A – Z for Mat Man and Me Teacher's Guide

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me

Teacher’s Guide

Advisors

Dr. Miriam Ortiz

Dr. Miriam Ortiz completed her Ph.D. in Education and Human Development from Southern Methodist University in 2017 with a focus on Special Education and Response to Intervention. Prior to completing her Ph.D., she worked in Tallahassee, Florida, as a K-12 teacher for students with behavior and emotional disabilities. She has worked closely with the researchers at SMU and across the country to improve the reading skills and academic achievement of struggling students and students with disabilities. She currently works as a Research Project Manager at SMU and in the Department of Teaching and Learning teaching courses in the Early Literacy Scholars Program, the Special Education Program, and the Doctoral Program. Dr. Ortiz is the Executive Director for the Division for Learning Disabilities (TeachingLD.org) of the Council for Exceptional Children. She is passionate about improving academic outcomes for children with or at risk for disabilities, teacher training, and assisting struggling readers. Dr. Ortiz has been co-author on several peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters about reading instruction for students with disabilities.

Dr. Deborah K. Reed

Dr. Deborah K. Reed completed her Ph.D. in special education at the University of Texas at Austin. She spent the first 10 years of her career as a reading and English language arts teacher as well as a reading specialist, working primarily with students from diverse backgrounds who were exhibiting serious reading difficulties. Since 2003, she has been a researcher and technical assistance provider in numerous states. She currently serves as the Director of the Iowa Reading Research Center and Professor at the University of Iowa. Dr. Reed has published extensively, including in journals such as Scientific Studies of Reading, Reading Research Quarterly, Exceptional Children, and Review of Educational Research. She also has been the recipient of the University of Iowa College of Education’s Outstanding Mid-Career Researcher Award and the Council for Learning Disabilities’ Outstanding Researcher Award. Her current federal and state grants support investigating methods for improving literacy instruction and assessment and for designing and delivering a graduate-level Dyslexia Specialist Endorsement.

Introduction

4 This Is A–Z for Mat Man® and Me! 6 Key Features of the Student Letter Books 7 Student Letter Books at a Glance 8 Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide 14 Interactive Teaching Tool 15 Student App 16 An Integrated Approach to Learning the Alphabet 17 Reading Science Informs Our Approach 18 Early Literacy Skills in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me 20 Differentiated Instruction 21 Scaffolding: Language & Multiple Representations 22 Best Practices for Teaching the Alphabet 23 Social-Emotional Learning in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me 24 A Strong Home-School Connection 25 Assessing Your Students 26 Connecting with Get Set for School® 27 Connecting with Handwriting Without Tears® 28 Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade

Table of Contents

Letter Lessons

32 Aa 38 b 44 Cc 50 Dd 56 Ee 62 Ff 68 g 74 Hh 80 i 86 j 92 Kk 98 Ll 104 m 110 Nn 116 Oo 122 Pp 128 Qq 134 Rr 140 Ss 146 Tt 152 Uu 158 Vv 164 Ww 170 Xx 176 y 182 Zz

APPENDIX

188 Answer Keys to Practice Book Letter Checks and Cumulative Review 190 Games and Songs 196 Social-Emotional Learning Activity: Problem Solving 197 Social-Emotional Learning Activity: Understanding Feelings 198 Social-Emotional Learning Activity: Persistence 199 Social-Emotional Learning Activity: Cooperation 200 Social-Emotional Learning Activity: Kindness

This Is A–Z for Mat Man® and Me!

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me is a resource to teach alphabet knowledge through meaningful and engaging stories. This flexible program easily fits into your literacy block. It builds on and enhances how you are already teaching the alphabet.

Meaningful, engaging stories and activities help students learn letter forms, names, and sounds, with the ultimate goal of leading children toward reading comprehension.

• Diverse and relatable characters invite all readers to see themselves in books.

• Our award-winning Handwriting Without Tears® letter formation language is central.

• An integrated focus includes both Letter Learning and Making Meaning instruction.

• Social-emotional learning (SEL) themes in every story lend themselves to valuable classroom discussions.

• Purposeful print and digital practice activities reinforce early literacy skills.

This Is A–Z for Mat Man® and Me!

Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade

Celebrate the joy of learning the alphabet and unlocking access to words in this vibrant read-aloud book. Children meet Mat Man, who cheerfully announces an assortment of balloons and characters marching along, each with a special connection to letters. This book launches learning in both foundational and language skills. It also prepares the class for reading the Student Letter Books.

Student Letter Books

With 26 books, one for each letter of the alphabet, letter learning comes to life. An exemplar word and picture gives children a mental model for each letter sound. Each book includes several words and pictures that feature the target letter, and supports early literacy with short sentences of text on the bottom of the page.

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Teacher’s Guide

With six pages of instruction for each letter, including separate lessons for Letter Learning and Making Meaning, you’ll find a familiar Before, During, and After Reading model. Each lesson supports differentiation with ready-to-use prompts for Emergent and Developing Readers, as well as ELL Scaffolds and Multimodal Learning activities. Additional activities address Social-Emotional Learning, Phonological Awareness, and Phonics.

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me: Practice for Emerging Readers, and A–Z for Mat Man® and Me: Practice for Developing Readers

Separate Practice Books for Developing and Emerging Readers provide meaningful and fun practice for Letter Learning and Meaning Making. Activities include the developmentally appropriate letter formation support from Handwriting Without Tears®, including gray strokes for tracing and double lines to assist with letter placement and size. Cumulative reviews help you track student progress.

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool, and A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App

The teacher dashboard provides direct access to everything you need to plan your lessons, assign Student Letter Books to children, and make the most of the books.

Via the student app, children can read a Student Letter Book independently or use a read-aloud feature to follow along with the words as they are read aloud and highlighted. Activities provide valuable, playful practice for alphabet, comprehension, and SEL: the skills students are learning.

Key Features of the Student Letter Books

Each letter book is a resource for alphabet instruction and a support for children learning to read. Children have the opportunity to see and hear letter-sound correspondences in connected text that has colorful illustrations and memorable characters.

Alphabet Instruction in Every Book

Each book opens with a routine that explicitly teaches the name, sound, and form of a letter.

• First, children say a rhyme along with you to set up the target letter.

• Then, a chant in every book helps children name the letter as they air trace or finger trace the capital and lowercase letter.

• Next, an exemplar word and picture gives children a mental model for each letter sound.

• Last, children get ready to look for letters and listen for their sounds in the story.

Intentional Text and Inviting Illustrations

Every book has a story with diverse characters in realistic, relatable situations. Children attach meaning to letter learning as they listen to the story read aloud, follow along, and start to read. They can apply their alphabet knowledge to identify words in the book.

Clear Layouts for Early Literacy

Every book supports children’s early literacy development, with short sentences on the bottom of the page. The books and lessons give context not only for phonics, phonemic awareness, and fluent reading but also print concepts as children practice looking from top to bottom, reading left to right, and using pictures to extend information in the words.

Questions About Letters, Meaning, and Feelings

Intentional text in every book supports use for different purposes. Questions in the back of each book prompt conversations and encourage children to look back to find letter-sound representations and evidence to support their comprehension.

Words to Watch

You can use the books for shared reading, where you read and children begin to recognize and read words on their own. A chart on the back cover of each book helps you prepare for the variety of words in the book including:

• decodable words children can sound out

• high-frequency words with irregular spellings that children may recognize by sight, learn by heart, and read with a focus on tricky parts

• story words that are more complex for you to read aloud

Student Letter Books at a Glance

Exemplar Word Book Title Topics

A apple Ally and the Apple teeth, lunch, school, counting

B bagel Ben and the Big Bagels community places, baking, city neighborhoods

C coconut Cora and the Coconut fruit trees, cooking, tropical islands

D dolphin Dax and the Dolphin dolphins, oceans, diving, boats, ocean trash

E elephant Emma and Her Elephant security objects, suburbs, community places

F fan Feng, Finn, and the Fan friendship, tools, learning pods, homework

G goat Gabby and Her Goat farms, farm animals, family, rules

H hammer Hana Has a Hammer farms, farm animals, fixing things

 igloo Ikiaq and the Igloo traditions, snow, seasons, family

 jellyfish Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish art, painting, school, presentations

K kayak Kaya and the Kayak water sports, exercise, kites, cities

L lock Lola and the Lock special things, chores, community places

 mask Mac and the Magnificent Masks art, friendship, animals

N nest Nell and the Nest birds, nests, nature, family

O octopus Oz and the Octopus octopuses, aquariums, ocean animals

P piano Paco and the Piano parks, community events, pianos, music

Q quilt Quinn and the Quilt make-believe, family, sunlight

R rake Rex and the Rake animals, tools, weather

S sun Sam in the Sun pets, weather, health

T tomato Tere and the Tomato farms, fruits and vegetables, family

U umbrella Umberto and the Umbrella weather, family, coastal neighborhoods

V vacuum Vic, Val, and the Vacuum cleaning, noise, music, violins, family

W watermelon Wes and the Watermelon community events, races, water sports, nature, rivers

X x-ray Xavier Gets an X-ray baseball, teams, broken bones, doctors

 yo-yo Yolanda and the Yo-Yo toys, friendship, sharing

Z zipper Zack and His Zipper weather, friendship, school, games

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Letter Learning

Research says...

“Knowledge about letters—their shapes, their names, and their linguistic functions—plays an important role in the development of reading and spelling ability” (Trieman et al., 2008).

Here’s an overview of the Letter Learning Lesson to use with the Student Letter Books.

Words to Watch

Use the categories of words to guide your planning and inform your in-the-moment instructional decisions. The words are listed in the order they appear in the book.

• Target Words in the Text: Words that begin with or include the target letter sound.

• Decodable Words: CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant), VC (vowel-consonant), and words with –s or –es suffixes, final double consonant sounds, and –ck endings. Encourage children to sound out these words if they are ready.

• Sight Words: Irregularly spelled high-frequency words. Children might be able to read some of these words.

• Story Words: Non decodable and non-sight words that tie the language together. You should read these aloud.

• Target Words in Picture: Illustrations in the book that start with the target sound. Use this list to see if children can find all the pictured words with target letter sounds.

Before Reading

• A quick phonemic awareness activity and introduction of the letter name, sound, and form will prime children for learning about the target letter and sound in the story.

• Use the first four pages of the Student Letter Book to explicitly teach the target letter and introduce the story.

• Use our digital resources or the Letter Formation chart in the back of the practice book for handwriting formation language.

• Guide children to notice the target letter and sound in their names and the names of friends. Research shows that this identity-connection of letters in names supports children’s recognition of letters in words they encounter.

• Setting a purpose will focus the children on their job as you read the story.

If...

Children incorrectly identify the beginning sound in words in the quick phonemic awareness activity

Then...

Before Reading

Children are not recognizing the name of the letter, the letter’s sound, or the capital and lowercase form

Letter Learning Cc

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Cc

Exemplar Word coconut

Letter Chant capital C, lowercase c, /k/, coconut

About This Book This story is about a girl named Cora, who tries to get a coconut so she can make a treat from it. This book includes a number of words that begin with Cc

About This Letter This book focuses on the hard sound for the letter c rather than soft c. When c is followed by e i or y, it usually has a soft sound: /s/. When c is followed by any other letter, it has a hard sound: /k/. Also note that most Cc words in the book are followed by a vowel; one exception is the word crack, which begins with a consonant blend.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text coconut, come, Cora, can, cat, car, cool, cut, cook, (with cr blend: crack)

Decodable Words will it gets can cat fell cut yum Sight Words a, the Story Words look down

Target Words in Pictures coconut, curls, can, cat, cart, carrots, corn, cassava, collards, car, camera, cane, cantaloupe, counter, cup, curtains, cookie

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /k/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /k/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: cat, monkey, goat, collards, cut Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital C Read the title, Cora and the Coconut, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that C stands for the /k/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital C and lowercase c, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with C, like Cora. Note that some C names begin with the /k/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /ch/ in Charlie Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the coconut picture. Remind children that a coconut is a fruit that grows on trees.

ELL Scaffold Multiple-Meaning Words: Prepare children for multiple-meaning words in the story: can will cool. Children may know that can means “be able to.” Point out that on p. 5, can means a kind of metal container. Talk about kinds of cans, such as a paint can and a can of soup.

Multimodal Learning Speaking: Bring in objects or print pictures of words from the story that start with Cc: can, cat, car, cane, cup Label each. Have children take turns asking and answering questions using these sentence frames: Do you have a ? Yes, I have a ___.

• Have children say the word coconut with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word coconut, think of the /k/ sound that stands for c

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Take note of which children are not yet hearing sounds so you can group them for extra support.

• Use the Phonological Awareness and Phonics activity for continued practice hearing not only phonemes but also syllables and onset-rime.

• Use the exemplar word as a reminder of the target sound.

• Use the practice book to monitor progress on identifying pictures for sounds.

Take note of which children are not yet recognizing or forming letters to group them for more support.

• Use the Letter Formation chart in the back of the practice book and model, with Handwriting Without Tears formation language.

• Use labels for objects around the room, and encourage children to search for letters and say their names and sounds.

Treiman, R., Pennington, B. F., Shriberg, L. D., & Boada, R. (2008). Which children benefit from letter names in learning letter sounds? Cognition, 106, 1322–1338

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Letter Learning

Research says...

During Reading

• Read aloud first for children to hear and enjoy the story.

• Read a second time as an interactive read-aloud or a shared reading, depending on the readiness of the group. On this read, focus on the target letter sound.

• Use prompts for Emerging and Developing Readers to differentiate letter, sound, and word observations in the book with a focus on the alphabet, as well as phonological and phonemic awareness. To determine how to group students, refer to Differentiated Instruction on p. 20.

After Reading

• Use the last page of the Student Letter Book to guide a letter hunt and discussion about target words. This prepares children for independent work in the practice book.

Phonological Awareness & Phonics

• Extend children’s learning by using words from the book, along with other words with the target letter sound, to practice differentiated phonological and phonemic awareness skills.

DURING READING (5–7

First Read: Read Aloud

Letter Learning Cc

minutes)

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Cora wants a coconut.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why does Cora want a coconut? (to eat it; to make coconut cookies)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Cc

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can make a C shape with their left hand when they hear or see a Cc word. Stop to find words that begin with Cc

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 6: I notice a word with lowercase c on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with man. Read it with me. (can) o p. 10: There are two Cc words on this page. One has a lowercase c and one has a capital C. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Cool, coconut) o pp. 13–14: Find two words that start with c on these pages. Point to them. Say them with me. (cut, cook)

AFTER

READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital C and lowercase c as they read. Invite volunteers to read Cc words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: How many times do you hear the /k/ sound in coconut? (two) Have children find c twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds.

o p. 6: A word on this page starts with /k/ and ends with an. What is it? (can) o pp. 13–14: There are two things that the characters do with the coconut. Both start with /k/. What are they? (cut, cook)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 15 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Cc in the story and the pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Cc on their own. Turn to p. 48 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Cora, can, cantaloupe, cookie, car, carrot, cane, camera Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: can: /k/-/an/, cat: /k/-/at/, cap: /k/-/ap/.

If...

Children are ready to read some words on their own

During Reading

After Reading

Children are still learning left-to-right directionality or voice-print-match

Children are uncomfortable or not yet ready to discuss their observations about letters in a group

Then...

Phonological Awareness and Phonics

Children are not breaking words into parts, or segmenting by syllables, onsets and rimes, or phonemes

Children are not yet decoding words with the target sound

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: cat, cut, cot, cap, cab, can, cub, cup, cut

• Encourage them to read with you—chorally, whispering, or echoing your model reading.

• Read partial sentences and stop at decodable and sight words to ask children to read them.

• Offer decoding support by having children identify initial, medial, and final sounds that they blend.

• Model and think aloud to demonstrate concepts about print.

• Watch for proper book handling and tracking. Point to the words as you read them.

• Pair children for more personal conversations as they revisit the book.

• Provide and model sentence frames to build confidence in oral language.

• Have children try more actions, such as stomping, to “feel” the syllables, or beats, in the words.

• Look at objects around the room and name them by just the onset, having children say the rime.

• Say children’s names that start or end with the target sound, and have children practice isolating that sound.

• Challenge them to spell the words either on paper or orally.

• Encourage them to tap out each sound as they say and spell the word.

Reed, D. K. (2021) The ABCs of alphabet Instruction. Iowa Reading Research Center. https://iowareadingresearch.org/blog/alphabet-instruction

“Alphabetical knowledge is multifaceted and involves names, sounds, and physical formations of letters. All are important to early reading development” (Reed, 2021).

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Meaning Making

Research says...

“After all, reading, as a language process, focuses on meaning. Humans—young and old—consistently approach language interactions—oral and written—with the expectation that there will be meaning” (Hiebert, 2017).

This is what you can expect from each Meaning Making lesson.

Before Reading

• Each story builds knowledge about a place, a topic, or a concept. The Build Knowledge section of the lesson highlights potentially challenging topics in the text. Use this information to prepare for discussion. Choose which facts to share with children before reading to ensure understanding of the story.

• Watch for the note Handle with Care in a few lessons for sensitive topics about characters’ cultural identities. These are ideas to deepen understanding about individual differences. Depending on your community and class population, you can choose whether or not to discuss.

• Each lesson focuses on a story element integral to the book: characters, setting, or events. Giving a purpose helps children know which story element they should be listening and looking for.

During Reading

• Prompts model questioning focused on meaning and on the story element for each book (character, event, or setting).

ELL Scaffolds

• Find suggestions for overcoming potential roadblocks English language learners (ELLs) may face in each story.

Multimodal Learning

• Add play and variety with tips for different modes of learning that engage young learners and encourage creative interaction with the text.

• See p. 21 of this teacher’s guide for more information about these supports.

If... Then...

Cc

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist of the story. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Cora) What is Cora trying to get? (a coconut)

Build Knowledge

Consider sharing these facts to help children better understand the story.

• This story is set in a tropical location, like Puerto Rico, where coconut palm trees grow.

• Cora can be a nickname for “Corazon,” which means heart in Spanish.

• In this story, a child wants to get a coconut from a tree. She’s eager to have it, and she’s a bit impatient because she wants to make her favorite dessert, besitos de coco (coconut kisses).

• In communities where coconuts grow, local people typically wait for fallen coconuts rather than risk climbing up to get coconuts from trees or standing under trees where coconuts may fall.

• Ripe coconuts turn brown, and this is a sign that they’re ready to eat.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold Visual and Sensory Models: Show a photograph of a coconut, or if possible, bring in a real coconut that children can touch and taste, as they practice saying the word coconut

Multimodal Learning Partner Reading: Pair up children to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Cora wants to do and what happens.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens to Cora at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What is the first event in the story? (Cora sees a coconut.)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Cora sees a coconut.)

• p. 5: Raise your hand if you think the coconut will come down. Do you think Cora will wait until the coconut falls down? Stomp your feet if you think she won’t wait.

• p. 7: What things does Cora use to get the coconut? (a can and a cat)

• p. 8: What is Cora excited to see? (a car) What do you see in the pictures so far that tells us that the place is warm? (Cora and friends have on clothes for a hot day. The top is down on the car.)

• p. 10: The picture and words on this page tell us that Cora has the coconut. Yay! Cheer with me! Now let’s talk about how Cora got it. Was it with a can? (No.) Was it with a cat? (No.) How did the coconut come down? (It fell out of the tree.)

• p. 15: How do you think Cora feels now? (Cora feels happy to be with her family, making cookies.)

Before Reading

After Reading

Children don’t yet have the knowledge or vocabulary to understand a portion of or the entire story

Children have trouble answering questions about what happens in the story

• Go over some or all of the suggested Build Knowledge facts with children before reading. Encourage discussion.

• Show visuals, act out, or listen to music that relates to the topic.

• Use the prompts as a model to ask more questions. Lead children to the answer rather than giving it to them.

• Look back for evidence. For example, if you ask about why the character feels a certain way, follow up by saying, “Let’s look back in the book. What do you notice about these words? What do you see in this picture? What do these clues tell about how the character feels?”

Hiebert, E. H. (2017). The texts of literacy instruction: Obstacles to or opportunities for educational equity?. Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, 66(1), 117–134.

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Meaning Making

Research says...

“Children who are better able to simultaneously consider letter sound and semantic (meaning) information about words are better comprehenders both in the short and long term” (Duke & Block, 2012).

After Reading

• Discuss a targeted story element (events, characters, or setting) and prepare children to respond to what they read on their own in the practice book.

Social-Emotional Learning

• Use the Figuring Out Feelings questions and additional prompts here to focus on one of the five SEL habits. This feature broadens understanding of the characters in the story, while deepening children’s connections to SEL skills.

• Reproducible graphic organizers for each habit can be found on pp. 196–200 of Appendix. Use the graphic organizers as a tool to extend conversations around a habit.

Digital Learning

• Remember that you can access the digital version of the book along with a variety of other digital learning resources to extend and enhance children’s learning at the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool.

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

Cc Meaning Making

• Talk about the events in the story and what happens to Cora. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Cora wants a coconut, but she can’t reach it. How do you think she feels?

(Possible answers: mad, angry, sad, disappointed, frustrated)

o In the middle of the story, Cora tries different things to get the coconut. What is one thing she tries? (Possible answers: tries to catch it with a big can, uses a cat, stands on a food cart)

o At the end of the story, what does Cora do? (cook and eat the coconut)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, prepare children to practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 49 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Persistence. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions on p. 16 of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Cora feels. Ask:

o Cora wants something, but it is hard. How does she show she won’t give up? (She keeps trying different ways to get the coconut. She uses a can and a cat. She also tries to get family members and friends to help her.) How does Cora feel when she finally gets the coconut? (happy, excited)

o Can you think of a time when you worked hard to get something you wanted?

• Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Cora showed persistence. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Cora and the Coconut found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Cc, sounding out words that start with /k/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Cora and the Coconut in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

After Reading

Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

If...

Children are not yet ready to answer questions about story elements in the book

Children have trouble with the vocabulary and expressions

Then...

• Provide a sentence frame such as: Ikiaq lives in a place with ___ weather. I know this because I see ___ in the pictures.

• Use the practice book to give more opportunities for written response.

• Refer to the social-emotional learning in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me on p. 23 for child-friendly definitions of each habit.

• Use the graphic organizers on pp. 196–200 for more SEL extensions.

Duke, N. K., & Block, M. K. (2012). Improving reading in the primary grades. The Future of Children, 55–72.

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Letter Learning Practice

Research says...

“Young learners must develop an awareness of the symbols that constitute the alphabet, learn the names of these letters and master the motoric requirements of letter transcription, including several complex configurations using the distinctive critical features of letters” (Reutzel et al., 2019).

Look at how each lesson connects to practice in centers and the practice book.

• Finish each lesson by giving children the chance to apply what they learned. After you’ve led children through the Student Letter Book with the Letter Learning lesson, set them up for independent practice.

• Use the Letter Learning practice page as a form of formative assessment to guide your grouping and reteaching.

Practice for Emerging Readers

• For Early Emerging Readers who are not yet ready for paper and pencil activities, go to p. 20 of this teacher’s guide for hands-on ideas for practicing letter learning.

• The top of every page includes letter formation practice. See p. 27 of this teacher’s guide for details on Handwriting Without Tears® letter formation. The rest of the page provides practice with identification of the letter form and sound through pictures. Take time to make sure children know what each picture represents so they can successfully complete the practice tasks.

Practice for Developing Readers

• The top of every page includes letter formation practice, but this handwriting activity is for more developmentally advanced children. For Developing Readers, the rest of the page includes activities that require children to recognize the target sound within a written word, with picture support.

• Take time to make sure children know what each picture represents so they can successfully complete the activities. Children also have opportunities to identify pictures or words in the world around them that include the target sound.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Cc, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /k/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 10 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. In the middle, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Cc. On the bottom of the page, say what each picture is. Then have children work independently.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 10 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Cc, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

a a a aC C a

c c c b l f Cc

c c c

A-Z_TG_Letter_A-Z_SS_6.18.21.indd 48 6/18/21 11:17 AM

Double Lines for Writing Practice

• The Practice for Emerging Readers pages have extra wide double lines. This matches the extra wide double lines used in the letter formation pages of HWT Letters and Numbers for Me

• The Practice for Developing Readers pages have regular double. This matches the regular double lines used in the Writing Activity pages of HWT My Printing Book

Reutzel, P., Mohr, K. A., & Jones, C. D. (2019). Exploring the relationship between letter recognition and handwriting in early literacy development. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 19(3), 349–374.

Key Features of the Teacher’s Guide: Meaning Making Practice

Research says...

“The challenge is that ultimately children need access both to code-focused and to meaning-focused skills, and that instructional approaches that prioritize the code for low-scoring readers (who are likely to come from less advantaged households) may inadvertently reduce their access to activities that support meaning making” (Snow, 2017).

Formative Assessment

• You can conclude each Meaning Making lesson with a discussion about the Student Letter Book. This discussion can lead into independent practice, where you invite children to transfer their knowledge.

• Use the Meaning Making practice page as a form of formative assessment, related to a specific story element, to guide your grouping and reteaching.

Preview the practice pages ahead, paying close attention to the sample responses. This will help you determine the level of support to provide for each group as you prepare students for practice.

Practice for Emerging Readers

• For Early Emerging Readers who are not yet ready for paper and pencil activities, guide children to talk about the story elements, using their words and bodies.

• Each practice page focuses on a specific story element, aligned with the instruction from the Meaning Making lesson. Children draw pictures about events, characters, or setting in each story, using a variety of graphic organizers.

Practice for Developing Readers

• Like the practice for Emerging Readers, each Developing Readers practice page focuses on a specific story element, aligned with the instruction from the Meaning Making lesson.

• Children write words and draw pictures about events, characters, or setting in each story, using a variety of graphic organizers.

• Children use regular double lines to assist with size and placement of letters and words on the line.

• At this developmental level, children may attempt to write one or two words on the double lines as labels for their drawings. Advanced students may be ready to write sentences.

Meaning Making Practice

Cora and the Coconut, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

Early Emerging Readers Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event that happens in the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

or pointin at the cocont.

Cora sees a coconut.

holds up a cat.

Sample answer: drawin of Cora eatin a cocont cookie. t may also show her randfather or other people, at a table, eatin a cookie with her.

Cora eats the coconut.

Snow, C. E. (2017). Early literacy development and instruction: An overview. In The Routledge international handbook of early literacy education: A contemporary guide to literacy teaching and interventions in a global context. Taylor & Francis. Kucirkova, N., Snow, C. E., Grøver, V., & McBride, C. (Eds.).

Interactive Teaching Tool

Resources for Teaching and Planning

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool supports A–Z for Mat Man® and Me by providing teachers digital access to all components of the program. You can plan from anywhere!

The dashboard provides direct access to everything you need to plan your Letter Learning lessons, assign Student Letter Books, and find related activities for your students. Via the dashboard, you can:

• Easily adjust the letter teaching order.

• Use the Read Aloud feature to project a Student Letter Book on the whiteboard and show highlighted words as they are read.

• Use the interactive Find It activities to find words or pictures that start with the target letter and get feedback.

• Gain access to additional interactive resources to enhance the learning experience, including:

o Animations that bring the target letters and exemplar words to life

o Touch-sensitive digital letter formation tool to help students write each letter

o Cross-curricular video clips to build knowledge about the topics of the Student Letter Books

o Take-home letters to support letter learning at home

o Assessment materials to diagnose and evaluate progress

o Black-and-white printable versions of each Student Letter book you can send home for family literacy

• Assign reading and letter learning activities directly to students they can easily access via A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App.

• Track reading and student assignments for completion and share reports with families.

Student App

Bring Letter Learning to Life for Your Students

In A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App, students have access to:

• Student Letter Books

• Practice for Emerging Readers and Practice for Developing Readers

• Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade read aloud story

• Assigned activities

For Students

• Students can read a Student Letter Book independently or use the Read Aloud option to follow along with the words as they are read and highlighted.

• Practice book pages can be printed, completed and uploaded back to teachers.

• Find It! activities encourage students to find words or pictures that begin with the exemplar letter.

• Starting Sounds and other activities including Match It, Trash It provide valuable and fun practice for the skills students are learning in the program.

For Families

• Printable mini-book versions of Student Letter Books are available for interactive rereading.

• Share family letters by printing or emailing to support letter learning and reading at home.

An Integrated Approach to Learning the Alphabet

Research says...

“The ease with which children acquire foundational skills in two domains of early literacy—code-focused skills (letter knowledge and phonemic awareness) and meaning-focused skills (oral language and comprehension)— shapes their future reading development” (Ortiz et al., 2012).

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me teaches the alphabet in a joyful, interactive way. The instructional design integrates skills so that children are working toward reading comprehension.

Connected Text Letter Learning Meaning Making

Letter Learning

Our approach ensures that students understand the alphabetic principle by connecting to related early literacy skills so they grasp how letters, sounds, and words relate to meaning. The books and lessons

• explicitly teach the letter’s name, sound, and form

• develop grapheme-phoneme correspondences

• incorporate letter formation from Handwriting Without Tears®

• provide the foundation for hearing sounds in words and recognizing words to decode

Connected Text

The Student Letter Books tie learning together. Each book was written to connect code-based foundational skills and meaning-based comprehension skills so that reading is purposeful. The books are the heart of both Letter Learning and Meaning Making lessons.

The books have

• multi-criteria text in that they include a mix of target letter-sound words, decodable words, sight words, and story words

• stories with characters, settings, and plots that are worth thinking about and talking about

• shared reading opportunities to get children to attend to print, letters, words, and ideas

Meaning Making

Our approach recognizes that oral language is critical for early readers, and children benefit from talking about story elements in text. The books and lessons

• build off the knowledge students’ bring to texts and invite them to join meaningful conversations

• strengthen children’s attention to story elements

• develop their oral language as they discuss the stories

• center on a social-emotional habit that connects to the plot

Cultural Diversity: We want all children to see themselves reflected in the books from their earliest reading experiences. Our books and lessons

• feature characters in common situations children experience

• broaden children’s understanding of diverse cultures and topics

Ortiz, M., Folsom, J. S., Al Otaiba, S., Greulich, L., Thomas-Tate, S., & Connor, C. M. (2012). The componential model of reading: Predicting first grade reading performance of culturally diverse students from ecological, psychological, and cognitive factors assessed at kindergarten entry. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 45(5), 406–417.

Reading Science Informs Our Approach

Skills in the Service of Reading for Understanding

“Think about what beginning readers are mainly working on: cracking the code. Making meaning with texts is always the focus, but young children especially need to develop the ability to hear sounds in words, develop sight words, and acquire word recognition strategies” (Fitzgerald et al., 2016).

