Lessons for Life

And so it begins...

Our time together as a new community of learners! Such an exciting time for a little one.  My first grade teacher was my favorite and I still remember my classroom and how she hugged me. I loved school. Everything about it.  But especially, the books.

This picture says it all for me.  My life as the oldest of five.  Being led by my mom into the library every week, all my brothers and sisters, with the red flyer wagon banging behind us filled with books.  The library.  Oh, the smell of those books!  Joy.  

This week I shared this memory with my crew, as my learning target for reading in these first days is to instill the joy of reading and to learn about my students' reading identities.

Well, as you can see, what I know about teaching with passion is that it is contagious.  Look at these engaged readers. YEAH!

We are exploring the books in our crew library and in the reading tubs I have gathered for early learning skills, such as rhyming. And it is a time for me to see what books jazz my kids.

In Math, we are learning early procedures such as counting of the school days using numbers and straws, figuring out how many children are present and absent, and learning the use of calendars.

And we explored patterns and began looking at how to use the number line and a number grid.  We will be doing lots of choral counting forward and back and began skip counting too.

Remember to click on the Math tab on my blog page.  There you can find a link to the EDM parent page (Everyday Math) and check out what we are learning.

Our first EDM math game learned this week is Monster Squeeze.

It involves using the number line to determine numbers that are larger or smaller and which way to go on the line.  You will find this game on the EDM website.  Ask your child about it! 

Working as team with pattern blocks took some negotiating!

More things we did our first week:

• We wrote about our hopes and dreams for 1st grade and a memory from summer.  The children love using the tools in the writing center to begin writing letters or making books of their choice.  Very busy!
• We began our 1st Expedition: Character Traits. Please click on the blog tab for Character Traits to read the traits we will be learning this next week so you can support my teaching in school.  This week we learned about Integrity!  This aligns with our crew bear who always tries to do the right thing.  We also began learning the Integrity song.  
• Songs we are learning:  Oh What a Beautiful Morning, I Think Your'e Wonderful, Hooray for the World, Teaching Peace, and Day-O.

We've got a full week ahead of us, and then we are off to camp.

Thanks for helping your child learn a homework routine, get enough sleep, and come with a healthy afternoon snack.

I'm in love again...with your child!

Joyfully, Mary Beth