Week 14 — Printable Lesson Packet

Mathematics

Objective: Students will solve take-from word problems with the result unknown by drawing a bar model with the part taken away crossed out and writing a subtraction equation (2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Spiral from Week 13: read one add-to problem, 'Priya had 28 beads and got 14 more. How many now?' (42). Then say, 'Now flip it. Priya had 42 beads and gave away 14. How many are left?' Have your child predict the answer before drawing (28).
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Read: 'There were 52 cookies on the tray. The family ate 27. How many cookies are left?' Draw one bar labeled 52 across the top, split it into a part labeled 27 with a big X through it and a part labeled ?. Write 52 - 27 = ? and solve two ways: count up from 27 to 52 (3 to 30, 22 more, so 25) and subtract with tens and ones. Name it a 'take-from' problem.
3. 15 min — Practice: Your child solves: 'Diego had 45 balloons. 18 floated away. How many are left?' (27) and 'A parking lot had 70 cars. 36 cars drove off. How many cars are still there?' (34). For each, draw the bar, cross out the part, write the equation with ?, and check by adding the answer back to the part taken (27 + 18 = 45).
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'Why does adding the answer back to the part you took away give the starting number?' Add take-from to the word wall.

Materials: whiteboard or large paper, paper, pencil, dried beans

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will retell the events of a classic Cinderella tale and identify its main characters and setting (RL.2.2, RL.2.3).

1. 15 min — Read-Aloud: Read 'Cinderella' by Marcia Brown (the Perrault version with the pumpkin coach) straight through. Remind your child that last week poets used sound to make meaning; this week they will see how different tellers change the same story. Ask: 'Who helps Cinderella, and what does she lose at the ball?'
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Draw a story map with five boxes labeled Character, Setting, Problem, Helper, Ending. Fill it in together for Marcia Brown's version (Cinderella; a kingdom in France long ago; her stepsisters keep her from the ball; a fairy godmother; the glass slipper fits). Keep this map for Wednesday's comparison.
3. 15 min — Guided Reading: Reread the pages where the fairy godmother transforms the pumpkin, mice, and rat. Your child reads the transformation list aloud and you list each 'before' and 'after' on paper (pumpkin to coach, six mice to six horses). Ask which change they think is the funniest and why.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Your child writes a five-sentence retelling of Marcia Brown's Cinderella using the words first, next, then, after that, and finally. Model the first sentence aloud: 'First, Cinderella's stepsisters went to the ball and left her at home.'
5. 10 min — Phonics: Compound Words: Explain that a compound word is two small words glued into one. Write and read: sunshine, bedroom, cupcake, football, rainbow, birthday, doghouse, sailboat, popcorn, fireplace. Your child draws a line between the two little words in each and tells what the big word means.

Materials: Cinderella by Marcia Brown, paper, pencil, writing paper, folder, index cards, marker

Science

Objective: Students will ask questions and make observations to define a simple problem that people want to change (K-2-ETS1-1).

1. 5 min — Science Question of the Week: Ask: 'How do engineers figure out exactly what the problem is before they start building?' Read the sticky-note problems from last Friday's reflection and choose one family problem to solve this week, or use this one: 'Crayons roll off the table and break.'
2. 20 min — Investigation: Play detective. Put five crayons on a table, nudge the table, and watch what happens; then try it on a tablecloth, a plate, and a folded towel. Record on a chart with three columns, 'surface', 'how many rolled off', and 'what I noticed'. Ask 'who, what, where, when, why' questions about the problem and write the three best ones in the Engineering Notebook ('Where do crayons roll the most? When does it happen? Who gets upset?').
3. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Write a problem statement together in one sentence: 'Crayons roll off flat tables, and that breaks them.' Explain that a clear problem statement is step one of the design process, and tape it to the notebook cover.

