Doubles

We have been working a lot on adding doubles. Here are two great songs to help your child memorize the doubles facts.

 

Sound and Light Investigations

We just finished a fun unit on Sound and Light. The first part of the project focused on sound. The learning goal of the sound unit was for students to be able to identify sound sources, explain the difference between volume and pitch, and understand that sound travels from the source to the receiver.

First, students practiced identifying sound sources. They took turns with a partner to drop objects and identify what object (i.e. coin, pencil, ball, etc.) made that sound. 

Next, we practiced making sounds and changing the volume and the pitch. We learned that the longer the tube or string, the lower the pitch. We also learned that the harder we tap the tube or pluck the string, the louder the volume will be. 

Last, we learned about how sound travels from the sound source to the sound receiver. We made spoon gongs and played telephone.

The second part of our unit focused on light. The learning goal of this portion of the unit was to identify how shadows are made. Students were given flashlights and a variety of objects and given the task to make a shadow. They really enjoyed making different shadows. They learned that shadows are made when an object is placed in front of a light source. 

The students learned so much in this unit! It was a lot of fun to teach, too! 

Thanksgiving Feast

First Grade had a feast on Tuesday to celebrate Thanksgiving. Each class contributed to the meal. Mrs. Flanegin's class provided the soup. Mrs. Porter's class made mashed potatoes. Mrs. Malaponti's class made cornbread, and our class made dirt cake (complete with gummy worms!). We prepared the dirt cake together on Tuesday morning and shared it with all of the first grade classes on Tuesday afternoon. Each student also brought a placemat that he/she created. We learned about appropriate manners at the dinner table, as well as how to set the table. It was a fun time!

Veteran's Day

We did so many wonderful things today to honor our veterans. We learned all about Veterans Day, who veterans are, and why we celebrate. We created this video to thank our veterans.

We took some time to honor our family and friends who are veterans. These students made little military men to share with the class since their special veterans couldn't come to school with them. 

We had a surprise visit from a very special veteran today, Ed Emory, and we learned about the hard work it takes to become a member of the military. Ed, Mrs. Jeffers' Dad (our computer teacher), told us about his role in the army. The students loved his story and had lots of questions for him.

 We ended the day by making a book to teach others about Veteran's Day. It was a very special day to honor very special people in our country. Thank you for all you do! Happy Veteran's Day! 

Fall Party Day

We had so much fun on Friday! We celebrated our Fall Party in the afternoon--complete with a donut competition (Ghosts vs. Bats), eating witch's brew, spider hat craft, and pin-the-nose-on-the-jack-o-lantern! However, we didn't wait until the party to have fun... In the morning, we had a school-wide assembly, celebrating students with perfect attendance, Students of the Month, and Character Kids. Then, we dissected plants to identify and label plant parts. We also wrote about How to Carve a Jack-o-Lantern. Of course, in order to do this, we had to actually carve a pumpkin, with the help of Ms. Foster! The kids had so much fun, especially on the "scooping the guts" part. See the video for some highlights of the fun day! Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween weekend!

Faulkner's Ranch Field Trip

We had an incredibly awesome time on our field trip today! We learned about the life cycle of a pumpkin, fed animals at the petting zoo, went on a scavenger hunt through a sorghum maze, went on a hayride, picked our very own pumpkins, and played all sorts of fun games! It was a huge success! See more pictures here: https://goo.gl/photos/XVYuTa4aLW5m7zkB8   

Introducing Vowel Town

 At our school we have a phonics program called Pathways to Reading. Pathways to Reading teaches vowel sounds and spellings using a visual called Vowel Town. The hill on the left is called Smile Hill because all the sounds on that side make your mouth smile. They are placed going down the hill according to how open your mouth is when you say the sound. As you go down the hill your mouth opens wider and wider. The valley is called the Wide Open Valley because your mouth is wide open when you make that sound. The hill to the right is called Circle Hill because your mouth makes a circle as you say those sounds. As you move up the hill, your circle closes more and more. The bottom sounds along the road are called taxi sounds because when you say them, your mouth moves from one position to another. The hill in the background houses the R Apartment. The /ir/, /er/, /ur/ sound lives at the top on the curve. Mr. R lives in the middle apartment. He often says /ar/, and /or/ lives in the bottom apartment by the door. (This incredibly clear description of vowel town was borrowed from this wonderful teacher.)

