Merry Christmas!

Today was the perfect day to end such a fabulous week in first grade! Our story today was Who Will Guide My Sleigh Tonight? by Jerry Pallotta. This book explored different animals Santa could use to guide his sleigh and the problems they might cause. We then wrote about an animal that could guide the sleigh but would not be a good choice. All of the pieces were then assembled into a class book. 

Let me take this time to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! May your holiday season be merry and bright, filled with smiles and laughter. 

Until 2013 . . . 

The Joy of Giving

Today's focus in first grade was about the joy of giving. We read about that first Christmas many years ago and talked about how God gave his son to us. We then created our own Nativity scenes. Here are some pictures of their work:

Our Reading activity focused on the book The Berenstein Bears and the Joy of Giving. In this story, Brother and Sister Bear learned that it is better to give than to receive. First grade then discussed gifts that we can give others. After some great examples of things they can buy for others, the attention switched to things that cannot be purchased that they can give to others. Some of their examples included hugs, kisses, and friendship. Each student picked what they thought was the best Christmas gift that does not come from a store that they could give someone and created a gift box for it. Here is a picture of that project: 

Just a reminder that dismissal tomorrow is at 12:30 PM. Students are permitted to wear jeans to school. 

Ring the Bells!

I have to say that this week is flying by. I am really enjoying seeing the excitement on the children's faces when they walk in in the morning wondering what we are going to do. Well, today's reading activities focused on the book The Polar Express. The students just loved the story and were memorized by the pictures. After reading, we recalled the events in the story by completing a sequence chart. We then made bells to help remind us to keep the Christmas spirit ringing all year long. Here's a picture of all of the bells:

This afternoon we attended the Handbell Concert. The Church was filled with beautiful music that helped put us more in the Christmas spirit. We will be attending the Christmas Choir performance tomorrow. 

Because of the program tomorrow we will not have gym class. Just a reminder that we will have our Spelling test tomorrow though. 

Santa's Stuck!

Greetings, everyone! Today's reading activity centered around the book Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Gowler Greene. This hilarious book tells the story of Santa getting stuck in the chimney after eating too much. The book explores how the reindeer and other animals work together to free Santa. After reading the story, we talked about what we would do if Santa was stuck in our chimney and then made a cute craft project. 

In addition to this project, we practiced our penmanship by coping a poem, studied our Spelling words, and sorted and graphed pattern blocks after covering a design. 

Tomorrow should bring more excitement to first grade. We are looking forward to hearing the Handbell concert and seeing what reading activity we will be doing. 

A Grinchy Monday!

It is hard to believe that we are one week away from Christmas break! In honor of the upcoming Christmas season, first grade this week is going to be reading Christmas stories and completing a project that relates to it. Today, we read How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Afterwards, we made grinches and drew how we could make the Grinch grin. The students came up with some great ideas including singing to him, giving him presents, and giving him a hug. 

I also thought it would be nice to make our classroom look more festive, so we decorated a small Christmas tree today. The students did a great job decorating it. The tree brings a little sparkle to the room. What do you think? 

Here Comes Santa Claus!

Today was a busy day to end the week. We spent some time day working in literacy centers reviewing vowel sounds and sight words. It is very important that we can easily distinguish between long and short vowel sounds and be able to recognize sight words instantaneously. We also spent time today learning how to add 2 even numbers and how to determine whether a number is even. 

We ended our busy day with Art class. With Christmas just around the corner, we thought it was the perfect time to make a Santa Claus. I think they are just darling. 

   
I hope everyone has a great weekend. Please note that next week's Spelling test will be on Thursday not on Friday. 

Happy Thursday!

Today was a great day in first grade! The highlight, of course, was gym class. That did not come as a surprise to me. The children just love running around and exercising. Today, we went bowling. The students were divided into groups with each group given pins and a ball. Working together, they set up their pins and then tried to knock them over. They had a blast! 

Back in the classroom, we learned how to draw time on a clock and number a clock face. We also continued to practice our sight words this week. 

