May Crowning!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone had a great day. 

Our day started with practicing our drills. We did a fire drill, hard lockdown, soft lockdown, and weather drill. The students did great with these ones. 

After settling down, we got our day started with Religion. We wrapped up our chapter on Jesus starting the church. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read words with three letter blends and with inflectional endings, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We also practiced using pronouns in sentences. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we read a short nonfiction piece about origami. We then folded paper to make a dog. We had fun doing this. 

This afternoon we honored Mary during our May Crowning prayer service. Our second graders did a beautiful job in leading the prayer service. 

Have a great night! 

Party Time!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a great day! 

In Religion class today, we reviewed Apostolic succession. We talked about how Jesus began the church and turned the keys over to Peter who became the first pope, and how the Apostles became the first bishops and helped the church to grow. 

In Language Arts, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with three letter blends and inflectional endings, and read our sight words. We also practiced using our vocabulary words in sentences. To help build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read Lissy's Friends. After reading the story, we discussed its theme. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we practiced using pronouns in sentences. We also wrote our first narrative paragraph. Yesterday, we read Owl Moon. Today, we used the events from the story to help write our paragraph. 

In Math class today, we learned how to tell time to the half hour. We used our clocks to practice showing times and our whiteboards to write the times. 

We ended our day with a party! Today, we had a fiesta complete with a pinata and confetti eggs! We had a blast! 

Have a great night! 

Cinco de Mayo!

 Greetings! Happy Cinco de Mayo! I hope everyone had a wonderful day and maybe enjoyed a taco or two! 

In Religion class today, we talked about the marks of the church. We learned that the church is one (only one church), holy (founded by Jesus), Catholic (for everyone), and Apostolic (grown by the Apostles). We created a poster to help us remember them. Here is a picture of our poster from today and of the cross we made yesterday to help us remember the seven sacraments. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Next, we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with three letter blends. Then, we reviewed adding inflectional endings onto words. After that we practiced using our sight words in sentences. Following that we learned our new vocabulary words (difficult and nobody) and practiced using them in sentences. Finally, we worked on our comprehension skills; this week we are focusing on theme. We reread A Spring Birthday. Then we wrote about what makes the story realistic and what the story's theme is. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we practiced using pronouns in sentences. We also took time to wrap our Mother's Day gifts. The students were so excited to do this! 

In Math class today we reviewed telling time to the hour. The students completed a write the room activity where they walked around and wrote the time shown on various clocks. 

Here are pictures of our latest Art projects. Enjoy! 

Have a great night! 

May the Force Be With You!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! May the force be with you! 

In Religion class today, we talked about how Jesus wanted his grace to be passed down. We do this when we celebrate the sacraments. We looked at each sacrament and talked about how we receive God's grace. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about traditions. We began by learning our new oral vocabulary words: effort, tradition, ancient, drama, and movement. Then, we worked on retelling as we read about traditional cultural dances. Following that, we learned how to blend and read words with three letter blends, words like split, scrape, three, and shred. After that, we learned our new sight words (before, front, heard, push, tomorrow, your). We ended our morning focusing on our fluency skills. We read A Spring Birthday. 

This afternoon we attended the annual 8th Grade Spring Showcase. We enjoyed watching the various skits performed by the 8th grade class. 

We ended our day with Gym class. Today, we headed outside and enjoyed the sunshine! 

Have a great evening! 

Welcome to May!

 Greetings! Welcome to May in first grade. This month is just going to fly by! 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded the children to keep pushing and not to slow down as the year is coming to an end. He encouraged us to be workers like St. Joseph, working humbly to build up the kingdom of God here on Earth. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We then worked on our Mother's Day projects. The writing just made me smile. I just love the innocence of children. 

In Math class today, we started our chapter on time. We practiced telling time to the hour. The students really enjoyed using clocks to show various times today. 

In Science class, we talked about how we can use the stars to help us. We just need to find the North star to help guide us. 

We ended our week with Art class. Today, we created birdhouses from construction paper. They turned out cute. I'll post pictures next week. 

Have a wonderful weekend! 

The End of April!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I don't know about you, but this week has flown by. Tomorrow is already Friday! 

In Religion class today we talked about how Jesus gave Peter the keys to the church. We talked about how Peter became the first Pope. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words, read words with silent letters and compound words, and reviewed our sight words. To build our reading fluency and comprehension, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read a nonfiction piece about rainy weather. After reading that piece, we completed pages in our Reading/Writing Companion that focused on the main idea and key details from that selection. Finally, we practiced identifying special pronouns in sentences. 

In Math class today, we began our chapter on time. We introduced telling time to the hour. We will take a deeper dive into that tomorrow. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today, we talked about why people work. We also talked about how some people work in factories. We watched some short videos showing people working in factories. 

Have a great night! 

A Mid-Morning Thunderstorm!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone found some sunshine on this rainy day. At least the grass will stay green for a bit! 

In Religion class today, we finished our chapter on the Easter story. We reviewed what happened during that first Easter Sunday and what it means for us once Jesus rose from the dead. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with silent letters, compound words, and our sight words. We also practiced using our vocabulary words in sentences. To help build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable booklets. We also read the realistic fiction story Rain School. After reading the story, we completed pages in our Reading/Writing Companion that focused on cause and effect. 

