 |
| This week was Teacher Appreciation Week, and the Stormonth teachers were spoiled with breakfast, lunch, yoga, gift cards, and ice cream. Thanks so much for your contributions! I am SO incredibly grateful to spend my days learning alongside your children! |
Can you believe it's already May? I'm astonished at how quickly our year together in first grade is coming to a close. The kiddos have been busy showing what they know in reading during our Fountas & Pinnell, PALS and MAP assessments. The PALS assessment also looks at their spelling development. Next Tuesday morning we'll take our MAP Math test to show what we know in that area. It's all a great way for us to see the growth each child has made and to see what they're ready to learn next. Here's a sneak peek at our week:
On Tuesday we finished up our nonfiction units in Reading and Writing. These units have gone hand-in-hand, with students reading nonfiction books on their chosen animal, making notes of important details about habitat, babies, food and physical traits and then putting this information into their own words in their books. We have a few loose ends still, but most books are ready for lamination and binding. I/we can't wait for you to see them!
On Wednesday we began our realistic fiction character units in both reading and writing. This is a really exciting unit, and the kiddos have been very anxious for it, particularly the writing portion! Ask your writer about the character s/he is imagining, what s/he is like, what kind of realistic adventures s/he will have, what problems s/he will encounter, and how s/he will solve those problems. While reading our realistic fiction books, we've focused on taking a sneak peek to find out where the characters are going and what they'll be doing, using the storyline to predict, stopping and thinking along the way, and retelling the most important parts.   |
| Our new read-aloud is Russell and Elisa by Johanna Hurwitz. She's one of our mentor authors for our new reading/writing units. |
 |
| We are learning to "Stop and Jot" the most important parts of the fiction books we're reading. |
 |
| We use these mini blank books to touch and retell with our partners. |
Here are some of our friends retelling the most important parts of the books they read during read to self.
In Math we completed our unit 7 geometry assessment and began our new unit on double-digit addition strategies. Please be patient with the different strategies that the kiddos are learning. While they may seem a bit convoluted, they are developing important math concepts.
In Science we have been busy watching our seeds grow and continued our exploration of soils. We added water to sand, clay and humus to see how it would change and if we could roll it into a ball. For most partnerships, only clay made a ball.
It was Teacher Appreciation Week, and let me tell you... I feel very appreciated every day here at Stormonth. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
And, finally, I want to wish all the moms a very Happy Mother's Day. I hope you all know how appreciated you are and that you find time to relax with those you love this weekend. Here is a little something I love to share with all the moms on this day:
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you’ve had a baby.
Somebody doesn’t know that once you’re a mother, “normal” is history.
Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct.
Somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
Somebody said being a mother is boring.
Somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver’s permit.
Somebody said if you’re a “good” mother, your child will turn out “good.”
Somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.
Somebody said “good” mothers never raise their voices.
Somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor’s kitchen window.
Somebody said you don’t need an education to be a mother.
Somebody never helped a fourth grader with math.
Somebody said you can’t love the fifth child as much as you love the first.
Somebody doesn’t have five children.
Somebody said a mother can find the answers to her child-rearing questions in books.
Somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery.
Somebody never watched her “baby” head out the door the first day of kindergarten (or to summer camp or college).
Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back.
Somebody never organized giggling Daisys, Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, and Seniors to sell cookies.
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married.
Somebody doesn’t know that marriage adds a new son- or daughter-in-law to a mother’s heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother’s job is done when her last child leaves home.
Somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don’t need to tell her.
Somebody isn’t a mother.
Wishing you all a delightful Mother’s Day!
Next Monday we'll take part in the Pedestrian Safety program. Please be sure to turn in your permission slip for this event.Somebody said being a mother is boring.
Somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver’s permit.
Somebody said if you’re a “good” mother, your child will turn out “good.”
Somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.
Somebody said “good” mothers never raise their voices.
Somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor’s kitchen window.
Somebody said you don’t need an education to be a mother.
Somebody never helped a fourth grader with math.
Somebody said you can’t love the fifth child as much as you love the first.
Somebody doesn’t have five children.
Somebody said a mother can find the answers to her child-rearing questions in books.
Somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery.
Somebody never watched her “baby” head out the door the first day of kindergarten (or to summer camp or college).
Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back.
Somebody never organized giggling Daisys, Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, and Seniors to sell cookies.
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married.
Somebody doesn’t know that marriage adds a new son- or daughter-in-law to a mother’s heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother’s job is done when her last child leaves home.
Somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don’t need to tell her.
Somebody isn’t a mother.
Wishing you all a delightful Mother’s Day!
Until then...
Michelle
Mark Your Calendars:
May 9: Pedestrian Safety Program 9am (your child MUST have a signed permission slip to take part)
May 10: MAP testing 9:50am
May 11: Early Release Day
May 20: Music Mini-Concert 1:50-2:20 May 25: Early Release Day May 30: No School ***June 2: FAMILY PICNIC!
Tentative time frame is 11:30-1pm
June 2: Talent Show
June 9: Last day of first grade
|
No comments:
Post a Comment