Monday, September 30, 2019

The End of September!

Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. I just loved hearing all what the children did this weekend. They were so excited to share everything with me! 

We began our day with Religion. With October upon us. we began to honor the month of the Rosary. Today, we learned how to pray the rosary including what prayers we say and how we use the beads. With this knowledge, we prayed the first decade of the Joyful Mysteries. We will continue to pray one decade a day during the month of October. 

We began Language Arts by working in our literacy centers; the students look forward to them each week. We then jumped into our week of learning. We learned two new oral vocabulary words (exercise and physical). We then worked on asking and answering questions as we read Move!. Next, we learned how to blend and read words with s blends and r blends. Following that we learned our new sight words. Then it was time to put our knowledge of new words to work as we read Move and Grin, a nonfiction story about the ways our bodies move. 

This afternoon we practiced writing sentences using correct punctuation. We then wrote a sentence about what we like to do in the fall. We added this writing to a craft to make a giant acorn. 

In Math class today we learned how to write addition number sentences by looking at a picture. The students did great with this. 

Have a great night! 

Saturday, September 28, 2019

From Apples to Applesauce!

Greetings! I hope everyone is doing well and that the children enjoyed their day off yesterday. Thursday was a fantastic day in first grade. I loved seeing their excitement all day. 

We began our day by making applesauce! Together we added apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon into a Crockpot. We then turned it on and waited for it to cook. 



In Religion class we talked about how Mary said yes to God. We read the story of the angel Gabriel visiting Mary telling her that she would be the Mother of Jesus and how she said yes to God. We are reminded to be like Mary and say yes when God asks us to do something. 

Language Arts was busy on Thursday; we wrapped up a week of learning. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read short o words, put words into ABC order, and wrote sentences using our sight words. We also read a story in our decodable reader booklets. In addition we read a poem and answered questions about it by completing pages in our close reading companion. Finally, we took our weekly assessment and correctly punctuated statements and questions. 

In Math class, we worked at solving addition problems using number bonds. The students are doing well with this. 

In Social Studies, to celebrate Johnny Appleseed, we wrote facts about his life. We then added those facts to a craft project. Have a look: 


Finally, after working hard all day and smelling our applesauce, it was time to enjoy it! And enjoy it they did! I just loved hearing their reactions to it and seeing their happiness on their faces. It was a great way to end a great day! 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Reading About Friends!

Greetings! Happy Wednesday! Today was a great, busy day in first grade. 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on the Blessed Trinity. We reviewed the Three Persons in the Blessed Trinity, how they are joined by love, and how the Sign of the Cross is a prayer to the Trinity. 

We began Language Arts class by reviewing our oral vocabulary words. Next we reread Friends All Around to build our comprehension skills. After that we practiced reading short o words and putting words into ABC order. Following that we reviewed our sight words. We then switched our focus to reading. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. And we read a story called Friends about what to friends do together. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we completed pages in our close reading companion that went along with the story Friends. We also practiced telling the difference between statements and questions. Today we read a sentence, identified whether it was a statement or question and then added the correct punctuation. 

No surprise, we headed outside for Gym class. It was just the perfect temperature to play outside with our friends. 

In Math class, we learned how to use number bonds to write addition sentences. We also learned that we can add two numbers in any order and still get the same answer. 

For our apple fun today we read the story Johnny Appleseed. We talked about his life and contributions to the United States. All of our apple fun will cumulate in a very fun activity tomorrow! 

Just a reminder that our Spelling test is tomorrow. Have a great night! 

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Lots of Doins'

Greetings! Happy Tuesday! Today was another terrific day in first grade. 

We began our day with Religion. Today we learned that prayer is talking to and listening to God. We also learned that the Sign of the Cross is a prayer to the Blessed Trinity. Finally, we practiced making the Sign of the Cross. 

We began Language Arts by working in our literacy centers. Then we jumped back into our week of learning. We reviewed the oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (collect, chore, and deliver). Next, we worked on asking and answering questions as we read a story about games long ago. After that we used our sound boxes to segment words into sounds. Following that we used our letter tiles to spell and read short o words. Then use learned how to put words into ABC word order. That was followed by practicing using our sight words in sentences. We ended our very busy morning by rereading Toss! kick! Hop! and writing the details about what friends do together. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we read our decodable reader and answered questions from it. We then sorted sentences based on whether they were questions or statements. 