Our instructional design is built on the premise that children learn best when skills are set in context of the “why.” The four recommendations from the What Works Clearinghouse Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade guide (Foorman et al., 2016) drive the instruction and practice in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me:

(1) Teach academic language skills;

(2) Develop awareness of sounds and links to letters;

(3) Teach students to decode and recognize words; (4) Ensure that students read connected text every day.

Alphabet Knowledge: A Vital Step in Learning to Read

W ord

Recognition ALPHABET KNOWLEDGE

OralLangua g e

Phonological Awareness

Connec ted Text

Systematic, Explicit Instruction

“Teaching phonics and phonological awareness explicitly, systematically, and sequentially, with phonemegrapheme correspondence as the core focus of instruction, is essential if the goal is preventing reading failure and enabling most students to read” (Moats, 2019).

Children develop into proficient readers when they receive systematic and explicit instruction. A–Z for Mat Man® and Me offers both.

• Systematic: We recommend teaching letters sequentially. The Letter Learning lessons for each book are highly structured to teach each letter of the alphabet. The Meaning Making lessons reinforce the use of the letters in words and stories.

• Explicit: Each letter’s name, sound, and form is explicitly taught, practiced, and applied.

Alphabet Knowledge

“When children recognize letters as units of independent importance and associate these graphic symbols with a letter name and sound, they make an important step forward in early reading acquisition” (Jones & Reutzel, 2012).

In A–Z for Mat Man® and Me, children learn and cement skills about letters. They apply this learning as they read the Student Letter Books along with you. As their letter knowledge becomes automatic, children will become more actively engaged in discussing the letter sounds in the books.

Fitzgerald,

39–62). Springer, Cham.

J., Elmore, J., Hiebert, E. H., Koons, H. H., Bowen, K., Sanford-Moore, E. E., & Stenner, A. J. (2016). Examining text complexity in the early grades. Phi Delta Kappan, 97(8), 60–65; Foorman, B., Beyler, N., Borradaile, K., Coyne, M., Denton, C. A., Dimino, J., ... & Wissel, S. (2016). Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten through 3rd Grade. Educator’s Practice Guide. NCEE 2016–4008. What Works Clearinghouse; Jones, C. D., & Reutzel, D. R. (2012). Enhanced alphabet knowledge instruction: Exploring a change of frequency, focus, and distributed cycles of review. Reading Psychology, 33(5), 448–464; Moats, L. (2019). Phonics and spelling: Learning the structure of language at the word level. Reading Development and Difficulties (pp.

Early Literacy Skills in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me

Structured Flexibility

• We know that children learn best from a systematic approach to learning the alphabet, so we recommend the letter sequence shown.

• We also know how busy you are and how overwhelming it can be to orchestrate your many learning resources. A–Z for Mat Man® and Me invites you to choose how to incorporate this program into your plans.

• The Student Letter Books and their accompanying lessons can be taught in any order you choose. In your digital dashboard, you can set your letter sequence.

• The Letter Learning and Meaning Making Lessons in this teacher’s guide fall in alphabetical order so that you can easily find which lesson you want to use based on your sequence. And the good news is that the instruction for each letter book stands on its own.

Recommended Letter Sequence:

m Tt Aa Nn Ss Rr Pp i Dd Hh g Ll Oo Ff

Essential Instruction

Alphabet Knowledge Skills

Every Letter Learning lesson provides instruction on the target letter. Students learn to:

• Identify the name and sound of letters

• Practice the forms of the capital and lowercase letters

Narrative Comprehension Skills

Every Meaning Making lesson provides instruction in listening and reading comprehension. Students learn to:

• Identify characters, settings, and major events in a story

• Identify the problem and the solution of a story

• Describe the major events

• Describe the actions and feelings of the main characters

• Describe the setting

• Use text evidence to support a response to a story

Skills Practiced

The Student Letter Books use target letters in context of fun stories. They are also intentionally designed to give word recognition practice in the following skills.

Phonics Skills

• Consonant sounds, including hard c, /k/ for c; hard g, /g/ for g; and two sounds, /ks/ for x • Short vowel a • Short vowel i • Short vowel o • Short vowel u • Short vowel e

• Final double consonant letters • Ending -ck

• Endings -s, -es • Decode and encode VC and CVC words

Top 25 High-Frequency Words*

the

of

and

to

a

in

is

that

it

was

for

you

he

* From The Educator’s Word Frequency Guide (Zeno et al., 1995)

* High correlation to Dolch and Fry lists

* Words in blue are decodable at this level.

on

as

are

they

with

be

his

at

or

from

had

I

Early Literacy Skills in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me

The Literacy Block

We recommend that you use this program during small-group rotation.

• Follow the same routine with each letter. Teach Letter Learning, followed by Meaning Making.

• Keep in mind that not all letters need the same attention.

• Observe and move on quickly when students are successful or stay on a letter longer when students need more support.

Small

Group (15–20 minutes per session)

Plan for shared reading of each Student Letter Book. Lead an interactive read aloud or invite children to read with you.

• Day 1: Teach each letter, using the Letter Learning lesson.

• Day 2: Use the Meaning Making lesson to reread for discussing the story.

Centers and Independent Work

(15–20 minutes per session)

Children can stay actively engaged on their own through practice.

• Use the Practice for Emerging Readers and Practice for Developing Readers for children to work on their own.

• Have children work in pairs on hands-on activities, including with LWT manipulatives and the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App

Optional Whole Group: You may occasionally want to gather all your students for reading aloud and modeling. Use both print books and project the stories from the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool including the read aloud book, Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade.

Bb Cc Zz Vv U Kk j Ww Ee y Xx Qq

Additional Early Literacy Skills

Each lesson offers guidance on how to incorporate additional early literacy skills before, during, and after reading each Student Letter Book. Phonological and phonemic awareness are incorporated into each lesson. You will find extensions for more sound practice related to each letter. As you read each book, you also can model concepts about print and encourage children to demonstrate their skills in their own copies of the books. Finally, children are continually expanding their spoken and written language skills with every book they read with you and every activity they do after reading.

Phonological and Phonemic Awareness Concepts About Print Language

• Recognize capital and lowercase letters

• Follow words on a page, from top to bottom and left to right

• Recognize words in a spoken sentence

• Recognize written words represent spoken words

• Through conversation after being read to and reading, use words and phrases

• Discuss topics, with prompting and support

• Provide an oral, pictorial, or written response to a story

• Clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words

Differentiated Instruction

Developmental Needs Addressed

It’s common to find children progressing at varied developmental ranges in any Pre-K to grade 1 classroom. Some children are just starting to recognize letters, while others can name letters but don’t know all letter sounds. More advanced learners know letter-sound correspondences and may recognize some words but need more support to read words and sentences.

Two Paths to Support Differentiated Instruction

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me includes two instructional paths: Emerging Readers and Developing Readers. This chart shows the general reading behaviors associated with each stage of reading and how to adapt instruction to meet students’ needs.

Emerging 3–5 years old Pre-K Kindergarten

• recognize or name some letters, especially letters in their own names but may not know letter sounds

• use visual cues to identify words

• pretend to read, telling the story from memory

• scribble, mixed with some letters when writing

• write their own name

• use first letter and last letter or other letters to predict words

• recognize all letters

• write most letters

• know many letter-sound correspondences

Developing 5–7 years old

First Grade

• recognize some high-frequency words

• sound out many phonetically regular words

• write letters for spoken sounds and words

• read simple text

• listen and follow as text is read aloud

• make physical gestures to reinforce letter recognition

• identify words that begin with the target letter

• distinguish between capital and lowercase letter forms

• find and say words with the target letter sound

• clap the syllables in target words to gain syllable awareness

• break words into spoken parts to develop onset and rime awareness

• form and trace letters with manipulatives

• sort letters and isolate the target letter

• match capital and lowercase letters

• say and write capital and lowercase letters on large double lines

• identify the target letter in text

• identify pictures of objects that begin with the target letter sound

• identify and draw characters

• discuss how characters act and feel

• identify and draw story settings

• act out parts of a story

• draw the beginning, middle, and end of a story

• use a graphic organizer to draw details from a story

• listen and track as text is read aloud

• read as much as they can on their own

• search for and read aloud words that begin with the target letter

• identify beginning and middle sounds

• manipulate phonemes, using words that include the target sound

• decode CVC (consonant-vowelconsonant) words that begin with or include the target letter

• segment phonemes in words with the target letter sound

• blend phonemes in words with the target letter sound

• say and write capital and lowercase letters on small double lines

• identify the letter sounds and write letters to complete words

• write words that begin with the target letter

• identify the target letter in text and read the text

• identify and write about characters

• respond in writing to how characters act and feel

• identify and write about story settings

• write about the beginning, middle, and end of stories

• use a graphic organizer to write details from a story

**Early emergent learners benefit from interactive learning rather than pencil-paper practice to build skills.**

Characteristics of Early Readers

Differentiated Instruction in A-Z for Mat Man ® and Me

Stage of Reading Approximate Age and Grade Children may... Letter Learning During Reading Letter Learning Phonological Awareness and Phonics Letter Learning Practice Meaning Making Practice

Scaffolding: Language & Multiple Representations

Breaking Down Barriers and Giving Access

Every lesson in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me includes scaffolds to support learning for all children in your classroom. Use our ELL Scaffolds with your English language learners to break down language blockers. Use our Multimodal Learning scaffolds with all children who would benefit from trying different representations or modes of learning. Both types of scaffolds help children overcome misunderstandings and promote a love of reading.

ELL Scaffolds

We understand that learning the English alphabet and letter sounds can be particularly challenging for English language learners (ELLs), especially for those who have had limited exposure to the alphabetic principle in their home language or for those who are used to an alphabet with a different orthographic system than English (e.g., Arabic, Mandarin, Russian). ELLs who have greater language proficiency may need more support in vocabulary development and understanding of idioms and figurative language in English, even in simple texts. To support ELLs, we provide ELL scaffolds in each lesson.

Our ELL Scaffolds:

• are relevant to the content of the Student Letter Book

• focus on the biggest blockers to language acquisition for the target letter

• support transfer of primary language skills to English

• build reading comprehension skills

• facilitate communication with classmates

• build confidence in speaking, reading, and writing in English

ELL scaffolds for Multiple-Meaning Words help children avoid confusion when reading the story by pointing out possibly familiar meanings and then teaching them other meanings that are used in the story.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Prepare children for multiple-meaning words in the story: can, will, cool. Children may know that can means “be able to.” Point out that on p. 5, can is a kind of metal container. Talk about kinds of cans, such as a paint can and a can of soup.

Multimodal Learning

Speaking: Bring in objects or print pictures of words from the story that start with Cc: can, cat, car, cane, cup. Label each. Ask children to take turns asking and answering questions, using these sentence frames: Do you have a ___? Yes, I have a ___.

Multimodal Learning

We recognize the variability of learning. Children benefit from opportunities that make learning visible, interactive, and transferable. Multimodal learning means using multiple modes of literacy and communication. In every lesson, we offer multiple modes for strengthening early literacy in ways that are tailored to the target letter and content of the story.

Our Multimodal Learning includes:

• reading

• writing

• speaking

• listening

• movement and drama

• art and music

Multimodal Learning opportunities for Speaking have children take turns speaking with partners or in small groups, completing sentence frames with words from the story.

Support Spanish speakers in your classroom!

Draw attention to biliteracy opportunities, such as cognates of many exemplar words: coconut/ coco, dolphin/delfin, elephant/ elefante, igloo/iglú, kayak/ kayak, piano/piano, tomato/ tomate, yo-yo/yoyó

Best Practices for Teaching the Alphabet

Research says...

“Children learn it [alphabet knowledge] by doing it. They should have dry erase boards to practice spelling words and listening for sounds. They should have magnetic letters for building words” (Mesmer, 2019).

Children learning the alphabet benefit from a multimodal approach, especially younger early emerging readers, who might not be ready for paper and pencil activities. Here are some ideas for enagement.

Identify the Letter Name and Form

• A-B-C Touch and Flip Cards: Use these LWT double-sided cards, featuring tactile letters and a puzzle, to reinforce letter form, capital and lowercase matching, and alphabet order.

• Name Games: Build on the use of characters’ names in the Student Letter Books by chanting, singing, and playing games with names. Extend with student names. Begin by discussing who in the class has the target letter in their name. Start a class letter graph, tracking which letter is represented most in class. Or create name puzzles on index cards or sentences strips for students to take apart and put together while saying the letters in their name or their friends’ names.

Identify the Letter Sound

• Sound Around Box: Use this LWT multipurpose resource to practice letter sounds by placing familiar items inside so children can identify the beginning sound of the object.

• Exemplar Words: Remind children of the exemplar pictures and words that represent each sound (e.g., B, bagel, /b/.) To reinforce and practice each sound, play “I Spy.” Say: I spy something that starts with the same sound as bagel. Ask children to look around the room to identify the word.

• Letter Search: Provide newspapers, magazines, or printable text. Encourage children to search for target letters. They can highlight or circle lowercase and capital letters you choose. Or have children search around the classroom, filling out a graph to record the number of specific letters they see around them.

• Picture Sort: Have children sort objects or pictures by sound. You can use the Sound Picture Cards in the Appendix on p. 191 or your own pictures.

Write the Letter

• Wet, Dry, Try and Magnetic Lowercase & Blackboard Set: Use the LWT Slate Chalkboard to write a chalk letter. Then, children wet, dry, and try the letter with chalk, sponges, and paper towel pieces. Or use the LWT Magnetic Lowercase & Blackboard Set to focus on letter placement and formation for lowercase letters.

• Touch and Feel Letters: Put shaving cream on a cookie sheet or put paint into a well-sealed plastic sandwich bag or gallon-sized bag. Model the steps to write a letter, and have children practice the capital and lowercase formation of the letter in the shaving cream or paint. This activity develops students’ motor skills as they feel the shape of each letter.

• Writing and Art Centers: Provide various fun opportunities for children to independently practice formation in centers. Children can use stencils, lined paper, varied writing utensils, the LWT Stamp and See Screen, or paint at an easel. Be sure to provide models of the letters for children to use for their writing.

Mesmer, H. A. E. (2019). Letter Lessons and First Words.

Social-Emotional Learning in A–Z for Mat Man® and Me

SEL is woven into the Student Letter Books and Meaning Making lessons as children read, think, talk, and write or draw about five key SEL habits. These five habits are grounded in the CASEL core competencies and offer common language and understanding for students, teachers, and families.

Student Letter Books

• In each story, the main character faces a problem. As the character works through the problem, children see examples of how a habit can manifest in everyday situations.

• Figuring Out Feelings: There are two questions in the back of every book focused on the habit identified for the story. One question is based on the text and one is based on children’s experiences.

Teaching the Five SEL Habits

Use these child-friendly definitions to introduce each habit to students, and continue to use this language throughout the year.

Habit Child-Friendly Definition

Problem Solving I can come up with a plan or join a plan when there is a problem so I can get to a solution.

Understanding Feelings I can understand my own feelings and recognize other people’s feelings.

Persistence I can keep going and keep trying, even when something is hard.

Cooperation I can work with others, and I can be part of a team.

Kindness I can think about how others feel, and I can do things to help others.

Background

Teacher’s Guide: Lesson

• A brief SEL activity following every Meaning Making lesson extends learning and builds oral language skills, with the key habits in mind.

Teacher’s Guide: Practice

• Go to pp. 196–200 of this teacher’s guide for reproducible graphic organizers. Use them to connect the habits to the Student Letter Book story.

Name:

Problem solving is the ability to think about a problem and find solutions.

When people solve problems, they show a willingness to think creatively, trying out a variety of options based on the resources available to achieve a desired goal.

Understanding feelings is the ability to accurately recognize our own and others’ emotions and thoughts.

When people understand feelings, they think about how feelings influence behavior. They might ask for or offer help based on this understanding

Persistence is the ability to face a challenge and stick with it.

When people show persistence, they show a willingness to try something and keep trying, even when it’s hard.

Cooperation is the ability to work well with others.

When people cooperate, they communicate and get along well with others so they can coordinate efforts to complete a task.

Kindness is the ability to show empathy, caring, and compassion for others.

When people show kindness, they value relationships and try to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world.

CASEL Alignment Student Book

Social CASEL: Self-Management; Relationship Skills

Emotional CASEL: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness

• Ben and the Big Bagels

• Feng, Finn, and the Fan

• Gabby and Her Goat

• Oz and the Octopus

• Quinn and the Quilt

• Sam in the Sun

• Ally and the Apple

• Emma and Her Elephant

• Lola and the Lock

• Mac and the Magnificent Masks

• Paco and the Piano

• Tere and the Tomato

Emotional CASEL: Responsible Decision Making

Social CASEL: Relationship Skills

Social CASEL: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness

• Cora and the Coconut

• Ikiaq and the Igloo

• Nell and the Nest

• Rex and the Rake

• Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish

• Vic, Val, and the Vacuum

• Wes and the Watermelon

• Yolanda and the Yo-Yo

Dax and the Dolphin

Hana Has a Hammer

Kaya and the Kayak

Umberto and the Umbrella

Xavier Gets an X-ray

Zack and His Zipper

A Strong Home-School Connection

Learning the alphabet is exciting, but it’s not easy! It also takes time for children to understand stories. Invite families to partner with you in helping children grow as readers. These are some ideas for connecting:

• Send children home with a mission to take a picture of things in their home or neighborhood that begin with the target letter-sound. Adults at home can email you or post to a site of yours.

• Start a family alphabet book that each child gets to take home and contribute to. Invite families to add pictures with labels. When it’s complete, laminate it and read aloud to the class.

• Challenge families to come up with tongue twisters together. Then give children a chance to read them to the class—with your support, of course!

• Extend conversations about characters by asking children to discuss characters in stories they read at home. Ask what problems characters have and how they solve them.

• Keep track of different settings in stories. Make a chart, and ask children to add to it for each story set in similar places as those in the Student Letter Books, such as a city or a snowy place.

• Encourage families (at open houses, through emails, at other school events) to review skills you’re teaching so that children can keep focused on learning at home.

More Digital Resources

Visit the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool for resources, including Family Letters and printable Student Letter Books.

AT HOME TIPS

Tips to help with common mistakes with the target letter

LETTER LEARNING

Fun, actionable alphabet activities for families to do together

MEANING MAKING

Ideas for talking about books

Assessing Your Students

As children are developing early literacy skills, it’s important to assess their progress.

Understanding Where to Start

Use our screening resources to see what children already know and how to group them.

• Use our Differentiating Instruction chart (p. 20 of this teacher’s guide) to check children’s early literacy skills to gauge which students are Emerging Readers and which are Developing Readers. Find more digital resources, too

• Go to the Resources section of the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to find screeners to diagnose children’s understanding of alphabet knowledge—alphabetical order, letter recognition, and letter sounds. You can evaluate children individually or in small groups. Download and print these formative assessment measures to understand the needs of your class.

Monitoring Progress

Young children progress at different paces. Children are unlikely to master every aspect of the letter the first time it’s introduced. The same is true for children understanding stories. So, it’s important to use multiple means of formative assessment to make decisions about how to form flexible small groups to meet students’ varying needs. The following resources can help with monitoring progress and planning for supports.

• Observe and record how children interact during small-group reading, how they respond to oral prompts, and how they engage in after-reading discussions and activities.

• Regularly review students’ practice book pages and use of manipulatives at centers.

• Refer to our If/Then charts on pp. 8–13 in this teacher’s guide to watch for opportunities to provide feedback or intervene with additional scaffolding, instruction, and practice.

• Use the letter checks at the back of the practice books. The letters are grouped in these checks based on our recommended sequence of teaching the alphabet on p. 18 in this teacher’s guide.

Letter Check 1 Letter Check 2 Letter Check 3 Cumulative Review

Practice Book Pages pp. 58–59 pp. 60–61 pp. 62–63 p. 64

Letters Reviewed m, Tt, Nn, Aa, Ss, Rr, Pp, i Dd, Hh, g, Ll, Oo, Ff, Bb, Cc, Zz Vv, Uu, Kk, j, Ww, Ee, y, Xx, Qq Full alphabet

• See pp. 188–189 of this teacher’s guide for answer keys to each of these review pages.

Go to the A–Z for Mat Man ® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool for additional downloadable assessment resources.

Connecting with Get Set for School®

Get Set for School® (GSS) is a complete, developmentally appropriate Pre-K program that combines purposeful play with multisensory experiences. A–Z for Mat Man® and Me is designed to support and enhance GSS instruction in alphabet knowledge, phonological awareness, concepts about print, oral language, comprehension and social-emotional learning. Both resources share the same child-friendly, step-by-step letter formation instruction, and they share Mat Man.

During the time slot for Readiness & Writing in GSS, use the Student Letter Books to introduce, reinforce, or review the letter of focus. Use the Student Letter Books in the Language and Literacy time slot to teach and reinforce literacy skills like character, setting, and sequence or phonemic awareness skills.

The Student Letter Books can be part of a lesson for center/small groups, with the six copies of each title included, or a whole-class read aloud—project digital versions of the books on to your whiteboard. Go to the resources page on the Interactive Teaching Tool to find a complete alignment of A–Z for Mat Man® and Me to Get Set for School.

As an example, Emma and Her Elephant can be used to support and extend instruction in Get Set for School.

GSS Skill Focus

Letter Identification & Sound

Print Concepts & Comprehension

Capital Formation Review & Lowercase Formation Practice

GSS Complete, Vol. 2: Learning Areas and Activities

• Language & Literacy, p. 104

Match Capital & Lowercase Letters

• Language & Literacy, p. 410

Identify and Compare Ee

• Language & Literacy, p. 100

Making Predictions

• Language & Literacy, p. 104

Learn lowercase e by tracing and copying

Connecting with Handwriting Without Tears®

Early Reading Victories – The Handwriting Key

Handwriting is an essential foundational skill for reading success. The research is clear—handwriting letters and early reading success are inextricably tied. The process of forming letters while handwriting activates neural pathways associated with strong reading skills. In fact, handwriting plays a crucial role in the formation of these brain networks that underlie the development of strong reading skills.

The Link between Handwriting Without Tears ® and A–Z

A–Z for Mat Man® and Me includes the trademark handwriting models and formation language that is core to the Handwriting Without Tears® (HWT) curriculum. Throughout the Student Letter Books and practice book pages, students see same fonts and features that they see in every HWT Student Book. Using both programs together reinforces and extends handwriting instruction and alphabet knowledge. In HWT, students practice the formation of letters they recognize for grapheme-phoneme correspondence. In A–Z for Mat Man® and Me students build on that learning as they write and read words.

Familar Features of HWT in A–Z for Mat Man ® and Me

In the practice book pages, students see the starting dot and direction arrow for each letter, gray strokes for tracing, and double lines to assist with letter placement and size.

In HWT Letters and Numbers for Me, children learn letter formation using extra wide double lines. Children begin to naturally write smaller as their fine motor skills develop, so midway through HWT My Printing Book, we transition to regular double lines. In the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me: Practice for Developing Readers, we use regular double lines throughout. Model writing letters and words for children on double lines and other lines, to demonstrate the correct size and placement of letters.

Gray Block Prevents Reversals

Starting Dot Lefty Friendly with Multiple Models

Gray Stroke for Tracing

Double Lines Quickly Teach Children How to Place Letters

• Small letters fit in the middle space.

• Tall letters go in the top place.

• Descending letters go in the bottom space.

• The base line guides placement, and the midline controls the size of letters.

top space

base line middle space bottom space

mid line tall small descending

Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade

Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade is a fun-filled concept book designed to teach the alphabet and kick off the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me program. The lively language and delightful illustrations support alphabet learning and include intentional connections to the exemplar words used in the Student Letter Books.

Goals for This Read-Aloud Book

• Introduce the alphabet. Include the book as part of your instruction on the alphabetic principle and helping children conceptualize that the alphabet is a collection of letters that represent sounds and make words.

• Teach alphabetical order. You can use the cover and the word list on the inside front cover to help you explain the order of the alphabet. You may sing alphabet songs before and after reading.

• Preview exemplar words. Our carefully selected exemplar words are illustrated throughout the book, and these same words and pictures are the heart of the Student Letter Books. Use the exemplar words and pictures to demonstrate sound-spelling (phoneme-grapheme) correspondences.

• Connect the components. This book launches the Student Letter Books, the instruction (lessons in this teacher’s guide), and practice (Practice for Emerging Readers and Practice for Developing Readers).

Connecting to the Student Letter Books

There’s a parade of letters in this book to celebrate the alphabet. For each letter featured in the parade, the main balloon shows the exemplar word that is used in the Student Letter Books. For example, for the letter , we see a large goat balloon in the parade. oat is the exemplar word used to teach letter-sound correspondence for the letter . Students will encounter the goat again in the  Student Letter Book: Gabby and the Goat

By using the same exemplar words for both the letter books and the read-aloud book, children will start to associate sounds with letters, as they’re also building vocabulary and word knowledge.

Don’t forget to check out the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool and Student App for more about Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade!

Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade

Lesson Ideas for Using This Read-Aloud Book

Read the book aloud several times, each with a slightly different focus.

• Start by reading the book to introduce the alphabet. Read aloud without pausing to allow children to hear the full text. Then go back, to invite children to hear sounds and hunt for pictures.

• Later, return to the book for each letter of the alphabet to complement your small-group reading of the Student Letter Books. As children grow in alphabet knowledge, they’ll get better and better at recognizing words with target letters and pictures that represent those sounds. They will be proud of what they can find!

Before Reading

• On the first read, have children guess which letter comes next as they listen and look at each page.

• On the second read, ask children to listen closely for the letter that starts their first name and last name. Have them try to remember other things that start with the same letters as their names.

During Reading

Make learning interactive by involving children on each page of the book.

• Show excitement through expressive reading. Encourage children to repeat some words.

• Talk about Mat Man’s role as an announcer. Point out that the speech bubbles show that he’s talking about what he’s seeing in the parade.

• Stop on each page to have children find pictures that start with the target letter. Ask: Can you think of what else could be in the parade for this letter?

• Have children give names to the characters for each target letter.

• As children develop as readers, use the book to model the difference between some words. For example, you can point out on the Ff page that Freddy and frog begin with two sounds that go together (a consonant blend): /f/ and /r/. Have children compare the sounds with /f/ followed by a consonant to saying other Ff words with /f/ followed by a vowel, like fan and football

After Reading

Talk about the book to both build oral language and focus on the alphabet.

• Ask: If you were in the parade, how would you dress up? Do you know which letter you would want to walk with?

• Ask: What kind of food carts do you see in the book? What other food carts could the illustrator have added? Which letter would they go with?

Also, invite children to make their own alphabet books—about a parade or another idea for meeting all the letters.

Practice

Turn to the next page for directions for using activities in the first two pages in the practice book to extend on the learning from Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade.

Mat Man® and the Great Alphabet Parade

Letter Learning Practice

Children can practice recognizing the letters in the alphabet after you read aloud.

Early Emerging Readers

Sing the alphabet song as a group, and point to each magnetic letter or letter tile as you go.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 4 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Lead children in singing the alphabet song, slowly, modeling how to underline each capital letter as you sing each letter’s name. Have children do the same.

Meaning Making Practice

Children can make connections to words and pictures in the book after you reread.

Early Emerging Readers

Invite each child to recall a favorite thing from the book. Flip back to pages to find pictures.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 5 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Have children circle the letter their name starts with, monitoring and helping, as needed. For the bottom activity, remind children what they listened and looked for.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 4 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Sing the alphabet song slowly together, modeling how to underline each lowercase letter as you sing each letter’s name. Have children do the same.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 5 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Review the directions to mark the letters that start children’s first and last names. For the bottom activity, children can draw what they remember.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Aa Exemplar Word apple

Letter Chant capital A, lowercase a, //, apple

About This Book This story is about a girl named Ally, who is having trouble eating her apple. Ally gets help from her friends in a school cafeteria that has many words that begin with Aa.

About This Letter This book focuses on the short a sound for the letter a: // rather than long a: /a/. Short vowel sounds are easy to confuse because they all sound similar, so encourage children to notice how the // sound feels in their mouth and their mouth position as they pronounce it so they can distinguish between // and //.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Ally, an, apple, ack, asks, adds, anyone, apples

Decodable Words licks, an, lick, it, ick, can, not, sip, ack, adds, up, lots

Sight Words for, of Story Words why, bite, help, slice, them

Target Words in Pictures apple, arrow, alphabet, alligator, astronaut

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: //. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the // sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: pot, alligator, dot, arrow, asteroid. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital A. Read the title, Ally and the Apple, and repeat the beginning sound to model that A stands for the // sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital A and lowercase a, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with A, like Ally. Note that some A names begin with the long a sound, /a/, like Aidan Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold Content Language: Explain that when Ally “adds them up,” she is counting the apple slices. Demonstrate with another object and ask children to “add them up” to show their understanding and connection to math vocabulary.

Multimodal Learning

Feel and See Sounds: To help children distinguish between the // sound and other short vowel sounds, have them look in a mirror to watch their mouth movement. Have them notice how the sound feels when they say it.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the apple picture. Remind children that an apple is a fruit that is ripe in the fall.

• Have children say the word apple with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word apple, think of the // sound that stands for a

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Ally licks an apple.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why does Ally lick her apple? (She can’t bite into it without her front teeth.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Aa

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can open their mouths and say “ah” for each Aa word. Stop to find words that begin with Aa

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two Aa words on this page. One has a lowercase a and one has a capital A. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Ally, apple)

o p. 10: Can you point to the word with capital A? It has an exclamation mark, so let’s show we are excited when we read it. Read it with me in an excited voice. (Ack!)

o p. 13: Find two words that start with Aa on these pages. Say them with me. (Ally, adds)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own

• Children can search for words that begin with capital A and lowercase a as they read. Invite volunteers to read Aa words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 7: What are the vowel sounds at the beginning of the two words on this page? (/ĭ/ and //). Say those sounds. What do you notice about your mouth? (/ ĭ/: mouth is more closed; //: mouth is more open.)

o p. 8: A word on this page has the // sound in the middle. What is it? (can) o p. 15: Find the a word. Cover up the s What word is it now? (apple)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Aa in the story and the pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Aa on their own. Turn to p. 36 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Ally, apple, astronaut, arrow, alligator, airplane, applesauce.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: cat: /k/-at, fan: /f/-an, hat: /h/-at, map: /m/-ap.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words. Explain that they should listen for the // sound in the middle of the word: map: /m////p/, fan: /f////n/, hat: /h////t/ . Have children stretch the sounds in each word and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist of the story. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Ally) Why does Ally lick her apple? (She can’t bite it because she is missing her front teeth.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children better understand the story.

• Ally is missing her two front teeth in the story. Most children start to lose their baby teeth at about age 6. By 13, most children have lost all their baby teeth and have all their 32 adult teeth.

