READ ALL ABOUT IT! News from September 4

IMPORTANT DATES:
•September 5-11~ Book Fair

REMINDERS:
Please help your child remember to wear sneakers on our PE days, Mondays & Wednesdays. Please remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the afternoons. Sometimes we will continue to work through snack time, so it’s important that you send something that can be eaten neatly. Thank you for using your child’s red Take Home Folder for all communication to and from school. Please initial in each calendar box daily, so I know you’ve seen it. And finally, thank you for remembering to send all money to school in an envelope, clearly labeled with your child’s name, my name, and what the money is for. Thanks!

LIBRARY: Our class will now be going to the school library on MONDAYS. The children are allowed to check out TWO books this year! We will encourage them to choose one to read to or with you, and one that can be read to them.

PTO news: Thanks to all of you who have joined our PTO! We are already collecting Box Tops, Coke lids and codes from boxes, Campbell Soup labels for Education, and can tabs! Thanks for sending these items in.

Homework:
1.This week, please look over the following “kindergarten” high frequency words. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. Our main goal now is for the children to be able to read them at first sight; spelling will come later. and, can, come, down, for, go, help, is, it, little I will assess the children on reading (or spelling) these words towards the end of the week.
2.READING: Please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. A new book baggie was sent home today with a letter explaining our home reading program!
3.Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation with homework! Together, we can work together to help your child reach his or her fullest potential!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, letter identification & formation. We are working on beginning and ending sounds of words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number recognition, formation, and identification. We’re comparing numbers using the terms “greater than & less than” on a number line and number chart. We’re reviewing calendar skills, graphing, and counting pennies. We’re learning how to use a thermometer to measure the temperature.

Social Studies: We will be learning about our community and neighborhood.

Read All About It! News from Nov. 14

IMPORTANT DATES:
•Nov. 17~ PTO Christmas Ornament fundraiser
•Nov. 23-25~ School closed for Thanksgiving holiday
•Dec. 6~ Winter Readerland! 5:30-7:00 pm
More information to go home, but mark your calendars now!
•Dec. 20~Westminster Elementary School will hold its annual White Christmas program.The program for Kindergarten through 2nd grade will be held from 8:15 – 9:15 followed by our 3rd through 5th Grade program from 9:30 – 10:30.

PTO NEWS: The PTO movie night has been cancelled for Friday, November 18th and has been rescheduled for Friday, January 6th.

Please see the SCRIP fundraising packets that were sent home today. These are due back Monday, November 28th. This allows everyone time to see family over the Thanksgiving holiday and get some sales!!

We made $203 last week at Wendy's Night! A big thank you to all of you who were able to come out and support our school! I was so impressed with the turn out when I was there.

From Fourth and Fifth Grades: HOT DOUGHNUTS NOW!! Krispy Kreme doughnuts will be on sale during the morning car rider line on Friday, December 2, 2011. All proceeds go towards the 4th grade field trip to Stone Mountain and the 5th grade field trip to Camp Greenville. Doughnuts will cost $6.00 per dozen (only sold by the dozen). If you were to buy them in the store a dozen would cost $6.99! Exact change would be greatly appreciated and would help the flow of morning car rider line.

100 Book Challenge: Thank you for the feedback that you are sending on your child’s Skills Card! I can see daily improvement in the children and their reading. Thank you for continuing to review the skills and strategies on the cards. By now, your child should be able to read for 2 15 minute periods at home, or maybe even 30 minutes in row. Let me know how that is working out! Thanks for your support.

Homework:
Please continue to review High Frequency words for first grade. If you haven’t had the chance to check it out lately, visit our class webpage for some links to sites that are terrific for reading and spelling these words. If you do not have a computer with internet access at home, remember that you can visit the public library!

Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week! In addition to the sheets that go home, please work on adding facts +0, +1, +2, +3, and double facts such as (2+2, 5+5, 7+7, 10+10).

Language Arts: This week we will continue reading and writing about Farms. This unit combines standards from ELA, Social Studies and Science! We’ll learn more about reading non-fiction for information, paying attention to special features such as bold print, subtitles, glossaries and indexes. In writing, we’re continuing to emphasize spelling, capital letters written in the correct places, and ending punctuation. We’ll learn more about writing more than one sentence on the same topic as we organize our ideas.

Math: We have been working on patterns, and will learn about even and odd numbers, adding and subtracting on a number line, and telling time to the half-hour.

Our addition is going so well! We’re working on Rocket Math, which emphasizes speed and repetition for memorization of facts.

Social Studies: As part of our unit on farms, we’ll learn about how we use resources from the earth. We’ll also talk about jobs that are related to getting farm products from the farm to our homes.

Science: We’ll be learning about living things and “non-living” things. We will study about the needs of all living things and the similarities and differences between animals and plants.

Newsletter from October 25, 2011

IMPORTANT DATES:
Oct. 25-28~ Red Ribbon Week! Join us as we pledge to lead healthy, drug-free lifestyles!Tuesday: Get red ribbons and sign pledge. Wednesday: Say Peace Out to Drugs~ Wear Tie Dye or Peace Sign. Thursday: Be Smart, Don’t Start – Students will receive Smarties. Friday: Wear Red!•

Oct. 27~ Class Cardinal Cash Celebration! Wear crazy socks and we’ll take off our shoes in the classroom! Report cards will go home, too.

Oct. 28~ Party at the Patch! 5:30-7:00
Nov. 2~ Early Release Day

PTO news: Thanks to all of you who helped unload our second batch of pumpkins at the Pumpkin Patch! If you haven’t yet, please stop by and buy some pumpkins, play in the corn, and support our school. Join us for the Party at the Patch on Friday! I’ll be there for face painting and a night of fun!

If you have questions about our SCRIP fundraiser, just let us know! Thank you for your tremendous participation in our BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending these and other labels in. Our PTO is so supportive of our school!

Homework:
Please continue to review High Frequency words for first grade. During our conferences, I’m checking with parents to see if you need another copy. If we haven’t met yet, please let me know if you need another set of these words. We have also been discussing the Skills Cards that pertain to your child’s individual reading level. Look for these to be going home in your child’s reading folder next week. Please return them daily.

READING: Thank you for your help with the 100 Book Challenge Program! We have worked hard on building up our stamina in class. As you can see from your child’s log, we are sometimes earning 2 steps a day in class for “Read to Someone” and “Read to Self!” Please be sure to read for at least 15 minutes each night, and continue to review your high frequency words.

