Making Life Sized Penguins- Part 1

Tuesday we began our final penguin project! Each student selected a penguin to create in life size form! Some selected the Little Blue, while others the Rockhopper! Many learners selected the largest of the Penguins, the Emperor! Students began by measuring their paper to make the height accurate. Next, our students sketched their penguin. Over the next few days we will be putting the finishing touches on our life-sized penguins!

Valentine Reminder

Mrs. Hackett's Class will be celebrating Valentine's Day tomorrow! 💝 Mrs. Hackett will be at a workshop on Friday! Thank you!

4 Winds- All About Birds!

On Friday our first-graders enjoyed another exciting, hands on lesson from our 4 Winds parents. Students learned all about birds and what makes them unique! This was a great connection to our penguin unit!

Students got a chance to try using different beaks (tools) to gather food for the baby birds! Thank you to our 4 Winds parents for this opportunity!

Pass the Egg! Penguin Fun!

First graders are learning so many penguin facts. This week we discovered that some penguin parents pass their egg back-and-forth on their feet, never letting it touch the Icy ground. King Penguin parents take turns caring for their egg. One keeps the egg snug and warm, while the other goes to eat. First-graders played a game where they had to pass an "egg" back-and-forth, never letting it touch the icy ground! We learned that penguin parents have a tough job!

All About Measuring!

Last week our first graders started a brand new unit all about measuring. We are learning to take accurate measurements with a variety of measuring units. We started off by using unifix cubes to measure items around our classroom. We then ordered the items from shortest to longest. We finished the week by measuring groups or fish and sorting out which fish would be "keepers".

First Grade Library Classes: Red Clover Books

This is a guest post from RES teacher librarian Beth Redford.

2014-2015 Red Clover nominee 

A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin 

by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet

First graders are enjoying this year's Red Clover books in the RES library. Named after Vermont's state flower, the Red Clover Award is Vermont's children's choice award for picture books. Every year, a group of teachers and librarians puts together a list of  10 fiction and nonfiction Red Clover books. Students who read or listen to at least five titles from the list get to vote on their favorite book. Their votes, along with votes from students all over the state, help choose the Red Clover Award winner.

Scholars are practicing their critical thinking skills while they are discussing these books in library classes. Our questions to focus on are: do I like or dislike this book, and why? What specific details in the text or illustrations make me think this book is interesting or boring, beautiful or ugly, serious or funny?

This week we read and discussed A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet. More information about this unique American artist and his work is available at the Red Clover Website. More information about the Red Clover program and the rest of this year's reading list is also available at this link.



cover image is from https://sites.google.com/site/redcloveraward20142015/home/a-splash-of-red-the-life-and-art-of-horace-pippin

Learning About Coins

Today in first grade we finished our week by learning about the quarter. We played coin bingo,looked at real money, and practiced counting coins. Students got to choose an activity to help them practice using the coins.  Some students chose to work in partners, while others chose to focus in on worksheet practice.  Next time you have a little change in your pocket, have your first grader count it for you!