• Apples aren’t just red! They can be red, yellow, and green.

• Apples vary in size. They can be as small as a cherry or as big as a grapefruit.

• There are about 2,500 different kinds of apples grown in the United States.

• Apples are healthy snacks for children because they have vitamins C, B, and K, as well as fiber. Fruit is less costly than chips to offer in a cafeteria, per the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Exclamations: Some students may not know the exclamations “ack” and “ick” in the story. Discuss and compare other silly things people say to show a reaction. Encourage children to share examples from their home language.

Multimodal Learning Partner Talk: Pair up students to talk about their answers to one of the more challenging questions. This will give them time to hear each other’s ideas before formulating their response and sharing with the rest of the group.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about why Ally licks her apple and what happens with the other characters.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens to Ally at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What is the first event in the story? (Ally licks her apple.)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Ally licks the apple.)

• p. 9: Ally can’t bite into the apple, but what can she do? Can you pretend to be Ally and show me what she can do instead of bite? (drink, or sip, from her juice box)

• p. 10: What does Ally notice that she thinks might solve her problem? (sliced apples)

• p. 12: How do Ally’s friends help her? (They offer her apple slices.)

• p. 13: Ally is using math! How many apple slices are on her plate? (ten)

• p. 15: The picture and words on this page tell us that Ally gets to eat an apple. Let’s give Ally a little cheer! Now let’s look in the picture: how is she able to eat the apple slices without any front teeth? (She uses her side and back teeth to eat the apple slices instead of her front teeth.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what happens to Ally. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, the children in the cafeteria don’t know about Ally’s missing front teeth. How can you tell? (They laugh at her when she licks the apple.)

o In the middle of the story, Ally asks for help. How do the other children help Ally solve her problem? (Some children share their sliced apples.)

o At the end of the story, what does Ally do? (She eats and shares the apple slices.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 37 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Ally feels. Ask:

o Ally has different feelings in the story. Let’s look at some pages to see why Ally’s feelings change. At the beginning of the story, Ally feels frustrated when she can’t eat her apple. She seems sad when other children laugh at her. How does Ally start feeling better? (She asks for help.) How do Ally’s friends help her? (They share apples.)

o Can you think of a time when you felt frustrated like Ally?

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how characters understand each other’s feelings in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Ally and the Apple found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Aa, sounding out words that start with //, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Ally and the Apple in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Aa, writing the letter, and identifying words with the // sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 6 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Aa. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with //.

a a Aa

Developing Readers

Go to p. 6 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Aa. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the middle letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

a

Say the name of each pictre. Write the letter that stands for the middle sond to complete the word. l ck p t f n c t r g h t i o a a u

Think of two thins that start with the same beinnin sond as apple. Draw them.

a a A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 6 6/18/21 9:53 AM

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Draw the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Have children sequence the pictures.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 7 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 7 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Ally and the Apple, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Ally and the Apple

Aa

Understandin the Story: Events

einnin End

iddle

Aa Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

Sample answer: drawin of Ally with apple slices. t may also show Ally eatin an apple slice and other children sharin with her.

Sample answer: drawin of Ally lickin an apple. t may also show children lahin at her or pointin at her.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

Sample answers: drawin of Ally sharin apple slices. t may also show children eatin apple slices with her.

Ally shares apple slices.

Ally asks for

help.

Ally licks an apple.

Letter Learning Bb

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Bb

Exemplar Word bagel

Letter Chant capital B, lowercase b, /b/, bagel

About This Book This story is about Ben, who owns a bagel shop. He runs into a problem when his bagels are too big for his bag. Ultimately, Ben figures out how to use a box for his bagels. Many words that begin with Bb tie to Ben’s actions.

About This Letter The formations of lowercase b and lowercase d are easily confused, so consider providing extra practice with letter formation. When pronouncing the sound that Bb represents with children, be sure to articulate it crisply, avoiding an extra “uh” sound at the end.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Ben, bagel, boil, bake, beep, bagels, big, bag, bin, box

Decodable Words Ben, has, mix, big, not, fit, in, bin, box

Sight Words a, the, are, they, do, for Story Words shop, too, sale

Target Words in Pictures bagel, buffalo, bee, blueberries, bananas, box, balls, banjo, baby, backpack, bear, bench, bird, ball

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /b/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /b/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: bat, rock, boat, house, big. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital B. Read the title, Ben and the Big Bagels, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that B stands for the /b/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital B and lowercase b, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with B, like Ben. Note that some B names begin with the /b/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /b/ /r/ together in Brittney

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the bagel picture. Share that a bagel is bread shaped like a circle with a hole in the middle of it.

ELL Scaffold

Onomatopoeia: Point to the timer in the picture on p. 8 as you read aloud: Beep! Beep! Say: That’s the noise of the timer going off. Say it with me: Beep! Beep! Have children share other words that sound like the noises they name. (Possible responses: buzz, honk, oink, purr, tick tock, woof)

Multimodal Learning Word Find: Have children speak aloud words and names for pictures. Ask them to find the word bag in the story. (p. 10) Have them say the word as they point to it in the text. Then have them say the word as they point to the bag in the picture. Repeat for bin (p. 11) and box (p. 12)

• Have children say the word bagel with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word bagel, think of the /b/ sound that stands for b.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out how Ben gets his bagels to people.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: How does Ben get his bagels to people? (He puts them in a box and pulls them with his bike.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Bb.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see a Bb word. Stop to find words that begin with Bb.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 7: Two words on this page begin with capital B. Can you point to them with me? Let’s read them together. (Boil, Bake)

o p. 8: I notice a short word that begins with a lowercase b. Can you point to it? It rhymes with dig. Read it with me. (big)

o p. 14: I see three words that begin with capital B. Look closely. What do you notice about those words? (They are all the same word: bagels; it is in the title of the book.)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital B and lowercase b as they read. Invite volunteers to read Bb words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There’s a word on this page that looks like and sounds like hen, but it begins with B. What is it? (Ben)

o pp. 6–7: There are three things that Ben does with the bagels. Two of them begin with capital B. What are they? (Boil, Bake)

o p. 12: Point to the word big. If we change the g to a n, what word would it make? (bin) What if we change the n to a b? (bib)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Bb in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Bb on their own. Turn to p. 42 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Ben, bake, bagel, baby, banana, bee, buffalo

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: bag: /b/-ag, big: /b/-ig, bin: /b/-in.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: bin, bag, big, box, Ben, bat, bun, bug.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Ben) Why won’t Ben’s bagels fit in his bag? (They are too big.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Bagels quickly became popular by the late 1800s in New York City, where the story is set, and in the 1950s, began to become popular around the country.

• Bagels are made of flour, yeast, salt, water, and sugar or molasses. After you mix the ingredients, you knead the dough, shape it into bagels, boil them for about 30–60 seconds per side, and then bake them for about 20–25 minutes.

• Ben may be a nickname for Benjamin.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a bagel, or if possible, bring in real bagels that children can touch and taste, as they practice saying the word bagel.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Guide children to pretend they’re in a bagel shop or out on a city street. Model using words and illustrations in the story to explain their actions (e.g., mix, boil, bake, put bagels in a bin, ride a bike, sell bagels).

• Handle with care: Ben, the main character, is Jewish. Orthodox Jewish men and teen boys typically wear a skullcap—which is called a kippah in Hebrew and a yarmulke in Yiddish—as a sign of religious devotion.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Ben works and how he does his job.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Ben does at his bagel shop and where and how he sells his bagels in his neighborhood.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Where does this story take place? (a bagel shop, on a city street, in a city neighborhood)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: These pages show the setting for the story. Where is Ben? (in a bagel shop)

• pp. 6–7: Notice what Ben does at his bagel shop. First, he mixes the dough. Point to the picture that shows him mixing the dough. Now point to the picture that shows him boiling the bagels in a pot of hot water. Then what does Ben do? (He bakes the bagels.)

• pp. 10–11: Do the bagels fit in the bag? (No.) Do the bagels fit in the bin? (No.) Why do the bagels not fit in the bag or the bin? (They are too big.)

• pp. 12–13: What does Ben see? (a box) Clap your hands if you think the bagels will fit in the box. Stomp your feet if you think the bagels will not fix in the box.

• pp. 14–15: Look at the picture. Where is the story set now? (on a street in Ben’s neighborhood) What is Ben pulling with his bike? (the bagels in the box) Yay! The bagels fit in the box. As Ben pulls his bagels in the box, he shouts, “Bagels! Bagels! Bagels!” so people know his bagels are for sale. Let’s shout with him: Bagels! Bagels! Bagels!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Ben does there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where does Ben make his bagels? (at his bagel shop)

o Is a bagel shop a place where you live or a place where you work? (work)

o What clues tell us that the story is set in a city? (There are other buildings close by and lots of people.)

o How does Ben pull his bagels to sell them around his neighborhood? (on his bike)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice on their own recalling where the story takes place. Turn to p. 43 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Ben feels. Ask:

o Ben usually uses a bag for his bagels, but the bag isn’t big enough. What does Ben use instead to solve his problem? (He finds a big box to fit the bagels. He pulls the box with his bike so he can sell the bagels to his neighbors.)

o Ben’s idea to use a box is different from what he’s used to. Can you think of a time when you did something different than you usually do?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Ben solves his problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Ben and the Big Bagels found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Bb, sounding out words that start with /b/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Ben and the Big Bagels in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning

Formative Assessment

Practice

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Go to p. 8 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Bb, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. On the bottom, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound.

name and the sond

the name of each pictre.

ox

b b b h

at ed

l

b b b

Go to p. 8 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Bb. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /b/.

Developing Readers

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Ben and the Big Bagels, children learned about the setting of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Talk about where and when the story takes place. Have children draw the setting.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 9 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Ben and the Big Bagels. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 9 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Ben and the Big Bagels. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

and the i aels

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw a place from the story.

Understandin the Story: Settin Where is en in the story? Write abot the place and draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of en in a bael shop. t may also show en ridin his bike in the neihborhood.

Sample answer: drawin of en in a bael shop. t may also show en ridin a bike in his city neihborhood.

Ben is in a city.

Letter Learning Cc

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Cc

Exemplar Word coconut

Letter Chant capital C, lowercase c, /k/, coconut

About This Book This story is about a girl named Cora, who tries to get a coconut so she can make a treat from it. This book includes a number of words that begin with Cc.

About This Letter This book focuses on the hard sound for the letter c rather than soft c. When c is followed by e, i, or y, it usually has a soft sound: /s/. When c is followed by any other letter, it has a hard sound: /k/. Also note that most Cc words in the book are followed by a vowel; one exception is the word crack, which begins with a consonant blend.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text coconut, come, Cora, can, cat, car, cool, cut, cook, (with cr blend: crack) Decodable Words will, it, gets, can, cat, fell, cut, yum

Sight Words a, the Story Words look, down

Target Words in Pictures coconut, curls, can, cat, cart, carrots, corn, cassava, collards, car, camera, cane, cantaloupe, counter, cup, curtains, cookie

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /k/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /k/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: cat, monkey, goat, collards, cut. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital C. Read the title, Cora and the Coconut, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that C stands for the /k/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital C and lowercase c, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with C, like Cora. Note that some C names begin with the /k/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /ch/ in Charlie

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the coconut picture. Remind children that a coconut is a fruit that grows on trees.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Prepare children for multiple-meaning words in the story: can, will, cool. Children may know that can means “be able to.” Point out that on p. 5, can means a kind of metal container. Talk about kinds of cans, such as a paint can and a can of soup.

Multimodal Learning

Speaking: Bring in objects or print pictures of words from the story that start with Cc: can, cat, car, cane, cup Label each. Have children take turns asking and answering questions using these sentence frames: Do you have a ? Yes, I have a ___.

• Have children say the word coconut with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word coconut, think of the /k/ sound that stands for c.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Cora wants a coconut.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why does Cora want a coconut? (to eat it; to make coconut cookies)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Cc.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can make a C shape with their left hand when they hear or see a Cc word. Stop to find words that begin with Cc

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 6: I notice a word with lowercase c on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with man. Read it with me. (can)

o p. 10: There are two Cc words on this page. One has a lowercase c and one has a capital C. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Cool, coconut)

o pp. 13–14: Find two words that start with c on these pages. Point to them. Say them with me. (cut, cook)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital C and lowercase c as they read. Invite volunteers to read Cc words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: How many times do you hear the /k/ sound in coconut? (2) Have children find c twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds.

o p. 6: A word on this page starts with /k/ and ends with an. What is it? (can) o pp. 13–14: There are two things that the characters do with the coconut. Both start with /k/. What are they? (cut, cook)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Cc in the story and the pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Cc on their own. Turn to p. 48 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Cora, can, cantaloupe, cookie, car, carrot, cane, camera Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: can: /k/-an, cat: /k/-at, cap:/k/-ap.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: cat, cut, cot, cap, cab, can, cub, cup, cut

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist of the story. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Cora) What is Cora trying to get? (a coconut)

Build Knowledge

Consider sharing these facts to help children better understand the story.

• This story is set in a tropical location, like Puerto Rico, where coconut palm trees grow.

• Cora can be a nickname for Corazon, which means heart in Spanish.

• In this story, a child wants to get a coconut from a tree. She’s eager to have it, and she’s a bit impatient because she wants to make her favorite dessert, besitos de coco (coconut kisses).

• In communities where coconuts grow, local people typically wait for fallen coconuts rather than risk climbing up to get coconuts from trees or standing under trees where coconuts may fall.

• Ripe coconuts turn brown, and this is a sign that they’re ready to eat.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory Models: Show a photograph of a coconut, or if possible, bring in a real coconut that children can touch and taste, as they practice saying the word coconut

Multimodal Learning Partner Reading: Pair up children to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Cora wants to do and what happens.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens to Cora at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What is the first event in the story? (Cora sees a coconut.)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Cora sees a coconut.)

• p. 5: Raise your hand if you think the coconut will come down. Do you think Cora will wait until the coconut falls down? Stomp your feet if you think she won’t wait.

• p. 7: What things does Cora use to get the coconut? (a can and a cat)

• p. 8: What is Cora excited to see? (a car) What do you see in the pictures so far that tells us that the place is warm? (Cora and friends have on clothes for a hot day. The top is down on the car.)

• p. 10: The picture and words on this page tell us that Cora has the coconut. Yay! Cheer with me! Now let’s talk about how Cora got it. Was it with a can? (No.) Was it with a cat? (No.) How did the coconut come down? (It fell out of the tree.)

• p. 15: How do you think Cora feels now? (Cora feels happy to be with her family, making cookies.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what happens to Cora. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Cora wants a coconut, but she can’t reach it. How do you think she feels? (Possible answers: mad, angry, sad, disappointed, frustrated)

o In the middle of the story, Cora tries different things to get the coconut. What is one thing she tries? (Possible answers: tries to catch it with a big can, uses a cat, stands on a food cart)

o At the end of the story, what does Cora do? (cook and eat the coconut)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, prepare children to practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 49 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Persistence. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Cora feels. Ask:

o Cora wants something, but it is hard. How does she show she won’t give up? (She keeps trying different ways to get the coconut. She uses a can and a cat. She also tries to get family members and friends to help her.) How does Cora feel when she finally gets the coconut? (happy, excited)

o Can you think of a time when you worked hard to get something you wanted?

• Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Cora showed persistence. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Cora and the Coconut found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Cc, sounding out words that start with /k/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Cora and the Coconut in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Cc, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /k/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Chloe sees the cat. Chloe pets the cat. The cat is cte! Cc

Developing Readers

Go to p. 10 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Cc, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

c c c a a a aC C a

up ar ed ips ox

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 11 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event that happens in the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them. Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Cora and the Coconut, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Cora and the Cocont

Understandin the Story: Events

Cc Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

iddle End

einnin

Sample answer: drawin of Cora eatin. t may also show Cora’s randfather and friends at a table with cocont cookies or in the kitchen cookin.

Sample answer: drawin of Cora lookin or pointin at a cocont in a tree. t may also show other people lookin or pointin at the cocont.

Cora sees a coconut.

Cora holds up a cat.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

Sample answer: drawin of Cora eatin a cocont cookie. t may also show her randfather or other people, at a table, eatin a cookie with her.

Cora eats the coconut.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Dd

Exemplar Word dolphin

Letter Chant capital D, lowercase d, /d/, dolphin

About This Book This story is about Dax, who sees dolphins diving. One dolphin gets trapped in a net. There are a number of words that begin with Dd in this story about Dax, Dad, and dolphins.

About This Letter The formations of lowercase d and lowercase b are easily confused; consider providing extra practice with letter formation. When pronouncing the sound that D represents with children, be sure to articulate it crisply, avoiding the extra “uh” sound at the end.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Dax, deck, dolphins, dip, dash, dive, Dad, diver, dolphin, dives, deep, dinner

Decodable Words Dax, is, on, deck, dip, net, gets, Dad, cuts, can, it

Sight Words the, they, a Story Words look, oh, no, now

Target Words in Pictures dolphin, daytime/day, dog, duck, deck, dessert, dish, door, doorknob

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /d/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the / d/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: jet, dog, coat, desk, doctor. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital D. Read the title, Dax and the Dolphin, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that D stands for the /d/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital D and lowercase d, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with D, like Dax. Note that some D names begin with the /d/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /d/ /r/ together in Drake

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the dolphin picture. Remind children that a dolphin is a mammal that lives in the ocean.

• Have children say the word dolphin with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word dolphin, think of the /d/ sound that stands for d.

ELL Scaffold

Plurals: Remind children that you add s to many nouns to show there is more than one. Have children chant: One dolphin. Two dolphins. Three dolphins. Reinforce by having children chant: One deck. Two decks. Three decks. And: One dinner. Two dinners. Three dinners.

Multimodal Learning Use Props: Print or make two cards for each child, with “Dax” written on one card and “Dad” on the other. Note the only difference in these words is the last letter (x, d). Have children hold up the correct card to answer: Who sees the dolphins? (Dax) Who sees a dolphin is caught in a net? (Dax) Who gets Dad? (Dax) Who dives into the water? (Dad) Who cuts the net? (Dad)

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out how Dax helps the dolphin.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: How does Dax help the dolphin? (He gets Dad. Dad cuts the net.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Dd.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can drum in the air every time they hear or see a Dd word. Stop to find words that begin with Dd

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: One word on this page has a capital D and one has a lowercase d. Point to the words. Now say them with me. (Dax, deck) o p. 6: I notice a word with a lowercase d Can you point to it? This word rhymes with lip. Read it with me. (dip)

o p. 12: Two words start with a lowercase d Can you point to the long word? Let’s read it together. (dolphin) Now point to the short word. Let’s read it together. (dive)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital D and lowercase d as they read. Invite volunteers to read Dd words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 6: A word on this page ends with -ip and starts with a /d/ sound. What is it? (dip)

o p. 9: I see two words on this page that are almost the same but have one letter that is different. Can you point to those words? (Dax, Dad) What’s different about them? (the ending letter and sound)

o p. 13: Point to the word dives. If we take away the s, what word does it make? (dive)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Dd in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Dd on their own. Turn to p. 54 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: deck, dip, dolphin, dash, dive, dinner, discover, dictionary

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: Dad: /d/-ad, Dax: /d/-ax, dip: /d/-ip.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending

Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: Dad: /d/ // /d/, Dax: /d/ // /ks/, dip: /d/ /ĭ/ /p/. Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Dax) What kind of animal is in the story? (dolphin)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story is set on a boat. Imagine that this boat is off the coast of Florida, where it is sunny and warm most of the year.

• Many different kinds of boats go in oceans, lakes, and rivers, from large military boats, shipping boats, and cruise ships, to smaller boats like the one in the story that is used for fun.

• Dolphins are intelligent animals. They communicate with each other by making different sounds, such as clicks, squeaks, and whistles. Nets and other fishing gear are a danger to dolphins.

• The father in the story is a diver. A diver experiences going deep into the ocean.

ELL Scaffold

Visual: Show a photograph of a real dolphin or play a nature video of dolphins swimming for children to look at or watch, as they practice using the word dolphin.

Multimodal Learning

Act It Out: Guide children to act out the key events in the story. Encourage or guide them to use words or descriptions from the illustrations to explain their actions.

• Divers often wear wetsuits to stay warm in the cold ocean and use goggles to protect their eyes.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Dax is and what happens there.

• Say: As we read, listen for where Dax is, what he sees, and how he helps a dolphin.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Where does this story take place? (on a boat; in the ocean)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: The words and picture tell us that Dax is on the deck of a boat. What does he see? (dolphins) How many dolphins does he see? (three)

• pp. 6–7: Think about the words and pictures. What do the dolphins do on these pages? (dip, dash, dive) What do you think it means to dip the way it’s used in the story? (to go down in the water) When I think of dash, I think of a race. What do you think dash means here? (to move quickly)

• pp. 8–9: Look at the picture. Raise your hand if you think Dad will be able to help the dolphin. Stomp your feet if you think he won’t be able to help the dolphin.

• p. 12: What does the dolphin do after it is set free from the net (swims, dives deep)

• p. 15: Think about the words and pictures. What happens at the end of the story? (The dolphin finds other dolphins. They have dinner.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Dax and the dolphins do there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where is Dax standing when he sees the dolphins? (on the deck of a boat)

o What clues tell you the story is set on a boat? (The boat is surrounded by water.)

o What does Dax see in the ocean? (dolphins)

o Where do the dolphins eat their dinner? (deep in the ocean)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 55 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Dax feels. Ask:

o We can show kindness by doing something that makes a good change for a person, an animal, or for the world. When Dax sees the dolphin caught in the net, how does he show kindness? (Dax calls his Dad to help the dolphin.) How does Dax feel after Dad helps the dolphin? (excited, happy)

o Can you think of a time when you did something kind for a person, an animal, or for the world? Or a time when somebody showed kindness to you?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Dax shows kindness in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Dax and the Dolphin found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Dd, sounding out words that start with /d/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Dax and the Dolphin in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Go to p. 12 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Dd, following your modeling. Remind them to start at the dot. On the bottom, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound.

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Emerging Readers

Go to p. 12 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Dd. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those words that start with /d/.

Developing Readers

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Dax and the Dolphin, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

Early Emerging Readers Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 13 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different settings. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of the story. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 13 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different settings. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of the story. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Understandin

Story:

Story:

Sample answer: drawin of Dax on a boat. t may also show Dax on the deck lookin at dolphins.

Sample answer: drawin of Dax in a boat. t may also show Dax lookin at a dolphin in the water.

Dax is in a boat.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Ee

Exemplar Word elephant

Letter Chant capital E, lowercase e, //, elephant

About This Book This story is about Emma, a girl who takes her stuffed animal everywhere. One day, Emma can’t find Ed, her elephant toy. Several words that have Ee in them help tell about Emma and her search for Ed.

About This Letter This book focuses on the short e sound for the letter e: // rather than the long e: Short vowel sounds are easy to confuse because they all sound similar, so encourage children to notice how the // sound feels in their mouth as they pronounce it so they can distinguish between //, //, and /ĭ/.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Emma, elephant, Ed, everywhere, eggs

Decodable Words has, an, his, is, runs, sad, can, cat, had Sight Words be, the Story Words name, takes, one, day, gone, where Target Words in Pictures elephant, elf (middle e: bed, welcome)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: //. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the // sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: bus, exercise, egg, mat, elk. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital E. Read the title, Emma and Her Elephant, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that E stands for the // sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital E and lowercase e, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with E. Note that some E names begin with the short // sound in Ed and Emma, while others begin with the long /e/ sound in Ethan Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Vowel Sounds: Reinforce the short e sound by having students chant // and then each target word: // Emma; // elephant; // Ed; // everywhere; // eggs.

Multimodal Learning

Cloze Reading: Read aloud the story, leaving out one Ee word on each page and pause for children to notice. As children follow along, ask them to say the missing word aloud when you pause.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the elephant picture. Have children predict whether the elephant in the story is real.

• Have children say the word elephant with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word elephant, think of the // sound that stands for e

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out where Emma finds her elephant.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Where does Emma find her elephant? (with the cat, under the bed)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Ee.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet every time they hear or see an Ee word. Stop to find words that begin with Ee.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two Ee words on this page. One has a capital E and one has a lowercase e. Point to the words. Now say them with me. (Emma, elephant)

o p. 6: There is a long word that begins with a lowercase e. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (everywhere)

o p. 14: This page has a short word that begins with a capital E. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with bed. Let’s read it. (Ed)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital E and lowercase e as they read. Invite volunteers to read Ee words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the word elephant. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (elephants)

o p. 6: Point to the word everywhere on this page. Cover up where. What word do you see now? (every)

o pp. 8–9: Emma and Ed both have the same thing on these pages. It starts with //. What is it? (eggs)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Ee in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Ee on their own. Turn to p. 60 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Emma, elephant, Ed, everywhere, eggs, elf, exercise, elk.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: bed: /b/-ed, fed: /f/-ed, red: /r/- ed.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Explain that children should listen for the // sound in the middle of the word. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: bed, red, hen, men, pen, ten, get, let, pet

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Emma) What does Emma try to find? (her elephant)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is set in a suburb. A suburb is a community outside a city. Many of the homes in suburbs are individual houses. Often, there are parks where people in the community gather.

• Ed is a toy stuffed elephant. Real elephants are the largest land animals. Elephants are native to Africa and Asia. Elephants are very intelligent. They know to use mud for sunscreen!

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of an elephant, or if possible, bring in a stuffed toy elephant that children can hug and hold, as they practice saying the word elephant.

Multimodal Learning

Whisper Reading: Invite children to whisper the words they can read in the story, such as Emma, Ed, has, eggs, and sad. They can practice with a group to whisper reading sentences together.

• People have been making stuffed dolls and wooden or stick animal figurines for children to play with since ancient times. The stuffed teddy bear was first created in the early 1900s, when shopkeepers in New York sewed one in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt. Today, you can buy a toy stuffed version of almost any animal.

• Handle with care: Emma represents a child with Down syndrome. About 1 in 700 children have Down syndrome, which is a genetic condition. Children born with Down syndrome have some form of intellectual disability that means they need more support with speaking and learning. Children with Down syndrome, like Emma, have many talents and participate in everyday activities with other children.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Emma does and why she does it.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Emma does with Ed and how she feels about him.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main character is who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who is the main character in this story? (Emma)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about Emma’s character.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: Emma is playing in the park with her elephant Ed. Is Emma happy? (Yes.) What do you see in the picture that tells you she is happy? (She is smiling.)

• pp. 6–7: Where does Emma take Ed? (everywhere)

• p. 13: The words on this page tell us that Emma is sad. What does Emma do in the picture that shows us she is sad? (She cries.) Can you point to it? Why is Emma sad? (Ed is gone.)

• p. 14: Let’s look at the picture. Has Emma found the elephant yet? (No.) Do we know who has the elephant? (Yes.) How do we know? (The picture shows us. The cat has the elephant.)

• p. 15: Look at the picture. Is Emma happy? (Yes.) How do we know? (She is smiling.) Why is Emma happy? (She found Ed.) Yay! Emma found Ed. Let’s cheer for Emma and Ed.

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and what Emma does and feels. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Who does Emma do everything with? (Ed; her elephant)

o When is Emma happy? (when she is with Ed) When is Emma sad? (when Ed is gone)

o Why does Emma look in the bed and in the laundry basket? (to find Ed)

o Why does Emma smile when she looks under the bed? (She finds Ed.)

o When Ed is missing, where is he? Who has him? (under the bed; the cat)

• Now that you’ve talked about the main character in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 61 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Emma feels. Say:

o Emma has a lot of different feelings in this book. Let’s look together at some pages and see what happens to make Emma’s feelings change. On p. 4, how does she feel? (happy, friendly)

On p. 12, she has different feelings. What makes her feel worried? (Ed is missing.) How does she feel on p.13? (sad) What makes her have different feelings on p. 15? (She finds Ed.)

o Can you think of a time when you had one feeling and then the feeling changed because of something that happened?

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about the feelings Emma shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Emma and Her Elephant found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Ee, sounding out words that start with //, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Emma and Her Elephant in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide

activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Ee, writing the letter, and identifying words with the // sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 14 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Ee.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 14 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Ee, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. In the middle, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the middle letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

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Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Emma and Her Elephant, children learned about the character in the story.

Early Emerging Readers Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 15 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and her feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Emma’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she had in the story. Draw a picture to show a time when Emma showed each feeling. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the character in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 15 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and her feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Emma’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she had in the story. Draw and write about a time when Emma showed each feeling. Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Characters

Understandin the Story: Characters

Sample answer: drawin of Emma lookin for her stuffed elephant, Ed. t may also show her lookin in specific places, like in the landry.

Sample answer: drawin of Emma lookin for her stuffed elephant, Ed. t may also show her lookin in specific places, like in the landry basket.

Sample answer: drawin of Emma with her stuffed elephant, Ed. t may also show her findin Ed nder the bed.

Emma can not find Ed.

Sample answer: drawin of Emma holdin her stuffed elephant, Ed. t may also show Emma findin Ed nder her bed.

Emma finds Ed.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Ff Exemplar Word fan

Letter Chant capital F, lowercase f, /f/, fan

About This Book This story is about Feng and Finn, who find a fan problematic. The book uses words that begin with Ff to tell how Feng and Fan figure out how to fix the fan so it’s not blowing in anyone’s face.

About This Letter The sound /f/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /fff/ vs /fuh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text fan, Feng, fixes, fantastic, Finn, feels, face, fine, frowns, football, fair Decodable Words fan, fixes, Finn, is, in, his, has, mad, tosses, tips, up, it

Sight Words that, the, a Story Words upset, why, now

Target Words in Pictures fan, fox, four, five, fish, fork, feet, football, food, feather

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /f/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /f/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: fur, farm, tail, father, door

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital F Read the title, Feng, Finn, and the Fan, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that F stands for the /f/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital F and lowercase f, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with F, like Feng and Finn. Note that some F names begin with the /f/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /f/ /r/ together in Francesca.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the fan picture. Remind children that a fan moves air, which keeps people cool.

• Have children say the word fan with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word fan, think of the /f/ sound that stands for f.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Point out that the word feel has two different meanings. Children may know feel means “to touch something.” Show p. 6 as an example of how feel is used to tell about an emotion you have. Talk about different kinds of emotions people have—happy, sad, frustrated, excited, upset. Have children act out the feelings.