Math homework will go home on Wednesday and Thursday of this week! In addition to the sheets that go home, please work on adding facts +0, +1, +2, +3, and double facts such as (2+2, 5+5, 7+7, 10+10).

Thank you! Our second grade teachers have loaned us some Leap Pad electronic books to use with our students. Thanks to Annmarie’s parents for donating some AAA batteries for them! We can’t wait to use them!

Language Arts: We have enjoyed reading different types of fiction, and we are classifying stories as “realistic fiction” or “fantasy.” We’ll be reading some of both and writing “fantasy” stories of our own. We are focusing on characters and settings in our reading and our writing. We’re learning more about short and long vowel sounds and practicing spelling our high frequency words more consistently.

Math: We’ll continue to work with pennies and nickels, and patterns in counting. We are doing a fantastic job with adding by counting up! We will begin Rocket Math this week! (More information on that program will go home next week.) We’ll use the number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting.

Science: We will learn about the life cycle of pumpkins, and compare it to what we know about apples.

Health: With Red Ribbon Week, we will discuss the importance of making healthy choices for our bodies. We’ll learn about ways to say “no to drugs,” as well as other ways to have fun in a healthy way.

Social Studies: We will continue to learn geography by following my sister, “The Traveling Teacher,” as she travels through Asia.

October is Fire Safety Month, so we will learn ways to prevent fires, as well as what to do in case of an emergency. We’ll be learning about the jobs firefighters do.

Newsletter from October 3, 2011

IMPORTANT DATES:
• The Book Fair is here all week! Family Night is 10/6 from 5:30-7:30
• 10/5~ Walk to School Day
• 10/10~ Fire Safety Week begins
• 10/10~ Parent Conferences will begin. Please look for a letter to schedule these meetings early this week. I am looking forward to meeting with each of you!
• 10/11~ Last day to order & pay for pictures.
• 10/11~ Chick Fil~A Night with free Face Painting! 5-8 pm

PTO news: Thanks to all of you who helped unload pumpkins at the Pumpkin Patch! Please stop by and buy some pumpkins, play in the corn, and support our school. If you have questions about our SCRIP fundraiser, just let us know! Thank you for your tremendous participation in our BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending these and other labels in. Our PTO is so supportive of our school!

Homework:
Please continue to review High Frequency words for first grade. I am no longer working on “weekly” class lists. Your child will be receiving a Skills Card with the 100 Book Challenge program that will be more specific to his or her needs. We’ll go over this at our parent conferences.
1. READING: Thank you for your help with the 100 Book Challenge Books! The children have been terrific at keeping up with taking home so many books! As always, please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. We are working on building up the amount of time that the children can read independently. These 100 Book Challenge books should be easy for your child to read. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
2. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week! In addition to the sheets that go home, please work on adding facts +0, +1, +2 and double facts such as (2+2, 5+5, 7+7, 10+10)

Introductions: Over the past few weeks, the first grade has been fortunate to receive assistance from a wide variety of people. We are continuously working on grouping our children flexibly in order to meet their individual needs. I will talk about these groups in greater detail at our conference, but I’d like to take this time to tell you about Mrs. Jenn Steele and Mrs. Susan Hoover. They work with our students at various times throughout the day on reading and math skills. Mrs. Shirl Bryson is a volunteer who has joined us every morning to work with students on reading skills. And finally, we are working on a new schedule of sending students to the school computer lab to work with Mrs. Debbie Levasseur on the Success Maker program. If you hear your child talking about working with one of these ladies, hopefully you will now know a little more about them.

Request: Our second grade teachers have loaned us some Leap Pad electronic books to use with our students. They use lots of batteries! If you would be able to donate AAA batteries throughout the year, we could certainly use them! We appreciate any help we can get! Thanks!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on vowel sounds & letter formation. We are working on spelling words, writing complete sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are learning how to brainstorm for ideas and organize our thoughts for writing. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We will work with pennies and nickels, telling time to the hour, and patterns in counting. We are adding by counting up. We use the number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting.

Science: We will wrap up our study of the seasons, the weather, the sun, the earth, and the moon this week.

Social Studies: We will continue to learn geography by using a map and a globe. We’re learning the differences between “states,” “countries,” and “continents.” We are learning how we are different, yet similar, to children and their families around the world.

October is Fire Safety Month, so we will learn ways to prevent fires, as well as what to do in case of an emergency. We’ll be learning about the jobs firefighters do.

Newsletter from September 26, 2011

IMPORTANT DATES:
• 9/30~ The Pumpkins arrive in the Pumpkin Patch! Be sure to support our school and have fun at the Pumpkin Patch this fall.
• 10/5~ Walk to School Day. Information will go home soon.
• 10/11~ Last day to order pictures. They went home yesterday!
• 10/11~ Chick Fil~A Night with free Face Painting! 5-8 pm

Fall Book Fair Arrives - October 3rd-7th. Family Book Fair Night: Thursday, Oct. 6th 5:30-7:30. See the letter from the library for more information!

REMINDERS:
Library day is FRIDAY!

We really enjoyed the visit from the Korean Children’s choir on Monday! It was interesting to see children who are different from us, yet so alike! We were fortunate to receive a special visit from them in our classroom after lunch. We sang together! Please ask your child about this wonderful experience.

EMGames Online: Your child brought home a card with directions how to access Every Day Mathematics games from any computer with internet access. I hope you have had the chance to visit this site! Remember, you can go to the public library for internet access if you do not have it at home.


PTO news: Look over the information about our new SCRIP Fundraising! It is an easy way to raise money for our school. Thank you for your tremendous participation in our BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending these and other labels in. Our PTO is so supportive of our school! 

Homework:
1. This week’s high frequency words are: who, where, why, how, will, do, does, can’t, I’ll, about Please work on reading them at first sight.
If your child can easily recognize them for reading, begin practicing the spelling of these words.
2. READING: Thank you for your help with the 100 Book Challenge Books! We are missing one book, titled Ff. It has a Y sticker on it. Otherwise, the children have been terrific at keeping up with taking home so many books! As always, please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. We are working on building up the amount of time that the children can read independently. These 100 Book Challenge books should be easy for your child to read. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
3. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, especially short vowel sounds, & letter formation. We are working on spelling words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are learning how to brainstorm for ideas and organize our thoughts for writing. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We will work with pennies and nickels, and review telling time to the hour. We’re working on number formation, counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s, and adding by counting up. We’ll be using a number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting. We are playing Every Day Math games online, so you will know how to play them at home!

