This will be the last post of 2012, so I want to wish you all a very Happy Holidays.  I hope that you and your family share some great memories over the holiday break.  Thank you for all of the support that you have given your child in first grade.  It has been a fantastic school year so far and we wouldn't be nearly as successful in the classroom without all of your help.

This Friday, December 21st, is going to be Pajama Day in 1-Bu.  Please check the email I sent last Friday for more specific information. 

Here's what we were working on in the classroom last week:

Reading : We continued talking about fluency last week, and the students are really starting to get a hang of it.  The three main things that we're focusing on in regards to the students' fluency are reading smoothly, giving characters different voices, and changing your voice for different ending punctuation marks (whether it be a period, exclamation mark, or question mark).  Please reinforce this when reading with your child at home.

This week, we'll be spending some time discussing retelling.  Retelling is a great way to monitor a child's basic comprehension of a text.  We'll be talking about including the characters, setting, problem, solution, and main events of the story in  a retell.  When your child is done reading a story, have him/her retell it to you. 

Writing : Last week we finished up talking about ways to add details to your writing.  We discussed adding in characters' moods and sound words.  This week, the students will be getting a writing piece reading for publishing.  Ask your child which writing piece he/she has decided to publish.

Math : We spent time reviewing coins and telling time to the half hour last week.  At this point, your child should be able to reliably count combinations of dimes, nickels, and pennies.  He/she should also be able to tell time to the hour and half hour.

This week, we're going to start a new unit on measurement.  The students always enjoy this unit!

Science : The students were really interested in the water cycle from our weather unit, so we decided to do some investigating with evaporation last week.  We left out some water on a plate to monitor its evaporation.  The students noticed that there were some mineral deposits left behind on the plate once all the water had evaporated.  Then, we decided to see what would happen if we left out salt water to evaporate, since a lot of the water that evaporates in our global water cycle comes from oceans..  The students wanted to know if the salt would evaporate since it had dissolved in water.  They were surprised to see how much salt was left on the plate once the water had evaporated, and they realized that must be why rain doesn't taste salty.  On Friday, we left out some sugar water to see what would happen once it evaporated.  Here are some pictures of the plain water and salt water plates once the water had evaporated:

Odds and Ends : Please keep in mind that this Friday, December 21st is a 12:45pm dismissal day.  We will be having a party involving some food at the end of the day, but please still have you child bring a regular snack to school.

Happy Holidays!

We had a great week last week!  The students have all been working very hard.  Reading homework seemed to go off without a hitch.  Thank you for your help with this at home.  Even though your child will be coming home with a book every single day he/she has school, it is not mandatory to read the book and fill out the log on the weekend.  (However, it's a great habit for the students to be reading everyday, so it would be great if your child did read over the weekends.)  If your child happens forgets his/her book at school one day, please have him/her read a book from home and fill out the log accordingly.

Here's what we were working on in the classroom last week:

Reading : Last week, we started learning about fluency.  In the classroom, we say that reading books fluently means reading with a 'storytelling voice.'  We went over two important aspects of fluency - smooth reading and giving the characters different voices.  Even if you get stuck on a tricky word, once you figure out the tricky word, you should go back to the beginning of the sentence and re-read the whole sentence in order to make your reading smooth.

Author Study :  We've just about finished up an author study on Frank Asch.  The students enjoyed reading all of his bear stories, as they think the bear is very silly.

Writing : We're currently working on various ways to add details into our writing.  Last week, we spoke about adding the weather, number words, size words, and shape words into our writing.  We also made a point of talking about how each of these details may not necessarily be important in every single writing piece.  For example, we would only describe the weather if it were an important aspect in that particular story.

Math : We had another big week in math last week.  We learned about how to figure out the rule in a frames and arrows problem, how to skip count on a calculator, and how to count dimes.  Please continue to practice counting combinations of dimes, nickels, and pennies at home!

Handwriting : At this point, we have gone over most of the letters in the alphabet and I expect the students to be forming their letters correctly.  If you notice your child forming a letter incorrectly when he/she is doing homework, please draw attention to it and have him/her correct it.

Phonics : This week we will be focusing on our fourth short vowel sound, the short e.  While I don't expect the students to be perfect every time, at this point they should be able to differentiate between the regular short vowel sounds for a, i, and u.  We do hand movements in school to practice these sounds.  Ask your child what they are for short a, e, i, and u.  (A sheet explaining these hand motions will be going in your child's binder once we review the short o next week.)

Science : Last week we continued our short science unit on the weather.  We'll be finishing it up at the beginning of this week by talking about the water cycle.  Then, we'll be diving into our next science unit - objects in the sky.  We got a preview of this unit when we visited the Discovery Lab on Friday.  We used globes and flashlights to model how day and night occur.

Odds and Ends : Please keep in mind that next Friday, December 21st is a 12:45pm dismissal day.

Here are some pictures

It was great talking with so many of you at your child's parent/teacher conference last week.  Thank you so much for meeting with me to discuss your child's progress.  Please remember that you can contact me at any point in the year if you would ever like to discuss anything about your child's progress or if you have any questions.

Here's what we were working on in the classroom last week:

Reading : We spent the whole week talking about 'just right' books.  Just right books are books that are not too easy and not too hard, but they're just right.  'Just right' can be applied towards a child's ability to decode a text or a child's ability to comprehend a text.  While I would never want to squelch a child's curiously or interest in a book that is too easy of too hard for them, the goal is for children to be reading just right books for the majority of the time they spend reading.  This will lead to the greatest development in your child as a reader.

On that note, reading homework starts next week.  A detailed letter will go home explaining exactly what your child must do.  Your child will be selecting his/her own book from his/her book bin at school to take home to read each night.  These books should be 'just right' books.  Please keep in mind that a just right book may be a book that your child can decode quite easily, but may be working on his/her comprehension with instead.

Last week the students added a sheet, describing all the animal decoding strategies we learned about, to the reading section of their binders.  Check it out and remind your child to use those strategies when he/she gets stuck on a tricky word.

Writing : We continued learning about how to add details to our writing pieces last week.  The students are suddenly realizing how much more information they can give the reader so that their stories make more sense.  So far, we've talked about including names, describing the setting, and using color words.

Math : Last week was a big week in math - we learned about how to tell time to the hour and all about frames and arrows problems!  If you ever happen to notice an analog clock that is near "o'clock" or "half-past," ask your child what time it is.

Phonics : We added to our knowledge about short vowels last week by studying the short u.  (We've already learned about the short a and the short i.)  We also had some fun with word ladders.  You should have come across a few of those in the returned work that came home on Friday.  The students love manipulating the letters in words to make new words.

Odds and Ends : We celebrated our November birthdays on Friday by having a dance party.  The students had a lot of fun and I learned that my iPhone doesn't take great pictures of children in fast motion.  Sorry!  I've included some of the blurry pictures below.