing
Students are asked to describe and then read back their thoughts after the blindfold walking activity (Activity 4), which prompts a follow-up discussion about differences between experiences with and without sight. In Activity 5 students listen to audio descriptions, guess locations, and are encouraged to record a noisy-place description and read it aloud to friends or family so others can guess. In Activity 7 students make lists of sounds and sights and then compare and discuss why the sights list is longer, prompting a multi-turn discussion with the adult.
Lesson 5
Touch
The lesson repeatedly prompts a child to respond to adult questions (e.g., "Ask your child if she remembers...", "Ask your child what she thinks...") and to discuss sensations while preparing Jell-O ("let her discuss how each ingredient feels"). Activity 4 asks the child to describe and guess items while blindfolded, which requires verbal description and immediate responses. Several activities encourage the child to talk about objects and label them with adjectives, implying short back-and-forth exchanges with an adult.
Lesson 6
Experimenting With Our Senses
Students are asked to compare and discuss their first and second descriptions in the taste test (Activity 1) and answer follow-up questions such as "Were your first answers the same as your second answers?" and "If your answers were different, why were they different?". In Activity 2 students identify and talk about spices, answering which spice they smell and whether they would like it on food. Activity 3 and Wrapping Up prompt students to tell a story about a favorite flavor, read it aloud, and explain how their senses help them make decisions, which requires responding to adult prompts and providing explanations.
Lesson 7
Using All of Our Senses
The skills list explicitly includes "Interact with reader when text is read aloud (questions, comments, and ideas)," and the Introduction directs an adult to ask the child which senses the boy in the story used and how he used each one. Activity prompts (Nature Walk and post-walk questions) ask the child to report what they heard, saw, smelled, and touched and to respond to follow-up questions about what they noticed and what they would tell someone else. Several activities encourage the child to explain, describe, or answer questions aloud to an adult.
Unit 3: We're the Same, We're Different
Lesson 1
You're Special
Students are asked to read their completed "You Are Special" paragraph aloud and share it with others, and the teacher/parent is instructed to "ask him what he likes about his story," which invites a response to peers' comments. Students are asked to compare their numbers with a parent or sibling after both fill out the "Your Numbers" sheet, creating an opportunity for back-and-forth discussion about similarities and differences. The introduction includes open questions (e.g., "In what ways are you like your friends or siblings?") that prompt students to discuss personal ideas with others.
Lesson 2
Physical Characteristics
The Different Friends activity has students listen to a short story and then answer questions, retell the story, and sequence events, requiring verbal responses to a narrator's comments. The Introduction asks the child to describe attribute blocks and family members and respond to follow-up prompts about similarities and differences. Activity 3 has students dictate a friendship story and discuss setting and character differences, involving back-and-forth discussion with an adult.
Lesson 3
Different Personalities
Students are asked to explain vocabulary words aloud and tell what they like most about their personality (Activity 1), which requires responding to an adult's prompts. In Activity 2 students write/paste personality words for themselves and a friend/sibling, circle shared words, count them, and are asked to describe how they are alike and different, prompting spoken comparison. Students are encouraged to present their personality webs to each family member and explain what they mean, which involves speaking to others about their ideas.
Lesson 4
Interests and Hobbies
Students are asked to share a chosen hobby with someone else (Activity 1), dictating and writing sentences to describe the hobby and given an opportunity to present it to another person. Students are directed to research an interest, answer prompted questions on the "My Interest" sheet, and then teach or talk about that interest with a parent or sibling (Activity 2). Students are instructed to interview three people using the "Hobby Survey," which has students read questions aloud and record others' answers (Activity 3).
Lesson 6
Different Families
Students are prompted to engage in discussion with an adult through guided questions (e.g., name family members, explain what it means to be part of a family, and describe responsibilities). Students are asked to "talk as you read" A Life Like Mine and to describe pictures, clothing, activities, and interactions, which requires verbal responses and comparison. Students complete compare/contrast activities (sentence prompts, Venn diagram, and wrap-up questions) that invite spoken explanation of similarities and differences with families from other countries.
