December ❄

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write: are, now

2. Identify, sound, and write: Bb

3. Take apart groups to create equations

4. Materials and Motion!

      

🦃 I hope you all had a wonderful fall break! We enjoyed talking about what we did and all the people we were able to spend time with. We are very thankful for our family and friends!

🚌 Our field trip to the Iowa City Children's Museum today was wonderful! The students loved touring each of the areas in the museum and discovering how we can turn our imagination and play into a story. We read The Idea Jar by Adam Lehrhaupt and would love to hear it again if you check it out at the library or find a read aloud online. Extra special shout out to the guardians who were able to help us be safe and have fun on this trip- thank you! 😊

📚 This week in reading we have focused on cause and effect. We read stories that helped us identify the cause and effect of certain events and feelings. We were able to transfer this learning into our daily life by making observations of the things around us. We also continued our work with rhyming by playing a few interactive rhyming games such as I have... who has..., rhyming match, and rhyming bingo.

🔢 This week starts our first look at subtraction in the classroom. We have been talking, manipulating, and writing number sentences that express how we can take apart numbers as well as how we can take from numbers. You can help your child with these concepts at home by gathering a group of objects, telling how many in all and then asking them to show two groups taken apart from the whole. You can then ask them to put the groups back together to make an addition equation!

🖊 This week in writing we worked on checking our story. We want to make sure everyone can read our story- even us! We realized that sometimes we write something a little sloppy, don't have spaces, or are missing some details and then when we go to read our story to someone we can't. We know that authors edit their stories, and we can too! We go back and read our story again to make sure we have it just right.

🌳 We have begun our new science kit this week: Materials and Motion! This kit focuses on how we can use materials in different ways. We will focus on one material at a time and how it can be changed or put into motion. Our first material is wood! What a great material to start with as we have been learning so much about trees in our last science kit!

Up next... Fall Break 🦃

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write: what, you

2. Identify, sound, and write: Ff

3. Create math equations

4. Talk about their story!

🍎 Thank you all for such wonderful meetings to discuss our growth! I look forward to our next conferences, but in the meantime, if you ever have questions, comments, or concerns please reach out!

📚 Thank you to those who stopped by the book fair and supported our classroom library! 😊

🦃 Friendly reminder we are in school only two days next week: Monday and Tuesday! The rest of the week is off for fall break. I hope you all have a wonderful time relaxing with family and friends!

🚌 The Friday after fall break (December 6th) is our field trip to the Iowa City Children's Museum. We will be enjoying this trip from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm. Thank you greatly to those who have volunteered your time to help us be safe and have fun! 

📚 Our reading focus this week has been to identify the author's purpose. This entails reading a story and then questioning what the author shared with us and why the author might have done so. We did this with story books as well as informative books. You can help your student continue to work on this goal by asking similar questions about various stories at home!

🔢 We have continued our work with addition this week moving from only one part of the equation to completing all of the equation ourselves! You can help your student at home by telling them story problems and asking them to show you how to solve the problem with pictures, objects, and equations. You can also show your student an equation from a story problem that you know is right or wrong, and then ask them to show the problem and check if your work is right or wrong. 

🖊 Our story writing unit is well under way! We have started to really make sure our writing tells all the details. It is rather funny when we start reading our story and then have to stop and say "Whaaaat?", then we know we need some more information! We remind ourselves, that writer's say "When I think I'm done, I've just begun!" Help your child with their stories at home by asking them what they are writing about and having them tell you the details of each page. Prompt them with questions that will focus their thinking and drive them to details.

Mid-November

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write: come, me, with, my

2. Identify, sound, and write: Nn

3. Review the two sounds of Aa (a- apple, a- ape)

4. What math sign means and

5. What math sign means is

🍎 Thank you to those of you who have already completed conferences with me. I look forward to meeting with the rest of our class on Tuesday (reminder there is not school on Tuesday). We have grown so much and are excited to show it!

