1st Grade

Reading 

• Foundational Language Skills: Phonological Awareness - producing a series of rhyming words (TEKS 1.2Ai)
• Foundational Language Skills: Phonics - decoding words (TEKS 1.2Biii)
• Multiple Genres: Describing Character and story language structure  (TEKS 1.8B, C, and D) 
• Comprehension: Establish purpose for reading (TEKS 1.4A) 
• Foundational Language Skills: Develops oral language through listening, speaking, and discussion (TEKS 1.1A-E) 
• Comprehension: Make personal connections (TEKS 1.6E,) 
• Foundational Language Skills: Phonics - decoding by applying letter-sound correspondence (TEKS 1.2Bi, 1.2Bii)
• Foundational Language Skills: Identifying and reading at least 100 high‐frequency words from a research‐based list (TEKS1.2Bvi) 

Writing  

• Composition: Dictate or compose personal narratives (TEKS 1.12A) 
• Convey messages in meaningful ways such as illustrating or writing (TEKS 1.11) 
• Composition: Plan a written piece by generating ideas for writing such as drawing and brainstorming (TEKS  1.11A) 
• Compositions: Edit for capitalization for the beginning of sentences and the pronoun "I" (TEKS 1.11)Dviii 
• Composition: Edit for punctuation marks at the end of declarative, exclamatory, and interrogative sentences (TEKS 1.11Dix) 
• Composition: Edit for correct spelling of words with grade‐appropriate orthographic patterns and rules and high‐frequency words with adult assistance (TEKS 1.11Dx) 

English Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment__K-12_English_06-2019.pdf

Spanish Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment_K-12_Spanish_06-2019.pdf

Questions to ask your child (Reading and Writing):

• Looking at the title and the cover, what do you think this story will be about?
• Based on what we just read, What do you think might happen next? 
• Tell me about the character in this story. What are they like? How do you think [the character] will solve the problem? 
• What was your favorite part? How do you think this is going to end? 
• What are you thinking about now? What in the story makes you think that? 
• Were you right?
• Tell me your story (before writing).
• Let’s say your story as you touch the pages that each part goes on. 
• Draw the picture for each part on the pages. 
• Write the sentences that go with each part.

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Read with your child daily.
• Practice high frequency words (snap words) each day for automaticity. 
• Encourage to tell you small moment stories and then write them as books.
• Ask for help with shopping lists. Encourage your child to write all the sounds they hear.
• Have them write letters to friends and family members.

Math

Addition & Subtraction (Part 1)

• Use & explain strategies to add and subtract numbers within 20 (TEKS 1.5G,1.3D, 1.3E)
• Draw pictures and use objects to add and subtract (TEKS 1.3A)
• Make the sum of ten in different ways (TEKS 1.3D)
• Skip count by twos, fives, and tens to count a set of objects (TEKS 1.5B)
• Create a word problem for a given number sentence (TEKS 1.3F)
• Represent addition/subtraction word problems with pictures and number sentences (TEKS 1.5D)
• Determine the missing value from an addition or subtraction word problem and from a number sentence (TEKS 1.3B, 1.5F)
• Explain what the equal sign means in a number sentence (both side of the equation represent the same quantity) (TEKS 1.5E)

Questions to ask your child (Math):

• What part is missing from the problem?
• How much did you start with?
• What action do you see happening in the word problem?
• How did you decide whether to add or subtract?
• What strategy did you use to solve the word problem?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Encourage your child to write their own word problems using real world context.
• Using two different colored objects, have your child represent 10 in different ways (example: 3 green stickers & 7 purple stickers).
• Skip count by twos, fives, and tens including starting at any number
• Have your child explain their thinking after they solve a word problem. 
• Ask your child what is ten more, and/or ten less than a given number (example: What is 10 more than 37? What is 10 less than 37? How do you know? What patterns do you notice?)

Science

Environments

• Sort and classify living and nonliving things based upon whether or not they have basic needs and produce offspring (TEKS 1.9A)
• Explain that living things have basic needs that must be met in order to survive, while nonliving things do not (TEKS 1.9A)
• Explain that living things have the ability to reproduce, while nonliving things do not.
• Analyze and record how organisms depend on other living things in various situations to survive (TEKS 1.9C)

TEKS http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/ch112a.html#112.12

Questions to ask your child (Science):

• What basic needs must be met for living things to survive?
• How can we sort and classify living things and nonliving things?

