Beanie Baby Reading Strategies

You may have noticed that the kids brought home a bookmark labeled "Stuck on a new word." this is a great reminder of the reading strategies that we've been learning about in class. These are known as Beanie Baby Reading Strategies, although to my first graders, they are simply my reading friends. I wanted to share them so that you can help your child use them when reading. We added a new one today, Flippy Dolphin, so then will be getting new bookmarks. These strategies are for when decoding a word, or for when they come to a word that they don't know. We have posters up of each one, along with the Beanie Baby, and it's so fun to watch them use the strategies. Make sure to watch for the new bookmark coming home soon! For a look at the posters, feel free to email me at scotte@molallariv.k12.or.us.

Introducing:
Eagle Eye: Look at the Pictures
Lips the Fish: Get Your Lips Ready
Stretchy Snake: Stretch it Out
Chunky Monkey: Chunk the Word
Skippy Frog: Skip It, Skip It
Tryin' Lion: Try it Again
Flippy Dolphin: Flip the Vowel
Helpful Kangaroo: Ask for Help

Please let me know if you'd like copies of posters, or bookmarks to help you remember these! As the year goes on, we will also be adding Comprehension Beanie Baby Strategies as well. More to come...

Nicholson Fundraiser

Our fall fundraiser started on Monday, so please make sure you've checked backpacks and have found your child's envelope. For each dollar sold, our PTC gets to keep half. There are contests between the classrooms, and prizes for selling as well. The only rules are to sell to people you know, with a grownup, before dark. Parents are welcome to take catalogues to work as well. Thanks for helping us raise money for classroom support, technology, assemblies, and other fun stuff at school!

Reading Homework Due

Reading Homework Calendars are due so please return them asap if your child hasn't already done so. New homework for October will be coming home tomorrow, and is due back on October 30th. A great place to keep the calendar is on the fridge so it doesn't get lost. Thanks for your help!

Book Orders Due Tomorrow

On the first day of school I sent home September Book Club Orders for Firefly and Seesaw (the names of the newspapers or book clubs). These are due back at school tomorrow, Friday September 18th. If you'd like to order books out of these fliers, please return them tomorrow with payment enclosed. Fliers will come home each month, so please be on the look out. This is the cheapest way around to build your home library with quality books.

Our 2009-2010 Class

We finally had everyone here so we could take our fall class picture! These kiddos are doing such a great job adjusting to first grade! I can't wait to see the progress that they make this year!

PTC Meeting Today

Our first PTC Meeting will be today at 3:30 in the library. Hope to see you there!

Open House

Thank you to everyone who came to open house last night! It was great getting to meet you all, and I know the kids loved showing off their classroom. It's great to have such amazing parents!

Welcome!

Welcome to Mrs. Scott's First Grade Class!!! I want to take a second and welcome you all into my room, and to our 2009-2010 school year! This blog is used as a way to communicate with parents, and for you to be able to see what we are doing in class. I will post pictures, kids work, and ideas for parents, so make sure to check back often. I know we will have a great year this year!

You're Invited

WHAT: End of the Year Celebration and Movie Viewing

DATE: Wednesday, June 1oth

TIME: 2:30 pm

WHERE: MES, Room 4

Please join us to watch our class movie!

Zoo Update

It's time for the Zoo! The weather is supposed to be great on Friday, so please dress your child accordingly. It would also be a great idea to put on sunscreen before sending your child to school. We don’t want any sunburns. It is also OK with me to send a hat to wear, as long as they don’t become a problem. Please don’t forget to send lunches in a disposable bag with their name on it.

If you are chaperoning this year, please read the following to help make the day go smoothly.

*Please arrive no later than 9:00am. The buses will leave promptly at 9:30, and each of you have been assigned a group you’re in charge of.
*Please bring a backpack. You will be in charge of your groups lunches until it’s time to eat. (Don’t worry, you should have no more than 3 kids)
*Please try to bring hand sanitizer and sunscreen.
*We will be meeting at the buses at 1:45 to return back to school. We also ask that chaperons don’t take kids on the train or to the gift shop.
*I'd love Digital copies of pictures you take! If you can email them to me over the weekend, I'd appreciate it. I'd love to add them to the movie.

Thanks for joining us!

Thanks Sergeant Velasco!

We had a very special opportunity to have Alex-Ann's dad, Sergeant Velasco join our class last Thursday for a Memorial Day lesson. Ms. Grisham, our student teacher did a lesson on why we celebrate Memorial Day, and then the kids got to meet two Sergeants in the Army. They talked about some of the jobs that they do, showed us some of their cool gear, and even gave out pencils and lanyards. Taryn even got to try on the parachute pack, but had to promise not to pull the cord! ;-) After the visit, the kids did a great job writing letters to the men thanking them for all of their hard work, and for visiting in our class. It was a great experience for the first graders, and we really appreciated their willingness to join us for an afternoon. Thanks so much!

