Mrs. Van Gorder’s Weekly News December Check out our class website! Math- T his week we finished our review of module 1 looking back at adding strategies, RDWW process to show work with number stories, missing addends, fact families and related facts. We took our end of module exam. Results will be coming home shortly. Your child will be bringing home a winter packet we worked on this week. Any incomplete pages can be done for fun over the break to keep skill sharp. After the break we will begin module 2 that focuses on place value and adding and subtracting within 20. Reading- In reading we looked for chunks, blends and small words within larger words to help us decode thems. Please have your child read everyday with you. It make a huge difference in their vocabulary and word recognition. The more they read the quicker they pick up words and the more fluid it will sound. During workstations we chose from a variety of winter and holiday themed educational activities. Be sure to check out your child’s work. Their ideas are unique and precious! We played blend bingo and used picture puzzles to put blends together. Writing- Our writer’s celebration was a huge success! We worked so hard this week to prepare our stories with detailed illustrations. We learned the correct way to spell words we wanted to write, learning that authors have editors that make sure everything sounds right and is spelled right before it’s published. We practiced reading our stories with great voice and fluency, seeing the crossover when reading any story. Word Study- This week we wrapped up our review of words that begin with a double our triple blend. We will continue to use it as a strategy to decode words in reading and writing when identifying a chunk. Our words of this week and next were: come, eat, her, mom, will, out, girl, too, read, she. We have now covered all 50 first grade words. Shortly after the break we will take a spelling test as we get ready to begin our buddy spelling program. More information will come shortly. Science- We have observed and documented the progression of our meal worms lifecycle. We have watched it progress from larva, to pupae and adult stages, discovering the adult is a darkling beetle. Social Studies- We learned about the 7 principals of Kwanzaa and talked about what they mean in our own lives. They include: unity, self determination, responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. Class Meeting - Our acts of kindness continue to be a success. We work hard everyday to complete a new act. Be sure to ask your child what we worked on this week. Additional Notes - I wanted to take a moment and thank all of you for the hard work and dedication to make learning such a huge success. Your children make me smile each and every day. The qualities you instill in them are visible in all that they do. Have a safe and wonderful holiday season. I’m looking forward to all the successes 2016 brings!