Kindergarten - ELA
1: Letters
Unit 1: A - A Is for Musk Ox
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to answer comprehension questions aloud after the read-aloud (e.g., identify the animals that talk, explain why we have the alphabet, name a favorite letter and say why). Students are asked to count the letter cards aloud and to 'discuss' the number and alphabetical order when ordering alphabet cards. The activities require students to verbalize answers, explain reasoning (why we have the alphabet; why a letter is a favorite), and participate in oral counting and discussion.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to say or sing the letters of the alphabet and to practice counting to 20 aloud, providing direct opportunities to speak audibly. In Activity 2 students repeat the sound of the letter A multiple times and practice saying it while tracing or forming the uppercase A. In Activity 1 students discuss information about musk oxen and compare sources, which requires them to express ideas and factual information verbally. In Activity 3 students act like a musk ox while an adult guesses, giving them a chance to express ideas and feelings through performance and prompted explanation.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to say or sing the letters of the alphabet and to practice counting to 20 aloud. During reading, students are encouraged to point to letters and say the letter aloud, to say the sight word "you" together and then by themselves, and to say letter sounds when shown flashcards. Students are asked what "herd" means and to explain the meaning, and the definition is read and discussed with them.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to say or sing the letters of the alphabet and to practice counting to 20 aloud, which requires producing audible speech. Students are asked what a herd is and prompted to review the sound of A, inviting short spoken responses. Students are prompted to look at the world map, name each continent, point out Canada/Greenland/Alaska, and discuss what the tundra environment is like, which invites students to describe ideas orally.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are asked to say or sing the letters of the alphabet and to practice counting to 20 aloud in the Getting Started review, and they answer spoken questions such as "What is a herd?" Activity 1 has students tell how many objects there are and answer questions like "What number is one more than 1?", requiring verbal responses. Activity 2 asks students to state whether they liked a book and explain why or recommend it to a friend, and Activity 3 has students dictate a story that is recorded and then reread, providing repeated opportunities to express ideas and feelings orally.
Unit 2: H - Hondo and Fabian
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson asks students to answer questions about the book (e.g., naming the two characters, describing differences, and listing actions Hondo and Fabian did), requiring spoken responses. It prompts students to explain a preference with a justification ("Would you rather be a cat or a dog? Why?"), which asks for expression of ideas and reasons. Activity 2 has students say number names aloud while pointing to number cards and counting animals, providing practice in producing audible speech.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to name the two characters and practice counting to 20 aloud, requiring spoken responses. In Activity 1, students talk about what they know about cats and dogs and verbally provide characteristics to record in a Venn diagram. In Activity 2, students say "Hondo," listen for the initial /h/ sound, describe how the letter H looks, and produce words that begin with /h/. In Activity 3, students sing the "Bingo" song aloud and are encouraged to point to letters and substitute claps while singing.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to retell the story in their own words using the pictures as prompts and to answer follow-up questions about what happened, which requires them to express ideas and sequence events. Students are asked how the characters feel and how they feel themselves, prompting them to state feelings and ideas aloud. Students practice saying the sight word "he," count to 20, and verbally compare quantities in the "Which One Has More?" activity, giving multiple opportunities for oral expression. Activity 4 asks students to use words or phrases to describe characters while an adult records responses, prompting spoken description.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked in the Review to say the sound the letter H makes and to think of words that begin with that sound, prompting spoken responses. Students are asked in Activity 2 to talk about a friend, describe what they like to do together, paint that activity, and then dictate a sentence about their painting that is written down. Students are prompted to name or identify beginning letter sounds in Activity 3 as they circle, cut, and paste letters, which requires them to produce sounds or words aloud.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are prompted to answer review questions (e.g., what a character is) and to name words that start with the "h" sound, requiring spoken responses. In Activity 2 students are asked to state what they think about the names "Hondo" and "Fabian" and to name a pet, prompting expression of opinions. In Activity 3 students talk about their own name, dictate two statements about themselves to an adult, and are encouraged to "read" aloud what they have written, providing opportunities to express ideas verbally.
Unit 3: I - The Little Island
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to speak about the book by finding the title and describing what they notice on the cover and by answering specific comprehension questions (e.g., What is an island? Which creatures lived on the island?). Students are asked opinion and explanatory questions (e.g., Would you like to visit the little island? Why or why not?), and the web activity asks them to state which islands they would like to visit and why. In Activity 1 students are instructed to count objects aloud when placing trees and fireflies on their island, providing opportunities to speak so others can hear their counting.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students page through The Little Island and talk about how the pictures change through the seasons, describing how seasons affect the island and themselves. Students pretend to go on a picnic and answer teacher prompts about what season it is, choose appropriate gear, and explain what accessories they will need when the season changes. Students respond to direct questions about how the seasons affect them, providing opportunities to express ideas and feelings aloud.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read the sight word card and supply the missing word when reading the title, requiring oral word production. Students are prompted to retell The Little Island in their own words using the illustrations to guide their retelling. Students answer oral questions (e.g., "What number is one more than 7?") and act out animals called out by the teacher, which involves speaking responses and describing animal movement.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are prompted to tell the definition of an island and to practice reading three sight-word cards, giving them opportunities to verbalize ideas and read aloud. During the wave activity, students are asked to observe, discuss possibilities, and decide what causes waves, which requires them to state their thoughts. In Activity 2 students are asked to read the first two lines of the story and to pretend to be the winds or kitten, which involves speaking lines and describing or acting out spatial relations aloud.
Lesson 5
Day 5
During the Review, the child is asked to tell the definition of an island and to practice counting aloud, prompting spoken responses. Activity 2 asks the child to describe the book cover, locate the back cover and title page, and to state her opinion of the book with reasons, which requires expressing thoughts and ideas. Activity 3 has the child draw and dictate or write about a visit to the island and then "read" her ideas to the adult, providing an explicit opportunity to speak her ideas aloud and share them with others.
Unit 4: T - What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students preview the book and make predictions, then answer oral comprehension questions about animals and their structures (e.g., naming noses, ears, tails, eyes, mouth, feet). Students respond verbally to questions comparing homes and animal features, recalling information from the reading. In the "Similar and Different" activity, students draw two animal cards and state one similarity and one difference aloud between the animals' structures.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to explain vocabulary words and to talk about the meaning of "structure," giving them opportunities to state ideas in full sentences. Students discuss pages about animals' tails, describe the purpose and shape of each tail, and consider what each animal might need a tail for. Students are asked to say the word "tail" together and to explain the tail they design, providing multiple spoken-expression opportunities.
Lesson 3
Day 3
The lesson asks the child to practice reading the sight word this aloud and to read the book with an adult, giving multiple opportunities to speak. The lesson includes comprehension questions (Was this book make-believe or true? What kind of information did you learn?) that require the child to state ideas and organize responses. The activities prompt the child to practice letter sounds (have him practice the sound of the letter t) and to read words to the adult.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to name an animal whose tail has a special job and to describe that job, which requires them to state ideas aloud. Students are prompted to discuss an animal's body parts, how they are used, where the animal lives, and what it eats, which involves speaking to convey information. In the "Who Has a Part Like This?" activity, students act out animals and participate in a guessing exchange, requiring them to communicate and respond to peers or family members.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students are asked aloud which tail is longer/shorter and to order the tails, prompting spoken responses and comparisons. In Activity 2, students are asked to recount the sequence of the book and to evaluate it ("Did he like it? Did he learn something new? Why or why not?"), prompting students to state opinions and explain reasoning. In Activity 3, students dictate 1–3 facts in complete sentences to an adult, requiring them to express ideas verbally and provide factual statements.
Unit 5: L - We're Going on a Leaf Hunt
Lesson 1
Day 1
The reading prompts ask the child to answer questions aloud (e.g., "Do you think the children enjoyed their leaf hunt? Why or why not?" and "How did the children feel at the end?"), prompting verbal expression of thoughts and feelings. The Skills section includes "With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details," which requires students to speak about story events. The activities ask the child to describe leaves, name adjectives, and recount personal experiences (e.g., "Have you ever gone on a search for something?"), providing multiple opportunities to express ideas and feelings orally.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to say the phrase "a tall mountain" aloud when identifying the adjective "tall." Students practice producing the L sound aloud while forming the uppercase L and while naming words like "leaf" and "lion." Students are asked to act out the story—moving through rooms, substituting verbs (skip, march, stroll, hop) and performing those actions aloud.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to say the sight word "go" aloud each time it appears and to point to and read the line that contains it. Students are asked to identify adjectives that describe the forest, waterfall, lake, and skunk and to repeat phrases such as "dark forest." Students count out leaves corresponding to number cards, speaking number words as they count. Students draw a map of the journey and may discuss the sequence using arrows and labels.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to name three adjectives that describe themselves, requiring them to speak about personal thoughts and feelings. Students discuss plant parts aloud, describe observations (roots, stems, leaves), and answer comparative questions about sizes and differences. Students count and compare groups of leaves and state which group has more, verbally matching counts to number cards. The letter-sound activities also prompt students to say beginning sounds for pictured items.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 prompts the child to answer questions aloud (Did you enjoy this book? Why or why not? Would you recommend it?), which requires verbal expression of opinion and feelings. Writing Workshop Option 1 directs the child to dictate her imagined story to an adult while the adult records it, providing an explicit opportunity to express ideas orally. Writing Workshop Option 2 invites the child to think of and dictate describing words for objects, practicing spoken expression of descriptive ideas.
Unit 6: F - Fireflies
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to describe the book cover and tell what they know about fireflies, prompting them to speak their observations and ideas aloud. Students answer questions about the character's feelings and explain why the boy was both crying and smiling, practicing expressing emotions and reasoning. Students give and follow spoken directional clues in the 'Find the Firefly' activity and practice counting aloud by tens in 'Two, Ten, Hundreds,' providing repeated opportunities for oral expression.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to speak aloud when they "practice counting by 2s and counting by 10s" and when they practice the letter F sound while forming the letter. Students are asked to explain word meaning (e.g., give a synonym for "blinking on, blinking off" and say what "soaring" means) and to explain how surrounding words give clues to meaning. Students are asked to determine whether pictured creatures are insects and to explain the clues and reasoning behind each decision, and to "talk together" about whether collected bugs are insects and how to know.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to read the word "said" aloud and to "read" the sentence that includes it, giving practice with oral word reading. Students are asked to count out loud by 10s and to answer numeric questions about adding one more, providing spoken number practice. Students are asked to name and act out opposites (e.g., happy/sad, tall/short), and to help think of other opposites, which requires speaking words and labeling feelings or actions.
Lesson 4
Day 4
During review, the child is asked to tell the opposite of "mean" and to recall letter sounds and word cards, prompting spoken responses. In Activity 1, the child is asked to recall insect characteristics and to come up with new ways to sort the creatures, which requires explaining sorting choices and counting group sizes aloud. Activity 2 invites the child to create and perform a dance and to imagine and describe movements as the boy in the book, which can prompt narration or explanation to family members.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 asks the child to "tell the story in his own words using the illustrations as a guide" and to discuss whether he liked the story and how he would feel letting the fireflies go, prompting verbal expression of ideas and feelings. Activity 1 invites the child to "tell you stories about catching a few fireflies at a time," giving repeated opportunities to speak about events. Activity 3 allows students to dictate their writing, which creates additional chances to express ideas orally.
Unit 7: E - But No Elephants
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to look at the book cover and tell what they see and predict what the book will be about, prompting them to state ideas and opinions. After reading, students are asked open-ended questions (e.g., describe Grandma Tildy's life at the beginning and end; say whether she was happy and why), which require students to express thoughts and feelings. Activity 2 asks students to put animals in order and verbally report the sequence using ordinal words (e.g., "First the ___ came…"), and Activity 1 has students name and compare animals aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to explain vocabulary words and give examples (e.g., explain 'adjective' or recall the meaning of 'predicament'), requiring them to state ideas in complete utterances. Students are prompted to name a predicament Grandma Tildy faced, producing a spoken response about story events. In Activity 1 students describe the positions of animals using target words and produce model sentences such as "The elephant's legs are under the floor," practicing spoken descriptions of what they see.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read the sight word "no" aloud and read it at the appropriate time in the book. Students are prompted to explain what happened in the story after reading. In Activity 1, students act like an animal, speak or act to be guessed, and then explain how that animal would help Grandma Tildy. In Activity 3, students verbally sort animals, count categories, and are asked to suggest and explain alternative sorting methods.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to name a predicament and to identify shapes aloud during the Getting Started review, prompting verbal responses. In Activity 1 students sort household items into "wants" and "needs," explain their reasoning for each choice, and count items, requiring them to state their ideas and justify decisions. In Activity 2 students make stick puppets, listen to a modeled dramatic reading, and are prompted to tell the rest of the story or make up a new ending using the puppets, which requires oral storytelling and expression of thoughts and feelings.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students say the Elephant Rhyme aloud and perform motions together, providing an opportunity to speak and be heard. During Reading Workshop, students retell the story and answer questions such as "Did you enjoy it? Why or why not? What was your favorite part?" which prompts them to express thoughts and feelings. In Writing Workshop, students dictate descriptions of a house full of animals, orally generating ideas for an adult to record.
Unit 8: C - Millions of Cats
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to predict and describe the book cover and title, answering what they see and what they think the book will be about. After reading, students answer multiple comprehension questions aloud (Q1–Q8) about characters, problems, and feelings (e.g., lonely, quarrel) and discuss reasons for events. In activities, students explain sorting choices while grouping die-cut cats and list similarities and differences in a Venn diagram comparing characters.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to explain what the word "quarrel" means, prompting them to use spoken language to convey an idea. Students are prompted to talk about different physical features (rivers, ponds, lakes, hills, valleys, meadows) while they make landforms with playdough, encouraging verbal description of objects and features. Students practice producing the "k" sound aloud while tracing and forming the uppercase letter C, reinforcing audible articulation of a phoneme.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read the sight word "pretty" aloud when the teacher points to it and to repeat the phrase "hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats" each time it appears, giving multiple opportunities for spoken practice. Students are asked to describe a quarrel they may have had and how it ended, prompting them to express feelings and recount events. Students are asked to answer the question about what lesson the story teaches, requiring them to state ideas and explanations in their own words.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to "communicate to others what she has learned" about pet care by designing a poster or giving a "pet talk" using a stuffed animal, which requires verbal presentation of ideas. Students practice oral performance in Activity 2 by creating motions and performing the poem for family, and the Optional Extension asks students to recite the poem, supply missing words, and eventually say the poem from memory.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 1 asks the child to count aloud with an adult using a 100-number chart, giving the child an opportunity to speak audibly while counting. Activity 3 invites the child to "dictate a story about cats," which requires the child to express thoughts and ideas verbally to an adult. The counting and dictation activities create direct opportunities for oral expression.
