Ways to talk about books with your child...
Who are the characters?
Where does the story take place?
What is the problem in the story?
What is the solution?
How did the characters feelings change?
Retell the story....
Sunday, May 3, 2020
Sunday, March 1, 2020
February Newsletter
Reading Workshop: We launched our new unit, Readers meet Characters and Series books by reading about Iris and Walter from the series and Mr. Putter and Tabby from the series. We recorded our thoughts, wonderings and favorite parts on post-its and in our readers' notebook.
**Character in series books become our friends because we know them so well.***
Click link for series books at first grade's "Just Right Level" First Grade Book Suggestions
Writer's Workshop, Our Writing Review unit is all about writing an opinion. The children are writing their opinions about the items in the collection they brought from home. But that is not all! Kids have opinions about a lot of things. They are honing their skills by writing about their favorite: food, sport, color, pet, etc. Did you know Opinion writing is like the cookie O.R.E.O.? Opinion writing involves much more than just stating an Opinion. Students must give Reasons for their opinion presented in an interesting and convincing manner with Examples. The last sentence is a restate of their Opinion.
We learned that Characters DRIVE the story by:
showing emotion,
taking us places,
getting into trouble or having problem and then...
fixing the problem or finding a solution.
Also, we are learning about characters from their friends.
Click link for series books at first grade's "Just Right Level" First Grade Book Suggestions
Writer's Workshop, Our Writing Review unit is all about writing an opinion. The children are writing their opinions about the items in the collection they brought from home. But that is not all! Kids have opinions about a lot of things. They are honing their skills by writing about their favorite: food, sport, color, pet, etc. Did you know Opinion writing is like the cookie O.R.E.O.? Opinion writing involves much more than just stating an Opinion. Students must give Reasons for their opinion presented in an interesting and convincing manner with Examples. The last sentence is a restate of their Opinion.
In Math, we are in Chapter 6, Numbers to 40.
Example:
Next up, Chapter 8. , Addition and Subtraction to 40. The students will be learning many strategies to solve addition and subtraction to 40. Many will be able to regroup larger numbers with blocks, cubes/tens rods and use a number line to help them find the answer.
We will ask that they draw the problem and answer the problem or use expanded notation to show tens and ones.
Being able to understand what the question is asking before starting the solution is key!
Over the summer your child may access online resources to help them practice their math:
NEXT UP: Social Studies: Long Ago and Today.
All parents used www.signupgenius.com to make their date/time selection.
You will be getting a reminder email a few days before the conference.
Looking Ahead:
March 6- Conference Prep- NO SCHOOL
March 9-12 Conferences
March 16- 20 Spring Break
March 31st- Spring Performance 6:30 p.m. at Wydown
April 3- Early Release
April 10th- April Break, NO SCHOOL
April 23th- Field Trip to the Museum of Transportation
May 8th- Early Release
May 1st- Field Trip to the Magic House
May 22nd- Field Day
May 25th- No School Memorial Day
May 28th- Last day, Early Release
Example:
Next up, Chapter 8. , Addition and Subtraction to 40. The students will be learning many strategies to solve addition and subtraction to 40. Many will be able to regroup larger numbers with blocks, cubes/tens rods and use a number line to help them find the answer.
We will ask that they draw the problem and answer the problem or use expanded notation to show tens and ones.
 |
| Drawing tens as a line and ones as dots and xs. |
 |
| Breaking down the problem into tens and ones |
Being able to understand what the question is asking before starting the solution is key!
Over the summer your child may access online resources to help them practice their math:
www.gregtangmath.com
Social Studies- Our new unit is Long Ago and Today.
*****Timeline project****
Please send 6-7 pictures of your child from birth through now. These need to be copies because students will be gluing them on paper for their own timeline. If you want, you can send digital pictures through email and I will print them on the color printer at school. Make sure your child has seen these pictures and can write one sentence telling about the picture. PLEASE SEND THEM BY SPRING BREAK.
PARENTS:
If you have any “old” objects around the house that you would be willing to share with the class, we would love it. Some examples of old objects are: typewriters, cameras, tape recorders, record players, toys, etc.
