Good Saturday Morning to all of you. I hope everyone had a great week. We just wrapped up our 5th week of school and I could not be more pleased where we are at as a class. As I have mentioned before, I use the first six weeks of school to build a classroom's norms, to build academic expectations, to assess, and to really dive into the social curriculum. This six week approach will culminate with the introduction of classroom parent volunteers. The volunteers will start this week. I will be specifically working with them on their roles and what it looks like in our class. I know the students are excited to welcome parents in.
This past week we started our first writing unit of the year. The first unit will focus on narratives or "small moment stories." For 1st graders, the students learn to write stories, and to write bit by bit, including details. But the unit also teaches them to participate in a first-grade writing workshop as they learn the habits, conventions, and mindsets of a workshop classroom. For 2nd graders, the students draw on the first-grade notion that stories can be about small, every day, beautifully mundane moments—but now, I'll present a new angle. I’ll nudge students to consider not only times in their lives, but also the feelings they felt, to find moments that matter. We had a great first week of writing and the students are already sharing stories they have created.
The class also created their own book this week. We had read a book about kindness and kind acts that people can perform. The students were then asked to think about when they are kind. What would that look like? Each student answered that question and then illustrated a picture of it. The book will be in our classroom library for kids to read. I am working on a digital version of it to share in next week's blog post. I just need everyone healthy and in school at the same time to record their voices. A big shout out to Libby for designing the cover of the book.
I have finished checking in on everyone's handwriting and letter formation. We all went through each letter to start the year. For those who have it down, are neat with their writing, and have correct starting points, they will no longer have to practice. For those who need more, a daily (quick check in) practice will be assigned. For those who have moved on, their daily work will still have to model their best ability in their daily work.
This week's read-a-louds were all about breathing. Our Social Emotional Learning curriculum focuses on students' ability to regulate themselves. One form of this is to use prescribed breathing techniques to settle one's feelings, emotions, and energy. The books all talked about how their breath can help them and different tools to use. I have to say the alligator breathing and race car breathing seemed to be quite popular.
NOTES:
*Please sign up to help with the Ski and Skate sale. The PTA does so much for our students and this is their only fund raiser of the year. I always enjoy the community feeling around this event. To sign up, please click on this link.
*We will pick up with our erosion unit again this week. Please make sure your children dress appropriately for river exploration on Wednesday.
*Please submit any book orders by the end of this coming week. I will submit the order at the end of the day on Friday.
*SNACKS! Several kids are wanting a snack in the afternoon but don't have any extra in their bags. Please try and pack and extra bar or something that can last a few days in their backpacks. You may need to explain what food is for that time. Some kids will just eat everything at lunch.
That is all for now. Have a great weekend.
Peace,
Mr. Young
