Mrs. Hicks’ First Graders

Upcoming Dates:

• Christmas Party December 20th at 9 am
• Christmas break December 23rd – January 7th

What we are learning:

• Spelling Words: so then, she, many
• Phonics/Spelling pattern: CVCe words: Ex: note, make  (On the back of the spelling test, there will be a CVC word like the word: not and the students will have to add an e to the end of the word to make the word the word: note and then they draw a picture of the word.)
  • Here are some example CVC words to add an e to each word to create a silent e (CVCe word).  Once the students make the new word have them read the word and draw a picture of the new word.
  • 
•  Math: Addition and Subtraction using bigger numbers. (using addition and subtraction problems with answers under 20)
  • To practice at home: I would love for the kiddos to start memorizing addition and subtraction facts where the answer is 10 and under.  You can make flash cards with the facts Ex: 2+3=, 4+5, 8+2, etc.
• Writing: Using nonfiction books to help create our own nonfiction stories.
• Reading: Nonfiction books: table of contents, glossary, labels, etc.
• Science/Social Studies: Owls: we are going to have so much fun learning about owls this week!!

This week we will be having a fundraiser to help raise money for two amazing women in our community that have become sick.  I sent home a letter last week about it and we will be collecting donations (coins, dollars, anything will help with their medical bills) in our classroom. To make this even more fun for our kiddos, each day we will have a dress up day!

Dress up days:

Monday: Wear your favorite team jersey/shirt (or your teams favorite colors)

Tuesday: Wear PJS

Wednesday: Hat day

Thursday: Bring favorite stuffed animal to school

Friday: Roughneck spirit colors

ON FRIDAY – we will be having our Readers Theater performance in our classroom at 9:30. Please try to make it if you can. The kiddos have been working so hard on this!

This week:

Spelling words: about, how, up, out (Spelling test will be on Thursday due to program on Friday)

Spelling Pattern/Phonics: Review Digraphs: sh, th, wh, ch and adding digraph ph (ph is like wh, the kiddos will have a hard time coming up those words on their own, so to practice just point out words that have that pattern in them.)

Math: Doubles and Doubles plus one. To practice at home: I would make flash cards with the doubles facts on it to practice. I am wanting these facts to be automatic for our kiddos. If they can memorize these facts it will help them so much with our other harder math that will be coming up! Once they memorize the doubles then flash the double and ask what is one more than that.  Ex: 3+3 what is one more than this double?, the answer is 7.

Doubles are: 0+0, 1+1, 2+2, 3+3, 4+4, 5+5, 6+6, 7+7, 8+8, 9+9, 10+10

Science/Social Studies: Thanksgiving

Important Dates:

• Friday, November 15th: We get to walk to the high school and watch a production of Cinderella.
• November 22nd: We will have a special performance in our classroom. The students will perform a short readers theater and a few Thanksgiving songs. The kids would love for you to come and watch at 9:30 am! More info will be sent home this week and we hope to see you all there!
• Thanksgiving holiday Nov. 25-29

What we are learning this week:

• Spelling: If, do, will, each
• Spelling pattern/phonics: sh, th, ch, wh
  • On the back of the spelling test, the kids will be asked to write which digraph is in each word: For example, there will be a picture of a thumb, the kids will have to write th.
    • To Practice:
      • Monday: Come up with 3 sh words
      • Tuesday: Come up with 3 th words
      • Wednesday: Come up with 3 ch words
      • Thursday: With your help pick out a few objects that start with wh.  (wh is harder for them to come up with words on their own.)
• Reading: We are focusing on reading with expression and fluency.
• Math:  Greater than/Less than, ordering numbers
  • How you can practice at home:
    • Give kiddos two number and ask them which is greater or less than. I am teaching the greater than/less than symbol on Tuesday so after Tuesday you can have them practice writing that. (Example: 67 > 56 )
    • We will be learning how to order numbers on Wednesday.  You can write 4 numbers on 4 different index cards and have your kiddo put the index cards in order from least to greatest.
• Social Studies/Science: Thanksgiving/ Practice for readers Theater.

