Dear Families,
Happy New Year! Can you believe 2018 has already
arrived? We hope you enjoyed some family
time and hopefully stayed warm throughout the past weeks.
We have been very busy
since our arrival back to school. We
also have some exciting upcoming information to inform you about.
First Grade Assembly
Each month a grade level
leads a morning meeting assembly for the school. First Grade will be leading the assembly on
Tuesday, January 23rd.
Assemblies start at the beginning of the school day. We will be presenting a beautiful song led by
Samantha’s father!
China Presentations
First Graders will be
learning about China and will be sharing our learning through music, art,
movement, and research. If you have any
connections to this unit of study please let us know. We will be holding this
presentation on the morning of Wednesday, February 21st. You will
receive more information in the weeks to come. We hope will be able to join us.
Math
This week during math, we
have been learning to use number lines to add and subtract. We have also been
solving story problems. We show our work
using equations to match words, pictures and numbers to solve. Our math menu
time is going along smoothly and children seem engaged and excited about
learning through written practice, technology, and through a variety of the
math games available. We introduced a
new math site called Prodigy. Coming home today is your students’
information to use Prodigy at home if you would like.
Literacy
During Reading Workshop,
we have learned to read longer words by using our Word Detective
strategies! We look closely at endings
and vowel teams. We don’t give up! We do
our best to figure out tricky words by using the strategies we have acquired!
At this point in the year, kids should have a fairly good grasp on short vowel
sounds.
Next week we will begin a
mini unit on letter writing. We will be
discussing the different reasons to write letters. We will become pen pals with other first
grade classrooms in St. Albans! We are
looking forward to this wonderful opportunity!
Mrs. Routhier and Mrs.
Boudreau welcome their UVM student teacher interns,
Ms.
Johnston, and Ms. Gribbell. We are
excited to let you know that they will
be with us
until May!
Reminders:
` * Don’t forget to send in sneakers on a
daily basis.
`
` * We are running low on extra
snacks. We would welcome any donations.
`
` *We are also low on disinfectant wipes.
` This time of the year we go through a lot
because we try to clean everything. Cold
season is upon us and germs spread easily.
Please consider sending some in if you can.
`
` * Please make sure your student has extra
clothes in their cubbies or backpacks. This is the time of year when socks and
pants get wet from outdoor play. We cannot send students down to the nurse if
they get wet from recess.
`
`
Important Dates:
~ Monday, January 15th – No
School
(Martin Luther King Day)
~ Tuesday, January 23rd – Whole
School
Assembly lead by the First Graders
~ Wednesday, February 14th –
Valentine’s Day ( more info to come)
~ Wednesday, February 21st –
China
Presentations (more info to come)
Have a great weekend!
Maryanne Routhier &
Jennifer Boudreau