Lesson 7
Different Homes
The lesson repeatedly prompts an adult to ask the child questions (e.g., identify and describe different homes, explain why people have homes, identify materials used to build homes) and to look through the book or Internet together to find countries with similar homes. Activities ask the child to record country names and add details based on pictures, and the Wrapping Up section asks the child to describe whether he would enjoy living in a different type of home and explain why. Several instructions use collaborative phrasing ("you and your child"), creating opportunities for back-and-forth discussion between child and adult.
Lesson 8
Different Holidays and Traditions
Students are prompted to name holidays and explain what they enjoy about each one, responding to adult questions ("Ask your child to name some holidays... Ask her what she enjoys about each one"). Students discuss why their family celebrates or does not celebrate specific holidays and compare similarities and differences when looking at holidays from other cultures ("discuss why your family celebrates... Discuss with your child any similarities and differences"). Students answer guided questions about celebrations (e.g., "What are the people celebrating? What types of activities are they engaged in?"), and students share a favorite holiday and explain why in three sentences.
Lesson 9
Different Modes of Transportation
Students are asked to give examples and discuss reasons for choosing specific modes of transportation (Introduction), which requires them to answer and explain their thinking to an adult. In Activity 1 students are prompted to "talk about where he went" after circling modes they have taken, and in Activity 2 they are asked follow-up questions about distance and to justify choices when selecting transportation. In the Wrapping Up students act out modes while an adult guesses and are asked to give examples, creating opportunities for brief exchanges.
Lesson 10
Wants and Needs
Students are prompted to ask four people a survey in Activity 4 and to record the two wants and two needs each person names. The activity then instructs students to "discuss the different items that people shared and whether or not their needs were truly needs," and to rearrange items on the web based on that discussion. Several places ask students to "read... and discuss" or to explain their answers (for example, asking the child to explain which list is longer and why).
Lesson 11
Being Part of a Group
Students are asked to discuss group similarities and differences with an adult (e.g., think of reasons people join groups, discuss identity/nationality/religion after reading pages 98–113). Students are prompted to answer follow-up questions about sorting the cut-out children (Which group has the most people? Do two groups have the same number?). Students brainstorm community groups and explain which group they find most interesting and why, verbally exchanging ideas with the adult who records them.
Final Project
Differences Make the World Go 'Round
Students are prompted to discuss country choices with an adult ("Discuss some of the different countries... ask her what country she would like to learn more about") and to share their finished book with family ("let her share it with her family to teach more about life in a different country"). The lesson also invites a meeting with a person from the chosen country and tells parents to "encourage her to ask questions about life in that country" and to "share her book with this person," which implies an opportunity for conversational exchange.
3: Patterns
Unit 1: Identifying and Creating Visual Patterns
Lesson 8
Creating and Writing About Patterns
Several activities require back-and-forth interaction with an adult: Activity 4 (Guess the Pattern) asks the adult to create a pattern and the child to figure out and describe it, and then to extend by letting the child create his own patterns. Activity 2 (Pattern Race) has the adult call out letters of a pattern while the child recreates it, and Activity 3 asks the child to brainstorm sequence words with an adult recording them. The activity sheets prompt the child to describe patterns using sentence starters (First, Then, Next), which requires spoken responses to prompts.
Unit 2: Patterns in Sounds, Words, and Actions
Lesson 1
Word Patterns
Students are prompted to discuss the difference between nursery rhymes and storybooks and to identify rhyming words during read-alouds, responding to oral questions. Students are asked to say pairs of rhyming words aloud and then add a new rhyming word to the pair (for example, say each pair and add another word). Students are asked questions such as "Can you think of any other -ake words?" and to pick a favorite rhyme and act out or illustrate it, which elicits verbal responses and short exchanges.
Lesson 3
Poetry Patterns
Students are asked aloud whether they hear word patterns as poems are read and to identify and circle rhyming words, which requires them to respond to the reader's prompts. During the song activity, students are prompted to guess the next rhyming word as each verse is paused and to recite the rhyming words after singing, creating opportunities for immediate verbal response. Students are asked to brainstorm other animal names and think of rhyming words, then write and illustrate an additional verse, which has them generate ideas in response to prior lines.