In Math class today we continued to practice counting on to solve problems. Today, I wrote a problem on the board and the students wrote the answers on a whiteboard. They did very well with this. 

We ended our day with more apple fun. Today we talked about the life cycle of an apple and made a diagram showing all of the steps an apple takes. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is Gym day! 

Monday, September 23, 2019

Happy Fall!

Greetings! Happy Monday! Happy Fall! Even though the calendar says that it is fall, it does feel like summer still. I can't complain. I do like the sunshine and warm weather. 

For Religion class today we headed over to church to hear Fr. Bernie, the leader of the parish retreat, talk to us. He talked to us about sharing, loving, and spreading God's love. 

We began Language Arts class by working in our literacy centers to build our fluency and comprehension skills. After that we jumped into a new week of learning. We learned two new oral vocabulary words (companion and relationship). We then worked on asking and answering questions as we read Friends All Around. Next, we blended and read short o words. Following that we learned our new sight words. We ended the morning by reading a nonfiction story called Toss! Kick! Hop! and discussed the details in the story. 

This afternoon we learned the difference between statements and questions. We will be working on identifying these sentences all week. 

For Penmanship class this week our focus is the letter T. 

In Math class today we still focused on addition. Today we learned how to write number sentences for pictures and how to count on to find the total. We also began our study of Math facts. Each day we will practice our math facts to become fluent in them. We will begin with the adding 0 and and adding 1 facts. 

This week marks the study of apples in first grade. Today we created a diagram of the parts of an apple. Our study this  week will lead to a very fun activity on Thursday! 

Have a great night! 

Friday, September 20, 2019

Falling for School!

Greetings! Happy Friday! Today was full of excitement in first grade. 

We began our day with Mass. Today Fr. Brian reminded us to have courage especially when showing our faith in public. He reminded us how the saints, especially St. Andrew Kim Taegon and his companions did. 

After Mass, we practiced several of our drills today. We practiced a fire drill, lockdown drill, shelter in place drill, and severe weather drill. For being the first time, the students did a good job. 

After that, it was time to learn. In Language Arts, we practiced using our oral vocabulary words in sentences. We then read l-blend words and plurals. Following that we wrote sentences using our sight words. After lunch we took our weekly assessment and practiced identifying sentences. 

In Math class today we practiced adding by counting on. The students worked in pairs to do this. They each picked a number from a bag and then worked together to find the sum. They enjoyed working with friends and did a good job counting on. 

In Science today we talked about the needs of all animals. Together we talked about how all animals need food, water, shelter, and air. 

Finally it was time for Art. Today we made fall tress. The students glued pieces of construction paper on a tree to create their fall scene. I just loved seeing their creativity. 


Have a wonderful weekend! 

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Blessed Trinity!

Greetings! Happy Thursday! Today was a much more normal day in first grade. It was good to be back on schedule. 

We began our day with Religion. Today we continued our learning about the Blessed Trinity. We reviewed the Three Persons in the Blessed Trinity and talked about how they are joined together by love. To help us remember all of this we made a Blessed Trinity ornament using Popsicle sticks. I just love doing this project every year. 


We began Language Arts by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Next, we read l-blend words and plurals. Following that we played a game where students had to guess to sight word as it was being spelled. Next, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets; we also partner read our story from yesterday. Finally we read a nonfiction piece about the needs of pets and completed pages in our close reading companion. 

We began a new chapter in Math today; this one focuses on addition to 10. We learned how to count on from the bigger number to find the sum. The students did good with this. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today we talked about why we have rules (to keep us safe). 

As usual, tomorrow will be a busy day. We have Mass, Library, and Art! 

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Wacky Wednesday!

Greetings! Today was a Wacky Wednesday in first grade. Our Wednesdays are normally disjointed with both Music and Gym, but today was really disjointed. However, with all of the interruptions, we still accomplished a lot. 

We began our day by attending the Officer Phil program. This program is brought to us by the Ebensburg Police. Using magic tricks and puppets, the students learned important safety rules like always wear a seat belt and helmet, never talk to strangers, and be a friend, not a bully. 

