10.31

We began our day with Reformation Celebration in chapel. What a great way to celebrate 500 years of Scripture Alone!

After chapel, we came back to our classroom and read through our story called "A Musical Day/" Can your firstie tell you the story about when the aunt comes to visit? What happens? Was it a great day?

We then worked on thank you notes, pretending our aunts came to visit. We are trying so hard to learn the parts of a friendly letter.

After lunch, we began carving. It just wasn't carving...we counted seeds, we measure how heavy our pumpkins wore (39.2 pounds!!) and we rolled the dice to design a face. THANK YOU to the moms and dads that made this happen today!

Have a blessed night!

See you in the morning! 

10.30

The last Monday of October!
We began our day with talking through the 5 Solas. Can your firstie tell you what they are? Martin Luther used these as tenets of his 95 theses.

We worked REALLY HARD on phonics today, checking that we know our short vowel sounds and our consonant sounds. We even spelled sight words together. It's time to start tying all this together to improve our spelling and reading!

We worked through centers as well, each one focused on something different. We explored consonant clusters (or blends), sight words (high-frequency words), sentence writing, reading to yourself, sharing a book with a friend, and listening to reading.

After lunch, we worked on putting events in time order, using the words "morning, afternoon, evening and night." We made posters with pictures we found in magazines. 

 Finally our buddies came down the hall and joined us in our GoNoodle Bones Dance, and we made skeletons with our buddies. It was a great way to end the day!

No Homework!

Chapel tomorrow- You are welcome to join us! We begin at 8:20.

Pumpkin Carving in the afternoon.

Have a blessed night!

Bat Day!

BAT DAY!

We began our day with prayers and song. Did you know that you can worship God everywhere, even in a cave! We also took spelling and reading tests, but that was after our bat eyes adjusted to the darkness!

We focused our whole day on bats.  We read about bats, we wrote about bats, we compared bats to birds, we built bats in caves, we made bat projects with chalk and outlining.  It was a 

BAT-TASTIC DAY! 

Have a blessed weekend!

10.26

Today, we began our day talking about Martin Luther! Everyone has a special "quiz" they can share at home with their families. I know that your firstie will teach you a lot!

We worked on short i  today.  Can your frist read this list of words to you?

sit
pin
lit
twin
spit
bill
fill
tin
win
bin
split
flit


In the afternoon,
we worked on writing subtraction sentences. Saxon calls these "some, some went away". They are fun to make up! Have your firstie make one up for you.

Finally, we made some handprint bats for our bat cave. We are excited for tomorrow!

HW: Purple bag with leveled reader
         Math facts side B

See you tomorrow!

10.25

Today, 6th grade led chapel, all about Martin Luther. What facts can your firstie tell you about the man who began the Reformation of the Lutheran Church?

We came back and made some pretty awesome bats roosting in a colony! After recess, we worked on consonant blends. What words can you say the begin with:

Br___________
Fr___________
Dr___________

We also sorted nouns. Can you name a person, a place, and a thing? Look around you! Nouns are everywhere!

In the afternoon, we worked on +1 in math. There is only 1 piece of math homework tonight!

Finally, we sorted bat facts into TRUE and FALSE. Your firstie can quiz you tonight!! It is in the blue folder.

Have a blessed night!

See you tomorrow!

10.24

Together Tuesday flew by in  a flash!
We started out today with all 6 literacy centers. Some of the skills we worked on as a whole group were subject/predicate; suffix -ing; using adjectives.  Everyone also had a chance to read the books that are perfect fits for them. Tomorrow, those books will come home.

We are working on sight words a TON...here's an easy way to practice:

We talked about Luther's Rose today. This is a symbol that we see everywhere in Lutheran schools and Lutheran churches. Ask your firstie what it all means.

After lunch, we worked on covering a shape with pattern blocks. This is a fun way to see that there isn't just one answer for every problems. That's a lesson that comes in handy as we get older!

Finally, we learned a bit more about BATS, specifically the brown bat today. We made a tree chart of what bats are, what they eat, what the have, and what they can do. We are getting to be experts!

HW- math facts and side b.

Chapel tomorrow

Library books due back.

Have a blessed night! 

10.23

It took us a little bit today to get back into our normal routine, but then it was business as usual. It was so nice being back together!

We began our day with PE and Art, but then we got into the good stuff!
We read about how animal communicate. How does a dog show that it is happy? How about a cat? How do animals communicate with each other?

We worked on that through lunch, then in the afternoon we took a math test. Easy Peasy!

We even took a math fact practice page. There is side b for homework. Our challenge is to get it done in 2 minutes or less!

After that, we were all about bats. What bat facts did your firstie learn today? We learned some very interesting facts!

We ended our day learning more about Martin Luther. If you want to know what the Reformation is all about, here is a great link!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tox2TflUH90

Have a great night!

