Watch Out World...

On the last day of school, one of the things we did was to discuss the students' future goals. Those goals included going to college and their dream jobs. So, we took these pictures (Pinterest inspired) to showcase their dream jobs.

Fingerprint Trees

During the last week of school the students created collaborative art projects to take home as a keepsake from first grade. Each student had a photocopy of a tree trunk. They then added their thumbprints in paint to one another's trees.

Readers' Theater Performance

To showcase their reading skills, we held an end-of-year Readers' Theater Performance. Each first grade class learned their own Readers' Theater from the You Read to Me, I'll Read to You series. All of the classes then joined together for a reading of Jack and Jill. For the final Readers' Theater, parents were asked to join in.

End-of-Year Picnic

We had our End-of-Year Picnic last Thursday. The students had about two hours to play soccer, basketball, draw with chalk, run, play chase, jump rope, and fly kites. They then ate their lunch outside.

Field Day

A few weeks ago we had our annual Field Day. The students rotated through various physical challenges such as Tug-of-War, Shoe Fling, Football Toss, Scooter Races, Ball Hug Race, and more.

Our Newest Reward: Simon

I'm always looking for new ways to motivate the students to stay on task and to have positive behavior. Recently I discovered an online version of the old game Simon that works with our Promethean Board. The students love playing this for a few minutes each day as a reward for completing work on time, etc. I love it because it helps them build their focus - both visual and auditory.

My Dream Bedroom: Area

To review area, the students designed their own dream bedroom. They first listed on a Circle Map furniture, toys, and other miscellaneous items they would love to have in their bedroom. They then drew those items, represented as squares and rectangles, on grid paper. After labeling the items, they measured the area, in squares, of each item and wrote sentences about their measurements. They then compared their items to one another according to their area.

What is Your Dream Vacation?

Using the software Kidspiration on our Promethean Board, we had a quick review of how to create a bar-type graph. We reviewed that first you need to ask a question. Then, you need to have some choices and record those choices on a table. Once you have choices, you can take a survey and mark your results with tally marks. The results can then be put into a bar-type graph. Kidspiration had premade templates with a question and table so the students used those to practice. They then created their own table on paper with at least four choices of dream vacations. They then surveyed ten classmates and created a corresponding bar-type graph on grid paper.

Animal Habitats

In science we have been learning how animals are dependent on their environment and the specials characteristics they have to make them suitable for that habitat. We looked at pictures and discussed the tundra, ocean, desert, grasslands, and rainforest. We then charted what physical features each habitat had. We followed that up by listing animals that live in each environment and what features they had to help them survive there. The students then chose four of the habitats to write about. They also drew one animal that could be found in each.

The Cow Who Clucked

We recently read The Cow Who Clucked by Denise Fleming to further learn how to make connections to a story. After reading and discussing some of the events that happened, the students wrote one sentence to describe their connection to the story on an outline of a person. They then colored the person to look like them.

Expository vs. Fiction

To help the students understand the difference between expository and fiction texts, we read Scaredy Crow (from ReadingA-Z) and All Kinds of Farms (from WeGiveBooks). The students then  created Double Bubble Maps to record how the books were the same and how they were different.

All Kinds of Farms

The students read All Kinds of Farms using the free books from www.wegivebooks.com. If you haven't used this website before, look it up! It is full of wonderful books and is a great way to give back as well. After reading All Kinds of Farms, the students created a foldable to record the topic, main idea, and supporting details of the story.

Ducks: See How They Grow

In reading, the students have been learning how to compare and contrast the features of fiction and expository texts. During these lessons we read Ducks: See How They Grow. After reading, the students created a four-flap foldable to write the topic, main idea, and two supporting details.