Get caught up on what we've been up to the last two weeks!
Literacy
During the last two weeks, the children have been working on our reading and writing unit on penguins. Last week, we started a RAN organizer on the back board, similar to the one they completed during their weather unit. The children talked about what they think they know about penguins. Then, they used Post-It notes to document their previous knowledge. The children also came up with their wonderings, questions they would like to research about penguins. They recorded these on penguins and we hung them on the RAN organizer. As we continue through the unit, the children will be able to move Post-It's around on the RAN depending on the information they learn.
The children have also been working on researching penguins. Each child has their own Penguin Stop & Jot journal. As they have been listening to nonfiction texts about penguins, they have been using Post-It notes to jot down facts that they think are interesting or important. By practicing this skill, the children are thinking critically about nonfiction material, as well as preparing for future research projects.
Writing
As part of our penguin unit, the children documented their previous knowledge about penguins. They completed a short writing piece about what they think they know about penguins. The children turned their writing into a penguin art project. Their penguin projects look great hanging from the ceiling.
Today, the children took all of their Stop & Jot Post-It notes and arranged them into categories. They labeled each of their pages with a heading that matched the facts on the Post-It notes. Next week, they will turn their Stop & Jot notes into a nonfiction book about penguins. The writers are so excited about their writing and they can not wait to begin publishing. Ask your writer about their favorite penguin facts!
Grammar Notebooks:
This week, the children were introduced to contractions. They learned that a contraction is a short form of two words. The words are put together and letters are left out. An apostrophe shows where letters have been left out.
Math
Last week, the children have worked on fact families, measuring (they were introduced to the centimeter), practiced finding the missing input and output numbers in “What’s My Rule?” problems, and practiced addition facts by playing, Tric Trac.
This week, the children learned about quarters. The children worked with counting combinations of quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies. Please continue to practice this skill at home!
This week, the children learned about quarters. The children worked with counting combinations of quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies. Please continue to practice this skill at home!
On Tuesday, the children worked with telling time using both a digital and analog clock. They had to record time on a digital clock given the time on an analog clock and vise versa. Here are two links to a game called, Stop The Clock, the children can practice matching digital time to the correct analog clock.
On Wednesday, the children were introduced to, My Reference Book. The children learned that this book may be used as a reference during math time in first and second grade. The children explored the table of contents and used it to find the page numbers that the different math topics were located on. After exploring the book, the children worked with a partner to complete, My Reference Book Scavenger Hunt. Using clues and the book, they recorded their findings in their math journal.
On Thursday, the children used their calculators to see how high they could count in 15 seconds. They reported their largest count to be recorded in our class tally chart. The children found the range by finding the difference between the largest and smallest numbers in our data. Then, the children worked to find the middle value (median) of our class data. Using the class tally chart, they created a bar graph to organize our class data. The children asked and answered questions using the bar graph.
Science
Last week, we started our new science unit. The children were very excited to listen to a clue about the unit before we began. They listened to a sound clip and drew a picture of what they thought we were going to study. The children came up with lots of ideas: fire engine, bee, siren, dog, duck, walrus, etc. They were surprised when they learned that the sound they heard was actually a penguin.
This week, the children enjoyed two science experiments based on penguins. On Monday, the children enjoyed doing an experiment to see how penguin’s feathers keep them warm. The experiment titled, Cozy in the Cold, allowed the children to explore what kept their hands warmer when holding a bag of ice water. Was it an empty bag or a bag filled with air? They enjoyed sharing their findings with the class. Ask your child what they discovered and what they suggested would do a better job of keeping their hands warm.
On Tuesday, the children completed a Penguin Oil Experiment. They experimented with what happened when water was sprayed onto their hands (one covered with oil, and one with no oil). The children recorded their findings. Then, they learned about penguin preening. A process where penguins cover their feathers with oil to make them wind and waterproof.
The children also enjoyed observing penguins using these two live penguin cams. Check them out at home:
Star Students
Trent was our star student last week. Thanks Trent for sharing all about you!
Karis was our star student this week. Thanks Karis for sharing all about you!
Royal Readers
A special thank you to Trent’s grandma and Karis’ dad. Trent’s grandma joined us last week as our Royal Reader. The children enjoyed listening to the two stories that Mrs. Colella read, Oh Say Can You Say? and Miles and Miles of Reptiles. This week, Karis’ Dad joined us. The children loved listening to the two stories that Mr. Depaz read, Happy Birthday to You! and Where Do Balloons Go?
Warm Fuzzy Celebration
In celebration of the children filling their warm fuzzy jar, they enjoyed a PJ and stuffed animal day last Friday. The children were very proud of their hard work!
Happy Birthday
Notes:
-The children have worked very hard this trimester! They brought home their Report Cards to share with you today.
-We will not have a spelling test next week. We will take this opportunity to review our word wall words.
-If your child will be absent next Thursday or Friday please send me an email and let me know. Thank you!
Have a great weekend!
