A guide for using our resources

Children will identify the parts of a lily pad and discover its special attributes

Vocabulary: stem, roots, veins, aquatic

Science Focus: plant parts

CCSS (and states that have similar standards): RI.1.1 ask and answer questions; RI.1.4 determine meaning of words; RI.1.10 read informational texts; RF.1.2 vowels; W.1.8 gather information; SL.1.1 participate in collaborative conversations

Simple, spectacular ideas to boost your lessons.

• This wordless book is sure to inspire students  imaginations and storytelling skills with the beautiful illustrations depicting a fantastical narrative that begins with frogs floating on lily pads.

• Make a chart titled “Adjectives.”
• Tell students that adjectives are descriptive words. Look at the first box in the issue. Which word is an adjective? Have students circle it. They can raise their hand to share. Add the word long to the chart.
• More adjectives in the article: tiny, huge, amazing.
• Revisit the article and have students come up with their own adjectives to describe lily pads and add to the list.

Skills: gross-motor

Materials: construction paper, masking tape, markers

• Have a movement break while having students practice following directions.
• Before beginning the activity, write actions on sheets of construction paper such as “wiggle,” “pull your ears,” “stand on one foot,” and so on. Then take the sheets to the floor in a zigzag pattern. These will be the “lily pads.” Space the sheets so kids can get from one to the next with a small stretch.
• Have kids take off their shoes and socks and line up behind the “lily pads.” Then play some music!
• When the music stops, kids have to do whatever is written on their “lily pads!”
• A variation of the game is to do it outdoors and draw lily pads with sidewalk chalk. You can also make it a skills game by writing math sentences, words, or questions to review key details from the article on each lily pad.