Week 7 Post

Here and there:

·         I am beyond grateful for my supportive families this school year!  Your time and considerations during conferences were noticed and appreciated. I can see that our students are surrounded by those who want them to succeed in all areas of life. It is quite a team effort, so far we are off to a great start!

·         I am happy to announce that Drew was our September Core Value award winner. His efforts are consistently made each and every school day.  He makes a conscious effort to show me he is on task and ready for what is next.  Drew also makes efforts to show me his neat work as well as how he came to a solution.  I appreciate his effort within all subjects as I know he makes the most of every school day! He applies the energy needed to reach success at school. Keep up with the efforts Drew, they are noticed!

·         For the month of October I would like us to specifically focus on PROBLEM SOLVING which means that I am looking for students to independently find answers to difficult problems and situations.  I am looking for examples of problem solving as we work, talk, and play at school. 

·         October break is just around the corner.

·         I will be out of school next Thursday and Friday as my brother is getting married. I will not be connecting with Dojo but Ms. Forest, our veteran Franklin teacher will be here to instruct and take care of our room 19 community. She is aware of all our studies and school behaviors.

·         Order your Franklin shirt by Tuesday, October 12^th.  Money and order slips can be turned into me or the office. Order forms were sent home today (Friday, September 28^th).

A look at next week…

Spalding

We will be adding to our books. We are writing with more words with patterns, rules, and jobs. We take our time discussing how and why we write our words in class. Please take the time to review the nightly words and put them on the back of the green paper. By the end of the week I want every child to be best prepared to test!

Reading

Aesop’s fables were such fun! I will send home our work packet next week.  It was great to see the students form connections about morals and lessons. Next week we will read similar stories from different lands. Some of our stories include Tom Thumb and Issun Boshi.  While we read our folktales we will work on text to self-connections as well as compare and contrast.

Math

WOW! What connections have been made with geometry. We will continue onto 3D shapes, the students are VERY excited!

Science

I am happy to share that we are done with our human body unit and now we will learn about objects in the sky. Our new unit will start with the study of stars!

History

Our early explorers unit will consist of readings and stories about Christopher Columbus. We will examine time lines and identify factual information.  We will work on an explorer writing while being inspired by those who embraced adventure!

Have  nice weekend all!

Ms. Reger

Week 7

Here and there:

·       See you all next week at your scheduled conference time. I look forward to talking about the day to day joys of having your child in our class.  Again, please be on time to make the most of our appointment.

·       Early release next week, dismissal is at 1:25.

·       Picture day is next week on September 27^th. 

·       BOOK FAIR time, a very favorite time of year! The book fair will be next Monday-Thursday open from 2:00-4:00. Please stop by after your conference or after school with your child to do a little shopping.

·       Book fair wish list: There are a few books that we would love to add to our class library! If you would like to donate a book it would be greatly appreciated, I always love to read from books that have been donated in the past. They bring back all the joyful times of that unit and student.

o   We are wishing for:

§  The Sun Is Kind of a Big Deal by Nick Seluk

§  Pig Star by Aaron Blabey

§  Try a Little Kindness by Henry Cole

§  The Three Little Superpigs by Clair Evans

·       For the month of September we will be focusing on EFFORT. I am able to observe effort as students show neat and accurate handwriting, make thoughtful connections, and acts in ways that are helpful to our room 19 culture.  When we put all of our energy into our obligations our time together will be extremely valuable. I cannot wait to award another room 19 classmate who continually shows effort.

A look at next week…

Spalding

We will continue to do our OPR and WPR routines daily. I can see the improvements so far this year and appreciate efforts made by our fabulous first graders.  Thank you for helping your student with their nightly spelling homework. I love to see those Spalding notebooks daily!

Reading

Continuing with Aesop’s fables, the students have really enjoyed the stories and finding the moral of each fable.

Math

Onto one of my favorite units, geometry! Next week we will start with 2-D shapes and identify the attributes of each closed figure. The students will identify and draw shapes, I look forward to the connections!

Science

Science will consist of a review of the human body.

History

I will be assessing their knowledge of all symbols in our unit. What a great unit to start the school year with!

See you all next week!

Ms. Reger

Week 6

Here and there:

·       All of our room 19 families are signed up for conferences, thank you all for organizing with other time slots with multiple siblings as well as using sign up genius! I love that you are all using technology to best communicate as we work together to educate your child.  Conferences are just around the corner, I am very excited to see you all!

