Week 15 — Printable Lesson Packet

Mathematics

Objective: Students will use the doubles and near-doubles strategies to recall addition facts within 20 (2.OA.B.2).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Spiral from Week 14: read 'Sara had 17 stickers and gave away 9. How many left?' and let your child solve it (8). Then say, 'That took a while. This week we make facts like 17 - 9 fast.' Give a 1-minute pretest of 20 mixed facts within 20 and keep the paper to compare on Friday.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Post the doubles ladder: 1+1=2, 2+2=4, 3+3=6, 4+4=8, 5+5=10, 6+6=12, 7+7=14, 8+8=16, 9+9=18, 10+10=20. Chant it up and down with claps. Then teach near doubles: 6 + 7 is 'double 6 plus 1' (13); 8 + 9 is 'double 8 plus 1' (17); 7 + 5 is 'double 6, one up and one down' (12). Model with two rows of beans that are almost equal.
3. 15 min — Practice: Make 12 index cards: 6 doubles (3+3, 5+5, 6+6, 7+7, 8+8, 9+9) and 6 near doubles (4+5, 6+7, 7+8, 8+9, 5+6, 9+8). Your child flips a card, says the double it hides ('7+8 is double 7 plus 1'), and gives the answer. Time three passes through the deck and record the fastest time.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'Which double do you know the fastest? Which near double still makes you think?' Circle those on the ladder to practice tomorrow.

Materials: index cards, dried beans, timer, paper, pencil

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will identify key words in a nonfiction text and use the book's glossary to find their meanings (RI.2.4, L.2.4e).

1. 15 min — Read-Aloud: Read the first half of 'National Geographic Readers: Sharks!' by Anne Schreiber. Say that last week they compared stories; this week they will learn the special words that nonfiction authors use and where to find their meanings. Each time a bold word appears, stop and say 'key word' together.
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Turn to the picture glossary at the back of the book. Show that the words are in alphabetical order and each has a short definition and a photo. Look up 'predator' and 'prey' together and write both words and their meanings on an index card.
3. 15 min — Guided Reading: Reread the pages about shark senses and teeth with your child reading aloud. Each time they hit a bold word they stop, flip to the glossary, read the meaning, then reread the sentence. Keep a Key Word List on paper.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Begin a new opinion piece: 'Sharks are amazing animals' or 'Sharks are scary animals' (your child picks). They write the opinion sentence and one reason from the book using the word 'because': 'Sharks are amazing because they can smell one drop of blood far away.'
5. 10 min — Phonics: Dictionary Skills: Practice first-letter alphabetical order. Write the shark words shark, fin, gill, ocean, prey, tooth, whale, jaw on cards and have your child line them up in ABC order, then read them in order and backward.

Materials: National Geographic Readers: Sharks! by Anne Schreiber, index cards, pencil, paper, writing paper, folder, marker

Science

Objective: Students will generate several possible solutions to the defined problem and sketch each one with labels (K-2-ETS1-2).

1. 5 min — Science Question of the Week: Ask: 'Why do engineers draw their ideas before they build them?' Read last week's Problem Brief aloud and the sticky-note idea. Say: 'Today we brainstorm, and in brainstorming every idea gets written down, even silly ones.'
2. 20 min — Investigation: Set a timer for 5 minutes and list as many crayon-holder ideas as possible on a big sheet (a tray with a lip, a cardboard tube with a base, an egg carton, a sock with the toe cut, a box with rubber bands). Then choose the three best and make a labeled sketch of each in the notebook: draw the shape, write the material next to each part, and write one criteria it meets ('lip stops rolling'). Support: give a choice of two materials to start the sketch. Stretch: add a top view and a side view of the favorite design.
3. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Count the ideas on the brainstorm sheet and celebrate the number. Ask: 'Which sketch would a stranger understand best, and why?' Circle the clearest label.

