Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Money Study!

Money Study!
Students have been working hard to learn the names and values of coins this month!
Coin counting is a fun and easy activity for at home practice. Take a look at these videos on Brainpop to guide your kitchen table conversations!


Have fun learning!
Love,
Mrs. L


Sunday, February 25, 2018

Best in Show Writing Homework!


Hi 1L Families,
 I don't like to give assignments over the weekend as I know how special family time is. I am kindly asking for forgiveness as I send along this homework request. Please don't get mad!

 In Writing, we are going to be moving into writing reviews and persuasive writing. The first few lessons require the students to have a small collection of precious things from home stored in a shoe box, plastic baggy, brown bag, etc. Over the weekend, could you help your child gather 5 or 6 objects to bring in on Monday or Tuesday. It should be 5 or 6 of the same object. This might be a group of plastic dinosaurs, a group of erasers, a group of gel pens, a group of bows, a group of baseball cards, a group of cars. If you could tuck them into backpacks for Monday, we will keep them safe in the classroom next week. 

Thank you!!!!
:)
Mrs. L

Friday, February 16, 2018

February Fun!

February flew by in a flash! Check out the amazing learning we have been doing this month!

Design and Engineer an Instrument!
Sound Engineers in work and practice. Students planned and carried out scientific investigations this month. Their investigations required clarification and proof that their instruments were making sound. They had to identify variables that contributed to the effectiveness, efficiency, and durability of their design under different conditions! They refined and modified their instruments when things failed and they had a whole lot of fun doing it!


Mrs. L's Valentine's Day Store
Students had to work with coins, determine their name and value and keep track of how much they spent. This is a really easy game to play at home! Please continue having coin conversations with your children.


Valentine's Day crafts and activities! 
Fine motor planning, cutting, gluing, folding, organization and following multi-step directions were all in play on this day! First graders had a blast! You can work on fine motor skills with your student by doing more than handwriting practice. Ripping paper, pinching tweezers and beading are important work for developing strong hands for creative writers!









Computer Science Investigation
Students worked with QR codes to review important math learning. Cooperation, teamwork and communication were key in accomplishing success in this activity! I encourage you to download a QR app with your child at home! These are fun ways to engage your child's imagination and get them thinking about computer programing!





Enjoy a restful and happy February break! 
Love,
Mrs. L

Monday, February 5, 2018

Sound Exploration and Homework!

Sound Exploration

Now that we know sound is caused by vibrations, it is time to make more discoveries about sound! 

This week students will be exploring how to make high and low sounds as well as loud and soft sounds. We will be doing some exploration of different instruments too! We will watch to see how different instruments make different kinds of sound and think about why that might be occurring. Later this month, we will be making instruments of our own out of the recycled material donations.

Have your students watch these Brainpop videos this week to ignite some conversation about how sound works! 
Our inspiration comes from this video on the Landfill Harmonic! Check it out and discuss at the dinner table!

Love,
Mrs. L

Thursday, February 1, 2018

Will the Groundhog see his shadow?

Groundhog Day Data and Predictions! 

Students worked on collecting data of their February 2nd predictions today! 
We learned about what shadows are, how they work,  and discussed recent weather patterns in order to make informed guesses about tomorrow's events. 
Take a look at this video and be sure to watch the news tomorrow for the Groundhog Day results!


Fingers crossed that Spring will be arriving early!
Mrs. L