Ms. Ward's First Grade
Newsletter Week 11
Through all the excitement, we even managed to learn a bit this week! Check out the newsletter for more details : )
Max, our STAR
UN Day
As a class, 1.3 traveled on our very own imaginary plane all around the world to learn about the different continents. With our passports, we entered Asia, North America, South America, Europe, and even Antarctica! In each country we learned a little something about the countries there, and tried delicious foods, ranging from sushi to empanadas to tamales to pigs in the blanket! Thank you all so much for providing the treats for the kids to try.
The parade around the school was fun as well as the kids were able to show off their costumes and get lots (I mean LOTS) of pictures taken!
If you have any pictures you would like to share with the rest of the class, feel free to email them to me. I would love some as well!
Our Week at a Glance
When talking about respect with our class, I was amazed by how insightful and knowledgeable they were on the subject. I wasn't surprised that they knew how to show respect because they do it everyday, but I was blown away by their ability to articulate what it meant to them.
In math we introduced telling time to the half hour, as well as frames and arrows routine, This routine is a way of finding patterns within numbers, a precursor to addition and subtraction, and an aid to gaining a better number sense. I am happy with the progress of all the students as the math concepts become more complex.
We had a few issues staying on task during Daily 5 this week. Hopefully it was simply because of all the excitement from UN Day. See below to see how Daily 5 will be changing next week! More responsibility and more accountability coming right up!
Next Week at a Glance
Maria will be pulling students one on one to introduce some on-level independent learning activities to your child. The games and manipulatives will generally focus on phonics and decoding skills. Each game will be tailored to your child's needs, and will be specifically pulled for him/her.
Students will also be receiving Daily 5 Student Contracts, which will hold them accountable for the various activities they should do throughout the week. The completed contract will be coming home on Friday so you can see the expectations of Daily 5. My hope is that it will help with responsibility, accountability, motivation, organization, and it will spark a conversation at home as well. Please let me know if you have any questions regarding the contracts.
In addition to Daily 5, we will also have a change in spelling. Since we have been in school for 54 days now, it is time to re-evaluate your child's spelling progress. Next week, there will be NO SPELLING WORDS. Instead, I will be giving the students an assessment that they cannot study for to determine their developmental spelling level. This will help me better assign spelling words to them in the future. Enjoy the week off from spelling, and look forward to more level-appropriate spelling words to come : )
Oh dear...
Please be sure to email or call the school if you have anything time sensitive and have not heard back from me.