Class Picture
Monday, January 9, 2012
3-D Shapes and a Growing Pattern
Our calendar pieces and the pattern they are showing have been quite puzzling to many of us this month. We are just starting to notice that the 3-D shapes are beginning to show a growing pattern. Without any prior knowledge on what the focus was this month, students have spent a week trying to unlock the mystery. From a food and object pattern, to a random and circle pattern, students have finally unlocked the mystifying puzzle. INQUIRE with your child what the pattern is this month. How did they know? In just looking at the calendar, students are working on identifying, naming, and describing 3-D shapes (cube, cylinder, rectangular prism, and sphere) in isolation and in everyday situations during number corner this month. We are also continuing to explore the idea of a growing pattern.
Activating our Schema
Have you ever read a story and been able to connect on a personal level with a character or storyline? Do you notice that it is easier to read and comprehend something that you have background knowledge of? This is because readers bring information from what they already know or what they have previously read about a topic and connect it with what they are reading. This increases their understanding of the text and helps them remember what they have read. Using prior knowledge can help students connect their own experiences with the text to better understand and make sense of what they are reading.
Students are working on just this in our classroom. We are learning that when we activate our 'schema' we can better understand, decode, and remember the story or new information we hear. Students are also learning about how to make meaningful connections as they activate their schema and knowing when their connections help or do nothing to help them better understand what they read. INQUIRE with your child about how they activated their schema while reading, The Snowy Day.
How can you help your child with this strategy at home?
1. When reading with your child, pause before and during the reading of the text to relate what is being read in the story to what is already known.
2. Model for your child how you activate prior knowledge before you begin reading.
Use some of the following questions to get started:
*What experiences have you had that might be similar to what this book cover is telling you?
*What do you already know about this content, genre, or author?
*While reading:
*Does this part of the story remind you of anything you have done before or read before that will help you understand this section of the story better?
*Using what you already knew about the topic, did that information help you understand this selection?
3. Remind your child that a reader can connect text to many different experiences. They can make a text to self connection (connecting to personal experiences), a text to world connection (what they know about the world that will help them better understand the story), or a text to text connection (the current book reminds them of a previous book read). When your child makes a connection, see if he/she can identify what kind of connection was made.
Parts Written by: Allison Behne © www.thedailycafe.com
Ideas and strategies are taken from: The CAFE Book, written by Gail Boushey & Joan Moser
Students are working on just this in our classroom. We are learning that when we activate our 'schema' we can better understand, decode, and remember the story or new information we hear. Students are also learning about how to make meaningful connections as they activate their schema and knowing when their connections help or do nothing to help them better understand what they read. INQUIRE with your child about how they activated their schema while reading, The Snowy Day.
How can you help your child with this strategy at home?
1. When reading with your child, pause before and during the reading of the text to relate what is being read in the story to what is already known.
2. Model for your child how you activate prior knowledge before you begin reading.
Use some of the following questions to get started:
*What experiences have you had that might be similar to what this book cover is telling you?
*What do you already know about this content, genre, or author?
*While reading:
*Does this part of the story remind you of anything you have done before or read before that will help you understand this section of the story better?
*Using what you already knew about the topic, did that information help you understand this selection?
3. Remind your child that a reader can connect text to many different experiences. They can make a text to self connection (connecting to personal experiences), a text to world connection (what they know about the world that will help them better understand the story), or a text to text connection (the current book reminds them of a previous book read). When your child makes a connection, see if he/she can identify what kind of connection was made.
Parts Written by: Allison Behne © www.thedailycafe.com
Ideas and strategies are taken from: The CAFE Book, written by Gail Boushey & Joan Moser
Science
Today and tomorrow, students will wrap up their study of force and motion by exploring how weight and size effect the way a ball moves. The focus today was on the effect the weight of a ball has on how quickly it reaches the bottom and also on how far it goes when released down a ramp. Students explored factors to consider before running a 'fair test.' Tomorrow students will focus on how balls of different size travel down a ramp.
HOOTS, HOOTS, HOOTS
Before vacation, our class reached a goal of 1,000 hoots! Unfortunately, I was out Friday at a dentist appointment and missed Screech's visit and an opportunity to film his dance. Hopefully, my dentist visits will be diminishing and I won't miss his next performance! INQUIRE with your child what moves Screech has amazed us with.