Science: We will continue to study the seasons and months of the year. We’re learning about how the weather changes with the seasons. Ask your child what we have learned about the sun and the earth!

Social Studies: We will learn more about the earth and using a map and a globe. We’re learning the differences between “states,” “countries,” and “continents.”

Newsletter from September 19, 2011

IMPORTANT DATES:
• 9/21~ Early Release Day~ please see form going home today.
• 9/23~ MAP testing & Last day to order PTO T-shirts
• 10/5~ Walk to School Day. Information will go home soon.
•
EMGames Online: Your child brought home a card with directions how to access Every Day Mathematics games from any computer with internet access. I hope you have had the chance to visit this site! Remember, you can go to the public library for internet access if you do not have it at home.

Free and Reduced Lunch: ATTENTION ALL PARENTS!!
If you haven’t already done so, please fill-out and submit a free and reduced lunch form. You can put it in a sealed envelope and put it to the attention of Dawn Dame, our cafeteria manager. You may benefit from this program and get your child(ren)’s lunch FREE OR REDUCED. The form is EASY to fill-out and you may be surprised how easy it is to qualify. You only need one form per family/household. Please list all children in your care on the form. Please let me know if you would like a form, or you can come by the school to pick one up.

REMINDERS:
Library day is FRIDAY!

PTO news: Look over the information about our new SCRIP Fundraising! It is an easy way to raise money for our school. Thank you for your tremendous participation in our BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending these and other labels in. Our PTO is so supportive of our school!

Homework:
1. This week’s high frequency words are: with, jump, but, as, came, got, have, make, what, of Please work on reading them at first sight.
If your child can easily recognize them for reading, begin practicing the spelling of these words.
2. READING: Beginning today, your child is bringing home four 100 Book Challenge books in a special book bag. As always, please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. We are working on building up the amount of time that the children can read independently. These 100 Book Challenge books should be easy for your child to read. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
3. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, especially short vowel sounds, & letter formation. We are working on spelling words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are learning how to brainstorm for ideas and organize our thoughts for writing. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number formation, counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s, and adding by counting up. We’ll be using a number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting. We are playing Every Day Math games online, so you will know how to play them at home!

Science: We will continue to study the seasons and months of the year. We’re learning about how the weather changes with the seasons, and we’ll learn about the sun and the moon.

Social Studies: We will learn more about our country and our constitution.

Read All About It! Newsletter from Sept. 12

IMPORTANT DATES:
• September 12~ Good News Club begins
• 9/15~ Wendy’s Night 5-8pm
• 9/16~ MAP testing
• 9/21~ Early Release Day
• 9/23~ MAP testing & Last day to order PTO T-shirts

EMGames Online: Your child is bringing home a card with directions how to access Every Day Mathematics games from any computer with internet access. Please put these cards in a special place. If you do not have a computer at home, remember that you can use the computers through the public library system.

REMINDERS:
Library day is FRIDAY!

Please remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings.

PTO news: Wow! Our class is really kicking it with the BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending in those Box Tops and other labels!
A HUGE thank you to our PTO and everyone who supported our school at our Apple Festival booth! Our PTO is so supportive of our school!

Homework:
1. This week, please look over the following “FIRST GRADE” high frequency words. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. Our main goal now is for the children to be able to read them at first sight; spelling will come later.
all, are, get, had, has, like, he, she, me, will
2. READING: Please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. This may include your child reading to you and you reading to or with your child. Please record the 15 minutes read on the reading log. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
3. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week! (We slipped out the door without it last week!! Sorry!)

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, especially short vowel sounds, & letter formation. We are working on spelling words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are learning how to brainstorm for ideas and organize our thoughts for writing. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number formation. We’ll be using a number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting. We are playing some Every Day Math games online, so you will know how to play them at home!

Science: We will learn more about the life cycle of apples and begin to study the seasons.

Social Studies: We will learn a little about our country and our constitution.

Newsletter from September 6

IMPORTANT DATES:
• September 9~ Picture Day!
• 9/21~ Early Release Day

REMINDERS:
Library day is FRIDAY!
Please remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings.

PTO news: We are now in a BOX TOP BLITZ! Thank you for sending in those Box Tops and other labels!

CORE ESSENTIALS Character Trait for September:
Knowledge—discovering something new so you can be better at whatever you do
1.) We are learning about the value of KNOWLEDGE this month —discovering something new so you can be better at whatever you do!
2.) Brainstorm one thing you each DO daily. Help one another discover something NEW in that area that can help you gain KNOWLEDGE.
3.) Books and the Internet - both are ways to gain KNOWLEDGE. But don’t overlook people! Who can teach you something new this week?
4.) Head for a sweet treat as a family this week and celebrate all the KNOWLEDGE that was gained this month at school and home!

Homework:
1. This week, please look over the following “kindergarten” high frequency words. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. Our main goal now is for the children to be able to read them at first sight; spelling will come later. away, in, look, make, my, said, play, we, you, here
2. READING: Please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. This may include your child reading to you and you reading to or with your child. Please record the 15 minutes read on the reading log. We will bring home one book from the classroom this week each day. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
3. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week.

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, especially short vowel sounds, & letter formation. We are working on spelling words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number formation. We’ll be using a number line and other strategies to solve number stories with adding and subtracting. We will learn how to play some Every Day Math games online, so you will know how to play them at home!

Science: We will learn about the life cycle of apples!

Newsletter from August 29

IMPORTANT DATES:
• September 2~ Final day to turn in Math calendars from this summer.
• September 5~ Labor Day Holiday

Thank you to everyone who was able to come out last week for our Spirit Night at Chick Fil~A!

REMINDERS:
Please help your child remember to wear sneakers on our PE days, Mondays & Wednesdays. Please remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings. Sometimes we will continue to work through snack time, so it’s important that you send something that can be eaten neatly. Thank you for using your child’s red Take Home Folder for all communication to and from school. Please initial in each calendar box daily, so I know you’ve seen it. And finally, thank you for remembering to send all money to school in an envelope, clearly labeled with your child’s name, my name, and what the money is for. Thanks!

LIBRARY: Our class will now be going to the school library on FRIDAYS. The children are allowed to check out TWO books this year! We will encourage them to choose one to read to or with you, and one that can be read to them.