Multimodal Learning

Look and Talk: Partner children and assign each pair one page from the book. Post these words: Feng, Finn, up. Ask partners to examine the picture and reread the words on their page to determine where the fan is facing. Have partners take turns completing this sentence orally with one of the posted words to report on their page to the class: The fan faces ___.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out who the fan blows on.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Who does the fan blow on? (Finn, Feng)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Ff.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can raise their hand every time they hear or see an Ff. word. Stop to find words that begin with Ff

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: I notice a word with a lowercase f on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with can. Read it with me. (fan)

o p. 5: There are so many words that begin with Ff on this page! Point to them with me. (Feng, fixes, fan, Fantastic) Let’s read the long word together. (Fantastic)

o p. 12: There is a long word that begins with a lowercase f. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (football)

AFTER READING (3–5

minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital F and lowercase f as they read. Invite volunteers to read Ff words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the word fan. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (fans)

o p. 7: A word on this page looks like and sounds like lace but it begins with f. What is it? (face)

o p. 12: Point to the word football on this page. Cover up ball. What word do you see and hear when you take away ball? (foot) Now put the two words back together. Say it with me. (football)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Ff in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Ff on their own. Turn to p. 66 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: fan, fixes, fantastic, face, fine, football, fair, fascinating

Onset-Rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: fan: /f/-an, fin: /f/-in, face: /f/-ace, fine: /f/-ine.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: fan: /f/ // /n/, fix: /f/ / ĭ/ /ks/, Finn: /f/ / ĭ/ /n/.

Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Feng and Finn) What blows air on Feng and Finn? (a fan)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is set in one apartment in an apartment building. Outside the windows in the illustrations, you can see other buildings in the neighborhood.

• The characters in the story use a fan to keep cool while they do their schoolwork. Many children have experienced remote learning. Some families have had their children join with children of neighbors and friends to learn together. Open windows and fans are used for air circulation, as well as for cooling indoor spaces.

ELL Scaffold

Sensory: Bring in an electric fan that children can stand in front of to feel the air blow, as they practice saying the word fan. Children can also make simple fans by folding a sheet of paper and waving it to feel the air move.

Multimodal Learning Draw and Write: Have children draw a picture of a fan blowing in their face. Guide them to write and complete this frame on their drawing: I feel ___. Then have them draw a fan blowing up and write and complete the same frame.

• Fans have blades that spin. The spinning blades push air toward you. The moving air cools you down. The closer you are to the fan, the stronger the air blows on you.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Feng and Finn do.

• Say: As we read, listen for what makes Feng and Finn mad at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what Feng does with a football at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What do Feng and Finn fight over? (a fan)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: What does Feng fix? (the fan) Look closely at the picture on p. 4. Why does Feng fix the fan? (It was blowing air on his face.)

• p. 6: Think about the words and pictures on this page. Why is Finn upset about the fan? (It’s in his face.)

• pp. 8–9: Now Finn fixes the fan. Look closely at the picture. Who is upset now? (Feng)

• pp. 12–13: The picture and words on this page tell us that Feng tosses a football at the fan. Do you think this will fix the fan? Raise your hand if you think this will fix the fan. Stomp your feet if you think this will not fix the fan.

• p. 15: Think about the words and pictures. Where does the fan face now? (up) Is the fan fair now? (Yes.) Yay! Feng solves the problem. Cheer with me!

Ff Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Feng and Finn do. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, what does Feng do that makes Finn upset? (Feng fixes the fan so it blows at Finn.)

o In the middle of the story, Finn fixes the fan. What does Finn do? (Finn turns the fan to blow on Feng.)

o At the end of the story, Feng makes the fan turn upward. What does he throw at the fan to make it face up? (a football)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 67 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Feng and Finn feel. Ask:

o A problem is something that gets in the way of what you want to do. Why is the fan a problem for Feng and Finn in the story? (The fan is blowing in their faces, and they don’t like it. It makes it hard for them to do their work.) When Feng hits the fan with the football, it makes the fan turn up. How does this solve the problem for Feng and Finn? (The fan is blowing up instead of blowing on one of the boys.)

o If you and a friend or family member had a problem like Feng and Finn do, what would you do? Can you think of a time when you had to figure out a solution with someone else?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Feng and Finn solve their problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Feng, Finn, and the Fan found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Ff, sounding out words that start with /f/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Feng, Finn, and the Fan in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Ff, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /f/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 16 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Ff.

a Ff

Developing Readers

Go to p. 16 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Ff. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

Say the name of each pictre. Write the letter that stands for the beinnin sond to complete the word.

f f f c f f j b f

fan f f f f a a A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 16 6/18/21 9:53 AM

aF F a am ox an ox in at Sample answers: two drawins of thins sch as a fish, fork, flower, football

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early

Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 17 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Feng, Finn, and the Fan, children learned about the events in the story. Fen, Finn, and the Fan

Go to p.17 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Ff

Understandin the Story: Events

Fen, Finn, and the Fan

einnin End

iddle

Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

Sample answer: drawin of Fen and Finn with the fan facin p. t may also show Fen and Finn smilin.

Sample answer: drawin of Finn and Fen with a fan faced toward Fen. t may also show Finn and Fen at a table or a mad face on Fen.

The fan is

on Feng.

Feng and Finn fight.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

Sample answer: drawin of Finn and Fen with the fan facin p. t may also show Finn and Fen with happy faces.

The fan is fair.

Letter Learning g

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase g Exemplar Word goat

Letter Chant capital , lowercase g, /g/, goat

About This Book This story is about Gabby, who has a goat named Gus. He gets into the garden and other places. Gabby’s world is filled with words that begin with g as she figures out how to use a gate to keep Gus where he should be.

About This Letter This book focuses on the hard sound for the letter g rather than soft g. When g is followed by e, i, or y, it usually has a soft sound: /j/. When g is followed by any other letter, it has a hard sound: /g/.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text abby, goat, us, good, go, gets, garbage, garden, get, gate Decodable Words has, us, can, bad, gets, in, get

Sight Words a, be, the, for Story Words no, out

Target Words in Pictures goat, goose, girl, grass, green, gate, garden

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /g/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /g/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: gorilla, car, game, box, gum.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital . Read the title, Gabby and the Goat, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that  stands for the /g/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital  and lowercase g, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with , like abby. Note that some  names begin with the /g/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /g/ /r/ in rady or /j/ in iana

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the goat picture. Remind children that a goat is a farm animal.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Point out that the phrase “gets in” can mean multiple things. In this book, it means getting involved in something bad in a place (like the garden or the garbage). It can also mean to physically get into something, such as a car or a train.

Multimodal Learning

Look at the Letters: Make a T-chart (on a whiteboard or paper), labeled with “Capital G” for one column and “Lowercase g” for the other. Have children list g words in the appropriate column. Discuss the shapes of the curved capital  and descending lowercase g.

• Have children say the word goat with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word goat, think of the /g/ sound that stands for g

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what Gabby does to help Gus.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: How does Gabby help Gus? (She puts up a gate to keep him in one place.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter g.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see a g word. Stop to find words that begin with g.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two g words on this page. One has a capital  and one has a lowercase g. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Gabby, goat)

o p. 10: There are so many g words on this page! Can you count them with me? (3)

o p. 11: I see a short word that starts with capital . Point to it with me. Let’s read it together. (Gus)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital  and lowercase g as they read. Invite volunteers to read g words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 6: Which word on this page looks and sounds like bus but begins with ? (Gus)

o p. 10: Point to the word gets If we take away the s, what’s the new word? (get)

o p. 10: I see a word that has a g two times. Read it with me. (garbage) What’s different about the g at the beginning and the end of this word? (The ending g makes a /j/ sound.)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with g in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter g on their own. Turn to p. 72 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: abby, goat, us, good, go, garbage, garden, gate. Onset-Rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: us: /g/-us, get: /g/-et, gate: /g/-ate.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: get: /g////t/, us: /G////s/, goat: /g//o//t/.

Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5

Review

minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Gabby) Why does Gabby need a gate? (to keep Gus from getting into the garden and the garbage)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is about a goat. Goats can be found on many farms, but they are mountain animals. So, they are very good at climbing. They can even climb up very tall trees!

• Goats are not usually afraid of humans. They like to be scratched and rubbed.

• Studies show that goats have an intelligence similar to dogs. Goats can interpret human body language. They can also differentiate between happy and angry facial expressions.

• Most of the farms in the United States are small, family-run farms.

• Gabby may be a nickname for Gabriella or Gabrielle.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Visual: Play a video showing goats and humans interacting, such as one showing baby goats lining up to get a hug from a human, for children to watch. Talk about what children notice as they practice saying the word goat

Multimodal Learning

Write About It: Make a T-chart (on a whiteboard or paper), labeled with “Good” for one column and “Bad” for the other. Have children compare and contrast what Gabby thinks are Gus’s good and bad actions. Children can draw, write, or dictate words for you to add in each column.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Gabby and Gus do in the story.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Gabby and Gus do at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what Gabby does to stop Gus at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: Who keeps getting into trouble in the story? (Gus; the goat)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7

minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 8–9: These pages show the first event in the story. What is it? (Gus helps move a tree for Gabby; Gus does something good.)

• p. 10: Look closely at the picture. Does Gabby look happy or upset? (upset) That’s right! She looks upset. Why is Gabby upset? (Gus is in the garbage.)

• p. 11: What is Gus doing in this picture? (He is in the garden.) Should Gus be in the garden? (No.) How do you know? (Gabby looks upset.)

• p. 13: The picture and words on this page tell us about something Gabby does. What does Gabby do? (Gabby gets a gate.) Will this gate help Gus stay out of the garden and garbage? Clap your hands if you think yes. Stomp your feet if you think no.

• pp. 14–15: I notice something about Gabby, Gabby’s dad, and Gus. They are all smiling. Why do you think they’re happy now? (Gus is behind the gate. He has his own space.) Yes! The gate worked! Let’s cheer for Gabby and Gus!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Gabby and Gus do. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Gabby is happy with Gus. What does Gus do that is good? (Gus helps move a tree.)

o How does Gus act in the middle of the story? Give me a thumbs up if Gabby thinks he’s good or a thumbs down if Gabby thinks he’s bad. (thumbs down) What does Gus do? (He eats the leaves off the tree. He eats from the garbage. He eats vegetables in the garden.)

o What does Gabby do at the end of the story to solve her problem? (She puts up a gate so Gus will stay in his own space.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 73 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Gabby feels. Ask:

o Gabby’s goat, Gus, can be helpful. But Gabby has a problem with Gus. What is it? (Gus keeps getting into trouble—he eats the leaves, he gets in the garden, he gets in the garbage.) Gabby wants Gus to be good. So, she puts up a gate. How does this solve Gabby’s problem? (The gate helps Gus stay away from the places he shouldn’t go.)

o Can you think of a time when something bad kept happening, so you had to come up with a plan to solve the problem?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Gabby solves her problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Gabby and Her Goat found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with g, sounding out words that start with /g/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Gabby and Her Goat in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter g, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /g/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 18 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter g. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /g/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 18 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter g, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the ending letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 19 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of Gus and three empty boxes. Draw three things Gus gets in the story. Use one box for each thing Gus gets. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about what Gus gets in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 19 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of Gus and three boxes with lines. Draw and write three things Gus gets in the story. Use one box for each thing Gus gets. Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines to tell about what Gus gets in the story.

Understandin the Story: Events

Understandin the Story: Events

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Gabby and Her Goat, children learned about the events in the story. What does s do in the story? Draw three thins s gets.

Sample answers:

• Drawin of leaves from a tree

• Drawin of arbae • Drawin of flowers in the arden

Sample answer: drawing of leaves

leaves

Sample answer: drawin of a arden

Sample answer: drawin of arbae

garden garbage

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Hh Exemplar Word hammer

Letter Chant capital H, lowercase h, /h/, hammer

About This Book This story is about Hana, who lives on a farm where there are many things that begin with Hh. One day, some animals escape from their pen and Hana must solve the problem.

About This Letter The letter Hh doens’t say its name. Listen while you say h—you don’t hear the /h/ sound. For this reason, recognizing the name and sound of Hh tends to be more difficult than other letters, so consider additional instructional time and continued review of Hh

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text hammer, Hana, has, hears, horse, he, hill, hog, hid, hay, hen, her, helpful Decodable Words has, yell, got, ran, up, hill, hog, hid, in, hen, gets, is Sight Words a, the, and Story Words she, out, too, then

Target Words in Pictures hammer, hair, hand, horseshoe, hoof, helmet, handle, hose, house, hive, honey

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /h/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /h/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: hand, bottle, hat, heart, pencil. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital H. Read the title, Hana Has a Hammer, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that H stands for the /h/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital H and lowercase h, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with H, like Hana and Hakim Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the hammer picture. Remind children that a hammer is a tool that is used with nails.

ELL Scaffold

Prepositions: Children might confuse some of the prepositions in the story (out, up, in). Use a toy (such as a horse figurine or doll) to demonstrate the position for each one. Have children practice with the toy while saying each preposition.

Multimodal Learning

Use Props or Pictures: Bring in toys or print pictures of the animals in the story that start with Hh: horse, hen, hog. Label each. Ask children to take turns completing this sentence orally: Hana gets the ___.

• Have children say the word hammer with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word hammer, think of the /h/ sound that stands for h

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out how Hana uses her hammer.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Hana fix with her hammer to keep the animals from running away? (the gate)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Hh.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet every time they hear or see an Hh word. Stop to find words that begin with Hh.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the three Hh words. (Hana, has, hammer) Now, point to the longest word. It starts with a lowercase h. Let’s read it together. (hammer)

o p. 10: This page has only one h word and it sounds like ten. Let’s read it together. (hen)

o p. 12: I see three Hh words on this page. One starts with a capital H and the others start with a lowercase h. Read them with me. (Hana, hog, hen)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital H and lowercase h as they read. Invite volunteers to read Hh words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 4: Point to the word hammer. Cover up the last three letters: mer. What word is left? (ham)

o p. 10: Point to the word hen. What word does it make if we add an s? (hens)

o p. 13 I notice that Hana and hammer have three things in common. They both start with (/h/). How many syllables are in each? (two) They both have an // in the first syllable.

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Hh in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Hh on their own. Turn to p. 78 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Hana, has, hammer, horse, hospital, hill, helpful, harmonica.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: hog: /h/-og, hen: /h/-en, hid: /h/-id.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: has, hat, hen, hid, hip, hog, hop, hum

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE

Review

READING

(3–5 minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist of the story. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Hana) How did Hana keep the animals from running away? (She used her hammer to fix the gate.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children better understand the story.

• This story is set on a farm. Many farms in the United States are small, family-run farms.

• One of the farm animals in this story is a hen. A hen is an adult female chicken.

• Another farm animal in this story is a hog. A hog is a large pig raised on a farm. Wild pigs are not called hogs.

• The barn in the story is filled with hay. Hay is dried grass. Horses eat hay as well as fresh grass. Hogs also eat hay, as well as grains and other foods.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a hammer, or if possible, bring in a hammer. As you model how to use a hammer to hit a nail, have children practice saying the word hammer

Multimodal Learning

Partner Reading: Pair children up to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.

• The main character in the story uses a hammer to fix a gate. A hammer is a simple tool used to hit or pound on something, such as a nail. A hammer has a long handle, a head (the top part of the hammer), the face (the flat part of the front of the head that strikes the object), and the claw (the back part of the head that you can use to remove a nail).

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Hana does in the story.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens in the beginning of the story, what Hana does in the middle of the story, and how Hana uses her hammer at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: Which animals get out of their pens on the farm? (the horse, the hog, the hen)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING

READING

(5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 5: The picture and words on this page tell about the first event. What is it? (Hana hears a yell.)

• p. 7: After getting out, where does the horse run? (He runs up the hill.) Let’s move our hand up, like the horse going up the hill.

• p. 9: Where does the hog hide after getting out? (in the hay) Where is the hog hiding? Point to the hog.

• p. 10: Who gets out next? (the hen)

• p. 13: The picture and words on this page tell us that Hana gets her hammer. Why does she get her hammer? (to fix the gate; to keep the animals in)

• pp. 14–15: Look closely at the picture. Which animals are back in their pens? Let’s point to them and name them: horse, hog, hen. Are all the animals back? (Yes.) Let’s cheer for Hana, she got all the animals back. Yay!

Hh Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Hana does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Hana hears a yell. Why does the boy yell? (The horse got out.)

o In the middle of the story, other animals get out. Which other animals get out? (the hog and the hen)

o What does Hana do at the end of the story? (Hana gets the animals. Then Hana uses her hammer to fix the gate.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, prepare children to practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end on their own. Turn to p. 79 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Hana feels. Ask:

o We can show kindness by doing something that makes a good change for a person, an animal, or for the world. When Hana brings the animals back to the farm, how is she showing kindness? (She is helping them get back to the farm so they can stay safe.)

o Can you think of a time when you did something to help a person or an animal stay safe?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Hana is kind in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Hana Has a Hammer found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Hh, sounding out words that start with /h/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Hana Has a Hammer in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Hh, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /h/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 20 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Hh.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 20 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Hh, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. In the middle, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

h h h

Hadley hat A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 20 6/18/21 9:53 AM

hair hills hand head Hh

f h l h d h

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 21 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you see a picture of Hana and three empty boxes. Draw three animals that Hana has to chase in the story. Use one box for each animal. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about what Hana chases in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 21 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you will see a picture of Hana and three boxes. Draw and write about three animals Hana chases. Use one box for each animal.

Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Events

Understandin the Story: Characters

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Hana Has a Hammer, children learned about events in the story. Which animals et ot in the story? Draw three animals that Hana has to chase.

Sample answers:

• Drawin of a horse

• Drawin of a ho

• Drawin of a hen

Sample answer: drawin of a horse

horse hog hen

Sample answer: drawin of a ho 

21

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase i Exemplar Word igloo

Letter Chant capital , lowercase i, //, igloo

About This Book This story is about Ikiaq , who wants to build an igloo. Ikiaq starts to build the igloo but then becomes ill, so his family helps him finish it up. This story features many i words.

About This Letter This book focuses on the short i sound for the letter i: /ĭ/ rather than long i: /ı¯/. Short vowel sounds are easy to confuse because they all sound similar, so encourage children to notice how the /ĭ/ sound feels in their mouth and their mouth position as they pronounce it so they can distinguish between the /ĭ/ and other short vowel sounds.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text kiaq , imagines, igloo, it, if, is, ill, inside, incredible Decodable Words an, can, it, if, sun, is, up, gets, at, cuts, ill, get

Sight Words he, the, and Story Words make, snow, hard, stacks, oh, no, done

Target Words in Pictures igloo, nuit, insects, itch (long /ı¯/: ice, icicle)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: //. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the // sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: ball, ink, image, iguana, snow.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital . Read the title, Ikiaq and the Igloo, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that  stands for the // sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital  and lowercase i, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with , like kiaq. Note that some  names begin with the // sound, while others begin with another sound, like /ı¯/ in vy

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the igloo picture. Tell children that an igloo is a type of house or hut usually built from blocks of hard snow.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Tell children that the word done can mean well cooked, as in “The chicken is done.” Or done can mean completed or finished, as in “My painting is done.” Then reread p. 14 and ask children which meaning is used. Ask: What is done? (The igloo is done or finished.)

Multimodal Learning Draw and Talk: Have students draw an igloo. Then have them share their drawing with a partner, taking turns beginning this exchange:

• This is my igloo.

• Is that your igloo?

• It is!

• Have children say the word igloo with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word igloo, think of the // sound that stands for i.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7

First Read: Read Aloud

minutes)

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what Ikiaq makes.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Ikiaq make? (an igloo)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter i.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up every time they hear or see an i word. Stop to find words that begin with i.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Find two words that start with a lowercase i. Let’s say them. (imagines, igloo)

o p. 13: There are two i words on this page. One begins with a lowercase i and one begins with a capital . Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (inside, Ikiaq)

o p. 15: There are so many i words! Count them with me! (4) Point to the longest one. Let’s say it together. (incredible)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital  and lowercase i as they read. Invite volunteers to read i words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 4: Point to the word igloo. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (igloos) o p. 13: Point to the word inside on this page. Cover up side. What do you see now? (in) o p. 15: How many times do you hear the / / sound in incredible? (two) Have children find i twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds.

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with i in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter i on their own. Turn to p. 84 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: kiaq, imagines, igloo, if, is, ill, inside, incredible

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: bin: /b/-in, did: /d/-id, fix: /f/-ix.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Explain that they should listen for the / / sound in the middle of the word. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: bin, bit, did, dig, fin, fix, him, his.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Ikiaq) What does Ikiaq want to make? (an igloo)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Imagine that this story may be set in Alaska. In northern Alaska, the coldest month of the year is January. The average high in January is about –3 degrees Fahrenheit. July is the warmest month, with an average high of about 43 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Igloos can be made of wood or stone. But most are made of snow. Snow igloos can stay very warm inside even when the temperatures outside are well below freezing.

• Igloos are usually used as temporary shelters, not as permanent homes.

• The characters in the story are Inuit. The Inuit are a people native to Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Russia.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Ikiaq lives and what he wants to do there.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Ikiaq imagines and how he makes it.

ELL Scaffold

Modeling Expressions: Organize tables or chairs to create your own igloo. Have some children stand inside the igloo and some stand outside. Ask each group: Are you inside the igloo? Guide children to respond with I’m inside the igloo or I’m not inside the igloo. Have children switch positions and ask the question again.

Multimodal Learning

Echo Reading: Give children an opportunity to practice their fluency after they’ve heard the book read aloud. Read a page, and then say: Your turn! Have children echo what you read. Watch and listen. Continue this way through the book.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Is this story set in a warm or cold place? (a cold place) Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7

minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these suggested prompts as models. Say:

• pp.4–5: Look closely at the picture. Is Ikiaq inside or outside? (inside) It looks warm inside. Does it look warm outside? (No.) What clues tell you it is cold outside? (the ice in the window; the snow in the window)

• pp. 8–9: The pictures on these pages tell us that Ikiaq is cutting blocks of snow. What do you think Ikiaq will use the blocks of snow to make? Raise your hand if you think he will use it for an igloo. Stomp your feet if you think he will use it for a snowman.

• pp. 10–11: Think about the words and pictures. I can tell that making an igloo is hard work. What does Ikiaq do again and again? (cut, stack)

• p. 12: The words tell us Ikiaq is ill. What in the picture shows us that he is not feeling well? (He sits down and puts his arm to his head.)

• p. 13: It’s cold outside, and Ikiaq is ill. Where does he go to get warm? (He goes inside the igloo.)

• p. 15: Think about the words and pictures. At the end of the story, what is done? (the igloo) Yay! Cheer with me. Look at how the igloo is described, and say it with me—The igloo is incredible!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Ikiaq does there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o What clues tell us that the story is set in a cold place? (There is a lot of snow outside. Ikiaq wears a winter coat and boots when he is outside.)

o What does Ikiaq do when the sun is up? (He cuts the snow. He stacks the snow. He makes his igloo.)

o Ikiaq gets ill. Who finishes the igloo for Ikiaq? (his family)

o Do you think the igloo is warm inside? Why? (Yes. Ikiaq goes inside his igloo when he is ill. The igloo glows with warm light at the end of the story.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 85 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Persistence with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Ikiaq feels. Ask:

o In the story, Ikiaq wants to build an igloo, but it is hard. How does he show he won’t give up? (He cuts and cuts the snow. He stacks and stacks the snow.) How does Ikiaq’s body feel from all the hard work on the igloo? (ill, tired) On p. 14, how does Ikiaq feel when the igloo is done? (happy, proud)

• Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Ikiaq shows persistence in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Ikiaq and the Igloo found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with i, sounding out words that start with /ĭ/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Ikiaq and the Igloo in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide

as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter i, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the // sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 22 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter i.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 22 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter i, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. On the bottom, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the middle letter sound.

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Ikiaq and the Igloo, children learned about the setting of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 23 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Ikiaq and the Igloo. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 23 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Ikiaq and the Igloo. Then you will write about and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw where kia lives.

Understandin the Story: Settin Write abot a place from the story and draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of kia in or next to an iloo. t may also show him in his cabin or otside in the snow.

Sample answer: drawin of kia inside of a cabin. t may also show kia in a snowy place, wearin a heavy coat.

Ikiaq lives in a cold place.

Letter Learning j

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase j

Exemplar Word jellyfish

Letter Chant capital , lowercase j, /j/, jellyfish

About This Book This story is about Jana and Jen, who work together to create a jellyfish in art class. As they make their jellyfish, they use and describe a number of things that begin with the letter j.

About This Letter When pronouncing the sound that j represents, be sure to articulate it crisply with children, avoiding the extra “uh” sound at the end. j is the most common letter to represent the /j/ sound, but keep in mind that the letter Gg can also represent the same sound (like in giraffe.)

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text ana, jar, en, jellyfish, jumps, jars, jeep, job, juice, jolly

Decodable Words has, jar, en, red, is, it, up, gets, jars, in, job, sells

Sight Words a, and, the, he

Story Words pink, what, she, more, make, book

Target Words in Pictures jellyfish, jacket, jeans, jars, juice

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /j/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /j/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: tree, jet, juggle, candle, jaw Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital  Read the title, Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that  stands for the /j/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital  and lowercase j, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with , like ana, en, and amal Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the jellyfish picture. Remind children that a jellyfish is a creature that lives in the ocean.

• Have children say the word jellyfish with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word jellyfish, think of the /j/ sound that stands for j.

ELL Scaffold Word Meaning: Explain that the word jolly means happy and friendly. Ask children to say jolly Then read aloud p. 15. Say: Who is jolly? (the jellyfish) What do you see in the picture that tells you the jellyfish is jolly? (He is smiling.)

Multimodal Learning Connect Text to Visuals: Have children find and point to a jar in the picture on p. 4 as they say “jar.” Have them do the same for jeep on p. 13, and juice on p. 14. Then ask children to share which picture of the jellyfish is their favorite as they say “jellyfish.”

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out what Jana and Jen make a book about.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What do Jana and Jen make a book about? (a jellyfish)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter j.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up every time they hear or see a j word. Stop to find words that begin with j

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: There are two j words on this page. One begins with a capital  and one begins with a lowercase j. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Jen, jar)

o p. 12: I see a long word that begins with a lowercase j on this page. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (jellyfish)

o p. 13: I notice a short word that begins with a lowercase j. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with Bob. Read it with me. (job)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital  and lowercase j as they read. Invite volunteers to read j words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There’s a word on this page that looks and sounds like car, but it begins with j. What is it? (jar)

o p. 7: Point to the word jellyfish on this page. It is a compound word—it has two small words to make one longer word. Cover up fish. What word do you see now? (jelly)

o p. 12: Point to the word jeep. If you add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (jeeps)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with j in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter j on their own. Turn to p. 90 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: ana, jellyfish, en, jump, jacket, jewelry, jam, jeep

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: en: /j/-en, jar: /j/-ar, job: /j/-ob, jeep: /j/-eep.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: jam, jet, job, jog, jot, en, im, on

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Jana and Jen) What is Jana and Jen’s book about? (a jellyfish)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Jellyfish are sea creatures, but they are not fish. They live in ocean waters around the world. Some float near the surface. Others live farther down. Jellyfish do not have backbones, blood, hearts, or brains. But they can sting people with their tentacles. Most jellyfish are between 1 and 16 inches long.

• Jana is a helper in class. Children may be familiar with different kinds of helpers who come to your school, including paraprofessionals, parents, and older students.

• Jen may be a nickname for Jennifer.

• Handle with care: The character Jana wears a headscarf called a hijab. Many Muslim women, teenage girls, and some younger girls wear a hijab as a sign of their religious devotion.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about how Jana and Jen work together to make something.

ELL Scaffold

Sentence Frames: Draw on language from the words and pictures in the book. Give children these sentence frames, substituting different words in each, as you point to illustrations.

• ___ has a ___. (first word: Jana/Jen; second word: jar, paintbrush, book)

• It is a ___. (jellyfish, book, jeep, lobster, flower)

Multimodal Learning

Draw and Write: Have children draw a page that could be in Jana and Jen’s jellyfish book. Encourage them to use j words. They can choose to show the jellyfish on a jet, smiling with joy, or out for a jog, for example. Invite children to add letters, words, or sentences that tell what their pictures show.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Jana and Jen do and how they help each other.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main characters are who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who are the main characters in this story? (Jana and Jen)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the characters.

DURING READING (5–7

minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: Look carefully at the picture. Jana and Jen are working together to make a picture. Are they happy to be working together? (Yes.) What do you see in the picture that tells you they are happy? (They are smiling.)

• p. 9: Jen jumps up to get more jars of paint. What can Jana and Jen make more of now that Jen got more paint? (more pictures of the jellyfish)

• pp. 10–11: The words on these pages tell us that Jana and Jen make a book. What is the book about? (a jellyfish) Can you point to the jellyfish book in the picture?

• pp. 12–13: Let’s look at the picture. Jana and Jen work together to present their jellyfish book. Who is holding up the jellyfish book? (Jana) Who tells the class about the jellyfish? (Jen) What does the jellyfish do in the book? (He is in a jeep. He has a job.)

• p. 15: Look at the picture. Is Jana happy with the book? (Yes.) Is Jen happy with the book? (Yes.) How do we know? (They are both smiling.) Yay! Let’s clap for Jana and Jen. They worked together to make a book they are both proud of!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and what Jana and Jen do. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o Who does Jana work together with in the story? (Jen)

o What do Jana and Jen use to create their book? (They use paint and paper.)

o Jen gets more jars of paint. Who does she get the paint for? (for her and Jana)

o How do Jana and Jen feel at the end of the story? (happy, proud, jolly) Why? (They like the book they made together.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the characters in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 91 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Cooperation with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Jana and Jen feel. Ask:

o Jana and Jen are friends. Let’s look in the book together to see what they do together and how it makes them feel. On p. 6, it looks like Jana and Jen are smiling and laughing. What makes them feel this way? (They are having fun painting the jellyfish together.) Let’s look at p. 10. How does Jana feel on this page? (happy, excited) Why? (Jana and Jen made a book together.)

o Can you think of a time when you worked on a project with a friend and you had a lot of fun together?

• Use the Cooperation graphic organizer on p. 199 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Jana and Jen cooperate in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with j, sounding out words that start with /j/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter j, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /j/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 24 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. For the middle activity, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital  and lowercase j. They should circle each one. For the bottom activity, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /j/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 24 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter j. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

aa J

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Jana, Jen, and the Jellyfish, children learned about the characters in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 25 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the characters in the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different characters. You’re going to circle the pictures that show the main characters. Then you will draw something that the characters do in the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the characters in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 25 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the characters in the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different characters. You’re going to circle the pictures that show the main characters. Then you will write and draw about something the characters do in the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Character

Understandin the Story: Character

Sample answer: drawin of ana and en paintin. t may also show them paintin a ellyfish.

Sample answer: drawin of en and ana paintin. t may also show en and ana showin their book to the class.

