Open House and Other Happenings

Hey Everyone,

I hope everyone got to catch up on some rest over the long weekend before we begin our next long stretch before Thanksgiving break. I got to press some apples and share some with the kiddos, always a treat!

Open House is always such a great evening and it was great to see you all. The kids are always great tour guides. If you have any questions/comments about what you saw and want to talk more, let me know. Also, if you couldn't make it but would like the opportunity to come in and check things out, let me know. We can always set up a visit during the day or before school.

A drawing from one page of a storyboard

A "Small Moment" planning sheet

In Writer's Workshop we are working on our Small Moment narratives (stories). We are starting with non-fiction and then moving to fictional narratives next. The kids are focusing on a small moment that they have had related to our Big 4 and thinking about the moral (lesson) they learned. My choice to do non-fiction first is because it is a type of writing that they are more familiar with and one that they are personally connected to. The structure of this kind of writing is different than fictional stories. To meet this challenge, we had kids draw a story that was at least 5 pages long. This is an effective way to help them stretch out the details in their their stories. They will be adding more words next week and we will be looking at the different parts of their writing that we will be looking for. For a look at the writing rubrics we use to score their writing pieces, take a look at the writing section of the blog page.

In literacy I got to start all of my reading groups. In our groups we do word study, reading books, learning about reading strategies, and practice our sight words. Each group meets for 20 minutes and I go through about 4 groups per day, meaning an 80 minute literacy time. The kids are really doing a great job building their stamina. We have also begun to have kids plan their literacy time over the past 2 weeks. Each day they plan what they will be doing in each of the 4 blocks of time during literacy. Next week we will be starting to goal set around writing skills to practice as well as the number of words they want to try and learn each week and then reflecting on their effort and progress at the end of the week. They will be attaching a piece of their writing from the week to show evidence of their progress toward meeting their goal. I'll look at these over the weekend and then return them to bring home on Monday.

A literacy plan from this week

We will be starting word study (spelling) groups in the next couple of weeks. The kids took a spelling assessment early in the year and we grouped the kids between my and Christine's (Ms. Babcock) class according to which spelling rules they are familiar with (long/short vowels, beginning/ending sounds, magic-e words, etc.). It is our hope that we will be able to split the kids up into 5 different groups, but this is depending on which adults are available during our Word Study time.

We'll begin our science work in earnest at the end of the month. In the meantime, we'll be doing some class investigations and doing some modeling of the scientific process in class. I'd like to give a shout-out to our 4-Wind volunteers who will be coming into our class to do some additional science work as well. It is a great program that the kids really enjoy and learn a lot from.

Last, here is a new math link for interested parties:

https://media.pearsoncmg.com/curriculum/math/Investigations3/gamecenter/english/index.html#/Grade:1/

I will add this link to my math page on the blog. I haven't fully explored the page (yet) but what I saw looked like there may be some good stuff.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Ben and Tammy


Other News:

BOOK ORDERS - Please send in any you might want on Monday. We didn't get any this first round. Be on the look-out for the next ones in the coming weeks if you didn't get in on this order.

This November 4th Rumney Memorial School will be hosting the 11^th annual Harvest Dinner to  raise money for two worthy causes—the local foods program at Rumney and the Middlesex Food Shelf.

In the next month leading up to the Harvest Dinner our school community will work together to collect items for the Middlesex Food Shelf. We will have donation boxes in each classroom, staff room, and in our school lobby. We have a goal of collecting 1,000 items, non-perishables and toiletries, before November 4^th.

Please consider bringing in items that you’d stock in your own pantry.  All donations are accepted and appreciated!

If you have any questions or would like to help plan this year’s Harvest Dinner please contact Honi Bean Barrett at hbarrett@u32.org

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

Parent Night and Hike Update

Hello Wonderful Families!

We have had another stellar week in our room. The kids are getting settled into their routines and are doing a great job. We are slowly building work stamina and are adding more options to their literacy time.

It was wonderful seeing those of you who could make it to our curriculum information night on Wednesday. For those of you who couldn't, we have sent home the same information we handed out as well as provided you a sheet for an opportunity to write questions and give feedback. If you have questions about any of this paperwork, please get in touch with Ms. Toth.

I know there has been some changes to the All School Hike that your children may have passed along to you. Some kids are concerned about the changes and we are committed to providing our 1/2 students with a great, fun-filled day. After we return from the Nature trail at Elmore State Park we'll be having a room for artwork (painting, pastels, maybe some clay), we'll be using the gym for some games, we'll have some quiet time, wrapped up by some outdoor play time. We think these options will scratch their itch for fun.

