Happy Friday everyone!

We had a fantastic day today. The grade 1 students proved themselves to be very respectful and responsible during morning Mass. I was very proud of their excellent behavior.

We played some learning games this morning to practice reading and spelling our words in preparation for Monday's second spelling test. We had a lot of fun challenging each other and cheering one another on.

Friday Homework:

Math

Because students missed out on yesterday's math class due to the weather and subsequent school cancellations we made up our class this afternoon. We spent a lot of time using manipulatives (blocks) to practice fewer, more, and same concepts. 

For homework, students are asked to complete page 5 of their Math Workbook. I had them write out a list of math vocabulary words and group them together to help them with their understanding while they do their homework over the weekend. The notes should be on a blue post it note and look similar to this:

less               more

fewer         bigger 

smaller            greater

Social Studies

Using page 14-17 of Horizons About My World, fill in the vocabulary words on page 5 of Horizons About My World Activity Book to answer what job each person has in the pictures. Please be sure to copy carefully from the textbook and print neatly.

Spelling

Students will have their second spelling test on Monday September 2. Please have them write their words and practice reading them out.

sentence

great

think

say

help

low

line

differ

Hello all,

They have just made an announcement that classes have been cancelled for the rest of the day due to the weather.

As we have not yet had math class today, there will be no math homework assigned.

Students are asked to study their spelling words at home this evening.

Enjoy your day off!

Important Reminder

Usually students are allowed to wear their P.E. uniforms to school on Fridays. Tomorrow, however, we ask that all students come to school in their proper uniform as we will have Mass in the morning. They are free to change afterwards.

Thank you!

Good afternoon,

We are having a much better day today and students are doing a good job helping each other to remember their rules and responsibilities. Way to go Grade 1's!

This morning we did a phonics lesson to practice identifying the ending sound of words. Most students did very well and I gave extra help to those who experienced some difficulties.

During social studies we spoke about the need for rules at school and how they help to promote fairness and honesty. The students had some great points to add to this discussion.

Wednesday Homework: Science

We have been talking about our five senses and the ways that they help us in everyday life. For homework, students are asked to complete the handout. Knowing that we use different body parts for different senses, students need to label each body part on the diagram with its corresponding sense. Students are reminded to write as neatly as possible and double check their spelling. Don't forget to put your name and date on the paper.

Other News:

Some students still have not done their spelling test corrections. Each word that was written incorrectly needs to be copied three times in the spelling tablet booklet and all tests need to be signed every week by a parent. Any students with unfinished corrections or signatures should have their books in their bags tonight. 

Thank you!

Classroom Photos

Good morning,

I just wanted to post a few photos of different spaces in our classroom. My camera was being a little finicky so I apologize for the glare and low quality but at least you get the idea. Enjoy!

This photo shows our classroom rules that we came up with together, our weather and calendar charts, which students are responsible for changing each day, and our class jobs list, which also rotates weekly.

 This is our reading corner where students can read their school library books or check out one from our growing class library. I hope to acquire a subscription to National Geographic for Kids and if anyone has any suggestions for books please feel free to let me know and I will order them online. =)

 

This is a new Kindness Wall in our classroom that I hope will continue to grow each day. As a way to encourage students to act kindly and compassionately, as well as to reduce the issue of telling on others, I have started to applaud students for reporting acts of kindness that they witness in our classroom rather than telling on others. Each Friday, the student with the most positive actions will receive a small prize.

"One kind word can change someones day"

Tuesday August 27, 2013

 Hello all,

Tuesday Homework: Language     English Workbook Plus     Page 2

Students need to color only the pictures next to the words that form a complete sentence.
At the bottom of the page, students need to use words from both boxes to make an original sentence (keeping in mind that sentences should have a capital at the beginning, and a period at the end).

Spelling Words

Our new spelling words are:

sentence

great

think

say

help

low

line

differ

We will spend some time practicing these words everyday and students will have their second spelling test on Monday September 2, 2013.

 

Monday August 26, 2013

• We had a great morning getting organized for the week and allocating new students for our class jobs. We also had our first spelling test and most students did very well. Please sign your child's spelling test. Words that were written incorrectly need to be copied in their spelling book three times each. Also, please go over the testing rules with your child. There are only two, but they are very important and will be strictly enforced.

1. No talking (this includes spelling the word out loud as you write it)

2. No cheating (including looking over at another students paper)

        Any violations of these rules will result in a point deduction from the test, a class point deduction, and based on the situation and number of offences, students may be held in during recess.