Materials: large paper, timer, Engineering Notebook, pencil, colored pencils

Mathematics

Objective: Students will use the make-ten strategy to add facts such as 8 + 5 and 9 + 6 within 20 (2.OA.B.2).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Doubles and near-doubles speed round with yesterday's 12 cards; aim to beat yesterday's best time. Then play 'Partners of 10': you say 7, your child says 3; you say 4, your child says 6; run through all pairs twice.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Draw two ten-frames (2 rows of 5 boxes each). Put 8 beans in the first frame and 5 in the second. Say, 'Move 2 beans from the 5 to fill the ten. Now we have 10 and 3, which is 13.' Write 8 + 5 = 8 + 2 + 3 = 13. Repeat with 9 + 6 (move 1, get 10 + 5 = 15) and 7 + 6 (move 3, get 10 + 3 = 13). Rule: 'Ask how many to reach ten, then add the rest.'
3. 15 min — Practice: Give 10 make-ten facts on the whiteboard: 9+4, 8+6, 7+5, 9+7, 8+7, 6+5, 9+3, 8+4, 7+4, 9+8. Your child solves each with the ten-frames first, then again without frames while saying the split out loud ('9 + 4 is 9 + 1 + 3'). Support: keep the beans on the frames for every problem. Stretch: use make-ten for 19 + 4 and 28 + 5 and explain why it still works.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'Which is faster for 8 + 7, near doubles or make ten?' Both give 15; let your child pick a favorite and say why.

Materials: two ten-frames drawn on paper, dried beans, index cards, whiteboard, timer

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will explain how the author defines key words inside sentences and will use 'because' and 'and' to link an opinion to reasons (RI.2.4, W.2.1).

1. 15 min — Shared Reading: Read the second half of 'Sharks!' by Anne Schreiber, your child reading the captions. Ask: 'What is the most surprising fact so far?' and 'Which key word would you teach a kindergartner first?'
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Show that authors sometimes explain a key word right in the sentence. Find a sentence in the book where a word is followed by its meaning or a picture label, and highlight the word and the explanation with two colors on a sticky note copy. Say: 'First look in the sentence, then look in the glossary.'
3. 15 min — Independent Reading: Your child rereads their two favorite pages silently and adds three more words to the Key Word List, writing a kid-friendly meaning for each in their own words. Support: they copy the glossary meaning and read it to you. Stretch: they write a new sentence using each word.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Introduce linking words on a card: because, and, also. Your child adds a second reason to the shark opinion using 'also': 'Sharks also have rows of teeth that grow back.' Then they read both reasons aloud and check that each one starts with a capital.
5. 10 min — Phonics: Dictionary Skills: Practice second-letter order with words that all start with s: shark, skin, snout, spine, swim, seal, sand, sting. Your child lines them up by looking at the second letter, then explains how they decided between skin and snout.

Materials: National Geographic Readers: Sharks! by Anne Schreiber, sticky notes, two colored pencils, paper, pencil, writing folder, index cards, marker

Social Studies

Objective: Students will identify the American flag, the bald eagle, and the Statue of Liberty as national symbols and explain what each stands for (D2.Civ.8.K-2).

1. 10 min — Read-Aloud and Discussion: Read 'The Flag We Love' by Pam Munoz Ryan. Pause to count the 50 stars and 13 stripes on the picture and ask: 'What do the stars stand for? Why 13 stripes?' Introduce the word 'symbol': a picture or object that stands for a bigger idea.
2. 15 min — Hands-On Activity: Make a flag with a red-and-white striped paper: cut 7 red strips from construction paper, glue them onto white paper leaving 6 white gaps, and add a blue rectangle in the top corner. Use a star stamp, sticker, or white crayon dots for the stars (10 dots is fine; talk about how the real flag has 50). While it dries, look at a quarter and a dollar bill and find the eagle.
3. 5 min — Quick Write: Your child writes: 'The flag is a symbol. The stars stand for ___ and the stripes stand for ___.' Then adds one sentence about where they have seen the flag (school, post office, a game).