Lesson 5
Story Patterns
Students are asked to describe and discuss patterns and their morning routine, prompting verbal description (Introduction). In Activity 1, students are asked to predict what will happen next and to answer questions about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end, and to "talk about the important events of the story." Activity 3 asks students to dictate their own story, attempt to read it aloud, and act it out using puppets, which involves speaking and explaining their ideas to an adult or listener.
Unit 3: Patterns in Your World
Lesson 1
Patterns in Nature
Students are asked verbally whether they have seen patterns outside and are prompted to explain the patterns they've observed. Students answer follow-up questions after a read-aloud (e.g., which patterns they had seen before, which were new, and what other patterns could be added), creating opportunities for multiple question-and-answer exchanges. Students are asked to share examples during the wrap-up and to discuss which patterns they find most interesting in Activity 3.
Lesson 2
Patterns of Growth
The lesson repeatedly prompts discussion: caregivers are told to "ask your child" how he has changed, to "discuss what plants need to live and grow," and to "talk about the pattern of growth" when organizing personal photos (Activities 1, 4, and 5). Activity 4 explicitly directs an adult to "ask your child if he can think of any animals" with unusual life cycles and to "ask your child what makes these animals' life cycles unique," which invites back-and-forth discussion. Several activities (park investigation, cutting and ordering life stages, and describing growth) require the child to describe observations and answer prompts verbally or with written sentences on activity pages.
Lesson 5
Calendar Patterns
The introduction asks the child to name the days of the week and months of the year in order, which requires the child to respond to an adult's prompt. Activity 4 directs the adult to record family events on a calendar and asks the child to look for and describe patterns (e.g., weekly, biweekly, monthly), prompting verbal responses about observed events. Activity 5 and the daily review encourage the child to say days and months aloud repeatedly, supporting short spoken exchanges during review.
Lesson 7
Patterns at Home
The lesson repeatedly prompts conversation: it tells the adult to "Ask your child if she can think of any patterns" and to "Talk about how patterns make the world a more interesting and beautiful place." Activities ask the child to "describe each pattern she finds" after a scavenger hunt and to "identify the patterns and discuss the designs" when examining quilts and pillows. The Wrapping Up section directs the adult to "Review... Discuss how patterns make the world more beautiful" and to "Ask your child what it would be like if there were no patterns." These prompts require the child to respond to questions and participate in spoken exchanges with an adult.
Lesson 9
Counting Patterns
Students are asked to listen to a story read aloud and answer questions about it, and activities include "Listen to a story read aloud" and "Answer questions about a story read aloud." In Activity 3, students fill in blanks as the adult reads (responding to prompts about how many clowns are in the car) and then are asked to tell their own story about the clowns, changing numbers in sequence. The lesson also encourages acting out the story, which can involve verbal exchanges while tracking and recording numbers as the story continues.
Lesson 11
Patterns in Graphs
The activities repeatedly prompt an adult to ‘‘read the title and labels to your child and discuss the data'' and to ‘‘ask her to describe any patterns,'' which requires the child to answer and talk about the graph. Specific questions such as ‘‘Ask her how many books she thinks John would read on the Tuesday…'' and the Wrapping Up prompt ‘‘Ask your child to describe how to find patterns in graphs and charts'' create opportunities for oral responses. Several tasks instruct the adult to ‘‘discuss'' or ‘‘ask'' the child questions, indicating planned verbal interaction.
4: Change
Unit 1: Changes on Planet Earth
Lesson 2
What Changed?
The lesson directs children to answer questions about changes in the read-aloud (e.g., identifying physical vs. chemical changes) and to "discuss the idea that objects can change in more than one way," which requires verbal exchange. It asks the child to give examples and to describe causes and whether changes are positive or negative, prompting back-and-forth with an adult. Activity 3 instructs adults to "switch roles with your child" so the child gives commands and the adult responds, creating conversational turns.
Lesson 7
Living Things Change
The lesson includes repeated parent-child question-and-answer prompts (e.g., "Ask your child if she can think of other ways that animals change" and "Ask your child if she thinks this change happens quickly or slowly and why"), requiring the child to respond and explain reasoning. Activity 2 instructs an adult to ask the child targeted questions about each picture (Did it change in size? number? place? shape?) and asks the child to circle descriptive words and classify changes as fast or slow, prompting verbal responses. The lesson also directs practicing hand signals with the child and engaging in go-to-the-zoo discussions, which involve interactive exchanges between the adult and child.
