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!