AGES 6–7 · GRADE 1

Week 1
Letter & Number Detectives
Five Fully-Scripted Days — Reading, Math, Writing & Enrichment

PART 2 · Week 1

Kicking off the year with a friendly review of kindergarten skills

before we build up to new first-grade concepts.
 First Grade Learning
WEEK AT A GLANCE
Adventure

Week 1 at a Glance

Subject Day 1 · Mon Day 2 · Tue Day 3 · Wed Day 4 · Thu Day 5 · Fri

Letter-sound warm-up + Word family - Word families - Mixed review +

Fluency mini-
Reading blend short-a words at + sight an/-ap + sight sight words “is,”
story + retelling
(cat, mat, sat) word “the” word “a” “to”

Mixed practice
Counting & 1-to-1 Number Subtraction
Math Addition within 5 + word
correspondence to 10 bonds to 5 within 5
problems

Sentence “About Me”

Tricky letters b/ Cut-and-build
Writing Pencil grip + letters a, c, t copy: “I can independent
d, i/l sentence puzzle
pat the cat.” writing

Friday logic
Sort & classify What comes
Which One challenge +
Enrichment AB pattern hunt by one next? (AAB
Doesn't Belong? weekly check-
attribute patterns)
in

Each day below is fully scripted across all four blocks. Run them in the order shown in Part 1's daily schedule, with a
movement break between Reading and Math, and another between Math and Writing.

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 2

 First Grade Learning
DAY 1 · MONDAY
Adventure

Day 1 · Monday — Kickoff Day · part 1 of 2

READING · Blending Short-a Words

Objective: She will blend three sounds to read short-a CVC words (cat, mat, sat).
Materials: Alphabet card set, letter tiles or magnetic letters (c, a, t, m, s, h), whiteboard.

Warm-up: “Let's zoom through our letter sounds! I'll point, you say the sound.” (Flip through all 26
cards briskly, 60–90 seconds.)
I Do: “Watch me build a word: c…a…t. I'll say each sound, then blend them together — caaat — cat!
This word is cat.”
We Do: “Let's build the next one together. Swap the c for an m. What sound does m make? Now
blend it with us: m…a…t… what's the word?”
You Do: “Your turn — swap the m for an s. Sound it out and tell me the word.”

Build and read: cat, mat, sat (letter tiles, then write each on the whiteboard)
Play “Swap It”: change one letter at a time and re-blend the new word

Review: N/A (first lesson of the year) Extension: Add hat and rat to the swap-it chain

Gifted: Ask: “Can you think of a rhyming word that ISN'T real, like ‘zat’? Is it still a word we could sound out the same way?”

Homework: Find 3 things around the house that start with the /m/ sound

Check: Can she independently blend cat, mat, and sat without help?
 MATH · Counting & One-to-One Correspondence

Objective: She will count a set of up to 10 objects, touching each one exactly once.
Materials: 20 small objects (buttons, blocks, or cereal pieces), a 1–10 number line.

I Do: “I'm going to count these blocks. Watch my finger — I touch one block for every number I say:
1, 2, 3… I never touch the same block twice.”
We Do: “Let's count these 7 together, touching each one as we go.”
You Do: “Now you count out loud while I watch your finger — count these 9 blocks.”

Count 3 different small piles (5, 8, and 10 objects), touching one-to-one

Match a written numeral card (1–10) to the correct pile size

Review: N/A (baseline skill check) Extension: Count backward from 10 to 1 with the number line as a guide

Gifted: Give her 13 objects (past 10) and ask her to count them — can she keep going past 10 using the same one-to-one
strategy?

Homework: Count how many steps it takes to walk from the kitchen to the front door

Check: Can she count 10 objects with zero recounts or skips?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 3

 First Grade Learning
DAY 1 · MONDAY
Adventure

Day 1 · Monday — Kickoff Day · part 2 of 2

WRITING · Pencil Grip & Letters a, c, t

Objective: She will hold a pencil with a tripod grip and form lowercase a, c, t starting at the correct point.
Materials: Pencil, handwriting practice page (Part 4, Day 1 Handwriting sheet), a small pom-pom or eraser for grip
practice.

I Do: “Pinch this pom-pom between your thumb and first two fingers — that's exactly how we hold
a pencil. Now watch me write a lowercase c: start at the top, curve around like a backwards C.”
We Do: “Let's trace three c's together, saying ‘curve around’ each time.”
You Do: “Now write a row of c's on your own, then try a and t the same way.”

