Vegetable Soup, Writing Celebration and Outdoor Play! 11/14-11/18

 

This week we wrapped up our farm unit with a focus on vegetable farms.  We made our own vegetable soup.  Many students LOVED the soup!  We used kid safe knives and students cut up all the vegetables themselves.  Many students asked me to share the type of knives we used with you.  These are similar to what we used. They loved being able to prepare the vegetables safely.  Our next unit is geography and cultures around the world.

Our class has started a reading incentive program!  For every 15 minutes your child reads at home, have them color in a pumpkin.  When they have 4 pumpkins colored in, they can bring it to school and put a sticker on our reading chart.  When we have 60 hours of reading we will celebrate with Pajama and Stuffy Day!  The pumpkin sheet came home in our home school folders, but here is the sheet if you need one! You can also just make your own!  The important part is practicing reading for 15 minutes as often as they can.  

Scholastic Book Orders:  A book order went home on Friday.  Orders are due 11/29.  You can place orders online here.  Click connect to teacher and enter our code FWQFN      If you would like help with your child’s reading level or w Learning highlights from the week:

• Math- First grade students worked on partners to 10 this week.  They worked on knowing them in a flash.  They created flashcards to help practice these facts. When we return we will be working on adding 3 numbers.  Our doubles facts and 10’s facts will help us to solve these problems.   Second graders continue to solve missing addend problems ( 36 - ___ = 60).  The idea is to use their understanding of partners to 10 and place value to solve the problems.  Example:  36 + 4 = 40… (6+4=10) so 40 + 20 = 60.  Therefor 36 + 24 = 60

• Reading- Our hard work on blending and segmenting words,  heart words, book box reading and book clubs continue.  We have also been practicing our automaticity with short vowel sounds.  E’s and I’s are especially tricky!

•  Writing-We finished our Small Moments personal narrative unit this week!  We celebrated by reading our stories to Mrs. Poor’s Kindergarten.  The Kindergartners loved our stories.  When we return from break we will be focusing on writing conventions.  

Mindfulness- The students have really done an amazing job talking about  and showing gratitude.  They were so excited about all the food items we collected and so proud when we brought them down to the office. 

Stuffy Day , Celebrating Ms. Roy and Other Adventures from 11/7-11/11

This week our students celebrated Ms. Roy.  She is expecting a baby boy at the end of November and will be on maternity leave until January.  Our students made her an advice book to help her care for her new baby and a beautiful thumbprint art print.  We also earned Stuffed Friend Day!  Students were able to bring in a stuffed friend to spend the day with.  Just a reminder that if your child was not able to be at school, they may bring their stuffed animal on their first day they return.  

Next week we will be learning all about vegetable farms.  On Friday we will be making vegetable soup.  If you would like to donate a vegetable for our soup, please send it in on Monday or Tuesday with your learner.  That way I will know what I need to pick up at the store for our soup. 

Learning highlights from the week:

• Math:  Some first graders worked on multiple ways to solve a problem and solving missing addend problems. Grade 2 worked on solving missing addend problems using a place value model.  For example, for the problem 42+___ = 70, students filled in 42 squares on a 100’s graph using a colored pencil. (4 full rows of 10 and 2 extra)  They then filled in that graph to 70 using a different color, first finishing off the row of 2 to make 50 and then 2 full rows of 10.  This gives students a visual of 42+28=70

• Reading:  This week’s focus was the introduction of new word features.  Students also worked in their book groups looking for text features and character traits. 

•  Writing:  We continued working on our small moments unit. Students have been brainstorming moments that are true and writing with increasing detail including actions, thoughts and feelings. We have also been discussing how to wrap up a story.

• Social Studies:  We continue to work on the economic cycle of buy, produce and sell.  This week we discussed how farms make products they can then sell in order to make money.  We explored fiber farms and the products that are made from various fibers.  We got a chance to touch raw alpaca fiber!  We decided it was softer than sheep wool. 

• Mindfulness:  For the month of November we are focusing on gratitude.  Students have been practicing reflecting on what they are thankful for.  We have begun discussing all the small things we are grateful for and during the All School Morning Meeting students shared things they were grateful for. 

 

Butter Making, Friday Letters and More! 10/31-11/4

 

Learning highlights from the week:

• Math:  First graders are working on finding many ways to add the same number. For example all the combinations that add up to 9. Grade 2 worked on place value with a focus on tens and ones, solving problems with efficient strategies and adding coins. 

• Reading:  We practiced sight words, mapping both the expected and unexpected sounds.  We worked on stretching out the sounds of letters in words to help us with both reading and spelling. Students also worked in their book groups.  Some are working on sharing favorite parts of their book others are working on character traits.  

•  Writing:  We continued working on our small moments unit. Students have been brainstorming moments that are true and writing with increasing detail including actions, thoughts and feelings. 

• Mindfulness:  For the month of November we will be focusing on gratitude.  Students have been practicing reflecting on what they are thankful for. This coming week we will begin a gratitude journal in which students will make an entry each day about something they are grateful for. 

• Social Studies- We are continuing with our Farm to Table- Farms of Vermont Unit.  This week we enjoyed learning about Dairy Farms. We enjoyed making butter! Next week we will learn about fiber farms.