First grade also led a prayer service for the other primary students today. They all did such a fantastic job reading. Every teacher remarked at how nice the service was. 

Just a reminder that all students will need to have taken an AR this week. 

Happy Wednesday!

Today was a calmer day in first grade. We started our day with Music class which was a great wake to wake us all up. Once we returned, it was time to learn new things. In Language Arts, we read a story about how things grow and change. I did notice that a few students were having difficulties with our sight words for the week. Please take some extra time to review these words tonight. 

In Math, we studied the odd numbers. We learned what the odd numbers are and practiced counting the odd numbers to 21. Now we can count by both even and odd numbers! 

A Whirlwind of a Day!

Greetings, everyone! Today was a whirlwind day in first grade. The first graders had Spanish, Music, and Computer class all before lunch! Needless to say, we worked very hard this afternoon. 

We learned how to read consonant-vowel words; these words were quite easy to decode. We also practiced reading our sight words. The highlight of Language Arts class came during the grammar portion. We are talking about action verbs this week. After brainstorming a list of action words, the students each picked a word and acted out the motion. Everyone else had to guess the action. This brought such excitement to the class! 

I hope everyone is having a good week. It is hard to believe that Christmas is only 2 weeks away! 

The Ever Many Sounds of Our Alphabet

Just when we thought we had it all figured out in first grade we learned that yet another letter can have more than one sound. We discovered that y can say i or e when it is at the end of the word. The trick is to know how many syllables a word has. If it has one syllable y will say i; if the words has two syllables it will say e. With a little practice, we will be able to differentiate the sound without a problem. 

We brought a little Art into Math class today when we talked about symmetry. First, we learned that a line of symmetry divides something in half with both sides being exactly the same. We then applied that knowledge by creating symmetric Christmas trees just in time for the holiday season. 

Blown Away!

 The students totally surprised me today during Art class. The goal of class today was to take pieces of tissue paper and glue them in an outline of a Christmas ball. I was worried that it just would not work and shared those concerns with a fellow teacher. Well, the students totally amazed me doing this project. They all created such darling Christmas balls. Many teachers commented about how pretty they all turned out. I am so excited to share pictures of them. Have a look: 

     

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

There was a lot of excitement in the air today in first grade. It started with a visit from St. Nicholas. We talked about how if boys and girls put a shoe out on the feast of St. Nicholas, he will come and fill it with surprises. So, before watching a video on the life of St. Nicholas, we put our shoes in the hallway. And sure enough, St. Nicholas did come and filled our shoes with a candy cane and pencil. 

That excitement carried over into our morning of learning. We reviewed our sight words for the week, reading words with long vowels, and reading our story. 

The excitement continued this afternoon as we attended the annual Christmas program. We totally enjoyed listening to and at times jamming along with  the band. They played some of our favorite Christmas songs and some new ones. After the band concert, it was time for the Christmas play. We enjoyed watching the junior high students tell the story of the first Christmas. 

I hope your day was filled with as much excitement as ours was. 

Action-Filled Wednesday

Happy Wednesday! First grade had an action packed day today. In Religion this week, we have been learning the Lord's Prayer. Today, we looked at the meaning behind these sacred words. 

During Language Arts class, we read a story about honey bees. We learned what the queen, drones, and worker bees do in a hive. In Math, we discovered how to count dimes and pennies. It was a little tricky at first, but we soon got the hang of it. 

Wednesdays mean its Social Studies day. Our focus switched to geography today where we learned about the continents and oceans. We sang a special song and created a map of the world using a paper plate. I hope you like what they made. 

With the Christmas musical season upon us, first grade did not have music class today, but we did have an extra Science class. Today we talked about how to sort objects. We discovered we can sort object by size, color, or shape. We then did an experiment to sort objects by whether or not they float. We found out that a plastic circle shape, a pencil grip, and linking cube floats. An Army man, dice, paper clip, bean, and chalk sink. We sure enjoyed playing with the water!