Parent Teacher Conferences coming up: March 9-12 All parents used www.signupgenius.com to make their date/time selection.
You will be getting a reminder email a few days before the conference.
Looking Ahead:
March 6- Conference Prep- NO SCHOOL
March 9-12 Conferences
March 16- 20 Spring Break
March 31st- Spring Performance 6:30 p.m. at Wydown
April 3- Early Release
April 10th- April Break, NO SCHOOL
April 23th- Field Trip to the Museum of Transportation
May 8th- Early Release
May 1st- Field Trip to the Magic House
May 22nd- Field Day
May 25th- No School Memorial Day
May 28th- Last day, Early Release
Friday, February 28, 2020
Science Experiments
Dr. D'Arcy, a Chemistry professor at Washington University came to our classroom. He brought with him current students in the chemistry program to help our class understand the properties of solids and liquids. The first grade students participated in 5 experiments.
Monday, February 17, 2020
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
January Update News
Reading:
As readers we are continuously practicing and using the skill of self-monitoring. This means that students are thinking about what they are reading and checking to make sure that what they read matches the words on the page. This includes recognizing any errors made and fixing them right away when reading. When reading, students are not only self-correcting, but also making sense of and understanding the story. Students are learning it is okay to reread a book several times to build fluency, or being able to read smoothly with expression.
Next we we will learn about Comprehension in reading.
Comprehension is another key to reading. Can your child tell:
Who is in the story
Where the story takes place
When the story takes place
What happened in order
What are the characters feeling
Who is talking
Some additional Comprehension questions: What is the author's message? What is the author trying to teach you? What is your favorite part and why? What was the most important in the story and why?
Writing: We finished our unit on Non-Fiction Reports. Students wrote all about an animal. They are experts on so many animals. They organized the writing into: What the animal looks like, lives and eats with a table of contents and a glossary. An author craft move we practiced in this unit was a TWIN SENTENCE. A twin sentence uses a vocabulary word and then explains it. For example: e
Groundhogs hibernate in the winter. Hibernate means to sleep all winter.
Our new unit will be Opinion Writing.
We will give our Opinion with reasons for the best on many things we like. We will be writing about our collections first. We will also review favorite restaurants, food, movies, and games.
Math:
We are finishing Chapter 10 Addition and Subtraction to 20.
Being able to compose (add) and decompose (subtract) Facts Fluently is a key skill in first grade.
One way is to make a ten and then add or subtract.
Example:
9 + 8 =
Take one from the 8 and give to the 9 to make a 10 so it is 10 + 8 = 18
Another way to add is to think of Doubles facts.
We know that 8 + 8 = 16 and 9 is 1 more then 8 so 8 + 8 + 1 = 17
Fact Fluency: Knowledge of basic facts to 20 and development of the number sense around 20 is essential to all areas of math. We continue to practice our math addition facts to 20 daily with games.
Please practice at home as well.
Science: We are starting our scientific study of Solids and Liquids. We will observe the properties of many solids and liquids, comparing how solids and liquids are alike and how they are different. Some key words you will hear children describe liquids are: viscous, bubbly, foamy, colorful, transparent, and translucent. Some key words you will hear children describe solids are: rough, smooth, rigid, flexible, and has color. We will continue our exploration of solid and liquid materials for a few more weeks. We hope children understand that the world is made of matter that comes in Solids, Liquids and Gases.
Look Ahead:
Friday, February 14th- Valentines Party and Early release
All students need a decorated box and enough valentines for 18 students.
See note being sent home. ***Parents Welcome****
Monday, February 17th- No School, President's Day
Book Orders Due:
Scholastic Book Orders will be coming home. Orders are due: Friday, January 24th.
If you order, there are 2 ways to pay:
A) Return order sheet and a check made out to Scholastic.
B) Online order with your credit card.
1. go to www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2. use my class activation code: fmr3g
3. shop and pay.
Next we we will learn about Comprehension in reading.
