What beautiful weather we are having. Don't worry, for all of you cold weather lovers it's coming back on Friday!! Bundle those kiddos up because the high is 47!!!
This week for Principal's Pride...
Hibiki G.
For being a good friend, a great classmate and a smiling, happy student! We will miss you!
I will have a subsitute, Mrs. Lieurance, on Wednesday. My daycare will be closed so I will be spending the day with my sweet girl!
In Reader's Workshop...
We will be learning to synthesize texts this week. I will post a "how to..." next week so that you can practice this reading strategy at home.
Take home readers are packed and ready to come home today. Please send them back each day. The students are working on comprehension strategies and will have three different books each week to read. The books will be on an independant level, instructional level and frustrational level.
In Word Work...
We will be working on Vowel-r syllables or bossy r's. These are syllables where the vowel is controlled by the r and makes an unexpected sound.
Word Work words: church, turn, first, girl, summer, her, were, very, play, walk, stop
Vocabulary words: your, down, friend, who, them
Challenge words: Texas, picture
In Writer's Workshop...
We will be working with our partners on developing ideas for Small Moments stories and getting them down on paper! We will also begin stretching our words to help us spell things more correctly. This is a very difficult skill for first graders so I do not expect them to be spelling every work correctly by the end of the year. The students will be chosing a story to publish at the end of this week and they will be hanging outside our classroom! They are becoming wonderful authors!
In math...
We will be working on learning about coins and counting small amounts of money. We will be dividing the students into groups according to a pre-assessment and the students will go to various 1st grade classroom to work with another teacher and other students.
In Social Studies...
We will begin our Texas unit this week. We will learn all about Texas!
Have a great week!
Mrs. Caballero
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
This week in First grade...
I can't believe today is already Wednesday. As you can see it's been a whirlwind of a week.
You have, by now, found new calendars for January in your child's take home (daily) folder. The expectation is that they read 10-15 minutes aloud, nightly (5 days a week; 200+ minutes / month) to improve their reading fluency, comprehension and overall self esteem as readers. Please record the number of minutes on the appropriate date. I will take the calendars out at the end of the month and replace them with the new months calendar. Tomorrow I will announce to the students that it is also part of their responsibility as a growing 1st grade to make sure their reading minutes are recorded. At the end of the school year we will have a reading party for the students who met their reading goal from January to mid May.
On Monday we will be welcoming a new person to our classroom. Ms. Brittney Ham, a student teacher from Texas State University, will be joining our class to share in the learning experience. She will gradually take over teaching with my assistance and guidance for about 8 weeks. After that she will take full responsibility over teaching and planning lessons for 2 weeks and then gradually I will take over the responsibilities as she phases out her experience. She will be with us until the end of April. I'm very excited for the students to get to work with her!
This week in Reader's workshop...
We are reading biographies about men and women who lead the Civil Rights movement. We are making connections to events that have happened in our own lives that made us feel not as important as someone else.
Take home readers will begin coming home each day (Monday-Wednesday) with new books each day. The students will be working on a strategy for comprehension through a genre that we will study. Please help your child remember to read their book each night and bring it back for a new one the next day. Two days a week the students have free choice home reading.
In Work Work...
We are reviewing vowel pairs this week. No words.
In Writer's Workshop...
Our little writers have been introduced to their writing partners. Each partner set has a "partner place" in the classroom where they go to work. We discussed the importance of having the right tools for writing so it's just as important to have a buddy also. The students agree on who is partner one and who is partner two. They read each other their stories and ask each other two questions, "Are you done with your story or will you add more?" "How will it go?" They also give feedback to each other about their story. This will help the students write as readers and read like writers.
In math...
We will wrap up our unit on 2D and 3D shapes. We will have a short assessment at the end of the week. We will begin our unit on money next Monday. This unit will cover identifying money and counting small equal amounts (i.e. 1 nickel is 5 pennies). We will also be grouping the students according to ability level, as determined by a pre-assessment, and the students will be going to another classroom to work with a different teacher and group of students. This will allow for focused instruction based on what the students already know.
In Science...
We are learning about Systems and how parts of an object work together. For example, a train and it's parts are a system. Without wheels to go on the track a train would not work properly. Today the students wrote what they thought a system was on a sticky note and also tried to think of an example of a system after we did a little background reading.
On Friday we will have Show and Tell in the afternoon. Please assist your child in finding an example of a system to bring. They will need to be able to explain it's parts and how they work together.
