Newsletter November 13 - November 17

This is our last full-week until our short week before Thanksgiving.  Today we took our second spelling test.  A new list of words will come home tomorrow.  That test will be on Tuesday, November 21 before our Thanksgiving holiday.

Here are this week's happenings and announcements and whatever else I need to say:

• Next week we only have two days of school.  I will still be teaching curriculum those two days, we'll have a spelling test, have reading groups etc., but on the afternoon of Tuesday, November 21 we'll do some Thanksgiving activities.  One of the things we will do is make "turkey cookies" out of Oreos, and create a bead bracelet as we learn about the "first Thanksgiving".  I would love some help with donations for these activities.  I will contact you through e-mail if you signed up to help with Thanksgiving, but could use some more help with donations.  If you can help please send me an e-mail.  I will send you back an assignment.  It will be something like; a box of whoppers, or a container of chocolate frosting.  THANK YOU!
• Please don't pull back on nightly reading with the holidays coming up.  I KNOW how stressful the holiday season can be and I don't expect perfection, but please do your best and keep this healthy habit of nightly reading for 10 minutes with your child.  I am so impressed at the progress I am seeing with my kids in reading--it shows as my students are "moving up levels" with their take-home books!  Keep it up!! It helps!
• Our math test for Chapter 3 will be tomorrow (Tuesday, November 14).  We will then move into our Subtraction strategies unit on Wednesday.
• We have finished our portion on Mesopotamia and just started learning about the Ancient Egyptians.  Today we learned the importance of the Nile river to the Egyptians and how it helped them in farming especially when the spring brought flooding into the area (sometimes flooding can be helpful). 
• In reading we are still learning about vowel teams or combinations.  We have learned the two sounds that the 'oo' spelling makes and we've learned about the sound that the 'ou' spelling makes. We will also learn about 'oi' and 'aw' in this unit.  As well as learning about verbs and reading from our Fables book (these books or readers emphasize through words and stories the things we have been learning about).  Today we read the fable "The Dog and the Mule".  The kids generated the lesson or moral of the story--"to be yourself". Ask your child about that fable and what they learned :)

Don't forget to help your child to remember to return their library books by Wednesday and to practice their sight words.  Please return the blue notes so that Mrs. Harris can pass your child off.

Happy Reading!!

We loved watching A'merrie on our Field Trip to the Paiute Tribal Center.

Blue Eagle awards and sports watches.

White eagle awards

Orange eagle award

Red Eagle awards

Newsletter November 6 - 10

It feels like Halloween was ages ago as we have started to dive into Thanksgiving learning.  Today we used a Scholastic Weekly Reader to learn about a "day in a Pilgrims life" specifically Pilgrim children.  We will use that knowledge in a writing and art activity on Wednesday.

Here are this week's happenings (other than our Pilgrim project):

• Tomorrow we are going to the Paiute Tribal Center for their Native American Month program.  We will be walking there and will leave East Elementary at 1:15 and return at approximately 3:00.  I would really like a helper to walk over there with me and my students.  If you could come with us tomorrow please let me know through e-mail.  
• This week is Drug and Bully Prevention week.  Today we signed a pledge, placed cups in the fence for our "No Drug Zone" sign, and were given red wrist bands to remind us to be drug and alcohol free.  If you child keeps that red wristband on all week they will be given a small prize from the PTA on Friday. Tomorrow we are going to the PTA sponsored presentations on drug and bully prevention from 9:00-9:20.  I sent home a flier last week about the activities and "crazy hair day" associated with the week last week so I won't go into detail about those specific activities.  If you have any questions though please contact me.
• This Thursday in our classroom at 3:00 we will have our PTA reading awards presentations.  Most of my students will be receiving at least the first award as I mentioned at the beginning of the year, I will supplement reading at home with 15 minutes of reading at school.  That way by reading the expected 10 minutes a night plus 15 minutes in class my students can achieve the highest award or "Gold Eagle".  This won't occur though without the reading at home minutes combined with our reading in class.  Please don't get lax on reading each night.  I know this time of year gets busy with the holidays, but continue with the healthy habit of reading each night with your child.  Those students who read every night really progress in reading and it's showing already. 
• I mentioned earlier that we are diving in to Thanksgiving learning. We are also finishing up on our math addition strategies unit.  We are still learning about adding three numbers together.  That will take a few more lessons solidify.  I will test on that chapter early next week.  In reading, we took our first spelling test today.  Watch for results tomorrow or the day after.   A new list of words will come home tomorrow and that test will be next Monday, November 13.  
• Don't forget library on Wednesday and Sight word Soldiers!

Happy Reading! 
 