📚 This week and last week in reading we focused on retelling a story and drawing conclusion about a story. We did this by orally telling, sorting pictures, and acting out. We also looked at how the characters are feeling and what is being said to help us draw conclusions about what might come next or why a character has done a certain action. Last week we focused on the words come and me, and we added with and my for this week. Last week we looked at the letter Aa again in order to help us identify the two sounds the letter makes (short a - apple, long a - ape) and this week we moved to the letter Nn. 

🔢 We have moved to topic 6 in math which brings us to addition. These are some very important foundational skills that will shape the future understanding of our math. We have focused on numbers up to ten and have spent a few days focusing on each aspect of an equation. Specifically, identifying the missing numbers of a problem, looking at the plus sign, looking at the equal sign, and connecting the concepts of number sentences and equations. We will continue this work next week!

🖊 Our Lincoln Lion Rainbow Publishers have completed their very first writing unit: teaching books! You will see one of your child's favorite teaching books at conference, and the rest will be making their way home as the writers see fit. We have started our next unit: stories! We have been reading lots of helpful books that show us different ways to ensure we have a story. We remind ourselves that stories tell who, what, when, where, and why/how. These stories will have all the details! We also learned about word bubbles and how they can help make our stories come to life!

🦁 Thank you for your continued support and encouragement to our class as we continue to work to our very best ability! As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a wonderful weekend! Lincoln Lions ROAR with PRIDE! 🦁

Happy Halloween! 🎃

Ask Your Child About...

1. Review all our letters: Mm, Ss, Cc, Tt, Aa, Pp

2. Review all our words: we, see, a ,to, the, I, like, and, can

3. What classify means

4. Our expectations and assembly

Halloween Party Success!

🎃 I want to give a special thank you to all of the guardians who came out to support us on Halloween! We loved having everyone line the halls to see our costumes, and appreciated all the help our added adults were able to give us. Thank you!

🍎 Conferences are almost here! We still have slots available, so if you have not signed up yet, please click the link and chose a time/day that works best for you. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about conferences. 

Thank you! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4AA9AA22A6F85-fall

🦁 This week the school went over our expectations for bathroom, hallway/stairs, recess, and lunchroom. Please ask your child what the expectations are for each of these areas (such as body to self, voice level, and so on). We also held an assembly to learn the Lincoln Lion Roar! You can sing your school pride at home with your child:

Lincoln Lions roar with pride

Working together side by side

Honest, Caring, Responsibility, Respect

These are the traits that we expect!

Lincoln Lions here us ROAR!

📚 In reading this week we have focused on reviewing our sight words so far, and the letters we have explicitly learned. Help your child by practicing reading and writing each of these from the list above. We also worked on the concept of retelling. We focused on the big parts of the story and worked to put the events in order. You can do this at home with your child verbally, through pictures, or reenacting! 🎭

🔢 Topic 5 of math is a review topic that helps the kids connect all of the concepts we have focused on thus far. We have worked to count groups of objects, identify different ways of classifying, show a number through picture/object representation as well as written numerals, and compared the groups to find which is greater than and which is less than.

🍂 In science we continued looking at leaves and comparing their similarities and differences. We discussed shape, edge line, texture, and color. We are still collecting leaves for our class shape collection, so please send in any special leaves you find around your neighborhood! We also had fun discussing the difference in weather we have had this week- from perfect fall to what seems like winter!

   

🍁Our Leaf Pile on Monday to Snow Tracings on Thursday! ❄

Fun Weekend 🦁

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write the letter Pp, as well as its sound

2. Identify and write the letter to

3. What one more would be

4. Leaves

5. Our caring day

💗

💗 Today we celebrated one of our four Lincoln Lion traits: Caring! We wore red (or shades of red) for all to see that we care about caring. We also had special red paw tickets to give out to others who we saw being caring. That's right, not just teachers were on the look out for caring friends- all the school was watching and saying thanks by giving out a red paw ticket. Spread caring like confetti!

🦁 Tomorrow is our Lincoln Fun Night! We will have games, food, and prizes available for all to join in the fun. Come on over to the school Saturday, October 26th  from 4-7pm! 

