The Great Thanksgiving Challenge!!!!

Students who bring in a note on the first day they return from break listing what educational activities they did during break receive a special prize (not Caught Being Good coupons or something from the regular prize box).  Students can read, write, practice math problems, play online games (if you do the activities on the blog and comment on them, no note is needed).  A list of activities or actual work will be accepted. 

Here are some ideas!  Check back throughout the break for other ideas or come up with some of your own.  Have fun!

Write and illustrate a first, next, then, last story (like the one where we wrote how to catch a turkey) about your Thanksgiving day.

Find objects around your house and play The Drop Game.  Record your results. The Drop Game is similar to Draw the Line.  


Play an online math or reading game.  Copy and paste the link into the comment box and write about what you learned while playing it.


Read a book of your choice.  


Have fun!!!!

HOMEWORK 11-22-11

We are still working on recalling facts from expository text (non-fiction).  Please read the Kind News magazine in your child's homework folder with your child and complete a 3-2-1 chart using this material.  This publication is available to us due to the generosity of the Dare County Animal Shelter of the Outer Banks.  Please consider sending them a thank you note.  :-)
You can refer to last weeks homework for instructions on how to complete this type of chart.  

COMMENT BOX:  In the comment box, use the 3-2-1 Strategy to review what you learned.  You can (but are not required to) use the online 3-2-1 strategy chart while you are reading (if you open another window) and note your ideas as you read/listen.  On my computer it would NOT save the information I typed in.  If you would like to print out the sheet and bring it in (instead of posting your work in the comment box) that will be fine.  If you CAN save the online strategy, you can email your work to your teacher [graykr@daretolearn.org OR keeli@daretolearn.org]. Remember to put your name so we know you've done your work.  

HOMEWORK 11-17-11

This week we have learned the 3-2-1 strategy for examining expository text.  Expository text is
non-fiction and full of facts intended to teach the reader about a topic.  After reading a non-fiction text, we recall what we have learned using this strategy:

3 - Write 3 sentences.  Each one should tell something you learned.
2-  Write 2 sentences.  Each one should tell something you found interesting.
1-  Write 1 question.  What would you still like to know about the topic?

ASSIGNMENT:  Read/listen to The Thanksgiving Feast/Thanksgiving Slideshow.  The speaker icon will read the selection to you.  You can also have an adult read it with you (they can read the larger words and you can read the trick words and the words that can be tapped).  Then, complete the COMMENT BOX assignment.  There is no book baggie homework tonight.

You can also visit other areas on this site for your enjoyment, but please just use The Thanksgiving Feast for the 3-2-1 assignment. 

COMMENT BOX:  In the comment box, use the 3-2-1 Strategy to review what you learned.  You can (but are not required to) use the online 3-2-1 strategy chart while you are reading (if you open another window) and note your ideas as you read/listen.  On my computer it would NOT save the information I typed in.  If you would like to print out the sheet and bring it in (instead of posting your work in the comment box) that will be fine.  If you CAN save the online strategy, you can email your work to your teacher [graykr@daretolearn.org OR keeli@daretolearn.org]. You may want to write facts down on a scrap paper as you view the slideshow.  Remember to put your name so we know you've done your work.   

Weekly Challenge 11-14-11

On Monday we were finishing Corn by Gail Gibbons (an excellent author of many non-fiction books for children).  We learned many facts about corn in this non-fiction, expository text.  One of the pictures showed how tall corn was after 4 weeks and then showed another picture of what corn looked like after 8 weeks.  I asked the students how many days 4 weeks would be.  It didn't take them long to figure out that 4 weeks was 28 days.  However, it was harder to figure out how many days were in 8 weeks.  Thus, THE WEEKLY CHALLENGE was created for this week!

WEEKLY CHALLENGE:  You may either post it in the comment box or do it on paper and bring it to class.  It is due Friday.  How many days are in 8 weeks?  Be sure to circle your answer and explain (with pictures, words, or numbers) HOW you got your answer.  You will be rewarded for successfully completing the task.  Comments showing answers can be viewed by me as you post, but will not be released until Friday.  Have fun!

Class Lesson

This post may seem odd, but it is merely for a class activity.  I need the character to "talk" on several computers and this is the easiest solution I can come up with for now. I plan to keep it up until the lesson is done and then pull it down...just wanted to explain in case someone stumbled upon it.  :) 

HOMEWORK 11-8-11

We have read the book One is a Snail Ten is a Crab.  In this book we saw that different combinations of people feet and animal feet could represent the same number.  If you would like to share the book with your child, check out the video.  Lily and Casia did a super job sharing the story.

Your job is to tell 3 ways you can make 30 using the characters in the book. Remember how we did it in class with the different numbers?

Remember:  1 is a snail, 2 is a person, 4 is a dog, 6 is an insect, 8 is a spider, 10 is a crab. 

You may want to use scrap paper at home to draw out your answer.  Drawing and counting the legs will be very helpful.

Here is an example of one possible answer (no, you cannot use this one as your answer):  I drew 15 people and found out that 30 is 15 people.

COMMENT BOX ASSIGNMENT:  Figure out THREE other ways to make 30 and write about each one in the box.  Remember to put your name.  

Character Costume Party 2011

On October 31, 2011 the first grade had a Character Costume Party!  Each student was to read a book and come to school dressed as a main character from the story.  Then, each student retold the story that was read to an audience consisting of peers, family members, and other school staff that popped in.  I hope all of you noticed Mrs. Brown in her opera gown!  Here's a quick peek to see which characters arrived in Miss Kristin's class.  Can you tell who they are and what story they represent? 

Character Costume Day 2011 on Prezi

Word Family Activity

Yes, I'm surfing the web on this crazy weather day.  I was checking out some school ideas when I came across this one.  All you need to practice word families is a marker and some paint samples.
 Word Family Fun is a great way to practice reading the word families we've studied:  -at, -an, -ap, -ot, -ell, and -et. 

Sight Word Bingo

Considering the weather is a bit nasty, I thought I would post today so the students would have something fun and educational to do.

Sight Word Bingo is a fun way to practice sight words. As stated on the site, "Sight Words are words that are recognized immediately (on sight) without phonetically decoding or sounding out parts."  Knowing these words helps students read fluently and allows them to comprehend what they are reading.  When these words are recognized automatically, it give the brain "more room" to process the meaning of the text.

The words in this game do not exactly match the list of Trick Words we use in class.  The list of Trick Words is inspired by our phonics program and the students themselves.  When the first grade teachers notice a word that the students need for successful reading and writing, we add it to our list.  Sight Word Bingo uses the Dolch Word List.  According to the game site, "The Dolch Word List is a list of English sight words by Edward William Dolch, PhD. The list is comprised of 220 words grouped by level, and includes pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, verbs and nouns."

Begin with the pre-primer level.  If your child is successful with that level, move to the next.  Daily practice with this game should improve your child's reading skills.  Have fun playing Sight Word Bingo!

Another fun rainy...or should I say windy...day site is Storyline Online.  The Screen Actor's Guild Foundation maintains this site.  Popular children's stories are read aloud by members of the Screen Actor's Guild.  The books change periodically.  At the moment, two of our recent class reads are on there:  Rainbow Fish and Stellaluna.  Listen and read along with the actors.  For a class bonus, complete one of the Related Activities that goes along with the story you read.  You can either do it on paper or submit it to the COMMENT BOX. 

Check back periodically, I may add some more activities.  