Literacy time is ramping up. You may have heard about their new sight word books, which we handed out today. These book are word lists tailored to the sight word count I've been collecting this week. There is a link in the reading section of the blog for you to print out these word lists, should you want to practice at home. If you don't have a printer but would like a list or a booklet from school, let me know. I'd be happy to print them out and send them home for you.

I'll be getting done all of our reading assessments done next week, which means guided reading

groups will be starting the week after. Kids will be grouped by their reading skills (word solving, comprehension, fluency {smoothness}, etc.). This way we ensure that the kids are getting exactly what they need. In reading groups we will be doing some sight word practice, reading books, and focusing in on word families and similar skills. Ask your kids about the books they are reading next week.

We have also started working on our handwriting during Writer's Workshop time. Kids are working at their own pace and doing constant check-ins with teachers as they go. Kids got books based on observations on their free writing and how they are using the lines on the page as well as their fine motor control. I've also given some pencil grips out for some kids to explore, it's important to have an efficient grip to ensure that kids are not over-working their hands while writing.

We had a visitor on the playground this week that got quite a bit of attention. It was pretty scary looking and we made sure to give it plenty of room. Problem being, I couldn't control where it

landed. So as I was standing guard to ensure the safety of our insect friend, it decided to visit my leg. It turns out it was a Pigeon Tremex. Check out the link for more information:

https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.asp?identification=Pigeon-Tremex

Last, I wanted to say how much I have appreciated all of your kind words and support thus far this year. I feel really good about the partnerships we are forming and I look forward to seeing them continue to grow.


Please get in touch with any questions, concerns or celebrations.

Enjoy the sunshine this weekend!

Ben and Tammy

The Brook, Literacy and Parent Night

Hey Folks,

It's been a beautiful, sunny week filled with laughter and learning in our room. There's a lot of information here, so please take note!

Nuts and Bolts:

• If you haven't and want to, please send in a spare set of clothes in a labeled bag. We'll keep them in a private place in the room
• The U-32 Cross Country Invitational is this weekend and there are kids races starting at 8:00am.
• Parent Information Night is this Wednesday, September 20th, at 5:30pm to 7:00pm. Christine and I will be doing presentations about our 1/2 program. We'll be free to touch base from 6:30-7:00. Again, please, no conferences! If you;d like to schedule a more formal conference, just let me know. I'm happy to meet any time.
• We'd like to start doing book orders in class. If you are interested in doing the organizing and ordering, let me know. The sad fact is that I don't have time to do it, so without help it is unlikely to happen.

We have been working really hard on our Big 4 and filling in the details on what we see them as

meaning. We have hung the poster in the room and the kids have begun to add their "signatures" around it as our social contract. We reference it daily and we have done some great learning around our expectations for one another and for our friends throughout the building. As a part of this, we are going to do a special project and we need your help. Next week we'll be doing an activity and we're asking the kids to have a set of darker clothes to wear for it. Please try to send them in on Monday.

We've continued our hard work in literacy. We're up to 30 minutes of continuous work time and will be moving up to 45 by the end of next week. We're working on writing and reading to ourselves.

We'll be introducing word work next week, where kids get to work on their sight words. To get a look at literacy in our class, check out the side bar on the blog page.

We traveled down to the brook, using our senses to observe our surroundings. We did a little writing along with our watercolors. Look at the example of the science journal cover as well as some of the

beautiful writing they are working on. We've continued enjoying our butterflies in the room as well. We avoided a close call with one of our caterpillars and had a great chat about the nature of all things living...

It is going to be lovely this weekend, enjoy the outdoors! Be in touch with questions, concerns and celebrations.

Best,

Ben and Tammy

Butterflies and The Big 4

Hey Everyone,

It was such an exciting week. We were lucky enough to see a monarch hatch and as you can see in the pictures, it was quite the event. Lots of excitement! We also go to release a couple of the butterflies that hatched, as well. As we looked for new milkweed for our last couple of caterpillars, we found another, which we donated to the kindergarten. Thank you to Katy, Brian, Anna and Ben for giving us the opportunity to share this amazing experience!

We did some great reading, too. We read a book called To Be A Kid, a book full of pictures and parts of being a kid. The kids wrote about What it means to be a kid to them in their new writing journals for their first writing assignment of the year. We have emphasized doing your best writing and including as many sounds as you can when writing words you don't know how to spell rather than an emphasis on correct spelling. They did a great job! I don't know about you all, but I know that sleepovers after school on a Friday always felt special... The bus note, the planning, English muffin pizzas and the falling asleep way before I wanted to.

We did some great work around "The Big 4", the expectations we are learning about and building with the students in our school. You can see the start of ours in the picture. We have been talking about each one of the rules and adding to them as we go. Ask your child about it.

