Question of the week for students: What season comes after winter?
Whisper the answer to me to earn a star student slip!
Bonus Question for a treat: Who did Clemson beat on Saturday?
Mrs. Cecil’s First Grade Newsletter
October 30, 2009
Dear Parents,
We have finished our three week study of the deserts in the United
States. This is always an interesting unit for the students. We completed
the unit by making and eating edible cacti last Friday! I was very pleased
with their scores on the desert test that we took on Monday. Their projects
were a great reflection of what they learned. Thank you for encouraging and
guiding your child on the desert project. Please stop by on Monday to pick
up the projects.
We had a great time on our field trip to see the Dinosaurs show at
the Center for Puppetry Arts. Thanks to Lucie and Tyree for chaperoning.
The kids were fantastic!
In math, we have completed Unit Three. The frames and arrows
diagrams that were introduced will gradually become more difficult so keep
practicing that skill at home. The children are doing a much better job
counting collections of coins. Please continue to use flashcards to improve
your child’s addition and subtraction skills. Subtraction requires extra
practice. Have your child begin at various numbers and count up by 2’s,
5’s and 10’s. As the unit four family letter stated, we are currently
working on measuring with inches, telling time to the quarter hour and
solving word problems.
In writing, we are focusing on writing at least four sentences on a
topic with correct capitalization, punctuation and correct spelling of word
wall words. We are also tying our writing to interesting children’s
literature. By studying how a published author expresses himself, we are
learning how to be more creative and interesting in our own stories. If
your child writes creative stories at home please send them in for me to see
and they will receive a star student slip!
Thank you so much for attending your child’s conference. I have
enjoyed sharing each child’s wonderful progress with you. It is amazing for
me to see such great progress in only ten weeks! As I mentioned, the next
nine weeks will be busy and packed with new skills. Please reinforce the
topics covered at school by reviewing your child’s work and tests. Let me
know if you have any questions. I will continue to alert you about items
that might need extra support via the weekly reports.
Your child has now brought home his/her second book in a bag. I find
that sharing this reading time with your child is the easiest way to help
him/her become more expressive and fluent. Have your child read his/her
book several times to work on fluency, expression and comprehension. Please
remember to return them to me on Monday so that I can send a new book home
the following Wednesday.
Reminders:
• Please send a snack with your child daily. You would be surprised
how much a first grader can eat at 10am!
• Please try to have your child at school by 7:50 each day. We now
have a math message each morning in addition to morning work. We begin
calendar and math at 8:10 so their work needs to be completed by 8:05. It
is also a great time for the children to receive individual help if needed,
socialize with their friends and begin the day in an organized way.
• No school on Tuesday, November 3rd
• Congratulations to our 11 students that participated in the
reflections competition. I loved seeing their creativity!
• Read-A-Thon materials came home yesterday. Please read over the
guidelines carefully and support your child and our classroom. The reading
begins next Wednesday. You will receive updates from Lucie. Thanks for all
of her hard work!
Congratulations to our new star students: Aminah and Sophie. They
continue to focus on our IB traits and profiles each day. I love their
excitement for school and their friends. Keep it up!
