Musical Minds

This past Thursday we got quite a loud treat at our school wide assembly put on by the Vermont Symphony Orchestra. The VSO's percussionist came to Allen Brook School and brought with them many different types of percussion instruments . They took us on a musical trip around the world and back in time to learn about where percussion originated and how these instruments look and sound in different parts of the world. We heard music from China, Africa, and the Middle East to name a few. The students were inspired at just how easy it is to create a percussion instrument out of everyday items. So, you better get some earplugs if they decide to invent some of their own at home!

Since this time of year is a time for giving I wanted to let you know about two events that are happening at school that you can contribute to to make a difference for families in the local community. First, Synergy is heading up the annual Food Drive event. Please send your child to school next week with non-perishable canned goods to donate to the Williston Food Shelf. Students will be picking up the items from each house daily and we will deliver it to the food shelf at the end of the week. Also on Friday, December 17th at lunch time Horizon is hosting a bake sale to raise money for a local charity that provides winter clothing to those in need. Students can bring in $1.00 and buy themselves a tasty treat and feel good knowing that the money that they contribute will go to help those in need.

What's The Matter?

This past week Synergy house began a new theme unit on the properties and stages of matter. The students are mixing up into four groups and will be experimenting with solids, liquids and gases as they rotate through four different workshops over the next few weeks.

We are also beginning a new unit of study in Reader's and Writer's Workshop. In Reader's Workshop we will be practicing the art of discussing our thoughts and ideas from reading with our reading partners. In Writers Workshop we will be writing small moment pieces. These narrative stories zoom in on a small moment from a bigger event and stretch it across the pages with a beginning, middle and end. We will also practice the technique of "show don't tell." That is when authors show us in the details how they are feeling instead of just telling. For example, instead of telling "I was excited" showing, "I had butterflies racing in my stomach as the roller coaster went higher and higher into the sky."

We are going to be seeing lots of cold weather and snow over the next few weeks. Please remember to send your child to school with appropriate gear and a change of clothes for those days that get muddy. Soon they will not be allowed off of the blacktop unless they have boots and snow pants to wear.

Techy Tots

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This week we explored technology in two different projects.

While studying families we have been reading a lot of books by the amazingly talented Todd Parr. We love his illustrations and fun simple text so much that we were inspired to create a class family book of our own. First we thought about what our page would look like and sketched and wrote a draft to get our ideas out. Then with the help of Ms. Sharpe and some parent volunteers we headed to the tech lab to create our illustrations using the Paint program. The first grade authors and illustrators got very creative and just like Todd Parr, very colorful! The next day we headed back to the computer lab where we added our text to our illustrations and had time to explore with paint some more. Next we are going to put all of our pages together and add voice thread to really make our book come to life. We can't wait for you to view it when we are ready to publish.

Next, we each made a list of all of the many things that we are thankful for in our lives. After we had made our own list we worked as a team to create a class Wordle with all of the words that we came up with. Wordle is a fun program that will take any text and turn it into a beautiful word cloud. It turns out that we are thankful for many of the same things and can't wait to celebrate them next week with the ones that we love most. You can take a look at the Wordle by clicking on the image above. I have emailed the students the link if they would like to practice creating their own wordle some time.

Just a reminder that the winter months are upon us and that means that we need to have our proper gear ready for recess. Once the snow falls students will need to have boots and snow pants if they want to be able to go off of the blacktop during recess. They should also have a change of shoes to wear when they are in school as well as gloves, hats, mittens and anything else to keep warm and toasty.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Habits of Mind

This year in math we have been working on adopting and practicing the Mathematical Habits of Mind that I have been learning about via the Best Practices in Mathematics professional development course that is being implemented school wide. The habits that we have been working on so far are justification, respect and private think time.

In our class we justify by "backing up our thinking with the word BECAUSE." For example: "I know that it is four BECAUSE I took two unifix cubes and attached two more unifix cubes and now I have four." We also justify our answers by drawing pictures and using numbers and words to explain why our answers or ideas make sense.