Ironic story - We were reading Rain School during the thunderstorm this morning!!

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced using special pronouns in sentences. We also wrote our very own persuasive paragraph. Next week, we will be diving into narrative writing. 

In Math class today, we practiced solving problems by looking for a pattern. We organized the information in a table, looked for a pattern, and then worked to solve the problem. 

We ended our day with Music class. Today, we created our own 4 beats in a measure. We had fun acting out our beats with everyone! 

Have a great night! 

A Rainy Day!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone had a nice day. 

In Religion class today, we talked about how Jesus resurrected both body and soul. We also talked about how we can live with him forever because of this. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Then, we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with silent letters. After that, we reviewed how to read compound words. Following that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended our morning by learning our vocabulary words (country and gathers). We defined each word and wrote sentences using them. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we focused on our comprehension skills. We reread Wrapped in Ice and wrote cause and effect examples from the story. Then, we learned about indefinite pronouns (anybody, everything, nothing, etc.) and practiced finding them in sentences. 

In Math class we took our chapter test on shapes. Next, we will learn how to tell time. 

Have a great night! 

Blossoming Writers!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! It is hard to believe that today is the final Monday in April. Where did this month go? 

In Religion class today, we talked about how we need to feed the gift of grace Jesus won back for us. We talked about praying, going to Mass, and helping others as ways to feed our grace. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about the weather. We began by learning our new oral vocabulary words (cycle, predict, creative, frigid, and scorching). Then we worked on visualizing as we read a tall tale about Paul Bunyan. Next, we learned how to blend and read words with the silent letters kn, gn, and wr. We ended our morning by learning our new sight words (been, children, month, question, their, year). 

This afternoon in Language Arts we read Wrapped in Ice which helped us practice our new skills. We also wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love school. We wrote the first and last sentence together. The students did the middle sentences independently. They have blossomed into writers! 

In Math class today, we again reviewed shapes and fractions. We are ready to take our chapter test tomorrow. 

Have a great night!  

Beautiful Butterflies!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great day to end the week! 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian talked to us about Jesus in the Eucharist. He reminded us that when we receive Jesus he becomes part of us. We are like a tabernacle for him. 

We finished another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We also played Memory where we matched a, au, aw, al, and augh words to their pictures. Finally, we did some creative writing. We wrote about what we would do if we were a kite. 

In Math class today, we continued our chapter review on shapes. We did very well explaining our understanding of shapes today. 

In Science class, we talked about why we only see stars at night. We created a star finder. We then used our flashlights to project our star on paper while a partner became the sun and blocked the stars. We had lots of fun with this. 

We ended our day with Art. Today we created a butterfly. The students had lots of fun painting their butterfly. They were very creative. 

Have a great weekend! 

Earth Day!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone enjoyed the sunshine today. 

In Religion class today we talked about how we remember Easter every time we celebrate Mass. We also looked at the four parts of Mass. 

In Language Arts, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words by answering questions using our words. We also practiced reading words with a, au, augh, aw, and al and vowel team syllable words. We reviewed synonyms and practiced using possessive pronouns in sentences. To help build our fluency and comprehension skills we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read a poem and completed pages in our Reading/Writing Companion that helped us build our poetry comprehension skills. Finally, we wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love gym. 

In Math class today, we began our review of shapes. The students did great identifying both 2D and 3D shapes. 

In Social Studies today we talked about saving and why people save money. 

We finished up our celebration of Earth Day today. We have been talking about ways to help the Earth all week. Today, we read The Lorax and wrote about something we can do to keep Earth clean and healthy. 

Have a great night! 

A Pizza of My Heart!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a great day! 

In Religion class today, we reviewed the Easter story. We focused on Jesus rising from the dead. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, practiced reading words with a, au, augh, aw, and al, and practiced reading vowel team syllable words along with our sight words. We also reviewed our vocabulary words. Then, to build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read the nonfiction story Meet Rosina. After reading that story, we wrote about the author's purpose. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we practiced using possessive pronouns in sentences. 

In Math class today we cooked up some fun. The students created a pizza. They then decided whether to divide their pizza into halves or fourths. Next, they decided the toppings to add to their pizzas. Finally, the students wrote about their pizza. They turned out great! 

Today is Earth Day! We have been talking about how to help planet Earth all week. Today, we made a tree and sorted examples on whether our not they are helpful to Earth. 

We ended our day with Music class. Today, we learned about phrasing in songs. We learned how by singing phrases we have time to breath. We practiced this by singing "The Itsy Bitsy Spider."

Have a great night! 

A Cold Start!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone had a great day and warmed up after that cold start! 

We began our day by going to Adoration. It was nice to spend some quiet time with Jesus especially during the Easter season. 

We continued our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Next, we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with the vowel variants a, au, aw, augh, and al. Then, we learned how to blend and read vowel team syllable words. Following that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended our morning learning our vocabulary words accept and often. We wrote sentences using those words. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we focused on our comprehension skills. We reread All Kinds of Helpers and wrote about the author's purpose. We also practiced using possessive pronouns in sentences. 

