Fall is now upon us...

I feel like our summer field trip was a success! :)  We are going to spend this week on rainbows.  We will be doing some fun activities with each color of the rainbow as we practice recognizing our color words.  That is something you can reinforce at home.

We are moving right along in reading.  They are working very hard on their sight words and practicing making the sounds of the letters to figure out the words they don't know.  I have introduced a few strategies we use and thought I would share them so that you can use them at home when you are reading with them. 

     Eagle Eyes:  check the letters, then check the picture
     Lips the Fish: get your mouth ready for the first word, then       
                            begin reading
     Stretchy Snake: stretch the word out slowly, then put the sounds
                               back together to figure out the word
     Peekin' Poodle: Peek at the picture to make sure it makes sense

Every chance you can take to let them read to you will make them more successful.  If they are struggling, read it with them once and then let them have a turn by themselves.  It is very important that they point to each word as their mouth is saying it at this point.  Have them work on expression as well.  I am excited to see where this group goes as readers. :)

This week in math, we will be reviewing and writing our numbers 0 through 10.  We will be counting groups and matching numbers to groups.  Once they have success with this, we will move on to the teen numbers which are much harder. 

I am sad to say that I have to be gone Friday for a meeting.  I have been asked to help revamp the district's reading curriculum.  As much as I hate leaving my students, I know it is important that I help with this important task.  I have done my best to line up a good substitute teacher and to prep her.  I will do my best to have the same sub when I am gone for these meetings.  Thank you for understanding.

Don't forget that we are having our Open House on Tuesday night from 5:30-6:30.  This is a special time for the kids to show off what they have been doing in our classroom.  I look forward to seeing all of you!

Have a great week!

Ms. Strong

Our First Week!

We made it through our first week with very few tears and much excitement and fun!  It amazes me every year how much these little guys' brains can consume in the first week.  They have done a really great job of learning and practicing all of the rules and procedures.  

Next week, Tuesday and Thursday, we will be doing our MAP testing.  We will do our DIBELS testing throughout the week.  MAP testing is done on the computer with Mrs. Miller, our computer teacher.  Mrs. Sheehan will be doing the DIBELS testing with them.  For this one, they are individually pulled outside the classroom for just a few minutes at a time.  It will test letter recognition and letter sounds.  MAP tests basic math and reading skills.   These tests are nothing for you or your child to worry about.  They are simply to give us a baseline to see where your child is at and give us a better idea of what we need to work on the most.  We will be taking the same tests in the winter and spring to show your child's progression.  Just make sure they get good rest this week and are in school this week.

We are off to a great start with our reading skills.  I hope they have been reading their books to you.  It is an exciting step for these little guys and they are so excited to be learning words.  We have learned a, I, and learned how to put two sounds together to make a word with the word am.  Try to have a designated box, basket, or bag for your child to save these books and read over and over.  The more practice they get, the better they will progress with their reading skills. They also love coloring and drawing in these books.  There are often pages in the back that they can add their own words and illustrations to the book.  Have fun with them and show them constantly what an important life skill reading is.

We are off to a great start in math, as well.  We are working on recognizing and writing our numerals 1-10. We are also practicing counting objects.  The students were excited to get their math workbooks and begin working in them.

In handwriting this week, we practiced proper posture and pencil grip with a few fun activities.  We are prepared to take off in our workbooks on Monday learning proper letter formation.  Please help reinforce starting every letter at the top when they are writing at home.

I am very excited to see the progress we make in all areas.  Please contact me anytime with questions or comments.  

Have a great week!

Ms. Strong

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