Newsletter 3

Upcoming Events

*October 2 - Student Count Day

*Friday, October 4^th- Laps for Lincoln at Lincoln 5:00- 8:00pm

*Oct 2,9, 16, 23,30 Late Starts

*Oct 10, 11- Half Days

*Oct 15- Dinges Farm

*Parents going need to send in $4 Dollars prior to this day.  Please label what the money is for.

What we are doing

We just completed our first rotation of table centers and math centers.  We focused on counting, numbers 1-10, and patterning in our math centers.  Table centers focused on working together, shapes, cutting, and recognizing letters.  We will begin new math centers, which will continue to focus on writing numbers, counting, and using a ten frame.  We will also be starting new table centers, which will focus on some fall activities, letter sound games, and cooperative learning activities.  We continue to talk about Daily 5 stamina.  This next cycle we will introduce our 4^th choice, word work.  We can read to self, work on writing, or listen to reading now.  You can help your child increase his or her stamina at home by having them read quietly each day.  Remember there are three ways to read a book: read the pictures, read the words, or retell a familiar story.  Make sure your child stays in one spot and reads quietly for this practice.

 On Constitution day we learned that the Constitution is the law for EVERYONE in our country.

Our handwriting focus this cycle was practicing horizontal and vertical lines.  This is helping us prepare for forming letters in the upcoming weeks. 

In our writing program we will continue working on telling stories.  Writers always begin with a story to share.  We are verbally telling our stories now to a buddy as we practice being a good speaker and a good audience.

This next cycle we will be starting our first week of our Benchmark Literacy Program.  We will be talking about identifying the main idea of what we read.  We are also going to learn how to ask questions while we read to make sure we understand what we are reading!

In social studies we are learning about ourselves, and how we are special and unique.  We are learning  that we each have “roles” (like daughter or son) and that we can name something we like about ourselves. 

In Science we are learning how to be “weather watchers”. We learned that 4 things tell us about the weather: the sky, the temperature, the wind, and if it’s raining or snowing.

When writing in our journals, we are listening for letter sounds in our words and putting spaces between our words.  Our newest focus is starting a sentence with a capital letter and ending it with a period.

Homework

October calendars will come home and September calendars are due by the end of this next week. Your child will receive a prize from our treasure chest when his/her form is returned to school with your signature. This homework is not mandatory and can be used to reinforce what we learn in class.  

Thank you to those who did the Math About Me form that came home last week. We are sharing these with the class and it has been fun comparing some of the numbers. This was to help your child see important reasons for using numbers. Thanks!

Laps for Lincoln

Friday, October 4th is our Laps for Lincoln Family Event! You can continue to send money in this next week to help us reach our class goal!!! If you raise at least $30, your child will get a free Necklace and charm.  There are prizes for students who raise the most money and for the class that meets their goal and gets the most money! Right now our class is in 2nd place for lower elementary!!! Keep those donations coming!!!!

Volunteers

I have finalized the list of parents assigned to parties and field trips this year.  I have put it on my blog and emailed a link to the document.  I am so happy to have so many people wanting to help. I do make use of parent helpers in the classroom often throughout the year.  You are a vital part of our children’s education!

Dinges Farm Field Trip

Our first field trip has been scheduled!  We will go to Dinges Farms on Tuesday, October 15^th.  We will leave around 8:45am and will return around 11:45am.  All students will ride the bus.  The parents that were assigned to help on this trip may also ride the bus with our class  The students cost is covered, but parents will be responsible for paying $4.00 on or before this date.