Hike Week

Hello Everyone!

We had a great week! Between the summer weather and the hike, I feel like we nailed it! I had a great time spending the morning outside with our group. I am looking forward to thinking of ways to improve our experience so any feedback I can pass along would be great, either from what was reported to you or what you experienced if you joined us. We want to make sure our kiddos have the most rich and enjoyable 1st and 2nd grade experience possible.

Thanks to the thinking of Mrs. Joslyn, we added a picture to our class, you can see it here:

We have talked a lot about the picture on our door and what they think it means. "Why are they doing that?" is the common question. When we talked about our picture and I asked them to explain why a circle is so powerful, the came up with quotes such as:

"It's like a nest, it keeps us safe"
"It's like the Earth"
"You can see what is different and the same about us"

It was an inspiring class meeting. We're working on printing out another copy and putting it next to the one on our door, maybe as a bulletin board and writing prompt. The possibilities are limitless.

An amazing cardboard creation

I've wrapped up reading assessments and will be starting on Monday. Like I said last week, depending on where your child is on their reading development will determine the frequency on how often we meet to discuss reading. In reading groups we will be also be practicing sight words, word families, similes/metaphors, etc. Spelling assessments are also done. I will score those over the next week and the kids will be starting word study groups in the coming weeks.

I saw that my first grade math blog page wasn't being posted and fixed that problem. For those 1st grade parents who want to check out what math looks like in our room, check it out. It also has additional resources to access.

The marble track to end all marble tracks (so far!)

We continued to talk about our class small moment story which focused on our Big 4. We made it about making safe choices and the kids will be digging their teeth into it next week by brainstorming and doing some work around organizing their thoughts and story.

As for a couple of updates, make sure you are checking heads in your house. We've had a couple of cases in the 1/2. We are doing daily checks here in school. We also had our first Clear the Halls drill. This can be a scary event for some kids so please do a check-in with your little one and let me know if there is anything that was concerning that came up. We are sending home book orders today. You don't need to participate, but it is a great way to get some books and  to get your kids excited about reading. There is nothing like looking forward to a book... Please make sure your orders come back to school by Friday, October 13th.

Last, this is a reminder that we do not have school next Friday or the following Monday due to teacher inservice and Columbus Day.

If you have questions, concerns or celebrations, be in touch! I hope you all get a chance to go and get some cider or explore the outdoors on the beautiful autumn weekend!

Best,

Ben and Tammy