Nature Watch

Phonics Practice
 A

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 BSF 12 11 10 09 08
 Unit 5

Nature Watch
 Contents

Miss Mirth’s Herb

Garden ........................ 1
r-controlled vowel er, ir, ur
by Maria Arroyo
Realistic Fiction
illustrated by Nan Brooks

The Seasons
The Seasons ................. 7
r-controlled vowel er, ir, ur
Informational Nonfiction: Science

by Shannon Cannon

y in the Dark
Carl
Carly in the Dark .......... 15
r-controlled vowel ar
Realistic Fiction

by Judith Bartley
illustrated by Alli Siena
 Hard
Workers
Hard Workers .............. 21
r-controlled vowel ar
Informational Nonfiction: Social Studies

by Amy Levin

No More
Mort the
Short! No More Mort
the Short! ................... 29
r-controlled vowel or, oar, ore
Fantasy
by Kenneth Corin
illustrated by Mircea Catusanu

From Farm
to Store From Farm to Store ....... 37
r-controlled vowel or, oar, ore
Informational Nonfiction: Social Studies

by Wallace Boten
 A Proud
Brown Ant A Proud Brown Ant ....... 45
diphthong ou, ow
Fantasy

retold by Lily Wallace

illustrated by Barry Rockwell

Now and
Long Ago
Now and Long Ago ........ 53
diphthong ou, ow
Informational Nonfiction: Social Studies

by Wiley Blevins

Roy’s
Rich Soil
Roy’s Rich Soil ............. 61
diphthong oi, oy
Fiction

by Marsha Boylan
illustrated by Richard Bernal
Which Holiday
Is It? Which Holiday Is It? ...... 67
diphthong oi, oy
Informational Nonfiction: Social Studies

by Yolanda Watson
 by Maria Arroyo
illustrated by Nan Brooks
 Miss Mirth has a garden
filled with herbs and flowers.
It makes Miss Mirth smile.
Her friends love the garden, too.

2
Miss Mirth is up early today
because it is her birthday!
“It’s my seventy-third!” says
Miss Mirth.
“Who will visit?”
3
 Miss Mirth checks her mail.
There is nothing in her box.
A blue bird chirps.
Nothing else makes a peep.
4
Miss Mirth picks an herb.
It’s green and curly.
She puts it in an urn.
She feels a bit sad.
5
 Then lots of people come!
“Happy birthday!” they yell.
“We did not forget you!”

“You didn’t!” Miss Mirth

beams. “I’m so glad!”
6
The Seasons

by Shannon Cannon
 A season is a time of the
year. A year has 4 seasons. The
weather changes in each season.
Seasons can be hot or cold.
Seasons can be wet or dry.
8
 In winter, days get dark early.
The air may turn cold, and it
may snow. Some animals sleep
through the winter.
What can you do in winter?
9
 In spring, days stay light longer.
Many animals have babies in the
spring. Birds make nests and lay
eggs. You can hear the birds chirp.
10
 Spring rains may fall. The rain
helps plants grow. Plants burst
up from the dirt.
What can you do in spring?
11
 Summer has the most hours of
sunlight. The weather can get hot.
Plants grow leaves and flowers.
Baby animals eat and grow.
What can you do in summer?
12
 Fall has fewer hours of sunlight.
Some leaves turn orange and brown
and twirl to the ground. The air turns
colder. Birds may fly to warmer places.
What can you do in fall?
13
 Winter, spring, summer, fall,
I like the seasons, one and all.
Wet, dry, cold, or hot,
Every season, I like a lot.
Which season do you like best? Why?
14
 a r ly i n t h e Da rk
C

by Judith Bartley
illustrated by Alli Siena
 My name is Carly.
I’m a smart kid.
But I do NOT like the dark.
I know it will never harm me.
But I do NOT like the dark.
16
I try to sleep in the dark.
Mom says that I should.
But it’s so hard!
I do NOT like the dark.
Poor me!
17
 When I lay my head down,
I start to see shapes.
I shout, “MOM!”
Mom says that the dark
can play tricks!
18
It’s just car lights shining on
a scarf and a ball.
Still, it’s hard to sleep.
“I have a plan,” Mom tells me.

19
 Mom got me a night-light.
She’s so smart!
Now I can sleep through the night!

20
 Hard
Workers

by Amy Levin
 People work at many kinds
of jobs. Here are a few workers
who help the community.