·       Next week we will introduce and work on the final 10 phonograms. At the end of next week all 70 will have been introduced and practiced. We will start to recognize all of our phonograms in words we read and write. The students who are showing great effort reading and verbalizing the phonograms daily with the class are the ones who are getting the most out of our Spalding time.

·       Thank you all for the support at home with signing off and assisting with homework. I do ask that you carefully read before you sign. I am seeing parents sign off without checking to make sure it is all done completely and accurately. 

·       For the month of September we will be focusing on EFFORT. I am able to observe effort as students show neat and accurate handwriting, make thoughtful connections, and acts in ways that are helpful to our room 19 culture.  When we put all of our energy into our obligations our time together will be extremely valuable. I cannot wait to award another room 19 classmate who continually shows effort.

A look at next week…

Spalding

That last phonograms will be introduced and reviewed, how exciting!  I encourage you to look over the review work from the week that is usually stapled to the graded spelling test. If the students crossed a phonogram out and rewrote it this means they need more practice with that specific one. If you need phonogram cards or would like to order a set for you child use the link below. The students will be using them through 6^th grade, it would be a worthwhile investment.

https://store.spalding.org/p-111-phonogram-cards-individual-size-set-of-87.aspx

Reading

As a class we will sort fiction and non-fiction examples as we have been exposed to both.  As we progress through the week we will be reading various Aesop’s fables and identify fable elements such as moral, problem, solution, and plot. How fun these stories are!

Math

I was very impressed with the odd and even and greater than/ less than assessment. This shows me that our number sense is strong and we can recognize patterns and place value.  The students loved our math skill(s) this past week.  Next week we are going to touch base on skip counting again, up to 200 and at any point in our number line. The week will start skip counting using number charts and transition to memorization.  In first grade they are expected to skip count by 2s, 5s, and 10s.

Science

We read some very interesting facts about the skeletal system, they enjoyed the movements and readings to help make connections.  Our skeletal system will continue with a fun project as we make cotton swab skeletons to show the parts of the human body.

History

The last and final monument will be Mount Rushmore.  We will be sorting facts and opinions about this national symbol. This will wrap up our American symbols unit.

Have a wonderful weekend, stay cool!

Ms. Reger

Week 5

Here and there:

·       All of our room 19 families are signed up for conferences, thank you all for organizing with other time slots with multiple siblings as well as using sign up genius! I love that you are all using technology to best communicate as we work together to educate your child.  Conferences are just around the corner, I am very excited to see you all!

·       Next week we will introduce and work on 10 more phonograms, I can tell we are starting to get a good grasp on them. The students who are showing great effort reading and verbalizing the phonograms daily with the class are the ones who are getting the most out of our Spalding time.

·       Back to Spalding notebooks for spelling next week. Again, I cannot express how important it is that they come back daily.

·       For the month of September we will be focusing on EFFORT. I am able to observe effort as students show neat and accurate handwriting, make thoughtful connections, and acts in ways that are helpful to our room 19 culture.  When we put all of our energy into our obligations our time together will be extremely valuable. I cannot wait to award another room 19 classmate who continually shows effort.

A look at next week…

Spalding

We will be reviewing phonograms 1-46 as well as introducing 47-57.  Practice makes perfect. We will be inputting spelling words as well as reviewing the rules of a silent and final e.

Reading

We are really understanding and expressing our ideas about author’s purpose. Next week we will continue to make connections and use close reading marks while reading informative narratives.

Math

We will strengthen our skip counting skills as well as introducing skip counting by 2s.  Students will also compare numbers and understand the meaning of even and odd.

Science

Onto the skeletal system as we read and use facts to explain the importance of this system. If anyone has had any broken bones that can been seen in an x-ray please send them in! It would be interesting to show!

History

I admire the interest within this subject, the students love our lessons on American symbols. We will be reading about the White house and the various rooms inside.  We will also read about the Liberty Bell.

Thanks for reading,

Ms. Reger

Week 4

Here and there:

·       Just a reminder that last year phonogram cards were made for you for at home practice, use them for verbal reviews.  If you no longer have them it would be a great idea to make your own phonogram cards using index cards and the app for assistance. Students can write the phonogram on the front and flip it over to add spelling words that have that phonogram in them.  Any extra phonogram practice at home goes a long way in the classroom.  The first 46 have been introduced and counting!

·       No school Monday!

·       Parents are invited to attend the informative special event on Wednesday, September 5^th at 7:00.  The amazing Franklin kindergarten team will teach families all about the Spalding language program. If you would like to become more knowledgeable on this helpful spelling program please attend.