You have, by now, found new calendars for January in your child's take home (daily) folder. The expectation is that they read 10-15 minutes aloud, nightly (5 days a week; 200+ minutes / month) to improve their reading fluency, comprehension and overall self esteem as readers. Please record the number of minutes on the appropriate date. I will take the calendars out at the end of the month and replace them with the new months calendar. Tomorrow I will announce to the students that it is also part of their responsibility as a growing 1st grade to make sure their reading minutes are recorded. At the end of the school year we will have a reading party for the students who met their reading goal from January to mid May.
On Monday we will be welcoming a new person to our classroom. Ms. Brittney Ham, a student teacher from Texas State University, will be joining our class to share in the learning experience. She will gradually take over teaching with my assistance and guidance for about 8 weeks. After that she will take full responsibility over teaching and planning lessons for 2 weeks and then gradually I will take over the responsibilities as she phases out her experience. She will be with us until the end of April. I'm very excited for the students to get to work with her!
This week in Reader's workshop...
We are reading biographies about men and women who lead the Civil Rights movement. We are making connections to events that have happened in our own lives that made us feel not as important as someone else.
Take home readers will begin coming home each day (Monday-Wednesday) with new books each day. The students will be working on a strategy for comprehension through a genre that we will study. Please help your child remember to read their book each night and bring it back for a new one the next day. Two days a week the students have free choice home reading.
In Work Work...
We are reviewing vowel pairs this week. No words.
In Writer's Workshop...
Our little writers have been introduced to their writing partners. Each partner set has a "partner place" in the classroom where they go to work. We discussed the importance of having the right tools for writing so it's just as important to have a buddy also. The students agree on who is partner one and who is partner two. They read each other their stories and ask each other two questions, "Are you done with your story or will you add more?" "How will it go?" They also give feedback to each other about their story. This will help the students write as readers and read like writers.
In math...
We will wrap up our unit on 2D and 3D shapes. We will have a short assessment at the end of the week. We will begin our unit on money next Monday. This unit will cover identifying money and counting small equal amounts (i.e. 1 nickel is 5 pennies). We will also be grouping the students according to ability level, as determined by a pre-assessment, and the students will be going to another classroom to work with a different teacher and group of students. This will allow for focused instruction based on what the students already know.
In Science...
We are learning about Systems and how parts of an object work together. For example, a train and it's parts are a system. Without wheels to go on the track a train would not work properly. Today the students wrote what they thought a system was on a sticky note and also tried to think of an example of a system after we did a little background reading.
On Friday we will have Show and Tell in the afternoon. Please assist your child in finding an example of a system to bring. They will need to be able to explain it's parts and how they work together.
Monday, January 11, 2010
This week in First grade...
It's cold outside!! Brr! Please send your child in clothing that covers their arms and legs while it is chilly. We will still go outside unless it is below 32 degrees.
Report cards will go home today!
Last week we completed our unit on the Chinese New Year celebration. The students did a wonderful job of making our Chinese dragon. When it came time for our dragon parade on Friday they were so excited. I am using this lesson/unit for a National Board Entry that deals with Social Studies and the Arts. We videotaped a short portion of the dragon dance and as soon as I get it converted to a digital format I will post it on the website. I was so proud of the students and their hard work!
In Reader's workshop...
There will be no take home readers this week. I will be completing assessments and evaluating all of the students progress so far this year. After assessments are complete I will send home a progress report updating you on how your child is doing.
We will continue learning about biographies and the people they are about. Today we learned about Harriet Tubman and why she was a brave woman.
In Writer's Workshop...
We will continue our work on writing "small moments" stories. I've been modeling what a small moments story looks and sounds like each day.
In Spelling...
We began an assessment to identify levels of spelling abilities. The students were given a short spelling test to assess their knowledge of phonemes (individual sounds) and how they go together to make words. After the assessments are complete we will begin a program called Words Their Way. This program is designed to be used with students who are leveled into flexible groups to work on spelling through games and interactive lessons. They will begin at a level that will challenge them as individuals so that they can progress throughout the year.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
In Math...
We will continue to learn about shapes and their attributes. Today we are making a shape poster to advertise a shape by drawing a picture of it and describing it. We made a list last week of 2D and 3D shapes to have up in our room as we learn about them.
In Social Studies...
We will be wrapping up our unit on Economics. This week we will talk about how to earn money and businesses.
Stay warm!
Mrs. Caballero
Report cards will go home today!