Newsletter October 30 - November 3

We had a fun time putting together our "apple head" witches today.  Tomorrow will be a full day with Halloween.  We will still have regular reading groups in the morning along with PE and Computers.  We will do some Halloween math in the afternoon and attend the Halloween sing at 2:15 and participate in the costume parade starting at 2:45.  Remember that you are welcome to attend the costume parade, but for space reasons there is not enough room in the Halloween sing for parents to attend.  I have explained several times the requirements for costumes tomorrow.  If you child's costume has a hat, or partial helmet type mask, glasses or gloves they can wear those for the parade but not during school.  Full masks, gigantic costumes and blood and gore are not acceptable at any time during the day or the parade.

Here are this week's happenings and notes and announcements:

• We are starting the month of November this week--October reading calendars will be due on Wednesday, November 1.  I will send November reading calendars home that day also.
• Today I sent home a spelling list.  We have just started our Unit 3 in our CKLA reading program.  We will now have spelling tests every 5 lessons.  That means that students will come home with a list and five days later I will test them in class on that list of words.  The words will come from the spelling patterns that we are learning.  The spelling test for the first list will be on Monday, November 6.  We won't have a traditional "Friday" spelling test, but on each spelling list I will have my students write the date of the test at the top of the list.  Some students may need a bit more practice than we have time for at school.  If you study these words with your child, you can count those minutes as part of their 10 minutes of reading.  I would rather see 10 minutes of reading though nightly, than 10 minutes of studying spelling words.  Helping them practice these words at home though might help with some initial frustration on the spelling test.  
• Next week on Tuesday, November 7 I want to take my class over to the Paiute Tribal Center for their program for Native American Month.  It will be a walking field trip.  We will leave the school at 1:15 and return by 3:00.  I need to get a confirmation from the tribal office, but plan on that day for a field trip.  I would be happy to have someone walk over with us to the tribal building.  If you think you could do this please let me know through e-mail.  
• This week in addition to starting our new reading unit where we will dive into vowel combinations such as /oo/ as in soon and narrative writing we will also start a new "Listening and Learning unit" about Early World Civilizations specifically Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt.  I love teaching these next two units both about early civilizations.  I love too that this program incorporates these subjects into first grade curriculum.  It's amazing what first graders can learn and retain if given the chance.  
• In math, we have learned how to add 10 to a number (10 + 4 = 14) and today we used that knowledge to "make a ten" to add (ex. 9  + 5 = 14, students learn to take 1 from 5 to "make a ten" then they will compute 10 + 4 = 14 so 9 + 5 = 14) Later this week we will learn how to add three numbers together and then problem solve (story problems) using the addition strategies we have learned.  The test for this chapter will be next week.  I will let you know a specific date as the concepts have been taught and reviewed. 
• Today was our first quarter first grade awards.  Congrats to those receiving attendance awards and to our Catch the Vision recipients, Elizabeth and Wes.  Our next PTA reading awards will be November 16 in our classroom.  I will send home information about that (a note in your child's folder) if they will be receiving one of those awards).   

Happy Reading and Happy Halloween!! Don't forget Sight word soldiers this Wednesday.  Send those signed lists (blue notes) back before Wednesday.

Catch the Vision awards

Halloween Apple head witches

Perfect attendance awards

Excellent attendance awards

Jeremiah--most improved award

Newsletter October 24 - October 27

I hope that you all enjoyed our three-day weekend.  I traveled to Colorado for a family event and the vibrant yellow leaves were beautiful along the way.  We had a great time at the pumpkin patch last week.  Thanks for sending in your 1.00 donation.  Today we finished up our Pumpkin Life cycle flip book in conjunction with that field trip.  Ask your child to read their book to you. Fall in first grade is a very magical time! 

Here are this week's happenings:

