Ticks

Here is a resource shared by Ms. Fisher for regular tick checks.  I just wanted to share as we're spending a lot of time outdoors at school.

Family Newsletter

Dear Families,

It was great to see you all for our parent-teacher conferences.  Thanks for taking the time to come in and thank you all for your continued support.  It truly takes a village.  These kids are amazing and we're creating a very strong learning community together, built on trust, friendship and perseverance. 

Reading and Writing:
We started our new author study last week.  We will read many books by the author and illustrator Mo Willems in the next few weeks.  We will use his books as mentor texts in both reading and writing.  We started by exploring the setting in his books.  The students discovered that the Piggie and Gerald books lack setting, so we created our own setting.  Look at some of this work!  Can you figure out the setting from these pictures?

Next week, we will explore how Mo Willems is using dialogue in his books.  As writers, we will try some of his ideas and use speech bubbles in our own stories.  We will also look at character traits and study the character Pigeon together.

Science:
We did a lot of science last week.  First, we learned more about leaves with Mystery Science and Ms. Fisher's class.  We went outside and collected leaves.  We partnered up and used our science thinking to describe our leaves.  Here are some pictures:

We also continued our work on light and sound.  We follow the NGSS science standards at ABS.  Throughout all of our science units, the students are encouraged to derive understanding through experimentation, scientific inquiries and data collection by adhering to reason and data.  We watched a short video about rainbows and learned about light.  We sorted different materials in groups based on their respective attributes.  The students learned that materials can be opaque, transparent or translucent.

Math:
First grade mathematicians continued working on partners to 10 and 10 and some more.  We also continued math problem-solving, using representations, labels and equations to show our understanding.  The students learned new domino games as well.  As the students are becoming more familiar with their math facts, we are encouraging them to count on as they figure out their calculations.  For example, it is more efficient to count on from 5 if you are adding 5+3 than starting at zero and counting five and then another three.

Flynn Theater:
We had a wonderful trip to the Flynn.  We saw "The Magic Flute".  It was performed by a theater company from South Africa, with incredible singing and dancing.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday. 
Best,

Maria

Nature Notes: Snow on Mount Mansfield

There was snow on Mount Mansfield this morning.  Winter is coming.....
I hope you had a chance to get outside today and enjoy the fall sunshine.

Family Newsletter

Dear Families,
What a gorgeous weekend so far!  I hope you and your family had lots of outdoor time.  Vermont certainly is beautiful in the fall.

Next week, I am starting parent-teacher conferences.  I look forward to seeing you again and share about your child's day at ABS.  Your child is welcome to attend.  If you prefer to meet with me alone, that is fine too.  If you did not yet sign up, please contact me so we can find a time/date for you.  Thank you!

Reading:
The students continued receiving instruction in reading in our "Book Clubs", our guided reading groups.  They have done an outstanding job getting used to our rotations between groups and increasing their own independent reading stamina during these classes.  Last week, the students also received their sight word booklets.  These booklets contain high frequency words, many of which cannot be "sounded out", so it is imperative that the students learn to recognize these words automatically to improve reading fluency, comprehension and confidence.  We will integrate these words into our reading instruction at school.  I have also linked them on the wiki, if you would like to print them for additional practice at home.  They are linked here for your convenience (scroll down to Trick Words) but you can access them anytime on the wiki under "Word Study".

Writing:
The students continued adding details to their words and pictures in our writer's workshop.  These classes typically begin with a brief mini-lesson, highlighting a particular objective for the day.  It is followed by independent writing practice so the students can apply this new learning.  During this time, I also confer with students in small groups, or individually.  We usually end the class with a few students sharing.  This sharing demonstrates the application of the new skills taught. The students love to share their writing!
Our focus last week was also on developing confidence to write the words down even though the spelling might be wrong.  Young learners sometimes "get stuck" as writers if they are not sure how to spell a particular word.  They can be hard on themselves and simply stop writing.  We are learning that it is important to have a "growth mindset" in writing.  As writers, we try something and we always do our best.  It is okay if it is not perfect, but it is not okay not to try!  The students are doing a terrific job trying!  They love writing their ideas down independently.

Math:
First grade mathematicians continued work on subitizing as well as partners to 5 and ten last week.  They also learned many new games for practicing and learning about ten and some more.  We are exploring the differences between -teen numbers and -ty numbers (ie thirteen is ten and three more, while thirty is three groups of ten).
The students also continued math story problem solving.  The students are presented with a scenario that they have to solve using models, mathematical representations and equations.  They also learn how to clearly, and efficiently label their drawings and systematically showing each step.