Lesson 8
Plants and Change
Students are asked to discuss plant needs and parts with an adult (e.g., "Ask your child if he can remember what plants need" and "Discuss the phases in a plant's life cycle"). The experiment activity has students state predictions, have those ideas recorded, and later compare observations to their recorded predictions (Activity 6). Reading questions and prompts (QUESTION #1, QUESTION #2, and the various "ask your child" prompts) require students to respond verbally to prompts and discuss uses and similarities/differences between plants and animals.
Lesson 9
Heat Causes Change
The lesson repeatedly prompts an adult to ask the child questions and follow-ups (e.g., Activity 1: ask how the ice is changing and why; Activity 2: measure the candle at intervals and then answer a sequence of questions about how and when it changed). Activity 3 asks the child to describe batter, predict what the oven will do, and then describe the finished cake, creating before/after exchanges. The wrapping up section directs the adult to ask the child to explain how heat caused specific changes, prompting multiple back-and-forth responses.
Lesson 11
People Change the Environment
The lesson asks the child to brainstorm positive and negative ways humans change the environment while an adult records her ideas, which prompts verbal exchange. The child is encouraged to describe illustrations, explain how each image is changing the environment, and decide if the change is positive, negative, or neutral, which requires spoken explanation and response to prompts. The lesson also asks the child to share ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle and to discuss recycling practices with family members, implying conversational interaction with others.
Final Project
Mobile of Change
The lesson asks the child to "discuss" scenarios (e.g., weather changes and hypothetical situations) and includes the skill "Discuss how weather can force people to change their activities or daily living." The lesson instructs the child to "express ideas through writing and conversation" and to "explain his mobile to family members," encouraging verbal explanation of ideas. Several prompts ask the child to think about and discuss examples of change with an adult or family.
Unit 2: Characters Change
Lesson 3
Is It a Problem?
Students are prompted to answer specific comprehension questions after reading (e.g., How does the author illustrate the problem? What happens as the boy continues to worry?), which requires them to respond to an adult's questions. In Activity 2 students brainstorm a list of personal problems and then answer a sequence of follow-up prompts (describe the problem, why it worries you, what you can control, what you can't), which involves multiple back-and-forth exchanges with the adult. In Activity 5 students are asked to discuss similarities and differences between characters, prompting comparative dialogue and identification of conjunctions in their responses.
Lesson 5
The Raft
The lesson repeatedly prompts oral discussion: it asks the child to "share any memories" with a caregiver, to "discuss" how the narrator differs across books, and to answer teacher/parent questions after reading each section. Several activities (Activity 6 figurative language, Activity 7 story elements, and the day-by-day question sets) prompt the child to explain meanings, give reasons, and respond to follow-up questions about characters and events. The lesson also encourages comparison and discussion across multiple texts (e.g., comparing narrators and story elements), which requires spoken answers and brief exchanges.
Lesson 6
Positive and Negative Change
Students are prompted to discuss cause-and-effect ideas with an adult and answer guided questions (e.g., asking how the rat feels, how he could respond, and how/why he changed). Students dictate a new ending for the rat story, have it recorded, and then read it aloud and discuss the change, which creates back-and-forth interaction. Students are asked to talk about personal experiences of change, describe whether changes were positive or negative, and share their illustrated examples with family, which requires verbal responses and explanations.
Final Project
My Own Story
The lesson prompts an adult to ask the child for story ideas, to read those ideas back, and to discuss which idea to develop, which creates opportunities for back-and-forth talk. It directs the adult and child to "discuss" the setting, "discuss" how the character will change after completing the problem/solution page, and to "read your child's dictated story aloud" and decide which parts go on which pages. The Skills section also mentions producing and publishing writing "including in collaboration with peers," implying some collaborative talk around the project.
Unit 3: A First Look at History - Change Over Time
Lesson 1
People and Families Change
Students are prompted to discuss memories and answer follow-up questions about pictures and growth (Activity 1, Growth Chart questions). Students read their ideas aloud and share descriptions with the rest of the family, and others are invited to contribute ideas about the family in the future (Activity 5 and Activity 6). Several activities ask students to respond to explicit adult questions and to participate in discussions about how people and families have changed.