• Next week on Halloween students can wear their Halloween costumes all day.  They can't be
  "bloody or gory" and no masks.  We will have a school-wide Halloween sing at 2:15 and a traditional Halloween costume parade from 2:45 - 3:15.  The Halloween sing will be in the gym and with all of the students in there is too crowded for parent visitors, but you are welcome to come and watch the parade.  Tables will be set up in the cafeteria for you to sit around as we circle through the school and cafeteria.  Those two activities will mostly be our Halloween party, but I will contact you if you signed up to help for Halloween and ask for a healthy snack before we head down to the sing.  We will finish our apple head witches the day before on October 30.  They are looking old and shriveled and are ready to "get dressed".  
• On October 30 at 3:00 in the cafeteria we will have our First grade awards.  These awards are attendance and behavior awards (perfect, excellent, Catch the Vision and Most improved).  I will contact you through e-mail if you child will be receiving an award.  You are welcome to come to this ceremony. Watch for an e-mail in the next couple of days.
• In math we are continuing with addition strategies.  We are working on doubles plus 1 and will continue with doubles minus 1 tomorrow.  That strategy is helpful for addition problems like 5 + 6 were the numbers are one apart.  Students use a known fact of 5 + 5 = 10 and then "add one more".  If they know 5 + 5 = 10 then one more than 10 is 11 so 5 + 6 = 11.  This is a tricky concept and we'll work on it.  We are have also learned the counting on strategy as well.  In the next few weeks, I will start timed addition and subtraction quizzes to help students with the facts through 20.  We want them to be somewhat automatic :)
• In reading we are finishing up our unit and I will assess their knowledge of the "silent e" spelling at the end of this week.  We have enjoyed reading about Gran and her adventures with Jen and Josh.  We will start a new unit next week.  Spelling words and spelling tests with start shortly.  Also in reading we are now reading versions of Little Red Riding Hood.  Today we read a version from China called Hu Gu Po.  Ask your child to retell this story to you :)  We will read another version from Botswana Tselane on Thursday and then do some group culminating activities around these versions.  Especially we will note the differences and similarities in the stories and point out the setting, characters, conflict and plot.  

I'm going to try and post a picture from the pumpkin patch at the end of my newsletter so scroll down.  Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns and.......
Happy Reading!

Robinson Family Pumpkin Patch October 2017

Newsletter October 16 - October 20

Today was the start of our second quarter of school.  It amazes me how fast each school year flies by.  I will print out first quarter Power School grades and send that home by this Wednesday.  At the end of each quarter I do drawing for a free book from the take-home book "tickets" (blue notes).  Each quarter five or six students will come home with a free book obviously the more "tickets" they have in the drawing the better chance they will have have, but more importantly imagine what better readers they will be with each book read!

Here are this week's happenings:

• This Wednesday we are going on our Field Trip to the Robinson Family Pumpkin Patch.  We will leave here by bus at approximately 9:30 a.m. and return by 11:00 for our library time.  I sent a note home about this last week.  Please help by sending in a $1.00 donation, as each student will be able to pick out one pumpkin to bring home. If any of you would like to come with us on this field trip please send me an e-mail.  An extra set of "adult" hands is always helpful.  
• Friday October 20, the Walk-a-thon money is due.  If you turn in money after that date it will still go towards a "good cause" but your child will not be eligible for the prizes after Friday.  Friday is also the day that the Box Tops are due for the root beer float party.  The class with the most box tops turned in will receive the Root Beer floats.
• This week our learning will center around addition strategies in math.  Today we again learned about "counting on".  Students learned that if they add 1, 2, 3 to a number they can "count on".  For example 3 + 8 = 11;  Students start on the "greater" number and then "count on".  Students say "8 then 9, 10, 11.  I taught them to "pound" the greater number in their fist then "count on from there.  I noticed some of you took advantage of the xtra math computer program that I sent home.  I sent home the information last week.  This is a great way to help with those automatic addition and subtraction facts which are a basis for higher level math concepts.  Look for that in your child's folder.  If you want another letter let me know and I can print your child off another one.
• In reading we just learned the /ue/ sound and spelling.  We now have learned all of the "magic e" spellings for long vowels (a_e, i _e, o _e and u _e).  Students are exposed to those spellings in the book Gran that we read from everyday. 
• Today we started reading versions of Tom Thumb.  We finished three versions of Cinderella last week.  Ask your child about the version "Billy Beg" or the "Girl with the red slipper"   I wasn't familiar with those versions until we started this reading program 2 years ago.  Tomorrow we will read a version of  Tom Thumb,  "Thumbelina".   
• Don't forget that next Monday, October 23 we are off for our Fall Holiday.  School resumes the following day, Tuesday October 24.
• In years past, students have been able to dress up for Halloween.  I am assuming this tradition will continue this year, but I haven't heard anything definitive about that or when the costume parade will be.  I will investigate and let you know more details next week in this newsletter.  

Happy Reading!!

Newsletter October 9 - October 13

Thanks for making the effort to come and see me last week during SEP conferences.  I hope that you found it valuable. If you ever have questions or concerns I am willing to meet anytime or to communicate through e-mail or a phone call.  I have a sweet little class this year and I feel lucky to be their teacher.  We gained another new student today--Phoenix Barnes from Mrs. Carter's class has joined our bunch.  He was warmly received.

