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Goal: add Card D after simplification. Say: “The root parts have to match, just as like variables do.”
0–2: Write 2x+3x=5x; ask for a radical analogue.
2–7: Model sqrt(12)=2sqrt(3); invite sqrt(27)=3sqrt(3).
7–13: Students reject sqrt(39) by a numerical bound: the true sum is above 8, while sqrt(39) is between 6 and 7.
13–20: Independent total and a sentence about like terms.
20–25: Ask if sqrt(12)+sqrt(8) can combine in one surd; hear why not after simplifying.
Routes: equations plus bound; talk through matching root tiles with recorded exact sum; arrange coefficient cards beside shared sqrt(3) strips and caption the result. Other domains:Day 4 swaps. Optional/home: invent two non-identical radicals that simplify to like terms. Move: when students add radicands, square or estimate both sides to expose the difference.