ISB Grade 1

In Social Studies this year, the first grade students are focusing on personal development. We are using the I.S.B. WE CARE (Character and Respect Education) program as a resource. The second character trait the students are learning about is RESPECT.

What is RESPECT?

A respectful person values all people. He is courteous, polite and accepting of differences in people. A respectful person does not judge people by how they dress, their gender, their culture, race, religion, or the amount of money that they have.

Children can show respect by being accepting of people of all cultures or who speak different languages or are different in other ways. Be aware that different cultures show respect in differently. Ways children can show respect at school are by: listening when someone else is talking and not interrupting, handling feelings of anger peacefully (not calling names or hitting), cooperating with the teachers and teacher assistants, asking for permission before using something that belongs to another person, taking turns, using good manners and being polite.

Modeling Respect at Home

One of the most important challenges parents face is to help our children develop strong characters based on good values. Your child will learn how to treat people with by watching how you treat others. Be a good model of respectful behavior. Below are a few simple ideas adapted from Brighter Vision Publications.

1. Show respect to your child by spending time with him, listening to him and speaking to him in a respectful manner.

2. Speak respectfully of others, even if the person being discussed is not a friend. Remember that your child often hears adult conversations that are not intended for him to hear. Avoid stereotypes or labels based on race. Don’t tell or laugh at jokes that are at the expense of someone else. Help your child to understand that you respect all people. Be clear to your child that your housekeeper, nanny, driver and other people who the family comes in contact with deserve his respect.

3. Be respectful of the elderly. Many cultures revere their aged and the term elder is generally a term of respect. Teach your child that seniors have valuable experience and may have great stories to tell

4. Take good care of property you are allowed to use and don’t take or use property without permission.

5. Look for ways to talk about respect with your children. In the stories you read or the programs you watch with your children, look for characters that show respect and those who do not. Discuss the characters’ actions and the resulting feelings of those around them.

6. Take the time to help your children develop a respect for life and the world around them. Go on nature walks. Plant a garden. Visit an elderly family member or friend. Watch baby animals at a farm or zoo. Guide your child in understanding that life is precious.

Sincerely,

The First Grade Teachers

Tags: Social Studies Respect

Before the break, Grade 1 had their first Character Assembly.

Three students in Room 104 were awarded a certificate for showing responsibility and for being leaders in our class.

As part of our social studies unit, we explored what it means to be responsible and how do we show it.

The students pictured below were always responsible and could always be relied on to do the right thing.

Congrats to M.V.E.,  J.B. and J.K.

We are so proud of you!

Our next unit in mathematics is called Solving Story Problems. We will be working on mathematical ideas such as adding and subtracting whole numbers, counting to higher numbers, counting sets of objects, and finding multiple combinations of a number.

Click here to download the Parent Letters:
Math Parent Letter Unit 3: Solving Story Problems

Writing Workshop Unit 2: Small Moments: Personal Narrative Writing

Grade One is currently immersed in the stories of our student’s lives.  We have begun our second unit, which focuses on what we call Small Moments, or otherwise known as Personal Narratives.  Storytelling is a crucial part of a child’s language development and in this unit we give the children the opportunity to tell stories from their own lives.

This unit encourages children to find small moments from their lives to use as seed ideas in their writing.  An example of a small moment may be when you were in such a hurry to get to school you forgot to get your backpack so you had to go back and get it.  These moments are everyday events that make our lives fun and special.

Young children have a tendency to make a list of what they did in a day rather than really tell the story.   To encourage writing stories that are focused with details we ask them to “Zoom In”.  So, instead of writing:

I woke up in the morning and ate breakfast.  I went to my friend’s house to go swimming.  We had lunch at the Proclub and then we played on the jumpy castle.  Then I went home and went to bed.

We encourage them to zoom in on one part of the story.  The child could choose so many areas in this story to develop with more details. A child could write the following story instead:

On Saturday, I went to my best friend’s house to go swimming. We splashed each other then had a race.  My friend won.  I felt a little sad. Then her mom brought out ice cream so I felt better.

The second story is still very simple, but it is a focused story.  In order for children to do this we model writing small moments.  We also ask students to take the time to make a movie of a small moment in their mind so that they can “zoom in” and remember the details.  Then they should plan their story even before they begin to write.

As they write they still work on learning how to write unknown words.  This is done through stretching out the sounds in the word.  Then the child will write the sounds as they hear them.  Students are also learning to write high frequency words quickly.  High frequency words are ones they use often.

Some ways you can help at home are:

1.    Remind children to remember a small moment.  Point it out to them and say, “Wow, this would make a great small moment to write about at school.  You should remember it.”
2.    When your child is writing at home and they are not able to read their own writing then help them choose a few words to sound out and write down.  This helps them slow down and practice an important skill.
3.    Work on writing high frequency words quickly.  If you would like a list then ask your teacher.  When children learn how to write these words quickly they are able to write and get their ideas down on paper with more ease.

Dear Family,

We are beginning a new unit in mathematics called Making Shapes and Designing Quilts. This geometry unit focuses on two-dimensional shapes and the relationships among them. Students observe, describe, compare, classify, represent, and build with 2-D shapes. They will also combine triangles and squares to make quilt patterns. Later in the year, in another geometry unit, students will learn about three-dimensional shapes and objects.

Click below for the parent letter.