Upon returning this am, I received the kindest note from our guest teacher. She was amazed at the community of learners we have - each child was able to show Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control throughout the day. I was SO proud of them!
Upon returning this am, I received the kindest note from our guest teacher. She was amazed at the community of learners we have - each child was able to show Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control throughout the day. I was SO proud of them!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Sharing
Sharing, a component of our morning meeting is a powerful activity each morning. Once a week, students step up in front of their class and share a memorable experience, object, or small moment from their life. During this time, students and teachers get to know each other's likes, dislikes, memorable moments, and learn what they do outside of school. The students and myself are provided this opportunity to get to know each other better - and the more I know your child, their interests, challenges, strengths, and all about their lives, the more deeper and richer the learning will be throughout the day and more cohesive and empathetic our classroom community is. Sharing also provides an opportunity for students to practice speaking effectively in a different situation - in front of 18 people! Classmates also have the opportunity to listen to their peers and ask questions in response to their story or personal experience - a skill that benefits all!
Ramps
The children have now had a number of sessions to explore how balls behave on ramps and roadways. In today's lesson, students continued to explore the movement in a more focused way. Drawing on their experiences in class and out, they began to make connections between the nature of the ball (size, weight, smoothness) and how it rolls, and the height of a ramp and how a ball rolls. In this learning experience, they rolled their balls down two ramps that start at different heights and observed what happened. In the next week or so, we will begin our science focus on the states of matter - solids, liquids, and gasses.
Winter Weather
Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you about making sure your child bringing in warm winter clothes...or about bringing in sneakers....or about showing responsibility by taking care of their belongings...
but, in math, the children have been using information from meteorologists and weather data online to see what the forecasted temperatures are for the day and then comparing and contrasting this to the current weather outside at the time by using a thermometer. Students are learning to read a thermometer (practicing counting by 2's) and have been calculating the difference between the forcasted temperature and actual temperature. While observing the changing temperatures drop during the change of seasons, the students are demonstrating their understanding of processes and change over time. They are continuously observing and recording weather data, and identifying and drawing conclusions based on the patterns in the data collected.
And of course, don't forget to help your child pack those indoor shoes! :)
but, in math, the children have been using information from meteorologists and weather data online to see what the forecasted temperatures are for the day and then comparing and contrasting this to the current weather outside at the time by using a thermometer. Students are learning to read a thermometer (practicing counting by 2's) and have been calculating the difference between the forcasted temperature and actual temperature. While observing the changing temperatures drop during the change of seasons, the students are demonstrating their understanding of processes and change over time. They are continuously observing and recording weather data, and identifying and drawing conclusions based on the patterns in the data collected.
And of course, don't forget to help your child pack those indoor shoes! :)
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Happy New Year
I hope everybody enjoyed a restful winter break and was able to spend an abundant amount of time with your children. The students had so many great stories to share from winter break - whether it be skiing, sliding, snorkeling, movies, ice skating, parties, presents, and of course - LOOSE TEETH! I cannot believe it is already January - and today marked the 78th day of school! We are just about half way. Keep your calendars marked - the 100th day (should) land on Monday, January 30th. We look forward to celebrating this special day in some kind of special way - TBD.
Throughout this 2nd part of the year, we plan on keeping with the routines of the day but of course welcome you to join us and share a special activity/lesson/craft/exercise, etc. Please let me how I can incorporate you into our classroom. We will be taking a few week break from NAP - as the winter seldom allows us extended time outside. We will plan on spending the day at the NorthBranch Nature Center in the upcoming weeks with Amy Butler. In February, we will also be integrating our Nature Adventure Animal Names into a research project and learning about how to read and write nonfiction.
We acquired a brand new set of cubbies in the hallway to store our winter gear - PHEW! Students will choose a space each morning to house their snowpants, jackets, and hats and hopefully we'll see less pile up in the classroom. THANK YOU TODD! We continue to work as a class in helping each other be responsible in the classroom to keep track of their things - it's hard work and we continue to improve every day. Please help your child be responsible for bringing in their warm clothing - hats, gloves/mittens, jackets, snowpants, boots, and of course, INDOOR SHOES. Many students are continuing to forget these - if it helps, please ask your child to store them at school - we have a special bucket for indoor shoes that stay in the classroom.
