CDSD Grade 1 Family Letter
Reading, Writing, Listening, & Speaking
Unit 2: Reading and Writing Stories
Key Learning:
Good writers use story parts (character, setting, events, etc.) to tell stories about events in their lives.
SPEAKING AND LISTENING:
- use complete sentences to share experiences, idea, feelings, and opinions clearly.
- engage in active listening (eyes on speaker, quiet hands, etc.).
- speak so others can hear and understand.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Initiate conversations with your child.
- Encourage asking questions to find out more information.
- Promote active listening and attention.
- Re-phrase student's sentence structure or grammar by repeating sentences properly.
HEARING SOUNDS IN WORDS:
- say words that rhyme.
- identify the first sound in a spoken words, including words that begin with vowel sounds (e.g., ostrich, eel, elephant, ape)
- identify the last sound in a spoken word.
- recognize when two words end with the same sound. (look & hike; mine & woman)
- blend spoken word parts together to say a whole word. (be + hind = behind; /t/ + /uk/ = tuck; /raf/ + /t/ = raft)
- break spoken words into word parts. (signal = sig & nal; quack = /kw/ & /ak/)
- change part of the word to make a new word. (change /swiv/ in swivel to /trav/. What's the word? travel; change /s/ in sat to /b/ and you get. . . bat)
- add a word part to a word or another word part and say the whole word. (Add /sil/ to the end of pen and what do you get? pencil; Add /mis/ to the beginning of take and what do you get? mistake; Add /b/ to the beginning of /own/ and what do you get? bone)
- delete word part away from a word and say the word or part that is left (Take /ketch/ away from ketchup and what do you get? up; Take /in/ away from wagon and what do you get? wag; What is fix without /f/? /iks/)
- Identify the number of words in a sentence.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
Play word games like the ones shown in the videos below:- Parent: "I'll say a word and you say the first sound. buffalo. Child: /b/
- Parent: "I'll say a word and you say the last sound. buffalo. Child /o/
- Parent "I'll say two word parts, you blend them together to make a word. /bot/ /tle/. Child: "bottle"
- Parent "I'll say two word parts, you blend them together to make a word. /p/ /ay/. Child: "pay"
- Parent "I'll say two word parts, you blend them together to make a word. /kam/ /p/. Child: "camp"
- Parent: "Break this word into syllables/parts, trumpet. Child: "/trum/" "/pet/".
- Parent: "Break this word into syllables/parts, love. Child: "/l/" "/uv/".
- Parent: "Say the word, basket." Child: "basket" Parent: "What do you get when you change /bas/ to /mar/? Child: "market"
- Parent: "Say the word, when." Child: "when" Parent: "What do you get when you change /wh/ to /m/? Child: "men"
- Parent: "Say "chill." Child: "chill" Parent: "Add /dren/ to then end and the word is . . ." Child: "children"
- Parent: "Say "ed." Child: "ed" Parent: "Add /h/ to then beginning and the word is . . ." Child: "head"
- Parent: "Say "dentist." Child: "dentist" Parent: "Say dentist without /ist/. Child: "dent"
- Parent: "Say "favor." Child: "favor" Parent: "Say favor without /fav/. Child: "or"
- Parent: "Say "knob." Child: "knob" Parent: "Say knob without /n/. Child: "ob"
LETTERS, SOUNDS, AND WORDS:
- when shown a vowel, make the short vowel sound (a in cat, e in hen, i in pig, o in box, u in hug).
- when a short vowel sound is made, write the correct vowel.
- when shown one of the following letters or letter combinations, make the letter sound: k, -ck, qu, x, y, z, -ff, -ll, -ss, -zz, nk, ng, ch, wh, th, sh, & tch
- when one of the following letter or letter combination sounds is made, write the correct letter or letter combination: k, -ck, qu, x, y, z, -ff, -ll, -ss, -zz, nk, ng, ch, wh, th, sh, & tch
- read and write short vowel words with k, -ck, qu, x, y, z, -ff, -ll, -ss, -zz, nk, ng, ch, wh, th, sh, & tch (e.g., dock, quiz, jazz, link, sang, chop, path, hatch)
- write the following letters with correct formation: K, k, Q, q, X, x, Y, y, Z, z, O, o, E, e, U, u
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Make a several three letter short a words out of magnetic letters or letter tiles. Point to each letter and make its sound and then read the whole word. Make some more three letter words. Point to each letter and have your child say each sound with you. Then, read the whole word with your child. Make several more three letter words. Have your child point to each letter and say its sound. Then, have your child read the whole word.
- Use magnetic letters or letter tiles to make three letter short a words.
- Have your child build the words with magnetic letters or letter tiles.
- Write each word on a different sticky note. Stick the words on the walls in your child's bedroom. Give your child a flashlight and turn off the lights. Say a word or make and have your child shine the light on the word. Let your child tell you a word to find.
- Put some sugar, sand, shaving cream on a cookie sheet or plate. Have your child use his finger to "write" the words. Have him name each letter while he "writes" the word.
- Give your child a cup of water and a paint brush. Have your child use the water and paintbrush to write each word on the sidewalk. He should say each letter as he writes the word.
COMPREHENSION:
- categorize words by a given category (e.g., paces that are cozy, forest animals, cold things).
- match a contraction with the two words that make the contraction (was & was not)
- name the setting of a story.
- match synonyms (huge/enormous; smart/clever)
- use details from the illustrations and words to describe the setting of a story.
- name the characters in a story.
