Our walk through Tryon Creek Park was remarkable!  The sun shone on towering trees through the autumn colored leaves.  Walking along we heard the call of birds, we saw the sparkle of raindrops on spiders’ webs, and felt the fluffy softness of moss.  Leaves of many kinds have come into our classroom as we...
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Leaves are falling, falling to the ground.  Red, yellow, green, and brown, leaves are falling to the ground  Friday we will experience autumn and the swirling leaves in the forest of Tryon Creek State Park.  Get the boots and raincoats ready!  Our learning about autumn and seasonal changes will flow through all areas of...
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Leaves are falling, falling to the ground.  Red, yellow, green, and brown, leaves are falling to the ground  Friday we will experience autumn and the swirling leaves in the forest of Tryon Creek State Park.  Get the boots and raincoats ready!  Our learning about autumn and seasonal changes will flow through all areas of...
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It has become the season of autumn and we’ve been having discussions around what makes a season a season.  Yes, the days look like summer, but what are some of the changes that we notice that make it fall?  During calendar time the students are learning what is the date, a month, day of...
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Homework for the week of September 28th-October 4th. 1. October Calendar of Activities 2. Reading Log 3. Literacy: Family Times 4. Math: Numbers Everywhere
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Perhaps in the excitement of Back to School Night, you missed the opportunity to sign up to help in the classroom.  Parents or Grandparents are needed to serve as Reading Buddies for our emerging readers.  This takes about an hour a week.  It is also helpful to have a parent in the classroom during...
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Our first days were spent learning big routines.  These past few days we’ve focused on some of the little routines like using a glue stick (remembering to recap), or liquid white glue (little dots only). When it was time to investigate sunflowers in science and art, we learned how to use and care for...
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Wonderful new friendships are being made as we come together in first grade.  Each morning it is the children’s responsibility to unpack their backpack and put everything in its proper place, then begin their morning paper, which reinforces independent reading skills and emphasizes following directions.  These are all very important routines which build self...
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Mixed emotions have been expressed throughout our last days.  Some first graders are excited by the idea of summer and moving along into second grade, while others want to hold onto the security of what they know makes them feel happy.  In the next week we will transition smoothly, while making those closing first...
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Art night was a huge success and it was a joy to see so many families attend.  The children were proud docents as adults asked them to explain their art work.  We are continuing our study of geography including the difference between city, state, country, and continents.  We have worked on mapping animals and...
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Math is an exciting time.  Along with strengthening our number sense, we are becoming more skilled at measuring and weighing.  Last week’s homework reviewed adding three numbers together.  Strategies become important as we first add two numbers, then add the third to the sum.  When Aubrey was adding 3+6+4= __, she first added 6+4...
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After studying mapping, the earth and continents, our trip to the Oregon Zoo was a huge success!  Each child carried their own map and recording journal, which they used to find their way.  Discovering and reading maps throughout the zoo was exciting.  While eating snack, Sam realized he was standing on a large tile...
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As we prepare for our visit to the Oregon Zoo on Monday, April 26th, our interest in the continents and the animals that live in different regions has become very exciting.  We’ve learned animals and people live on all the continents, but an animal may only live in a small part of the world....
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When working as a scientist we must be careful to record facts.  ”My rock is pretty.” does not give us useful information.  Each child has taken a good look (with a magnifying glass) at their rock chosen from the rock pile at the Rice Rock Museum. We’ve recorded information that describes the surface, size,...
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What we have learned during our study of rocks and minerals has given us a natural curiosity about geology and geography.  One of the most asked questions has been, “What is the earth’s inside made of?”  After pondering ideas we’ve decided it’s mostly rocks.  Our trip to the Rice Rock Museum was amazing, allowing...
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Spring brings us signs of new beginnings.  Book Making and Messages will naturally take on signs of spring.  We have successfully completed geometry, and math will now focus on measurements: linear, time, and money.  We will also work on solving word problems.  In geography the globe and maps will become more meaningful and useful....
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With Mrs. Joy’s wonderful guidance, the children’s curiosity has taken them into exploration of Pebbles, Sand, and Silt.  As scientists we use our eyes (and a magnifying glass), touch, smell, and hearing.  When investigating rocks we did not use our taste.  Here are some bits of what we have noticed so far.  Zoe remembered...
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Homework for the week of March 2nd-8th 1. March Calendar of Activities 2. Reading Log 3. Literacy: ai and ay, possessives, drawing conclusions 4. Math: Less than and greater than
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Homework for the week of February 16th-February 22nd 1. February Calendar of Activities 2. Reading Log 3. Literacy: drawing conclusions, contractions, er, ir, ur 4. Math: solid shapes
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Homework for the week of February 9th-16th 1.  February Calendar of Activities 2. Reading Log 3. Literacy: endings ed and ing, ar, plot 4. Math: What makes a shape?
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Sharing family stories has taught us about the ways families are the same and different.  Our families share sad and happy times.  With our stories we are remembering fun times.  Avi and Ivy love to swim with their families, Austin went crabbing in the ocean, Tyler goes to the park, and Darius flew to...
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Homework for the week of February 2nd-8th 1.  February Calendar of Activities 2. Reading Log 3. Literacy: ending es, or, theme of a story 4. Math: addition to 14
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