Our Cultural Feast is Thursday at 10:00. Please bring your dish in by 8:00 that morning. Label it if you would like it returned. Please feel free to join us for the feast. We'd love to have you!
HW Project - Cultural Survey & Where We Came From - due Wednesday.
In Class...
We have been doing practice tests for the CRCT which the students in late April. The students are doing very well in reading. We are focusing on learning about antonyms & synonyms, pronouns, nouns & verbs, finding the subject in sentences.
In Math we will begin our unit on double digit addition and subtraction without regrouping. Please go over addition and subtraction facts with your child. These should be memorized.
In Science we have learned about animals’ appearance, growth, and movement. We will be comparing animals based on these characteristics.
In writing we have completed our All-About books. We will begin writing informational pieces comparing and describing animals.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
Wanted
Dates to Remember...
April 6-10 – No school: Spring Break
April 21, 22, 23 – CRCT Testing
May 13- K & 1st Field Day
May 15, 10:00 – Author’s Tea - Please try to make plans to attend this special event. We will make a book for each family containing our stories. The “authors” will read their stories to us. Afterwards, we will have an “author’s signing” of the books and refreshments. This should be a very special day for our students.
May 22 – Last day of school
Thank you to...
All of you for my wonderful Teacher’s Appreciation gifts this week! Jayla’s mom for making our Talking Dictionary, Andrew O.’s mom for sending in baby wipes, and Mikaela’s mom with help during math.
In Class...
We have been doing CRCT review tests in class. Please look for these and discuss them with your child.
We will discuss whether texts that we read are fiction or non-fiction. We are discussing the characteristics of each and will identify every text we read as either fiction or non-fiction.
In Math we will begin our unit on double digit addition and subtraction without regrouping. Please go over addition and subtraction facts with your child. These should be memorized.
In Science we learned that animals need food, water, oxygen, and shelter. We will begin describing and comparing them.
In writing we began our All-About books. The students are enjoying learning about their animal and writing about it.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
Wanted
Dates to Remember...
April 6-10 – Spring Break
April 21, 22, 23 – CRCT
May 13- K & 1st Field Day
May 15, 10:00 – Author’s Tea - Please try to make plans to attend this special event. We will make a book for each family containing our stories. The “authors” will read their stories to us. Afterwards, we will have an “author’s signing” of the books and refreshments. This should be a very special day for our students.
May 22 – Last day of school :)
Thank you to...
Jayla’s mom for making the sentences for our poem, Kris’ mom for our AR information, Daniella & Andrew R.’s moms for sending in extra snacks, and Mikaela’s mom with help during math.
In Class...
We have completed our Phonics series. During our phonics time we will be practicing and reviewing for the Language Arts section of the CRCT. Look for these packets to come home in the next week or so. Please go over with your child anything that they missed.
We have been working on finding the main idea of text that we are reading. Please go over this at home.
In Math we will begin our unit on measurement, comparing and measuring length, weight, and capacity with non-standard units of measure.
In Science we will begin our unit on animals. We will learn what they need to survive. We are also still enjoying watching our pea seeds grow. So far some of our plants have stems, roots and tiny leaves. Ask your child what the job of each of the plant parts (roots, stem, leaves, flower) is.
In writing we wrote an informational piece about the most important part of plants. As we learn about animals we will write about them – what they need, their appearance.
Our tadpoles are very busy. We are enjoying watching them grow. I hear ours are the fattest ones in the first grade. J
Sight Words
Friday a blue quarter sheet went home attached to a golden sheet or by itself. Please help your child practice these words at home.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
***Secret Question: What do we call the word that takes the place of a noun?***
Wanted
Personals…
· Don’t forget to turn in those old cell phones, used ink cartridges, batteries, etc. Our class could win!
Dates to Remember...
March 19 - 3rd 9 weeks report cards go home. Please sign the signature card and return in the envelope. Keep the report.
