Welcome to First Grade!

Dear Families,

 

We had a terrific first week together. It was a fun-filled but exhausting week for all.  I hope your child will relax and get some rest this weekend.  Remember, we have Monday off (Labor Day).  I will see the students back on Tuesday again.

This year, my newsletters will not include photos of the children due to the number of parents who opted out of having their child’s picture online.  I will still take pictures of our learning adventures together, but these photographs will be shared in your child’s private scrapbooks during conference times and special celebrations.  At the end of the school year you will take home your child’s scrapbook.  Thank you for understanding.

 Here is our week in review:

 Social-Emotional Learning:

●     We had a wonderful first week together as a new first grade class!  We prioritized getting to know each other and the students participated in many learning activities and games to build new friendships.  They discovered that they have many things in common with many classmates. We sang songs together in our classroom and gathered in our Harmony Kiva to sing songs with Ms. Fisher’s and Ms. Crowley’s classes as well.  We sing songs together in the kiva once a week.  This is a very special time on Harmony.  Here is a link to the classroom song links in case you want to sing at home too.

●     We also played a human scavenger hunt together.  The students were encouraged to learn more about their classmates’ likes and dislikes.  You will find this scavenger hunt inside your child’s Home Folder this week. Additionally, we played with magna tiles, legos and playdough but I think our balloon game is already a class favorite!.  Ask your child to explain.

●     This week, we created our new classroom norms and expectations.  For our classroom to feel fully inclusive, we decided that our school motto, “Be Safe, Be Kind, and Be responsible” would be a great framework for our own classroom rules.  We created a classroom contract and all the students signed it by decorating a bee, which we hung around the contract itself.  The students did an outstanding job contributing their own interpretations and understandings.

●     The students filled our classroom buzzy jar for being safe, kind and responsible already!  They are amazing! They show such patience and kindness to each other already.  I am so lucky to have them in my class.  We celebrated with some extra outdoor play time with Ms. Fisher’s first graders and used chalk and bubbles. We also had extra outdoor playground play time together.  What a fun way to end our first week together!

 You Can:

●     At home, you can revisit our school and classroom expectations and talk to your child about how these norms apply to the home as well.  How can your child be safe, kind and responsible at home?  Encourage your child to be specific.  What does it look like to be kind at home?  What does it sound like?  Keep the language positive.  For example, if your child says “no hitting”, rephrase that to “hands to self”, for example.  Perhaps you want to create your own contract for home too?

 Reading:

●     We had library this week and the students started reading some books on their own in our classroom.  They were so excited to pack new library books to take home.  We hope the handy library bags will help your child manage their library books.  Please return the bag and the books next Wednesday so your child can get new ones.

●     Our Allen Brook School library also has fantastic online resources for you and your child.  Please check out this link  for further reading exploration at home.  I also have additional online reading resources on my own website, but nothing beats reading real books together!  In a few weeks, your child will bring home classroom books for reading at home.  More information about this soon.

●     The students participated in many teacher-led read alouds this week.  Most books reflected some of the strong, mixed feelings we all experience when school starts again (or any time we find ourselves in new, unfamiliar surroundings).  For example, we read the book “First Day Jitters” by Julie Danneburg.  This story has an unexpected ending.  Ask your child to explain.

 

●     Our first graders also had the opportunity to self-select books for their classroom book bins.  Every day, we read together.  When the students read independently in first grade, it is important that they are exposed to a variety of books.  At this early stage in the school year, as we are establishing our new classroom community, it is important for the students to learn to navigate these settings and sustain attention for longer periods of time.  As the school year unfolds, I will share more information on specific tasks and sequences, but this week, the students learned to pick interesting books for them and they learned what their choices are when the book is no longer interesting or right for them.

 

You can:

●     You can support your child’s literacy development and love of reading at home too.  Engage in an honest conversation with your child about what types of books and magazines they can read and what types of books and magazines you can enjoy together.  Ask your child to explain what type of books interest him/her.  Perhaps your child prefers books about a specific character, or books in a series?  Perhaps your child likes to learn about interesting animals?. 

 

Writing:

●     The students started to decorate their writing folders this week.  We will start writing more systematically next week.

 You Can:

●     Consider creating a space at home for your child to explore writing and drawing.  This space can be at the dinner table, in a hallway nook, or with a clipboard in bed.  (Nothing fancy!)  Involve your child in the decision-making process.  For example, what pens or pencils should be made available?  Crayons? Markers? Lined paper, blank paper or both?  Notebooks or scraps of paper?  Be creative.  Involving your child in the creation of a space for writing at home might also provide a creative corner, or a calming corner for your child. 

 Math:

●     First grade math will start next week.

 News and Reminders:

●     There is no school on Monday next week (Labor Day)

●     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 Loveon 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