Hi Parents,
We've had such a fun week! We learned so much this week and everyone is really beginning to act much more like 2nd graders than 1st graders! Can you believe our year is almost over? Only nine more weeks of school left. Check out below to find out what we've been doing this week!
Phonics/Grammar: We learned all about the sounds -aw, -oy, and -ou. We began our week with creating a word web for the children to use all week to study. We also worked on the whiteboards, completed a cut and glue sort, worked with our book buddies to spell the words, and even played a fun game in the dark where we spelled the words on the ceiling and the kids had to guess them! This is a great activity for your child to do at home right before bed to learn these words! We also worked more on identifying and writing sentences using correct subject/verb agreement. Remember to keep emphasizing good use of grammar when speaking at home!
Reading: We continued our work this week on improving our fluency. One aspect of this is to increase our sight word vocabulary. I've really been pushing the kids to expand their instant recognition of increasingly more challenging words and we've been playing lots of partner games to do this. We also worked on our speed and tension when reading, using good expression and trying to avoid "choppy" reading. We also began our new and very exciting chapter book, The White Giraffe. This is a story about a girl named Martine who is sent to live on a game reserve in South Africa. She encounters many adventures while on a quest to find out if the mythical "white giraffe" really exists!
Writing: We took a short break from formal writing instruction this week. We will begin our final genre next week, response to literature. Our writing instruction this week really focused on the use of correct grammar. We listened to our chapter book, The White Giraffe, and then wrote sentences describing the two main characters in the book.
Math: We have continued our study of finding strategies on our own to solve complex word problems. Our focus has moved from following the four-step process to coming up with our own strategy that suits the problem. I have really enjoyed seeing the deeper understanding the children have shown me this week. They are learning to be independent thinkers and to really defend how and why they got certain answers. Awesome!
Science: We began our unit on Animal Needs. We read several books on what animals need to survive. We also created our own animal needs book to share with others.
Class News and Reminders...
Congratulations to Keaton Abrams for being chosen as our Teacher's Helper! Way to go!
Thank you to the Meireles' for sending in class snack, even when Cristina was out sick a few days this week!
Please make sure your child is reading every night. Every grade level has a set amount of required nightly reading and the reason for this is how greatly all academic areas are improved when your child is a strong reader. With the busy spring season upon us, I will be very LENIENT with homework, but I will not be so with my AR requirements. The two passing tests per week is the minimum children should be reading. I really hate to have children spend their fun Friday time reading, so please help me out by making sure your child is reading at home and bringing those books back to school for the tests.
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