Friday, December 10, 2021

Family Newsletter

 Dear Families,


Here is our week in review:

It was Ms. Emily’s last day with us today.  We will miss her but we hope that she will be back to visit and work as a Guest Teacher in our classroom again next semester.  Thank you Ms. Emily for working with us this semester! 


Social-Emotional Learning:

  • This week, we learned that people can have different reactions to the same situation.  What is a small problem to one person can be perceived as a big problem to another.  We learned that we can build understanding of others by carefully paying attention to their facial expressions, body language and words used.  We listened to the “Feeling Song” again too.  Singing and listening to music help us connect and it also helps us calm our bodies.  

  • Some students also had the opportunity to perform their puppet shows to our second grade friends.  Some students choose to just share their puppets and others will wait to perform next week.  They all did an amazing job.  The puppets will come home next week.





Reading:

  • In reading, the students continued building their independent reading stamina and choosing “just right” books to sustain reading for longer periods of time.  We also focused on having quiet whisper voices during this time.

  • We continued learning about interesting historical figures who showed perseverance and grit during difficult times.  Learning about other people helps us connect and show empathy to each other.  A highlight this week was a book about Jacques Cousteau whose adventures underwater taught the world about how to better understand and protect marine life in all of its forms.





Writing:

  • The students added another chapter to their “All About Me” books this week.  This week, authors focused on writing about things they like to do outside of school.  They had so many different things to share.  Some students like to play with friends nd do sports, while others prefer to watch TV or even help mom at home with chores!

  • The students continued to tap out sounds to slow down and listen for the sounds in the words we spell.  They even wrote their trick words in sand this week!  




First Grade Math:

  • First grade mathematicians continued to build a deeper understanding of partners to 10 while participating in several small groups and games.  Ask your child to explain the game “Drop the Beans”, a game in which the players find all the possible combinations to 10 while visualizing the parts.

  • First grade mathematicians also learned a game called “Cats and Mice”.  In this game, they learned to compare numbers using the language “greater than”, “less than” and “equal to”.  They also learned to use the mathematical symbols to represent these relations (>, <, =).  Mathematicians are building an understanding of how finding the difference between numbers will help us solve both addition and subtraction problems.  Comparing numbers (and having a variety of strategies) will help them solve these math problems more flexibly.

  • The Number Corner Calendar for December addresses data collection.  The students are learning about surveys and how different types of graphs help us illustrate larger data sets into easily digested pictures.  So far, they have learned about bar graphs and pictographs. We will learn more about graphing next week.



Technology:

  • This week, our class participated in a nation-wide coding adventure.  All across the country (and the world), students of all ages learn to better understand computer programming and how important it is for our daily lives and learning.  Thank you Ms. Scott for helping us start this engaging and educational learning.  We started with codemonkey.com  Next week, the students will get a trial account with us at ABS and we will continue to learn how we can code computers and how coding improves our lives every day.



News and Reminders:

  • The weather is getting colder so please make sure your child has weather appropriate clothes for school.  With the arrival of winter and snow, your child will need snow-pants, gloves/mittens, boots, hats and a winter jacket as well for everyday outdoor fun.  Having indoor shoes, such as sneakers, helps your child stay dry and comfortable throughout the day (and prepared for PE too!).Thank you.

  • If you have an extra plastic grocery/shopping bag, please send it in with your child for him/her to keep their soggy outdoor gear in.  The lockers are narrow and it is crowded with other children’s backpacks hanging on the locker doors.  Having a large grocery/shopping bag for wet/soggy snow pants, hats, mittens, etc, make packing up for the end of the day easier and less frustrating.  It also helps your child during dismissal time since all gear neatly fits into a bag, rather than being dragged, or worse, lost, in our hallways as we walk to the buses or cars. Thank you.

  • Last reminder about the changing weather; Please make sure you swap out your child’s extra clothing to reflect the changing temperatures too.  We will do our best to help your child bring home his/her ziplock bag of extra clothing this week so you can check what is inside.  Many parents have not changed the contents of this bag since the beginning of the school year and having to put on shorts if your pants get wet during the school day is not cozy!  Thank you.

  • If your child has been vaccinated for Covid, please email the school nurse a copy of the vaccination card.  Her email is slove@cvsdvt.org

  • Here's a link to this week's Bell




Have a great weekend,

Maria


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