Materials: 5 crayons, tablecloth or dish towel, plate, folded towel, Engineering Notebook, pencil, tape

Mathematics

Objective: Students will solve take-from problems where the change or the start is unknown, writing equations such as 40 - ? = 22 and ? - 15 = 30 (2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Fact family flash: write 13 + 8 = 21 and ask your child for the three related facts (8 + 13, 21 - 8, 21 - 13). Repeat with 25 + 17 = 42. Say, 'Every subtraction story hides an addition fact.'
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Read: 'Lily had 40 stickers. She gave some to her sister. Now she has 22. How many did she give away?' Draw the bar: 40 over the whole, ? crossed out in one part, 22 in the other. Write 40 - ? = 22. Show that ? is the missing part, so 22 + ? = 40 works too (18). Then read: 'Jonah had some coins. He spent 15. Now he has 30. How many did he have at first?' Draw 15 crossed out and 30 with ? over the whole; write ? - 15 = 30 and solve by adding 30 + 15 = 45.
3. 15 min — Practice: Two problems: 'A jar had 56 buttons. Some fell out. Now 39 are in the jar. How many fell out?' (56 - ? = 39, 17) and 'Some ducks were in the pond. 24 flew away and 18 stayed. How many ducks at first?' (? - 24 = 18, 42). Act out the second with 42 beans to prove it. Support: start with numbers within 20 (a jar had 15, now 9, how many fell out?). Stretch: write a start-unknown story about your own toys with numbers over 50.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'When the ? was over the whole bar, what operation helped you find it?' Listen for 'I added the two parts.'

Materials: dried beans, coins, paper, pencil, whiteboard or large paper

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will describe how Cinderella responds to unkindness and how the story's magic solves her problem (RL.2.3, RL.2.2).

1. 15 min — Shared Reading: Reread the opening pages of 'Cinderella' by Marcia Brown where the stepsisters give her chores and mock her. Your child reads the stepsisters' lines in a snooty voice. Ask: 'How does Cinderella act when they are cruel? Does she get even?'
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Introduce the word 'kindness' as this story's lesson. On paper make two columns, Unkind Acts and Kind Acts, and list three of each from the book (stepsisters tease her; she helps them dress for the ball; she forgives them at the end). Ask what the ending would be if Cinderella had been mean back.
3. 15 min — Independent Reading: Your child rereads the ball scene and the midnight escape on their own, then tells you the three most important events in order. If they can, they point to the exact page where the clock strikes twelve.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Your child writes a paragraph answering 'How does Cinderella feel at the start, in the middle, and at the end of the story?' Encourage feeling words beyond happy and sad: lonely, hopeful, amazed, worried, joyful.
5. 10 min — Phonics: Compound Words: Write and read a second set: goldfish, notebook, butterfly, pancake, snowman, mailbox, toothbrush, backpack, homework, sidewalk. Play Compound Match: cut ten cards in half at the seam, mix them up, and have your child rebuild the words and read them.

Materials: Cinderella by Marcia Brown, paper, pencil, writing folder, index cards, marker, scissors

Social Studies

Objective: Students will distinguish local, state, and national government and name the leader of each level (D2.Civ.1.K-2, D2.Civ.5.K-2).

1. 10 min — Read-Aloud and Discussion: Read 'Duck for President' by Doreen Cronin. Each time Duck moves up (farm, governor, president) pause and ask: 'Who is Duck in charge of now? Is that more people or fewer?' Draw three nested circles on paper labeled town, state, country while you read.
2. 15 min — Hands-On Activity: Make a three-layer Government Stack out of three paper plates of different sizes (cut one small, one medium, keep one large). Label them 'Local: mayor and town council', 'State: governor and state legislature', 'National: president and Congress', and stack them small on top. On each plate, write two jobs that level handles: local (trash pickup, parks), state (driver's licenses, state parks), national (the army, money, the mail).
3. 5 min — Quick Write: Your child writes the name of our mayor, our governor, and the president on the matching plate, then writes one sentence: 'The ___ is in charge of the most people.' Fill in the names together from a quick search.