Just a reminder that the students will not have gym class tomorrow because of the Christmas program. Please continue to read their library book with them. All students will need to take a test by Friday. 

We are so Industrious!

First grade has been really industrious the past few days. As maybe some of the students told you, industrious is one of our amazing words this week. I have heard several students use this word when referring to how hard we work in first grade. I love hearing them use new words! 

Things keep moving along in Language Arts. This week, we learned to read long e words spelled ee and words with 2 syllables. We also continue to practice our sight words. In Math class today we learned the even numbers and practiced counting by 2's to 20. 

Just a reminder: Please encourage your child to read his/her library book. All students will need to take an AR test on his/her book by Friday. 

Happy Advent!

Greetings! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed the beautiful weather. As we begin the season of Advent, I thought I share with you what first grade will be doing this Advent season. I created an Advent calendar. Each day, one student will reach into an envelope and pull out a picture which will relate to something Jesus did or taught. We will then read a Bible story that helps explain the meaning of the picture. Afterwards, we will  add these pictures around our manger as we wait for Jesus to come. So, for today, we pulled out a quarter and grapes. The quarter reminds us to share what we have and the grapes symbolize Jesus' first miracle. Here is a picture of our Advent calendar. 

Sweet Friday!

What a way to end the week! We had an awesome day learning new things, reviewing things, and making things! The new learning came in Language Arts where we learned to put words in ABC order. We also spent time reviewing our phonics sounds and sight words in Language Arts.  

First grade had fun making several things today. In Religion, we made an Advent wreath. Each week the students are encouraged to color a flame above each candle as we prepare to celebrate Jesus' birth. During Art, we made gingerbread men. Didn't they turn out adorable! 

I hope everyone has a terrific weekend! 

Reading, Math, and a Little Exercise

Today was yet another exciting day in first grade. In Language Arts, we read Life in the Forest. This story is about different animals that in live the forest and what these animals eat. While reading this story, we learned the importance of reading captions. 

We learned some new Math facts today: the subtracting zero facts and subtracting a number from itself facts. As we used pennies to solve the problems, the students quickly discovered how easy these facts are. 

The highlight of the day was gym class. We played an exciting game called "I Want a Home." The students were tired and sweaty by the end of the class. There smiles on their faces as we left the gym told me that  they really enjoyed exercising today. 

A Day of Learning and a Little Shopping, too

Today was a successful day in first grade. We had a successful trip to the Secret Santa shop where everyone was able to buy some items for their family members and get them wrapped. Thank you to all of the parents who volunteered. Without you, this shop would not be possible. 

After our shopping was complete it was time to learn. We began our discussion about Advent today in Religion class. In Language Arts, we practiced reading words with the inflected ending -ed; we also practiced reading our sight words. Finally, in Math, we discovered how to tell time to the hour. 

Welcome Back!

Today was a good day back from Thanksgiving break. We started off a bit sluggish but quickly awoke as we learned new and exciting things. In Language Arts we learned how to decode and read long u and long e words. We also talked about the author's purpose for writing a story. In Math class we learned how to count by 2's. 

Just a reminder that the students will be visiting the Secret Santa shop tomorrow. If you wish, please send in money with your child. Money should be sent in either an envelope or change purse. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! It is hard to believe that it is already Thanksgiving. Where does the time go? To get us ready for all of the good food we will enjoy tomorrow, the first grade students created a bar graph of their favorite Thanksgiving foods. As you can see in the picture below, most students like mashed potatoes while few students like stuffing. 

We also read two Thanksgiving books. One was This is the Feast by Diane Shore, the author who visited us earlier this year. We also read Who Will Carve the Turkey This Thanksgiving by Jerry Pallatta. After reading this book, we wrote who could carve the turkey but what would happen if they did. All of our ideas will be put together into a classroom book. 

