What A Great First Week of School!

Happy Saturday to all of my first grade students, their parents, my fellow teachers, and all educators who made it through Week #1! It was a busy five days of community building and exploration as we jumped right into learning.

 

 

 

My students have already been introduced to 8 different math stations, so we are ready to begin some guided math with work stations next week. We are moving into a pattern unit. Can any of my students find a pattern this weekend to bring in Monday to share with the class? I challenge you!

 

 

 



We also began building "stamina" during independent reading time, and I'm proud to say that by Friday my class was able to read for 5 full minutes without any interruptions or distractions! I was very proud of their perseverance! Developing reading fluency is so important for these first graders, and I encourage you to go to the links below (especially the first one!) for more information:

http://www.oess.org/uploaded/Race_Brook/Kelly_Michel/Oral-Reading-Fluency-Parent.pdf

http://www.nea.org/grants/facts-about-childrens-literacy.html

 

 

Next week we will continue to build stamina as I try to finish individual reading conferences. Students will have reading homework each night so be sure to record and sign the log sheets found in their Reading Notebooks. Remember: your child will bring home more than one book; however, you do not record every book. You only record one title per 15 minutes of reading time. So if your child reads for 15 minutes, record one book. If your child reads for 30 minutes, record two books. Most of my firsties will not be able to read much more than 15 - 30 minutes at this point in the year, but we are building up to 30 minutes of reading time each night!

 

 

 

Last, I want to share some fun pictures from the week, including some from the Back to School Bash.

 

 

We used a hula hoop to show how cooperation and collaboration are very important skills! Students had to move the hula hoop around the circle without letting go of each others hands! It was a lot of fun, and they really want to do that game again!

 



 

 

Having some fun at the Back to School Bash on Thursday night! If you weren't able to join us for this event, be sure to mark your calendars for the Fall Festival in October! (Date to come later.)

 

 

Enjoy your weekend sweet students and tired parents and get ready for another adventurous week at OES. Ahoy Maties!