Nature Adventure

We had another magical day in the woods yesterday for Nature Adventure.  Three other first grade classrooms joined us in an all day event to celebrate the end of the fall season in the woods.

We made nature crafts, hiked the woods to re-visit the debris shelters we made earlier in the year, cooked bread on a stick and apples over a fire, learned about ropes and used them to climb a small hill, and took part in a nature scavenger hunt.  Mid-day all of the classes came together to sing and hear a story told by our naturalist Amy.

With all of the exciting things we did yesterday, my favorite memories are witnessing the discoveries and joys the children had in being in the woods.  From observing icicles forming to the joy in watching a leaf fall from the sky.  It was magical.

Publishing Party

On Wednesday, December 14, our class invited our 3rd grade buddies to our room for a publishing party.  We have been working very hard on writing "Small Moments", or memoirs.  Many of the first graders chose to read their stories to the entire group, while others quietly shared their writing with their individual buddies.  We celebrated our accomplishment with apple cider and popcorn and enjoyed the time to connect with our 3^rd grade friends.

Small Moments

We have been working hard on writing personal narratives, "small moments", this month.  We worked on stretching out our ideas across several pages, planning our thoughts by saying our stories aloud before writing them, and zooming in our stories with a strong focus.  We will end our work this week by discussing how to write an effective ending.

Veteran's Day and 11-11-11

We had a fun themed day today with our celebration of 11-11-11 and Veteran's Day.  Highlights include walking in the parade and seeing REAL veterans (the kids were so excited), and lots of activities around the number 11.  We read 11 books, wrote 11 digraphs in shaving cream (messy but fun), did 11 jumping jacks, wrote number sentences for 11, and made collections of 11 things found in the classroom.
It was a really great way to end the week!

Nature Adventure

We had an AMAZING day outside.  We ventured to Hubbard Park again and enjoyed a cold, but beautiful morning hiking through tall grasses, woods, and fields.  We listened as our naturalist, Amy, use bird calls to invite a wood thrush, and at least 12 chickadees to the trees within feet of where we were.  We enjoyed our snacks with tea brewed over a fire using a Kelly Kettle.  After some fun games, we finished our day by gathering sticks to make a tri-pod sculpture.  When we returned to school, the students wrote in their science journals and I’ve never seen them so engaged in expressing what they saw, and still wonder about our experience outside.  It was magical.

Writing

The first graders have been "collecting seeds" or ideas for stories this week.  We have been reading the memoir, 26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie de Paola and using his charming story to make connections to our own lives.  These connections will become the seed for a personal narrative.  We have been recording our seeds this week and next week we will choose one seed to stretch out into a story.

Nature Adventure!

We had an amazing day at Hubbard Park yesterday! We explored the beautiful fall toned forest and picked new sit spots. We also picked animal names for the year. I'm the porcupine. Ask your child what his or her name is!

Bridges Math

Students began unit 2 of Bridges Math this week.  Our focus in this unit is on counting, computation, and patterning.  We are working for the first 9 sessions on addition and subtraction.  We began by counting and sorting buttons.  We then separated the buttons into groups with two colors and placed 6 of each color into a paper bag.  Each child gave the bag a shake, pulled out 6 buttons, and recorded their results (5 gold buttons + 1 blue button = 6 buttons.  The children continue working in this manner to explore combinations for the numbers 4-9.

Decoding Words

Students have been working on building a "tool box" of reading strategies they can use when they are stuck on a word during independent reading.  This week we have been discussing how the beginning and end sounds of words can help us solve an unknown word.  We also think about if the word looks right, sounds right, and makes sense. Encourage your child to try these strategies at home!  

Read to Someone

This week we launched the "Read to Someone" portion of our Daily 5 reading block.  During this time, students are working with a partner to practice their independent reading.  This type of reading gives students a fun way of practicing fluent and expressive reading.  It also helps readers increase their reading involvement, attention, and collaboration.  So far we've worked on checking for understanding when listening to a partner read.  When we read with a partner, we sit EEKK.  Can you figure out what this means?  Ask your child to tell you more!

Help Needed with Nature Adventure

Dear Parents,

By this time, many of you will have made it out into the woods with your Kindergartner or first grader.  I hope that your first day went well and that you had as much fun as my daughter's class did!

Your time, energy, and input as a parent is critical to the success of this program. With that in mind, we would like to schedule two meetings - one in the fall (mid-November) and one in the spring -  to share experiences, learn from each other, iron out bumps in the road (yes, there will be many), and make recommendations that will improve the program.  

