The Martino Messenger
First Grade News

Important Upcoming Dates

                * January 21- No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

                * February 1 - Sock Hop 💃 🕺

                * February 11-14 - Kindness Week & Legend HS Wish Week

                * February 14 - Valentine's Day Party  

                     Look for more information soon!  💕

                *Friday, February 15th - No School - Teacher Inservice Day                      *Monday, February 15th - No School - President's Day

Put on your calendar:  Thursday, February 21st

Specials Showcase Performance

6:15-6:45

Click here to see the Mrs. Petty's Page explaining this program.

**Students are asked to wear a solid color shirt, if possible, in any color of the rainbow.

***Arrive 15 minutes prior to the performance, no sooner, please.

                      Classroom Highlights 

Dear Parents, 

Happy 2019!  The year is flying by!  We've continued to be busy first graders!  I would like to share all of the learning that has been going on in class... and let you know what your child will be working on in the upcoming weeks.  In blue you will find some ideas for you to use to begin a discussion with your child about their learning.  

Literacy:

In Writing we finished our work in our Narrative Writing Unit before break by "publishing" one of our stories.  I hope you saw the folder that came home with some of your child's writing from this unit.  I included a letter that explains some of the concepts we covered.  

We began our next writing unit on Information Writing, or writing "teaching books" where we are writing about topics we are "experts" on.  This is something they know a lot about or love to do, and something they care about - something they are passionate about. Our topics range from How to Take Care of a Dog, to All About Star Wars, or American Girl Dolls.  The kids love sharing their expertise!

During this unit we look closely at various nonfiction books and study the strategies authors use to teach their readers, then try and use these in our own books. 

Concepts we will be focusing on include:

*Writing a book that teaches readers about a topic

*Having a beginning that captures the reader's attention

*Adding facts and details that teach about the topic - writing in "twin sentences" (two sentences that go together to add detail - such as: Dogs like to eat biscuits.  A biscuit is like a cookie or treat.

*Adding nonfiction text features to help teach readers, such as illustrations that teach, labels, headings, maps, charts, or diagrams.

*Thinking about questions our readers would have about our topic, and adding details that answer those questions

*Using comparisons and examples to add details

*Writing an ending

The kids love Writer's Workshop!  I often hear, "I love writing!" or "When can we write?"  I love it!

We've also been discussing the need to focus on spelling, conventions, and neatness.  I don't expect first graders to spell all words correctly.  But if a word can be found on our Word Wall, or in a book we are reading, or somewhere in the room... I expect that they use these resources to help them spell words.  The kids each have a "Mini Word Wall" and I will give them a "Word Bank Book" soon where they can find words they might be spelling.  

Words Their Way:  We work on "word work" everyday with our Words Their Way program that focuses on spelling patterns for all grades.  Each child is continually assessed to see which spelling focus they should be working on. I handed out a parent brochure about Words Their Way in the beginning of the year.  It does a nice job explaining our Words Their Way spelling program.  Click here to read the brochure, in case you missed it.  

We've also began daily editing - checking sentences for corrections on capitals, punctuation, sentence structure, and grammar.  Hopefully all of this work will transfer into their writing! 

We are connecting our Information Writing Unit with our work in reading by focusing on nonfiction books.  We've talked about the difference between fiction and nonfiction and began looking closely at nonfiction text features. We are looking at how authors of nonfiction books use these features to teach their readers. I've told the kids that we have to look at everything carefully on the pages of a nonfiction book. (This is linked to our writing, as we will add these text features into our own books to help teach about our topics)

Here is an anchor chart with some strategies we are talking about for how to get "super smart" about nonfiction topics:

We will also be doing some hard work with the comprehension strategy of Determining Importance and paraphrasing.  Wow!  These can be hard concepts for first graders!  As we read we think about what is really important information and what are just interesting details.  We will be paraphrasing what we learn, writing it down in our own words.  We practiced this skill recently when learning about Martin Luther King, Jr.  You may have seen your child's technology project on Seesaw.  Everyone did a marvelous job!  (Please see "Technology" below for more details about this project.)  We will continue working on this skill by connecting reading instruction with our Social Studies unit, researching important American Figures and Symbols.  We will also be practicing and performing Reader's Theatre plays about an important American figure.  They will be researching the American Figure, and working collaboratively on putting these plays together, having fun performing them for our peers, Book Buddies, and maybe even a kindergarten class!  

