Second Grade - ELA
1: Community
Unit 1: Communities Around the World
Lesson 1
Exploring a Community
Students are asked orally to describe their community and answer comprehension questions after reading The City Mouse and the Country Mouse, which requires spoken responses. Students are prompted to read the story aloud or attempt to read it aloud, and to discuss whether they would rather live in the city or country, giving reasons. The wrap-up includes a spoken activity: the adult says a simple sentence and the child identifies the noun and verb, and multiple activities ask students to produce sentences (labeling buildings and writing three sentences about a preference).
Lesson 2
Roles of People in Communities
Option 2 instructs students to "Write a sentence about the job of each community worker," and asks them to identify the noun and verb in each sentence. Activity 4 has students write a paragraph about a chosen worker, circle beginning letters and end punctuation, and then role-play scenarios for that worker. The Wrapping Up section asks students to name jobs and describe how workers help the community, which invites spoken descriptions.
Lesson 3
Goods and Services
Students are asked to describe a time they have used each good or service and to say where a person would go to buy it (Activity 1), which prompts spoken responses that could include detail. Students read If You Give a Pig a Pancake, decide for each situation whether the pig is asking for a good or a service, and record examples on a two-column chart (Activity 3), requiring oral decisions and recording. The skills list includes 'Read aloud independently with fluency and comprehension,' indicating opportunities for students to speak aloud in context.
Lesson 4
Wants and Needs
Students are prompted to answer specific oral questions (e.g., ‘‘Was the item you had as number 1 a want or a need? Did you have more needs or wants at the top of your list?'') and to describe differences between wants and needs. Students are asked to explain where Jessie can find water, food, shelter, and clothing and to decide which items belong in wants versus needs during collage and cut‑and‑paste activities. Students must verbally respond to prompts about importance (e.g., ‘‘Do you think wants or needs are more important? Why?'') which requires producing spoken explanations.
Lesson 5
Money
Students are prompted to answer oral questions such as how people get money and what people do with money, which requires spoken responses. Students are asked to tell the value of each coin and to explain equivalencies (e.g., how many pennies equal a nickel or dime), prompting verbal explanation. Students decide which price tag goes on each toy and may justify their choice, inviting spoken clarification about amounts.
Lesson 6
Uses of Money
Students are asked multiple oral questions (e.g., where people get money, what people do with money, what it means to be a hard worker, where they would like to go on vacation) that require spoken responses and discussion. The skills list includes developing vocabulary by listening and discussing new words and using new vocabulary in writing, which involves oral discussion. The activities ask students to explain wants and needs, describe goods and services, and discuss reasons for giving money, all of which invite extended responses.
Lesson 7
Work and Money
Students are asked to explain their reasoning aloud as they make spending decisions in Activity 1, prompting spoken explanations. Activity 4 directs students to use each spelling word in a sentence and to say the sentence aloud, giving explicit oral-sentence practice. The Wrap Up asks the child to describe the choices people have to make about work and money, which requires verbal description.
Lesson 8
Customs and Holidays
Students are prompted to "Write a sentence about what you do on each holiday" on the Patriotic Holidays activity, requiring them to produce sentence-level responses. On the Holiday Book (Option 1) pages students are asked to "write the name of the holiday, find the date on a calendar and write it, and write sentences about why the holiday is celebrated and what your family does," and the pages include prompts such as "On this day our family..." and "We celebrate this holiday because..." that students must complete. The skills list explicitly includes using correct capitalization for proper nouns and at the beginning of sentences, reinforcing sentence-level writing conventions.
Lesson 9
Different Communities
Students are asked to name and describe holidays and to say which country they want to research, which prompts oral responses that can include detail. Students are asked to describe what they learned about the country and what they would do if they visited, which require spoken descriptions. The Life Application asks students to write five questions they would ask someone from the researched country, which engages them in composing detailed questions.
Lesson 10
Communities Change
Students are prompted to respond to multiple open-ended oral questions (e.g., "What happened in the story?," "Why?," "How did the land change over years?") during the read-aloud and discussion sections. The Skills list explicitly includes "Respond to open-ended question about a text (LA)," indicating students will give oral responses. Students also write sentences describing the community for each season in Activity 2, practicing sentence construction in a related context.
Lesson 11
Government and the People
The lesson asks the child to "explain why it is important to allow everyone to vote" and to answer questions such as how citizens decide leaders and what voting means, which require spoken explanations. The lesson also directs the child to "write a sentence about why [each service] is important to the community," and to complete other written response prompts on activity pages (e.g., "Tonight we will...").
Lesson 12
Rules and Laws
Students are asked oral questions in the Getting Started and Introduction sections (e.g., name rules you are expected to follow; why do you think you have rules; would you like to live in a home with no rules?). In Activity 2 students play a game with no rules and then answer several reflective questions aloud (e.g., What was different about the game this time? Is the game better with rules or without rules? Why?). In Activity 3 students are prompted to read a situation aloud and discuss consequences, and to describe consequences they faced when they did not follow a rule or law.
Final Project
Community Brochure
Students are asked to "think about the sentences she wants to include on each page" and to "record her ideas," which requires composing sentence-level content for the brochure. The introduction prompts students to describe things they have learned about communities and to answer two guiding questions aloud before beginning the project. The closing asks students to share their brochure with family and friends and to answer reflective prompts about what they like and how to improve it, creating spoken opportunities.
Unit 2: Citizenship
Lesson 1
A Good Citizen
Students are asked to "write a sentence or two" about times they demonstrated each citizenship trait (Option 2), which requires producing complete written sentences with detail. Students are prompted to "make up a sentence or two" to describe each page of the wordless book Home and to write sentences for each scene in the Scene by Scene activity, which requires sequencing and describing events. Students are asked orally to answer comprehension questions after The Boy Who Cried Wolf and to explain why they selected characteristics, and they dictate responses that are read back and revised, requiring spoken sentence production for clarification.
Lesson 2
Decisions and Consequences
Students are asked to explain the idea of cause and effect aloud and to give examples, requiring verbal explanation. Students respond to comprehension questions about Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse (e.g., "Did you like this story? Why or why not?" "How would you describe Lilly?"), which elicit spoken answers. Students role-play situations and participate in a Memory-style Actions and Consequences game that involve speaking and describing actions and outcomes.
Lesson 3
Diversity in the Community
In Activity 4 students plan and write five interview questions, are given examples of sentence questions, and practice writing question marks. During the interview students orally ask those questions while an adult records or takes notes, and afterwards students review answers and write short answers for each question. The Introduction and Wrapping Up prompt students to share and explain similarities, differences, and the meaning of "diverse," which requires producing spoken explanations.
Lesson 4
Living in America
Students are asked to answer open-ended "Why" questions about the Pledge (e.g., Why do you think we have a pledge? Why is it important that America is a republic?), which requires them to explain meanings. Students are instructed to "complete the two sentences" at the bottom of the Flag activity page, providing written sentence responses about stripes and stars. Students are asked to "explain the meaning of each part" of the Pledge and to describe places they have seen the flag, prompting spoken or written explanations that could be given as sentences.