- use details from the illustrations and words to describe a character's feelings, thoughts, actions.
- name the important events in a story.
- sequence the main events in the correct order.
- use details from the illustrations and words to describe an important event in a story.
- infer the lesson of a story.
- use picture cards, puppets, or the illustrations in a book to retell a story.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Read to your child daily.
- Choose a category such as stinky things. Take turns with your child naming words that fit the category. (Dad: socks Child: skunk Dad: garbage) Continue naming words that fit the category until you or your child cannot think of a word. You may want to say a word that does not fit the category to see if your child can catch you.
- Use word cards to match contractions to the words that make them.
- Work with your child to create lists of synonyms (nice, kind, pleasant, etc.)
- When reading to or with your child, ask her to identify the setting and characters. After reading ask her to draw or paint a picture of the setting and characters.
- While reading to or with your child, share what you think a character is thinking or feeling. Point out what words or details in the picture helped you figure out what a character thinks or how she feels. Encourage your child to do the same.
- After reading a story to or with your child, work together to list the important events. Write them on strips of paper. Have your child place the events in the correct order. You may need to read the events to your child.
- After reading a story, fable, or fairy tale, talk about what you think the lesson or moral is. Point out what words or events from the story helped you infer the lesson.
- After reading a story to or with your child, help your child make paper bag puppets of the characters. Use the puppets to retell the story with your child.
- After reading a story to or with your child, have your child draw a picture of each important event on a separate piece of paper. Have your child use her pictures to retell the story.
TYPES OF TEXTS:
- Realistic Fiction (Example: Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats)
- Fantasy (Example: The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss)
- Fable (Example: The Tortoise and the Hare by Jerry Pinkney)
- Fairy Tale or Folktale (Example: Cinderella by Marcia Brown and The Little Red Hen by Lucinda McQueen)
- Personal Narrative (Example: The Short Cut, by Donald Crews)
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Take your child to the library and check out books from the types listed above.
- Use the list above when selecting books for your child to read and books for you to read to your child.
WRITING PERSONAL NARRATIVES
- chose an event from his life to write about.
- draw two more connected events from his live in order to plan his story.
- write about a single event or a series of loosely connected events.
- add thought bubbles and speech bubbles to show the thoughts and feelings of characters.
- after writing, check that each sentence begins with a capital letter and ends with a period, question mark, or exclamation point.
- write the word "I" with a capital letter.
HOW YOU CAN HELP AT HOME:
- Help your child create a list of things that happened to him that would make great writing topics. You may want to do this in a writing journal.
- After your child chooses an event to write about (building a sandcastle), have him draw each part of the story on a separate piece of paper (build the walls, build the towers, put a flag on top of towers, wave crashes into castle.) Staple the pages together into a booklet.
- Have your child write a sentence(s) on each page to tell about that part of the story. (I made a sandcastle with my mom. We made the walls. We built four tall towers. I put a flag on top. The waves crashed onto my castle!)
- Encourage him to spell words by saying the words slowly and writing letters for the sounds he hears. Do not spell the words for him. (I mad a sndksl wif my mom. We bilt 4 wols. We bilt tol twrs. I put a flag on top. The wavs kasht onto my kstl.)
- Encourage your child to add speech bubbles or thought bubbles to show what the characters say and think.
- Have your child reread each sentence to check for capital letters and ending punctuation.
WORDS TO KNOW:
- category: the name of a group of things
- contraction: a short way of writing two words (e.g., can't, he's, won't)
- describe: to use your senses to tell what something is like (looks like, sounds like, feels like, smells like, tastes like)
- h-brother: ch, sh, th, wh
- lesson: what the character learns about how people should behave
- predict: to use clues from the words, pictures, and your experiences to guess what will happen next in a story
- problem: the thing that is getting the main character from getting what she wants
- reread: to read something again
- retell: to tell what happened in a story
- senses: things our bodies can do to learn about the world around us: see, hear, taste, smell touch
- sequence: the order of events or steps: first, next, then, last
- setting: the time, season, and place a story happens
- solution: how the problem of a story was solved
MORE WAYS TO HELP AT HOME
ONLINE RESOURCES
THE BEST APPS FOR IPHONE, IPADS, AND ANDROID DEVICES
Endless Alphabet
Skill: Print Awareness, Phonics, Spelling, Vocabulary
Device: Android, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Price: $4.99 - $6.99
Letters transform into living toys that voice their names. Children learn that one letter works with others to build words and sentences.
Alpha Writer
Skill: Phonics, Spelling
Device: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Price: $4.99
Alpha Writer is a app that helps teach children letter sounds and how to form words by combining different letter sounds. Children physically manipulate letters onscreen. They will hear the sound of each letter as they touch it, and can position letters in any order they please to form words.
Bob Books Reading Magic #1
Skill: Phonics, Spelling
Device: Android, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Price: $3.99Bob Books Reading Magic #1 will teach children early phonics skills. Children learn the sounds letters make and how to combine them to make short words. Children will drag letters for the given words to the proper place below the picture, while the app sounds out the letters to read the word aloud.
Elkonin Boxes
Skill: Phonemic Awareness (hearing sounds in words)
Device: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Price: $0.99Elkonin boxes helps beginning readers practice an important foundational skill: the ability to segment and blend sounds that make up words.
Writing Wizard
Skill: Phonics, Handwriting
Device: Android, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Price: $4.99Writing Wizard helps children practice tracing letters, numbers, and words while learning letter names and letter sounds.