Saturday, November 10, 2018

Silent "e" Practice: is it "bossy"or "magic"?


So many good ideas come from Pinterest. I was looking for some new ways to reinforce silent "e". I came across this chart and it's now one that we practice a few times a week. Say it without the "e" hop and then add the "e" and make it hope. Sometimes we call it "bossy" e and other times it's "magic" e.  Whatever way the children remember that the "e" makes the vowel say its own name is a good way.
After chanting the chart, students get to enhance their learning by playing a game that features "silent e" words. (Thanks to TPT for this game.)

Science: How can objects move?


 Children had the opportunity to discover how objects move and log their findings in their Science Journals. They were given a bag of objects and then they were asked how can they make these objects move.  This child explored using the Rekenrek and said to move the balls you can slide them. For the pencil, she blew on it and it rolled.
(Once the camera came out, everyone wanted to share!)
J practiced moving the Rekenrek and a marble.
K had a top that spins to move it and a can that he used his arms to move it,
M rolled the marble and twisted the wind up toy.

Partner Reading - Sharing the Learning

The best part about partner reading is sharing the learning. After 15 minutes of reading their books independently, students will have the opportunity to share the books with their partner for the next 15 minutes. They may use Post-It notes to highlight parts of their books that they want to share with their partner. It could be anything from an interesting fact to an unknown word. During this time, we pull small groups for guided reading. Our focus this year in Reader's Workshop is to build strong partner readers that like to share the learning and become comfortable talking about books.

Saturday, November 3, 2018

Literary Character Parade and Centers

 A favorite time of year is the Literacy Character Parade for Kindergarten and First Grade students. Children get to dress up in their favorite costume and parade around the first floor of our school for the older students and parents to watch and cheer on. They also have a book that matches their character. When they return to the classroom, centers included mummy making, pumpkin decorating, paper bag bats, and a few games to play. Another fond memory for our first graders.



















Writing Partners Working Together

One of the students's favorite writing activities is working with a partner. During this time,they get to share their writing, ask for ideas, and give/receive compliments on their work. Children are writing "All About" books in whatever subject they are an expert in which includes hiking, sports, theme parks, and dance. Their reports include an Introduction, Table of Contents, How To page, Information and Conclusions. Writing with a partner helps children to build relationships and trust with their first grade friends.

Kindergarten Pow Wow 2019

Our tribe this year was the Inuit. Our students learned about the Inuit culture which included their food, housing and shelter. They sang ...