Unit 9: G - The Real Mother Goose
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to talk about poems and answer questions such as what parts are silly, which ones they like, and why, giving chances to express thoughts and feelings. Students are asked to read and/or listen to poems and to read lines aloud (e.g., emphasizing rhyme in "Little Boy Blue"), practicing spoken language. In Activity 2 students act out a poem, read it aloud in role, and are challenged to memorize and recite the poem, including supplying words when lines are left off.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students recite the poem "The Little Bird" aloud and are asked to supply some words, and they sing the months of the year to practice reciting them in order. Students are asked orally to think of a word that rhymes with "boy" and to talk about what happens in January (weather, activities, family birthdays). Students practice producing sounds when they make the "g" sound while forming the letter G and review letter sounds and word cards.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to read poems aloud (practice the poem "The Little Bird" together; read poems or listen to CD/MP3) and to supply words aloud. Students are asked to identify rhyming pairs and to say which poem is their favorite and explain why, requiring spoken expression of ideas and feelings. Students are asked to identify a circular object, name a rhyming word for "book," and tell how they decided to group objects, prompting spoken descriptions and reasoning.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to practice the poem "The Little Bird," supply some words, and then try to say as much of the poem as they can on their own, which requires oral production. Students are prompted to sing the months-of-the-year song and sing nursery rhymes, providing repeated opportunities to speak or sing aloud. Students are asked to think of a word that rhymes with "car" and to talk about different versions of nursery rhymes, prompting brief verbal responses and discussion.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students are asked to identify a ball as a sphere, compare it to a circle, and explain where it is relative to other objects using sentences such as "the sphere is on top of the shelf." Activity 1 also asks students to name as many spheres as they can, prompting them to produce spoken lists and descriptions. In Activity 3, students dictate an original or adapted poem to an adult, requiring them to express ideas orally for writing.
Unit 10: O - Owl Babies
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to speak: students are asked to look at the cover and describe what they see, predict whether the book will teach facts or tell an imaginary story, and answer explicit comprehension questions (e.g., "Did the book tell a story...?," "How do you know?", and "Name some true facts in the book"). Activity 1 instructs students to "talk about each shape," answer questions about shape attributes (e.g., "How many sides the triangle has?"), and count and order shapes aloud. These prompts require students to express thoughts, feelings, and ideas in spoken form and provide multiple opportunities for verbal explanation and description.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students explain vocabulary words in their own words during the review, practicing putting thoughts into spoken language. Students predict whether Baby Owl is fiction or nonfiction and justify their thinking aloud, practicing expressing ideas and reasons. Students dictate facts learned about owls and are invited to present an optional owl poster or perform the poem with motions for family or friends, which requires speaking aloud to an audience.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read aloud the sight word "want" and to read Bill's line "I want my mommy!" as the teacher points to the words, providing practice speaking a line from the text. Students are prompted to tell the story in their own words, which requires them to express ideas and sequence events verbally. Students discuss how the music makes characters feel (identifying when it seems scary or cheerful) and name shapes aloud and call out shape names while choosing movement, which requires them to express feelings and ideas verbally.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to recite the poem "The Wide-Eyed Owl" together, giving them a direct opportunity to speak aloud. Students practice and perform a Reader's Theatre script with two family members, taking turns reading character lines and using emphasis and intonation (bolded lines indicate expressive delivery). Students are prompted to observe owls on a website and answer questions about how Owl Babies portrays owls, requiring them to state ideas and explain differences between real and fictional owls.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 (Reading Workshop) asks the child to think about clues and then tell the adult which book is fiction and which is non-fiction and what clues support that idea. Activity 3 (Writing Workshop) asks the child to dictate a factual description and a brief fictional story about an owl for the adult to record, providing an opportunity to express ideas aloud. Activity 1 (Longer Math Activity) invites the child to create stories to act out on the mat and to respond to verbal word problems, which involves speaking about actions and quantities.
Unit 11: S - Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to look at the book cover and describe what they see and what the pictures represent, prompting them to express observations aloud. Question #2 asks students to state their favorite activities during each season, eliciting personal thoughts and feelings. During the Adding Apples activity students create and tell addition stories and are prompted to read equations aloud, practicing clear verbal expression of mathematical ideas.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to recall the names of the four seasons and to discuss what causes the seasons, which requires them to speak aloud and share ideas. Students talk about the current season and describe typical weather, then record daily observations on a Weather Report chart by drawing, writing, or dictating to an adult. Students practice producing the "s" sound aloud while tracing and forming the uppercase S, providing focused verbal articulation practice.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to speak when they name the four seasons and answer a math question (2 + 1). Students read aloud the sight word "some," read sentences from The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree, and read the book a second time while looking for and saying the word "some." Students answer comprehension questions (e.g., "What gift did the tree give Arnold in each season?"), count and describe quantities aloud during the Ten Little Apples activity, and produce adjectives to describe each season and optionally record a poem.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to name the four seasons and give an adjective that describes summer, requiring them to produce verbal responses. Students are asked to explain how each family member contributed to making the apple pie and why the family worked together, prompting them to state reasons aloud. Students are asked to listen to Vivaldi clips and tell which season is being described and what in the music makes them think of that season.
Lesson 5
Day 5
The lesson asks the child direct questions ("Ask your child if she remembers the difference..." and "What shape is this?") which requires the child to answer orally. Activity 2 asks the child to "share with you the setting and the clues that helped her identify the season," requiring verbal explanation of ideas. Activity 3 allows the child to "write or dictate some things she knows about that season," which involves expressing ideas aloud when dictating.
Unit 12: D - Dinosaurs Big and Small
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to discuss the book cover and answer guided oral questions (e.g., Was the book fiction or non-fiction? What did you learn?), which requires spoken responses. Students are asked to identify and explain the roles of the author and illustrator and to ask and answer questions about key details. In Activity 1 students verbally compare lengths (answering Who is longer? Which is the longest?), and in Activity 2 students describe characteristics of the dinosaur they create.
Lesson 2
Day 2
During the Review, students are asked to show a dinosaur from the book and name one interesting characteristic, requiring them to produce a spoken response. In Activity 2, students practice making the /d/ sound aloud while forming the capital letter D, which asks them to vocalize sounds. Activity 1 asks students to notice imprints and answers the question "Can she see the imprint the twig made?", prompting students to observe and respond verbally. Activity 3 has students listen to the song "We Are the Dinosaurs" and act out movements, which may invite singing or vocal participation with the words.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to name their favorite dinosaur and one characteristic, prompting short oral description. Students practice reading the word "big" aloud as they find it in the book and are prompted to read it each time it occurs. Students are asked to explain the meaning of "sprawl," predict which object is heavier using the balance and state their prediction/result, and recite the dinosaur poem aloud with motions while identifying descriptive words.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to name their favorite dinosaur and state one characteristic, then think of an adjective to describe that characteristic, which requires them to express an idea orally. Students are asked to dictate five facts about their researched dinosaur while an adult records them, and then to share this new information with friends and family, which gives them opportunities to speak about their research.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 instructs the child to look for adjectives in text and then "encourage him to share some of the adjectives he found or thought about," prompting the child to speak about observations. Activity 3 directs the child to "dictate (or attempt to write if possible) some factual sentences about dinosaurs," requiring the child to formulate and express ideas orally. The reading workshop also offers an option for the child to read text and identify adjectives, which can involve verbal reporting of findings.
Unit 13: P - Harold and the Purple Crayon
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson includes explicit oral question prompts (QUESTION #1-#3) that ask the child to describe Harold's adventure and how Harold feels, requiring spoken responses. Activity 1 asks the child to explain what imagination is, recall solutions Harold used, and offer her own solutions to posed predicaments, which elicits students speaking their ideas. Activity 2 asks the child to identify shapes in the room and sort/count cut-out shapes, prompting students to name and describe shapes aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked direct questions that require spoken responses, such as "What shape is the moon in the story? Does the moon always look that way?" and "Which two [colors] do you think will combine to form purple?" Students are prompted to make predictions and answer aloud during the color-mixing activity. Students practice producing sounds and saying words aloud (for example, making the "p" sound and saying "purple" while forming the uppercase P).
Lesson 3
Day 3
The lesson prompts the child to speak about imaginative use ("Ask your child how she uses her imagination") and to identify shapes and colors verbally during the review. The teacher prompts the child to answer comprehension questions after rereading Harold and the Purple Crayon and to explain meanings during Word Play (e.g., asking what "trim" and "drew" mean in context). Activity 3 asks the child to explain the difference between a square and a rectangle, decide which solid matches which flat shape, and describe what she notices when tracing and counting faces, edges, and corners.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked orally to name shapes and distinguish which are flat or solid, and to answer imaginative prompts (e.g., "Where is she going?" when imagining sitting on a boat). During Activity 1 students are asked to explain what imagination means, compare their neighborhood to Harold's, say why or why not, and describe important places they would include. Students create a neighborhood map and are instructed to display and share their map with friends and family, implying opportunities to speak about their work.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are prompted to name or show examples of shapes and to answer questions about what they notice (e.g., "Have her name or show an example of each" and "Ask your child if she could make a rectangular prism"). Students are asked to count edges, corners, and faces aloud as they construct shapes. Students are invited to "write or dictate a description or story" about their drawing, which requires them to express ideas verbally for an adult to record.
Unit 14: B - Blueberries for Sal
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson asks the child to look at the book cover, predict what the book will be about, and answer discussion questions after the read-aloud (e.g., who was looking for blueberries, why they wanted blueberries, how characters felt). The questions explicitly prompt the child to describe feelings (e.g., "How did the bears and the people feel about each other?") and to express ideas about illustrations and story events during discussion.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to name one similarity and one difference between Little Sal and Little Bear and to name number pairs that add to 10, requiring oral responses. Students are asked whether the book takes place in the past and to look through pictures to find and describe clues, which requires them to explain ideas verbally. Students are asked to describe what "hustle" must mean and to act out movements after reading verbs of motion; they also practice making the "b" sound while forming the letter B.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to retell Blueberries for Sal in their own words using pictures as prompts, which requires them to express ideas and a sequence of events. The teacher prompts the child to read the sight word card "she" and to read aloud when the word appears in the story, giving opportunities for spoken expression. Students are asked questions (e.g., what it means to hustle, name number pairs that equal 10) and to read number cards aloud and count out blueberries, which requires verbal responses and explanation of thinking.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to read the number 13 and explain what it means, which requires them to speak and explain an idea aloud. Students create a two-column list naming elements of fiction and non-fiction about bears, requiring them to state and classify ideas verbally. Students learn and sing "The Bear Went Over the Mountain," add motions, and substitute verbs, which requires them to speak/sing aloud and produce expressive language. The letter-sounds activities require students to say beginning sounds and letters when matching pictures and letters.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 2 (Reading Workshop), students examine books and then share their findings aloud with an adult, answering prompts about clothing and technology that require them to state observations and ideas. In Activity 3 (Writing Workshop), students present or dictate their writing and receive comments, suggestions, and questions, which requires them to express their thoughts and ideas verbally.
Unit 15: R - Rain
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to discuss and answer open-ended questions about the book (e.g., what they notice on the cover, what they know about rain, what the author made them feel, and whether the ending was a surprise), which requires verbal expression of thoughts and feelings. The Skills section lists that students will "Describe familiar people, places, things, and events, and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail" and "Produce and expand complete sentences in shared language activities," which directs students to speak in complete sentences and provide details. The activities include prompting students to talk about personal experiences (e.g., being caught in a downpour) and to discuss predictions about the story, promoting verbal expression of ideas and feelings.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to describe a downpour and to use all five senses to describe water and rain, verbally answering questions about how it looks, sounds, feels, smells, and tastes. Students are prompted to describe ice after freezing the water and to predict and report changes over time, practicing oral description and explanation. Students dictate sentence endings for the Rainbow Book and answer questions about number formation and greater number, requiring them to speak ideas and observations aloud.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to tell how 14 is made and to say which number (9 or 7) is smaller, requiring verbal explanation. Students read sight words and are asked to read the book back aloud, pointing to words as they speak. In Activity 2 students read written equations aloud and state answers, and in Activity 3 students point to objects and use describing words (e.g., "purple flowers") to tell about the scene.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked orally to provide a synonym for "downpour" and to answer math questions (4 + 1 and 3 + 2), which requires them to speak responses. During the rain experiment, students are asked to identify where Earth's water is and are asked "What happens?" after observing condensation, prompting them to describe observations aloud. The teacher directions also ask the child to "help your child identify" water sources, which encourages the child to name and discuss those places.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students point to number cards and count aloud from 1 to a chosen number, requiring verbal production. In Activity 2, students practice reading a book aloud and are instructed to read the book to a sibling, pet, stuffed friend, or parent. In Activity 3, students answer the question about why writers use color words and dictate sentences or phrases about their favorite things, which requires them to express ideas orally.
Unit 16: N - Night in the Country
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to respond orally: teachers/parents are instructed to ask the child what he notices on the cover, what time of day it is, what the word "country" means, and whether he has been to the country. After reading, the lesson asks the child to say what he thought about the book and includes explicit discussion questions such as "How do you feel about nighttime? Why?" and "Would you like to live in the country? Why or why not?" The Listening Walk activity asks the child to describe how he feels outside at night and to imagine and name sounds and animals, requiring verbal expression of ideas and feelings.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to explain vocabulary words in their own words, requiring them to express meanings verbally. Students create paper-doll puppets and role-play characters, asking and answering scripted questions about where they get food, clothing, and activities, which requires spoken exchange of ideas. Students discuss what activities happen during day and night and practice the "n" sound aloud while forming the letter, giving additional opportunities to speak.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to tell the story in their own words using the pictures as a guide, requiring them to produce connected oral language and sequence ideas. Students read the sight word "there" aloud during repeated readings and respond to review questions (for example, "5 minus 1" and differences between country and city), giving multiple opportunities for spoken responses. Students practice letter sounds (the sound of n) and name landforms aloud while constructing models, supporting oral vocabulary use and pronunciation practice.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to answer which of two numbers is greater during Review, requiring them to speak an answer aloud. In Activity 1, students are encouraged to brainstorm natural resources and respond to a question about how people ought to treat them, prompting them to express ideas. In Activity 2, students act out actions and make onomatopoeic sounds (e.g., "reek, reek," "clinks," "pump"), which requires producing audible sounds and vocalizations.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1 students are asked to say the matching number sentence aloud (for example, "10 minus 3 equals 7") and to describe several scenarios of apples falling from the tree. In Activity 2 students are prompted to identify questions while "reading" and to share those questions aloud and talk about them with an adult. In Activity 3 students are asked to read their journal writing and dictated ideas out loud and to name their favorite part of their writing.
Unit 17: M - Marshmallow
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to look at the cover and answer questions about what they see and predict the book's topic, prompting verbal responses. After reading, students are asked direct comprehension and opinion questions (e.g., how Marshmallow acted, why Oliver hesitated, why Oliver decided to be friendly, what was your favorite part), requiring them to express thoughts and feelings. Activity 2 has students respond verbally to role-play friendship scenarios, practicing expressing ideas, feelings, and choices in spoken form.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to respond orally when prompted (e.g., being asked what it means to hesitate and why household rules are important). Students discuss how Oliver followed rules and help create and explain household rules using words and/or pictures. Students practice oral recall and fill-in-the-blank responses during the poetry memorization activity and are encouraged to perform the poem for friends or family. The letter-sound activity also has students produce the /m/ sound aloud while practicing the letter M.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to reread the book and read the word "out" as it occurs in the story, providing practice with oral reading of words. After reading, students are asked to tell the story in their own words and use pictures to prompt their retelling. Activities also prompt verbal responses: the memory poem practice requires oral recitation and Activity 2 asks students to explain how they can compare the sizes of two toys and determine which is longer.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to explain the number 14 in their own words and to describe whether they would hesitate before jumping into a cold pool, prompting them to express ideas and feelings. Students are prompted to talk about similarities and differences between Owen and Mzee and Oliver and Marshmallow, encouraging them to describe and compare story details. Students practice a memory poem and are asked to display and share their charcoal-style drawings, providing additional opportunities to speak or present aloud.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1 students are asked to observe a can and marshmallows, name shapes, count faces, and answer questions about rolling, requiring verbal responses and explanations. In Activity 2 students listen to poems, identify rhymes, compare how poems sound to stories, and share findings from independent book exploration aloud. In Activity 3 students dictate words to complete a poem and a story and answer prompts about which animal would make the best pet, verbally expressing preferences and ideas while the teacher records responses.