In addition, we would like to invite you to participate anyone who is interested in developing the program to participate in other ways as well.  Below are some options that the advisory team discussed:
1.  Events - we would like to plan 2-3 events per year - each with multiple goals - community-building, education, and fundraising.  Last year, we had a viewing & discussion of the movie, "Mother Nature's Child" at the Savoy, a year-end celebration & plant sale with the Dave Keller Band, and a garage sale.  We;ve also talked about a winter celebration with hot cider and perhaps a moonlit snow-shoe hike.  So, if you have some good ideas - let's hear 'em.  If you like to organize and run events - then step right up, we need your help.
2. Grant Writing - I have two kind souls pegged for this, but if anyone else wants to be involved in the future, let me know.
3.  Fundraising Committee - Really, number 1 and 2 fit under fundraising.  With this in mind, it would probably make sense to meet periodically to discuss fundraising goals and ideas.
4.  Advisory Committee Input - If you have an interest in helping us mold this program, at a strategic level (eg - determining if/how we can expand into 2nd grade), please be in touch.
5.-100.  Other ideas
We have an immediate opportunity for a few people to help out with the Montpelier Home Tour on October 15th.  Through a very generous offer, we will be able to use this event to raise my for the Nature Adventure Program.  Please contact first grade teacher Susan Koch at susank@mpsvt.org, if a have a little time on October 15th. 
I look forward to seeing everyone in November or around the school.
http://www.montpelierchamberorchestra.org/montpelierhometour2011.cfm

Laury  Saligman
Parent Coordinator for NAP

Nature Adventure

We had a wonderful morning outside today!  We walked to Harrison Field and practiced fox walking, played games, and sang songs.  We rediscovered our “sit spots” from last year or chose new ones.  Finally, we used nets, magnifying glasses, and field guides to explore the insects around us.  When we returned to school, we wrote about one thing we saw, and one thing we are still wondering about in our science journals.  Ask your child to tell you more about our great day!

Upcoming NAP days:

October: 17th

Please send in boots or sneakers, dress your child in layers, and check the weather report for rain or snow.

Bug Day

All five first grade classes participated in a fun-filled bug day.  We walked to Harrison Field and cheered each other on with relay races, ate a bug for snack (peanut butter, crackers, and pretzels), and created bug costumes.  Our day ended with a bug parade through the school.  We had SO much fun!

Our Reading Stamina is Increasing!

The first graders have been working very hard on their independent reading.  Today the entire class read for 16 minutes of focused "read to self"!  We are all feeling very proud of our accomplishment.

4 Winds

We had a wonderful afternoon today with Laura (Jasper's mom) and Laury (Kira's mom).  We began our yearlong study of Cycles in Nature with a look at insect life cycles.  We watched a wonderful puppet show, and learned about complete and simple metamorphosis.  The students used their imaginations to experience the life cycle of a butterfly, role-played some of the ways that insects use their senses to communicate, and completed metamorphosis puzzles to learn the different stages of the two main life cycles of insects.  We can't wait for our next 4 Winds day!

Hopes and Dreams and Rules in School

We have many hopes and dreams in our 1st grade classroom.  As part of our school's Responsive Classroom approach, we foster a desire for learning through goal setting, and work as a community to support each other in accomplishing these goals.   Some first graders are working towards becoming better writers.  Others want support in making new friends.  Take a moment to ask your child about their Hope and Dream for the year.   Brainstorm with them the kinds of things will they need to do in order to reach their goal.

After sharing our Hopes and Dreams, we work as a class to create class rules.  I explain to the children that rules will help ensure that learning occurs and therefore support our Hopes and Dreams.  On the first day of this discussion we made a long list of class rules.  Today, we revisited our list and realized that all of the rules we brainstormed fit nicely into two rules:

Take care of our school community

Respect ourselves and each other

Tomorrow I will ask each student to sign off that they agree with the rules.  I will post them in the room and refer to them often.  Our next step will be to discuss what happens when a rule is broken.  Check back soon to hear more.

In Honor of 9/11

In recognition of 9/11, the first graders took some time from the day to talk about peace.  While we didn't specifically talk about the events of 9/11, I wanted to honor the day by engaging the students in service work.  We read a picture book about all of the ways you can show peace.  One way suggested picking up trash in your community.  I divided the students in small teams and we ventured outside, trash bags in hand, and combed the school grounds for garbage.  The students were very focused on their task, and I think they were quite surprised by how much trash we actually found.  It was a great way to give back to our school community!

 

Building Stamina in Reading

The past few days the first graders have been hard at work building stamina in indepedent reading.  Students began with a choice of reading the words or the pictures of books in their book bins.  We started the timer, and began "read to self".  The first day, we stopped after 3 minutes of successful reading.  As soon as someone is unable to focus, the timer stops and we gather to process our reading.  Each day, we hope to add a few minutes of "read to self" with the goal of students being able to read for thirty or more uninterrupted minutes independently.  Today we made it to 6 minutes!  Check in with your child often to find out how we're progressing!

Bugs, Bugs, Bugs!

Today we started our new math program with a unit on bugs.  This unit happens to tie in perfectly with our science curriculum about insects!  This week students will be sorting, estimating, and counting by 1's, 5's, and 10's as we learn about the life cycles of butterflies, beetles, and praying mantis's.  We'll be learning some new songs to go along with our work, so be sure to ask your child to share these with you!

The First Day of School

I had such a wonderful day with all of your children!  I feel so lucky to be here at Union and even more lucky to be able to work with such wonderful kids!  Here's a snapshot of our day together.

What a Way To Start the School Year!

Welcome Families!

Instead of joining my colleagues at our inservice today, we are all at home recovering from Hurricane Irene.  My husband is busy drying out our flooded basement, and I am playing with my girls and finding some moments to create my very first blog!  This is a really exciting way to connect with everyone and I hope it will be well used by all.  I look forward to seeing everyone on the very first day of school, September 1st!