PTO news: Thanks to all of you who have joined our PTO! We are already collecting Box Tops, Coke lids and codes from boxes, Campbell Soup labels for Education, and can tabs! Thanks for sending these items in. Our PTO is also selling T-shirts. If you would like an order form, just let me know.

Homework:
1. This week, please look over the following “kindergarten” high frequency words. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. Our main goal now is for the children to be able to read them at first sight; spelling will come later. and, can, come, down, for, go, help, is, it, little
I will assess the children on reading (or spelling) these words towards the end of the week.
2. READING: Please read with your child for 15 minutes, with a timer. This may include your child reading to you and you reading to or with your child. Please record the 15 minutes read on the reading log. We will bring home one book from the classroom this week each day. You may read personal books or library books for the rest of the 15 minutes.
3. Math homework will go home on Tuesday and Thursday of this week.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation with homework! Together, we can work together to help your child reach his or her fullest potential!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, letter identification & formation. We are working on beginning and ending sounds of words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. We are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number recognition, formation, and identification. We’re comparing numbers using the terms “greater than & less than” on a number line and number chart. We’re reviewing calendar skills, graphing, and counting pennies.

Newsletter From August 22

Thank you to everyone for helping this year get off to a wonderful start! The children are adjusting to our daily routines and getting to know each other. We have a super group of hard workers and good friends!

IMPORTANT DATES:
• Aug. 22~ YMCA after school care begins
• Aug. 24~ Cub Scouts meet after school
• Aug. 25~ Meet the Principal night at Chick Fil~A 5:00-8:00 pm
• September 5~ Labor Day Holiday

LUNCHROOM NEWS: As you know, four choices are being offered this year for lunch. Please take a few moments each evening or morning to discuss lunch options with your child. It will help speed up our morning routine if the children knew what they would like to have for lunch each day. Menus were sent home on Watermelon Welcome. Let me know if you need another one. If your child is bringing a lunch box, milk & juice is available for 50 cents. Thanks!

REMINDERS:
Please help your child remember to wear sneakers on our PE days, Mondays & Wednesdays. Please remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings. Sometimes we will continue to work through snack time, so it’s important that you send something that can be eaten neatly. Thank you for using your child’s red Take Home Folder for all communication to and from school. Please initial in each calendar box daily, so I know you’ve seen it. And finally, thank you for remembering to send all money to school in an envelope, clearly labeled with your child’s name, my name, and what the money is for. Thanks!

THANK YOU to Annmarie’s family! They sent a huge bag of supplies and cookies! Thanks for thinking of us! Callie brought in more class supplies, today! THANKS!

Summer Reading Celebration: We shared some of our favorite books in the courtyard on Friday afternoon. We enjoyed cookies (thanks, Annmarie!) and juice while we talked and read with our classmates. Thank you to everyone who brought a book from home!

PTO news: Thanks to all of you who joined our PTO at Watermelon Welcome. Remember to send in your Ingle’s card number. This is one of the easiest ways for our school to earn money. We are collecting Box Tops, Coke lids and codes from boxes, Campbell Soup labels for Education, and can tabs! Thanks for sending these items in.

Homework: At this point in the year, your child’s main homework will consist of working on reading (& spelling) high frequency words and reading daily at home. Beginning next week, I will add math homework. For this week, please look over the following “kindergarten” high frequency words. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. Our main goal now is for the children to be able to read them at first sight; spelling will come later.
a, and, away, big, blue, can, cat, come, dad, dog, down, find, for, funny, go, help, I, in, is, it, jump, little, look, make, me, mom, my, not, one, play, red, run, said, see, the, three, to, two, up, we, yellow, you

I will assess the children on reading (or spelling) these words towards the end of the week.

Also begin to set aside a solid 15 minute slot of time for you and your child to read together. Next week we will begin to bring books home from the class to ready each day. Thanks in advance for your cooperation with homework! Together, we can work together to help your child reach his or her fullest potential!

Language Arts: We will continue to work on letter sounds, letter identification & formation. We are working on beginning and ending sounds of words, writing sentences with spacing between words, and including periods at the end of sentences. This week we are focusing on using our fingers to point to the words as we read, using the pictures for clues, and “getting our mouths ready” as we face unknown words. We are reading stories (fiction) and reading for information (non-fiction).

Math: We’re working on number recognition, formation, and identification. We’re comparing numbers using the terms “greater than & less than” on a number line and number chart. We’re reviewing calendar skills and counting pennies.
Social Studies: We have been learning how routines & rules help us in our classroom community.

Read All About It! March 1st newsletter

IMPORTANT DATES:
•BOX TOP BLITZ continues throughout the month! Thank you for your participation!
•March 2~ Last day to turn in Jump Rope for Heart money.
•March 2~ Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!! READ ACROSS AMERICA
•March 9~ Early Release (12:45)
•March 11~ Spring Pictures
•March 17~ Family Expo
•March 21~ Snow Make Up Day

Chick Fil~A News: Get excited everyone! Mama Bear, Papa Bear, Brother Bear and Sister Bear are on their way to Chick-Fil-A of Seneca on Monday, March 21st from 5:30-7:30pm! Bring the kids out for a fun night at Chick-Fil-A of Seneca with the Berenstain Bears!

THANK YOU to Sonni for bringing in extra snacks for the class!

100 Book Challenge: Congratulations to Reilly, Gracie, and Ryan! They have already earned 50 steps! Thank you to everyone for your support of this program. The children who are reading a minimum of 15 minutes every day at home are growing weekly! If you have any questions about this program, please let me know!

Language Arts: We are reading books by Dr. Seuss, in celebration of Read Across America! We are working hard on studying word patterns and rhymes to help us with our reading, and more importantly now, with our spelling. We will be writing silly “Seuss” stories of our own! We will be reading and writing ideas from a variety of his books. We will also read some biographies of Dr. Seuss.

Last week we read information about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. We’ve learned so much! We will continue to compare and contrast their lives this week. We will continue to read more biographies throughout the rest of the year.

In writing, we are focusing on writing several sentences on one topic. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly. We are using our dictionaries. We’re including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

MATH: We are learning about the signs for “greater than” and “less than.” (> <) We’re adding larger numbers by using our tens & ones blocks, our number grids, and learning how to add in columns. Continue counting combinations of coins!

ROCKET MATH: Thanks to all of you who are already working on your facts at home! Congratulations to Gracie and Jayli! They have already reached their M facts!