WEEKLY CHALLENGE

THIS IS NOT THE HOMEWORK.  Scroll down to the next entry entitled HOMEWORK 11-3-11 for tonight's homework.  This is a challenge we talked about during calendar time in Miss Kristin's class.  Students fulfilling this challenge will be rewarded.  Students must have the answer and have an explanation for HOW they determined the answer.  The answer to the challenge can be posted in the comment box OR brought to school.  The challenge is also posted in Miss Kristin's room and can be solved in class.  The explanations should be clear and align with first grade thinking and problem solving. THE CHALLENGE SOLUTION IS DUE FRIDAY.

CHALLENGE:
Wednesday was the 40th day of school.  How many more days until the 100th day?

HOMEWORK 11-3-11

This week I am attempting to implement some of the new technology that I learned about at the math conference in Greensboro.  Again, I am trying something new, so please let me know how it goes.  This is a learning process for all of us.  By watching the video, you will see how to do a word sort.  Kai was a great sport and agreed to let me tape him.  And yes, we did this the day of our Character Costume Party. This sort was done with the -at and -an word families.  Before doing the assignment, please watch the video.

ASSIGNMENT:  Your assignment for tonight is to sort the pictures from the presentation below into two categories:  words with the digraph 'sh' and words with the digraph 'ch'.  To do this, students should look at each picture, say the name of the picture, tap the word for the picture and write the word in the correct category.  After you complete this for the first picture, click on the arrow and go to the next.  If you need to go back, click the arrow pointing to the left.

Your COMMENT BOX assignment requires your child to list the words into the correct categories in the comment box. [For adults:  Do not let the child see these spellings or supply them with the spellings of the words until they have made many attempts to tap and write.  The goal is for them to distinguish between the two digraph sounds, tap the word correctly, and write the word correctly.  Here are the words for each picture:  ship, chin, chop, shot, chip, shop.]  For simple posting, write sh: (followed by the 'sh' words).  Start a new line and do the same for the 'ch' words.

Draw the Line

Here is a fun way you can practice more with part, part, whole.  Being able to identify the whole and its parts is essential for developing a solid foundation in number sense. 

First, get a piece of 8 1/2  x 11 paper and fold it in half.  (If you don't have this, you can find an easy substitute:  a paper plate with a line drawn down the middle is great, too.  The main objective is to have a workspace that is clearly divided into 2 separate areas.) 

Next, find a set of 10 objects that can be gently tossed and fit within the workspace.  Pennies, PollyPocket dolls, plastic animals, plastic people, cereal, M&M's or other small candy (kids like this option so they can eat afterwards)...whatever you have on hand. 

Decide on what number is going to be the whole and put the rest of the objects aside.  Refer to this group as the whole throughout the remainder of the activity. 

Have your child toss the whole set of objects onto the workmat.  Have him observe what part of the whole is on the left side of the workmat and what part is on the right.  Ask what two parts make up the whole.  See if he can write or state a number sentence (eg. 2+4=6) that matches the workmat.  Rotate the mat so that the left part is now on the right.  Can he come up with a new number sentence?  Using the same whole, have your child toss the objects again.  Have the same discussion about the new parts.  Continue until many or all of the combinations have been found.  For the comment box bonus activity, you may want to have your child keep a list of the combinations he makes as well as the matching number sentences.

Select a new whole and follow the procedure again. 

COMMENT BOX BONUS:  For 3 'caught being good' coupons, have your child post one of the wholes she explored and list the parts that she found using number sentences.

HOMEWORK 10-26-11

Now that you are familiar with adding, it's time to start practicing addition facts to build fluency.  Building fluency means that you can easily recall the addition facts without having to count.  It's okay to use your fingers or other tools to begin, but our goal is to know them well.  Being able to recall the facts without much thought makes it easier to solve math problems.  The more you practice, the better you get.  Play each of these games at least once, then head to the comment box to get credit for doing homework.

First up is Marble Math Addition. This one will increase in difficulty as children are successful.  There are marbles that the students can use if they still need manipulatives.

Next is Addition Concentration .  In this game, students are shown sums and addition facts and must match the sum to the correct fact.

Our last game for tonight is Math Baseball.  In this game students must find a missing addend.  When you get to the page from this link, make sure you select 'addition'.  Also, select 'yes' for the question 'algebra style'.  Start out at the 'easy' level and progress to a harder level if your child is proficient.  We have been working on finding the missing part in class.  You may need to have some manipulatives on hand (pennies, cereal pieces, etc.).  Ask your child to identify the sum and talk about how that is the whole.  Then ask them the part they know (it is one of the addends).  Have them show the whole with the manipulatives.  Then have them separate the part they know from the whole.  That is the missing part.  

COMMENT BOX ASSIGNMENT:  Remember to include your name so we know you did your homework.  What game did you like best?  Why?

HOMEWORK 10-20-11

We have been learning about animals. We know that animals are LIVING. Living things grow, move, eat, need oxygen, produce waste (yes, this means they poop), and reproduce (have offspring/babies). To begin tonight's homework, sort the items into two groups Living vs. Non-Living.

Habitats are where living things live and grow. They can get the things they need to stay alive.  Play Get Me Home! to sort the animals into their habitats.

Last, with an adult, go to National Geographic for Kids. Together, read about at least three different animals. Find out what the animals eat and how they move. What do you know about their babies? Find out about the habitat where they live. You will need this information for the assignment in the COMMENT BOX.

COMMENT BOX: To get credit for doing the homework, you MUST post in the comment box or write this assignment on a piece of paper and bring it to school. If you choose to use the comment box, remember that the comments will not appear immediately. They will appear after I release them. Make sure your child's name appears in the comment box so s/he gets credit for doing the assignment. Select one of the animals you read about on the National Geographic site. Write the name of the animal in the comment box. Then do the following (adults can enter the information, but discuss the ideas together):

* Tell about the animal's habitat.

* Tell about what the animal eats.

* Tell about its babies.

* Share an interesting fact about the animal.

HOMEWORK 10-12-11

Solving and explaining problems and developing number sense is a large part of the first grade math curriculum.  For tonight's math homework, there are two games that practice this skill.  Both have timers and show the score.  You may want to write down the scores and set goals for personal improvement. 

First, your child should play Addition Sentences/Sums to 10.  While playing this game, your child should find the correct number sentence to go with the picture shown.  We have been working on the commutative property in math (eg. 3+4=7 has the same value of 4+3=7), but have not used the name to describe it at this time.  Before moving on to the next question, verbally ask your child what the number sentence would be if the puzzle pieces were flipped.  We are emphasizing that the order of the addends (the parts we add together to get the sum) does not matter; the sum will be the same.  Play this game for 2 minutes (or more if your child likes it), then play the next game.

Next, your child should play Write the Addition Sentence.  For this activity your child will be given a word problem.  You can choose to hear the word program with the proper download.  However, it is read quite rapidly.  You can read them with your child and have her read the trick words.  Sometimes students will determine an answer, but explain the answer by using a number sentence that does not represent the story.  You may want to have some scrap paper and a pencil nearby in case your child needs to work it out before entering it.  Play this game for 5 minutes. 

