Dear Families,
Here is our week in review:
Social-Emotional Learning:
This week, we continued to get to know each other and establish our new classroom community. We played many collaborative and team-building games and learned some new songs too. Ask your child to explain some of our new daily morning meeting activities that we play together
This week, we started our weekly job chart too. Every week, the students will rotate through a variety of different jobs to help keep our classroom efficient. We have a line leader and a line ender. We have a greeter and a paper passer. We also have a student helping us with attendance, lunch orders and returning our books to the library. We also have many more jobs. The students are eager to help out and very responsible in their chores!
This week, we learned about active listening skills in our Second Step lessons. The students learned that listening skills are important for learning and engagement. They also learned that the brain grows and gets stronger when learning is happening. Students can show active listening by using their whole body listening skills with eyes watching, ears listening, body still and voices off.
You Can:
You can support your child’s love of helping out by asking your child to help you at home too. Having simple, developmentally/age-appropriate tasks boost confidence and provides a sense of purpose. Young children love to help out. Talk to your child about what specific tasks your child can learn to manage more independently at home. For example, does your child have a morning routine or a bedtime routine that your child can independently complete? Does your child help you set the table, or pack the library books? How about unpacking the backpack on Fridays and emptying the contents of the Home Folder for you to read?
You can also support active listening skills and the social cues by following the steps presented in this week’s Second Step HomeLink. This assignment is optional but we encourage families to engage in these conversations at home. Having the same social language bridges the school and the home and young learners thrive on clear and similar expectations. If your child wants to hand in the HomeLink for me to check (and to earn a buzzy for our classroom buzzy jar), please return it to the classroom on Monday along with your child’s Home Folder. Thank you.
Reading:
This week, we continued to read our classroom read aloud chapter book, “Diary of a Pug” by Kyla May; a book about a little dog’s adventures, written from the perspective of the dog. For the next few weeks, I will read the first book in many different series to spark an interest in different types of books and encourage the students to try new books (and genres) to read.
This week, we also had a special visit from our school principal, Ms. Filion, who read a book to us. Thank you Ms. Filion for spending time with us and reading us a book!
This week, the students also participated in discussions about why we read and why it is important. Ask your child to share his/her ideas. Their answers are always insightful and poignant. For example, they said that we read because teachers/adults ask them to read, because it is homework, or because that is how they learn new information. All of this is true, of course, but let’s not forget the most important reason why readers read: it makes you feel good and happy. Reading should be enjoyable and relaxing. We will work on this together this year!
You can:
You can support your child’s love of reading by reading to, and with, your child every day. Expose your child to different kinds of books and magazines. Read recipes and lists together too. Once you start looking, there are things to read together everywhere! Be Reading Detectives together!
Please read your child’s library books together too. Remember that your child chose these books independently and they are important to them.
Writing:
This week, the students started writing their Hopes and Dreams for this school year. On Harmony, we encourage the students to think about goals for school rather than goals that pertain to life outside of school. The students will also create a small art project to go along with the writing. When everything is done, we will hang our creations on display along with the students in Ms. Fisher’s class by the lockers for all to see. The students are very excited!
You Can:
You can support your child’s writing at home by encouraging your child to express himself/herself on paper, using drawings and writing. Celebrate your child’s writing/drawings and listen as your child reads the writing out loud.
Perhaps your child wants to start a diary at home too just like the main character in our read aloud? This does not have to be a fancy journal or book. It can be some blank papers folded over to make a little book. Some students started making them already in our classroom. They are so creative!
Math:
We started having math classes this week. We will have math every day. This week, the students participated in a scavenger hunt to learn where some important math tools are located.
They also learned about the importance of having a growth mindset and showing perseverance and resilience when things feel challenging. We also learned that mistakes lead to new learning and grow our brains!
Math students practiced parts of 5 in many different ways this week. First grade mathematicians used their math hands and our magnetic ten-frames to show 5.
First grade mathematicians also started to practice proper number writing.
You can:
You can support your child’s engagement in math by emphasizing the importance of having a growth mindset. In our math community, we help each other overcome those obstacles. Having a positive attitude and being willing to try new things help us learn together.
Please celebrate your child’s math work when it comes home in the Home Folder. Your child will not take home math work every week because many of the learning activities are partner/group games and, thus, not paper-based. You will notice that your child is currently learning about proper number formation and number writing. While your child will learn about this at school, you can support this learning at home by reinforcing that all number writing starts from the top!
News and Reminders:
Please see this link for our upcoming Ice Cream Social.
If your child has an ABS Chromebook Student Pledge inside his/her backpack this week, please read this document with your child and sign it. This document should be returned on Monday so our class can start using chromebooks soon. Thank you.
Your child has a homework assignment inside his/her Home Folder this week! We want to get to know each other! Please follow the directions and return the ME BAGS as soon as you can. We hope to start this project sometime next week. Thank you!
We have library exchange on Wednesdays every week. Here is a message from our fabulous librarian Mrs. Clopton: Your child visits our library each week for lesson time and book exchange with Mrs. Clopton. This blue bag will be a safe place to keep and transport library books. Kids can also visit our library EVERY day in the mornings from 7:35-10:00 a.m. during flex time to exchange books.
If your child will be out due to illness, please include our school nurse, Sylvia Love on all communication with the school and me. Thank you. Her email is slove@cvsdvt.org
We would like for you to add an additional contact person for your child’s pick-up/appointment/dismissal plans. Please add Lori Saladino at lsaladino@cvsdvt.org to your email to me and Laura Gigliotti in the front office. Lori can also be reached via phone at 871-6282 if you need to call. Thank you.
Your child’s Home Folder includes information about our school picture day at ABS. Please follow the directions from the photographer if you are interested in ordering additional pictures of your child. Thank you. School picture day is on 9/18.
Have a great weekend,
Maria
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