Trace and then independently write a full line each of a, c, and t on the practice sheet

Review: N/A Extension: Write a short row combining letters into the word cat

Gifted: N/A today (introduced Day 3)

Homework: Practice pinching a cotton ball 10 times before bed to build grip strength

Check: Are letters mostly staying on the line, starting at the correct point?

ENRICHMENT · AB Pattern Hunt

Objective: She will identify and extend a simple AB repeating pattern.

Materials: 20 mixed buttons or blocks in 2 colors/shapes.

I Do: “Look at this row: red, blue, red, blue. That's a pattern — it repeats! Watch me add the next
piece — what color comes next?”
We Do: “Let's build one together: circle, square, circle, square… what comes next?”

Build 3 AB patterns using household objects (silverware, socks, blocks)

Hunt around the house for a real AB pattern (tile floor, striped shirt, fence posts)

Review: N/A Extension: Try an AAB pattern (red, red, blue, red, red, blue…) — can she extend it?

Gifted: Ask her to invent her own pattern rule and explain it to you in her own words — this is early algebraic reasoning!

Homework: None today Check: Can she extend an AB pattern for at least 6 more items without help?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 4

 First Grade Learning
DAY 2 · TUESDAY
Adventure

Day 2 · Tuesday — Word Family Day · part 1 of 2

READING · The -at Family + Sight Word “the”

Objective: She will read four -at family words (hat, sat, mat, bat) and recognize the sight word “the” by sight.
Materials: Letter tiles, index card with “the” written large, yesterday's word cards.

Review: “Quick warm-up — show me cat, mat, sat from yesterday.”

I Do: “This word, the, is a snap word — we don't sound it out, we just remember it by sight. T-H-E,
‘the.’ Say it with me five times.”
We Do: “Let's build hat together using our -at ending trick: swap the beginning sound onto -at.”
You Do: “Now you build bat and sat on your own.”

Build the whole -at family: hat, sat, mat, bat

Find “the” three times in a picture book and point to it each time

Review: Rebuild cat, mat, sat from Day 1 first Extension: Add rat and fat to the family

Gifted: Ask: “What do all these words have in common? What part never changes?” (This is early phonological pattern
recognition.)

Homework: Find one more -at word somewhere in the house or a book

Check: Can she read all four -at words and point out “the” on a page without help?
 MATH · Number Bonds to 5

Objective: She will decompose the number 5 into two parts using objects (e.g., 5 = 4 + 1, 3 + 2).
Materials: 5 two-color counters (or 5 coins, heads/tails), number-bond mat (two circles connected to one circle) —
can be hand-drawn.

I Do: “I have 5 counters. Watch — I split them into a group of 4 and a group of 1. 4 and 1 make 5!”
We Do: “Let's shake them and see how they land — how many reds, how many blues? Let's write
that as a bond.”
You Do: “Shake and split them three more times, and tell me the bond each time.”

Find every way to split 5 (5+0, 4+1, 3+2, 2+3, 1+4, 0+5) and record each on the bond mat

Review: Count to 10 with one-to-one touching (Day 1 skill)

Extension: Try the same activity with 6 counters instead of 5

Gifted: Ask: “Did you find a way that's the same as another way, just flipped around? Why do you think that happens?” (introduces
commutativity informally)

Homework: Split 5 crackers between two stuffed animals a different way each time at snack

Check: Can she find at least 3 different number bonds for 5 independently?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 5

 First Grade Learning
DAY 2 · TUESDAY
Adventure

Day 2 · Tuesday — Word Family Day · part 2 of 2

WRITING · Sentence Copying

Objective: She will copy the sentence “I can pat the cat.” with correct spacing between words.
Materials: Practice sheet (Part 4, Day 2 Writing sheet) with the sentence printed above blank lines, pencil.

I Do: “Watch how I leave a finger-space between each word so it doesn't all run together.”
We Do: “Let's write the first two words together, leaving that finger-space.”
You Do: “Finish the rest of the sentence on your own.”

Copy the full sentence onto the practice lines, then draw a picture of a cat being patted

Review: Letter formation for a, c, t (Day 1) Extension: Write one more sentence of her own using the word “the”

Gifted: N/A today Homework: N/A Check: Are there visible spaces between each word?

