Friday, October 13

Our focus letters this week were: X, K, and V.

We added the words "can" and "you" to our sight word list. We have been reading and writing these words in sentences, in addition to the other sight words learned this year.

In Math, we began to represent numbers 1 - 10 using tally marks this week. We learned that we make bundles of 5 when using tallies and have been practicing counting by 5s to 20. We also have been working on accurate and efficient ways to count groups of objects - by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s depending on the quantity.

We have also been practicing our subitizing (ability to recognize the number of objects without counting them) skills through a fun partner game. I will send home a copy of the game for the students to play with an adult or older sibling if they choose.

In Inquiry (aka Science), we began talking about scientists. We read a book called I Wonder by Annaka Harris and shared some of our "wonderings". We learned that scientists are people who are curious about the world and their surroundings. Scientists have many wonderings that they try to answer through experiments and research. We will be conducting a leaf experiment next week! :)

We read the book The Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert and created our own leaf animal or person using creativity and leaves, pinecones, pebbles, berries, and some twigs. Here are a few examples:

We met with our Grade 4 Buddies today and did a Picture Book Scavenger Hunt. The students had a list of 20 things they needed to look for with their buddy in both fiction and non-fiction books. Afterwards, the buddies looked at books together with the older buddy reading to the younger buddy. Some of the Grade 1 students were also able to practice their reading skills with the older buddy's support when needed.

Mr. van Sluys introduced lacrosse this week in Gym. The students have been practicing many skills and have already improved greatly in their ability to scoop, throw and catch, and cradle the ball with their lacrosse sticks.

Important! :)

*** Next week, we will begin to delve into a Science unit on Matter. Please have your child bring in a small toy that they can use for our lesson on Tuesday.***

Please support your child in bringing their Home Reading books back each Friday so I can give them new books and/or reading activities the following Monday. Please ensure the books are returned in the Ziploc bag I provided or one from home so that the books can be protected while in transit. Thank you for your help. :)

Field Trip forms for our Storybook Theatre trip on October 24th were sent home on Tuesday. Please return the completed forms as soon as possible.