Lesson 45 Teacher Guide & Scoring Rubric
Teacher Key
Serl's Original Teacher Note: Conduct an oral conversation before writing. Discuss: (1) Where toads are found (damp, shaded places under stones, logs, or leaves); (2) What they do there (remain hidden by day, hunt insects by twilight); (3) Food (insects, beetles, spiders, slugs); (4) How they catch prey: the toad's tongue is attached at the front of the lower jaw and covered with a sticky secretion, allowing it to flip outward with remarkable speed and snare insects instantly.
Standards Addressed: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.1 (Key Details in Scientific Text), L.2.2.C (Apostrophes in possessives), L.2.1 (Sentence types & end punctuation), W.2.2 (Informative/Explanatory writing).
Section 1: Nature Investigation & Text Facts
1. Habitat: yard (or garden).
2. Diet: spiders (accept: bugs or insects).
3. Appetite: forty or fifty (40 or 50).
4. Capture Tool: toad's tongue (or sticky tongue).
Section 2: Science Detective & Punctuation
A. Science Fact: sticky (or gluey / adhesive).
B. End Marks: Did you ever see a toad? | The toad eats spiders in the yard.
C. Possessive Apostrophe: toad's tongue (apostrophe before the 's').
Section 3: Writing the Story of the Toad (Sample Response)
1. Habitat: A quiet toad lives under the cool, damp stones in the garden.
2. Hunting: When a spider creeps past, out shoots his long, sticky tongue to catch it.
3. Helper: He eats forty or fifty insects every evening to keep the garden safe.
Section 4: A Gardener's Best Friend (Sample Answers)
• The toad helps the gardener by eating harmful pests that eat the vegetables.
• He is a gentle, quiet helper that protects our flowers and plants naturally.
• Frogs vs. Toads: Explain that frogs have smooth, wet skin and live near water, whereas toads have drier, bumpy skin and dwell in gardens and woods. Both are amphibians.
• The Mechanics of the Tongue: Human tongues are rooted at the back of the mouth; a toad's tongue is rooted at the front and flips out like a party blower.
• Apostrophe Check: Ensure students write toad's tongue with an apostrophe to indicate possession.
| Evaluation Metric |
Exemplary (5 Pts) |
Proficient (3-4 Pts) |
Developing (1-2 Pts) |
| Scientific Comprehension |
Demonstrates complete understanding of habitat, diet, and tongue mechanism. |
Answers all text fact questions correctly; understands sticky tongue concept. |
Confuses diet or habitat; answers incomplete or inaccurate. |
| Mechanics & Punctuation |
Flawlessly uses question mark, period, and possessive apostrophe in toad's. |
Places punctuation marks correctly; minor slip with possessive apostrophe. |
Omits question mark; confuses possessive with plural noun. |
| Narrative Composition |
Composes 3 vivid, coherent sentences covering habitat, hunting, and utility. |
Writes 3 clear sentences describing the toad's life and hunting. |
Writes fewer than 3 sentences; thoughts are fragmented or disjointed. |
| Ecological Reflection |
Expresses a mature appreciation of the toad as a natural pest controller. |
Explains why gardeners appreciate toads in a complete sentence. |
Reflection is brief, off-topic, or missing complete sentence structure. |