When your child is reading nonfiction books at home, point out some of the text features and discuss their purpose... Why did the author choose to put this text feature (photographs, heading, map, diagram, labels, chart...) in his/her book?  What does it help teach?  How can you use this in your teaching book?

You can also practice the steps for paraphrasing as you read together.  S.T.P. - Stop, Think, Paraphrase (cover the words with your hand, then say what you learned or what happened in your own words.)  You can do this with both fiction and nonfiction.

Math:  

We will be completing our third unit on addition and subtraction soon. It was a big unit and covered some important concepts.  This week we will do some  work on counting large groups of objects by putting them in groups of 5 or 10.  It is important for the kids to practice counting by 5s and 10s at home so they can be fluent and able to apply this skill when counting objects.  Later, they will be using skip counting to help them add and subtract by 10.  Also, please continue to practice counting by 2s.  This is still hard for many of the kids.  Playing the math games I've sent home is also important. These are a great way for the kids to learn their basic math facts which they will apply as they add and subtract larger numbers. There are also many apps and games for the iPad or other digital devices the kids can use to learn their math facts.  Just be careful not to choose ones that time the kids for speed. Research shows that this can be harmful.  Jo Boaler is a professor and researcher of Mathematics Education at Stanford University.  She has a website called Youcubed.org where she shares the latest in what research says about teaching math. I've included a few links below that have some really interesting information about teaching math that I think you might enjoy:  

Parents Belief About Math Change Their Children's Achievement

What is Number Sense?  This video illustrates our goal for our kids - having a strong sense, or deep knowledge, of numbers so we can be flexible and break them apart and combine them in new ways when computing.  Our curriculum, Investigations, does a great job of having kids think about different ways they can solve problems.  It is important for the kids to be able to reason flexibly, and share this reasoning with others, explaining how they figured out the problem.


Depth, Not Speed

Four Boosting Messages

I've also included a link that many parents have found helpful.  It is a link to "Math Words and Ideas" from our Investigations curriculum.  They are included with our lessons, and can show you how we teach some key concepts or how we approach certain math ideas:  

Math Words and Ideas

Most of the kids have been completing the Sunshine Math sheets that have been coming home for homework.  I encourage everyone to try these problems!  You may need to help them read the problem... we talk about how important it is to read the problem more than once.  If they are not sure how to solve the problem you can offer some ideas, or even show them how you would figure it out.  Encourage them to do the thinking!  You will notice that this math covers many concepts we haven't yet covered in class.  If they seem too hard for your child, just have them try the ones they can handle.
Remember, this is optional. Have fun with this!    

Our next unit is on measurement.  This will include telling time to the hour and half hour, and an introduction to fractions.    

As your child works on math problems, including the Sunshine Math, talk about different problem solving strategies they can use to figure out the problem, including drawing a picture, acting out the problem, making a chart, or using objects they can manipulate to help them. 

Also, it will really boost your child's computing if they practice and learn their basic math facts.  Continue to play all of the games sent home!  Make it fun and play as a family whenever you get a chance!

Science:  

We completed our unit unit on Solids and Liquids before break. Our next Science unit will begin after Spring Break- a unit on life cycles where we will observe the life cycle of plants and animals. This is a fun unit as we will have some special creatures and plants in our room as we observe their lifecycles first hand.   