Lesson 2
Understanding Time
The lesson includes many scripted discussion prompts for an adult to ask the child (e.g., asking the child to name something that happened in the past, talk about something happening now, and one thing she would like in the future). Activity 2 lists a set of oral questions (e.g., "Were you born in the past, present, or future?", "Can you think of a change that has happened in your life in the past?") and advanced follow-up questions intended to generate conversation. Activity 1 and the wrap-up explicitly prompt the child to explain differences verbally (e.g., discuss yesterday/today/tomorrow and explain past/present/future).
Lesson 4
Past and Present
The lesson includes multiple discussion prompts that require the child to answer and explain (e.g., questions after reading in Activity 3: comparing school days, similarities, differences, and whether they'd enjoy living in the past). Activity 5 and other sections instruct the child to "discuss with your child what clues she used" and to explain ordering decisions, which requires back-and-forth conversation about reasoning. Activity 7 asks the child to dictate five clues and then "read the clues to other family members to see if they can guess the time period," creating an opportunity for interactive exchanges with others.
Lesson 6
Predicting Future Change
Students are asked to answer follow-up questions about scenarios (e.g., predicting how a family move will change the family) and to record or dictate their ideas, which requires verbal responses. Students are prompted to discuss whether predicted outcomes are positive or negative and to come up with two examples of changes that could have both positive and negative results, encouraging back-and-forth discussion. Students dictate a personal change and attempt to read it aloud, providing an opportunity to respond to adult prompts and questions during the activity.
Lesson 7
People of the Past
Activity 1 asks an adult to read a biography with the child and then ask questions (e.g., How would you describe this person? Are you similar to this person?), which prompts the child to respond and reflect. Activity 2 has the adult reread descriptions and ask the child to point to the individual described and place items in chronological order, prompting follow-up interaction. Activity 3 has the adult tell about a time they made a positive change, then ask the child to think of ideas, write them down, and discuss steps to follow through, creating a back-and-forth discussion.
Final Project
My Past, Present and Future
Students are prompted to read through their book or comparison pages and answer specific questions that a parent or adult asks (e.g., What did you do well on your project? Is there anything you would change?). Students are asked to present their book or comparison pages to their family, which provides opportunities to respond to comments from others. The option to illustrate and dictate sentences for comparisons also allows students to talk about choices with an adult helper.
6: Reading
Unit 1: Semester 1
Lesson 2
Letter Sounds Review II
Students are prompted to answer and explain ideas (for example, Activity 5.3 asks, "What do you think this book is about?" and "Do you think the pig and the cat can fit in the box?" and asks the child to explain her thinking). The lesson repeatedly has the adult ask questions and have the child respond (e.g., "What sound does short i make?", "Which card says 'of'?", and asking the child to point to letters or sight words in the Weekly Message). Activities require students to respond and demonstrate understanding aloud and to spell or build words in response to prompts (e.g., building words, word chains, and sharing words during the Wrapping Up section).
Lesson 4
Letter Sounds Review IV
Students are prompted to respond to adult prompts and answer questions (e.g., Activity 1.1 asks "How many sentences does this message have?" and students circle end marks; Activity 5.2 asks comprehension questions about the reader). In Activity 5.3 students read Making Sentences cards, complete teacher-started sentences by supplying missing words, and are encouraged to create their own sentences. Several activities require students to read aloud to an adult and respond (Activities 3.1, 5.1, sight word checks), providing opportunities for back-and-forth turns.
Lesson 6
Open Syllables and Digraph th
In Activity 1.1 (Weekly Message) students are asked to point to words they know, read along, and add words to the 'an' word family while answering the teacher's question about whether the words end with the same sound. The Life Application rhyming game directs students to take turns coming up with rhyming words, which requires students to respond to each other's contributions. Activity 5.1 (Forming Sentences) asks students to reorder words, read them aloud, and allows them to move words and play with different orders, inviting brief verbal interaction and teacher prompts to get started.