In Fundations we have introduced digraphs (sh, th, ch, wh, ck).  Digraphs are two consonants put together to make a sound.  Neither consonant makes its regular sound.  After these directions, I will list the "phrases" we use in class to remember these sounds.  You may want to use them to help your child decide which digraph to use for each picture.  For this game, there is not a timer.  You will need to time it yourself.  Also, make sure your child clicks on CHECK after selecting each digraph.  Without clicking CHECK, the correct answer will not be given which may reinforce wrong answers.  Please play Digraph Phonics Game for about 1 to 2 minutes.  After playing the games, don't forget to read the COMMENTS directions and put a comment in the box so your child gets credit for doing online homework.  :-)
CALL PHRASES FOR DIGRAPHS:
sh - ship - /sh/
ch - chin - /ch/
th - thumb - /th/
wh - whistle - /wh/
ck - sock - /ck/  [You may notice that this sound is at the end of the word, unlike the others.  This is so that students can associate the digraph ck being found at the end of the word.]

COMMENT:  For tonight's comment, have your child tell you a story that joins two groups of things.  Use the word problems from the second game as an example.  These only need to be a few sentences long (see the example below).  Each should end with a question.  Include the number sentence that solves the problem.  You may type in the story.  Please use your name or your child's name (you may use your first name if you'd like) in the comment box so we can give your child credit.  Comments will not automatically appear; I will release them.  For practice later, come back and visit the comment section and have your child solve other students' questions.

EXAMPLE:  Meg had 7 blocks.  She found 2 more under the bed.  How many does she have in all?  7+2=9

New Links!

As you have seen by the work that has gone home and by last week's Weekly Math Review, we are exploring addition sentences and working on joining groups.  One game we suggested on our weekly letter is called Addition With Pictures.

Another site I have stumbled upon is called Children's Stories Online. There are a variety of stories you can listen to with your child.  The story is read aloud to your child with the words highlighted as they are read.  You can have your child follow along and read the trick words aloud with the narrator.  At the end, ask some questions about the story.  Here are some suggestions for questions:
*  Who are the characters in the story?
*  What is the setting of the story?
*  What was the problem in the story?
*  How did the problem get solved?
*  Make a text-to-self connection.  What in your life does the story remind you of?  Why?
*  Make a text-to-text connection.  What book does this story remind you of?  Why?

Feel free to leave a comment in the comment box.  Let me know what book you liked best or if you find another place to find stories online!  :0)

HOMEWORK 10-5-11

Welcome to our first online homework assignment!  For tonight's homework, we will focus on math skills. The required activities are bold.  After doing the assignment, please answer the 'comment assignment' (at the bottom of this post) in the "comment" area.  You do not need to join to do it.  Put your comment in the box, sign your name, and choose to post as "anonymous".  This way, we will see that you did the assignment, but you will not have to register with the blog site.  I moderate the site and have it set so that the comments must be approved by me before they will appear.  Therefore, your comments will not appear immediately.  I will approve them at some point this week.  Include your child's ideas in the comment, but feel free to enter the text yourself (for now).  A great way to have your child help is to ask him/her to spell the trick words that you use in your entry.  As we said in the letter, this is a new experience for all of us, so we hope to work together to develop an online homework system that is beneficial for everyone involved. 

The first activity is to play Busy Bees.  This game gives your child the total number of bees (the whole), shows some buzzing around, and then asks for how many in the hive.  Your child is asked to enter that number and check it.  If your child is having trouble with this, slow down the pace and use manipulatives to help.  For instance, get 10 pennies.  If the question says, "There are 8 bees." and then shows three flying, talk her through the process.  Ask her how many bees are in the whole (answer 8).  Have her get 8 pennies and remove the others from the table.  Ask her how many she can see on the screen.  Explain that those bees are one part.  Have her move those pennies to a pile on the left side of the table.  Ask her what she can do to find out the part that is in the hive.  Guide her into discovering that there are 5 in the hive and that she can figure it out by counting the other pile of pennies.  Play this game two times (at least...feel free to come back as often as you like).

After playing Busy Bees, play Ten Frame.  Although this may seem easy, it is a great skill to practice.  The goal is to get children to "see" groups of objects and be able to identify how many there are without having to count each one.  This activity enables students to build a solid foundation for the place value skills we will develop this year.  Games 1, 2, and 3 will be the most beneficial at this time and correlate more to the skills we are working on now.  Game 4 delves further into addition and has multiple steps for adding two addends. This activity is optional. The homework requirement is to play Games 1, 2, and 3 for a total of 10 minutes.  Please sit with your child while he does these activities.  You will need to make sure he understands the questions as they change from time to time.  Be sure to ask him how he knew the answer.  Being able to explain HOW an answer is found is equally important as finding the right answer.

 COMMENT ASSIGNMENT:  Let us know what you think about our first online homework assignment. Did you like having online homework versus the traditional pencil and paper? What worked?  What would be better for next time?  If you have difficulty with the comment box, email your comment to your child's teacher (KEE:  keeli@daretolearn.org; GRAY:  graykr@daretolearn.org).  THANKS!

Math Conference

On August 4th I attended a class focusing on math and the curriculum changes that will be happening by the year 2012-2013.  I found some new online activities that you may want to explore.  One game that practices counting skills is called Okta's Rescue. The student is given a number and has to select that many octopi. To finish the game, the student has to count ALL the octopi that s/he collected throughout the game.  There are different levels of play.


Another counting game, Grouping and Grazing, allows students to group objects by either 5's or 10's and then asks them to count the objects.  There are different options and level of play.

Have fun with the new games!  I hope you are almost done with your summer packets!  I cannot wait to see you when school begins!

Reading Eggs

Some of you may have heard about Study Island, the computerized program that students in grades 3-5 use to practice their skills.  Reading Eggs is a program created by the makers of Study Island for younger students.  For July's calendar activity, please sign your student up for Reading Eggs.  In order to do this, you will need to click on the words Reading Eggs to get to the site.  Once there, sign up for the free trial.  You will need to supply your email address.  If you are concerned about giving your regular email address, I suggest opening up a free account through Yahoo! or another free email site and using it solely for free trials.  After supplying the email address, you will need to launch the program through the email the program sends to you.  You will have the choice of starting your child at the very beginning of the program or having them take a placement test which will suggest activities at your child's level.  After enrolling your child, please have him/her use the program two to three times per week as long as the trial lasts.  This is a new program to those of us at CHES so we would love to hear feedback from both students and adults.  Please leave your thoughts on the program as a comment.  Have fun!

Summer Fun!

Welcome to my First Grade blog! Some of you are visiting for the first time as part of your Summer Packet while some of you are former students still looking for some fun things to do. Hopefully I have found some games that everyone will enjoy! Play as many as you like. Let me know what games you like by either commenting in the journal you will bring to school in August or by commenting on the blog. If you choose to leave a comment here, you do not need to have an account. All you need to do is choose to comment as "anonymous". Be sure to sign your name in the comment box, though. Your comment will not appear right away. I check the comments before they get posted.

Do you like connect the dots? SUPER Connect the Dots will let you practice counting. It starts with having you count to ten and then increases each time you complete a puzzle.

Here's one that is wonderful for everyone! Have fun playing Tangram! Use the tangram shapes to solve the puzzles. Can you name all 7 shapes that are used in tangrams?

Another fun game for everyone is Moon Rock Patterns. This game is out of this world! REALLY! Complete the patterns and earn points. Can you name each pattern that you create? Remember, we name patterns with letters and only name the pattern unit (the part that repeats).

Want to read or listen to a story online? Check out Lilly the Wild Cat. If you have already finished first grade, try reading it yourself before listening. If are getting ready to start first grade, try finding trick words that you learned in kindergarten. Can you find any periods (.)? Why do we use a period? Can you find quotation marks (" ")? Do you know why we use those? I bet you can find a comma (,). Why does an author use a comma? When you are done reading, think about the answers to these questions:

1. Who is the main character in the story?
2. Is this story fiction (make believe) or non-fiction (real)? How do you know?
3. How does Lilly feel about being a wild cat at the beginning of the story? Does she feel the same way at the end?
4. What does this story make you think of in your life?