Lesson 5
Citizens Share and Help
Students are asked to use each spelling word in a sentence about themselves using the word "I," write those sentences in their journal, and read them aloud (Activity 3). Students must explain their drawings and "how it makes the community a better place to live" after completing the "Citizens Sharing" page (Activity 1). Students are prompted to describe what they plan to do, record who will help, and explain what each person will do on the "A Helping Hand" page (Activity 2), and to answer wrap-up questions about what it means for citizens to share.
Lesson 6
Leaders in the Community
Students are asked oral comprehension questions after the read-aloud (e.g., "What was the person's name and where did he or she live while growing up?"), which prompts spoken responses. Students are asked to write sentences and a paragraph about a leader (Activity 4 and Activity 5) and to complete sentence templates in the Biography Book (e.g., "___ was born in ___"). Students are also asked to talk about what it means to be a leader and to describe a time when they were a leader during the wrap-up.
Lesson 7
Inventors
Students complete sentence-starter worksheets (Option 1 and Option 2) that require them to write a sentence about how each invention helped the community. Students are instructed to identify sentence parts by circling the subject and underlining the predicate, and they fill in sentence frames such as "We use the ________ to ________." Students also write a paragraph about a favorite invention and answer open-ended questions about an inventor (e.g., "How would you describe the inventor?").
Final Project
Community Citizens Mobile
Students are asked to fill in information on each shape including name, characteristics, what the person does, and how the person helped the community, and to write and illustrate three community items on the back of each shape. Students are also asked to write a title for the mobile and to explain the parts of the mobile and share it with the family, providing an oral opportunity to give details or clarification.
Unit 3: Plants and Animals
Lesson 1
Living and Nonliving
Students are asked to ask and answer questions about organisms (listed under Skills) and to answer specific comprehension and reasoning questions about Sylvester (e.g., "Is Sylvester the donkey living? How do you know?"). Students are asked to read the story aloud and to dictate a story about finding a magic stone so an adult can record it, and to share descriptive words aloud with family members during the Describing Attributes activity so others can guess the item.
Lesson 2
Animal Structure
The lesson's Skills list includes "Ask and answer questions about organisms (S)" and several prompts ask the child to "describe" animals and explain how their design helps them live. Activity 2 (Option 2) asks students to answer specific questions about the graph (e.g., which covering had the highest number of animals; how many more did __ have than __?). The Wrapping Up section asks the child to "describe some different ways that animals' bodies help them to live" and to imagine how animals would be different without certain body parts.
Lesson 3
Classifying Animals
Students are asked to write a multi-sentence paragraph in Activity 9, with explicit guidance about sentence beginnings, endings, and paragraph structure. The skills list and several activities (e.g., Activity 10) require students to ask and answer questions about animals and to describe body coverings and habitats, which prompts spoken responses. Activity 8 and other comparison tasks (Venn diagrams, 'A Closer Look at Mammals') ask students to state traits and explain similarities and differences, encouraging formulation of complete thoughts.
Lesson 5
Animal Needs
Students are asked in Activity 1 to "write a sentence" describing how the community helps meet each need. In Activity 2 and Activity 4 students write the animal's name, habitat, and how food, water, and shelter needs are met, and Activity 4 uses fill-in-the-blank sentences to guide descriptive writing. The Wrapping Up section asks the child to "explain" what people and animals need, prompting verbal responses.
Lesson 6
Extinct and Endangered Species
Students read and perform a scripted puppet show, practicing lines and creating unique voices (Activity 3). Students are asked to make up and dictate at least two lines for each dinosaur puppet and have those lines recorded in script form (Activity 4). Students are prompted to answer wrap-up questions about what it means to be endangered or extinct and reasons animals lose habitats.
Lesson 7
Plants
Students are asked orally to answer comprehension questions about Jack and the Beanstalk (e.g., Who were the characters? Where did the story happen? What happened in the story?), which requires verbal responses. Students are prompted to explain plant needs, explain what their drawings reveal (Activity 4), tell a story about a planted seed (Activity 7), and role-play being a seed (Activity 8), all of which require giving explanations or descriptions. The wrapping up and experiment activities ask students to compare results and discuss predictions, encouraging spoken clarification and detail.
Lesson 8
The Role of Plants
Students are asked orally to identify the author and title and to predict events before and during reading, which requires them to respond to prompts. After reading, students are asked specific comprehension questions (e.g., Who are the two characters? What did the tree give the boy?), which require spoken or written answers. In written activities students are prompted to write sentences: the thank-you note activities ask students to compose sentences to express gratitude, and the "Plants Used in My Community" sheet asks students to write a sentence for each item with provided sentence structure.
Lesson 9
Comparing Living Things
Students fill in sentence starters on the Option 1 activity (e.g., "Plants and animals need ______."). Students write three full sentences in Option 2 describing how plants, animals, and humans are the same and different. Students copy and rewrite full sentences in the Spelling activity and are asked to describe similarities and differences at the end of the unit.
Lesson 10
Life Cycles
The lesson prompts oral responses: it asks the child questions (e.g., "Ask your child if she has always looked the way she does today" and "Ask your child how she was different") and tells the child to "describe the life cycle" of animals. The Skills list explicitly includes "Select and use new vocabulary in speech and writing (LA)" and activities instruct students to "discuss each stage of the animal's life" and to role-play animal stages, which requires spoken description. Several activities (discussing pictures, role-playing, and the Life Cycle Logic puzzle) require students to give verbal explanations or answers to prompts.
Lesson 11
Community Members Depend on One Another
Students are asked direct oral questions about what vegetables and meats they eat ("Ask your child if he eats vegetables and which ones he eats"; "Ask him if he eats meat and if he can name any types of meat that he eats"), prompting them to provide detail. Students are prompted to discuss food chains and explain dependencies ("Discuss that within habitats..."; "Ask your child to give you an example of a food chain"; "Ask your child how animals depend on plants and other animals to survive"), which requires spoken explanation. Students are asked to create a food chain with themselves at the top and to discuss animal diets, providing additional opportunities for verbal clarification and detail.
2: Matter and Movement
Unit 1: States of Matter
Lesson 1
What Is the World Made Of?
Students are asked to explain differences and describe states throughout the activities (e.g., Activity 1: "What is the difference between a solid and a liquid?"; Wrapping Up: "Ask your child to describe the different states of matter and to give examples of each"). Activity 3 explicitly asks students to "write a sentence to describe each balloon," providing a written-sentence task. Several activities require students to answer questions aloud and justify their choices (e.g., explain how they decided which state is in each balloon, explain problems in the scavenger hunt).
Lesson 2
Solids
Students are asked to write sentences about two solids in Activity 3, with each sentence required to include at least two descriptive words or phrases drawn from sensory observations. Activity 8 asks students to use each spelling word in a sentence that they can say aloud, which requires spoken sentence production. Activity 6 asks students to explain how they know whether a container holds a solid, liquid, or gas, prompting oral explanations that provide clarification and detail.
Lesson 3
Liquids
Activity 5 explicitly asks the child to write five sentences about how she uses liquids and reminds her that a sentence starts with a capital letter and ends with a period; it also has the child identify nouns and underline verbs in each sentence. Activity 8 asks the child to write one or two sentences about three liquids and to label and draw each container. Several prompts (e.g., "Ask your child to describe what a liquid is," "Ask her how the liquids are similar and how they are different," and prediction tasks) require the child to produce descriptive responses.