READ ALL ABOUT IT January 18 newsletter

IMPORTANT DATES:
 Feb. 3~ 100th Day of School!
 2/4~ Family Movie Night @ 6:00
 2/9~ Early Release Day
 2/11~ Valentine’s Day Party
 2/17~ Math & Science Night

MAP TESTING: Our first session went very well last week! Our class will take the second Reading test on Friday. We will take the Math portions on Tuesday and Thursday of NEXT week. Thank you in advance for making sure your child gets a good night’s sleep and a healthy breakfast!

FROM THE LIBRARY: Mark Your Calendars – Book Fair Week February 21st-25thOur school will be hosting another book fair in February. We will be open for parents to shop before school from 7:30-8:00 each day and until 4:00 on Monday and Thursday. Monday – Thursday we will be open for students from 8:00-3:00 and Friday until 9:30. We will also be hosting another “Bring a Loved One to Lunch” on two different days by grade levels. Wednesday, February 23rd , grades K, 2nd, and 4th will be hosting parents. Thursday, February 24th, the schedule will include grades 1st, 3rd, & 5th. Parents can purchase books for a teacher by choosing slips from the teacher’s wish list board. Please see the Media Center’s website to respond if someone will be eating lunch with your child(ren). The menu will be posted on the website as well as the lunch schedule for each grade. A link will be posted on the left hand side of the webpage starting February 1st called “February Book Fair Luncheon”. The Media Center website is http://www.oconee.k12.sc.us/webpages/mfarmer/

Dr. Seuss Costume Parade – March 2ndStart getting your costumes ready and celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday on Read Across America Day March 2nd. We will be having a book character parade that day led by musicians and banners but we need your family’s creativity to make it work! We are inviting our students to dress in costume of a book character. However we are especially hoping to see characters FROM Dr. Seuss books (ex: thing one and thing too, Cat in the Hat, The Lorax). If your child would like to make a sign to wear with his/her costume during the parade, that would be great since they will be marching around the school. For more information check the Media Center’s website starting February 1st for a Dr. Seuss Celebration link.
THANK YOU to our parent chaperones, Angel Morehead, Joe Byers, Carolyn Woody, Cheryl Carver, and Michele Crawford! We had a terrific field trip to the Brooks Center and Chick Fil~A! I am trying to put pictures up on our webpage…

TAKE HOME READERS: Please set a timer for 15 minutes as your child reads. You may also use this time to review the first grade high frequency words. On Wednesday of this week, we will begin bringing home 4 100 Book Challenge books and earning steps at home! (A letter will accompany these.)

Language Arts: We are reading books by Eric Carle. We’ll use his style of writing to write stories of our own! We will be comparing and contrasting his books with those of other authors we know. Our reading AND our writing have come such a long way! I look forward to sharing some assessments and writing samples with you when we begin our conferences.

We’re continuing to focus on vowel “teams,” such as ea, ai, and oa, as well as “r-controlled” vowel sounds (ar, er, ir and ur). We are reading and spelling BLENDS, such as sn, sl, pr, cl, st, etc. We are learning more about compound words and contractions, such as can’t, I’ll, I’m, isn’t, etc.

In writing, we are focusing on writing several sentences on one topic. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly. We are using our dictionaries. We’re including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

MATH: We will be working with numbers up to 100 as we celebrate our 100th day of school! We’ll be working with place value (tens and ones) with base-10 blocks. We will continue “Rocket Math” this week, focusing on speed and memorization of addition facts.

Please continue reviewing counting combinations of coins, adding with speed and accuracy, and telling time to the hour and half-hour.

SCIENCE: February is Dental Health month, so we’ll be studying ways to care for our teeth! 

Read All About It! Newsletter for January 18

Welcome Back, and Happy New Year! What a January this has been so far!

IMPORTANT DATES:
Jan. 19~ Deadline to turn in your slip if you would like to be a chaperone for our field trip.
Jan. 24~ MAP testing for First Grade begins
Jan. 27~ Field Trip to Brooks Center and Chick Fil~A AND report cards will go home!


Thank you for your generosity shown during our WHITE CHRISTMAS Food drive and Money Collection! I am so overwhelmed by the compassion that you and your children showed! So far, our class has collected 58food items and $60.99! (This was a wonderful opportunity to practice counting money, too!) Thank you for encouraging your child to think of others!

SNACKS: Thank you to AJ for bringing extra snacks for our class last week! Please continue to send a healthy snack each day.

TAKE HOME READERS: Please set a timer for 15 minutes as your child reads. I realize that one Take Home Reader doesn’t take 15 minutes to read, so please begin to set up an area with library books and personal books that your child can read after reading the THR. You may also use this time to review the first grade high frequency words. We will soon be earning “steps” in 100 Book Challenge at home, so it’s very important to establish this routine.

Math Homework will be given Tuesday through Thursday this week, then M-F from here on out! Please continue to review addition facts and counting coins.

Language Arts: We are reading and writing about snow and winter! We had started an author study of Ezra Jack Keats, the author of The Snowy Day, just before the snow. We’ll continue with this later this week. We read about Martin Luther King Jr. today.

We’re learning about vowel “teams,” such as ea, ai, and oa, as well as “r-controlled” vowel sounds (ar, er, ir and ur). We are also beginning to learn more about reading and spelling BLENDS, such as sn, sl, pr, cl, st, etc. We are learning more about contractions, such as can’t, I’ll, I’m, isn’t, etc.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly. We are using our dictionaries. We’re including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

We are will continue “Rocket Math” this week, focusing on speed and memorization of addition facts. More information will go home about this soon.

We’re adding & subtracting on the number line, the number grid, & with number stories. We’re telling time to the HALF-HOUR & counting combinations of quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies.

SOCIAL STUDIES: We will continue to discuss Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks this week.

READ ALL ABOUT IT! Newsletter for December 13

IMPORTANT DATES:
• December 16~ First Grade White Christmas program at 9 am.
Wear a red shirt and blue jeans.
• December 17~ Half-Day and Class Christmas Party
Please send $1.50 to help cover the cost of goodies and supplies
If you would like to volunteer to help at the party, please let me know.
If you are planning to bring a younger sibling, please send $ for them to eat, too.

WHITE CHRISTMAS Food drive and Money Collection will continue through the rest of December. I am so overwhelmed by the compassion that our children have already shown! So far, our class has collected 51 food items and $58.49! (This has been a wonderful opportunity to practice counting money, too!) Thank you for encouraging your child to think of others at this special time of year.

SNACKS: Please continue to send snack for the rest of the week, except for Friday!