22
 Mr. Perez is a teacher. He
has a first grade class. Mr. Perez
teaches kids to read and spell.
He teaches them math, too.
23
 Mr. Clark has a farm with a
large red barn. His house is big,
too.
Mr. Clark has some goats. He
makes cheese from their milk.

24
 Mr. Carter has a market.
He starts work at 6 AM. He sells
fresh plums, grapes, peas, and
green beans. People come
from near and far to shop at
his market.
25
 Ms. March is a school nurse.
She fixes bumps and cuts. When
kids do not feel well, she may
have them rest. She may call their
mom or dad to take them home.
26
 Mr. Stone drives a large bus. He
takes kids to and from school. He
turns on the flashing lights when
kids get on or leave the bus. The
lights mean cars must stop.
27
 There are many workers in a
community. Some work in stores.
Some work outside. What jobs
do these workers have?
28
No More
Mort the
Short!

by Kenneth Corin
illustrated by Mircea Catusanu
 Mort is smaller than most of
the children in his class.
So Mort’s pal Cory named him
Mort the Short.

30
Mort isn’t good at running or
other sports.
But he tries hard.
He runs until he is worn out.
His mom yells, “Stop, Mort!”
31
 At school, Miss Loren said,
“We will have a Math Bee.”
Mort felt happy. He knew that
he would win.

32
Mort did his math from morning
until night.
He added up the numbers that
his mom named.
He got each sum right!
33
 But Cory gave Mort a hard time.
“You won’t win,” she said.
“I’m better at math than you
are.”

34
That made Mort study more
than before!
The Math Bee came.
Cory did well, but Mort got the
Grand Prize!
35
 The prize was a big, round pin.
Cory said, “Now I’ll have to
name you Mort the Math Whiz!”

36
From Farm
to Store

by Wallace Boten
 Do you know how peanut
butter is made? First a farmer
buys peanuts. The farmer plants
the peanuts in a big field.

38
 Small green plants grow. Their
branches bend over and go into
the dirt. Lots of peanuts grow at
the end of the branches. These
peanuts grow under the dirt.
39
 In the fall the farmer harvests
the peanuts. He uses a big tractor.
The farmer sells the peanuts to
a factory. He takes the peanuts
to the factory in trucks.

40
 At the factory, a machine
takes the shells off the peanuts.
Then the peanuts are cleaned,
sorted, and roasted.
It will take 850 peanuts to
make one big jar of peanut butter!
41
 Machines grind the peanuts.
Then salt, oil, and sugar are
added to the peanuts. These
four things make peanut butter.
42
 Machines pour the peanut
butter into jars. Lids are put on
the jars. Next the jars go to stores.
The peanut butter will be for sale.
43
 Lots of people like peanut
butter. They buy jars and jars of
it. Think of all the great peanut
butter sandwiches that can make.
44
 A Proud
Brown Ant

retold by Lily Wallace

illustrated by Barry Rockwell
 A little brown ant had a
very big family. The ants
seemed the same, but the
little brown ant was just a
bit smaller than the rest.
46
When it gets cold in most
places, ants gather food
for the winter. So all the
ants set out fast! The little
brown ant was left alone.
47
 “Wait for me,” she shouted.
But no one heard a sound.

When the little brown ant met

up with the rest, they were
on their way back home.
48
The little brown ant frowned.
“All the food is gone now.
How will I eat?”

The ant sat down to rest. She

saw something on the ground.
49
 The ant got closer. “Great!”
she cried loudly. “It’s a big,
beautiful hunk of sweet cake.
How will I get it home from
here? I am much too small.”
50
The ant asked the animals she
met for help. Each one told
her, “No. I will not help.”

“Well,” pouted the ant, “then

I’ll have to do it myself!”
51
 Crouching down, she slowly
lifted up the cake. Step by
step, the ant made it home!
The cake would last all winter.
The ant had never felt so proud.
52
Now and
Long Ago

by Wiley Blevins
 Life now is not the same as it was
long ago. We look at TV. We work
and play on computers. We go to
schools with many classrooms.
Long ago, life was not the same.
54
 This is a school from long ago.
The school had 1 room. Kids of all
ages were in the same class. They
had the same teacher.

55
 This is a farm from long ago.
The farmer used a hand-held
plow. His oxen, horses, or cows
pulled the plow.

56
 Now, farmers use tractors that
run on gas. They use machines
to plant seeds and harvest crops,
too. They can finish their work
much faster.
57
 This is a town from long ago. The
streets were made of dirt. People
rode on horses or in coaches. The
houses had no electric lights and no
running water.
58
 Now, streets are paved. Lots of
yellow cabs and buses go up and
down the streets. The houses have
electric lights and running water.

