Parent guide · Grade 2 Phonics & Reading: Syllables and Stories · Unit 2
Lesson 2.4 Unit 2 Check
Written for the parent. Read the Say this lines aloud as they are, or in your own words. Answers for you are marked Listen for.
At a glance
- Time
- 5 sessions of 15–20 minutes
- Goal
- I can tap and blend words such as hunter , lion , fellow . I can read the heart words among and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “The Lion’s Share” and tell it back.
- You need
- Heart-word cards (printables pack)
- Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
- A King James Bible
- the lesson page (it also has a short video (3:02) and an explainer to read aloud (about 10 minutes))
Steps
Do this: Split and read: rabbit, robot, inside, napkin, music, sunshine.
Do this: Tap and blend. For each word your child touches each letter (or letter team) and says its sound, then sweeps a finger under the whole word and says it smoothly. Never guess from the first letter or a picture. If a word is misread, point to the part that was missed and blend again from the start.
Do this: Spell it. Say a word. Your child says it back, taps the sounds on his or her fingers, then writes one letter (or letter team) for each sound. Check together, sound by sound.
Do this: Heart words. A heart word is mostly regular. We tap it like any other word, and draw a heart over the one part that does not follow the rules we know yet. Practise the heart words on cards every day this week (see the table below).
Do this: The week at a glance. Day 1: warm-up, new sound, handwriting. Day 2: card review, word lists, spelling. Day 3: second new sound or more words, heart words. Day 4: read the story, talk about it. Day 5: reread the story for fluency, play the game, quick check (10 words, 1 sentence, 5 spelling words). Read the read-aloud at another time of day.
Show: Blend hunter.
Say this: “Touch and say: /h/ /u/ /n/ /t/ /er/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: hunter . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: hunter
Show: Blend lion.
Say this: “Touch and say: /l/ /i/ /o/ /n/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: lion . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: lion
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: hunter · lion · fellow · donkey
Listen for: hunter = h | u | n | t | er; lion = l | i | o | n; fellow = f | e | ll | ow; donkey = d | o | nk | ey
Ask: Read: basket · wagon · tiger · sunrise
Listen for: basket = b | a | s | k | e | t; wagon = w | a | g | o | n; tiger = t | i | g | er; sunrise = s | u | n | r | i_e | s
Ask: Read: silent · mistake
Listen for: silent = s | i | l | e | n | t; mistake = m | i | s | t | a_e | k
4 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Trying to read a long word all at once. Find the vowels, split the word into syllables, read each part, then put it together.
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
- Dictation: rabbit, robot, inside, tiger.
- Use the ball-and-stick lines: tall letters touch the top line, short letters touch the middle line, tails go below the base line.
Copywork: Write each word once, saying the sounds as you write: hunter, lion, fellow, donkey, basket, wagon.
Word Sounds Heart part among /ŭ/ /m/ /ŭ/ /ng/ ♥ o says /ŭ/ The Lion’s Share
A lion, a donkey and a fox went hunting together. They agreed to split the meat when the hunt was over.
They got a big stag. The lion said to the donkey, "You divide it." The donkey made three equal piles and said, "Pick your pile, my king."
The lion roared in anger and leaped on the donkey. Then he said to the fox, "Now you divide it."
The fox pushed almost all the meat into one big pile for the lion and kept just a tiny scrap for himself. "Who showed you how to divide like that?" asked the lion. "The donkey did," said the fox. We can learn from the mistakes of others.
Retold from Aesop. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: lion, donkey, share.
Every word in this story uses only the sounds and heart words taught so far (checked by the School Launch decodability checker). Read a page a day on Days 3 and 4, and the whole story on Day 5.
- Who went hunting?
Answer
A lion, a donkey and a fox.
- How did the donkey divide the meat?
Answer
Into three equal piles.
- How did the fox divide it?
Answer
Almost all for the lion.
- What is the lesson?
Answer
Learn from the mistakes of others.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- Who went hunting?
Aesop: The Lion’s Share. Read the original.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Sort words by first syllable type: closed, open or silent-e.
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can tap and blend words such as hunter , lion , fellow .; I can read the heart words among and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “The Lion’s Share” and tell it back.
The Swing (Robert Louis Stevenson)
How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do!Up in the air and over the wall,
Till I can see so wide,
River and trees and cattle and all
Over the countryside—Till I look down on the garden green,
Down on the roof so brown—
Up in the air I go flying again,
Up in the air and down!This week: Big voice. Speak so a person at the back of the room hears every word. Big, not shouting: fill the room, do not scream.
- Day 1: The teacher says it twice; the child echoes it one line at a time.
- Days 2–4: Say it together each morning; drop one line of help each day.
- Day 5: Say the title and the poet, then the poem. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.
A wise person learns and is careful.
Spread over the week
5 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.
- Session 1. Warm-up, then teach the new idea (steps 1 and 2).
- Session 2. Warm-up again, then show how with the examples.
- Session 3. Practice together, then play the game.
- Session 4. More practice, handwriting and reading, and the daily habit.
- Session 5. Quick check: narration and a few practice items. Move on when it is mostly right.
For you
For families. Keep each session short and cheerful: 15 to 20 minutes, then stop. If your child is tired or frustrated, stop and finish tomorrow. A lesson can take more than a week; move on when the quick check on Day 5 is mostly “Got it.”