Week 2

- September 14, 2017

A Message from Ms. Starostecki...

The Grade 1's will be going on their very first Seasonal Walk (for Fall!) on September 22. The walk will begin at 1pm and we will be back at the school at around 3pm. We will be walking from Robina Baker School east through Ontario Cres. to John Maland High. We will head north past Centennial Park until we reach the river valley where we will dip into the trail system and head west. We will stop at the park on River Dr. before heading back to the school.

For this walk, I would love to have some volunteers. I will be needing 3 volunteers. Please contact me as soon as possible if you would like to join us for our Seasonal Fall Walk as it will be first come first serve basis. Thank you in advance!

REMINDERS

LIBRARY 1C has library every Monday. Please make sure your child brings back their library book so they can exchange for a new one!

SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDER due September 28th.

AGENDAS I encourage parents to look at their child's agendas and mail bags daily. I also check their agendas daily so feel free to use them as a form of communication.

CALENDAR Please check our Calendar regularly to keep up to date with classroom events.

WATER BOTTLES Water bottles can be kept in the classroom until Friday. I will remind the students to take them home at the end of the week.

SNACKS & BIRTHDAYS In an effort to provide students with the healthiest environment I can, I am encouraging you to provide healthy snacks for school snacks and celebrations (i.e. birthdays).
Some healthy snack foods:

Cereal with milk
Low-fat cheese melted on a whole-grain tortilla
Fresh cut-up fruit with yogurt for dipping
Graham crackers and low-fat milk
Yogurt or Yogurt Tubes
Vegetables and low-fat dip
Fruit
Whole-grain crackers or toast with peanut-free butter or hummus
Fruit salad
Low-fat string cheese
100% juice
Whole-grain muffins or bagels

MATH

In our pattern unit, the students began their week by sorting objects by one attribute. This week, the Grade 1s learned what a patterns means. A pattern is a sequence that repeats. We can find patterns everywhere. Patterns may be sequenced in many different ways. A repeating pattern is the same sequence over and over. The students learned to describe and duplicate patterns such as: AB patterns, ABC patterns, AABB patterns, ABB patterns, and lastly AAB patterns. They also learned about the core of a pattern which is the smallest part that repeats and how a pattern rule tells us how to build a pattern.

LANGUAGE ARTS

DAILY 5 The Grade 1's continue to work on their goal of 15 minutes during Read to Self. While they Read to Self the students are practicing the Eagle Eye strategy. Eagle Eye serves as a reminder to look at the pictures for clues when reading a book.

PRINTING This week the students practiced and refined their flagpole letters (i, l, t, j, k)and half moon letters (a, c, d, g, q). I will be sending a printing practice sheet for those letters on Monday. The sheet provides parents with some instructions and tips on how to refine their child's printing.

ALL ABOUT ME I sent "All About Me" Bags home with some students this week. I will continue to do so at the end of each week. If your child has an All About Me bag, please follow the instructions, and return the bag after the weekend. We will use these bags to learn more about our classmates, learn about asking/answering questions, and participate in shared writing.

LISTENING GAMES I read the book, The Kissing Hand by Mem Fox to 1C this week. Our phonological awareness activities were centered around the book this week. It is the story of Chester Raccoon who confronts his first day of school and needs reassurance. Mother Raccoon finds an unforgettable way of communicating the message that everyone most needs to hear. The perfect book for any child taking the plunge into school, endearing illustrations are as soothing as the simple story. This book opened up a great conversation by relating the text to personal experiences.