Please remember that the $17 due for Scholastic News and Gospel Weekly magazines is due on September 13, 2010. This fee is one time only for the entire year.
Gym days will be: Tuesday and Friday. Students should wear their gym uniforms and sneakers on these days. PLEASE NOTE: First Fridays we go to Mass. Students should wear SCHOOL uniforms. They do NOT need sneakers because gym is in the morning when we will be at Mass.
Reading in first grade involves the development of skills needed to read for comprehension with fluency. It is important that students receive a balanced approach to reading because, being able to decode a word is just as important as comprehending. If most time reading is spent decoding words, retention of the content will be minimal. Based on this philosophy, students will receive instruction through the use of phonics and story passages. The stories we read will involve the development of vocabulary through the use of high frequency words. Spelling words will also be covered as part of our reading program. We will have several small reading groups so that all students are able to work at the appropriate instructional level. They need to be met with a challenge to stay motivated but should not be overwhelmed as we work on skills. Daily phonics and comprehension activities will take place.
Listening comprehension is another important part of of early literacy development. Along with small reading groups, our class will participate in whole group read alouds. Read alouds are a great way to focus on listening comprehension and discussion. The children have already participated in a read aloud, during the first week of school and all enjoyed it. Read alouds also provide for a great assessment of prior knowledge. Books chosen for read alouds will be tied in with topics being discussed in class or related to a special day or theme.
Writing is a huge part of the first grade curriculum. Everyday we will develop our writing skills, as they are so closely related to reading skills. Students will be given daily grammar practice as part of morning work. Early in the year sentences will be grammatically correct to familiarize students with basic sentence writing structure. As we move through the language arts curriculum, morning work will serve as a class editing activity. We will look at a sentence on the board and fix it while writing. Other opportunities for writing will happen each day through the use of interactive and shared writing experiences. Students will also be given pictures or topics to write about during the language arts class.
Our approach to Math is "hands-on". We will use manipulatives to explore math concepts whenever possible. Some manipulatives we will use are unifix cubes, base 10 blocks, shells, counters, and many other objects to count, estimate, problem solve and develop math skills. Advanced skills in money and time will be covered as well as two digit addition and subtraction.
Our Science lessons involve the use of hands on activities whenever possible. We will study the various areas of science within the disciplines of life, earth, and physical science. We will focus on content areas that expose children to possible topics found on the 4th grade New York State Science assessment. Early exposure to key content leads to improved comprehension of topics within the assessment.
In Religion we get to know God through Bible stories and lessons. Our curriculum will be a combination of the We Believe series by Sadlier and Gospel Weekly publications. To supplement these texts, bible stories will be read to students as they "take notes" to develop listening skills. Children will be drawing pictures as they listen to a bible story. These drawings will serve as notes to help students practice writing and describing what they drew.
Our Social Studies curriculum involves topics such as getting ready for school, families, communities, our country, work, and our world. Scholastic news publications will also supplement our Scott Foresman curriculum. Focus on geography, holidays, and other appropriate topics will be part of the curriculum this year.
We will go on field trips when possible and appropriate throughout the school year. Parents will be notified of field trips well in advance.
We look forward to working with your children everyday!
Please remember that home toys will not be allowed out during the school day as we have many fun games and activities for the students to play with during recess when there is inclement weather.
Another reminder to all parents: We cannot microwave any lunches for students this year. In first grade the children eat in the gym/cafeteria and no microwave is available.