Also, THANK YOU, HEATHER, for spending a few hours in our classroom over vacation. Heather put on her rubber gloves and scrubbed our classroom! We were so thankful to come back after vacation to a workspace free of germs, grime, and dust! Our class greatly appreciates the time Heather put in doing the dirty work. Of course, there's more to be done - so if you'd like to help out with some cleaning - let me know and I'll set you up with a time, a bucket, and some gloves!
I look forward to a great rest of the year. THINK SNOW! (I definitely need it for some weekend skiing!)
Throughout this 2nd part of the year, we plan on keeping with the routines of the day but of course welcome you to join us and share a special activity/lesson/craft/exercise, etc. Please let me how I can incorporate you into our classroom. We will be taking a few week break from NAP - as the winter seldom allows us extended time outside. We will plan on spending the day at the NorthBranch Nature Center in the upcoming weeks with Amy Butler. In February, we will also be integrating our Nature Adventure Animal Names into a research project and learning about how to read and write nonfiction.
We acquired a brand new set of cubbies in the hallway to store our winter gear - PHEW! Students will choose a space each morning to house their snowpants, jackets, and hats and hopefully we'll see less pile up in the classroom. THANK YOU TODD! We continue to work as a class in helping each other be responsible in the classroom to keep track of their things - it's hard work and we continue to improve every day. Please help your child be responsible for bringing in their warm clothing - hats, gloves/mittens, jackets, snowpants, boots, and of course, INDOOR SHOES. Many students are continuing to forget these - if it helps, please ask your child to store them at school - we have a special bucket for indoor shoes that stay in the classroom.
Also, THANK YOU, HEATHER, for spending a few hours in our classroom over vacation. Heather put on her rubber gloves and scrubbed our classroom! We were so thankful to come back after vacation to a workspace free of germs, grime, and dust! Our class greatly appreciates the time Heather put in doing the dirty work. Of course, there's more to be done - so if you'd like to help out with some cleaning - let me know and I'll set you up with a time, a bucket, and some gloves!
I look forward to a great rest of the year. THINK SNOW! (I definitely need it for some weekend skiing!)
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Lobsters for Dinner?
In Unit 3, students are concentrating on counting by 2's, 5's, and 10's in a variety of contexts. Much of this learning is embedded in solving and creating our own word problems all about lobsters. Students are not only learning about what lobsters look like, what they eat, and how they move, but are using them to focus on counting skills by 2's (large claws) and 10's (large claws and small claws together). Using lobsters, our word problems are also challenging us to count beyond 100 and are strengthening our understanding of addition and subtracting. These last 2 weeks, students have also been focusing on counting by 5's and 10's using the value of pennies, nickels, and dimes. Check out the video above to see how literacy, math, and science are integrated in this fun song!
Monday, December 19, 2011
NAP Winter Celebration Day
Students spent an ENTIRE day outside in the frigid temps today! About 70 first graders scattered about Hubbard park for a day of exploration and fun. We explored the shelters we built (my group found 13), listened to stories, baked bread and warmed up at the fire, used rope to climb some steep hills, did a scavenger hunt, sang songs, and created art using materials from the forest floor. INQUIRE with your child what their favorite part of the day was.
*Thanks to those parents who helped us today. If you have any pictures to add to the slideshow from your groups, please email them to me and I'll add them to the show. *
Listen to Amy begin to share a story with all the first graders!
*Thanks to those parents who helped us today. If you have any pictures to add to the slideshow from your groups, please email them to me and I'll add them to the show. *
Listen to Amy begin to share a story with all the first graders!
 |
 |
| Personalize your own free slideshow design |
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Guest Teacher
For your information there will be a guest teacher in our classroom on the following days:
December 14th - ALL DAY (I'll be in and out of the classroom doing reading assessments)
December 16th - 1/2 Day PM
December 23rd - 1/2 Day PM
Please help your child at home be prepared for a guest teacher and reminding them to show C.A.R.E.S. when I am out of the classroom. Thanks for your support with this at home. We will be preparing in the classroom as well!
