Week of February 8, 2016
______________‘s
Reading Log & Newsletter
Today I read with… Comments…
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:
Sunday:
Parent/Teacher conferences will be held again on March 11 th . The district gives teachers just this one day, so I would greatly appreciate it if you could make every effort to be available for 20 minutes between 7:30 am and 5:30 pm on this day so we can discuss your child’s progress. If you have extenuating circumstances, we can work together to find an alternate time during that week that works for both of us. More information about scheduling your conference will be coming as we get closer to
March 11 th .
IMPORTANT DATES and REMINDERS:
This week is Colors Week!
Monday- Rainbow
Tuesday – Green
Wednesday – Yellow
Thursday – Blue
Friday - Red
Our Friendship Celebration will be on Friday, February
12 th . Students will exchange
Valentine cards.
Mrs. McCormack will do a literacy activity with us on the afternoon of
Wednesday, February 10 th .
(I will have a subtitute for that afternoon.)
Bike/Walk to School Day in
Friday, February 12th!
We will have a dental health presentation on
Thursday, February 11th at
2:15.
February Vacation is
February 15 th – 19 th !

Week of February 8, 2016
Math: Last week we learned the vocabulary for measuring length and height. We practiced comparing objects of different lengths and heights using non-standard units. Students learned the importance of using a starting line when comparing length and height. Our fluency practice is going well and our new calendar math packets are giving us extra practice with number bonds, place value, patterns, fact families and balanced equations.
Word Study: We looked at the “oy” and “ou” spelling patterns last week and learned that they make more than one sound. We have been doing Making Words more frequently in class; I have decided to discontinue the
Making Words homework because I consistently have 4-5 students who do not have their envelopes and even more who do not bring the homework back to school. We will continue using Making Words as a way to learn about spelling patterns in class. Students finished up with their personal sorts and practiced their skills using our Word Study centers. We will be reassessing to get new personal words as well as to see what spelling patterns they have mastered so I can make sure their sorts match the skills they need to work on. In addition, we have been working on our handwriting (the expectations have risen!) and fixing sentences to make sure
Word Wall words are spelled correctly, each sentence begins with a capital letter, and that each sentence ends with punctuation – this is pretty challenging for many of the kids, but they are working hard!
Reader’s Workshop: Our character study continued with students practicing talking about their characters with their reading partners. They learned that using sticky notes to mark places where they notice things about their characters can help them learn more AND help them decide what to share with others. We began working on writing about our characters, which is pretty challenging at this time of the year.
Writer’s Workshop: We learned that nonfiction writers think about what type of paper to use to best teach their reader in each chapter of their books. Students practiced writing introductions and conclusions, an important skill that first graders are expected to do regularly by the end of the school year – we are off to a great start!
Social Studies/Science: Students practiced watching a movie “like a scientist” while we watched a 15 minute video about winter. They wrote down important facts they learned and then created a page using Pixie in the computer lab showing what they learned. We read “Flat Stanley” and learned about a great program our
Brunswick Police Department has started; each Friday one child’s Flat Stanley will do a ride along with an officer. The adventure will be documented and shared on the Brunswick Police Department’s Facebook page.
We made our Stanley’s and they will be added to the collection for a chance to be a police officer for a day.