Jen and Jana make a jellyfish book.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Kk

Exemplar Word kayak

Letter Chant capital K, lowercase k, /k/, kayak

About This Book This story is about Kaya, who has a kayak. She helps a kid whose kite goes into the water. The story uses a number of words that begin with Kk to describe what happens to the kite and how Kaya rescues it.

About This Letter When pronouncing the sound that Kk represents with children, be sure to articulate it crisply, avoiding an extra “uh” sound at the end. The /k/ sound is also represented by Cc

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Kaya, kayak, kisses, kid, kerplunk, kite, kick

Decodable Words sits, in, sun, passes, dock, is, sad, can, back

Sight Words a, the, with Story Words falls, help

Target Words in Pictures kayak, ketchup, key, kit, kickstand

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /k/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /k/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: kit, motor, kangaroo, lamp, king

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital K Read the title, Kaya and the Kayak, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that K stands for the /k/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital K and lowercase k, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with K, like Kaya. Note that some K names begin with the /k/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /n/ in Knox.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the kayak. Explain that a kayak is a long, narrow boat that you sit in and move with paddles.

• Have children say the word kayak with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word kayak, think of the /k/ sound that stands for k

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

ELL Scaffold

Onomatopoeia: If children have read Ben and the Big Bagels prior to this lesson, remind them that Ben’s timer makes a Beep! Beep! noise Ben and the Big Bagel. Then read aloud pp. 8–9. Ask: Which word names a noise? (Kerplunk!) What makes the kerplunk sound? (the kite falling into the water) Have children share other words that sound like the noises they name. (Possible responses: chomp, crunch, meow, plop)

Multimodal Learning Write, Draw, and Speak: Have children apply their knowledge about Kk by brainstorming names that start with K to name the kid in the story. (Possible responses: Kavita, Kim, Kennedy, Kailani) Post the names. Then have children draw a scene to add to the book of the kid flying the kite. Children can pick a name and share their drawing, using this frame as they speak: ____ has a kite.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out how Kaya helps a kid she sees.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: How does Kaya help a kid she sees? (Kaya gets the kid’s kite.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Kk.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up every time they hear or see a Kk word. Stop to find words that begin with Kk

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: One word has a capital K and one has a lowercase k. Point to the words. Now say them with me. (Kaya, kayak)

o p. 7: I notice a short word that begins with a lowercase k. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with hid. Read it with me. (kid)

o p. 12: Point to the first word with me. Now, point to the last word. What do you notice about the two words? (They are the same, but the first one starts with a capital K.)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital K and lowercase k as they read. Invite volunteers to read Kk words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 7: Point to the word kid. If we change the d to a p, what word would it make? (kip) o p. 9: A word on this page looks and sounds like bite but begins with k. What is it? (kite) o p. 15: Point to the first word with me. Let’s read it. (Kaya) Point to the last word and read it. (kayak) What is the same about the words? What is different? (They have most of the same letters, but Kaya begins with a capital K, and kayak has a k at the end.)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Kk in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Kk on their own. Turn to p. 96 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Kaya, kayak, kisses, kid, kerplunk, kite, kick, kindergarten. Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: kid: /k/-id, kite: /k/-ite, kick: /k/-ick.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending

Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: kid: /k/ /ı¯/ /d/, kite: /k/ /ı¯/ /t/, kick: /k/ /ĭ/ /k/.

Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Kaya) What does Kaya get for the kid on the dock? (the kite)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story is set on and around a river or lake in a city like Chicago. Kayak rentals and kayaking clubs have grown in popularity in many cities.

• Kayaks have a long history. They were likely first used by the Inuit of Greenland. Kayaks are typically built for one person but can be built for two or even three people. A kayak is similar to a canoe, but the top is covered with an opening where the kayaker sits.

• People can use kayaks for transportation, for fun, and for exercise. They can be used in rivers, lakes, or even in the ocean.

• In the story, a kite drops into the water. You fly a kite so that the wind pushes against it. The kite should be tilting slightly, with the top leaning forward, so that the wind also lifts the kite. If the wind stops or the angle of the kite changes, it might drop.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Kaya is and what she does there.

• Say: As we read, listen for where Kaya is and how she helps someone.

ELL Scaffold Visuals: Show a photograph or a video of someone kayaking. Have children share what they notice about what the kayakers are doing and what’s around them. Then children can draw a picture of themselves in a kayak. Have them share their drawings by holding up the drawing and saying kayak

Multimodal Learning Express Opinions: Have children identify all the fun activities the characters are doing at the lake and surrounding park. (p. 4, in kayaks; p. 6, walking and jogging; p. 7, flying a kite; p. 9 kicking a ball) Ask: If you were at the lake or park, which activity would you like to do—kayak, walk, fly a kite, or kick a ball? Why? Have children respond using this frame: • I would like to ____.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Where does this story take place? (in a kayak, on a river or lake)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: These pages show the setting for the story. Where is Kaya? (in a kayak, on a river or lake) Look around in the picture. Do you think the story will take place on a tropical island or a city? (a city)

• pp. 8–9: Notice where Kaya is in the picture. What does she see? (She sees the kite in the water.)

• p. 10: The words on this page tell us that the kid is sad. Why is the kid sad? (The kid’s kite is in the water.) What do you see in the picture that tells you the kid is sad? (The kid is frowning.) Let’s frown like the kid.

• p. 12: Is Kaya still in the kayak? (No.) Where is she? (in the water) Why is she in the water? (She is getting the kite.)

• p. 13: Who does Kaya give the kite to? (the kid) Is the kid happy? (Yes.) How do you know? (The kid is smiling.)

• p. 14: Look at the picture. Everyone is happy. Why is Kaya happy? (Kaya is happy because she helped the kid.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Kaya does there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where does Kaya paddle her kayak? (on a river or lake)

o What clues tell you the lake is in the middle of a city? (There are tall buildings all around and a lot of people.)

o Where does the kite fall? (into the water)

o Why is Kaya able to get the kite for the kid? (She is already close to the water.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, prepare children to practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 97 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Kaya feels. Say:

o We can show kindness by doing something to help another person, even when it’s hard for us to help them. How does Kaya show kindness to the kid in the story? (Kaya gets the kite out of the water and gives it back to the kid.) Is it easy for Kaya to get the kite? (No.) Why not? (She gets out of her kayak and into the river; she gets all wet.)

o Can you think of a time when you helped somebody, even when it was a hard thing to do?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Kaya shows kindness in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Kaya and the Kayak found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Kk, sounding out words that start with /k/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Kaya and the Kayak in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Kk, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /k/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 26 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. For the middle activity, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital K and lowercase k. They should circle each one. For the bottom activity, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /k/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 26 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Kk, following your modeling. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

Kal sees a dck. Look! A dck!

Kam and Kat like the dck.

Kat sees some chicks. Look! Some chicks! Kal and Kam like the chicks.

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 27 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Kaya and the Kayak. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Kaya and the Kayak, children learned about the setting of the story. Kaya and the Kayak

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw a place from the story.

Sample answer: drawin of the river in the city. t may also show Kaya in a kayak in the river or the dock with people walkin, oin, and playin.

Go to p. 27 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Kaya and the Kayak. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Kaya and the Kayak

Understandin the Story: Settin Where is Kaya in the story? Write abot the place and draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of Kaya in a kayak, in the river. t may also show a city settin arond the river.

Kaya is in a city.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Ll

Exemplar Word lock

Letter Chant capital L, lowercase l, /l/, lock

About This Book This story is about Lola, who loves her little lock. When Lola loses the key to her lock, she can’t unlock the box that holds her special things. We see many Ll words as we learn about Lola looking for the key.

About This Letter The sound /l/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /lll/ vs /luh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Lola, lock, large, little, lost, look, lamp, ladybug, luck, laundry, loves Decodable Words has, lock, is, not, it, luck, in Sight Words a, the, for Story Words oh, no, key, by, what, her Target Words in Pictures lock, lips, leaf, llama, lamb, lady, lion, lavender, laundromat

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /l/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /l/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: lake, day, lime, penny, ladder

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital L Read the title, Lola and the Lock, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that L stands for the /l/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital L and lowercase l, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with L, like Lola and Lewis.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the lock picture. Remind children that you use a lock to keep other people from opening something.

• Have children say the word lock with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word lock, think of the /l/ sound that stands for l.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

ELL Scaffold

Exclamations: Children may assume that the word What always begins a question. Reread page 12. Explain that the phrase “What luck!” is an exclamation, not a question. Point out the exclamation mark. Explain that the phrase means “That is lucky!” Reread the line in the book with proper intonation and have children repeat after you. To differentiate from a question, use proper intonation to ask a question and have children repeat: What is that?

Multimodal Learning Use Props or Pictures: Bring in objects or print pictures of words that start with Ll from the story: lamp, ladybug, laundry. Label each. Ask children to take turns completing the sentences orally:

• Lola looks for the key by the ___.

• Lola finds the key in the ___.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out where Lola finds the key to her lock.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Where did Lola find the key to her lock? (in the laundry)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Ll.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can make an L shape with their left hand every time they hear or see an Ll word. Stop to find words that begin with Ll

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 6: Find two words that start with a lowercase l on these pages. Say them with me. (lock, large)

o p. 8: There are two Ll words on this page. One has a capital L and one has a lowercase l. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Lola, lost)

o p. 10: I notice a word with a lowercase l on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with camp. Read it with me. (lamp)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital L and lowercase l as they read. Invite volunteers to read Ll words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: How many times do you hear the /l/ sound in Lola? (two) Have children find Ll twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds.

o p. 9: There’s a word on this page that looks and sounds like book, but it begins with l What is it? (Look)

o p. 14: Point to the word lock. If you add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (locks)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Ll in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Ll on their own. Turn to p. 102 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllable Identification Have children clap the syllables in these words: Lola, lock, large, little, lost, lamp, ladybug, laundry. Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: lock: /l/-ock, lamp: /l/-amp, luck: /l/-uck.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: lap, leg, let, lid, lip, lit, lot, lips, luck

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about?

(Lola) What does Lola love? (her little lock)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story starts in Lola’s home and ends in a laundromat, which is a common neighborhood place. A laundromat has many washing machines and dryers. You pay for each load you wash and dry. You bring your own laundry detergent.

• Locks come in many forms—padlocks that open with a key or a combination of numbers, doorknob locks, deadbolt locks, and locks that open after you type a code into a keypad.

• Lola can be a nickname for the name Dolores, which is of Spanish origin.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a padlock that uses a key to open, or if possible, bring in a real padlock and key that children can touch and lock and unlock, as they practice saying the word lock

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Guide children to act out the key events in the story. Encourage or guide them to use words or descriptions from the illustrations to explain their actions.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what happens to Lola and what she does.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens in the beginning of the story, what Lola does in the middle of the story, and how Lola finds her key at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What does Lola lose? (the key to her lock)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: The picture on these pages show the special things Lola keeps in her box. Point to the little lamb. Point to the special leaf. What does Lola use to keep them safe in the box? (a lock)

• pp. 6–7: What does Lola use to close and open the lock? (a key)

• p. 8: The picture and words on this page tell us that Lola loses the key. What is Lola doing in the picture that tells us she is sad? (She is crying.) Show me with your facial expression how she feels.

• pp. 12–13: The picture and words on this page tell us that Lola’s dad finds the key. Yay! Cheer with me! Now let’s look at the picture to figure out where he found it. Where does Lola’s dad find the key? (in the laundry)

• pp. 14–15: Think about the words and pictures. What can Lola do now that she has found her key? (Lola can open the lock. She can open the box and see her special things.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Lola does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Lola looks at all the special things in her box. Then what does she do with the box? (She locks it up with the lock and key.)

o In the middle of the story, Lola looks in different places to find the key that she lost. Where is one place she looks? (Possible answers: by the lamp, under the ladybug pillow)

o At the end of the story, what are Lola and her dad doing when Lola’s dad finds the key? (They are doing laundry.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end on their own. Turn to p. 103 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Lola feels. Say:

o Lola has a lot of different feelings in this book. Let’s look together at some pages and see what happens to make Lola’s feelings change. How does she feel on p. 4? (happy) On p. 8 she feels sad. What makes her feelings change? (She lost the key to her lock.) How does she feel on p. 11? (worried, concerned) On p. 13 her feelings change. Why? (She found her key.)

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about the feelings Lola shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Lola and the Lock found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Ll, sounding out words that start with /l/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Lola and the Lock in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide

activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Ll, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /l/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 28 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Ll.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 28 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Ll. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Lola and the Lock, children learned about events in the story.

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 29 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you see a picture of Lola and three empty boxes. Draw three places where Lola looks for her key.

Remind children that they can draw in a way that makes sense for them, as long as it’s about where Lola looks for her key in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 29 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you will see a picture of Lola and three boxes. Draw and write about three places Lola looks for her key. Use one box for each idea. Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Events

Understandin the Story: Events

Sample answers:

• Drawin of a lamp

• Drawin of a ladyb

• Drawin of the ladromat

Sample answer: drawin of a ladybu

under the ladybug under the lamp laundromat

29

Sample answer: drawin of a lamp

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase m

Exemplar Word mask

Letter Chant capital , lowercase m, /m/, mask

About This Book This story is about Mac, who makes an amazing mask. Mac notices that Marcos is frustrated making his mask and helps out. Many words that begin with m emerge in Mac’s world.

About This Letter The sound /m/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /mmm/ vs /muh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text ac, makes, mask, macaw, arcos, mad, markers, mess, mop, make, mouse, magnificent

Decodable Words ac, it, is, but, mad, tosses, mess, get, mop, sits

Sight Words a, the, with, and Story Words amazing, spills, paint

Target Words in Pictures mask, mirror, magnet, moose, moon, milk, muffins, monkey, man, mouth

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /m/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /m/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: mud, face, money, sand, map.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital . Read the title, Mac and the Magnificent Masks, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that  stands for the /m/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital  and lowercase m, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with , like ac, arcos, and acey

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the mask picture. Remind children that a mask is something you put over your face. It may be for fun, as part of a costume, or to keep people healthy.

ELL Scaffold

Pronunciation: Native speakers of certain languages, such as Korean, may add extra vowel sounds to words when learning English. Sit with children and have them watch your mouth as you clearly annunciate each target word in the book. Have children repeat. Allow them to watch themselves in a mirror as they mimic your mouth movements.

Multimodal Learning

Create and Present: Have children draw their own masks, choosing from these animals: macaw, mouse, moose, monkey. Then have children take turns showing their masks to the class, using this sentence frame: My mask is a ___

• Have children say the word mask with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word mask, think of the /m/ sound that stands for m.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what kinds of masks Mac makes.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What kinds of masks does Mac make? (macaw, mouse)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter m.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can raise their hand every time they hear or see an m word. Stop to find words that begin with m.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Find the word that starts with lowercase m. Say it with me. (mask)

o p. 8: There are two m words on this page. One has a capital  and one has a lowercase m. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Marcos, markers)

o p. 14: I notice a word that starts with a lowercase m on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with less. Read it with me. (mess)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital  and lowercase m as they read. Invite volunteers to read m words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There’s a word on this page that ends with ask and starts with an /m/ sound. What is it? (mask)

o p. 8: Two words on this page start with the /m/ sound and have an /ar/ sound. What are they? (Marcos, markers)

o p. 14: There’s a word on this page that looks and sounds like house, but it begins with m. What is it? (mouse)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with m in the story. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter m on their own. Turn to p. 108 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: ac, arcos, mask, make, markers, mop, mouse, magnificent. Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: mask: /m/-ask, mess: /m/-ess, make: /m/-ake.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: mask: /m/ // /s/ /k/; mad: /m/ // /d/; mop: /m/ // /p/. Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

eaning aking

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE

Review

READING

(3–5 minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Mac) What does Mac help Marcos make? (a mask)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The children in the book make masks as part of an art project.

• Masks are worn in many celebrations around the world, such as during the Chinese New Year and at Mardi Gras, a traditional festival in New Orleans.

• The macaw is a type of parrot that lives in the rainforests of Mexico, Central America, and South America.

• Children are likely familiar with seeing and wearing masks to prevent spreading viruses. Cloth and disposable face masks are a different form of mask than costume masks. A face mask creates a barrier so that when someone talks or sneezes, the droplets don’t go into the air and into the mouth or nose of other people.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a traditional mask of an animal, or bring in a real mask that children can touch and try on, as they practice saying the word mask.

Multimodal Learning

Choral Reading: Read aloud the story, having children chorally read behind you after each page. Be sure to read with expression and gestures to act out the action. Encourage children to mimic your expression and gestures.

• Handle with care: Mac may represent a child who doesn’t act and dress like only a boy or only a girl.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Mac makes and why Mac helps someone.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Mac does at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what Mac does to help Marcos at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in the story. Ask: What are the children in the story making? (masks)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.

DURING

READING

(5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these suggested prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Mac makes a mask.)

• p. 6: Look closely at the picture. Who is wearing the macaw mask? (Mac) Are other children making masks? (Yes.) How can you tell? (One child is wearing a moose mask.)

• pp. 8–9: Think about the words and pictures. How does Marcos feel? (mad, upset, frustrated) Why is he mad? (He is having a hard time making a mask.)

• p. 12: What does Mac do? (Mac sits with Marcos.) Why does Mac sit with Marcos? If you think Mac sits with Marcos to help make a mask, clap your hands. If you think Mac sits with Marcos for another reason, stomp your feet.

• p. 15: Look closely at the picture. Who is wearing the mouse mask? (Marcos) How do the characters feel at the end? (happy) Yay! Mac helped Marcos. Now Marcos has a magnificent mask. Let’s cheer for Mac and Marcos.

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Mac does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, who makes an amazing mask? (Mac)

o In the middle of the story, Marcos throws markers, spills paints, and makes a mess. Why does he make a mess? (He is mad. He is not happy with how his mask-making is going.)

o At the end of the story, Marcos has a mask. Who helps Marcos make a mask? (Mac)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling where the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 109 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Marcos feels. Ask:

o Marcos has a lot of different feelings in this book. Let’s look together at some pages and see what happens to make Marcos’s feelings change. On p. 7, how does Marcos feel? (mad) When we look at p. 9, does he still feel mad and also frustrated? (Yes.) His feelings change on p. 13. How does Marcos feel? (happy) And on p. 15? (happy, excited) What happens that affects how Marcos feels at the end of the book? (Mac helps him make a mouse mask.)

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about feelings Marcos shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Mac and the Magnificent Masks found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with m, sounding out words that start with /m/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Mac and the Magnficent Masks in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide

activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter m, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /m/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 30 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the middle of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter m. On the bottom of the page, say what each picture is. Then have

Developing Readers

Go to p. 30 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter m, following your modeling. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

eaning aking Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Mac and the Magnificent Masks, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 31 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show things that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 31 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and and of the story.

m

Understandin the Story: Events

ac and the anificent asks

einnin End

iddle

Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

Sample answer: drawin of arcos with a mose mask. t may also show him lookin in a mirror or may show his classmates and teacher with him.

Sample answer: drawin of ac makin a mask. t may also show the details of the macaw mask.

Mac makes a mask.

Sample answer: drawin of arcos wearin the mose mask. t may also show arcos lookin in the mirror and children cheerin and happy for arcos.

Marcos

tosses markers.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

Marcos has a mouse mask.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Nn Exemplar Word nest

Letter Chant capital N, lowercase n, /n/, nest

About This Book This story is about Nell, who finds a nest. She keeps trying to see inside the nest, but it is too high up. Nell tries different ways to get to the nest. She also knows a number of words that begin with Nn.

About This Letter The sound /n/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /nnn/ vs /nuh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Nell, nest, Nana, news, needs, no, now

Decodable Words Nell, runs, tells, back, it, has, get, let, kisses

Sight Words a, to, the, be Story Words finds, see, sees

Target Words in Pictures nest, neighborhood, needle, needlepoint, nuts, necklace, neighbor, nine

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /n/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /n/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: fox, net, napkin, rat, nail.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital N. Read the title, Nell and the Nest, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that N stands for the /n/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital N and lowercase n, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with N, like Nell and Naseem. Also discuss names that end with n like Brayden, emphasizing the letter n and the /n/ sound at the end.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the nest picture. Remind children that a nest is a home for baby birds.

• Have children say the word nest with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word nest, think of the /n/ sound that stands for n

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

ELL Scaffold

Idioms: Explain that when Nana says “Let the nest be” on p. 13, she is telling Nell not to touch or bother the nest. Put a picture of a nest or a model nest on a table. Have one child start to reach for it and another child say, “Let the nest be.” Repeat until all children have had a turn. Mix it up, too, by substituting the noun in “Let the ___ be” with cat, dog, flower, and plant

Multimodal Learning

Draw Pictures: Post these lines from the book:

• Nell finds a nest!

• Nell runs to Nana.

• Now Nell sees. Have children each choose one line and make their own drawing to go with the line. Then have children take turns sharing their drawings and saying the line that goes with it.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why the nest is special.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why is the nest special? (It has baby birds.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Nn.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet when they hear or see an Nn word. Stop to find words that begin with Nn

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: I see a word that starts with a capital N on this page. Can you point to it? Say it with me. (Nell)

o p. 7: This page has many Nn words. How many do you see? (three) Let’s read the one that starts with a lowercase n (news)

o p. 13: I notice a word with a lowercase n on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with best. Read it with me. (nest)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital N and lowercase n as they read. Invite volunteers to read Nn words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There’s a word on this page that looks and sounds like best, but it begins with the letter Nn. What is it? (nest)

o p. 6: How many times do you hear the /n/ sound in Nana? (two) Find Nn twice in the word; look at the beginning and the middle.

o p. 10: Point to the word needs. Cover the s at the end. What’s the new word? (need)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Nn in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Nn on their own. Turn to p. 114 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Nell, nest, Nana, needle, neighborhood, news, now, necessary Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: Nell: /n/-ell, nest: /n/-est, news: /n/-ews.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending

• Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: Nell: /n/ // /l/, nest: /n/ // /s/ /t/, neck: /n/ // /k/.

• Have children stretch the sounds in each word and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING

Review

(3–5 minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Nell) What does Nell find? (a nest)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story takes place in a neighborhood with a variety of trees and flowers. It is likely a rural community.

• Many birds build their nests in trees. Some nests look like bowls. Others look like sacks, hanging down. Some look like mud huts. Some are tiny. And some, like the bald eagle’s nest, are huge.

• Bird eggs can be different colors. They can be white, blue, brown, green, or other colors. They can also have spots. The color and spotting of the egg depends on the type of bird.

• Bird-watching groups and other experts recommend that people do not touch bird nests or eggs because it is disturbing to the mother bird.

ELL Scaffold

Prepositions: Help students understand when the preposition to connects to a noun. Point to p. 6. Say: Nell runs to Nana. Then point to p. 8. Say: Nell runs to the nest. Have children say where they will run and then do it, such as: I run to the desk. I run to the shelf.

Multimodal Learning Partner Reading: Pair children up to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.

• Nell may be a nickname for Eleanor, Helena, or Penelope. Note that these longer names have the /n/ sound in the middle.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Nell is and what she finds there.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Nell sees in her neighborhood.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Does this story take place inside or outside? (outside)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7

minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: The picture on these pages shows us the setting. What do you see that tells you the story is set outside? (trees, flowers, grass, houses) What does Nell find while she is outside? (a nest)

• pp. 6–7: The picture and words on these pages tell us that Nell runs to Nana to tell her about the nest. Is Nell scared of the nest or is she excited about it? (excited)

• p. 10: The picture shows us that the nest is high up in a tree. Can Nell see inside the nest? (No.)

• p. 14: The words tell us that Nell can now see in the nest. Look at the picture. Who picks up Nell so she can see inside the nest? (Nana) What is inside the nest? (bird eggs; a baby bird)

• p. 15: Think about the words and pictures. Why does Nana kiss Nell? (Possible answers: Nana loves Nell. Nana is happy Nell listened to her. Nana is happy the eggs and baby bird are safe.)

Nn Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Nell finds there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o What clues tell us that the story is set in a neighborhood in the country, not in the city? (There is grass and different plants. There are houses. There are no big buildings.)

o What does Nell find in a tree in her neighborhood? (a nest)

o Is the nest still in the tree at the end of the story? (Yes.)

o Does the setting stay the same or change in the story? (The setting stays the same.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 115 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Persistence. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Nell feels. Say:

o Nell really wants to see into the nest, but it is hard for her. Does Nell give up just because it is hard to see? (No.) How does she show she won’t give up? (Nell keeps trying different ways to see inside the nest. She runs back to it. She reaches for it. She stands up tall.)

o Can you think of a time when you really wanted something, but it was hard to find or hard to get?

• Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Nell shows persistence in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Nell and the Nest found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Nn, sounding out words that start with /n/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Nell and the Nest in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Nn, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /n/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 32 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Nn. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /n/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 32 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Nn. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

a a a aN N a

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Talk about where and when the story takes place. Have children draw the setting.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 33 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Nell and the Nest. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Nell and the Nest, children learned about the setting of the story. Nell and the Nest

Nn Circle the pictre that shows where the story takes place.

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw a pictre of where Nell is in the story.

Sample answer: drawing of some houses. It may also show flowers, trees, cacti, or a mobile home.

Go to p. 33 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Nell and the Nest. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Nell and the Nest

Understandin the Story: Settin Write and draw abot the place where Nell is and why it is important to what happens in the story.

Sample answer: drawin of Nell near a tree. t may also show flowers or hoses.

Nell lives in a neighborhood with trees.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Oo Exemplar Word octopus

Letter Chant capital O, lowercase o, /o/, octopus

About This Book This story is about Oz, who helps find an octopus at an aquarium. This book features words that begin with Oo and words that have Oo in them.

About This Letter This book focuses on the short o sound for the letter o: // rather than the long o: /o/. Short vowel sounds are easy to confuse because they all sound similar, so encourage children to notice how the // sound feels in their mouth and their mouth position as they pronounce it so they can distinguish between short vowel sounds.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text octopus, Oz, on, of, otter, (middle o: not, log, rock, top) Decodable Words is, Oz, not, it, on, log, rock, top, of, did, back

Sight Words the, to Story Words where, does, see, look, tank, go

Target Words in Pictures octopus, otter, (middle o: log, rock)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: //. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the // sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: ox, curtain, truck, ostrich, opera.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital O. Read the title, Oz and the Octopus, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that O stands for the // sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital O and lowercase o, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with O, like Oz. Note that some O names begin with the // sound, while others begin with a long o, like /o/ in Olivia

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the octopus picture. Remind children that an octopus is an animal that lives in the ocean.

• Have children say the word octopus with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word octopus, think of the // sound that stands for o.

ELL Scaffold

Pronunciation: Many languages do not have short and long vowel sounds. Point to the word octopus on p. 8. Say the word slowly, clearly enunciating the short o in the first syllable and the long o in the second syllable. Make sure children see how your mouth moves as you say the word. Then have children repeat after you several times.

Multimodal Learning

Search for Words: Have partners work together to find one word in the story that has a short o in the middle of the word. As partners report their findings, create a list Then challenge partners to find another short o word until all words have been identified. (not, log, rock, top) Provide clues if needed. Say: Find a word that has the // sound in the middle and ends with the letter g. (log)

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what Oz finds.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Oz find? (the octopus)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Oo.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can cup their hands together to make an O shape when they hear or see an Oo word. Stop to find words that begin with Oo

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: I see a long word that starts with a lowercase o on this page. Can you point to it? Read it with me. (octopus)

o p. 5: Lots of words on this page have an o Let’s count them. (three) Let’s read the last one together. (rock)

o p. 12: Two words begin with a lowercase o Can you point to them with me? Let’s read them together. (on, otter)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital O and lowercase o as they read. Invite volunteers to read Oo words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the long word that begins with Oo. Let’s read it together. (octopus) What sound does the middle o say? (/ o/)

o p. 7: A word on this page looks like and sounds like net, but it has an o in the middle. What is it? (not)

o p. 13: Point to the word otter. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (otters)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Oo in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Oo on their own. Turn to p. 120 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: octopus, on, of, otter, Oz, odd, offer, operation.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: top: /t/-op, fox: /f/-ox, log: /l/-og.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Explain that they should listen for the // sound in the middle of the word. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: box, fox, got, log, lot, not, top

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Oz) What goes back into the tank? (the octopus)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is set at an aquarium. At an aquarium, people can see and learn about different fish and marine animals.

• An octopus is an animal that lives in the ocean. It has a round body and eight long tentacles.

• Octopuses can squeeze through very tight spaces and are clever. At an aquarium in New Zealand, an octopus named Inky squeezed out of his tank, pulled himself to a drainpipe, and slid through the pipe into the ocean.

• Oz may be a nickname for Osmond, Osgood, or Ozni.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Oz does and what happens.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Verbal: Show students a video tour of an aquarium that features an octopus. As the video plays, pause and point out the tanks, where people stand to look in the tanks, and the different sea animals, including the octopus. Have students shout Octopus! every time an octopus appears on screen.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Have children work with a partner to talk about a part of the story and to act it out. Invite each pair to show other pairs.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Oz wants to see at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what Oz finds at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: Where does Oz find the octopus? (on the otter)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: The words and picture on these pages tells us about the first event. What is it? (Oz is looking for the octopus.)

• pp. 6–7: Does Oz see the octopus? (No.) Do you see the octopus? Let’s point to it.

• p. 8: Oz starts to look for the octopus. Where does he look first? (on the log) Point to the log. Is the octopus on the log? (No.)

• p. 9: Now where is Oz looking for the octopus? (on the rock) Point to the rock. Is the octopus on the rock? (No.)

• p. 10: Think about the words and picture. What does Oz see. (the octopus) Where is the octopus? (on top of the tank)

• pp. 14–15: Think about how the story ends. Where is the octopus now? (in the tank) Let’s cheer for Oz. He helped find the octopus and get him back in the tank. Yay!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Oz does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, what does Oz want to see? (the octopus)

o In the middle of the story, Oz looks in different places to find the octopus. Where does he look? (on the log, on the rock)

o Where is the octopus at the end of the story? (back in the tank)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 121 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving. See page 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Oz feels. Say:

o Oz wants to see the octopus, but when he looks in the tank, he can’t see it. Oz doesn’t give up! What does Oz do to find the octopus? (He looks in different places. He looks on the log. He looks on the rock. He finds it on the otter. Although we do not see what happens next—the worker puts the octopus back in the tank—we see the octopus in the tank at the end. Oz helps solve the problem. By finding the octopus, he helps get the octopus back in the tank.)

o Oz solves the problem of the missing octopus by looking around the aquarium. Can you think of a time when you solved a problem by helping someone find something that was missing? How did you help?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Oz solves a problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Oz and the Octopus found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Oo, sounding out words that start with //, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Oz and the Octopus in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Oo, writing the letter, and identifying words with the // sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 34 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. For the middle activity, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Oo. On the bottom, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with //.