Last, check out Spelling Practice. This will help you practice spelling your trick words. Start with 'pre-primer' level and move through the others. See how far you can go. This one is even good for my older, former students!

HAVE FUN! KEEP READING AND WORKING ON YOUR SUMMER PACKETS!!!

First Grade Memories

We made it through our year in first grade! We have learned a lot and are ready for second grade! Before we leave, we want to share our memories of first grade. These are the things we will always remember about our year together!

* Jose: I will never forget the ice cream on Friday.
* Bella: I will always remember that we planted some plants.
* Austin: I will never forget the math videos because they teach us math like addition number sentences and subtraction sentences.

* Olivia: I will miss learning how to count to 100 and I will miss doing "a safe a", "e Pete e", "i pine i", "o home o", and "u mule u". Also, I will miss doing syllables and I will miss ice cream on Friday.

* Daymon: I will always remember dance parties. I will remember dance parties because everyone had fun.
* Yoselyn: I will always remember first grade because of the dance parties. Do you know why? Because we got to dance a lot. We got to play Duck Duck Goose. It was a lot of fun. Finally, we got a sip of water.
* Jobell: I will never forget learning about math. I will remember about Fast Facts.
* Osmar: I will remember we played basketball.
* Berlynn: I will always remember when we got to do the ABC cards. It was fun. Some had base ten blocks and some had ones, too. Some had money.
* Clara: I will remember doing a dance party because it gets all our energy out. Of course it was fun.
* Tristan: I will always remember the ice cream.
* Sydney: I remember learning in first grade. What I remember learning about in first grade is when Ms. Kristin told us about two syllables.
* Kevin: My favorite part of first grade is water day. We had fun with water balloons.
* Gavin: I will remember reading trick words.
* Jennifer: I will never forget doing the dance party. I enjoy it because I like dancing.
* Carter: I will never forget ice cream because it tastes good.
* Kirra: I will remember doing all the writing we did all year. Yes, maybe other people won't. It's sad.

* Mia: The thing I will always remember is the dance party because it was fun. My favorite thing about the dance party was when we get to dance.
* Tommy: My favorite thing was the plants. I liked seeing them change every day.
* Ayden: I will not forget about when we grew plants.

Plants

We are presently exploring the world of plants. Yesterday we watched a short video about the plant life cycle. In class we have grown grass, planted marigolds for Mother's Day, and are now watching what happens when we rest a potato in a cup with water. We are practicing our scientific writing skills by preparing observation pieces. We tried to watch lima beans sprout with Miss Jenny, but unfortunately they grew mold and had to be thrown out. That's the fun of science! We never know when an experiment is going to work or not work. We just observe what happens and look for solutions!

To learn more about plants with your child, check out the Plants web quest. This site proposes a challenge while teaching about the basics of plant structure. Complete the task and bring in the field journal for a special prize. This will not only serve as a fantastic scientific family project, it will also help develop reading skills; encourage your child to read as much of the text as possible while supporting him/her to prevent frustration. Although the instructions tell the students they will be creating the original plant on a program called Pixie (which we do not have), my students may create the original plant using any method they would like and bring in the completed project. I know time is limited before we release for the summer; you may want to save this activity for a rainy summer day. If you complete this challenge during the summer vacation, you may bring the completed project to me within the first week of school for your prize. :-)

Have fun learning about plants!

Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month and we are certainly excited! Our school will be celebrating throughout the month and will showcase our love for poetry on April 12 at 6:30. Students, teachers, families, and community members are invited to join in the festivities by sharing self-written works or a favorite poem written by someone else. Costumes and props are welcome, but not required. Don't feel like sharing? That's fine! Come and enjoy the poetry reading and the other activities. See you there!

In our class we have been writing cinquains! We have written partner poems about characters from Julius the Baby of the World by Kevin Henkes. To finalize our fairy tale unit, students are writing individual poems about a fairy tale character of their choice. Come check out our display in the hall! To write your own cinquains at home, you can use the graphic organizer that we used in class. It's the second page.

The students especially like humorous poems. They like to find the rhyming words and giggle when they hear something absolutely crazy. Some popular poets that the students will enjoy are Kenn Nesbitt, Jack Prelutsky, and Shel Silverstein. You will enjoy visiting any of these sites and sharing the fun side of poetry.

To enjoy some other fun poems and even learn how to write your own poems with advice from poet Bruce Lansky, visit Giggle Poetry. There you will find games, poet interviews, and suggestions for how to present poems (suggestions for props, etc. - super ideas for our upcoming Poetry Night).

For students who want to write poetry, but need a more concrete format, check out the Poetry Idea Engine. There, students select words to create limericks, haiku, cinquains, and free verse poems. This is a great springboard for creating self-written poems.

So, now we come to the part where I issue your challenge: visit some of these sites and receive a prize for completing any or all of the following activities:

* present a poem of your own or one of your choosing at Poetry Night
* post a poem you have authored as a comment
* bring a poem you have authored to school
* perform a poem for the class using props
* find another fun poetry site not suggested here and post it as a comment
* bring an art project to school based on a poem you like
* CHOICE: come up with a poetry activity on your own and share it as a comment or bring it to school

Enjoy National Poetry Month!!!

The Parade of Legs

Yes, it's been a bit since I have posted. Between the Science Festival and the wicked cold I have had, I have not taken the time to post. However, now that the Fest is over and I am feeling better, I have a new post! :-)

First, I would like to know what you liked best about the Science Fest this year. Which activities were your favorite? Why? Also, to help me plan next year, what activities did you like least? Why? How could it be better? Leave your comment in the comment box (remember you can comment using ANONYMOUS and sign your name). There will be a classroom reward for posting.

Next, I would like to offer you a challenge! Go to The Parade of Legs and follow the directions. This is a parent/student activity that will help your child see that there are many ways to solve a problem. Please allow your student to attempt to solve the problem on his/her own before stepping in to help. I am constantly amazed by what incredible thinking skills these students have at such a young age...I bet you will be, too! At the bottom of the screen (on The Parade of Legs page), there are links to pages that explore different strategies for solving this problem. Bring in a solution for a PRIZE!!! Have fun learning! Can you write your own problem like this? Write one in the comment box for your classmates to solve. Yes, I will offer a prize for this challenge, too! Excited to read your posts!

Fairy Tales

Once upon a time there was a first grade that loved fairy tales....

