Our Third Week

Hello Families,

September is flying by quickly, and our first graders are adjusting well to classroom routines and expectations. We earned a couple more Panthers Pride cards this week and were so cooperative during indoor recess on Thursday. Nobody even complained when another class joined us for Tumble Books instead of activities in the classroom.

Math
We did a quick check on Topic 2, identifying, reading, and writing numbers to 12. These will be coming home next week. I apologize for not having them ready to go today. Our second topic is a short one. We are learning to compare numbers to tweleve. New vocabulary words are greater than, less then, least, greatest, compare, between, before, and after. Using these words in daily family conversations will be very helpful for your child. Our topic 2 check is scheduled for Tuesday, September 24.

Reading Workshop
Wow! I am beyond impressed with the reading stamina of these readers. This week we read for more than 15 minutes. That means that all students were quiet, stayed in their spot, and had their nose in a book the whole time. We learned how to care for books (ask about the crying books), how to get and put back our book boxes nicely, how to choose "just right" books, and how to find an appropriate spot to read. They are amazing, and I can't wait to watch their reading growth this year.
***Look for the following characteristics when helping your child find a "just right" book: It is read not too fast, but not too slow. He/she knows all or most of the words. The topic is age appropriate.***

Word Workshop
We are reviewing short a, i, e, and several consonants. We are practicing segmenting words, which means saying the sound of each letter. Even for First Graders that are reading, phonics review is very important. The little books are great practice for fluency. The studetns can choose to leave them at school in their books boxes or take them home for practice.
 Sight words: go, I, is, see, the, my 

This Week I Really Learned!
Today your child will be bringing home his/her T.W.I.R.L. book for the second time. Thank you for taking time to write to you child. We were able to enjoy some of the letters during snack break this week. They loved hearing your written words.