Week Ending 9/28/18

Our first month of school is over and we're moving on to October!  We've been in school for 17 days so far and we've really settled into a routine and our content area work has really picked up! It's very exciting seeing what students are interested in and what they feel is their strength.

Important Information:

• October 8, is Columbus Day and there is no school.  
• Picture Day has been rescheduled to Monday, October 15th.  
• We have a number of birthdays in October. Parents are invited to come in and read a book to our class on their child's birthday.  Please touch base with me about a week before so we can find a time that works.  Typically, readers come at morning meeting and then can head out to start their day.

3, 2, 1 things you should know about our week...

3 reading workshop skills we focused on were determining whether a book was fiction or non-fiction, tracking our thinking WHILE reading using post-it notes to show either favorite part or new information learned, and how to BUZZ about books using a conversation bookmark to get us started.  

* Ask your child which book they chose to buzz about today at the end of reading workshop. 

2 math activities we worked on during 10-Minute Math at the beginning of our day was showing multiple addition and subtraction sentences to equal 14 and identifying what time it will be ____ minutes.  The new Investigations program is very hands on and student focused!  Math workshop is a time where students independently choose which activity to work on and when done, they move on to a different activity.  All students work on the same skill, but are showing what they know in different ways.  This has already helped create more independence in the classroom regarding their own learning!  We are just really exploring the concepts, math workshop, and 10-Minute Math, but so far I think we're all enjoying it!

1 science activity we worked on was brainstorming words used for observation and making our own observations of a shell by writing and drawing as accurately as we can like scientists do! 

Please be sure to sign up for a conference.  Fall Conference Sign Up

Have a great weekend!

Here's a few pics from math workshop today:

 

Week ending 9/21/18

Hello families! We've really been getting going in room 250 with all our subjects and it's so exciting to see what their interests are and what they feel successful in!

Important information:

• Don't forget!  All About Me bags went home earlier this week and they should come back on Monday so we can begin sharing in class. 
• Picture Day is Wednesday, September 26.
• Open House is Thursday night, September 27th, at 6:00 for K-2 students.  Please remember that this is an adult only evening.  Thanks!
• Thursday, September 27th, is also an early release day with dismissal at 12:30. 
• Please remember to send a note in with your child if there is a dismissal change.  I often have access to email but should it be down or I am out, I would not be able to access it nor would the substitute.  If you know a few days before, that's fine too.  Thank you!  
• Please check out our Amazon Wish List you can find here: Amazon Wish List

3 math skills we worked on this week were showing the number seven in multiple ways with multiple addends too, investigating whether or not the order of the numbers makes a difference with addition, and adding numbers quickly and accurately when playing 5 in a Row.  

* Ask your child to show you 3 ways to show the number 7 or any number under 10.

2 reading strategies we reviewed were what to do with a word you don't know (we listened to Slowly, Slowly, Slowly, said the Sloth to discuss being slow and careful when sounding out) and we discussed taking a book walk before reading a book so they can decide if it's just right for them.  We also talked about iPick which is a strategy for choosing books.  They have bookmarks to use them independently to help choose their own books.  

* Ask your child to share one part of iPick.  

1 writing activity we worked on was writing our weekly letter.  Every Friday, we're writing letters about one thing that happened this week.  We are learning about letter formation, sticking to one idea, adding feelings, and reviewing capitals and punctuation.  

* Ask your child who they wrote to and one thing written in their letter.  

Here's our iPick bookmark:

Week ending 9/14/18

Hello families!
Another week of school is done and it's been another enjoyable week!  I've enjoyed getting to know the students' personalities and I look forward to continue to get to know them as learners this year!

Important Information:

• Wednesday, September 19, there is no school.
• Wednesday, September 26, we have picture day.
• Thursday, September 27, there is an early dismissal at 12:30.  
• Thursday, September 27, there is Open House beginning at 6:00 in our classroom (K-2 classrooms), followed by the auditorium with our principals and PTO, and then classroom time for grades 3-5. 

3, 2, 1 things you should know about our week...

3 math skills we've been reviewing with our new Investigations program are telling time, identifying which numbers are missing on a hundreds chart, and counting coins up to 100.

*Ask your child one activity they worked on in math this week.

2 important people in our classroom are Mrs. Ripley and Mrs. Sherman, our assistants for the classroom.  Mrs. Ripley is here Monday and Tuesday and Mrs. Sherman is here Wednesday through Friday.  They are an important part in our day to day workings of our classroom and in this room, we see us as having three teachers here for your students.  Don't be shy to say "Hello!" if you see them.

1 important writing activity we worked on was writing our hopes and dream for the school year.  It's so important for students to have a hope for the year...something they are striving to achieve!  I can't wait to see how they work on those this school year!

Week ending 9/7/18

Welcome back to school!

What a great week it's been!  I've really enjoyed getting to know your children this week and I look forward to learning even more as the weeks go on.  Thank you for your supply donations, book donations, and money.  We will be getting Raz Kids up and running soon for the students and I'm excited about that!

Important information:

• There is no school on Monday, the 10th or on Wednesday, the 19th.  
• Please remember to send in sneakers for PE on Tuesdays and Fridays.
• Please remember to send in a note with your child in the am if there are dismissal changes.  I have been able to get the emails, yet if I'm not here or there is an email issue, I may not get the message.  
• Thank you for your help with dismissal.  I am asking the students who leave with me to say "Good-bye" and high five and wait for me to say "Good-bye" back so I can continue to make the connection between student and pick up person.  Also, when picking up, please keep away from the doors so we can all exit together as it's often crowded there the first few weeks.

3, 2, 1 things you should know...

3 math activities we've already started are learning to play Guess My Number, using pattern blocks to cover shapes and then finding different ways to cover the same shape, and reviewing what coins are which.  

* Ask your child to play Guess My Number with you...they know how to play!  

2 read aloud we read and discussed were Calvin Can't Fly ( about getting immersed in a book) and Wild About Books (the zoo animals LOVE reading)!  

* Ask your child about a book they were reading today during independent reading time.

1 writing activity we worked on today was writing about five things we did in school this week.  

* It should be in your child's folder, so please ask them to see it.

Here's a snapshot of what we've been working on... All About Me...