Presently, we are examining a genre of literature that most children adore: fairy tales. We have listed the elements of fairy tales (once upon a time, magic, love, princes, princesses, talking animals, happily ever after, etc.) and have read two so far: The Frog Prince (by Edith Tarcov) and Jack and the Beanstalk (retold by Stella Williams Nathan). Soon we will be reading other versions of the stories and compare and contrast them using a Venn diagram (you can print this one out to compare two stories). We will also explore author's message: What was the author trying to teach us or tell us about by writing this story. This is sometimes difficult for students to grasp. Often, they want to describe an actual event from the story rather than a "general message" or "moral". For instance, in The Frog Prince, a student may say that the author wanted to tell us not to drop a ball in the well or that the king wanted her to keep her promise. Sometimes when asked why the author wrote the story, a child will say that the author just wanted to tell a story or s/he wanted to teach us about frogs (in the case of The Frog Prince). When asking your child a question about the author's message, delve deeper. Discuss (as in The Frog Prince) that the author was teaching that it was not good to lie or that promises should be kept by asking questions about what the characters learned (i.e. What do you think the princess learned in this story?). Then relate that to the author writing the story to teach others about lying and keeping promises. This is a higher order thinking skill and will take some practice. This skill is something we are going to begin next week. If you would like to begin working on 'author's message', read this online version of The Frog Prince. Ask how it is like the version we read in school and how it is different. Then gradually move to the questions about what the characters learned and ultimately to the questions about why the author wrote the story (linking the character's learning to the author's message). This online version also comes with print outs so you can create your own book or have your child retell the story (there are character print outs as well). For a prize in class, have your child post a comment about the author's message in The Frog Prince or examine another fairy tale of your choice (there are several online versions as well as books that you have in your personal collection). Have fun learning with your child!

Telling Time

In math we are learning how to tell time to the hour and half hour on digital and analog clocks. Telling time to the half hour is difficult for some children because the hour hand is not directly on the hour when the minute hand has traveled from the top of the hour to the half hour. What Time Is It? allows students to match a digital clock to the time shown on the analog clock. For practice with writing time, you can create worksheets at The Math Worksheet Site. Please make sure your child clearly shows the difference in length between the hour and minute hands. Likewise, please make sure that when drawing the hands for the half hour your child shows that the hand is BETWEEN the present hour and the next hour. For instance, if it is 4:30, the hour hand should be halfway between the 4 and 5. Have fun!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DR. SEUSS!!!!!!!!

This is one of my favorite days of the school year...Read Across America celebrated on Dr. Seuss's birthday! Not only do we focus on timeless classics, but we excitedly celebrate literature (getting to wear my Cat in the Hat t-shirt is pretty awesome, too!). For some background and ideas for this "holiday", check out Read Across America Day. For online links to LOTS of Seuss ideas and online games, check out Dr. Seuss Games. Your child will adore Seussville! This site is whimsical and will put a smile on your face! Visit old friends and discover new ones! While checking out another possibly good link, I discovered that there are several videos on YouTube of people reading Dr. Seuss stories (such as Dr. Seuss's ABC)! When using YouTube, PLEASE accompany your child as it is EASY to find videos that are NOT child-friendly. If you have an iPod Touch or iPhone, there is an app where you can download Dr. Seuss books. However, I do no think that this is a free app. Let us know what you do to celebrate this magnificent author on this very special day!

Accelerated Reader

Some of you may remember that we once had Accelerated Reader at our school. I am thrilled that it is now back! For those of you who don't know what it is, it is a reading incentive program that promotes reading and comprehension. How does it work? Simply, there is a test bank. Students read the specific books that are on their level. Students can read independently, with someone, or even have books read to them. Then, without the assistance of the book, the student must answer anywhere from 5 to 10 questions about the story. Typically, there are only 5 questions on the tests for 1st graders. Mrs. Couch, Mrs. Brown, and Miss Meredith announced yesterday that there would be a competition beginning next month to recognize classes making progress in Accelerated reader. I have shown the program to the class and some students have already begun taking the tests. You may want to help your child by helping her/him read books from the Accelerated Reader test list. I will send home some suggested books soon, but thought I would suggest a few here if you were eager to begin. I am adding these from memory (I am unable to access the school's list from home) so some titles may not be completely exact (but they will steer you in the right direction. If you want to practice for your test, write a retell of the book in the comments box. :-)

Days With Frog and Toad, Frog and Toad Together, Where the Wild Things Are, Runaway Bunny, Goodnight Moon, Little Bear, Little Bear's Visit, The Frog Prince, Henry and Mudge in Puddle Trouble, Henry and Mudge-Mr. Hopper's House, Junie B. Jones Has a Monster Under Her Bed, Junie B. Jones-Sneaky Peeky Spying.

New Online Activities

Presently, we are working on place value with tens and ones. When organizing blocks to show how many tens and how many ones in a two-digit number, some of the students are having difficulty differentiating between how many groups of ten they have created and the number of blocks all together. When doing the assigned homework, ask how many groups of ten they have for each number. Shark Numbers will give your child practice counting tens and ones. Be sure to ask your child how many groups of ten are in each number. Base Ten Blocks gives your child base 10 blocks and asks him/her to build numbers. The only confusing thing is that the instructions tell you to 'make x =' and then gives the number. Explain to your child that all s/he has to do is build the number. Your child can also practice showing numbers three ways in this quick game. You may need to review this with them at first, but then they will quickly master it on their own. :-)

Another skill we practice daily is reading number words. Students should be able to read the number words for numbers up to 99. Place Value Shoot-Out is a fun way to practice reading number words.

Our phonics unit is focusing on "silent e". Some of the terms we use to explain "silent e" are "bossy e" (because he makes the first vowel say its name), "busy e" (he has a busy job...making the first vowel say its name), "sneaky e". At Starfall, students can practice making short vowel words and turning them into long vowel words by adding 'e'.

Hearing the long vowel sounds and differentiating between them is equally important. Sort pictures by their vowel sounds in this fun activity. Be sure to select 'long vowels' (although practice on the other two listed topics is fine as well).

For practicing inference (using clues to decipher what is not explicitly stated while reading), play What's in the Bag. Students are given 3 words to describe what is in the bag and then they are given three choices of what could be in the bag. While playing, ask your child why they selected the answer they chose. Although it may seem simplistic, explaining their answers helps hone higher order thinking skills.

Have fun playing! Let me know which games you like best and if you find any games you like that practice what we are learning in class.

Valentines Day Box Project

In honor of Valentines Day, we are going to have a We Love Books book party! Projects will be completed at home and shared with the class on Monday, February 14.

Assignment: make a box for collecting valentine cards using one of the project ideas from the list. The box must fit above the cubbies. Each child will present his/her box to the class on Valentines Day. This project will be graded. The book selected for the project should be one of your child’s favorite books to keep the theme: We Love Books! The front face of the box should have the following information: the title of the book and the author. There should be a slot at the top for collecting cards. Your child’s name should also appear on the top of the box.

The presentation to the class should include the following information:
* title of book
* author
* brief retell of the story (using the box for help, but NOT reading from a script-the students do verbal retells in class often without the aid of text) OR (if the story is non-fiction) s/he should share facts learned
* why the student likes the book

PROJECT IDEAS

SETTING DESIGNER: Decorate your box to represent the setting of the story. For instance, if you choose a fairytale that takes place in a castle, make your box look like a castle.

COLLECTION BOX: Create a box with a removable lid. Fill the box with items that will help you retell the story. For example, if I selected the story The Mitten, I would put in some fluff (to represent the snow), white yarn (to represent the yarn that Baba used to make the mittens), a pair of mittens, toy animals of the characters, etc. Make sure the outside of the box is decorated to match the story, too.

COLLAGE CRAFTER: Using your knowledge of the story characters, dedicate one side of the box to each character. Neatly glue pictures that represent each character to each side of the box. You can use pictures from magazines, the Internet, clip art, etc. For more information on making a collage, visit Make-a-Collage.

STORYTELLER: Retell the entire story. After putting the title/author information on the front of the box, use the other sides of the box to retell the story: one side of the box should depict the beginning of the story, the back of the box should depict the middle of the story, the other side of the box should depict the end. Each side can use a combination of words and pictures, but should not be a complete script to be read.

