Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Spring Break

Just a reminder that Spring Break begins this Friday, April 3rd and school resumes on Monday, April 13th. This Thursday, April 2nd, is our last day of school.

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Mark Your Calendars!

Below you'll find a list of important upcoming dates.  Please note our Farmers Market Share date has changed from our last update (due to some calendar conflicts, such as upper grade testing, half-days, etc).  

Saturday, March 27th from 10:00-12:00- Math Workshop at EVCS
Monday, March 30th - School Wide Morning Meeting in the auditorium
Wednesday, April 29th - Field Trip to Queens County Farm
Wednesday, May 6th - Farmers Market Share starting at 8:45 am
Friday, May 29th - New Beginnings Celebration starting at 8:45 am

Our drama share facilitated by Kevin is still TBD but will be in June.  This last Social Studies unit will focus on Community Activism and we are super excited about this project.  

Also, our end of year party is tentatively set for Tuesday, June 23rd, but we'll be in touch as we get close.

Monday, March 23, 2015

Math Sprints

Here are some math sprints for fluency practice at home! Set the timer for 60 seconds and off you go!

Prompt your child to try to *make 10* first (reinforcing the associative property - we can add numbers in any order and STILL get the same total!).



Thursday, March 19, 2015

Conducting Surveys in Math

Today the first graders learned about conducting surveys in math workshop.  They learned that people can conduct surveys to learn more about a group of people.  The first graders responded to a survey about their favorite read aloud so far in first grade.  After gathering the responses, the first graders organized and analyzed the collected data.  We found that more kids liked Charlotte's Web than any other book.  We also figured out that 6 more kids liked Charlotte's Web than The Stories Julian Tells.

After our meeting on the rug, the first graders went off and conducted their own surveys.  We asked lots of different questions and found out new information about each other!  Everyone enjoyed the activity and we are excited to continue learning about surveys and organizing data!








Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Parent Workshop, Saturday March 28th

Saturday, March 28, 2015 
10am - 12pm.
Come out to learn more about the progressions in mathematical understanding from Kindergarten through Fifth Grade!  We will gather in our auditorium.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

School Wide Morning Meeting

Join us for our next School Wide Morning Meeting on Monday, March 16th in the auditorium!

Gail Gibbons

Our students have developed a love for non-fiction - and they especially love non-fiction author Gail Gibbons! Look out for Gail Gibbons' books in the library or bookstores!

Some titles include...
Farming
Bats
Pigs
The Milk Makers
Apples
Horses

Monday, March 9, 2015

Progress Reports

Progress Reports went home today in purple folders! Please check your child's backpack for reports from the classroom, Maggie (art), Stephanie (music) and Reina (dance).  Some children also have updated reports related to their IEPs.

We look forward to discussing your child's progress in first grade next week!  We are proud of everyone's hard work :)

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Measuring In Math!

This week we began our new Math Unit - Measurement and Data Collection!  Today we discovered some important rules around measuring with centimeter cubes... Ask your child to share what she or he has learned so far!










Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Spelling Practice at Home

Here are some sentences you can dictate to your child so that she or he can practice spelling. Say the sentence aloud twice. Then, have your child write the sentence using her or his best spelling - remind your child to remember capitalization and punctuation. Then, go through the sentence together and fix any mistakes.

My belt is on the shelf.
Did Beth step on that frog?
This clock is the best gift!
Bill fell in the sand.
Stan must dump in the sand.
Come to the pond and swim.
Could mom mend the rip in this dress?
I wish that Kim would not brag.
Could Tim get the cloth on the shelf?

Math Fluency Practice at Home

Set a timer for 60 seconds and see how many questions you can accurately answer!







Upcoming Important Dates

March 13th - Poetry Slam
March 18th - Evening Parent Teacher Conferences
March 19th - Half Day for Students & Afternoon Parent Teacher Conferences
March 26th - Queens County Farm Trip
April 3rd - April 12th - Spring Break *School resumes April 13th
April 24th - Farmers Market Share

From Farm to Table

Today the first graders began their next Social Studies Unit, "From Farm to Table." This unit is a drama-based unit that focuses on the big question, "Where does our food come from?" Students will explore the journey of food from the farm to plate, learning about parts of a farm, organic versus industrial farming, and animal and farm worker rights. We'll learn how a farm works – in particular, the animals that live there, what they provide to people, and how farmers take care of the crops and the animals.

Starting in two weeks in writing workshop, students will write non-fiction information books covering all sorts of farm topics. The first graders will learn how to write different kinds of facts, how to organize information, and how to elaborate in their writing. Some first graders will also use research to add details to their books.

We'll also visit the Queens County Farm and the Union Square Farmers Market.

All of our work will culminate in a "Farmers Market Share" on Friday, April 24th.  Stay tuned for updates on this exciting project!