First Grade Math - We finished the first grade book!  We worked on a unit with identifying and counting coins - heads and tails.  We have now started working out of the second grade book.  We are working on math mountains, switch partners, addends, identifying partners and totals, and odd and even numbers.  Reminder - We take a math facts quiz every Thursday.  Please remember to practice math facts.  Today we had a shortened math class due to Lion King practice.  We didn't get through the whole lesson so I didn't hand out math homework today.

Phonics - This week we are working on two syllable words with suffixes s, ed, and ing.

Reading - Each day we work in the daily 5 and in our reading groups.  Our word work focus is pronouns.  One of the pronoun activities that they are having fun with is Angry Bird pronouns.  Another one is pronoun pizzas.  :)

Religion - This week we are working out of our textbook.  We are learning about the twelve Apostles.  Friday we will also work out of our Promise Paper.

Social Studies - We have now learned every state and every capital!  The kids love to sing Fifty Nifty!  Today we also did USA puzzles, a state word search, and colored a map of each of the states.

Science - We have been working with our aquariums.  We learned facts about the snails and the guppies.  We have had a little bit of excitement with the guppies.  One female had some babies.  We now have a separate aquarium for the babies.

The mama fish  :)

Writing - Today the kids did an absolutely amazing job in writer's workshop!  April is poetry month so we have been working on poetry.  So far we have done acrostic and cinquain poems.  Today we worked on diamante poems.  Diamante poems are shaped like a diamond.  The pattern is one word - a noun, two words - adjectives that describe the noun, three words that are ing verbs about the noun, two words - adjectives about the noun, and one word - a noun (synonym of the first noun).  The kids made a rough draft.  When the rough draft was all correct they rewrote a final copy.  They then illustrated on their copy and made it into a kite.

Next week - 

Thursday (5-4-17) we will have an all school mass at the SM Campus.  The talent show will follow.

Friday (5-5-17) is a half day.  

Weekly Spelling Lists -

Phonetic List - 2 Syllable Words with Suffix s, ed, ing
dishpans
invented
finishing
includes
expected
disrupting
bathtubs
insisted
publishing
athletes

High-Frequency List - Trick Words - Words 161-170
line
set
own
under
read
last
never
us
left
end

Our trip to Osprey Point was a lot of fun!  We hiked and found the big tree!  It is an oak tree that is over 100 years old!  After our hike and a snack, we played two games.  One was called What time is it Mr. Fox?  The other was a relay race.  We had to walk with a plastic Easter egg on a spoon.  Here are a few pictures of the big tree.

After we got back to school we did a few activities with some nature items that we collected.  We made bookmarks with contact paper.  We also used nature items to decorate some heads.  Here are a few of those pictures.  They are so creative!

An art update from Mrs. I. -

Students in first grade are having an introduction to Art History. We learned about our Art History time line, and viewed the Cave Paintings of Lascaux, France. These are beautiful paintings from early man with animals, such as wild cattle, bison and horses. Students are now creating their own cave paintings stories. 

Our Elementary Art Show will be held, Thursday, May 11th in the St. Matt's Gathering space along with the book fair. Student work will be on display through out the weekend masses. 

Tomorrow we will be taking the bus to Res in the afternoon.  We will be at Res from 12:45 - 3:00.  All students will be picked up at Res.  If your child is in the after school program or the Y program they will be bussed back to SMS.

First Grade Math - Today we took the unit 8 test on 2 digit addition.

Religion - This week we have been focusing on Holy Week.  We will finish our ABC's of Lent book tomorrow morning.  We walked through and prayed the Stations of the Cross.

Phonics - This week we continued talking about two syllable words.  Today we learned that if a word is a multi-syllabic and it ends in -ic it is spelled with a c.  (public, topic, panic)

Social Studies - We are up to 42 states and capitals!  Only 8 more to go!

Science - This week our plants grew quite a bit!  We built our aquariums.  We worked in our science packets on describing and drawing the organisms in our terrariums.  Today the students took home their plants.  They also took home their planting cards.  The planting cards show the progress of the seeds.  Transplanting these plants should be easy - they will keep on growing!  I have quite a few pictures of our plants to share.