ENRICHMENT · Sort & Classify

Objective: She will sort a mixed group of objects by one attribute of her choosing and explain her rule.
Materials: 20+ mixed small objects (buttons, blocks, toy animals, etc.) with varied color, size, and shape.

I Do: “I'm going to sort these into two piles. Can you guess my rule by looking at the piles?” (Sort by
color; let her guess.)
We Do: “Now let's sort them a different way together — by size this time.”

Sort the same set of objects three different ways (color, size, shape) and name each rule out loud

Review: AB patterns (Day 1) Extension: Sort by two attributes at once (e.g., “big and red”)

Gifted: Ask her to sort the objects into 3 groups instead of 2, and explain why she chose those groups — there's no single right
answer here, which is the point.

Homework: None today Check: Can she generate and explain at least two different sorting rules on her own?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 6

 First Grade Learning
DAY 3 · WEDNESDAY
Adventure

Day 3 · Wednesday — Reasoning Day · part 1 of 2

READING · -an / -ap Families + Sight Word “a”

Objective: She will read -an and -ap family words (map, nap, can, fan) and recognize the sight word “a.”
Materials: Letter tiles, index card with “a” written large.

I Do: “Here's another snap word: a. Just one letter, but we still read it every time we see it by itself.”
We Do: “Let's build map together using our -ap ending trick.”
You Do: “Now build can and fan on your own using -an.”

Build the -an family (can, fan, man, pan) and the -ap family (map, nap, cap, tap)

Review: Rebuild yesterday's -at family first Extension: Mix -at, -an, and -ap words together and sort them by family

Gifted: Ask: “Can you make up a silly sentence using three of today's words?”

Homework: Circle every -an or -ap word you can find on one page of a book

Check: Can she read at least 6 of the 8 new family words with minimal prompting?

MATH · Addition Within 5

Objective: She will solve addition problems within 5 using counters and record the equation.
Materials: 5–10 counters, whiteboard or paper for writing equations, the + and = symbol cards.

I Do: “Here are 2 counters, and here are 2 more. When we put groups together, we ADD. 2 + 2 = 4.
This + means ‘put together,’ and = means ‘the same as.’”
We Do: “Let's put 3 and 1 together — how many all together? Let's write the equation.”
You Do: “Now solve 2 + 3 on your own with the counters, then write it.”

Solve and write 5 addition equations within 5 using physical counters each time

Review: Number bonds to 5 (Day 2) — connect: addition is just putting a bond back together!

Extension: Try one addition problem with numbers up to 8

Gifted: Ask: “Does 2 + 3 give the same answer as 3 + 2? Try it with counters and see.”

Homework: Find two small groups of toys and figure out how many there are all together

Check: Can she solve 3 out of 5 addition problems within 5 independently?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 7

 First Grade Learning
DAY 3 · WEDNESDAY
Adventure

Day 3 · Wednesday — Reasoning Day · part 2 of 2

WRITING · “About Me” Independent Writing

Objective: She will independently write 2–3 simple sentences about herself using a word bank for support.
Materials: About Me writing page (Part 4, Day 3 sheet) with a word bank (name, age, color, animal words) and
sentence starters.

I Do: “I'm going to write about myself: ‘My name is…’ Watch me use the word bank if I get stuck on a
spelling.”
We Do: “Let's start your first sentence together: ‘My name is…’ — you finish it.”
You Do: “Now write two more sentences about yourself on your own — your age, your favorite
animal, anything you like!”

Write 2–3 original sentences about herself, then illustrate one of them

Review: Sentence spacing (Day 2) Extension: Add a 4th sentence describing her favorite thing to do

Gifted: N/A today Homework: N/A

Check: Did she write at least 2 complete, spaced-out sentences with support from the word bank?

ENRICHMENT · Which One Doesn't Belong?

Objective: She will identify which of 4 items doesn't share a common attribute with the others and justify her
answer.
Materials: Which One Doesn't Belong? cards (Part 4, Day 3 Enrichment sheet) or 4 real household objects per round.

I Do: “Here are 4 shapes: circle, circle, circle, square. Which one doesn't belong? Why?”
We Do: “Let's look at this next set together — there might be more than one right answer! Tell me
your reasoning.”