Materials: The Flag We Love by Pam Munoz Ryan (library), red, white, and blue construction paper, scissors, glue stick, star stickers or white crayon, a quarter, a dollar bill, pencil, writing paper

Mathematics

Objective: Students will subtract within 20 by counting back for small differences and by thinking addition (fact families) for larger ones (2.OA.B.2).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Mixed addition speed round: shuffle the doubles, near-doubles, and make-ten cards together (22 cards) and time one full pass. Record the time on the tracking sheet next to Monday's and Tuesday's.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Teach count back for subtracting 1, 2, or 3: for 14 - 3 say '14... 13, 12, 11' while tapping three fingers. Then teach think addition for the rest: for 15 - 8 ask, '8 plus what makes 15?' and use make ten (8 + 2 = 10, 10 + 5 = 15, so 7). For 13 - 6 use the near double (6 + 7 = 13, so 7). Write each subtraction fact next to its addition partner.
3. 15 min — Practice: Sort 12 subtraction cards into two piles, 'count back' (12-2, 15-3, 18-1, 11-3, 16-2, 20-3) and 'think addition' (15-8, 13-6, 17-9, 14-7, 12-5, 16-9). Solve each pile out loud, saying the strategy first. Then solve the think-addition pile a second time faster.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'Why is counting back a bad idea for 17 - 9?' Listen for 'too many steps, I might lose count.' Reinforce: count back for small numbers, think addition for the rest.

Materials: index cards, timer, tracking sheet, paper, pencil

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will compare how two nonfiction authors define the same key words and will use a children's dictionary (RI.2.4, RI.2.9, L.2.4e).

1. 15 min — Read-Aloud: Read 'Sharks' by Gail Gibbons. Ask your child to listen for key words they already know from Anne Schreiber's book (gills, prey, fins) and to raise a hand when Gibbons explains a word with a labeled diagram instead of a glossary.
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Put the two books side by side and look up 'gills' in each. Talk about how Schreiber uses a glossary and Gibbons uses labels on a drawing, and that both help a reader. Then look up 'gill' in a children's dictionary and compare all three meanings.
3. 15 min — Guided Reading: Your child reads two pages of Gail Gibbons with you, choosing three key words they cannot define. For each, they try the sentence first, then the diagram, then the dictionary, and tell you which one worked.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Your child adds a third reason from Gail Gibbons's book using 'and' to join two facts: 'Sharks have been on Earth for millions of years, and some are as small as your hand.' They then circle every linking word in their draft (because, and, also).
5. 10 min — Phonics: Dictionary Skills: Teach guide words: the two words at the top of a dictionary page tell the first and last words on it. Open the children's dictionary to any page, read the guide words, and have your child decide whether fin, tooth, gill, and prey would be on that page, before or after.

Materials: National Geographic Readers: Sharks! by Anne Schreiber, Sharks by Gail Gibbons, children's dictionary, paper, pencil, writing folder, index cards

Science

Objective: Students will compare sketches against the criteria list and choose one design to build, explaining the choice (K-2-ETS1-2).

1. 5 min — Review: Lay the three sketches side by side with the Problem Brief. Ask: 'Which ones meet all three criteria? Which uses only recycling-bin materials?' Introduce the word 'prototype': the first version you build to try out an idea.
2. 20 min — Deeper Investigation: Make a Decision Chart: rows are the three sketches, columns are the criteria plus 'easy to build'. Put a check or an X in each box, count the checks, and pick the winner (if there is a tie, your child breaks it and says why). Then make the final build plan: a bigger, neater drawing with every material listed on the side, a step list of 1, 2, 3, 4, and a 'test plan' line: 'Tilt the table and put 8 crayons in.'
3. 5 min — Data Discussion: Ask: 'Did the chart pick the same design you liked most? Why or why not?' Point out that engineers use criteria so their choice is fair, not just a favorite.