April 6-10 – Spring Break
April 21, 22, 23 – CRCT
May 13- K & 1st Field Day
May 15, 10:00 – Author’s Tea - Please try to make plans to attend this special event. We will make a book for each family containing our stories. The “authors” will read their stories to us. Afterwards, we will have an “author’s signing” of the books and refreshments. This should be a very special day for our students.
May 22 – Last day of school
Thank you to...
Jayla’s mom for pulling and stapling science packets, Zach’s mom for making vocabulary flip books, and Andrew R.’s mom for sending in extra snacks.
In Class...
In Phonics we are getting ready to complete our phonics program for the year. This will be the last week of our official phonics program. However, we will still be reviewing the skills and practicing with our phonics lists every week. This week, as our phonics lessons are now very short we will be looking at parts of speech (nouns, verbs, pronouns) in our books.
In Math we have learned how to tell time to the hour and half-hour. We will be working on organizing data in tally tables, and graphs (bar & picture) and using those to analyze data
In Science we have learned the parts of plants. This week we will learn what plants need to survive and we will plant our own so we can watch them grow.
Our frog embryos are now tadpoles. We have enjoyed watching them grow. They are now swimming and have gotten much bigger since they came out of their eggs.
Sight Words
Congratulations to Mikaela, Graham, Kristopher, Andrew O., Jake, Mardochee, and Daniella for knowing all 200 Sight Words! They are now members of the 200 Word Club. This week please look for a note home regarding the number of sight words your child knows. I will also send a list of the words home with the words they need to know highlighted. Please help them practice these words at home. ***Suggestion: After you practice have them find 2-3 in text that they have read.***
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
Wanted
Personals…
· Don’t forget to turn in those old cell phones, used ink cartridges, batteries, etc. Our class could win!
Dates to Remember...
Thursday, March 12 – Class Pictures
April 6-10 – Spring Break
Thank you to...
Kristopher’s mom for AR, Mikaela's mom for helping with a math group.
In Class...
In Phonics we have been reviewing all of the sounds and spelling previously learned and practicing blending words with those sounds. We learned the new spellings for kn (as in knot) and gn (as in gnat).
In Math we started our unit on fractions: halves, fourths, and wholes. We will begin our unit on time this week.
We will wrap up our unit on George Washington Carver.
In Science we will begin our unit on the parts of a plant.
We got something very exciting on Friday. Our frog embryos arrived! We put them in the tank in the afternoon before we went home. This morning they had come out of their yolk sacs but are still attached and still getting their food from them. Once they start swimming, we will begin feeding them and discussing the basic needs of animals.
***Phonics words for the week are always under the page on the right marked "Phonics Focus".***
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE (Early Release)
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
PTA Performance
This Thursday, March 5th, the 1st grade will be performing at this meeting. Please wear brown class t-shirt or other dark tee and jeans. Bring your child to the classroom by 6:15. Keep your child's coat. They will not be returning to the classroom after the performance.
Personals…
· Don’t forget to turn in those old cell phones, used ink cartridges, batteries, etc. Our class could win!
Dates to Remember...
***Tuesday, March 3 – Early Release – Students are dismissed two hours early
***March 5 – First Grade PTA
March 12 – Class Pictures
April 6-10 – Spring Break
Thank you to...
Kristopher’s mom for AR, Andrew R.’s mom for help with AR tests, Zach’s mom for Scholastic book order, and Jayla’s mom for our poem.
In Class...
In Phonics we have been reviewing all of the sounds and spelling previously learned and practicing blending words with those sounds. We learned the new spellings of oo (as in hoot and in brook).
In Math we continued our unit on money. We have been counting combinations of 1, 5, 10, & 20 dollar bills. We will be learning about fractions next week.
We also started our Social Studies unit on George Washington Carver. We will continue learning about him next week and the contributions that he made to our country.
In writing, we will be writing a how-to book.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: Art
Tuesday: PE
Wednesday: Music
Thursday: Tech
Friday: PE *
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
Personals…
· Don’t forget to turn in those old cell phones, used ink cartridges, batteries, etc. Our class could win!
Dates to Remember...
