Students learn about insects and their impact on the natural world by asking and answering questions about informational texts in order to become inquisitive, active readers.
As part of the upgrade to Fishtank Plus, this unit was revised in October 2020. Some texts, materials, and questions may have changed as part of the revision. If you are looking for the 2018-2019 version of this unit, visit our archives.
In this unit, second graders learn about insects and the impact insects have on the natural world. Building on what students learned in Unit 1 about habitats, they will explore how different insects rely on their habitat for survival. Through this exploration, students will learn the unique characteristics of insects, how insects can be both beneficial and destructive, and the stages of an insect’s life cycle. By the end of the unit, students will have a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the beauty of the insect world.
This unit consists of predominantly shared reading experiences to help students practice different reading strategies and skills. Building on Unit 1, students will continue to be inquisitive, active consumers of texts by asking and answering questions, and they will continue to deepen their understanding of the role text features and illustrations play in helping a reader better understand the content of a text. Students will also begin to explore the connections between scientific ideas and concepts using cause-and-effect language and will continue to strengthen their habits of discussion as they debate and analyze key ideas of the unit.
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Book: Insect Bodies by Bobbie Kalman and Molly Aloian (Crabtree Pub Co. 2005) — IG570L
Book: Insect Life Cycles by Bobbie Kalman and Molly Aloian (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2005) — NC760L
Book: Insectlopedia by Douglas Florian (HMH Books for Young Readers, 2002)
Book: Helpful and Harmful Insects by Bobbie Kalman and Molly Aloian (Crabtree Pub Co. 2005) — NC790L
Book: Ants by Melissa Stewart (National Geographic Kids, 2010) — 470L
Book: Bees by Laura Marsh (National Geographic Kids, 2016) — 530L
See Text Selection Rationale
This assessment accompanies this unit and should be given on the suggested assessment day or after completing the unit.
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Insects have an important impact on the natural world. Although you might think insects are annoying, they are incredibly helpful! Many bees help the natural world by making it easier to grow crops. Bees pollinate flowers so they can spread seeds. Ants dig deep in the dirt which helps keep soil fertile, making it easier to grow crops. Other insects, called scavengers, help to keep the natural world clean. They eat things that other animals or insects do not want to eat, like dead or dying animals and insect droppings. Insects can also make things for people! Bees make honey that we eat. Silkworms help make a material called silk that we use to make clothing. However, sometimes insects can be harmful. Some insects, like mosquitoes, spread diseases and can make people sick. Other insects can ruin crops by eating them. Although some insects can be harmful, insects are an important part of the natural world and we should work to protect them.
The core texts in this unit include more multisyllabic words than in the previous unit. At this point, students should be able to fluidly identify known spelling-sound correspondences in one-syllable and two-syllable words; however, they may struggle to decode longer multisyllabic words. When prepping for a lesson and internalizing the text complexity of a particular text, we suggest identifying multisyllabic words that may be challenging for students, and using the Syllabication Routine at the beginning of the lesson.
The main fluency focus of this unit is on reading an informational text with the right expression and intonation to show interpretation of the passage. This includes knowing how to read different text features to highlight the feature's purpose. This also includes rereading and self-correcting in order to figure out the meaning of domain-specific, multisyllabic, or tricky words.
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As students master complete sentences in Unit 1, we move on to expanding sentences to make them stronger. The focus in this unit is on writing complex sentences using the conjunctions “because,” “but,” and “so.” Including conjunctions in their sentence-level writing not only makes sentences stronger and nuanced, but it encourages students to develop more specific and detailed points.
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abdomen adult antennae aphid arthropod characteristics compound eyes colony cocoon egg emerge exoskeleton fertile hatch hive honeycomb host larva metamorphosis mouthparts molt nectar nymph parasite pest pollinate pollen pollination pupa scavenger solitary social thorax venom wing bud
exo-
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Insect Bodies pp. 4 – 11
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
RI.2.5
Identify key information about insect bodies by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Insect Bodies pp. 12 – 19
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
RI.2.5
Identify and explain characteristics of an insect by identifying and explaining key details in a text Read Aloud.
Discussion & Writing
Insect Bodies
RI.2.4
RI.2.7
Explain which of the following images are insects by using organizing categories to defend claims or opinions about a content-related topic.
Insect Life Cycles pp. 6 – 9
RI.2.1
RI.2.3
RI.2.5
Identify key information about insect life cycles by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Insect Life Cycles pp. 10 – 19
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
Describe the key phases in a complete insect life cycle by using text features and details to describe the connection between scientific ideas.
Insect Life Cycles pp. 20 – 25
RI.2.3
RI.2.5
RI.2.7
Describe the differences between a complete and incomplete metamorphosis using text features and details to describe the connection between scientific ideas.
Discussion & Writing
Insect Life Cycles
RI.2.3
W.2.2
SL.2.1
Explain what happens at each stage of the life cycle by using picture clues and details to sequence events.
Ants pp. 4 – 13
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RI.2.7
Identify key information about ants by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Ants — pages 16-21 & 24-31
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RI.2.7
Identify key information about ants by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Discussion & Writing
Ants
W.2.1
SL.2.1
SL.2.2
Argue why an ant would or would not survive in a rainforest habitat by using organizing categories to defend claims or opinions about a content-related topic.
Bees pp. 4 – 13
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
Describe the impact bees have on the natural world using key details from the text.
Bees pp. 16 – 23
RI.2.2
RI.2.4
RI.2.5
Describe a bee’s world by noticing key details in the text and using relevant vocabulary.
Bees pp. 24 – 29
RI.2.5
RI.2.6
Determine the main purpose of a text by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Discussion & Writing
Bees
W.2.1
SL.2.1
SL.2.2
Argue why a bee would or would not survive in a rainforest habitat by using organizing categories to defend claims or opinions about a content-related topic.
Insectlopedia — "The Caterpillar," "The Dragonfly," and "The Army Ants"
RL.2.4
SL.2.5
Explain how the author uses poetry to describe an insect.
Insectlopedia — "Inchworm," "Hornet"
RL.2.4
SL.2.5
Explain how the author uses poetry to describe an insect.
Helpful and Harmful Insects — Pages 6-7 & 10-15
RI.2.3
RI.2.6
RI.2.8
Identify the different ways insects can be both helpful and harmful and explain one reason why by using text features and details to describe the connection between scientific concepts.
Helpful and Harmful Insects pp. 16 – 21
RI.2.3
RI.2.6
RI.2.8
Identify the different ways insects can be both helpful and harmful, and explain one reason why by using text features and details to describe the connection between scientific concepts.
Helpful and Harmful Insects pp. 22 – 29
RI.2.2
RI.2.3
RI.2.8
Identify the different ways insects can be both helpful and harmful and explain one reason why by using text features and details to describe the connection between scientific concepts.
Discussion & Writing
Helpful and Harmful Insects
W.2.1
SL.2.1
SL.2.2
Argue why it would be a good or bad thing if all the insects in our world suddenly disappeared by using organizing categories to defend claims or opinions about a content–related topic.
5 days
Writing
Variety of nonfiction insect books
W.2.2
W.2.7
Describe an insect by writing an informational text that uses researched facts, images, and definitions to explain what they learned.
4 days
Project
All unit texts and posters
W.2.2
W.2.5
SL.2.1
SL.2.5
SL.2.6
Design a make-believe insect by using key details from the entire unit to show mastery and understanding of a topic.