They say that time flies when you are having fun and it's hard to believe that Ms. Russell's class is in the final stretch of their first grade year. The children have been working very hard on many different things. Here are some of the highlights:After working with fairy tales (reading, writing and making them "bloom" into a beautiful creation made for Books In Bloom), Ms. Russell's class is devoting time learning about non-fiction books. They continue to compare fiction and non-fiction and are finding that reading non-fiction books really means reading to learn instead of just focusing on learning to read. In the non-fiction genre, Ms. Russell's class has looked at quite a lot of different types of books that have helped them learn about many things they need to know. Things like; the symbols of the United States, different types of animals and habitats as well as reading about people, places and events. Through this type of work they've talked about things such as what inspired the Star Spangled Banner to be written as well as things like building character and respecting diversity. They've also been learning about why they need to recycle instead of throwing everything into the trash. In fiction, Ms. Russell's class has focused on Robert Munch's very entertaining books, Arnold Lobel's Frog and Toad series as well as Cynthia Rylant's Henry and Mudge series. The children look for story patterns and make predictions based on their knowledge of what they have previously read by these authors.
During writer's workshop, Ms. Russell's class has been writing up a storm! Children have explored many different types of writing such as writing notes to each other and to their teachers, creating fictional stories and fairy tales, writing poems, and writing about their daily lives. Ms. Russell's class continues to consider the 6+ Traits of Writing throughout writer's workshop using traits such as Word Choice, Sentence Fluency, Voice, Conventions...to name a few. They have also worked hard learning many new spelling words from our word wall as well as many groups of words and word families through our Word Study and phonics program.
In Math, the children have focused on number sense, exploring 3-D shapes, volume, measurement, addition (single and double digit), subtraction (single and double digit) and have even started learning about double digit addition using regrouping. IXL math is an incredible support for all of these concepts and the students are reminded that practicing time, money, adding, subtracting and more is a great use of time. In May, Ms. Russell's class has been learning about fractions (1/2, 1/3, 1/4 etc) and have been creating tangible items to help with this process. They've also explored the use of a Venn Diagram to help with grouping. This is also a concept that IXL Math explores.
Ms. Russell's class has 2 upcoming field trips. The first trip is this coming Wednesday, May 16th and will be the final of the three Audubon trips to the neighboring field, forest and wetland areas. Please be sure to dress your child appropriately for this walking field trip that includes a grassy field, a wooded area and a pond. We will gather data that compares the three areas in the fall, winter and finally the spring. The second and final field trip of the year will be an all day trip on June 7th. Ms. Russell's class will be heading to Plum Island for a tide pool exploration. This trip is a highlight of the year and all parents are welcome to help the children explore and learn about the many wonders that the ocean brings to our nearby shores.
Our final Open House will be on Friday morning, May 25th from 8:15-8:35. The children invite you to celebrate a year of learning and growing by sharing work and successes with you. We hope you can make it!