How can I help my child learn at home?

Matter

• Select common household items and have your child classify them by their observable physical properties

Environments

• Help your child learn more about living things by growing a plant and observing its reactions to its environment. 

Social Studies 

Government & Citizenship

• Learn about the purpose of rules and laws in the home, school, and community (TEKS 1.10A, 1.10B)
• Examine what makes a good citizen (TEKS 1.12A, 1.12B)
• Identify the responsibility of authority figures and roles of public officials at the local, state, and national levels (TEKS 1.11A, 1.11B)
• Explain how voting is a way of making choices and decisions (TEKS 1.13D)

TEKS https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=19&pt=2&ch=113&sch=A&rl=Y

Questions to ask your child (Social Studies):

Government & Citizenship

• Why are rules important? Why do we have them? What would happen if we didn’t have them?
• How are the rules in our house, school, and community similar to or different from each other?
• What makes a good citizen?
• Why do people vote?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Talk about the different authority figures and their roles in the different places you go as a family (library, park, community swimming pool, shopping mall)
• When your child displays characteristics of a good citizen, acknowledge it and name it.
• Share times when you have voted.
• Celebrate Freedom Week is in September and Constitution Day is September 17. Share with your student what freedom means to you and discuss why the Constitution is such an important document for our country.

English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students

Overview:

If this is the first time your child attends a Texas school, the first nine weeks will be the time your child becomes accustomed to the new environment as they learn.

How does the school know that my child is an English Learner/Emergent Bilingual student?

When you register your child in school for the first time, you are asked to fill out a home language survey that asks two specific questions: (1) What language is spoken in the child’s home most of the time? and (2) What language does the child speak most of the time? If the survey indicates that your child speaks a language other than English and/or the home language is other than English, he/she will then be tested at the Multilingual Department’s Welcome Center. If the assessment indicates that your child is not yet proficient in English, the Language Proficiency Assessment Committee (LPAC) will make a program recommendation for your child.

How will my child learn English?

Dual Language programs are designed to make grade-level academic content accessible to English learners through the development of literacy and academic skills in the child’s primary language and English. English as a Second Language program (ESL) targets English language development, including listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, through academic content instruction that is linguistically and culturally responsive.

Questions to ask your child:

• What was one interesting thing you did at school today?
• Who did you sit with during lunchtime?
• Who did you talk to the most today?
• What is your homework for today?

How may I support my child?

• Encourage your child to use a bilingual dictionary.
•  Encourage your child to read daily in his /her home language and/or English. In the primary grades, read to/with your child.
• Schedule time every day for your child to do homework.

Resources:

Parent Guide: https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/parent-guide-el-english.pdf

U.S. Department of Education - English Learner Tool Kit: https://ncela.ed.gov/files/family_toolkit/EL-Family-Tool-Kit-All.pdf

U.S. Department of Education - Especially for Parents: https://www2.ed.gov/parents/landing.jhtml?src=pn

Supporting English Learners in Texas:  https://www.txel.org/Parents-And-Families

Reading

• Foundational Language Skills: Phonics - decoding by applying letter-sound correspondence (TEKS 1.2Bi, 1.2Bii)
• Foundational Language Skills: Identifying and reading at least 100 high‐frequency words from a research‐based list ( TEKS 1.2Bvi) 
• Foundational Language Skills: Uses appropriate fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) when reading grade-level text. (TEKS 1.4A)
• Comprehension: Make and correct or confirm predictions using text features, characteristics of the genre, and structures with adult assistance (TEKS 1.6C) 
• Comprehension: Monitor comprehension and make adjustments. (TEKS 1.6I) 

