Week 12 - November 2-6, 2015

Thank you to all the people who helped make the Read-a-thon a success, and for all the wonderful books purchased for the classroom!

A gentle reminder - Parents please send appropriate protein enriched food for your children in their lunches.  I do believe they will feel better in the afternoons. Also, may I suggest one fruit and one sweet item.  Their morning snacks should not be full of sugar (except for fruit).  A cheese slice, a fruit roll-up, a piece of fruit are fine.  Please do not send cookies or candy items.  I know we spoke about this at the beginning of school, but I want all of us to be careful to keep the guidelines of the school.

Mrs. Sutton has given a website suggestion for parents who want to check safe, peanut-free snacks. 
http://www.firstkidspreschool.org/images/peanut-freesnacls.pdf

SPECIAL ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!

Starting tomorrow the new winter dress code will be in place. Pants must be worn (no shorts) and girls have to wear tights with their dresses.

Congratulations to Riley (Citizenship) and Kodie (Honesty) for receiving their virtue awards on Friday.  You are great examples to have in the classroom!

ELA:

Reading :

Students will continue to read Frog and Toad and answer questions in their Literature Journals.
Please make sure you return the books in the bag by Thursday (new day) so that I have time for them to read with me. If I feel they are not fluent I will resend them for another week.

We will continue to study nouns, proper nouns and adjectives in grammar.  Dictation has just recently been introduced so we will continue to practice that skill.

The Read-a-thon was great fun and the students heard many wonderful stories.

 

Spelling:

Monday: foot, feet, blows, blow, block, spring, river, planted, plant cut
Tuesday: song, sing, sang, sung, winter, stone, free, lake, lace, page
Wednesday: nice, end, fall, went, back, away, paper, put each, soon
Thursday: Write the 30 spelling words once with markings.
to prepare for the test tomorrow (Friday).

Phonograms to review: v, ar, oy, ng, a, d, f, s, b, h, k, l, r, ea, ear (Plus the ones your child misses on his daily WPR page that will go home on Wednesday nights in the Planner).

Science:

We are having a lot of fun studying the human body and this week we will study the digestive system, starting with the mouth and moving to the large intestine.  This will be a good opportunity for you to discuss the benefits of a balanced diet.

History:

On Monday the containers with the mummified apples were opened and we were very surprised to see what was inside.  I have a few pictures, but please ask them about it!

 

Students had quite a bit of fun making their mummies out of the toilet paper rolls. A few will be left on display in the hall on our bulletin board.

This week we will begin our study of the Three major religious groups.  Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
The focus for the next two weeks will be on Judaism, their customs and beliefs.  We will be reading about Abraham and Sarah and the Pharaoh of Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea.  I am going to really enjoy teaching this!

Math:

This week we will concentrate on adding a two-digit number to a one-digit number.  The students will also be able to recognize and name the four basic shapes: circle, triangle, rectangle, and square.

I hope everyone has a great week!  Don't forget the Egypt party on Friday.  Make sure you check out the sign-up for that event, there are still spaces available. Students may wear a sheet for a toga if they wish.  I will be making bread with them - - from grain to loaf -- this week so they will better
understand the importance of wheat in the life of all cultures.

Your children are amazing hard workers! I am so proud of them!

Quote of the week:

(Hebrew) "If you are not a better person tomorrow than you are today, what need have you for a tomorrow?" - Rabbi Nachman of Breslov


Happy November!

Week 11 October 26-30, 2015
 
What a fun week we had! 

On Friday we studied about the pumpkin seed and the pumpkin patch. Afterward we went to our NEW Learning Playground and created a pumpkin volcano!  It was so amazing and everyone laughed and cheered when the red foam rolled back into the pumpkin.  We then celebrated our part in supporting the Playground with popsicles all around!  The day was beautiful and we had a lot of happy hearts.

A few reminders for the week:

*No reading groups on Thursday as many of you will be at the Read-a-thon on Friday.
*The Read-a-thon will begin after 12:00 p.m. and end at 2:30. 
*We will begin Frog and Toad on Tuesday, so make sure your child has their book ( I have many of the books).
*Make sure you are reading each night for 15 minutes.  It is very important at this level that we increase your child's fluency to prepare them for 2nd grade. Some of you have Blast Off pages.  These are VERY important to complete.  It only takes 1 minute every other night to give them this learning vitamin!
*Make sure you initial and return the WPR sheet that is sent home Wednesday night.
*Most parents have contacted me about their student's costumes for Friday.  Please make sure you check with me to make sure the costume is appropriate for this event.
*Thank you all for the contribution of the tp rolls and the paper towel rolls.  We officially have enough.  Over 225 !