Let me take this time to wish everyone a happy and blessed Thanksgiving holiday. I hope you enjoy your time with your family and friends and all of the food you will eat. I'll see everyone next Tuesday. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Day!

The theme of the day in first grade today was turkey day! We did many fun things with turkeys today. In Language Arts, we created word family turkeys. The students enjoyed coming up with words in the -ake, -ine, and -one families. 

We then read the book Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano. In this hilarious story, turkey tries to disguise himself from Farmer Jake. After reading it, we recalled all of the disguises Turkey tried and even created a disguise for him. 

Our finally turkey project was making a turkey using a coffee filter. The students colored the coffee filter and then I sprayed it with water causing the colors to bleed together. We then glued the turkey along with a Thanksgiving poem onto a sheet of construction paper. Here are pictures of the final product. 

Just to let you know that our day was not all turkey themed. We did learn how to count dimes in Math class. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is an early dismissal day. Dismissal time is 12:30. 

Pilgrim Life

As we continue our discussion about Thanksgiving, today we talked about pilgrim life. We read Samuel Eaton's Day and Sarah Morton's Day.  These books looked at the daily life of a young pilgrim boy and girl. We then created lists of the things each one did. We used those lists to create a Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting the daily life of a boy and girl pilgrim. 

Next it was time for our creative juices to flow. We made a self portrait of ourselves either as a boy or girl pilgrim. Finally, we finished the sentence "If I was a Pilgrim boy/girl, I would . . ." Those pilgrims were so cute. Here are some finished projects. 

Mayflower Day!

Today was Mayflower Day in first grade. For the next several days, first grade will be learning about the first Thanksgiving. So today, we started at the beginning. We read On the Mayflower and then wrote facts about what we learned from the book. We "stuck" our facts on a giant Mayflower ship. Then using those facts, we created our own Mayflower book to share with our families over the holiday. I think they turned out amazing. Here is a picture of our giant Mayflower with facts on it and a picture of a finished book. 

Our Thanksgiving theme continued in Art class where we made turkeys. The students had the option of using either a pattern or their foot for the body. The feathers are the children's hands. Here are pictures of the finished projects. 

Don't be fooled but we did not do Thanksgiving projects all day. In Science we talked about different habitats around the world and the plants and animals that we find in them.

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend! 

A Happy Day

Today was a very happy day in first grade. We had our annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. Our table looked super cute with our turkeys. The students also received a colorful placemat which added some festive flare to the table. As for the meal, it was delicious. They also enjoyed the special treat of popcorn with their meal. 

Besides, the luncheon, we did do learning today. In Math, we learned some new facts. We solved subtracting 1 facts. We discovered that subtracting 1 is just like counting backwards. 

Crafty Kind of Day

Today was another exciting day in first grade. We used our scissors and glue to create many things. In Religion, we colored a picture of a vine, and on each leaf wrote the name of one person who helps us grow closer to Jesus. 

In Social Studies, we talked about different American symbols. To help us remember them, we created our very own flip book. The students wrote the name of a symbol a drew a picture of it on each page. I thought they turned out amazing! Here is a sample picture. 

We did take a break to make the decorations for our Thanksgiving table. Don't these turkeys look adorable? 

A Great Day of Learning

Today was a great day of learning in first grade! We read a wonderful story in Language Arts about how dinosaurs worked together to save a baby dinosaur. One student remarked that that was 'an awesome story.' I hope you enjoyed the story tonight. 

In Math class, we used our pattern blocks to cover designs. We had to cover the same design in four different ways. It was neat watching the students solve how to arrange the blocks to cover the designs. 

Tomorrow should be just as exciting as we get ready for our Thanksgiving Luncheon on Thursday. 

Contraction Central

What a great day we had to end the week! In Language Arts, we talked about contractions. We learned how to spell contractions with the words not, am, and will; we then practiced reading contractions. Here is a picture of a sorting activity we did with the contractions.

The highlight of the day for the students came during gym class. We played a game called 'Good Ship Spark.' The students would perform various exercises like skipping or doing sit ups when a command when shouted. Smiles were abound! 

