Week of November 1st

• Please get out and vote on Tuesday, November 2nd!  
• This is a shortened week, so my plan is to continue instruction from last week.

Week Review:  In reading groups this week, we will continue to focus on building words.  Just a reminder that: Level B will continue to focus on practicing sight words.  Level C will be focusing on changing the beginning letter or sound to create a new word. Our endings will have the short and long "a" sound (sat, cat, rat, hat, bat, OR make, take, bake, rake). Levels D and E will focus on adding the -ed ending to words (looked, cried, baked) and make them aware of the "unusual" rules (change the y to i and then add -ed OR drop the silent e and then add -ed).  Level F will be practicing breaking/chunking up words into parts and looking for little words that we already know (sh/out).  Level G will be building words in a pattern or sequence as found in Patricia Cunningham's book Making Words, 1st Grade.  Levels H and higher will be introducing new vocabulary through our books.  We will be discussing the unknown words in our story. (the pronunciation, the meaning)

Book/Author Suggestion:  Students had the opportunity last week to vote in an age-appropriate election.  Parents have the opportunity to vote on   Prop L, this Tuesday, November 2nd.  It is a wonderful opportunity to discuss our right to be heard and make changes to better our community.  Try checking out:
                 Voting in Elections* by Terri DeGezelle.  It is a nonfiction book with a Reading Level of 3.7. This book describes how people vote and elect government leaders and examines the history of voting in America, who can vote, and how the votes are counted.  It is a great place to start discussions with your child.
                  Duck for President* by Doreen Cronin.  This is the author of Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type She brings humor to the electoral process through her fictional story.  Students will laugh and get an idea of how important a few votes can be! 
* indicates if it can be found in the Sappington Library. 

Parent Tip:  As Election Day approaches, we may be overwhelmed with the TV commercials and countless ads in our mailbox, but I encourage you to remember that it is an awesome responsibility to be able to vote.  Try to share the importance of voting with your child by taking time to read up on the facts that you will be voting on this Tuesday.  The South County Times included a sample ballot in their paper today.  It includes the candidates and the language that will be used on your local ballot.  I think it is important to share with our students that even as adults, we can have trouble with the language of something and how we use the resources we have to help educate ourselves.  If you are interested, take some time to stop by the website that your child visited and exercised their right to vote: www.kidsvotingmissouri.org

Week of October 25th

Looking forward to seeing some of the parents at conferences this week!  Please bring any questions you have.  I hope to help shed some light :) 


Week Review:  In reading groups this week, we will focus on building words.  Level B will continue to focus on practicing sight words.  Level C will be focusing on changing the beginning letter or sound to create a new word. Our endings will have the short and long "a" sound (sat, cat, rat, hat, bat, OR make, take, bake, rake). Levels D and E will focus on adding the -ed ending to words (looked, cried, baked) and make them aware of the "unusual" rules (change the y to i and then add -ed OR drop the silent e and then add -ed).  Level F will be practicing breaking/chunking up words into parts and looking for little words that we already know (sh/out).  Level G will be building words in a pattern or sequence as found in Patricia Cunningham's book Making Words, 1st Grade.  Levels H and higher will be introducing new vocabulary through our books.  We will be discussing the unknown words in our story. (the pronunciation, the meaning)

Book/Author Suggestion:  Students will be going to Powell Hall this week and celebrating at our Fall/Halloween party.
                 The Carnival of the Animals by Jack Prelutsky can be found in the St. Louis County Library.  They describe this book-and-CD set as "a great way to introduce children to classical music. America's first Children's Poet Laureate has written all-new verses to accompany the composer Camille Saint-Saens's "The Carnival of the Animals."  This is the music that the first graders will be hearing when they visit Powell Hall.
                 J is for Jack-O'-Lantern: A Halloween Alphabet* by Denise Brennan-Nelson.  This story is adorable!  I encourage you not to avoid "alphabet" or "counting" books, because you think your child has conquered A-Z or counting 1-10.  Some of these books have rich, new vocabulary.  This book is an example of that.  There are words or concepts that you can explain when sitting down and reading this book together.  For example, witches brew, or snazzy, dangle, or kooky, crooked grin and disguise. Have fun and enjoy the beautiful illustrations by Donald Wu.

* indicates if it can be found in the Sappington Library. 