59
 Facts about long ago can be
found in many places. Find out
about your town. Look for things
about the past. Ask a grown-up.
How has your town changed?
60
 Roy’s
Rich Soil

by Marsha Boylan
illustrated by Richard Bernal
 Farmer Roy worked in Illinois.
Roy raised fat hogs.
Roy’s hogs sure made him joyful.

62
But Roy did not enjoy one thing.
His hogs OINKED and OINKED!
The noise kept Roy up all night!

63
 So Roy sold his hogs to
a farmer across town.
“My farm has rich soil,”
said Roy.
“I’ll learn to raise corn.”
64
Roy planted his yellow corn.
Soon it was 10 feet high!
The next week it reached
30 feet!

65
 Roy got rich, thanks to
those noisy hogs.
“Oh, boy! I’m lucky,” he said.
“Illinois has some fine soil
for fine corn!”
66
Which Holiday
Is It?

by Yolanda Watson
 What is a holiday?
Let's learn!
It is a fun day.
It is a day to celebrate.
68
This day celebrates the U.S.A.
Boys and girls wave flags.
They may eat chicken and hot dogs.
Which holiday is it?
69
 It is July 4.
Join the parade!
We celebrate that our land is free.

70
This day celebrates the planet.
Boys and girls mop and paint.
They plant flowers and pick up trash.
Which holiday is it?
71
 It is Earth Day.
You can help.
Do not drop trash.
Bag it!
72
This is a day to say thanks.
Boys and girls may help bake.
The food is good. Enjoy!
Which holiday is it?
73
 It is Thanksgiving Day.
We think about the first
Thanksgiving Day.
74
Unit 5: Nature Watch
Week 1: Miss Mirth’s Herb Garden page 1
to use with Kitten’s First Full Moon WORD COUNT: 104
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
r-controlled vowel er
her, herb
r-controlled vowel ir
bird, birthday, chirps, Mirth, third
r-controlled vowel ur
curly, urn
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, an, and, beams, bit, box, checks, did, didn’t, feels, filled, glad, green, happy, has, in, is, it,
it’s, lots, mail, makes, Miss, my, not, peep, picks, sad, she, smile, so, the, then, up, visit, we,
will, with, yell
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
Review: because, blue, come, friends, of, people, puts, says, there, they, today, too, who,
you
STORY WORDS
garden, love, nothing

Week 1: The Seasons page 7

to use with Kitten’s First Full Moon WORD COUNT: 193
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
r-controlled vowel er
summer, winter
r-controlled vowel ir
birds, chirp, dirt, twirl
r-controlled vowel ur
burst, turn(s)
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, and, be, best, can, cold, colder, days, dry, each, eat, eggs, fly, get, grow, has, helps, hot,
I, in, is, it, lay, leaves, light, like, lot, make, may, most, nests, places, plants, rain(s), sleep,
snow, spring, stay, sunlight, the, time, up, wet, which, why

75
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
through
Review: all, changes, do, every, from, have, many, of, one, or, some, to, what, you
CONTENT WORDS
animals, babies, fall, flowers, seasons, weather, year

Week 2: Carly in the Dark page 15

to use with Meet Ben Franklin WORD COUNT: 114
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Element
r-controlled vowel ar
car, Carly, dark, hard, harm, scarf, smart, start
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, and, but, can, got, I, in, is, it, it’s, just, kid, know, lay, light(s), like, me, Mom, my, name,
never, night, not, on, plan, play, see, shapes, she’s, shining, sleep, so, still, tells, that, the,
tricks, try, when, will
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
Review: ball, do, down, have, head, now, poor, says, should, shout, through, to

Week 2: Hard Workers page 21

to use with Meet Ben Franklin WORD COUNT: 182
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Element
r-controlled vowel ar
barn, cars, Carter, Clark, far, farm, hard, large, March, market, starts
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, and, at, beans, big, bumps, bus, cheese, class, cuts, dad, drives, feel, first, fi xes, flashing,
fresh, get, goats, grade, grapes, green, has, he, help, his, home, in, is, jobs, kids, kinds,
leave, lights, makes, math, may, mean, milk, mom, Mr., must, not, nurse, on, or, peas,
Perez, plums, read, red, rest, sells, she, shop, spell, Stone, stop, stores, take(s), teacher,
teaches, the, them, these, turns, well, when, with

