Field Trip, etc.

Happy Friday Owl Families!

We had our field trip on Tuesday and even though it was very snowy and cold, we learned a lot! 
We learned all about ways the early settlers prepared for the holidays.  They visited the log cabin where they learned about pioneer life and heard a story.  They took a walk on some trails and learned about evergreens.  They were able to listen to a story and make a craft that smells great!  And finally they made a hand-dipped candle that is coming home with them, and played with some pioneer toys.  Enjoy some of the pictures below.  A big THANK YOU goes out to the three moms that came with us!!

We also started our final Daily 5 choice... read to someone.  There are some pictures below of the owl friends practicing this choice.

Have a good weekend!

Pictures and Videos!

Hi Owl Families,

It's been a while and we have been busy, busy in the Owl Room!  Below are pictures from the 1st annual Turkey Bowl, pictures of the owls acting out their "How-To" stories with their writing partners, and videos from our revision unit! Enjoy! :)

Reed

Paityn

Lydia

Lindsey W.

Lindsey M.

Kennedy

Keegan

Justin

Jordyn

Jonah

Gary

Eve

Ethan

Ella

Cade

Avarey

Austin

Adam

Week of November 11

Happy Friday Owl Families!

Parent-teacher conferences were held on Monday and Tuesday.  I really appreciate those that took the time out of their busy schedules and came in.  THANK YOU!

We held our first reader's theater last week, with our story of the week Space Pup.  The video is below.  We talked about the fluency and expression of the readers.  We were all impressed by the great job they did!

In math we finished up our unit 3 tests.  You will see those come home today.  The first graders did well on it!  Monday we will start unit 4.  Unit 4 will be about place value and numbers to 100.  In this unit the students begin by counting tens: 10, 20, 30, 40, and so on.  They just a 10 x 10 grid to help them "see" the relationship between the tens digit in a decade number and the number of tens it has. (See picture below).

Soon they will link 2-digit numbers to tens and extra ones.  They will learn that a 2-digit number, such as 46, is made up of tens and ones, such as 40 and 6.  Then they will use what they know about adding 1-digit numbers to add 2-digit numbers. (3+4=7, so 30+40=70).

Finally they will learn to regroup and count on to find a total.  See picture below for example.

Right now, your owl friend may enjoy counting by tens for you.  They may also enjoy using household items to make groups of ten and extra ones, and then telling you the total number.

Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs. Vos

Halloween, Pizza Party and Conferences

Hi Owl Families!

Last week, we celebrated Halloween with our party.  A big THANK YOU goes out to those that helped bring in supplies and those that helped run the stations--it was a huge success!  Enjoy the pictures below from the party.

We have a pizza party scheduled for Thursday, November 7.  That is TOMORROW!  There will be a drink provided as well.

Conferences are next week Monday and Tuesday.  You will receive your child’s report card at your conference.  First Grade is a HUGE year of growth for your child and I have already seen a LOT of growth in a lot of children from where they started the school year.  Please note that First Grade is a continuum of learning in that we start with very foundational skills and build on them to achieve mastery by June. So, with that said, seeing a lot of 2’s or “still developing” areas on your child’s report card is completely normal, especially in the area of writing.  Please arrive at your scheduled time and know that we only have a short 20 minutes to discuss your child.  

There is a video attached to a link below that helps explain the movement towards the Common Core State Standards.  It's a good way to understand what your child is working through at school and why school is more than just reading, writing and math.

Video Link

The week of October 21

Hello Owl Families!

Happy Friday!

I wanted to give another THANK YOU to those that are volunteering and bringing things in for our Halloween party.  I greatly appreciate it!!  I do have one more slightly odd request!  I looking for someone to bring in pumpkin seeds (that are baked) for next week after our Halloween party.  We will be doing an activity with these!  So, if you are planning to carve pumpkins this weekend, please don't throw the seeds away!  I would love them for our class!!  One last housekeeping item: don't forget that conference confirmation slips are due back the day before Halloween.  That's Wednesday, October 30!  I still have a few missing and would like to get the schedule concrete!  THANK YOU!  

Yesterday we saw our book buddies.  We read a story called Stellaluna and then made a bat and retold the story for the beginning, middle and end.  They turned out great and are all hanging out in our room!  Take a look! :)

Today we started our fourth Daily Five choice, which was Listen to Reading.  Check out the action shot of some owl friends doing Listen to Reading for the first time!

It was indeed a happy Friday in the Owl Room today.  We had our writing celebration today!  Since September, we have been working hard on our small moment stories.  This week we picked one and made it into a book.  We celebrated today by reading them (videos below) and cheers-ing each other for the FABULOUS job we all day! (pictures below).  Please note that the videos are limited to 30 seconds, so some of the videos are just a glimpse as to what the story was about!  They loved this, and I was a very proud teacher!!  Enjoy!

Adam

Ahyana

Austin

Avarey

Cade

Ethan

Ellie

Gary

Jonah

Jordyn

Justin

Keegan

Kennedy

Lindsey M.

Lydia

Nehemiah

Paityn

Reed

Week of October 14th

Greetings Owl Families!

This week in language arts we were hard at work editing our small moments stories.  There are pictures below for you to enjoy as they worked with their writing partners.  There are also videos of when they did their editing checklist--I was very impressed with how well they did!!

In math we finished up unit 2 and will start unit 3 on Monday.  This unit focuses a lot on stories problems.  To solve story problems, children first need to know which number is unknown.  Is it the total or one of the parts?  This program helps children focus on this important issue by using "math mountains" (picture below).  In a math mountain, the total sits at the top and the parts (or partners) sit at the bottom of the mountain.  Children can quickly see the relationship between the partners and the total when they look at the mountain.  Children can find the answer by drawing the mountain to see which number is unknown.  Then they count on from the partner they know to the total.  In this way, they can find the partner they don't know (see picture below).

In social studies, we have learned and studied ourselves, our families, and how a family is like a school.  Now we are moving on to past and present.  These lessons will be talking about how the past was different than today, and we will compare school, housing, travel, communication, work and play.  We will hit on what makes us a good citizen and study words like authority, rules, responsibility.

I wanted to quick thank those who are bringing in things for our Halloween party, and those that are coming to help!  I feel so blessed to be able to work in such a supportive community!  Thank you again!  This party will go very smooth because of the givers and volunteers!

Have a great weekend!  --Mrs. Vos

Shape GO! Map

Hello there, Owl Families!

I hope you had a fabulous fall week!  Thank you to those that came to Dancing with the Teachers... we didn't place but it sure was fun!!  Here is what's happening in the Owl Room.

We have been focusing on retelling our stories with our Shape GO! Map.  This helps us comprehend the story better.  Below is a Shape GO! Map to print off for your reference as you read with your first graders at night.  I would recommend putting a copy in your JRL bag so you can practice this after you read your JRL book!  Remember it's okay if the JRL books your child is bringing home are a little easy, we are working on becoming fluent readers and can practice that better with easier books!

Thank you for your continued support in and outside of school!

 
Have a great weekend!  Mrs. Vos