It's hard to believe that it's only the second week of a new school for these kids! They have adjusted so nicely, and we were able to start digging in to the curriculum topics this week. I'm very impressed with this great group! Here's a quick look at what we covered in class this week.
- On Monday, we reviewed the Reading Super Powers that the kids learned about in kindergarten. Ask them to show you or explain "pointer power", "picture power", or "sound power". These are all strategies to help them become more independent readers. They all keep these invisible powers in their pocket in case they are stuck on a word as they read; it gives them a strategy to use instead of just giving up or asking someone else.
- I rolled out the Reading Workshop program throughout the rest of the week. After I teach a short lesson, the students have an opportunity every day to do some independent reading and practice what they learned. They also have some time to read with a partner and chat about the books. They really put a lot of effort into this part of the day - and they seem to love the books that we have in the classroom! This week, we talked about "taking a sneak peek" at a book before we start to read. Tomorrow, the kids will learn how to check the predictions that they make about the book.
- In our phonics program (Fundations), the kids learned that there are 5 vowels and that they are the hardest working letters in the alphabet because every word has a vowel. We are also reviewing the letter sounds, as they are a building block of reading skills. Each day, we focus on a couple of letters. The kids also practice handwriting and how to form those letters. So far, we've covered t, b, f, m, and n. Tomorrow we will begin reviewing the vowels with Short A. We also watched a fun video called Vowel Bat that reviews the vowel sounds.
- In math, the students are learning about how numbers relate to one another. You may be familiar with "number bonds" from kindergarten. (If not, ask your first grader to draw one for you.) The Eureka Math program contains lots of fun games and hands-on activities to teach math concepts. This week, the kids used egg cartons (shortened to have only 10 spots) to practice "making 10". They put counting cubes in each of the cups of the egg carton. They also played a game called Happy Counting.
- We logged into the ST Math Program. As you may already know, we have Chrome Books for every first grade student. It's fantastic! All year, we will be using the ST Math program for the kids to master the math concepts. It is directly aligned with the Eureka Math program so that they kids have fun games to play that reinforce what they learn in other areas of math. I'll talk more about this great program at Open House.
- We are easing into the Writing Workshop curriculum as well. They will be writing personal narrative stories (or Small Moment) stories in the coming weeks. Keep an eye out in their folders for a packet about writing topics. If you could help your first grader fill it out and send it back to school sometime next week, that would be really helpful as they begin to write in class.
- I started to read a classic chapter book to the kids: Ramona, The Pest by Beverley Cleary. If you've never read it, Ramona is a well-intention, but impulsive, kindergartener who doesn't always make the right choice. The kids love her! :)
The first grade is planning to go on a field trip on Wednesday, October 2nd, to Spring Hill Farm in Haverhill! It's always lots of fun! Please check your child's folder tonight for the permission slip.
Poetry Notebooks
Starting tomorrow, the students will bring home a poetry notebook every Friday. Over the weekend, they should read the newest poem to you and then you can sign the paper in the front cover of the book. We read these poems as a group every morning during our Morning Meeting. Poetry is a fantastic way to increase reading fluency. Plus, the kids will have a great book of poems to keep at the end of the year. Send the book back to school on the following Monday. Thanks!
Upcoming Dates
- Friday, 9/13: First library class
- Wednesday, 9/18: Library class
- Wednesday, 9/25: Early release at 1:45
- Thursday, 10/3: Open House - 6:30-7:30pm
- Wednesday, 10/2: Spring Hill Farm field trip
- Wednesday, 10/9: Picture day (more info will be sent out later) and 1:45 early release
Thanks so much!
Katie Barnett