Going on a Bug Hunt

This month we have been learning all about insects. We have learned about their three body parts, the head, thorax and abdomen, and that all insects have 6 legs. We have just started talking about insect habitats. Today we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and get outside. We went on a bug hunt! Each child was armed with a pencil, clipboard, report paper, and magnifier. Their task was to find a bug (preferably and insect) and observe it to see what they could find out. They then wrote their report with the help of a few insect books from our library, and will report to the class what they found. It was a great activity and we learned a lot!

April Good Citizen Assembly

Congratulations to our Good Citizens for the month of April!

1st Grade Music Program

Thanks to everyone who came and participated in our music program. The kids had a lot of fun learning about the beats of music, and getting ready to show all of you. They were all so tickled that parents came to watch them perform. Thanks for supporting your kids!

Math Dash

We had some extra time at the end of math today, so I had the kids playing games to help them with their math facts. I bought a math board game a few years ago, but just recently opened it up. It is such a COOL game! It's called Math Dash, and ours is addition and subtraction. They also have different levels of it, with different skills. It's such a great game because you can play with 2-8 players. I'm trying to figure out how to make a version that the kids could take home for the summer. If you are interested, you can view/purchase it at Amazon by clicking HERE. This is a great way to practice learning and remembering math facts, especially as they get into multiplication. Knowing your multiplication facts can make math so much easier as the kids get older, and if they know their addition and subtraction facts, multiplication facts will be easier to learn. Here are a few pics of the kids playing today.

Class Reminders

I'm sorry it's been so long since I have posted. We have been swamped! Here are a few announcements and reminders for this upcoming week.

• PTC Meeting Tuesday at 3:45- We have lots to talk about, and will be setting a plan for next year, so please join us!
• Country BBQ day is Tuesday May 19th. Lunch is early and begins at 11:15.
• We have started our memory book for this year. We have a spot for a small (wallet size) picture of your family if you'd like to include it, otherwise the kids will just draw you. Send it in ASAP if you'd like. We will be making this page next Wednesday.
  
• We have a new student teacher who has joined us for the remainder of the year, so please welcome Ms. Grisham into our room.
  
• If you haven't returned Zoo permission slips, please do so ASAP. We are going to be busy in the next few weeks, and need to buy tickets.
• Have a good Friday, and hopefully we'll see some more sunshine!
  

Happy Mothers Day

I hope all of our Moms had a great mothers day, and enjoyed their treats. I even heard that people are already trying recipes, so have fun! We sure had fun making you presents. Hopefully you all felt a little spoiled last Sunday!

Happy Monday!

• Our May Newsletter is coming home today. Make sure to read it, as it has some important end-of-the-year information and dates.
• Our final book order is coming home today. May and June are included, as are Seesaw (K-1) and Firefly (Pre-K). Don't forget to have your kids reading at home this summer. This is a great resource for cheap books at their level. Book orders are due back by May 18th.
  
• Field trip permission slip is coming home today. Make sure to return it by May 20th.

Farm to Market Day

Wednesday was Farm to Market day here at MES. This was an event that Sodexo put on for our school. It was a way of bringing some agricutlure and knowledge of food into the classroom. We each visited 4 stations in the gym, and then got to have a great lunch from the A-Z salad bar. They brought in a fruit or vegetable for each letter of the alphabet, and the kids did a really good job of trying out new things. It was a fun day and we learned a lot about where our food comes from, and ways we can eat healthier.
Our first station was to meet some Pygmy Goats. We learned all about them, and what they can do to help us. We got to pet the baby goats, and even got to put in our suggestions as to what the babies names should be.


Then we moved to a station where we learned all about the food pyramid. We learned that we really need to strive to have 9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Learning about the food pyramid this week, we now know that we should aim for 3-5 servings of vegetables, and 2-4 servings of fruits each day. How can we help make sure that our kids are eating healthy?Our next stations taught us about what kind of foods are grown or made in Oregon. We got to make a "live necklace," which includes a bean that will sprout and grown if kept in the sunlight. Once it sprouts a couple of inches, it can be planted and will continue to produce beans.

At our last station we learned out to make healthy smoothies for a great and easy snack. Check out the quick and easy recipe below, and see what other fun and healthy things you can add.

Strawberry-Banana Smoothies

• Strawberry Yougurt
• Frozen or Fresh Strawberries
• Ripe Banana
• Little Bit of Milk

Put ingredients in blender and mix until well blended.
Variations:
Add different fruits, yogurts, and juices for different flavors.

