First 1st Grade Blog!

Now that I am "settled in", it's time to start making this blog part of my weekly routine! This year's first graders are FABULOUS! We have already studied quite a few word families, met with reading groups, been to literacy workstations, ordered numbers, created and written about scarecrows using elaborative detail (be sure to check out the display case as you enter the school as well as the displays outside each classroom), learned about families, and are now beginning to learn about animals. We are very busy each day! I will use this blog to keep you up to date on what we are doing. This will not take the place of the weekly letter (which is posted on the CHES site each week). This is merely a supplement to the information you receive in the homework folder. I will provide links to online activities for you and your child. I will also share student work on here. I hope you will take part in this blog by leaving feedback. You do not have to have an account to do so. You can write a comment, sign it, and submit it using "anonymous". Please remember that this is a public forum and that it is designed to be a positive place for us all to share and support the students. Any negative comments will be deleted. I invite you to share any nifty links you find as well. Thanks for supporting our class!

We have already studied the following word families: -an, -at, -ap, -ug, -in (and are introducing -ad this week). To practice these families, try The Word Family Game. After your child has come up with the sentence, write the sentence down. Cut apart each word (make the period in the sentence separate from the words). Have your child read each word. Give your child the words in the sentence making sure they are not in order. Have him/her put the sentence back together in order and read it to you. You may want to do this on index cards and write each sentence with a different color so you can tell which words go with each sentence. You may also want to keep track of what each sentence says on a "master" list or by writing the sentence on the back of one of the cards so the activity can be used again later (you can store the cards in a baggie for safe keeping). Let your child choose his/her favorite sentence to share as a comment on this blog entry. When you check this site again, see if there are any comments and have your child read the sentences for practice.