I am looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow for conferences. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Just a reminder that there is no school on Monday. 

On the 7th Day of November

We had a very busy learning day in first grade today. In Language Arts, we continued our study of the long vowels by learning how to read long o words. We also talked about sequence and how to write days, months, and holidays correctly. 

In Math, we learned some more addition facts. Today, it was the adding 0 facts. The students quickly discovered how easy these facts are. 

Finally, in Social Studies, we talked about heroes. We learned what a hero is and discovered some of America's heroes including Sacajawea, Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, Eleanor Roosevelt, Cesar Chavez, and Martin Luther King, Jr. We then talked about our own heroes. 

Just a reminder that our Spelling test is tomorrow because of no school on Friday. We will also have gym class tomorrow. 

Election Day

Happy Election Day! The first grade held their own kind of election today. No, we did not vote for president, but we did vote for what prize we would like to earn if we can move all the beans from one jar to the next. Each student was given a ballot and asked to pick between either extra play time or show and tell. After everyone voted, the votes were counted, and show and tell was the winner. 

To practice our sight words, the first grade played tic-tac-toe today. Everyone created their own unique game board. Then, they were put into partners where they tried to get three in a row by reading the words correctly. I think everyone will agree that this activity was a lot of fun. 

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! It is hard to believe that we are beginning our first full week in November. Where have the past two months gone?

Today, we spent some time reviewing long a and long i. We are getting used to long vowels. We also reread our story Who Works Here? I hoped you enjoyed hearing all about community helpers tonight. 

In Religion, we talked about the different seasons in the Church year and made a poster to help us remember them. We learned about what happens during each season and the colors we see in each one. 

Just a reminder . . . tomorrow is a jean day for the students. This was earned by the students  because we collected over 700 box tops during the first marking period. Thank you to everyone who sent in box tops and please remember to keep sending them in!

On the 2nd Day of November

Happy Friday! The biggest excitement of our day came at the end when we were packing up. We saw snow flurries in the air. The children were all excited. (I was happy that they were not sticking to the ground.)

Today, we read our story called Who Work Here? where we learned about jobs in the communities. We also talked about living and nonliving things in Science class. The students were asked to sort pictures based on whether it was a living things or a nonliving thing. 

For art today, we made Indian corn using paint. The students used both sponges and their fingers to create their picture. Here are some examples of their masterpieces. 

Have a great weekend!

All Saints' Day

What a beautiful day we had today in first grade. The children came bouncing into the classroom so excited for the prayer service. Instead of answering the usual question when is lunch, I kept answering when is the prayer service. I loved seeing their enthusiasm. 

I hope all of you enjoyed the prayer service. Thank you to all of you for helping with the costumes. The students looked amazing around the altar. They stood their so proud as their saints names were announced. It was really neat to see. 

Even with all the excitement surrounding the day, we did manage to learn some new concepts today. We learned the sounds wh and ch make in a word. We also practiced our new sight words and fit in a game of SPARKLE to review our Spelling words. Just a reminder that we do have a Spelling test tomorrow. 

Have a great night!

Happy Halloween, 2nd Edition

Happy Halloween, everyone! I hope everyone is doing well this week. It has been a bit of a disjointed week, but hopefully this is the worst it will get this winter. 

Today, first grade learned how to read long i words. We were visited again by our good friend Magic E to help us read these words. 

We also practiced today for our All Saints' Day Prayer Service tomorrow. We are all excited to dress up as our patron saint and hear what our 8th grade friends have to say about them. We hope you will all be able to join us tomorrow for the service. It begins at 1:00. 

Just a quick note about the prayer service, the students will process out at the end of it. Then, after a few minutes, the students will be led back into the church for a group picture in front of the altar. Don't forget your camera! 

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween (a few days early)! We had a spooktacular time in first grade celebrating Halloween today. First, thank you to all of the parents who helped with the party. Thank you for taking the time to organize the games and crafts and taking time to be with the students. The students and I really had a fun time. 