🎉 We have filled our class paw ticket jar! We will celebrate on Monday, October 28th by having a pajama party! Please help your child pick out a set of pajamas that is comfortable and appropriate for all of our regular school day activities. Thank you and Go LIONS! 🦁

🙋 If you would like to volunteer for our field trip to the Iowa City Children's Museum on December 6th from 9:00-noon please let me know! You would help a small group of students move from room to room at the museum for some active play. Thank you!

🍎 Conferences are headed our way! I sent out a link last week with the available slots. I am also attaching the link here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4AA9AA22A6F85-fall

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding conferences and sign up. Thank you!

🎃 Our Halloween Party will take place on Thursday, October 31st from 1:00-the end of the day. If you would like to help contribute to our celebrations please click the link below. It is also Lincoln tradition to parade around the school block for all the students and neighborhood to see- feel free to join in watching! Thank you! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaca82ea5fd0-20191

📚 Our reading focus this week has been with the letter Pp and the word to. We practiced writing and reading each of these as well as kept our eyes open for them in the world around us. See how many letter Pp and word to you can find this weekend! We also looked at different text features we might see in a story; such as word bubbles, charts, or little fun facts. We understand that these can be helpful to fully reading a story, as well as just some extra information that might be good to know.

🔢 We are finishing up topic 4 in our math study this week. We are very strong in our ability to identify which group of objects is greater or smaller and are working on being able to do the same when we only see the numeral representation. We also worked with +1. This is a very important concept to understand as it helps build a solid foundation for what is to come. Ask your child about items you see around the house or while you are at the store. Ask them the tell which is greater and which is less, or are they the same? Ask them to show the numeral representation to you, and ask what one more would be. Our goal has been to not recount the group, but rather to say "I know this is 6, and one more than 6 is 7, so there would be 7."

🍂 We have continued our study of trees and use of our five senses by focusing on leaves. We have been noticing more leaves falling at recess and see so many on the ground! We have discussed how we can use our five senses to observe leaves, the shapes of leaves, and how leaves are different. When your family is outside enjoying the fall weather, see if you can find different shapes of leaves together. If you do, have your child bring them in! We are trying to start a collection of different shaped leaves!

🍁 We are loving fall! 🍂

🍁🍂🍁

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write the letter Cc, as well as it's sound

2. Identify and write the word a

3. Compare groups of objects using drawings, numbers, and verbal sentence frames

4. Our five senses

5. Perseverance!

6th grade friends helping with a small group

🦁 Conferences are coming up quick! I sent out a link last night with the available days and times. I am also attaching the link here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4AA9AA22A6F85-fall 

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding conferences and sign up. Thank you!

🦁 Friendly reminder that next Saturday, October 26th from 4-7pm will be Lincoln's Fun Night! Please join us for some fun games, exciting prizes, and tasty food!

🙋 I am still looking for two volunteers for our field trip to the Iowa City Children's Museum. There is a note coming home in your child's blue folder with more information. Please let me know if you are interested and available. Thank you!

🎃 Our Halloween Party will take place on Thursday, October 31st from 1:00- the end of school. If you would like to help contribute to our celebrations, please click the link below. Thank you! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4aaca82ea5fd0-20191

📚 This week in reading, we focused on the letter Cc, word a, and concept of details. We read several books that used our word and letter of the week and had fun finding this sound and word in them all! We also paused throughout our stories to identify important details of the story that would help us understand what and why something is happening and better predict what might happen next.

🔢 We are focusing on the written form of our numbers this week when looking to compare groups. This means we counted two groups of objects, wrote their corresponding numbers, and then considered which numeral was greater and which numeral was less. Going through each of these steps helps solidify the math concepts as well as build a deeper understanding of what it all means.

🖊 Our Lincoln Lion Rainbow Publishers are hard at work on their teaching stories! We learned that writers don't just give up when it gets hard to spell or draw... no way! Writers keep on trying until they get it just the way they like! Help encourage your child to persevere when the going gets tough by reminding them of the Little Engine That Could. We can do it!

🌳 Science has brought us to our five senses this week. We are focusing on each of the senses and what they can help us observe about the things around us. We used our five senses to check out our tree a little closer. We listened for our tree's sound, we sniffed for our tree's scent, we looked for our tree's shape, and we felt for our tree's texture. Go on an adventure with your family and see what you can discover with your five senses!

