House Project

Due: Tuesday, December 4th  

Our next first grade project is something your child will love! The students are responsible for building a 3 dimensional model of their home and complete writing to describe their home.

The directions and grading rubric were sent home with your child on Wednesday. 

Please take a peek at the following pictures to get an idea of how to do this project! Enjoy. 

*Remember, this should not be a store bought project. We want the students to be creative and to use materials around your home, just like the Native Americans did when they built their homes. Most of the work should be done by your child with your assistance. The writing should be done by the child.

Autumn, Pumpkins, and Goblins....OH MY!!

The students have been and continue to be hard at work learning all about the autumn season!
We have 2 special happenings this month:

First, we will be learning all about pumpkins and investigating them as scientists. We will need everyone to bring in a pumpkin on Tuesday, October 23rd (please no earlier as they may rot quickly). Please be sure the  pumpkin is a size that your child can carry on his or her own. After we have investigated our pumpkins, we will be decorating them on Wednesday the 31st and they will come back home that afternoon.

The second special happening is our vocabulary parade. In class, the 1st graders will be choosing a fall word and will need to come to school with their decorated hat on the 31st. Each grade level chooses a different curriculum related theme and the entire school will then be putting on a parade around the school and YOU are invited to come see it :)

We are still working out the details and directions so please be on the lookout for more information to come home on Monday.

This is our first year for the entire school participating and we are excited to join the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders in this fun learning activity!

Once the information comes home, be sure to call or email any of us with any questions!

We're Crazy About Books

   We love teaching reading and we are excited to help each child develop a passion for reading and books! We work very closely as a team to help each child become a confident and successful reader. Later in September students will be having Readers' Workshop in a classroom where the are being appropriately challenged at their instructional reading level.
   During Readers' Workshop/Literacy Time students will be part of a small guided reading group, participate in a literacy center, and practice independent reading. They will also have direct phonics instruction (Fundations.) We will regularly assess the students to ensure they are making progress and provide necessary extensions/interventions.
   During Literacy Time the students will be reading non-fiction and fiction books, use the computers, practice reading sight words, read poems, and write. The students will be working hard, having fun, and feeling proud about their reading accomplishments! The most important thing we (teachers and parents) can do at the beginning of the year is to help the children become very interested in books! Read, read, read!

Kicking off a new year!

   Welcome to first grade! We are so excited to kick off another year at Memorial School. We hope you all had a wonderful summer filled with fun times with family and friends. We also hope you had lots of time to relax. First grade is a very busy place to be. Our schedule is jam packed so it is extremely important that you get lots of sleep each night!
   Throughout the first week of school we will play a lot of get to know you games, learn about the rules and routines of first grade, and meet new friends. We will also be exploring colors, bears, and numbers. We will be starting homework soon!
   Please make sure your child comes to school with a healthy snack and drink each day. We will provide a schedule of your child's specials at some point during the first week of school. Please make sure your child wears sneakers on Gym days.
   We look forward to a fun-filled year in first grade! Please check back regularly for news and updates.

All About Birds

We were lucky enough to have Ms. Pavlecik come in and do a bird show for us. She taught the 1st graders new vocabulary, parts of a bird, and about the different types of beaks birds have and why. As always, it was a fantastic show! We are looking forward to her coming back in March to teach us specifically about chickens when we hatch chick eggs.

PENGUIN PROJECT

It is time for our next project! Your child has chosen 1 of the 17 penguins to learn more about and teach to the class. Attached is the list of penguins and the penguin your child chose is highlighted.

The students have researched their penguin of choice and filled out a graphic organizer. Each child will be responsible for transferring the information to a report form, which is included in this packet. Please be sure they fill in any missing information and/or add any interesting facts to the report. The children are also responsible for creating a 3-D arts and crafts replica of their penguin at home. Their penguins must be true to the description—for example, if your child chose the Little Blue Penguin, its colors should represent the researched colors of a Little Blue Penguin (bluish-gray feathers) and it should be about 16 inches tall.

This 3-D penguin can be made in any creative way! Some suggested materials would be yarn, 2 liter/1 gallon plastic bottles, paper mache, a sock, plastic containers, cotton balls, feathers, tongue depressors, tissue/paper towel tubes, paper plates, paint, clay, Styrofoam products, or any recyclable materials. Let your child’s imagination lead the way!

The report and the project are both due on Friday, February 10th. The students will be making a penguin report cover in class to put their reports in and will be presenting their projects and reports to the class.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. We can’t wait to see the finished products!!

Have fun,

The 1^st Grade Team

 Here is a class picture from last year for some building ideas.

A few websites to reference are:

Penguin craft ideas

http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/penguinscraftsideaswintersnowprojectskids.html

(has some advertising)

http://www.freekidscrafts.com/penguin_crafts-t86.html (has some advertising)

Pictures and short descriptions of penguins

http://kevinschafer.com/penguinplanet/aboutp.html

Facts about penguins (no photos)

http://www.whaletimes.org/whapeng.htm

Facts with pictures (there is a little advertising on this site)

http://www.kidzone.ws/animals/penguins/index.htm

Classroom website with lots of info.  However, outside links do not always work

http://www.cityofportsmouth.com/school/dondero/msm/bird/index.html

Animal bytes from Sea World

http://www.swbg-animals.org/animal-info/animal-bytes/animalia/eumetazoa/coelomates/deuterostomes/chordata/craniata/aves/species-list-alpha.htm

Antarctic Animals

http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/antarctica_animal.htm

Info and Video on Emperor and Adelie Penguins

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Animals/CreatureFeature/Adelie-penguin

Penguin sounds

http://www.junglewalk.com/popup.asp?type=a&AnimalAudioID=10997

House Project Directions

  Your child’s first project is to build a 3 dimensional model of his/her home with as many details as possible. They will then write a few sentences describing why the house is built and set up that way.  Completed projects are due on Friday, December 2nd.  Your child will be presenting their project on Monday, December 5^th.  Please have your child practice reading their report at home to ensure their confidence when they are presenting it to their classmates. 

Please use a poster board or cardboard to build on.  You can use construction paper, popsicle sticks, shoeboxes, backyard materials, whatever your imagination can dream up. We encourage using materials found around the house rather than store bought.  The Native Americans made their homes using materials found in their backyards so we are trying to encourage the children to do the same.   Please fill out the

“My Home” activity sheet and return the project to school by Friday, December 2nd. 

Have fun and as always thank you for your support!

The First Grade Team J

Here are a few examples: