Pumpkin Day Fun!

Pumpkin Math and Pumpkin Carving

On Wednesday morning, the children enjoyed a trip to the Dryden Pumpkin Patch to select their very own pumpkin. They had so much fun despite the rainy weather!

Then, later in the morning the children became pumpkin investigators as they used their pumpkin to complete a pumpkin math packet. The investigators began by estimating the height, weight, measurement, and number of lines on their pumpkin. Then using their investigative tools they found out the correct height, weight, measurement, and number of lines on their pumpkin. They also, drew a picture of what they wanted their carved pumpkin to look like. We even did an experiment to see if pumpkins sink or float.

In the afternoon, the children loved having a family member or volunteer come in to help them carve their pumpkin. What a sight it was to see the children and volunteers hard at work carving so many pumpkins. Thank you to everyone for coming and making this an enjoyable event for the children. The pumpkins looked great! Thank you also to all of you who helped clean up the classroom after pumpkin carving, I appreciate all your help! Enjoy all the photos of our fun filled day

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News You Can Use!

Hello 1-1 Families! Here are a few updates from the last few weeks! There are also some important notes at the bottom!

Literacy

During readers workshop over the last two weeks the readers have been hard at work. They have been practicing building their reading stamina and applying the skills and strategies we have learned during our whole group lessons.

Our lessons have focused on:

-“Just Right Books” (Ask your child how to pick a Just Right Book and how to identify books that are Too Easy or Too Hard).

-Digging into Genres (Identifying components and features of Poetry, Fiction, and Nonfiction)

-Retelling 

-Building Stamina

-Stop, Think, Write (The children worked on stopping, thinking and writing down notes about what they are reading).

-Do you have a Balanced Reading Diet?

Writing

In writing, the children zoomed in on their favorite small moment and began writing. The children will take this piece all the way through the writing process. They have completed work on their rough drafts and have reread their story to work on adding additional detail. The children also shared their writing with the class and worked on giving peer feedback through “glows” and “grows.

Math

In Math, the children were introduced to change to more number stories and change to less number stories. The children also learned how to write addition and subtraction number models. 

Tomorrow, the children will review all the concepts from Unit 2 using Mimio vote. They will review different strategies to help them solve different math problems from Unit 2. On Tuesday, they will take their Unit 2 math test. I will send their tests home later this week when everyone has had a chance to complete the test.

Science

The scientists have been working hard on their Collecting and Examining Life Unit. Look at all the great lessons they have been engaged in recently!

-Comparing animals and plants

-What’s Alive (Mystery Substance A and B)

-Observing Crickets

-Studying Gold Fish

-Identifying three plant parts: the stem, leaf, and fruit

-Seed dispersal

Art Appreciation

On Friday, Mrs. Barbieri came in and the children had their 1st Art Appreciation presentation. They learned about a detailed African Mask. They discussed the mask in detail, noting colors, materials used, and texture. Then the children got to create their own mask while listening to some African music. Thank you, Mrs Barbieri!

Star Students

Thank you to our first three star students: Jake, Oliver, and Alex. We really enjoyed learning more about each of you!

Royal Readers

We have been lucky enough to have some fabulous Royal Readers over the last 3 weeks. Thank you to Mrs. Zimmermann, Mr. Wilt, and Mr. Williams. The children loved listening to the wonderful books you all read. We look forward to more Royal Readers as the year continues. 

Birthday 

Two weeks ago, we celebrated Cara’s birthday. Happy Birthday Cara!

Halloween Notes

Monday, October 31st is the Halloween Parade. It will start at about 1:30. We will parade out the front doors and head north on Dryden to Fairview, west on Fairview to Bristol, south on Bristol to Rockwell, east on Rockwell to Lincoln, returning to the school  playground area. Following the parade, the students will have a brief recess period, then return to our classroom for some fun activities. For more information on Halloween lunch procedures and costume questions read this weeks Dolphin Splash. A letter will come home in tomorrow’s backpack mail asking you if your child will be having home lunch on Halloween. Please fill out the note and return it by this Friday, October 28th. Thank you!

Notes:

- PJ day is tomorrow, Monday, October 24th! 

-Remember our Pumpkin Carving day is this Thursday, October 26th at 1:15. If you are the adult coming to our pumpkin carving day please plan to come in one day this week to have your diver’s license scanned (if you have not volunteered at Dryden before). Everyone must have their license scanned before they can come to our classroom. Stopping by earlier this week will keep you from waiting in a long line the day of pumpkin carving. I look forward to seeing all our parent/ family volunteers. Please remember to bring a large scooping spoon!! 

-On Friday, October 21st we kicked off Character Counts/Red Ribbon Week! It will continue into this week. Everyone is invited to wear a special color each day of the week to promote each Character Counts pillar:

*Monday, October 24—Wear YELLOW for RESPECT

*Tuesday, October 25—Wear RED for CARING

*Wednesday, October 26—Wear BLUE for TRUST

*Thursday, October 27—ORANGE for FAIRNESS

*Friday, October 28—Wear PURPLE for CITIZENSHIP