1. Welcome to First Grade Welcome to First Grade Mrs. Heeney Mrs. Korenkiewicz Mrs. Kurtz –Literacy First Miss Bucci – Learning Support

2. Contact Information Mrs. Lauren Bucci –lbucci@boyertownasd.orglbucci@boyertownasd.org Mrs. Polly Heeney -pheeney@boyertownasd.org Mrs. Janette Korenkiewicz –jkorenkiewicz@boyertownasd.orgjkorenkiewicz@boyertownasd.org Mrs. Marcia Kurtz –mkurtz@boyertownasd.orgmkurtz@boyertownasd.org

3. What is Literacy First? First Grade is the only grade level that incorporates the Literacy First Program First Grade Team Allows for another professional educator to be involved in the learning process and assisting student achievement

4. Benefits of the Program Two first grade homerooms each with their own homeroom teacher Literacy First Teacher available to push in to assist students with instruction, pull students for individual help or instruction, and team teach with the two homeroom teachers

5. Co Teaching Regular Education and Learning Support teachers working hand in hand Two professionals instructing students together More opportunities for small group and individualized instruction

6. First Grade Curriculum First grade demands are much different now than in years’ past You will be amazed at what your first grader is learning and is able to do at the end of the school year

7. Literacy Block Guided Reading Reading Anthology Writing WorkshopWriting Phonics Making Words Reading Workshop

8. Guided Reading Differentiated instruction in reading on a student’s individual level in a small group setting Reviews past skills and builds upon them Provides strategies for reading unfamiliar text Occurs daily with assignments sent home to reread and review the text

9. Reading fluency Reading Comprehension Vocabulary Sight Words Independent reading Introduces students to a variety of texts and genres

10. Reading Anthology Scott Foresman Reading Street 5 Themed Books – Each with 6 stories Each story introduces phonics skills and comprehension/story structure features Phonics skills are revisited in additional stories and build upon each other Include Guided Reading texts that connect to the week’s stories Social Studies or Science relations

11. Writing Workshop Follows Lucy Calkins Builds upon Kid Writing from Kindergarten Journal Writing- “Small Moments” – something that has happened in your own life Persuasive, Informative, and Narrative Includes; Parts of Speech,

12. Text to Picture Match Handwriting (Start your letters at the top) Spaghetti and Meatball Spaces (word/letter spacing) Good Beginning Talk Across your Hand (planning thoughts) Transition Words Juicy Details (Hamburger) Wrap it Up (Ending) COPS (Editing; Capitals, Omissions, Punctuation, Spelling)

13. Phonics Instruction follows reading Differentiated by students’ need level Small Group Instruction Skills include vowel sounds long and short Blends, digraphs, diphthongs, onsets, rimes, rhymes, word chunks, prefixes, suffixes, contractions, homophones, etc. Skills build upon each other and are applied in all other literacy areas

14. Making Words Small Group Instruction Word Making and Breaking Onsets and rimes, rhymes, word families Differentiated to meet students’ needs

15. Reading Workshop Independent reading on students’ own level Conferences with teachers and strategy lessons for specific skills Reading Partners for book discussions

16. Mathematics Scott Foresman Investigations Inquiry-based explorative math curriculum Topics spiral across lessons, units, and grade levels 80 Minute Math Period Manipulatives Open Ended Problems

17. Science Kit-Based Inquiry lessons Scientific process One kit per quarter Solids and Liquids Weather Astronomy Organisms

18. Social Studies New Topics This Year Traveling Passport Studying Canada, Germany, and China Self-directed project on a country

19. Homework Guided Reading Homework M-Thurs –Reread story from class, discussion Making Words –twice a week, two sentences Word Book –vocabulary sight words Math, Science, Social Studies – Sparingly as needed Parent Signature

20. Classroom Rules We use language that is quiet, polite, and not harmful We keep hands, feet, body, and objects to ourselves We follow directions when given. We care about others’ feelings. We treat others the way we want to be treated

21. Behavior Incentive Cards Green, Orange, Yellow, Red, Blue Students receive a stamp on their daily calendar for keeping a green card for the day

22. After 5 stamps, a student can move their token to the next level Play Football, Ski Race, and Baseball After all students have completed all levels, students vote on behavior incentive

23. Report Card Math, Reading, and Writing aligned to Pennsylvania State Standards Math and Reading Proficient Skills 4, 3, 2, 1, scale Reading Requirement -10 Books Conferences after First Quarter; additional conferences available after successive quarters

24. Work Habits and Social Skills List included on Mrs. Korenkiewicz’s website through the BASD homepage Students assessed on each descriptor using the criteria listed

25. Interventions Literacy First Remediation Title One Speech Therapy Occupational Therapy RtI (Response to Intervention)

26. The First Grade Garden “First Grade is very much like a garden….some flowers will be blooming right away at the beginning of the school year and others will progress and bloom in the spring…”

27. Questions? Parents are invited and encouraged to come back to your child’s classroom and visit our learning space Teachers will be available to meet and discuss any other concerns

28. Together we can help make your child’s educational experience positive and successful