Lesson 4
Bartholomew and the Oobleck
Students are asked oral comprehension questions after the read-aloud (e.g., "How would you describe the king?"; "Do you think the king will be different from now on? If so, how?"), requiring them to formulate responses. Students complete the Story Quilt by listing/drawing characters, setting, three important events, the problem, and the solution, which requires them to produce statements about the story. Students are prompted to write sentences in multiple activities: writing three sentences that describe the oobleck (Activity 4), writing three true and three false sentences (Activity 3, Option 2), and composing a new ending in Activity 5.
Lesson 5
Comparing Matter
Students are asked in Activity 3 to "write a sentence about each picture using the adjectives she listed," which requires composing sentences. Activity 2 asks students to "explain how she made her selections," prompting oral explanation. The Wrapping Up directs students to "explain how the molecules in solids, liquids, and gases are different," encouraging students to provide spoken descriptions.
Lesson 6
Changes in States of Matter
Students are prompted to speak repeatedly: they are asked to "tell you everything he knows about water," to identify states of matter (ice, water, steam), to explain what causes changes, and to give examples during the wrapping up. Activities ask students to "explain what can cause one state to change to another" and to "give some examples of matter that can change when heat or cold is applied," which require verbal responses. The skills list includes "Use new vocabulary in speech and writing," and Activity 7 asks students to read aloud the sentences they wrote about foods that change.
Lesson 7
Exploring Solids and Liquids
Students are asked to "write three sentences" describing three events from the book in Activity 1. The Skills list includes "Respond and elaborate in answering what, when, where, and how questions," and several activities prompt students to record a hypothesis and "record the results" on the Dancing Raisins page. Activities also ask students to explain how they know whether batter is a solid or liquid and to answer "why" questions about the story, which require elaborated responses.
Lesson 8
Our Bodies and Our World
Students are asked orally to define matter ("Ask your child what the definition of matter is") and to share scenarios and descriptions aloud ("Ask your child to share different scenarios... Ask her to describe solids, liquids, and gases within her own body"). Students are prompted to answer comprehension questions about a story (Who was the main character? What challenge did Jason have? How did he solve his problem?), which requires verbal or written responses. The skills list also includes that students "Independently read aloud with fluency and comprehension," indicating opportunities for spoken language practice.
Final Project
States of Matter
The Liquids Collage directions ask students to "Write a sentence beneath each liquid about what it is used for," and the example liquids include full model sentences (e.g., "Lemonade is a yummy drink during the summer."). Students are required to compose at least five sentences that state the use of each liquid, providing requested detail about each item.
Unit 2: Earth
Lesson 1
Our Planet Earth
Students are asked specific map questions (e.g., Which ocean is west of North America?) that require them to respond orally or in writing. Students are prompted to "explain what he learned" at the end of the unit, which asks for spoken explanations. Students are directed to write three sentences about the book and to write a letter to an alien, which requires composing complete sentences in writing.
Lesson 2
Matter on the Planet
Students are asked in Activity 3 (Option 1) to write a sentence about two of the items and include two of the adjectives in each sentence, requiring sentence-level composition with requested detail. Activity 3 (Option 2) repeats this explicit writing task, asking students to write a sentence about two items using adjectives. Activity 2 asks students to describe the air they breathe and explain how they know it is there, providing an oral prompt to give requested detail.
Lesson 3
Digging Into Dirt
The lesson asks the child to "write two or three sentences" explaining how he solved the soil "Who Did It?" mystery (Activity 5) and explicitly asks him to "write four complete sentences" about ways the Earth is important (Activity 8). Multiple activities prompt the child to "describe," "explain," and "discuss" soil characteristics and observations (Activities 2, 3, 4, 7), which require verbal responses. Several tasks combine oral explanation with written responses (e.g., explaining then writing the solution to the soil mystery).
Lesson 4
From the Earth
Students are prompted to discuss and name natural resources (e.g., "Ask your child to name any natural resources she can think of and how they are used") and to describe how items help meet needs (e.g., "ask her to describe how each item helps to meet the needs of animals or people"). Students take turns describing objects and their source in the closing game ("Take turns with your child pointing out objects... and describing the Earth resources"). Students are asked to write sentences about how their family uses materials and to read each sentence aloud (Activity 1 and Activity 5).
Lesson 5
Rocks
Students are prompted to answer comprehension questions aloud after reading Everybody Needs a Rock and to attempt to read the story aloud (Activity 6), which requires spoken responses. Students are asked to write a sentence about each of five important items on the back of the "Rocks All Around" sheet (Activity 4) and to dictate a sentence for each spelling word (Activity 10), which requires forming sentences. Students are also asked to write or dictate a short story about their new rock (Activity 9), which involves producing multi‑sentence narrative responses.
Lesson 6
Water, Water Everywhere
Students are asked to write sentences in multiple activities (Activity 3: "write a sentence or two" describing how freshwater bodies differ from the ocean; Activity 7: "write a sentence about the importance of each example" and rank uses of water; Activity 8: "write a short paragraph" describing where a newly invented creature is found, what it eats, and its features). Several prompts ask students to speak and describe observations (e.g., name bodies of water, "describe what she discovers" in the waves model, and "talk about some of her favorite ocean animals"). The Activity 4 graph questions require students to answer questions that ask for explanation of data (e.g., which range had the greatest number of fish?).
Lesson 7
Taking Care of the Earth
Students are asked to "use each of the following words in a sentence" in the Spelling activity and to "write two or three sentences that explain why recycling is important" in the Is It Recyclable? activity. The lesson prompts students to give examples aloud (e.g., "Ask your child to give examples of why the Earth is important") and to make predictions and have those predictions recorded (e.g., predict what happens when oil is dumped into water and record the answer). Students are also asked to read directions and materials lists aloud and to share the "Air Pollution" list with their family.
Final Project
Earth Exhibit
Students are asked to label each material and write a sentence that tells where it is found and another sentence that explains why it is important for living things. The planning pages and activity cards include prompts and lines for "Where it is found," "What it is used for," "Description," and "Directions," requiring students to write responses. Part 2 requires students to record their two sentences from the planning sheet beside the word Description on exhibit cards and to write directions for visitors.
Unit 3: Balance and Motion
Lesson 1
What Is Balance?
Activity 9 directs students to write each step in a complete sentence, use sequencing words (first, next, then), and read their directions aloud. Students are asked to give those directions to a family member and check whether the person can follow them, which requires providing clear, detailed sentences. Activity 1 and other question prompts ask students to answer questions about balances, offering additional opportunities to respond verbally.
Lesson 2
What Can Be Balanced?
Activity 3 asks students to decide whether each sentence is missing a noun or a verb and to record a noun or verb in the blank to 'balance' it; students are then asked to reread each sentence and identify the noun and verb and to cut apart, select, glue, and illustrate four complete sentences. The Introduction and Activity 1 prompt students to explain what they learned about using a balance and to describe what it means to eat healthily, which involve answering questions about balance and diet. Activity 4 asks students to write a paragraph about an example of balance in nature, requiring them to produce connected sentences in writing.
