News You Can Use!

We had a short but busy week here in 1-1. The children were engaged in all their learning activities. Look at all they accomplished this week!

Writing

This week, the children were hard at work publishing their How-To pieces. Using the app Storykit on their iPads they typed their How-To, each step was typed on a new page. The children used the art tools within the app to illustrate a few of their pages. On Friday, the children took photos of themselves acting out each of their How-To steps. They will insert their photos into their How-To pages. The children will finish publishing their How-To pieces next week and I will post them to the blog. 

Math 

In Math, the children worked with dice sums. They recorded the frequency of their dice sums in their math journals and noted which sums were rolled with the highest frequency. Together as a class we made a tally chart of the sums rolled the most. The children had a discussion about why 6, 7, and 8 were rolled most often.

The children enjoyed playing, Base-1o Exchange. Working with a partner, the children had to take turn rolling a die. They either collected longs or cubes based on their roll. When they had 10 cubes on their mat they had to exchange for a long. The first one to 10 longs (100) won!  

On Thursday, the children worked with Doubles, Doubles +1, and Doubles +2 facts. The children enjoyed learning a Doubles Rap to help them remember their Doubles facts. They also learned strategies that they can use to help them solve Doubles +1 and Doubles +2 math facts. They can start at a Doubles fact and count up 1 or 2, depending on the given math fact.

Science

This week, we concluded our science unit on magnets. The scientists really enjoyed investigating what happens when two magnets interact. They discovered that magnets can push (repel) as well as pull (attract) other magnets. The scientists recorded their observations using their iPad and an app called Explain Everything. They created two slides, one showing the magnets attracting and one showing what happens when the magnets repel. Enjoy their compiled slideshow below!

On Friday, the scientists enjoyed listening to a book about magnets titled, What Makes a Magnet? They discussed different objects that use magnets both at school and at home. The scientists were excited to watch a video about creating your own compass. They learned that the needle of a compass is a magnet and it always pulls in one direction. The scientists completed the unit by reviewing their magnet knowledge and completing our Magnets KWL.

Bee Mine

In preparation for February and Valentine’s Day, the children created bees to hang up in our classroom. They enjoyed creating their Bee Mine Bee and can’t wait to see them buzzing about the classroom! At the end of next week, look for a Valentine’s Day note to come home in your child’s red folder. It will give details about our Valentine’s Day party and valentine giving. 

Happy Birthday

On Wednesday, we celebrated Jacob’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Jacob!

Have a great rest of the weekend! 

News You Can Use!

Literacy

Treasures: 

This week, the children worked with long i (i_e). The children read stories about families. The selections this week were made up of nonfiction, realistic fiction, and a play.  The children had fun acting out the play, Smile Mike. They did a nice job of giving voice to the characters. The children revisited the skill of making and confirming predictions. They made predictions before and during the reading of each story. The children talked about what actually happened after reading each story. 

Grammar Packets:

This week, the children learned that the verbs is and are tell about the present. Is tells about one person, place, or thing. Are tells about more than one person, place, or thing.

Writing:

This week, the children brainstormed a list of How-To writing topics. They chose their favorite topic and began their How-To piece. First, they wrote the list of materials needed for their How-To. Then, they wrote four or more steps explaining how to perform their task. Last, they drew a sketch for each step. On Thursday, the children met with a peer and edited their writing. Next week, the children will publish their How-To writing using their iPads.

During Daily 5 time this week, the children used the StoryKit app on their iPads to write stories. On Friday, the children had a chance to project their stories on the whiteboard and read them to the class. The children were so proud to see their work on the “big screen!” 

Guided Reading Groups:

This week, the children had a chance to record themselves reading one of their guided reading books. After, they listened back to their recording and checked their fluency. Then, they recorded themselves reading the book a second time. They discussed which of their recorded readings sounded the best and why.

Next week, we will be taking a short break from guided reading groups. I will be assessing each child’s reading fluency. The children will be doing their winter CBM, how many words they can correctly read in one minute on a first grade passage. I will begin guided reading again on Friday.

Math 

In Math, the children worked with base-10 blocks to model 2- and 3-digit numbers. They used their base-10 blocks to find sums of 2- and 3-digit numbers. On Tuesday, they compared pairs of 2-digit numbers and then wrote number models using > and <. On Wednesday, the children worked with comparison number stories. They compared groups of objects and then wrote number models to show their solutions. On Thursday, the children used different solution strategies they have learned this year to solve number stories. They had to record number models to match their solution strategies. The children also enjoyed writing their own number stories for other children in the class to solve.

Science

This week, we continued our science unit on magnets. The scientists started the week by, using their iPad and the app PicCollage to sort their photos from last week into two categories, magnetic and non-magnetic.  

On Tuesday, the scientists observed how a magnet can attract a paper clip without touching it. They carried out several  investigations and discovered that the force of a magnet works through several different materials (air, water, paper, plastic, fabric, aluminum foil, index cards, and a plastic cup).

On Wednesday, the scientists discussed whether all magnets have the same pulling strength. As a group of scientists, we brainstormed different ways that we might test the pulling strength of magnets. We then planned an investigation. How many paper clips can each magnet hold? Ask your scientist what magnet had the most pulling strength. 

Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Friday morning, the children listened to the story, Martin’s Big Words. Then, they had a discussion about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his big words (the words that were most important to him). After, The children created a list of six of their own big words. Using the Skitch app on their iPad, they took a photo of themselves and then typed in their six big words. Enjoy the slideshow below, Our Big Words.

