The Wonderful World of Writing - Our Celebration

 

Today was our Writing Celebration for our Series Writing Unit (Lucy Calkins). Students were so excited to show off all of their hard work. This was a realistic fiction unit of study that drew on their knowledge of Small Moment Narrative Writing. Children used a writing rubric to ensure that their writing included all that was taught: great beginnings, character development, problem/solution, and of course, a great ending. They visited different tables and read their classmates stories. Afterwards, we debriefed and celebrated with Goldfish and Skittles. It is very important to recognize all of their efforts in the genre and celebrate it for the great work that it is.

Engine 30 Came to Visit

Today we had a visit from the Jacksonville Fire /Rescue Team including Firefighter Robert and his friends.  Students had a wonderful time hearing all about fire safety, seeing the truck up close, and getting to spray the fire hose.  One of the firemen put on the heavy duty gear in the 95 degree heat and explained different scenarios to the children about how not to be scared of a firefighter dressed up that way. Thanks Piper's dad (Robert) for showing us your truck and teaching us about fire safety.

 Yes - it was very hot today but you wouldn't know it from these firefighters who did all they could to show kids what they may look like if there is a fire...and not to be afraid and hide.

Lots of questions about what is on the truck - the hammers, ladders and first aid equipment - just a few of the hundreds of items that they carry.

 Each child had a chance to shoot the fire hose and knock down an orange cone.

It was such a great learning experience for the children.  Thanks so much!!!

Meet the Author - Last Days of Series Writing

We are putting the finishing touches on our realistic fiction writing series this week. Our students were introduced to the "Meet the Author" section that is listed on most book jackets. They did such a great job on this writing, we decided to have a class share and have all the children tell everyone about their family, hobbies and interests.  Students shared their "About the Author" page with a real picture of themselves to add the authentic look to their books.

 Students were overjoyed when they were given a sheet of paper with their picture on it.  This added surprise helped to fuel a productive day in Writer's Workshop.

Sharing their writing is a one the children's favorite things to do. They have come so far these last two years...on to 2nd grade very soon.

Skills Block Activities

 Using a wooden block with "ir, er, ur, ar" on it, students were invited to roll the dice and find a word with that "r-controlled" combination. They found the word, placed their chip on the word, and then wrote it on their clipboard. This kind of "hands-on" practice helped to review and reinforce these tricky words and always proves to make Skills Block a little more fun!!

Math Reflex Honors and Writer of the Week

We like to celebrate our top mathematicians and writers every couple of weeks. The children look forward to getting their work up on the board to be shared with the class. Most recently we had "C" who made the most gains Math Reflex and "A" who wrote the cutest story about using a blanket to clean up a picture (using Kevin Henkes as a mentor.)  They also get to sit on special chairs during mini lessons for all of their hard work.  What a fun way to get recognized and to keep Writing and Math so special. 

Puppets Close Up - Speaking and Listening

One of the Speaking and Listening Standards for first grade states, "Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). Using puppets was a wonderful way to meet this standard and have lots of fun at the same time.

 Lilly and Mr. Slinger from "Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse."

We love Kevin Henkes and his wonderful characters!!

Puppets for Retelling - Kevin Henkes Stories

 

Students were invited to create their own puppets to go with their favorite Kevin Henkes books for homework. For the past few days, children presented their retellings to the class and enlisted friends to help them with their parts. 

 


Now they know the books inside out and upside down. What a great way to make each book come to life.

Kevin Henkes Celebration Day - 2015

 

A favorite day for our First Graders is our traditional Kevin Henkes Celebration Day. Students were invited to dress up as their favorite mouse character and enjoy a morning of centers. They made movie star glasses, artistic ties, and has some tasty cheesy snacks. This was surely a memorable day for our young Kevin Henkes fans. 

Reader's Theater - Kevin Henkes Author Study

We are at the mid-point in our Kevin Henkes Author Study. The children are very familiar with his books after hearing them several times. They also have a copy of one of his favorite books in their book bin and can switch it out when they are ready.  Working together in a Reader's Theater environment affords the students the opportunity to support and encourage each other in their respective roles and helps to promote fluency in reading. This group is practicing Chrysanthemum.

 Following along with the script  (Owen) is always fun and makes students accountable for their parts in the play.  Students highlighted their character or narrator part so they are aware when it is their turn.

Practicing daily helps all students prepare for their big day when they can perform in front of the class. (Weekend with Wendell)

Each group finds their own meeting place in the classroom and helps each other if their is any difficulty in their lines. This is a great way to build fluency in all reading levels. (Sheila Rae the Brave).

Valentine Fun in First Grade

 Valentine mailboxes come in all different shapes and sizes. There was excitement in the air delivering and receiving Valentine wishes.  This is a sampling of the creative boxes.

We celebrated with an Ice Cream Social in the afternoon. The children picked their toppings and had a special ice cream treat to mark the occasion. Thanks to our wonderful parent volunteers and parents who sent in all of the special treats.