Well, here is the picture of our pumpkin. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Be safe trick or treating and don't eat too much candy! 

Monstrous Writing!

This week in Writing class we have been working on monster writing. First, we began by creating our very own monsters. Next, we planned our writing by completing a graphic organizer. Finally, we used our organizers to write about our monsters including what our monsters have, what they can do, and what they like to do. I must say, the turned out so amazingly. Here are some pictures of them. 

Well, first grade did it! We successfully moved all of the beans from one jar to the other. So, today we carved our pumpkin. Check back tomorrow for pictures of it. 

Just a reminder that our Halloween festivities begin tomorrow at 1:00 with a parade. We will then have a party in the classroom until 2:15. I can't wait to see everyone's costumes. I wonder what Miss Chalich will be?

Happy Wednesday

Happy Wednesday, everyone. I don't know about you, but this week is flying by for me. I must begin with a big thank you to all the parents and students who participated in the career day today for Red Ribbon Week. It was amazing to see so many students participating in this activity. 

We put our knowledge of magic e to the test today when we read "The Farmer in the Hat." We all laughed at the end of the story when we discovered who was the farmer in the play. 

We also began our studying of the adding 1 facts in Math class today. We discovered that adding 1 is also like counting by 1. 

Just a reminder that Halloween treats are due tomorrow. 

The Magic Continues!

The magic of learning continues in first grade. We continued practicing reading long a words. We are becoming much better at recognizing the long a sound. We also learned today that c and s can have different sounds. 

With Red Ribbon Week in full swing, the students are busy learning about making healthy choices. Yesterday we learned all the things our brain does. And today we talked about things we must do to keep our brains and bodies healthy like eating the right foods, exercising, and getting enough sleep. The festivities continue tomorrow as the students are asked to wear or bring in something that shows what they would like to be when they grow up. Just a reminder that uniforms still must be worn. 

The Magic of e

We had a little bit of magic in Language Arts today. We discovered that when e is at the end of a word, like make, the e makes  the a say its name. For us, 'e' is a magic letter. It took a little while for us to get used to the idea that 'a' can have more than one sound. Practice makes perfect is what I told them today. We will continue practicing reading long a words all week.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Red Ribbon Week fesitivites today. The students really enjoyed wearing the bandannas. Tomorrow's theme is "Stomp out Drugs!" Students can wear sneakers and crazy socks to school.

A Review Day

Greetings! I hope everyone has had a nice week. First grade had a good end to our week. We spent part of our day reviewing things we had learned this week. We reviewed the sounds of sh, th, and al. We also reviewed our double facts. 

We did talk about something new in Religion class and that was the Great Commandment. We talked about how Jesus told us to love God, love ourselves, and love others. I hope you like the mobiles the students made today. 

Next week is Red Ribbon Week. Each day there will be a different theme and activity that the students will participate in. On Monday, our theme is to Band Together Against Drugs. Students are encouraged to wear a headband or bandanna to school on Monday. A flyer with the other activities will come home on Monday. 

Have a great weekend! 

Excited Readers

Well, as I predicted yesterday, our reading story was a huge hit with the students today. They were all smiles reading about Max and Ruby and the trouble Max had in catching a fish. I hope that excitement was still there as they read you the story tonight. 

Just a quick note about tomorrow's dress code. It is a pink shirt dress down day. Students are permitted to wear jeans to school, but they must wear a pink shirt. If they do not have a pink shirt, they may wear a white shirt, and they will receive a pink ribbon to wear. Students may also wear their uniforms. If you have any questions, let me know. 

Today just seemed like an ordinary day in first grade. In Language Arts we learned about the sound al. It took us a little getting used to, but once we got the hang of it we were off and reading. We also practiced our sight words for the week. 

It is amazing seeing the children's writing skills develop. Today, they wrote a sentence describing a picture. Many of them used vivid verbs and adjectives to describe it. They are becoming such wonderful writers. 