We are respectful mathematicians when we disagree kindly with classmates. This means that instead of telling someone that their answer is wrong we try to convince them why their answer doesn't work or make sense by showing them how we figured it out.

We give each other private think time by thinking quietly about the math and trying (as hard as it might be) not to raise our hand until private think time has ended. We also honor other people's private think time by not calling out answers when someone else is trying to do their best thinking.

Using these habits of mind takes hard work and cooperation, but we are making great progress and it shows in the critical thinking that is taking place. With lots of practice these will become habits that we use naturally as mathematicians for our entire lives.

Celebrating Family

This week we have been finishing up our units of study in readers and writers workshops. This month in readers workshop we learned about choosing just right books. These are books that we can read independently. They aren't too hard or too easy. We also practiced several different reading strategies that make us stronger readers. Some of these strategies include using the pictures to help us figure out words, tracking the print with our eyes and fingers, recognizing patterns in books and looking at the first and last sounds of words.

To celebrate our new reading skills we invited Mrs. Dyer's class to come to our room and listen to us read our just right books to them. They were excited to join us and the first graders loved showing off how much they have grown as readers since they were in Kindergarten.

We have also begun a new unit of study about our families. We are going to be learning about each others families and families around the world. We will be thinking about who makes up a family, our jobs in a family, different kinds of families and different traditions that families have. The students brought home a letter and questionnaire to fill out with all of you and they will be bringing them back with pictures to share out to the class over the next few weeks.

Growing Readers!

This week in Reader's Workshop we learned about different strategies that strong readers use to help them figure out tricky words. By reading along together from BIG BOOKS we practiced using the picture clues, first and last sounds in words and tracking with our eyes to make sure that what we are reading looks right, sounds right and makes sense.

We also began to meet in our guided reading groups. In these groups we use strategies to read together and discuss books to enhance comprehension. You will notice that your child has been coming home with a book bag. This bag goes home after we have discussed and read the book several times, so it should seem very familiar. Their job is to take the book home and do a fluency reading. That means that they are reading at a good pace, looking at each word and using lots of expression in their voice. They should read it as many times as they can to you, their siblings or even the family pet!

For more great information about reading visit the Reading Rockets website in the Wonderful Websites sidebar or click on the widget to the right.

Happy Reading!

Healthy Habits!

This week during theme time we learned about the importance of making smart food and exercise choices to keep us healthy. The students learned about the new USDA food pyramid and had a chance to experiment with using our team laptops as they played some fun online games that required them to make healthy food choices. Check out these sites under our wonderful websites.

On Thursday we had the opportunity to have the actors from FOODPLAY come and teach us even more about healthy choices that we can make for our body. The assembly was so entertaining and we all learned a lot. You can learn more about the Emmy award winning show at www.foodplay.com

Thanks to all of the families who sent in magazines that featured healthy foods. We used them at the end of the week to test our new knowledge by creating an artistic representation of a well balanced healthy meal.

Celebrations!

This week the first graders finished up their first unit of study in both Writers and Readers Workshop.

In Writers Workshop we established the routines and expectations of writing. The students practiced writing stories that have a clear beginning, middle and end and created a list of head and heart ideas to help them get ideas for writing. We have also participated in writing conferences and author's share where the students share and offer feedback to each other about their writing pieces. To celebrate the end of the first unit of study we were invited to Ms. Roger's classroom to partner with second graders and hear some of their writing while we enjoyed a special snack of three-layered "Beginning, Middle and End" cookies. It was a great time.

During September's unit of study in Readers Workshop we also worked hard to establish the expectations of what independent reading looks like and sounds like. Our mini-lessons focused on the habits of strong readers, how readers choose books, thinking and sharing about our books and using our schema to make connections while we read. The new reading vocabulary word that we learned in Reading this week was STAMINA. Just like how athletes need to practice and practice their sport to build up their strength, readers need to practice and practice to get stronger too. That is called build up stamina and the first graders are doing a fantastic job at this.