Social Studies:  

We began a unit on American Heroes and Symbols with a discussion about Martin Luther King Jr. We also learned about Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges. Next, we will learn about other American figures including Helen Keller, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln.  The kids will be working on Reader's Theatre plays about these historical figures.  We will also be learning about historical landmarks and symbols, such as The Statue of Liberty, The Liberty Bell, and Mount Rushmore.  They will be working in small groups, using an online research website called Pebble Go to help gather facts about one American Hero or Landmark, then share their information with the class by creating a collaborative project.  They will be able to choose to make an informational poster, book, or use technology, creating a project with Sonic Pics or Adobe Spark Video.  

Have a discussion about Martin Luther King Jr.  

Ask them to tell you what they already know about George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. It is fun to see what they think they know before we begin studying a topic!  
In the next few weeks you can also ask them about the American Figure they are researching.

Technology

To build schema for our Famous Americans and American Symbols unit, first graders learned how to access assigned books within Epic Books about Martin Luther King Jr.  They took screenshots of pictures that illustrated important moments in Dr. King's life.  Through Spark Video, they organized their screenshots and recorded their new learning about this American Hero.  

**Please see your child's project on their Seesaw portfolio!  

I've enjoyed sharing some of our learning with you!  I hope you enjoy talking with your child about their work!  

I have a wonderful class and I feel so blessed to share my day with your child! I can't thank you enough for all of your help and support everyday!  My door is always open so please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!  

Respectfully, 
Stacie Martino 

The Martino Messenger

First Grade News!

Important Upcoming Dates

Tuesday, November 6th - NO SCHOOL

Professional Development Day

November 12th - 16th Book Fair

Wednesday, November 14th:  

Learning Celebration & Thanksgiving Feast

Please join us for our Annual Thanksgiving Family Feast and Celebration of Learning on Wednesday, November 14th.  Enjoy a Thanksgiving meal with your child and view his/her great work in the classroom during Celebrations of Learning. 

We are also looking for volunteers.  Our flexible volunteer schedule allows you to enjoy lunch with your child and still help out.  View your child's schedule below and click here to volunteer.  Parents and siblings can pre order tickets at MySchoolBucks.com.  Students will use their lunch accounts to order that day.  We hope you are able to join us!

Our Learning Celebration will be from 11:10-11:40, 

with lunch from 11:40-12:00.  

Monday, November 19th-Friday, November 23rd: NO SCHOOL

THANKSGIVING BREAK!

Classroom Highlights

Literacy  World Class Outcome: Create meaning strategically in reading and writing

One overall theme throughout the year in reading is teaching the kids that reading is not just about reading the words.  We also think about the information... Reading is thinking!  I say this to them all of the time!  Listening and reading involve thinking, and nothing matters more than the thinking we do when we read, listen, and view.  

After Fall Break we discussed that good readers listen to their "inner voice" when they read. When they learn something new their inner voice might say "Wow!" "I didn't know that!" "Awesome" or "Yuck!" We kept track of our learning by writing it down on a sticky note and coding it with an "L" for "I learned..." For example:

We also started talked about another comprehension strategy good readers use, Asking Questions.  Stephanie Harvey writes, “If we want to develop critical thinkers we must teach our children to think about and question what they listen to, read, and view.  Asking questions enriches the learning experience and leads to deeper understanding.  Questioning is the strategy that propels learners on.  

Asking questions can be hard for first graders. Their first response is to say, "I don't have any questions." I respond by saying, "If you did, what would they be?" They need to learn to push their thinking! Sometimes their questions are ones that have already been answered, or are not very deep, like, "Why is a squirrel called a squirrel?" They need us to help them by modeling good questions. They can ask questions when reading both fiction and nonfiction.

*In technology the kids created a Sonic Pic presentation to share their thinking when reading a nonfiction book. They shared the sticky notes where they wrote what they learned and wonder. They uploaded this presentation to their Seesaw Journal. Seesaw allowed them to access audiences of both parents and other first grade readers. Partners then left digital comments for each other on their presentations. The kids loved learning from their friends and giving feedback. As you can imagine, there was lots of excitement and wonder about being able to work with a partner without sitting next to them! Look for these presentations on Seesaw soon!

