April Newsletter
Dear Parents,
It was a pleasure to meet with all of you during March parent conferences. It has been a busy winter in Room 2. Here are a few of the highlights from the past two months.
For most of the winter, students were learning how to monitor their reading for sense. We learned the importance of talking to ourselves about what we read and then asking ourselves questions to determine if what we read made sense. We know that we can reread the text, read on to gather more information, or ask others questions when the text does not make sense.
Soon, we will begin teaching students a new strategy in reading group to help monitor their understanding of a text. The students will learn how to identify story elements in fiction stories. Each day, they will practice how to identify the main character in the story, the setting, the story problem (what the main character wants or needs) and the story resolution (How the main character gets what he/she wanted). Any time you are reading with your child, you might want to help your child practice this strategy at home.
The children have learned fascinating information about famous people from the parent read-aloud biographies. They have also enjoyed listening to the realistic fiction stories you have been reading for parent read-aloud. We have learned many valuable lessons from the characters in the realistic fiction stories. Our favorites include, be sure to take a buddy with you when you go anywhere and you are never too old or too young to learn anything new. It is helpful to discuss with your child the lesson in the story.
We have now read so many word identification stories that favorites have emerged. Some of the class favorites are Rhymin’ Ralph, A Riddle, William’s Room, and Chopper Copper. During word identification lessons, students have begun developing theories about sound-letter matches in words. One theory we are exploring is the “C” and “G” theory. The students wonder if the letter that follows the C or G affects the sound that the C or G represents. Some students suspect that when the C or G are followed by the letters E or I, the C represents the /s/ and the G represents the sound /j/. We are looking for examples to prove or disprove our theory. Another theory we are currently exploring has to do with the sound that a vowel represents when it is followed by the letter R, as in the key word CAR. We are so pleased to see the language logs full of discoveries.
The students have completed writing thank you letters to friends and relatives for the special gifts or kindnesses they received. Some students were surprised and pleased to receive responses in the mail. Recently we have been writing Silly Stuffed Animal Stories. The students are learning the value of collaboration. They have been sharing their story plans with a partner and seeking feedback. The emerging authors in the classroom are beginning to see that writing is a process, writers collaborate with other writers, and revising one’s piece makes it better. The children have been thrilled to practice their signatures – in cursive! Mrs. Milne has taught each one to write his/her first name in cursive and she brags about the excellent job they are doing.
In Social Studies, we have been discussing how people’s beliefs have changed the way we live by reading about famous Americans such as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The class has been having lively discussions during science class. As we wrap up our study of the three states of matter (solid, liquid, gas), students have enjoyed making predictions. The class seemed to especially enjoy the experiment where they predicted which objects would sink and which would float. They learned that you cannot always base your prediction on an object’s appearance.
The only homework during the coming spring break is to continue reading daily for 20-30 minutes. The daily habit of reading is important, even during vacation. Students should read from the book-in-bags, the word detective bag, and library books or story folders. Feel free to supplement with materials from your local library or personal collection. As always, we offer our heartfelt thanks for your faithful work with your children. The progress that we see in each child is proof that all of our efforts are paying off. Best wishes for a restful, relaxing, and fun spring break!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Sherry Cress