Lesson 3
Symmetry
Students are asked to explain what it means for a figure to be symmetrical and to name different lines of symmetry, which requires them to speak about the concept. The Life Application activity has students play "I Spy a Symmetrical Figure," in which the child asks yes/no questions about a pictured object. Activity 3 asks the child to write three sentences describing a symmetrical picture, providing practice in producing complete sentences in written form.
Lesson 4
Force and Motion
Students are asked orally to answer questions such as "What is the difference between a push and pull?" and "What does motion mean?" and to explain whether they made an object move by pushing or pulling. Students are prompted to write sentences about pictures (Activity 3) and to write a short paragraph or story describing a drawing with labeled examples of motion (Activity 4). Students record and report measurements and lists (Activity 5 and Activity 7), which requires them to state observations and distances.
Lesson 5
Gravity
Students are prompted to answer oral questions such as "why she could not stay in the air" and "what is stopping it," which require verbal explanations. Students are asked to read the book title aloud, guess the book's topic, read statements, and decide true/false, providing spoken responses. The wrap-up asks students to "explain what gravity is" and to demonstrate the center of gravity while explaining, prompting spoken description of observations.
Lesson 6
Friction
Students are asked verbally why a pushed toy car stopped and asked to explain what friction is and give examples, which requires spoken explanation. Students decide and justify the order of skaters based on surface friction, an activity that can prompt spoken reasoning. The "Science Sentences" activity has students choose correct verb forms and circle singular/plural nouns and linking verbs, which practices grammar needed for sentence construction.
Final Project
A Wordless Skit
Students are asked post-performance reflection questions (e.g., "How do you feel about your performance?" "What was your favorite part?") that require verbal responses and could prompt complete-sentence answers. The lesson asks students to invite an audience and encourages audience members to share what they enjoyed, creating opportunities for spoken description and clarification. The skills list includes selecting and using new vocabulary in speech and extending oral language, which implies speaking practice connected to the skit activities.
3: Culture
Unit 1: Geography
Lesson 1
Using Maps and Globes
Students are asked oral comprehension questions after reading The Armadillo from Amarillo (e.g., Where was Armadillo at the beginning of the story? What state did Armadillo live in? Where did the eagle take Armadillo?). The Skills list explicitly includes "Answer questions about text read aloud (LA)," and the Introduction prompts the child to describe where he lives to someone on another continent. Activity 5 asks the child to write a paragraph about a trip, requiring students to organize and produce connected sentences in writing.
Lesson 2
Cardinal Directions
Students are asked to describe the direction of the front door and explain how to get there from the middle of the house, which requires giving explanations and directions. The lesson asks students to explain whether directional words like left/right will work on a map and why, and to explain why a figure ended up in the same or a different place when facing different directions. Activities require students to answer map questions (e.g., "What is north of Death Valley?") and to follow and give multi-step oral directions (e.g., "take three steps north, two steps east").
Lesson 3
Landforms and Bodies of Water
Students are asked to write a paragraph to someone deciding which body of water to move near (Activity 2), which requires composing multiple complete sentences to give reasons and details. The student pages include sentence-completion prompts and cut-and-match activities with fill-in-the-blank sentences that ask students to produce finished sentences. Activity 4 asks students to write a sentence explaining how people who live on or near a landform are affected, and Activity 5 asks students to dictate a description of their drawing, prompting spoken sentence production.
Lesson 4
Natural Resources
The lesson repeatedly asks the child to answer questions aloud (e.g., "Ask him where each is found," "Ask him if he can think of any other natural resources") and to describe and explain uses (e.g., "Ask your child to describe ways that he uses natural resources," "Ask him to explain why natural resources are important to people"). Activity 3 directs the child to read information aloud and answer questions on the "Researching Resources" sheet, which requires verbal responses. Activity 5 prompts a field-trip discussion about how a resource is used and related jobs, encouraging spoken explanation.
Lesson 5
Habitats and Geography
Students are asked to describe different animal habitats and to answer specific questions such as which habitat they would most/least enjoy and why, which requires spoken responses. The Skills section lists "Record or dictate knowledge on topics (LA)," and several activities prompt children to "talk" about uses of animals and to "ask your child" questions, implying oral discussion. Multiple activities require students to write a sentence (e.g., beneath each habitat, in the poem template, and in the "If I Lived..." page) that provide requested detail about habitats and resources.
Lesson 6
Geography, Weather and Natural Disasters
Students are asked in Activity 3 to write a question for each natural disaster and are reminded to begin each sentence with a capital letter and use correct end punctuation. In Activity 3 students are also asked to write three or four sentences that describe each disaster and then identify the subject and verb in each sentence. In Activity 5 students are asked to write three or four sentences describing today's weather and suggested activities.
Lesson 7
The Seven Continents
The lesson asks students to answer explanatory questions such as "Why is it important to know where places are located?" and "Which continent would you most like to visit? Why?", which require more than one-word responses. The extension asks students to draw an animal and "tell you which continent it lives on," and Activity 4 directs students to "discuss the weather" and point out warm and cool areas. Several prompts invite students to explain or describe locations, animals, and weather in their own words.
Lesson 8
People Change Geography
Activity 2 directs students to write a sentence about each crop/farm they research, which asks them to produce written sentences that provide details about resources. Activity 6 requires students to use each spelling word in a written or oral sentence, prompting sentence production in speaking or writing. The wrapping-up prompts (e.g., asking how people change the land and what pollution is) ask students to respond verbally, encouraging spoken sentence answers.
Final Project
Geography of a Continent
Students are asked to give a presentation about a continent to their family and to practice that presentation until they are comfortable, using at least three props to support it. Students are asked to tell their family about the poster they created and to describe the information it gives about the continent. Students are prompted to list each prop and describe how they will use it and to answer wrap-up questions asking what they learned and why they would or would not enjoy living on the continent.
Unit 2: People Around the World
Lesson 2
Traditions
Students are asked to write a sentence about each holiday on the Holidays page and to "write sentences to describe unique ways that different cultures celebrate Christmas," providing multiple written-response tasks. Activity 8 (My Favorite Holiday) explicitly reminds students that each sentence should have a subject and predicate and reviews capitalization and end punctuation. Several activities prompt students to answer questions (e.g., naming holidays, comparing celebrations) and to "share personal experiences," which could require sentence responses.
Lesson 4
Homes and Culture
The lesson asks students (Option 2) to make up their own paragraph and explicitly directs them to "write her own complete sentences", identify nouns and verbs, and check that sentences begin with capital letters and end with periods. Activity 1 requires students to write a paragraph that includes when a tradition occurs and why it is important, which asks for providing requested detail. Activity 4 asks students to explain the purpose of rooms and demonstrate how family members will use rooms, which involves producing explanatory utterances.
Lesson 5
Transportation in Culture
Students are asked to write about a time they took a form of transportation and are encouraged to produce more complex sentences (Activity 1 gives an example: "I rode in an airplane to visit my grandma in Nebraska"). Students perform role-play where they pretend to be a driver or guide and describe a habitat or trip for a passenger to guess (Activity 3). The introduction and wrapping-up prompt ask students to act out forms of transportation and to describe types of transportation and how they are used in different cultures, which requires spoken responses.