After that we had Religion class. Today we talked about the Blessed Trinity. We learned that there are Three Persons in the Blessed Trinity: God, Jesus (God's son), and the Holy Spirit. We also talked about how they are joined together by love. 

After our Math Meeting and Music class, we had Math class. Today we took our chapter test on number bonds. Tomorrow we will begin to learn how to solve addition problems. 

For Gym class today we again went to the playground. It was the perfect day to play outside, not too hot or too cold. It was tough to come inside. 

The rest of the day was spent in Language Arts. We reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We also worked on our comprehension skills as we reread Cool Dog, School Dog. Following that we practiced reading l-blend words, plurals, and our sight words. We then focused on fluency and comprehension. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We then read Flip, a fantasy story about a dinosaur in school. After reading the story we drew what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Finally, we practiced identifying statements. 

Tomorrow should be back to normal! Have a great night! 

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Busy Beavers!

Greetings! I hope everyone had a fantastic day and was able to enjoy that sunshine. 

In Religion class today we talked about God's greatest gift: his son Jesus. We also talked about why Jesus is God's greatest gift. 

We began Language Arts class by working in our literacy centers. Then we jumped back into our week of learning. We reviewed the oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and then learned three new words (companion, popular, and groom). We then worked on reading l-blend words by using our letter tiles. After that, we learned how to blend and read words with plural -s. We wrapped up the morning by using our sight words in sentences. 

This afternoon we reread A Pig for Cliff and wrote about what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. We then read our decodable reader and answered questions about the story. 

In Math class today we reviewed number bonds. Tomorrow we will take our test. 

Have a great night! 

Monday, September 16, 2019

Fun in Centers!

Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. I just loved hearing the stories of everything the children did over the weekend. 

We began our day with Religion class. Today we talked about how God promised to send his Son Jesus to us. We also talked about how Jesus promised to send us the Holy Spirit. 

We began Language Arts class by working in our literacy centers. Then we began a new week of learning. We started by learning two new oral vocabulary words (care and train). We then worked on visualizing as we read Cool Dog, School Dog. Following that we learned how to blend and read l-blend words; those are the words that begin with bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, or sl. Next we learned our new sight words (be, come, pull, and good). We ended the morning reading a fantasy story about a pet pig in A Pig for Cliff

This afternoon we learned about statements. We learned that statements tell us something, begin with a capital letter, and end with a period. 

This week in Penmanship we will be practicing writing the letter I. 

We did something different in Math class today. We worked in math centers. The students rotated between centers to practice number bonds. The rolled two dice which represented the parts and then solved for the whole. They also had to find the part when given a whole and one part. Finally, they worked with me to review number bonds. 

Just a reminder that book orders are due tomorrow. 

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Play-doh Fun!

Greetings! I hope everyone is having a nice start to their weekend. We had a busy day to end our week in first grade. 

We began our day with our first Faith Family Mass of the year. Everyone sat with their Faith Family this morning at Mass. During Mass, Fr. Brian reminded us that we need to spend more time handing out compliments instead of negative ones. 

After Mass, we had our Peacekeeper Assembly. We watched a short video on what bullying is and what to do when we see bullying. After the video, we reviewed the tips given to us. The students then took a piece of paper and crumbled it up. They then had to try to smooth it out and get the wrinkles out. They learned that when we bully the hurt is still there like the wrinkles. We ended the program by praying our Peacekeeper promise. 

After all that it was time to return to work in the classroom. We began with Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read short i words, and final double consonant words. After a trip to the library we wrote sentences using our sight words. Following lunch we took our weekly assessment and practice writing sentences in the correct word order. 

In Math class today we worked in our math workbooks to solve number bond problems. We are doing very well with them. 

In Science class today we talked about insects. We learned that insects have three parts (head, thorax, abdomen) and 6 legs. The students then worked with those at their table to create an insect using Play-doh. Here are their insects: 




Finally, it was time for Art class. Today we made scarecrows using paper plates. I loved seeing how some students made happy scarecrows and how some scarecrows are scary. Here is a picture of them:


And finally, here is a picture of the owls we made last week: 


Have a great weekend! Go Pitt! 

Thursday, September 12, 2019

A Warm Day!

Greetings on this warm Thursday. I do love the warm and sunny weather but a slight cool down will be appreciated. We took many drink breaks today to quench our thirst from the heat. 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on God creating the world. We reviewed how God created everything and how we need to take care of God's creation. 