PTC Bingo

PTC Basket BINGO is tonight! Please join us for some family BINGO fun, tonight starting at 7:00pm. We've got a great list of prizes this year, including our Green Galore basket, which turned out AMAZING! We hope to see you there! This will also be the last night for picking up cookie dough. If you haven't gotten yours yet, stop by and pick up your products from 6:00-7:00pm before BINGO. Thanks you to everyone who donated to our basket. It will be one of the best to win!

We Need Jars!

Please have your child bring in a small jar to class for a project we will be doing. Larger than a baby food jar, but not as big as a pickle jar. I'm thinking about 4-6 inches tall would be perfect, but we can work with whatever you have. If you have the lid, send it in, but you don't have to have it in order for us to use the jar. Thanks for your help! If you happen to have a few laying around, feel free to send in a couple.

Cookie Dough Fundraiser Pick-Up

If you haven't picked up your cookie dough and products from the fundraiser please do so tomorrow, Tuesday April 28th from 3:00-5:30. Thanks for your participation! Don't forget that PTC Basket Bingo is this Friday. Last call for donations for our Green Galore basket. Thanks for all of your help! Our basket is looking awesome!

School Beautification Day

Today to help celebrate Earth Day and Arbor Day MES kids paired up to help clean up our school. Our class worked with Miss Accuardi's class to pull weeds in the front of the school. Truth be told though, I'm not sure if we helped or made it worse. ;-) But, we tried. Then our class went to the area right outside our classroom door to pull more weeds, and make a flower bed to plant some seeds. We raked and added some dirt, planted seeds and watered the flower bed. We'll see if anything comes up. It was a lot of fun and the kids worked hard!

Earth Day

Happy Earth Day! We had a fun day doing all sorts of projects about the earth. We started the day making a model of the different layers of the earth, which are the inner core, outer core, mantle and crust. We also talked a lot about things that we can do to help keep the earth healthy and clean. Thank you for sending back your "Healthy Earth Pledges." The tree is almost complete, so we'll be sure to add pictures later. We even got to make earth crayons out of old blue and green crayons. Make sure that at home you are doing everything you can to set a good example of how to help the earth. Here are a few easy things you can do that our class came up with:
1. Recycle plastic, glass, aluminum and paper whenever possible. Don't forget to return those pop cans and plastic bottles!
2. Use re-usable water bottles instead of the plastic disposable ones whenever possible.
3. Use reusable grocery bags, or reuse the plastic ones instead of getting new ones every time.
4. Turn of your lights and water whenever you aren't using them.
5. If you unplug things such as microwaves, computers, TVs, toasters, blenders, etc. when they aren't in use, you can save over 5% on you electricity bill, and save energy.
6. Walk, don't drive when you can, or try to group your trips into the least amount of driving possible.
7. Spread the word!!! Tell others about things that they can do. We only have one chance to help keep our planet a safe and healthy place to be, for all of these kiddos and their futures.

Cookie Dough Pick-Up is today!

Please come and pick-up your cookie dough today at MES from 4:00-6:30. We'd also love to have you stay for our PTC meeting at 6:30. We hope to see you tonight!

Enjoy the Sunshine!

My goodness, you can tell the sun is out and shining today! This class was crazy! We had a very loud, disruptive class today, which is very unusual for this bunch of kids. I know that kids tend to go nuts when the sun is shining, and they are cooped up inside, so please make sure the kiddos get plenty of time to play tonight. And please have a conversation with your kids about still making responsible choice for school and their behavior. I can't tell you how many times I heard "He pulled my hair!" or "He pinched me!" or "She kicked me!" today. Tomorrow we will be practicing getting along and keeping our hands to ourselves. ;-) Have a good afternoon in the sunshine! Don't forget the sunscreen!

Friday Notes

• We finished our unit on weather today. We made a very cool book today which we will be turning into a movie. For a look at our inspiration, take a look at this website.
• Thanks for those who participated in our fundraiser! Products will be delivered to MES on Tuesday, and can be picked up then from 4:00-6:30.
  
• Please, please, please, PLEASE send in your recipes! I've only received about 4, and we need them starting next week.
• If you haven't paid your snack fee, please do so ASAP. I'm about a week from being out of snack, and I only have about $10 for the rest of the year.
• If you're child will be going to work with you on "Take Your Child To Work Day" next week, please let me know asap.
• Have a good weekend, and enjoy the sunshine!!! Don't forget your sunscreen!
  

Happy Easter!

I hope that everyone had a great Easter! I meant to get these pictures up last week, but ran out of time. We made some really cute projects for Easter. We learned a fun poem, and did a lot of writing about the Easter Bunny. Hopefully he was good to the first graders!