76
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
house
Review: are, call, come, do, from, have, here, many, of, people, school, some, there, to,
too, what, who, work
CONTENT WORDS
community, workers

Week 3: No More Mort the Short! page 29

to use with Stormy Weather WORD COUNT: 144
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
r-controlled vowel or
Cory, Loren, morning, Mort, or, short, sports, worn
r-controlled vowel ore
before, more
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, added, at, bee, better, big, but, came, class, did, each, felt, gave, got, grand, happy, hard,
he, him, his, in, is, isn’t, made, math, Miss, mom, most, name, named, night, no, numbers,
pal, pin, prize, right, running, runs, she, so, stop, study, sum, than, that, the, time, tries,
until, up, we, well, whiz, will, win, won’t, yells
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
Review: are, from, good, have, knew, now, of, out, school, to, was, would, you
STORY WORDS
children, round, smaller

Week 3: From Farm to Store page 37

to use with Stormy Weather WORD COUNT: 182
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
r-controlled vowel or
for, sorted
r-controlled vowel ore
store(s)

77
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, added, and, at, be, bend, big, branches, butter, can, cleaned, dirt, end, farm, farmer,
first, go, green, grind, grow, harvests, he, in, is, it, jar(s), know, lids, like, lots, made, make,
next, off, on, over, peanut(s), plants, roasted, sale, sells, shells, take(s), that, the, then, these,
things, think, trucks, under, uses, will
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
great, their
Review: all, are, buy(s), do, from, how, into, of, one, people, put, they, to, you
CONTENT WORDS
factory, field, machine(s), oil, salt, sandwiches, sugar

Week 4: A Proud Brown Ant page 45

to use with Happy Fall! WORD COUNT: 196
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
diphthong ou
crouching, ground, out, pouted, proud, shouted, sound
diphthong ow
brown, down, frowned, how, now
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, am, ant(s), asked, back, big, bit, but, by, cake, closer, cold, cried, each, eat, fast, felt, for,
gather, get(s), got, had, help, her, home, hunk, I, in, is, it, it’s, just, last, left, lifted, made,
me, met, most, much, myself, never, no, not, on, places, rest, same, sat, seemed, set, she, so,
step, sweet, than, the, then, told, up, wait, way, well, when, will, winter, with
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
Review: all, do, from, great, have, here, little, of, one, saw, their, they, to, too, very, was,
were, would
STORY WORDS
alone, beautiful, family, food, gone

78
 Week 4: Now and Long Ago page 53
to use with Happy Fall! WORD COUNT: 190
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
diphthong ou
found, houses, out
diphthong ow
cows, down, how, now, plow, town
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, ages, and, are, as, ask, at, be, buses, cabs, can, changed, class, coaches, crops, dirt, facts,
farm, farmer(s), faster, find, finish, for, gas, go, grown-up, had, hand, harvest, has, held,
his, in, is, it, kids, life, lights, lots, made, much, no, not, on, or, oxen, past, paved, places,
plant, play, rode, run, running, same, seeds, streets, teacher, that, the, things, this, TV, up,
use, used, we, with
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
yellow
Review: about, all, from, have, look, many, of, people, pulled, school(s), their, they, to, too,
was, water, were, work, your
CONTENT WORDS
classrooms, computers, electric, horses
Week 5: Roy’s Rich Soil page 61
to use with A Tiger Cub Grows Up WORD COUNT: 94
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
diphthong oi
noise, noisy, oinked, soil
diphthong oy
boy, enjoy, Roy(’s)
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, and, but, corn, did, farm, farmer, fat, feet, fine, for, got, has, he, high, him, his, hogs, in,
it, kept, lucky, made, my, next, night, not, planted, raise(d), reached, rich, so, sold, thanks,
the, thing, those, town, up, week

79
 HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
learn
Review: across, all, one, said, some, soon, to, was, worked, yellow
STORY WORD
Illinois

Week 5: Which Holiday Is It? page 67

to use with A Tiger Cub Grows Up WORD COUNT: 119
DECODABLE WORDS
Target Phonics Elements
diphthong oi
join
diphthong oy
boys
Words Using Previously Taught Skills
a, and, bag, bake, can, chicken, day, dogs, drop, eat, enjoy, fi rst, flags, flowers,
free, fun, girls, help, hot, is, it, land, let’s, may, mop, not, our, paint, pick, planet,
plant, say, thanks, that, the, think, this, trash, up, U.S.A., wave, we, which
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS
learn
Review: about, do, good, they, to, what, you
CONTENT WORDS
celebrate, Earth, holiday, parade, Thanksgiving

