It is hard to believe that it is December already (but it certainly looks like it outside with all of this snow!).
Next week is Ms. Kendal's last week with us. She will do two more solo days of teaching on Monday and Tuesday; then, I will be back in the classroom again as the main teacher, with Ms. Kendal in a more supportive role. She has accepted a job as a first grade teacher in her hometown in Ohio and will start there in January. We are very excited for her and know she will do an amazing job. Those kids are lucky to have her as their teacher!
Reading:
The students continued reading books in different series last week. Ms. Kendal also continued reading Kate DiCamillo's books about Mercy Watson to the class. The students deepened their comprehension skills. They continued work on finding character traits and how to effectively compare the same character in many different books. They also explored character's perspectives and how one's understanding of the world and knowledge influence how one reacts to it.
In partner reading, the students received their own "Personal Readers", a collection of short stories and poems for children. The students are encouraged to read these passages multiple times, paying close attention to their own (and their reading partner's) phrasing and expression. They are doing great. These "Personal Readers" will eventually come home. Each booklet contains many reading activities for you to do at home. This is voluntary, of course, but I hope these reading activities will not only improve reading skills, but also encourage families to spend time together.
Lastly, the students started using our "Reading Buddies" in class. Our reading buddies are small stuffed animals that we use to help us focus on reading. They are friends we can whisper read our stories to and friends who are always there when we need them. Perhaps your child has tried to read to a stuffed animal at home to? They are great listeners!
Math:
First grade mathematicians continued to work hard in our number corner and work place activities last week. We continued our work around fractions. The students explored wholes, halves and quarters while playing games and turning and talking to each other, sharing their understanding.
First grade mathematicians also continued problem solving and finding different strategies for solving subtraction problems. They played a game called "Bears on the Bed" and "Spin and Subtract". Ask your child to explain.
Be Safe, Kind and Responsible at ABS:
The students filled our classroom jar again for being safe, kind and responsible. They celebrated with extra recess and went sledding outside!
Technology:
The students will learn about computer coding starting next week. On Monday, Ms. Wilson, our school district technology coordinator, will join our class to kick-start this event called "Hour of Code". This is a nation-wide approach and students love the challenges it provides, with online computer coding puzzles and incremental stepping stones. I will share the links next week so your child can access this at home as well if he/she wants to.
Last week, we also video-conferenced with a first grade class in Kentucky. With the help of Anne Pius, our fabulous ABS Technology Specialist, we were able to connect with a first grade class in KY a couple of weeks ago. Leading up to our online chat, we learned about KY. We explored maps, looked on google earth for KY and read books about KY. The students brain-stormed questions they had for the students from KY and we decided to organize the questions into two groups; questions about their school, and questions about their state. The class in KY did the same thing for us and Vermont, which meant we had to also learn more about VT-so we could answer their questions correctly!!
Here are some pictures from our first video chat. We will connect again with them online, both through video-conferencing, but also through seesaw. Stay tuned!
Upcoming Events & Reminders:
- We have 4 Winds on Thursday 12/6 between 1;15-2:15. Please make sure your child comes to school with appropriate outdoor gear as we hope to go outside. Thank you.
- Ms. Kendal's last day with us is on Friday, 12/7.
- Our next school-wide buzzy celebration is scheduled for Friday, 12/7. Bring a HAT to school.
- Team Harmony has re-scheduled the Family Breakfast that we missed due to the snow day, right before Thanksgiving break. It will now be on January 18th between 7:45-8:30am. More information will follow at a later date.
Have a great weekend and enjoy all this beautiful snow!
Maria
Can't believe it's already December! We are so thankful for all the hard works you and Ms. Kendall do for the students. We see such a growth in our daughter's overall development. Thanks for the summary of all the upcoming dates! I put them in the calendar. have a great day! (Jiyon)
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