Unit 18: U - Umbrella
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to predict the book from the cover and answer recall questions after reading (Questions #1-#4), which requires them to express ideas and feelings about story events. Students are asked to describe how Momo felt when it rained and to give reasons, practicing expression of feelings and ideas. In Activity 1 students are asked to create and tell their own math story problems using umbrellas and to show the stories with props, encouraging verbal storytelling. The Extension and walk activity asks students to talk about what they see and hear, providing additional opportunities to express thoughts aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
During the review, students are asked to tell if something unfortunate has happened to them recently, prompting them to speak about a personal event. Activity 1 asks students to locate Japan, discuss its distance from the United States, and view pictures, which gives students opportunities to describe and talk about people, homes, and habitats. Activity 2 has students practice making the different "U" sounds aloud while forming the letter, and Activity 3 has students play back and create rhythms, requiring audible production and repetition of sounds.
Lesson 3
Day 3
The lesson asks the child to answer oral questions (e.g., "what would be an unfortunate thing to happen on someone's birthday?" and "what is 5 + 5?") and to read the word "not" aloud. The lesson instructs the child to retell the story "Umbrella" in his own words using pictures as prompts. Activities also prompt the child to name pairs of numbers that add to 10 and to say letter sounds (practicing the sound of the letter u) aloud.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to explain the meaning of the prefix "un-" and to name a pair of numbers that adds to 10, prompting verbal responses. Students are asked to describe clouds they have seen and how they are alike and different, encouraging spoken description of observations. Students are asked in what kind of weather they would appreciate a fan, prompting them to state a preference or feeling aloud.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are asked to read words and pages aloud (Activity 2) and to read or have their writing read aloud (Activity 3), requiring them to verbalize text. Students are prompted to state opinions and reasons when asked what they thought about the book, what they liked, and whether they would recommend it. Students are asked to talk about their special birthday gift, name their favorite part of their writing, and point out capital letters while explaining why they used them.
Unit 19: J - Jump Frog Jump
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to identify characters and setting aloud (e.g., "Which animal... Why is that?") and to answer comprehension questions after reading (e.g., "Do you think that was a kind action? Would you have done the same thing? Why or why not?"). Students are prompted to look back through the book and say which animals the frog escaped or which did not escape, requiring spoken recall. In Activity 1 students put story pictures in order and are asked to read the sentences in order, and in Activity 2 students are encouraged to count aloud while jumping (including counting to 100 and by tens).
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to define vocabulary in their own words and to answer questions such as what it means to escape and to count to 100 by tens, requiring spoken responses. Students are prompted to think about pond animals, describe what they know, state similarities and differences, and explain sorting choices aloud. Students sing and produce the finger-play "Five Little Speckled Frogs," create motions, and count backwards aloud, and they practice saying the /j/ sound (e.g., "jump" and "jar") while tracing and writing the letter J.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read sight words aloud and to read repeated phrases ("how," "Jump, frog, jump!") during the second reading. Students are prompted to line up story sequence cards and tell the story using those cards as prompts. Students create original sentences using direction words and act them out with die-cut figures and props, and they are asked to count aloud and sing a song together.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to sing "Five Little Speckled Frogs" together, which requires vocalizing. The plan tells students to read a nonfiction book or read on a website about frogs, providing an opportunity for oral reading. The guide instructs to "talk about what a life cycle is," prompting students to discuss and explain the stages in their own words.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 has students ask a question and answer adult questions ("Have your child ask you a question. Ask her a question.") and encourages students to "read" the book to an adult aloud. Activity 3 asks students to think of a question about an animal and record it, which prompts them to formulate and potentially speak their idea. These tasks require students to produce spoken language and to express a question or short narrative aloud.
Unit 20: K - Kindness
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to look at the book cover and say what they notice and predict what the book will be about. Students are prompted to explain what an act of kindness is, recount a time they performed kindness and how it made them feel, and answer comprehension questions such as "What was your favorite example... Why?". After watching the kindness video, students are asked to "describe kindness in his own words," and activities prompt students to tell and number characters, point to numbers on request, and read numbers aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students make and use a "Kindness Mouse" puppet and are instructed to give it a voice and "say at least one kind thing to each family member," which requires speaking aloud to others. Students are asked in review to say how they felt after doing acts of kindness, prompting expression of feelings. Students role-play characters from the book and add dialogue to act out acts of kindness, which practices conveying ideas and feelings verbally. The uppercase K activities prompt students to practice the "k" sound aloud while forming the letter.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read sentences aloud, including the sentence "So, when someone need help, just give them a hand," and to read the sight word "so" on multiple pages. After reading, students are asked which act of kindness they found especially kind or thoughtful, to explain how one small act resulted in a series of kind acts, and to discuss whether they agree with the author's idea. In the "Animals in Fiction" activity, students name aloud actions that are true to the animal and actions that are human-like while the teacher records their responses.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to speak aloud to continue counting to 20, give a synonym for "grand," and answer 10-6, providing multiple opportunities to produce spoken responses. Students dictate items for an "I Am a Good Citizen!" poster, verbally generating and explaining rules they follow while an adult records their ideas. Students listen to, sing along with, memorize, and perform the Kindness Song (optionally acting or dancing), which asks them to vocalize feelings and kind actions for family members.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 1 directs the child to supply each number aloud while taking 100 steps, requiring oral counting. Activity 2 has the child practice retelling the story using illustrations and giving a general description of each act of kindness. Activity 3 asks the child to read his writing or listen to his dictated words read back and to state reasons he likes the book, prompting spoken expression of ideas and opinions.
Unit 21: V - Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are prompted to answer oral questions about the book (e.g., "What does she see?", "What instruments...?", and the post-reading question set) and to "Communicate observations orally" in the Skills list. Students are asked to talk about musical terms (solo, duet, chamber group) and to discuss experiences (e.g., "Has your child ever sung a solo?"). In Activity 2 students name and demonstrate their created instrument, which requires them to present and describe it aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
The lesson prompts the child to answer questions aloud (e.g., asking how many instruments are playing during a solo and asking if he sees natural resources used in making instruments). Students are asked to determine and explain ways to classify instrument pictures, making piles and then coming up with a second classification, which requires stating their reasoning. The lesson also asks the child to describe what he thinks it would be like to play in an orchestra and which instrument he would enjoy playing, prompting expression of preferences and ideas.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to answer questions aloud (e.g., how many instruments are playing; name a natural resource) and to name and order the instruments from the book, which requires verbal responses. Students are asked to identify and describe shapes of objects (cylinder vs. cone) and to think of examples, prompting them to explain observations. Students brainstorm jobs and decide whether each provides goods or services, which requires them to state and categorize ideas orally.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked review questions (e.g., how many instruments are playing, name a job and classify goods/services, name shapes) that require verbal answers. In Activity 1, students discuss which senses they could use and dictate observations on a "Senses Web," requiring them to express ideas aloud. In Activity 2, students select, practice, and perform or sing a song for the family, which requires speaking/singing audibly and conveying ideas or feelings through performance.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students are asked to tell how many chamber group members are present and missing and to state those numbers aloud while writing matching equations (e.g., "3 + 7 = 10"). In Activity 2, students supply rhyming words aloud (filling in missing words from lines read aloud) and identify rhyme pairs from the text. In Activity 3, students dictate thoughts to an adult and are asked to read their writing back aloud to the adult or listen as it is read back to them.
Unit 22: Y - Little Blue and Little Yellow
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to name their favorite color and explain why, which requires them to express a preference and a reason aloud. Students make observations and predictions about the book cover and answer detailed comprehension questions after a read-aloud, requiring them to state ideas and feelings about the story. In activities students point to stickers and say each color, say and continue color patterns aloud, and are challenged to create and say a sentence using the word "row" twice with two meanings.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to define vocabulary in their own words and to describe two meanings of the word "row," requiring spoken explanations. Students answer oral questions about color mixing and continue an oral pattern (car, car, truck...), practicing verbal responses. Students discuss friendship and safety—explaining what makes a good friend, why rules matter, and naming someone they consider a friend—expressing thoughts and feelings aloud; students also answer questions about making dough green and identifying the shape as a sphere.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked orally to continue a pattern and to name one quality of a good friend, requiring them to speak responses aloud. Students are asked to read the sight word "they" in sentences and to read it as it occurs in the story. Students are encouraged to retell and act out Little Blue and Little Yellow in their own words using pictures and Play-doh, which requires them to express ideas and sequence events verbally.
Lesson 4
Day 4
The lesson asks the child to respond orally in multiple places: the child is asked to name the three primary colors, continue an orally presented color pattern, and explain the number 19 (10 plus 9). In Activity 2 the child is asked to tell a story about torn-paper characters and to choose one scene to "write or dictate" what is happening, which requires verbal storytelling and description of events and feelings. The review prompt to "act out rowing a boat" also invites spoken or expressive responses tied to physical acting.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 asks the child to identify who is speaking and to "talk about what he has found," which requires verbal explanation about text and findings. Activity 3 allows the child to dictate what he would like to write, which asks the child to express ideas orally for another person to record. The Reading Workshop also prompts the child to point out quotation marks and then discuss instances of spoken words, prompting verbal identification of speakers.
Unit 23: W - George Washington's Birthday
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson asks the child to compare pictures, explain why George Washington is famous, and give an opinion about whether the book is fiction or nonfiction, prompting verbal responses. It directs the child to answer questions about vocabulary (e.g., 'tyrant'), to say what parts of Washington's life were interesting or surprising, and to discuss whether the quill-writing method would be enjoyable and its advantages/disadvantages. The Skills list also includes "Ask and answer questions about unknown words" and identifying main ideas with prompting, which require the child to speak their ideas aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to respond orally to review prompts (recalling a myth about George Washington, answering what arithmetic is, and giving the answer to 2+3). Students are prompted to describe the flag (noticing stars and stripes), count the stars and stripes aloud, and say the name of their state. Students practice oral production by identifying which word box should be the title and by saying or singing the days of the week song aloud.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to repeat the sight word "went" and to read the word aloud in sentences, practicing spoken word recognition. Students recap each story page-by-page and are asked to identify whether each item is a myth or a fact, requiring them to state ideas about the content. During the tossing activity, students count aloud (saying numbers like "two") and practice counting by tens, providing additional opportunities for spoken responses.
Lesson 4
Day 4
The review prompts ask the child to name two U.S. symbols and challenge him to explain why they were chosen, requiring the child to state and justify ideas. The George Washington and Benjamin Franklin activities direct the child to talk about admired qualities and ask why those qualities are important, prompting verbal explanation. Activity 2 asks the child to use dramatic skills to act out sentences (including actions tied to italicized words), which gives opportunities to express ideas and feelings aloud while performing.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 directs the child to share her observations aloud and answer questions such as whether she enjoyed the book and why, and whether she would recommend it to friends. Activity 3 asks the child to read back over her journal entry or read it aloud to the adult and to talk about her favorite part and possible word choices. These prompts require the child to state opinions, reasons, and personal experiences verbally.
Unit 24: Q - The Quilt Story
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to make observations about a quilt and to answer comprehension questions after reading (e.g., explaining how they knew the story took place long ago and how the quilt helped the girls). The skills list includes having students, "With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story," and Activities prompt students to name and count shape sides and corners, sort shapes, and explain their sorting choices. Activity prompts also require students to explain how shapes combine (e.g., using 2 squares to make a rectangle or naming the shapes created when a square is cut).
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to respond to oral questions (e.g., "Ask your child what wood shavings are," identify shapes in the room, and name the letter after Q), which requires spoken answers. Students are prompted to talk about Daniel Boone and discuss what character qualities he must have had and whether they would enjoy exploration, which asks them to express thoughts and feelings. Students practice producing sounds aloud when they form the letter Q and repeat the "kw" sound during handwriting or sand tracing activities.
Lesson 3
Day 3
The lesson asks the child to "tell the story back in his own words," which requires verbal retelling of events and ideas. It asks the child to identify shapes and "tell you something about each one," and to match shapes to name cards and respond to verbal clues, prompting spoken descriptions and answers. The lesson also has the child practice reading the sight word "under" aloud in the book, providing short oral reading opportunities.
Lesson 4
Day 4
The lesson instructs an adult to "ask your child to identify and trace all five shapes," requiring the child to name shapes aloud. The holidays activity directs the teacher and child to "discuss" American holidays and shows the child descriptions of historical figures, which implies verbal exchange about those figures. Some activities (e.g., read descriptions, ask the child to cut out pictures and place them) create moments where the child may respond verbally to questions about the content.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students listen to spoken clues, travel to the correct shape, and say the name of the shape aloud, providing direct practice in speaking. In Activity 2, students look at illustrations and explain how characters feel, verbally describing thoughts and feelings drawn from the pictures. In Activity 3, students compose or dictate sentences about a personal item or holiday and then read back their writing and explain what they like or could add, practicing expressing ideas clearly aloud.
Unit 25: X - An Extraordinary Egg
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to describe the book cover and explain what the word "extraordinary" means and to justify whether listed events are extraordinary, requiring verbal explanation. The reading questions prompt students to answer factual and personal questions (e.g., what they thought was inside the egg, whether they've found something extraordinary) and to compare and contrast friendships from two books. Activity 1 asks students to count aloud to 50, to say specific numbers when pointed to, and to practice reading numbers, and Activity 2 has students dictate lists of factual and fictional frog attributes and decide where to place each card.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to read number 32 and to review letter sounds and sight words, prompting oral responses. Students are asked to talk about the story (e.g., what the frogs thought) and to describe a real egg using guided questions about color, size, shape, texture, weight, and buoyancy. Students are asked to practice making the "/ks/" sound for X and to review the sound of the letter X as they form the letter, which targets pronunciation.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read the sight word "look" and to read it within the sentence "Look what I found!" as the adult reads the sentence. Students are prompted to retell An Extraordinary Egg in their own words using the pictures to help remember events. Students repeat words containing x and are asked to name numbers and the next number on the hundred chart, which requires them to speak words and numbers aloud.
Lesson 4
Day 4
During the review, students are asked to find the number 12, read the number 41 aloud, and say what comes next, prompting spoken responses. Activity 1 asks students to recall the stages of a frog life cycle and to explain how the alligator life cycle differs, requiring them to state ideas verbally. Activity 2 has students act out life cycles, giving them opportunities for expressive, performative communication even if it is largely nonverbal.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students count eggs aloud by pointing to each egg and saying each number, and they also count by tens and compare two groups to decide which has more. Students are asked to identify and read aloud dialogue from the book and to state what they liked about the story. Students draw and write or dictate a creative story, then speak one thing they like about their story and one idea for improvement after the story is read back to them.