In Math class today, we continued our study of fractions. We practiced folding paper shapes into halves and fourths. 

Have a great night! 

Fraction Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great start to their week. It is hard to believe that this is the last full week of April! 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on the Last Supper. We reviewed what Jesus said and did at the Last Supper. We also talked about when we remember the Last Supper. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we are reading about helpers. We began by learning our oral vocabulary words (inspire, respect, decision, distance, swiftly). Then, we worked on retelling as we read a fable about how the moon got in the sky. Following that we learned how to blend and read words with vowel variant diphthongs a, aw, au, augh, and al: words like ball, paw, cause, taught, and walk. After that, we learned our new sight words for the week (brother, father, friend, love, mother, picture). 

This afternoon we put are new skills together as we read All Kinds of Helpers. We also reviewed the reasons an author writes a story. Finally, we learned the possessive pronouns and practiced using them in sentences. 

In Math class today, we continued our discussion on fractions. We learned that when we divide something into halves we get 2 equal parts. We also learned that when we divide something into fourths we get 4 equal parts. Here is what we created today: 

And, here are pictures of the spring gnomes we created in Friday's Art class. 

Have a great night! 

Spring Garden Gnome!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a fantastic day to end the week. 

At Mass today, we welcomed Fr. Norris. He reminded us that Jesus always feeds us in the Eucharist and that we are to feed people too by being kind to others. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We also wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love the beach. 

In Math class today, we began to look at fractions. Today, we looked at shapes to see if they were divided into equal or unequal parts. 

In Science class, we learned about the phases of the moon. We created a moon book to help us see the cycle the moon completes each month. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today, we created a spring garden gnome. 

Have a great weekend! 

A Beautiful Spring Day!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! Today was another beautiful day. It was so hard to come in from recess! 

In Religion class today we learned that extra blessed hosts are kept in the tabernacle. We talked about how Jesus' Body is always present in church in the tabernacle. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words, read words with the vowel variant /u/ and words with suffixes. To help build our fluency and comprehension, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read a nonfiction piece about volunteering. After that, we practiced using pronouns in sentences. Finally, we wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love the zoo. 

In Math class today, we wrapped up our study of 3D shapes. We completed a write the room activity where we identified the various shapes. We also did a roll and color activity. 

In Social Studies class today, we learned the names of the countries the border the United States. We learned that Canada is our neighbor to the north and that Mexico is our neighbor to the south. 

Have a great night! 

Beats in Music Class!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone enjoyed the sunshine today! 

In Religion class, we talked about how Jesus is the Bread of Life. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with the vowel variant /u/, words with suffixes, and our sight words. We also practiced using our vocabulary words in sentences. To help build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type. After reading that story, we talked about its theme. Finally, we practiced using pronouns in sentences. 

In Math class today, we identified the 3D shapes used to construct a design. 

We ended our day with Music class. Today, we talked about 4/4 beats. We created our very own 4 beat pattern and practiced clapping it out. 

Have a great night! 

Oh! Happy Day!

 Greetings! Today was another great day of learning in first grade. 

In Religion class, we talked about how we remember what Jesus said and did at the Last Supper every time we celebrate Mass. We talked about how the bread and wine become Jesus' Body and Blood. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Then, we used our letter tiles to spell and read words with oo, u, ue, ui, ew, and ou. Next, we learned how to read and define words that end with the suffixes -ful and -less. Following that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. After that, we learned our vocabulary words (demand and emergency) and wrote sentences using those words. Finally, we worked on our comprehension skills. We reread Super Tools and wrote about problems and solutions in the story along with its theme. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we reviewed pronouns. We created a pronoun flower. We wrote pronouns along with nouns the pronouns could replace. 

In Math class today, we reviewed our 3D shapes. We reviewed the shape names, their attributes, and real life examples of each shape. 

Tonight, our Reading Competition team earned a first place ribbon scoring 59 points. They earned 2nd place overall in the competition. We could not be prouder of how hard this group worked! 

Have a great night! 

The Greatest Gift!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend! 

In Religion class today, we reviewed the Last Supper. We talked about how Jesus gave his greatest gift to us: the gift of himself in the Eucharist. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we are reading about working together. We began by learning our oral vocabulary words (conflict, fair, argument, shift, risk). Then, we worked on asking and answering questions as we read a fable about mice and a cat. Following that we learned how to blend and read words with oo, u, u_e, ui, ue, ew, and ou, words like spoon, truth, rule, juice, blue, chew, and you. After that, we learned our new sight words for the week (answer, brought, busy, door, enough, eyes). Finally, we put all our new skills together as we read Super Tools. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about pronouns. We learned that they take the place of nouns. We also talked about theme as we read A Bad Case of Stripes. 

In Math class today, we shifted our focus to 3D shapes. Today, we learned the names of the shapes and their attributes. 

Have a great night! 

Spring Wreaths!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! Today was a great day to end a great week of learning. 

At Mass this morning, the children were excited to use the song books for the first time. They also enjoyed the sprinkling rite; we got very wet. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We also worked on our fluency and comprehension skills as we read a short nonfiction piece about tiny houses. 

