October 6 to October 10, 2014

Reading

     We continue to build our stamina and now we are Reading to Self for 7 minutes.  Each student has a "Just Right Book Bag" in their desk (the books in this bag are just the right fit).  I have selected books at a level that is right for your child and each day they practice reading by reading and rereading these books.  I compare shoes to books for the children.  If we wear shoes that are too big, then we may trip and we become frustrated. If we try to read a book that is too hard, we can trip over the words and become frustrated.  But we don't always wear the same shoes, we may have shoes for sports, for the beach, for playing in the mud, for different things that we like to do.  I encourage the children to select a few books that suit their interests such as books about sharks or snakes or cats.  They may not be able to read that book YET, but they can read the pictures or it is a book that someone can read to them.

     Your child has a take home book bag of books to read at home. Keep this bag at home for a week and  please read nightly with your child.  You will be amazed at the progress with consistent practice. Just like any skill, the more we practice, the better we are at that skill.  It is okay to reread books and you can list the same book on the reading log every time your child reads it.  Please return book bags on the day indicated on the reading log.  This helps me when changing books so that I do not have too many to change on one day.  Oh, and when your child fills in a reading log, they earn the chance to choose a prize from the Treasure Chest!

Our Word Wall Words This Week Are:

to

the

look

see

here

Mathematics

     We have been working on numbers (Grade one to 30, Grade two to 50).  We count, print numerals, organize numbers, and represent them in different ways(groups of 10's, with tallies in groups of 5's). 

Science

We are discovering living things.  Our first inquiry project was Sea Monkeys.  

We asked questions.

We made a prediction of what we think they may look like.

Next we will observe growth and changes.  Stay tuned.

Grade 1 Big Ideas

Living things grow, take in food to create energy, make waste, and
reproduce.
Plants and animals, including people, are living things. 
Living things have basic needs (air, water, food, and shelter) that are met
from the environment. 
Different kinds of living things behave in different ways. 
All living things are important and should be treated with care and respect.

Grade 2 Big Ideas
Animals have distinct characteristics. 
Humans are animals. 
There are similarities and differences among different kinds of animals.

Humans need to protect animals and the places where they live.