Writing 

• Composition: Dictate or compose informational texts, including procedural texts (TEKS 1.12B) 
• Spell words using sound‐spelling patterns (look, book, took, cook) (TEKS 1.2) 
• Composition: Use the writing process to compose texts (TEKS  1.11A-E) 
• Compositions: Edit for capitalization for the beginning of sentences and the pronoun "I" (TEKS 1.11Dviii)
• Composition: Edit for punctuation marks at the end of declarative, exclamatory, and interrogative sentences (TEKS 1.11Dix) 
• Composition: Edit for correct spelling of words with grade‐appropriate orthographic patterns and rules and high‐frequency words with adult assistance (TEKS 1.11Dx) 

English Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment__K-12_English_06-2019.pdf

Spanish Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment_K-12_Spanish_06-2019.pdf

Questions to ask your child (Reading and Writing):

• What do you already know about (the topic)? 
• What did the author teach you about (the topic)? 
• What does this remind you of? 
• What have you learned? 
• How is the character like you (or different from you)? 
• How did this story make you feel? 
• How does the connection you made help you understand the character better? 

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Continue to read with your child. Select topics of interest and stories that are interesting to your child. 
• Continue to practice high frequency words (snap words). 
• Help your child when decoding longer words become challenging. Often reminding them to break the word into chunks, to see the familiar word before an ending will help them grow in their ability to read these words with automaticity. 
• Find a quiet place and quiet time (as much as possible in our busy lives) for your child to read.  Children should read 15-30 minutes each night. 
• Check-in with your child to see how they are enjoying their reading. Maybe even grab yourself a copy of the book so you can have book chats.
• Your child is learning to write procedural texts. Help them rehearse for this by using the structure of how to write. This can be with Lego building, cooking, or even getting ready for school. 
• Continue to talk about writing using story language. Take time to have your child tell their story, touch and tell the pages of a blank book. Then, sketch and write. They should always reread. They will have more details to add when they reread.
• Colorful pens and markers are great tools to encourage young writers to revise and edit.  

Math

• Sort two- dimensional shapes based on the number of sides and vertices (TEKS 1.6A)
• Distinguish between attributes that define a two- dimensional or  three- dimensional figure and attributes that do not define the shape (TEKS 1.6B)
• Create and identify two- dimensional shapes: circle, triangle, rectangle, square, rhombus, and hexagon (TEKS 1.6C, 1.6D) 
• Identify and describe three-dimensional shapes:  sphere, cone, cylinder, rectangular prism, cube, and triangular prism (TEKS 1.6E)
• Join shapes together to make a new shape (TEKS 1.6F)
• Divide a shape into two and four equal parts and describe the parts (TEKS 1.6G)
• Identify an example of a half or a fourth and explain when it is not a half or a fourth (TEKS 1.6H)
• Use a measuring tool such as string to measure the length of an object (TEKS 1.7A)
• Use objects like paper clips to measure the length of an object and tell how many units long the object is (TEKS 1.7B, 1.7C)
• Measure an object using two different size units (large paper clips and small paper clips) and describe how and why the measurements differ (smaller units of measure will require more units to measure, while larger units of measure will require less) (TEKS 1.7C)
• Tell time on a clock (analog & digital): to the hour and half hour (TEKS 1.7E)

Questions to ask your child (Math):

• What are the attributes of a _?
• How is a _ different/similar to a _?
• Is this divided into halves/fourths? How do you know?
• Looking at an object, ask, how could we measure the length/height?
• When measuring an object, where do we start measuring?
• What time is it?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Have your child identify 2D and 3D shapes in the environment.
• Have your child create their favorite shape using  materials such as: popsicle sticks, toothpicks, paper, playdough, and write about its attributes. 
• Have your child divide their food, such as a sandwich, into two or four pieces. Ask them what one piece represents (one-half, one-fourth, or neither [if not equal in size]) and how they know.
• Have your child measure the height/ length of objects around your home using objects such as paper clips, beans, string, or crayons.
• Have your child tell the time (to the nearest half hour) on both analog and digital clocks.