Warm Fuzzy Celebration

On Friday, the children were very excited to celebrate filling the warm fuzzy jar. They were proud of how hard they had worked together as a team. The children voted on free choice time with their iPads! They were able to use any of the apps that we have used so far in the classroom. They enjoyed playing individually and collaborating with one another to write stories, play math games, create music, and help each other learn new tricks on the iPads. 

Star Student

Johnny was our star student this week. Thanks Johnny for sharing all about you!

Royal Reader

A special thank you to Johnny’s Mom, she joined us this week as our Royal Reader. The children loved listening to the two stories that Ms. Kukla read, Curious George and the Pizza and Skippyjon Jones.

Notes: 

-Due to the short week, we will not have a spelling test this week. We will be reviewing our word wall words in class.

-Wednesday is a Monday schedule, we will have music and gym! 

-Thank you to those of you who donated syrup to the Odyssey Wheeling Food Drive. If you would still like to help out, they have asked the first grade children to bring in syrup. Thank you!

Have a great rest of the weekend! 

News You Can Use!

Literacy

Treasures: 

This week, the children worked with digraphs (ch, tch, and wh). The children read stories about the sun and shadows. The selections this week were made up of nonfiction, realistic fiction, and a poem. The children worked with identifying the main idea and supporting details. They were very excited to experiment with shadows out at recess. The children came back in throughout the week and reported if their shadows had been in front of, behind, or next to them. They also connected that in the morning their shadows were larger then during lunch recess. 

Grammar Packets:

This week, the children were introduced to past tense verbs. They learned that a past tense verb tells about action that happened in the past. 

Writing:

This week, we started our new writing unit on How-To Writing. The children watched a short Brainpop video on How-To’s and then they took turns acting out examples of how to do things in the classroom. They started by listing the materials needed and then they walked the class through the steps using transition words.

Together as a class, we wrote a How-To paper titled, How To Build A Snowman. The children brainstormed a list of materials needed to build a snowman and then using transition words they wrote down the steps. 

Next week, the children will come up with their own How-To writing topic. This weekend, help your child come up with some ideas of what they would like to write their How-To piece on. 

New Year’s Resolutions

The children also worked on writing New Year’s Resolutions. They came up with one or two goals they have for the new year and wrote them down. They worked very hard on their writing and came up with some wonderful resolutions!

iPads

This month, we have a class set of iPads in the classroom. The children will be using them to enhance their learning. This week, the children worked together to come up with our iPad rules. They are very responsible with the iPads and doing a great job of using the apps we have learned so far. They were excited to take their iPads to both art and music this week. We also have incorporated the iPads into our math and science lessons. Stay tuned to see how else we use the iPads this month.

Math 

In Math, the children worked with base-10 blocks to model whole numbers less than 100. They also identified whole numbers modeled by base-10 blocks. They exchanged base-10 cubes and longs to show different representations of the same numbers. On Tuesday, the children worked with place value on their calculators and number grids. They investigated place-value digit patterns. On Wednesday, the children were introduced to the symbols for greater than (>) and less than (<). They used their iPads to compare and record whole numbers using <,>, and =. The children enjoyed playing Top-It with Relation Symbols (<,>, and =).

On Thursday, the children had math explorations, they explored area, weight, and counting. Using a given unit (index cards), they worked as a group to figure out the area of the top of their desk. Then using a pan balance they had to find sets of objects that weighed about the same. Their last exploration was on counting large numbers of pennies, they had to come up with a plan and carry it out to successfully count their pennies. Then they exchanged their pennies for dimes and nickels to show the same amount with the fewest possible coins. 

The children also used their iPads this week to practice their math facts and review telling time to the nearest hour, half hour, and quarter hour. 

Science

This week, we started our new science unit on magnets. The scientists enjoyed two lessons. The first lesson, focused on exploring what happens to a magnetic object when it is placed close to a magnet. The scientists learned that a magnet causes a push or pull (force). 

In lesson two, the scientists went on a magnetic scavenger hunt. Using their own magnet, they had to find and test objects in the classroom that they thought were magnetic. They learned that magnets pull on (attract) some materials and not others. After they tested their objects, the scientists used their iPads to take pictures of the objects they tested. Next week, the scientists will use an app called Pic Collage to sort their photos into two categories, magnetic and non-magnetic.  

Chinese New Year
On Thursday, Mrs. Hays (a Dryden Parent) came in and presented on Chinese New Year. The children enjoyed learning about the preparations, special foods, and celebrations that are part of Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year begins February 10th. Thank you, Mrs. Hays!

 

Happy Birthday

On Wednesday we celebrated Diana’s Birthday. Happy Birthday Diana!

Notes: 

-Congratulations to all my 1-1 Winter Reading Challenge participants. I am so proud of all the reading you did over winter break. Thank you for coming to celebrate with me, I hope you enjoyed your lunch bunch fun!

-The Dryden Odyssey students are holding an Odyssey Wheeling Food Drive. If you would like to help out, they have asked the first grade children to bring in syrup. Thank you!

Have a great rest of the weekend!  

Exciting Mail!

Guess what came in the mail yesterday!

We received a response to the letters that the children wrote to author, Mo Willems during our letter writing unit. The children were very excited to read the letter from Mr. Willems. In his letter, Mr. Willems answered some of the children's questions and told them to visit his web site if they would like to learn more about him and his books. Mr. Willems also complimented the children on their great letters!

He also included two signed posters, which we have proudly displayed in the classroom! 

Thanks, Mo Willems!

 Learn more about Mo Willems and his books at:

http://www.mowillems.com/

http://mowillemsfaq.blogspot.com/