Newsletter May 15, 2009

This past week, first graders were busy in all subject areas. They continued writing their own narrative stories in Writer’s Workshop, continued their work in geometry, and perfected their scientific inquiry skills while studying plants.

In Writer’s Workshop, the students began creating their own narratives, using many different tools to help them get started. Some students benefited from our discussions of potential topics, while others explored topics from books and magazines in the classroom. Some students used our “Word Baskets” to help them create their stories, while another group of students simply closed their eyes to think freely and independently. It was wonderful to see so many authors ready to take on this challenge and truly participate in the writing process the way it should evolve. The students created rough drafts on our color-coordinated helper sheets, with sections for characters, setting, problem and solution. The students also edited and added more details as they polished their writing pieces. They are so excited to share their creations with their friends, but for now, we are trying to work independently, sharing only at the end of class and at our end of the unit “Author’s Café” celebration. We will inform you of time and place so you can all attend this very special celebration as we get closer to its conclusion. Lastly, our classroom narrative unit is complete and we will begin creating the illustrations soon as a collaborative venture in small groups.

Our math unit on geometry exposed us to both 2- and 3-dimentional shapes this week. We also learned what polygons are. Ask your child to explain this mathematical concept to you. This unit is particularly interesting to us, as it allows us to explore geometry in the world around us and in different cultures. Your child will bring home his/her Mexican place mats this week and they have been laminated so they can be enjoyed many times. Please look closely at the precise patterns your child created.

On Tuesday, we were treated to another engaging Hands On Nature class. This time, our parent volunteers taught us a class on honey bees and their behaviors. We learned so much! For example, did you know that the Queen bee eats something called “royal jelly” and that the male bees are called “drones”? Did you know that the worker bees work all the time to bring food back to the hive and do a special dance to let all the others know where the food is located? We had a chance to practice these dances outside, challenging our friends to find hidden flowers in a field. Lastly, we also had the opportunity to study a real bee hive, and discovered that the inside quarters were shaped like hexagons!! Isn’t it amazing—MATH IS EVERYWHERE!!! (Perhaps your child also remembers from our study of the human body that the inside of the human bone is shaped in a honeycomb design through which the blood flows! More hexagons!!).

Our spider plant shoots are almost ready to be planted and the roots are growing long and thick. We observe them periodically and take note of the changes we see. Our beans are starting to sprout as well. We discovered that the roots are coming first, before the stem and the leaves. Ask your child to explain why.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Regards,

Maria McCormack