During Unit 1 of this module, your child will research the physical characteristics of birds. At the end of the unit, they will be able to answer the unit guiding question: “What makes a bird a bird?” I am writing today to explain what your child will be learning, describe the activities that will support this learning, and suggest how to support this learning at home. I hope that you will plan to join us at the end of our deep study to celebrate all of your child’s learning!

WHAT will your child learn?

Students will study the physical characteristics of birds. The learning will be focused on these ideas:

• Birds are animals with beaks, feathers, wings, and feet.

• There are many different types of birds, and they use their body parts to help them.

• Despite their differences, there are key features that all birds have in common.

• Students will also practice these reading foundation skills:

• Beginning to read and spell two-syllable words with closed syllables (e.g., absent and bandit).

• Beginning to read and spell one- and two-syllable words with closed syllables (e.g., hero and hotel).

HOW will your child learn?

Throughout the unit, your child will read, think, listen, talk, write, draw, and ask questions about the physical characteristics of birds. Students will participate in these activities, among others, to build their literacy skills:

• Listening to read-alouds and independently rereading a variety of texts about birds’ physical characteristics

• Researching specific bird body parts with a partner

• Singing songs about birds and their physical characteristics

• Engaging in collaborative conversations with classmates

• Writing to describe birds’ body parts using adjectives

• Learning how to make a scientific drawing of birds’ body parts

What can you do to SUPPORT your child’s learning at home?

Here are a few activities that you can do at home with your child to support his or her learning:

• Ask your child to talk with you about this question: What are the parts of birds’ bodies, and how do birds use them?

• Read books and sing songs about birds from home or at the library.

• Identify different types of birds around your yard or neighborhood; observe them closely to describe their body parts.

• Encourage your child to read the weekly Student Decodable Reader or a letter book to you every night.

• Notice vowels in written words and vowel sounds in spoken words. This helps readers identify syllable type in order to read an unknown word.

During Unit 2 of this module, your student will begin to investigate the importance of bird’s body parts in helping them to survive. At the end of the unit, they will be able to answer the unit guiding question: “How birds use their body parts to survive?” I am writing today to explain what your student will be learning, describe the activities that will support this learning, and suggest how to support this learning at home. I hope that you will plan to join us at the end of our deep study to celebrate all of your student’s learning!

WHAT will your student learn?

Students will continue to study the different physical characteristics of birds, focusing now on how birds use their bodies to survive. The learning will be focused on these ideas:

• Birds have specially designed body parts that help them survive.

• Scientists gather information using a variety of tools and record what they notice.

• Students will also practice these reading foundation skills:

• Beginning to read and spell CVCe (consonant, vowel, consonant, -e) words (e.g., cave, life, and code).

HOW will your student learn?

Throughout the unit, your student will read, think, listen, talk, write, draw, and ask questions about the topic of how birds use their body parts to survive. Students will participate in these activities, among others, to build their literacy skills:

• Listening to read-alouds and independently rereading a variety of texts about birds

• Researching the different bird body parts in groups

• Singing songs about birds

• Engaging in collaborative conversations with classmates

• Writing about how birds use their body parts to survive, using shades of meaning in adjectives and verbs

• Learning how to make a scientific drawing of bird body parts

What can you do to SUPPORT your student’s learning at home?

Here are a few activities that you can do at home with your student to support his or her learning:

• Ask your student to talk with you about this question: How do birds use their bodies to survive?

• Read books and sing songs about birds from home or at the library.

• Identify different types of birds around your yard or neighborhood; observe them closely to describe what they are doing.

• Encourage your student to read the weekly Student Decodable Reader or a letter book to you every night.

• Notice vowels in written words and vowel sounds in spoken words. This helps readers identify syllable type in order to read an unknown word.

During Unit 3 of this module, your student will participate in another research cycle in which members of the class study a specific bird to learn about how those birds’ key parts help them to survive in their habitat. At the end of the unit, they will be able to answer the unit guiding question: “How do specific birds use their body parts to survive?” I am writing today to explain what your student will be learning, describe the activities that will support this learning, and suggest how to support this learning at home. I hope that you will plan to join us at the end of our deep study to celebrate all of your student’s learning!