In Math class today, we reviewed our 2D shapes. I read a riddle, and the students drew the shape I was describing. Then, we completed a write-the-room activity where students identified the shape on top of a snow cone. Finally, we played shape BINGO. 

In Science class, we talked about how the length of days changes during the seasons. We learned that days are long in the summer and short in the winter. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today, we created a spring wreath using cupcake liners. The students glued flattened mini cupcake liners on a paper plate. Then they added circle to the middle and leaves to complete their flowers and wreath. I'll post pictures on Monday once they are dry. 

Have a fabulous weekend! 

Welcoming Prospective Teachers!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone was able to enjoy the sunshine today. 

In Religion class, we wrapped up our chapter in believing in Jesus. We talked about what makes us believe in him. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words and read words with diphthongs oi and oy and words with final stable syllables. To build our fluency, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. Finally, we practiced using prepositions in sentences. 

In Math class today, we used our shape blocks to make designs. We had lots of fun doing this. We were very creative in our designs. After designing, we identified how many of each shape we used. 

In Social Studies class today, we learned the names of the continent, the country, and the state where we live. 

This morning we welcomed students from the Penn Highlands Early Literacy program into our classroom. These prospective teachers read stories with the students, did a rhyming activity with them, and played Simon says. We really enjoyed having them. 

Here is a picture from the Religion Easter project we did on Tuesday: 

Have a great night! 

Fun with Shapes!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a fantastic day! 

In Religion class, we talked about how Jesus wants us to grow in our faith. One way that we can do that is by praying to Jesus. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read words with the diphthongs oi and oy, read final stable syllable words, and read our sight words. We also practiced using our vocabulary words in sentences. To help build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read Building Bridges. After reading that story we wrote details about each bridge that we read about. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced using prepositions in sentences. 

In Math class, we reviewed the 2D shapes. We sorted cards by identifying the shape name, its attributes, and real life examples of the shapes. We also talked about what makes a shape closed and not closed. 

In Music class today, we talked about sounds we hear all around us. We listened to snippets of sounds and identified the sound, whether it was loud or soft, and whether it was high or low. 

Have a great night! 

He Is Risen!

 Greetings! Happy Easter! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend celebrating with family and friends! 

In Religion class today, we talked about what happened on that first Easter many years ago. We created a Resurrection scene to remind us that Jesus is risen and is alive. 

We picked up with our week of learning in Language Arts where we left off last week. We answered questions using our oral vocabulary words. We also used our letter tiles to spell and read words with the diphthongs oi and oy. After that, we learned how to blend and read final stable syllable words, words like table and simple. Following that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. Then, we learned our vocabulary words (balance and section) and wrote sentences using those words. We ended the morning focusing on comprehension. We reread The Joy of a Ship and wrote cause and effect examples from the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced finding prepositional phrases in sentences. We also wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love spring. 

In Math class today, we began our chapter on shapes. Today, we learned the names of the 2D shapes. We learned characteristics about them including number of sides and vertices. We then sorted shapes based on the number of sides. 

Have a great night! 

Jelly Bean Jamboree!

 Greetings! Happy Easter! The students were greeted with quite a surprise today. The Easter Bunny came! He left baskets filled with treats for them. I'm sure you can picture the smiles on their faces! 

In Religion class today, we reviewed the events of Holy Week. We watched a short movie about Holy Week and created a cross with pictures from the events of Holy Week. 

Our Language Arts class centered around jelly beans. We read a book which told the meaning behind the colors of jelly beans. Next, we used jelly beans to measure different objects. Finally, we created a graph of our jelly beans and answered questions about our graph. 

After lunch, we watched It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown. Then, it was time to go home. 

Here is a picture from the cross scene was painted yesterday. 

May everyone have a blessed Easter. See you on Tuesday! 

A Peep-tastic Day!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! We had a peep-tastic day in first grade! 

Our focus in Religion today was the events of Good Friday. We talked about how Jesus was arrested and how he carried his cross up the hill. We also talked about how he was nailed to the cross and died. We created a cross scene to remember these events. 

Our Language Arts class centered around Peeps today! Each student adopted a Peep. He/she created a nest for it, named the Peep, and watched the Peep all day. We also did a graphing exercise with peeps which helped us review tally charts and picture graphs. Finally, the students worked in Peep centers. They used place value blocks to show various numbers, identified whether the word had a short or long vowel sound, and matched synonyms. 

This afternoon was our Haiti reward of a movie. We really enjoyed A Bug's Life. 

Have a great night!

An Egg-cellent Day!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone enjoyed the sunshine today. We had an egg-cellent day in first grade. 

We began our day by going to Adoration. It is the perfect week to spend some quiet time with Jesus. 

When we returned to the classroom, we continued learning about the events on Holy Thursday. Today, we focused on the Last Supper. We learned that the meal was simple, just bread and wine. We also learned that we remember what Jesus said and did at the Last Supper every time we go to Mass. 

Our Language Arts class centered around Easter eggs. We began by doing the 'What's in My Egg?' activity. The students wrote some very good clues. We enjoyed guessing what was in each other's eggs. Then, the students worked in Easter egg theme centers. Working in groups, they determined the number of syllables in words, made compound words, counted coins in Easter eggs, and unscrambled letters to make a sight word. They students worked so well together and enjoyed each station. They were surprised when I said it was time for lunch. 

