Dear Parents,
We are zipping right along. It is amazing to think it is just 4 weeks until
Spring Break! (after this week)Please remember that tomorrow is an early
release day (we get out at 12:45). Friday is our Valentine celebration.
Please send Valentine cards by Thursday so we have time to pass them out.
Also remember that Monday is a student holiday (no school).
We are reading up a storm! We are learning about making predictions,
retelling the story, and checking for understanding when we read or listen to
a story. These are wonderful comprehension strategies to practice with your
child when you read to them. We are working very hard on decoding (accuracy)
strategies also. We are still working on cross checking and using pictures to
help us figure out words. Many are getting to reading levels where skipping
the word and reading on is effective also. (Don’t forget to go back and re
read when you use this one to make sure you understand the ideas in that
part). Most of all remember when your child is reading a book on their own
they should know 99% of the words- or there is too much work for these
strategies to work. When you find yourself coaching heavily- “do
this” , “remember this sounds like …,” etc. You are doing the work, not your
little reader. This is not a good book for them to try on their own. Most of
all, keep up the comprehension. If your child is sounding heavily and saying
words that do not make sense or nonsense words that sound like the letters.
They are not reading. The most important part of reading is. . .
understanding what you read.
In math, we are learning about capacity and area. We are looking at different
size containers and thinking about how much they would hold. Here are some
guiding questions we think about. Which holds more? Which items would fit in
which container? Would more cotton balls or more paper clips fit in a
container? Why? We are also testing our ideas to see if what we think is
correct. We are doing something similar with area. Which space would hold
more of a given object compared to another area. It is fun to explore this
way. And it gives us a chance to count greater amounts of objects.
I hope everyone has a great week!
Cindy B.