Ask your child to listen to their inner voice and to think out loud, sharing what their inner voice is saying as they read!  

Discuss what you learn and questions you have, then try and discover the answers together!

Model how to ask questions as you read with or to your child!

In writing we've been continuing with our small moment unit, writing stories from our lives.  We discuss how writers use various strategies to help our readers understand our writing.  We've been practicing "Bringing our stories to life" - making people talk, move, think, and feel.  We are also trying to tell our stories in "itsy-bitsy steps"  - writing what happened first, then next, then next and using lots of detail.  We discussed the next steps in the writing process, editing and publishing and practiced these steps on one of our stories.  The kids shared their "published" story on Seesaw. 

This week we will look closely at mentor texts and notice things authors do in their writing that we can try in our own writing... things like "pop out words" (bold face words), elipses (...), and onomatopoeia (words that show sound, like "ding" "whoosh" or "clickety clack." We are also focusing on editing our work, correcting spelling and adding punctuation.  

We will be finishing up our narrative unit in about a month or so by "publishing" one of our best stories, then move on to writing information pieces about topics we are "experts" on.  

Ask your child to share how they are bringing their stories to life when they write!

Math  World Class Outcome:  Look for and make use of structure:  

    I can see and understand how numbers and shapes are organized 

and put together as parts and wholes.

We've been working on a unit on geometry.  Our geometry unit focuses on two dimensional shapes and the relationships among them.  Our goal is for students to describe shapes according to their attributes (triangles have 3 straight sides and 3 corners), and to understand that shapes can be put together or taken apart to make new shapes. Students observe, describe, compare, classify, represent, and build with 2-D shapes. We use what we know to recognize shapes in the world and to use geometric vocabulary to describe them.  

We will finish up this work in the next few weeks, then move on to our next addition and subtraction unit.  

Ask your child to find geometric shapes in the world and describe them using our math language!

Social Studies

World Class Outcome:  Evaluate the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship - We concluded this unit before Fall Break.  The kids worked collaboratively in small groups to create posters that teach Gold Rush citizens how to go for the G.O.L.D. throughout the building.  These are hanging up throughout the school, and your child should have the video they posted on their Seesaw portfolio for you to see.

Ask your child to tell you what it means to be a good citizen at Gold Rush and 

why it is important!

Our next Social Studies unit will be a history unit on Family & Cultural Traditions in the United States in the past.  We will be discussing our Thanksgiving Holiday, analyzing how it has changed over time and why.  We will go into December with this unit, discussing various other traditions.  

Begin to talk about your family traditions and customs!

Science:  World Class Outcome: -Demonstrate the process of inquiry:

    *Identify a problem

     *Generate questions

     *Investigate possible solutions to the problem

We completed a unit on rocks called Pebbles, Sand, and Silt.  The kids really loved working with the rocks and felt like real geologists!  This unit introduced concepts in earth science while practicing the process of inquiry. The activities provided experiences that heighten students' awareness of rocks as earth materials and natural resources.  They came to know rocks by many names and in a variety of sizes.  For example, pebbles and sand are the same material - rock - just different in size.  

Begin a rock collection!  Find different and unique rocks around your neighborhood.  Describe the properties of the rocks you find!

Thank You!

Thank you Ann Fitch for planning and coordinating our Halloween Party!  Thanks, too, to all of the parents who provided food, supplies, and helped supervise stations!  The kids had such a wonderful time! 

And thanks to all parents for supporting your child at home! 

Important Upcoming Dates:

Thursday, September 20th:  Digger Dash!  

First graders begin stretching at 9:10 and will run from 9:25-9:55.

If you are coming to cheer us on, please meet us on the blacktop at 9:10!