Here are this week's happenings:

• This week we have a few PTA sponsored activities--on Thursday, October 12 at 3:00, in my classroom, those that have been earned Eagle awards (reading awards) will be presented.  If you child is receiving an award I gave you the invitation during SEP conferences.
• Friday October 13 is the Walk-a-Thon.  I sent home information about how you can donate for that event last week.  Donations are not necessary all will and can participate.  The Walk-a-thon will be in the afternoon from 2:00-3:00.  
• The October Scholastic book order will be due this Friday.  The easiest way to order is to use the online code, but you can always send back the fliers marked with your selections and check made out to Scholastic.
• Today we started our new math unit.  We are again back to Addition strategies, but with sums through 20 now.  Today we again reviewed the commutative property of addition (8 + 7 = 15 so 7 + 8 = 15).  We learned to use our number line to help us add two numbers together.  Students start on the "bigger" number and then "hop forward" the remaining number.  For example 6 + 9 = 15, students start on 9 and "hop forward" 6 to arrive at the sum 15.  This is just another strategy to help with addition. 
• We started a new Reading unit also--Different Lands--Similar stories.  We will hear several different versions of familiar stories.  Today we started with Cinderella from France and tomorrow we will hear a version The Girl with the Red Slipper from Egypt.  
• Our reading groups are well underway.  Everyday except Wednesday all students are instructed in a small group setting on their reading level.  I hope that you have noticed some improvements in your child's reading.  In first grade those improvements can be pretty dramatic sometimes.  It's amazing to witness. Please help with those "dramatic improvements" by having your child read their take home books every night and practicing their sight word.  Remember that Wednesday is our Sight Word pass off day.
• We are hoping for a field trip next week to the Robinson Family pumpkin patch.  We are just waiting on a bus confirmation.  We planned on this happening next Wednesday, October 18 in the morning.  I will let you know as soon as I get the go ahead from the bus garage.  
• Lastly, instead of starting our "apple head" witches tomorrow (Tuesday) we will start the creation on Wednesday.  With PE and computers on Tuesday our time will be a bit limited, so I thought it would be better to do those on Wednesday after lunch.  If you have already sent an apple with your child thank you--if not, please help by sending one in by Wednesday.

Happy Reading!!

Newsletter October 2 - October 6

Welcome to October!  The end of first quarter is Friday, October 13.  If your child has any missing work that needs to be turned in by Wednesday, October 11.  I will print out a Power School report after the end of the quarter and send it to you.  You can check Power School at any time using the information I gave you at your SEP conference.  Let me know if you see any discrepancies--that is definitely not an exact science.

Here are this week's happenings:

• Thanks to those that I have already visited with at your child's SEP conference.  If you need to reschedule please send me an e-mail and I can usually accommodate your schedule.  Remember school  dismisses everyday at 2:30 even on Wednesday.
• This Wednesday morning is the PTA sponsored Grandparents breakfast from 8:00-8:40.  The book fair is also open during that time and all week until Friday at 3:00.  
• Another round of PTA reading awards will be on Thursday, October 12 at 3:00 in my classroom.  I will or  already have informed you at your child's SEP conference if they will be receiving an award that day.  You are welcome to come to this awards presentation.  It's brief so make sure you arrive on time (3:00 in my room).
• Please send an apple with your child by next week for our "apple head" witch craft.  We will be making them next Tuesday so apples by Monday would be very helpful.  Thank you!  
• We are almost finished with Unit 2 in math (subtraction strategies).  I hope to give the test for that chapter this Friday.  I'll see how the review goes on Wednesday and Thursday, but my plan like I said it to test this Friday.
• In reading we have started Unit 2--we have learned how to spell the /e/ sound 'ee' and today are starting the 'magic e', 'silent e' rule.  We will learn about the /ae/ sound and how to spell it 'a_e'.  Students will also be exposed to these "new" spellings and sounds in their reading.  We started a new book "Gran" which is about an adventurous grandma and her grand kids Josh and Jen.  
• I know we have a book fair this week, but I will still send the October Scholastic reader fliers home next week.  They will be due on Friday, October 13.  Ordering online is the easiest way to order from those fliers.  This is of course optional :)
• Don't forget to send back sight word lists (blue note) on Wednesday (tomorrow).  Please make sure that those words are automatic for your child.  Mrs. Harris gives them a "second chance" to get it automatically but sends it home, if it's not automatic the second time, with the word(s) listed that still need to be worked on.  Please don't give up if that happens, simply practice once more and send the list back in again.  Acquiring automatic sight words is crucial to becoming a fluent reader so include this practice in your child's ten minutes of nightly reading if necessary.  I gave or will give those students who haven't passed off a list in a while a list at SEP conferences so all students should have one.

Have a great Fall day and Happy Reading!