Math Parent Letter Unit 2

One of the amazing things about Grade 1 is how much students grow as readers. As a class, we will explore ways to become better independent readers and readers that are part of a learning community. Together, we will build the skills and strategies to do our best reading and the thinking that goes along with it.

We start of the year with a unit of study called: Readers Build Good Habits

In reading workshop and throughout the day, we will learn how:

1) Strong readers read every day
2) Strong readers talk and think about book with other people
3) Strong readers read everything in sight
4) Strong readers take care of book and protect their reading time.

We will strengthen our reading muscles and develop stamina for reading through shared reading, guided reading, partner reading and independent reading.

Students have just completed the initial reading assessments. As a result, they have been been pointed towards areas of the classroom libraries where they are likely to find Just Right Books. On Friday (or the last day) of each week, student will go book shopping and find at least 10 books. These books will become their personal library for the following week and the materials with which students read and think about the texts they have chosen. These books, which are stored in their book bags, are also ones that students will chose to take home with them each day for their daily reading homework.

Students are responsible for bringing home a book or two each day, chosen from their book bags. They are expected to read and share their reading with their families each night. In addition, reading logs are to be filled out daily. These books should be a their Just Right levels…texts that are not too easy or too hard to read and talk about. More about Just Right books will be shared soon.

In order to help our young readers develop an appreciation for and a love of reading, it is important that they read books that are of interest to them and are suitable for their reading level. Throughout the year, these titles will change and students will be given opportunities to develop an understanding of which texts are best fits.

We want children to develop a deep appreciation for their books, their reading time and the thinking that goes along with a good read. Texts, time and talk are key ingredients to becoming a good reader. I encourage you to explore different texts at home and share conversations about what is read. Remember that it is not the last page which is the goal, but the journey through the pages that we want students to explore and learn to love.

Happy reading,
Vu

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

September, 2009

Dear Parents of First Graders,

In Social Studies this year, the first grade students are focusing on personal development. We are using the I.S.B. WE CARE (Character and Respect Education) program as a resource. This month the students are learning about the character trait of RESPONSIBILITY.

What is RESPONSIBILITY?

Responsible people do what they are supposed to do. They think about what effects their actions have on others, and they accept the consequences of their choices. They use self-control. They work hard and do their best.

Some ways children can show responsibility at school are: coming to school on time, doing their homework and returning it, having the appropriate folders, bringing their hats to school every day, taking care of materials, cleaning up after themselves, learning to problem solve when conflict arises and trying their hardest to do their best work.

Ideas for Teaching Responsibility At Home

One of the most important challenges parents face is to help our children develop strong characters based on good values. Below are a few simple ideas adapted from Brighter Vision Publications.

1. Let your children do things for themselves. Parents can encourage independence by letting their children do things for themselves. Parents should praise children for doing things on their own. If you have a caregiver/nanny, talk to them about letting your child take care of their own materials, carry their bags, organize themselves for school, etc. Give your child the opportunity to act responsibility. Set goals for responsible behavior at home-take care of their toys, show self-control when angry, and so on. Help your child take responsibility for one or two chores. Make a simple job chart and mark it each time he or she completes the chores.

2. Use the word responsibility with your child. This way your child will become familiar with the concept and absorb the word into his/her vocabulary. Talk often about being responsible, using examples from your own life and the world around you.

3. Tell your child that you want him/her to be responsible. You expect it. Reward responsible behavior and discourage irresponsible behavior with fair, consistent consequences. If you notice your child, yourself or others acting responsibly or irresponsibly, point this out to your child. Talk about who is being responsible. Talk about the consequences of the behavior, both positive and negative.

3. Be careful and conscious about setting a good example of being responsible in everything you do and say. What you do and don’t do sends a message to your child.

Sincerely, The First Grade Teachers

In our first Writing unit of study, students learn to:
-Work Independently in Writing Workshop
-Use Writing, Along with Pictures to Tell Each Story
-Write Longer, More Varied, More Thoughtful Pieces
-Prepare for Publication

The purpose of this unit is to develop an understanding that writing is a way to communicate meaning. Students will use the writing workshop as a time to pay attention and share the details of their lives. They will approach writing using any means possible—drawing, written words, accompanied oral commentary—to capture that meaning.

Students will learn that during writing time they must write words as best they can. They will learn that a writer says the word slowly, listening for the sounds, and records the sounds he/she hears. (They may know about other strategies such as relying on known words, visual knowledge, familiar chunks, etc.) Students are encouraged to do thier best to write and spell.

Students will also develop the ability to work through portions of the writing process with independence (generating topics, planning writing, envisioning a subject, recording it on the page). They will learn to work through other portions of the process with adult help (rereading what he has written and adding on).

As students grow as authors, it is helpful to talk about experiences and share thinking about events at home and abroad. By sharing conversations at home or during trips, students are better able to come to class and write about them. Highlighting the sequence of events and talking about the feelings that are involved will help your child add details that are important to their stories.

In our first unit of study in Reading, “Readers Build Good Habits,” we look at:
• Reading Identities
• How to Take Care of Books and Libraries
• Understanding Reading Workshop Procedures
• How to Stay Focused on Reading
• How to Think and Talk about Books

Students will:
• Identify a favorite book
• Identify a favorite reading memory
• Identify where I like to read and who I like to read with
• Develop a reading goal
• Learn how to borrow and return books carefully
• Follow a system for taking books home and bringing them back
• Learn to focus on reading and take time to think about what they read