Parent Tip:  As the weather continues to get colder and we spend less time outdoors, keep an eye out for fun, educational ways to spend time together as a family.  Pick a night (Wacky Wednesdays, for example) that the TV stays off and family games are a must.  Try visiting www.itsamadlibsworld.com where there are over 250 Mad Libs to fill out with your family.  If you aren't familiar with Mad Libs, they are a "funny, often ridiculous story created when you fill in the blanks with the part of speech that is requested."  Most likely you will have to help them with some examples of a noun, verb, adjective, adverb, etc.  but giving them a few examples (the wackier, the better) will help expand their own vocabulary.  The end result is a funny story that most first graders want to hear over and over again! 

Week of October 18th

Week Review:  In reading groups this week, we will focus on our writing skills.  Levels A and B will be using sight words to create a story using repetitive language.  We will be using our books for an example, but we will continue the story by adding our own sentences.  For example, "We will go (up/down)."  Level C will be writing sentences that include an new/unknown word that we found in our story for the day.  Levels D and E will be writing sentences that include the -ed ending.  We will discuss dropping the silent e at the end of words such as "baked" or changing the "y" to "i" such as cried.  Levels F and G will be writing sentences using the new vocabulary that they were introduced to in their new book.  While writing out the new words, we will listen to chunks of the word at a time.  Levels H and above will be focusing on writing sentences that answer a question about the story we just read.  They will try to restate the question in the beginning of their writing.  Q:"Why are Kenny and Amber still hungry at the end of the story?"  A:"They are still hungry because Gilbert ate all of their food."


Book/Author Suggestion:  This week is another fun-filled week in October.  We have a firefighter visit this week AND we will be celebrating Missouri Day and Columbus Day.  Soooooo...I have THREE suggestions this week ;)

• A Day with Firefighters by Jan Kottke * is a book that gives a simplified version of a day in the life of a firefighter.  It is a 1.2 reading level and should be the perfect level for your first grader.  You may need to help them with some of the more challenging words, but encourage them to read it to you :) 
• Christopher Columbus by Lola M. Schaefer * is a biography of Christopher Columbus without giving too many details and your first grader begins to lose interest.  The reading level for this book is 2.1 (a little higher), but the content is appropriate for Kindergarten through Third Grade. 
• Missouri by Patricia K. Kummer, the Capstone Press Geography Department, is my final choice.  The reading level is actually a 4.0 which is too high for many of our first graders, but the Fun Facts, Famous Missourians, The Missouri Timeline and pictures all make it easy to use and worth the time to talk about with your child.  Many of the pictures are of places that you have traveled with them.  So take the time to peruse through and maybe it will inspire your family to take a field trip!

* indicates if it can be found in the Sappington Library. 


Parent Tip:  Now is a good time to check with your child to make sure they can recognize or read important safety signs.  Do they know how to read the word "exit" or "stop"?  As they grow in their ability to read at school, encourage them to take on responsibility with their safety.  Read the street sign and practice writing the name of the street that you live on.  If they are riding their bike, can they read the "stop" sign, or "warning" signs in your area, "construction" signs when you are stuck in traffic?  My last suggestion is to create and write a plan in case of an emergency.  If there is a fire, what is the family plan?  What do they do? Where do they go?  By writing out these plans, you are practicing their skills, but also helping them to remember what to do in an emergency.  It's always good to practice.  

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Week of October 11th

Week Review:  In reading groups this week, we will focus on building words.  Levels A and B will focus on practicing sight words.  Level C will be focusing on changing the beginning letter or sound to create a new word. Our endings will have the short and long "e" sound (me, we, be, she  OR bell, tell, sell, well, shell) .  Levels D and E will focus on adding the -ing ending to known words (looking, playing, jumping).  Level F will be practicing breaking/chunking up words into parts and looking for little words that we already know (sh/out).  Level G will be building words in a pattern or sequence as found in Patricia Cunningham's book Making Words, 1st Grade.  Levels H and higher will be introducing new vocabulary through our books.  We will be discussing the unknown words in our story. (the pronunciation, the meaning)


Book/Author Suggestion:  This Friday is the day we celebrate Curious George.  It would be great to familiarize your child with the authors, Margaret and H.A. Rey.  Some titles that I would recommend are Curious George Learns the Alphabet*, Curious George at the Fire Station*, and Curious George Goes to a Costume Party*.  These books also correlate with another theme within October for first grade (alphabet, fire safety and Halloween). 

* indicates if it can be found in the Sappington Library. 

Parent Tip:  There are lots of wonderful websites when helping your child learn to read, but who has the time to go through all of them?  When looking for a refresher on ways to help your child, or fun activities to try at home, I have found the PBS website very helpful.  Visit their Reading & Language section to get some great ideas on how to help your "First Grader Read and Write".  They have activities and games that you AND your 1st grader will find fun.  They also have a Curious George section on their PBS kids site.  Don't forget to make reading fun!!