Week of December 12th-December 16th

 

First Grade Newsletter

December 12th-December 16th

Literacy

KNOWLEDGE

Reading Street: Unit 3 Week 2

Main selection:  Ruby in Her Own Time

Weekly Question:  What do we learn as we grow and change?

Amazing Words: attempt, event, timeline, famous, flatter, correct, lovely, common

Comprehension skills: Compare and Contrast

Comprehension strategy: Inferring

Genres:  Animal Fantasy

PHONICS

Fundations: Unit 6 (Week 3 of 3)

• Skill(s): Suffix -s (added onto action words and objects to make more than one); Narrative story form: character, setting, main events; Reading with accuracy and prosody
• Trick Words: 
• Review Trick Words: the, a, and, is, his, of, as, has, to, into, we, he, she, be, me, you, your, was, one, from, have 
• Alphabetical order*Please note that Unit 1 of Fundations and Lively Letters are very fast paced reviews of the alphabet letter sounds and formations taught extensively in Kindergarten.

Math in Focus

Chapter 4

Numbers to 20

Pre-requisite skills and number sense

Objectives

- Count on from 10 to 20

- Read and write 11 to 20 in numbers and words

- Use a place-value chart to show numbers to 20

- Use tens and ones to show numbers to 20

     -  Compare numbers to 20

      - Order numbers to 20

     - Find 1 more or2 more than a number

     - Find 1 less or 2 less than a number

-    - Find the missing numbers in a number pattern

Science

Patterns in the Sky

Last week students wrapped up our unit on space by working in groups to create a poster about 1 of the 3 patterns in the sky we have learned about. The posters students made will be hung in the hallway on display.

Light & Sound

    This week students will begin our second unit about light and sound. Our first lesson will be brainstorming all of the ideas students have about light.

Social Studies

Holidays Around the World

  In the month of December, students will learn about holidays that are celebrated in December all around the world. In the first two weeks of December, students discussed their own traditions and holidays, and learned about Las Posadas, Kwanzaa, and Christmas/St. NicHolas Day in Germany.

This week students will learn about Hanukkah, Christmas traditions in Italy & Sweden, and St. Lucia Day in Sweden. Each lesson will consist of the holiday's traditions, important symbols associated with the holiday, and the date(s) the holiday is celebrated on.

 Specialists

 

MONDAY: Music

TUESDAY: P.E.

WEDNESDAY: Art

THURSDAY: Music 

FRIDAY: P.E.

  

Writing Workshop

Jan Brett Riddle

     This week students will listen to The Mitten read aloud. After the read aloud, the class will discuss the different animals that climbed into the mitten. Each student will write 3 clues about 1 animal and draw a picture of it.

Gingerbread Friends-Opinion Writing

     Students will listen to 4 different versions of the Gingerbread Man story (the original, the Gingerbread Baby, the Gingerbread Boy, and the Gingerbread Girl). After listening to all of the books, students will write about which gingerbread friend s/he would want to be and why. 

Students will continue to write their Tom the Turkey stories. 

                 

                   Parent Reminders

1.  Library- Our class' library day and time is every Thursday from 2:00PM-2:30PM.

2.    Please be sure your child returns their school folder to school everyday.  Also, please check it each day for important handouts and homework assignments. I will write about specific handouts that you should be looking for throughout the week in this section of the newsletter.

3.    Children should bring in a small healthy snack (separate from their lunch) to have in class at 10:00 a.m. Please make sure that it is nut-sensitive and has no glass products.

4.    Homework Update: This week your child will begin homework. In your child's red homework folder, you will see 4 sheet protectors and a recording page. Please keep the pages in the sheet protectors unless you are filling out the reading log. Once you have filled out the Reading Log, please make sure the paper gets back into the sheet protector. I will collect the red folders on Friday and take out all of the completed work.

a. Two Less Bingo Math Activity: Students will use the bingo boards in their red homework folder, a deck of cards, and "bingo chips" (pennies work) to play. To begin, draw a card from the deck. Each player must use that card to subtract two to find the answer. For example, if 5 is chosen, players must find the answer to 5-2 and cover the answer on their cards. Only 1 space can be covered each turn and players cannot move bingo chips after it has been placed. Five chips in a row (horizontally, diagonally, or vertically) results in a bingo. 

b. Reading (Activity) Log: The first page in the sheet protector will be your child's reading or activity log. This log will be collected every week on Friday when your child brings their red homework folder back. Please check off the boxes of what activities you have complete on specific days. For the Discussion Question box, please fill in the questions that you discussed with your child while reading 1 out of the 4 days.

c. Phonics Word List: Your child should read their word list every day.

d. Pen pal Journal: Students will bring home their journals home to write 1 pen pal letter for the week. If I have written a letter to your child, please have your child read the letter and respond to it. If I did not respond to your child's letter from last week, your child can write a letter about something that they want to tell me about.

5. Login Sheet- The online websites that are listed on the login sheet are extra from the the homework given to your child unless stated otherwise. Lexia is a great program for students to practice their current phonics skills at home. I Know It Math is great math skill practice when I assign review or current skill practice activities.

6. Before School Help on Thursday at 8AM.

Have a fantastic week!

Mrs. Ash

Homework

Your child brought home a red homework folder today. Inside the folder is a reading log and math activity with materials. I will also include individual login information for all of our online platforms. This week students should be reading for 10 minutes, read phonics word list everyday, write 1 penpal journal entry, and play two less bingo math activity. 

Your child also will bring home their penpal journal this week. Please read my letter and have your child respond to it in 1 penpal letter. In future weeks, if I did not write to your child, your child can write to me about anything s/he wants. Once your child has finished his/her letter, return it to school. If I did not receive your child's journal last week, please have your child write a letter to me this week and I will check both letters once the journal is turned in. 

The homework folder and journal should always be brought to school in your child's backpack, but only returned on Fridays.