Unit 26: Z - Greedy Zebra
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson prompts the child to observe the book cover and tell what he notices, to predict how the zebra will be greedy, and to explain after reading how the zebra was greedy and what happened as a result. Parents are asked to ask the child if the zebra deserved the result and why or why not, and Activity 1 includes prompts for the child to count aloud, tell which group is greater, and create and solve story problems verbally.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to define vocabulary words in their own words and to give an example of being greedy, which requires them to speak and express ideas. Students are asked to create and solve a story problem using animal cards, an activity that can require them to explain their thinking aloud. Students may dictate a zebra report and share it with family or friends, providing an explicit opportunity to express thoughts about research orally.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are asked to read the sight word "new" aloud in a sentence and encouraged to read it as it occurs in the story, which requires spoken production. Students are prompted to retell the story using the illustrations and to predict what would have happened if Zebra had not been greedy, requiring them to express ideas and reasoning. Students are asked to explain why being greedy is negative and to state the sorting criterion and counts when grouping animals, requiring them to verbalize thoughts and agree/discuss choices. Students are asked to talk about what they might see in a cave, how a cave would make them feel, and whether they would be brave enough to go in, which prompts expression of feelings and opinions.
Lesson 4
Day 4
The lesson instructs an adult to "read and discuss" information about five animals, which requires the child to respond verbally during discussion. Activity 2 directs the child to act out animal movements after pages are read and includes quoted phrases from the story that the child can dramatize. The Review section asks the child to think of an opposite for "greedy" and to count by 1s and 10s to 50, activities that involve generating verbal responses.
Lesson 5
Day 5
In Activity 1, students are asked to identify animals by number and state comparisons aloud (for example, "The elephant is bigger than the onyx"), which requires them to express ideas verbally. In Activity 2, students are asked to identify similarities and differences between books, name settings, categorize nonfiction books, and explain why certain books were favorites, prompting them to state thoughts and feelings. In Activity 3, students are asked to read their journal writing aloud or have it read to them and to explain what they like about their writing and respond to a suggested improvement, providing additional opportunities to express ideas orally.
2: Holidays
Unit 27: Halloween
Lesson 1
Day 1
The lesson asks the child to explain why Goodnight Moon was written and how it would make a young child feel, prompting the child to state feelings and reasons aloud. The lesson asks the child to observe and describe similarities and differences between Goodnight Moon and Goodnight Goon and to answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., deciding what kind of lagoon is pictured). The lesson has the child make a prediction for how many wraps it will take to make a mummy and then report and compare the prediction to the actual count.
Lesson 2
Day 2
The lesson asks the child to recall what a lagoon is and to count aloud from 1 up to 100, which requires verbal responses. The skeleton activity lists body-part terms (feet, legs, hands, etc.) and instructs the child to color those parts and receive assistance if unfamiliar with the terms, prompting verbal labeling. The "Dem Bones" video encourages the child to complete the bones dance along with the dancer and to point to the correct bones, which can accompany spoken identification.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to count to 100 by tens and to join in aloud at the ends of lines during a shared read-aloud, providing opportunities to speak audibly. Students are asked to explain what a lagoon and a goon are and to choose a page from the book and explain why they like it, which requires expressing thoughts and feelings. In Activity 1 students create and solve story problems with ghost manipulatives, verbally explaining quantities and solutions.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are prompted to speak when asked to name two pairs of numbers whose sum is 10 and to count by tens to 100, which requires oral responses. Students are asked to think of a synonym for "lagoon" and say that word aloud. During the bat activity, students role-play by pretending to be a bat and are asked to describe what kind of bat they are, what they eat, and other facts, requiring them to express ideas and knowledge orally.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are asked to line up and count 10 die-cut stars and to add more stars and count the total, which requires them to say number words aloud. The reading workshop directs students to practice saying rhyming words (for example, 'claws' and 'jaws') and to look for rhyming pairs. The teacher prompts the child to share any rhyming pairs he found, requiring the child to speak his observations to an adult.
Unit 28: Thanksgiving
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked open-ended oral questions (e.g., What do you see on the cover? What do you like about Thanksgiving? What are you grateful for?), prompting them to speak about thoughts and feelings. The skills list includes 'With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text,' which requires students to respond verbally. In Activity 1 students 'dictate each fact' and later 'read the turkey facts aloud,' giving students opportunities to produce spoken language about their research.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are prompted to name one thing they know about turkeys and one thing for which they are grateful, requiring them to speak ideas aloud. Students are asked to recall specific Pilgrim details and to answer guided questions, which requires verbal responses and idea expression. Students predict whether the boat will sink or float, respond to observational questions (e.g., "How would the Pilgrims have felt?"), and act out feelings and actions using body and facial expressions.
Lesson 3
Day 3
The text asks a child to "offer something she learned about the very first American Thanksgiving," which requires the child to speak about knowledge aloud. It directs caregivers to "talk about your family's favorite Thanksgiving foods" and to "discuss with your child how the help Pocahontas provided was different," which prompt children to explain ideas and compare events verbally. The cornucopia activity asks the child to write or draw things they are thankful for and could be used as prompts for the child to express feelings of gratitude aloud.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked verbally what it means to be grateful and what the Pilgrims were grateful for, requiring them to speak and explain ideas. Students are prompted to name words that describe Abraham Lincoln and explain why we still celebrate him, and they are asked "How does it feel to be President Abraham Lincoln?" which invites spoken responses. Students are also asked to dictate a note describing why they are thankful when creating a Thanksgiving card, which requires them to express thoughts and feelings aloud to an adult.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Students are asked to watch a turkey-counting video and "sing along," which provides an oral performance opportunity. Students are prompted to "point out some of her observations" about book illustrations, requiring them to speak their thoughts about what they notice. Students are asked to draw things they are grateful for and then "write words or sentences, or dictate them," which requires students to express feelings and ideas verbally to an adult.
Unit 29: Christmas
Lesson 1
Day 1
Students are asked to explore The Christmas Wish and then speak about what they notice and predict what the book will be about, practicing verbal description and prediction. Students are prompted to identify and name shapes, order rectangular strips, and describe shape features as they glue pieces to make a tree, practicing oral labeling and explanation. Students are asked to read a webpage with an adult and then tell three things they learned about real Christmas trees, giving opportunities to report information aloud.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to tell about their favorite part of The Christmas Wish, prompting them to recount and express ideas about the story. Students are prompted to talk about life in Norway after viewing informational websites, encouraging spoken description and conversation. Students are asked what snow is made of and to predict and explain what happens when solids and liquids mix, which requires them to state ideas and reasoning aloud.
Lesson 3
Day 3
Students are prompted to chant the finger play "Five Little Bells," practice finger motions, and ring bells (Activity 2, Option 1), which requires chanting aloud. Students are asked to count and sing additional carols such as "Jingle Bells" and to sing along with the "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" video (Activities 2 and 4), providing opportunities to speak/sing audibly. Students are asked to note animals in the book and answer questions about the reindeer's appearance and abilities (Activity 3), prompting verbal explanation of observations.
Lesson 4
Day 4
Activity 1 prompts students to talk about Santa Claus, answer questions about Anja's motives, and explain whether Anja's experience was a dream or real, requiring students to state their ideas and reasoning. Activity 2 asks students to find locations on a world map, name their country and continent, locate islands and mountains, and explain Santa's travel path, requiring students to describe places and explain choices. The activities repeatedly ask the child questions and invite verbal responses about traditions, reasons, and geographic observations.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 2 asks the child to identify how a character's voice sounds and to say the character's words in that voice, which requires the child to speak aloud and convey feelings or personality. Activity 3 (Option 1 and 2) asks the child to write or dictate a description of celebrations or to compose a letter to Santa, which requires the child to express thoughts and feelings verbally when dictating. Activity 1 prompts the child to think of a helpful task and (implicitly) share that idea, encouraging verbal expression of intentions or plans.
Unit 30: February Celebrations
Lesson 1
Day 1
The Skills list explicitly includes "Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly." The lesson asks the child to speak about holidays ("Ask your child what she typically does to celebrate Valentine's Day," "Ask your child what she remembers about a famous President") and to answer comprehension questions after reading (six explicit questions). The lesson also prompts oral brainstorming about how to handle differing opinions and suggests singing and possibly performing "Skidamarink," which requires verbal expression to a listener.
Lesson 2
Day 2
Students are asked to describe observations about coins and answer questions such as "what do you notice?" and "what do you remember about Lincoln," prompting them to speak about facts and ideas. Students explain numerical relationships (e.g., how many pennies equal a nickel, dime, quarter) and sort coins, then review names and values aloud. Students are prompted to discuss opinions and feelings by answering whether they would like to be president and explaining the best and worst parts of being president.
Lesson 3
Day 3
In Activity 1, students are prompted to listen to and practice saying "I love you" in several languages using an audio-enabled website, which asks the child to choose a language and practice saying the phrase aloud. In Activity 3, students are instructed to read each math problem out loud to an adult before cutting and matching the pieces, providing explicit practice speaking aloud. Both activities require real oral production of words and a simple expression of feeling (saying "I love you").
Lesson 4
Day 4
Students are asked to explain why education is important and to talk about Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech and how he showed love, prompting verbal responses. Students are asked to name similarities between Booker T. Washington and Martin Luther King, Jr. and to discuss whether those dreams improved the country. Students dictate or write 3–5 of their own dreams aloud to create a dream book, which requires them to express thoughts and ideas.
Lesson 5
Day 5
Activity 1 asks the child to say what she would tell the President and then to dictate her thoughts to an adult while the adult records them, which requires the child to put ideas into spoken words. Activity 2 has the child create and share Valentine cards containing the message "I love you" and to write recipient and sender names, which engages the child in expressing feelings and ideas for others to receive.
1: Environment
Unit 1: Habitats and Homes
Lesson 1
My Environment
Students are asked to briefly describe their environment in the Introduction and to answer discussion questions about water, food, and shelter (Activity 1). In Activity 2 students speak about room functions as they tour and label rooms, circle items, and explain why those items support a healthy environment. Activity 3 asks students to state which room is most important, dictate their ideas (or write them), and read the resulting paragraph aloud. The Wrapping Up section has students sing a song with motions and perform it for their family.
Lesson 2
What Is a Map?
Students are prompted to respond orally to direct questions (e.g., "What is the name of our country? state? town? address?") and are asked to repeat these questions over a week until they can provide correct answers. Several activities require verbal responses about spatial relationships (e.g., "What is beside the refrigerator?" "What is in front of the couch?"). The Wrapping Up asks the child to describe the environment in which he lives, which elicits the child's spoken ideas about home and surroundings.
Lesson 3
Guide to Animal Habitats
The Skills list includes "Listen to and answer questions about text read orally," and the Introduction asks the child to describe her environment and answer specific oral questions about the book cover (title, author, predictions). Activity 5 asks the child to tell a story about visiting a habitat and respond to prompts about what she would see, feel, and do, which requires verbal expression of ideas and feelings. The wrap-up has the child sing a habitat song, and multiple activities prompt oral responses (pointing out animals, counting aloud, answering questions) that require speaking aloud.
Lesson 4
Animals Live and Grow
Students are prompted to speak and explain repeatedly: they are asked to sing "The Habitat Song," to name the things animals need (water, food, shelter), and to discuss how habitats provide these things. Students are asked to analyze and verbalize examples (e.g., find a consumer and its energy source in each habitat) and to answer specific comprehension questions about the read-aloud (Questions #1–#7). The lesson repeatedly instructs an adult to "ask your child" to tell what he learned, why shelter is important, and how animals and plants help one another.
Lesson 5
Discovering Animal Habitats
Students are asked to give examples and discuss habitats (Introduction) and to identify and describe the animals found in each habitat (Activity 1 Options 1 and 2). The lesson prompts students to answer targeted questions about habitat names and animal needs (Activity 2 and Activity 3) and to describe environments during the wrap-up. Activity 6 asks students to answer and discuss graph-related questions (Which habitat had the most? the fewest?), providing multiple opportunities for oral responses.
Lesson 6
Exploring Animal Habitats
Students are asked to predict what they will find and have their ideas recorded, which requires them to express thoughts orally. During the habitat observation, students answer guided questions (e.g., Where are the plants? What are the animals doing?), prompting spoken descriptions of observations. In Activity 2 students tell a narrated story about an animal, have that story dictated and read back, and the Wrapping Up suggests role-playing and performing for family members so students speak aloud and describe actions and feelings.
Lesson 7
Tools in My Environment
Students are prompted to respond verbally to questions throughout the lesson (e.g., answering "What is a safe and healthy environment?" and discussing what makes life easier). In Activity 1 students are asked aloud questions and asked to tell the adult what they find during the Tool Scavenger Hunt. In Activity 2 and the Wrapping Up section students are asked to explain what each tool is used for and to tell what a tool is, requiring them to describe ideas and processes in words.
Lesson 8
Animal Care
The activities repeatedly prompt the child to respond verbally: after practicing pet care the child is asked "What do pets need?" and "What would happen if we didn't provide a healthy environment for our pets?" Activity 2 has the child listen to The Salamander Room and answer multiple comprehension and opinion questions (e.g., "Could the boy give the salamander the kind of habitat... Why or why not?" and "Do you think the boy should have kept the salamander... Why or why not?"). Wrapping Up and Life Application direct the child to discuss how it would feel to live in different habitats and to explain what environment they would need to create for certain animals.
Lesson 9
Animal Designs
Students are asked to name animals and habitats and to explain how each animal moves and which body parts are used (Activity 1). Students must explain why animals do not belong in certain habitats and give reasons orally (Activity 2). Students are prompted to say full sentences aloud identifying misplaced animals (Activity 3) and to tell a creative story about an animal in the wrong habitat and then have that story read aloud (Activity 4).
Lesson 10
Amazing Animals
Activity 2 asks the child to pretend to be an animal, explain what he (as the animal) would do, and answer questions like "How would you feel?" and "What would you do?", encouraging role play and spoken responses. The Skills list and Activities prompt students to "present dramatic interpretations of stories," "listen critically to text read aloud," and "respond to critical questions," which require oral expression. Activity 3 instructs the child to read word problems aloud and encourages drawing and verbal discussion of answers; the Wrapping Up asks the child to tell about animals learned that day.
Lesson 11
Amazing Me
Students are asked to respond verbally to prompts in the Introduction and Activity 1 (e.g., explain how they would change in cold, what happens to skin, or getting glasses). Activity 2 asks students to read the emotion words aloud and to indicate and discuss how pictured items make them feel. Activity 3 and Wrapping Up ask students to share examples aloud and to read their recorded ideas back, providing multiple opportunities to express thoughts and feelings.
Final Project
Animal Research / My Environment
Students are asked in the Introduction to describe the environment in which they live and to answer guided questions (e.g., "Can you describe the environment in which you live?" and "What do habitats give to the animals that live in them?"). Students are prompted in Wrapping Up to explain each page of their book and to share the book, song, or dramatization with the family. The Project Extension explicitly encourages students to think of words for a song, sing the song, and act out pages of the book, providing multiple oral presentation and performance opportunities.
Unit 2: Weather
Lesson 1
Reading the Skies
Students are prompted to describe the weather aloud (Introduction, Life Application) and to answer guided questions about how weather makes them feel (Activity 1). Students dictate sentences using vocabulary words and tell or dictate stories about their favorite weather (Activities 1, 2, and 3), providing practice expressing ideas and feelings. Students regularly discuss daily weather observations and vocabulary (Weather Calendar, Wrapping Up), which requires them to speak their observations and choices aloud.