PROJECT DESIGNER: In keeping with the theme of We Love Books and the requirement of making and presenting a valentine box, you are free to come up with your own idea! If you want to do something a bit different, contact us to explain the idea. This option requires prior approval. If your child selects a non-fiction book, this will probably be the option you choose. For non-fiction, you may also adapt one of the previously describes ideas.

I can't wait to see your creative creations! :-)

Math Skills

We are presently exploring the world of place value...tens and ones to be exact. We are also practicing many other skills each day. In order to keep skills sharp, you may want to periodically check out the following topics (clicking on them will take you to an online practice activity):
tens and ones, 3D shapes, 2D shapes, counting coins, calendar, fact families, addition and subtraction to 10

Geography

The class has been learning about the continents and oceans of the world! Did you know that there are actually five oceans? The Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and...you'll have to ask your child what the fifth ocean is. If s/he doesn't know, look it up together! Although the fifth ocean is not on this game, your child can practice locating the 7 continents and 4 of the oceans by playing World Geography. You can check out the tutorial first and then go to the quiz. Can you find any other great geography games? Post them if you do! Have fun!

More Addition Practice

Overall the first Fast Facts test went well! I am so impressed with how well the students are doing! Parents, thank you for all your work with the children! One site I like to use is Math Fact Cafe. At this site you can make your own worksheets, if that method works best for your child. Also, there is a Flashcards section that will flash traditional-looking flashcards and allow the student to answer. If your child is doing well with the +0 and +1 number sentences, you may want to begin working on the next test set: +2 and +3. If your child is doing well with all the addition facts to 10, you may also want to begin focusing on subtraction. Ultimately, each student should memorize the addition and subtraction facts to 10. Thanks, again, for all you do to make your child successful in school. :-)

Fast Facts

Since Fast Facts are part of your daily routine, I am searching for new ways to keep you entertained while learning. Sheppard Software states that they make learning fun and they definitely live up to their claim. They offer a variety of games that give you the option of choosing what type of fast facts you want to practice (addition/subtraction/multiplication/division). The only drawback I see is that they are not specifically focusing on the facts we are presently studying (the +0 and +1 facts). Still, there is no harm in exposing your child to the other facts they will encounter this year. One nifty feature on this site is that you can email your teacher your score! If you need my email address, write me a note at school. Since this is public, I am not comfortable posting my address here.

As you check out the site, you will find other topics besides addition facts. This quarter we will be exploring place value (tens and ones), time (hour and half hour), and measurement.

Check out the other subject areas at the top of the page for more exciting activities. If you have older students, there is even practice for the SAT! Have fun exploring!

If you come across any sites that you particularly like, please post them in the comments so that other families can check them out!

Absolutely Whootie

It's sometimes amazing how I can stumble upon sites when I least expect it! This morning I was checking to see if our library system carried ebooks (for my personal reading) when I stumbled upon a link on their site called Start Squad. It is from the North Carolina Library System and contains LOTS of links. Please check some of them out and let me know what you think! :-)

The one that I was immediately drawn to was Absolutely Whootie (if you follow the links in Start Squad, it is under the Reading category). It has a large selection of multicultural stories from around the world that are read to aloud. For those of you on Facebook, you can become a fan and receive updates from the site. I cannot wait to explore this one when I have more time!

OK, kids, here's your challenge...listen to some of the stories, then choose one you want others to read. Here's an example of an entry (based on The Mitten):

I read The Mitten by Jan Brett. In this story Nicki loses a mitten and all sorts of animals decide to climb inside. I think you should read this book because it is amazing how many animals can fit inside.

When you post, I will reward you at school. HAPPY READING!!!

Jan Brett Author Study

First grade is presently engaged in an author study of Jan Brett. The first book we are sharing is The Mitten. We are discussing and creating good questions about the story, a practice that all good readers share. For instance, BEFORE reading, we look at the title and the cover and ask questions that lead us to wonder what may happen in the book. For The Mitten, we asked if all the animals were actually characters in the story. We also asked why there was just one mitten (since we usually talk about 'mittens'). DURING the reading we stopped after every few pages and developed new questions based on what was going on and then formed new questions. A few of the questions we asked were....Will all the animals fit? Is Nicki going to realize that he lost a mitten? AFTER reading we asked why the author wrote the story and if there was a lesson to learn. To practice this skill, students were given other books and asked to write their own questions about those books. Help your child with this skill when you are reading books together. :-)

Online, check out Hedgie Loves to Read. It is available for download and even has audio so you and your child can listen to it.

Also, if you are on Facebook, check out the Jan Brett fan page. You can help our school win a free visit from Jan Brett by becoming a fan of hers. Make sure you hit the tab that says CONTEST and then enter our school library as your library of choice (Cape Hatteras Elementary, Buxton, NC, 27920). Please help spread the word! :-)

Letter to Santa

It's not too late to write to Santa! Use your technology skills and shoot him an email! Hope all your wishes come true!
PS. Remember to tap out your words, use proper punctuation, and use capitals where they belong. :-)

Family Reading Night

On Monday we will be sending home a notice about our upcoming K-2 family reading night. It is going to be Thursday, December 2. The doors open at 5:45 and the event will begin promptly at 6. There will be two stations. One will be a "make and take" area where you will make an activity to help your child learn sight words. Knowing sight words automatically is a vital component of successful reading. The other station will be a grade-specific session about our phonics program, Fundations. Babysitting will be available for younger children. After the sessions, there will be snacks. The CHES Literacy Committee hopes to see you there!

To practice reading and spelling sight words, try HANGMAN. :0)

Thanksgiving

In class we have been learning about Thanksgiving. One of the books we read was Thanksgiving is... by Gail Gibbons. Do you remember what kind of text it is? Remember, the question is not asking for you to make a connection (text to text, text to self, or text to world). Think about this...is the book a "character/problem/solution"? Ready for the answer? If you answered expository to the first question, you are RIGHT! :-)

Want to see an interview with Gail Gibbons? Click on her name. You can also visit her official website to learn more about her and find a list of all her books. Try one of these activities:

* In the comment box, tell about your favorite Gail Gibbons book.

* After looking at the list of Gail Gibbons books, tell about one you would like to read.

To learn more about Thanksgiving, check out National Geographic for Kids and try one or all of these activities:

* Read First Thanksgiving by Lyssa Walker. Post your 3-2-1 chart in the comment box (remember: 3 things you learned or discovered/2 things you found interesting/1 question you still have or want to find out).

* Read Thanksgiving Traditions by Sara Zeglin. In the comment box, tell us if you celebrate the holiday. Tell us what your family traditions are on Thanksgiving day.

* Check out the other Thanksgiving activities on the site. In the comment box, tell what you did. Some of those crafts look like a lot of fun! Those mini turkey pies look delicious!

* Look for other sites with Thanksgiving information and share them in the comment box so others can enjoy them.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! KEEP CHECKING BACK FOR NEWER POSTS!

AFRICA

We have been learning about the continent of Africa in preparation for our study of Anansi the Spider. This week we explored this incredible place by helping Anansi find the missing pieces of the calabash on PBS Kids' Africa! After reading about it, we used the 3-2-1 strategy to help us remember what we learned, what we found interesting, and what we still wanted to know. Post YOUR 3-2-1 ideas (remember: 3 things you learned; 2 things you found interesting; 1 question you have). Posting will earn you a prize!!

Ordering Numbers

Numeration skills are essential for building a solid mathematical base for future math learning. Here are some fun games that will practice and/or extend skills we have been working on since the beginning of the year.

