Merry Christmas!

 Merry Christmas! Today was a great day of celebrating in first grade. After a few tech glitches on my end, we were able to get started and have fun.

In Religion today we watched a video on the first Christmas. The video reminded us what Christmas is truly about. 

Then, we played our games. Thank you for helping with our Santa's surprise game. The students had really good clues; it was hard guessing what was in each bag. 

After that we went on a scavenger hunt. The students were told what to find and then went and found it. I told them not to run or make a mess. I am hoping that they listened. I could tell that they really enjoyed it. 

Next, we did a fun drawing project. We put the paper plate on our head and attempted to draw a Christmas tree without looking. We had many laughs. 

Finally, we played a Christmas version of Head Bands. One at a time, the students closed their eyes. I showed the others a card. They then had to give clues to what was on the card. 

As you can tell, we had a blast today. We ended by reading the book that Jingles brought to us. It will become part of our classroom library. 

May you and your family have a blessed and Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year. I'll see you in 2021! 

~Miss Chalich 

The Polar Express!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is doing well and is ready for Christmas. I love seeing the children's excitement as we get closer to Christmas. I miss seeing it in person. 

In Religion class today we continued reading the Christmas story. We read about how the shepherds and kings came to see baby Jesus. We then talked about things we could do that could be a gift for others. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts today. We practiced using our oral vocabulary words in sentences. We also spelled and read soft c, soft g, and inflectional ending words. In addition we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We then worked on finding rhyming words in poems. This was easy as our poems were nursery rhymes. We enjoyed reading these rhymes. 

Our Christmas story today was The Polar Express, a classic Christmas story. I again loved how everyone gathered to hear this timeless story. As we finished, the students shared what they would ask Santa for as the first gift of Christmas. 

In Math class today we continued to practice to add to 20. We are doing very well with this. We will be continuing this skill when we return in January. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is an early dismissal day. We will be having lots of Christmas fun tomorrow! 

Our Final School Week of 2020!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! Welcome to our final school week of 2020! It sure has been a year of ups and downs. This week we will be wrapping up things and celebrating Christmas!

In Religion class today we began our look at the Christmas story. Today we read about how Joseph and Mary traveled to Bethlehem and how Jesus was born in a stable. We will continue to read the Christmas story tomorrow. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We also practiced spelling and reading words with soft c and soft g as well as words with inflected endings where the final e was dropped. In addition, we practiced reading all of the sight words we have learned this year. After that we reviewed past and future tense. 

Then it was time for Christmas fun. Today we read How the Grinch Stole Christmas. I loved how siblings joined us for this story! After reading we talked about how we can make the Grinch grin. 

In Math class today we continued practiced adding to 20. Today we focused on adding a two digit number and a one digit number. The students are doing very well with this. 

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

The Gingerbread Man!

 Greetings on the day after the first major snowstorm of the season. I hope everyone made it home safely and had fun digging out. I can't remember the last time we got this much snow. It looks like we will have a white Christmas. 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on how the Holy Spirit helped the church grow and how the Holy Spirit continues to help the church today. 

In Language Arts class, we read the classic folktale The Gingerbread Man. After reading the story we completed pages in our close reading companion. Next we sorted sentences bases on whether they told about the past or future. Then we reviewed using commas in a series. 

Our Christmas story today was Mooseletoe, a story about a moose who forgets the Christmas tree. After reading the story, we talked about the problem and how it was solved. The students were then asked to decorate Moose in a Seesaw activity. 

In Penmanship, we practiced writing Q and q. 

In Math class we learned new strategies to help us solve addition problems to 20. Today we used our linking cubes and a number chart. The students are encouraged to use the strategy they like best. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is a technology prep day. Have a great weekend! See you on Monday! 

Greetings from my House!

 Greetings! I hope everyone is doing well. The children were so excited about the snow today. I hope they have the chance to go outside and play in it. 

We had a great day today. Because of the weather, I decided to teach from my house today. The students loved seeing my computer room and meeting my dog. I am very please with how well today went. 

In Religion class, we talked about how the Holy Spirit helps the church today. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we, as members of the church, pray, share, and teach others about Jesus. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We used our sound boxes to segment and blend words. We then practiced reading soft c, soft g, and -dge words and practiced reading and spelling words with inflectional endings when the final e is dropped. Finally, we practiced our sight words. 

