Day 1 · Monday
Mathematics
I can use a strategy to multiply quickly with all the facts from ×2 to ×10.
Builds on: Review of the fact strategies from Weeks 6 to 8 and the strategy list from Week 9 Day 4. One-minute check: ask 4 × 6 and its strategy (24; double-double: 12, then 24).
Materials: 8 index cards or paper slips, Grid paper, Notebook, Pencil
5 min · Warm-Up
Spaced review from Week 13 Day 4. Ask 8 × 0, 1 × 9, 0 ÷ 5 and 7 ÷ 1 (0, 9, 0, 7). Then practice ×6 to ×9 facts with no clock. Ask 6 × 4, 7 × 3, 8 × 5 and 9 × 2 (24, 21, 40, 18). Your child tells the strategy for one. Any strategy that works is fine.
10–15 min · Mini-Lesson
Say: "Speed comes from choosing a strategy, not from guessing. Let us match each hard table to its strategy." Write the list together and keep it in view. For ×6: the ×5 fact plus one more group. For ×7: 5 groups and 2 groups. For ×8: double the ×4 fact. For ×9: 10 groups minus one group. Say: "These came from Week 7 Day 3 and Week 8 Days 1 to 3." Ask: "Which strategy uses subtraction?" (The one for ×9.) Write 8 × 7. Say: "8 groups. I double the ×4 fact." Write 4 × 7 = 28, then 28 + 28 = 56. Say: "So 8 × 7 = 56." Sketch 8 rows of 7 dots with a line under row 4. Say: "8 groups is 4 groups and 4 more groups. That is why the double works." Write 9 × 6. Say: "9 groups. I use 10 groups minus one group." Write 10 × 6 = 60, then 60 − 6 = 54. Say: "So 9 × 6 = 54." Ask: "Why do I take away 6?" (10 groups is one group too many.) Ask: "Which easier tables use doubles?" (×2 and ×4. Also ×3: a double plus one more group.) Say: "For ×5 and ×10 we count by 5s or by tens. And we can always switch the factors." Now your child does more. Write 7 × 8. Ask: "Which strategy fits? Show the steps." (5 × 8 = 40; 2 × 8 = 16; 40 + 16 = 56) Ask: "Why does it match 8 × 7?" (Switching the factors keeps the product.)
10–15 min · Guided Practice
Write each fact. Your child names the strategy first, then writes the steps and says the product in a sentence. 1) 6 × 7 (5 × 7 = 35; 35 + 7 = 42). 2) 8 × 4 (4 × 4 = 16; 16 + 16 = 32). 3) 9 × 9 (10 × 9 = 90; 90 − 9 = 81). 4) 7 × 7 (5 × 7 = 35; 2 × 7 = 14; 35 + 14 = 49). If stuck, say: "Look at the first factor. Which strategy goes with that many groups?"
15–20 min · Independent Practice
Your child writes each fact from problems 1 to 6 on a card. The product and the strategy steps go on the back. 1) 6 × 6 (36). 2) 8 × 8 (64). 3) 9 × 4 (36). 4) 7 × 4 (28). 5) 9 × 8 (72). 6) 6 × 5 (30). 7) Your child outlines 8 rows of 6 on grid paper and draws a line under row 4. Then your child writes the double. (4 × 6 = 24; 24 + 24 = 48) 8) Solve two word problems and add a card for each. Nine teams have 7 players each. How many players are there in all? (63) Six cartons hold 9 eggs each. How many eggs are there in all? (54) Last, your child sorts the 8 cards into "know it" and "still building." Use no clock. A fact is known when the product comes without counting. Praise the strategy, not the speed. Keep the cards for Day 5.
5 min · Exit Ticket
Cover the strategy list. Read each question aloud; your child answers on paper.
Watch for: Guessing a nearby product instead of using a strategy, such as 48 for 7 × 7.
Try: Slow down. Your child whispers the strategy before writing any product. For 7 × 7: "5 groups and 2 groups, 35 + 14."
Exit ticket (3 questions)
- What is 8 × 3? Show the strategy steps.
- What is 9 × 3? Show the strategy steps.
- Which fact is still building for you? Which strategy will you use for it?
Show answers
- 24; 4 × 3 = 12, and 12 + 12 = 24
- 27; 10 × 3 = 30, and 30 − 3 = 27
- Answers vary. Look for: a named fact and a strategy that fits its first factor.
