Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Excitement was in the air today in first grade. The students are so excited for the holiday break as well as for Santa Claus. 

We did finish our Language Arts story today. We reviewed long e and two syllable words as well as our sight words. We took our test on the story too. 

Then it was time for celebrating. The students were so excited to help me open presents. I cannot thank you enough for your generosity. They were also excited to open presents from me. (I can only imagine your floors on Christmas morning!) 

This afternoon we went to church to hear the Christmas Choir program. The students did such a beautiful job singing and playing. 

I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! See you in 2014! 

"Busy Bees"

Happy Thursday, everyone! I hope everyone is having a great week! Today was an awesome day in first grade. 

To wrap up our study of the Christmas story, the students created their own Nativity scene pictures. They arranged pictures of Mary, Jesus, Joseph, shepherds, and the Kings on paper. They did a great job with this project. 

In Language Arts class today, we reviewed long u and long e words as well as words with inflected endings. We also practiced our fluency by rereading Honey Bees. After reading, the students wrote sentences telling what they learned about bees. We then created bees to correlate with our writing. Have a look at their work! 

During Math class today we solved a problem by looking for a pattern. 

Then, it was time for some Christmas activities. We read the book The Polar Express. We completed a worksheet where we sequenced the events in the story. Finally, we created our own Christmas bells that we can ring all throughout the year. 

We ended our day with a special Art project. Today the students created a Santa Claus. They will be bringing them home tomorrow. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is our last day of school before Christmas vacation! 

Ringing of the Bells!

Happy Wednesday, everyone! It is hard to believe that Christmas is just one week away. Excitement is building in first grade. 

Today in Religion class we continued to talk about the Christmas story. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed long e words spelled e and ee, two-syllable words, and our sight words. After all that hard work, we were ready to read our story Honey Bees. The story was about the jobs of the various bees in a hive. The students loved this story and I hope you do too. 

This afternoon we went to the annual Hand bell Concert. Beautiful music filled the church as the older students played Christmas songs. The students loved the music and can't wait until they are old enough to play the bells. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is a jean day! 

Happy Tuesday!

Hello, everyone! I hope you had a great Tuesday. We sure did in first grade. 

Today we began our study of the Christmas story in Religion class. We read the story, talked about it, and even acted it out. 

During Language Arts class, we practiced reading two syllable words with the VCCV pattern. We also practiced our sight words and continued practicing finding nouns in sentences. 

In Math class, we practiced our adding  2 facts. 

Just a reminder that we will NOT have gym class tomorrow because of the Hand bell concert. 

Christmas Carolers!

Greetings! I hope everyone had a great weekend! I know the students had to have a busy one; it took them awhile to wake up this morning. But once the energy started to flow, we were off and learning. 

In Religion class we wrapped up our talk about Pentecost. 

During Language Arts class, we blended and read long e words (spelled e or ee). We also practiced comparing and contrasting. In addition, we practiced finding nouns in sentences. 

In Math class today, we identified the odd numbers to 100 and also learned the adding 2 facts. 

Here are some pictures of the Christmas ornaments we made last week using clay and cookie cutters. I also added a picture of our Art project on Friday. Have a great night! 

O Christmas Tree

Greetings! I hope everyone is having a great weekend. I am sure the students are loving the snow. 

Friday was a fantastic day in first grade! 

In Religion class, we learned about the Glory Be and practiced praying the prayer. During Language Arts class we wrapped up our story by reviewing long u, long e, inflected endings, and our sight words. We also took a test on the story. 

We used pattern blocks in Math class to cover a design and filled in a chart showing how many of each shape we used. In Science class we talked about how to sort objects. We discussed we can sort them by size, color, weight, or if they float. We then took objects and sorted them by whether they floated or not. 

Finally, we ended our day with Art class. This week we made Christmas carolers. I'll post pictures of them next week once they are displayed in the hall. 

We even had time for a few Christmas activities today. The students helped me decorate our classroom Christmas tree. We then wrote the steps in how to decorate a tree. The students then made their own Christmas trees and added some white paint for snow. Here are pictures of the Christmas trees the students made and then of our classroom tree. Enjoy! 

Christmas Concert!

Happy Thursday, everyone! Christmas could definitely be heard throughout the school today. This afternoon we attended the annual Christmas band concert and play. What a fabulous job all of the students did. We heard some fantastic Christmas music and saw a beautiful play about the true meaning of Christmas. 

Before attending the concert, we had work to do in first grade. We talked about what happened at Pentecost in Religion class. During Language Arts class, we reviewed long o, contractions, and plurals; we also worked in literacy centers. 

After the concert we completed a project that correlates to the book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Yesterday we heard the story. Today we wrote and/or illustrated what we would do to make a Grinch grin. Here are some examples: 

Reading, Math, and Christmas too

Today was another great and busy day in first grade. 