• No Homework for Monday August 26, 2013

Normally we would have reading and phonics homework on Mondays but I will not assign homework today just so we can get everyone familiar with the blog and caught up on previous posts. Homework will recommence tomorrow with language and spelling and will be posted here.

• Today during Reading we read a story about travelling to the moon. We are learning about how to pick out the main idea and supporting details in a piece of writing. Students were really engaged in this topic of space and so we had some great discussions and later in the afternoon I showed them a variety of short videos of astronauts landing on the moon, and life in space. They were fascinated by the idea of space being weightless and also at the beautiful images of Earth. I am sure they will be happy to tell you about some of the things they learned.

Grade 1 Blog News

Good morning everyone,

It was really wonderful to meet so many of you on Saturday, thank you for taking the time to come to school. For those of you who were not able to attend, I`m sure we will cross paths before too long.

Just to clarify once again, beginning this week we will no longer be using the green assignment books to record homework, with the exception of Chinese. Mr.Tung and I have spoken and he would like to continue using them to record grade 1 Chinese homework. Any homework or assignments in the following subjects reading and phonics, language and spelling, math, social studies and science, will be posted on the blog.

The blue communication books will no longer be sent home everyday and will only be used to correspond about individual students. I would ask that you do not comment on the blog in order to respect everyone`s privacy. If you have any issues, comments, or concerns, please feel free to write to me in the communication book and I will respond promptly.

I think this covers everything for now. I will post closer to the end of the day with a debrief on Monday`s happenings.

Take care,
Miss Fisher

Homework

In order to help students learn responsibility, organization, and to ensure that they are spending a fair amount of time exploring each subject, we will be implementing a homework schedule.

The itinerary, starting on Monday August 26, will be as follows:

Monday: Reading and Phonics

Tuesday: Language and Spelling

Wednesday: Science

Thursday: Math

Friday: Social Studies

Weekly Spelling Tests

Happy Friday everyone!

I did send a notice home with the students today with all of the information to follow but I wanted to post it on the blog so everything is in one spot and in case any students lost the papers along the way. It happens ;)

We will be starting weekly spelling tests. These will take place on Monday mornings so the students will have the chance to study their words over the weekend. We have been spending some time practicing every day this week so I think the students will be successful on their first attempt this coming Monday August 26.

The first list of words is:

Give

Very

Through

Just

Form

Under

Name

Students will receive a new list of spelling words no later than Tuesday of every week and I will also post the list on the blog. If you have any questions or concerns do not hesitate to get in touch with me.

Enjoy your weekend and I look very forward to meeting with you, whether it be tomorrow at the parent teacher meetings, or in the very near future.

Kind regards,

Miss Ashley Fisher

Welcome to Grade One

Dear Parents and Students,                                                   

Welcome to Grade One! I hope you had a fantastic summer holiday.

I am excited about the opportunity to get to know you, and I am looking
forward to a happy and productive school year.  

Our class blog is:

http://grade1disk.blogspot.com

This blog will be used for all schedules, information/updates, and assignments as well as homework.

I will also use the blog for posting photographs of class activities and just use it as a way of keeping you informed and up-to-date for activities for school life.  

The Communication Book will only be for material related to specific 
students (your child) or when school notices need to be sent home.

As homework will be posted regularly on the blog, students will no longer need to use the green Assignment Books as they have proven to be quite time consuming and difficult for their age group. I hope this will be a much easier and user friendly system for us all!

The start of a new year holds the promise of new discovery and learning 
as well as the prospect of personal growth in all areas. We will have lots
of fun reading, writing, and learning new things together.

 Please also be reminded that:

*Students are required to wear full school uniform to school everyday. On Thursdays, students must still come to school in their uniform and bring their P.E. clothes and shoes in a bag to be changed into in the morning.

* Students are allowed to come to school in their P.E. uniform on Fridays if they wish.

*Please remember that if students have P.E. class and they do not have their proper P.E. uniform they will be unable to participate in the class. 

*It is essential they participate, so please be aware of the schedule. Grade 1 students will have P.E. class from 11:15 am-12:00 pm every Thursday.

So much will happen during this formative year and because of this, the year will be full of important transitions.  I believe that a good parent-teacher relationship is necessary for maximum school success.   If you ever have any comments, questions or concerns, please write to me in the communication book and always know it is my pleasure to talk to you about your child.

Sincerely,

Grade 1 Homeroom

Ashley Fisher