First Week!
Wow! What a great first week and what an incredible group of kiddos. The first hour of class I kept telling them that I could not believe it was their first day of first grade because they all seemed to get back into "school mode" pretty quickly - maybe even faster than me!
We focused a lot on classroom routines and will continue to develop routines, transitions and expectations throughout these first weeks in order to build a strong learning community.
On the first day of school we read "First Day Jitters," a story that talks about how we all get nervous for the first day of school - even teachers! We also enjoyed some delicious Jitter Juice to help ease those butterflies or bubbles in our tummies! Throughout the week we have been checking our understanding while we read. When you read with your child I encourage you to help them use this strategy - pause and ask "do you understand what just happened?" "what do you know about the characters?" "what is the author trying to tell us?" Asking these questions and modeling that all readers use these strategies is critical in building comprehension and also confidence in reading.
We talked about and practiced reading independently. The students picked their books to read and they learned about the 3 ways to read books (read the pictures, read the words, retell the story). Just like with running, or physical activity, reading takes stamina. The students will continue to read independently in short increments to help build their stamina and turn them into voracious readers!
Everyday after lunch we have been coming in and doing yoga. It is a great way to stretch our bodies and get our brains ready to learn after recess!
We ended the week with an art project including our favorite subjects, the first graders! They created paper portraits that will soon be up in the hallway!
Reminders:
9/3 -- No School - Memorial Day
*Please make sure to return your registration forms to school to ensure all of the information is up-to-date!
Looking forward to a great year in Room 112!
We focused a lot on classroom routines and will continue to develop routines, transitions and expectations throughout these first weeks in order to build a strong learning community.
On the first day of school we read "First Day Jitters," a story that talks about how we all get nervous for the first day of school - even teachers! We also enjoyed some delicious Jitter Juice to help ease those butterflies or bubbles in our tummies! Throughout the week we have been checking our understanding while we read. When you read with your child I encourage you to help them use this strategy - pause and ask "do you understand what just happened?" "what do you know about the characters?" "what is the author trying to tell us?" Asking these questions and modeling that all readers use these strategies is critical in building comprehension and also confidence in reading.
We talked about and practiced reading independently. The students picked their books to read and they learned about the 3 ways to read books (read the pictures, read the words, retell the story). Just like with running, or physical activity, reading takes stamina. The students will continue to read independently in short increments to help build their stamina and turn them into voracious readers!
Everyday after lunch we have been coming in and doing yoga. It is a great way to stretch our bodies and get our brains ready to learn after recess!
We ended the week with an art project including our favorite subjects, the first graders! They created paper portraits that will soon be up in the hallway!
Reminders:
9/3 -- No School - Memorial Day
*Please make sure to return your registration forms to school to ensure all of the information is up-to-date!
Looking forward to a great year in Room 112!
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