What Boylee Is Learning At School

Here's the latest info from school:


December/January Newsletter
Dear First Grade Parents,

Happy New Year! Last year has come and gone and time just flew right by. We are already well into our first month of the new decade and the children are growing more each day.

Thank you so much for your support. Parent volunteers are so helpful in the classroom. We appreciate your time and commitment. We would also like to thank families for their generosity and warm wishes during the holiday season. We feel very fortunate to be a part of such a kind and caring community. Please read below to learn more about the new ideas and concepts the children are experiencing in class.

Fondly,

First Grade Teachers:


Reader’s Workshop

In Reader’s Workshop in December, the students learned how to find Just Right books based on their reading levels. As has been true throughout the year, students still focus on being independent readers. As a constructivist school, we strive to have students reflect on how they are doing, so students have used checklists to make sure they are following our procedures. We also continued with partner reading to continue to focus on socialization and for reading comprehension. Students checked each other’s understanding and also learned to check their own understanding through retelling. In first grade, as we have been learning to work together, we have also been learning how to use peers as resources.

In January we are focusing on Character Study. The children have examined what a character is and talked as a class about some of their favorite characters. By using bubble maps, students have organized their thinking as they have analyzed the traits of characters from guided reading and from their own independent reading books. As students have been learning about their characters and making personal connections, they have also been working on reading with fluency and expression. As they become more expressive readers with a deep understanding, the children will culminate this unit with a Reader’s theater!

Writer’s Workshop

In December, students learned how to create a character. They developed a character that was somewhat like who they are. They sketched, planned, and wrote.

Keeping in mind that Writers write for Readers…they were reminded that content matters, and were encouraged to write Realistic Fiction problems and solutions. They learned to check for order and understanding. They shared their writing with a partner.

First Graders, through Writers’ Workshop experiences, are learning that Writers live wide-awake lives, and pay close attention to the many “rich moments” in their lives that are worth writing about. They are also learning how to capture a small moment (thought), -and “stretch” that topic to tell a Personal Narrative story across the pages.

In First Grade, we now begin to see how our own lives are full of “small moments,” and how we can find details that are worth writing about, -and that we can be Authors, too!

Students are also beginning to discover, and use, new writing techniques modeled from several *Mentor Authors. They observe and learn about varied writing styles. They practice transferring new craft techniques, which they are learning from Mentor Authors, to their own pieces of writing. They are learning how authors can help them edit by teaching them about punctuation.

*Angela Johnson, Mo Willems, Ezra Jack Keats, Joanne Ryder


Math

In December, the children continued to learn about addition. They learned how to act out story problems, to use pictures and manipulatives to add, and to write number sentences. After the children developed a conceptual understanding and the different strategies of addition, they practiced adding numbers to 10. Students learned to answer “how many in all” questions and learned how to write addition stories. In class, students will review these skills with flash cards from 0-9. Each Friday the students will have a quick timed assessment to monitor their progress and mastery of their addition facts. These assessments are differentiated to meet the needs of the individual students, much like Just Right books. Students practice at their level and move at their own pace.

In January, we introduced the concept of subtraction. Students learned to use pictures or objects to model subtraction problems and to write subtraction sentences. We played musical chairs to show the concept of taking away, which was great for the kinesthetic learners! Students answered questions such as “how many are left?” and “how do we find the difference?” Students brainstormed and shared the strategies they use to subtract. Some of these strategies include: counting back, counting on, using the number line, and using objects.

To prepare for double–digit addition/subtraction and money, the children reviewed learning to count, read, and write numbers to 100. They practiced putting objects in groups of ten and counting by tens to find out how many there were. Ex. 7 tens + 2 ones =72; 70 + 2; seventy-two. Finally, students learned to compare numbers to 100, using <, >, = and counting 1 more than, 1 less than, 10 more than, and 10 less than. Knowing the values of numbers will help the children add and subtract accurately and to make comparisons between groups. Understanding of these new concepts will lead us into understanding how to count, add, and subtract money. Parents, please be sure to practice counting by 5’s and 10’s with your child.

*Activity: Here’s a fun activity to do at home! Give your child a set of 10 small healthy snack items, such as raisins or nuts. Have him or her eat the treats one at a time, telling you a new subtraction sentence after each bite.

DWoK

In December students gained an understanding of “Bird’s Eye View”. The students gained an understanding of where they are on a map by studying various types of maps. They learned about directionality and scale. Students created a three-dimensional model of our school using blocks. Then they transformed this model into a two-dimensional map. Afterward, the students practiced creating a map to scale. As a culminating learning experience, the first grade students viewed where their school and surrounding neighborhood is on Google Earth. Students located popular landmarks like the Mann’s Chinese Theater, the Hollywood Bowl, and the Hollywood Sign.

In January students created a large puzzle banner to symbolize how each individual is an integral part of the whole group. The students designed and decorated their personal puzzle pieces. Then the students shared art materials to show that they know how to collaborate as a group. Finally, each team of students worked together to build the puzzles. Students also created a survey to get to know Selma’s first graders. In February the children will meet and greet their Selma neighbors.

Music

In December students learned to sing the major scale. They then learned that melodies are made from the notes from a scale. The children analyzed “Jingle Bells” and learned which notes are in the melody. In small groups students played the melody to “Jingle Bells” using tube instruments. In December the children also began to learn about rhythm in music. They had already learned to find the beat, so we began to focus on how to divide the beat into whole notes, half notes, quarter notes and rests.

In January the children have begun to learn about keyboards! Students are learning to navigate their way on keyboards and have begun exploring patterns they see on the keys! We’re very excited to continue our keyboard program!

Theater Arts

In December the children continued to rehearse their play, learning about blocking and projecting our voices. They also began to learn vocabulary of theater and what it means to be an actor. Our first unit culminated in our first grade winter program productions!

This month, they are continuing to develop their theater vocabulary and are focusing on collaborations. As in Reader’s Workshop this month, our first grade actors will be talking about the difference between characters and real people before developing a character as a class. Through various games, they have been learning to improvise emotions and actions that characters might express. Students will also use props to develop their characters, before finally developing a story as a class.

Visual Arts

First graders are learning how to use a pencil to sketch and draw. Ms. Heather has taught us how to hold a pencil-for the performance we expect. We can draw a thin line, a thick line, a curve, straight line, and we can “shade-in” spaces.

Recently we have been discussing architecture, making connections with neighborhood buildings in DWoK, as well as discussing Form follows Function concepts in Art. We are drawing and designing buildings, using the ruler as a tool.

Dance

Last month the children learned to dance the Horah. The students learned how to keep in sync with the larger group while stepping to the rhythm of the music. The students danced in a large circle to celebrate their performance and the joyous occasions of the holidays.

Currently the students are learning how to tap dance. The children are excited to try on a pair of tap shoes. Ms. Heather will be providing shoes in various sizes for children who do not have a pair of their own.

Coming up in February…

In reading the children will be studying Nonfiction.
In writing the children will learn about procedural writing and they will explore “How-To” and “All About” writing.
In Math the children will study Data, Graphing and Money
In DWoK the children will continue to build relationships and get to know their neighbors.