November 9-13

Hello Parents,

We had another fantastic week last week! The pyjama and stuffy day was enjoyed by all our friends! They worked hard and deserved it! Love the teamwork!

It was so neat to hear the children tell me that they notice so many word wall words while reading the levelled books in class during Independent Reading. I encourage you to have your child use Raz-Kids as much as you have time for it. A child last year started at level 2 in October and he read and improved weekly and by the end of the year that child read at a level 22! That child used Raz-Kids often throughout the year and all the hard work paid off! Remember that understanding the text is key. A child who can decode the words but doesn’t understand what has been read is not ready for that level of text. There is so much growth and change that goes on in Grade 1. Your child works hard at school. We learn a lot and have fun doing it! As you can imagine, it is challenging to be one teacher to 19+ children in one class. Some children need a little extra support. They are all at different levels in reading, writing and math and that is ok. Your child will be most successful if they work hard at school (We call it being “On The Job”) and have some extra support with their reading, writing and math at home, that only a parent can give them, one-on-one. The amount needed varies per child of course. I am looking forward to meeting with every family during interviews so we can talk about your child’s learning.

In Language, not that most children can write a simple sentence, we will introduce a Descriptive Writing Checklist during our descriptive writing work. Here is what it looks like:

Descriptive Writing Checklist:

• I have an opening sentence
• I have included 3 details
• I have a closing sentence

This is used along with the Writer’s Checklist which is now expected with all written work.

In Math, we talked about number sentences with addition and subtraction and how to write them using math symbols ( +  -  =  ). We will continue to explore numbers and do Inquiry Problems each week. Here is an example: Katrina has 12 apples. Some are red and some are green. How many of each apple might she have?

In Science, we are exploring our knowledge about Seasons and Seasonal Changes. This week, we will continue to focus on the Fall season (clothing, animals, activities, celebrations, food, weather etc). If time permits, we will do a leaf collage after reading the story “Leaf Man”.

Last week, our class did very well during our school lockdown. I had to remind just two students that there is NO talking aloud at all during this time. Please ask the how a lockdown works at our school when they are in the bathroom, hallway and in our classroom.

Note that interview night is Thursday, November 19th starting at 4:00pm. If you already know that this night doesn’t work for you, please write me a note in your child’s agenda.

Appointments are booked online.

Please sign and return Report Card envelopes by Tuesday. Thanks

Important Dates:

• Wednesday, November 11th - Remembrance Day Ceremony at 10:45am
• Wednesday, November 11th - Special Remembrance Day Craft Session with Nanny Sue
• Friday, November 13th - Gospel Value Assembly - Justice at 9:30am
• November 16th-20th - Bully Awareness and Prevention Week
• Thursday, November 19th - Parent-Teacher Interviews starting at 4:00pm
• Friday, November 20th - PD Day - No school

I hope you all have a great week!