first grade | Teaching Every Day

Rooster’s Off to See the World by Eric Carle is a second-grade reading level book. It is a wonderful read aloud to younger kids, especially when read with other Eric Carle favorites. It tells the story of a rooster who wants to travel and asks several animals to come along with him.

(Common Core Standards appear in italics. They correlate with specific standards in different grade levels. These standards are used in almost every school in the country. Click the Common Core tab above to learn more.)

Practice math- Do verbal or written story problems following along with the story. 1 rooster + 2 cats+ 2 frogs+ 4 turtles+ 5 fish = how many animals in all? When the animals leave, write the subtraction problems. (first grade- Solve word problems that call for addition of three whole numbers whose sum is less than or equal to 20)
Read with voice- This book makes a great read aloud. Try out different voices for each of the animals. Pay attention to words the author uses such as purred, snapped, or complained. (second grade-Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud.)
Alternatives to said– This activity goes along with reading with voice. Make a list of all the words used instead of “said.” Talk about why the author used these different words. See if your child can use some of the new words in her writing.
Act it out- Use puppets or yourself to act out the story. Maybe you could be the rooster and your child play the part of the other animals.
Write the sequel– The story ends with rooster dreaming about a trip around the world. Where would he go? What would he do? Have your child make up the rest of the story and you can write it down.
Text to self connection- Ask your child to explain when he has felt like the characters in the story- excited for a trip, lonely, or homesick. (first grade- Describe people, places, things, and events with relevant details, expressing ideas and feelings clearly)

Bowling is a fun indoor activity when it is too cold or hot outside. We found a local bowling alley with a weekly special for preschoolers ($3 that includes one game, shoes, and a drink). Though, even the smallest bowling balls are pretty heavy for little ones, so I recommend it for kids over 3. Big Sis has a great time bowling, and it is educational, too! Playing a sport is always a learning experience in my book. But the bowling alley is also a wonderful place to practice math in the real world. Old school bowling provided lots of math practice when you kept score with a pen and paper. Yet, even with today’s bowling alley computers keeping score, you can still ask your kiddo some math questions. Then just look up at the screen to check the answer!

You can ask about…

Counting- Count how many pins are still standing. (kindergarten- Count to tell the number of objects)
Make a ten- You started with 10 pins. Now there are 6 pins standing. How many did you knock down? What number plus 6 makes 10? (kindergarten- For any number from 1 to 9, find the number that makes 10 when added to the given number)
Simple addition- You knocked down 2 pins last turn and 3 pins this time. How many did you get in all?
Two-digit plus one-digit addition– Your score was 33, then you knocked 5 more down this turn. What is your score now? (first grade- Add within 100, including adding a two-digit number and a one-digit number…)
Subtraction– There were 10 pins and you knocked down 5. What is 10-5? (kindergarten- Add and subtract within 10)
Relationship between addition and subtraction- There were ten pins and I see 2 still standing. How many did you knock down? You can think about it as “what number plus 2 equals 10?” Or you can think “10-2=?” (first grade- Understand subtraction as an unknown-addend problem)