Science

Environments

• Explain that living things have the ability to reproduce, while nonliving things do not.
• analyze and record how organisms depend on other living things in various situations to survive (TEKS 1.9C)
• gather evidence of interdependence among living organisms such as energy transfer through food chains or animals using plants for shelter. (TEKS 1.9C)
• analyze and record examples of interdependence found in various situations such as terrariums and aquariums or pets and caregivers. (TEKS 1.9B)

Organisms

• Identify and explain how the parts of plants work together to allow the plant to function. (TEKS 1.10B)
• Identify and explain how plants are made up of parts including roots, stems, branches, leaves, and flowers. (TEKS 1.10B)
• Identify and explain how plants absorb water and nutrients with roots and make their own food using air and the energy from sunlight in their leaves. (TEKS 1.10B)
• Investigate how external characteristics such as body covering, color, body shape, or size that are related to where animals live. (TEKS 1.10A)
• Investigate external animal characteristics such as wings, flippers, hooves, or paws that are related to how they move. (TEKS 1.10A)
• Investigate external animal characteristics such as teeth, claws, beaks, or eyes that are related to what they eat. (TEKS 1.10A)
• compare ways that young animals resemble their parents (TEKS 1.10C)
• observe and record life cycles of animals such as a chicken, frog, or fish (TEKS 1.10D)

Earth

• Compare different types of soil by their observable properties (TEKS 1.7A)
• Describe soil based on particle size, texture, and color  (TEKS 1.7A)
• Identify and describe that water comes from many different sources including streams, lakes, and oceans. (TEKS 1.7B)
• Identify and describe that different sources of water have different characteristics such as size, types of water, and movement. (TEKS 1.7B)
• Identify and describe sources of water-based on observable characteristics such as color. (TEKS 1.7B)

TEKS http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/ch112a.html#112.12

Questions to ask your child (Science):

• What types of offspring do living things produce?
• What are examples of interdependence found in terrariums and aquariums?
• What are the parts and functions of plants?
• What comparisons can we make between the parts of plants?
• What are some important external characteristics of animals?
• How do the external characteristics of animals help us determine where they live, how they move, and what they eat?
• What characteristics do young animals have that resemble their parents?
• What characteristics do young animals have that do not resemble the parent?
• What observations can we make about the life cycle of an animal such as a chicken, frog, or fish?
• What physical properties can we use to observe, compare, describe, and sort soil?
• What are some natural sources of water?
• What observable characteristics can we use to identify and describe natural sources of water?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Examine various edible plant parts from the grocery store, including fruits and vegetables. Have your child identify as many plant parts as possible. 
• Have your child invent an animal that has special external features. Your child should draw the animal in its habitat. Encourage creativity, but make sure your child focuses on realistic characteristics and how these characteristics relate to where the animal lives, what it eats, and how it moves.
• Have your child create a poster to illustrate the stages of life cycles for two different animals. Below each life cycle, have your child write or complete a sentence comparing the appearance of the young and the parent. 
• Help your child learn more about the interdependence of organisms by building a terrarium.
• Explore your own backyard or green space in your neighborhood to help your child learn more about the properties of soil. Collect soil samples from several locations and compare their properties.
• Visit a nearby stream, river, lake, or ocean. If possible, visit several different natural water sources. Have your child observe each body of water, decide what type of water source it is, and explain the reasoning behind this decision. Alternatively, you can also research bodies of water on the internet and have your child classify them by observable properties. 

Social Studies 

Citizenship and Government

• Learn about national holidays and celebrations (TEKS 1.1A, 1.1B)
• Identify famous Americans who made a difference (TEKS 1.2A, 1.2B)
• Learn about American patriotism by learning about U.S. symbols, customs, and celebrations (TEKS 1.13A)

Geography

Learn how to use relative location (left, right, near, far, next to) and the four cardinal directions (1.3A, 1.3B)

TEKS https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=19&pt=2&ch=113&sch=A&rl=Yer113/ch113a.html

Questions to ask your child (Social Studies):

Citizenship and Government

• Why do we say the Pledge of Allegiance or the Pledge to the Texas Flag?
• Who are some famous Americans you have been learning about in school?

Geography

• Ask students questions where they have to know or use relative location.
• What are the cardinal directions?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• When driving around town, look for US Symbols and discuss them.
• Have a talk with your child about the reasons for the holidays and how they are celebrated as they come up throughout the year.

English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students

Overview:

Your child is becoming comfortable with Texas schools. The focus is now developing his/her English and supporting him/her to learn the core content.

How will my child learn English?

