November is zipping by! We have been very busy in first grade and we haven't stopped rolling yet! Below you’ll find out what we've been up to in class, the exciting things that are to come, and some ideas on how you can support your student at home.
Classroom Updates
Riggs
We're continuing our very important review of all of the phonograms. Knowledge of the phonograms sets a strong base for both reading and writing, so it is very important that you're reviewing and practicing the phonogram sounds at home with your student. One way to tell which phonograms your student needs to focus on the most is by looking at any quizzes that come home.
Support Idea(s):
- Play “I spy” with the phonogram cards. Lay the phonogram cards out on a table or the floor so that all of them are visible. Take turns with your student to “spy” a phonogram by saying it's sound. The other person can search for and point out the phonogram card that matches the sound.
IEW
The students have been working on locating verbs, nouns, and adjectives in the poems we read. They have also been focusing on finding the main idea, sequencing events, summarizing, and differentiating between informational and story-telling texts.
Support Idea(s):
- When reading with your student, ask them to identify the verbs, adjectives, and nouns in the text.
- Help your student read and recite the poem, Hope by Langston Hughes. Have them practice reciting it to friends and relatives.
Reading
While listening to stories read aloud, the students have been working on comparing and contrasting events, characters, and settings of stories. For example, we have compared Chicken Little to the tale of Medio Pollito, and the classic story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears to Somebody and the Three Blairs. During guided reading groups, the students have continued working on many different skills to improve reading and comprehension. Some of these skills include: book sense, retelling, and identifying genre, characters, main idea, setting, information and table of contents. They have also been working on remembering their phonograms through hands-on games.
Support Idea(s):
- Choose stories that are similar in some way to each other. Ask your student to tell you how the stories are the same. How are they different? Maybe even ask your student to draw you a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast those stories. (We’ve practiced using Venn Diagrams in class!)
Math
During math, these are some of the concepts we have been and will be working on:
- Big ideas: Number and Operations, Data Analysis and Probability, Algebra, Measurement, Process Skills
- fractions can be compared and used to identify equal parts
- when we have a complete set of equal pieces, we have a whole
- tally marks are used to record results on a simple table
- bar graphs are used to display data and information
Support Idea(s):
- When you’re giving your student a snack or food item that can be divided into equal pieces (i.e. apple, banana, orange, sandwich, etc.), practice dividing it into halves, fourths, and eighths. This can also be practiced with paper “snacks”.
- Ask your student to take a poll of your friends and families’ favorite fruits or vegetables when given a few options. Help your student record the data using tallies, and then graph the results.
History
We concluded our study of Columbus and the Conquistadors, and we are beginning our unit on Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. Some key concepts we will be learning about include:
- MESOPOTAMIA: THE “CRADLE OF CIVILIZATION”
- Importance of Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
- Development of writing (cuneiform), why writing is important to the development of civilization
- Code of Hammurabi (early code of laws), why rules and laws are important to the development of civilization
- ANCIENT EGYPT
- Geography: Africa, Sahara Desert, importance of Nile River, floods and farming
- Pharaohs: Tutankhamun, Hatshepsut
- Egyptian religion: Pyramids and mummies, animal gods, Sphinx
- Writing: hieroglyphics
Support Idea(s):
- Talk with your student about what they have learned during our science and history lessons at school. Ask questions and see if they are able to answer them. If they are unable to answer your questions, provide extra support for them by reading books (from the library), or finding appropriate websites on the topics we're studying. Ask questions during and after the reading to encourage involvement and comprehension.
Field Trip Friday, January 11th, 2013
I know that this field trip seems far in the future--but if you would like to be a chaperon, why not sign up now! This field trip is called “Healthy Me”. We will be visiting businesses in downtown Milwaukie that work to educate us about our bodies and ways that we can keep them healthy. If you are interested please contact our classroom field trip volunteer coordinators, Mrs. Sanborn and Mrs. Higgins.
School-Wide Announcements
PTA PIZZA AND BINGO NIGHT!
The next PTA Social is not to be missed!!!
On the evening of Thursday, November 15th,
OUR ENTIRE SCHOOL will be gathering for an incredible night of fun.
Please come to the 1st Annual Pizza and Bingo Night, which will be held in the CHPCS cafeteria from 5:00 until 6:30pm.
The PTA will be serving PIZZA AT ONLY $1 PER SLICE,
and hosting a Bingo game.
Bingo cards will cost $1 each, with the money going towards the fabulous prizes you'll get if you win.
IMPORTANT
NOTE: Each adult that signs up to become a member of the PTA that night
will receive 5 free Bingo cards. Feel free to email Mr. Varis, the PTA
President, with any questions you may have (a.varis@chpcs.org).
Hope to see you there!!!
Head Lice
There was one case of head lice in 5th grade last week. We were alerted by the parent. Student was treated and rechecked. PLEASE check your children prior to return to school on Tuesday! Lice have a way of jumping around. Trash bags will be available Tuesday morning for students to store their backpacks and coats in for the next few weeks.
We have had a great track record for the last couple of years and would love to keep it that way!
Calendar at a Glance:
| Thursday, November 15th | PTA Pizza and BINGO Night, 5:00PM |
| Wednesday, November 21st and Thursday, November 22nd | NO SCHOOL - Thanksgiving Break |
| Thursday, November 29th | All School Assembly, 8:15 (6th grade hosting) |
| Saturday, December 1st | PTA Winter Craft Fair, 10:00AM-2:00PM |
| Monday, December 3rd - Wednesday, December 19th | MAP Testing |
Thank you for your continued support and have a great week!
~Mrs. Varis
No comments:
Post a Comment