First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: Everyone can be a good neighbor.
Unit 1:
Lesson Essential Question
1
Main Ideas &
Summarize
What is important about being a friend?
2
Understanding
Characters &
What clues tell me how a character feels?
Infer/Predict
3
Sequence of Why is the order of story events
Events &
Monitor /
Clarify important?
4
Text and
Graphic
What information do words and pictures
Features &
Question give?
5
Story
Structure &
How does the setting make a story
Analyze /
Evaluate interesting?
First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: We all have something to share.
Unit 2:
Lesson Essential Question
6
Understanding What lessons can you learn from story
characters?
Characters &
Summarize
7
Details &
How do animals communicate?
Infer/Predict
8
Sequence of
Events &
Why is the order of story events
Analyze/Evalu
ate important?
9
Text and
Graphic
How do words and pictures help tell a
Features &
Question story?
10
Story How do parts of a story work together?
Structure &
Visualize
First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: It’s a big, wonderful world.
Unit 3:
Lesson Essential Question
Why do authors write stories?
11
Author’s
Purpose &
Analyze
/Evaluate
12
Sequence of Why is the order of story events
Events &
Question
important?
13
Cause and What changes do the different seasons
Effect &
Visualize
cause?
14
Conclusions &
What clues help you decide why events
Infer/Predict
happen?
How are animals the same and different?
15
Compare and
Contrast &
Monitor
/Clarify
First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: We discover new things every day.
Unit 4:
Lesson Essential Question
16
Main Idea and What is important to know about the
Details &
Question
moon?
17
Compare and How are ways to travel the same and
Contrast &
Visualize
different?
18
Author’s
Purpose &
Why do authors write nonfiction?
Summarize
19
Conclusions & What clues help you find out how
Monitor
/Clarify
characters feel?
20
Cause and
Effect &
What makes a story funny?
Infer/Predict
First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: Living things change as they grow.
Unit 5:
Lesson Essential Question
21
Story
Structure &
What do characters do when there is a
Analyze
/Evaluate problem?
22
Conclusions &
What clues tell you why animals look as
Visualize
they do?
23
Cause and
Effect &
What causes events in a story to happen?
Monitor/
Clarify
24
Sequence of Why do authors put events in a certain
order?
Events &
Question
25
Understanding What clues tell you what a character is
like?
Characters &
Summarize
First Grade HMH Big Ideas & Essential Questions
Big Idea: Always try your best.
Unit 6:
Lesson Essential Question
26
Compare and
Contrast &
How are ways to make art the same and
Monitor
/Clarify different?
27
Text and
Graphic How do words and photos work together to
Features &
Analyze
/Evaluate give information?
28
Story How does a problem make a story
Structure &
Infer/ Predict
interesting?
29
Cause and How do some story events make other
Effect &
Visualize
events happen?
30
Understanding What can you learn from story characters?
Characters &
Summarize