Counting Caterpillar asks the student to order five numbers from least to greatest. What is especially nice about this game is that the range of numbers can be set individually. The goal for first graders is to be able to compare and order numbers from 1-99.

Oldsmobile Cars asks students to order four numbers. The directions change throughout this game. Sometimes students are asked to order the numbers from least to greatest, other times they are asked to order the numbers from greatest to least.

Penny Prizes asks students to compare two numbers and choose the one that is either the greater or lesser number for numbers up to 99.

As always, let me know which games you like best and if you find any others that you think are fun. :-)

Word Family Practice

Working with word families allows students to explore spelling patterns so they can discover how English works. Understanding how words "work" leads to a deeper understanding and enables students to read and write well. To practice several of our phonics skills, check out Sadlier-Oxford Phonics. Scroll through the activities on the site. To practice identifying the digraphs we have been studying, use the games under the heading for second grade entitled Beginning Consonant Digraphs and Final Consonant Digraphs. The Word Drop games in both the K and Grade 1 sections will help your child improve their skills with sight words/high frequency words (typically what we refer to as "trick words" in Fundations). Quia also provides word family practice for some of the word families we have studied. Students will read a sentence and spell the word that correctly completes the sentence. Not only will they practice creating words, but they will use context clues to select the correct word. While playing with your child, ask how s/he knew what word was correct. Encourage him/her to tell you the words that helped determine the answer. Have fun learning!

Writing With Elaborative Detail

The first graders had a blast writing with elaborative detail with Mrs. Carolyn! They created scarecrows with all sorts of scraps and doodads, described them in a graphic organizer, and then created descriptive sentences about their creations! Excellent work!

Go Fish

Practice the word families we have studied (-at, -an, -ack, -in, -ug, -ad, -ap) or trick words using the game Go Fish!

We have been studying about animals in science and have been learning about expository text (ask your child to tell you that expository text is non-fiction text that is designed to teach/inform) during writing. The students have been creating their own expository writing after reading about various animals. Check out the National Wildlife Federation with your child and read about a variety of animals. What is your favorite thing about this site? Share your ideas in the comments section. :)

Coins for Cancer

The Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation is presently sponsoring its Coins for Cancer fundraiser. Our class set an all-time 1st day record by collecting $241!!!! Way to go! Keep up your generous spirit and earn the ice cream buffet!! Special thanks to Emily for organizing her lemonade stand over the weekend to earn donations for this worthy cause.

Addition Game

This week we will be learning how to write addition number sentences. While looking for some math activities, I found this cute addition game called Farmer Fred's Pumpkin Patch. You may need to explain number sentences to your child (what the + sign and = sign mean), but once they get the hang of it, I think they will enjoy growing pumpkins. Have you found any online games your child enjoys? If so, share them in the comments so others can benefit. :0)

Animals

During the 1st quarter of the school year we study animals. We learn about living vs. non-living (ask your child about the experiment we did with the rock and the goldfish). We then learn about what animals need to live (food, shelter, water, air, and sometimes care from humans). We have learned that a habitat is a place where something lives. Soon we will be exploring what lives in our local habitat. National Geographic has some really wonderful articles about animals and excellent photos. Share these with your child, discussing each animal's needs and its habitat. Post something that you and your child learn about the animals you read about. Be looking for upcoming information about our field trip to Wildfest on October 29 (after linking to this site, scroll down to read the info on Wildfest). So exciting!!

Math Game

We have begun rudimentary addition. Next week we will actually begin writing number sentences to match adding one group to another. If you want to get a "jump start", check out ABCya! You will need to show your child how to make a group to represent the first addend and then another group to represent the other addend to find the sum. I like this one since there are manipulatives for the students to use. Let me know what you think!

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.

August

Can you believe it is already August? I certainly cannot! I hope all of you have been working on your summer packets. They are due the first day back to school. If you are ready to begin buying school supplies, go to the school website. For those of you who want to compete in the Fiction Diggers competition, you can find the list of books that you will need to read this year. Enjoy your last weeks of summer! Remember school begins on August 25.

Your Own Blog

In addition to this blog, I have maintained a personal blog documenting my life in a journal-like way. I make sure I change people's names to respect their identity. To practice your writing skills and to keep a digital journal, begin your own blog using this site. In addition to writing, you can personalize it by adding cool backgrounds and changing the fonts. Let me know when you have made one so I can check it out. :0)

More Online Fun

It is very hot outside! If you are inside escaping the heat, practice addition fast facts by playing Math Line. Pair up numbered balls before the line of balls starts falling through the hole! Also, brush up on your Spanish! :0)

Digital Drama Station

Students loved expressing themselves in the Drama Station this year! Students put their 21st century skills to use, collaborating to write scripts retelling stories and then creating puppets and backgrounds (using Power Point), to perform their dramatic creations. This article, Make Your Own Animation, will give you and your child ideas for using technology to create your own digital presentations. Most of the students are already familiar with Pivot (one of the suggested FREE programs available for a project like this). Pair this program with some script writing and you will have a fantastic and educational rainy day (or any day) activity!

More Sites....

These two sites should keep the children academically entertained for quite a bit!

Gamequarium Language Arts lets the children practice spelling, punctuation, and vocabulary! Lots of links to a wide array of games. You can also go to a more general area of Gamequarium for links to other educational activities.

Another fabulous site is Mr. Nussbaum. WOW! LOTS of links to an amazing number of games! I can't wait to share this one with my children! It has activities for students in grades K-8!

As always, have fun and let me know what you think!!

Summer Packet

I have noticed that the summer packet for rising 3rd graders asks the students to use Education City. CHES did not renew the "at home" portion of this site. The 3rd grade teachers created the packet and most certainly did not realize that Education City would no longer be available. I will look for sites that would be helpful to maintain skills and post them on this blog throughout the summer. Focus on finishing the paperwork and use whatever educational sites you find to supplement. As the parent of a rising 3rd grader, I plan to document my child's use of the computer although it will not necessarily be Education City. I haven't checked it out recently, but I know at one time there was a free trial available to Education City. You also may want to check out Study Island and take advantage of the "Try Us Out" section. Study Island is what the students in grades 3-5 use (and even what they use at the secondary school).

Having recommended those sites, I have found one called Carrot Sticks. It is a math program that provides practice with addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division (all are free until the end of June - addition is free all the time). Students create an avatar and can compete with other students to quickly solve math problems. If competition is not your child's style, there is PLENTY of practice. The program assesses skill and moves your child to different levels based upon his/her ability and is for students in grades 1-5. Check it out!

If you find any cool sites, let me know so we can all take advantage. :0)

Olympics 2010

We have had a super time keeping track of our medals, writing poems about Winter Olympic sports, and finding participating countries on the globe! We have also read Hour of the Olympics by Mary Pope Osbourne to find out about ancient Greece and the first Olympic games. Wow! Have they changed since then!

To find out about the latest Olympic news you can visit the NBC Olympics site. This is the one we have used to chart the medals. What's new today? Post any information you find in the comment section. You can learn about the mascots for the Vancouver Olympics and play games with them. This page will take you to many places so you can find out more about the Olympics, both the modern games and the ancient games.