Upcoming Events and Reminders:

• Student Picture Re-take date is October 16th.  Please let me know if your child needs to retake his/her pictures.
• Harmony House is going to the Flynn Theater on October 25th.  The bus leaves around 9am and will be back around 11:30-12.
• There is no school for students on October 18th due to conferences.

Family Newsletter

Dear Families,
It is getting colder and colder every day, it seems like.  Please do not forget to send your child to school with appropriate outdoor gear as we go outside every day.  Thank you.

Reading:
Last week, the students continued to receive individualized instruction in our guided reading groups.  We are all learning how to follow the expectations of sustained quiet reading and focus on engagement, making sense of the words and stories while choosing "just right books".  We also discussed the importance of having a quiet and cozy spot to read; not just at school, but also at home.  I shared several special spots I have in my own house and a very special spot my son Ryan just created for reading.  Ask your child to tell you what he did!  In our classroom, we take turns using "Big Joe", a silly name for a larger, comfy chair in our newly created reading nook in the back of our classroom.  Come by to take a look.  Perhaps your child will share some of the ideas we came up with for creating a comfy reading spot in our classroom so you can do this at home too.
A quiet, comfy reading spot is, of course, not complete without a stuffed animal that is always ready to listen to a good story.  The students also received this and these stuffed animals now accompany them in reading, if desired.

Writing:
The students started writing their small moment stories last week.  This is a larger writing unit which we will explore for the next few weeks.  In this unit, the students will learn to find stories in the everyday, small moments, that happen all the time.  They will also learn to stretch these stories out over several pages, adding details to both the words and the pictures.  Last week, the students listened to the mentor text, "Sheila Rae the Brave" by Kevin Henkes.  We discussed how the main character was brave.  We made personal connections to the character and the students shared a time they themselves showed bravery.  After sharing our stories verbally, the students started writing them down on paper. 

GUM:
Once a week, we have GUM on the schedule.  GUM stands for Grammar, Usage and Mechanics.  During this 20 minute block, the students practice penmanship, hand-writing and learn about language conventions and grammar.  I would like to offer the students sugar-free gum during this time.  Please let me know if you do not give permission for this.  Thank you!

Mindfulness:
We practice mindfulness every day in our classroom.  Through a variety of activities, the students learn about emotional self-regulation and strategies to calm down. So far, the students have learned different breathing techniques, such as the snake breath, and they have also learned some yoga.  Ask your child to explain the rag doll.  Every day, I read the book "Stella Diaz has something to say" as part of our Global Read Aloud, and the children practice mindful mandala coloring.  I hope you can encourage your child to use some of these strategies at home too in times of emotional upsets and challenges.  Stay tuned.  I hope to share new mindfulness techniques as I introduce them in the classroom.

Reminders and Upcoming Events:

• If you have not signed up for parent-teacher conferences yet, please do so.  I look forward to sharing about your child's day at school!
• Harmony House will go to the Flynn Theater on 10/25.  The bus leaves at 9am and we will return around 11:30 or 12.
• There is no school on Wednesday 10/9 due to Yom Kippur.
• There is no school on Friday, 10/18 due to parent-teacher conferences.

Family Newsletter

Dear Families,

The weather is getting cooler out there.  Fall has definitely arrived!  Remember, we have outdoor recess everyday so please make sure your child comes to school with a long-sleeved sweater or hoodie for the cooler temperatures.  Thank you.

Speaking of fall; our wonderful UVM Intern Ms. Cristina, led a lesson earlier this week.  She read the book "Johnny Appleseed" by Steven Kellogg and discussed the different story elements in this book as well as how this book is an example of a tall tale.  Next week, the students will complete a writing activity to show their understanding of these concepts.  We look forward to another lesson, Ms. Cristina!

We had another guest reader read a book in our classroom last week.  Ms. Filion joined our room.  She read the book "The Energy Bus" by Jon Bordon.

The students listened intently to the book and learned about the importance of having positive thoughts and positive energy in your life.  As a follow-up activity, the students created their own "license plates" and added pictures of things that bring happiness to their own lives.  We placed our license plates inside our scrapbooks, so we can refer to them any time if we need to remind ourselves of positive, kind energy.  Thank you Ms. Filion for taking the time to read to us.