Lesson 7
Consonant Digraphs ch, sh, wh, ph
Students are asked to respond to questions about the Weekly Message (e.g., "Can you find the digraph th in this message?") and to identify and say words aloud (Activity 1.1). The Reader activity prompts students to predict and answer follow-up comprehension questions (Activity 3.3), producing back-and-forth with an adult. The Life Application asks students to take turns adding words that begin with the same sound, explicitly prompting turn-taking and building on previous contributions.
Lesson 9
Blends with l
Students take turns producing words in the Life Application activity, where they and an adult alternate saying words that start with a given blend. Students create sentences using word cards, read those sentences aloud to an adult, and are asked to change or extend sentences (e.g., replace a word or make three or four more sentences). Students answer comprehension questions after reading the reader, providing opportunities for short spoken responses.
Lesson 10
Blends with r
Students are prompted to take turns in several activities (Activity 4.1 directs the adult and child to take turns writing words). The Life Application asks students to respond to an adult's word with a word that begins with the same blend and then switch roles, creating a back-and-forth exchange. The reader comprehension questions (Activity 4.2) require students to answer questions about the text aloud, producing short verbal responses.
Lesson 12
Double ll, ss, ff, zz (FLOSS)
Students are prompted to read aloud with an adult and answer questions (e.g., show Weekly Message #12 and have the child read along; ask, "Which letters does the FLOSS rule tell us to double?"). Students are asked to respond to comprehension questions after reading the reader Huff and Puff (e.g., "What insects are shown?" "Why do you think...?"). Students participate in interactive tasks that require verbal responses, such as giving thumbs-up/thumbs-down when deciding whether a word follows the FLOSS rule and saying the FLOSS rule in their own words.
Lesson 14
Three-Letter Beginning Blends
The lesson includes multiple prompts that require the child to respond verbally, such as asking "Are these rhyming words? What makes them rhyming words?" (Activity 2.1), and comprehension questions after reading Spring Has Sprung! (Activity 4.3) that ask the child to answer and describe actions. The Wrapping Up and Life Application sections ask the child to share new words and to make up silly sentences, prompting verbal responses and some back-and-forth with the adult. Several activities instruct the child to read aloud with the adult and to read sentences back after dictation (Day 5), which elicits spoken responses.
Lesson 15
More Ending Blends
Students are asked to take turns providing words and producing rhymes in the Wrapping Up activity, which requires at least back-and-forth exchanges. During Day 5 reader work, students answer comprehension questions about The Raft Trip, responding to adult prompts. Several activities ask students to read along, respond to teacher prompts, and come up with words (for example, Activity 4.2 asks students to come up with additional words that end with specific blends).
Lesson 16
R-Controlled Vowels (ar)
Students are prompted to read the Weekly Message aloud with an adult and to point to and read words they know, producing multiple teacher–student turns (Activity 1.1). Students are asked to generate questions using sight-word cards (which/what/when) and to repeat the process for other words, producing student-originated utterances in response to prompts (Activity 1.3). Students read the short reader and answer follow-up prompt questions (e.g., "What else might you find…?"), which requires them to respond to adult prompts and provide elaborated answers (Activity 4.2).
Lesson 17
Semester Review
In Activity 3.1 students play a turn-taking word-building game in which each child adds a vowel, consonant, or word-building card in response to the previous play. In Activity 4.1 students are asked to state which reader is their favorite, explain why, and talk about characters and what the characters do. Activity 4.2 invites students to share the readers they create with others, providing an occasion for verbal exchange.
Unit 2: Semester 2
Lesson 3
Hard and Soft c and g
Students are repeatedly asked to answer and explain orally (e.g., "What do you notice about the sound of c/g in these words?", "How do you know?"). Activities ask students to read aloud, respond to questions, and explain their thinking during word-building and sorting (pointing to letters, saying why a c or g is hard or soft). The Weekly Message and dialog prompts encourage students to say words that begin with c and g and to participate in teacher-child exchanges.
Lesson 4
More R-Controlled Vowels (er, ir, or, ur)
Students are prompted to read and respond to the Weekly Message #4, point out known words, and add words to the group (Activity 1.1), which requires them to react to an existing text and contribute new ideas. During read-aloud and comprehension work (Activity 5.2), students answer follow-up questions such as "Are you surprised...? Who did you think would win? Why?", prompting them to respond to prompts and give reasons. Multiple activities (spelling, word building, and sight-word review) involve back-and-forth adult-led questioning where students read aloud and answer questions about pronunciation and meaning.