This week:

• Spelling words: your, which, their, said
• Spelling pattern:  Blends: Sm, sk, scr, str
  • To practice:
    • Monday: Come up with 3 words that have sm in them.
    • Tuesday: Come up with 3 sk words.
    • Wednesday: Come up with 3 scr words
    • Thursday: some up with 3 str words
  • On the back of the spelling test this week, the students will be asked to describe something using adjectives.
    • To practice: grab a household object and describe it using adjectives.  Example: Describe an apple (hard, red, smooth)
• Math: Place value
• Writing: Focus on starting our sentences with a capital letter and ending with a period.
• Science/Social Studies: Thanksgiving/ Past and present
• Reading: Using the plot of stories: a story tells who, where, and what happened.

It is red ribbon week!

• Monday: Wear red
• Tuesday: Team shirt/jersey (also a half day!)
• Wednesday: Pajama day
• Thursday: Book Character day (if you need help with ideas to help your child be exactly what they want to be let me know! I usually can find a book on anything!)
• Friday: Roughneck Spirit

This Week: 

• Math: Place Value
• Spelling: NO SPELLING WORDS THIS WEEK!
• Phonics/word study: sk and sm blends
• Writing:  Adjectives
• Science/Social Studies: Pumpkins/ Life Cycle of a Pumpkin

Graded papers will come home Wednesday this week. Also, report cards went home last week, please sign and return. Once I see that you have signed it I will send them back home for you to keep!

Your children will be doing lots of fun activities at the end of the week, so be sure to ask them about the Witch’s Brew, building haunted houses and pumpkin painting! 🙂

Please click the link below to select your conference time!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054aaba82ca1fc1-student

• Monday, October 21st – STUDENT HOLIDAY! Enjoy this day off with your kiddos 🙂
• October 28th-November 1st – Red Ribbon Week!
  • Monday: Wear red
  • Tuesday: Team shirt/jersey
  • Wednesday: Pjs
  • Thursday: Book Character dress up day
  • Friday: Roughneck Spirit
• Tuesday, October 29th – Student-led conferences – Please make sure you are signed up!
• Wednesday, October 30th – EARLY RELEASE DAY! Students will be released at 11:30 (if your kiddo is boys and girls club please let me know ahead of time how they will be getting home that day!)

This Week:

• Spelling: we, there, can, an
• Spelling Pattern: Consonant blends: sp, sn, st, sl
  • To practice: On Monday: come up with words that begin with sp (ex. spit); On Tuesday, come up with words that begin with sn (ex: snap); On Wednesday, Come up with words that begin with st (ex. step); On Thursday, come up with words that begin with sl (ex. slap)
• Math:  Numbers to 20: place value, putting the numbers in order, comparing numbers
• Writing: Using Facts and details in our nonfiction writing
• Reading: Learning new information from the nonfiction stories we read.
• Science/Social Studies: Bats and Spiders

Spelling Words: from, have, for, by

Phonics/Spelling Pattern: Knowing the difference between a long vowel sound and a short Vowel sound.  Ex: Cake is Long and Tap is short.  To practice say a word and ask if the vowel is a short sound or long sound.  (example of words to ask: dice, tip, sip, dime, pop, note, map, make, met, meat) **They do not have to spell them just know if it is short or long sound.

Math: Review word problems/ review addition and subtraction/ figure out all the ways to make 10; Introduce graphs (Monday: Tally Chart, Tuesday: Pictograph, Wednesday: Bar Graph.  Thursday: We will see all the ways to make 10!)

Writing: Use a plan to help guide our Writing (Someone, wanted, but, then), Know when to capitalize a letter: Names, I, Days and Months.  We will also start practicing editing a paragraph.

Reading: Knowing the difference between fiction and nonfiction.  (To practice at home sort books by fiction and nonfiction)

Science/Social Studies: Finish up our unit about inventors: Thomas Edison

Reading folders came home starting Tuesday!! Please have your kiddo read each night and sign. Starting next week there will also be a fluency practice attached to the reading log with instructions on it and this will help us become fluent readers! (While we are getting adjusted to reading groups books might seem either too easy or too hard.)

Spelling words: on, are, as, with

Spelling pattern: -en,  -ed, -in, -it, -og, -ot

Writing: Using correct spacing while writing.

Math: Subtraction

Science/Social Studies: Learning about Francis Scott Key, Eleanor Roosevelt,  and Benjamin Franklin .

Important Dates:  

• Picture day Sept. 19th
• Early release Sept. 25th
• Monster Truck Show  October 5th