Fluency of Thought in First Grade

Our "Book of the Month" for January is "If...A Mind Bending New Way of Looking at Big Ideas and Numbers" by David J. Smith.  This book scales down everything from timelines to the universe in kid-friendly terms and pictures. An exercise we used in Reader's Workshop today was to use a strategy that helps to make more meaning of what the students are hearing during a read aloud. We taught students how to keep their brains on fire, capture their thinking, and connect it altogether in order to make meaning of what they are hearing and reading. Students were asked to write the entire time they were listening to the book being read. This was not easy for first graders but we were pleasantly surprised with the outcome.
The goal is that students will do this thinking while reading, listening, and discussing books. The students write the entire time they are listening to the text.  They continually grabbed thoughts and wrote to add and revise as they grew new ideas.  The following are the results of our first exercise in getting our brains on fire.

Grabbing thoughts and writing them using numbers to separate thoughts.

Asking "How old is/are the planets?"

Some students are not ready for such extensive writing, but they experience the magic in their own way.  Brains are on fire...

100th Day of School - First Grade 2015

Celebrating the 100th day of school has really turned into a memorable day for our students. The room was full of 100 balloons, students brought in an empty water bottle filled with 100 items, and we also made a 100 item snack mix. It was an out-of-the-ordinary day but a milestone in their first grade year.  Looking forward to the next 80 days -- it goes by so quickly!



 

Celebrating the 100th day.

 

Water bottles filled with 100 items.

100 day glasses...loads of fun for the 100th day!!

Opinion Writing - Organizing Anthologies

  Students celebrated the end of the second bend in our Opinion Writing Unit by collaboratively publishing anthologies. The children worked in small groups based on a common topic (for instance, movies, super heroes, or restaurants) and assembled their reviews to present to the class. Questions were asked such as, "Who might want to read your reviews?" "What is your review helping people do or understand?"

Working on the cover of their anthology had students sharing ideas, planning the cover and talking about the piece they want to include in their book. Anthologies are available for you to read if you are interested in reviews on movies, restaurants, games, toys, vacation spots and video games. The students are very willing to give their opinion on all of those topics!

Powerful Punctuation

Skills block is pepped up with powerful punctuation Popsicle sticks. Students are given six punctuation sticks with various marks and capitalization on them to choose from when a sentence is read or written on the board. They will hold up the stick that they think is the correct answer. This is a great way to check in an instant for punctuation and capitalization understanding.

Writing Opinions About Our Collections

 Our new unit is Opinion writing and in particular, "Writing Reviews". Students were invited to bring in a favorite personal collection of theirs and judge how they would rate them: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. They spent time judging all they have collected, thinking, "This is the best because..."  They are trying to convince others of their opinions.

A few days later, students visited tables with other children's collections and rated what they thought was the best and why.  It was a time when they learned that writers don't always share the same opinion. When people disagree, this leads writers to back up their opinion with reasons.

Sharing Writing

At the end of each workshop, Reader's, Writer' and Math,  it is very important to close with sharing some of  the work that has been completed. It varies in what exactly will be shared. In Writer's Workshop, sometimes the share may be what was taught in the mini lesson, sometimes something interesting a child added to his/her writing, it could be the teacher sharing, or it could be a completed piece that a student would love for classmates to hear. In this case, it was a completed piece of nonfiction writing about gardening. It's just amazing to see how fast our writers are learning and growing much like the gardening book "L" wrote and read to the class.

Getting Ready for Turkey Day

Yes, that is glitter on our turkeys.  We call them our "Las Vegas Turkeys" and students were invited to dress them up in whatever way they wanted.  They were shown a sample, given the paper and then free-drew what they saw. We think they look amazing and help add to our excitement that the Thanksgiving holiday is just one week away!!

Our Publix Field Trip

 "Publix isn't a field trip," one of our students said as we announced our field trip destination. But his mind was changed after this visit to our local Publix supermarket. We walked (about a mile) to the store where we were greeted by Ms. Marilyn, our tour guide. She explained the different sections of the store and we visited the bakery, deli counter, fruits/vegetables, dairy and meat departments. Students were treated to fresh turkey and wheat bread and also gifted with a frisbee and book about Publix. 

 Children learned how to properly eat a mango (island style) and the difference between a plantain and a banana.

 Keeping your hands clean is very important in all sections of the store but especially the meat department. Children were told that it is not a good idea to touch the meat packaging because germs can easily transfer.

Afterwards, the same child was asked, "Well, is Publix a field trip?"  He answered, "Oh yes - I can't wait to go back and show my mom and dad."  I'm taking a guess, but I think they already know!!

Literary Characters on Parade

Character Parade on PhotoPeach

Writer of the Week

 Our writing mentor, Lucy Calkins, tells us to treat our writing like gold. How better to treat it like gold than to put the writing in a gold frame? We have now started our "Writer of the Week".  Our featured writer this week is "A" and she wrote "All About Dogs".  She told us all about the different colors a dog can be, their sizes and whiskers. "A" labeled her drawing and told even more about dogs through pages 2 and 3. All this week her writing will be in front of the classroom for all to admire. Our young writer is well on her way to author several more "All About Books".  Congratulations...and keep up the super job!!