Are you interested in learning more about where countries are located? If so, check out Geography Games. Have fun learning more about our world! Let me know what you think by leaving a comment. :0)

Finally, you can check out all of the Magic Tree House books by visiting the official site. I've ordered you a surprise that is arriving when our book order comes. :0)

New Math Activities

Hey, guys and gals! These are the activities I showed you during class today! At the IXL site you can count models of numbers and write them in standard form; write the value of the underlined digit in a number written in standard form; write a number in standard form; and identify the digit in the ones, tens, hundreds place. You can also guess the number being described using clues. If you want to practice counting money, there are lots of coin activities. Just choose from the topics in the green box on the left side of the screen. The one about shapes looks cool, too! Remember that the site will only let you play for a little bit before they want you to pay to join. I believe you can play a few games each day. Have fun learning! Leave me a comment to let me know what games you try and which ones you really like. If you find something else that you think a classmate might like, let me know! :0)

Fast Facts Strategy

This post is mostly for parents....I was searching for a few games to post when I came across this strategy for practicing/memorizing addition and subtraction facts. It is a second grade objective to memorize the addition and subtraction facts to 18. Some of you use aaamath.com as well as other sites for practice. This seemed like a good method, too. By "ticks", I believe they mean tallies or some other type of mark that reminds you that they have repeated the fact fluently. Give it a try and let me know if it works for you.

Congruent Shapes

We have learned that congruent shapes are the same size and the same shape. Check out this game I found that lets you match congruent shapes! It's called Ice Blocker. Let me know what you think! Can you find other games that let you practice shapes?

MONEY!!

In honor of Black Friday, count some money! Here is a site where you can match money cards. Have fun!!

Professor Garfield

Thanks to some other teachers at school, I checked out a new website called Professor Garfield. It uses the funny comic cat to practice lots of skills. There is even a place where you can create your own comics! Make a comic of your own and bring it back to school on Monday, November 30th for a prize!! Have fun! Let me know what you like best about this site. I liked playing the trivia game against other people and watching the videos in Knowledge Box (check out the topics in other grade levels, too).

Happy Thanksgiving Break!!

Hi, second graders! We have not used this site this year, but I think you are really going to enjoy it! I use this spot to share cool websites with you and share information about our class. I even use it to post stories that you have written so others can see your incredible writing. You can use it to link to the sites I suggest or sites we have visited (like the R.L. Stine site). You can also leave comments. If you want to leave a comment, you do not have to be a member. You can select to submit it anonymously, but sign your name. Please remember to respect the feelings of your classmates by writing positive comments. I would love for you to suggest websites for me to post or share anything interesting about the topics we are studying. You can see older posts and use those to link to other sites on the web. I will leave a new post this week with some online information that I think you may enjoy. Since I know how much you liked the R.L. Stine site, I will include that one here. All you have to do is "click" on his name and it should take you there. Can you find any sites for other author's we have read like Gail Gibbons, Dan Gutman, or Mary Pope Osborne? If you do, let me know!

Rain by Ronaldo

Rain
Wet, splashy
Raining, splashing, wetting
Wet days
Raindrops

Thunder by Trafton

Thunder
Hot
Unneeded
Nature
Destroying
Electric
Roaring

Rain by Jazmine

Rain

Drippy, wet

Falling, dripping, watering

Rain, rain, go away

Water

Rain by Betty

Rain
Watery, wet
Dripping, watering, dipping
The rain is dripping on the roof.
Weather

Cloud by Henry

Cloud
Fluffy, big
Flying, soaring, hovering
Cool to look at
Weather

Sun by Samantha

Sun
Hot, bright
Warming, tanning, burning
On fire
Star

Rain by Morgan

Rain
Drip, drop
Splashing, playing, running
Go inside
Water

Poetry

Many of you have been excitedly writing cinquain poems. I am thrilled with your work! I would love for you to post some on here in the comment boxes. Click here to get to the worksheet we use to plan and write our cinquains.

We have also talked about acrostic poems. Those are the ones where you take the topic word and write it vertically down the left side of your paper. Each line you write must be about the topic and begin with the letter from the word. Here are some examples. Please post your poems.

Try out some others we discussed: free verse, concrete, rhyming! Write and post and have fun! Feel free to leave positive comments about another person's poem, too! Get your parents to write some also!!!

Disappointed

I have had this blog for two school years and I must admit that I was truly disappointed this morning when I saw that someone had left an unkind comment about another classmate. Many times this year we have quoted the phrase, "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all." Just to make it clear, that goes for writing, too. Before you write or say something, think about how you would feel if another person was saying or writing the same thing about you. If you would not like it, then please keep it to yourself. We are a class and our job is to support each other and celebrate our successes. Please do not leave hurtful comments.

So you know how this works, I get an email whenever something is posted. Since this is my blog, I have the authority to delete comments. I will delete unkind remarks. I can also choose to turn off the 'comment' option, but I like the idea of you being able to add your thoughts about activities on here.

Make a Mummy

Today we read about mummification. It was mentioned in our read aloud book Clementine's Letter. We were curious about how mummies were made so we did some research. We made our own mummy! Give it a try on Discovery Kids!

Science Fest

We are presently seeking volunteers to assist second grade with the experiment portion of the Fest. If you can help on June 4, please let us know. Mrs. Kee's class needs help from 9-10:30 am and I need help from 12:45-2:15. The task is easier than it sounds and we will be there to help! THANKS!

Landforms

As the year winds down we are learning about landforms and bodies of water. We are creating expository text by making a booklet that tells about 6 landforms/bodies of water of choice. The booklet must be illustrated and include examples of each. The students are using their textbooks and computerized material to do their research. On the National Geographic for Kids site students can play a game that teaches them about the Grand Canyon. They can also learn about Mount Everest by playing a similar game. To create some interest about other geographic topics, try the GeoQuiz. Try it until you get 100! Take the opportunity to explore the other wonderful articles and videos on the National Geographic site. Visit often as the site changes regularly.

Have some fun researching sites on your own. Post what you find so we can share it with others!!

Venn Diagrams

We have been using Venn diagrams to show how all of the students are a like and different. We have also been using them to compare stories. After reading non-fiction text, we have used Venn diagrams to compare and contrast the topics of the books (eg. spiders vs. insects). We are using Venn diagrams with two and three overlapping circles. Zoo Logic will help students sort animals into the correct pens using the concept of a two-circled Venn diagram. The site does not specifically say that the zoo pens are Venn diagrams, so you will want to ask your child what the pens remind him/her of (guide them to the answer: Venn diagram). I am still searching for other games/activities to practice this skill online. If you find one of your own, please send it to me or post it in the comment section.

Language Arts Sites

We have been working on using periods, capitals, commas, exlamation points, question marks, and apostrophes correctly in our own writing. The students are really improving this skill. For fun practice with editing, we have been using the Power Proofreading site. With its game format, it is a fun way to practice. Have fun!

For children needing extra work with sight words, Professor Garfield is a wonderful place to begin. You can select stories rich with sight words, print them out, and let your child read away. There are Bingo cards, flash cards, etc. If you would like some of the stories, but do not have access to a printer, let me know. I can certainly provide you with what you need.

A fantastic way for "chapter book readers" to make their reading more meaningful and to get them to think about what they are reading is to have them make predictions every so often throughout the book. Scholastic Instructor gives detailed instructions for doing this. Encourage your child to follow these steps. Not only will it improve his/her reading skills, but it will also hone writing skills.

Inauguration Info

With our study of how our country elects a president, we talked about the Inauguration. I was hoping that we'd be able to watch it together on the 20th, but due to the work day, that will not be an option. I hope you will take the opportunity to view this event so you can see what takes place. You can read about Presidential Inaugurations by connecting to this link. Write about it and bring it in on Thursday (or post a comment here) for a prize. :D