As usual, Language Arts class was hoppin'. We began by reviewing our oral vocabulary words. Next we read short i and and final double consonant words. We then read our word wall to review all of the sight words we learned. After that our focused turned towards reading. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets and the story from yesterday. We then read a nonfiction piece that compared city life to country life and completed pages in our close reading companion. Finally, we practiced putting sentences in correct word order. 

In Math class today our work with number bonds continued. The students completed number bonds by matching a missing part. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today we talked about our classroom, the jobs we can do to help in our classroom, and how we need to respect each other. 

Tomorrow is our first Faith Family Mass of the year. The students are to wear their red Christ is RICH in me t-shirts tomorrow with their uniform. If they wear the t-shirt then they will not need to wear the dress shirt. If you cannot find it or if it does not fit, please wear your dress shirt to school. If you have any questions, please let me know. 

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Flying By!

Greetings! Happy Wednesday! This week is sure flying by fast. 

In Religion class today we talked about how God will always love us. We read the story Guess How Much I Love You to remind us of how much God really does love us. 

Language Arts class was really busy today. We began by reviewing our oral vocabulary words. We then used our sound boxes to segment words by sound. After that we practiced reading short i and final double consonants words. Then we practiced our sight words. Our focus then switched to reading. We partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We finished our morning by reading and discussing Go, Pip!

This afternoon we completed pages in our close reading companion that correlated with our story. We also practiced putting sentences into correct word order. 

For Gym class today we headed outside. Yes, it was warm, but it felt so good to be outside in the sunshine. 

In Math class today, we continued our work with number bonds. We reviewed how to solve for a missing part when given a whole and part. We also practiced solving for both parts when given the whole. 

Have a great night! 

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Adoration

Greetings on this warm Tuesday. Yes, it does seem to be getting warmer outside. But we are not letting that stop us from learning inside. 

For Religion today we went to Eucharistic Adoration. Since this was our first time going, we went and sat in the cry room. There, we were able to look at the Blessed Sacrament exposed on the altar as I talked to the students about it. We also talked about how we pray. After that we did spend some quiet time in prayer. When we go again, we will be sitting in the church. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by working in our literacy centers to build our fluency and comprehension skills. After that we jumped back into our week of learning. We reviewed the oral vocabulary words we learned yesterday and learned three new words (bored, scurried, and feast). After that we worked on visualizing as we read a classic fable "City Mouse, Country Mouse." Next we used our letter tiles to spell and read short i words. Following that we learned how to blend and read words with final double consonants. We ended our morning by practicing using our sight words in sentences. 

This afternoon we reread Six Kids and wrote details from the story. We then read our decodable reader and discussed details from it. 

We continued our work with number bonds today. Today we learned how to solve for a missing part when given the whole and a part. This was a little trickier but with practice we got better. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is Gym day. Please wear your sneakers to school. 

Monday, September 9, 2019

Faith Family Day!

Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. We are off to a great start in first grade. 

For Religion class today we met with our Faith Families. While with our families we talked about respect and what it means to be respectful. We will be going to Mass with our Faith Families this Friday. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts today. We began by learning two new oral vocabulary words (city and country). We then worked on visualizing as we read Alicia's Happy Day. After that we learned how to blend and read words with short i. 

With all that learning, we took a little break from the new to practice the old. Today we worked in our literacy centers for the first time. The goal of our literacy centers is to build our fluency and comprehension skills. 

After our little break, we returned to the new. We learned our four sight words for the week (down, out, up, and very). We then read Six Kids, a fantasy story about six chickens. We ended the morning by putting sentences into the correct word order. 

Our focus this week in Penmanship is the letter L. 

We began a new chapter in Math today. We are learning all about number bonds. Today we learned that one part plus the other part makes the whole. We will continue to explore number bonds all week. 

Have a great night! 

Friday, September 6, 2019

Friday of Firsts!

Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great day to end their week. We had one busy day of firsts in first grade. 

We began our day with Mass. Today at Mass, Fr. Brian had a blessing of the bookbags. All of the students took their bookbags to church and after the homily, Fr. Brian blessed them with holy water. 