Lesson 2
Types of Precipitation
Students are asked to answer and discuss comprehension questions after read-alouds (e.g., describing habitat weather, how characters look when hot or cold, and things learned from the book). Students are prompted to discuss different types of precipitation, to describe what is happening during the jar "rain" experiment, to count raindrops, and to explain the causes of rain. The wrap-up directs students to explain why precipitation is important and where water comes from, and Activity 5 asks students to discuss dangerous weather and family safety plans.
Lesson 3
Measuring and Charting Weather
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to speak: caregivers are told to "Ask your child what she thinks" about animals' habitats, to "Ask your child how she thinks she could" measure rain, and to "ask her to describe what the weather can be like in different habitats." The wrapping up section directs the child to give examples of how weather can be measured and how weather helps plants and animals. Several activities invite verbal discussion (e.g., discussing temperature changes, rain gauge ideas, and features of animals that allow them to survive), providing opportunities for spoken responses.
Lesson 4
Simulating Weather
Students are asked to name three things the wind can move and to go outside to identify moving objects, requiring verbal responses. They are prompted to explain what happens during the bottle cloud experiment and to answer a wrap-up question about how rain forms, providing opportunities to describe observations and ideas. The lesson has students sing the Weather Song, read the words aloud, follow along by pointing to each word, and create their own song, engaging them in multiple oral expression activities.
Lesson 5
Fall
The lesson asks the child to recite the months of the year and to read the directions aloud, providing spoken practice. The child is prompted to answer questions about the fall picture (e.g., "Do you like the fall? Why or why not?") and to explain what happens to the weather in the fall. The child is also asked to discuss the graph results aloud (which color has the most/fewest leaves) and to describe similarities and differences between her environment and the picture.
Lesson 6
Winter
Students are asked to describe the outside environment in winter and to describe what they see in pictures from Whatever the Weather, practicing verbal description of observations. Students dictate a story about something they like to do in winter, use vocabulary words (cold, snow, freeze) in that story, and then attempt to read the story aloud with help sounding out words. Students answer questions comparing winter to summer and describe what a winter environment can be like, speaking their ideas in response to prompts.
Lesson 7
Spring
Students are asked to attempt to read each poem aloud and to listen for rhyming words, underlining rhymes after hearing them. Students are prompted to tell what each poem was about and to describe how they would illustrate the poems, and an extension invites students to dictate or write their own spring poem. In Activity 3 and the Wrapping Up, students are asked aloud questions (e.g., about wind, why an object moved/fell off, what special things happen in spring, what a seed needs) and expected to answer and explain their observations.
Lesson 8
Summer
Students are prompted to answer questions aloud about seasons, activities, and weather (e.g., "Ask your child what season follows spring" and "ask him what activities he enjoys in the summer and to describe the weather"). Activity 1 asks students to describe the picture, explain what is happening, and say how the kids feel. Activity 2 directs students to read the story aloud or read along, fill in blanks using vocabulary, and "read the completed story aloud," and the Wrap Up asks students to sing the season song with an adult.
Final Project
Weather Games
The lesson lists "Make oral presentations (LA)" as a skill and directs the child to give the family a weather forecast each morning for three days, practice the forecast, and be prompted as needed. Activity 3 asks the child to read Whatever the Weather aloud if she is able and to answer specific observational questions about the weather. The Wrap-Up asks the child to share what she learned and to state her favorite season and type of weather, prompting spoken responses.
Unit 3: Community
Lesson 1
On the Town
Students are prompted to speak about community concepts by answering guided questions after the story (e.g., "What is a community?"; "What places did Charlie visit?"; "Why did Charlie write down the places…"). Option 2 asks students to read community vocabulary and read each sentence to fill in words, which requires oral reading and verbalization of ideas. Activity 3 has students write or dictate a sentence about a new community place, and the Wrapping Up section asks students to discuss what a healthy community provides, encouraging spoken explanations.
Lesson 2
My Community Environment
Students plan and conduct brief interviews with community workers, preparing questions and asking them during a visit (Activity 4). Students describe and discuss important places on maps and in books, answering prompts such as why a person would come to a place and what people who work there do (Activities 1, 3, Wrapping Up). Students create a poster and either write or dictate brief descriptions of how each place serves the community, requiring oral explanation and labeling (Activity 2).
Lesson 3
Jobs in the Community
Students are asked to read their paragraph aloud for the family after completing the "When I Grow Up" page. Activities prompt students to say each sentence aloud (Activity 5), describe what they saw after observing a community worker (Activity 3), and share/dress up and present their chosen worker and page to family members. The wrapping-up charades and role-play invitations require students to act out and, if needed, add words to performances, encouraging spoken expression.
Lesson 4
Goods and Services in the Community
The lesson asks the child to read the names of buildings, goods, and services aloud and to sound out words if needed, providing practice in verbal expression. Parents are instructed to ask the child to name important community places and explain how each place helps people, prompting students to describe ideas verbally. Activities require students to participate in discussions (e.g., bartering, advantages of money) and to describe goods and services during the Wrapping Up section. The money activity has the child read price tags aloud, count out dollars, and explain purchase choices to a caregiver.
Lesson 5
Resources
Activity 3 asks the child to gather three natural and three manmade resources and "explain how each resource is used" or "explain where it is found," prompting the child to state ideas about resources. The Wrapping Up direction asks the child to "explain the difference between resources found in nature and resources made by humans," prompting a verbal explanation. The Life Application suggests the child identify natural and manmade resources in the kitchen, which can be done by naming and describing items aloud.
Lesson 6
A Good Community Citizen
Students are asked in Activity 1 to decide whether actions show good citizenship and to "explain how she made her decision," which requires verbally expressing reasoning. Wrapping Up prompts students to answer what it means to be a good citizen and to think of ways they can be good citizens, encouraging spoken responses. Activity 3 asks students to describe observed examples of good citizenship and allows students to dictate their observations while an adult records them, prompting verbal description of thoughts and ideas.
Lesson 7
A Citizen with Character
Students are asked oral questions throughout (e.g., "Ask your child what it means to be a good citizen," and prompts in Activity 4 such as "What do you think will happen next?" and "What would you have done?"). Activity 3 asks students to score pictures and "explain why he chose each score," requiring verbal explanation. Activity 5 includes options for students to dictate their own version of the story and to orally describe beginning, middle, and end, and Activity 6 asks students to describe actions and consequences aloud.
Lesson 8
Rules and Laws
Students are asked to read each rule sentence aloud by themselves or with assistance (Activity 1) and to say which rule is most important and explain why. In Activity 2 students read items aloud and decide whether each is a rule, a law, or both, articulating their reasoning. In Activity 3 students answer open-ended questions about the "house with no rules," make a list of 3–5 rules, and discuss those rules with other family members, requiring them to state thoughts and feelings.
Lesson 9
Caring for Our Communities
Students answer comprehension questions about the story (beginning, middle, end; what Katy does) and verbally discuss community scenarios (Activities 1 and 2). Students plan and then share three things that make their community healthy by taking pictures/drawing/making a video and explaining their choices to family (Activity 3). Students participate in a spoken game role-playing requests for community helpers and respond aloud (Activity 4), and they role-play helpful and harmful actions while classmates guess (Activity 5). Students create and sing a song encouraging helping others, producing spoken/sung lines (Activity 6).
Final Project
I Can Make A Difference
Students are prompted to give examples of how people can make their communities better, which requires them to speak aloud. The plan activity invites students to dictate their ideas while an adult records them, so students must express their thoughts and sequence steps orally. Reflection and wrap-up questions (e.g., "Were you able to carry out your plan?" and "What did you learn?") ask students to describe what they did and how they felt, providing opportunities to express ideas and feelings.
2: Similarities and Differences
Unit 1: Amazing Attributes
Lesson 1
Describe It
Students are prompted to tell as much as they can about a displayed object and to describe objects placed in a bag, verbally giving attributes (Activity 1). Students take turns describing objects to a partner/parent and guessing based on those descriptions, and they are asked to explain how pairs of objects are similar or different (Activity 2 and Life Application). Students are encouraged to use descriptive vocabulary in sentences and to write or copy a sentence describing an object (Handwriting and vocabulary review).
Lesson 2
Animal Attributes
Students are prompted in Getting Started to explain how two stuffed animals are alike and different, requiring them to state ideas aloud. In Activity 1 (Option 1 and 2) students are asked to circle living things and then describe how they know which objects are living, prompting oral explanation of reasoning. In Activity 2 students are asked to identify animal body parts and discuss how animals use those parts, and the Wrapping Up directs students to describe ways animals are alike and different, all of which require students to express ideas verbally.
Lesson 3
Size, Shape, and Color
The lesson repeatedly prompts the child to describe and discuss objects (e.g., asking the child to describe a metal spoon's size, shape, and color and to explain how a wooden spoon is similar or different). Activities ask the child to organize toys and explain the process used, to walk around and draw objects with specific shapes, and to describe what she learned about mixing colors. The wrapping-up and life application sections ask the child to name and describe shapes and to talk about properties of objects throughout the week.
Lesson 4
How Does It Feel?
Students are asked to pull objects from a bag while blindfolded and describe aloud how the object feels, and their spoken descriptions are recorded. In Activity 1 students verbally describe objects first using non-texture attributes and then using only texture words, and they discuss whether those descriptions allowed the listener to guess the object. Wrapping Up and Life Application prompt students to name texture words and to select and describe objects in their room or yard, providing repeated opportunities to speak their ideas aloud.
Lesson 5
How Old?
The lesson's skills list explicitly includes "Express ideas and ask questions (LA)." In multiple activities students are prompted to answer and ask questions aloud (e.g., being asked their age, deciding which question to ask each pictured person, discussing what indicates age, and talking about whether the world is more interesting because of different ages). Activities also prompt students to describe observations (sorting pictures, judging tree ages) and to reread or attempt to read questions aloud.
Lesson 6
The Measure of Things
The lesson repeatedly prompts oral responses by instructing the adult to "Ask your child" about measurements (e.g., what a doctor measures, how he knows measurements, and examples of things that can be measured). Multiple activities ask the child to describe reasoning aloud (e.g., explain how he measured length with a nonstandard tool, describe similarities/differences among sugar, water, and milk, and explain why two measurements differ). The Wrapping Up and Day 2 sections explicitly ask the child to explain differences between length, weight, and capacity and to discuss why measurement choices matter.
Lesson 7
More Attributes
Students are asked to explain what an attribute is and to describe ways to find similarities and differences among things. Students are prompted to describe how attribute blocks are similar and different and to state groups for sorting (e.g., size, color, thickness). Students are asked to name attributes of toys, explain placement in Venn diagram sections, and answer "why" questions about similarities and differences.
Lesson 8
Amazing Attributes
Students are prompted to describe different types of measurements and to explain what a magnet is and what it can be used for. Students make predictions on the "Magnetic or Not?" page and predict and sort objects on a labeled sheet for the sink-or-float activity, then compare predictions to results. Students are asked to discuss which predictions were correct, look for similarities among objects, and explain why some objects sink or float (including discussing the term "density").
Lesson 9
Solids and Liquids
Students are prompted to explain the difference between a solid and a liquid and to write down definitions on the activity page. Students are asked to discuss observations and causes during melting/freezing (e.g., "What do you observe?" "What caused the ice cube to change?") and to brainstorm and talk about examples when sorting pictures into "Solids" and "Liquids." The Life Application asks students to talk about batter versus baked goods and explain what caused the change, providing more opportunities for spoken explanation.
Lesson 10
Earth Materials: Rocks, Soil, and Water
The lesson repeatedly asks the child to speak: read-aloud question prompts (e.g., name solids, describe liquids, role of solids/liquids) and Day 2 compare/contrast questions require verbal responses. Activity 1 asks the child to describe how dirt looks, feels, and smells and to explain similarities/differences between samples, and Activity 6 asks the child to describe what happens in the water experiment and brainstorm places water is found. The wrap-up directs the child to describe the three main Earth materials and their attributes, providing multiple opportunities for oral expression of ideas and observations.
Lesson 11
Using Earth Materials
The introduction asks the child to describe the three Earth materials she explored, prompting oral description. Activity 1 asks the child to record or dictate a water-use log, requiring spoken recounting of daily events. Activities 2 and 3 prompt the child to think about, discuss, and explain how rocks and soil are used and why they are important, creating multiple opportunities for verbal expression.
Final Project
Presenting Attributes
The Skills list explicitly includes "Give presentations to express ideas and understanding," and the project requires students to prepare and present either a demonstration or a poster to the family or a small group. Steps instruct students to decide what they will say about each attribute, practice giving the demonstration or presenting the poster, and describe each part of the poster using words and sentences. The wrapping-up questions and parent feedback steps require students to talk about what they enjoyed and how they performed.
Unit 2: Senses
Lesson 1
My Five Senses
Students are prompted to describe objects aloud and explain how they determined attributes (Introduction). After reading, students are asked a series of oral questions (e.g., name the five senses, which body part is used, when you use more than one sense) that require them to state ideas and reasons. Activity 3 (Option 2) has students dictate four complete sentences describing an intense sensing experience and discuss nouns and verbs, and the teacher records and reads the sentences back to the student.
Lesson 2
Senses and Body Parts
Students are asked to name the five senses and give examples, which requires them to speak and explain (Getting Started). Option 2 directs students to make up and tell a story aloud about Jackie, including planning a beginning, middle, and end and pausing to glue sense organs as they narrate. The option to 'let him tell the story aloud' and to discuss story parts explicitly asks students to organize and express ideas verbally.
Lesson 3
Smelling and Tasting
Students are prompted to describe situations where they use smell and taste and to say aloud whether they like a smell and whether they want to taste an item (Activity 1). Students speak aloud to report whether tasted foods are good or bad and try to guess the food, with the adult recording their guesses (Activity 1). Students are asked to name tastes (salty, sweet, bitter, sour) as they sample foods, to ask and record responses from four people in a taste survey, and to answer follow-up questions about which flavor people liked most or least (Activity 2). The introduction and wrap-up include oral questions asking which senses are used and which tastes the child enjoys most.
Lesson 4
Hearing and Seeing
The Skills list explicitly includes "Describe experiences and ideas orally," and multiple activities require spoken responses (Activity 1 asks students to answer comprehension questions about the book). Activity 4 has students describe their experience blindfolded and then read their thoughts aloud and talk about differences, and Activity 5 asks students to describe a noisy place and attempt to read their description aloud to see if others can guess. Activity 7 has students describe what they hear on a guided listening walk and then compare and discuss those descriptions.
Lesson 5
Touch
Students are prompted to describe textures and use descriptive adjectives in Activity 1 (Touch It) where they choose or generate words to describe objects. In Activity 3 (Sensory Art) students discuss how ingredients feel while preparing Jell-O and later describe their painting and give it a title. In Activity 4 (Feel It!) students are blindfolded and asked to describe how items feel and to guess each item based on their verbal descriptions. The introduction and wrapping-up questions ask students to explain what texture means and to discuss how the world would be different if everything had the same texture.
