Apple Seeds

To get ready for our field trip to the apple orchard we've studied seeds and how they grow. We started by looking at different types of seeds, and then we narrowed our focus to apple seeds. Over the last couple weeks we soaked apple seeds in water so that they expanded. After they soaked, we were able to peel away the layers to see the different parts of the seeds.

Junior Great Books

Last week we began our first unit in the Junior Great Books series. Junior Great Books is a reading program that combines high quality literature with art, drama, and discussion. The main focus is answering interpretive questions through discussion and using evidence from the text to support answers. To kick off our first unit we read a variety of stories and worked on asking and answering questions about the text. One story that we read was called "The Fox and the Stork." In the story, both characters play tricks on each other. The question that we answered after reading was "Who was meaner: the fox or the stork?" Students wrote their answer on a sticky note and then posted it. From their answers we had a discussion about why they chose one character over the other. We had a perfect opportunity to talk about how during discussion sometimes we change our minds when one student did just that. We will use Junior Great Books to support reading and discussion skills throughout the year.

Nature Walk and Descriptive Writing

As we work on narrative writing we've begun to think more about descriptive writing. Last week we started working on using our five senses to describe what we observe around us. This week we went on a nature walk on the trails behind Southeast. We were careful to pay attention to what we saw, heard, felt, and smelled (no tasting!). Afterwards, we started working on turning our observations into descriptive sentences. 

Literacy Centers

Today we began our literacy centers. Literacy centers are stations that we visit to practice skills that we've learned in reading, writing, and phonics. When we go to centers we have to practice responsibility and problem solving. Our centers will change weekly or biweekly. This week our centers are whisper phones, spelling beads, Raz Kids, and sandpaper sight words. Ask your first grader for more information about each center! 

Our First Published Books

Your first grader is an author! This week many of us finished up our Jasper's Beanstalk Part 2 books and we added them to our student library. Yesterday we had time to enjoy reading each other's work and seeing our own work on display. 

Measuring with Non-standard Units

This week we worked on measuring using non-standard units. We measured different objects around the room using popsicle sticks and recorded our findings in measurement booklets. For each item we measured we made an estimate and then recorded the actual measurement. We practiced measuring with no gaps and no overlaps between units. 

Next week we will try the same activity using unifix cubes (a much smaller unit). We'll compare the two units of measure and discuss why each object is more unifix cubes long than popsicle sticks.

Sharing in Writer's Workshop

Last week we started our first grade writer's workshop! Each day we have a writing mini lesson, lots of writing time while teachers conference with writers, and time to share our work. Today was the first day that we learned about how we share our work. We practiced reading our writing with a loud voice and keeping our papers in our laps so that we can make eye contact.

We are finishing up our first writing project, which some of your saw at open house. Last week we read a story called Jasper's Beanstalk. In the story Jasper the cat climbs a beanstalk, but we never find out what happens next. Our class wrote Jasper's Beanstalk Part 2! We worked on using our imaginations, writing with sequence words, and adding details.