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Explore with students some creatures that live in tropical rain forests.

Goal
Students will learn about tropical rain forests and some animals that live there.

Objective
Students will be able to describe some animals that live in tropical rain forests. They will also be able to explain why the animals are in danger.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Setting tells you where and when a story takes place. Ask: What is the setting of this story? Is this story about long ago or today?

Link
Learn how kids can help save rain forests.

Literature Connection
• The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest, by Lynne Cherry
• Looking for Jaguar and Other Rain Forest Poems, by Susan Katz
• Over in the Jungle: A Rainforest Rhyme, by Marianne Berkes
• The Rainforest Grew All Around, by Susan K. Mitchell
• A Rain Forest Tree, by Lorien Kite
• Rain, Rain, Rain Forest, by Brenda Z. Guiberson
• A Walk in the Rainforest, by Kristin Joy Pratt

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

National Standard
Science (NSES)
Organisms and environments

Before Reading
Tap Prior Knowledge: Find out what students already know about tropical rain forests. Ask: What is a tropical rain forest? What animals might you find there? Why might tropical rain forests be disappearing?

Background Information
• It rains almost every day in a tropical rain forest. The average temperature is between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
• The Amazon rain forest in South America is the largest tropical rain forest in the world.
• The Amazon rain forest has been nicknamed the “lungs of the planet” because it provides the world with oxygen by continuously converting carbon dioxide.
• Rain forests play an important role around the world. They help regulate world climates and the water cycle. Rain forest trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Diverse rain forest plants provide people worldwide with medicines and food.
• Rain forests contain more than half of Earth’s animal and plant species.

During Reading
Make Predictions: Ask students to read the news sidebar heading, “Saving Rain Forests.” Allow them to predict what the story will be about. List their responses. Check predictions after reading.

After Reading
Think Critically: Ask students to think about the habitat in which they live. Ask: How is a tropical rain forest different from where we live? How is
it the same?

Science Extension: Have students read books about tropical rain forests. Then ask them to brainstorm a list of animals that live in the rain forest. Have each student choose one rain forest animal to learn more about that wasn’t in the student edition. Ask each student to write a paragraph describing the animal and where it lives and to draw a picture of the animal. Display work on a classroom bulletin board.

Adaptation: Have each student pick one rain forest animal he or she learned about in the issue. Instruct students to write short paragraphs describing their animals.
 

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Engage students in a lesson about healthy eating.

Goal
Students will learn about food guidelines so they can make healthy choices.

Objective
Students will be able to name the food groups and identify several foods that fall into each group.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Categorize is when you gather together information that is the same or almost the same. Classify is when you give that information a name. After reading the issue, have students create food collages. Bring in old magazines, and ask students to cut out pictures of foods. Have them work in groups to create collages of healthy foods in each food group. In the classroom, display students’ work as a reminder of which foods they should eat from each group.

Link
Invite students to play these interactive games about healthy foods.

Literature Connection
• The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Junk Food, by Stan and Jan Berenstain
• The Busy Body Book: A Kid’s Guide to Fitness, by Lizzy Rockwell
• Eat Healthy, Feel Great, by William Sears, Martha Sears, and Christie Watts Kelly
• Good Enough to Eat: A Kid’s Guide to Food and Nutrition, by Lizzy Rockwell
• Gregory, the Terrible Eater, by Mitchell Sharmat

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.

National Standard
Science (NSES)
Personal health

Before Reading
Make Predictions: Explain that March is National Nutrition Month. Ask: What are the different food groups? Which foods are good for you? Which foods are not good for you? Why?

Background Information
• The American Dietetic Association sponsors National Nutrition Month in March. The goal of the month is to focus attention on the importance of developing healthy eating and exercise habits.
• Healthy foods contain nutrients, the substances that the body uses to grow, to heal, and to obtain energy.
• Health experts recommend that children exercise for at least 60 minutes a day and eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
• Brightly colored fruits and vegetables are healthy. Experts say kids should eat a rainbow of colors.

During Reading
Identify Text Features: Encourage students to view the food plate in the issue. Point out that the food groups are different sizes. Ask: What does the food plate show? Why are the food groups different sizes?

After Reading
Think Critically: After students have finished reading the issue, tell them to think about their diets. Ask: Are you eating enough foods from the different food groups? Which foods should you eat more often? How might you feel if you didn’t eat healthy foods?

Science Extension: Create an indoor garden for your classroom. Many vegetables can be grown indoors in pots. Try planting spinach, lettuce, carrots, cherry tomatoes, radishes, or herbs.

Adaptation: To help English Language Learners better comprehend the content of the issue, bring in some foods (or pictures of foods) mentioned in the issue. Label each item, and teach students how to pronounce each word. Use the items as visual aids while reading the issue.


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Teach about our solar system.

Goal
Students will learn about our solar system.

Objective
Students will be able to name the planets and other objects in our solar system.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Vocabulary in Context means figuring out the meaning of a word by looking at the words and sentences around it. Have students read the story “Journey to Jupiter.” Ask them what they think the word original means (in the last paragraph). Have them show you words and sentences that helped them understand what the word means.

