Our first class picture for the year!
Gunnar's Dad came to help celebrate his birthday!
This Week...
Dear Parents,
I can not tell you how wonderful it has been to have all your sweet children back at school this week. One of the best benefits of looping is knowing the children so well and jumping right back into things without missing a beat! We have had lots of fun getting to know our new friends in our classroom as well. They have fit right in and we have loved having them in our classroom family.
We will be having our Curriculum Night on Wednesday, August 31, from 6-8, in the classroom. We will most likely have three different thirty minute sessions so that parents with multiple children can attend each of their children's various classrooms. More details will be coming out about this very soon. In the meantime, I wanted to give you some information about our first grade curriculum that will hopefully give you some insight into what we will be learning about this year. Of course, I will talk more about this at curriculum night, but hopefully this will give you an idea about some of the things we will be doing this year.
Word Study:
At CSD, we begin in the early elementary years applying the science and logic of spelling to even the most basic words so the foundation is in place for both basic and upper-level spelling. Memorization is still an important aspect of spelling, but giving students the tools to understand spelling ultimately allows them greater capacity for upper-level spelling. The basis of our "spelling" program is phonograms. A phonogram is a single letter or fixed combination of letters that symbolizes the sounds of speech. We have twenty-six letters in English, but forty-five sounds and over seventy basic phonograms. Through the understanding of these phonograms and a limited number of spelling rules, we will be able to logically explain the spelling of most words. We will be breaking words apart, analyzing them and really understanding why they are spelled they way they are spelled. This is why we call it word study rather then the traditional "spelling." Each week I will introduce and do a daily review of the phonograms we are working on for the week. I will then introduce the words that we will study for the week. In the beginning we will start off with five words. After winter break we will move to ten words. I will teach the children how to mark these words. The marking system helps bring attention to the phonograms and spelling rules that apply to the words. The students are never "tested" on this or expected to do this, again it is just a way to draw attention to the phonograms and rules being taught. I will show you how I do this at curriculum night. We will do a spell check each week to check students progress on their words. If a student misses any words we will know that they need to keep practicing these words and continue to help him/her with these. Your child will be bringing home his/her binder each week with their word list and a list of suggested activities list of ways they can practice these words at home. You do not need to turn anything in to me from this list, but do know the more you practice your words the better your child will become at them.
Sight Words:
Sight words are a very important part of first grade. Just like last year we will continue to introduce new sight words during our literacy time. We will be doing various activities with them to practice these words at school. We will continue to add them to our growing word wall in our classroom and on our personal word walls when we write. Some great ways to practice sight words at home are the same ways that will be on the list in the binder of your word study notebook. Remember you want to make it fun and make sure that what you are doing is developmentally appropriate for your child! Keep in mind they have been in school all day long and that when they get home they need to spend time outside playing! :)
Reading:
I have been and will continue to get updated assessment information on your child. I love listening to each of them read and hearing all the great gains they are making! I will start sending books home as soon as possible. My plan is that I will pull students to read and then send them home with their book to read. I will usually try to send a quick note about what we worked on when we read together. Please have your child read the book to you. They will most likely keep the book for a few days. They can bring it back and forth to school but make sure they read it each night the bring it home. Reading the same book each night reinforces fluency and helps them build their confidence as a reader. Once I meet with them again I will give them a new book. Please know I will try my best to meet with students as much as possible. Also, make sure you continue to read to your child each night. This also helps your child become a better reader! They learn to hear what a fluent reader sounds like. Stop when you come to a word you think they may not know and talk about that new vocabulary word, have your child make predications about what might happen in the story, and most importantly enjoy the magic of reading with your child, soak it in, and enjoy a little one on one time with him/her!
Math:
During Math Workshop time I use math tubs to help differentiate for each student. There is a specific "teacher table" where each student will be called over to work with me or Ms. Alicia and we will individualize based on the needs of each student. I use lots of "games" to teach various math concepts. I will try in my newsletter each week to explain the concept that the game addresses. The students are very engaged and on task during this time and I have seen lots of growth with their math development.
Writing:
We do Writer's Workshop during the week, and I will have the student's writing at various times throughout the day. They will have focused lessons that will teach a specific skill or genre, as well as times when they will do journals/free writes. One of the highlights this year is our bare book, which focuses on a multi-genre piece called the Passion Project. Each child will get to choose a topic he/she is passionate about and research and write lots of different types of pieces about this topic. It is lots of fun and their books are amazing!
Science:
Our science curriculum is integrated throughout our units of study. We have focused lessons on Fridays and we love to get the parents involved this way. We call Fridays Sci Fri Fridays and will be sending out a Sign Up Genius if any parent would like to sign up to lead a favorite science experiment with the class. These were a favorite with the students last year and they look forward to having their parents come in if possible.
Homework:
Hopefully, you have all attended an Open House and heard our school's philosophy on homework. It is our belief, just as research shows, that there is no benefit to giving young children homework, other than having them read. We believe that young children spend a long day at school and when they get home they need to spend their time playing outside, talking with their families and decompressing from the day. Therefore, the only homework that your child will have in first grade will be reading and practicing their word study words. I may occasionally send home a math game for your family to spend time playing together so that you can be involved in what we are learning in math. I hope that you and your child will enjoy some special family time together, as I know it goes so fast! Below is a wonderful article I saw on homework, check it out!
http://www.salon.com/2016/03/
Have a wonderful weekend and encourage your child to get some rest. It's been a long week!
Hugs,
Mrs. Schultz
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