During this time, your child’s teacher is providing strategies in the classroom in order to help with Second Language Acquisition. Teachers report the strategies and linguistic accommodations they provide for the students in order to help the students be successful in acquiring the English language. 

Questions to ask your child?

• What did you learn in your_____ class?
• How did you ask for help?
• Who did you talk to the most in your classes?
• What is your homework for today?

How may I support my child?

• Check out books including audiobooks in English or in their home language from public libraries.
• Encourage your child to read and/or listen to audiobooks daily.
• Be sure to attend parent-teacher conferences scheduled by your child’s school.
• Schedule time every day for your child to do homework.

Resources

Parent Guide: https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/parent-guide-el-english.pdf

The 50 Best ESL Resources for Kids:   http://www.studentguide.org/the-50-best-esl-resources-for-kids/

Colorín Colorado (bilingual website):  http://www.colorincolorado.org/

PBS Kids http://pbskids.org/

Unite for Literacy: https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/

Supporting English Learners in Texas:  https://www.txel.org/Parents-And-Families

Reading 

• Foundational Language Skills: Phonics - decode words with initial and final consonant blends, digraphs, and trigraphs (TEKS 1.2Ci) 
• Foundational Language Skills: Identify and read at least 100 high‐frequency words from a research‐based list (TEKS 1.2Bvi) 
• Comprehension: Generate questions, make prediction, create mental images, make connections, determine importance (TEKS 1.6A-I) E
• Foundational Language Skills: Work collaboratively with others by following agreed‐upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, and making appropriate contributions to classroom and partner discussions (TEKS 1.1A-E) 

Writing 

• Composition: Dictate or compose informational texts, including procedural texts (TEKS 1.12B) 
• Composition: Use the writing process to compose texts (TEKS  1.11A-E) 
• Compositions: Edit for capitalization for the beginning of sentences and the pronoun "I" (TEKS 1.11Dviii)
• Composition: Edit for punctuation marks at the end of declarative, exclamatory, and interrogative sentences (TEKS 1.11Dix) 
• Composition: Edit for correct spelling of words with grade‐appropriate orthographic patterns and rules and high‐frequency words with adult assistance (TEKS 1.11Dx) 

English Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment__K-12_English_06-2019.pdf

Spanish Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment_K-12_Spanish_06-2019.pdf

Questions to ask your child (Reading and Writing):

• The author [or character] said ___.   What did he/she really mean?
• Why is [character] acting like that? 
• How is [character] feeling now? 

How can I help my child learn at home?

Reading

• This is a great time to take your first grade reader to the library. There are many early readers that your child will be able to read independently. Encourage them to reread these books. 
• Your child should read 15-30 minutes a night. This can include time that you read to them and they read independently. You might select a chapter book that is a little higher than a book that they can read independently to build their language comprehension. 
• Have fun talking about books and favorite authors. 

Writing

• Help your child research topics that interest them. Background knowledge will help them have more interesting writing. 
• Encourage your child to write letters to family members and friends. 
• You might give your child a journal or notebook to record interesting moments or write stories. 

Math

Representation & Comparison of Whole Numbers to 120

• Look at a set of objects and know how many there are in the set without counting all (TEKS 1.2A)
• Count forward and backward from any number (TEKS 1.5A) 
• Represent the value of whole numbers (TEKS 1.2B, 1.2C)
• Compare numbers up to 100 using <, >, or =  (TEKS 1.2G)
• Generate a number that is greater than or less than another number  (TEKS 1.2D)
• Compare numbers up to 120 using the words more than, less than, or equal to  (TEKS 1.2E)
• Order numbers from least to greatest or greatest to least  (TEKS 1.2F)
• Generate a number that is 10 or 100 more than or less than a given number  (TEKS 1.5C)

Personal Financial Literacy

• Identify a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter and its value (TEKS 1.4A)
• Describe the relationships between coins (example: how many nickels are in a quarter) (TEKS 1.4A)
• Use ¢ to represent the value of a coin (TEKS 1.4B)
• Count by twos, fives, and tens to determine the value of a group of pennies, nickels, and/or dimes  (TEKS 1.4C)
• Define money earned as income (TEKS 1.9A)
• Explain the difference between wants and needs (TEKS 1.9B)
• Explain the difference between spending and saving (TEKS 1.9C)
• Describe when and why you might make a donation (TEKS 1.9D)

Questions to ask your child (Math):

• Given a set of two numbers, ask, which number is greater? Which is less?
• Given a set of three numbers, ask, which number is least? Which is the greatest? How do you know?
• Can you count forward/backward from _?
• What is the value of a _?
• What is the difference between a need and a want? 

