12.30.2011
Party Time
Well, hello there! It feels like forever since I last posted. I have to say I am missing your little guys and girls over this holiday break. I look forward to seeing everyone on Monday, bright and early. I wanted to share some of the sweet pictures that were took at our holiday party on Thursday, December 15th. The kids had a blast! Thank you to Mr. John Peterson for sharing these wonderful pictures with us.
Can you tell we had fun?
12.12.2011
Monday, December 12th
Man, I have a lot to post tonight! We have been doing so many exciting things in our classroom that I want to share with everyone.
Reader's Theatre Plays- I would like to thank everyone who attended our Thanksgiving Reader's Theatre Plays. Everything went so well and, I think we would all agree, the students did a great job. Reader's Theatres are such a fun way to work on reading fluency and through this process our student's fluency skills really improved. They are starting to sound like mature readers and that is wonderful!
Slippery, Slimy Creatures- We had a very special guest come in on Thursday to show us the adaptations reptiles have in order to survive in their environments. We got a chance to actually see specific structures on a variety or reptiles and we got to see how those structures worked firsthand! At the end of the presentation the students even got to hold and touch a real snake....yikes!
Reading- Ok, so on to the content! This week in reading we are finishing up our unit on key details and events from stories. As I am giving the Winter rounds of DRA's I am noticing that many students can read the passages but are having difficulty recalling the important events from the story. This is why we continue, and will continue after the break, to study key details and main topic.
Today, to try and help students understand how the key details help "support" the main idea we played JENGA. We built a tower of "key details" and placed the big "main idea" block on the top of the tower. We discussed how it was so important to have as many key details to support the main idea as possible, or, as we found out, the main idea would tumble to the ground! It was a neat way to physically show the kids how important key details are in reading comprehension.
Math- Well, we have moved on to doubles facts in math! Students have caught on quicker than I anticipated which means we will be moving on to bigger and better things by the end of this week. No time to waste! Today, we played "Double Trouble" a dice game where students could practice their doubles skills.
I will not be sending out math homework for this week, but will continue with the review packets following the holiday break. This has made a big difference and the students LOVE homework!!!
Remember, Janie Griggs Day is tomorrow. Please allow some time tonight for your student to write a special thank you to Ms. Griggs as she has been with Stonewall for many years and has been a true blessing to Stonewall!
Reader's Theatre Plays- I would like to thank everyone who attended our Thanksgiving Reader's Theatre Plays. Everything went so well and, I think we would all agree, the students did a great job. Reader's Theatres are such a fun way to work on reading fluency and through this process our student's fluency skills really improved. They are starting to sound like mature readers and that is wonderful!
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Reading- Ok, so on to the content! This week in reading we are finishing up our unit on key details and events from stories. As I am giving the Winter rounds of DRA's I am noticing that many students can read the passages but are having difficulty recalling the important events from the story. This is why we continue, and will continue after the break, to study key details and main topic.
Today, to try and help students understand how the key details help "support" the main idea we played JENGA. We built a tower of "key details" and placed the big "main idea" block on the top of the tower. We discussed how it was so important to have as many key details to support the main idea as possible, or, as we found out, the main idea would tumble to the ground! It was a neat way to physically show the kids how important key details are in reading comprehension.
Math- Well, we have moved on to doubles facts in math! Students have caught on quicker than I anticipated which means we will be moving on to bigger and better things by the end of this week. No time to waste! Today, we played "Double Trouble" a dice game where students could practice their doubles skills.
I will not be sending out math homework for this week, but will continue with the review packets following the holiday break. This has made a big difference and the students LOVE homework!!!
Remember, Janie Griggs Day is tomorrow. Please allow some time tonight for your student to write a special thank you to Ms. Griggs as she has been with Stonewall for many years and has been a true blessing to Stonewall!
12.07.2011
Wednesday, December 7th
Happy Wednesday to everyone! We have been busy, busy, busy this week with our Culture Around the World trips. I hope you have found time to ask your student about each country that they visited this week. So far the students have visited Russia, France, Sweden, and Mexico to find out about the different cultures in each country. We have been discussing the word culture this week and what is included in a culture (language, dance, food, music, holidays/traditions). I will be sending home completed passports on Friday!
Students have been working hard in their reading stations this week. I am so proud of the progress that they have all made since the beginning of the year. They are certainly becoming more independent! I am currently working on assessing student's reading through the DRA. The winter scores will be on the next report card. Be on the lookout for that and remember to read every night with your student. Practice makes perfect.
In math, we continue to work on addition to 20. We will be focusing our studies on doubles facts towards the end of this week. For fun math links please visit the classroom website. Websites provide a fun and engaging way to practice basic math facts at home.
Oh yes, and a big congratulations is in order for our very own, Caroline. As of Monday she became a proud big sister. What an exciting time of the year!
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