Language Arts was full of firsts today. We began class by using our oral vocabulary words in sentences and reading short a words and words with the inflected ending -s. After that we wrote sentences using our sight words; the students did this independently and did a great job with it. We also took our first reading assessment of the year; I was quite proud of them for they really paid attention to what we were doing. We ended class by identifying sentences. 

We did take a break from our Language Arts work to head to the library. We were all excited to get a book to take home. Please make sure to return all books by next Friday! 

After Language Arts, we had our first Spelling test of the year. The students were very excited about this. 

Then it was time for Math. Today we wrapped up our study of the numbers 0-10 by taking a test. Next week we will begin learning about number bonds. 

After all the tests, it was time for a break. In Science class, we talked about all the different ways an animal moves. So, the students were broken into groups. Each cube was given a cube with pictures of animals on it. They took turns rolling the cube and acting out how that animal moves. They loved this! 

We ended our day with Art. Today we painted for the first time. We made owls using stamps. We still need to add eyes and wings to the owls. I will post pictures of the finished products on Monday. 

Have a great weekend! 

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Picture Day!

Greetings! Well, excitement was in the air today in first grade. We were quite excited for picture day. We could hardly wait to have our pictures taken and could not contain the excitement once we did! 

In Religion class today we talked about how God uniquely created us and made us different from the plants and animals. We are able to love, know, and serve God and others. 

We had a busy day in Language Arts. Class was interrupted by pictures and Guidance. So, we had to continue the learning this afternoon. This morning, we practiced using our oral vocabulary words in sentences. We then used our dry erase markers and a whiteboard to spell and read short a words and words with the inflected ending -s. After that we partner read a story in our decodable reader. Following that we talked about what we can learn from photographs in a story. We ended the morning by writing sentences correctly. 

This afternoon we partner read Nat and Sam. We also read a nonfiction piece about school rules and completed pages in our close reading companion. To end our day, we created a short a apple tree. On each apple, we wrote a short a word. It was a good way to end our day. 

In Math class today we reviewed concepts related to the numbers 1-10. Tomorrow we will be taking our first Math test of the year. 

Tomorrow will be a busy day. We have Mass which will include the blessings of bookbags. We also have our first Spelling test. We will be visiting the library. And we have Art. Lots of doings' going on! 

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Open House Day!

Greetings! Happy Open House Day! I look forward to seeing many of you later today. We had a busy day in first grade. As one student said, there is so much to do! 

In Religion today we talked about how God made people. We discussed how each one of us is different yet special. We also talked about how God wants us to care for his creation. 

We had a busy day in Language Arts. We practiced using our oral vocabulary words in sentences. We then used sound boxes to stretch words and identify all of the sounds in words. After that we practiced reading short a words and words with inflected ending -s. Following that we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We ended the morning by reading and discussing Nat and Sam, a realistic fiction story about a boy in school. 

This afternoon we completed pages in our close reading companion to help us build our comprehension skills. We also reviewed sentences and fragments. The students worked in groups to sort sentences and fragments. 

For Gym class today we headed to the playground. We loved the sunshine and time to play with our friends. 

In Math class today we used our thinking caps to solve problems. We sorted numbers into categories based on whether they were less than 5, between 5 and 7, or greater than 7. We then used linking cubes to help identify the next number in a pattern. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is Picture Day! 

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Happy Labor Day!

Greetings on this day after Labor Day! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. It was sure nice having an extra day off! 

We began our day with Religion. Today we talked about how God created the world. We took time to illustrate something that God made that we find beautiful. I just loved seeing the variety of responses from animals to flowers to mountains and everything in between. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts today. We reviewed the oral vocabulary words we learned last Friday and then learned three new words (common, recognize, and object). Next we worked on visualizing as we read a nonfiction piece about schools around the world. Following that we used our letter tiles to spell and read short a words. Next, we learned to blend and decode words with the ending -s. After that we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended the morning by rereading Jack Can and writing details from the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we read our decodable reader and answered questions about it. We also learned the components of a sentence and identified sentences on a workbook page. 

In Math class today we learned how to identify one more and one less than a number. We began with linking cubes before moving to using our brains. The students had no troubles with this. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is Gym day. Please wear your sneakers to school. Also, tomorrow night is Open House. I look forward to meeting with you then.