Lesson 6
Experimenting With Our Senses
Students taste each drink and describe what each one tastes like, then repeat the descriptions while blindfolded and compare their answers. Students are asked and respond to questions about differences in answers, whether they can taste color, and whether the cups are the same or different. Students smell scratch 'n sniff spice cards, say which spice they smell, state whether they like the smell, and whether they think it would taste good. Students tell a story about a favorite flavor, have it recorded, and are encouraged to read it aloud; students also answer wrap-up questions explaining how senses help make decisions.
Lesson 7
Using All of Our Senses
Students are prompted to explain which senses the character used after reading pages from My Five Senses and to explain how they would use each sense on the 'How Many Senses?' page. Students are asked to dictate their findings from the Nature Walk and to answer follow-up questions such as 'What were some things you heard?' and 'If someone asked you what you found on your walk, what would you say?'. The Skills list and activities also ask students to interact with the reader (questions, comments, and ideas), which requires verbal responses.
Lesson 8
Writing About Our Senses
Students are asked to describe an apple using their different senses and to state sensing words for a variety of objects, which requires them to express ideas aloud. In Activity 1 students read or listen to clues and identify items, requiring them to speak or respond verbally. In Activities 2 and 4 students are prompted to attempt to read their sensory report aloud and to dictate or write a sentence to describe popcorn, providing opportunities to express thoughts and observations.
Final Project
A Sensible Party
Students are asked to welcome guests as they arrive and to lead the games they prepared, which requires speaking to others. Students may invite guests by telephone and can make invitations, providing opportunities to express information about place, date, and time. Students are asked post-party to answer questions about how the party went and how guests used their senses, prompting them to describe experiences and ideas aloud.
Unit 3: We're the Same, We're Different
Lesson 1
You're Special
Students are asked to attempt to read each question aloud and to sound out words when answering (Activity 1). Students fill in a personal paragraph and are prompted to read their story and share it with others, and to discuss what they like about their story. The skills list and activities also ask students to discuss, dramatize stories, and compare answers with others (Activities 1 and 2). The wrapping-up prompts ask students to discuss ways they are alike and different, encouraging verbal expression of ideas and feelings.
Lesson 2
Physical Characteristics
Students are asked to describe attribute blocks, a picture of themselves, and family members, requiring them to put observations into words. Students answer guided questions about two illustrated figures (hair, eyes, hands, legs) and about the story "Different Friends," including retelling the story and sequencing events. Students dictate their own friendship story with a beginning, middle, and end and respond to discussion prompts about being friends with people who look different.
Lesson 3
Different Personalities
Students are asked to explain the meanings of vocabulary words aloud and to circle words that describe themselves (Activity 1), which requires them to use descriptive words in speech. Students are prompted to describe how they and a friend/sibling are alike and different and to count and discuss shared traits (Activity 2). Students are asked to present the personality webs to family members and explain what they mean, and to sing a song substituting personality words (Wrapping Up). The lesson also lists the skill "Use words that describe in speech and writing," indicating practice in verbal expression.
Lesson 4
Interests and Hobbies
Students are asked to dictate and then copy or write sentences that describe a hobby and to share that hobby with someone else (Activity 1). Students are asked to teach a parent or sibling about an interest after researching and answering prompts on the "My Interest" sheet, and to create a poster, presentation, or booklet as an extension (Activity 2). Students are asked to interview three people using the Hobby Survey and are specifically encouraged to read the survey questions aloud during the interviews (Activity 3).
Lesson 5
Shapesville
Students are prompted to explain ways people can be alike and different and to describe how they are similar to or different from family members. During reading, students answer comprehension questions (e.g., "Did you enjoy the story? Why or why not?" "How are the shapes' personalities different?") and describe shapes' physical characteristics and interests aloud. Students select a shape that represents them, dictate a short description of their personality and interests, attempt to read that description, and share their shape design and explanation with family members.
Lesson 6
Different Families
Students are prompted to name family members and answer guided questions (e.g., "What are your responsibilities in your family?"), providing multiple opportunities for verbal responses. The Skills list explicitly includes "Dictate ideas and responses," and activities ask students to describe people, clothing, activities, and interactions in pictures. Wrapping Up asks students to explain how their family is similar to and different from other families, prompting spoken comparison and explanation.
Lesson 7
Different Homes
Students are prompted to identify and describe different homes after reading pages 26–35, to explain why people have homes, and to name materials used to build homes. The lesson asks students to say what they enjoy most about their house, to describe the type of home they would like to live in, and to explain why homes look different around the world. Activities ask students to search for homes and record country names and to talk about materials and details they find, prompting verbal explanation and description.
Lesson 8
Different Holidays and Traditions
Students are asked to name holidays and explain what they enjoy about each one, prompting spoken responses (Introduction). Activity 2 directs students to discuss holidays around the world using specific questions about what people are celebrating, activities, clothing, and foods. Activity 3 asks students to say which holiday is their favorite and explain why, with the option to dictate sentences while an adult records them. The lesson's skills list explicitly includes 'Use new vocabulary in conversation,' indicating planned opportunities for oral expression.
Lesson 9
Different Modes of Transportation
Students are prompted to speak about transportation in the Introduction by giving examples and discussing reasons for choosing modes of travel. In Activity 1 students "talk about where he went" after labeling modes, and in Activity 2 they explain and justify choices for travel between points. Activity 3 has students tell a story about a trip, have the story recorded, and attempt to read it aloud; the Wrapping Up asks students to act out modes of transportation while others guess.
Lesson 10
Wants and Needs
Students are prompted to answer and discuss questions (e.g., describing what people and animals need, explaining what it means to want something) and to 'discuss' pages about education, play, and love, which requires verbal responses. Students take a Wants and Needs Survey in Activity 4 by asking four people to name two wants and two needs and then discussing whether responses are wants or needs. Activity 2 asks students to tell how it felt to give away items and allows them to dictate their ideas while an adult records them, requiring expression of feelings and ideas.
Lesson 11
Being Part of a Group
Students are asked to discuss reasons people join groups, talk about similarities and differences after sorting pictures, and answer specific questions (e.g., which group has the most people), which requires verbally explaining their thinking. Students are prompted to brainstorm community groups and explain the purpose of each group and why one would be interesting, providing opportunities to state ideas and preferences aloud. Students are asked to dictate or read aloud a completed paragraph about a group they belong to, which requires expressing thoughts and ideas in sentences.
Final Project
Differences Make the World Go 'Round
Students are directed to share their finished book with their family to "teach more about life in a different country," which requires them to speak about their work. Students are invited to meet a person from the chosen country and are "encouraged" to ask questions about life there, prompting oral questioning and description. The project asks students to describe similarities and differences (e.g., location, food, hobbies) in sentence frames that can be spoken aloud during sharing.
3: Patterns
Unit 1: Identifying and Creating Visual Patterns
Lesson 1
What Is a Pattern?
Students are prompted to read the title and attempt to read the story aloud and to follow along as the story is read. Students are asked to name colors and objects in patterns aloud (e.g., "butterfly, ant, butterfly, ant..."), to explain patterns they see, and to use sequence language such as "First, there is..., Next, there is..." while pointing to items. Students are also asked to explain each completed pattern and to answer questions about where they have seen or made patterns.
Lesson 2
Recognizing Types of Patterns
Students are asked to explain how they decided whether a set is a pattern (Activity 2) and to describe the pattern of each caterpillar and sort them into pattern types (Activity 3). Students are prompted to label objects A and B, count colors, and answer questions such as how many colors are in the set and whether a row forms an ABAB pattern (Introduction, Activity 1, Student pages). Students are asked to explain the difference between ABAB and AABB and to point out examples, which requires them to state their reasoning aloud (Wrapping Up).
Lesson 3
What Comes Next?
Students are asked to explain what it means for something to have a pattern and to explain how they know what comes next, prompting verbal explanation of their thinking. Multiple activities include oral question prompts (e.g., "What comes first in the pattern? Next?"; "Describe the center square. Are the lines thick or thin?") that require spoken descriptions and answers. Students are prompted to describe, compare, and answer questions about patterns in Activities 1–4, including radiating patterns and bug patterns, which require expressing ideas aloud.
Lesson 4
Extending a Pattern
Activity 1 prompts the child to answer aloud when asked "what would come next," requiring a verbal prediction. Option 2 and Activity 2 ask the child to read the words for each pattern (or have them read to him) and to answer questions about patterns, which provides opportunities to speak about observations. The Wrapping Up section explicitly directs the child to "explain how he extends a pattern," requiring an oral explanation of ideas.
Lesson 5
Making Color Patterns
Students are asked to think of ways to use colors to create patterns and to demonstrate their ideas, which prompts oral explanation. Students are asked to describe the patterns they create after making caterpillar sticker patterns and necklaces. Students are invited to demonstrate a variety of color patterns using blocks, counting bears, or colored shapes, providing additional opportunities for verbal explanation.
Lesson 6
Shapes and Patterns
Students are prompted to describe the order of shapes aloud (e.g., saying "The first shape is a small circle. The second shape is a small square..."). They are asked to explain and label patterns verbally (e.g., "Circle, Square, Circle, Square..." and to tell whether sets are ABAB, AABB, or ABC). Multiple activities require the child to show and describe ABC, ABAB, and AABB patterns, including describing caterpillar patterns and explaining patterns they create.
Lesson 7
Making Number Patterns
The lesson asks the child to "demonstrate or explain ways numbers can be used to make patterns," and instructs caregivers to "encourage him to identify the new pattern" which can involve verbal identification. Activities prompt the child to look at patterns and label them with number cards and to explain or identify patterns when using objects. The wrap-up asks to review the idea that patterns can be made by numbers or objects, implying spoken review or explanation.
Lesson 8
Creating and Writing About Patterns
Students are repeatedly prompted to describe patterns aloud or in writing: Activity 1 asks the child to "describe each pattern," with sentence prompts (First comes..., Then comes..., Next comes...). Activity 4 (Guess the Pattern) requires the child to figure out a created pattern and "describe it," which implies verbal explanation during the game. Activity 3 asks students to brainstorm and record sequence words (first, then, next), supporting oral use of those words when describing order. Several activities (Pattern Race, Describe the Pattern sheet, and Wrap Up) ask the child to describe patterns and their kinds, providing multiple opportunities to express ideas about patterns.
Final Project
Patterns Poster or Patterns Presentation
Students can choose a presentation option in which they write a "Script for Presentation," rehearse so they "know exactly what they will say," and demonstrate seven types of patterns to an audience of friends or family. The activity prompts students to describe each pattern and demonstrate examples aloud. The wrap-up questions ask students to reflect verbally about how their project went and what viewers learned.
Unit 2: Patterns in Sounds, Words, and Actions
Lesson 1
Word Patterns
The lesson asks students to say word lists aloud (e.g., saying take, bake, rake and asking for other -ake words) and to say pairs of rhyming words aloud when matching words in Bear Hugs. Students are asked to pick a favorite nursery rhyme and act out or illustrate it and to identify and record rhyming words they hear while reading aloud. Several activities prompt students to label pictures verbally and to add words to extend spoken patterns.
Lesson 2
Making Word Patterns
The introduction asks the child to explain what it means for words to rhyme and to name pairs or sets of rhyming words, prompting spoken explanation. Activity 1 tells the child to read each sentence aloud to check answers and to read sentences when the sheet is unfolded. Activity 2 and the advanced option instruct the child to practice reading words in the same word family, and the Wrapping Up section asks the child to explain how groups of words follow a pattern and to name sets of words.
Lesson 3
Poetry Patterns
Students are prompted to read poems aloud multiple times and to sing the song "A-Hunting We Will Go," pausing for the child to guess and recite rhyming words. Students are asked to tell what each poem is about, brainstorm other rhyming words, write another verse, and explain how to find rhyming words. The skills list also includes "Discuss, illustrate, or dramatize a story or poem," supporting spoken responses and dramatization.
Lesson 4
Sentence Patterns
Students are asked to recite example sentences and to "read each sentence he forms aloud to see if it makes sense," providing repeated oral practice (Activities: Making Sentences, Option 1 and 2). In Activity 2 students act out situations, make up sentences about actions, and either dictate or read sentences aloud while identifying nouns and verbs. Day 2 activities instruct students to read sentences from the "Completing a Sentence Pattern" pages aloud and choose words that complete them, and Day 3/Activity 5 has students make up and say sentences using noun/verb cards.
Lesson 5
Story Patterns
Students are asked to describe their morning routine and to describe the beginning, middle, and end of stories, which requires them to express ideas aloud. During read-aloud activities, students are prompted to predict what will happen next and to answer questions about story events, practicing verbal expression. Activities ask students to dramatize or act out stories with puppets or dolls and to attempt to read their own story aloud, providing opportunities to speak in front of others.
Lesson 6
Sound Patterns
Students are asked to listen and then answer questions aloud about patterns (e.g., "ask him if he heard a pattern," "ask him what type of pattern he heard," "ask him to name the two sounds repeated"). Students are instructed to identify, describe, and record pattern segments and repetitions (Activity 2: "describe each part and the order," "record the number of times each sound was made," "identify one segment of the pattern and record how many times each sound repeats"). Students are prompted to imitate and extend patterns verbally and with instruments and movements (give the child the spoon/instrument to extend the pattern; "let your child identify the patterns you create and repeat them to the rhythm of the music"; "ask your child to describe how to make a sound pattern").
Lesson 7
Making Sound and Action Patterns
Students are asked to explain how sounds can be used to make patterns and to provide examples, prompting them to speak to convey an idea. Students create and perform sound patterns with instruments or sound words and are asked to perform or listen to patterns they created, which requires producing audible sound and sequencing vocal or instrumental actions. Students take turns forming and imitating action patterns and are asked to describe a pattern in writing and to explain what patterns mean during wrap-up, providing opportunities for verbal explanation of their ideas.
Final Project
Patterns Video
Students write or dictate a script for each pattern and record the type, parts, and where they found or made the pattern, which requires organizing and expressing ideas. Students practice what they will say multiple times, pretend to be videotaped to get comfortable addressing the camera, and then record and watch their video to evaluate clarity. The lesson lists "Use props and pictures to support spoken messages," and directs students to read words from books or poems and explain the pattern, which prompts verbal explanation of ideas.
Unit 3: Patterns in Your World
Lesson 1
Patterns in Nature
Students are prompted to speak when asked if they have seen a pattern outside and to explain the pattern in their own words. Students identify and describe patterns in pictures during the read-aloud and answer guided questions about which patterns they have or have not seen. Students are asked to discuss types of patterns they observe in animals, to say which patterns they find most interesting or beautiful, and to share examples of patterns at the end of the lesson.
Lesson 2
Patterns of Growth
Students are prompted to answer oral questions such as "How are you different now from when you were a baby and a toddler?" and to discuss what plants need to live and grow. Students are asked to explain life cycles verbally (e.g., explain that offspring follow the same growth pattern, discuss what makes butterfly and frog life cycles unique). Students are also asked to describe the growth pattern of a plant and a person and to talk about stages they have gone through while organizing personal photos.
Lesson 3
Night and Day
Students are asked verbally how they know when it is nighttime and when it is daytime and to describe what kinds of things happen during day and night. During the globe/flashlight activity students are asked to spin the globe and then describe when it is daytime and when it is nighttime where they live. In Activity 3 students draw a daytime and nighttime activity and then record or dictate a few sentences explaining each activity, and students are asked to explain the pattern of night and day at the end.
