My apologies for not posting a blog last week. I realized that I had completely forgotten to do one when I logged onto this site just now.

For the past two weeks, we have been focusing on r-controlled vowels - ar, er, ir, or, and ur. The students have been reading texts that include many words with these vowels and we have been working on sounding out and spelling words containing these vowels.

I introduced symmetry this week in Math. The students have learned the terms symmetrical and a-symmetrical and we have been identifying shapes using these terms as well as making shapes with our bodies that are symmetrical and a-symmetrical.

We also did some work with data collection and graphing in Math. We used our "Math Carpet" (looks like a hundred chart) to collect data on various topics. The students were each given a block and were asked to place it in the column of their choice. For example, the question was "Which is your favourite sport?". Three choices were decided upon - soccer, baseball, and hockey. Once all the blocks were placed, two "data analysts" had a chance to tell us three things they each learned from the data collected.

In Social Studies, we have started to discuss the concepts of Past and Present. We sorted pictures of clothing, telephones, homes, vehicles, etc., and discussed how these items have changed over time. Please watch for a note coming home on Monday regarding a small homework assignment.

Monday was Earth Day. We recognized it by reading the book The Earth Book by Todd Parr and coming up with a long list of actions we can take to look after our planet. Each student wrote three promises they have for the Earth with regards to what they will do to care for it.

We completed our study of the 5 Senses by making a "Feeling Hand" that had objects representing the textures rough, smooth, bumpy, hard, and soft.

We are very excited to be welcoming duck eggs to ours and Mrs. Burch's classroom next week. We will be monitoring these eggs in an incubator until they are born and will then get to enjoy the ducklings for a few days before they are returned to a farm!

We enjoyed the great Spring weather this week and took advantage of the warmer temperatures to get outside a couple of times.

On Tuesday, our class and Mrs. Burch's class went on a community walk to the nearby "Pirate Park". On our ways there and back we stopped to look at some of the features of a neighbourhood. These included street signs, traffic signs, community mailboxes, crosswalks, etc. At the park, we had the students find their own spot to do a 2-minute sensory activity. We had them stand quietly to use their hearing, sight, smell, and sense of touch to explore the area around them. Afterward, they shared what they had observed in the silence. It was wonderful to experience 48 Grade 1 students being calm and observant in this environment! :) They also had a bit of time to play at this community playground.

This week in Math, we have been learning about 3D objects and have been starting to identify them in our classroom and school. Next week, the students will get to build some of these objects using toothpicks and marshmallows. We will begin to learn about faces, sides, and vertices.

The students have been working on completing a booklet about Spring. We have been discussing the clothing we wear, the activities people take part in during this season, as well as changes that are occurring in nature. We went for a walk around the field of our school on Wednesday to observe signs of Spring and were able to see leaf buds, new green grass, insects, mud, and snow that was melting.

We have also been focusing on the senses of taste and smell this week and did two activities to test these senses. Next week, we will focus on sight and hearing.

Looking ahead...

A friendly reminder that next Friday is a Professional Development Day and there will be NO school for students.

 I hope everyone enjoyed a good Spring Break. Let's hope that the true Spring shows its lovely face soon! :)

This week we focused on "Bossy e" and learned that a silent e at the end of one syllable words makes the vowel say its name. We have also been working with compound words to identify the two words that make up the compound word (examples: popcorn, firefly) and have started to find this type of word in various texts we read.

In Math, we spent some time reviewing 2-dimensional shapes in preparation for learning about 3D shapes (objects) next week. 

As Spring has "officially" begun, we started work on a Spring booklet where the students will write and draw about different aspects of the season such as; changes that occur for animals and plants, activities people take part in, clothing we wear, and the weather.

We also began learning about the five senses. We will be doing a smelling and a tasting activity next week. Please watch for a note coming home on Monday regarding the tasting activity. 

Today, we met up with our Buddies and heard a story about an eclipse. We also did an art activity to show what an eclipse looks like and came up with questions we have about solar eclipses. As per directions from the CBE, we will be keeping the students inside on Monday between 11:50 and 2pm due to the solar eclipse taking place that day.

As long as the forecast holds, Mrs. Burch and I plan to take the students for a community walk on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday to observe signs of Spring as well as elements of a neighbourhood - part of our Social Studies focus on communities. Please ensure your child has suitable walking shoes or boots on all three days. Thank you.