Mrs. Ramirez's Class Newsletter
November 2014
What's Happening in First Grade?
November is here...and I can almost smell that turkey! Yum!
In writing we will be be writing Opinion pieces. We will be working to write with a strong introduction, a statement of opinion, backing our opinions up with reasons, and writing a logical closing. A good way to get a discussion about Opinion Writing going at home is to play "Would You Rather...?" As your child, "would you rather have a longer recess or no homework for a whole week?" Have them state their opinion and back it up with reasons why!
In Social Studies, we will be discussing where we live...our town, state, country and planet! We build this base knowledge so that we can begin to discover other countries, like Canada and then Germany.
In Math, we will be continuing to learning about adding and beginning to learn about subtraction! Make up your own subtraction problems at home ("If Fiona had 5 carrots on her plate and she ate 3, how many carrots would she have left?"). We will also be continuing our study of place value, focusing on how many tens and ones are in a number.
In Reading, we will be talking about the comprehension strategy of Visualizing. Visualizing is when students make pictures in their mind of what is happening in a story to make reading three-dimensional. Visualization helps readers engage in text in ways that make it personal and memorable. We will be working to hone our visualization skills and to adapt the images we create as we continue to read a text.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
Thursday, November 20th
Monday, November 24th
Tuesday, November 25th
You should be receiving an email from Volunteer Spot to remind you of your time. If you are unsure of what time slot you have signed up for, please do not hesitate to contact me!
Please make sure you arrive promptly to your conference. Many time slots are back to back and we need to try to stay on schedule as best as we possibly can! :)
I look forward to meeting with you to discuss your child's progress thus far in first grade!
School's out for Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 24th
Tuesday, November 25th
Wednesday, November 26th
Due to the Thanksgiving Holiday, we do NOT have school on the following dates:
Thursday, November 27th
Friday, November 28th
Monday, December 1st
Action Based Learning Lab
On Monday afternoons we will have our Action Based Learning Lab in which all of the first grade classes will meet in the gym for 30 minute blocks of time. The Action Based Learning Lab is as series of progressions and stations, each designed to prepare the brain for input and processing.
On Mondays, please dress your child as if they were participating in gym class. Comfy clothes and sturdy sneakers will help our fantastic first graders move throughout the lab and combine kinesthetic activities with academic ideas. Our first lab session was a huge success and everyone enjoyed it!