Red homework
folders are sent on Mondays and should be signed and return on Friday Morning.
SPELLING:
This week we worked on words with beginning sounds of b, m, s, and r. We did
the word study following the daily schedule below. Your child will bring
home the red Homework folder on Monday and will have a word sort page of what
we worked on this week. Each night of the week your child is expected to do
a different activity with them. I recommend you follow the same daily
schedule for your nightly activities to ensure that these words and the
spelling principles they represent are mastered. These activities have been
modeled and practiced in school, so your child can teach you how to do them.
In the beginning, the word sorts will start of as picture sorts. In general,
when asked to write the words, please remember the focus is on that
particular spelling principle and that is what we hold them accountable for.
We also want to see them applying previously taught principles as well. For
example: If the principle is words that begin with the /r/ sound and I (or
you)ask them to spell "robe" then I would expect to see the r in the
beginning position of their spelling. If they wrote "rob" or "roab" then we
praise them for that correct beginning sound spelling. Keep the focus on the
principle.
These sorts may come in color and that is so I can keep up with them in
class. Further below you will see some more fun ways to practice the
spelling. Your child may choose 1 product to turn on Friday but are not
required to. I hope this is clear but please let me know if you have
questions.
Monday - remind your child to sort the words into categories like the ones we
did in school. Your child should read each word aloud during this activity.
Ask your child to explain to you why the words are sorted in a particular way-
what does the sort reveal about spelling in general? Ask you child to sort
them a second time as fast as possible. You may want to time them. Put them
in a baggie or box for tomorrow.
Tuesday -Do a blind sort with your child. Call out a word for your child and
have him indicate under which header it belongs without looking at it. Lay
down the card and let your child check his work. Now let your child glue
them sorted.
Wednesday- Assist your child in doing a word hunt, looking for words in a
book they have already read that have the same sound, pattern, or both.
Students may also generate additional words on their own to the sort they
glued.
Thursday- Do a blind writing sort. As you call out the words in random order
your child should write them down without looking in the correct groups.
FUN WAYS TO PRACTICE SPELLING
*Sidewalk Chalk
*Jumping rope while spelling
*Rainbow writing with several crayons or markers
*Quizzing a sibling or parent and having them quiz YOU back
*Writing in shaving cream
*Scrambling the letters on small pieces of paper and putting them back
together
*Word searches (there are many tools online to create these)
*www.spellingcity.com (can be accessed from my Learning Links page)
Read at least 15 minutes/night and record the number of
minutes in their homework folder.
Reading minutes can be a combination of parents reading aloud and students
reading aloud to their parents. The goal is for your child to practice as
much as possible. If your
child is a confident reader, focus on comprehension by asking questions at
the end of the story. Ask them to retell what happened in their own words.
First graders should spend at least 15 minutes engaged in reading each
night. This should include time of independent reading and being read to by
a family member. Daily reading will be part of your child's homework each
week.
You may include your child's homework reading minutes in the library's
Read Along Program. Forms can be found here...
http://teacherweb.com/TX/FernBluffElementary/Library/photo3.aspx
Once your child completes his/her form, they
should return it to school, receive their prize, and begin a new form.
Reading expectations:
End of 1st 9 Weeks-level 6
End of December- level 10
End of January- level 12
End of 3rd 9 weeks- level 14
Exit- level 16
Suggestions to help your child at home:
As you are reading with your child at home, give your child time to decode
new words independently if you are reading an instructional level book (the
guided reading books for example). A good rule of thumb is if the first
page or so has less than five difficult words for your child, it is "just
right" for reading instruction. This will not only reinforce strategies we
learn at school, but it will also boost confidence when a new word
is "figured out" rather than just being told to the student! Here are a
few prompts you may want to try to encourage your child to use reading
strategies we have learned...
1. Does that word make sense in the sentence?
2. Look for key clues in the pictures.
3. Does that word sound right? Is it a real word? Does that word look
right? Does what you are reading match the letters you see?
4. Is there a little word in the big word that you know?
5. Search for word chunks that you know. (blends, word family endings, etc)
6. Sound out the first letter and see if the word pops in your head.
7. Backtrack to the beginning of the sentence at start again to look for
clues you may have missed the first time.
8. Skip the word and read the rest of the sentence. Then go back and try to
fill in the blank.
9. Most of all, make reading fun and the skills will come! Happy Reading!
Comprehension of stories your child reads or listens to is equally important!
As you read aloud to your child or listen to them read to you, stop
occasionally and check for
understanding. Ask your child what surprised them about what just happened
in the story, what
confused them, or what they are reminded of. Maybe the story is reminding
your student of
something they've done personally (text to self connection), another book
they've read (text to text
connection), or something else they know about the world such as a spaceship
that just launched for
outer space (text to world connection).
If your child is not comprehending a text FINISH the story, so your child
does not get frustrated with
himself. Then take time to discuss new vocabulary words or build background
knowledge for your
child before reading the story again either immediately or another time. If
the story was about a
family who lived near the ocean and he/she have never been to the ocean look
at real pictures or
video of the ocean together or take a trip there to build background
knowledge. Discuss how life
near the ocean might be different than life here in Round Rock. Next time
you read the story, your
child will have a better understanding.
Good luck and HAVE FUN watching your child grow into a lifelong reader this
year!
