Happy Labor Day! I hope you have enjoyed your weekend as much as I have. We were blessed with beautiful weather.
Last week, I had a wonderful time getting to know my new students and reconnecting with my former students. Thank you for all of your friendly greetings at Meet the Teacher. It was a pleasure to meet your families!
Homework will be to read every night (even on weekends!), complete two half-page reading responses (Please see the literacy homework sheet in your child's K.I.T. binder.), and three nights of math homework. We will go over math homework from the previous evening each day during math time. Please help your child remember to keep their math pages in their homework folder inside their K.I.T. binder. Spelling homework will be added shortly, which will include a differentiated word list especially for your child.
If you have questions about any of the homework please feel free to contact me.
Thank you for encouraging your child to do their best and accept responsibility for completing their homework. Your positive feedback is powerful!
Showing posts with label August. Show all posts
Showing posts with label August. Show all posts
Monday, September 1, 2014
Saturday, August 31, 2013
What a Week!
Greetings, 1st grade families!
I hope you are enjoying this fabulous Labor Day weekend!
Have you heard news of our 1st week? We had a GREAT time! I am blessed to have such a wonderful group of students. Thank you for sharing your children with me!
In reading we learned to read a book three different ways (read the pictures, read the words, and retell a familiar story). We worked on building our stamina for reading independently. Our goal is to build our stamina to 30 minutes of sustained, silent reading. We practiced a reading comprehension strategy called “Check for Understanding” to help us remember who and what we are reading about.
Next week we will practice “Checking for Understanding” while reading with a partner. We will begin reading with our Book Buddies from Ms. Eller’s 3rd grade class on Wednesday. During Book Buddy reading we will practice our reading fluency as well as other reading strategies.
In writing we wrote stories about things we like. We worked on building our writing community by listening to and sharing stories. We noticed many commonalities with our friends. Two of our friends enjoy playing volleyball with their dads. Two other students like playing at the pool. It is so fun to learn about each other through our stories!
In math we are working to solve word problems, staying flexible with our thinking, while attempting to avoid common misconceptions. When students see two numbers in a word problem we don’t want them to automatically add them together. We want them to understand the problem first, so together we have worked to analyze the meaning of word problems before working to solve them with our own independent strategies. Your children are amazing! So far they have used strategies such as drawing a picture and making a model to solve problems. Two students created t-charts to organize their data. Student volunteers shared their work and taught the class new strategies for solving problems!
For the next several weeks we will work to internalize number combinations to 10 and, as the year progresses, to 20. Next week we will write numerals to 120, practice counting by groups, and use equations to represent our work.
In social studies we are learning about what it means to be a good citizen. We have reviewed what it means to S.O.A.R. (Show self-control. Offer peer support. Actively listen and learn. Respect people and property.)
We will begin a unit in science soon called Force and Motion. As an introduction to the unit we have been reading about magnets and magnetic force. We did a few informal experiments through which we discovered that a magnet’s magnetic force can travel through some materials, such as paper, to another magnetic material, such as a metal refrigerator door. Ask your child if a magnet’s magnetic force will travel through a paperclip. Ask them what else they can tell you about magnets. (Possible answers: Magnets have two poles, and North Pole and a South Pole. Earth is a magnet. Our planet also has a North Pole and a South Pole. Some metals are magnetic, Etc.)
Have a fun weekend! I look forward to seeing your children on Tuesday!
I hope you are enjoying this fabulous Labor Day weekend!
Have you heard news of our 1st week? We had a GREAT time! I am blessed to have such a wonderful group of students. Thank you for sharing your children with me!
In reading we learned to read a book three different ways (read the pictures, read the words, and retell a familiar story). We worked on building our stamina for reading independently. Our goal is to build our stamina to 30 minutes of sustained, silent reading. We practiced a reading comprehension strategy called “Check for Understanding” to help us remember who and what we are reading about.
Next week we will practice “Checking for Understanding” while reading with a partner. We will begin reading with our Book Buddies from Ms. Eller’s 3rd grade class on Wednesday. During Book Buddy reading we will practice our reading fluency as well as other reading strategies.
In writing we wrote stories about things we like. We worked on building our writing community by listening to and sharing stories. We noticed many commonalities with our friends. Two of our friends enjoy playing volleyball with their dads. Two other students like playing at the pool. It is so fun to learn about each other through our stories!
In math we are working to solve word problems, staying flexible with our thinking, while attempting to avoid common misconceptions. When students see two numbers in a word problem we don’t want them to automatically add them together. We want them to understand the problem first, so together we have worked to analyze the meaning of word problems before working to solve them with our own independent strategies. Your children are amazing! So far they have used strategies such as drawing a picture and making a model to solve problems. Two students created t-charts to organize their data. Student volunteers shared their work and taught the class new strategies for solving problems!
