February and March Update

Hello and Happy Sunday! Welcome to our classroom update from the months of February and March! We have been so busy in first grade and we did a lot of unique activities and projects, as well as a few special days, over the past two months! But first, a few notes as we go into the month of April.

- Spring break will be April 10-14.
- We will be going to the Henry Vilas Zoo on Madison on Wednesday, May 31 from 10:00-2:30. Permission slips will be sent home at the end of April. However, chaperone space is limited so please let me know as soon as possible if you are interested in chaperoning the field trip. Chaperones will be selected on a first come, first serve basis.
- In May, we begin working on placing students into their second grade classrooms. If you would like to provide some more information about where you think your child will learn best, please fill out this form and submit it to me by the end of April.

Our Learning in Literacy:

During February and March, we continued to learn about long vowels. Students worked hard to learn these tough spelling patterns! Here are some of the word activities that students completed!

We also learned about several different language skills over the past two months. Students learned about what synonyms are. We read several Fancy Nancy books and students picked out "fancy" words from the book and we talked about synonyms for those words. Then students picked their favorite synonyms and made a "fancy word wand" to hang up in the classroom!

In March, we practiced writing similes about the colors of the rainbow. Students wrote a simile for each color (example: As red as a strawberry.) and we made rainbow artwork to go with them!

Students learned about inside and outside character traits this month. We picked two characters from a story to make character trait bags. Students decorated the outside of the bag with the characters' outside traits and we wrote notes to put inside the bags with the characters' inside traits.

Finally, in literacy, we are continuing to work on our writing portfolios each week. Can you believe that we just completed our entry for the 30th week of school? Students are working on adding more detail to their writing and are still focusing on using conventions appropriately (punctuation, spacing, upper/lowercase letters, etc).

Our Learning in Math:

Here are some of the skills that we are focusing on in math:

- Telling time to 5 minute increments
- Counting money with quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies
- Determining a rule and applying it to a set of numbers
- Addition and subtraction using multiple strategies
- Measuring in inches and centimeters with a ruler
- Identifying symmetry
- Writing and solving puzzles with numbers up to 1,000

Valentine Heart Math!

Number grid puzzles in the hundreds!

Skip counting into the hundreds!

Symmetry practice with pattern blocks!

Our Learning in Science:

In science, we finished learning about balance and motion. Over the last few weeks, students had the opportunity to complete several technology and engineering based experiments. One favorite experiment is creating and programming tracks for a mini robot names Ozobot. Students use black, red, blue, and green to draw tracks on a piece of paper. Different combination codes tell Ozobot to do different things!

We also enjoyed designing towers using popsicle sticks and clothespins! Students worked together to make very unique and creative structures!

Homeless Care Packages!

In February, we put together our care packages for homeless shelters. Thank you so much to everyone who donated supplies!

Dr. Seuss Read In!

At the beginning of March, we had our Dr. Seuss Read In! Students read Dr. Seuss books and completed Dr. Seuss activities all morning!

Thanks for reading our classroom update! Have a wonderful Sunday!

January Update

Hello and Happy Sunday!

Here are a few notes about the coming month!

- We will be having a Kindness Party on Friday, March 3rd in lieu of a Valentine Party on the 14th. Students are invited to bring their Valentines on the 3rd of March and we will celebrate all of the acts of kindness that our class completes in the month of February. I will be sending home a class list with your child on Monday.
- Parent-Teacher Conferences will be on Thursday, March 2 and Thursday, March 9. I will be sending home a note with your child in the next week or so about conference sign up.


Here's a look at our learning in January!

Our Learning in Literacy:

In January, we began learning about blends and digraphs in words. Students completed several different types of puzzles to help them practice reading and spelling these challenging words!

This past week, we started learning about long vowel spelling patterns with Long A. Learning about long vowels can be very challenging for students at first so please take some extra time at home to work on these words. Help your child find some long vowel words in the books that you are reading at home!

When we start learning about long vowels, we learn about "magic e." The magic e makes the other vowel in the word say its own name. Ask your child about magic e and how it works!

Students also practiced their long a words with a word sort this week!

We spent a lot of time practicing our snap words this month! We even played this Snap Word Scavenger Hunt game! Students had a snap word taped to their forehead. They had to walk around the room and write down the words that each of their classmates had on their foreheads. By process of elimination, students then figured out which word was on their own forehead.

During reading, students learned about a new strategy for helping with comprehension: inferring. We learned that students can infer things from a text to help them understand it better. We introduced this concept by inferring things about me. Students got to take items out of my purse and infer things about me based on what I carry in my purse. They loved it!

During writers workshop, we started learning about "how-to" books. We began writing the steps for "How to Build a Snowman." In the month of February, students will make their own mini books about how to build a snowman!

Our Learning in Math:

Here are some of the skills that we focused on in January:
- Counting dimes, nickels, and pennies
- Comparing numbers using greater than, less than, equal to symbols
- Telling time to the quarter hour
- Using base ten blocks to help with place value (hundreds, tens, and ones)
- Continued practice with addition and subtraction
- Measurement with rulers

Telling time!

Understanding number relationships: 10 more, 10 less, 1 more, 1 less

Before and after number writing in the hundreds!

New challenging tangram puzzles!

Winter measurement!

Number writing books to 1,000!

Skip counting in the hundreds.

 Sorting math facts!

Number grid puzzles!

Skip counting by 5s in the hundreds!

Number grid puzzles, take two!

Our Learning in Science:

In science, we continued to learn about Balance and Motion. Students built tops and rollers this month. They had to use their knowledge of balance and counterweights to get their tops to spin successfully and to create efficient rollers! Here's a peek at the students working on their tops!

I hope that you enjoyed this look at our learning from January. Please let me know if you have any questions. Have a great day!