Go to p. 34 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Oo, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. On the bottom, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the middle letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word.

o o

Nico took the book. t is in his room. Nico looks for a fox.

f n d g

O o o o i o o e o

a o e a o

Emerging Readers

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Oz and the Octopus, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Draw the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Have children sequence the pictures.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 35 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 35 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Understandin the Story: Events

Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

einnin End

iddle

Sample answer: drawin of the octops in a tank. t may also show Oz lookin at the octops and smilin.

Sample answer: drawin of Oz lookin for the octops. t may also show a lare fish tank with fish, ellyfish, and and nderwater plants.

Oz looks for the octopus.

The octopus is on th e tank.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

Sample answer: drawin of the octops back in the tank. t may also show Oz lookin into the tank.

The octopus is back.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Pp

Exemplar Word piano

Letter Chant capital P, lowercase p, /p/, piano

About This Book This story is about Paco, who goes to the park with Papa and finds a piano that’s ready to be played. There are plenty of words that begin with Pp that tell about Paco, his family, and the community.

About This Letter When pronouncing the sound that Pp represents, be sure to articulate it crisply, avoiding an extra “uh” sound at the end. The formation of lowercase p can be confused with lowercase q , so give extra practice with writing the letter.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text party, park, popcorn, pizza, piano, Paco, Papa, Pip, pup, (with pl: play, plays) Decodable Words is, in, will, it, Pip, pup, sits

Sight Words a, the Story Words what, this, there, so, yay

Target Words in Pictures piano, people, pants, pocket, pink, pug, picnic, purple, pizza, popcorn, ping-pong, purse, pig, pot, police, (with pl: plate)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /p/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /p/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: road, pan, pond, pillow, cloud. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital P. Read the title, Paco and the Piano, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that P stands for the /p/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital P and lowercase p, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with P, like Paco. Note that some P names begin with the /p/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /f/ in Phoebe or /p/ and /r/ together in Preston

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold Word Meaning: Read aloud p. 11. Point out that pup is short for puppy. Then explain that a puppy is a young dog. Say: Let’s point to the pup in the picture. Then ask: What’s the pup’s name? (Pip) Let’s say it together: Pip the pup.

Multimodal Learning Draw and Write: Show pp. 6–7. Point to the pizza and the popcorn. Then ask: If you were at the park would you want the pizza or the popcorn? Why? Draw a picture and write about it.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the piano picture. Remind children that a piano is a musical instrument.

• Have children say the word piano with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word piano, think of the /p/ sound that stands for p.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning Pp

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what Paco plays in the park.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Paco play in the park? (a piano)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Pp.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see a Pp word. Stop to find words that begin with Pp

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two Pp words on this page. They both begin with a lowercase p. Point to the words. Now say them with me. (party, park)

o p. 10: I see a word that has Pp twice. Point to the capital P. Now point to the lowercase p. Say it with me. (Papa)

o p. 14: There are so many Pp words on this page. Let’s count them. (three) Let’s read them together. (Paco, plays, piano)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital P and lowercase p as they read. Invite volunteers to read Pp words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 6: Point to the word popcorn on this page. Cover up corn. What word do you see now? (pop)

o p. 10: How many times do you hear the /p/ sound in Papa (two) Say it with me. (Papa)

o p. 11: A word on this page ends with -ip and starts with a /p/ sound. What is it? (Pip) If we change the last p to n, what word would we make? (pin)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Pp in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Pp on their own. Turn to p. 126 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: party, park, popcorn, pizza, piano, Paco, Papa, participate.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: pup: /p/-up, pop: /p/-op, pit: /p/-it.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: pup: /p/ // /p/, Pip: /p/ /ĭ/ /p/, pig: /p/ /ĭ/ /g/. Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5

Review

minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Paco) Where does Paco go? (to a park)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is set in a park where there is a community party.

• The piano was invented in Italy more than 300 years ago.

• Popcorn is a treat made by heating up kernels of corn.

• Paco can be a nickname for Francisco, which is of Spanish and Portuguese origin.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Paco is and what he does there.

• Say: As we read, listen for where Paco is and what he plays there to entertain people.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Where does this story take place? (in a park)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

ELL Scaffold

Aural Learning: If possible, play or hit a few keys on a piano. Then allow children to gently hit a few keys, while they practice saying piano. Or play a recording of classical piano music for children to listen to as they practice saying piano and working on the letter Pp

Multimodal Learning Express Opinions: Have children identify all the fun activities the characters are doing at the park. (p. 6, eating popcorn; p. 6, playing pingpong; p. 7, eating pizza; p. 7, playing soccer; p. 8, walking a pup; p. 15 playing the piano) Ask: If you were at the park, what would you like to do—eat popcorn, play ping-pong, eat pizza, play soccer, walk a pup, or play the piano? Have children respond, using this frame:

• I would like to ____.

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: These pages show the setting for the story. Where is Paco? (in a park)

• pp. 6–7: Think about the words and picture. What are some of the fun things you can do in a park? (eat popcorn, play ping-pong, play soccer, eat pizza)

• p. 8: What do Paco, his Papa, and his sister see? (a piano) There’s a sign on the piano. Can you point to it? What does it say? (Play me!)

• p. 9: This page asks a question—Will Paco play it? What is “it”? (the piano) Clap your hands if you think Paco will play the piano. Stomp your feet if you think he will not play the piano.

• p. 10: Who plays the piano first? (Papa)

• p. 15: Look at the picture. Who is playing the piano now? (Paco) Where is the piano? (in the park) Are the people in the park happy that Paco is playing? (Yes.) How do you know? (The people are smiling and clapping.)

Pp Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Paco does there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where does Paco play the piano? (in a park)

o What clues in the pictures tell you that the story is set in a park? (There is a sign that says “park.” There is a lot of grass. There are lots of trees. Kids are playing soccer.)

o When you are in a park, are you inside or outside? (outside)

o Does the setting change, or is the story always set in the park? (It is always set in the park.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 127 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Paco feels. Say:

o Paco has lots of different feelings in this book. Let’s look at p. 10. How does he feel as he watches Papa play the piano? (happy) How does he feel on p. 12, when his dad asks him to play? (nervous) How does he feel on p. 13, when he plays the piano? (happy)

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about the feelings Paco shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Paco and the Piano found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Pp, sounding out words that start with /p/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Paco and the Piano in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Pp, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /p/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Pax plays with Pip. Paco pets Pip. Pip naps. Pp

Developing Readers

Go to p. 36 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Pp, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. In the middle, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

a a aP P a

p p p

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Using pictures or props, have children choose what to wear and use in the story’s setting.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 37 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Paco and the Piano. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Paco and the Piano, children learned about the setting of the story. Paco and the Piano

Go to p. 37 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Paco and the Piano. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Pp Circle the pictre that shows where the story takes place.

Understandin the Story: Settin

Write and draw abot where Paco oes in the story.

Sample answer: drawing of a park with grass and trees. It may also show Paco and people playing piano or ping pong; or people eating or talking.

Paco and the Piano Circle the pictre that shows where the story takes place.

Understandin the Story: Setting Write and draw abot where Paco goes in the story.

Sample answer: drawin of a park with grass and trees. It may also show Paco and people playing piano or ping pong; or people eating or talking.

Paco is in a park.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Qq

Exemplar

Word quilt

Letter Chant capital Q, lowercase q, /kw/, quilt

About This Book This story is about Quinn, who likes to play with her big red quilt. Quinn accidentally gets her quilt wet. A number of words that begin with Qq tell about Quinn and how she figures out to dry the quilt.

About This Letter This book focuses on the /kw/ sound represented by letter Qq. Unlike the most common sounds associated with other consonants, the /kw/ sound is represented by two letters: q and u. These two letters form a consonant digraph: qu. Less often, qu can represent the /k/ sound, as in quay or the end of antique.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Quinn, quilt, queen, quiet, quick

Decodable Words Quinn, has, it, is, big, red, wet, yells, can, sets, in, sun

Sight Words a, the Story Words trips, what, do, she

Target Words in Pictures quilt, quail, question mark, quacking duck

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /kw/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /kw/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: quack, heart, quail, question, leaf

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital Q. Read the title, Quinn and the Quilt, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that Q stands for the /kw/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital Q and lowercase q , using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with Q. Note that some Q names begin with the /kw/ sound like Quinn. Also point out that some names have a q in the middle, and in these, the q stands for a /k/ sound in names like Marquis and Enrique

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Consonant and Vowel Sounds: Help children distinguish between long and short vowel sounds that follow qu in the story. Say Quinn and quiet, emphasizing first the short vowel and then the long vowel sound. Have children repeat each word. Then say quilt and quick Ask: Does the i in these words sound like Quinn or quiet? (Quinn)

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Guide children to act out the key events in the story. Encourage them to use words or descriptions from the illustrations, like trips, yells, quiet, and quick, to explain their actions.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the quilt picture. Remind children that a quilt is a kind of blanket.

• Have children say the word quilt with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word quilt, think of the /kw/ sound that stands for q

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what Quinn does with her quilt at the end of the story.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Quinn do with her quilt at the end of the story? (makes a tent; reads under it)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Qq.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see a Qq word. Stop to find words that begin with Qq.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two words on this page that begin with Qq. One begins with a capital Q and one with a lowercase q . Let’s read them together. (Quinn, quilt)

o p. 10: How many words are on this page? (two) Which begin with Qq? (both of them) Let’s read them together. (Quiet, Quinn)

o p. 13: This page has a long sentence. There is one word that begins with q. Find it. (quilt) Let’s read it together. (quilt)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital Q and lowercase q as they read. Invite volunteers to read Qq words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 4: Point to the word quilt If we add an s to the end, what word is it? (quilts) o p. 12: Point to the two Qq words. Let’s read them. (Quinn, quick) What is the same about the words? (both begin with qu; both have a short /ĭ/ sound in the middle) What is different? (Quinn ends with -nn and quick ends with -ck; Quinn has a capital Q and quick has a lowercase q .)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Qq in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Qq on their own. Turn to p. 132 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Quinn, quilt, quarter, quiet, question, quarantine

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: Quinn: /kw/-in, quick: /kw/ -ick, quilt: /kw/-ilt.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: Quinn, quit, quick, quits, quill.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Quinn) Why does Quinn take her quilt outside? (It gets wet.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• A quilt is a type of blanket made of three layers. The layers are sewn together with yarn, thread, or ribbon.

• The top layer of the quilt can be made from many pieces of cloth sewn together in patterns, known as patchwork. The patches can be different shapes.

• Sometimes quilts are used as a blanket and sometimes they are works of art made to be hung on a wall (wall hangings) or used as decoration.

• Quilting is a part of many cultures, including the Amish and many Hawaiian and Indian cultures.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a quilt, or if possible, bring in a real quilt so that children can feel it, as they practice saying the word quilt

Multimodal Learning

Partner Talk: Consider pairing up students to talk about their answers to one of the more challenging questions. This will give them time to hear each other’s ideas before formulating their response and sharing with the rest of the group.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Quinn does with her quilt.

• Say: As we read, listen for what happens to Quinn at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: What is the first event in this story? (Quinn trips.)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 6: How does Quinn play with her quilt? (She wears it as a robe so she can pretend to be a queen.)

• p. 7: This page has the first event in the story. What is it? (Quinn trips.) Here, trips means “falls.”

• p. 8: When Quinn trips, what happens to her quilt? (It gets wet.)

• p. 9: What does Quinn do when she sees that her quilt is wet? (She yells.)

• p. 10: Why does Quinn’s dad say when Quinn goes to him for help? Can you show me and tell me what he says and does? (puts his fingers to his lips, tells her to be quiet) Why does she need to be quiet? (The baby is asleep.)

• p. 13: Quinn thinks of a great way to solve her problem. What does she do? (She puts her quilt out in the sun to dry.)

• pp. 14–15: Where does Quinn read a book at the end of the story? (under the table, under her quilt as it is drying in the sun)

Qq Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what happens to Quinn. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Quinn trips. What happens to her quilt when she trips? (It gets wet.)

o In the middle of the story, Quinn asks her Dad for help. Why can’t he help her? (He is with the sleeping baby.)

o What does Quinn do with the quilt at the end? (She puts it out in the sun to dry; she makes a tent and reads under it.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 133 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Quinn feels. Say:

o At the beginning of the story, Quinn is a queen! She wears her quilt as a robe. What is her problem with the quilt? (It gets wet.) Why does Quinn want her quilt to be dry? (so she can keep playing with it) What does she do to solve the problem of the wet quilt? (She takes the quilt outside and sets it in the sun to dry.) Does Quinn still play with her quilt while it is drying? (Yes.) Is she still using it as a robe? (No, now she is using it for a tent.)

o Can you think of a time when you needed help from someone and they couldn’t help you? What did you do to solve the problem?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Quinn solves her problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Quinn and the Quilt found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Qq , sounding out words that start with /kw/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Quinn and the Quilt in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Qq , writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /kw/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 38 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Qq . On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /kw/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 38 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Qq . Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, explain that children will try to read some words and then look for the letter Qq . For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

a

Qa Q a q q q q

q q

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Quinn and the Quilt, children learned about what happens at the beginning, middle, and end of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Draw the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Have children sequence the pictures.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 39 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 39 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Understandin the Story: Events

Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

einnin End

iddle

Sample answer: drawin of Qinn in a red tent. t may also show that the tent is actally her ilt and that she is readin nder the tent.

Sample answer: drawing of Quinn with a quilt around her shoulders. It may also show a crown on her head.

Quinn plays with the quilt.

Sample answer: drawin of Quinn under a tent. It may also show Quinn reading books.

The quilt gets wet.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end. Beinnin iddle End

The quilt is a tent.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Rr

Exemplar Word rake

Letter Chant capital R, lowercase r, /r/, rake

About This Book This story is about Rex, who discovers a raccoon on his roof. Rex uses his rake and tries other ways to get the raccoon off his roof. Words that begin with Rr are all around Rex.

About This Letter The sound /r/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /rrr/ vs /ruh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text roof, raccoon, Rex, rake, run, roar, rests, rains, runs

Decodable Words is, on, Rex, gets, hits, will, run, sits, lets, it, runs

Sight Words the, a, he, and Story Words what, no, now

Target Words in Pictures rake, red, rose, rug, roof, rabbit, rope, rock, road

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /r/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /r/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: rag, rocket, sandwich, robot, book. Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital R. Read the title, Rex and the Rake, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that R stands for the /r/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital R and lowercase r, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with R, like Rex and Rebecca.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the rake picture. Remind children that a rake is a yard tool with teeth on one end. It is used to move leaves into a pile.

ELL Scaffold

Pronunciation: The letter Rr is pronounced in other ways in many other languages than it is in English (e.g., It is trilled or dropped). Provide extra practice with the articulation of the sound. If needed, demonstrate how the mouth moves differently when making the /r/ sound compared to the /l/ and /w/ sounds.

Multimodal Learning

Listen and Move: Read the story aloud, asking half the children to stand up each time you say raccoon and half to stand up each time you say Rex Then read the story aloud again, switching who stands up.

• Have children say the word rake with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word rake, think of the /r/ sound that stands for r

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out what Rex sees on the roof.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Rex hear and see on the roof? (a raccoon)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Rr.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet when they hear or see an Rr word. Stop to find words that begin with Rr.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 6: There are two Rr words on this page. One has a capital R and one has a lowercase r. Can you point to them? Now say them with me. (Rex, rake)

o p. 10: There is a word on this page that begins and ends with lowercase r. Point to the word. Let’s read it together. (roar)

o p. 12: I see a long word on this page that starts with a lowercase r. Can you point to it? Read it with me. (raccoon)

AFTER

READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital R and lowercase r as they read. Invite volunteers to read Rr words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say: o p. 5: Point to the word raccoon. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (raccoons)

o p. 6: A word on this page ends with -ake and starts with an /r/ sound. What is it? (rake)

o p. 10: How many times do you hear the /r/ sound in roar? Point to each r, saying the /r/ sound as you point to the beginning and end of the word.

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Rr in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Rr on their own. Turn to p. 138 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Rex, rake, raccoon, roof, run, roar, raspberry, respectfully Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: Rex: /r/-ex, rake: /r/-ake, run: /r/-un.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: Rex: /r/ // /ks/, rake: /r/ /a/ /k/, run: /r/ // /n/.

Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Rex) What is on Rex’s roof? (a raccoon)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• This story is set in a home in the woods. It may be a house or a cabin.

• Raccoons were originally native to North America. Now, raccoons can be found in parts of South America, Europe, and Asia.

• The word raccoon is an adaptation of a Powhatan word that means “animal that scratches with its hands.” The Powhatan are a Native American people.

• Raccoons have strong claws and can quickly climb up trees, rock walls, and other structures.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Rex wants and why he wants it.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Rex does with the rake.

ELL Scaffold

Parts of Speech: Give children a chance to use the word rake as both a noun and a verb. Use pictures or props of a rake and leaves. Invite children to use these sentence frames, adding a name or pronoun, to describe what someone is doing:

• ___ gets a rake.

• ___ rakes leaves.

Multimodal Learning Analyze Pictures: Explain that sound can be shown in pictures through lines. Have children find the lines that show the scratching noise the raccoon makes on pp. 4 and 5, the banging noise the rake makes on pp. 7 and 8, and the roaring noise Rex makes on p. 11.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main character is who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who is the main character in this story? (Rex) Explain that the raccoon is another character in the story.

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the characters.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 4: Rex is sitting on the couch, reading. Then he hears a noise and looks up. Point to where he hears the noise. Do you think he likes or does not like the noise? (He does not like the noise.)

• p. 7: Look at the picture. What is Rex hitting the roof with? (a rake) Why is he hitting the roof with a rake? (He wants the raccoon to run away.)

• pp. 10–11: The raccoon did not run away after Rex hit the roof with a rake. What does Rex try here to get the raccoon to run away? (He roars.) Is a roar a loud noise? (Yes.) How do we know? (The picture shows us. His mouth is wide open. He is shaking his fist.) Let’s roar like Rex: ROAR!

• p. 12: Look at the picture. Is Rex happy? (Yes.) How do we know? (He is smiling.) Why is Rex happy? (The raccoon is walking away.)

• p. 13: Oh, no! The raccoon is still on the roof. Is Rex happy or frustrated? (frustrated) How do we know? (He is making a frustrated face. He is grabbing his head.) Let’s show that we are frustrated, like Rex.

• pp. 14–15: Think of how the story ends. Why does the raccoon finally run away? (because of the rain)

Rr Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and what Rex does and feels. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o What does Rex want the raccoon to do? (run away; get off his roof)

o What does Rex do to make the raccoon run away? (He hits the roof with a rake. He roars.) Why does Rex get frustrated? (The raccoon will not run away.)

o What happens when it rains? (The raccoon runs away.) Rex has his hands on his hips as he watches the raccoon run away. Let’s put our hands on our hips. How do you think Rex feels as he watches the raccoon run away? (confused and annoyed that it took so long)

• Now that you’ve talked about the characters in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 139 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Persistence. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Rex feels. Say:

o Sometimes, when people keep trying to do something hard, they get frustrated. And sometimes, they try but don’t get what they want. Rex hit the roof with a rake. Then he roared. Did he make the raccoon go away? (No.) How did it make Rex feel? (mad, frustrated) At the end of the story, Rex finally gets what he wants: the racoon runs away. Did Rex make the raccoon go away? (No. The rain made the racoon go away.)

o Can you think of a time when you kept trying to solve a problem and it wasn’t working?

• Use the Persistence graphic organizer on p. 198 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Rex shows persistence in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Rex and the Rake found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Rr, sounding out words that start with /r/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Rex and the Rake in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Rr, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /r/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 40 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Rr. On the right of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /r/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 40 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Rr, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sounds. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Rex and the Rake, children learned about the character in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide and support children as they retell the story using their words and their bodies.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 41 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the character in the story and his feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Rex’s face. Each one shows a different feeling he had in the story. Draw a picture to show a time when Rex showed each feeling. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the character in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 41 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the character in the story and his feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Rex’s face. Each one shows a different feeling he had in the story. Draw and write about a time when Rex showed each feeling. Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Characters

Think abot Rex does and how he feels. When does Rex feel confsed abot somethin in the story? Draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of Rex lookin p at his ceilin. He may be sittin on his sofa in his hose.

When does Rex feel pset and frstrated in the story? Draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of Rex tryin to et the racoon off the roof. t may show Rex standin on a table. t may also show him with a rake.

Understandin the Story: Characters

When does Rex feel confsed abot somethin in the story? Write and draw abot it.

Sample answer: drawin of Rex in his livin room. t may also show him lookin p the ceilin, wonderin abot the noise he hears.

When does Rex feel pset and frstrated in the story? Write and draw abot it.

Rex hears a sound on the roof. The raccoon will not move.

Sample answer: drawin of Rex lookin p at the raccoon on his roof. t may also Rex “roarin” at the raccoon.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Ss Exemplar Word sun

Letter Chant capital S, lowercase s, /s/, sun

About This Book This story is about Sam, who plays with his dog, Sid, in the hot sun. As Sam figures out how to cool himself and Sid, he does and sees a number of things that begin with Ss.

About This Letter The sound /s/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /sss/vs/suh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text sun, so, Sam, sips, Sid, sits, socks, sees, sink, soak, (with s blends: slurps, splash)

Decodable Words sun, is, hot, Sam, sips, Sid, sits, his, socks, can

Sight Words the, a Story Words takes, off, poor, what, do, now

Target Words in Pictures sun, sink, sit, sandwich, sailboat, sandals, socks, (with s blends: sweat, small, skirt, stairs, splash, smile)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /s/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /s/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: rock, salt, belt, sand, soap Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital S Read the title, Sam in the Sun, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that S stands for the /s/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital S and lowercase s, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with S, like Sam and Sid. Note that some S names begin with the /s/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /sh/ in Shana.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Vocabulary Access: Have children find the picture in the book that shows when Sam sips (p. 6). Explain what it means to sip, and then what it means to slurp (p. 7). Then have children act out each as they pretend to sip or slurp their favorite drink.

Multimodal Learning

Cloze Reading: Read aloud the story, leaving out one Ss word on each page and pause for children to notice. As children follow along, ask them to say the missing word aloud when you pause.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the sun picture. Remind children that the sun is in the sky and gives us light and heat.

• Have children say the word sun with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word sun, think of the /s/ sound that stands for s.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Sam and his dog, Sid, get hot.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why do Sam and his dog, Sid, get hot? (The sun is strong.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Ss.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can clap when they hear or see an Ss word. Stop to find words that begin with Ss

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Find two words that start with lowercase s on this page. Say them with me. (sun, so)

o p. 6: There are two Ss words on this page. Point to the word with a capital S. Say it with me. (Sam) Point to the word with a lowercase s. Say it with me. (sips)

o p. 9: A word that starts with a lowercase s is on this page. This word rhymes with rocks. Read it with me. (socks)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital S and lowercase s as they read. Invite volunteers to read Ss words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 6: There’s a word on this page that looks and sounds like lips, but it begins with s. What is it? (sips)

o p. 10: There’s a word on this page that ends with -id and starts with an /s/ sound. What is it? (Sid)

o p. 13: Point to the word sink. If we add an s to the end, what is the new word? (sinks)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Ss in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Ss on their own. Turn to p. 144 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: sun, sips, sits, sailor, sees, sandwich, sink, supermarket

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: sun: /s/-un, sip: /s/-ip, sit:/s/-it.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: Sam, Sid, sun, sip, sit, sock, set, six

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Sam) Who does Sam help in the story? (his dog, Sid)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The sun is a star. It is the closest star to Earth.

• Of the four seasons—winter, spring, summer, and fall—summer is the warmest season of the year.

• Being active also makes you hot. People who run around on a hot, sunny day can become overheated.

• When people get hot, they sweat. When dogs get hot, they pant.

• One way to cool down when overheated is to drink water. Other ways you can cool down are to go to a shady area, go inside where there is air conditioning, or take a cool bath.

• Sam may be a nickname for Samir.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Sam and Sid are playing and what the day is like.

ELL Scaffold Vocabulary Access: Help children understand the meaning of the word soak. Show a video or demonstrate with a cup of water and a sponge. First, dip the sponge in the water quickly. Discuss how the sponge looks. (not very wet) Then soak the sponge. Ask children to talk about how the sponge changed when it was soaked.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Guide children to act out the key events in the story. Encourage or guide them to use words or descriptions from the illustrations to explain their actions. Encourage children to show how the temperature makes the characters feel.

• Say: As we read, look at the pictures to see where Sam and Sid are playing. Listen to hear why they are so hot.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: When does this story take place? (on a hot, sunny day)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING

READING

(5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: Look closely at the picture. Sam is sweating. What does that tell us about the weather where Sam is? (It is very hot.)

• pp. 6–7: What does Sam do to cool down from the sun? (sips water) What does Sid do to cool down from the sun? (slurps water)

• p. 9: The pictures and words on this page tell us that Sam takes off his socks to cool down some more. What about Sid? Is he still hot? Raise your hand if you think Sid is still hot. Stomp your feet if you think he is not hot now.

• p. 13: What does Sam see that gives him an idea for helping Sid? (a sink)

• p. 15: Think about the words and picture. Is Sid still hot under the sun. (No.) Yay! Sam helped Sid cool down. Let’s cheer for Sam and Sid.

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Sam and Sid do there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o Where are Sam and Sid playing? (outside; in a city; in a courtyard; on a sidewalk)

o What clues tell us that it’s hot outside in the story? (Sam sweats. Sam and Sid drink water. Sam takes off his socks. Sam helps Sid soak to cool down.)

o Why are Sam and Sid hot as they play outside? (The sun is so hot.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 145 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Problem Solving. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Sam feels. Ask:

o At the beginning of the story, Sam and Sid are so hot. Let’s look at pp. 5–6. What do they do to try to solve this problem? (They sip and slurp water.) Sam and Sid are still hot, though. On pp. 14–15 Sam uses a sink to help solve the problem for Sid. How does the sink help Sid? (Sid soaks in the water; it cools him off.)

o Can you think about a time when you were very hot or very cold? What did you do to solve the problem of being too hot or too cold?

• Use the Problem-Solving graphic organizer on p. 196 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Sam solves a problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Sam in the Sun found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Ss, sounding out words that start with /s/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Sam in the Sun in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Ss, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /s/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 42 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Ss. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

the Letter Ss Ss

Sam likes school.

Sam likes her class.

The bs is here. Sam sits. Sofia smiles at Sam. Ss

two thins that start with the same beinnin

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Using pictures or props, have children choose what to wear in the story’s setting.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 43 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Sam in the Sun. Then you will draw a picture that shows where and when the story takes place.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Sam in the Sun, children learned about the setting of the story. Sam in the Sn

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw where Sam and Sid play.

Sample answer: drawin may show Sam and Sid in the cortyard, on front steps, or a sidewalk

Go to p. 43 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Sam in the Sun. Then you will write about and draw a picture that shows where and when the story takes place.

Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Story:

Sample answer: drawin of Sam on a blacktop or concrete sidewalk. t may also show the hot sn, the bildins arond him, or the sink.

Sam is in the city. It is hot.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Tt

Exemplar Word

tomato

Letter Chant capital T, lowercase t, /t/, tomato

About This Book This story is about Tere, who grows tomatoes. Tere waits for the tomatoes to be ready to eat and then tastes one. Talking about Tere takes many words that begin with Tt.

About This Letter When pronouncing the sound that Tt represents with children, be sure to articulate it crisply, avoiding the extra “uh” sound at the end.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text tomato, turns, Tere, taps, too, to, takes, tangy, tasty, time, tomatoes

Decodable Words red, taps, it, licks, lips, is, if, bad

Sight Words a, the, are, and, for Story Words her, ready, ay, what, waits, hard, wait

Target Words in Pictures tomato, toe, toy, top, tiger, tie, turtle, towel, table

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /t/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /t/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: wolf, town, tub, teeth, pan

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital T Read the title, Tere and the Tomato, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that T stands for the /t/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital T and lowercase t, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with t, like Tere. Note that some T names begin with the /t/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /th/ in Thatcher.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the tomato picture. Tell children that a tomato grows on a vine.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Children may know that turns means “rotates or moves in a new direction.” Have children stand up and turn around as they say turn. Then point out that on p. 4, turns is used to mean “becomes” or “changes to.” Talk about other things that turn, such as how day turns into night or how milk can turn bad or rotten.

Multimodal Learning

Echo Reading: Give children an opportunity to practice their fluency after they’ve heard the book read aloud. Read a page, and then say: Your turn! Have children echo what you read. Watch and listen. Continue this way through the book.

• Have children say the word tomato with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word tomato, think of the /t/ sound that stands for t.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out what Tere grows.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does Tere grow? (tomatoes)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Tt.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see a Tt word. Stop to find words that begin with Tt.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There are two Tt words on this page. Which one has two ts in it? Can you point to it? Now say it with me. (tomato)

o p. 7: I see a word on this page that ends with t. Point to the word. Let’s read it together. (it)

o p. 15: I notice a word that starts with a capital T on this page. Point to it. Let’s say it together. (Time)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital T and lowercase t as they read. Invite volunteers to read Tt words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: How many times do you hear the /t/ sound in tomato? (2) Have children find lowercase t twice in the word, noting both the beginning and middle sounds.

o p. 5: There’s a word on this page that ends with a lowercase t. What is it? (it) If we add an s to the beginning, what’s the new word? (sit) What if we add f to the beginning? (fit)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Tt in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Tt on their own. Turn to p. 150 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: tomato, turns, taps, takes, tangy, tasty, time, telephone

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: tap: /t/-ap, top: /t/-op, tip: /t/-ip, tin: /t/-in.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: tap: /t/ // /p/, top: /t/ // /p/, tip: /t/ /ĭ/ /p/, tin: /t/ /ĭ/ /n/. Have children stretch the sounds in each word and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Tere) What does Tere taste? (a tomato)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story is set on a farm in a Central American country, such as Guatemala, where there is a growing number of female farmers.

• Tomatoes are native to South America. Today, tomatoes are grown in many parts of North America, Central America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia.

• Tomatoes may be red and round, like in the story. Tomatoes can be other colors and shapes, including yellow and oblong.

• Tomatoes need sunlight, water, and healthy soil to grow.

• Many think of a tomato as a vegetable, but it is actually a kind of fruit. Like all fruits, tomatoes need to ripen before they are ready to eat.

• Tere may be a nickname for Teresa.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Tere does and how she feels about it.