·       I decided that the best way to stay organized with school supplies would be to use a crayon/ pencil box. I gave each student a small pencil box to use for the school year. If you would like to purchase one for you child please send it in and they can use it. Again, the smaller sized one, the 8x6 inch size.

·       Please message me on Dojo or write a note on your child’s homework assignment sheet if there a change in transportation. If I am not aware of adjustments I cannot make the change and transportation will be as normal.

·       It is so heartwarming to see the moments of caring and considerate actions made by our classmates. From tying a friend’s shoe to words of encouragement, it is wonderful to see that we have cultivated a place that takes care of one another. Thank you students for the endless amounts of sweetness.

·       Seasonal colds and allergies seem to have hit room 19. Please rest up and wash your hands regularly to avoid contacting and spreading germs.

·       As next week is a short we week will be sending home review pages to use for spelling word homework. The normal routines with Spalding books and 30 words per week will continue the following week.

·       Use the link to sign up for a parent/teacher conference!

o   www.SignUpGenius.com/go/70A0D4BA9AF2AABF94-fall 

·       This month we made a conscious effort to take responsibility for our learning, obligations, and actions. These responsible actions make for endless amounts of learning and growing.  I look forward to acknowledging one student on Monday.

·       For the month of September we will be focusing on EFFORT. I am able to observe effort as students show neat and accurate handwriting, make thoughtful connections, and acts in ways that are helpful to our room 19 culture.  When we put all of our energy into our obligations our time together will be extremely valuable. I cannot wait to award another room 19 classmate who continually shows effort.

A look at next week…

Spalding

We will continue to review the first 36 phonograms while introducing the next 5.  Spelling homework may look a little different as students will bring home a sheet of spelling words as a review. All 10 words from the sheet will need to be written on the green homework assignment sheet. Please return the sheet so we can use for Tuesday as well as Wednesday. Due to the short week we will review words instead of inputting new ones. 

Reading

I love the participation as I am able to hear many students read aloud to the class. Thank you for the effort and enthusiasm students! Next week we will continue to focus on informative narratives. We will take important information and key words to use in graphic organizers. The use of close reading marks are still happening as we read, so fun!

Math

We are REALLY catching onto fact families as we relate addition and subtraction.  Next week we will work on number patterns to 120.

Science

The human body will continue with the circulatory system.

History

The students took great interest in the Statue of Liberty. It was exciting to see them make connections with such an amazing U.S. landmark.  We will continue our American symbols unit with the bald eagle.

I hope you all enjoy your holiday weekend with friends and family,

Ms. Reger

Week 3 post

Here and there:

·       We have reviewed the first 36 phonograms this past week. We will continue to introduce the next set. They are becoming more complex as cues and words differentiate the various phonograms. Again, it would be a good idea to download and use the Spalding app now to reinforce what we have be practicing at school. For more information on the app use the link below. Use your app store to download.

o   http://www.spalding.org/apple-ios-app-marketing

·       Spalding spelling homework starts next week! A reminder of routines and expectations flyer was sent home last Wednesday. If it was misplaced use Classdojo as I posted the information on our story. The students are very excited to start spelling in their notebooks but with that comes great responsibility.

·       Please closely review the green homework slip nightly. They are completed by the students with correct assignments. Addition math facts, math worksheet, poetry practice, and reading have been the four components of homework thus far. Spelling will be added to the homework starting Monday.  

·       Progress reports for the first three weeks of school will be sent home on Monday.

·       SPIRIT DAYS started, it was AWESOME to see 18 of our students in Franklin colors and/or t-shirts.

·       As soon as we are contacted by PFO I will send out a digital signup link for fall conferences.  There will be many spots to choose from, please pick one that best fits your schedule. I look forward to sharing data and stories at that time.

·       Looking for a crafty parent! I would like for us to have a giant jar or large can to collect our box tops in. If you would love to take on this project let me know on Dojo in a message.

·       POETRY TIME! Please practice the circled poem title over the next couple weeks as they will recite the poem of choice on August 30^th.

·       August is the month for our class to focus on responsibility!  I am looking for students who take obligations seriously as well as those who hold accountability for their actions and attitudes. I cannot wait to award one student this upcoming Friday!

A look at next week…

Spalding

Spelling notebooks will be sent home nightly as your student will use them to complete the spelling homework. Notebooks MUST be sent back to school every day as we will be using them for our lessons. I cannot stress enough how important our notebooks are.  We will also be working on reviewing the first 36 phonograms and introducing new ones as they are found in our spelling words.

