Curriculum

Children will retell stories including key details and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson. For example, after reading "The Tortoise and the Hare," a teacher can ask a 6-year-old to recount the story. The child might say, "The tortoise walked very slowly but didn't stop, and the hare ran fast and then took a nap." The teacher might then lead the child to discuss the lesson by asking, "What does the story teach us?"

Children will ask and answer questions about key details in a text. For example, after reading a story together, the teacher might prompt the class with questions like, "What was the main problem in the story?" or "Who are the main characters?" Students will then respond with answers such as, "The main problem was that the cat wanted to find its way home," or "The main characters are the cat and the dog."

Children will use drawing, dictating, and writing to tell a story. Using "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle, a 5-year-old might draw and label the caterpillar eating foods from Monday to Sunday. They could dictate or write, "First, he ate an apple. Then, two pears." They might finish by saying, "I liked when he turned into a butterfly," showing how to sequence events and express reactions.

With prompting and support, children will retell familiar stories, including key details. For example, after reading "Goldilocks and the Three Bears," a teacher might ask, "Can you tell me what happened in the story?" The child could respond by saying, "Goldilocks went into the bears' house, tried their porridge, and sat in their chairs." The teacher might help by prompting them to remember important details, like, "What happened when the bears came home?"

Children will describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details. For example, after reading "Corduroy" by Don Freeman, a teacher might ask a 6-year-old to tell about the main character. The child might say, "Corduroy is a small teddy bear who wears green overalls and lives in a department store." Moving on to the setting, the teacher could prompt, "Where does the story happen?" to which the child might respond, "First in the department store and then in a little girl’s home." Discussing the major events, the child might recount, "Corduroy tries to find a button for his overalls, gets in trouble, but then a girl named Lisa buys him and takes him home.”

Children will identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. For example, after reading a story about animals on a farm, the teacher might ask, "What is the main topic of this story?" The children could respond, "The main topic is farm animals." Then, the teacher may prompt them to retell key details by asking, "Can you tell me some important things that happened in the story?" The children might say, "The cow gives milk, the chickens lay eggs, and the pig likes to roll in the mud."

Children will learn to enhance their writing by responding to feedback with adult help. For example, a 5-year-old writes about a day at the zoo and draws a picture of animals they saw. An adult might ask, "What sounds did the animals make?" or a peer might suggest, "Write about the big elephant you saw!" The child can then add these details to their writing, such as "The lion roared loudly" or "The big elephant sprayed water with its trunk."

Children will decode regularly spelled one-syllable words. For example, they will use their knowledge of phonics to read words like "cat," "dog," "sit," and "run" by sounding out each letter and blending the sounds together.

Children will, with prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. For example, after listening to a story read aloud, they might be prompted by the teacher to say, "What is this story mainly about?" They may respond, "This story is about a little bunny." Then, with further guidance, they could retell key details, such as "The bunny found a carrot," or "The bunny hopped through the garden."

Children will read emergent-reader texts with purpose and understanding. For example, after reading a simple story, they will visualize the events by creating mental images or drawings of key scenes. They might be encouraged to retell the story in their own words, highlighting the main characters, important events, and their favorite parts.