Lesson 6
American Culture
The lesson repeatedly asks students to describe and explain items orally and in writing (e.g., describe what an object is a symbol of, explain which leaders' contributions were most important and why, discuss life in cultural neighborhoods, and let the child explain different aspects of American culture). The Skills list includes "Participate in rhymes, songs, conversations, and discussions (LA)," which indicates students are expected to take part in spoken exchanges. Several activities prompt students to answer questions and tell stories (e.g., asking the child the name of her country, asking what she thinks life is like in Chinatown or Little Italy).
Lesson 7
History of America
The Skills list includes "Participate in rhymes, songs, conversations, and discussions" and "Discuss and explain how, why, and what if questions," indicating students will speak and explain ideas. Activity 3 asks the child to answer specific questions about the Pilgrims (e.g., "How did the Pilgrims get to America?", "Why did the Pilgrims leave England?"), requiring spoken responses. Activity 4 and Activity 8 ask the child to explain wants versus needs, make lists, and describe three ways culture has changed, all of which prompt students to provide explanations during discussion.
Lesson 8
Asian Culture
The lesson lists the language skill "Respond and elaborate in answering what, when, and how questions (LA)" and includes activities that ask students to discuss questions (Activity 1 question prompts, Activity 8 discussion prompts) and to share information with family (Activity 6 presentation of panda information). It also asks students to present dramatic interpretations and to select and use new vocabulary in speech, which require spoken responses and elaboration.
Lesson 10
South American Culture
Students are prompted to answer oral comprehension questions after reading (e.g., "What are some animals that can be found in South America?"; "What are some differences between South America and your own community?"), which requires speaking in response to a task. The spelling activity asks students to write each word three times and then "use each word in a sentence about one of the continents or countries she learned about," explicitly asking students to produce sentences. Students are also asked to complete a guidebook entry and to read or present their animal description to family members, which requires composing and speaking sentences that provide details.
Unit 3: Stories Around the World
Lesson 1
Fiction or Nonfiction
Students are prompted to describe stories orally when the materials say to "ask her if she thinks the story was a good story or not and to describe why," and to "ask your child to describe the difference between a fiction and nonfiction book." The skills list explicitly includes responding through speech. The lesson also contains several teacher/parent questions (e.g., "Ask your child which types of books she thinks are most interesting") that invite spoken responses.
Lesson 2
Character
Students are asked to record examples of what a character thinks, says, and does (Activity 2) and to write an action and a thought for each character (Activity 3), which require producing utterances in response to prompts. Students are asked to tell a story about characters (Activity 4) and to pretend to be a character and respond to situational prompts (Activity 5), which involve speaking or responding in context. The Wrapping Up and Life Application prompts require students to explain why characters are important and to describe characters, asking for verbal explanations or descriptions.
Lesson 4
Plot
Students are asked to identify the problem, three or more events, and the solution after a story read-aloud (Activity 1), which requires spoken responses. Students are asked to tell the story of "Jack and the Beanstalk" as they remember it and to sequence events aloud (Activity 2). Students are asked to tell and dictate a story they create, read it aloud, and define what the plot is (Activity 5 and Wrapping Up), all of which involve producing spoken explanations or summaries.
Lesson 5
Folktales and Fairy Tales
Students are prompted to answer explicit comprehension and discussion questions (Activity 1: Who were the characters? What is the setting? What was the problem?). Students are asked to describe characters and changes in Yeh-Shen (Activity 4 and the Yeh-Shen worksheet) and to share knowledge about continents and culture (Activity 1 and 4). The Wrapping Up prompt asks the child to "describe a folktale" and "what we can learn from folktales," and Activity 2 has the child read and arrange sentence strips aloud.
Lesson 7
Theme
Students are asked to describe the main characters, major events, and the theme after reading a story (Activity 1), which prompts spoken explanations. Students are asked to explain the lesson/theme of each fable in their own words and say how they could use the lesson in their own life (Activity 2). Students dictate an original story, read it aloud, and discuss revisions (Activity 4), engaging in spoken sentence production.
Lesson 8
Myths and Legends
Students are asked numerous oral questions (Activity 1 and Wrapping Up) such as "What did the people want?", "Why do you think the people wanted fire?", and prompts to explain why they enjoyed a story or to describe myths and legends. Activity 2 asks students to read a script and perform a skit for an audience, which requires speaking lines and giving spoken responses while acting. Activity 3 and other guided questions prompt students to explain differences between fact and fiction and to answer comprehension questions about Paul Bunyan, eliciting spoken explanations.
Lesson 9
Poetry
Students are asked to explain why a poem is their favorite and to answer questions about rhyming words and which picture reminds them most of their life, which requires spoken explanations. Students are prompted to describe what a person from another country could learn about American culture from selected poems and to say what they learned after reading nursery rhymes from other countries. Students are asked to recite favorite nursery rhymes and to respond to questions about activities, homes, clothing, and holidays using examples from the text and pictures.
Final Project
A New Cinderella
Students are instructed to answer each planning question in a sentence, beginning with a capital letter and ending with a period, and to write responses on the Organizing My Story page. The story templates and fill-in-the-blank prompts require students to produce full sentences (e.g., "Once upon a time there lived a..." and completion of narrative sentences). Students are asked to read their finished book aloud to family and friends, which provides an opportunity to speak their written sentences.
4: Relationships
Unit 1: Living Things and Their Environment
Lesson 1
Relationships Among Organisms
Multiple activities ask the child to speak and provide explanations: Activity 3 asks the child to "explain one difference" between each parent and offspring; Activity 7 asks the child to "describe to you how" the different sibling is different; Day 2 Activity 4 and the Wrapping Up section ask the child to "discuss" shared traits and to "describe three inherited traits" and the difference between inherited and learned traits. These prompts require the student to give spoken details or clarifications in response to questions.
Lesson 2
Heredity Lab
The Spelling activity instructs the child to "use each word in a sentence orally" before writing, which requires producing spoken sentences. The Wrapping Up section asks the child to explain "how her investigations explain what she has learned about traits and heredity," prompting an oral explanation. Several activities instruct discussion of traits (e.g., "Discuss the traits of the Generation 2 creatures" and "Discuss how the generations differ and why"), which require students to speak about observations.
Lesson 5
Rivers
Students are asked to answer specific read-aloud questions (e.g., Question #1 with an expected full-sentence answer: "Rivers carry water and ponds have still water"). Activity 4 directs students to draw four life stages and "write a simple sentence that describes each of the four stages" in their own words. Multiple prompts ask students to speak about what they know or learned (e.g., "Ask your child what he knows about river habitats," and "Ask your child what he learned about rivers and the life cycle").
Final Project
Investigating the Environment
Students are asked to explain their ideas when planning investigations ("Have her explain her ideas to you and ask her to pick two ideas"). Students are asked to share and explain their observations, investigations, and research with family ("Let your child share her project... Have her explain her observations, investigations, and her animal research"). The lesson directs students to "communicate observations and justify explanations using student-generated data" and to write a sentence about what they saw as an option when analyzing photographs.
