Lesson 34: The Little Ducks — Answer Key & Guide
Curriculum Focus & Learning Objectives
• Reading Comprehension: Extracting facts from rhyme text and visual illustration (identifying colors, counting items).
• Full Declarative Syntax: Converting question stems into complete answers with subject-verb agreement and terminal periods.
| # |
Prompt / Question |
Standard Model Answer |
Instructional & Grammar Notes |
| 1. |
What is the color of the first duck? |
The first duck is black. |
Acceptable: The color of the first duck is black. Reinforce capitalization of The and period at end. |
| 2. |
What is the color of the second duck? |
The second duck is gray. |
Acceptable: The color of the second duck is gray. (American: gray; British: grey). |
| 3. |
How many white ducks are there? |
There are six white ducks. |
Model uses existential There are with plural noun phrase six white ducks. |
| 4. |
How many ducks in all? |
There are eight ducks in all. |
Math integration: 1 black + 1 gray + 6 white = 8 ducks. Word form eight is strongly preferred. |
| 5. |
What are they doing? |
They are running out to play. |
Present continuous tense matching the poem: They are running out to play. |
Phonics & Rhyme Integration
Point out the rhyming word pair at the ends of lines 2 and 4: gray and play (both ending with the long /eɪ/ sound written -ay). Encourage rhythmic choral reading.
Cross-Curricular Math Link
Connect the reading with elementary math addition: 1 + 1 + 6 = 8. Ask students to verify by counting each duck individually in the illustration from left to right.
| Evaluation Metric |
Target Standard (Exemplary) |
Common Correction Points |
| Complete Sentence |
Answers in full declarative syntax, not single word fragments. |
Avoid single-word answers (e.g. "Black", "8"). |
| Accuracy & Math |
All 5 answers accurately reflect the facts in the rhyme (8 total). |
Ensure total count is 8, not 6 or 7. |
| Mechanics |
Capital letter at start of every sentence; period (.) at end. |
Check for missing periods and lowercase start. |
| Spelling |
Correct spelling of color words (black, gray, white) and numbers (six, eight). |
Watch silent letters in eight (e-i-g-h-t). |