TAKE HOME READERS: Please set a timer for 15 minutes as your child reads. I realize that one Take Home Reader doesn’t take 15 minutes to read, so please begin to set up an area with library books and personal books that your child can read after reading the THR. You may also use this time to review the first grade high frequency words.

Language Arts: We are reading and writing about Christmas traditions and holiday traditions from around the world. We will write our letters to Santa Claus tomorrow.

We’re learning about vowel “teams,” such as ea, ai, and oa. We are also beginning to learn more about reading and spelling BLENDS, such as sn, sl, pr, cl, st, etc. We will learn more about contractions, such as can’t, I’ll, I’m, isn’t, etc.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly. We are using our dictionaries. We’re including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

M&M Math Masters: Congratulations to our Math Masters! 114 of our students are already Math Masters!! We are beginning “Rocket Math” this week, focusing on speed and memorization of addition facts.

We’re adding & subtracting on the number line, the number grid, & with number stories. We’re telling time to the HALF-HOUR & counting dimes.

READ ALL ABOUT IT for December 6

IMPORTANT DATES:
• December 10~ Polar Express Day in first grade: Wear your pajamas!
• December 16~ First Grade White Christmas program at 9 am
Wear a red shirt and blue jeans.•
December 17~ Half-Day and Class Christmas Party
Please send $1.50 to help cover the cost of goodies and supplies
If you would like to volunteer to help at the party, please let me know.
WHITE CHRISTMAS Food drive and Money Collection will continue through the rest of December. I am so overwhelmed by the compassion that our children have already shown! So far, our class has collected 38 food items and $51.51! (This has been a wonderful opportunity to practice counting money, too!) Thank you for encouraging your child to think of others at this special time of year.

FROM THE LIBRARY: Our class will no longer go as a “whole class” to library on Wednesdays. The children will be allowed to check out books individually before school, during snack time, and WITH A PARENT until 3:30.

A special holiday event sponsored by the Oconee County Public Library invites the community to give the gift of a library card this holiday season. Now through December 13th, parents and other caretakers of children are encouraged to fill out a special holiday library card application for their child. Applications will be available at all Oconee County Public Library branches, local businesses, and elementary schools. The applications should be mailed in or turned into a library branch by December 13th.

After the application has been submitted, the “library elves” will create a library account for the child and mail them a card in a holiday envelope, along with a special candy cane bookmark. The gift of a library card is a great stocking stuffer, or would make a perfect addition to gifts under the tree. If a child already has an account with the library they will be mailed a holiday envelope and book mark, with a note congratulating them on having a library card. All cards will be mailed on December 16th.

The card becomes a magical key to open worlds of facts and imaginings for children. A card is often the first public possession a child has. It teaches responsibility as well as opening doors to learning and enjoyment. Best of all it is free and such a wonderful gift for a child.
For more information contact OCPL at 638-4133 or visit their website at www.oconee.lib.sc.us You can also get an application from your child’s teacher, the Westminster Elementary School Library, or our school’s front office.

SNACKS: Thank you to Ryleigh and her mom for making trail mix to share with the class on days we forget snack! It’s always nice to have extra snacks on hand.

TAKE HOME READERS: Please set a timer for 15 minutes as your child reads. I realize that one Take Home Reader doesn’t take 15 minutes to read, so please begin to set up an area with library books and personal books that your child can read after reading the THR. You may also use this time to review the first grade high frequency words.

Language Arts: We will be reading books by Mercer Mayer throughout the next couple of weeks. We’ll use these books to study the “story elements” of Characters, Setting, Problem and Solution. We are also beginning to read and write about CHRISTMAS!

We’re learning about vowel “teams,” such as ea, ai, and oa. We are also beginning to learn more about reading and spelling BLENDS, such as sn, sl, pr, cl, st, etc. We will learn more about contractions, such as can’t, I’ll, I’m, isn’t, etc.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. Today we received our very own DICTIONARIES to use in our Writing Workshop. We reviewed alphabetical order. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

M&M Math Masters: Congratulations to our Math Masters! 13 of our students are already Math Masters!! We will begin “Rocket Math” later this week, focusing on memorization of addition facts.

We’re adding and subtracting on the number line, the number grid, and with number stories. We’ll continue to practice with frames and arrows and other patterns. We’ll be telling time to the HALF-HOUR and counting dimes.

Read All About It! Newsletter for November 29

IMPORTANT DATES:
• December 4~ Breakfast with Santa! 8:30-11:00 am
• December 10~ Polar Express Day in first grade: Wear your pajamas!• December 16~ First Grade White Christmas program at 9 am
• December 17~ Half-Day

FROM THE LIBRARY: Our class will no longer go as a “whole class” to library on Wednesdays. The children will be allowed to check out books individually before school, during snack time, and WITH A PARENT until 3:30.

Please check out the media center's webpage at
http://www.oconee.k12.sc.us/webpages/mfarmer/forms.cfm?myform=1493 to find information about a new program Mrs. Farmer would like to begin. Fill out the brief questionnaire to help support a special emphasis for boys as readers. You can also find the information at the Media Center's page under "Media Center Forms".

SNACKS: Thank you for remembering to send a snack each day. These should be healthy snacks, not cookies or brownies or candy. Also, please try to send finger foods only. We often work through shack, and foods that need spoons or need cutting and peeling can be messy.

TAKE HOME READERS: Please begin setting a timer as your child reads. I realize that one Take Home Reader doesn’t take 15 minutes to read, so please begin to set up an area with library books and personal books that your child can read after reading the THR. You may also use this time to review the first grade high frequency words.

THANKSGIVING: Thank you to everyone who shared their Thanksgiving memories and traditions with us! It was interesting seeing how many people share some of the same traditions!

Language Arts: We will be reading books by Mercer Mayer throughout the next couple of weeks. We’ll use these books to study the “story elements” of Characters, Setting, Problem and Solution.

We’re learning about vowel “teams,” such as ea, ai, and oa. We are also beginning to learn more about reading and spelling BLENDS, such as sn, sl, pr, cl, st, etc. We will learn more about contractions, such as can’t, I’ll, I’m, isn’t, etc.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. Today we received our very own DICTIONARIES to use in our Writing Workshop. We reviewed alphabetical order. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

M&M Math Masters: Have you noticed how your child is zooming through the addition facts?! Thank you for reviewing addition at home. M&M Math is a wonderful way to get the children comfortable with the adding practice, and to learn their doubles facts and other “tricks” to help with addition. We will begin “Rocket Math” during the next few weeks, which focuses on memorization of addition facts.

