Thursday, January 16, 2014

Reading, Writing, Dreaming and Exploring


Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop

We kicked off 2014 by writing New Year’s resolutions.  Students had a wide range of resolutions such as focusing hard, becoming a better reader, learning how to ice skate and how to do yoga!  We will be hanging them up in the classroom to remind us of our resolutions.  On the first day back, students practiced kids yoga to calm our minds and get us back in school mode after two weeks off! 

Students have been working hard in guided reading groups and literacy workstations to reinforce literacy skills learned throughout the year and gain new skills.  It is crucial for young readers to not only read the words on the page, but be able to understand what he/she is reading.  We have been focusing on concrete comprehension (who, what, when?) and inferential comprehension (thinking beyond the text i.e. why do you think the character made this choice?)

For Writer’s Workshop we began the personal narratives unit. We discussed how writers are like photographers.  While a photographer can take a picture of a whole aquarium, they can also zoom in on just one important part.  Just as a writer can also write about their whole trip to the aquarium, or zoom in on one part.  Students brainstormed “small moments” in their life and began planning their ideas.




Three authors shared their published work in the Author's Chair.



Math




Up until this point in the school year, students have worked hard to understand addition and subtraction and view problems in different ways.  Students have used various problem solving strategies to solve math story problems and focused on the relationship that numbers have to ten.  Number relationships provide the foundation for fact strategies.  Students entered 2014 ready to endeavor new strategies and techniques for solving addition and subtraction problems.  Fact strategies provide a bridge from understanding the meanings of addition and subtraction to quickly and accurately recalling basic addition and subtraction facts. 

What are fact strategies?

Fact strategies are mental techniques to solve facts.  The ultimate goal is for children to eventually stop using the strategies as they develop quick and accurate ways to recall basic facts.  Practice over time will support children to move towards mastery.

One and Two More

It is helpful for children to recognize that 6, for example, is 1 more than 5 and 8 is 2 more than 6.

Doubles

Addition doubles are addition facts in which the two numbers being added together are the same.  Visual representations that help children grasp this concept are fingers on two hands (5 + 5) or eggs in a carton (6 + 6).

As children understand the doubles strategy, they can then build upon the strategy and use near doubles.  Near doubles is when one of the numbers being added is one more than the other number.

For example,

If a child knows that 5 + 5=10, then they can the idea of doubles plus 1 to add 5+6.  6 is the same as 5+1. 5+5 is 10, so 5+6 has to be 1 more.  5+6 equals 11.

Students have been working hard to use fact strategies and understand the relationship between addition and subtraction.


                              
Math Vocabulary

More than
Less than
Greater
Fewer
Equal to
Doubles
Near doubles


Here are some links for children to practice subtraction problems at home:

On http://www.ixl.com/math/grade-1 I suggest practicing addition and subtraction word problems and number sentences with pictures.  Encourage students to use strategies such as drawing pictures or using manipulatives.





Fundations

Students have been learning about two letter consonant blends: when two consonants are next to each other in a word, you blend the sounds together and hear each sound.

We had lots of fun making pretend milkshakes in blenders!  Students blended together the “ice cream” (one consonant) and “milk” (the other consonant) in “blenders.”  Students enjoying making milkshake menus by generating their own words with the given consonant blend.  Some of the class favorites…

Stein Milkshake
Smelly Milkshake
Fast Milkshake

Ask your child what milkshakes they put on their menu…


Students have been learning about silent e, also known as magic e: when an “e” is at the end of a word it doesn’t make a sound and it “magically changes” the vowel to say it’s name/make it’s long vowel sound.

Students had magic wands and practiced their magical spell to transform words…

“Abracadabra fidalee fee, I give you the power of the magic e!”



Science and Social Studies


We explored the idea of air resistance as students dropped parachutes from a chair.  We observed how the parachute fell faster when more paper clips were added.  Students practiced thinking and writing like scientists by using language such as, “I saw, I noticed and I observed.”

 See the following video from class


In light of MLK Day on Monday, we focused on the meaning of three new vocabulary words: dream, peace, equality.

We looked at 2 eggs and discussed how eggs look different on the outside but look the same on the inside just like people. 

Students understand that Martin Luther King was a very brave, helpful and important person.  We read a poem about helping the world and students thought of 3 ways they can help at home, at school or in the community.  Now understanding the term “dream” in a new context, students were able to generate their own dreams.







Great work earning Career Day room 101!


Mystery Readers








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