Greetings Families,
The Holiday Season is fast approaching and with it many exciting activities. Please note the dates below.
Friday, Nov. 14, Free Dress
Monday, Nov. 17, - Friday, Nov. 21, Canned Food Drive
Friday, November 21, Grandparents/Special Friends Day
Wednesday, December 17, Christmas Tree Farm Field Trip 8:15-11:25 (volunteer trained parents/grandparents welcome, $5 per chaperone)
This is the time of year when we see a huge leap in Grade 1 development. Students generally return from Winter Break reflecting a new social/emotional maturity and an increased academic propensity. We view this as a wonderful window of opportunity to fill in any gaps they may have in their foundational skills as well as a time to front-load the work ahead. Please continue nightly reading (5-10 minutes minimum), nightly math practice (5-10 minutes minimum), and Lexia practice as appropriate for the child's schedule (a total of approximately 20 minutes per night). As always, if there is a pattern of frustration around any of the work just drop a note in the folder and we will work on it at school. At-home practice builds a lifestyle of academic stamina and leads to more efficient automaticity which is critical for their future success as a lifelong learner. We appreciate all of your efforts in this area and are witnessing the benefits of this at-home practice.
With the change in seasons we are experiencing and influx of jackets in the lost and found bin. The only way we can get these articles back home is if they are clearly labeled with the child's last name.
In math this week we are learning new strategies to solve addition and subtraction problems within twenty. The strategies being introduced move away from a reliance on finger counting and develop the ability to mentally hold digits and place values while adding and subtracting. This will be a practice that continues through middle school and as a result will be a primary focus throughout Grade 1. At-home support of number sense, sequencing numbers, number recognition, replicating numbers, number bonds, and looking for numbers in the world around us is crucial for each child's math ability. Daily exposure to numbers is the glue that helps the direct instruction stick.
In literacy, students are working in differentiated guided reading groups where they have been working on sentence "cloze" activities requiring them to fill in the blanks using context clues. Our curiosity to explore books on trees and leaves was recently inspired by the introduction of a real "Seasonal Tree" to our classroom. Writing skills continue to expand with the use of sentence frame modeling and phrasing. All students practice this method multiple times throughout the week and should be able to share information about "trick words," "glued sounds," "marking," and correct capitalization and ending punctuation. During independent and buddy reading time students are practicing their "good-fit" books from their cubbies and their reading folders.
We are currently connecting our studies of science and history in our study of trees, genetics, and making paint from natural materials. Using various texts we are looking at trees from both a scientific perspective and from a cultural perspective. Our exploration of genetics takes us from the basic understanding of the way traits are passed from parents to children in the animal kingdom and more broadly how those traits help the species survive. In studying Native American artifacts we experienced their innovative approaches in using natural materials. We are replicating this practice by making our own paints from clay, oil, and spices.
Feel free to drop by the classroom after school or during after school activities to peruse your child's cubby and view showcase work.
Thank you for all of your important work with your children. The time and energy you spend on them is evident.
Best,
Jen and Wendy
Grade 1 Team
The Holiday Season is fast approaching and with it many exciting activities. Please note the dates below.
Friday, Nov. 14, Free Dress
Monday, Nov. 17, - Friday, Nov. 21, Canned Food Drive
Friday, November 21, Grandparents/Special Friends Day
Wednesday, December 17, Christmas Tree Farm Field Trip 8:15-11:25 (volunteer trained parents/grandparents welcome, $5 per chaperone)
This is the time of year when we see a huge leap in Grade 1 development. Students generally return from Winter Break reflecting a new social/emotional maturity and an increased academic propensity. We view this as a wonderful window of opportunity to fill in any gaps they may have in their foundational skills as well as a time to front-load the work ahead. Please continue nightly reading (5-10 minutes minimum), nightly math practice (5-10 minutes minimum), and Lexia practice as appropriate for the child's schedule (a total of approximately 20 minutes per night). As always, if there is a pattern of frustration around any of the work just drop a note in the folder and we will work on it at school. At-home practice builds a lifestyle of academic stamina and leads to more efficient automaticity which is critical for their future success as a lifelong learner. We appreciate all of your efforts in this area and are witnessing the benefits of this at-home practice.
With the change in seasons we are experiencing and influx of jackets in the lost and found bin. The only way we can get these articles back home is if they are clearly labeled with the child's last name.
In math this week we are learning new strategies to solve addition and subtraction problems within twenty. The strategies being introduced move away from a reliance on finger counting and develop the ability to mentally hold digits and place values while adding and subtracting. This will be a practice that continues through middle school and as a result will be a primary focus throughout Grade 1. At-home support of number sense, sequencing numbers, number recognition, replicating numbers, number bonds, and looking for numbers in the world around us is crucial for each child's math ability. Daily exposure to numbers is the glue that helps the direct instruction stick.
In literacy, students are working in differentiated guided reading groups where they have been working on sentence "cloze" activities requiring them to fill in the blanks using context clues. Our curiosity to explore books on trees and leaves was recently inspired by the introduction of a real "Seasonal Tree" to our classroom. Writing skills continue to expand with the use of sentence frame modeling and phrasing. All students practice this method multiple times throughout the week and should be able to share information about "trick words," "glued sounds," "marking," and correct capitalization and ending punctuation. During independent and buddy reading time students are practicing their "good-fit" books from their cubbies and their reading folders.
We are currently connecting our studies of science and history in our study of trees, genetics, and making paint from natural materials. Using various texts we are looking at trees from both a scientific perspective and from a cultural perspective. Our exploration of genetics takes us from the basic understanding of the way traits are passed from parents to children in the animal kingdom and more broadly how those traits help the species survive. In studying Native American artifacts we experienced their innovative approaches in using natural materials. We are replicating this practice by making our own paints from clay, oil, and spices.
Feel free to drop by the classroom after school or during after school activities to peruse your child's cubby and view showcase work.
Thank you for all of your important work with your children. The time and energy you spend on them is evident.
Best,
Jen and Wendy
Grade 1 Team