We’re adding and subtracting on the number line, the number grid, and with number stories. We’ll continue to practice with frames and arrows and other patterns. We’ll be telling time to the HALF-HOUR and counting dimes.

READ ALL ABOUT IT! Newsletter from Nov. 15

IMPORTANT DATES:
•Nov. 15-19 ~“Be a Buddy Not a Bully!” Westminster Elementary Bully Prevention Week
•Nov. 22~ Mid-term reports go home
•Nov. 24-28~ Thanksgiving Holidays!

DECEMBER 4~ Breakfast with Santa! Join us in the lunchroom from 8:00-11:00 am!

FROM THE LIBRARY: Please check out the media center's webpage at
http://www.oconee.k12.sc.us/webpages/mfarmer/forms.cfm?myform=1493
to find information about a new program Mrs. Farmer would like to begin. Fill out the brief questionnaire to help support a special emphasis for boys as readers. You can also find the information at the Media Center's page under "Media Center Forms".

SNACKS: Thank you for remembering to send a snack each day. These should be healthy snacks, not cookies or brownies or candy. Also, please try to send finger foods only. We often work through shack, and foods that need spoons or need cutting and peeling can be messy.

TAKE HOME READERS: These are going so well! The children are really growing as independent readers! Thanks for your help with this. There are just a few children who are not reading every day. Please use the Take Home Reader as a part of 15 minutes of reading daily.

THANKSGIVING unit: We are reading Historical Fiction and non-fiction to learn information about the pilgrims and Native Americans. We will also be discussing the various family traditions we have during the holidays. Thanks in advance for participating in some of the take home activities!

Language Arts: We are learning about setting purposes for reading, such as reading to find out certain information, to find out the answer to a question, or to check a prediction. We’re working on summarizing the main idea of a story and retelling it with proper sequence. We have been learning about a variety of “genres.” Ask your child to tell you about non-fiction, historical fiction, realistic fiction, and fantasy. Please continue to remind your child to touch each word as he or she reads, and remind them to use strategies such as “get my mouth ready,” looking at pictures for clues, or making “guesses,” then returning to see if our guesses make sense.

We’re reviewing rhyming word “families” to help us with reading and spelling. We’re reviewing the sounds of ch, sh, th, and wh.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. We are trying to hear the beginning & ending sounds, as well as a vowel sound. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

We are excited about receiving brand new HANDWRITING books! A homework sheet for today and tomorrow is going home today, concentrating on the letter a. Please do the front tonight and the back tomorrow. We’ll have math homework on Wednesday and Thursday this week.

Math: We’re beginning to learn combinations that equal a sum of 10. (7+3, 5+5, 8+2, etc) We’re adding and subtracting through number stories. We’re continuing to memorize some “doubles” facts, such as 4+4, 5+5, etc. We’re working with numbers up to 110 on our Number Grid. We will continue to work on telling time to the hour this week.

Health and Safety: We will be learning about healthy foods and snacks.

Social Studies: We will be learning about family traditions for Thanksgiving, as well as the story of the “first” Thanksgiving. We celebrated Veterans Day last week, as well as learned about different kinds of careers on Career and Fine Arts Day.

READ ALL ABOUT IT! Newsletter from Nov. 8

IMPORTANT DATES:
• Nov. 10~ Early Release Day: Students dismissed at 12:45
• Nov. 11~ Veterans Day
• Nov. 12~ Career and Fine Arts Day
• Nov. 12~ Family Free MOVIE Night,TOY STORY III will be shown at 6:00!
• Nov. 15-19 ~“Be a Buddy Not a Bully!” Westminster Elementary Bully Prevention Week

SNACKS: Thank you for remembering to send a snack each day. These should be healthy snacks, not cookies or brownies or candy. Also, please try to send finger foods only. We often work through shack, and foods that need spoons or need cutting and peeling can be messy.

TAKE HOME READERS: These are going so well! The children are really growing as independent readers! Thanks for your help with this. There are just a few children who are not reading every day. Please use the Take Home Reader as a part of 15 minutes of reading daily.

FARM UNIT: We have been reading and writing about life on the farm. We’ve compared and contrasted different types of animals, learned about different crops, and seen how farm products go from the farm to our homes. We’ve learned about living and non-living things. We’re finishing up this unit, and we’ll begin our Thanksgiving unit this week.

Language Arts: We are learning about setting purposes for reading, such as reading to find out certain information, to find out the answer to a question, or to check a prediction. We’re working on summarizing the main idea of a story and retelling it with proper sequence. We have been learning about a variety of “genres.” Ask your child to tell you about non-fiction, realistic fiction, and fantasy. We are continuing to increase our independent reading time. So far, our longest time is 15 minutes! Please continue to remind your child to touch each word as he or she reads, and remind them to use strategies such as “get my mouth ready,” looking at pictures for clues, or making “guesses,” then returning to see if our guesses make sense.

We’re reviewing rhyming word “families” to help us with reading and spelling. We’re reviewing the sounds of ch, sh, th, and wh.

In writing, we are focusing on getting good ideas for writing. We’re continuing to work on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. We are trying to hear the beginning & ending sounds, as well as a vowel sound. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

We are beginning a renewed emphasis on HANDWRITING. You can expect to see handwriting practice sheets coming home for homework.

Math: We’re beginning to learn combinations that equal a sum of 10. (7+3, 5+5, 8+2, etc) We’re adding and subtracting through number stories. We’re continuing to memorize some “doubles” facts, such as 4+4, 5+5, etc. We’re working with numbers up to 110 on our Number Grid. We will continue to work on telling time to the hour this week.

Health and Safety: In conjunction with Walk to School day, we have learned about ways to get more activity into our day! We also celebrated Red Ribbon Week by talking about things we can do to lead a healthy drug free life.

Social Studies: We will be learning about family traditions for Thanksgiving, as well as the story of the “first” Thanksgiving. We will celebrate Veterans Day on Thursday.

Science: We’re learning about the needs of living things, comparing and contrasting animals and plants.

Read All About It! September 27 Newsletter

IMPORTANT DATES:
• Oct. 1~ last day to turn in parent portal letters
• Oct. 1~ pumpkins arrive
• Oct. 7~ Bring a Loved One to lunch for the book fair 11:55-12:20
• Oct 13~ Early Release day for students
• Oct. 18~ Teacher In-service day

Thanks in advance for your help in scheduling parent conferences. Please see the letter with days and times to choose your conference day TOMORROW.