Unit 2: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Lesson 1
Relationships
Students are asked to answer specific comprehension questions about Chapters 1 and 2 (e.g., "How did Abilene feel about Edward? How do you know?"), which requires them to provide detailed responses. Students are asked to write three sentences describing their favorite stuffed animal's personality and to illustrate it, practicing sentence production in writing. Students are challenged at the end to use each vocabulary word correctly in their own sentence, reinforcing sentence construction with targeted vocabulary.
Lesson 2
Point of View
Students are asked to answer specific comprehension questions after a read-aloud (e.g., identify the ship, explain a metaphor), requiring them to produce spoken or written responses. Students are asked to retell Pellegrina's story and to retell chapters 3–4 "in her own words," which prompts extended explanation and detail. Students are prompted to discuss point of view and to compare characters using a Venn diagram, which asks them to explain similarities and differences.
Lesson 3
The Queen Mary
Students are asked to describe a time they rode on a boat and to describe their favorite experience, which requires them to speak in sentences. After reading Chapters 5 and 6, students are asked WH-questions (e.g., Why do you think Abilene didn't want to let the other girls hold Edward?) that prompt explanatory answers. The Wrapping Up activity has students repeat full sentences while substituting an emphasized word with a more descriptive word or phrase, which practices producing whole sentences aloud.
Lesson 4
Pronouns
Students are asked to answer specific comprehension questions aloud after reading Chapters 7–9, which requires spoken responses about what Edward thought and who found him. Students are prompted to discuss illustrations and to describe characters and relationships (e.g., compare Edward's relationships with Abilene vs. Nellie and Lawrence). Students read sentences aloud with nouns and then read them again replacing nouns with pronouns, practicing spoken sentence reading.
Lesson 5
Emotions
Students are asked to describe how Edward's relationships differ ("Ask your child to think back... Ask him to describe how the two relationships are different") and to answer a series of comprehension questions aloud after reading Chapters 10–12. The skills section explicitly includes reading closely and "cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking," and the activities prompt students to discuss quotes and explain Edward's feelings. The guide also directs students to write a "Goodbye Note" that expresses emotion, and to verbally discuss why Edward's feelings change.
Lesson 6
Irregular Verbs
The Wrap-Up asks the child to "say three sentences" containing regular past-tense verbs and "three sentences" with irregular past-tense verbs, requiring oral sentence production. Reading and Questions prompt answers to comprehension items (e.g., "Did Edward like Bull and Lucy? How do you know?"), which ask for explanatory responses. Activity 1 models inserting verbs into the sentence frame "Yesterday, I __________," encouraging students to produce whole sentences using past-tense verbs.
Lesson 7
Figurative Language
Students are asked to discuss Edward's feelings and to answer aloud who their favorite character is and why, which requires verbal responses with supporting detail. The Reading and Questions section asks students to answer questions such as "Do you think Bryce should have taken Edward down? Why or why not?", prompting them to provide reasons. Activity 1 Part II and the Figurative Language Option 2 require students to write their own sentences (using plural forms or figurative language), giving practice composing complete sentences with detail.
Lesson 8
The Falling Star
Students are asked to "write a sentence for each preposition listed" on the Prepositions activity page and are given an explicit example sentence: "Edward is beside the ball." The Reading and Questions section directs students to answer comprehension questions about Chapters 17 and 18, prompting them to produce responses to specific questions about characters and events.
Lesson 9
Apostrophes
Students are prompted to discuss changes in Edward in the Introduction when asked, "Ask your child what he believes changed Edward," which requires spoken explanation. Students read Chapters 19–21 aloud with an adult and then are asked to answer three comprehension questions about where Bryce takes Edward, who Edward thought he saw, and what Neal did — tasks that require verbal responses. Students practice ordering from a menu in Activity 2, which asks them to choose items they can afford and (implicitly) place an order, creating opportunities for spoken exchanges.
Lesson 10
Illustrations
Students are asked to answer specific comprehension questions after reading Chapters 22–24 (Question #1–#4), which requires them to give verbal responses. Students are prompted to retell the story using the book's illustrations as a guide and to pick and explain a favorite illustration, asking who, what, when, and where. Students are asked to briefly describe, in chronological order, each environment Edward encounters and to explain which "family" was their favorite and why, requiring spoken description and detail.
Lesson 11
Building Sentences
Students are asked to predict the story ending and to answer four comprehension questions aloud after reading Chapters 25–27 and the Coda, which requires them to produce responses. Activity 1 has students use FANBOYS conjunctions to expand sentences, and Activity 3 has students add adjectives and rearrange sentences to make complete, more detailed sentences. The Relationship Timeline and quadrant pages require students to write simple sentences describing Edward's relationships, and the Wrapping Up asks students to share a personal time of heartbreak and how they recovered.
Final Project
Chalkboard Presentation
Students are asked to dictate a sentence that describes their opinion of the story and to explain why they feel that way (Slide 1). Students dictate a sentence explaining why they like a favorite part of the story and a sentence describing a favorite relationship and why it is their favorite (Slides 2–3). Students practice presenting the slides aloud to family and record themselves reading a selected paragraph, which requires speaking sentences with detail.
Unit 3: Connecting with the Past
Lesson 1
Studying History
The lesson directs students to "use each word in a sentence" during the Chronology Vocabulary activity, requiring them to produce sentence-level responses for vocabulary words. The lesson also asks students to "explain the difference between primary and secondary sources" and to answer discussion prompts (e.g., "Ask your child what he knows about American history"), which require students to produce spoken or written explanations.
Lesson 2
Colonization and the Revolution
Students are prompted to answer open-ended oral questions (e.g., "What do you think about how boys were treated differently from girls?") and to "explain what she thinks" about quotes from the Declaration of Independence, which require spoken explanations. Students are asked to "share some of the things she learned" at the end of the unit and to list two things on the "Colonists and the American Revolution" page, which can elicit explanatory responses. Several activities ask students to write things they are thankful for or fill in blanks about George Washington, providing opportunities for written responses.
Lesson 3
Slavery and the Civil War
Students are asked to "explain each trait with evidence from the book as he writes it" on the Character Traits cube, which requires them to provide explanations. Students must "add the date, picture, and description to the timeline" for Harriet Tubman and Abraham Lincoln, requiring them to write a description of events. Students complete the "Slavery and the Civil War" page by finishing the sentence "Because the Civil War was fought, today ________", which asks for a written response that conveys consequences.
Lesson 4
Immigration
Students are asked to answer explicit comprehension questions after reading (e.g., Who was Annie Moore? What did the immigrants see?), which requires verbal or written responses. Students are asked to listen to oral histories, describe a favorite recording, and retell one of the stories, which asks them to produce spoken narratives. Students are directed to select a photograph and answer guided questions about the person in the picture (Where do you think he/she is from? What is he/she thinking or feeling?), and to complete a sentence on the 'American Immigration' activity page that begins "Because immigrants were brought to Ellis Island...".
Lesson 5
Civil Rights
The lesson asks students to answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., "How would you describe Ruby's family?" and "Do you think Ruby was scared?") and to explain the Civil Rights Movement in their own words, which require students to produce spoken responses. It instructs students to discuss videos and to 'speculate about what would be different in his community,' prompting oral explanation and clarification. The 'Civil Rights' student page asks students to write and complete the sentence prompt ("Because Americans fought peacefully... today _____ and _____"), giving a written opportunity to produce complete sentences.