Next week we will begin new units of study in literacy and the students will be writing personal narratives and learning about just right books and moving into working in small reading groups.

We are also finishing up our first unit in Math. This unit focused on patterning, sorting and counting. We have also been learning about some of the habits of strong mathematicians. We are practicing justifying or "backing up" our thinking by using the word "because", and being respectful mathematicians by letting people have think time before giving answers and disagreeing respectfully. The first graders are doing an amazing job at this and are sounding like stronger mathematicians every day.

We have had a busy and hardworking month and I can't wait to see how much more we grow in October.

Happy Fall!

Using Our Schema!

This past week in Readers Workshop we practiced what it looks like and sounds like to share about what we are reading during independent reading. We brainstormed a list of the many different things that we could share about our reading like what the book was about, things we learned, questions we still have and favorite parts/pictures. The students practiced sharing with strong voices while classmates practiced the fine art of listening to understand.

In Writers Workshop we learned that writers get their ideas from two main places, their head and their heart. We all created a list of things that we know a lot about and care a lot about to help us if we ever get writers block. These lists now live in our writing folders to help us get ideas for the next writing piece because writers are never DONE! We also learned about the importance of adding detailed illustrations to help us to tell our stories and bring them to life for the reader.

Our new word for the week in literacy was SCHEMA. Our schema is all of the things that we already know from the different experiences that we have had. Our schema helps us to choose books, understand what we are reading and helps us to create strong writing pieces when we write about what we know. The great thing about schema is we are always getting more as we continue to learn, read and write!

In Number Corner and Math we continue to look closely at patterns and sorting different materials by their many characteristics. The students have already begun to talk more like mathematicians since the saying in our classroom is "Strong Mathematicians Back Up Their Thinking With...BECAUSE." It may be fun to sort and categorize the fall leaves at home as they begin to fall in your own yard. You will be amazed at the smart thinking that you hear.

Hopes, Dreams and Dots!

What a busy week we have had in Synergy. Our class began to think about our hopes and dreams for first grade. We have lots of friends who want to learn to be stronger readers and writers, some who want to become better mathematicians and some who want to learn more about specific topics. We each illustrated and wrote about our personal hope and dream for the year on a star that will hang from the ceiling in our classroom to remind us to "Reach For The Stars!"

During theme time we began our workshops on the five senses. All of the students in Synergy house are blended together into four groups. Each day that we have workshops the groups rotate to a new classroom to explore one of the senses. In Ms. Roger's room they are exploring their taste buds, in Ms. Kate's room they are putting their noses to the test, they are getting "touchy feely" in Ms. Stein's room, and are putting their listening ears on in Mrs. Eaton's room. We are becoming sensory experts!

Wednesday, September 15th was Dot Day. This day of creativity was inspired by Peter Reynold's beautiful book The Dot. The message in Reynold's book is to celebrate your individuality and "Make Your Mark." All over the world students were using their creativity to celebrate Dot Day. In our classroom we created our own dot collage using watercolors. The students certainly loved making their mark and just as we expected, no two dots were quite the same! To learn more about Dot Day and Peter Reynolds visit his website at www.peterhreynolds.com

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Choosing Books

Today we took our first trip to the library. Mrs. Wentz reminded us where all of the many books are located and we got to spend some time choosing books. In first grade we will have library on Mondays and each student will be able to take out two books at a time.Books should be brought back to school the following Monday to exchange.

For now students are able to choose whichever two books they would like. During certain units of study I may have them choose one specific book and one free choice depending on what our focus is in reading. Recently our focus has been on different strategies that we use to choose books. Some of us choose books because they are old favorites, written by an author that we like or because it was recommended to us by a friend. You may want to talk with you student about why they chose the book that they did.

