Week 3 of 8
Week 3
Kindergarten → 1st Grade · Addition within 5 and Rhyming
Math
Addition Within 5
Joining two small groups and naming the total, with sums no greater than 5. Mid-kindergarten, usually alongside counting objects.
The mistake to watch for. Counting the first group again from one instead of counting on. For 3 + 2 a child restarts at "one, two, three" rather than starting at three.
How to help. Cover the first group with your hand and say its number out loud. The hidden group can't be recounted, so counting on becomes the easier path.
A worked example
Try 2 + 3. Hold up two fingers on one hand and three on the other, then count them all: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. So 2 + 3 = 5.
Reading & language
Rhyming Words
Hearing that two words share an ending sound, regardless of spelling. Kindergarten, often taught alongside nursery rhymes and songs.
The mistake to watch for. Matching by the first letter instead of the ending sound — pairing "cat" with "can" because both start with c.
How to help. Say both words slowly and stretch the ending: "c-AT, h-AT." The match is in the last sound, not the first.
A worked example
Which word rhymes with 'cat': hat or cup? Rhyming words end with the same sound: c-at, h-at. Hat rhymes with cat.
Words for this week
- add
- To put numbers together to find how many in all.
- plus
- The sign ( + ) that means add.
- equal
- The same amount. The sign = means "is equal to".
- total
- All of the things added together.
- sum
- The answer you get when you add.
- rhyme
- Words that end with the same sound, like cat and hat.
- sound
- What you hear when you say a letter or a word.
- word
- A group of letters that has a meaning.
- end
- The last part of something, like the last sound in a word.
- syllable
- One beat in a word. Elephant has three syllables: el-e-phant.
Read this week
Herrerasaurus
A short dinosaurs & fossils article from our Learn library, chosen for this reading level. Read it together, then ask your child to tell you one new thing they learned.