To get us into the Christmas spirit, we will be reading a Christmas story each day and completing activities that go along with the story. Today we read Santa's Stuck. After reading the story, the students talked and wrote about what they would do if Santa was stuck in their chimney. 

We continued to practice the numbers to 20 in Spanish today. After reviewing the numbers, the students had to pay attention as a mystery number was quickly revealed. We then identified that mystery number in Spanish. 

In Math class today we began learning strategies to solve addition problems to 20. Today we focused on drawing a picture and making 10. We will learn more strategies tomorrow. 

And, just in case you were worried, Jingles found us today. Here he is: 

Have a safe night! Enjoy the snow! 

The Day Before Snow!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is staying well.

In Religion class today we talked about how the Holy Spirit helped the church to grow. Filled with the Holy Spirit, the first members of the church told others about Jesus, helped people, and shared their things. 

In Language Arts class, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We then reread The Nice Mitten and wrote cause and effect examples from the story. We did the same when we read our decodable reader. Finally, we practiced sorting verbs based on whether they told about the past or future. 

In Science class today we focused on the life cycle of water. We learned that water can be a solid, a liquid, or a gas. We talked about how water changes from each stage. 

In Math class today we wrapped up our chapter on the numbers to 20. We reviewed counting, place value, patterns, and ordering numbers. Next, we will begin learning how to add to 20. 

Have a great night! 

Using our Thinking Caps!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone is doing well and had a nice weekend. We had a good start to our third week of virtual learning. Today also began our last full week before Christmas break. 

In Religion class today, we talked about the first church members. We learned that the first church members prayed together, ate together, shared their things, and gathered to learn about Jesus. They did many of the same things that we do today. 

In Language Arts we reviewed our oral vocabulary words we learned last week and then learned three new words (eventually, timid, and foolish). We then worked on my predictions as we read a folktale about a foolish rabbit. We then segmented words into sounds using our sound boxes. Following that we used our letter tiles to spell and read soft c, soft g, and -dge words. Next we learned how to spell and read words with the inflectional endings -ed and -ing where the final e is dropped before adding the ending. Finally, we talked about cause and effect. We used real-life examples to discuss these terms. We will take what we learned today and apply it to a story tomorrow. 

In Social Studies today we looked at the seasons of the year. For each season, we talked about the weather and different activities we do in each one. 

In Math class today we used our critical thinking skills to solve problems. To do this, we put on our thinking caps and used what we know to solve the problems. 

Have a great night! 

Ordering Numbers!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is doing well. We had another great day to wrap up our second week of virtual learning. 

In Religion class today we talked about how the church began on Pentecost. We read how Peter and the other followers, filled with the Holy Spirit, told many people about Jesus and how those people became members of the church. 

We began Language Arts class by reviewing the sounds of c, g, and dge. The students are doing well with this skill. We then learned our new sight words. Next, we read our story The Nice Mitten, a classic folktale. Finally, we learned about past and future tense verbs. 

In Penmanship class today we practiced writing j and J. 

In Math class today, we ordered numbers from least to greatest and from greatest to least. The students did very well with this. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is a Technology Day. There will be no assignments tomorrow. Have a great weekend! I'll see you on Monday! 

Lots of New in Reading!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! Thank you so much for your flexibility today. I really appreciate it. 

In Religion class today, we wrapped up our chapter on the Holy Spirit coming to Jesus' followers. We reviewed the events of Pentecost and drew a picture of what happened on Pentecost. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts. Our focus will be on folktales. Today we learned two new oral vocabulary words (hero and tale). We worked on making predictions as we read Interrupting Chicken. Then, we learned how to read words when c says /s/, g says /j/ and dge says /j/. It was a lot of new today, and the students did great. We will be continuing to practice these skills tomorrow. 

In Math class today we continued to work to solve number patterns. The students are doing well using their linking cubes and number charts to help them. We also practiced finding 1 more, 2 more, 1 less, and 2 less from a number. 

We ended our day with Spanish. We are still focusing on the numbers to 20. We reviewed the numbers, and then played a game. A number disappeared from the screen. The students had to identify the number and say it in Spanish. 