In Math class today, we began our chapter on shapes. We reviewed the names of shapes. Next week, we will begin a deeper dive into shapes and their attributes. 

Have a good night! 

Jesus' Call to Serve!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend. 

In Religion class, we continued our study of Holy Week. Today, we focused on Holy Thursday, particularly Jesus' call to serve. We talked about how Jesus washed the Apostles' feet and then commanded them to follow his example. We talked about how Jesus calls us to serve one another. We made a simple craft reminding us of his call. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we are reading about buildings. We began by learning our oral vocabulary words (project, structure, contented, intend, marvelous). We then worked on retelling as we read a folktale. Following that, we learned how to blend and read words with the diphthongs oi and oy, words like coin and boy. Next, we learned our new sight words (above, build, fall, knew, money, toward). Finally we read The Joy of a Ship which helped us practice our new skills. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we learned about prepositions. We practiced using them in sentences. We also learned about paragraphs particularly the sentences in a paragraph. Then, together, we wrote a persuasive paragraph on why we love Easter. 

In Math class today, we learned how to solve problems using the guess and check method. The key is to not give up and keep trying until we find the answer. 

Have a great night! 

Learning About Holy Week!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone enjoyed the beautiful spring day we had. It was also a great day for Opening Day in baseball. Unfortunately, the Pirates lost, but there are still 161 games left. Things will get better! 

In Religion class, we began our study of Holy Week. Today, we focused on Palm Sunday. We talked about how Jesus rode into Jerusalem and how the people waved palm branches and shouted 'hosana'. We made a palm branch to help us remember his triumphant entry into the city. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read words with the diphthongs ou and ow and words ending in -er and -est, and wrote sentences using our sight words. To build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklet. We also took our weekly assessment and practiced using a, an, this, and that in sentences. 

In Math class today, we wrapped up our chapter on graphs by taking our test. Next, we will turn our attention to shapes. 

In Social Studies class, we learned the difference between city, town, and rural areas. We sorted pictures based on where we would find them. 

Have a great weekend! 

A Wonderful Wednesday!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a wonderful day! 

In Religion class today, we talked about how our faith in Jesus helps us. We read about how Jesus helped the Centurion's servant because of his faith. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words, read words with the diphthongs ou and oi, spelled and read words ending in -er and -est, and read our sight words. To build our fluency and comprehension skills, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read Whistle for Willie. After reading that story, we completed pages in our Reading/Writing Workshop that focused on cause and effect. 

This afternoon in Language Arts we practiced using a, an, this, and that in sentences. 

In Math class today, we reviewed picture graphs and tally charts. We practiced making both and answered questions about the data. 

We ended our day with Music class. Today, we talked about different voices. We practiced using our whisper, speaking, singing, and calling voices. 

Have a great night! 

Writing About Spring!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! The children really enjoyed the warm weather yesterday as many told me of their fun in the sun. 

In Religion class today, we talked about what it means to believe in Jesus. We said that we believe in Jesus because we trust him and because he is the Son of God. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about sound. We began by learning our five new oral vocabulary words (volume, senses, distract, nervous, and squeaky). Then we worked on retelling as we listened to a story about a squeaky bed. After that, we learned how to blend and read words with the diphthongs ou and ow, words like cow and out. Following that, we learned our new sight words for the week (color, early, instead, nothing, oh, thought). We ended our morning working on our fluency skills as we read Now, What's That Sound?

This afternoon in Language Arts, we learned when to use a and an in sentences. We also wrote about what we see, hear, smell, taste, and touch in spring. 

In Math class today, we reviewed graphs. We looked at the data on graphs and answered questions about them. 

Have a great night! 

Happy Spring!

 Greetings! Happy Spring! We have made it through winter! We had a great first day of spring in first grade. 

At Mass this morning, we welcomed Jadin O'Brien. She talked to us about turning our suffering into prayers for others. 

We wrapped up another week of Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, wrote sentences using our sight words, and took our weekly assessment. We also worked on our comprehension skills as we read poems and answered questions about them. In addition to that, we wrote about what we like to do on a rainy day and added our writing to a craft. 

In Math class today, we continued to work with tally marks and picture graphs. We created our own tally chart based on favorite sports in the class. We used that data to make a picture graph. Then we wrote about something we learned from the graph. 

In Science class today, we talked about how the sun changes position during the day. We learned that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. 

We ended our day with Art class where we worked on two projects. We created an Easter bunny on a colorful background. We also made an Easter basket filled with Easter eggs. I'll post pictures on Monday. 

Have a great weekend! 

Book Fair Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is having a great week! And, not only is tomorrow Friday, but also the first day of spring!! 

In Religion class today we wrapped up our chapter on the miracles of Jesus. We reviewed some of the miracles Jesus did and reviewed that he did them because he is the Son of God. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words, read r-controlled words, and practiced writing abbreviations. To help build our fluency, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also practiced finding adjectives that compare in sentences and wrote sentences using adjectives that compare. In addition to all of that, we finished our Lucky Charms St. Patrick's Day writing. 