We started our day with Religion class where we talked about how Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to his followers. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed long e, long u, inflected endings, and sight words before reading our story. This week we read a nonfiction story called Life in the Forest. The students enjoyed reading about the animals and plants that call the forest their home. 

During Math class today, we practiced adding 2 to even numbers. We also identified all of the even numbers to 100. 

In Social Studies class today, we talked about the countries that neighbor the United States. We talked about how Canada, the United States, and Mexico are alike and different. 

To end our day, we participated in various relay races during gym class. We learned that it is more important to have fun than it is to win. 

Throughout this week and next, the students will be completing various Christmas projects. Yesterday, we read the story Santa's Stuck. Today the students wrote what they would do if Santa was stuck in their chimney. They then created artwork that correlates to the story. Here are some finished products. 

Here is a picture of the gingerbread men the students created in Art class last Friday. Aren't they adorable? 

Finally, on a side note, I have to show you some decorations in the classroom. Mrs. Link bought me a Charlie Brown tree and St. Nick gave me the Peanuts characters that go with it. Isn't it adorable? 

On the 10th Day of December

Greetings, everyone! What a fantastic day of learning we had in first grade today. 

We began our day by attending Adoration. It is always nice to spend some extra time praying to Jesus. 

In Language Arts class today we learned how to read words with the inflected ending -ed. We also practiced our sight words. During the writing portion of the class we wrote letters to Santa. Needless to say, we are getting very excited for Christmas. We even had time today to work in literacy centers. 

We learned how to label a clockface and draw time on a clockface during Math class today. 

The best part of the day was making Christmas ornaments. Each student was given a packet of Model Magic clay from Crayola. They then picked a cookie cutter shape that they wanted for their ornament. The ornaments are hardening now and later in the week we will paint them. Hopefully they will add some sparkle to your Christmas trees. The students did take the extra clay home with them to use. Smiles and laughter filled the room when we did this. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is gym class. 

A Short Day = A Lot of Learning

Happy Monday everyone! I hope everyone had a nice weekend plus the extra two hours. 
Even with a short day, we still managed to learn a lot. 

In Religion class we talked about how Jesus surprised his followers after his Resurrection. 

During Language Arts class, we learned how to blend and read long u and long e words. We also talked about the author's purpose for writing a story. In addition, we discussed how to make a word plural by adding an s. 

In Math class we studied the odd numbers and practiced counting by odds to 21. 

Have a great night! 

Happy Thursday!

Happy Thursday, everyone! I hope you are enjoying your week. It is sure flying by for us in first grade. 

Today in Religion we wrapped up the chapter on Jesus' death and resurrection. Our Advent symbol today was candles. We are reminded to light for others. Today we promised to let our light shine bright this Advent season. 

During Language Arts class today, we reviewed long i and digraphs wh, ch, and tch. We also practiced our fluency by rereading our story and working in literacy centers. 

In Math class today we talked about lines of symmetry. We created Christmas trees with lines of symmetry. 

Tomorrow will be an exciting Friday as it is the feast of St. Nicholas. Have a good night! 

The Warmth of December

What a beautiful day it was today! We are really enjoying this warm weather especially since we can go outside for recess. 

Our Advent symbol today was fish. We heard the story about how Jesus called fishermen to be his followers. 

In Language Arts today, we reviewed reading long o words and contractions. We also practiced our sight words before reading our story The Big Circle. The students loved reading a story involving dinosaurs. 

In Math class, we practiced counting dimes and pennies. 

For Social Studies today, we talked about where we live. We started with the continent, narrowed that down to country, and narrowed that even further to the state. We made a flip book to help us remember. 

Our day ended with gym class. We enjoyed our exercise today. 

On the 3rd of December

Welcome back, everyone! I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving. The students really seemed to enjoy their time off. 

We began our day by wrapping up our talk about Advent. We reviewed the meaning behind the season as well the the meaning of the Advent wreath. We also began our Advent calendar today. Each day, a student will remove a picture from our Advent calendar. We will talk about the picture and how it relates to Jesus. We then will hear a story from the Bible. Finally, we will add the symbol to a bulletin board as we wait for Jesus. For instance, today we added three symbols: a quarter, grapes, and smiley face. The quarter reminds us to share this holiday season, the grapes represent Jesus' first miracle, and the smiley face reminds us to follow Jesus' rules. Here is a picture of our Advent calendar. 

In Language Arts class today, we learned how to read and spell contractions. We also practiced our sight words. Finally, we reviewed writing days of the week, months, and holidays. 

In Math class, we located numbers on a hundred number chart. 

Just a reminder that we will be visiting the Secret Santa shop tomorrow. Please send in money in a marked envelope. We also have gym class tomorrow.