Link
Invite students to build their own virtual space mission, courtesy of NASA.

Literature Connection
• Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: Space Poems and Paintings, by Douglas Florian
• First Space Encyclopedia, DK Publishing
• Meet the Planets, by John McGranaghan
• On the Moon, by Anna Milbourne
• Voyage to the Bunny Planet, by Rosemary Wells
• What Makes Day and Night, by Franklyn M. Branley

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.

National Standard
Science (NSES)
Objects in the sky

Before Reading
Tap Prior Knowledge: Explain to students that they will learn about our solar system. Ask: What do you know about our solar system? How many planets are in our solar system? On which planet do we live?

Background Information
• The sun is the largest object in the solar system. Its diameter is 109 times the diameter of Earth.
• All planets orbit the sun in the same direction.
• Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are made mostly of rock.
• Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are made mostly of gas. They all have rings. Only Saturn’s rings are thick enough to be seen easily from Earth.
• Like Earth, Mars has mountains and valleys. The largest volcano in the solar system, called Olympus Mons, is on Mars.
• In 2006, astronomers decided that Pluto should no longer be considered a planet. It became one of a new group of smaller space objects called dwarf planets.

During Reading
Identify Main Idea: Explain to students that the main idea in a story is the big idea you get from reading the story. It is what the writer is trying to tell you. Ask: What is the main idea of the solar system story? What is another good title for the story?

After Reading
Think Critically: Ask: Is it important for scientists to learn more about our solar system? Why or why not?

Social Studies Extension: Have students use books and the Internet to research more about the eight planets of our solar system. Ask: If you could visit another planet, which would you choose? Why? Ask students to imagine visiting that planet. Have them illustrate and write postcards about their visit to send home to Earth.

Adaptation: Play 20 questions with the class. Have one student think of an object from the issue (for example: Earth, the sun, or the moon). Allow other students to ask yes-or-no questions while trying to guess correctly. Repeat the game, allowing other students to lead.


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Teach students about famous landmarks on different continents.

Goal
Students will learn about famous landmarks.

Objective
Students will be able to name several famous landmarks and tell at least one fact about each.

Concepts of Comprehension©
Author’s Purpose is the reason an author has written a text for readers. After students have read the issue, ask: What is the author’s purpose for writing this story? (A) to persuade kids to visit every continent, (B) to explain how people build landmarks, (C) to teach about world landmarks (The correct answer is C.)

Link
Watch a video about the Great Wall Marathon.

Literature Connection
• Amazing Buildings, by Kate Hayden
• Mount Rushmore, by Judith Jango-Cohen
• Mummies, Pyramids, and Pharaohs: A Book about Ancient Egypt, by Gail Gibbons
• O, Say Can You See? America’s Symbols, Landmarks, and Inspiring Words, by Sheila Keenan

Standards In This Issue
Common Core State Standard
Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text.

National Standard
Social Studies (NCSS)
People, places, and environments

Before Reading
Tap Prior Knowledge: Ask: What is a landmark? Can you name any famous landmarks in the United States? Can you name any landmarks around the world?

Background Information
• Mount Rushmore is a national memorial. A memorial is a statue or a place that honors the memory of a person or an event.
• Machu Picchu was deserted shortly after it was built. Scientists believe invading armies, fire, or disease drove people away.
• The body of the Great Sphinx was carved from a single block of stone. It is near the pyramids of Giza. They were burial sites for Egyptian kings.
• In 1990, the Leaning Tower of Pisa closed to the public for 11 years while workers tried to make it more stable by reducing the tower’s tilt.
• The Great Wall of China was built in sections. Over time, parts of the wall crumbled. Later, emperors rebuilt the wall and made it longer.
• The Sydney Opera House has about 3,000 events each year. They include operas, plays, musicals, dances, concerts, and films.

During Reading
Identify Cause and Effect: Tell students that cause is the reason something happens. Effect is what happens as a result. Explain that soft soil was the cause. The Leaning Tower of Pisa tilting was the effect. Ask: What might have been the effect if the tower had been built on harder soil?

After Reading
Think Critically: Ask: Which landmark would you most like to visit? Why?

Social Studies Extension: The United States has many famous landmarks. Divide your class into small groups. Assign each group a U.S. landmark to research, such as the Statue of Liberty, the Space Needle, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Gateway Arch, or the White House. Ask members of each group to write a few facts about the landmark and make a diorama depicting it.

Adaptation: Using a word from the student edition, such as tower, create a phonemic riddle. Ask: If you change the t in tower to fl, what is the new word? Use additional words from the issue to create more riddles.

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Grade 2 Teaching Centers, 2011-12

February 2011-12

Print out your February Teacher's Guide here.

December/January 2011-12

Print out your December/January Teacher's Guide here.

November 2011

Print out your November Teacher's Guide PDF here.

October 2011

Print out your October Teacher's Guide PDF here.

August/September 2011

Print out your August/September Teacher's Guide PDF here.