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Count forward and backward while driving in the car, while brushing teeth, counting down seconds with the microwave - make a game out of it!
• Make up 3-5 numbers (within 120) together and have your child order them from least to greatest or greatest to least
• Have you child identify coins
• Give your child a group of coins and have them determine the value

Science

• Identify how rocks, soil, and water are used to make products. (TEKS 1.7C)
• Observe weather conditions around us using our senses (TEKS 1.8A)
• Use tools such as windsocks and thermometers to gather weather information (TEKS 1.8A)
• Record weather data including relative temperatures, such as hot or cold, clear or cloudy, calm or windy, and rainy or icy  in charts, tables, and graphs (TEKS 1.8A)
• Demonstrate that air is all around us and observe that wind is moving air. (TEKS 1.8D)
• Observe and record how the Moon’s appearance changes over time. (TEKS 1.8B)
• Observe and record how the Sun appears to change position in the sky, such as during sunrise and sunset and through the changing location of an object’s shadow during different times of the day. (TEKS 1.8B)
• Observe and record stars in the night sky (TEKS 1.8B)
• Identify the different characteristics of day and night (TEKS 1.8C)
• Identify the characteristics of seasons, summer, fall, winter, and spring (TEKS 1.8C)
• Identify how what we see and do changes from day to night and from season to season. (TEKS 1.8C)

• Classify objects by observable properties such as larger and smaller, heavier and lighter, shape, color, and texture (TEKS 1.5A)

Questions to ask your child (Science)

• What observable characteristics can we use to identify and describe natural sources of water?
• What observations can we make about weather conditions?
• How can we record weather data?
• What observations can we make of the changes in the Moon’s appearance, the clouds, and the Sun’s position during the day?
• Why do we see stars at night and not during the day?
• What different types of activities do we do in the day and night and from season to season?
• What observable properties can we use to classify objects?
• What tools can we use to measure objects?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Visit a nearby stream, river, lake, or ocean. If possible, visit several different natural water sources. Have your child observe each body of water, decide what type of water source it is, and explain the reasoning behind this decision. Alternatively, you can also research bodies of water on the internet and have your child classify them by observable properties
• Help your child learn more about weather observations by making a weather chart and recording weather data each day.
• Observe and record changes in objects in the sky, including the moon, sun, and stars
• To help students learn more about the changing seasons throughout the year, have them make their own calendar. Then, have them create a picture on the top half of each calendar page that reflects that month. 
• Select common household items and have your child classify them by their observable physical properties

Social Studies 

What should my child be working on in the 3rd nine weeks of school?

Geography

• Identify and describe the physical characteristics of place such as landforms and bodies of water(TEKS 1.5A)

Economics

• Understand how all families must satisfy their basic human needs for food, clothing, and shelter (TEKS 1.6A, 1.6B)
• Understand how workers produce goods and services and exchange them (TEKS 1.7A, 1.7B, 1.7C)
• Think about what happens when a person wants more than they can have and how that leads to making choices (TEKS 1.8A, 1.8B, 1.8C)

TEKS https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=19&pt=2&ch=113&sch=A&rl=Y 

Questions to ask your child (Social Studies):

• What is the difference between a lake and a pond?
• How would you describe this area?
• How do people get what they need?
• Why do people have to make choices when they want something?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• As you travel throughout the year, talk about the physical characteristics of the land.
• As you and your family make purchases over the next several weeks, discuss with your child if these things fulfill one of the basic human needs, and if so, which one.
• Also, discuss whether or not these purchases would be classified as a good or service.

English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students

How will I know when my child has learned academic English? 

Every year, your child will take an assessment called the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS) to assess his/her English proficiency level in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. When your child meets the criteria for reclassification, he/she will not need to take the TELPAS any more.  However, the school will continue to monitor your child’s progress to make sure he/she is successful at school.