We are all looking forward to our reading story tomorrow since it is about Max and Ruby. I'm sure we'll be laughing and smiling. 

Happy Monday!

Greetings, everyone, and welcome to a new week in first grade. Like always, first grade was busy learning new and exciting things today. In Language Arts, we learned the sounds for the letters sh and th. In Math, we continue to practice our double facts. Tonight we have our very first fact homework assignment.

We also held a class meeting today to discuss what it means to be a good friend. We talked about how friends share, say polite things, and include everyone. We all promised to do our part and be good friends!

So Much to Share

Friday was such a busy day in first grade. In Religion we continued our discussion on how Jesus healed many people. The students created a picture with Jesus in the center and wrote the names of 4 people who they would like to pray for around Jesus. The highlight was adding the band aids. Here is a picture of what they did. 

Today also marked the end to Fire Safety Week. Not only did we have a fire drill but also some of the firefighters came to talk to us about safety. With them, we practiced stop, drop, and roll, crawling under smoke, and trying on the fire gear. Back in the classroom, we finished our mini fire safety books and wrote our fire safety rules. Here are pictures from our finished products.  

We ended our Friday with Art Class. This week the students created either a bat or a skull using marshmallows. They first traced a pattern on black paper and then glued marshmallows around the outline. I must say that they look spooktacular. Here a samples of their work. 

Have a great weekend!

Notes from Religion Class

Today was quite a pleasant day in first grade. Our focus this week in Religion has been how Jesus helped many people. Yesterday we read a story about how he healed a blind man by touching his eyes. Today we read a story called Who Wrecked the Roof? which tells the story of how Jesus healed a paralyzed man after his friends lowered him from the roof. This story is interesting in that it is told from the viewpoint of a bystander. After reading, we created a mini of how Jesus helped all kinds of people. The children are really like hearing these stories of Jesus helping others. 

"It just can't be the time to go home!"

This is what one student said when I said it was time to get ready for home. We were all amazed at how fast the day went and sad that we were leaving. I must say that I love seeing the children's enthusiasm for learning. 

In Reading today, we read a story about an animal park in Africa. I hope all of you enjoy your journey to the safari tonight when you son/daughter reads you the story. We continue learning our double facts in Math class. Our Doubles Rap is sure a hit with the students. 

Please remember that we do not have gym class tomorrow because of Living Rosary. Students must wear their regular dress shoes to school tomorrow. 

Growing in Reading!

What a great day we had in first grade. Each week, I love seeing our phonics knowledge grow as we learn more decoding skills. Today we talked about final blends. The students are really working hard at becoming fantastic readers. 

This week is also fire safety week. We began our discussion of fire safety by creating a little lap book. We talked about smoke alarms, the importance of a meeting spot, and other fire safety rules. 

As promised here are pictures of our Columbus Day projects. I hope you enjoy! 

Happy Columbus Day!

Happy Columbus Day! Today in first grade, the students learned about Christopher Columbus. We learned that he discovered America in 1492 and that he led three ships across the Atlantic Ocean. To honor and celebrate him, we wrote about what we would have done if we discovered America and created a picture with his three ships. Check back tomorrow for pictures of these projects.

Besides learning about Columbus, first grade studied the short u sound in Language Arts and how to write number sentences for 'some, some more' stories in Math.

It was an exciting day in first grade!

A Ghost Garden!

Happy Friday, everyone! What a great day first grade had to end the week. We started the day by attending Mass where Msgr. reminded us that God cares about us very much. 

Afterwords, first grade was busy learning new things. We got to experiment building designs with pattern blocks in Math. In Science, we learned about the basic needs of animals and how parents take care of their babies. 

Of course, the big thrill was Art class. Today, we made ghosts for Halloween. As I was hanging them up in the classroom, one student said that they looked like a ghost garden. See what you think! 

                                                     A close up picture of the ghosts!

Have a great weekend!