We are going to again practice finding letters we know by looking for them in a sentence. When we find the letters, we will also say the sound the letters make.

[Write the following sentence on a chart or whiteboard. Read each word as you write the sentence:

Our class voted for a white dog.]

We want to find a lowercase letter d in our sentence.

[Display letter card D. Point to the lowercase d on the card.

Encourage a volunteer child to look for and point to each instance of the lowercase letter d in the sentence as you display the D letter card.]

What sound does the letter D make?

Yes! Letter D says /d/. Let’s together say the sound of the letter D: /d/.

Now let’s spend some time with our book.

[See Week 3, Day 5 of Language/Literacy for a description and examples of how to approach today’s book reading. Key aspects are summarized below: 

• Display book cover. Explain that we have read our book two times this week. Each time we read the book we learn something new. Point to and say title of book. Engage children in describing what they remember about the book: 
  • What is our book about?
  • Who were the main characters in our book? 
  • What happened first? What happened next? 
• Point to and say the names of author and illustrator. Point to where to begin reading. 
• During the reading, pause on pages that include a word defined in the prior two readings of the book. Ask or remind children what the word means. Also pause during the reading to define the 2–3 words identified for today’s session, using the following approach:
  • Read the sentence with the novel word. Identify the novel word. 
  • Repeat the sentence in which the word is used. 
  • Define the novel word and connect the definition to the book. 
• After the book reading, write the 2–3 words targeted for today on the chart and engage children in a discussion of each word, using one or more of the following strategies: 
  • Ask children to describe a picture related to the word. 
  • Define a word without naming it and ask children to identify the word. 
  • Encourage children to think about a novel word or phrase in another context.
• Explain that different types of things happened in our book. Facilitate a discussion of children’s interpretations of events and/or characters in the book, especially events or characters related to one or more words defined this week. See Week 3, Day 5 for examples.]

[Hold up two fingers on one hand.]

• How many fingers am I holding up? (two) Now I am going to hold up two more fingers.
  [Use same hand to hold up four fingers.]
• How many fingers am I holding up now? (four)
• Did we just practice adding or subtracting? (adding)
  [Continue to hold up four fingers on one hand.]
• Now I am going to take away one finger. How many fingers am I holding up now? (three)
• Did we just practice adding or subtracting? (subtracting)

Today we are going to read a book about some little mice and a snake.

[Display book cover.]

Our book is called Mouse Count. The book was written by Ellen Stoll Walsh.

Let’s talk about what we see on the cover of our book.

[Encourage children to count the three mice with you—1, 2, 3—and describe the snake’s head. Point out the book title and author’s name.]

The word “count” is in the title of our book. We know what it means to count. We say our numbers to find out how many.

[Read the book, using your own words to expand book text. Emphasize that snakes like to eat mice. That’s why the mice in our story are careful to watch for a snake.

As part of reading the book, encourage children to join you in counting each of the three sets of mice the snake puts in the jar.

At the conclusion of the book, engage children in a conversation focused on their interests in the story and key aspects of the story, such as the following: 

• the snake wanted the “little, warm, and tasty” mice to be his dinner 
• the snake kept putting more mice in his jar because he was hungry; the number of mice in the jar got larger and larger! 
• how many mice did the snake put in the jar? (10) 
• what did the mice do to get out of the jar?

As a follow-up to the book sharing, display the jar and 10 counters. Explain that we will pretend the counters are little mice. Put the pretend mice in three groups on the table or floor, corresponding to the story: two groups of three and one group of four.

Lead children in counting each group of pretend mice in the order used in the book (three mice, then four mice, then three more mice) as you or volunteer children take turns placing items in the jar, one at a time. Use the count on approach demonstrated in the book (1, 2, 3; 4, 5, 6, 7; and 8, 9, 10).

Invite a volunteer child to show how the mice rocked the jar one way and then another way to tip it over and escape from the snake.

Lead children in counting the number of pretend mice as each is removed from the jar. Hold each pretend mouse as it is counted and moved away from the jar.]

Today we read a story about a hungry snake and 10 little mice. We practiced counting the mice the snake put in the jar. We also practiced counting pretend mice we put in our own jar. How do we know there were 10 little mice? (counted them; last number counted was 10)

We are learning about time. We know that things we do during the day take a certain amount of time.

We also know that living things grow and change over time. Remember, this is called a life cycle.

• How does a caterpillar change over time? (it becomes a butterfly)
• How does a tadpole change over time? (it grows and becomes a frog)
• Have you changed since you were a baby?

Today we are going to read a book about a boy who grows and changes over time.

[Display book cover.]

Our book is called The Growing Story. The author of our book is Ruth Krauss. The illustrator is Helen Oxenbury.

[As you read the book, pause to describe illustrations that show how things grow and change over time.

Ask the following questions focused on time after you’ve finished reading:]

• The book helped us remember that animals and plants change over time. The chicks and dog grew bigger. How did the plants change? (got bigger, flowers bloomed, produced corn and fruit, leaves on the trees changed colors and fell off the trees)
• How did the little boy change over time in our book? (his arms and legs grew, his pants were too tight and the pant legs were too short because he had grown)

Let’s think about how long it takes some living things to grow and change over time.

The chicks and puppy were little, just like the boy at the beginning of our book. The chicks and dog were all grown up at the end of our book.

Was the boy all grown up at the end of our book? (no)

We know that it takes more time for a person to grow up than it does for a chick or puppy to grow up. Each life cycle takes a certain amount of time.

How are we different now compared to when we were a baby? (clothes are bigger, longer arms and legs, can reach things that are higher, more teeth)

It took a long time for our body to grow and change.

We know that living things grow and change over time. In our book, a little boy, a dog, chickens, and plants all changed over time. What takes the most time to grow up: a child, a chicken, or a dog?

Today we will play our Sleeping, Sleeping, All the Children are Sleeping game. When we wake up today in our game, we will move our bodies around our activity space. Please listen carefully to the song so you know how to move your body. The song may ask us to jump or hop or march or move our bodies in some other way.

What can we do to make sure we do not bump into someone when we are moving? (stay in our personal space, pay attention to people around us, keep a safe distance from the person in front of us)

[Encourage children to lie in a sleeping position. Begin singing the song. Name a different movement each time children pretend to wake up. Use one or more movements in the Key Concepts list. Continue the activity as time and child interest permit.]

Today we played our Sleeping, Sleeping, All the Children are Sleeping game. We moved our bodies in different ways each time we woke up.