Questions to ask your child?

•  What book are you reading at school?
•  What did you do in your math class?
•  Did you ask for help when you didn’t understand?
• What is your homework for today?

Resources:

Parent Guide: https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/parent-guide-el-english.pdf

Reading activities in English and Spanish: https://readconmigo.org/parents/activities

Colorín Colorado (bilingual website):  http://www.colorincolorado.org/

Unite for Literacy: https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/

Supporting English Learners in Texas: 

https://www.txel.org/Parents-And-Families

Reading

• Foundational Language Skills: Work collaboratively with others by following agreed‐upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, and making appropriate contributions to classroom and partner discussions (TEKS 1.1A-E) 
• Foundational Language Skills: Phonics - Decode words with initial and final consonant blends, digraphs, and trigraphs (TEKS 1.2Ci) 
• Comprehension: Use metacognitive skills to both develop and deepen comprehension of increasingly complex texts (TEKS 1.6A-I)
• Response Skills: make connections, retell, write brief comments, use text evidence, interact (TEKS 1.7A-F)
• Multiple Genres: theme, main characters, elements of fiction, setting (TEKS 1.8A-D) 

Writing

• Composition: Use the writing process to compose literary texts (TEKS 1.11A-E; 1.12A) 
• Compositions: Edit for complete sentences with standard English conventions (TEKS 1.11Di-x)

English Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment__K-12_English_06-2019.pdf

Spanish Language Arts TEKS: https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Vertical%20alignment_K-12_Spanish_06-2019.pdf

Questions to ask your child (Reading & Writing):

• What is most important here?
• What is something new you learned? 
• Oh ... that's interesting ... Now what are you thinking?
• What lessons did (the character) learn? 
• How does the character feel? 

How can I help my child learn at home?

Reading

• Ask your children what kinds of books they enjoy or what topics are interesting to them. Check in with your child to see how they are enjoying their reading. Maybe even grab yourself a copy of the book so you can have book chats.
• Encourage your child to write letters to family members and friends. 
• You might give your child a journal or notebook to record interesting moments or write stories. 

Math

Addition & Subtraction (Part 2) 

• Use & explain strategies to add and subtract numbers within 20 (TEKS 1.5G, 1.3D, 1.3E) 
• Draw pictures and use objects to add and subtract (TEKS 1.3A)
• Make the sum of ten in different ways (such as: 7+3, 9+1, 5+5)(TEKS 1.3C)
• Skip count by twos, fives, and tens to count a set of objects (TEKS 1.5B)
• Create a word problem for a given number sentence (TEKS 1.3F)
• Represent addition and subtraction word problems with pictures and number sentences (TEKS 1.5D)
• Determine the missing value from an addition or subtraction word problem and from a number sentence (TEKS 1.3B, 1.5F)
• Explain what the equal sign means in a number sentence (both sides of the equation represent the same quantity) (TEKS 1.5E)

Data Analysis 

• Collect, sort, and organize data using tally marks or a T-chart (TEKS 1.8A)
• Represent data to create a picture graph or bar-type graph (TEKS 1.8B)
• Ask and answer questions about data represented in a picture or bar-type graph (TEKS 1.8C)

Questions to ask your child (Math):

Addition & Subtraction to 20 (Part 2) 

• What action do you see happening in the word problem?
• How do you decide whether to add or subtract?
• What strategy did you use to solve the word problem?
• How much did you start with?
• What part is missing from the problem?

Data Analysis 

• Looking at a graph, ask, which has the most? The least?
• Looking at a graph, ask, how much more does _ have than _?
• What does the data in the graph tell you?

How can I help my child learn at home?

Addition & Subtraction to 20 (Part 2) 

• Encourage your child to write their own word problems using real world context.
• Skip count by twos, fives, and tens including starting at any number
• Have your child explain their thinking after they solve a word problem.
• Using two different colored objects, have your child represent 10 in different ways (example: 3 green stickers & 7 purple stickers)
• Ask your child what is ten more, and/or ten less than a given number (example: What is 10 more than 37? What is 10 less than 37? How do you know? What patterns do you notice?)