10.18

Today was a Wednesday that felt like a Friday!! We began with chapel today.
Thank you Mr. Looker for leading us in our message!

We came back and got through our spelling tests and reading tests super fast, because we wanted to do our math in the morning!

Once that was done, we practiced our doubles facts using the wrap ups! These are tricky, but once we get it, we can TOTALLY DO IT!

We ended the day working hard on our boats that we created. Be sure to check Seesaw for an updated look at what the boats looked like!

Finally, we have notes in backpacks along with a sticker for a FREE SODA at the Roller Rink on Friday night.

Have a blessed weekend!

10.17

We began our day with Character Traits! Can your firstie tell you the lesson we learned from the little boy in our story this week? It's a GOOD ONE!

How would you describe Jack? How would you describe Jack's friends?

After centers, we looked at all the places that God is with us....guess what? It's EVERYWHERE! Tonight, thank God in prayer for being always with you, even when things aren't going exactly the way we wish. God promises that He will NEVER LEAVE US! That is something we can count on.

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In math today, we used the words "HEAVIER" and "LIGHTER". Using a balance scale, we compared mystery items! Ask your firstie what he/she learned!

Finally, we ended our day talking about families. As a family, see if you can make a list of 5 things that are special about your family. Talk about what special things you do together as a family. Then thank God for the gift of families that come in all shapes and sizes.

Tonight, your firstie is bringing home a SQUARE ONE ART PACKET. Proceeds benefit our school. Orders are due by 10/31.

Homework - Math Side b

Spelling test tomorrow!

10/.16

Today, we began our day with gym. The kiddos did the beep test...ask what that is~

Then we learned all about digraph ck. A digraph is two letters that come together to make one sound. Digraph ck comes AFTER short vowels, like in the words duck, stack, pick, flock.  Hopefully knowing the rule will really help us pay attention to our spelling.

We also worked on double final consonants. This takes PRACTICE!!

To help with these new skills, I have gathered some links that reinforce what we did today in reading class:

http://www.roythezebra.com/reading-games/double-consonants-ff-ss.html

http://www.roythezebra.com/reading-games/double-consonants-ck.html

http://www.eduplace.com/kids/sv/applications/wordsort/index.html?grade=1&unit=16

http://www.eduplace.com/kids/sv/applications/wordbuilder/index.html?grade=1&unit=10

After lunch, we took our first ever fact practice page!! We are working hard on doubles. If we can memorize these, we have a great base for the other facts in first grade.

Singing this rap at home will help!

Every day we will do fact practice sheets. The goal is memorizing. And sometimes that takes lots of practice.

At the end of the day, we sat down and talked about the tent church. What is it? Why did the Israelites build one? How was it similar to our church? How is it different?

Tonight, just math homework. Ask to see the fact practice! It's pretty awesome!

Have a blessed night!

THANK YOU!

Grandparents' and Special Persons' Day was a GREAT SUCCESS!! Thank you for having such great families!! The kids had a great time, and I hope the special friends did too!!

Have a blessed weekend!
I will see you Monday!!

10.12

Today, we learned why God gave us the 10 Commandments and WHAT they are. Can your firsties tell you (or show you) any of the Commandments? We worked hard on them.

Today, in centers, we wrapped up our Unit 1 test. It took use a few days, but it is finished! Monday, we begin unit 2. We did review b and d reversals today, just because.  Here's one way:

After lunch, we learned the REST OF THE DOUBLES RAP! It's pretty awesome! We even had time to make our our flashcards! No homework tonight, though!!

Finally, we began the plan for building our own boat. We took everything we know about floating and sinking and hopefully put it to good use!

Have a blessed night!

See you tomorrow!

10.11

We started our day in chapel, led by a GREAT group of 7th graders! Tonight, talk about how we can strengthen our faith in God. What can we do? What can God do for us?

In whole group reading today, we worked on centers. It was great having a rainy day, because we got a LOT DONE! Everyone had a chance to read on Seesaw and everyone got to finish a vowel sort!
We also LOVE using QR codes to practice short vowel spelling! It's like a secret message just waiting for us!

Pastor Wugazzer came today and read to us! It was a funny story about a crocodile IN A BOOK!! We sure felt lucky to have a special reader in our room!

In the afternoon, we worked on patterning in math! 

We created patterns with pattern blocks! Can you make any patterns tonight at home?

We ended our day with Library Time!

HW: Just math!

Tomorrow is THURSDAY!

FRIDAY IS SPECIAL PERSONS' DAY!

Remember your person can bring show and tell!

Have a blessed night!

10.10

We began today talking about how we aren't so different from the Israelites in the Old Testament...they were complainers....we are too! God provided for them- He does for us too! God promised them a Savior--we live in the GRACE and LOVE of Jesus! What a comparison!!

In whole group reading today, we worked on finding our sight/hf words, and reading them fluently! This is a great practice...reading things over and over, until they are smooth!! NICE JOB FIRST GRADE!

