First Grade Families,
January 2009 Welcome back! We hope that everyone had a happy and relaxing holiday break. The grade 1 students would like to extend a warm THANK YOU to ALL of the parents and family members who joined us for our gingerbread decorating day. It was a huge success and we absolutely couldn’t have done it without your help! A special THANK YOU goes out to Bryanna and Mrs. Busby as well as Dean and Quinn and Mrs. Laflamme for sending in “sweet” supplies for this VERY exciting activity. The arrival of wintery weather is often accompanied by runny noses and yucky coughs. DON’T LET THE FLU GET YOU! Getting the flu shot is easy! Ottawa Public Health holds free flu shot clinics around the city. The flu shot is free for persons 6 months of age and older who live, work or attend school in Ontario. You can also take preventive actions everyday: • Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. Try to avoid close contact with sick people. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
LANGUAGE ARTS High-frequency words, word endings and word families will continue to be reviewed daily. Good readers are always thinking and our next comprehension strategy is determining importance. In order to make sense of both fiction and nonfiction text, students must be able to determine the important ideas and information. Readers distinguish important from unimportant information in order to identify key ideas or themes as they read. We decide what IS important at the word, sentence, and text level. We use text structure and features of text (such as bold or italicized print, and photographs) to help distinguish important information from unimportant information Writers carefully use words and put them together to convey their ideas. This month, we will learn about persuasive writing. The purpose of writing a persuasive essay is to influence or change a reader's thoughts or opinions on a particular topic. As writers, we choose what words to include in a text and what not to include in a text in order to convey our message.
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SNUGGLE UP BOOKS – We are thrilled to
watch our “Centi-Read” grow longer every day! Don’t forget that students are welcome to return snuggle books on Tuesdays and Thursdays if they wish to read another book.
MATH - Our next unit will focus on deepening your child’s understanding of time and money. We will look at some tools we use to measure time, especially calendars and clocks. We will learn to tell time to the hour and half-hour. Next, students will learn to identify Canadian coins: penny, nickel, dime, quarter, 1-dollar coin, and 2-dollar coin. We will use different combinations of coins to make a certain amounts (for example, 10¢ using 10 pennies or 2 nickels). MATH AND DETERMINING IMPORTANCE Mathematicians . . . MUST determine the important information before solving a math problem and as they work through it. They: · look for patterns and relationships · identify and use key words to build an understanding of the problem · gather text information from graphs, charts, and tables · decide what information is relevant to a problem and what information is irrelevant · choose an appropriate strategy to help them solve a problem SCIENCE - Our science unit is Understanding Matter and Energy. We will learn that: ·everything that happens is a result of using some form of energy. ·the sun is the principal source of energy for the earth. ·humans need to be responsible for the way in which we use energy. PHYSICAL EDUCATION – We are working on locomotor skills, throwing and catching as we learn about the game of basketball. ARTS –Our strand this tem will be Visual Arts. We will begin to learn about the basic elements of design (colour, line, shape, texture).
RELIGION - We will grow in our understanding of both giving and receiving care and recognize how Jesus in his caring actions shows people how God cares for them THANK YOU to all of the families that visited our Christmas Craft Fair! Together we raised over $800.00 for the Shepherds of Good Hope. MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!! January 27, 2009 is Family Literacy Day! Families and communities across Canada celebrate this special day at literacy-themed events coordinated by literacy organizations, schools, public libraries and families. We encourage you to celebrate literacy at home with your first grader EVERY DAY! CONGRATUALTIONS to Tristan Roos-Cator, our December recipient for the virtue of showing Hope. During the month of January, we will be practicing the virtue of Love and our class will be responsible for teaching others what it means to show love.
IMPORTANT DATES to REMEMEBER
January 27th – Family Literacy Day January 29th - Recognition Assembly January 30th – PD DAY! No School!
Your Partner in Catholic education, K. Murphy