Dear Zoo-Friends,Today we are again going to celebrate EARTH WEEK! Today’s lesson is called “Arbor Day.” This lesson is going to be very simple because, well, it is an outdoor project and it requires chatting, observing, and just plain enjoying.

S.T.R.E.A.M.S.:Science – all aspects of our physical worldTechnology - looking up topics online, viewing pictures and videosRecreation - movement and fitness – free and structured physical activitiesEngineering - little hands building with blocks, Legos®, scissors, stirring, transferring, lacing – anything that uses the hands and fingersThe Arts - literature, art & musicMath – sorting, adding, subtracting, subitizing, measuring, time, comparing sizes/weights, etc.Socialization - learning about self, family, community, world

Do This Daily:1) Signal and sound the “a – z’s” every day. Older children can practice their word list. Signal and sound!

2) Read a wonderful literature book aloud every day! There is good book called, The Giving Tree. It is a magnificent book written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein in 1964. This book should be in everyone’s home and school library! Enjoy each page and look at the simple pictures. Ask and answer questions. Give your child time to talk. Act out the story. Discover other Shel Silverstein books, such as Where the Sidewalk Ends. It is a book of simple but very funny poetry!

April 24 2020

A SECRET! Dr. Char Wrighton read this book to her first class of students in 1974 and every year after that. She also read it to each of her 3 children and 7 grandchildren. It is still a favorite!

Other Literature Book Possibilities! A Tree is a PLANT by Clyde Robert Bulla and Maple by Lori Nichols.

3) Read, the Zoo-phonics Mini-Book, #24, “Inny and Sam.” (The mini-book and lesson plans are below.)

4) Word Meaning. Discover the word, “Arbor Day.” “Arbor” means “tree” in Greek. It is a time set aside every year – always on the last Friday in April, and was created to remind people to appreciate trees.

S.T.R.E.A.M.S. - These activities are for all age groups today! Don’t forget to Signal and sound the first letters underlined below!

1) Social: Review the concept of sharing and caring! Tell your child that a TREE IS A PLANT! So, it “shares the air” with us, just like you learned in Lesson One of Earth Week.

a) Find a Tree! If you have a tree in your front or backyard, you have a treasure! Go look at it closely. Check out its leaves, bark, trunk and branches (check out the blends: “tr” and “br.”). If you do not have a tree, take a walk and find one. Do you see any blossoms (flowers)? Seeds? Pinecones are seeds!

b) Rest and Enjoy. If possible, pack a snack and bring a blanket and lie down under the tree’s branches. Have your child describe it. You can draw them out with questions. Is the wind moving the leaves? Can you hear it? Are birds singing? Discuss everything you notice. Before you leave, give it a hug and tell it “THANK YOU!” for giving you shade, coolness, and oxygen. Thank it for letting birds, squirrels and bugs live in its branches and leaves.

2) Science: a) Plant a Tree! Remember, just like people, trees start small and grow to be big! If you can plant one or more

trees, please do. What a great experience to feel the dirt, smell it, and know you, as a family, are giving life to something important.

b) Names of Trees: There are so many different kinds of trees. Discover some of their names (pine, oak, aspen, spruce, maple, beech, birch, cottonwood, elm, ash, willow, etc.).

c) Leaves. Did you know that some trees keep their leaves all year (evergreen – they still drop some leaves) and some lose their leaves every fall (deciduous). Discover and discuss.

3) Technology: a) Go online to various kid-friendly “Arbor Day” video sites. b) Look for a cross-section of the tree trunk and look at its rings (see below). You count them to find out how old

the tree was and if there was rain or a drought. c) Check out pictures of redwood trees. They are the tallest in the world!d) The oldest trees are trees are the Great Basin bristlecone pine trees from California and Nevada, in the

United Stated! They are thought to be 500,000 years old!

4) Art & Music: Collect leaves from trees and other plants (don’t pick poison oak or poison ivy!) and make a beauti-ful collage! You need glue, leaves, and a cardboard base on which to glue!

TO ADD TO THE FUN! Use this link to listen to LOTs of songs about TREES! https://www.life-gate.com/people/lifestyle/ten-song-celebrate-trees

FIELD TRIP! If at all possible, take a trip around the neighborhood or town to see all the differ-ent trees. There are so many varieties!

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Lesson Plan Book #24

Vocabulary Words:

Notes and Observations:

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1. Inny 2. and* 3. his* 4. pal 5. Sam 6. sat* 7. on* 8. a* 9. mat10. had*11. bun12. jam13. sup14. the*15. got*16. fat

* High Frequency Words

“Inny and Sam” (Focus: Short “a,” mixed vowels, VC/CVC words)

This Mini-Book is comprised of a VC/CVC words, a Blend (and), Schwas (the, a), the Double Consonant in the name “Inny.”

a. Write the vocabulary words on the board for all to see. Discuss any unfamiliar vocabulary with your students.

Do your students remember what “sup” means? (It is an old-fashioned term that means “to dine” or “to eat supper.”) Discuss the word “bun.“ (It is a small bread roll.) A bun can mean a hair-do also. That’s when a person puts her hair in a ponytail, then rolls it into a bun and pins it.

Spell out the vocabulary words with the AACs prior to reading this Mini-Book.

b. Ask for volunteers to read this Mini-Book fi rst. Make sure everyone has a chance to read aloud. Break into buddy-groups for a second reading opportunity. Now, have each child read independently (SVR). Walk around the room and listen to them read. Gather together to ask and answer comprehension questions (located in “c.” below). Ask students to come up with questions of their own to ask their classmates.

c. Ask these questions: What are Inny and his pal Sam doing? (They are sitting in a tree on a mat.) Look at the picture carefully on page 2. What is Inny doing? (He is repelling down from a high leaf, bringing food to Sam.) What do they have to eat? (A bun and jam.) Describe the looks on their faces. Try to make your face look like Inny’s and Sam’s.

Optional: Make homemade jam and bring in buns to eat. Each student can make his or her own mat by decorating a piece of construction paper.

d. Signal the capital letters in the names in the sentences. Signal the capital letters at the begin-ning of the sentences. Discuss the reasons (rules) for capital letters. Ask each child to Signal the fi rst letter in their names. Ask children what makes a complete sentence.

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