Lesson 4
Daily Routines
The introduction prompts an adult to "Talk about some of your child's routines," which asks the child to describe routines aloud. Activity 2 instructs the child to "dictate a sentence about each step" of a routine, requiring oral formulation of ideas. Activity 4 allows the child to "write or dictate and copy a sentence" describing a routine, which again elicits spoken expression that an adult records.
Lesson 5
Calendar Patterns
Students are asked to name the days of the week and months of the year (Introduction, Activity 5) and to review them daily until they can say them in order independently. Students are prompted to dictate or record their scheduled daily activities (Activity 1), which requires them to express what they do. Students are asked to look for and describe event patterns on the calendar and to report whether events occur weekly, biweekly, or monthly (Activity 4).
Lesson 6
Seasonal Weather Patterns
Students are asked to name the four seasons and to describe activities and types of weather associated with each season, requiring spoken responses. Students answer direct oral questions (e.g., "Which month comes after March?" "Which season comes before summer?") and discuss a U.S. map to describe regional weather differences. Students are prompted to discuss the current month, season, and observed weather aloud during the wrap-up.
Lesson 7
Patterns at Home
Students are asked to think of and describe patterns in the house and to describe each pattern they find during the Pattern Scavenger Hunt. Students are prompted to identify patterns, name each shape, and state the number of sides and angles while discussing quilt designs. Students are also asked to dictate and then copy a sentence that describes a pattern found in their closet and to answer reflective questions about how patterns affect the home.
Lesson 8
Symmetrical Patterns
Students are asked to describe the pattern in a butterfly's wings and to say whether the wings look the same or different, prompting verbal description of observations. Students are asked to sort shapes and then tell which group has more shapes and how many more, prompting them to state quantitative comparisons aloud. In the wrapping up, students are asked to describe what it means for something to have a symmetrical pattern and to give examples of symmetrical and non-symmetrical objects, prompting extended verbal explanation.
Lesson 9
Counting Patterns
Students are asked to act out a story and to tell their own story about the clowns, changing numbers and continuing a pattern, which requires spoken narration. Students are prompted to listen to a story read aloud, answer questions about it, and to dictate a sentence before copying it, providing spoken response opportunities. Several activities (responding to questions, narrating the clown story, and acting out) require students to speak so peers or adults can hear their ideas.
Lesson 10
Tracing Patterns
Students are prompted to tell a story about one or more objects they create (Activity 1). Students are asked to identify the holiday associated with each pattern, identify the original patterns, and count shapes aloud (Activity 2). Students are asked to explain why stencils help and to explain how a pattern can be used in art during wrap-up (Activity 3 and Wrapping Up).
Lesson 11
Patterns in Graphs
Students are prompted to describe patterns aloud (e.g., asked to "describe any patterns in the graph," to color-code and explain the chart, and to answer questions such as "What does this chart tell us?"). Students are asked to predict data (e.g., "How many books she thinks John would read on the Tuesday following...") and to discuss labels and titles after an adult reads them. The wrap-up asks students to describe how to find patterns in graphs and charts, which requires verbal explanation.
Final Project
Patterns All Around Lapbook
The Skills list explicitly includes "Use props and pictures to support spoken messages" and "Record or dictate knowledge on a topic," which gives students opportunities to speak about their work. The introduction directs an adult to ask the child to name different types of patterns and to talk about patterns he found in his environment. The Wrapping Up prompts ask the child which mini-book he is most proud of and to share what his book teaches about patterns with family and friends.
4: Change
Unit 1: Changes on Planet Earth
Lesson 1
What Causes Change?
Students are asked questions and prompted to explain what change means and to identify examples of change and cause-and-effect in conversation with an adult. The Skills section lists "Express ideas through writing and conversation" and "Read or attempt to read own dictated story," and Activity 3 explicitly asks the child to attempt to read her completed paragraph aloud. Activity 1 asks the child to look at picture cards, match pairs, and decide what changed, which the child is encouraged to discuss and glue while explaining reasons for change.
Lesson 2
What Changed?
Students are prompted to speak about their location and to answer guided questions during the Introduction (e.g., "Ask her what her location is now"). In Activity 1 students answer comprehension questions about physical vs. chemical changes and discuss examples; Activity 2 asks students to give and record sentences describing examples of change. Activity 3 has students follow verbal commands, then switch roles and give commands to an adult, and the Wrapping Up asks students to explain different ways change can happen.
Lesson 3
Changing Position
Students are prompted to speak about the book cover and predict its topic and to answer explicit comprehension questions (Question #1–#4) aloud about how objects start moving and what force keeps us on Earth. Multiple activities ask students to explain observations and ideas verbally (e.g., ask why objects pushed up come back down, ask the child to explain ways objects change position, discuss magnet behavior). Parents are instructed to ask the child to name examples and describe toys that require pushing or pulling, prompting spoken explanations and descriptions.
Lesson 4
Changes in the Environment
Students are asked to discuss and describe types of weather and how weather forces people to change activities (Activity 1). Students are prompted to answer questions about changes while reading the book (Activity 2) and to describe changes that take place in the natural environment and explain what causes those changes (Wrapping Up). Students are asked to speak about personal experiences (illustrate or say/write two sentences about a time when weather caused them to change an activity) and to answer oral questions during counting and sorting activities (Activity 3).
Lesson 5
Changes in Location
Students are asked to describe where a stuffed animal is after it is moved and to answer how the animal changed. Students complete sentences with prepositions on the "Where Did He Go?" wheel and are encouraged to attempt saying or writing the words from the word box. Students follow spoken directions in the "Mouse in the House" activity by moving a cutout mouse to locations read aloud and later switch roles to describe another person's location.
Lesson 6
Changes in the Sky
Students are asked to describe how objects on Earth change and to talk about how the Earth, Moon, and Sun move (Introduction, Wrapping Up). Students brainstorm adjectives and phrases for the Sun and Moon and can dictate their ideas while an adult records them (Activity 1). Students respond to questions during movement activities (Activity 2), demonstrate with a model (Activity 3), and discuss observations outside (Life Application), providing multiple opportunities to speak and explain ideas aloud.
Lesson 7
Living Things Change
The lesson asks the child to answer questions aloud (e.g., "Ask your child what it means for something to be living...") and to describe observed changes (e.g., "On the 'Changes in Living Things' page, your child can observe the pictures and describe the changes..."). It prompts the child to explain reasoning (e.g., "Ask your child if she thinks this change happens quickly or slowly and why") and includes an objective to "Present dramatic interpretations of ideas presented in text," which requires verbal expression. The activities also ask the child to give examples and talk about observations during outings (e.g., "Ask your child to give examples of changes that occur in animals" and "Go to the zoo... Talk with your child about changes you observe").
Lesson 8
Plants and Change
Students are asked orally directed questions after readings (e.g., What are some things plants are used for? How are plants similar to and different from animals?), which requires them to speak and state ideas. Activity 1 asks the child to sing along with a video and then say the plant needs aloud from memory, providing repeated spoken practice. Activity 6 asks students to state predictions about the plant experiment and have those ideas recorded, and the Wrapping Up section asks students to describe what plants need and list plant parts aloud or in writing.
Lesson 9
Heat Causes Change
Students are prompted to describe and explain observations aloud (e.g., asked what burned, how the ice is changing, what will happen to the water, and to describe the batter). Students answer guided questions about the candle (How did the candle change? What caused the candle to change? Was it a physical or chemical change?) and are asked to explain how heat caused changes during wrap-up discussions. Several activities instruct students to discuss predictions and observations with an adult, providing repeated opportunities for oral expression.
Lesson 10
Chemical Changes
Students are prompted to discuss the difference between physical and chemical changes during the Introduction. After Activity 3, students are asked to explain how they made each decision on the 'Chemical or Physical Change' page. In Wrapping Up, students are asked to describe the difference between a physical and a chemical change and to give an example of each, which requires verbal explanation of their ideas.
Lesson 11
People Change the Environment
Students are asked to brainstorm positive and negative ways humans change the environment and dictate their ideas for recording (Activity 1), which requires them to produce and articulate ideas aloud. In Activity 3 students describe what is happening in illustrations, explain how each illustration changes the environment, and decide whether the change is positive, negative, or neutral and why. The Wrapping Up and Life Application ask students to share ways to reduce/reuse/recycle and to point out environmental changes during a walk or drive, prompting spoken observation and explanation.
Final Project
Mobile of Change
The skills list asks students to "Express ideas through writing and conversation" and to "Use new vocabulary in speech and writing," which requires verbal expression. The activities ask students to discuss questions about change, to report daily on weather changes, and to explain their mobile to family members, including answering which example is their favorite. The introduction prompts students to talk about hypothetical scenarios (e.g., "What if you stayed the same age?") that require speaking thoughts and feelings aloud.
Unit 2: Characters Change
Lesson 1
What's in a Name
Students are asked to make predictions aloud in the Introduction and to answer comprehension questions after listening to the story (Questions #1–#4). Activity 3 (Feeling Phrases) prompts students to read phrases, identify what the author communicates about Chrysanthemum's feelings, and discuss or illustrate those emotions. The Vocabulary activity asks students to guess word meanings from context and then discuss the correct definitions aloud, and the Characters Change activity asks students to describe and explain how Chrysanthemum changed.
Lesson 2
Why Worry?
Students are prompted to share what they worry about and to discuss answers to comprehension questions after watching the read-aloud (e.g., explain whether Wemberly needed to worry and why). Students are asked to combine sentences orally using conjunctions (Activity 1) and to produce sentences aloud using "and" and "but" during the wrap-up. Students are asked to say which story they enjoyed more and explain why, requiring expression of personal feelings and ideas.
Lesson 3
Is It a Problem?
Students are prompted to answer comprehension questions aloud after reading (e.g., questions about how the author illustrates the problem and how the boy handles it). Students practice combining sentences orally using the conjunction "or" (explicit instruction: "Have your child practice combining the following sentences orally"). Students discuss and verbally brainstorm problems, explain why a problem worries them, and describe steps they can take to tackle a problem, all of which require expressing thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
Lesson 4
Comparing Characters
Students are asked to dictate three- or four-sentence story summaries to a grown-up (Activity 3), which requires them to express the beginning, middle, and end aloud. The unit prompts students to discuss similarities, causes/effects, and personal reactions (e.g., "Which story did you like most? Why?"; think of your own cause-and-effect example), and to answer the questions at the bottom of activity pages either orally or in writing. Several activities instruct the adult to record the child's answers or to discuss ideas with the child, providing multiple opportunities for spoken responses.
Lesson 5
The Raft
Students are prompted to share memories of time spent with grandparents and to answer comprehension and reflective questions aloud (e.g., why the boy did not want to stay, how he feels at the end). Students engage in multiple oral discussions across days, including talking about figurative language, why the author used certain phrases, and how the character changed. Students are asked to discuss story elements (characters, setting, problem/solution) and to explain their thinking when comparing stories and describing the boy's feelings and experiences.
Lesson 6
Positive and Negative Change
Students are asked to discuss causes and effects aloud in guided questions and to answer specific comprehension questions about the rat story. Students dictate a new ending to the story and then read the story aloud with their new ending. Students are asked to share their illustrated cause-and-effect example and verbally describe whether the change was positive or negative to family members.
Final Project
My Own Story
Students are asked to dictate their story while an adult records it, which requires them to speak their ideas aloud. Students discuss story ideas, characters, setting, problem/solution, and how the character changes, which prompts them to express thoughts and feelings. The plan includes having the child (or an adult reading it back) read the dictated story aloud during the online publishing step, providing an opportunity for oral expression.
Unit 3: A First Look at History - Change Over Time
Lesson 1
People and Families Change
Students are asked to answer guided questions about how they have changed (Activity 1, Activity 4) and to describe memories and differences verbally. Students dictate ideas about family changes while an adult records them and are encouraged to read their ideas aloud (Activity 5). Activity 6 asks students to share predictions and descriptions with the rest of the family, and the Wrapping Up section asks students to describe different ways they have changed aloud.
Lesson 2
Understanding Time
Students are prompted to talk about things that happened in the past, things happening now, and things they want to happen in the future (Introduction asks the child to name something from past/present/future). Activity 2 and the Advanced Questions ask students to answer many oral questions aloud (e.g., "Were you born in the past, present, or future?" and "Tell me about a change that is happening in your life at the present"). The Wrapping Up asks students to explain the difference between past, present, and future, requiring spoken explanation.
Lesson 3
Communities Change
Students are asked to read the book aloud or have the book read aloud and to read the title and author, providing opportunities to speak. Students answer questions about the story (Where did the story happen? Who are the characters? Which child would you like to be? What was your favorite part? When would you have most liked to visit Maple Street?) and are prompted to explain their answers. Students discuss and point out differences in transportation, clothing, homes, and activities, and are asked to describe ways to learn more about people from the past. Students are prompted to say the phrase "chronological order" three times and to explain choices when sequencing events and identifying artifacts.
Lesson 4
Past and Present
Students are asked to dictate a story about an adventure set in a historical time period and have the story recorded (Activity 2). Students are prompted to answer discussion questions about differences between past and present and to point out differences in illustrations after reading (Activities 1 and 3). Students are asked to dictate five time-period clues and then read those clues aloud to family members for guessing (Activity 7).
Lesson 5
Exploring the Past
Students write one sentence about each element of culture and draw illustrations, then assemble those pages into a book (Activity 4). Students are encouraged to select a culture and use the finished book to give a presentation to the family and share what they learned. The timeline and cut-and-paste activities require students to organize and talk about cultural information, supporting oral recounting of ideas.
Lesson 6
Predicting Future Change
Students are asked to answer questions verbally in Activity 1 by identifying what changed and predicting how the change will affect the future, including responding to follow-up questions. Students are asked to discuss and decide whether changes are positive or negative in Activity 2 and to come up with examples that have both positive and negative outcomes. Students are asked to dictate a description of a personal change in Activity 3 and to attempt to read the description aloud, and the wrapping up prompts ask students to talk about positive and negative changes.
Lesson 7
People of the Past
Students are prompted to answer oral questions in Activity 1 (e.g., describe the person, explain what they did to make a positive change) and in the Wrapping Up section (e.g., define a biography, describe people from the past). Activity 3 asks students to think of a personal positive change and discuss what they need to do, requiring them to explain ideas aloud. Activity 2 has students reread descriptions and point to or identify the individual described, which involves verbally identifying and recounting information.
Final Project
My Past, Present and Future
Students are asked to read through their book or comparison pages and to present their book or comparison pages to their family, which requires them to speak aloud and describe their ideas. The wrap-up prompts ask students to answer questions such as "What did you do well on your project?" and "How do you think you will change when you are grown?", prompting expression of thoughts and feelings. The option to dictate sentences for the comparison activity gives students occasions to produce spoken sentences that communicate ideas about past and present cultural elements.
6: Reading
Unit 1: Semester 1
Lesson 1
Letter Sounds Review I
Students are prompted to read the Weekly Message aloud while pointing to each word and to shout the exclamation "Exciting!" when prompted. They practice saying letter sounds clearly (e.g., producing /m/ as "mmmm" and avoiding added vowel sounds), identify beginning sounds aloud, read sight words aloud, and read the Tap and Pat reader twice while pointing to each word. Students also answer spoken questions (e.g., "What else do you see on the cover?" and clues in Guess My Word) and are asked to speak the words they write.