Final Project
Preparing Projects
Students are asked to practice presenting their "Connecting with the Past" poster and to "explain how we still have a relationship with these past events," which requires spoken explanation. Students are instructed to invite family and friends to their exhibit, read the book, look over the timeline, and then present the poster, creating an audience for spoken communication. Students are also asked follow-up questions about their favorite part and areas for improvement, prompting verbal responses.
6: Reading
Unit 1: Semester 1
Lesson 1
Word Families and Long Vowel Review
Students unscramble words to form a complete sentence in Activity 4.3 (Sentence Scramble) and then read that sentence aloud. In Activity 5.2 (Reader #1) students read a short reader independently and are asked direct comprehension questions (e.g., "What did Jade do while Cash rode bikes with Dad?" and "Which would you have the most fun doing?") that prompt spoken responses. During Shared Reading students are asked to read the message aloud and answer questions about vowel sounds and capitalization, requiring verbal answers.
Lesson 2
Vowel Teams Review
Students read full lines in the Shared Reading activity (child lines are complete sentences) and read the Reader #2 story aloud, producing complete sentences while reading. The comprehension section asks oral questions (e.g., "Do you like snow? Why or why not?") that invite spoken responses. The Life Application asks students to try to use target words in sentences, prompting sentence production in real situations.
Lesson 3
Complex Consonants Review
Students unscramble words to form a complete sentence in Activity 4.3 and then read that sentence aloud. Students are asked to "explain in his own words" how c and g are pronounced differently in Activity 3.1, prompting oral explanation. In Activity 5.2 students read a story and answer specific comprehension questions aloud (e.g., Who are the children? What is wrong with the restaurant?).
Lesson 4
R-Controlled Vowels Review
Students unscramble words to make a complete sentence in the Sentence Scramble activity and then read that sentence aloud. In Life Application, students are invited to dictate a short sentence and then reconstruct it from index cards, which requires them to produce and organize a spoken sentence. Comprehension question prompts after the Reader (e.g., "Who wins the race?" and "At first, who did you think would win the race?") ask students to answer orally, encouraging spoken responses.
Lesson 5
More R-Controlled Vowels
Students are invited to produce sentences in Activity 2.2 where they are asked to use "hear" and "heard" in sentences (e.g., "What is something you hear right now?" and "What is something that you heard yesterday?"). In Activity 5.1 students are asked comprehension questions that require explanatory responses (e.g., "Why does it rain?" and "Do you like storms? Why or why not?"). In Shared Reading students read full Child lines aloud, practicing speaking full sentence forms when they read those lines.
Lesson 7
More Long Vowel Spellings
Students are asked to explain their sorting groups and "explain his groups to you" after word-sorting (Activity 1.2). Students are asked to read a short reader and answer comprehension questions aloud (Activity 5.2). Students are prompted to "explain the difference between 'many' and 'any'" and to "explain the answer to the riddle as needed" (Activity 1.3 and Introduction).
Lesson 9
Complex Consonants: dge vs. ge
Students are asked to read aloud and answer questions about sounds and spellings (e.g., "What sound does the letter g make in these words and how do you know?" and "Where is the /j/ sound in the word 'stage'?"), which requires verbal explanation. Multiple activities ask students to explain the rule about using dge and ge (Activity 3.1) and to discuss word meanings and sorting rationales (Activity 2.1). Comprehension questions about the reader (Activities 4.2 and 5.1) ask students to describe events and reasons (e.g., "How did the moose escape the cage?" and "Why do you think it is a problem that a moose is on the loose?"), prompting spoken responses with detail.
Lesson 10
Complex Consonants: tch vs. ch, ck vs. k
Students are asked to answer open-ended questions (e.g., "What do you think will happen in this book?" and "What words do you think you'll find in this book? Why?") and to respond to comprehension questions about The Egg at the Lake. Students are prompted to "explain why she thinks so," to "explain the rules about using ck, ke, and k," and to point to a column and explain why a word belongs there. Several activities require students to read aloud and to read or say words and explanations aloud to the adult.
Lesson 11
Final e: ce, ve, ze, se
Students are asked to use each sight word in a sentence (Activity 1.3). Students read Aesop's fables and answer comprehension prompts aloud (e.g., "What was your favorite fable? Why?", "How did the dog lose his bone?", and explain the moral) which require spoken responses. Students are prompted to pose and answer riddles and to explain answers, requiring them to speak responses in context.
Lesson 12
Homophones
Students read lines aloud in Shared Reading (Activity 1.1) and speak full utterances such as "A 'pear' is a fruit, and a 'pair' means I have two." Students are asked to "explain in her own words" what is special about homophone pairs (Activity 1.2) and to answer open-ended comprehension questions about the reader (Activity 5.1). Several activities require students to read words and sentences aloud, describe word meanings, and discuss differences (e.g., Activities 2.1, 3.1, 5.1, and the wrapping-up comparison of rhymes vs. homophones).
Lesson 13
Making Plurals
Students are asked to explain when to add -es and to "explain what he's learned" about making plural words (Activity 2.2 and 3.1), which requires spoken explanations. The lesson poses predictive and comprehension questions (Day 4 pre-reading; Day 5 reader questions) that prompt students to answer "What do you think...?" and "Why?", encouraging verbal responses. Multiple activities ask students to read aloud, say plural forms, and read their written responses aloud, providing opportunities for spoken explanations and detail.
Lesson 14
Uncommon Plurals
Students are asked to use sight words in sentences (Activity 1.3) and to answer comprehension and discussion questions aloud (e.g., "What are the rules you've already learned?" "What do you think will happen in this book?" "Why did the women and children need to bring the animals to the barn?"). Students are prompted to explain linguistic rules orally (e.g., "Why does this word need es at the end?" and to share what they notice about letters before y). Several activities require students to state plural forms and to put words into sentences or read lines aloud, providing repeated opportunities for oral sentence production.
Lesson 15
Words Ending with ed and ing
Students are asked to describe something they did yesterday and to write a short sentence about it and another about something they will do later, providing explicit sentence-writing practice (Activity 1.2). The teacher/parent prompts students to use target words in sentences (e.g., use "know" and "knew" in a sentence; invite the child to use each new word in a sentence during Wrapping Up and Activity 3.3). Students answer oral questions about tense and story comprehension that require spoken responses in sentence form (e.g., "What is something that you did last week?" and comprehension questions about The Red-Eyed Tree Frog). Several activities ask students to read sentences aloud, place them by tense, and produce completed sentences for fill-in and sentence-completion exercises (Activities 2.1, 5.2).
Lesson 16
Words Ending with er and est
The lesson asks students to use sight words in a sentence (Activity 1.3) and to read and answer comprehension and comparison questions during shared reading and pre-reading (Activity 1.1, Day 4.2). Students are asked to explain differences (e.g., explain the difference between adding er and est in Activity 5.1) and to respond to prompts about comparisons (e.g., Which shape is the tallest? Which is the shortest?). Several activities prompt students to speak their answers aloud when comparing objects (Activities 1.2, 2.1, 3.1, 5.2).