Here is the whole school Digger Dash Schedule: 

Digger Dash Schedule
7:30-8:20 Set Up
8:20-8:45 Station Meeting with Volunteers
8:45-9:00 Stretching for Preschool & Kindergarten
9:00-9:15 Race Begins for Preschool & Kindergarten
9:10-9:25 Stretching for Grades 1 & 2
9:25-9:55 Race Begins for Grades 1 & 2
9:50-10:00 Stretching for Grades 3 & 4
10:00-10:45 Race Begins for Grades 3 & 4
10:40-10:50 Stretching for Grade 5
10:50-11:35 Race Begins for Grade 5
11:35-12:35 . Clean Up
10:45-2:30 Pledge Tally - Begins after Grades 3 & 4

No School Friday, September 21st - Teacher Inservice Day

Parent/Teacher Conferences:

Thursday, September 27th and Thursday October 1st 

Please click HERE to sign up for a conference time.

The password is:  Digger

Fall Break: October 8th - October 12th 

NO SCHOOL

Dear Parents,

I can't believe it is already September!  I have been enjoying getting to know your children!  They are such a wonderful group of kiddos!  This newsletter is designed to keep you updated with what your child is learning at school.  Use this as a tool to communicate with me and with your child about their learning. In bold you will find questions or suggestions of how to spark a conversation about what your child is doing in school.  Hopefully this will keep you from hearing "nothing" or "I don't know."  We are very busy in first grade, as you will see!  

Literacy:  
Reading - 

We have "Reader's Workshop" everyday.  We've been focusing on finding "Good Fit Books" and building our stamina for reading them in class, adding more time to sustained independent reading each day. It is so important for the kids to spend time in class - and at home - practicing the skills they are learning!  The best way for your child to become a proficient reader to to spend time reading books on their level every day.  I love how Richard Allington, a well-known educator and researcher, puts it:  "Few can learn to do anything well without the opportunity to engage in whatever is being learned."

Ask your child to tell you what a "Good Fit Book" is:

A "Good Fit Book" is one where you....

          *...know most of the words (This can be hard!  When asked, the kids 

              usually say, "Yes!  I knew all of the words" - even when they didn't.

              Therefore, I tell the kids they should know all of the words.  We are 

              learning what this looks and sounds like!)

          *...understand the book - It makes sense to you! We talk a lot about                     how important it is to understand what we read.  We are always 

              asking ourselves, "Does this make sense?"

As you read with your child, stop and ask them "Did that make sense?"

**It is essential that your child read Good Fit Books in order to grow as a reader.  Please encourage, and help, your child find Good Fit Books to read at home!

Vacation Book:  A book that your student can read very fluently and understands what they are reading.  Too easy for the student, but can still enjoy every now and then. 

Good Fit Book:  A book that your student can read fluently, they understand what they are reading, knows almost all of the words (95-98% accurate!), and gets your student thinking!  These books are the key to helping your child grow as a reader and should be read the majority of the time!

Dream Book:  A book that your child is interested in reading, but he/she knows less than 95% of the words.  This is a book that can be enjoyed by having someone read to them. This is also a book that your child will someday be able to read, but only after continuously reading Good Fit Books to help them grow as a reader.

**It is still so helpful and important for you to read to your child! Take time everyday for them to read to you, and for you to read to them and enjoy books together!  This builds a love of reading!

This year Gold Rush is using a new reading curriculum, K-5th grades, written by reading expert Lucy Calkins.  


First graders began the year with Unit 1: Building Good Reading Habits. We talk about how a habit is something you do every time, without thinking about it.  We've been practicing the good habits readers do every time they read a book.  

The following came home in your child's Book Bag last week, so you can practice these at home too:

Last week we began talking about Good Habits for Solving Hard Words.  Look for the following sheet in your child's Homework Folder.  Readers need to know a variety of strategies they can use to figure out tricky words.  Often, not just one strategy will work!

Ask your child:  "What can I do when I get stuck on a word?"

