A Day at the Beach!

Today was quite an exciting day in first grade! We had a great day reviewing skills and learning new things. It is hard to believe that we only have one week left in first grade! 

In Religion class today, we talked about how the church honors the saints. We learned that on November 1st we honor all the saints and call this day All Saints Day! 

During Language Arts class, we did a lot of reviewing and practicing. We reviewed prefixes un- and re-, long vowels i and o, vowels aw and au and short e: ea as well as our sight words. We continued to practice our fluency by partner reading our story Ben Franklin and His First Kite. To help us review the story elements, we made a kite illustrating the characters, setting, problem, and solution in the story. Below is a picture of how the kite turned out. Next we took a test on the story. We finished class by practicing using pronouns in sentences. 

In Math class today we learned how to solve a problem by drawing a picture and using  table. For Science class, our focus stayed with plants. We identified the needs of plants. 

Finally, it was time for Art class. Today we made a beach scene, perfect since summer is right around the corner. Don't they make you want to be at the beach right now? 

Have a wonderful weekend! 

Awards Day!

Greetings! Today was quite an exciting day in first grade. The students participated in their very first Awards Ceremony. This is the time each year that the students are honored and recognized for their hard work during the school year. The students were quite excited to receive their awards today! 

With the school year quickly coming to an end, we are still hard at work learning new things and practicing skills we have learned this year. In Religion class today, we talked about the saints. We learned that the saints are people who followed Jesus and lived like he did. 

During Language Arts class, we reviewed prefixes un- and re- and long vowels i and o as well as our sight words. We then read our story Ben Franklin and His First Kite. This is a neat story telling of an experiment Ben did when he was a young child. We ended class by reviewing pronouns; we practiced using them in sentences. 

In Math class today, we learned how to write addition and subtraction fact families. We also learned 4 new subtraction facts. 

We ended the day with a special Science class. Today we learned the different parts of a plant and their function. We then labeled a plant to show each part. 

Tomorrow will be another busy and exciting day to end the week! 

Reading, Math, and Gym!

Greetings! I hope everyone had an awesome day. We had a great day of learning and fun in first grade. We began our day in Religion class. We talked about how the church honors Mary with special feast days and prayers. We also learned some of the titles the church gives Mary like "Our Lady" and "Blessed Mother". 

Next, in Language Arts class, we learned long vowel i and o words. When we see the endings -old, -ost, -ild, and, ind, we know that the vowel makes a long vowel sound. We practiced spelling these words and reading the words in a story. Next, we practiced our sight words. We then practiced using pronouns in sentences. 

For Gym class today we stayed inside and headed to the gym for some fun. We used the scooters to participate in relay races. We finished class by playing the favorite "Alligator, Alligator." 

During Math class today, we talked about place value. We learned how to identify the place values in three digit numbers. Next week, we will use pictures of pennies to show the place value in three digit numbers. 

We ended our day with Social Studies. Today we talked about the rights and responsibilities of citizens. One of the rights we talked about was the right to vote. We held our own mock election. Students voted for what to play next week in Gym class. After casting the ballots and tallying the results, the students voted to play kickball. Thy enjoyed this lesson! 

Have a wonderful evening! 

Last Week of May

Greetings and Welcome Back! I hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. From the sounds of the children, it seems that they enjoyed the outdoors. I love hearing what they did over the the weekends. 

It is hard to believe that it is already the final week in May. Where did this month go? We began our day by attending Eucharistic Adoration. Spending quiet time in prayer is a great way to begin our day. 

In Language Arts class today we blended and read words with prefixes un- and re-. The students did great not only reading these words but also defining them. We also talked about the theme in a story. In addition, we looked at more pronouns and learned where to use them in sentences. 

During Math class today, we talked about probability. We defined the words impossible, certain, and likely and gave examples of each. Next we did an experiment with linking cubes. I put ten yellow linking cubes in a bag and kept picking one out. We learned that I was certain to get yellow and that it would be impossible to get another color. We then switched it up. I put nine yellow and one red linking cube in a bag. Each student had a turn to pick a linking cube. As expected, more yellow were picked then red. We said it was likely that we would get yellow but not certain. The students enjoyed this lesson. 

We worked on a special project to end the day. The students colored their own picture frame. We then added a class picture and went around the room signing each other's poster. When we were finished we had a keepsake poster to remember our first grade friends. 

Just a reminder that tomorrow is gym class! 

Field Trip Day!

Today was quite an exciting day in first grade. It was the day we had been waiting for: Field Trip Day! We were so excited to see and feed all of the animals at Living Treasures. 

After what seemed like a never ending bus ride, we arrived at Living Treasures. Once the students got a cup of food, they were off to see and feed the animals. Among the animals the students saw were kangaroos, bears, bison, goats, horses, camels, monkeys, lemurs, and pigs. They loved petting and getting up close to the animals. Many students wore smiles all day long. 

Another highlight of the day was shopping in the gift shop. This gift shop has a variety of products. Everyone left with something to either play with or cuddle up to. 

Here are some pictures from our trip: 

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! See you on Tuesday!

Back to Normal!

Today was a normal day; we had no schedule changes just a busy schedule. The students worked so hard today. 

In Religion class today, we talked about Mary. We discussed things that she would have done with Jesus and things she would have taught him. 

Language Arts class was busy. We reviewed several phonics skills: vowels au, aw, short e: ea, diphthongs oi and oy, and suffixes -er and -or. We also practiced our sight words. Next we worked on our fluency and comprehension. We partner read our story and then wrote three facts we learned about Alexander Graham Bell. At the end of the day, we added our writing to a telephone craft project. After all that reading, we took a test on the story. We then reviewed the pronouns I and me by using them in sentences. After that, we wrote the conclusion sentence in our narrative paragraph. Finally, we worked in our literacy centers. 

We learned new subtraction facts in Math class today. We learned the answers for subtracting half of a double fact (i.e. 18-9, 14-7, 8-4, etc.). We used pennies to help us solve these problems. 

Please remember that our field trip is tomorrow. Students are permitted to wear jean or shorts (weather permitting) and sneakers. Please remember to send a lunch. There is a gift shop at Living Treasures. If you send money, please place it in a labeled envelope. 

Feels Like a Tuesday!

Happy Wednesday! With the changes to the schedule this week, today felt more like a Tuesday especially since the students had Music class instead of Gym class. Nevertheless we still had a wonderful day in first grade. 

We wrapped up our chapter in Religion about sharing God's love. We reviewed how we can share God's love with our friends and families. 

In Language Arts class, we reviewed our phonics skills: vowels aw, au and short e: ea. We did some word sorting to help practice these skills. First we sorted words based on whether the word had au or aw. Next, we sorted words with ea based on whether the ea made a long or short vowel sound. Next we practiced our sight words. After all this practicing we were ready to read our story Alexander Graham Bell. The students enjoyed reading and seeing the first telephones. I hope you enjoyed the story as well. After reading, we practiced using I and me in sentences and wrote our narrative paragraph. 

In Math class today, we learned about temperature. We learned how to read a thermometer and how to show temperature on a thermometer. 

We ended our day with Social Studies class. Today we talked about government leaders. We learned that a mayor governs a town, that a governor leads a state, and that a president governs a country. We also identified our current governor and president. 

Tomorrow is going to be an action-packed day!