Complete 4 rounds of Which One Doesn't Belong?, explaining her reasoning out loud each time

Review: Sorting rules (Day 2)

Extension: Try a round where she has to find two different valid answers for the same 4 items

Gifted: This activity IS the gifted challenge today — there is no single correct answer, and explaining reasoning out loud is exactly
the skill CogAT-style reasoning tests measure.

Homework: None today

Check: Can she give a reasonable justification, even if her answer differs from the 'expected' one?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 8

 First Grade Learning
DAY 4 · THURSDAY
Adventure

Day 4 · Thursday — Tricky Skills Day · part 1 of 2

READING · Mixed Review + Sight Words “is,” “to”

Objective: She will read a mix of this week's word families and recognize two new sight words, “is” and “to.”
Materials: All word cards from the week, two new sight word cards.

I Do: “Two new snap words today: is and to. Let's say them five times each.”
We Do: “Let's shuffle all of this week's word cards and read five together.”
You Do: “Now you read the rest of the pile on your own — I'll help only if you're stuck more than a
few seconds.”

Read through the full shuffled deck of the week's words (about 16 cards) at least once

Review: All word families from Days 1–3

Extension: Time how many cards she can read correctly in 60 seconds, and try to beat it tomorrow

Gifted: Ask her to sort the deck into piles by word family herself, with no families labeled

Homework: Read the word deck to a family member before bed

Check: Can she read at least 12 of 16 cards independently?

MATH · Subtraction Within 5

Objective: She will solve subtraction (take-away) problems within 5 using counters.
Materials: 5 counters, whiteboard, the – symbol card.

I Do: “I have 4 counters. Watch — I take away 1. This minus sign means take away. 4 – 1 = 3.”
We Do: “Let's take away 2 from 5 together and count what's left.”
You Do: “Now try 4 – 2 on your own with the counters.”

Solve and write 5 subtraction equations within 5, physically removing counters each time

Review: Addition within 5 (Day 3) Extension: Try one mixed problem: 5 – 2 + 1

Gifted: Ask: “Is 4 – 1 the same as 1 – 4? Try it with counters — what happens?” (sets up understanding of order mattering in
subtraction, unlike addition)

Homework: At snack, start with 5 crackers and count how many are left after eating some

Check: Can she solve 3 out of 5 subtraction problems within 5 independently?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 9

 First Grade Learning
DAY 4 · THURSDAY
Adventure

Day 4 · Thursday — Tricky Skills Day · part 2 of 2

WRITING · Tricky Letters b/d, i/l

Objective: She will correctly form and distinguish the frequently-reversed letters b and d.
Materials: Practice sheet (Part 4, Day 4 sheet), a small toy bed and ball to anchor the 'b' and 'd' memory trick.

I Do: “Make fists and stick up your thumbs — that spells ‘bed’! Left thumb is b, right thumb is d.
Whenever you're not sure, make a bed with your hands.”
We Do: “Let's trace 3 b's while saying ‘down, up, and around,’ then 3 d's.”
You Do: “Now write a full row of b's, then a full row of d's, checking with your hand trick if you're
unsure.”

Practice the 'bed hands' trick, then complete the b/d discrimination worksheet

Review: Letter formation basics (Day 1) Extension: Add i/l discrimination practice using the same tracing method

Gifted: N/A today Homework: Practice the bed-hands trick 5 times before bed (literally!)

Check: Does she reverse b/d less than half the time by the end of practice?

ENRICHMENT · What Comes Next? (AAB Patterns)

Objective: She will identify and extend an AAB repeating pattern, one step more complex than Day 1's AB
pattern.
Materials: Same buttons/blocks from Day 1, in 2 colors.

I Do: “This pattern is trickier: red, red, blue, red, red, blue… Watch how two reds come before each
blue.”
We Do: “Let's build one together and you tell me what comes next each time.”

Build and extend 2 different AAB patterns, then invent an ABB pattern on her own

Review: AB patterns (Day 1) Extension: Try an AABB pattern

Gifted: Ask her to describe the RULE for her pattern in a full sentence, e.g. “two reds, then one blue, and it keeps going.”

Homework: None today Check: Can she extend an AAB pattern for at least 2 more full cycles?

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 10

 First Grade Learning
DAY 5 · FRIDAY
Adventure

Day 5 · Friday — Fluency & Friday Fun · part 1 of 2

READING · Fluency Mini-Story

Objective: She will read a short original decodable passage built entirely from this week's taught words and
answer a retelling question.
Materials: “Nat and the Cat” mini-story (Part 4, Day 5 sheet — original, decodable, uses only this week's words).