Materials: Engineering Notebook, pencil, ruler, colored pencils

Mathematics

Objective: Students will apply fluency strategies to solve word problems within 20 quickly and to name the strategy they used (2.OA.B.2, 2.OA.A.1).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Two-minute mixed practice: 30 facts (addition and subtraction within 20) on a page. Mark how many were finished and how many were correct. Compare with Monday's pretest and celebrate growth.
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Read fast-fact stories and ask your child to say the strategy before the answer: 'Jo has 8 crayons and finds 7 more. How many?' (near double, 15). 'Ty had 16 grapes and ate 9. How many left?' (think addition, 7). 'There are 9 ducks and 5 more land. How many?' (make ten, 14). 'A shelf has 13 books. 3 fall off. How many left?' (count back, 10). Write the equation for each.
3. 15 min — Practice: Play 'Fact Race' with a die and beans: roll two dice, add them, and say the strategy; then roll once, subtract from 20, and say the strategy. Ten rounds each. Then your child writes two fact stories of their own with a compare bar model, one addition and one subtraction, and solves them.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Ask, 'Which strategy did you use the most today?' Remind your child that tomorrow is a 3-minute check of 40 facts and that the goal is 'fast and correct, not rushed.'

Materials: dice, dried beans, practice page (30 facts), paper, pencil, timer

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will use key words correctly in their own writing and finish an opinion piece with linking words and a closing (RI.2.4, W.2.1).

1. 15 min — Shared Reading: Reread the pages of either shark book that your child says are the most interesting. Play Key Word Bingo: write six key words on a grid, and each time one is read they cover it with a bean.
2. 10 min — Mini-Lesson: Model checking a word's spelling in the glossary or dictionary while writing. Write 'preditor' on paper, say you are not sure, look it up, and fix it to 'predator'. Say: 'Writers check reference books; that is what they are for.'
3. 15 min — Independent Reading: Your child reads a different nonfiction book with a glossary (any National Geographic Kids Reader or a Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science book) and finds three key words, writing each with its glossary meaning on the Key Word List.
4. 15 min — Writing Workshop: Your child writes the closing sentence ('That is why I think sharks are amazing') and then checks the spelling of every key word in the draft against the glossary. Read the whole piece aloud together and count the linking words; aim for at least three.
5. 10 min — Phonics: Dictionary Skills: Dictionary Race: you name a word (shark, ocean, tooth, jaw, fin, whale) and your child finds it in the children's dictionary using guide words, then reads the first meaning aloud. Time each search and try to beat the last time.

Materials: National Geographic Readers: Sharks! by Anne Schreiber, Sharks by Gail Gibbons, a second nonfiction book with a glossary, children's dictionary, paper, pencil, dried beans, writing folder, timer

Social Studies

Objective: Students will explain the meaning of the Statue of Liberty and the Liberty Bell and describe why people value these symbols (D2.Civ.8.K-2).

1. 10 min — Review and Extend: Hang the paper flag and quiz the stars and stripes. Then read 'The Statue of Liberty' by Lucille Recht Penner (Step into Reading) and ask: 'Who gave the statue to America? What does her torch stand for? Why did people arriving by ship feel happy to see her?'
2. 15 min — Project Work: Add a 'Symbols of Our Country' section to the Government at Work poster with four squares: flag, bald eagle, Statue of Liberty, Liberty Bell. In each square draw the symbol and write one word it stands for (freedom, strength, welcome, liberty). Make a torch by rolling green paper into a cone and stuffing it with orange tissue or paper flames, and pose holding it up while a family member takes a photo for the poster.
3. 5 min — Share Progress: Your child presents the four symbols and explains which one they would show a visitor from another country first and why.

Materials: paper flag from Tuesday, The Statue of Liberty by Lucille Recht Penner (library), poster, markers, green construction paper, orange or yellow tissue or paper, tape, phone camera

Mathematics

Objective: Students will demonstrate fluency by completing 40 addition and subtraction facts within 20 in 3 minutes and by explaining the mental strategies they used (2.OA.B.2).