Support: Keep the strategy list in view. Work only the ×6 and ×9 cards today, and add the ×7 and ×8 cards tomorrow.
Extend: Your child solves 8 × 8 two ways and tells which is clearer. Samples: double the ×4 fact, 32 + 32 = 64; 5 groups and 3 groups, 40 + 24 = 64.
Homework: Your child practices the still-building cards for 5 minutes, saying the strategy first. Sample: 9 × 8; 10 × 8 = 80, and 80 − 8 = 72.
English Language Arts
I can review narrative writing by mapping a story I hear and writing one of my own.
Builds on: Needs the story arc from Week 12 Day 1 and the narrative checklist from Week 12 Day 4. One-minute check: ask, "Which part of a story is the turning point, where the problem is answered?" (The climax.)
Materials: Notebook, Story map drawn in the notebook (characters, setting, problem, events, resolution), Pencil
5 min · Warm-Up
Word study, 3 minutes: Unit 3 review. Write unlock, dislike, preheat, thankful, spotless, quickly. Your child sorts them into a prefix column and a suffix column. Then your child tells what each word part means. (un-: not or undo; dis-: not; pre-: before; -ful: full of; -less: without; -ly: in a certain way.) Spaced review from Week 12. Ask: "Name the five parts of a story arc." (Opening, rising action, climax, falling action, ending.)
15 min · Mini-Lesson
Say: "This week we review Quarter 2. Today is narrative writing. A strong story has an opening, a problem that matters, rising action, a climax and an ending. The ending solves the problem. Writers add time-order words, sense details and dialogue." Read this story aloud. Your child only listens. "Nico's Window Garden" Nico planted basil seeds in an old egg carton on his windowsill. Every morning he checked them, but for a whole week nothing happened. "Maybe they're broken," he sighed. His neighbor, Mrs. Lin, leaned out of her window. "Seeds need patience, and maybe a little more water," she said. Nico watered them carefully. Three days later, he spotted tiny green loops poking through the soil. "Mrs. Lin! They're alive!" he shouted. That afternoon, he made her a thank-you card shaped like a leaf. Model the first two boxes of the story map. Say: "Characters: Nico and Mrs. Lin. Setting: Nico's windowsill, beside Mrs. Lin's window." Write them in.
10 min · Guided Practice
1) Your child retells the story in 4 or 5 sentences from listening only. Listen for the problem and the ending. 2) Ask: "What is the problem?" (The seeds are not sprouting.) Write it on the map. 3) Ask: "What is the climax?" (Nico spots the green sprouts.) Mark it with a star. 4) Ask: "How does the story end?" (He thanks Mrs. Lin with a leaf-shaped card.) 5) Read the story once more. Your child raises a hand for each time-order phrase. (Every morning, for a whole week, three days later, that afternoon.) If stuck, say: "What did Nico want? What moment gave it to him?"
20 min · Independent Practice
Your child writes a new short narrative of 8 to 10 sentences. Ideas: something lost and found, a plan that went wrong, or a surprise in the kitchen. 1) Plan for 3 minutes on a fresh story map. 2) Start with this frame if needed: "One ___, ___ was ___ when ___." 3) Write the story from opening to ending. 4) Tick this checklist. A clear problem and an ending that fixes it. At least 3 time-order words. At least 3 sense details. At least 2 lines of dialogue with quotation marks. Look for: one small moment, events in order, and a climax your child can point to. Save the story for tomorrow.
5 min · Exit Ticket
Read each question aloud. Reread Nico's story first if your child asks.
Watch for: Calling every event "rising action" and not finding the climax.
Try: Ask, "At what moment is the problem answered?" Your child marks that sentence with a star.
Exit ticket (3 questions)
- What job does Mrs. Lin's line of dialogue do in the story?
- Name one sense detail from "Nico's Window Garden" and the sense it uses.
- Point to the climax of your own story. What happens there?
Show answers
- It gives the advice that helps solve the problem: seeds need patience and more water.
- Any one: "tiny green loops poking through the soil" (sight); "he shouted" or "he sighed" (hearing).
- Answers vary. Look for: the moment the problem is answered, not the first or last event.
Support: Your child draws the story map as four picture boxes first. Then your child tells the story aloud before writing one or two sentences for each box.
Extend: Your child retells Nico's story as Mrs. Lin would tell it, using I, and adds one thought she might have.