February 27 – PTSA Cosmic Bowling (6:15 – 8:30 PM)
Tuesday, March 3 – Early Release – Students are dismissed two hours early
March 5 – First Grade PTA – We will be singing (orange half-sheet came home today)
March 12 – Class Pictures
April 6-10 – Spring Break
Thank you to...
Graham’s dad for being our Mystery Reader – we loved Hand the Cow Dog; Daniella’s mom for help with our fractions games and copies, Kristopher’s mom for AR, Zach’s mom for Scholastic book order, Carly’s parents for the Wee Deliver mailbox.
In Class...
The children loved having their teddy bears join them in class all week. They wrote informational pieces about their bears.
In Phonics we have been reviewing all of the sounds and spelling previously learned and practicing blending words with those sounds. We learned the new spellings of ou (as in out). We will be learning about the sound of 'aw' as in saw. They are also reviewing comparatives, i.e. big, bigger, biggest. They will review words with the 'au' spelling pattern also.
In Math we began our unit on money. If you want to help your child at home it might be helpful to have them count quarters, dimes, and nickels by 5's. We have tapped the quarter 5 times counting by 5's, then count dimes by tapping them twice, and of course once for the nickel. Students know how to count by 5's and it can be helpful for them to count combinations of coins this way. If yours doesn’t, please help them practice. It will also be helpful for students to memorize 1 quarter equals 25 cents, 2 quarters equals 50 cents, 3 quarters equals 75 cents and 4 quarters equal $1.00.
We will be learning about Dental Hygiene. We are lucky to have a Dental Hygienist coming in to talk to us on Tuesday.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: P.E.*
Tuesday: Music
Wednesday: Tech
Thursday: PE *
Friday: Art
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
Personals…
· This week on Wednesday we will have our Friends and Family lunch. Our lunch time will be 11:46 to 12:26.
· This week the First Grade team will be sending a letter of interest for a field trip to the Chattahoochee Nature Center
Six Flags Reading
Please help your child keep up with their reading. They are already reading, so why not write it down and get a FREE ticket to Six Flags. Students can read their AR books and count those, but their mini-books that are sent home for homework do NOT count. The forms are due back on Tuesday, Feb. 17.
Valentine Card Exchange
On Friday, February 13th we will have a Valentine card exchange during snack time. Each student will need to bring in a valentine for each classmate. I will send home a notice with a class list, so that you have the names of each student.
Dates to Remember...
February 11 – Friends & Family Day
February 16 – No School: President’s Day/Teacher Work Day
Thank you to...
Jayla’s mom, Kristopher’s mom, and Zach’s mom.
In Class...
It was great to meet with all of you this week and discuss the children’s progress. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules.
We completed our study of light and shadows. Ask your child what is light, what are light sources, and what is a shadow.
In Phonics we have been reviewing all of the sounds and spelling previously learned and practicing blending words with those sounds. We learned the new spellings of ow (as in cow) and oa (as in float).
In Math we continued addition and subtraction. Please help your child practice their addition & subtraction facts each night.
We had breakfast with Mrs. Manharth on Friday because we reached our 50% goal in AR. The students are really doing well.
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: P.E.*
Tuesday: Music
Wednesday: Tech
Thursday: PE *
Friday: Art
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
We will begin our unit on Theodore Roosevelt. We will learn about the contributions of our 26th president and what character traits he displayed. ***Don’t forget to send a teddy bear in with your child. We’ll be using our teddies to do lots of neat activities this week.
We will begin our unit on Money in math. Please be sure to send in your child’s money baggie. *** I have updated the blog with lots of new math games to practice skills for this quarter. Be sure to check out the “Learning Links” under Pages on the right side of the screen. Jot a note in your child’s agenda and they’ll earn a Buggy Buck.***
In writing, we will be using a “Hamburger” Organizer to help us organize our piece with a “top bun” topic, juicy details, and a “bottom bun” wrap-up sentence which we will use for our informational writing pieces.