Materials: Duck for President by Doreen Cronin (library), paper, marker, 3 paper plates, scissors, markers, internet access, pencil

Mathematics

Objective: Students will solve compare word problems (how many more, how many fewer) using a two-bar comparison model (2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Build two towers of blocks, 9 tall and 6 tall, side by side. Ask, 'How many more blocks in the tall tower?' Line them up and point to the extra 3. Repeat with 12 and 7. Say, 'Comparing means lining them up and looking at the difference.'
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Read: 'Carlos has 34 books. Ana has 21 books. How many more books does Carlos have than Ana?' Draw two bars stacked, the top bar longer and labeled 34, the bottom bar shorter labeled 21, with a ? bracket over the extra length. Write 34 - 21 = ? (13). Then reword it: 'How many fewer books does Ana have?' and show it is the same model and same answer. Name this a 'compare' problem.
3. 15 min — Practice: Your child solves: 'The oak tree is 48 feet tall. The maple tree is 29 feet tall. How much taller is the oak?' (19) and 'Grace scored 15 points. Wes scored 7 fewer than Grace. How many points did Wes score?' (15 - 7 = 8, note that fewer here means Wes's bar is shorter). Draw both comparison bars for each and label the ?.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'How is a compare bar model different from a take-from bar model?' Listen for 'two bars instead of one' and 'nothing gets crossed out.'

Materials: building blocks or connecting cubes, paper, pencil, whiteboard or large paper

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will compare and contrast two versions of Cinderella from different cultures using a Venn diagram (RL.2.9, W.2.2).

1. 15 min — Read-Aloud: Read 'Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China' by Ai-Ling Louie. Before starting, say that this version is more than a thousand years older than the French one. Stop at the fish bones and ask: 'Who is the helper in this story? Who was the helper in Marcia Brown's?'
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Draw a large Venn diagram with two overlapping circles labeled Cinderella (France) and Yeh-Shen (China). Model one entry for each part: only France has a pumpkin coach, only China has a magic fish, both have a lost slipper. Explain that the middle is for things both stories share.
3. 15 min — Guided Reading: Flip between the two books with your child to hunt for four more Venn entries: the mean stepfamily (both), a festival instead of a ball (Yeh-Shen), the tiny golden slipper (Yeh-Shen), the fairy godmother (Cinderella). Your child writes each entry in the right spot. Support: you write, they say where it goes. Stretch: they add how each story's helper first appears.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Turn the Venn diagram into sentences. Your child writes one 'Both stories' sentence and one 'But' sentence: 'Both stories have a girl who loses a slipper. But in Yeh-Shen a fish helps her, and in Cinderella a fairy godmother helps her.'
5. 10 min — Phonics: Contractions: Teach that a contraction squeezes two words together and the apostrophe marks where letters left. Write and read the 'not' family: is not / isn't, cannot / can't, do not / don't, did not / didn't, was not / wasn't, are not / aren't, will not / won't, could not / couldn't. Your child covers the long form and reads the short one, then reverses.

Materials: Cinderella by Marcia Brown, Yeh-Shen by Ai-Ling Louie, paper, pencil, writing folder, index cards, marker

Science

Objective: Students will gather information about a problem by interviewing people and testing the situation, then list the criteria a good solution must meet (K-2-ETS1-1).

1. 5 min — Review: Read the problem statement on the notebook cover. Ask: 'How would we know if a solution worked? What must it do?' Introduce the word 'criteria': the things a solution must do to count as a success.
2. 20 min — Deeper Investigation: Interview two family members (in person or by phone) with three questions: 'Do crayons roll away from you? What would help? What must the fix NOT do?' Write short answers in the notebook. Then run a fair test of the roll: tilt a book slightly with a pencil under one end, release a crayon from the top, and measure with a ruler how far it rolls; repeat three times and write the distances.
3. 5 min — Data Discussion: Write a criteria list of three items, for example: 'Holds at least 8 crayons. Stops rolling on a tilted table. Fits in a pencil box.' Add one constraint: 'Made only from things in the recycling bin.' Support: offer two criteria and have your child choose one to add. Stretch: have your child rank the criteria from most to least important and explain the order.

