Friday, January 30th

HAPPY FRIDAY!

We have had a great week!  The weather has been good so these firsties have been outside and playing!  That makes inside time so much easier for them!

And, the three-dimensional map is coming along!!! These students are so creative!  How do we make a swing set? How can we show cars and buses?  They have an answer for everything! 

 

We will complete this project by mid-week next week because…….

THE GREETING CARD COMPANY IS OPENING AGAIN NEXT WEEK FOR VALENTINE’S DAY!!!!!! (And, we don’t have room for a Greeting Card Company AND a three-dimensional map!:)

So, your child will have time to create (and write and address) three valentine cards for friends and/or family members.  If your firstie has some ideas about some people to whom he/she would like to send a valentine card, please send addresses (no more than 3) and stamps. The Greeting Card Company will “officially” re-open on Tuesday, February 3^rd! We will mail our cards no later than Wednesday, February 11^th. (Look for info about our Valentine Party (Feb 12^th) on Tuesday of next week.)

AND, HOW ABOUT THESE MATHEMATICIANS?????

I am so impressed with how these firsties are building models of numbers, recognizing patterns, and talking about how they are getting their answers when solving problems. 

We are working every day, structuring our math time to provide opportunities for students to practice different ways of learning and applying math, as well as fostering opportunities for independent learning and success.

We often work in a large group to introduce new concepts.  Because students internalize and move from concrete to abstract at different levels and rates, it is important for me to meet them in smaller groups and individually as well. During these times students will use math games and activities to provide hands-on practice of math concepts in a variety of ways.  Students will often create their own game board, which provides added practice in the writing and understanding of numbers.

 

WAY TO GO, FIRSTIES!

And, don't forget, no school for students on Monday! Enjoy the long weekend with them!

Friday, January 23rd

MEET SANDY AND DOUG!!!

Sandy (and, Doug, her assistance dog) will be volunteering in our classroom on Fridays! They are both amazing!

So, next week we will be completing our maps!  We are also working hard on our 3-dimensional map of our school and school space! Here is a peek at what we are doing:

               

             

We will be working with addition/subtraction problems with totals up to twenty, and we will review the idea of fact families.  We will also write story problems that show putting numbers into groups of 10. (Today we enjoyed cookies bagged in groups of 10!!)

And, we will be exploring the properties of Liquids!

Thank you for making sure that your firstie returned his/her Book Group book everyday.  We are working hard on reading strategies that will help us become independent readers AND have fun while reading!

We  will be outside whenever the weather allows.  So, please make sure your "firstie" has snow pants, a coat, snow boots, a hat, and mittens every day.  

Yes, we are busy!  AND, WE ARE LEARNING SO MUCH!!!

Thursday, January 22nd

So.... the sun came out for a little while and we all put on our coats, snow pants, boots, gloves, hats, scarves and headed out to explore the Maple Valley Trail!  It starts (we think) across the street from the school. We had a great time walking with friends, talking about all of the tracks we saw in the snow, learning and practicing the safe way to cross streets, and so much more.

 

I am amazed at the conversation and wonder and fun that can happen outdoors (in the wintertime) in just 30 minutes! We have all agreed that our next outing MUST be long enough to take us to the end of the trail!