Since we ran out of time yesterday, we moved our Music class to today. Today we talked about how music can be fast or slow and loud or soft. We listened to various pieces of music and did different motions to show if the music was fast or slow or loud or soft. 

In Math class today, we learned about tally marks. We gathered data from a picture and drew tally marks to show that data. Then, we created a picture graph using that same data. We are really enjoying graphs. 

In Social Studies today, we continued our talk about seasons. Today, we talked about different things we do in each season. 

The highlight of the day was visiting the Book Fair. We all came away with new books to read. It is always fun to shop for books! 

Have a great night! 

Picture Graph Fun!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is having a great week. Spring begins in two days!!

In Religion class today, we reviewed the stories of Jesus healing people. We created a tiny booklet to remind us of all the people Jesus helped. We also created a poster reminding us that Jesus is our healer. The students loved adding band-aids around it! 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read r-controlled words, abbreviations, and our sight words. To build our fluency and comprehension, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets. We also read Thomas Edison, Inventor. After reading this story we completed pages in our Reading/Writing Companion that focused on problem and solution and cause and effect. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced writing sentences with adjectives that compare. We also worked on some special projects. 

Our Math class today centered on picture graphs. We made a picture graph showing the fruit in a basket and then answered questions about it. We really enjoyed making the graph! 

Have a great night! 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 Greetings! Happy St. Patrick's Day! I hope everyone had a fantastic day! It's the luck of the Irish day! 

After a delayed start, we got to work. We answered questions using our oral vocabulary words. We also used our letter tiles to spell and read r-controlled -or words. We ended our morning learning how to write abbreviations for titles, months of the year, and days of the week. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We also learned our new vocabulary words: idea and unusual and wrote sentences using the words. Finally, we worked on our comprehension skills. We reread The Story of a Robot Inventor. Afterwards, we wrote facts about his life and wrote about a problem he had and how he solved it. 

In Math class today, we began our chapter on data and graphs. We used our linking cubes to show the data in a more organized way. Tomorrow we will transition to graphs. 

We ended our day with some St. Patrick's Day fun. We reviewed the colors of the rainbow and used food dye to show a rainbow. We put the dye in cups of vinegar. Then, we added baking soda to the cups and watched our rainbow erupt. We loved this! 

Have a great night! 

Leprechaun Writing!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone is doing well and enjoyed the weekend. I think the children really enjoyed the break on Friday; it was much needed. 

In Religion class today, we continued to learn about the miracles of Jesus. Today, we read about Jesus helping the paralyzed man. First, Jesus forgave his sins, and then, Jesus helped him walk. We talked about how Jesus can forgive sins because he is the Son of God. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about inventions. We began by learning our new oral vocabulary words (curious, improve, device, imagine, and complicated). Then we worked on retelling as we read about inventions. Following that, we learned how to blend and read r-controlled -or words, words like corn, more, and soar. Next, we learned our new sight words (began, better, guess, learn, right, sure). We ended our morning focusing on fluency. We read The Story of a Robot Inventor which helped us practice our new phonics skills. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we learned about adjectives that compare. We add -er to an adjective when we compare two things, and we add -est to an adjective to compare three or more objects. We also did some St. Patrick's Day writing; we wrote about what we would do if we were a leprechaun. 

In Math class today, we learned how to solve a problem by creating a chart. We enjoyed looking for patterns as we made our charts. 

We ended our day over at church praying the Stations of the Cross. 

Have a great night! 

Cotton Ball Clouds!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! It looks like winter has returned. The children were so excited to see the snow on the grass this morning. I'm hoping that this return does not stick around that long. 

In Religion class today, we read about more of the miracles Jesus did. Today, we learned how Jesus raised a girl from the dead, helped blind people see, and helped deaf people hear. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read r-controlled er, ir, or, and ur words and words that end in -er, and wrote sentences using our sight words. We took our weekly assessment and practiced finding adjectives in sentences. In addition to that, we worked on our fluency and comprehension. We partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read about the moon. Did you know that people once thought that the moon was made of cheese? 

In Math class today, we took our test on adding and subtracting with and without regrouping. Next week, we will begin our chapter on graphs. 

We ended our day with some Science and Social Studies fun. In Language Arts this week, our stories centered on what we observe in the sky. Today, we learned about different types of clouds. We used cotton balls to show each one. 

Then, we talked about the seasons of the year. The students used paint to show how trees look in each season. 

Here is a picture from our Art class last week. 

Have a fabulous weekend! 

Trusting in Jesus!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone is doing well tonight. 

In Religion class today, we continued learning about the miracles of Jesus. We read about how Jesus calmed the storm. We talked about how Jesus can calm storms in our lives and how we need to trust him. We made a small poster to help us remember this. 

In Language Arts class, we answered questions using our oral vocabulary words, read r-controlled words, words ending in -er, and our sight words. To help us build our fluency, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read Kitten's First Full Moon. After reading this story, we answered questions that focused on cause and effect examples from the story. Finally, we practiced finding adjectives in sentences and wrote sentences using adjectives. 

In Math class today, we reviewed adding and subtracting with and without regrouping. We will be taking our chapter test tomorrow. 