Materials: phone or family members, hardcover book, pencil, crayon, ruler, Engineering Notebook

Mathematics

Objective: Students will solve two-step subtraction word problems, including problems that mix take-from and compare, by writing two equations (2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Subtract twice in a row mentally: 'Start at 50. Take away 10. Take away 8.' (32) 'Start at 75. Take away 20. Take away 6.' (49) Ask, 'What did you have after the first step?' to reinforce keeping track of the middle number.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Read: 'A bus had 58 riders. 23 got off at the first stop and 16 got off at the second stop. How many riders are still on the bus?' Draw a bar for step one (58 - 23 = 35) and a bar for step two (35 - 16 = 19). Then show a second path: add the two groups who left first (23 + 16 = 39), then 58 - 39 = 19. Say, 'Two different paths, same answer, and that is a great way to check.'
3. 15 min — Practice: Your child solves: 'Hana had 64 beads. She used 28 for a bracelet and 19 for a necklace. How many beads are left?' (17). Then a compare-plus-take: 'Milo has 42 crayons. Ruby has 15 fewer than Milo. Ruby gives 9 crayons away. How many does Ruby have now?' (42 - 15 = 27, 27 - 9 = 18). Require two numbered equations and a model for each step.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask your child to explain which of the two paths for the bus problem felt easier and why. Remind them either path is correct.

Materials: paper, pencil, whiteboard or large paper, dried beans

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will add a third version of Cinderella to the comparison and explain how setting changes the story's details (RL.2.9, RL.2.7).

1. 15 min — Shared Reading: Read 'Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters' by John Steptoe, an African tale with two sisters, Manyara and Nyasha. Ask your child to raise a hand each time they notice something that reminds them of Cinderella or Yeh-Shen (a kind sister, a cruel sister, a king choosing a wife, a helper who is more than he seems).
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Say: 'The setting is where and when a story happens, and it changes the details.' On paper list the setting of each of the three books and one detail that fits it: France with a royal ball, ancient China with a spring festival, an African village with a journey to the city. Ask which details the illustrations gave you.
3. 15 min — Independent Reading: Your child chooses any one of the three books and rereads their favorite part on their own, then finds one picture that shows something the words do not say. They explain the picture to you.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Your child finishes a compare and contrast paragraph: an opening ('I read three versions of Cinderella'), the Both sentence and But sentence from yesterday, one new sentence about Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters, and a closing that names the version they liked best. Read it aloud together and fix capitals and periods.
5. 10 min — Phonics: Contractions: Teach contractions with am, is, are, and will: I am / I'm, it is / it's, she is / she's, he is / he's, we are / we're, they are / they're, you are / you're, I will / I'll, we will / we'll, let us / let's. Your child hunts for three contractions in any of this week's books and copies them with their long forms.

Materials: Cinderella by Marcia Brown, Yeh-Shen by Ai-Ling Louie, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe, paper, pencil, writing folder, index cards, marker

Social Studies

Objective: Students will explain that different levels of government make different rules and identify which level handles a given community concern (D2.Civ.1.K-2, D2.Civ.5.K-2).

1. 10 min — Review and Extend: Hold up the Government Stack and quiz: 'Who is Duck at each level?' Then read 'House Mouse, Senate Mouse' by Peter W. Barnes and Cheryl Shaw Barnes, and explain that the mice in Congress are one part of the national government that writes laws. Ask: 'Why do so many mice have to agree before a law passes?'
2. 15 min — Project Work: Add a 'Three Levels' strip to the Government at Work poster. Sort ten concern cards onto the poster under Local, State, or National: a broken streetlight, a new highway between two cities, a stamp price, a school playground, the state flag, a war, a stop sign, a driver's license, the national park, the town pool. Draw an arrow from each card to the government leader who would handle it.
3. 5 min — Share Progress: Your child chooses one card and explains to a family member why it belongs at that level. If they disagree, look at whether the concern affects one town, one state, or the whole country.