December 14th - ALL DAY (I'll be in and out of the classroom doing reading assessments)
December 16th - 1/2 Day PM
December 23rd - 1/2 Day PM
Please help your child at home be prepared for a guest teacher and reminding them to show C.A.R.E.S. when I am out of the classroom. Thanks for your support with this at home. We will be preparing in the classroom as well!
Using the CAFE menu
Students have been choosing a focus area to work on in their individual reading. Students can choose from comprehension, accuracy, fluency, or expanding their vocabulary. Within these broader categories, students focus on 1 specific strategy that falls in that category. For example, one might be working on remembering to flip the sound when working on accuracy or making sure they tune into interesting words when working on expanding their vocabulary. INQUIRE with you child what strategy they're focusing on this week!
Unit 3 - Bridges
We have moved onto unit 3 in Bridges- Whales Tails and Lobster Legs. This unit will focus on counting by 1's, 2's, 5's, and 10's, on number patterns and fact families, addition and subtraction story problems, addition and subtraction facts to 10, coin worth and adding combinations, counting by 10's and 1's, and many lessons on sorting and graphing. We will also be continuing to tell time by the half hour and by 5 minute intervals on an analog clock, comparing and collecting data, and looking at probability.
Here are some frequently asked questions that are answered by the Bridges Program. If you have any questions regarding math in your child's classroom, please INQUIRE with me!
Q: Why do you spend time having students make their own picture problems?
A: In this unit, students learn about different sea creatures and create picture problems about them. Then, students solve one another’s problems. When mathematical problems are embedded in a context that students understand well and find interesting, students can draw on their familiarity with the context to make sense of the math they are learning. Sea creatures,
with their different numbers of legs and other body parts, lend themselves well to solving problems involving equal groups, a major theme of this unit.
Q: Why are time and money part of a unit on sea creatures?
A: The topic of the unit is sea creatures, but the mathematical theme is equal groups. Sea creatures’ bodies, coins, and the clock face provide three different ways to represent equal groups (of 2, 5, and 10). We want students to move beyond counting one by one when solving problems. The scenarios and problems in this unit encourage them to begin counting equal groups by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s. It’s a more efficient way to solve many problems, and it’s also a precursor to understanding place value and to calculating efficiently in our base ten number system.
Check out the winter calendar pieces we created ourselves and put into an AABB pattern! Students have also been challenged by adding double digit numbers. When given a 2 digit number, students have been visualizing in their mind the amount of 10's and 1's in each number and then being asked to add them together. It's amazing how easy this is when you think of it in terms of groups! We have had many new work places this past week including: Spin and Add, Race you to 25 cents, 10 or bust, Count and Compare Coins, and Add and Compare. INQUIRE with your child how to play these games and what their favorite is!
Inquire with your child what time it is using an analogue clock! What time do we generally study time?
Here are some frequently asked questions that are answered by the Bridges Program. If you have any questions regarding math in your child's classroom, please INQUIRE with me!
Q: Why do you spend time having students make their own picture problems?
A: In this unit, students learn about different sea creatures and create picture problems about them. Then, students solve one another’s problems. When mathematical problems are embedded in a context that students understand well and find interesting, students can draw on their familiarity with the context to make sense of the math they are learning. Sea creatures,
with their different numbers of legs and other body parts, lend themselves well to solving problems involving equal groups, a major theme of this unit.
Q: Why are time and money part of a unit on sea creatures?
A: The topic of the unit is sea creatures, but the mathematical theme is equal groups. Sea creatures’ bodies, coins, and the clock face provide three different ways to represent equal groups (of 2, 5, and 10). We want students to move beyond counting one by one when solving problems. The scenarios and problems in this unit encourage them to begin counting equal groups by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s. It’s a more efficient way to solve many problems, and it’s also a precursor to understanding place value and to calculating efficiently in our base ten number system.
Check out the winter calendar pieces we created ourselves and put into an AABB pattern! Students have also been challenged by adding double digit numbers. When given a 2 digit number, students have been visualizing in their mind the amount of 10's and 1's in each number and then being asked to add them together. It's amazing how easy this is when you think of it in terms of groups! We have had many new work places this past week including: Spin and Add, Race you to 25 cents, 10 or bust, Count and Compare Coins, and Add and Compare. INQUIRE with your child how to play these games and what their favorite is!