I Do: “This whole story uses only words you already know how to read! Let's read the title together.”
We Do: “Let's read the first two sentences together, pointing to each word.”
You Do: “Now read the rest of the story on your own. I'll just listen.”

Read the full mini-story once with support, once independently

Answer: “What did Nat do with the cat?” (retelling check)

Review: All word families and sight words from the week

Extension: Reread the story a third time and try to read it faster and smoother

Gifted: Ask her to draw what she thinks happens right after the story ends — an inference question

Homework: Read the story to a family member

Check: Can she read the story with 90%+ accuracy and answer the retelling question correctly?

MATH · Mixed Practice + Word Problems

Objective: She will solve 2 simple addition and 2 simple subtraction word problems within 5, choosing the
correct operation herself.
Materials: Counters, the Week 1 math word-problem sheet (Part 4, Day 5 sheet).

I Do: “Listen to this story: ‘3 birds were on a branch. 2 more birds landed. How many birds now?’ Do
we add or take away here? How do you know?”
We Do: “Let's solve one together, deciding first whether it's a + or a – problem.”
You Do: “Now solve the rest of the word problems on your own sheet.”

Solve all 4 word problems, using counters as needed, circling + or – before solving each one

Review: Addition and subtraction within 5 (Days 3–4)

Extension: Try one word problem with a missing addend (e.g., “3 and how many more make 5?”)

Gifted: Ask her to write her OWN word problem for a family member to solve Homework: None today

Check: Did she choose the correct operation for at least 3 of the 4 problems?
 First Grade Learning
DAY 5 · FRIDAY
Adventure

Day 5 · Friday — Fluency & Friday Fun · part 2 of 2

WRITING · Cut-and-Build Sentence Puzzle

Objective: She will physically rebuild a scrambled sentence into correct word order and copy it.
Materials: Word cards for the sentence “The cat can nap.” cut apart, glue stick, sentence puzzle sheet (Part 4, Day 5
sheet).

I Do: “These words are all mixed up! A sentence needs to make sense and usually starts with a
capital letter. Watch me put them in order.”
We Do: “Let's mix them up again and rebuild it together.”
You Do: “Now you rebuild it a third time on your own, then glue the words down in order and copy
the sentence below.”

Rebuild the scrambled sentence 2–3 times, then glue and copy the final version

Review: Sentence spacing and capitalization (Days 2–3)

Extension: Scramble a second, slightly longer sentence for her to solve

Gifted: Ask her to build her OWN 4-word sentence using this week's word cards, in any order that makes sense

Homework: N/A Check: Did she identify the correct word order without more than one hint?

ENRICHMENT · Friday Challenge + Weekly Check-In

Objective: She will complete an open-ended logic puzzle and the class will review the week's four big
objectives together.
Materials: Friday logic puzzle sheet (Part 4, Day 5 Enrichment sheet), Week 1 tracker from Part 8.

I Do: “This puzzle doesn't have letters or numbers — it's all about shapes and thinking. Let's look at
the first one together.”
Wrap-up: “Let's look back at everything we learned this week — what was your favorite part?”

Complete the Friday logic puzzle

Fill in the Week 1 tracker together and celebrate with a sticker

Review: This IS the week's cumulative review Extension: Try the “bonus round” puzzle at the bottom of the sheet

Gifted: Puzzle is intentionally open-ended — there may be more than one valid solution path; ask her to explain her thinking either
way

Homework: None — enjoy the weekend!

Check: Weekly assessment: review all 4 daily checks above — 3 or more independent = ready for Week 2; fewer = revisit that skill
Monday using a different modality (see Part 1, Section 2.4)
 First Grade Learning
WHAT'S NEXT
Adventure

Coming Up Next

Nice work finishing Week 1! Next we'll build the printable worksheet pack that goes with every activity
above — handwriting pages, the Day 5 decodable story “Nat and the Cat,” math practice sheets, and
the Which-One-Doesn't-Belong enrichment cards, each with directions, examples, and an answer key
(Part 4 preview).
After that: your first Reading Library entry (Part 6 preview), pairing an original beginner story with a
teaching guide to a real library book.

PART 2 · Week 1: Letter & Number Detectives Page 13