Success News
May 1, 2008

Dinosaurs Are Extinct

        We have retired all of our dinosaur materials and projects for this school year!  The students were so thrilled with Dinosaur Galore Day.  Each child had a parent attend and assist them with their chocolate chip toothpick dig.  Also everyone did an incredible job reading their fictional pet dinosaur story from the author chair.  That is a very brave task for first graders!  Finally, thank you to all the parents who volunteered their time helping making the special dioramas, chaperoning the field trip to the Peabody Museum, and ironing the wonderful t-shirts.  We couldn’t have done this unit without your support!

Springtime

        During the months of May and June we will be focusing on the theme of springtime.  We were hoping to kick off the unit with a trip to Bauer Farm.  However, due to the pouring rain, our trip has been rescheduled to May 12.  In the classroom the students will be growing their own individual plant, and recording its growth in a plant journal.  The purpose of the journal is to focus on the scientific skills of observation and accurate data collection.

Language Arts Update

        The children are currently very busy with writing projects.  We are in the final stages of writing our hard covered books.   We have chosen the topic of a family trip.  First they needed to complete a story planner outlining where they went, and at least three events from their trip. Then each day they write about only one event. We are encouraging them to use descriptive language to keep their pieces interesting! The students conference with a teacher daily, and check for their own spelling and punctuation errors. When the stories are finished, they will be typed and sent to the parent publishing team to assemble.  Keep your eyes open in a few weeks for the result of all this hard work!  Also we are in the midst of creating a Mother’s Day surprise!
        We are trying to end each day with a relaxing read aloud time of E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web.  It is the perfect story for our spring unit. If weather permits we read outside on our patio! We will be going to the Garde Theatre on May 7 to watch the play.
        During reading groups we have been focusing on non-fiction materials.  We are encouraging them to read slowly and carefully in order to recall the factual material. We recall the information orally and sometimes they are asked to record the facts. We are preparing them for second grade, where there are many opportunities to write about their books!