Lesson 5
Long a Spellings ai, ay
Students are asked to read and respond to the Weekly Message with an adult, pointing to words and answering prompts (e.g., identify two-syllable words and point out long a words). During reading activities (The Gray Day) students are asked open-ended questions such as "What do you think the boys would do if they went outside?" and "Do you like rainy days? Why or why not?" Sight-word activities prompt students to notice and answer questions about words (e.g., "What do you notice about the words 'may' and 'way'?") and to read words aloud in response to the adult's prompts.
Lesson 6
Long e Spellings ee, ey, ea
The Life Application suggests playing an "I Spy" turn-taking game using long vowel sounds, which requires students to take turns and respond to each other's prompts. Several activities ask the child to answer teacher/parent questions about texts (for example, Day 5 comprehension questions and prompts like "What do you notice about 'see'?"), giving opportunities for back-and-forth Q&A. Activity 4.2 (Making Sentences) has the child create and read sentences aloud using provided word cards, inviting interaction with an adult as the child composes and reads sentences.
Lesson 7
Long i Spellings y, igh, ie
The lesson includes multiple teacher–student prompt-and-response activities (e.g., asking the child to point to and read words in the Weekly Message, to read and show found sight words, and to answer comprehension questions about The Dark Night). It asks the child to respond to phonics prompts and questions during word-building activities (e.g., identify sounds in fight/night, point to silent letters, and decide which column to place words in the sorting activities). The Life Application asks the child to explain long i spellings to a family member or friend and to give examples, inviting an interaction with another person.
Lesson 8
Long o Spellings ow, oa, oe
The Life Application activity asks students to 'begin with one long vowel word' and 'take turns saying words that rhyme,' which requires students to respond to a partner and carry on multiple exchanges. The Weekly Message and Activities (e.g., asking the child to point to words, discuss similarities between 'go' and 'no,' and answer questions about The Slow Boat) prompt spoken back-and-forth between child and adult. Several activities (word building, word sorting, and reader comprehension) include teacher prompts and questions that elicit student responses in a conversational context.
Lesson 10
Other Long Vowel Patterns
Students are prompted to take turns using each sight word in a sentence (Activity 1.3), which creates back-and-forth speaking opportunities. Parents ask questions that require the child to guess or explain (e.g., "Do you see any words in the message that are unusual in some way?" in Activity 1.1 and comprehension questions after Reader #10 on Day 5). Several activities ask the child to read aloud and respond to prompts, and to read and respond to sentences during Fill in the Blanks and Sentence Dictation activities.
Lesson 13
Other Vowel Sounds ou, ow
Students are asked to sort words aloud and then explain their groups (Activity 2.1), allowing them to change their groupings and explain their reasoning, which creates opportunities for back-and-forth talk. Students are prompted to answer and discuss phonics questions (e.g., identifying ending consonants that go with ou/ow in Activity 3.1) and to read and respond to comprehension questions after reading the story (Activity 5.1). The lesson also suggests taking turns writing words and reading along with an adult, which provides turn-taking practice.
Lesson 15
These Make More Than One Sound: oo and ea
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message and answer teacher prompts (Activity 1.1), underline and circle words, and respond when asked which vowel sound group a word belongs to. Students read the reader aloud and answer comprehension prompts, including a follow-up question that asks them to generate additional ideas about the bear's behavior (Activity 5.1). Students are asked to use sight words in sentences (Activity 1.3) and to place words into columns while repeating them aloud and responding to teacher checks during sorting activities (Activities 2.1, 3.2).
Lesson 16
Silent Starts: kn, wr, gn
Students are prompted to make guesses and respond to questions (e.g., Activity 1.2: ask how to say "gnome" and allow guesses; Activity 2.1 and 3.1: ask how to pronounce "know" and "write" and ask about vowel sounds). Students are asked to read along and then list things they've learned (Activity 1.1), to answer comprehension questions about The Gnats (Activity 5.2), and to point to or select words as the adult reads sentences (Activity 3.3). Several activities require students to explain word meanings or reasoning (e.g., sorting by vowel sound, explaining why a letter is silent).