Homework: Read your own book for 15 to 20 minutes. Then read your narrative aloud to someone at home and ask them to name the problem. Look for: a listener who can name it.
Science
I can review and explain ecosystems, habitats and adaptations with examples.
Builds on: Needs the notebook pages from Weeks 10, 11 and 14. One-minute check: ask "Is storing nuts something a squirrel HAS or something it DOES?" (Does. It is a behavioral adaptation.)
Materials: Science notebook from Weeks 10 to 17, and pencil, 12 index cards, Bean cup and a little water
5 min · Day 86 — Q2 Review: Ecosystems, Habitats and Adaptations — Wonder Warm-Up
Spaced review from Weeks 10 and 11. Your child gives a meaning and an example for three words, with no rush. Ecosystem (the living and nonliving things in one place and how they affect each other; a pond). Habitat (the place where a living thing gets what it needs; a desert). Adaptation (a feature or behavior that helps a living thing survive; thick fur). Check the bean cup and water it if dry. Then the wonder. Ask: "Which Quarter 2 idea could you teach to a younger child today?"
10–15 min · Mini-Lesson
Say: "Today we check six skills." 1) Living, once living or never alive. Ask: "What is a cardboard box?" (Once living. Cardboard is made from trees.) 2) Food roles. Ask: "Name the role of a fern, a ladybug and bread mold." (Producer, consumer, decomposer.) 3) Habitat needs. Ask: "What four things does a habitat provide?" (Food, water, shelter and space.) 4) World habitats. Ask: "Which habitat is warm and very wet all year, with tall trees?" (Rainforest.) 5) HAS or DOES. Ask: "An owl has large eyes. A monarch butterfly flies south for winter. Which is physical and which is behavioral?" (Eyes are physical. Flying south is behavioral.) 6) Camouflage and variation. Ask: "Brown rabbits and white rabbits live on brown ground. Which does a hawk spot more easily?" (The white ones. Brown rabbits blend in, so more of them survive.) If stuck, say: "Find the page for that week. Read me one line from it."
15–20 min · Investigation / Hands-On
Review Card Game. 1) Make 12 cards together, two for each skill. Write a question on the front and the answer on the back. Use these six, and your child writes six more from the notebook. "Name a decomposer." (Mushroom, mold or bacteria.) "Is a river rock living, once living or never alive?" (Never alive.) "Which habitat has frozen ground and no tall trees?" (Tundra.) "Thick fur: has or does?" (Has. It is physical.) "Name one need a nest meets for a bird." (Shelter.) "Why is a green caterpillar hard to see on a leaf?" (Camouflage. It blends in.) 2) Your child answers each card. Right answers go in a Got It pile. Missed cards go in a Practice pile. 3) Reteach each Practice card from its notebook page, then try those cards again. 4) Record the result in a table with three columns: Skill, Got It, Practice. Expect 10 or more cards in Got It by the end.
10 min · Science Notebook Entry
Your child writes a one-page summary with a heading for each of the six skills and one example under each. They use this frame for adaptations. "The ___ lives in the ___ and has ___ that helps it ___." Sample: "The camel lives in the desert and has wide feet that help it walk on sand."
5 min · Wrap-Up & Exit Ticket
Ask the three exit questions aloud; your child answers with no notebook. Praise examples that are different from the cards. Save the Practice pile for tomorrow's warm-up.
Watch for: Mixing up habitat, the place where something lives, with adaptation, a feature that helps it live there.
Try: Use the frame "The ___ lives in the ___ and has ___ that helps it ___." The second blank is always the habitat.
Exit ticket (3 questions)
- A pond has cattails, a turtle, mud and sunlight. Which are living, and which are nonliving?
- A snowshoe hare has wide furry feet. It also freezes still when a fox comes near. Which is physical, and which is behavioral?
- Name a habitat and one animal that survives well there. Give one reason.
Show answers
- Living: cattails and turtle. Nonliving: mud and sunlight.
- The wide furry feet are physical. Freezing still is behavioral.
- Answers vary. Look for: a correct pair with a reason, such as tundra and caribou, because thick fur keeps it warm.
Support: Use 6 cards, one for each skill. Your child may look at the notebook page before answering.
Extend: Your child draws a food web of five living things for one world habitat. They label one adaptation for each animal.
Homework: Practice your Practice-pile cards with a family member. Look for: each answer given without turning the card over.