We ended our day in church praying the Stations of the Cross. 

Have a great night! 

Blossoming Writers!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone was able to get outside and enjoy the warm weather before it disappears tomorrow. 

We began our day by going to Adoration. We spent some quiet time praying to Jesus. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Next, we used our letter tiles to spell and read r-controlled er, ir, or, and ur words. Then, we learned how to read words that end in -er. Following that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. After that, we learned our vocabulary words (leaped and stretched) and wrote sentences using them. We ended our morning focusing on comprehension. We reread A Bird Named Fern and wrote cause and effect examples from the story. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we wrote sentences using adjectives. We also wrote our very own how-to paper. I'm so pleased with how their writing skills have grown this year. 

In Math class today, we continued to practiced solving subtraction problems with regrouping. We did very well today paying attention to see whether or not we needed to regroup. 

Have a great night! 

Being Feed by Jesus!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend! 

In Religion class today, we reviewed the story of Jesus feeding the crowd with five loaves of bread and two fish. We talked about how Jesus still feeds us in the Eucharist today. To help us remember all of this we made a poster. Have a look: 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we will be reading about things we see in the sky. We began by learning our oral vocabulary words: observe, vast, remained, certain, and thoughtful. Next, we worked on making predictions as we read a folktale about why the sun and moon are in the sky. Then, we learned how to blend and read r-controlled er, ir, or, and ur words, words like her, bird, word, and turn. Following that, we learned our new sight words for the week: another, climb, full, great, poor, through. We ended the morning working on our fluency by reading A Bird Named Fern. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we learned about cause and effect. We matched causes to their effects. Then, we learned about adjectives. We described an apple. Finally, we illustrated the steps in a process. Tomorrow we will write the steps. 

In Math class today, we learned how to subtract a two-digit number by a two-digit number with regrouping. The students did well with this. Again, the key is to look at the ones and decide where the bigger number is. 

Today, we welcomed Johnstown Tomahawk Evan Kensey to our classroom. He read us a story and talked with us about hockey. 

Have a great night! 

Brushing Our Teeth!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! We have made it through the first week of March. It is hard to believe that it was 60 degrees today when the other day we had ice. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian reminded us how special Mary is. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in first grade. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read r-controlled -ar words, and spelled plurals when we need to change the y to an i and add -es. We also wrote sentences using our sight words and took our weekly assessment. Finally, we partner read a story in our decodable reader booklets to help us build our fluency. 

We wrapped up our Dr. Seuss week fun today. We read The Sneetches and wrote about what makes us special. We are going to miss our special friends we had with us this week! 

In Math class today, we learned how to subtract a two-digit number from a two-digit number without regrouping. The students did very well with this. 

Our Science class today was devoted to learning about how teeth and how to take care of them. We learned that germs are on our teeth. We also talked about how sugary foods stick to our teeth. To keep our teeth healthy we need to brush them twice a day, floss, and eat healthy food. Our lesson did include practice in brushing teeth. Pairs of students were given a hard-boiled egg soaked in Coke-Cola. Working together the students brushed their tooth to make it white again. They loved getting messy today. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today, we decorated a shamrock using pieces of green scrapbook paper. We will mount our shamrock to construction paper on Monday. 

Here are pictures from last Friday's Art project along with the President's Day writing we did. 

Have a great weekend! 

Opposite Feet!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone had a great day as we inch closer to the weekend! 

In Religion class today, we started to learn some of the miracles Jesus did. Today, we focused on Jesus feeding 5,000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. We talked about how Jesus still feeds us today in the Eucharist. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read r-controlled -ar words, spelled and read plurals where the y is changed to an i and add -es, and read our sight words. To help build our fluency, we partner read a story from our decodable reader booklets. We also read a classic Frog and Toad story A Lost Button. We really enjoy those characters. After reading the story we wrote the answers to cause and effect questions. Finally, we practiced combining sentences. 

In Math class today, we subtracted using mental math. We found it easy to subtract the tens and just add the ones. 

For our Dr. Seuss fun today, we read The Foot Book. After reading the story, we listed antonyms on the board. Then, each student took a pair of words and illustrated them. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. We are wrapping up our celebration of presidents. We are in the process of writing what we would do if we were president. 

Have a wonderful evening! 

Return from the Ice!

 Greetings! Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone did well with the ice yesterday. I was glad I didn't have to venture out into it yesterday. 

In Religion class today, we wrapped up our chapter on Jesus sharing the Good News. We talked about how Jesus and his Apostles went from town to town telling people that God loves them and teaching them how to pray. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. We then used our letter tiles to spell and read r-controlled -ar words. Then, we learned about plurals that end in a y; we need to change the y to an i and add -es. After that, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. We ended the morning by learning our vocabulary words (trouble and whole); we wrote sentences using our vocabulary words. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we reread A Barn Full of Hats. We wrote about the characters and who is telling the story. Then, we practiced combining sentences using so and because. Finally, we wrote the steps in making a pizza. 

In Math class today, we continued to practice subtraction with regrouping. We are doing better at recognizing when to regroup and how to regroup. 