WHAT will your student learn?

Students will continue to study how birds’ key body parts help them to survive in their habitat by researching a particular bird in expert groups. The learning will be focused on these ideas:

• Some birds have unique and specially designed body parts that help them survive.

• Scientists gather information using a variety of tools and record what they notice.

• Students will also practice these reading foundation skills:

• Continue to read and spell two-syllable words with open and closed syllables

• Continue to read and spell CVCe (consonant, vowel, consonant, -e) words, but also with suffixes such as -s, -ed, and -ing (e.g., saving and stretching).

HOW will your student learn?

Throughout the unit, your student will read, think, listen, talk, write, draw, and ask questions about the topic of how specific birds use their body parts to survive. Students will participate in these activities, among others, to build their literacy skills:

• Listening to read-alouds and independently reading a variety of texts about birds and their body parts

• Researching specific birds in groups

• Singing songs about birds

• Engaging in collaborative conversations with classmates

• Writing about how particular bird body parts help birds survive

• Learning how to make a scientific drawing of a bird

What can you do to SUPPORT your student’s learning at home?

Here are a few activities that you can do at home with your student to support his or her learning:

• Ask your student to talk with you about this question: How do the body parts of the bird he or she is researching help it survive?

• Read books and sing songs about birds from home or at the library.

• Identify different types of birds around your yard or neighborhood; observe them closely to describe what they are doing.

• Encourage your student to read the weekly Student Decodable Reader or a letter book to you every night.

• Continue to help your child notice vowels and vowel sounds in words.

• Help your child notice how a suffix changes the meaning (e.g., run vs. running) and sometimes the spelling of a base word (e.g., name and naming; the silent e is dropped and the -ing suffix is added).

Books to check out or you can type in their name and the word read aloud to see if it a read aloud on YouTube or Sora.

• Just Ducks

Davies, Nicola

• Birds

Henkes, Kevin

• Birds (Scholastic Discover More)

Arlon, Penelope

• Flight School

Judge, Lita

• Feathers: Not Just for Flying

Steward, Melissa

• Beaks!

Collard, Sneed

• Little Kids First Big Book of BIrds (National Geographic)

Hughes, Catherine

• A Bird Is a Bird

Rockwell, Lizzy

• About Birds: A Guide for Children

Sill, Cathryn

• About Hummingbirds: A Guide for Children

Sill, Cathryn

• About Raptors: A Guide for Children

Sill, Cathryn

• Birdology: 30 Activities and Observations for Exploring the

Russo, Monica

• Birds

Squire, Ann O.

• Birds, Nests, And Eggs

Boring, Mel

• Brilliant Birds

Feldman, Thea

• Bring On the Birds

Stockdale, Susan

• Crow Boy

Yashima, Taro

• Ducks Don't Get Wet

Goldin, Augusta R.

• Each Kindness

Woodson, Jacqueline

• Eagles (Seedlings)

Riggs, Kate

• Fur and Feathers

Feldman, Thea & Claire

• Hummingbirds (Seedlings)

Arnold, Quinn

• Inch by Inch

Lionni, Leo

• Is This Panama?: A Migration Story

Thornhill, Jan

• National Wildlife Federation's World of Birds

Kurki, Kim & National Wildlife

• Parrots Over Puerto Rico

Trumbore, Cindy

• Sylvie

Sattler, Jennifer

• The Invisible Boy

Ludwig, Trudy

• Those Shoes

Boelts, Maribeth

• Today at the Bluebird Cafe

Ruddell, Deborah

• Two Parrots

Kheiriyeh, Rashin

• What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?

Jenkins, Steve & Robin Page

• Bird Builds a Nest: A First Science Storybook

Jenkins, Martin

• Birds: Explore the World of Our Feathered Friends

Bailey, Jill

• Just Like Us! Birds

Heos, Bridget

• Paddle Perch Climb: Bird Feet are Neat

Angus, Laurie Ellen

• Robins!: How They Grow Up

Christelow, Eileen

• Warbler Wave

Sayre, April Pulley