Congratulations to Aubrey!  She won the estimation game this week.  I wonder what she will bring the class on Monday.


English/Language Arts:

Spelling:

Monday: run, was, that, his, led, lay, apple, ate, author, bread
Tuesday: brown, dog, eats, fast, food, jump, sleep, wash, yellow, nine
Wednesday: face, miss, rides, ride, tree, sick, got, north, white, spent
Thursday: Write 30 words once to prepare for Spelling test tomorrow.
Phonograms: v, ar, oy, ng, a, d, f, s, b, h, k, l, r, ea, ear

Literature:

Starting Tuesday students will begin reading Frog and Toad. They will write in their literature books with a focus on correct sentence structure and proper punctuation. Students will continue to practice recognizing nouns, proper nouns, and adjectives.

History:

This will be the last week studying Ancient Egypt.  Our Egypt party will be on November 6. 

This week students will create a King Tut booklet, make a graham cracker pyramid with frosting (I am accepting contributions for this project), and they will review their hypothesis concerning the mummification of  apples which was generated in the experiment on Monday.
The class will review for the Unit test and have the Unit test on Friday.

The class will open their mummified apples on Monday and discuss the results of using the natron mixture to dry out the apples.

Science:
Students will begin the study of the Muscular System of the body. Everyone had a great time playing "Simon Says" and pointing out various parts of the skeletal system.

Math Homework:

Monday: pages 74, 75
Tuesday: pages 76, 77
Wednesday: pages 78, 79
Thursday: pages 80, 81
Friday: No math homework.


Quote of the week:

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.

Thomas Jefferson

Have a great week!

 

Week 10  October 19-23, 2015

*Make sure you check the right margin for important dates and events!

A big thank you to all the wonderful parents of the students in 1B.
Once again it was a pleasure speaking with you and sharing stories about your children!
Below I have a recap of some of the items we spoke about.

1.  Make sure the reading log is complete when your child returns it to school after the two week period. Make sure you return their readers on Wednesday to exchange for the new ones.
2.  Make sure on Wednesday night you sign the WPR Phonogram page (found in their planners) and send this back.  It will be for a grade.  Please check the phonograms they have missed and add those to the weekly phonograms listed on the spelling page.
3.  Continue to finish the math pages for a HW grade.
4.  Make sure their spelling words are written properly and check their sentence at the bottom of the page. (5 points total)
5.  Remember, homework is not to be longer than 45 minutes each night.  If it is taking longer, we need to have a conversation.
6.  The spelling test on Fridays will have a new look.  We will be adding a WPR section, 5 Bonus words section, a sentence dictation section, and a free sentence writing section.
7.  Let me know if your child is asking for flash cards for Rocket Math.  I will send them to you in a document and you can print them.
8.  October 30 is our Read-A-Thon.  First grade will be reading at noon until 2:30.
The students may come to class in their costume (and a change of clothes if they wish).


ELA

Spalding:

Tuesday:  I, as, send, alone, lone, one, has, some, if, how.
Wednesday:  her, them, other, baby, well, about, men, man, for, ran.
Thursday:  Practice writing the 20 spelling words for the test on Friday.
Friday:  Spelling Test

Phonograms to review: c, ai, aw, I, z, j, p, ou, ow, ee, sh, e, o, m, n

History:

We will continue to learn about Ancient Egypt.  This week we will mummify an apple and discuss the belief system of the Egyptians.

Science:

We will continue to learn about our bodies. The focus will be on our skeletal system again and learning the names of various bones.

Math:

We will be learning directional vocabulary and doing activities in class to solidify that skill.  They will continue to practice Part-Part-Whole.  We will practice our new Rocket Math Program and keep track of our gains.

Homework:

Tuesday: Pages 69-70
Wednesday: Pages 71-72
Thursday:  Pages 73-74
Friday:  No Homework


Please remember to have a snack and a water bottle for your child each day.  We have a wonderful mother who keeps us supplied for emergencies, but we all need to be careful to take care of our own needs.