Lesson 2
Letter Sounds Review II
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message and point to each word as they read, and to reread the reader The Pig Can aloud (Activity 5.3). The teacher models how to read a question by making the voice go up at the end, and students are prompted to describe the book cover and explain their thinking about whether the pig and cat can fit in the box. Students are instructed to say letter sounds without adding vowel sounds and to say each letter sound as they spell words (Activities 1.2, 3.2, 5.2), and they are encouraged to read the book to others to build fluency and confidence.
Lesson 3
Letter Sounds Review III
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud while pointing to words and to answer the prompt about the hint, requiring oral response. Multiple activities ask students to say letter sounds (e.g., not adding a vowel to /j/), to say words slowly and clearly while building and writing words, and to read the reader The Bug aloud and describe the cover. The lesson also prompts students to answer comprehension questions about the reader (e.g., "What is the bug able to do?" and "Why can't he do that?"), which requires expressing ideas orally.
Lesson 4
Letter Sounds Review IV
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message and to read along as the adult points to words, then answer how many sentences it has, providing spoken responses. Students are prompted to say letter sounds and words slowly and clearly (e.g., "encourage her to say them slowly, clearly pronouncing each sound"), flip letter cards and say sounds aloud, and read sight words and sentences aloud while pointing. Students read a reader aloud to the adult and answer comprehension questions, and they build and orally produce sentences using word cards.
Lesson 5
Adding s, More Word Families, Ending with ck
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud with modeling for reading more loudly for an exclamation and raising the voice for a question (Activity 1.1). Students read sight words aloud and say each sight word before tracing and writing it (Activities 1.3, 2.1, 2.2). Students read the reader Ducks Are Fun aloud and answer a comprehension/opinion question ("Which duck do you think is having the most fun? Why?"), and are encouraged to read it again in a different voice (Activity 4.3). Students are prompted to say letter sounds as they spell words in word chains and to say words aloud when adding s or solving "Guess My Word" clues (Activities 3.1, 5.1, 5.2).
Lesson 6
Open Syllables and Digraph th
Students are prompted to read aloud in multiple activities (Activity 1.1 asks the child to read the Weekly Message aloud and point to words; Activity 5.2 asks the child to read the reader ‘This Is...' aloud and to read with feeling for exclamation points). Students answer comprehension and observational questions (e.g., identifying whether words rhyme, explaining why names start with uppercase letters, choosing which pet they'd prefer). The rhyming game and sentence-forming activities require students to speak answers and take turns producing words or sentences orally.
Lesson 7
Consonant Digraphs ch, sh, wh, ph
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and point to words they know, to read sight words aloud in random order, and to read Reader #7 aloud to an adult while answering comprehension questions (e.g., predictions and why questions). Students are prompted to make up funny sentences that use target sounds and to say the sound of each digraph as they sort and build words. Students also respond orally during activities (stand up/sit down on /ch/ vs /sh/), answer questions about word features, and read sentences they wrote after sentence dictation.
Lesson 8
Blends with s
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to read the reader (Meg and Dan and the Sled) aloud to an adult, pointing to each word as they read. Students are prompted to say letter sounds and blend sounds as they spell and build words (e.g., saying each letter sound while creating word chains and saying sounds while writing words). Students answer comprehension and opinion questions aloud ("Why do you think they stop for a snack?", "What would you want for a snack?") and are asked to list words out loud that begin with particular blends.
Lesson 9
Blends with l
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message and read aloud along with an adult, point to each word, and read the reader 'The Club' aloud to a listener. Students are prompted to say words in each blend column, say each letter sound while spelling words in word-building and word-chain activities, and read sight words aloud and use them in oral sentences. Students are also asked to answer comprehension questions about the reader and to create and read their own sentences using word cards, including explaining the difference between 'have' and 'had' and describing what they would do at the club.
Lesson 10
Blends with r
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and read along as able, and to point to and say blends in words such as "crab," "frog," and "truck." Students read the reader One Can on their own and then read it aloud to the adult, and they answer comprehension and personal-preference questions (e.g., "Which of these things are you best at -- hopping, swimming or running?"). Multiple activities prompt students to name pictures, say words in each column, read aloud words they created in Alphabet Soup, and respond verbally in the Life Application activity where they say a word that begins with the same blend and then switch roles.
Lesson 11
Ending Blends
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to read the reader "At Camp" aloud to an adult, pointing to each word as they read. Students are prompted to pronounce individual letter sounds and blends (for example, say /n/ and /d/ separately and then together as /nd/, and say each letter sound while spelling during word chains). Students name pictures, say words in each column when sorting ending blends, and read aloud sentences after dictation. Students are asked comprehension and opinion questions (e.g., "What do you think your favorite camp activity would be?"), requiring them to state ideas and preferences verbally.
Lesson 12
Double ll, ss, ff, zz (FLOSS)
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud (reading along as able) and to read the decodable reader Huff and Puff to an adult, pointing to each word as they read. Students respond orally to comprehension questions about the reader (e.g., Why do you think the insects are following the kids?), and they are asked to say the FLOSS rule in their own words. Students also create and read words they build, read sentences they write, and read words they formed from the Alphabet Soup activity aloud to the adult.
Lesson 13
Glued Sounds ng and nk
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud with the adult and to read words and sentences aloud during Activities 1.1, 2.1, and 3.1. The plan repeatedly prompts students to spell and say words, to sound out and read new words aloud, and explicitly encourages reading words aloud so the adult can hear them. Students make sentences from word cards (Activity 5.2) and read Reader #13 aloud, then answer comprehension and opinion questions (Activity 4.3). These tasks require students to speak so that they can be heard and to express ideas in sentence form.
Lesson 14
Three-Letter Beginning Blends
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud with an adult and to re-read the previous reader and Reader #14 (Spring Has Sprung!) aloud, pointing to each word as they read. Students answer oral comprehension questions about the reader (e.g., "What do the kids do at the track?") and are prompted to share new words and favorite words aloud. The lesson invites students to make up and share silly sentences that begin with the same blends and to read aloud sentences they have written during dictation activities.
Lesson 15
More Ending Blends
Students are asked to read aloud several times (Activity 1.1: read the Weekly Message aloud and read along; Day 5 Activity 5.2: read The Raft Trip aloud to the teacher). Students are prompted to speak words and sounds aloud (Activities 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, and 4.2 ask students to say ending-blend sounds, read new words, and point to blends as the teacher says words). Students answer oral comprehension and expressive prompts (Day 5 questions about the reader, including "What would you like to see if you went down a river on a raft?" and fluency checks when students read words they built in Activity 4.4).
Lesson 16
R-Controlled Vowels (ar)
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and point to words they know (Activity 1.1) and to read the reader Which? When? What? aloud and answer the question on each page (Activity 4.2). The lesson prompts students to respond verbally to questions on student activity pages (e.g., "Which horse runs faster?", "What is your favorite color?", "When do you eat lunch?") and to come up with questions using sight words (Activity 1.3). Activities such as Word Chains, Guess My Word, and Sentence Dictation require students to say letter sounds, spell words aloud, write and then say words, and read dictated sentences to an adult (Day 5 activities).
Lesson 17
Semester Review
Students are asked to read aloud the Weekly Message (Activity 1.1) and to read readers aloud to an adult (Activity 4.1). Students are prompted to answer comprehension and opinion questions aloud (e.g., "Which of these readers is your favorite? Why?") and to talk about characters and their actions. Students are invited to share a self-created reader with others (Activity 4.2) and to show and read sight words found in the word search (Activity 5.1).
Unit 2: Semester 2
Lesson 1
Long Vowels a and i with Silent e
Students are asked to read aloud in multiple activities (read the Weekly Message aloud, read the reader 'In the Fall' to an adult, and read words and sentences aloud during word-building and spelling activities). Students orally produce and identify vowel sounds (saying short and long vowel sounds, standing/raising a hand for long-vowel words), and they answer comprehension and personal-preference questions (e.g., 'Of all the things that Lin and Dev do in the fall, which do you like to do most?'). Students also say and write words in 'Guess My Word' and read back spelling-test words, providing repeated opportunities for oral production.
Lesson 2
Long Vowels o, u, and e with Silent e
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and follow along (Activity 1.1). They practice reading sight words aloud and pointing to cards (Activity 1.3) and read the reader They Chose To Doze aloud to the adult, then answer comprehension questions including a preference question ("Would you rather…?") (Day 5, Activity 5.1). Students also read words aloud during the spelling test and read back sentences they have written in the dictation activity (Day 4 Activity 4.3; Day 5 Activity 5.2).
Lesson 3
Hard and Soft c and g
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to read words and the reader out loud (Activity 1.1; Day 5 Activity 5.2), providing repeated opportunities for oral reading. Students are prompted to answer and explain phonics reasoning aloud (e.g., "What do you notice about the sound of c?"; "Ask her to explain how she knows") in Activities 2.1, 3.1, and 4.1. Students write dictated sentences and then read them back aloud (Day 5 Sentence Dictation), reinforcing oral expression of ideas.
Lesson 4
More R-Controlled Vowels (er, ir, or, ur)
Students are repeatedly asked to read words and texts aloud (Weekly Message, word lists, Reader #4, spelling test) and to read words aloud after spelling them. Students are prompted to pronounce specific r-controlled vowel sounds (/er/ as in "herd" and "burn") and to read dictated sentences and sight words aloud. Students answer comprehension and opinion questions (e.g., "Are you surprised that the cat won the race? Who did you think would win? Why?") and are asked to use sight words in sentences.
Lesson 5
Long a Spellings ai, ay
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and read along, to point to and read known words, and to identify long a words. Students read sight words and read each word aloud after spelling it in Word Building activities, and they read sentences from the Fill in the Blanks and Spelling Test pages. On Day 5 students read The Gray Day aloud to an adult and answer comprehension and opinion questions including Do you like rainy days Why or why not, and students read dictated sentences aloud after writing them.
Lesson 6
Long e Spellings ee, ey, ea
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to read sight words and word lists aloud (Activities 1.1, 1.3, Day 2). Students make sentences from word cards and are asked to read those sentences aloud (Activity 4.2). Students read Reader #6 aloud and then answer comprehension and preference questions (Day 5), and students complete sentence dictation and then read their written sentences back to the adult (Day 5).
Lesson 7
Long i Spellings y, igh, ie
Students are asked to read aloud and read along with the Weekly Message and to re-read and then read the reader (The Dark Night) to an adult, answering comprehension questions about what Tom and Val see and dream. Multiple activities require students to read sight words aloud as the adult points to them, to show and read words found in the Sight Word Search, and to read sentences aloud after dictation. The Life Application asks the student to explain to a family member or friend what she knows about ways to spell long i and give examples.
Lesson 8
Long o Spellings ow, oa, oe
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to point to and read words they know. Students read The Slow Boat on their own and then read it aloud to an adult, answering comprehension and preference questions (e.g., "If you were on a boat, would you want it to go fast or slow?"). Students also participate in oral activities such as reading sight words, reading words during word-building, saying words aloud during the spelling test, and reading back sentences written during dictation.
Lesson 9
Long u Spellings ue, ew, ou
Students are asked to read aloud several times (read the Weekly Message aloud, read words and sentences, read the reader Would You Eat It? to an adult) which requires verbal expression. Students are prompted to explain phonics changes and word meanings in their own words (explain what changed when adding silent e; explain meanings of "blue" and "blew"), and to answer comprehension and opinion questions ("What does Tom add to the stew?"; "If you were going to make a funny stew, what would you put in it?"). Students also perform oral word-identification tasks (point to and read sight words, clap for words with long u) that require spoken responses.
Lesson 10
Other Long Vowel Patterns
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to point to and read long-vowel words as the adult rereads the message (Activity 1.1). Students read words and sentences aloud throughout the week (spelling words, sight words, word-building cards, dictated sentences) and are asked to read created words and the reader aloud to the adult (Activities 1.2, 2.2, 3.1, 5.1). Students answer comprehension and opinion questions about the reader (e.g., "Would you want to take care of a wild colt?"), and they are prompted to use sight words in sentences and to read their sentences to the adult (Activities 3.1, 3.2, 5.1).
Lesson 11
Long Vowel Sounds Review
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to point to and read words they know, and to reread the message while pointing to long-vowel words. Students are instructed to reread readers and write the long-vowel words they find and then read those words aloud to the teacher. Students are prompted to "write and say each word" in Guess My Word, to read sentences they completed in Fill in the Blanks, and to "talk about what she knows" about long vowel spellings during the wrap-up.
Lesson 12
Other Vowel Sounds oi, oy
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and read along (Activity 1.1), to listen to and say words from the oi/oy video and name which column they belong in (Activity 2.1), and to read words aloud after the word-building and spelling activities (Activities 3.2, 4.2). Students make sentences from word cards and read those sentences aloud (Activity 4.1), read a short reader aloud and answer comprehension questions that ask for opinions and preferences (Day 5 Reader), and are prompted to read their dictated sentences aloud after writing them (Day 5 Sentence Dictation).
Lesson 13
Other Vowel Sounds ou, ow
Students are asked to read aloud multiple times (Activity 1.1: "read the message aloud," Day 5 Activity 5.1: read The Hound and the Owl aloud to you). Students must explain their thinking orally (Activity 2.1: sort words and then "ask her to explain her groups," Activity 3.1 and Wrapping Up: ask her to explain how she knew spellings and when to use ou versus ow). The lesson includes oral sentence work and speaking practice (Activity 4.3: dictate sentences for the child to write and then "ask her to read them to you"; Sight Words activities ask the child to say and read word cards aloud).
Lesson 14
Other Vowel Sounds aw, au
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and read words on activity pages (Activity 1.1; Activity 1.2). During sorting and follow-up prompts (Day 2 Activity 2.1, Day 2 Activity 2.2) students read words aloud, explain their groupings, and answer questions such as "What do you notice about all of these words?" On Day 5 students read The Pups aloud to an adult and answer comprehension questions, and many activities require students to read words they created and to read dictated sentences back aloud.
Lesson 15
These Make More Than One Sound: oo and ea
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and read along (Activity 1.1). Students read The Bad Bear aloud to an adult and then answer comprehension questions about the story (Activity 5.1). Students write dictated sentences and then read them to the adult (Activity 5.2) and are prompted to use sight words in sentences and to speak/read words aloud during multiple phonics and sorting activities. The lesson's skill list explicitly includes reading grade-level text orally with appropriate rate and expression.
Lesson 16
Silent Starts: kn, wr, gn
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to 'read along' as able, and to list aloud some things they have learned about reading words. Students read word lists and readers aloud (The Gnats) and answer comprehension questions such as 'What do the gnats do...?' which requires verbal expression of ideas. Multiple activities require students to read sight words and sentences aloud (Sentence Dictation, Spelling Test read-back, reading sight word cards), giving repeated opportunities to speak and convey meaning.
Lesson 17
Year-End Review
Students are asked to read the Weekly Message aloud and to read along as able (Activity 1.1). Students say and point to sight words and answer a prompt about their initial sound (Activity 1.3), and they read words and readers aloud to an adult (Activity 3.2, Activity 5.2). Students write sentences based on pictures and then read those sentences aloud, and they are asked to talk about favorite activities and share their work with others during Wrapping Up.