Finally, we also focus on comprehension strategies during Reader's Workshop time.  Good readers utilize a variety of comprehension strategies which help them become purposeful, active readers who are in control of their own reading comprehension.  These strategies include asking questions, predicting, monitoring your comprehension (being aware of when you do or don't understand), making inferences, visualizing what is happening in your head, and summarizing & synthesizing information.  Right now we are working on a comprehension strategy called Making Connections.  When we Make Connections we connect what we already know (our "schema" or background knowledge) to the text we are reading.  We say, "This reminds me of..."  Connections help us understand a story at a deeper level. Our connection can help us understand how a character is feeling. It can also help us predict what might happen next.

As you read with your child ask them, "What connections do you have?" or "What does this remind you of?"  You can also model the connections you are making.  It is great for them to hear examples of making meaningful connections!

We also have "Word Study" everyday.  This is a time to focus on phonics and patterns we see in words.  Gold Rush uses a program called Words Their Way.  I've given the class a spelling test to see what they know about letters, letter combinations, and the sounds they make.  This helped me start them at the appropriate Words Their Way level and differentiate for each child. Each week your child is given a "Word Sort."  It has words that focus on a particular pattern, such as short vowels, blends (two letters whose sounds, when put together, blend closely - such as bl, st, dr, cr....), digraphs (two letters that, when put together, make a new sound - such as ch, sh, ph, th..), and long vowel patterns (two vowels that make one long vowel sound ("magic e"or "silent e" as in cake, and other combinations like oa, ai, ea...).  

Another part of literacy is our Writer's Workshop:  
Right now we are working on writing and telling "small moment" stories from the events in our lives.  A small moment is one moment from our day.  Unlike a huge "watermelon story," such as a trip to Disney Land, a small moment is a "seed story" - or one event from our trip, such as riding on Splash Mountain. First graders love to tell stories!  They come in everyday with a story about going to the park, loosing a tooth, or playing with friends.  But sometimes they struggle with coming up with ideas to write about.  As they share their stories tell them, "That would make a great small moment for you to write about at school!"  

In Writer's Workshop I teach them to go through the Writing Process.  Our steps are:
1. - Think of an idea.  For a small moment, this could be something you do (like riding my scooter or going to gymnastics), or something that has happened to you (like getting caught in a rain storm or making cookies with Dad.)
2. - Plan  I tell them this is the most important!  We will learn various ways to plan our story. Right now we are thinking about what happened first, then next, then after that and are "touching and telling" (touch each page as you tell the story out loud and think about what would go on each page), then sketch (draw a quick sketch on each page to help you remember your plan)
3. - Write!  As you can see, we don't begin with writing our story!
4. - Revise  I tell them, "When your done you've just begun!"  We add detail to our story using "spider legs" and think how can I make my story better?
5. - Edit  We check spelling and punctuation.  We are talking about leaving spaces between our words, writing with lower-case letters, learning strategies for spelling words we don't know, and using punctuation.  Of course not all of our spelling is expected to be correct!  We focus on the patterns we are learning in our Words Their Way sort, and we use our Word Wall to help us spell.  First graders spell phonetically and that is what we want them to do for most words right now.  

Ask your child to tell you about the small moment stories they are writing.

Math:  

We've been working on our first Investigations unit on counting, addition, and subtraction.  I have been sending home letters from our math program that describe the concepts we are working on and gives ideas for you to support your child at home.  I know it is hard to get to these at times, but they are a great reference for you and I encourage you to read through them when you get a chance.  They really do give you a lot of great information!

This first unit develops students' ideas about counting and quantity, place value and the structure of the base-10 number system.  It develops computational fluency, and focuses on the operations of addition and subtraction.  

We work a lot with ten frames.  These enable children to automatically think of numbers less than ten in terms of their relationship to ten, and to build a sound knowledge of the basic addition and subtraction facts for ten, which are an integral part of mental calculation.  They also help us learn place value.  I love these!  

