On Friday a note explaining our Mystery Reader program and the sheet to sign up to be a mystery reader were sent home in your child's backpack. As you choose from the dates please know that not everyone can come right away in the beginning of the year. Please do your best to choose dates you can make work in 3 different months. That way I have a better idea of your availability throughout the year and can do my best to schedule everyone who wants to participate when they are available. If your child's sheet went missing you can download and print a copy here: Mystery Reader PDF.
Literacy
Students began working on the comprehension skill of making connections using prior knowledge and learning new vocabulary words with this week's supporting text: Frog & Toad: Dragons & Giants, by Arnold Lobel. Each week we follow the same process to help reinforce comprehension skills and to develop a deep understanding of the vocabulary words. At the beginning of the week we read the story and discuss the meaning of our six vocabulary words for the week: brave, mountain, leaping, together, avalanche, hawk. In the middle of the week we draw sketches of our vocabulary words to help us remember what they mean. During Daily 5 later in the week students will soon have the opportunity to choose a word to draw a picture of the word and share how their it helps them understand the word using the SeeSaw App. Check your SeeSaw accounts to see if your child has worked on this. Finally at the end of the week, we reread the story and identify the vocabulary words and their meaning. If you would like to continue this practice at home, here is a copy of the sheet we draw our sketches on: Dragons & Giants. I would encourage you to have your child draw a picture of the vocabulary word, write a sentence using the vocabulary words, or “autograph” next to the word when they use a vocabulary word in their everyday speech.
Our class continued to practice our reading strategies using our CAFE menu to help us. CAFE is an acronym and will assist students all year when making reading goals:
Additionally, the past few weeks I have been meeting with each student individually in a conference style setting in order to determine students’ reading strengths and needs. This assessment process takes time but allows me to get a very good sense of what each individual student needs. I will be completed with all of the students’ reading assessment by the end of next week and will begin working with students to set reading goals and begin reading "good fit" books that you will see coming home to reinforce the skills they are working on at school.
Students began working on the comprehension skill of making connections using prior knowledge and learning new vocabulary words with this week's supporting text: Frog & Toad: Dragons & Giants, by Arnold Lobel. Each week we follow the same process to help reinforce comprehension skills and to develop a deep understanding of the vocabulary words. At the beginning of the week we read the story and discuss the meaning of our six vocabulary words for the week: brave, mountain, leaping, together, avalanche, hawk. In the middle of the week we draw sketches of our vocabulary words to help us remember what they mean. During Daily 5 later in the week students will soon have the opportunity to choose a word to draw a picture of the word and share how their it helps them understand the word using the SeeSaw App. Check your SeeSaw accounts to see if your child has worked on this. Finally at the end of the week, we reread the story and identify the vocabulary words and their meaning. If you would like to continue this practice at home, here is a copy of the sheet we draw our sketches on: Dragons & Giants. I would encourage you to have your child draw a picture of the vocabulary word, write a sentence using the vocabulary words, or “autograph” next to the word when they use a vocabulary word in their everyday speech.
Our class continued to practice our reading strategies using our CAFE menu to help us. CAFE is an acronym and will assist students all year when making reading goals:
- C- Comprehension: I understand what I read.
- A- Accuracy: I can read the words.
- F- Fluency: I can read accurately and with expression.
- E- Expand Vocabulary: I know, find, and use interesting words.
Additionally, the past few weeks I have been meeting with each student individually in a conference style setting in order to determine students’ reading strengths and needs. This assessment process takes time but allows me to get a very good sense of what each individual student needs. I will be completed with all of the students’ reading assessment by the end of next week and will begin working with students to set reading goals and begin reading "good fit" books that you will see coming home to reinforce the skills they are working on at school.
Writing
Students were able to continue to focus on the supporting text, Dragons and Giants, in writing this week. We began to learn about the writing process that writers follow when writing a story. We learned this process by a visual which is posted below, movements to go with each part of the process, and I modeled my own piece for them to see. See if your child can remember the movements and "sounds" that go with the writing process.
Students were able to continue to focus on the supporting text, Dragons and Giants, in writing this week. We began to learn about the writing process that writers follow when writing a story. We learned this process by a visual which is posted below, movements to go with each part of the process, and I modeled my own piece for them to see. See if your child can remember the movements and "sounds" that go with the writing process.
Students had the opportunity to think about different things that friends might do together and had the chance to use the writing process to write about an event that Frog and Toad might do together as friends. Some students are writing about a fishing trip, when Frog gets sick and Toad takes care of him, when Toad help Frog to ride a bike, and so on.
Additionally, Ms. Logan, a ReadyGen coach was able to come into our room and demonstrate a writing lesson for the first and second grade teachers to learn from. We were so lucky to be the class chosen for the opportunity to work along side an expert with our new curriculum!
Additionally, Ms. Logan, a ReadyGen coach was able to come into our room and demonstrate a writing lesson for the first and second grade teachers to learn from. We were so lucky to be the class chosen for the opportunity to work along side an expert with our new curriculum!
Math
This week students continued using our number racks and ten frames to learn the math strategy "Fast Tens". With continued practice, students should begin to become automatic with solving problems within ten. This will help with the common core state standard goal 1.OA.6: Add and subtract within 20, demonstrating fluency for addition and subtraction within 10....
Additionally students continued working on the data goal 1.MD.4: Organize, represent, and interpret data with up to three categories; ask and answer questions about the total number of data points, how many in each category, and how many more or less are in one category than in another. They practice this by playing a new game called Which Coin Will Win? Students were also exposed to the greater than, less than and equal signs (>, <, =) at the end of the game to share the data they collected.
This week students continued using our number racks and ten frames to learn the math strategy "Fast Tens". With continued practice, students should begin to become automatic with solving problems within ten. This will help with the common core state standard goal 1.OA.6: Add and subtract within 20, demonstrating fluency for addition and subtraction within 10....
Additionally students continued working on the data goal 1.MD.4: Organize, represent, and interpret data with up to three categories; ask and answer questions about the total number of data points, how many in each category, and how many more or less are in one category than in another. They practice this by playing a new game called Which Coin Will Win? Students were also exposed to the greater than, less than and equal signs (>, <, =) at the end of the game to share the data they collected.
Social Studies
We are wrapping up our communities unit and learning more specifically about our classroom community/school community. We are looking forward to moving on to a new unit of study later next week!
We are wrapping up our communities unit and learning more specifically about our classroom community/school community. We are looking forward to moving on to a new unit of study later next week!
Upcoming Events
Thursday, September 27th: Mystery Reader Form Due
Saturday, September 29th: NSSD 112 Education Foundation 16th Annual 5K Fun(d) Run and Family Walk at 8:00am at Ravinia Festival.
Friday, October 5th: Early Release, students dismissed at 1:00. (We will still have lunch and snack on this day)
Monday, October 8th: No School/Fall Break
Thursday, September 27th: Mystery Reader Form Due
Saturday, September 29th: NSSD 112 Education Foundation 16th Annual 5K Fun(d) Run and Family Walk at 8:00am at Ravinia Festival.
Friday, October 5th: Early Release, students dismissed at 1:00. (We will still have lunch and snack on this day)
Monday, October 8th: No School/Fall Break