« September 2009 | Main | November 2009 »
This week in Phonics, we continue to focus on the short a sound, as in bag, and will work on the ending consonants b, k, s, r, f, and l.
Test scores for our first spelling test were awesome! This week's spelling words are: am, bad, had, fan, sad, can, find, all look, book
High Frequency (shoebox) words are: all, are, find, make, play
Reminders:
Lunch/snack towels! Our paper towel supply is dwindling!
Have a great week!
Fr. Bill spent some time in our classroom talking about the life and death of of friend Monsignor Cardiff who passed away on Saturday. He answered many questions to help prepare the children for the Wednesday 8:30 a.m. Mass we will be attending. There will be an open "couch" casket viewing during the service. If you have concerns about your child attending this Mass, please let me know. Some children will be spending this time supervised in the library instead of participating in the service. Please make the decision that is right for your child.
Homework for tonight is to read Look at That! in the reader and enjoy the beautiful autumn afternoon!
Tonight's homework is in the take home reader What Pam Can Do? Your child should read the story aloud to you and do a word hunt to find all the short /a/ words.
Unit 1 Math Tests are in today's folder. I was really pleased with the children's scores. Today we worked with double-sided counters to find different ways to make the sums 4, 5, and 6. They can practice at home using coins (heads and tails.) Ask them to show you what they did. Hopefully, all are working regularly with addition flashcards and/or online basic fact practice games. Check out the St. Linus website for some suggestions!
There is a note in your child's folder today with further information about pick-up procedures for tomorrow's 11:30 a.m. dismissal. If you have decided that your child should not attend the 8:30 a.m. Mass for Monsignor Cardiff, please send a note and your child will join others who will be supervised in the library.
Because our week was shortened and we lost some Language Arts time on Wednesday, we will have both our Reading Selection and Spelling Tests on Friday. For homework tonight, your child should re-read Can You Find It? in their reader. They should then be able to retell the story to you in their own words, which will aid in their comprehension.
For your information, next week we will not be working in our readers. We will be working on our first Readers Theater play on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. There will be no Reading Selection or Spelling tests.
Reminder: Library Books
Welcome cold weather!!! ???
This week in Reading, we're working on a play called What Will I Be?. Your child's script is in their Home folder today. For homework, they need to practice reading their part two times. They don't have to read the entire play to you, but it might be fun to help them out by reading it with them! They also should decorate the cover of their script (crayons only) and be sure to return it tomorrow for more practice!
Reminder: Please send your child with the appropriate outdoor attire for recess. The weather is getting colder but we'd still like to get outside, even if it's for only 10 or 15 minutes.
The children had a lot of fun performing their Readers Theater play What Will I Be? for Mrs. Dougherty's kindergarten class today and they did a super job reading!
A big THANK YOU to Max and family for the wonderful spooky music CDs for everyone! Happy Birthday Max!
Back to a more normal schedule this week...
In phonics, we will be working on the short /i/ sound as in it, and the /ck/ ending as in kick.
We are back to our regular Reading schedule this week, with a phonics selection from the reader coming home Monday, a mini take-home phonics reader coming home Tuesday, the main selection from the reader on Wednesday, and our weekly selection test on Thursday.
Spelling Words for Friday's test are: it, sit, hit, pick, sick, kick, saw, went, duck, black
High Frequency Words are: went, walk, did, saw, me
In Math, we begin a new chapter focused on the addition facts to 10. Please encourage your child to practice their facts on a regular basis. I'll begin "quizzing" the children every other week on their basic addition facts and we will work on them in class, but it is the work they do at home that will help them achieve mastery. Check out the links to fun math websites on the stlinusschool.org website.
We will have a fun visit from Mother Goose on Tuesday. Ice Cream Day is Wednesday ($1.00.)
Watch for information on an exciting Science field trip coming very soon!
Have a great week.
Look in your child's folder today for information about our upcoming field trip to Lake Katherine Nature Center on October 28. I forgot to include a request to wear gym sweatpants and sweatshirts on this day.
Today's homework:
Reading: Read What Did I See in Reader 2 times aloud.
Math: Workbook page 23
Our weekly spelling word lists are now online on a fun learning website! Go to www.spellingcity.com, click on "find a List" and type in my name as follows: Lisa Oconnell. You and your child will find fun games with our spelling words plugged in to make learning them more fun. I'll update my homepage each week with new spelling words.
We're looking forward to having some rhyming fun with Mother Goose tomorrow!
Reading/Phonics Homework: Read Kip Went Zip 2 times aloud. Circle short /i/ words, underline words with the -ck ending.
Math Homework: Workbook page 24
Thanks to Rachel and family for the book donation to our classroom library!
Have a great day and enjoy the warm weather while it lasts!
REMINDERS
Please send in Field Trip permission forms and money for next week's trip to Lake Katherine.
