October 1, 2010
Dear Parents,
Wow! It sure seems strange to be in October already. We have had a very
busy week. We finished up with Apples and did a few activities involving
seasons. We will begin a month-long Fall unit that will consist of Spiders, Bats,
Bones and Halloween activities. This will be intermixed with Read and Respond
activities centered around both fiction and non-fiction texts. During this time, we
will learn how to respond to books that the students read or that are read to them.
Here are some quick, fun math game ideas that you might like to try at home over
the next few weeks:
*Add a Deck of Cards - using only the number cards and aces (no face cards) add
combinations of ten (0+10, 1+9, 2+8, 3+7, 4+6, 5+5). What is the total by adding all the
combinations? See if your child can do this in under three minutes. We have been
working on partners for 10 and this is a great game to reinforce this skill.
*Play “War” using the number cards and aces. Our math book calls this game
“Top It”. Divide a deck of cards between two players. Each player draws the top card
off of their deck. Whoever has the highest number wins both cards. If both cards are the
same, a “war” occurs (the kids know how to do this). More advanced math students can
draw two cards and add them together, then find which player has the higher number.
*Make sure your child knows their doubles: 1+1=2 through 10+10=20. This
will be very important to memorize!
We are working on our Mad Minutes and the kids seem to really enjoy this time.
We will work throughout the year to get faster at recalling these math facts, as quick
recall makes problem solving much easier in the upper grades.
Next week’s sight vocabulary words are:
I have enjoyed talking with you about your child’s progress during conferences.
Remember that there will be no school for students on October 14th and 15th.
Respectfully,