Last week we completed our unit on the Chinese New Year celebration. The students did a wonderful job of making our Chinese dragon. When it came time for our dragon parade on Friday they were so excited. I am using this lesson/unit for a National Board Entry that deals with Social Studies and the Arts. We videotaped a short portion of the dragon dance and as soon as I get it converted to a digital format I will post it on the website. I was so proud of the students and their hard work!
In Reader's workshop...
There will be no take home readers this week. I will be completing assessments and evaluating all of the students progress so far this year. After assessments are complete I will send home a progress report updating you on how your child is doing.
We will continue learning about biographies and the people they are about. Today we learned about Harriet Tubman and why she was a brave woman.
In Writer's Workshop...
We will continue our work on writing "small moments" stories. I've been modeling what a small moments story looks and sounds like each day.
In Spelling...
We began an assessment to identify levels of spelling abilities. The students were given a short spelling test to assess their knowledge of phonemes (individual sounds) and how they go together to make words. After the assessments are complete we will begin a program called Words Their Way. This program is designed to be used with students who are leveled into flexible groups to work on spelling through games and interactive lessons. They will begin at a level that will challenge them as individuals so that they can progress throughout the year.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
In Math...
We will continue to learn about shapes and their attributes. Today we are making a shape poster to advertise a shape by drawing a picture of it and describing it. We made a list last week of 2D and 3D shapes to have up in our room as we learn about them.
In Social Studies...
We will be wrapping up our unit on Economics. This week we will talk about how to earn money and businesses.
Stay warm!
Mrs. Caballero
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
This week in First Grade...
Welcome back everyone! I hope you all had a nice break and relaxed! I know everyone at my house sure did! Yesterday we got a new student! Welcome Xavier! We're so excited to have you in our class!
Reminders:
Science Fair forms are due Jan 11th
This week in Reader's Workshop...
We are reading and learning about the Chinese New Year! On Thursday we are going to make our own Chinese Dragon and dance him around 1st grade at the end of the day on Friday. The students are so excited to learn about different cultures and take part in some of their traditions.
We will also be reading about famous people and learning about biographies for the next two weeks. Today we started by discussing Abraham Lincoln.
This week in Word Work...
We are learning about tricky vowels. The saying is. "When two vowels go a walkin' the first one does the talkin' ". It's cute and helps them remember how to spell words with vowel pairs.
Word Work words: float, boat, coat, throat, cloak
Vocabulary words: boy, could, here, red, old
Challenge words: biography, service
In Writer's Workshop...
We have started to think about stretching small moments. We read a few excerpts from A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams. We really listened to how she added a lot of details to help the reader visualize what was going on. We practiced by first verbally rehearsing with a partner to put our stories into words then by writing our words with a lot of detail and drawing a picture plan to help us pick details out.
In Math...
We began our unit on two dimensional and three dimensional shapes. We will learn about the attributes of the shapes and that you can put shapes together to make new shapes.
In Social Studies...
We began our unit on Economics. We will first discuss wants versus needs then we we learn about good and services and how to tell the difference between the two.
Have a warm week!
Mrs. Caballero
Reminders:
Science Fair forms are due Jan 11th
This week in Reader's Workshop...
We are reading and learning about the Chinese New Year! On Thursday we are going to make our own Chinese Dragon and dance him around 1st grade at the end of the day on Friday. The students are so excited to learn about different cultures and take part in some of their traditions.
We will also be reading about famous people and learning about biographies for the next two weeks. Today we started by discussing Abraham Lincoln.
This week in Word Work...
We are learning about tricky vowels. The saying is. "When two vowels go a walkin' the first one does the talkin' ". It's cute and helps them remember how to spell words with vowel pairs.
Word Work words: float, boat, coat, throat, cloak
Vocabulary words: boy, could, here, red, old
Challenge words: biography, service
In Writer's Workshop...
We have started to think about stretching small moments. We read a few excerpts from A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams. We really listened to how she added a lot of details to help the reader visualize what was going on. We practiced by first verbally rehearsing with a partner to put our stories into words then by writing our words with a lot of detail and drawing a picture plan to help us pick details out.
In Math...
We began our unit on two dimensional and three dimensional shapes. We will learn about the attributes of the shapes and that you can put shapes together to make new shapes.
In Social Studies...
We began our unit on Economics. We will first discuss wants versus needs then we we learn about good and services and how to tell the difference between the two.
Have a warm week!
Mrs. Caballero
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