80
HIGH-FREQUENCY WORDS TAUGHT TO DATE
Grade K Grade 1 into school
a about it should
and across jump shout
are again knew show
can all learn so
do also live some
for any make soon
go away many their
has ball more then
have be move there
he because never they
here blue new three
I boy no through
is buy not today
like call now together
little change of too
look come old two
me could once up
my down one upon
play eat or use
said every our very
see find out want
she friends over water
the from people way
this girl place were
to give poor who
was good pretty why
we great pull work
what head put would
where help ride yellow
with her run your
you house saw
how says

81
 DECODING SKILLS TAUGHT TO DATE
CVC letter patterns; short a; consonants b, c, ck, f, g, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v; inflectional ending -s
(plurals, verbs); short i; consonants d, j, qu, w, x, y, z; double final consonants; l blends; possessives
with ’s; end blends; short o; inflectional ending -ed; short e; contractions with n’t; s blends; r
blends; inflectional ending -ing; short u; contractions with ’s; digraphs sh, th; compound words;
long a (a_e), inflectional ending -ed (drop final e); long i (i_e); soft c, g, -dge; digraphs ch, -tch, wh-
; inflectional ending -es (no change to base word); long e (e_e), long o (o_e), long u (u_e); silent
letters gn, kn, wr; 3-letter blends scr-, spl-, spr-, str-; long a (ai, ay); inflectional endings -er, -est;
long e (e, ea, ee); e at the end of long e words; long o (o, oa, oe, ow); 2-syllable words; long i
(i, ie, igh, y); 2-syllable inflectional endings (changing -y to ie); long e (ey, y); inflectional ending -ed
(verbs; change y to i); r-controlled vowel /ûr/er, ir, ur; inflectional endings -er, -est (drop final e);
r-controlled vowel /är/ar; abbreviations Mr., Mrs., Dr.; r-controlled vowel /ôr/or, oar, ore;
compound words; diphthong /ou/ou, ow; final e (mouse, house); diphthong /oi/oi, oy; prefixes
re-, un-

82
Photography
Cover, 1: Sarah Lawless/Getty Images. 7: (l) Steve Mason/Getty Images, (r) IT Stock/PunchStock.
8: Dwight R. Kuhn. 9: Jim Brandenburg/Minden Pictures. 10: Digital Vision/PunchStock. 11:
Royalty-Free/CORBIS. 12–13: Jules Frazier/Getty Images. 14: C. Sherburne/PhotoLink/Getty Images.
21: Lawrence Migdale/Photo Researchers. 22: Razi Searles/Bruce Coleman Inc. 23: Geostock/
Getty Images. 24: F.K. Photo/CORBIS. 25: Matthew McVay/Folio, Inc. 26: David Buffington/Getty
Images. 27: Photodisc/Getty Images. 28: (bl) Chip Henderson/Index Stock Imagery, (br) Jim
Foell/Capstone Press, (tl) Ryan McVay/Getty Images, (tr) Photodisc Collection/Getty Images.
37: Digital Vision/Getty Images. 38: Georgia Peanut Commission. 39: David R. Frazier/Folio, Inc.
40: Georgia Peanut Commission. 41–43: Arthur C. Smith III/Grant Heilman Photography. 44:
Brand X Pictures/Alamy. 53: (bkgd) Underwood & Underwood/CORBIS, (inset) Brand X Pictures/
PunchStock. 54: Scott T. Baxter/Getty Images. 55: Edouard Evartt Exline/CORBIS. 56: Hulton
Archive/Getty Images. 57: Digital Vision/PunchStock. 58: Hulton Deutsch Collection/CORBIS.
59: Chris Minerva/Index Stock Imagery. 60: Dave G. Houser/CORBIS. 67: Fredde Lieberman/Index
Stock Imagery. 68: Gary Sundermeyer/Capstone Press. 69–70: Ariel Skelley/CORBIS. 71: Nancy
Sheehan/Index Stock Imagery. 72: Tom Stewart/CORBIS. 73: Royalty-Free/CORBIS. 74: Bettmann/
CORBIS.
Grade 1 • Unit 5

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