Short but Sweet Weeks 😊

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and write the letters Aa and Tt, as well as their sounds

2. Identify and write the words see and we

3. Group items in different ways to show 5 and 10

4. Identify, count, and write numbers 0-10

5. What helps a tree grow?

6. Our new tree planted by us!

7. Their teaching story

8. Fire Safety

SO HAPPY to have grass again! Grass Angels were made!

🍎 A huge thank you to you all for sending tasty, healthy, and exciting snack choices for our class! I will let you know when we are in need of more again, otherwise you can always send more as you feel inclined. Thank you!!

🦁 A day to take note: Saturday, October 26th 4:00-7:00 pm will be Lincoln's Fun Night. There is an information sheet in your child's blue folder that tells more information about this event. We hope to see you there!

  

🚒 Fire Safety week! We had a visit from the Iowa City Fire Department this week to help us learn some important information. They taught us a few songs about stop, drop and roll if our clothes are on fire, and two ways out for safe planning in every room. Ask your child what they remember Freddy the Fire Engine and Sparky the Dog sharing with us.

🙋 Volunteers Needed: We have two upcoming events that require some parent volunteers. If you are interested in either of the events, please email me so that I can get the information to you and the school screening process can begin so you are approved by event time. Thank you!

1. JA in a Day- Junior Achievement lesson completed in one half of a single school day. All materials provided and training from JA provided. You would lead the lessons and I would support. This is scheduled for November 25th or 26th (We are flexible to which day and morning or afternoon based on volunteers).

2. Iowa City Children's Museum field trip- we are required to have one adult for every five students, meaning we need three parent volunteers for this trip! You would accompany us to the museum and be accountable for a group of 4-5 students as you move through the different sections of the museum. Scheduled for December 6th from 9:00 am to 12:15 pm.

📚 These past two weeks in reading have focused on the letters Aa and Tt, the words see and we, and the comprehension skills of comparing and contrasting as well as understanding characters. You can help your child to continue their understanding of these concepts by reading various texts with them at home and practicing their identification and writing of the focus letters and words. When you are done with a story, or as you read through it, feel free to ask prompting questions about the character and why they might feel or do the things they do. You can also discuss similarities and differences between characters or even between similar books written by different people (fairy tales are great for this!).

🔢 We have continued our study of showing different ways to make 5 as well as different ways to make 10. You can do this at home by gathering various items and creating groups from them, you can also transfer this to paper by drawing the objects (or representing them with circles) and then writing the numbers to compare greater and less as well as use number sentences to explain how the two numbers come together to make 5 or 10.

🖊 Last week we continued writing our stories, expressing how we are in charge of our writing and we can use tools around us to help get letters and words on paper. This week we moved to a specific writing style: teaching books! We each thought of something we know a lot about and felt we could teach to others. Ask your child what their teaching book is about and help them come up with what they should put on each page.

🌳 We have continued our study of trees (and will do so through out the year as the seasons change) and moved to what they need to be healthy, happy, trees. We discussed how trees need sun, water, soil, leaves, bark, and love to grow big and strong. Help your child discover what else a trees needs or what a tree can provide for other living things. Most exciting, we planted our very own tree today! We will continue to check our tree and be sure to give it everything we can to help it become strong.

Picture steps of planting (let me know if you would like a picture of your child watering the tree (or any other newsletter pictures) and I can email it to you!):

Our Red Leaf Maple Tree

        

    

🦁 Have a fantastic weekend, stay warm, and as always please don't hesitate with questions or comments. 🙂

Eventful Week 😊

Ask Your Child About...

1. Review the words: I, and, like, the

2. Identify, write, and voice the sound of the letter Ss

3. Compare groups using the language greater than, less than

4. Our adopted tree

5. The new playground

6. Our new friend!

We love the new playground!