As part of our butterfly releasing, we got to start our science journals as well. The kids were given a question, "Do you think the butterfly will fly away (instead of being place on a flower)?" They made a prediction and then did some observations. Considering that it is only day 9 and they were doing something totally new, we were so pleased with their effort.

The kids have been getting better and better at their morning routines. Please make sure your child is clear about their breakfast, snack and lunch plans as to avoid tears and confusion for us and the kitchen. By and large the kids have been doing a great job at this, so thanks. Along these lines, also try to be clear about after school plans with your kiddo(s). There is a big effort in our school right now, trying to tighten up this process. We appreciate all of your help and flexibility.


I have sent you all a sharing schedule as well. I've included a reminder in the email about sharing guidelines but please help your children remember the sharing rules:

1. It can be from nature
2. It can be something they made
3. It can be a story, with or without pictures/artifacts (no toys, please)

As a reminder, we will be offering a parent forum here at Rumney on September 20th from 5:30-7:00. Christine and I will be talking about our 1/2 programs for the first two blocks (there will be 3 total, 30 minutes each) and we will be free for the third block (6:30-7:00) for some light checking-in. No impromptu conferences, please! If you'd ever like to set up a time to chat in more detail, I am more than happy to meet before school most any day. Just let me know when.

As always, let us know if you have questions, comments or concerns.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Ben and Tammy

Week 1 Reflections

Friday, September 1, 2017

Dear First and Second Grade Families,

We have had a magical first week of school together! It has been so fabulous to start to get to know each other. We played many games to get to know names, sang some songs, shared about ourselves, learned classroom routines and to had fun! At the beginning of the week we enjoyed the beautiful weather and spent time outside exploring what our campus has to do!

This week we also spent a lot of time practicing routines in our classrooms. This involved learning expectations as well as how to function as a group. To do so, our school is focusing on four main expectations or rules:

1. Respect yourself and others
2. Work Hard
3. Help each other
4. Make safe choices

We have had some great conversations this week about the “Big 4” and will continue to do so throughout the year. These are school wide expectations so they are present in allied art areas, recess, lunch as well as all classrooms. Our students have already shown great knowledge of these and have been using them already! Ask your child about the Big 4!

We have talked about our weather chart as well as spent some time painting, making our covers for our science journals. We will be putting those to work more and more as we go through the year. Next week I hope to make some time to go to the brook and into the woods to do some observing.

We have also read some great books during read aloud this week. We have read The First Day Jitters,  Elmer,  Down the Road and Wolf Watch. All of these books are along the theme of getting to know each other and recognize that we are all different and special for our own reasons. We also are asking children to think about how their classroom dynamic may be like the book we read (we are like a pack, making mistakes is okay, etc.) They have started some great conversations about our classroom culture and how we want each other to feel as a part of a community.

Next week we are looking forward to getting into some more literacy jobs, math rotations and exploration of our senses outside. I will also be sending home a sharing schedule to be started the following week (September 11th). When it is your child’s share day, they can share a story (may include photos), a homemade item, or something from nature.

I will be sending this to all of your emails but check out the blog for pictures. They are great! Last, as best you can, please try to help your kiddos get lots of sleep. I know the transition back to school is intense and more sleep for them (and we adults!) is really helpful.

Please reach out with any celebrations, questions or concerns. Have a great three day weekend!

Sincerely,

Ben and Tammy

bweiss@u32.org

223-5429 (s)

223-3677 (h)

Post Production Week

Hey Folks,

It was wonderful to see you all at the play last week and at my house for collecting clay. I'll try to schedule another date for folks who didn't get a chance to get to the house to collect some more clay.

Wedge Party!

Also, if you could send in labeled tools such as hand saws, brace and bit drills, egg beater drills, etc. it would be a huge help as we embark on our wood working training next week. Also, if you have scrap 2x4s laying around, feel free to send them in. We'll need them!

We'll be starting our non fiction writing this week. Along with it, the kids will begin to work on working with their mediums (wood and clay) to display with their writing. We picked out our topics for our projects and let me tell you, this will be one of the greatest celebrations of learning yet! I am so excited to see their hard work pay off! The kids will be working on their projects during free times, Literacy and Writer's Workshop. I always find that this is the best and productive way to spend time at the end of the year to ensure we are the most productive we can be.

Two Friends Reading Together

Important Upcoming Dates:

May 26th: (Blue permission slip): First Graders go to U-32 for Book Buddies from (9:15-11:15)

May 30th: (Yellow permission slip): All first and second graders to The Montshire Museum (full day)
Chaperones for the Montshire Field Trip (The first three returned):

Emily Leader
Brigitte Beaudoin
Mary Trepanier

June 20th: Last day of school (1/2 day of school, 12:30)

Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts as we move toward the end of the year!

Best,

Ben