Comprehension is another key to reading. Can your child tell:
Who is in the story
Where the story takes place
When the story takes place
What happened in order
What are the characters feeling
Who is talking
Some additional Comprehension questions: What is the author's message? What is the author trying to teach you? What is your favorite part and why? What was the most important in the story and why?
Writing: We finished our unit on Non-Fiction Reports. Students wrote all about an animal. They are experts on so many animals. They organized the writing into: What the animal looks like, lives and eats with a table of contents and a glossary. An author craft move we practiced in this unit was a TWIN SENTENCE. A twin sentence uses a vocabulary word and then explains it. For example: e
Groundhogs hibernate in the winter. Hibernate means to sleep all winter.
Our new unit will be Opinion Writing.
We will give our Opinion with reasons for the best on many things we like. We will be writing about our collections first. We will also review favorite restaurants, food, movies, and games.
Math:
We are finishing Chapter 10 Addition and Subtraction to 20.
Being able to compose (add) and decompose (subtract) Facts Fluently is a key skill in first grade.
One way is to make a ten and then add or subtract.
Example:
9 + 8 =
Take one from the 8 and give to the 9 to make a 10 so it is 10 + 8 = 18
Another way to add is to think of Doubles facts.
We know that 8 + 8 = 16 and 9 is 1 more then 8 so 8 + 8 + 1 = 17
Fact Fluency: Knowledge of basic facts to 20 and development of the number sense around 20 is essential to all areas of math. We continue to practice our math addition facts to 20 daily with games.
Please practice at home as well.
Science: We are starting our scientific study of Solids and Liquids. We will observe the properties of many solids and liquids, comparing how solids and liquids are alike and how they are different. Some key words you will hear children describe liquids are: viscous, bubbly, foamy, colorful, transparent, and translucent. Some key words you will hear children describe solids are: rough, smooth, rigid, flexible, and has color. We will continue our exploration of solid and liquid materials for a few more weeks. We hope children understand that the world is made of matter that comes in Solids, Liquids and Gases.
Look Ahead:
Friday, February 14th- Valentines Party and Early release
All students need a decorated box and enough valentines for 18 students.
See note being sent home. ***Parents Welcome****
Monday, February 17th- No School, President's Day
Book Orders Due:
Scholastic Book Orders will be coming home. Orders are due: Friday, January 24th.
If you order, there are 2 ways to pay:
A) Return order sheet and a check made out to Scholastic.
B) Online order with your credit card.
1. go to www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2. use my class activation code: fmr3g
3. shop and pay.
Mittens, Mittens, Mitterns
First grade students have been reading and comparing the two Mitten books:
The Mitten by Alvin Tresslet and The Mitten by Jan Brett.
Both books have a little boy who looses a mitten in the snow and animals that decide to get warm by climbing inside. The books differ by the kinds of animals and the way the mitten is made.
We enjoyed reading, discussing and thinking about the story last week.
In addition, we read the Missing Mitten Mystery by Steven Kellogg. We imagined what a mitten could be for the forest animals. Some ideas were a nest for a bird, a sleeping bag for a mole, or a blanket for a mouse.
In addition the main character imagines that mittens can be planted and grown on trees!
This will lead to a discussion on which is best:
gloves verses mittens.
The Mitten by Alvin Tresslet and The Mitten by Jan Brett.
Both books have a little boy who looses a mitten in the snow and animals that decide to get warm by climbing inside. The books differ by the kinds of animals and the way the mitten is made.
We enjoyed reading, discussing and thinking about the story last week.
This will lead to a discussion on which is best:
gloves verses mittens.
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Looking Ahead
Important Dates:
First Grade Field Trip: Thursday, January 16th. We go to see Click, Clack Moo at Florissant Civic Center.
Early Release: Friday January 17
No School: Monday January 20th- MLK Day
Early release and Parties for Valentines Day: Friday, February 14th.
No School Monday February 17th- President's Day
First Grade Field Trip: Thursday, January 16th. We go to see Click, Clack Moo at Florissant Civic Center.
Early Release: Friday January 17
No School: Monday January 20th- MLK Day
Early release and Parties for Valentines Day: Friday, February 14th.
No School Monday February 17th- President's Day
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