• Say: As we read, listen for why Tere waits to eat the tomato.

ELL Scaffold

Interjections: Read aloud p. 8, making sure your voice expresses a feeling of uncertainty. Explain that Ay! is a Spanish term that people say when they are upset or unsure of something. Similar expressions in English are “Oh!” or “Oh, dear!” Have children put their hands on their hips, as the character does, and say Ay!, mimicking your tone.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Act out and explain the gestures Tere uses throughout the story (p. 8, hands on hips/annoyed by something; p. 9, raised hands/unsure of what to do; p. 11, chin resting on hand/boredom and impatience). Then say: Let’s show that we are annoyed. Then have students follow along as you put your hands on your hips. Repeat for the other two gestures.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main character is who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who is the main character in this story? (Tere) Explain that the girl and boy in the pictures, Tere’s children, are other characters in the story.

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the characters.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• p. 5: The words and picture on this page tell us that Tere taps the tomato. Why does she tap it? (She wants to know if it is ready; She wants to eat it.)

• p. 8: Look at the picture. Let’s pretend to be Tere. How do you think she feels in this picture? (She is worried, impatient; She wants a tomato.)

• p. 9: Think about the words and pictures. Does Tere take a tomato? (No.) Why does she wait? (She does not want the tomato to be bad; She wants a ripe tomato.)

• pp. 10–11: What is Tere still doing? (She is still waiting.) Is Tere happy she needs to keep waiting? (No.) How do you know? (She is not smiling.)

• p. 13: Terry finally takes a tomato, and it tastes tangy. Look at Tere’s face. What do you think tangy means? (sharp; sour)

• pp. 14–15: Think of how the story ends. What do Tere and her children get to enjoy because they waited? (eating tomatoes)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and what Tere does and feels. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o What does Tere want? (a tomato)

o How does Tere feel when the tomatoes aren’t ready yet? (She is impatient and worried.)

o Tere waits to take a tomato. Why is it good to wait? (The tomatoes need to ripen before they are ready.)

o Are Tere and her children happy at the end of the story? (Yes.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the characters in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 151 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Understanding Feelings. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Tere feels. Say:

o Tere has a lot of different feelings in this book. Let’s look at some of the pages to see what happens to change how she feels. On p. 8, how does she feel? (annoyed) How does she feel on p. 9? (unsure of what to do) On p. 11 she looks bored. What happens in the book to make her feel bored? (She is waiting for the tomatoes to be ripe.) What happens on p. 14 to make Tere look happy? (The tomatoes are ready.)

o Can you think of a time when you felt impatient or bored?

• Use the Understanding Feelings graphic organizer on p. 197 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about the feelings Tere shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Tere and the Tomato found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Tt, sounding out words that start with /t/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Tere and the Tomato in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide

activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Tt, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /t/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 44 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. On the bottom left, review what each picture is before children say each word on their own and circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. On the right of the page, explain that children will be looking only for the letter Tt.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 44 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Tt, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the beginning letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

at

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Tere and the Tomato, children learned about the character in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Show pictures in the book. Ask children to make faces and move like the character.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 45 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and her feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Tere’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she had in the story. Draw a picture to show a time when Tere showed each feeling. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the character in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 45 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and her feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Tere’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she had in the story. Draw and write about a time when Tere showed each feeling.

Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Characters

Think abot what Tere does and how she feels in the story. When does Tere feel worried? Draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of Tere tochin a tomato or lookin at her children with her arms p

When does Tere feel happy in the story? Draw a pictre.

Understandin

the Story: Characters

Think abot what Tere does and how she feels in the story. When does Tere feel worried? Draw and write abot it.

Sample answer: drawing of Tere looking at the tomatoes. It may also show a tomato vine and Tere looking worried or putting her hands in the air.

Tere looks at the tomatoes.

Sample answer: drawin of Tere pickin tomatoes. t may also show her eatin a tomato or pttin tomatoes in a basket.

Tere

Sample answer: drawing of Tere gathering the tomatoes. It may also show Tere picking tomatoes and putting in a basket with a child.

gets the tomatoes.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase U

Exemplar Word mbrella

Letter Chant capital U, lowercase , //, mbrella

About This Book This story is about Umberto, who doesn’t want to use an umbrella on a rainy day. Umberto tries different ways to stay dry. The story includes words that begin with U.

About This Letter This book focuses on the short u sound for the letter u: // rather than long u: /u/. Short vowel sounds are easy to confuse because they all sound similar, so encourage children to notice how the // sound feels in their mouth and their mouth position as they pronounce it so they can distinguish between the // and other short vowel sounds.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text gly, mbrella, Umberto, nder, p, pset, s

Decodable Words not, it, is, wet, ducks, deck, runs, rock, gets, up, on, top, cup, pot, mom, an, s

Sight Words that, a, he, and, for, of Story Words says, no, so

Target Words in Pictures mbrella, mpire, p (with long : nicorn)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: //. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the // sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: paper, p, cactus, mpire, nder.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital U. Read the title, Umberto and the Umbrella, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that U stands for the // sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital U and lowercase , using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with U, like Umberto. Note that other U names begin with the /u/ sound, like in Uriah

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the umbrella picture. Remind children that an umbrella is something we use to keep us dry in the rain.

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: Children may know that a duck is an animal. Point out the word ducks on p. 8, and explain that it means to “lower your head or body,” usually so you can go underneath something. Have children stand up and practice ducking under a table or under something else.

Multimodal Learning Feel and See Sounds: To help children distinguish between the // sound and the //, have them look in a mirror to watch their mouth movement as they say each sound. Have them notice how the different sounds feel.

• Have children say the word mbrella with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word mbrella, think of the // sound that stands for .

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7

First Read: Read Aloud

minutes)

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out why Umberto doesn’t want to use an umbrella.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why doesn’t Umberto want to use the umbrella? (He thinks it’s ugly.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Uu.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can put their hands up when they hear or see a U word. Stop to find words that begin with U.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the longer U word on the page. Read it with me. (mbrella) Now let’s read the shorter word together. (gly)

o p. 8: I see a word on this page that begins with a capital U. Point to it. Let’s read it. (Umberto)

o pp. 8–9: Look closely. I see the same U word on both pages! Point to it with me on each page. Let’s read it together. (under)

AFTER READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital U and lowercase  as they read. Invite volunteers to read U words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 8: Some words have  in the middle. Point to one on this page. (ducks) Read it with me.

o p. 11: Point to the word pset. There are two small words in it. Cover set. What word is left? (p)

o p. 12. I see another word with u in the middle. Point to it. (cup)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with U in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter U on their own. Turn to p. 156 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Umberto, p, mbrella, mpire, nder, gly

Onset-rime Practice breaking words with the middle // sound into spoken parts: sun:/s/-un, nut: /n/-ut, cup: /k/-up.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out the sounds: sun, hut, rug, cup, nut, mud, bun, cut.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Umberto) Why doesn’t Umberto like the umbrella (He thinks it’s gly.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Rain is the liquid form of water that falls from the sky in drops.

• Rain fills lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams. It provides the fresh water that humans, animals, and plants need to survive.

• Umbrellas can be used to keep dry on a rainy day, but they can also be used as protection from the sun.

• Umbrellas are one way to keep dry in the rain. Jackets with hoods, rain boots, and hats also protect people from rain.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Umberto does and what happens.

ELL Scaffold

Prepositions: Go over the prepositions on pp. 8–9 (under) and p. 10 (on). Then, go to pp. 12–13. Have children talk about what preposition (position word) they would use to describe Umberto, the cup, and the pot.

Multimodal Learning Partner Reading: Pair children up to read the book. Encourage them to help each other with unfamiliar words, using the back cover as a reminder of which to try to sound out.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Umberto does at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what Umberto does to stay dry at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: Why does Umberto keep getting wet in the story? (He doesn’t have an mbrella.)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: These pages show the first event in the story. What is it? (Umberto doesn’t want to use the mbrella his mom gives him.)

• pp. 6–7: What happens when Umberto is walking? (It starts raining.)

• pp. 8–9: What does Umberto do to try to stay dry? (He ducks nder a deck. He runs nder a rock.)

• pp. 12–13: What else does Umberto do to try to stay dry? (He puts a cup and a pot over his head.) Do you think the cup or the pot will work? (No. Those things are too small to keep the rain off Umberto.)

• pp. 14–15: How does Umberto finally stay dry? (He gets nder the mbrella with his mom.) Let’s cheer for Umberto. He solved his problem of getting wet on a rainy day. Yay!

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Umberto does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Say:

o In the beginning of the story, Umberto says no to his mom. Why? (He doesn’t want to use the mbrella. He thinks it’s gly.)

o In the middle of the story, it starts to rain. What are some of the ways that Umberto tries to stay dry? (He ducks nder a deck, he runs nder a rock, he ses a pot, and he ses a cup.)

o What does Umberto’s mom do at the end to help Umberto get out of the rain? (She shares the mbrella with him.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 157 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Umberto feels. Say:

o Umberto is not very nice to his mom at the beginning of the book. Let’s look at pp. 4–5. Can you show the face Umberto is making? In the middle of the book, Umberto gets very wet in the rain. Look at p. 11. How does he feel after being in the rain? (upset) Even though Umberto was not very nice to Mom at the beginning of the story, how does she show kindness to him on pp. 14–15? (She shares the umbrella with him.)

o Can you think of a time when you were not very nice to someone and that person was kind to you anyway? How did that make you feel?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about the feelings Umberto shows in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Umberto and the Umbrella found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with U, sounding out words that start with //, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Umberto and the Umbrella in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 46 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. In the middle, explain that children will be looking only for the letter U. On the bottom of the page, review what each pictures is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with //.

Go to p. 46 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter U, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. On the bottom, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the middle letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

loves his cp. Uh, oh! The cp is lost. an hnts for it.

p

n ts b d

o a u u u

u e i o u

u u u

Emerging Readers

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Umberto and the Umbrella, children learned about the events in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 47 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you see a picture of Umberto and three empty boxes. Draw three things Umberto uses in the story to stay dry. Use one box for each thing Umberto does. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about what Umberto does in the story.

Go to p. 47 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the events in the story. On this page, you will see a picture of Umberto and three boxes. Draw and write about three things Umberto uses to stay dry in the story. Use one box for each idea.

Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Umberto and the Umbrella U

Understandin the Story: Events

Umberto and the Umbrella U

What does Umberto do in the story? Draw three thins Umberto uses to try to stay dry.

Sample answer: drawin of a deck

Sample answers:

• Drawin of a deck

• Drawin of a cp

PM

A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Emerging_Text_6.17.21.indd 47 6/17/21 6:56

A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 47

Sample answer: drawin of a pot

9:53 AM

6/18/21

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Vv

Exemplar

Word vacuum

Letter Chant capital V, lowercase v, /v/, vacuum

About This Book This story is about Vic, who starts to clean up a mess with a vacuum. He doesn’t notice that Val is practicing her violin. When Vic turns on the vacuum, Val gets annoyed. Vic agrees to vacuum later. The book features Vv words.

About This Letter The sound /v/ is a continuous sound, which means it can be held continuously for several seconds. Continuous sounds are usually the easiest to learn. As children say the sound, encourage them to hold the same sound, rather than adding an “uh” to the end (e.g., /vvv/ vs /vuh/).

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Vic, vacuum, very, Val, violin, (with v blend: vroom)

Decodable Words mess, Vic, gets, is, Val, can

Sight Words a, the, he, you

Story Words what, loud, hey, sees, thank, now, play

Target Words in Pictures vacuum, vest, van, vase, violet (color), violets (flowers), vulture, vine

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /v/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /v/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: van, tub, vent, duck, valley Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version

• Have children find each capital V Read the title, Vic, Val, and the Vacuum, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that V stands for the /v/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital V and lowercase v, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with V, like Vic, Val, Veronica, and Vladimir. Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the vacuum picture. Remind children that you use a vacuum to clean a carpet or rug.

• Have children say the word vacuum with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word vacuum, think of the /v/ sound that stands for v.

ELL Scaffold

Pronunciation: Reinforce the /v/ sound by having students chant /v/ and then each target word: /v/ Vic; /v/ vacuum; /v/ very; /v/ vroom; /v/ Val.

Multimodal Learning

Use Word Cards: Make a set of cards with Vic, Val, vacuum, or violin on each card. Distribute one card to each child. Ask children with Vic cards to each find a classmate with a vacuum card. Ask children with Val cards to each find a classmate with a violin card. Then have partners take turns completing and saying aloud the correct sentence with their cards:

• ____ turns off the ___. (Vic; vacuum)

• ____ plays the ____. (Val; violin)

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7

First Read: Read Aloud

minutes)

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out why Val wants Vic to stop using the vacuum.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why does Val want Vic to stop using the vacuum? (She is playing the violin.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Vv.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can make a V shape using both hands when they hear or see a Vv word. Stop to find words that begin with Vv

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: One word on this page has a capital V and one has a lowercase v. Point to the words. Now, say them with me. (Vic, vacuum)

o p. 6: There is a long word on this page that begins with a lowercase v. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (vacuum)

o p. 15: I notice a word with a capital V on this page. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with pal. Read it with me. (Val)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital V and lowercase v as they read. Invite volunteers to read Vv words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: Point to the word vacuum. If we add an s to the end, what’s the new word? (vacuums)

o p. 12: A word on this page ends with -al and starts with a /v/ sound. What is it? (Val)

o p. 13: There’s a word on this page that sounds like sick, but it begins with a capital V. What is it? (Vic)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Vv in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Vv on their own. Turn to p. 162 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Vic, Val, vacuum, very, violin, vest, violet, vegetable

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: Vic: /v/-ic, Val: /v/-al, van:/v/ -an, vet: /v/-et.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: Vic: /v/ /ĭ/ /k/, Val: /v/ // /l/, van: /v/ // /n/, vet: /v/ // /t/. Have children stretch the sounds in each word and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE

Review

READING

(3–5 minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story about? (Vic and Val) What is Val doing in the story? (playing the violin)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Some sounds are soft, such as a whisper. Some sounds are loud, such as the noise a vacuum cleaner makes.

• A vacuum cleaner works by sucking up dust, dirt, and other things from a carpet or floor.

• A violin is a musical instrument that has strings you pluck or rub a bow against to make music. Other string instruments include the guitar, banjo, cello, and harp.

• Vic may be a nickname for Victor or Victorino. Val may be a nickname for Valerie or Valentina.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Vic and Val do and how they feel about it.

• Say: As we read, listen for what Val asks Vic to do.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main character is who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who is the main character in this story? (Vic) Explain that Val is another character in the story.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Audio: Compare a vacuum and a violin for how they look and sound. Play a video of someone using a vacuum, or if possible, bring in a real vacuum that children can use, as they practice saying the word vacuum. Play a video of someone playing a violin. Give children a chance to talk about how different each sounds.

Multimodal Learning

Use Props: Play a video of someone using a vacuum, or if possible, bring in a real one. At first, have children stand right next to you as you play the video or use the vacuum. Then have them back up as far as possible, then turn it off. Discuss how the sound went from very loud to less loud to silent. For children with hearing loss, do the same activity based on vibrations.

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the characters.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: Think about the words and pictures on these pages. Who makes a mess? (Vic) What does Vic get to clean up the mess? (a vacuum)

• pp. 6–7: The words on these pages tell us that the vacuum is loud. How loud is the vacuum? (very loud)

• p. 8: The vacuum makes a very loud noise. Let’s say it together with a very loud voice. (Vroom!)

• pp. 12–13: Think about the words and pictures. What is Val playing when Vic starts the vacuum? (a violin) Raise your hand if you think Val wants Vic to turn off the vacuum. Stomp your feet if you think she does not.

• pp. 14–15: The words and pictures on these pages tell us that Vic turns off the vacuum to be nice to Val. Yay! Cheer with me. What can Val do now? (play the violin)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and what Vic and Val do. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Why does Vic start using a vacuum? (to clean up his mess)

o What does Val want? (She wants Vic to turn off the vacuum.) Why? (The vacuum is loud. She is playing her violin.)

o Does Vic turn off the vacuum? (Yes.)

o Is Val happy at the end of the story? (Yes.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the characters in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 163 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Cooperation. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Vic and Val feel. Say:

o Val was playing her violin, but then Vic starts to vacuum the floor. The noise bothers Val. Why is Val bothered by the noise? (She can’t hear herself playing.)

o Vic cooperates with Val by turning off the vacuum so that Val can play her violin without all the noise from the vacuum. Can you think of a time that you needed to stop doing something you were doing because it was bothering someone else? How did you cooperate?

• Use the Cooperation graphic organizer on p. 199 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Vic showed cooperation in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Vic, Val, and the Vacuum found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Vv, sounding out words that start with /v/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Vic, Val, and the Vacuum in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 48 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. For the middle activity, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital V and lowercase v. They should circle each one. On the bottom, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /v/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 48 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Vv. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, identify the pictures before children say the words to hear the beginning letter sound. They will write a letter to complete each word. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

a a a aV V

Vish and Val et in the van. They move very fast! Vish and Val leave.

the

v v v v v l t r b

a ase an og op ug at Sample answers: drawing of two thins sch as a video, vest, volcano, violin, vitamin

The first one is done A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 48 6/18/21 9:53 AM Vv

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Vic, Val, and the Vacuum, children learned about the characters in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide children to fold a paper in half. On each half, have them draw a character.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 49 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the characters in the story and their feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Val’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she has in the story. Draw a picture to show a time when Val shows each feeling. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the character in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 49 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the characters in the story and their feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Val’s face. Each one shows a different feeling she has in the story. Draw and write about a time when Val shows each feeling. Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Characters

Understandin the Story: Characters

Sample answer: drawin of Val holdin a violin. t may also show Vic vacmin and Val lookin mad.

Sample answer: drawin of Val holdin her violin and Vic vacmin

The vacuum is loud.

Sample answer: drawin of Val playin violin by herself

Sample answer: drawin of Val playin her violin. t may also show Vic holdin the vacm.

The vacuum stops.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Ww

Exemplar Word watermelon

Letter Chant capital W, lowercase w, /w/, watermelon

About This Book This story is about Wes, who wants to win a watermelon in a race. But during the race, he stops to help Wendy. Wes helps Wendy and still tries to win the race. Words that begin with Ww fill Wes’s world.

About This Letter When you say the name of the letter Ww, you hear the /d/ sound instead of /w/ sound. The letter name also includes the name of the letter Uu within it. As a result, identifying the name and sound of Ww tends to be more difficult than other letters. Consider additional instructional time and continued review of Ww

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Wes, wants, win, what, will, watermelon, watch, Wendy, wet Decodable Words Wes, win, will, get, wet, yes

Sight Words to, he, a, and, they, the Target Words in Pictures watermelon, wheel, woodchuck, wagon, wave, wood, woods

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /w/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /w/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: computer, worm, window, heart, water

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital W Read the title, Wes and the Watermelon, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that W stands for the /w/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital W and lowercase w, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with W, like Wes. Note that some W names begin with the /w/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /r/ in Wren.

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the watermelon picture. Remind children that a watermelon is a large fruit.

ELL Scaffold

Pronunciation: Post pairs of Vv and Ww words (e.g., vet/wet; vent/went; vest/west; vow/wow), and have children repeat each pair after you. Correct pronunciation and model mouth movement as needed.

Multimodal Learning

Identify Characters: To help children hear the difference between the character names, Wes and Wendy, point out that Wes has a short name, and Wendy has a longer name. Guide children to clap once as they say Wes and twice for Wendy. Then point to pictures of each character on different pages of the book, and invite children to call out Wes or Wendy.

• Have children say the word watermelon with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word watermelon, think of the /w/ sound that stands for w

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out if Wes wins the watermelon.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Who wins the watermelon? (Wes and Wendy)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Ww.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can hold up three fingers to make a W shape with their left hand when they hear or see a Ww word. Stop to find words that begin with Ww

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Find three Ww words on this page. Two have a lowercase w and one has a capital W. Say them with me. (Wes, wants, win)

o p. 6: A long word on this page begins with a lowercase w Can you point to it? Let’s read it together. (watermelon) Let’s clap out the syllables. (wa/ter/mel/on)

o p. 15: I see a long w word and a short w word. Point to the short word. Say it with me. (win)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital W and lowercase W as they read. Invite volunteers to read Ww words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There’s a word on this page that looks like and sounds like fin, but it begins with w. What is it? (win)

o p. 6: The word watermelon is a compound word. What two smaller words are in it? (water, melon)

o p. 14: There are two names that start with a capital W on this page. What are they? (Wes, Wendy) What middle sound do they both have? (//)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Ww in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Ww on their own. Turn to p. 168 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Wes, win, wagon, will, watermelon, watch, Wendy, waterfall

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: win: /w/-in, will: /w/-ill, wet: /w/-et.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: wet, wig, win, wit, wag, wax, web, wok.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE

Review

READING

(3–5 minutes)

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Wes) What does Wes want to win? (the watermelon)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Wes and Wendy are in a race with other people. In a race, the first person to cross the finish line wins the race. Some races are on foot, others are in boats, on horseback, or in cars.

• Wes and Wendy use boats called canoes for the race. Canoes are often used for fun on a river or lake. A canoe is pointed in the front and the back. People in a canoe hold paddles and put them into the water to row and move it in different directions.

• Wes may be a nickname for Wesley. Wendy is a name that became popular after Peter Pan was written.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Wes and Wendy race and what happens during the race.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Show a photograph of a watermelon, or if possible, bring in a real watermelon that children can touch and taste, as they practice saying the word watermelon.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Have children examine p. 12, and then have children try acting it out. Have partners take turns helping each other get up from the ground by reaching out a hand. As they help, have them use this frame, completing it with their partner’s name: I will help ____.

• Say: As we read, look at the pictures for where the story takes place and listen for what Wes does there.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when a story takes place. Ask: Where does this story take place? (on a river, near the woods)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: This picture shows us the setting. Where does the race take place? (on the river, near the woods)

• pp. 6–7: What is the size of the watermelon Wes will win? Show me with your hands. Now, explain with words. (Possible answers: big, huge, gigantic, large)

• p. 10: How did Wes and Wendy get wet? (the big wave from the other boy in the race)

• Do you think Wes will help Wendy? Put your thumb up if you think he will. Put your thumb down if you think he won’t so that he can keep racing.

• p. 12: Why does this page say “Yes!”? (Wes will help Wendy.) How does Wes help Wendy? (Wes pulls Wendy from the water and into his boat.)

• pp. 14–15: In the picture, Wendy and some other people are happy and cheering. We can cheer, too. Let me hear your best cheer. Why are the other characters cheering? (Wes and Wendy win the race and the watermelon.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the setting in the story and what Wes and Wendy do there. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where do Wes and Wendy race? (on a river)

o Does the race take place inside or outside? (outside)

o What clues tell us that the river is in the countryside and does not run through a city? (There are no buildings. There are a lot of trees. There is a lot of grass. There are no sidewalks.)

o Does the setting change, or is it the same throughout the story? (It is the same.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 169 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Cooperation. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Wes feels. Say:

o On p. 8, we see Wes smiling and rowing hard to win. Now let’s turn to p. 11. Look at Wes’s face. How do his feelings change? (He isn’t smiling now. He looks caring and concerned.)

On p. 13, what do you notice? (Wes and Wendy are both working hard to row.) Last, let’s go to pp. 14–15. How does cooperation help Wes win the race? (He cooperated, or worked together, with Wendy to row quickly.)

o Can you think of a time when cooperating with someone else was a good memory?

• Use the Cooperation graphic organizer on p. 199 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Wes shows cooperation in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Wes and the Watermelon found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Ww, sounding out words that start with /w/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Wes and the Watermelon in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Ww, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /w/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 50 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Ww. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, explain that children will try to read some words and then look for the letter Ww. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

name

Wyatt ets two points. He ets a few more. Wyatt wins a toy owl!

a a aW W a

Read

Say the letter name and the sond it stands for. Then, trace and write capital W and lowercase w Wes and the Watermelon Practice the Letter Ww Ww Think of two thins that start with the same beinnin sond as watermelon. Draw them. watermelon w w w w a

Sample answers: drawing of two things such as a walrs, wipes, water, window w w w

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Wes and the Watermelon, children learned about the setting of the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Talk about where and when the story takes place. Have children draw the setting.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 51 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Wes and the Watermelon. Then you will draw a place from the story. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 51 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see pictures of three different places. You’re going to circle the picture that shows the setting of Wes and the Watermelon. Then you will write and draw a place from the story. Check that children understand that they will draw in the box and write on the double lines.

Wes and the Watermelon

Understandin the Story: Settin Draw a place from the story.

Wes and the Watermelon

Sample answer: drawin of a river. t may show people paddlin in the river. t may also show a rassy area with trees where Wes, Wendy, and other people are standin.

Understandin the Story: Settin Where is Wes in the story? Write abot the place and draw a pictre.

Sample answer: drawin of Wes in a canoe in a river. t may also show Wendy, other racers, and the race banner. Wes is in a canoe in the river.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Xx

Exemplar

Word x-ray

Letter Chant capital X, lowercase x, /ks/, x-ray

About This Book This story is about Xavier, who is a baseball player. Words with the letter Xx tell about Xavier playing baseball and getting an x-ray. About This Letter This book focuses on the /ks/ sound for Xx rather than /z/. The /ks/ sound usually comes in the middle or end of words. So, unlike most of the other books, this one includes target words with the Xx at the end of the word, as well as the exemplar word and the character’s name with Xx at the beginning.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text Xavier, x-ray, (with final x: box, six, fix)

Decodable Words is, at, bat, in, box, it, six, will, get, hit, yes, runs, his, leg, gets, an, has, fix, him, up

Sight Words he, the, to, a

Story Words slides, five, broken, bone, cast, team, here, better, soon

Target Words in Pictures x-ray, (with final x: box, six, fox)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /ks/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /ks/ sound at the end of the word, put your thumb up: fox, car, six, box, gum.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital X. Read the title, Xavier Gets an X-ray, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that X stands for the /ks/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital X and lowercase x, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with X, like Xavier. Note that some X names can also begin with the /z/ sound like Xena or Xander

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the x-ray picture. Explain that an x-ray can be a picture of the bones in your body.

ELL Scaffold

Visual Aids: Show some images or a video of a person with a cast on. You may want to show both arm and leg casts. For a leg or foot cast, also show crutches, so children can better understand the purpose of a cast and the meaning of the word.

Multimodal Learning

Look at the Letters: Because most words that include the /ks/ sound have an x in the middle or end of the word, encourage children to look and listen to every part of the words in the book so they can find the letter Xx or the /ks/ sound. When they find a word with Xx, ask them to say the word aloud and then say if the x is at the beginning or end.

• Have children say the word x-ray with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word x-ray, think of the /ks/ sound that stands for x.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out why Xavier has to get an x-ray.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why does Xavier get an x-ray? (He hurts his leg when he slides during his baseball game.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Xx.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can give a thumbs up when they hear or see an Xx word. Stop to find words that begin with Xx

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: I see a word with an x at the end. Point to it with me. Let’s read it. (box)

o p. 6: I see another word with an x at the end. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (six)

o p. 10: I see two words that begin with Xx on this page. Point to the word that begins with capital X. Let’s read it together. (Xavier) Point to the word that begins with lowercase x. Let’s read it together. (x-ray)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital X and lowercase x as they read. Invite volunteers to read Xx words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: There is a word on this page that ends with x. Point to it. Read it with me. (box) If we take away the b and put an f, what’s the new word? (fox)

o p. 12: There is a word on this page that ends with x. Point to it. Read it with me. (fix) If we take away the f and put an s, what’s the new word? (six) If we take away the s and put an m, what’s the new word? (mix)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Xx in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Xx on their own. Turn to p. 174 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Xavier, x-ray, box, six, beeswax, sandbox.

Onset-Rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: box: /b/-ox, six: /s/-ix, wax: /w/-ax.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: box: /b/ // /ks/, six: /s/ /ĭ/ /ks/, wax: /w/ // /ks/.

Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and setting in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Xavier) Why does Xavier get an x-ray? (He hurts his leg during his baseball game.)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• Baseball is a sport played by two teams with nine players each.

• The pitcher on one team throws a baseball, and the batter on the other team tries to hit it with a bat, run to first base, and move around the bases as teammates hit. The team in the field tries to catch or grab the ball to get the other team out. After three outs, the teams switch sides. Crossing home plate means a run. The team with the most runs wins.

• Many people in North America, South America, and Asia play and watch baseball.

• X-rays can go through many solid materials. A doctor takes x-rays to see bones and other things inside the body.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Multiple-Meaning Words: On p. 5, Xavier is “in the box.” Show children the white square in the illustration, explaining that a batter’s box is where a batter stands to hit. Discuss the similarities and differences between a batter’s box and a box that holds things.

Multimodal Learning Act It Out: Guide children to act out the key events in the story. For example, they can pretend to swing a bat, hit, and run to model the first event in the story. Encourage them to use words or descriptions from the illustrations to explain their actions.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about where Xavier is and what happens there.

• Say: As we read, listen for where Xavier is, what he sees, and why he gets an x-ray.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the setting is where and when the story takes place.

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the setting.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: Where is Xavier in this picture? (in the batter’s box, at a baseball field, outside)

• p. 9: How do we know that Xavier is hurt? (His face looks like he has pain; there is red around his leg showing where he is hurt.)

• pp. 10–11: Where is Xavier in this picture? How do you know? (in a doctor’s office or hospital; There is a doctor, an x-ray, and he’s wearing a hospital gown.)

• p. 12: What does the doctor put on his leg to fix him up? (a cast)

• p. 13: Yay! Xavier looks happier now. The cast will help his leg heal. What would you say to Xavier to make him feel better? (possible answers: Sorry you got hurt; You’ll be back to baseball soon; I can help carry things for you)

• pp. 14–15: Where is Xavier in this picture? How do you know? (at home; He’s sitting on a couch, there’s a rug, and everyone has their shoes off in what looks like a living room.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING

(3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the different settings in the story and what Xavier does in each of the places. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Where is Xavier when he hurts his leg? (on the baseball field)

o Where does Xavier go to get an x-ray? (the hospital or doctor’s office)

o Where does Xavier go after he gets his cast? (home)

o Who visits Xavier at home? (his team)

• Now that you’ve talked about the setting for the book, have children practice recalling where the story takes place on their own. Turn to p. 175 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness with children. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Xavier feels. Say:

o Let’s look at p. 10. How does Xavier feel as he looks at the x-ray? (scared, worried) On pp. 11–13, who helps Xavier and fixes him up? (the doctor) When Xavier gets home after he gets his cast, how do his teammates show him kindness? (They visit him; they sign his cast; they sign the baseball.)

o Can you think of a time when you got hurt and somebody was kind and helped you?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Xavier solves his problem in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Xavier Gets an X-ray found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Xx, sounding out words that start with /ks/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Xavier Gets an X-ray in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Xx, writing the letter, and identifying words that have the /ks/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 52 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. For the middle activity, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital X and lowercase x. They should circle each one. On the bottom, review what each pictures is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that end with /ks/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 52 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Xx, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, identify each picture before children say each word on their own to listen for the ending letter sound. For the bottom activity, encourage children to use friends’ names and familiar objects. They should do their best to spell each word.

