Labels and Captions

Our writing over the past two weeks has focused on labels and captions.  Last week we discussed how we can label our pictures to give our readers more information.  We practiced this skill by traveling around the room in groups and labeling different parts of pictures.  

This week we have taken our writing a step further by creating captions.  We learned that in addition to labeling our pictures, we can also write a caption to provide more details that answer the questions: Who? and What?  Yesterday we went on an adventure around the building and took pictures with our iPads and then provided a caption for each picture.  Then we created our own pictures on our whiteboards and wrote captions.  Some of us even included labels as well!

"I am spray painting my pumpkin"

"My baby brother"

"Riding a roller coaster"

Encourage your child to write at home!  Give your 1st grader a notepad to help you write a list for the grocery store.  Have him or her write a note to a relative and send it in the mail.  (And encourage your relatives to send a letter in return!)  Create a treasure hunt or scavenger hunt by enlisting the help of your 1st grader to write clues to post around the house for a sibling or family member to solve.  Keep a journal or diary where you and your child draw pictures and write about your favorite memories.  

Most importantly, PRAISE your child for any and all writing.  This is the best time to boost our children's writing confidence and stamina as we move toward more conventional writing throughout the year.  

Number Detectives and Math Games

Number Detectives 

To kick off our first unit in math our 1st graders were challenged with becoming  NUMBER DETECTIVES!  We used magnifying glasses and hunted around the room to discover all of the places we noticed numbers.  We found numbers on the calendar, number line, dice, rulers, stickers, etc.  Ultimately we were able to discover that numbers are everywhere within our classroom, school, and community.

Encourage your 1st grader to notice numbers all around them in their everyday lives!  Look for numbers on road signs, sports jerseys, advertisements, etc.  Choose a number and ask your child to tell the number that is one more and one less, or choose two numbers and ask your child to compare which number is more and which is less and explain how they know.  

Math Games

Reinforcing skills and concepts through games is a large part of the 1st grade math curriculum.  Our children thrive on learning through play.  Last week we learned our first math game of the year - Penny Dice.  This game reinforces counting skills and one-to-one correspondence to 20, as well as number comparisons. 

To play Penny Dice partners use a bank of twenty pennies.  Each partner rolls the dice, and in turn, takes the number of pennies from the bank that is indicated by the dice.  The game is over when there are no more pennies left in the bank.  At this time both players count their pennies and determine who has more.  The player with the most pennies at the conclusion of the game wins.  

Play this game at home by gathering 20 pennies (or 20 of any object if coins are at a minimum - legos, pebbles, macaroni - anything will do!) and dice.  Don't have dice but have an iPhone or iPad?  Download the virtual Dice app for free!  (This app will come in handy for games throughout the year.)  If your 1st grader needs a challenge, use more than 20 objects in the bank, and when determining a winner, have them count their pennies in groups of five while using their math vocabulary to explain more and less.  

Happy Gaming!

Welcome!

Welcome to the 2013-2014 School Year!  

First grade is such an exhilarating year of growth and exploration both academically and socially, and I could not be more excited to be sharing it with you and your little one.    This blog will serve as a photographic timeline that will give friends and families a glimpse into the excitement that takes place in our classroom each day.  So bookmark this site or subscribe to the posts and get ready to join us on our journey through first grade!