REMINDERS:
Please also remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings.

Thank you for using your child’s red Take Home Folder for all communication to and from school. Please initial in each calendar box daily, so I know you’ve seen it. Thanks!

PTO news: We are looking for volunteers to help unload pumpkins after school on Oct. 1, as well as volunteers to sell pumpkins throughout the month of October. If you or someone you know could help, please call one of our PTO parents. Lori King 903-4771, Chantay Huff 247-5945, or Jenny Lyle 247-1542 You may email our PTO at ptowes@oconee.k12.sc.us

From the library:
Book Fair “Bring a Loved to Lunch”: On Thursday, October 7th the media center will be hosting a luncheon for students & a loved one. Each student can bring an adult to eat with them during our lunch time at 11:55-12:20 & browse the Book Fair before or afterward. Please let us know how many adults will attend & your menu choice(s). See the Media Center’s website at the school’s homepage & click on Media Center Forms to respond electronically.

TAKE HOME READERS: As we begin Guided Reading groups this week, your child will sometimes bring home more than one book to read during your daily 15 minutes of reading. Sit with your child as he or she reads with you, and then use the remainder of the time reading library books or personal books together. (You only need to write the title of one book on the form though.) This is also a wonderful time to continue to review the kindergarten and first grade high frequency words. Look for these words as you read together, and do word searches in newspapers and magazines for these words. A list of these words was sent home at the beginning of school. If you need another copy, please let me know. I’ll try to attach a copy to our class website, too.

Homework: We will have math homework at least 2 days a week. If you have not already moved on to the First grade high frequency words, please do. Continue to review kindergarten “high frequency words”. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words. I will go over the results of our recent assessments at our upcoming parent conferences.

Language Arts: We are learning about setting purposes for reading, such as reading to find out certain information, to find out the answer to a question, or to check a prediction. We are trying to build our stamina in independent reading, timing to see how long we can read and stay focused on our books. Please continue to remind your child to touch each word as he or she reads, and remind them to use strategies such as “get my mouth ready,” looking at pictures for clues, or making “guesses,” then returning to see if our guesses make sense. In writing, we are focusing on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. We are trying to hear the beginning & ending sounds, as well as a vowel sound. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end. We’re reading books by Tomie dePaola and others for inspiration on how to get IDEAS for our writing.

Math: We’re beginning to learn combinations that equal a sum of 10. (7+3, 5+5, 8+2, etc) We’re adding and subtracting through number stories. We’re continuing to memorize some “doubles” facts, such as 4+4, 5+5, etc. We’re working with numbers up to 110 on our Number Grid. We will work on telling time to the hour this week, reviewing the names of the hands and how to read the clock. We’re reviewing calendar skills and reading the Fahrenheit thermometer.

Science: We’ve been reviewing the months and seasons, comparing and contrasting activities and changes in weather and nature at different times of the year.

READ ALL ABOUT IT! September 20 newsletter

IMPORTANT DATES:
• September 21 & 23~ MAP testing
• Sept. 22~ Picture Money due
• Oct. 1~ pumpkins arrive

MENU CHANGE: Tomorrow, chicken nuggets will be substituted for the meatloaf.

REMINDERS:
Please also remember to send a small, healthy snack that can be quickly and independently eaten in the mornings.

Thank you for using your child’s red Take Home Folder for all communication to and from school. Please initial in each calendar box daily, so I know you’ve seen it. Thanks!

Congratulations to our Terrific Kids for August and September, Ryan Carver and Gracie Lee!

PTO news: We are looking for volunteers to help unload pumpkins after school on Oct. 1, as well as volunteers to sell pumpkins throughout the month of October. If you or someone you know could help, please let me know. You may email our PTO at ptowes@oconee.k12.sc.us There are a few other things that we are trying to get "donated"......

• Hay Bales (we need about 20)
• Mums (for decoration)
• Decorative Scarecrows
• Decorative Corn Stalks
• Corn for our Corn Box (like a sandbox except it has corn)

Thank you in advance for any assistance you could give us! FALL IS IN THE AIR!

From the library:
Book Fair “Bring a Loved to Lunch”: On Thursday, October 7th the media center will be hosting a luncheon for students & a loved one. Each student can bring an adult to eat with them during their scheduled lunch time & browse the Book Fair before or afterward. Please let us know how many adults will attend & your menu choice(s). See the Media Center’s website at the school’s homepage & click on Media Center Forms to respond electronically.


TAKE HOME READERS have gotten off to a terrific start, with your help! Thank you for setting aside at least 15 minutes each day for reading. Sit with your child as he or she reads the THR with you, and then use the remainder of the time reading library books or personal books together. (You only need to write the title of the THR on the form though.)

Homework: We will have math homework at least 2 days a week. Continue to review kindergarten “high frequency words”. If your child can easily recognize them for reading, go ahead and begin practicing the spelling of these words.

a, and, away, big, blue, can, cat, come, dad, dog, down, find, for, funny, go, help, I, in, is, it, jump, little, look, make, me, mom, my, not, one, play, red, run, said, see, the, three, to, two, up, we, yellow, you We are in the process of assessing how well your child can read these words.

Language Arts: We are learning about setting purposes for reading, such as reading to find out certain information, to find out the answer to a question, or to check a prediction. We are trying to build our stamina in independent reading, timing to see how long we can read and stay focused on our books. Please continue to remind your child to touch each word as he or she reads, and remind them to use strategies such as “get my mouth ready,” looking at pictures for clues, or making “guesses,” then returning to see if our guesses make sense. In writing, we are focusing on spelling basic high frequency words correctly, and stretching out other words. We are trying to hear the beginning & ending sounds, as well as a vowel sound. We’re going to be working harder on including finger spaces in between the words as we write. We are working on writing complete sentences, with capital letters at the beginning and a period or question mark at the end.

Math: We’re beginning to add and subtract through number stories. We’re working on beginning to memorize some “doubles” facts, such as 4+4, 5+5, etc. Please continue to work on number formation, although we’ve really improved! We’re working with numbers up to 110 on our Number Grid. We will work on telling time to the hour this week, reviewing the names of the hands and how to read the clock. We’re reviewing calendar skills and reading the Fahrenheit thermometer.

Social Studies: We learned about our Constitution on Friday, and we’ll continue to discuss the freedoms and rights we have as Americans.

Science: We will be exploring and making observations as scientists. We’ll begin writing using our senses.