October 9, 2015

I hope everyone has a great long weekend, full of good food and good books and good fun!  If you're decorating with the autumn leaf art that came home, please know that the leaves are coloured with corn syrup and food colouring, and that they will stick to things put on top of them, or the colours may run if they're left near a heat source.

My apologies in advance for the turkey dinner bells the grade ones are bringing home. Maybe their cuteness factor will make up for the noise ...

We had a presentation this afternoon from ATCO gas; there's some follow-up literature going home with the students.


Just a quick reminder that we have swimming next week in the afternoons. Please send swim gear. Our lessons are over at 2:45, so if you'd like to pick up your child from the pool, please feel free to do so; just let me know when you're picking them up. Thanks.

Please remember to sign and return the grade one spelling books.

Thanks also to everyone who sent veggies for our stone stew; it was a hit! Here are some photos of the lunch event here in Room Four, where the excitement never ends ...

September 25, 2015

We had our first spelling test of the year today, and ALL the brainy first graders of Room Four got 100%!  Wowza!  Here's a photo of how happy everyone was!

 

We also finished our one kilometer Terry Fox Run.  This is a photo of us standing in front of Terry's picture. (What a hero that guy was - and what great runners we were!)

 

 

September 17, 2015

Welcome to our class blog!  We'll use this blog to post photos, "bouquets" and announcements, and to provide links to  websites. (Just click on the links at the side and you'll be taken on  little educational adventures ...) I'll try to make weekly Monday morning posts to this blog, but this will vary from time to time, depending on our schedule - and my ambition!

Here are some first-day-of-school photos showcasing our new crop of fantastic first graders!  Enjoy!

June 11, 2015

Reminders for tomorrow include:

1.  Spelling test
2.  Homemade and Tell is due.  Students can bring anything they've made - or helped make - at home. Sewing projects? Playdough creations? Paintings? Lego constructions? Jewels?
3.  Wacky Hair Day will be here at last!  Can't wait to see what colours, hair additions, wigs, etc. will surface tomorrow.
4.  We'll be joining the other grade one class for a walking tour of historical sites in Jasper tomorrow afternoon.  We'll leave right after afternoon attendance is taken and should return sometime between 2:30 and 3:00.  Please ensure students are dressed appropriately.



Here are some cowpoke photos, in case you haven't been in to check out the bulletin board outside our classroom.  I think these photos have really captured the personalities of our first grade cowgirls and cowboys!

June 2, 2015

The students brought home lots of literature today, including:

1.  A notification regarding lice; please read the information on the note and check your child for lice.
2.  Permission forms to be completed and returned asap.  One of the notes outlines our plan to hike to Mina Lake.  Please note that we'll keep our eye on the bear situation and will NOT hike to Mina if the bear situation does not warrant a walk up the hill with a pack of first graders.
3. Book order forms for our final book order of the year. Stock up for the summer!
4. A sheet for this Friday morning's show and tell.  The theme this week is "Play and Tell"; students can bring a toy, a board game, a video game, a football - anything that they like to play with - to present to the class.

Tomorrow is "Wacky Walking Wednesday". Students and staff are challenged to avoid using vehicles to get to school - and and to be creative and have fun getting to good old JES.  Students in previous years have used wheelbarrows, stilts, decorated bikes, horses ... let's see what everyone can come up with tomorrow!

April 20, 2015

(Review) word of the day: retain

The first graders' daily homework is taking on a new look.  The students have a notebook added to their golden envelopes.  The notebook has a "sentence starters" sheet glued onto the front cover. When the students finish reading their books, their job is to print the book's title on the top of the page, then choose a sentence starter and use it to write about their book.  Some students write only a few lines.  Others fill the whole page.  There's room at the top of each page to add a drawing related to the book, if the students are feeling artistic.

After the writing is complete, the students should colour in a box in the graph beside their chosen sentence starter.  This will create a visual showing whether or not students are choosing various starters (something they SHOULD be doing).

I'll check the notebooks daily and write comments daily as well.

The writing the students are doing will help strengthen their reading - and vice versa.  Daily parent supervision and guidance with the reading and writing is invaluable.  Your dedication to your child's education makes a huge difference.  Thanks in advance for your support with this new homework initiative.

April 14, 2015

We're heading to the Palisades tomorrow, along with the Kindergarten, Grade Two, and Grade Three classes.  Please check your child's agenda pocket for a note regarding the field trip.  Please return the permission form attached to the note by tomorrow morning, if you've not already returned that permission slip.

Please note that we'll be gone all day tomorrow.  We leave on the bus shortly after morning registration and will return in time for our regular dismissal.

Parents are welcome to join us.  There should be room on the bus to accommodate extra adults, but parents are also welcome to bring their own vehicles. Parents who'd like to catch a ride on the bus should just come into the classroom with their child when the morning bell rings.

Please remember to send a lunch (see the note that went home today!) and clothing and footwear appropriate for the weather.


Newsletters also went home today.  We'll watch for safe arrival of the newsletter slips to come back tomorrow.