Plants and Terrariums

Aquariums

Extra Plants

Caterpillars Monday

Caterpillars Tuesday

Caterpillars Wednesday

Caxton

Aubrey

Peas 

Sunflowers

Kidney Beans

Kidney Beans

Pumpkins

Bookmobile - Here is an email I received from Mrs. Stewart -

• The Brown County Library Bookmobile is planning a stop at our school on May 15th.  They will be here for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon.  I do not have the exact times yet but I am assuming it will be like 9-11 and 12 - 2.  He is a really nice man and was excited to be coming back to our school.  He asked that you have  your kids bring library cards if they want to check out books.  He is also willing to read a story to each of the classes. If you go on the website there is an online card application. 

The website for the Brown County Library is http://www.browncountylibrary.org/.  If your child does not have a library card and you would like them to you can apply for one online.  Click on "Apply for a library card" in the pink box.

Osprey Point - Next week we are heading out to Osprey Point.  Please let me know if you'd like to join us.

Report Card Envelopes - Please remember to return your report card envelopes.

Have a Blessed Easter!

Here are a few pictures of our plants this morning!  Boy have they grown in a week!

Kidney Beans

Peas

Sunflowers

Pumpkins

Our grass seed caterpillars

First Grade Math - We are continuing to work on two digit addition.

Phonics - We are working on two syllable words that have a closed syllable and a vowel-consonant-e syllable.  (v-e)

Science - Our seeds are starting to grow!  These pictures are from early last week.  I'll have to take another picture tomorrow...they are so much bigger!

We also built terrariums.  The terrariums have three levels - gravel, leaf litter, and woodland soil.  We learned about and planted to woodland plants - pine tree seedlings and moss.  One of our volunteers, Mrs. Gordon, did some planting with us as well.  She had the students mix potting soil and grass seed.  They put it into knee high nylons and tied it into three sections.  It looks like a caterpillar.  We are now waiting for our caterpillar "hair" to grow.  (It's kind of like a Chia Pet!)

Mixing the soil and the grass seed

Our next visit to Osprey Point is on April 19th.

Religion - We are up to letter V in our ABC's of Lent book.  This week Ms. McAllister also came to visit.  She made the ABC's of Lent book and shared some of the stories with us.  Our Promise Paper this week talked about the passion.  We made Hosana wind socks.  This week we will be walking through the Stations of the Cross throughout the school on Tuesday.

We will be having mass on April 20th.  Parts will go home this week.  The parts this time are-

Greeters - Ella, Aisling, Sam, Clare

Introduction - Cayden

First Reading - Kate

Petitions - Eamonn, Caxton, Vinny, Dakota, RP

Bread - Ephraim

Wine - Emma

Thanksgiving Prayer - Quinn

Reading the song titles - Eddie, CJ, Aubrey

Reading - Our word work focus is singular and plural words.  We are working on words that are plural with just s, words that are plural with -es, and irregular plurals.  A new work on writing center this week is fantastic facts.  The students find four facts about an organism, write them, and illustrate them.  They are turning out pretty cool!  Each reading group continues to meet.  When the students are not meeting with their group, they are doing read to self, read to someone, work on writing, word work, listening, compass odyssey, or the spelling center.

The writing center has a lot of choices.  Here are a few students writing autobiographies and working on stencil stories.  :)

Eddie was practicing his spelling words.

Computer - In the computer lab we have been working on Middlebury Interactive for Spanish, practicing typing on DanceMat, and working on other various websites.  If the students ever want to find any of our websites at home, they can go to our first grade sqworl page.  The page is located at www.sqworl.com/grazhj.  

This Thursday all of the students will be bused over to Res for the afternoon.  All students will be picked up at the Res campus.  

Weekly Spelling Lists -

Phonetic List - 2 Syllable Words with a closed syllable and v-e syllable
reptile
inside
cupcake
dislike
baseball
rosebud
fireman
pileup
admire
mistake

High-Frequency List - Trick Words - 151-160
every
found
still
between
name
should
home
big
give
air