OF course, all that reading made us a teeny bit tired...so we re-energized with brain breaks!

We worked through all our centers, even using a QR reader to scan codes to write words!! PRETTY AWESOME!

After lunch, we took a math test---pretty simple! Then we explored our SCIENCE! 

We were wondering about floating and sinking.

We took our best guess....

They we checked it out!

Ask what was surprising!

Chapel tomorrow!

No hw tonight!

Bring back library books tomorrow too!

Have a blessed night! 

Monday 10.9

Today, we began with PE--nothing like being wide awake right away!
We came back from that and right away began reviewing our sounds/letter correspondence! AN D YAY! Everyone did great!! We also reviewed our spelling and high frequency words.

We had a crazy messy art class, learning to mix primary colors but after some intense clean up, we got right down to lunch!

The afternoon started with math. We are working on SOME SOME MORE stories. These are great to practice!! I am excited for the kiddos to share a seesaw message with you tomorrow about this!

Finally, we ended the day talking about manna. This DAILY BREAD kept the Israelites alive in the desert. How does God provide us with Daily bread?

HW: Math side b
Have a blessed night!

10.5

Today, we began our day with a friend's Bible. He brought it to school for "Bring your BIBLE to school day!" How cool is that??!?! We read together the Biblical event of crossing the Red Sea. What happened here? Has there ever been a time you have felt like there was no way out, yet Jesus provides the PERFECT WAY? We have a pretty amazing God.

In phonics, we talked about pronouns. As your kiddo is talking tonight, see if you can point out "PRONOUN!" We did it all day :)

After working through our centers, we had a beautiful recess and lunch.  In math, we did the DOUBLES RAP! This is hard...we will practice it, then send a video!

We ended our day with Science sorting- Magnetic and NON- Magnetic.

HW- Math!
Spelling test tomorrow!
Have a blessed night!

10.4

We began our day with chapel. The kids heard from one of the pastors at Lutheran Heritage Foundation, where the word of God is translated and shared with people in other countries.

We came back from choir, and worked on our short U words. We have covered all 5 short vowels now!

After recess, we worked through our centers. Each group had a chance to read a book together! What story did your firstie read today?

In the afternoon, we worked on using words like first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth! Tonight, see if you can use those at home! They are order words!

Finally we worked on making sure our thoughts all match our topic.... today it was "Snack I like to eat". We got it!

HW: Math side b

Have a blessed night! 

10.3

We began today with a full morning of literacy! We started with looking at describing words in paragraphs, then we worked on our NEW story! We read "Gus takes a Train." We MAPPED the story- meaning we talked about characters, setting and plot! What happened at the beginning, middle and end?

If you click this link, click Book One, Lesson 5..Gus takes a train...you will see our story!

https://www-k6.thinkcentral.com/content/hsp/reading/journeys2014/na/gr1/ese_9780547894485_/launch.html


After snack and recess, we worked on our Jesus time story of Pharaoh and Moses, and the angel that passed over the homes of the Israelites!

After that we went to technology class! Ask your firstie about that!

After lunch, we worked hard in math, writing + stories. These are simple to do...hand your firstie 5 small treats (marshmallows, etc) and have him/her arrange them into two piles. Write out (the first pile) +  the second pile =  5!  Rearrange and redo!

Finally, after much waiting, we got to explore MAGNETS! We LOVED IT! Ask about what your firstie learned while exploring!

HW  - Just math tonight

Both LIBRARY and CHAPEL tomorrow! 

Have a blessed night!

October!! 10.2

WOW! We made it! Flip the calendar, and get ready to GO!! This is a great month in the life of a firstie.

We began today writing about our weekends. Everyone is getting much better at expressing themselves in writing!! 

We also learned about the short vowel U sound, the QU combination, and the Z intial and final sounds.

We also did a bit of Adjective Review. We solidified what we knew as describing words. You can do this at home by asking "What kind of glass?" or "How many M&MS?"  Those will help firsties use adjectives in conversation.

We had some GREAT center time today, working on all different literacy skills. Ask what center was your kiddo's favorite.

Here are some short U activities to work on at home this week:

http://more2.starfall.com/n/short-u/su/load.htm?f&redir=www

http://www.ictgames.com/cvcPop.html (click on U)

http://www.eduplace.com/kids/sv/applications/wordfind/index.html?grade=1&unit=9 (short U words)

In the afternoon, we zipped through our math test, then we reviewed our Jesus event for the week. There were plagues on the people of Egypt, because Pharaoh would not follow God's command to let the Israelites go! What was the final straw, the one event that led Pharaoh to say "GO!"?

We practiced our memory with PICTURES today! It's a great one for that!

Right before an EXTRA RECESS WITH BUDDIES, we listed all that we already knew about magnets. We are about to learn SO MUCH MORE this week!

NO homework! Check bags for notes and finished work! See you tomorrow!