Have a great night! 

Pattern Fun!

 Greetings and Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is doing well. Today was another great day of virtual learning! 

In Religion class today we reviewed the Blessed Trinity and learned the Glory Be, a prayer we can say to the Blessed Trinity. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts today. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, spelled and read long i words and plurals, and reviewed our sight words. We also read a nonfiction story about how plants grow and completed pages in our close reading companion. Finally, we practiced using present tense verbs in sentences. 

In Science class today we learned about solids, liquids, and gases. The students gave examples of each one and helped me sort pictures based on whether it was a solid, liquid, or gas. 

In Math class today we focused on patterns. We used linking cubes and a number chart to help us see the patterns before switching to just looking at the numbers. We will continue to practice number patterns tomorrow. 

Have a great night! Stay warm! 

Celebrating St. Nicholas!

 Greetings! Welcome to our second week of virtual learning. I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. 

In Religion class today we watched a video on the life of St. Nicholas whose feast day was yesterday. After watching the video, we talked about how St. Nicholas helped people and how we should help people too. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We then practiced spelling and reading long i words and plurals. After that, we read our story The Big Yuca Plant. After reading this play, we sequenced the events in the story. Finally, we talked about how to write titles of a play. 

In Social Studies today we learned about natural resources. We identified them, talked about how they are found in nature, and talked about how we need to not waste them. 

In Math class this afternoon we continued to practice identifying the least and greater number in a set. Today, our sets included three, four, or five different numbers. Even with larger sets, the students did great with this. 

Have a great night! 

First Week of Virtual Learning!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! Thank you for a great first week of virtual learning! I am so proud at how well the students are doing! 

In Religion class today we read the story of Pentecost, the day the Holy Spirit came to the disciples. We talked about how they heard a strong wind and saw flames of fire over their heads and how they were filled with the Holy Spirit. 

In Language Arts we reviewed our oral vocabulary words. We also used our sound boxes to segment words into sounds. In addition we also practiced reading long i words, plurals, and our sight words. 

In Math class we practiced comparing numbers and telling how much more a number is. We also identified the greater and least number in a set. 

We ended our day with Penmanship class. Today we practiced writing g and G. 

This week, a special visitor began making an appearance in our classroom. Our classroom elf Jingles has come and is keeping watch over our learning. The students are excited to get clues everyday as to where Jingles is at. Today, he was sleeping on the tissue box. 

Have a great weekend! I'll see you on Monday! 

On the Second Day of December!

 Greetings on this chilly night. It seems old man winter has arrived with the start of December. I hope everyone is staying safe and warm. 

In Religion class today we talked about how Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to be with his followers. Tomorrow we will be reading the story of Pentecost. 

In Language Arts class, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We then reread Time to Grow and sequenced the events in the story. Next, we read our decodable reader and sequenced the events in that story as well. Finally, we practiced using present tense verbs in sentences. 

In Math class today we worked with comparing numbers. We built two towers of varying lengths using our linking cubes. We identified which one had more and by how much. We also looked at which one had fewer and by how much fewer. We transitioned into looking at pictures, telling which set had more, and identifying how much more. 

We ended our day with Spanish. Today we learned the numbers from 11-20. We watched a video to help us learn these numbers. We will continue to practice these numbers next week. 

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

Hello, December!

 Greetings! Happy December! I hope everyone had a good day and enjoyed (maybe) the snow. We had an awesome first day of virtual learning. I am so excited about all that we were able to do today! 

In Religion class we talked about how the risen Jesus surprised his followers. We loved hearing how Peter got so excited that he jumped off the boat to swim to shore to see Jesus. 

In Language Arts class we reviewed our oral vocabulary words we learned last week and learned three new words (assist, grasped, and spied). We then worked on making predictions as we read a fable. Following that we used our letter tiles to spell and read long i words. Finally, we learned how to read plurals with magic e words. 

In Math class today we learned about place value. We used our base ten blocks to show a number based on its number of tens and ones. I think the students did very well with this. 

Finally, in Science class, we talked about how we can group objects based on different properties. We then conducted a Science experiment to see whether certain objects would sink or float. The students really enjoyed this. 

Thanks for a great day! See you tomorrow!