Weekly News!

It was another busy week in first grade! This week, we began introducing routines for Daily 5 time. Daily 5 will be something that we do each day for roughly an hour. The students have 5 tasks, Read to Self, Read to Someone, Work on Writing, Listen to Reading, and Word Work that they will be completing independently as I work with small Guided Reading groups. It is so important that we set these routines in stone so that they are able to be truly independent and use this time wisely each day! We began by talking about what good readers do, finding “good fit” books, learning the “I PICK” method of choosing books, learning the 3 ways to read a book, and practicing our reading stamina. The students are very excited about learning these routines, and cannot wait to put them into practice. They are doing a fantastic job so far- I cannot wait to see them in action when we start Daily 5! Next week, we will introduce one of each of the five choices each day and practice the routines for that choice. We will then be ready to officially start Daily 5 time the following week!

During Writing Workshop, we have been working hard on our autobiographies. We started by writing about our favorite pet or animal, and then went back to add more details and detail sentences. Next we will write about our favorite toy or game, followed by our favorite things to do. We have continued to practice correct letter formation during handwriting instruction. The handwriting packets the students are working on will stay at school until they are complete, but if you are interested in a separate handwriting packet to use at home for extra practice, please let me know and I can send one of those home with your child!

In math this week, we learned the game, Top-It, which will appear in many difference capacities throughout the year! The students had fun practicing both with their cards in class one day, and in the computer lab to practice with the online version as well. They should now be a little familiar with logging in and finding the Top-It game, so feel free to try this at home! It is great practice! Next we worked on making tallies and using tallies to gather data.

Our Community Helpers social studies unit began this week, with an introduction based on our school helpers, followed by crossing guards, doctors, and firefighters. Next week, we will continue with garbage collectors, librarians, nurses, and police officers. In honor of Patriot Day, we created a class book today based on the book, America Is… by Louse Borden. The students wrote their own ideas about what America Is, and did beautiful illustrations as well!

We are also eagerly working on our class raffle item project for the PTA Progressive Party. When our bookshelf is complete, I will make sure to post pictures so you can see their cute contribution! It really is turning out so nicely, and the children have had a blast working on it. Thank you so much for your support of this project, I know the PTA will be very excited to see the students’ work!

Upcoming Events:
Monday, 9/12: Spirit Wear orders due; Book Orders due
Tuesday, 9/13: Music for Youth demonstration concert 1:30 pm
Friday, 9/16: Constitution Day
Wednesday, 9/21: JILL’S BIRTHDAY!
Friday, 9/23: JOE’S BIRTHDAY!

Have an excellent weekend!!

☺ Mrs. Glaser