Data Analysis 

• Have your child create a survey, record their findings using tally marks, and then make a graph using their results. 

Science

Matter

• Classify objects by observable properties such as larger and smaller, heavier and lighter, shape, color, and texture (TEKS 1.5A)
• Classify objects by the materials from which they are made (TEKS 1.5C)

Energy

• Predict and identify changes in materials caused by heating and cooling (TEKS 1.5B)
• Identifying different forms of energy including light, thermal, and sound (TEKS 1.6A)

Force and Motion

• Observe and describe how objects can move and change position over time. (TEKS 2.6C)
• Observe and describe how the motion of objects can be predicted, observed, traced, and described. (TEKS 2.6C)
• Observe and describe how patterns of motion can include sliding, rolling, or spinning. (TEKS 2.6C)
• Observe and identify how some objects will stick to magnets, especially objects made with iron. (TEKS 2.6B)
• Observe and identify how magnets are used in many ways such as holding small objects to a refrigerator or lifting objects as well as in common everyday objects like doorbells, phones, speakers, compasses, and devices with electric motors. (TEKS 2.6B)

TEKS http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/ch112a.html#112.12

Questions to ask your child (Science):

Matter

• What observable properties can we use to classify objects?
• What tools can we use to measure objects?

Energy

• What predictions can we make about how materials are changed by heating and cooling?
• What happens to various materials when they are heated? Cooled?
• What are some different forms of energy?

Force and Motion

• How can we predict, trace, and describe the motion of objects?
• How does the motion of an object compare when it is sliding, rolling, and spinning?
• What is the physical property that allows an object to be attracted to a magnet?
• How are magnets used in everyday life?

How can I help my child learn at home?

Matter

• Select common household items and have your child classify them by their observable physical properties

Energy

• Predict what will happen to common household items when heated or cooled? Test the predictions and have your child explain the results.
• Go on a scavenger hunt to identify useful objects in your home that produce energy. Ask your child to name an object and identify the form(s) of energy it produces.

Force and Motion

• Discuss with your child and challenge them to demonstrate rolling, spinning, and sliding. Then, select some objects in your home to have them illustrate how the properties of an object affect its motion. 
• Have your child use a magnet to classify objects in your home between magnetic and nonmagnetic. 

Social Studies 

Science & Technology

• Describe how technology has affected the ways families live, communicate, move around (transportation), and participate in recreation (TEKS 1.15A, 1.15B)
• Identify contributions of scientists and inventors (TEKS 1.15C)
• History
• Sequence and categorize information (TEKS 1.16B)
• Use a simple timeline (TEKS 1.17A)
• TEKS https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=19&pt=2&ch=113&sch=A&rl=Y  

Questions to ask your child (Social Studies):

• Science & Technology
• How is the way we live different from how people lived 100 years ago?
• What did people do for fun many years ago?
• How did people travel before there were cars or airplanes?
• History
• What is a timeline?
• What is the past? What is the present? What is the future?

How can I help my child learn at home?

• Read books about famous inventors or scientists. Discuss the qualities and characteristics it takes to be an inventor (persistence, imagination, hard work)
• Together make a timeline of a family member’s life.
• Categorize items on a shopping list.

English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students

When your child has met the reclassification criteria, they will no longer receive English language development support (although they will continue to learn English with other students). Teachers will continue to monitor your child’s progress. Please continue to ask the teacher how your child is doing. If your child did not meet the reclassification criteria, he/she will continue to receive English language development support.

Questions to ask your child:

• What book are you reading at school?
• What did you do in your _____ class?
• Did you ask for help when you didn’t understand? Who helped you?
• What is your homework for today?

How may I support my child?

• Schedule an individual meeting with your child’s teacher to learn how you can continue to help your child succeed.
• Encourage your child to read and/or listen to audiobooks daily.

Resources:

Parent Guide: https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/parent-guide-el-english.pdf

Reading activities in English and Spanish: https://readconmigo.org/parents/activities

Colorín Colorado (bilingual website):  http://www.colorincolorado.org/

Unite for Literacy: https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/

Supporting English Learners in Texas: https://www.txel.org/Parents-And-Families