Personals…
If you received a Parent Survey Form in the big envelope, please fill it out and send it back as soon as possible. Thank you!
Six Flags Reading
Please help your child keep up with their reading. They are already reading, so why not write it down and get a FREE ticket to Six Flags. Students can read their AR books and count those, but their mini-books that are sent home for homework do NOT count.
Valentine Card Exchange
On Friday, February 13th we will have a Valentine card exchange during snack time. Each student will need to bring in a valentine for each classmate. I will send home a notice with a class list, so that you have the names of each student.
Dates to Remember... February 4 – Early Release – Students dismissed two hours early February 16 – No School: President’s Day/Teacher Work Day
Thank you to...
all of you who sent in fruit for the staff. Thanks! Jayla’s mom for collating, cutting, & laminating; Kristopher’s mom for gathering our AR information; Zach’s mom for making our vocabulary flipbooks; Beth’s mom for gathering the teddy bear books and for our math story problems.
In Class...
In Science we have begun our study of light and shadow. We asked the question: “What makes a shadow?” Be sure to look for our writing on shadows in the hall when you come for your conference. We went on a light source “hunt” around the school and determined what is and isn’t a light source. We made shadows using various light sources in our classroom.
In Phonics we have been reviewing all of the sounds and spelling previously learned and practicing blending words with those sounds. We learned the new spellings for long o (_oe as in toe, _ow as in row).
In Math we have been learning different strategies to use to help us subtract. We have learned to use the number line to subtract, and to use “related facts” to help us. (9+7=16, so 16-7=9). We are adding and subtracting up to and from 18 now.
We watched the Inauguration of Barack Obama. The students suggested we stand up during the oaths. J They were very interested in all of the “Presidential facts” that were on the screen.
Special Events...
January 26-30 – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students dismissed two hours early)
February 4 – Early Release – Students dismissed two hours early
February 16 – No School: President’s Day/Teacher Work Day
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: P.E.
Tuesday: Music
Wednesday: Tech
Thursday: PE *
Friday: Art
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
We will complete our unit on light & shadows and begin studying the contributions of Teddy Roosevelt. Look for a teddy bear letter to come home.
In writing, we will be using a “Hamburger” Organizer to help us organize our piece with a “top bun” topic, juicy details, and a “bottom bun” wrap-up sentence which we will use for our informational writing pieces.
Thank you to...
Jayla’s mom for copying, cutting, & laminating; Kristopher’s mom for gathering our AR information, Andrew R.’s mom for helping students take AR tests.
In Class...
In Social Studies we concluded our unit on Harriet Tubman. We also read about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and his amazing legacy.
In Phonics we have been reviewing sounds and spelling previously learned, as well as learning the new spellings for long i (_y as in fly).
In Math we have been learning different strategies to use to help us subtract. We have learned to use the number line to subtract, and to use “related facts” to help us. (9+7=16, so 16-7=9). We are adding and subtracting up to and from 18 now.
Thank you for helping your child with their Inauguration homework. We made a bar graph of the president’s ages at the time of their Inaugurations.
Special Events...
January 26-30 – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students dismissed two hours early)
February 4 – Early Release – Students dismissed two hours early
February 16 – No School: President’s Day/Teacher Work Day
This Week...
Specials:
Monday: NO SCHOOL
Tuesday: Music
Wednesday: Tech
Thursday: PE *
Friday: Art
*Remember to wear tennis shoes on PE days.
We will begin our Science unit on Light & Shadows.
In writing, we will be using a “Hamburger” Organizer to help us organize our piece with a “top bun” topic, juicy details, and a “bottom bun” wrap-up sentence which we will use for our informational writing pieces.
We will watch the “swearing in” of President-Elect Barack Obama, Tuesday morning. We are witnesses to a wonderful moment in American History.
Thank you to...
all of our parents for returning the conference forms; Zach’s mom for making copies; Jayla’s mom for copying, cutting, & laminating; Kristopher’s mom for gathering our AR information, Andrew R.’s mom for helping students take AR tests.
