Thanksgiving and the middle of the 2nd 9 weeks!

       It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is less than 1 week away, and that we are in the middle of the 2nd 9 weeks!  :)  Phewwww!!!  I was just watching OUR babies--you may have given birth to them, but they are my children, too now!--- today and thinking about how much they had already grown... in heighth and in knowledge. It made me feel a little sad.  Before you know it I will be writing, "It's summer vacation, already! Can you believe how time flew??" 

       Don't forget our Thanksgiving Feast is Tuesday at 12:00 on the stage in the gym.  I have sent home reminders about what you are scheduled to bring.  Please be here by 11:30 to finish set up before we bring the kiddos down.  Please join us in eating our Thanksgiving Feast.  We would love to have you!

      Be sure to look at Scholastic online.  This is a great way to order books for the holidays without your child seeing them when they take them home.  There is a link to Scholastic online ordering on this page.  Look at the right side of the page.  When you order online, you also earn free books for our classroom and yourself.

       I have not made a link for Study Island on this page, but I would like to let you know about a great program that our school purchased 2 years ago.  It is called Study Island, and is aligned with our new Common Core Standards. Students can learn through the use of technology and GAMES!  It also has a page where I can monitor student progress. If a child is struggling in an area, it will let me know so I can work with him/her. Go to www.studyisland.com. Your child's username is his/her firstname.lastname@HCES.  Your child's default password is falcons. This is a great tool.  We often use it in the classroom together, but have not used it in computer lab because students cannot log themselves on. It takes an entire class period to log on, but that is all we get finished.  :(  If any parent would like to volunteer to help get students logged in on Tuesday mornings from 10:20-11:10, I would be happy to have you  helping!  I would really like to use this resource more frequently!


    

Is Fall Break Almost Over Already???

    It's hard to believe that our beloved Fall Break is almost over already!  The first 5 days have gone by too quickly! I haven't gotten nearly enough done, as I am sure is the concensus with everyone!  ;) 

    Don't forget, we have Parent-Teacher Conferences on Tuesday, October 9th from 3 p.m until 6 p.m. in the LIBRARY.   I'll try to remember to hang signs reminding you that they will be held in the Library.  You may enter through the doors by the office at the front of the building.  I hope you can make it for you appointment.  If something comes up, and believe me, I know things happen, please try to contact the office to let me know so we can reschedule as soon as possible. 

Fall Break! Need I Say More????

   
    Here we are, already at Fall Break.  This first 9 weeks has been a whirl wind.  Don't forget, when we come back from Fall Break, we begin Parent/Teacher Conferences on Tuesday, October 9th in the Library.  I hope to see you all there. If you haven't signed up yet, please don't forget to give me a call by next Monday afternoon.

     We have a Unit 2 math assessment today. Bummer....  :(  On the up side, we are having  a sight word race with Ms. Smith's homeroom today.  Wish us luck!  They have been practicing for a victory.  They have been learning "We Are the Champions."  Their version goes something like this, "We are the champions.... of the WORDS"!!!  Cute, right? Children knowing all of their sight words correctly will also get their faces painted. :)

    We will also be having a birthday blow out (sort of) for Mrs. Goddard.  ;)   Mrs. Goddard is turning old over fall break, so I am bringing in cupcakes today for my birthday. Yummy!  After a long day of assessing, assessing, assessing, the kids will need a break.

    Our first field trip is coming up on Monday, October 22nd to see The True Story of the Three Little Pigs at the Carson Center.  Our plans for the trip have changed slightly. The first showing was booked, so we will be attending the 11:00 showing.  We cannot push lunch any later, so we will have to go to Chuck E. Cheese BEFORE the play.  This also means we have less time to play at Chuck E. Cheese.   :(   We are disappointed, but everything will work out I'm sure.

      Fall parties will be coming up before you know it.  Our room mother should be contacting you all soon.  The kiddos are getting excited!  If anyone has any games that we might be able to play during party time, please be sure to share. The more structure, the smoother the party goes.

      Please remind your kiddo to continue reading and practicing sight words this fall break!  :)   Have a great, restful vacation!

Ready for S'more Learning???

   If  you haven't had a chance to see our bulletin board, stop by and check it out with your child in the morning!  I have some of the CUTEST pictures posted on it with some student work.  :)  I know you'll love it!  Also, check out your child's journal for the microwave s'mores recipe.  It has a special surprise with it! ;)  

    Tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 21st), 1st graders will be popping popcorn to go along with this week's story All That Corn.  Mrs. Goddard is also reading aloud a big book with a science connection-- Popcorn Science. I will be reading that aloud as Ms. Smith, Mrs. Holly, and Mrs. Johnson pop and serve the popcorn.

     Also, don't forget next Tuesday, Sept. 25th is our Grandparent's Day lunch.  Our class goes to lunch at 11:10 a.m.   Students also have created a special surprise for their grandparents. :)  We will take them to lunch with us.

     Can you believe we are nearing the end of the first 9 weeks???  We have completed our first round of MAP testing for reading and math.  We have also completed DIBELS testing.  I am currently working on assessing math and reading standards for this 9 weeks. Any volunteers available to help in the classroom during this time would be greatly appreciated! ;)  (Be sure you have completed a background check within the last 3 years.) 

      Changes have been made to our field trip.  I will try to send out info regarding this tomorrow.

Chugging right along!

Whoa!  Can you believe how difficult reading has gotten so quickly?  :)  I remember when we were tapping out all of the sounds in our words.  Now we are proficient chunkers, and in many cases, flat out reading multisyllabic words. Those sight words sure do help kiddos read, too!  I'm so proud of those little guys! Parents, keep up the good work! Your kids are doing great!

More Than Half Way Through the First 9 Weeks

   Can you believe we are more than halfway through the first 9 weeks?   My, how time flies.... your child is practically a second grader already!  ; )  Ok, so maybe that's a little drastic.  On the upside, we are nearly to Fall Break!  What a lovely time of the year! 

     I edited "The Year to Read" link.  Take a moment to revisit that link if you have time.

     Sorry I have gotten behind on posting new and important things.  My computer died at the beginning of the school year. Talk about stress!  All my pics and documents from the last 7-8 years were on my computer, including the birth of my two year old.  I was one SICK mama, wishing I had been smart enough to back up my hard drive.  On the upside, they were able to retrieve both pictures and files. On the down side, my computer still isn't functioning properly.

     I lost lots of "favorites" links, including my link to this site. That wouldn't have been a big deal, but since it was a favorite, I didn't really have my username and password memorized. I just relied on my link each time.  Tonight I decided I needed to sit down and try different usernames and passwords until I found something that worked. To my relief, I remebered it. :) 

First Week Down...35 To Go! ;)

     Wow! The first week in first grade was a whirlwind!  We learned lots about school rules and classroom procedures last week.  We will continue working with rules and procedures so that the classroom will run seamlessly. This week you also will begin seeing more work coming home. Students will need to take their reading books home each day (M-Th.) for fluency practice.  Also, please be sure to check your child's FALCON notebook daily for fluency work in math, cut-out projects, notes from the teacher, etc. :)

     Students, don't forget your PE shoes on Tuesday! Parents, we are on a 4 day rotation (art, library, music, PE). We started last Monday in library. Tuesday was music, Wednesday was PE, Thursday was art, and Friday was library. I believe I denoted PE days on our snack calendar.

     Parents, don't forget to check the snack calendar and send snacks on the appropriate days. When we accumulate extras, I will account for that in the snack schedule. You are welcome to send snacks in advance.  It would be helpful if you label them with your child's name. I will put them up until it is your child's snack day.