After students learn the vowel sounds and spellings, they are prompted to spot the vowel in words to help them decode the word. This is very helpful because often times the vowels are the trickiest part of the word. If they can figure out the vowel sound, then the word is much easier to decode. Watch the video below for more information about vowel town and how we use it in the classroom.

 

Caring for our Physical, Social, and Emotional Needs

The first graders at Lewis have been learning about caring for one another's physical, social, and emotional needs. This is a project we started at the beginning of the school year. Some of the pieces of work that have contributed include: finding problems and solutions in fiction books, writing about problems and solutions that have happened to us, and asking others in our school building what their common problems are. We have compiled some videos to help teach others how to solve their problems at school and meet the physical, social, and emotional needs of others.

Math Workshop

Math Workshop was introduced to the students this past week. The Math Workshop framework allows for students to be engaged during all of math time and to work on goals designed to meet their learning needs. Rather than working on an assignment that may be too easy or too hard, students are challenged by working on a skill that is their "next step" in learning. For example, the first grade math goal we are currently working on is adding numbers to 20. Students have been taught how to use several "tools" to help them add, including a number line, touch points, a part-part-whole mat, and a ten frame. Some students are using these tools to add to 10. Others, however, are using these tools to help them add to 20 and beyond. Through having different "stations," the students are given the opportunity to experience a variety of activities, while staying engaged and on-task at each "station."    The students are divided into small groups of 4-5 students, and they move through each of the "stations" with their group. Some of the times they are working with another student in their group, but other times, they are working independently.

The video above shows a little piece of each of the stations. The acronym MATH tells students where to go for each rotation. The "M" stands for "Math Fact Practice." The end-of-the-year goal for first grade in addition and subtraction is to be able to correctly solve 40 problems in 2 minutes. Through allowing students to practice their math facts daily during Math Workshop, this end-of-the-year goal is easily reachable. The "A" stands for "At Your Seat Work." This includes worksheet-type activities for students to practice the skill we are working on in math. This will change throughout the year based on the topic we are learning in math. Some of the topics we will learn about in first grade include: addition, subtraction, word problems, telling time to the hour and half-hour, measurement using non-standard units, and identifying 2-D and 3-D shapes. The "T" stands for "Teacher's Choice" or "Teacher Time." During this part of Math Workshop, students will meet with the teacher to continue to practice and improve upon their skills to meet their end-of-the-year goals in math. For students that have already met those goals, they will be challenged with more critical thinking and problem-solving skills related to the topic being learning. The "H" stands for "Hands-On Activities." This includes game-type activities that allow students to practice their math skills with a partner. 

Meet the Student Teacher!

Hello! My name is Shelby Foster and I am the student teacher in Ms. Brandt's first grade class. I am currently a student at Northwest Missouri State University (Go Bearcats!!). I grew up in Liberty, MO which is where I graduated high school. My dream is to teach 1st or 2nd grade. I can't wait to spend the semester with this great group of kids. I hope to teach them just as much as they teach me. I look forward to this wonderful experience!



This is a picture of me and my fiancé. Go Royals!!

Addition War

Students improve their addition fluency in a fun and exciting way! Each student lays a card and whoever can say the sum of the cards first wins that round!

Toothpaste Words

On the second day of school, we did an experiment where the students had to observe how quickly toothpaste comes out of the tube but how difficult it is to put back in. While the experiment was a lot of fun, the concept it represents is not as enjoyable. We discussed how sometimes our words just slip out easily (like the toothpaste coming out of the tube) but they are impossible to take back (just as it is impossible to put the toothpaste back into the tube). Therefore, we need to be careful to choose our words wisely. After the experiment, we developed a list of toothpaste words and phrases that we should avoid saying because they might hurt others, and they are impossible to take back. We followed up the activity by reading My Mouth is a Volcano by Julia Cook. This story tells about a boy who struggles with interrupting others because he claims the words just erupt like a volcano from his mouth. One day in school when it is his turn to share, he gets interrupted twice and suddenly he understands why it is so important to not interrupt. This teaches the students about seeing things from other people's perspective and understanding that if they wouldn't like someone to do that to them, they shouldn't do it to others. 

First Day of School 2015

We're off to a new start to our school year! Things are going great! We are working hard on learning new procedures and getting back into the routine of school.

Here are our First Day of School pictures! (A few days late...) Enjoy! 

Grandparents' Day