Ximena has six boxes. Two boxes won’t open. ax will fix them.

fixes one box.

fixes the next box. Six boxes will open now.

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Xavier Gets an X-ray, children learned about the setting in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Talk about where and when the story takes place. Have children draw one place in the story.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 53 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see a picture of Xavier and three empty boxes. Draw three places where Xavier is in the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in a way that makes sense for them, as long as it’s about the setting of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 53 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Say: We talked about the setting of the story. On this page, you see a picture of Xavier and three boxes. Draw and write about three places where Xavier is in the story. Use one box for each idea. Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Sample answer: drawing of a baseball field

Sample answers:

• Drawing of a baseball field

• Drawing of a doctor's office or hospital

• Drawing of a home, which may include a sofa in a living room

Sample answer: drawing of a doctor’s office or hospital

baseball field

Sample answer: drawing of a home, which may include a sofa in a living room

home doctor’s office

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase y Exemplar Word yo-yo Letter Chant capital , lowercase y, /y/, yo-yo

About This Book This story is about Yolanda, who has a yellow yo-yo. Many words that begin with y tell how Yolanda plays with her yo-yo and shares it with Yaz.

About This Letter The name of the letter y begins with the /w/ sound instead of the /y/ sound. It also includes the name of the letter i within it. For both these reasons, identifying the name and sound of y tends to be more difficult than other letters, so consider additional instructional time and continued review of y

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text olanda, yo-yo, az, yak, yes, yells Decodable Words has, az, yak, will, yes, back, not, yells, runs

Sight Words a, they, the Story Words cool, take, turns, now, trade, nice, sorry, be

Target Words in Pictures yo-yo, yellow, yarn, yard, yucca

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /y/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /y/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: yak, table, yellow, box, yesterday.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital . Read the title, olanda and the o-o, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that  stands for the /y/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital  and lowercase y, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with , like olanda. Note that y stands for the /e/ sound at the end of some names, like Henry or Riley

Set the Purpose

• Go to p. 3. Point to the yo-yo picture. Tell children that a yo-yo is a toy with a string attached to it.

• Have children say the word yo-yo with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word yo-yo, think of the /y/ sound that stands for y.

ELL Scaffold

Idioms: On p. 7, the book asks if Yolanda and Yaz will “take turns.” Explain the meaning: when two or more people alternate as they do something. Demonstrate by handing different toys to two children. Ask them to take turns. Guide them to trade the objects with each other, and say, “Let’s take turns.” Ask children for examples of taking turns with their siblings and friends.

Multimodal Learning Express Opinions: Ask children to raise their hand to show whether they would prefer to play with the yo-yo or the yak puppet. Pose more possibilities of toys and games that children can choose from. See if you and the children can think of any that begin with y like yo-yo and yak

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening. Say: Listen to find out what olanda does with her yo-yo.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: What does olanda do with her yo-yo? (She shares it with Yaz.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter y.

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet when they hear or see a y word. Stop to find words that begin with y.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: I see a word with y at the beginning and in the middle. Point to it with me. Let’s read it together. (yo-yo)

o p. 5: I see two y words. Point to the word with the capital . Read it with me. (Yaz) Point to the word with the lowercase y. Read it with me. (yak)

o p. 9: I see a long word that begins with a capital . Point to it. Let’s read it. (Yolanda)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital  and lowercase y as they read. Invite volunteers to read y words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 5: Let’s read the two y words. (Yaz, yak) What is the same about them? (Both have y and a at the beginning.) What is different? (Yak ends with k and az ends with z.)

o p. 8: Point to the word yo-yo. If we add s to the end, what’s the new word? (yo-yos) o p. 12: Point to the word yells. If we take away the s, what’s the new word? (yell)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with y in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter y on their own. Turn to p. 180 to prepare children for using the practice book.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: yellow, yo-yo, olanda, az, yak, yucca, yesterday

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: yak: /y/-ak, yam: /y/am, az: /Y/-az.

Developing Readers

Decoding Write these words, one at a time, on a whiteboard or paper. Ask children to read each word by looking at each letter and saying the sound it stands for, encouraging them to tap out sounds: az, yak, yam, yes, yaks, yams.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Yolanda) What does she do with her yo-yo? (shares with Yaz)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story is set in a country with a warm climate where people speak Spanish, such as Mexico.

• Mexico is a country in North America, located south of the United States. Mexico has the largest number of Spanishspeaking people in the world.

• A yo-yo falls and then rises back up to the hand by unwinding and rewinding the string.

• Yo-yos have been around for a long time! The first known yo-yo was used in Greece over 2000 years ago. It was made of terra-cotta, which is a kind of clay.

• Yo-yos today can be made of plastic, wood, or metal.

• Yaz may be a nickname for Yazmin.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold

Visual Aids: Show students a video of person doing yo-yo tricks. You may also want to bring in a real yo-yo to demonstrate and invite children to try. Encourage children to talk about how the yo-yo works.

Multimodal Learning

Choral Reading: Read aloud the story, having children chorally read behind you after each page. Be sure to read with expression and gestures to act out the action. Encourage children to mimic your expression and gestures.

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what Yolanda does and what happens.

• Say: As we read, listen for what olanda does with her yo-yo at the beginning of the story, what happens in the middle of the story, and what happens with the yo-yo at the end of the story.

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that an event is something that happens in a story. Ask: Who does olanda share her yo-yo with? (Yaz)

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about events.

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: The words and picture on these pages tell us about the first event. What is it? (Yaz and Yolanda look at each other’s toys.)

• pp. 5–6: What kind of toy do they each have? (Yolanda has a yo-yo and Yaz has a yak.)

• pp. 8–9: Do they take turns with the toys? (Yes.)

• p. 12: olanda wants to trade back the toys. Does az want to give back the yo-yo? (No.) Show me what az is doing with the yo-yo and the face she is making. (holding the yo-yo close, making a mad face)

• p. 14: Where does az run? (under the table)

• p. 14: How does olanda get az to give her back the yo-yo? (She tells her to be nice.)

Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the events in the story and what Yolanda does. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o In the beginning of the story, olanda and az see each other’s toys? What do they do? (They trade or share their toys.)

o In the middle of the story, does az want to trade back their toys? (No.)

o Do olanda and az get along at the end of the story? How do you know? (Yes, they are hugging.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the events, have children practice recalling the beginning, middle, and end of the story on their own. Turn to p. 181 to prepare children for using the practice book.

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Cooperation. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Yolanda and Yaz feel. Say:

o At the beginning of the story, az and olanda cooperate, or work together, by trading their toys. When olanda is ready to trade back, does az cooperate? (No.) What does she do to show that she is not cooperating? (She doesn’t want to trade; she runs away and hides under a table.) olanda keeps trying. What does she do to remind az about cooperation? (She goes to her and says, “be nice.”)

o Can you think of a time when someone wasn’t cooperating, or sharing, with you? What did you do to help your family member or friend cooperate?

• Use the Cooperation graphic organizer on p. 199 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Yolanda shows cooperation. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of olanda and the o-o found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with y, sounding out words that start with /y/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread olanda and the o-o in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter y, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /y/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 54 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start on the dot. For the middle activity, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital  and lowercase y. They should circle each one. On the bottom, review what each pictures is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /y/.

Go to p. 54 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter y, following your modeling. Remind them to start on the dot. For the middle activity, explain that children will try to read some words and then look for the letter y. For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

t is a snny day. Emmy wants to play! azmin is bsy.

first

Say the letter name and the sond it stands for. Then, trace

as mch as yo can. Then,

Cy says yes. Cy ets a lot.

write capital 

start yo-yo

sond as yo-yo

y y y y

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Early Emerging Readers

Draw the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Have children sequence the pictures.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 55 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you’re going to look at pictures that show something that happens in the beginning and middle. You will add your own ideas about what happens at the end of the story.

Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the end of the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 55 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. On this page, you see a picture of an event from the middle and a sentence describing it. For the beginning and end of the story, your job is to remember events and share them.

Check that children understand that they will draw in each box and write on the double lines for events at the beginning and end of the story.

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For olanda and the o-o, children learned about what happened at the beginning, middle, and end of the story. olanda and the o-o

Understandin the Story: Events

Beinnin End

iddle

y Think abot what happens in the story. Look at the pictres that show events at the beinnin and middle. Draw what happens at the end of the story.

Sample answer: drawin of olanda and az hing. t may also show olanda holdin a yo-yo.

Understanding the Story: Events Think about what happens in the story. The middle of the story is filled in. Now, draw and write about what happens in the beinnin and end.

Beinnin

Sample answer: drawin of olanda with a yo-yo and az with a yak. It may also inclde happy faces on olanda and az.

Yaz and Yolanda

have toys.

Sample answer: drawin of olanda and az hing. It may also show olanda holdin her yo-yo.

Yaz does not trade back.

Yaz is sorry.

Letter Learning

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the name, sound, and form of capital and lowercase Zz

Exemplar

Word zipper

Letter Chant capital Z, lowercase z, /z/, zipper

About This Book This story is about Zack, who can’t zip up his zipper. When Zula sees that Zack is having a problem, she stops playing to help him. Zack and Zula are just two of the Zz words in this story.

About This Letter The formation of capital and lowercase Zz can be confused with capital and lowercase Ss, so consider providing extra practice with letter formation. Since there are relatively few letters in English that begin with Zz, this lesson also includes words that have the /z/ sound in the middle and end.

WORDS TO WATCH

Target Words in the Text zipper, Zack, zip, zig, zag, Zula, (final z: freeze) Decodable Words bad, Zack, tugs, it, will, not, zip, is, mad, sits, kids, zig, zag, runs, in, has, hugs, tags

Sight Words and, the Story Words fixed

Target Words in Pictures zipper, zoo, zebra (middle z: dozen)

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Warm Up with Phonemic Awareness

• Say the sound: /z/. Ask children to say it with you.

• Do a quick activity to have children listen for beginning sounds.

• Say: If you hear the /z/ sound at the beginning of the word, put your thumb up: zero, jar, zombie, cactus, zucchini.

Introduce the Letter Name and Form the Letter

• Show the book cover, in print or the digital version .

• Have children find each capital Z. Read the title, Zack and His Zipper, and repeat the beginning sounds to model that Z stands for the /z/ sound.

• Read aloud the introduction. Trace capital Z and lowercase z, using formation language as you model. Children can air trace or finger trace in their own books.

• Talk about names that start with Z, like Zack and Zula. Note that some Z names begin with the /z/ sound, while others begin with another sound, like /j/ in Zhong, which is of Chinese origin, and like /sh/ in Zhalay, which is of Persian origin.

Set the Purpose

ELL Scaffold Letter Differentiation: Show p. 10. Point to the s in kids Ask: Is this a z? (No.) Let’s say the word kids. Does it sound like /z/? (Yes.) Point to the z in zig. Ask: Is this a z? (Yes.) Let’s say the word zig Does it sound like /z/? (Yes.) Repeat with zag, zipper, hugs, and tags

Multimodal Learning Say and Count: Draw attention to z, /z/, in the middle of a word. Point to the egg carton on p. 6. Say: This holds a dozen eggs. Have children repeat after you. Then have them count buttons, marbles, or other objects to 12, using an empty egg carton.

• Go to p. 3. Point to the zipper picture. Remind children that a zipper is something we can have on our clothing to make things easy to close and open or put on and take off.

• Have children say the word zipper with you. Say: Whenever you hear the word zipper, think of the /z/ sound that stands for z.

• Tell children that you are going to read the book two times. The first time, children will listen to the story. The second time, children will go back to each page for letter learning.

Letter Learning

DURING READING (5–7 minutes)

First Read: Read Aloud

• Set children up for listening: Say: Listen to find out why Zack is inside during recess.

• Read the story all the way through, pausing only to show the pictures on each page.

• Ask: Why is Zack inside during recess? (His zipper is stuck.)

Second Read: Read Along

• Set children up to interact with each page as you reread the book.

• Say: This time, listen and look for words that begin with the letter Zz

Emerging Readers

• Have children listen and follow as you read.

• Children can stomp their feet every time they hear or see a Zz word. Stop to find words that begin with Zz.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: There is a long word on this page that begins with lowercase z. Can you point to it with me? Let’s read it together. (zipper)

o p. 6: I notice a word that begins with a lowercase z. Can you point to it? This word rhymes with lip. Read it with me. (zip)

o p. 14: I see two words that begin with a capital Z. Can you point to them with me? Let’s read them together. (Zack, Zula)

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Alphabet

Developing Readers

• Encourage children to read as much of the story as they can on their own.

• Children can search for words that begin with capital Z and lowercase z as they read. Invite volunteers to read Zz words they know.

• Use these prompts as models. Say:

o p. 4: Point to the word zipper on this page. Cover up the last three letters. What word do you see now? (zip)

o p. 8: I notice a word on this page with a z toward the end of the word. Can you point to it? Let’s read it together. (freeze)

o p. 10: I see two words that look the same but have a different vowel in the middle. What are they? (zig, zag)

• Review the Letter Learning questions on p. 16 of the student book. Invite children to answer them.

• Lead a discussion about all the words that start with Zz in the story and pictures. Encourage children to use complete sentences as they speak.

• Now that you’ve talked about letters in the book, have children practice recognizing, saying, and writing letter Zz on their own. Turn to p. 186 to prepare children for using the practice book

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS AND PHONICS

Emerging Readers

Syllables Have children clap the syllables in these words: Zack, Zula, zip, zipper, zig, zag, zoo, zebra, zookeeper.

Onset-rime Practice breaking words into spoken parts: zip: /z/-ip, zig: /z/-ig, zag: /z/-ag.

Developing Readers

Phoneme Segmenting and Blending Guide children to tap out each sound as they say these words: zip: /z/ /ĭ/ /p/, zig: /z/ /ĭ/ /g/, zag: /z/ // /g/. Have children stretch the sounds in each of those words and blend them together.

Meaning Making

BACKGROUND

Objective Identify the characters and major events in a story.

BEFORE READING (3–5 minutes)

Review

Ask children to recall the gist. Ask: Who is this story mostly about? (Zack) What gets stuck? (Zack’s zipper)

Build Knowledge

Share these facts to help children understand the story.

• The story is set during school recess. During recess, children often go outside to play, even when it’s cold and snowy outside.

• The story is set during the winter. It is snowing, which means a winter jacket should be worn to stay warm.

• Zack’s zipper gets stuck in the story. A zipper has “teeth” on each side. As you pull up on the slider, the teeth on each side lock with each other. If the two sides are not lined up properly, you cannot pull the slider up.

• Zack (also spelled Zach, Zak, and Zac) may be a nickname for Zachary or Zachariah.

Set the Purpose

• Explain that you will read aloud and stop to talk about what happens to Zack and how he feels about it.

• Say: As we read, listen for why Zack cannot go outside. Look for clues in the pictures that tell how he feels.

ELL Scaffold

Visual and Sensory: Demonstrate zipping up a jacket or another item that has a zipper. Have children take turns zipping the zipper as they practice saying the word zipper. Monitor closely to help children avoid pinched fingers in the zipper. For language practice, have children say: zip, unzip

Multimodal Learning

Get Up and Move: Have children look at the lines in the picture for zig and zag on p. 10. Use tape or chalk to mark zigzags on the floor. Then have children zig and zag around as they say the words. After, talk about how much fun moving around like that is. Ask: Why do you think Zack feels sad when he sees other kids zigging and zagging? (They are having fun, and he isn’t.)

• Talk about story elements: characters, setting, and events. Review that the main character is who the story is mostly about. Ask: Who is the main character in this story? (Zack) Explain that Zula is another character in the story.

• Tell children that as you read the story again together, they should think about the characters.

DURING

READING

(5–7 minutes)

Read Aloud Invite children to interact with the words and pictures. Use these prompts as models. Say:

• pp. 4–5: Think about the words and pictures. What is hard for Zack to do? (He can’t zip his zipper.)

• p. 7: Zack keeps trying to zip his zipper but it just won’t zip. How does this make him feel? (mad)

• p. 8: Why doesn’t Zack just go outside with his coat unzipped? (He would freeze because it’s snowing outside.)

• p. 9: Look at the picture. How does Zack feel? (sad) Why does Zack feel sad? (He can’t go outside and have fun.)

• pp. 12–13: The words and picture tell us that Zula zips the zipper. How does Zack feel now? (happy) How do you know? (He is smiling.)

• p. 15: Think about how the story ends. Where is Zack? (He is outside.) Does he get to run around with the other kids? (Yes.) Why does he get to go outside and run around with the other kids? (Zula fixed his zipper.)

Zz Meaning Making

AFTER READING (3–5 minutes)

Oral Language: Review Story Elements

• Talk about the characters in the story and how Zula helps Zack. Encourage children to use words from the book. Ask:

o Why does Zack want to go outside? (He wants to play with the other kids.)

o Why can’t he go outside? (His zipper gets stuck.)

o Why does Zula go inside? (She sees Zack. She wants to help him.)

o Does Zula fix Zack’s zipper? (Yes.)

o Is Zack happy at the end of the story? (Yes.)

• Now that you’ve talked about the characters in the book, have children practice recalling the characters on their own. Turn to p. 187 to prepare children for using the practice book

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING

• Review the habit of Kindness. See p. 23 in this teacher’s guide for the definition.

• Discuss the Figuring Out Feelings questions in the back of the student book. Encourage children to use their facial expressions to show how Zack feels. Say:

o On p. 11, Zula notices Zack sitting inside. Why do you think she goes in? (She realizes that Zack isn’t playing and may be lonely.) How does Zula show kindness to Zack? (She stops playing and goes inside to help him with his zipper.) How does Zula’s kindness change Zack’s day? (He is able to play outside and have fun.)

o Can you think of a time when you stopped what you were doing to show kindness to someone else? What did you do?

• Use the Kindness graphic organizer on p. 200 in this teacher’s guide to write or draw about how Zula shows kindness in the story. Children can use the back of the page to write or draw about their own experiences.

There’s More . . . Digital Learning!

• Use the digital version of Zack and His Zipper found in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool to model tracking print, finding words with Zz, sounding out words that start with /z/, and identifying words children know.

• Invite children to reread Zack and His Zipper in the A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Student App on their own or with a friend or family member. The app also extends both meaning making and letter learning skills in a variety of activities.

Letter Learning Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward the following skills: identifying the name of the letter Zz, writing the letter, and identifying words that begin with the /z/ sound.

Early Emerging Readers

Go to page 22 in this teacher’s guide to find hands-on practice opportunities for early emerging readers.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 56 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. At the top of the page, model forming the first capital and lowercase letter. Tell children to start at the dot. In the middle, remind children to move from left to right as they search for capital Z and lowercase z. They should circle each one. On the bottom of the page, review what each picture is before children say the word for each picture on their own and circle only those that start with /z/.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 56 in the Practice for Developing Readers book. Point to each activity on the page, providing brief instructions to get children started. Have children write the letter Zz. Remind them to start at the dot. For the middle activity, explain that children will try to read some words and then look for the letter Zz For the bottom activity, explain that children should add words or a sentence to label their pictures, as best they can.

a a z z a Z z

A trip to the zoo! Lizzy sees a zebra. Zoe sees it, too.

Zoe hears bzzin. Lizzy sees a bee! Zoe and Lizzy rn!

a

Liz and Zoe et to the zoo! They look at a zebra.

Say the letter name and the sond it stands for. Then, trace and write capital Z and lowercase z Zack and His Zipper Practice the Letter Zz Zz Think of two thins that start with the same beinnin sond as zipper. Draw them. zipper z z z z

Sample answers: drawin of two thins sch as a zero, zipper, zoo, ziza A-Z_StudentPracticeBook_Developing_Text_6.17.21.indd 56 6/18/21 9:53 AM

Meaning Making Practice

Formative Assessment

Provide practice activities as one way to monitor progress toward understanding story elements. For Zack and His Zipper, children learned about the character in the story.

Early Emerging Readers

Guide children to fold a paper in half. On each half, have them draw a character.

Emerging Readers

Go to p. 57 in the Practice for Emerging Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and his feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Zacks’s face. Each one shows a different feeling he had in the story. Draw a picture to show a time when Zack showed each feeling. Remind children that they can draw whatever they like in whatever way it makes sense, as long as it’s about the character in the story.

Developing Readers

Go to p. 57 in the Practice for Developing Readers book.

Say: We talked about the character in the story and his feelings. On this page, you see two pictures of Zack’s face. Each one shows a different feeling he had in the story. Draw and write about a time when Zack showed each feeling.

Check that children understand that they will draw in the boxes and write on the double lines.

Understandin the Story: Characters

Understandin the Story: Characters

Sample answer: drawin of Zack tryin to zip his acket, sittin inside, or lookin ot a window.

Sample answer: drawin of Zack tryin to zip his acket. t may also show him lookin at the window and other children playin.

Sample answer: drawin of Zack ettin help from Zla, hin Zla, or playin otside.

Sample answer: drawin of Zack with his acket zipped p. t may show him smilin and hin Zla. t may also show him otside playin with other children.

Zack can not zip his coat.

Zack plays outside.

Appendix: Answer Keys

Key to Letter Check and Cumulative Review: Practice for Emerging Readers

students’ progress as they learn the alphabet. Then use the Letter Review page after you’ve taught the full alphabet. On each page, review all the pictures. Then, have children work on their own to circle the letter that stands for the beginning sound. Observe how automatic it is for each child to identify the letters.

Letter Check 1, Part A (p. 58)

1. apple 2. rake 3. nest 4. piano 5. mask 6. tire

Letter Check 1, Part B (p. 59)

1. sun 2. igloo 3. monkey 4. alligator 5. necklace 6. turtle

Letter Check 2, Part A (p. 60)

1. dolphin 2. carrot 3. octopus 4. fan 5. goat 6. bike

Letter Check 2, Part B (p. 61)

1. hammer 2 lock 3. zipper 4. garbage 5. fish 6. leaf

Letter Check 3, Part A (p. 62)

1. yo-yo 2. elephant 3. jellyfish 4. vacuum 5. kayak 6. umbrella

Letter Check 3, part B (p. 63)

1. rug 2. watermelon 3.key 4. x-ray 5.raccoon 6. egg

Letter Review (p. 64)

1. zebra 2. pizza 3. log 4. wheel 5. arrow 6. basket

wag

Appendix: Answer Keys

Cumulative Review: Practice for Developing Readers

Letter Check 1, Part A (p. 58) 1. mask 2. tire 3. nest 4. piano 5. rake 6. sun 7. apple 8. igloo Letter Check 1, Part B (p. 59) 1. raccoon 2. iguana 3. pig 4. sink 5. mouse 6. alligator 7. necklace 8. turtle

Letter Check 2, Part A (p. 60)

1. dolphin. 2. hammer 3. goat 4. lock 5. fan 6. bike 7. carrot 8. zipper

Letter Check 2, Part B (p. 61)

1. garbage 2. car 3. leaf 4. bananas 5. door 6. horse 7. octopus 8. fish

Letter Check 3, Part A (p. 62) 1.vacuum 2. kayak 3.umbrella 4. jellyfish 5. watermelon 6. elephant 7. pizza 8. question mark

Letter Check 3, part B (p. 63) 1. x-ray 2. jam 3. kite 4. yo-yo 5. key 6. queen 7. eggs 8. wheel

Letter Review (p. 64) 1. socks 2. mailbox 3. cat 4. basket 5. elephant 6. window 7. umbrella 8. log

Appendix: Games and Songs

How to Use These Pages

Make learning active and fun for young children by playing and singing. Use games and songs to provide new modes of practice for alphabet learning. You can also make up your own games and songs!

Games

The printable Sound Picture Cards and ABC Cards can be used in a variety of ways to keep children thinking and talking about letter names and sounds. See the suggested games at the bottom of this page for ideas you can use. Build on them with your own materials and creativity.

Songs

ABC songs can infuse joy into alphabet learning. Use these suggested songs on pp. 193–195, along with additional songs found at our A–Z for Mat Man® and Me Interactive Teaching Tool.

Game Ideas

Memory: Make two copies of the Sound Picture Cards or ABC Cards on cardstock. Teach children how to play a memory (or concentation) game. Encourage children to say the letter or sound as they pick up each card. Then they should look for a match. Two pictures that start with the same sound or a capital and lowercase of the same letter could be matches.

Sorting: Have children sort the pictures by different rules such as:

• Short vowel sort (medial vowel) (e.g., cat for // and leg for //)

• Begins with /b/ or begins with /d/ (e.g., dig vs. bag)

• Ends with /k/, /t/, /g/, /ks/, /p/, or /n/

Short vowel sort

Begins with...

Ends with...

bed leg net ten

dig zip kick lick

box mop dog fox doll rock

rug duck sun cup

// // // // // hat cat bat bag jam van

/b/ /d/ bed bag box bat

dog dig doll

hat cat bat net

rug bag leg dog dig pig

box fox cup mop sun ten van

/k/ /t/ /g/ /ks/ /p/ /n/ lick duck rock kick

Letter Match: Have students match the Sound Picture Card with the ABC Card that matches the beginning, middle, or ending sound. Or have children match capital and lowercase cards.

Letter Match: All words represented on the Sound Picture Cards are decodable, except goat, question mark, watermelon, yo-yo, and x-ray. Show children the decodable word cards and have them spell each word orally or in print, encouraging them to tap out each sound as needed. Then, have them read the written words without the picture

Picture names (left-to-right, top-to-bottom): lick, bat, leg, fox, kick, pig, bag, net, doll, question mark, dig, yo-yo, ten, rock, x-ray, zip, jam, box, rug, goat, hat, van, mop, duck, watermelon, cat, bed, dog, sun, cup

K k

L l

S s

y

Z z

F f

 m

T t



 N n U

Be My Echo (to the tune of “Are you Sleeping?”)

Be my echo (teacher)

Be my echo (children) A says // (teacher) A says // (children) Astronaut and apple (teacher) Astronaut and apple (children) //, //, // (teacher) //, //, // (children) ...

Be my echo (teacher)

Be my echo (children) V says /v/ (teacher) V says /v/ (children)

Violin and vacuum (teacher) Violin and vacuum (children) /v/, /v/, /v/ (teacher) /v/, /v/, /v/ (children)

A astronaut and apple B buffalo and bagel C coconut and camel D dinosaur and dolphin E elephant and eggroll F firework and football G gumball and gorilla H hula-hoop and hammer  igloo and iguana  jellyfish and jaguar K kayak and karate L lion and lasagna  manatee and monkey N nectarine and ninja O octopus and otter P penguin and piano Q quarterback and queen R railroad and rainbow S saxophone and seal T telescope and turtle U umpire and umbrella V violin and vacuum W waterfall and winter X x-ray fish and x-ray  yesterday and Z zipper and

Some Letters Say Their Name

(to the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb”)

Some letters say their name, Say their name, say their name. Some letters say their name, Like B, C, D, and .

And the first sound those letters say, Letters say, letters say.

The first sound those letters say Starts their names, as well.

Listen to letters B and C, B and C, B and C.

Listen to letters B and C And D, G, , K, P

The second sound other letters say, Letters say, letters say.

The second sound other letters say. Starts their names, as well

Listen to letters  and N,  and N,  and N.

Listen to letters  and N, And F, L, R, and X.

A few letters DON’T say their name, Say their name, say their name. A few letters DON’T say their name— H, W, and .

Listen to letters H and , H and , H and 

Listen to letters H and , Plus letter W.

Can you tell letters by their names? By their names, by their names? Can you tell letters by their names? You sure can if you try!

Make sure children can hear and say the difference between letters whose names match the first sound in them, like B, /b/, compared to letters whose name matches the second sound we hear, like , /m/. In , the first sound we hear is actually //, which can be confusing.

Words Begin With Letter Sounds

(to the tune of “Wheels on the Bus”)

Apple begins with //, //, //, //, //, //, //, //, //, Apple begins with //, //, //, Apple starts with A.

Continue with the same pattern, using these exemplar words from the Student Letter Books for each letter (e.g., Bagel begins with /b/, Coconut begins with /k/, and so on).

The Alphabet Has Lots of Letters

(to the tune of “Old MacDonald”)

The alphabet has lots of letters. We see, say, and write. And one of them is letter A We see, say, and write.

With an //, // here and an //, // there, Here an //, there an //, everywhere an //, //.

The alphabet has lots of letters. We see, say, and write.

Sing a verse for each letter of the alphabet. Substitute the letter and sound it represents. Point to the letter and write it as you sing. Start with this example and follow for each letter in alphabetical order. Or just sing a verse for the target letter you’re teaching.

Appendix: Songs to Makes Learning Stick

Where Is Ally?

(to the tune of “Where is Thumpkin?”)

Where is Ally? (child 1) Where is Ally? (child 2)

Here she is! (child 2, holding up the book) Here she is! (child 2)

What is her letter? (child 1) What is her letter? (child 1)

A, A, A (child 2) A, A, A (child 1)

Put children in pairs. Have the children place the Student Letter Books in front of them on the floor. One child starts and secretly thinks of one of the characters from the books. Then when they say the name of the character, another child picks up the book for that character and holds it up. Then they switch.

Name:

Problem Solving

Draw a picture of the problem in the story. Then, draw a picture of the solution.

Bonus!

Write about the character who has a problem in the story.

Problem Solution has a problem.

On the back of the page, write or draw about a time you solved a problem.

Choose one feeling. Then, draw a picture of when the character had this feeling in the story.

On the back of the page, write or draw about a time you had the same feeling.

Without Tears

Name:

Persistence

Draw a picture of what the character wants in the top box. Then, draw two pictures showing what the character does to get it.

Bonus!

What does the character want? Write about it.

On the back, write or draw about a time you really wanted something and what you did to get it.

Name:

Cooperation

Draw a picture of characters who show cooperation. Then, draw a picture of what they do together.

Bonus! Write about two characters who show cooperation in the story.

and show cooperation.

On the back, write or draw about a time you showed cooperation.

Appendix: Social-Emotional Learning

Appendix: Social-Emotional Learning

Name:

Kindness

Does the character show kindness to a person, an animal, or to the Earth? Circle your answer.

Draw a picture of how the character shows kindness.

Bonus!

Write about the character who shows kindness.

is kind

On the back, write or draw about a time you were kind.