I hope everyone had a safe and restful holiday break.
Writing
Descriptive Writing
Before the holiday break, students completed their first descriptive writing piece and shared their writing with the class.
UST - Poetry Slam
During the month of January we will be focusing on poetry to prepare for UST's poetry event, which will take place on Friday, January 29th. More information about the Poetry Slam will be sent home next week. This year's theme is to incorporate a beat, or musical element into our poems. Samm Bennett, a guest speaker, will be joining each class on Zoom next week to help introduce the musical element of poetry.
To prepare, our class talked about what poetry is, learned about different kinds of poems (acrostic poems, haikus, rhyming, concrete poems, five senses poems), and practiced rhyming words. We read rhyming poems aloud while patting our legs and clapping our hands to keep the beat.
Reading
We spent time this week reviewing story elements and characters. Students talked about how characters feel, how their feelings can change, and made connections to the characters by thinking, "This is how the character feels. How would I feel?"
Science
Light & Shadows
During distance learning, our class learned that there are natural light sources (sun, fire) and man-made light sources (lightbulbs, flashlights, phones). Students used flashlights at home to investigate light and shadow indoors and the sun to make shadows outdoors.
This week we continued our science unit about light. We used a wood block, a plastic bag, and a piece of paper to learn that different materials allow different amounts of light to go through them (opaque, translucent, transparent). Students used flashlights to test objects to find out if they are opaque, translucent, or transparent.
Opaque: No light travels through the piece of wood. Materials that do not allow light through are called opaque.
Translucent: The piece of paper is not clear and only a little light travels through. Materials that allow some light through are called translucent.
Transparent: The piece of plastic is clear and the light travels right through it. Materials that are clear and let light through are called transparent.
Math Rocket Math This week our class started Rocket Math. Rocket Math is a weekly timed Math facts program that allows your child to memorize their math facts. We will begin on level A (sums to 4). Once your child has mastered this level they will “shoot up their rocket” to the next level. Your child's first Rocket Math quiz and a set of addition flashcards (numbers to 10) will be sent home next week in their homework folder. |
Next week we will start our new math chapter titled Addition and Subtraction within 20. Our class will review what we have learned about addition and subtraction to help us start adding and subtracting larger numbers.
Addition and Subtraction within 10
*use numbers bonds to help you
*count on from the greater number
*count back from the greater number
*make fact families
*make and solve addition and subtraction stories
Outdoor Recess
A big thank you to Ms. Ward and Ms. Keay for being G1A's Class Parents and helping organize the holiday gifts for our class! The students were so excited about the books they received. I hope they enjoyed sharing their book with you at home!
Happy birthday Louis, Kengo, Risako, and Sofia!
Have a wonderful weekend!
- Ms. Allison