Lunch towels, please!
Homework for tonight:
Study for Friday's spelling test
Math Workbook page 26 (pg. # should be circled each night they have homework)
PLEASE SEND IN A BABY PICTURE OF YOUR CHILD, WITH THEIR NAME WRITTEN ON THE BACK, FOR A PROJECT THIS WEEK. ANYTHING FROM WALLET SIZED TO 5" X 7" WILL WORK.
We're excited about our Science field trip to the Lake Katherine Nature Center this Wednesday. Weather permitting, some of our time will be spent outdoors, so please send appropriate outerwear. Students will need to wear their gym uniforms to school and lunch will be served as soon as we return. Chaperones were selected by a drawing of volunteers and notified by email on Friday. Thanks to all who volunteered their time!
Our phonics focus this week is again on the short /i/ sound as in fix, and we will also work on the -x ending in words.
Spelling Words for this week's test: fix, in, mix, him, six, did, on, they, fox, box
Don't forget to visit Spellingcity.com for fun games to practice our new words. My homepage has been updated! You can access this website from our St. Linus homepage.
High Frequency Word Wall (shoebox) words: how, many, on, why, they
In Math, we finish up our addition concepts chapter, and move into subtraction. You should begin adding subtraction flash cards to your practice arsenal at home. Subtraction is a difficult concept for some to understand. We will spend a lot of time working with manipulatives in the classroom, and work our way to the more abstract use of subtraction sentences to show "take away."
In Music this week, we listened to the story/video/song There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly. After learning the song, we compared it to a related book There Was An Old Teacher Who Swallowed A Flea. We had a lot of fun talking about the rhyming words in both, and you will enjoy the artwork the children created to depict their favorite parts of the story.
Please remember to send in a baby picture of your child (with their name on the back).
Homework for Monday:
Reader Fish Mix aloud twice. Ask your child to find the words that rhyme.
Homework for Tuesday:
Reading/Phonics: Read Will Rick Get His Wish? 2 times, do a word hunt and circle the words with a short /i/ sound.
Math: Workbook pg. 27
Please practice addition facts for timed quiz tomorrow!
Reminders:
Field Trip tomorrow! Please send children in gym uniforms with appropriate outerwear. We will try to squeeze in a quick a.m. snack before we board our bus since we'll be having lunch about a half hour later than usual. Chaperones, please arrive shortly before 9 a.m. Thanks!
If you haven't already, please send in a baby picture of your child, with name on back.
Our field trip was a lot of fun and a great learning experience. Ask your child what a beaver's teeth look like, and why, and how they are different from a ferret's teeth. We explored animal skulls and pelts, discussed what animals eat and how they build their homes, and took a nature walk through an herb garden and past a waterfall. Look for pictures on this blog in the next day or so...
Wednesday's homework: Reader How Many Fish?, read aloud and retell the story in your own words. Selection test tomorrow.
Tomorrow is red shirt day!
A few still need to send in a baby picture -- thanks!
HALLOWEEN PARTY TOMORROW!
Costumes, YES! Weapons, NO! Masks are allowed during parade only. If costume includes uncomfortable shoes, please send gym shoes to change into.
Your child may bring a wrapped treat to pass out if you'd like, but there is no obligation. Treats will be passed to the entire class (25 total) during our party in the afternoon.
See the note that came home today for parade information.
Homework for Thursday is to study for tomorrow's Spelling Test. We will manage to get some work done on Friday!
Sorry about the sideways images. I haven't quite figured out how to manipulate the photo images onscreen.
A big thanks to all the parents who helped to make our Halloween Party a big success, including Mrs. Przybylski, Mrs. Dials, Mr. and Mrs. Guerin, Mrs. Houston, Mrs. Hynes, Mrs. James, Mrs. McCarthy, and Mrs. Vicenteno. Thanks also to all who sent the great treats to pass to the class and their grateful, candy-deprived teacher. I've had my Halloween candy hidden at home to keep myself from breaking into it!
I hope you all have a very fun and safe Halloween!
A note came home today regarding a couple of cases of H1N1 here at St. Linus. We are being vigilant about washing our hands and desks, sneezing into our elbows, etc. There are a number of children out sick in our classroom, but I haven't been notified that any of these children have the H1N1 virus. We do, however, have 1 verified and 1 possible case of strep throat. We'll continue to do our best to stay healthy as we head into flu season.
For the week of November 2-6, we will focus on the short /o/ sound, as in job, and -s plurals, as in dogs.
Spelling words for next week: job, jobs, dog, dogs, log, logs, this, into, rock, frog
High Frequency (word wall) words: does, into, he, this, water
This page contains all entries posted to Mrs. O'Connell's Classroom Connection in October 2009. They are listed from oldest to newest.
September 2009 is the previous archive.
November 2009 is the next archive.
Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.