🦁 We have had several exciting things this week including a new classmate, new playground equipment, fire drill, and the Homecoming Parade! It sure is great to be a lion! 🦁

📚 Our letter of the week is Ss! We have been reading many books that have 's' in them, and we have been listening closely for the 's' sound in words we say. Continue to help your child identify the letter and sound of 's' and practice writing them in different ways! You could use play dough, mud, form it with letters and trace over with our finger- all sorts of techniques! This week we also reviewed our previous words: I, and, like, the. Please continue to work with these at home as well. During story time we also focused on the concept of sequencing. We found out that sequencing means putting things in order from start to finish. We are experts at this now- just ask your child to sequence or retell the story after you are done reading together!

🖊 Our stories are coming along quite nicely! If your child is working on a story at home, encourage them to do their very best. Remind them that they are the author, which means they are in charge of what they write. We don't need Ms. Grady or anyone else to tell us how to spell or what to write! No way! We can do it on our own! We learned that writers do their very best and know it's okay if something isn't quite right yet.

🔢 We finished topic two in math and will begin topic three next week. Topic two focused on grouping similar objects, counting to see how many, writing the number, showing how many with counters, and then using verbal cues to indicate which group was greater and which group was less. You can continue to practice these skills at home by gathering various objects from abound your house.

      

🌳 This week in science we adopted a tree! This tree is not a tree that we personally planted, but rather a tree that has been in the ground for quite some time. We will watch our tree throughout each season to see how it changes. We observed our tree to find out what it looks, feels, and smells like. We also measured our tree so that we can check its growth at the end of the year. Maybe you could adopt a tree in your neighborhood too! Enjoy the images of our tree artwork and our beautiful adopted tree!

🦁 As always, please reach out to me with any questions, comments, or concerns. Have a wonderful weekend!

Mid September🌈

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and practice writing the word: and
2. Identify and practice writing the letter: Mm

3. Practice comparing and writing numbers up to 5

4. Use the language greater than and less than

5. What shape trees can be

6. Our Writer's Workshop

😊 We are settling into our routines and where things are in the building very well! We have even been mistaken for a first grade class! WOW! Let's keep up the great work!

🦁 Now through winter break we will be hosting two University of Iowa students in our classroom! These students are currently in school completing their work towards becoming a teacher. Ms. W will be in our room every morning except for Thursdays to help us with reading and Ms. L will be in our room every Friday morning to help us with math.

🙂 As you may have heard, we have our official library check-out day: Wednesday. Some of the students have been confused as to how check-out works, so I thought I would clarify with you all as well. Each week on Wednesday, your child will get the chance to check out books of their choice to bring home. These books can stay with your child for an entire week, being returned on the following Wednesday. We do have library again on Thursday, but this is not a check-out day, it is a story and media day with Mrs. Locher. Please enjoy your child's check-out books for a full week (Wednesday to Wednesday), and return them in our backpacks when you are done.

📚 This week we have been focusing on our word 'and' along with the letter 'Mm'. We have practiced identifying, reading, and writing each of these. Please continue our hard work at home by prompting your student to work with the word 'and' as well as the letter 'Mm'. Some activities you can try are counting how many of this word or letter are in a story, or if you hear the letter at the beginning, middle, or end of a word. You can also practice neat handwriting (with paper and pencil, with a stick and dirt, using finger paints... make it fun!) with your child so that everyone can clearly see what we are trying to write.

🔢 We completed our very first math topic, and are moving right along in topic 2. So far in our new topic we have been looking at groups of object in sets of five and determining which object type is greater and which object type is less. We are practicing by matching the objects up, counting and comparing the numbers, and by using number sentences such as There are 5 toys, 3 are balls and 2 are trucks. 3 is greater than 2, so the are more balls than trucks. Keep up this work at home by comparing objects around the house!

🖊 We are writers! This week we have officially started our writer's workshop, and we have decided our publishing name should be: Lincoln Lion Rainbow! 🌈 For this first writing unit we are focusing on things we know about. This is an inviting topic as there is a wide range of things we know about and can share with others. Ask your child what their first story is about and help them remember details they can add to it on Monday.

🌳 This week in science we focused on shapes of trees. This allowed us to compare and contrast tree shapes and justify our thinking by comparing them to actual math shapes. While you are out and about, see how many different tree shapes you can find!

