1E Newsletter: Week of March 8
What's going on in First Grade!
This Week...
Sunday: World Language, Library
Monday: MSArabic/Explore Time, PE, Music
Tuesday: Art, Guest Reader (slot available)
Wednesday: PE, World Language, Tech
Thursday: Art, Music, Hot Dog Lunch (preordered)
Field Trip: Final Call for Chaperones and Permission Slips
ASD Annual Fund- High 5 Campaign
Please consider donating generously to the ASD Annual Fund Campaign! I have already donated my 5qar in front of the students-- I hope you will join me in donating to the school too! More info coming home today.
----- (as written in Sahifa)-----
During the month of March ASD will be running an Annual Fund Campaign. This targeted fundraising effort will allow us to go beyond the essentials to provide new opportunities for our students and make ASD even better!
Each year ASD identifies a number of projects that will have immediate impact on the School community, and these become our priorities for the year’s Annual Fund. Allocation of funds follows the priorities set forth in our Strategic Plan, establishing a roadmap to the next level of excellence for ASD.
When you make a gift to the ASD Annual Fund, you help keep our school among the best. Contributions enable us to upgrade technology, advance athletics, promote the arts, and encourage global citizenship. Additionally, you help the American School of Doha attract and retain outstanding faculty and staff, and you support enhancements and maintenance for our beautiful campus.
Every gift counts no matter the size, as each donation demonstrates confidence in our school and ASD’s mission and values.
Look for more information from your child’s Principal to learn more about our “Give 5 a High 5” campaign involving students and staff March 8-12.
For more information on the ASD Annual Fund or to make your gift please contact our Development Office at 4459 1500, or Jennifer Bryan jbryan@asd.edu.qa
Class Photos Online
login: 26(first initial)(last name)@asd.edu.qa (i.e. 26acarroll@asd.edu.qa)
password: 123456 (please do not change these passwords-- the students will do this eventually in school)
Please Sign and Return
- Opinion Writing Rubrics-- to be sent home early in the week
- Math Assessments-- to be sent home at the end of the week
Writing
- What is poetry?
- Using your poet's eyes
- poets vs. scientists
- using your senses
- object poems-- writing about common items
- where do you find poetry
- looking at expert poets
**homework this week will be a survey for parents on Poetry-- we thank you for giving poetry a favorable spin and reminding students that poetry doesn't have to rhyme :)
Reading
- how do you know you understand?
- self monitoring: good readers think about their reading
- post-its to show our thinking
- read aloud to model Word Attack Skills
Math
We are wrapping up our math unit:
- Math Assessment
- Error analysis on the assessment-- fixing our mistakes
- Introducing Geometry
- Looking at different shapes
- Exploring with tangrams and pattern blocks
- Shape sorting based on attributes
Science
- Observing goldfish and looking at their parts
- Animal sort
- Using Book Creator to do an animal project
- Observing turtles and looking at their parts
New Writing Unit: Poetry Parent Letter
Dear Parents,
"Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.”
Our young poets will turn the ordinary into the extraordinary! By observing mentor texts our poets will learn tools, strategies, and poetic devices to give power to the meaning, shape, and sound of their poems. We will work with the structure of poetry, learning how poets use line breaks and white space. Finding the precise words that convey our intended meaning is a critical part of poetry. Figurative language will also be explored and played with during this unit. We will also experiment with rhythms and repetition to bring a sense of musicality to both our poems and the poems we read aloud. Be prepared to be amazed!
The following standards are being addressed in this unit of study:
- Standard 1 Students will read fluently using the skills and strategies of the reading process.
- Standard 2 Students will comprehend, respond to and analyze a wide variety of literary and informational texts including fiction and non-fiction.
- Standard 4 Students will write with clarity and logic on a wide range of topics for a variety of purposes and audiences.
- Standard 5 Students will use grammatical and mechanical conventions in writing.
- Standard 6 Students will demonstrate competence in the general skills and strategies of the writing process.
- Standard 8: Students will deliver coherent, well-focused presentations appropriate for a variety of audiences and purposes.
Parent Teaching Tips:
- Model loving poetry—share favorite childhood poems and nursery rhymes(from any culture and in any language).
- Poetry and Popcorn Night: Choose a poem to practice during the week and recite on the weekend. Reciting poems is a wonderful way to work on speaking skills and reading fluency.
- Artistic Response: Draw, use clay, paint, etc. a visual response to a poem. Be sure to discuss what words and poetic devices led to creating your mental image.
Sincerely,
The First Grade Teachers