For the next several weeks we will work to internalize number combinations to 10 and, as the year progresses, to 20. Next week we will write numerals to 120, practice counting by groups, and use equations to represent our work.
In social studies we are learning about what it means to be a good citizen. We have reviewed what it means to S.O.A.R. (Show self-control. Offer peer support. Actively listen and learn. Respect people and property.)
We will begin a unit in science soon called Force and Motion. As an introduction to the unit we have been reading about magnets and magnetic force. We did a few informal experiments through which we discovered that a magnet’s magnetic force can travel through some materials, such as paper, to another magnetic material, such as a metal refrigerator door. Ask your child if a magnet’s magnetic force will travel through a paperclip. Ask them what else they can tell you about magnets. (Possible answers: Magnets have two poles, and North Pole and a South Pole. Earth is a magnet. Our planet also has a North Pole and a South Pole. Some metals are magnetic, Etc.)
Have a fun weekend! I look forward to seeing your children on Tuesday!
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Donate to Our Class Through DonorsChoose.org!
The Board of Directors at DonorsChoose.org wants to kick-start our projects! For the next 7 days, when someone donates to our projects and enters the code INSPIRE, they'll match the donation dollar for dollar. Please take a few minutes to review the projects I have created at DonorsChoose.org. Every donation will have a direct impact on student learning this year!
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Read Aloud Every Day!
I was just reading an interesting post from Jen Robinson's Book Page about the Read Aloud 15 Minutes campaign. If you aren't already signed up to receive emails from her you should go to her site right now and sign up. She writes great book reviews and is an advocate for voracious reading. Check out the press release for some compelling information on the importance of reading aloud to kids every day.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Welcome back!
It was a great week! I am so excited for the year to come. Thank you to everyone who came to Back to School Night and to all of the parents who stopped in during the week to say, "Hello!" I look forward to getting to know you and your family throughout the year.
This week we practiced our routines and procedures. The kids are doing great with our Morning Routine of getting set for the day, choosing new books for their book boxes, and reading. They are already building stamina for an increased volume of reading. We learned that reading time is precious and we need to make sure we have time each day to practice. We learned that the more you read, the more you know! Just like preparing for a marathon, it is important to increase our reading at a steady pace in order to grow stronger and stay the course. Thank you for your support at home making sure your child has a quiet place to read each night (either with or without you).
In writing we have begun brainstorming topics, planning, and drafting stories. Some students are writing about their lives and some are creating stories from their imaginations. Both types of stories are great for sharing, and we have enjoyed hearing several stories already. Your kids are creative and detailed!
In math we are practicing counting, comparing, and composing numbers. We collected data about our eye color and converted it into a class pictograph. We practiced making a bar graph, and compared the information. We learned a new math game called "Tall Towers" and another math activity named "Number Splash." We also spent some time exploring the manipulatives.
In social studies we have been discussing the importance of rules and laws. We shared some of the rules that we have at home to keep our home safe and rules that we have at school.
We will continue working on all of the above concepts and begin our reading assessments this week. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
This week we practiced our routines and procedures. The kids are doing great with our Morning Routine of getting set for the day, choosing new books for their book boxes, and reading. They are already building stamina for an increased volume of reading. We learned that reading time is precious and we need to make sure we have time each day to practice. We learned that the more you read, the more you know! Just like preparing for a marathon, it is important to increase our reading at a steady pace in order to grow stronger and stay the course. Thank you for your support at home making sure your child has a quiet place to read each night (either with or without you).
In writing we have begun brainstorming topics, planning, and drafting stories. Some students are writing about their lives and some are creating stories from their imaginations. Both types of stories are great for sharing, and we have enjoyed hearing several stories already. Your kids are creative and detailed!
In math we are practicing counting, comparing, and composing numbers. We collected data about our eye color and converted it into a class pictograph. We practiced making a bar graph, and compared the information. We learned a new math game called "Tall Towers" and another math activity named "Number Splash." We also spent some time exploring the manipulatives.
In social studies we have been discussing the importance of rules and laws. We shared some of the rules that we have at home to keep our home safe and rules that we have at school.
We will continue working on all of the above concepts and begin our reading assessments this week. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Back to School
I am looking forward to meeting my new students and parents!
Back to School Night is this Thursday, August 23rd from 5:00pm-6:00pm!
If you already have your child's supplies you may bring them to Back to School Night. You may access a supply list HERE. An additional supply "wish list" is included at the Important Links tab.
Back to School Night is this Thursday, August 23rd from 5:00pm-6:00pm!
If you already have your child's supplies you may bring them to Back to School Night. You may access a supply list HERE. An additional supply "wish list" is included at the Important Links tab.
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