During the next few sessions in Reader's Workshop we will begin to think about just right books or books that are at our reading level. Some books are too challenging which can make reading frustrating and some are too easy which can take the fun out of reading. We will be learning different strategies for choosing books that are just right for us. When your child brings home library books you could have some rich conversations about whether or not the book that they brought home is a just right book and how they know that it is. Please be aware that books that may seem too challenging to read independently can still be enriching books to read aloud together.

Happy Reading!

Ready To Read!

Wow! What a difference a few degrees makes. We came back to school thankful for the cooler temperatures and began to dive into readers and writers workshop with great enthusiasm.

In Readers Workshop we are beginning a unit of study on the Habits of Good Readers. This week we discussed some of the things that good readers do. For example, good readers have different strategies for choosing books, good readers use bookmarks to keep their place in a book and good readers read in a quiet spot and work on reading for longer amounts of time. It is so fascinating to see how students choose books and the many different genres that they are already interested in.

In Writers Workshop the students were introduced to the three important parts of a story-the beginning, middle and end. After guided practice as a group they got together in pairs to practice orally telling a beginning, middle and end story about their summer. Next week we will take our oral stories and turn them into our first writing pieces.

Next week we are going to begin a unit on the five senses. The students will get to go to different workshops over the next five weeks in each of the
different Synergy classrooms. This will be a great opportunity to interact and learn with other first and second grade friends and teachers. Be sure to look for updates about our science discoveries!

Off To A Great Start!

We have had a great first week together in first grade despite the sticky hot weather. We've spent a lot of time learning about each other and the routines of the classroom. We have also been talking a lot about how we can Be Safe, Be Kind and Be Responsible because that is the Allen Brook way!

In math we dove into our first unit of study which investigates bugs of all types and the patterns and counting that we can do with them. The kids love the work places and are really showing that they know how to take care of the materials and work together as mathematicians.

We have a lot of bookworms in this class and they were excited to learn how to take books out of our classroom library during Reader's Workshop. Next week we will continue to think about what good readers do, how they choose books and what independent reading looks/sounds like.

In Writer's Workshop we have had guided discovery of two of the most important tools that authors and illustrators use, the pencil and the crayon. Next week we will be focusing our Writer's Workshop on writing and illustrating our hopes and dreams for the school year.

I have included a slide show of some of the students in their math work places. It is amazing all of the smart thinking that is happening in our class already!

Furry Friends

Two of my favorite things in the world are my dog, Banjo and my cat, Rudy. They keep me active, love to snuggle and make me laugh out loud at the silly things that they do. Banjo loves to snowshoe with me in the woods during the winter and this summer he hiked Camel's Hump for the first time. Rudy and I love to find sunny spots to curl up and read together. You will hear more about Banjo and Rudy in the stories that I write and tell this year in school. What kinds of animals do you have in your lives? What things do you like to do with them?

Welcome First Graders!

Hello to all of my new first grade students. I hope that you have all been having lots of fun this summer. I can't wait to meet all of you in just a few weeks. I have been having many fun summer adventures myself. We have had lots of visitors and have gone on several trips. Most of all,I have enjoyed swimming in the refreshing lake near my house. (I have even tried to teach my puppy how to swim! I don't think he likes it quite yet though.)

I have begun to gather lots of ideas for next year and can't wait to share them with you when we begin school in September. This blog is one way for us to keep in touch and share all of the things that happen in our classroom with our families. I will show you more about how to use it this fall. Until then, I hope that you will enjoy reading my posts and trying out some of the Wonderful Websites that I've suggested.

If you or your family would like to make a comment on the post all you have to do is click on the pencil icon at the bottom. Then you just type your comment and click on the name/URL button if you want to put your name or the anonymous button if you want to keep your name private. If you have any questions please email me at jeaton@cssu.org

Can't wait to meet all of you in the fall and begin a fantastic and fabulous year together!

Fondly,
Mrs. Eaton