1. 10 min — Warm-Up: Calm warm-up: chant the doubles ladder, run the partners of ten, then do a one-minute pass through the card deck. Ask your child to name the four strategies (doubles and near doubles, make ten, count back, think addition).
2. 15 min — Mini-Lesson: Strategy review board: write 6+7, 9+5, 14-2, 15-7, 8+8, 12-9 on the whiteboard and have your child tag each with a strategy label and solve. Then talk about test-taking habits: 'Skip a fact if you freeze, come back to it, and keep your pencil moving.'
3. 15 min — Weekly Assessment: Give the 40-fact check: 20 addition (include 4 doubles, 6 near doubles, 10 make-ten such as 9+6, 8+7, 7+4) and 20 subtraction (6 count-back such as 13-2, 17-3; 14 think-addition such as 15-8, 12-5, 16-7, 18-9). Set a timer for exactly 3 minutes. Record facts completed and facts correct; a target is 32 or more correct. Afterward, have your child pick three facts and write the strategy used for each in a sentence.
4. 5 min — Wrap-Up: Compare Monday's pretest with today's check and name the growth. Reflect: 'Last week's word problems used big numbers; now the small facts inside them are fast.' Preview next week: mixed two-step problems that use both adding and subtracting.

Materials: 40-fact check page, timer, whiteboard, index cards, pencil, Monday's pretest

Assessment: Timed fluency: 40 facts in 3 minutes; mental math strategies

English Language Arts

Objective: Students will publish an opinion piece using linking words and show they can find and define key words using a glossary and dictionary (W.2.1, RI.2.4, L.2.4e).

1. 10 min — Reading Celebration: Shark Fact Share: each family member picks one fact from either book and says it in a news reporter voice. Your child goes first and must use at least one key word.
2. 15 min — Reading Assessment: Give your child four key words from the week (predator, prey, gills, fin) on paper. They write a meaning for each, then use the glossary to check and mark each one right or fix it. Finally they put the four words in alphabetical order.
3. 15 min — Publishing and Author's Chair: Your child copies the shark opinion piece neatly, underlines each linking word, and adds a labeled shark drawing with at least two key words as labels. They read from the Author's Chair; ask them which reason they think is the strongest.
4. 10 min — Phonics Check: Hand your child eight cards (ocean, fin, shark, tooth, gill, prey, whale, jaw) to put in alphabetical order in under two minutes, then find any two of them in the children's dictionary using guide words.
5. 15 min — Independent Reading: Free choice nonfiction from the library. Ask your child to show you where the glossary or index is before they start and to teach you one new key word at the end.

Materials: National Geographic Readers: Sharks! by Anne Schreiber, Sharks by Gail Gibbons, paper, clean paper, pencil, crayons, writing folder, index cards, children's dictionary, timer, library books

Assessment: Define and alphabetize four key words with glossary self-check, published opinion piece with at least three linking words (because, and, also) and a closing, and an alphabetizing and dictionary lookup check.

Science

Objective: Students will communicate a design plan clearly enough that another person could build it from the drawing alone (K-2-ETS1-2).

1. 10 min — Drawing Conclusions: Run a Blueprint Test: hand the final build plan to a family member who has not seen it and ask them to describe, step by step, what they would build. Every time they get stuck, add a label or arrow to the drawing. Count the fixes and write 'We added ___ labels' in the notebook.
2. 15 min — Extension or Art Connection: Gather the materials for next week's build from the recycling bin and lay them out on a tray; photograph or draw the 'materials kit'. Then use blue paper and a white crayon to make an old-style blueprint of the design, and talk about how real building plans used to be printed white on blue.
3. 5 min — Week Reflection: Ask: 'Which was harder, thinking of ideas or choosing one?' and 'What are you most worried might go wrong when we build?' Write the worry down; next week you will find out.

Materials: Engineering Notebook, pencil, a family member, recycling-bin items (cereal box, cardboard tube, egg carton, plastic lid), tray, blue construction paper, white crayon