Structured Literacy: (phonological awareness, phonics, handwriting, spelling, and decoding)
This week, students will learn about the schwa sound. The schwa is the most common vowel sound in English, but it can be tricky because it doesn’t always match the vowel letter we see. It sounds like a quick, soft “uh” sound (like in the word about).
You’ll find schwa in many words, especially in unaccented syllables. For example:
- a in about → /uh/
- e in problem → /uh/
- o in lemon →/i/
- u in supply → /uh/
Because schwa can be spelled with any vowel, it’s important for students to listen carefully to how the word sounds rather than relying only on the spelling. Learning about schwa helps students read longer words more smoothly and spell more confidently.
These lessons help students recognize common spelling patterns and grammar rules, building confidence as readers and writers.
❤️Heart Words❤️Each week, students will also learn irregularly spelled words, known as “heart words.” These are words that students must learn “by heart” because part of the word doesn’t follow regular spelling rules. This week’s heart words are: “woman” and “women.”
Reading:
This week in reading, we will read “If You Find a Rock” as we learn about the central idea of a text. Then we will read the skit, “The Puddle Puzzle.” We will learn the comprehension strategy of “Ask and Answer Questions.” Then students will learn about the Elements of Drama. Our third text of the week is “Looking at Art” in which we will focus on connecting text and visuals.
Central Idea: This week, students will learn how to identify the central idea of an informational text. The topic of a text is the person, place, or thing it is about. The central idea is the most important point the author wants to make about that topic. Students will first figure out the topic, then look for supporting evidence—facts or examples that explain the author’s main point—and think about what that evidence has in common.
Ask and Answer Questions: One way for students check their understanding of what they read is by asking and answering questions about the text. We encourage children to ask questions before, during, and after reading because it helps them pay attention to details and stay engaged. Students also practice using words like who, what, where, when, why, and how to form their questions. To answer them, they look for evidence in the text and pictures—clues and details that help confirm their thinking. This strategy helps students stay focused, understand information more deeply, and build strong reading habits.
Elements of Drama: Drama is written differently than stories or poems, and understanding its features helps students make sense of what they see and read. A drama, or play, is written to be performed by actors, so it is organized into acts and scenes instead of chapters or stanzas. The characters’ words are written as dialogue, and instructions for how the play should look or sound are given in stage directions. Like stories, dramas include important elements such as characters, setting, and plot, but they are presented through action and speech. Learning about these features helps students understand how drama tells a story in a unique way.
Connect Text and Visuals: When children read, both the words and the visuals—such as pictures, drawings, and illustrations—work together to tell the story. Text and visuals often give important details about the characters, setting, and events. Sometimes the visuals even show information that isn’t directly written in the text. Paying close attention to these details helps students better understand what is happening in the story. Children also learn to notice how the placement of printed words on a page can add meaning, such as showing which character is speaking. By connecting the text and visuals, students build a deeper and more complete understanding of what they read.
If You Find a Rock is a gentle, poetic book that celebrates the many kinds of rocks children might discover outdoors. Each type of rock is described by how it can be used—like a skipping rock that bounces across the water, a sitting rock that’s just right for resting, or a wishing rock that holds a secret hope. Paired with beautiful photographs, the book invites readers to notice the small wonders of nature and connect their own experiences with the natural world.
The Puddle Puzzle tells the story of siblings Taylor and Brandon, who run a detective agency. One day, Carlos and Adriana come to them with a mystery: their puddle has disappeared! Through clever detective work and scientific thinking, Taylor and Brandon discover that the puddle vanished because it evaporated into water vapor under the heat of the sun. The story combines mystery and science to teach students about the water cycle and how temperature affects water.
Looking at Art by Andrew Stevens, and Soap Bubbles by Jean Siméon Chardin this week, students will explore the painting Soap Bubbles by Jean Siméon Chardin by using ideas from Andrew Stevens’s Looking at Art. Chardin’s painting shows a young boy carefully blowing a soap bubble, with the delicate bubble shimmering in the light. As part of our comprehension work, students will practice connecting text and visuals by noticing how words and pictures work together to tell a fuller story. In this lesson, the painting serves as the “visual text,” and Looking at Art provides the written text. By examining both closely, students learn how visuals add details or meaning that words may not explain, and how the two support each other to deepen understanding.
Our vocabulary words for these texts are:
- agency
- business
- confidently
- located
- eagerly
- seeps
- mystery
- ace
Writing: Students have chosen topics for their descriptive essays, and we have begun the research phase of prewriting. They are listening to a book on Epic! and taking notes about what they learn. These notes will be turned into sentences and then developed into a full paragraph.
During independent writing time, students are also working on typing their stories from our personal narrative unit.
Grammar:
This week, students are learning more about how nouns work. They are reviewing that nouns name a person, place, or thing, and focusing on two specific kinds of nouns. First, they are learning about nouns that name places, for example, school, park, city, or Colorado. Second, they are learning about collective nouns, which name a group of people, animals, or things, like team, flock, or family. Understanding these types of nouns helps students describe the world around them more clearly and use precise language in their speaking and writing.
Ways to Support Literacy at Home
- Your child should read 10-20 minutes every night. Research shows that reading each night, even for just 15 minutes, makes a big difference in a child’s growth as a reader. Regular practice helps children expand their vocabulary, recognize letters and sounds more easily, and strengthen focus and memory. Daily reading is also linked to stronger language skills, better reading performance, and can even serve as a calming routine before bedtime.
- Practice Heart Words: Review this week’s heart words (about, away, around) with your child. You can write them on index cards, post them on the fridge, or play a quick “read it, spell it, say it” game.
- Spot the Schwa: When reading together, listen for the schwa sound—the quick “uh” or “i” sound any vowel can make in an unstressed syllable. Examples include the a in about or the o in lemon. Encourage your child to point out which vowel is making the “uh” sound.
- Ask and answer questions: Prompt your child to ask questions before, during and after they read a story each night.