Picture Day Tomorrow!

It is picture day tomorrow.  We are tentatively scheduled to begin at 10:10am.  Please let me know if you have any questions.


Thanks,

Michael Hagen

Spelling Words for the Week

I apologize I did not get these out yesterday.  Unfortunately something unforeseen came up at the end of the day, which led me to not being able to get the spelling words in the folder.  Here are the spelling words for the week:

• words
• what
• but
• all
• not
• an
• she
• or

Weekly Wrap-Up

Another fantastic week here on planet first grade! We were able to get to a lot of material and the kids responded quite well. I was particularly pleased with how they handled the math assessment we took on Tuesday and Wednesday. Look for more on that in the math section. We also have picture day coming up next Wednesday, so everyone practice those smiles!!! Now onto the highlights...


Math:



It was a big week in math that saw us complete unit one. The culmination of this unit included an assessment that the class completed independently. I am still looking at the data, but I was really pleased with how everyone responded to the assessment. This is a new task for the kids and a big departure from kindergarten, but they did great! We also spent time on Monday working on counting larger numbers. The class got to play Rolling for 50 with a partner, which was a lot fun. Finally, on Thursday we introduced the "turn-around rule." The kids were able to practice this concept in their math journals. As usual, we spent Friday catching up on math items from the week and playing math games.



Phonics:


We worked on several concepts in phonics this week. The kids practiced writing rhyming words by themselves. They also examined how they can change the first letter of a word to make a new word. This has been a big focus this week.



Writing:



In writing this week we worked on spelling the best we can and moving on. Often kids will get tripped up on a difficult word and are unable to complete the story as a result. This lesson was designed to provide the kids with a way to keep the story moving, even when there is a tricky word. The class also received alphabet linking charts to help with their writing. In addition to the alphabet charts I added a personal word wall for the kids to write down hard to remember words. These tools will be very helpful as the writing lessons continue.



Science:



In science this week we examined how the sun warms. This included a fabulous experiment regarding several bags of ice outside. The kids loved answering questions about how the ice melted in their science journals.



Social Studies:



In social studies this week the kids had an opportunity to illustrate ways we get along in school. We also had a fun icebreaker activity I used when we switched desks today. As always we reinforced our PBIS concepts and of course our YNWA concepts!





If you have any questions please let me know. All told for the week!

Spelling words for the week:  you, that, was, for, one, had, fix and what.  Homework tonight is to practice these words with your child.  Our spelling test will be next Monday.


Thanks,

Michael Hagen

We are desperately low on snack in the classroom.  I have had some very generous parents donate quite a bit of snack early on, but we have exhausted that quickly.  The kids really do enjoy a quick break in the morning and afternoon, so please send in that snack.


Thanks,

Michael Hagen

We had another fantastic week here on planet first grade.  We had testing, Constitution Day and science…oh my. We will finish up our NWEA testing for the fall next week, but the class has done fantastic so far.  As soon as parent results are ready I will let you know. 

September 17^th was also Constitution Day and we celebrated in an appropriate way—We made a class Constitution.  This was an entirely student driven exercise with the exception of the first rule: You’ll Never Walk Alone.  YNWA is a phrase you will hear a lot from your child over the course of the year.   This is a message I will be teaching and reinforcing throughout the year.  My message is that in Mr. Hagen’s classroom we are family.  We are a group.  We are a team.   These kids will always have a bond that connects them.  We help one another out.  We support one another and if they can remember that and keep that message in his/her heart then he/she will never walk alone.  I believe it is an appropriate and positive message that I look forward to exploring more with the class.  This is a great group of kids and I am so excited to be their first grade teacher. 

Now onto the highlights…

Math:

In math this week we organized a lot of data using tallies.  The class worked in small groups to sort and tally several types of animals.  We also tallied how everyone gets home at the end of the day.  We also spent time exploring some mathematical manipulative materials.  We capped off the week by talking more about number stories. 

Phonics:

We have been making ABC books dealing with beginning sounds.  Although this sounds a bit rudimentary for first graders I am adapting the assignment to meet the individual learners.  We also spent time with rhyming words, spelling words and changing the first letter to make a new word.  

Science:

We practiced using our thermometers to check the temperature of three different cups of water.  We also recorded our findings in our journals.  The class had a blast with that lesson.  We also began looking at the collecting and examining life aspect of our science curriculum.  We will spend more time on that next week. 

We have P.E. on Monday's, Wednesday's, Thursday's and Friday's.  Please make sure to send in gym shoes with your child or they will SIT OUT from P.E.   I do not like to see this happen, because these kids need that movement, so send in those shoes.

Thanks,

Michael Hagen