Materials: Government Stack plates, House Mouse, Senate Mouse by Peter and Cheryl Barnes (library), poster from last week, 10 index cards, tape, markers

Mathematics

Objective: Students will demonstrate that they can solve take-from and compare word problems using bar models and equations with a symbol for the unknown (2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Sort five problem cards by type without solving: two take-from, two compare, one add-to. Your child reads each aloud and says 'take-from,' 'compare,' or 'add-to' and explains one clue word or idea that helped.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Review the two model shapes side by side on the whiteboard: single bar with a crossed-out part (take-from) and two stacked bars with a ? over the difference (compare). Solve one of each together with your child holding the marker: 'A farmer had 63 eggs and sold 47. How many left?' (16) and 'Eva ran 36 laps. Noah ran 19. How many more laps did Eva run?' (17).
3. 15 min — Weekly Assessment: Four problems on one page, each needing a bar model, an equation with ?, and an answer: 1) 'Jack had 51 stickers and gave away 26. How many are left?' (25); 2) 'Ivy has 47 shells. Leo has 29. How many more shells does Ivy have?' (18); 3) 'There were some apples in the basket. 17 were eaten and 24 are left. How many at first?' (41); 4) 'Ben has 33 cards. Tessa has 14 fewer. How many cards does Tessa have?' (19). Note which model shape your child chooses for each.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Reflect: 'Last week the stories added; this week they took away and compared. Which model did you draw the most?' Preview next week: getting fast with facts within 20 so the stories get easier.

Materials: assessment page (four problems), index cards, paper, pencil, whiteboard or large paper

Assessment: Solve comparison and take-away word problems with bar models

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will publish a compare and contrast paragraph and demonstrate reading and writing of compound words and contractions (RL.2.9, W.2.2, L.2.2c).

1. 10 min — Reading Celebration: Slipper Vote: set out the three books and let each family member place a bean on the version they liked best, then say one reason. Your child tallies the beans and announces the winner.
2. 15 min — Reading Assessment: Give your child a blank Venn diagram labeled Cinderella and Yeh-Shen. Without the books open, they write two things only in each circle and two things in the middle, then tell you the lesson both stories teach. This is the week's assessment.
3. 15 min — Publishing and Author's Chair: Your child copies the compare and contrast paragraph neatly and draws the three helpers (fairy godmother, fish, and the snake or king from Mufaro's tale) along the bottom. They read from the Author's Chair and answer one question from the audience.
4. 10 min — Phonics Check: Dictate five compound words (rainbow, backpack, popcorn, toothbrush, sidewalk) and five contractions (can't, didn't, it's, we're, I'll). Check apostrophe placement together and have your child fix any misses.
5. 15 min — Independent Reading: Free choice from the three Cinderella books or a library folktale. Ask your child to find one contraction and one compound word while reading and show you at the end.

Materials: Cinderella by Marcia Brown, Yeh-Shen by Ai-Ling Louie, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe, dried beans, paper, clean paper, pencil, crayons, writing folder, library books

Assessment: Venn diagram of Cinderella and Yeh-Shen from memory with a stated shared lesson, published compare and contrast paragraph, and a 10-word dictation of compound words and contractions.

Science

Objective: Students will present a clearly defined problem, criteria, and constraints in words and drawings (K-2-ETS1-1).

1. 10 min — Drawing Conclusions: Make a one-page Problem Brief in the notebook with three boxes: Problem (the sentence from Monday), Criteria (the three items), and Constraints (recycling-bin materials only, must be done in one week). Read it aloud and check: 'Could a stranger understand our problem from this page?'
2. 15 min — Extension or Art Connection: Draw a 'before' picture of the problem happening (crayons rolling, a frowning face) and make a labeled diagram of the tilted-book test with the three roll distances written as a little table. Decorate the Problem Brief cover with the title 'Our Problem' in bubble letters.
3. 5 min — Week Reflection: Ask: 'What did the interviews teach us that the test did not?' and 'What is one idea you already have for a solution?' Write the idea on a sticky note and save it; next week is design week.

Materials: Engineering Notebook, pencil, ruler, drawing paper, crayons or markers, sticky notes