A ten frame is a grid with 10 squares, 5 on the top, and 5 on the bottom:


This ten frame shows the number 7:


We talk about what we notice and I love these discussions! The kids might say, "I notice 7 is 5+2" or "You need 3 more to make 10"
                  
We add ten frames to make larger numbers, like 16 below.  The kids might say, "I notice we need 2 ten frames to make 16 because it is larger  than 10." Or, "Sixteen is 5+5+5+1"  or "10 + 6."  Or, "The 1 in 16 stands for 1 whole ten frame, and the 6 in 16 stands for 6 on the second ten frame.  








Ten frames help us visualize numbers and understand place value. Math researchers like Jo Boaler, tell us that representing math visually is so important!  We will work with ten frames in various ways all year. 

 For homework you were given a set of Primary Number Cards to play our math games.  Under each number on the card is a ten frame representing that number.  Ask your child what they notice about the number by studying the ten frame.

 We've been working with addition and began subtraction last week. We discuss the tools and strategies students can use to help them add and subtract.  

Students use the strategy they best understand.  They begin with counting all and work through the strategies when they are developmentally ready. Most first graders still need concrete examples they can see and count before moving to the abstract.  They move to the abstract when they are developmentally ready. If your child still needs to count on his/her fingers, or use a manipulative to see numbers, that is just fine!  



I love our math program!  It really helps build a strong foundation and understanding of numbers and how they can be put together and taken apart to solve problems.  We focus a lot on the process we went through to find solutions, and we share this thinking with each other, learning ways to look at a problem.  By explaining their thinking, the kids understand the concepts at a much deeper level, which will help them apply what they know to new situations.  

To build on these concepts, count often with your children.  Practice counting by ones, fives, tens, and twos to 120.  When they become fluent, try starting at a number other than one.  

Make story problems for your kids, such as "We are having people over for dinner.  One family has 6 people, one has 5, and we have 4.  How many plates will I need?  

Social Studies:  

It is so important to take the time to build a strong classroom community in the beginning of the year in which all students feel safe and can learn.  We talk a lot about our school motto, Going for the G.O.L.D.:  Give respect, Own your actions, Listen and Learn, and Do your best. We've been discussing how to be a good citizen, and characteristics of a good citizen. The kids began collaborating in small groups to create posters that explain how to be good citizens at Gold Rush and go for the G.O.L.D. around our building.  We will post these around the school.  
We will include a "QR Code" (a barcode people can scan from their smartphone or iPad) on our posters that will take them to the presentation the kids create in Seesaw that describes their poster.  We are discussing how to Collaborate and Communicate with our peers.  These are two of the "4C's" that are part of Douglas County's GVC (Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum).

We are working with our technology teacher, Megan Fleet, to learn how to use an app on our iPads called Seesaw to share our work with our peers and our families. I will be sending a link for you to sign up so you can see items in your child's "portfolio."  This is an exciting way for them to share their thinking and learning with you! Look for this soon!

Ask your child to tell teach you about what it looks like and sounds like to go for the G.O.L.D. at Gold Rush.

What's coming next?

Reading:  More work with activating schema & making connections.

Writing:  Extend small moment writing to study mentor texts and use the 

              "craft moves" we notice from these texts in our own writing.

Math:  Subtraction story problems, more efficient counting & adding strategies,

              and beginning geometry in October.

Science:  A unit called "Pebbles, Sand, & Silt" - an introduction to Rocks &                       Minerals.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF MY VOLUNTEERS WHO HAVE STARTED HELPING ME WITH HOMEWORK FOLDERS, SIGHT WORD ASSESSMENTS,  AND WORD WORK SUPPORT!  

THANK YOU TO ANGIE EGAN AND AMY GREENLAW FOR MAKING OUR DIGGER DASH BANNER!  IT LOOKS GREAT! 

AND THANKS TO ALL PARENTS FOR SUPPORTING YOUR CHILD AT HOME!  YOUR CHILDREN ARE WONDERFUL AND THAT IS A REFLECTION OF YOU!