Writing:

The students continued practicing writer's workshop expectations and adding details to their words in writing.  This week, the learned how to add interesting details by focusing on who was present when the story was taking place, where it happened, what happened and when it happened.  We have a poster as a public record to remind ourselves of these possible ways to add more details to our stories as we continue to build writing stamina and independence.

Science:

We continued practicing scientific inquiry skills by interacting with Mystery Doug on Mystery Science.  We practiced turning and talking with our partners and focusing our observations on real evidence and fact instead of subjective observations.

We also had our first 4 Winds class.  We learned about insects and bugs. We learned that there are many similarities but also some very important differences between the two groups.  Ask your child to explain.  Thank you parents for providing these learning opportunities for our budding scientists!

Toys and Distractions:

We have noticed on Harmony that many children come to school with toys.  They have their toys in their backpacks but cannot help but taking them out at various times during the day to share, trade or give away.  Please help us help your child stay focused on learning here at school by making sure these toys do not even enter your child's backpack.  Perhaps a daily check is required as many children find times to put them in there without their parents knowledge  (I know from my own experience with my own 4 children...their creativity in this regard was outstanding!).  Toys are easily lost and it is tremendously disappointing to a young child when that happens.  It is also quite upsetting if toys have to be taken away because they interfere with math, writing or reading.  Please discuss this with your child at home and refrain from packing any toys at all. We discussed this on house and many children stated they only play with the toys on the bus. The teachers on Harmony are hoping books will be a better entertainment solution for the bus drive.

Technology:

The students successfully logged onto our classroom digital portfolio SeeSaw last week.  This week, we will post our "Hopes & Dreams" for this school year and share the access to this online portfolio with you all.  More information regarding SeeSaw will follow so please stay tuned and updated on our weekly posts!

We primarily use chromebooks when we access technology here at school.  Any additional practice your child can have at home with using a keyboard, a track pad and learning how to spell his/her full first and last name helps in this regard.  Thank you!

Lastly, thank you to those who already signed up for parent teacher conferences.  They are coming up soon.  Time flies!  Let me know if the times provided do not work for you and your family.  We will find another slot for you:)

Enjoy this beautiful fall day!!

Best,

Maria

Family Newsletter

Dear Families,
The school week went by fast with lots of special events and beautiful weather!

Shelburne Farms:
We had a wonderful day at Shelburne Farms, learning about how different foods grow and eventually make it into our kitchens.  The students participated in different workshops and learned about berries, vegetables and herbs while making a pizza together.  Thank you parent chaperones for coming along.  Here are some pictures:

Technology:
For the past two weeks, the students have learned about what it means to be safe, kind and responsible online.  As you might recall, we had our wonderful Digital Learning Leader Ms. Wilson join our classroom to  discuss these ideas.  At Curriculum Night, some parents asked if we could please share this contract for home use.  Ms. Wilson happily shared her contract so it was placed inside your child's Friday Folder.  This contract is yours to use, or not.  It does not have to come back to school as we already have one signed and safely stored inside our scrapbooks.  We understand it is a challenge to balance technology with other demands at home so perhaps this contract can help eliminate some of those struggles.

Science:
We started our inquiry-based science last week.  We invited Ms. Fisher's class to join us for a mystery science investigation into the largest apple in the world.  We followed up by tasting three different kinds of apples and graphing our results.

Math:
Our first grade mathematicians worked hard all week and earned a math celebration for filling our class jar.  On Friday, we introduced ipads as a rotating station.  At this station, the students practiced their subitizing skills.  Subitizing is the skill to quickly recognize a set of numbers and patterns in a group without counting.  For example, understanding dice patters help us group numbers quickly and efficiently for accurate calculations.

Reading:
We started guided reading groups.  The students participate in daily small groups and receive targeted  instruction in reading.  We call these groups "Book Clubs" as we also share our understanding and wonderings as we read.  My intern, Ms. Cece, conducted her first lesson.  The students learned about different story elements.  They learned about characters, setting, problem and solutions.  We will continue these discussions in the weeks to come.  The students are encouraged to identify these story elements in the stories they read; both in book clubs, but also in books they read independently.  Perhaps you can also engage in these types of conversations at home with your child?

Forest Friday:
We ended the week by going outside for another Forest Friday workshop.  The weather was sunny and cool; perfect for outdoor explorations and creative play.

Have a great day. 
Best,
Maria