We ended our day with some Dr. Seuss fun. Today we read There's a Wocket in My Pocket. After reading the story, we got in the style of Dr. Seuss and made up a word to rhyme with pocket. We also wrote about what our creature likes to do. 

Have a great night! 

Talking Like a Pirate!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! Happy March! It is hard to believe that another month is upon us! 

In Religion class today, we learned the Great Commandment: to love God, love others, and love ourselves. We talked about various ways we can love God, others, and ourselves. We also created a giant heart to help us remember this commandment. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week, we are reading about ways to sort and classify things. We began by learning our oral vocabulary words (classify, distinguish, entire, organize, startled). Then, we worked on making predictions as we read the classic fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Following that, we learned how to blend and read r-controlled -ar words; we really enjoyed talking like a pirate as we read them. We ended our morning by learning our new sight words (four, large, none, only, put, round). 

This afternoon we read A Barn Full of Hats. I just love seeing their fluency grow and become more expressive. After that, we talked about how to combine sentences using and, but, and or. 

In Math class today, we learned how to subtract with regrouping. We did great taking one away from the tens. We want to take one away from the ones as well. We are working on adding a ten to the given ones already. We will continue to practice tomorrow. 

We ended our day with some Dr. Seuss fun. I just love celebrating this week with the students. Each day, we will read a story and do an activity associated with the book. Today, we read Horton Hears a Who. We wrote about how we can be kind like Horton. We are working on adding our writing to a craft. 

Have a wonderful night! 

Wash Away the Germs!

 Greetings! Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a great day to end the week. We had one awesome, busy day in first grade today. 

At Mass this morning, Fr. Brian talked to us about the importance of forgiveness. 

After Mass, nursing students from St. Francis University visited first grade. They talked to us about germs. They showed us how to properly wash our hands and reminded us to cover our coughs and sneezes. 

We wrapped up another week of learning in Language Arts. We used our oral vocabulary words in sentences, read words with long e and compound words, and wrote sentences using our sight words. We also read a short nonfiction piece about saving bees. Finally, we took our weekly assessment. 

In Math class today, we learned how to subtract a one digit number from a two digit number. We began by writing the problem vertically. First, we subtract the ones and then we subtract the tens. The children picked this skill up quickly. 

We ended our day with Art class. Today, we made a mosaic rainbow coming out of a pot of gold. The highlight was adding glitter to the gold coins. 

Have a great weekend! 

Forces and Motion!

 Greetings! Happy Thursday! I hope everyone enjoyed the snow yesterday. It is already gone! 

In Religion class today, we talked the Bible. We learned that the Bible is a book of stories written by God. We learned that the Bible has two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our oral vocabulary words, read long e words spelled with ey and y, read compound words, and read our sight words. We also practiced using our vocabulary words in sentences. After that we read Koko and Penny, a nonfiction story about a gorilla and her caretaker. After reading that story, we wrote about the details in it. Finally, we practiced finding adverbs that tell when in sentences. 

This afternoon we were treated to a program about force and motion. This program was sponsored by the Home and School Association. We learned all about Newton's three laws of motion and gravity and enjoyed watching the various experiments. 

Have a great night! 

The Beatitudes!

 Greetings! Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is hanging in there. Winter just won't go away! 

In Religion class today, we talked about the Beatitudes. We talked about how Jesus calls us to be humble, kind, and peacemakers in our world. We also talked about the third and fourth Stations. 

We continued with our week of learning in Language Arts. We began by answering questions using our oral vocabulary words. Then, we used our letter tiles to spell and read long e words spelled with -ey and -y. After that, we learned how to blend and read compound words. We were so excited about compound words that we even found them in Spanish class today. Next, we practiced using our sight words in sentences. Following that, we learned our vocabulary words clever and signal and wrote sentences using those words. Finally, we switched our focus to comprehension. We reread From Puppy to Guide Dog and wrote about what makes the story nonfiction and sequenced the events of how a puppy becomes a guide dog. 

This afternoon in Language Arts, we practiced finding adverbs that tell when in sentences. We also wrote sentences with adverbs. 

In Math class today, we continued to practice subtraction by counting backwards. Tomorrow, we will learn how to subtract without regrouping. 

Here is a picture from Friday's Art class.

Have a great night! 

A Delayed Delayed Start!

 Greetings! Happy Monday! Today was quite the surprise. I was not expecting that delay. I am hoping everyone made to and from safely today. 

Even with the late start, we still accomplished a lot today in first grade. 

We began a new week of learning in Language Arts; this week we are reading about how animals help people. We began by learning our new oral vocabulary words (career, soothe, advice, remarkable, trust). Then we worked on retelling as we read a story about a boy training a dog. After that, we learned how to read long e words spelled with ey or y, words like key and happy. 

After lunch, we learned our new sight words (found, hard, near, woman, would, write). Then, we read From Puppy to Guide Dog which helped us practice our new reading skills. Finally, we practiced finding adverbs that tell when in sentences. 

In Math class today, we switched our focus to subtraction. Today, we learned how to count back to solve problems. We used a 100 number chart to help us. 

We finished our day at church praying the Stations of the Cross with our schoolmates. The children did a nice job following along with everyone. 

Have a great night!