Reading

The students have done a wonderful job making connections and finding key words within our stories.  Next week we will use those connections and words to explain information found within informative narrative texts.  The students will be reading as a class but also independently as I am able to meet them at the individual level.  Our grammar element continues with complete sentences. Practice makes perfect as we write clear, accurate and complete sentences. 

Math

One of my favorite units of study will be introduced next week, fact families. I hope that with the connections between part-part-whole start to click our mental math facts strategies become more efficient.  We will also start addition time tests. As our weeks progress we want to rely less on our fingers and pictures to touch points and mental math. 

Science

The human body will continue with the digestive system.

History

Wow, what amazing conversations took place as we used our close reading strategies to understand the true meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance.  The students look forward to saying the pledge at the start of our school days.  Next week we will continue with the next symbol, the Statue of Liberty. 

Thank you all for your continued support as we are off to a great start!

Ms. Reger

Week 2 post

It has been exciting to see our routines and expectations become more of a habit rather than practice. Our days have been filled with rich learning content and opportunities for the students to share connections. Their ideas are powerful and will continue to be as our year continues. Thank you families for your continued support as we work together to make the weeks wonderful.  Classdojo seems to be a hit as pictures are shared and messages are sent. I appreciate you all getting connected!

Here and there:

·       We have reviewed the first 26 phonograms this week. We will continue to introduce the next set. It would be a good idea to download and use the Spalding app now to reinforce what we have be practicing at school. For more information on the app use the link below. Use your app store to download.

o   http://www.spalding.org/apple-ios-app-marketing

·       I look forward to more school days that start off with the entire class turning in homework assignments. That was an exciting time!

·       SPIRIT DAYS start August 31^st. Let’s show our Franklin pride every Friday by wearing Franklin shirts or the color(s) red, white, or blue.

·       Please be on the lookout next week for a digital signup sheet for fall conferences.  There will be many spots to choose from, please pick one that best fits your schedule. It will be first come, first served basis. I look forward to sharing data and stories at that time.

·       Parent volunteers, we are happy to have you as you join us to help.  With that being said we value the idea of being present while in class. This means that all cell phones will need to be put away. If you need to take a phone call please do so in private. The students hold responsibility for their learning, I value the opportunity to teach your child, please hold the role of parent volunteer with pride and presence. I enjoy seeing parents involved and with a purpose.  We could not do what we do here at Franklin without YOU! What a great class culture we create.

·       Those helping hands at home, I appreciate your time while helping us prep for upcoming activities.

·       Looking for a crafty parent! I would like for us to have a giant jar or large can to collect our box tops in. If you would love to take on this project let me know on Dojo in a message.

·       Math work, I have been sending home the math classwork in their homework folders (it looks similar to the homework page) as this is a great resource to use if your child is struggling with concepts. I like to offer ways in which children can have resources available to help them solve. We work on them for as much time as we have or until I see that we are ready to move on to another skill/ activity. This may be the case for other subjects being sent home. Just be sure to take out of the folder once home. It is not incomplete work, if there is work that needs to be completed beyond homework it will be sent home and assigned to the green homework sheet.  

·       POETRY TIME! Please practice the circled poem title over the next couple weeks as they will recite the poem of choice on August 30^th.

·       August is the month for our class to focus on responsibility!  I am looking for students who take obligations seriously as well as those who hold accountability for their actions and attitudes. I cannot wait to award one student at the end of the month.

A look at next week…

Spalding

 As a class we will continue to take the time to carefully and accurately write our letters. I see much improvement already! This is an important skill as our work is reflected in our penmanship, it also helps with the transition to cursive in later grades.  We will also start our OPR and WPR practices. It is time to download the Spalding app and practice those assigned homework phonograms!

Reading

As a class we will be reading informational texts as we reread stories, mark our text, and find important information. Through these practices of close reading we will become independent readers and text detectives. If you would like to know more about close reading use the link below. The texts we will be using will be in the form of short stories, read a louds, and maps! It is a great way to incorporate our history studies and reading skills at the same time.

https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/common-core-close-reading-0/

Math

Next week will consist of more complex addition problems as we add three digits and work with word problems.

Science

The human body will continue with the muscular system as we make moving arms and muscles out of paper.

History

How fun the flag studies have been. We have reviewed the symbolic meaning behind our flag, the influential people who created our flag, the color representations, and much more. Next week we will continue with the pledge and introduce a variety of symbols we will be studying over the unit.

Have a nice weekend,

Ms. Reger