Monday, December 14, 2009

Week 17

We are taking a week off from the reading series. We will still be reading but it will be some fun books that go with the holidays. I love this time of year so we will be doing activities that go along with the season.

Our party will be Friday afternoon at 12:15. That will give us time after recess to clean up and leave the room ready to come back to in the new year.

Questions of the Week
Monday - What do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?
Tuesday - If you could only have one gift, what would it be?
Wednesday - What should Santa bring me for Christmas?
Thursday - What would you like to get your family for Christmas?
Friday - MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

We are working hard on money. I am using IXL Math to help us do that. Your kids can do 20 questions for free on their website. I think that is daily. We are using the Kindergarten section right now. The first grade one asks them to identify the dollar coin. That is absurd. The Kindergarten section just deals with the coins we learn. You might check your child at home to see if they know coins and their values. We also got time to the quarter hour. It is introduced. I don't really expect master of this. State standards say that we only have to do time to the hour. . .not even the half hour.

Spelling has been a little slow. I haven't had any help. My aide is on the DIBEL team so she has been testing for the last week. There is just so much to get to.

Thanks for all the support you have given. I think Santa needs to bring your child a new glue bottle, new crayons, and a new glue stick. Our glue bottles and crayons are pretty sad.

I am making a classroom wish list: Crayons, glue bottles, glue sticks, dry erase markers, cheap paper plates in small and large, paper cups, and anything else you think might be useful.

Have a great holiday season and be safe. We are off to the farm in Kansas. It will be great to be there. . .hope it is nice enough to fish. . .and see our son. Our daughter in Ohio won't be able to be there. She is recovering from Gamma Knife Radiosurgery and just doesn't have the time. Don't work in the aviation industry if you want a holiday off!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Week 16

The story this week is "On the Way to the Pond." The phonics skill is the /er/ sound made by er, ir, and ur. The new vocabulary words are:
find,
follow
found
four
full
these
way
were

We have been doing money and measurement in math. This will continue this week. Please help your child with money. Several children still don't know the names of the coins or the value of them. We have worked on pennies, nickels, and dimes. The quarter will be introduced soon. We are using IXL math to practice money.

Questions of the Week
Monday - Tell me 5 things you see that let you know that Christmas is coming.
Tuesday - Tell me 5 things you hear that let you know that Christmas is coming.
Wednesday - Tell me 5 things you taste that let you know that Christmas is coming.
Thursday - Tell me 5 things you smell that let you know that Christmas is coming.
Friday - Tell me 5 things you touch that let you know that Christmas is coming.

We have started having lunch detention in first grade. Many children are not coming in from recess in a timely manner and are being disrespectful to the aides on the playground. There is also a lot of hitting and punching. These behaviors will earn you a day in lunch detention. We have only been doing it for one week but we are seeing changes in behavior already. Hopefully they will learn to think before they react.

One of my former students is stationed in Iraq. I would like to send him a box of goodies sometime after the first of the year. Anything you would like to send to contribute to this box would be appreciated. He said that anything that you would take on an extended camping trip would be useful. Also magazines and things that can be given to the children. The preschool is doing Shaymon's dad so I thought this former student could be someone we helped out.

Is there anyone who could make us some tree shaped sugar cookies for our Christmas party??? Please give me a call if you can help.

Have a great week.