October+Newsletter

Dear Families,

October is here! Parent volunteers have begun and the children are having fun! They will be playing games that go along with our literacy centers as well as math games that follow the curriculum. They also have begun reading daily from our buddy bags to teachers! They love to change books and get new ones! Please make sure when these bags come home on Wednesdays, that they are sent back on Thursdays. Thank you for your help! We continue to work hard on the Daily Five. The children are learning to read to self and read to each other. They are building their stamina and sustaining quiet reading time for much longer.

Reading groups and centers have been going very well. Each day your children now have reading groups within center time. They are called over to work with me in small groups. They have been doing quite well and enjoy their successes with reading. We are working on strategies of becoming a good reader: looking at the picture, skipping the word and going back to see what makes sense, looking at all the sounds, looking for small words (chunks) with the big words, etc. While some children are in reading groups, others are working in literacy centers. Centers and reading groups are a fun time for all the children as well as a time to get up and move around the classroom. We will begin to practice the Daily Five during this time as well. We have begun using word rings. These are sight words that are placed on rings for the children to gain extra practice. We read and trace the letters daily. The words that go on the rings are picked from the books they are reading and may have difficulty with. It is a great way to differentiate each child’s learning. Every child has different words on his/her word ring.

Math Investigations is going great! They children are really excited about math and are really having fun with the activities. They are beginning to understand number sense. They love to work with partners and in small groups. I will continue to send home the math games as well as different activities. Please save these games in a spot to play when you are “free” and looking for something to do! If the homework is not a game, it will always be due the following school day unless otherwise specified.

Our first unit for Science is measurement. We have begun to work on weighing different objects by using balances. Discussions have taken place of where we have used balances and scales in our world. Students will compare weights, fill containers, and figure out the lengths of objects. They will also explore capacity, the amount a container can hold. Length will be investigated by using hands, feet, and cubes to measure objects around the classroom.


 * __ Upcoming Events: __**


 * Friday, October 19th: Professional day for teachers, no school for students


 * Wednesday, October 24th -October 26th are 1/2 days. Dismissal will be at 1:00 p.m. These are also the three days for parent conferences. Lunch will still be served. Book fair will be open all 3 days.


 * Halloween party and parade will be held on Wednesday, October 31st. The K-3 school-wide parade will be held at 1:30 p.m. in the field. Come join us after the parade for our first grade class party!

It has been wonderful to get to know your children and have the opportunity of working with them.

Sincerely, Keri Sciuto