Lesson 17
Semester Review
Students arrange scrambled words into complete sentences in Activity 5.2 and are asked to consider capitalization and sentence-ending punctuation before producing the sentences. In Activity 3.2 and other places, students fill in blanks to complete sentences and then read those sentences aloud. Several activities require students to write full sentences (e.g., sentence scrambles, fill-in-the-blank) and read them aloud to demonstrate correctness.
Unit 2: Semester 2
Lesson 1
Compound Words
The lesson explicitly asks the child to use the sight word "own" in a sentence (Activity 1.3). The lesson requires the child to read the book aloud and answer comprehension questions orally, with the parent asking questions and listening to responses (Reading and Questions). The lesson also encourages the child to discuss what he's reading and to answer opinion and factual questions about the story.
Lesson 2
The Six Syllable Types
The lesson asks the child to say a sentence aloud using an animal name in Activity 5.1, providing an explicit prompt for sentence production. Day 3 reading questions include open-ended prompts (Question #1 and #5) that require the child to provide explanations or reasons rather than single words. During Shared Reading the child reads and responds in full-sentence dialogue with the parent, modeling sentence-level speech and comprehension.
Lesson 3
Open and Closed Syllables
The lesson explicitly asks students to "use each [sight] word in a sentence" for the sight words under and never (Activity 2.3). Several comprehension tasks (Questions #1-#5 about Mouse Soup) require students to answer questions that call for short explanations (e.g., Why did the weasel catch the mouse?; How do you know this story is fiction?). The role-play activity (Activity 3.1) has students read and act out dialogue from the story, requiring them to produce oral sentences in character.
Lesson 4
Syllables with R-Controlled Vowels
Students are asked in Activity 5.2 to write short sentences using sight words and a two-syllable r-controlled word, with explicit directions to start sentences with a capital letter and end with a period. Activity 3.1 allows students to identify the problem and solution in a story and to dictate their answers to be recorded, which gives an opportunity to produce spoken responses. The Reading and Questions section prompts students to answer comprehension questions and to retell stories, tasks that can involve producing complete sentences.
Lesson 5
Two-Syllable Words Ending in y
Activity 1.3 explicitly asks the child to use each sight word orally in a sentence, requiring students to produce spoken sentences. Activity 4.3 (Puppy Word Sentences) has students complete and read entire sentences using target words, which elicits sentence production. The Reading and Questions section asks comprehension questions (e.g., Why do you think the mouse was able to trick the weasel?) that prompt students to answer in spoken or written form.
Lesson 6
Possessives
In Activity 1.1 (Shared Reading) students speak full lines such as "Look at the cat's toy," "And here is Dad's hat," and participate in call-and-response reading with the parent. The Reading and Questions section directs the adult to ask comprehension questions (e.g., "What did Penny find in Mrs. Goodwin's front yard?") for the child to answer. Activity 4.1 asks students to call out pretend-play events and act them out, and Activity 3.1 has the child read back a list of words and phrases aloud.
Lesson 7
Contractions
Students are asked to use the sight words "don't" and "it's" in sentences orally (Activity 1.3). Students answer comprehension questions about Penny and Her Marble (Reading And Questions) including open-ended "Why do you think..." prompts that require explanatory responses. Activity 4.1 asks students to write the theme and then read their responses aloud, and Activity 4.2/4.3 require students to convert phrases to contractions and separate contractions into the two words, which involves producing and reading short utterances.
Lesson 8
Two-Syllable Words with Silent e
Students are prompted to give an oral summary of the Frog and Toad story and to reread the story before summarizing (Activity 4.1). They are asked several open-ended spoken questions (e.g., "What season was it? How did you know?", "Do you like winter? Why or why not?", Activity 4.1 and Day 3) and to explain how characters felt (Activity 3.1). Students are also asked to read aloud, respond during shared reading, and to bring out and label theme items while naming them (Day 2 activities).
Lesson 9
Vowel Teams
Students are asked to use each sight word in a sentence and to try using both words in the same sentence (Activity 1.3). Students are prompted to answer comprehension questions about Frog and Toad (Reading And Questions) and to explain the riddle answer, which require oral responses. Students are asked to summarize the story "Ice Cream" and to write or complete sentences in the "Complete the Sentence" activity, demonstrating practice producing sentences in response to prompts.
Lesson 10
Consonant Teams
Students are explicitly asked to use the sight words "once" and "friend" orally in a sentence (Activity 1.3). Students answer comprehension questions aloud after reading Frog and Toad stories, which requires producing spoken responses to prompts (Reading and Questions). Students fill in sentence-completion worksheets (Panther Word Sentences) and read those sentences aloud, and students are asked to write their own sentence for a holiday on the Seasons and Holidays page (Day 2 Activity 2.1).
Lesson 12
Suffixes
Students are asked to use each sight word in a sentence (Activity 1.3) and to answer comprehension questions that require explanations and reasons (Reading and Questions, e.g., "Why do you think Annie put Willy in the box?" and "If you were a mouse, would you rather be Alexander or Willy? Why?"). Students are asked to tell a story out loud that includes all eight theme words and to explain story elements such as character, setting, beginning/middle/end (Activity 2.1 and Activity 3.1). Multiple activities prompt oral responses that require full-sentence explanations and detail (Day 4 Magic Purple Pebble prompt to explain why she would wish to be turned into something, and wrap-up questions asking for definitions and implications).
Lesson 13
Prefixes
Students are asked to explain what a suffix is and give examples (Introduction) and to share what each prefix means after watching the video (Activity 1.2). Students are prompted to read poems aloud and answer comprehension questions such as "Which poem was your favorite?" and "How are poems different from stories?" (Reading And Questions). Students are asked to find and name words aloud (Finding Words in the Text, Day 4 activities) and to read sight words and explain their meanings (Activity 1.3).
Lesson 14
Words Starting with q or a
Students are asked to use each sight word orally in a sentence (Activity 1.3). Students are prompted to read poems aloud and answer comprehension questions that require explanations (Day 4 questions: favorite poem and why; compare reading aloud vs. reading silently). Students are asked to say what they usually do on a given day and to answer questions about days of the week (Day 2 Theme Words), which require spoken responses beyond single words.
Lesson 15
Semester Review
Students are asked to explain meanings orally in Activity 1.3 (e.g., respond to "what the phrase means" for "Jane's cat" and tell what contractions are short for), and they are prompted to read sentences aloud to check that answers make sense. Activity 5.3 requires students to write four sentences using target words, and Activity 3.3 and 4.3 prompt students to state opinions (e.g., which theme word was his favorite) and explain them. Several activities also prompt students to say or read words aloud after completing decoding or syllable-division tasks.
Final Project
Write Your Own Story
Students are instructed to write about 2–3 simple sentences on each notecard/page (Activity 2.2 and Day 3) and to edit spelling and grammar during Book Editing (Activity 4.1). Students complete a Story Idea page that prompts them to plan a beginning, middle, and end and to record words to use, which supports composing full sentences. Students also read their finished book aloud to the family (Wrapping Up), providing at least one opportunity to speak sentence-length text.