Wow! Can you believe it's been 64 days! 
Inquire with your child what time it is using an analogue clock! What time do we generally study time?
Ropes
What can you do with a rope in Hubbard Park? On Monday, students explored a variety of ways to use a rope. While some students used guide books to practice tying knots, others tied them around trees on top of the hill to use as an aide to climb steep hills. INQUIRE with your child what other uses they had!
This may or may not be our final NAP for 2011. The first grade team and Amy Butler are working on a possible celebration on December 19th. If you are able to volunteer on this day (for the entirety) please let me know via email. If this is unable to happen, we will resume NAP lessons after February vacation. Stay tuned!
This may or may not be our final NAP for 2011. The first grade team and Amy Butler are working on a possible celebration on December 19th. If you are able to volunteer on this day (for the entirety) please let me know via email. If this is unable to happen, we will resume NAP lessons after February vacation. Stay tuned!
Another Handmade Ball
Today we made another handmade ball. First, students explored using four different balls: a soccer ball, a tennis ball, a softball and a baseball to determine what they could be made from, what is inside, the texture and how they roll. Then we put on our science eyes/ears/touch and explored the same balls that I previously cut in half to better understand what makes up each ball, outside and inside. Wow, did you know there is only densely packed fibers inside a softball, but it's so hard? INQUIRE with your child what is inside a soccer ball and a tennis ball - what makes them similar and different?
Students then made their own balls again. This time we used the following materials: cork, cotton batting, yarn, duct tape, newspaper, clay, masking tape. Talk with your child to learn how s/he thinks their second ball with roll, bounce or behave when it is thrown. Will it perform the same as the first one they made?
Students then made their own balls again. This time we used the following materials: cork, cotton batting, yarn, duct tape, newspaper, clay, masking tape. Talk with your child to learn how s/he thinks their second ball with roll, bounce or behave when it is thrown. Will it perform the same as the first one they made?
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Shoes
Many students are 'forgetting' their indoor shoes as we get into boot season. Because we sit on the floor for parts of the day, it is important that students have shoes to wear (I don't need a wet bottom!) If you'd like, please feel free to leave a pair of indoor shoes in the classroom overnight. For emergency purposes, students need to always have shoes on their feet during the school day! Instead of packing those crocks away, perhaps you want to leave them in your child's classroom as an 'extra' for the winter!
P.S. Will you come visit us and read us a story?
We continue to write letters to various people during writing. Today, we decided to write a letter to Cynthia Rylant. All students contributed to the ideas within this letter. We made sure to include information about why we were writing her and that we had been learning about her life and reading many of her books over the last few weeks. We shared our favorites with her and also asked her a few questions. Many of the students wondered where she got her ideas and whether she had any new ideas for new books. Other students wondered how she went about choosing the illustrator for her books.
Working with New Friends!
This week, students in Mrs. Wrigley's class and our class have been getting together a few times a day. Some students meet together for FIT with Mrs. Wrigley or myself in small groups. During Fundations this week, students are mixed up and either working on spelling in either my room or her room, and then students have a choice to interact with their peers from either of the classes during center time at the end of the day. Students from both classes may even get together for a morning meeting activity later in the week! INQUIRE with your child whether they've met any new friends. Next year, students from all classes will be divided up and placed in new classrooms with new friends. The opportunities we are providing allow students to get to know other students, new teachers, be challenged at their own level academically, and experience different teaching styles!
Friday, December 2, 2011
We'll Miss You, Shannon
Shannon and Bridget led an engaging 4 Winds lesson today on Seeds. Students learned about the life cycle of seeds, parts of a seed, types of seeds, and the various ways in which seeds travel. Students watched a puppet show, dissected and identified various seed parts, ate a variety of seeds and even pretended to be the wind, blowing seeds from one place to another (see video).
A special thanks to Shannon for all her help last year and this year. She has put an abundant amount of time into the organization of the program. I greatly appreciate this! Shannon has recruited many new parents to take her spot, and we look forward to upcoming lessons with them!
A special thanks to Shannon for all her help last year and this year. She has put an abundant amount of time into the organization of the program. I greatly appreciate this! Shannon has recruited many new parents to take her spot, and we look forward to upcoming lessons with them!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)