Feeling Good 🙂

Ask Your Child About...

1. Identify and practice writing the word: the

2. Practice writing counting and showing numbers: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

3. Show different ways to make a group of 5

4. Parts of a tree

Go Noodle Brain Break!

📘 You will find your child's Blue Friday Folder in their backpack. It will contain their school pictures and an I Can Read dvd and pamphlet for you to keep at home.

📚 Our reading focus for this week was story structure. This is considered a priority standard as it is something the students will continuously work on throughout all their years in school. You can help your child with story structure by reading books together at home and then discussing the characters, setting, and what happened at the beginning the middle (big event) and how the story ended. We also practiced reading and writing the word: the. Help your child identify, read, and write 'the' at home!

🔢 Math focused on counting groups of objects up to the number five, then practicing writing these numbers. We also looked at different ways we can show the number five (1 and 4, 2 and 3, 5 and 0, and the flip of those). You can practice this at home by creating groups, writing the number that represents the group and then showing different ways of making the number (you can split the group, show with your fingers, write a number sentence, and so much more!).

🌳 Our tree study has brought us to observe the different parts of a tree. Ask your child to identify the roots, trunk, branches, and leaves. Can they show you a comparison with their body? We also looked at different types of trees and completed puzzles to create them! Take a walk around your neighborhood and see what types of trees you can find! Do their parts look the same? Different? Try drawing them or taking pictures to compare. Enjoy the beautiful weather while exploring science in your own backyard.

🦁 We are doing a great job of focusing our minds and bodies for learning. Help your child be ready for the next week of school by asking about our routines and expectations. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns please let me know! Have a fantastic weekend!

Short but Full Week

Ask Your Child About...

1. To identify and practice writing the words: I, like

2. Practice writing, counting, and showing the numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

3. Science!

4. The drum assembly

5. Lunchroom and hallway expectations

🙂 It was a short week, but it was jam-packed with activities! The students are tired and will need some extra rest again this weekend to prepare for a [full] week of school next week.

😷 Your child may have informed you of my absence the past two days. I am terribly sorry to have missed a few days so early on in the school year but I did not want to risk passing sickness to the kiddos. 

🤧 I have noticed several friends coughing and/or sneezing throughout the days. Please be sure to check on your child's health and keep them home if they are sick. Help remind them to cover their mouths and noses by crossing their arm over their face so they cough or sneeze into their inner elbow. This helps protect our friends and keep our hands clean.

📘 Friday Blue Folders will not be coming home this week. These folders only come home when there are items being sent to you from the office or myself. Do not worry if your child doesn't come home with their folder, as some weeks there are no forms to be sent home.

📚 This week in reading, we focused on the topics of family and friends. When reading these stories we asked questions about what makes a family or a friend and how each family and friend is unique and special. We also focused on the words I and like. We identified these in various texts, practiced spelling these words, and created stories using the sentence starter "I like ___". Please help your child identify I and like in books, magazines or newspapers, advertisements and so on. Ask them to read the words with you and on their own. Prompt them to spell the words and break down the sounds within it. Lastly, help your child practice writing these words. You can create a book, sentences, or simply trace them on paper, in sand or dirt, with paint, or shaving cream on a smooth surface!

🔢 In math we focused on numbers 1-5. We practiced pointing and counting, crossing items off so we don't miss or over count. Then we represented the number by shading in the same amount that we had counted. You can practice this skill at home by counting to a number and then representing it by coloring or setting out that many of an item (toys, rocks, etc.). We are also practicing writing these numbers. We want them to be neat and clear so anyone is able to read them. Even if your child knows how to write these numbers, practice is always good! You can help guide your child as much or as little as they need by drawing a dotted line to trace over or by handing them blank lines to practice on.

🌳 The kids were very excited to start our first science unit: trees! Each child has their own investigative bag that we will use for every science lesson. We discussed how scientists only show what is real and they have to use close observation when investigating. Ask your child to identify the parts of a tree and you can compare the parts to their own body.

🦁 I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments, or concerns. I am looking forward to being back at school with all the kids on Monday!