The Read-a-thon is coming --- check the link for more information.

A few moms who cannot come in and aid in the classroom have volunteered to help cut out items for our Egyptian party.  If you would like to help with that, please let me know.

Winter Concert information:

The K-5 Winter Concert will be held at the Higley Center for the Performing Arts, located at 4132 E. Pecos Rd. Gilbert 85295, on Wednesday November l8.  The K-2 Concert will begin at 5:30 p.m. with students arriving at 4:45 p.m.  The 3-5 Concert will begin at 7:00 p.m. with students arriving at 6:30.


Quote of the week:

"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."

Helen Keller

I hope you have an adventurous week!

Week 9

Congratulations to Benjamin for having the closest estimate of items in the estimation jar!  We will continue our estimates next Tuesday the 20th.  I wonder what interesting item Ben will fill the jar with?

Our Read-a-thon will be on October 30 this year.  It is a chance for the student to dress in the costume of his favorite character in a book the class has read, or a book in our library, or they may dress as their favorite author.  There will be more details later.

We have half days this week due to parent-teacher conferences.  I am thrilled to be able to meet with each parent for an extended amount of time.  Please have your questions written down so we may use our time together effectively.


Spelling:

Monday:  lot, box, school, belong, door, floor, yes, low, soft, stands.

Tuesday:  stand, yard, bring, tell, five, ball, law, ask, just, way.

Wednesday:  get, home, much, call, long, love, then, house, year, to.

Thursday:  Write each word once to practice for the spelling test tomorrow. (No Markings)

Phonograms to review:  gu, ck, or, oe, ough, ph, oa, ui, ew, ed, wh, t, au, qu, er

Please don't forget to write the words three times each (with markings) and write a good sentence using one word from the list.  I will be looking for capitals and proper punctuation this week.  5 pts. total.

Literature:

We will continue reading our book Owl at Home and write in our new literature journals.


History: 

We will continue to study Ancient Egypt.  The focus will be on hieroglyphics and pyramids.

Science:

We will be studying the human body in October.  This week we will focus on the skeletal system.


Math:

We will continue to focus on addition with number bonds.  We will look at other methods of addition and subtraction.

Homework:

Monday:  Pages 61, 62
Tuesday:  Pages 63, 64
Wednesday: Pages 65, 66
Thursday:  67
Friday:  No math homework.


Quote of the week:

 "Character is, in the long run, the decisive factor in the life of individuals and of nations alike."  Theodore Roosevelt


Have a wonderful week!

The New and Improved Cinderella named Rosie

Our scholars have been reading different versions of Cinderella over the last few weeks. When we were finished they decided to write their own Cinderella story. They worked very hard together and below is the story they wrote. This story is entirely theirs . . . . .

The New and Improved Cinderella named Rosie

                    

Once upon a time a man and a woman wanted a daughter.  They visited a witch and she gave them a seed.  They planted the seed in their backyard and they watered it every day.  A flower opened and a little girl appeared so the man called her Rose.  The man got sick and died.   The mother married another man.  He treated Rosie like a slave.  He had two nice sons and two wicked daughters.   One day they began to fight with each other and distracted the dad.  The wicked girls were hurt and sent to the hospital.

Rosie wanted to go to the school dance.  She bought a beautiful blue dress.  The wicked sisters returned from the hospital and ripped Rosie’s dress.  The nice brothers made a new dress for Rosie.  Now Rosie can go to the dance.  She finds a nice friend and dances with him.  The step sisters decided to go to the dance also and saw Rosie.   They were jealous and chased her home and made her lose her new shoe.  Rosie injured her foot when she stepped on a thorn.  When she got home, she asked her stepdad for help.  He said “No!”  The two brothers snuck into a room to get supplies to pull the thorn out.  Rosie yells “Ouch that hurts so much!”

Her friend finds her shoe and asks his friends to help him find the beautiful girl who owns the shoe.  The two sisters tried the shoe on and it didn’t fit.  Rosie tried on the shoe and it fit.

The step sister’s mouths fell open and they started drooling when they saw that the shoe fit Rosie.  They were mad and left home and the stepdad left too.  Rosie and her friend were so happy they danced at the house!  The step brothers put on circus music and danced too.

And they all lived happily ever after!

THE END