Welcome back!  Back to the grind.

I hope you had an enjoyable Thanksgiving full of family, friends, and yummy food!  It was so nice to have some extra days off and get caught up on everything around the house and at school.  However, I am so excited to see those firsties tomorrow!  At the end of the week we will start our Christmas and holiday fun!  We keep Christmas light-hearted and fun (Santa, elves, etc.).

The informational writing has proven to be much harder to master than opinion writing.  We are going to take a step back and write a few how-to pieces together this week.  We will also be learning the parts of a letter.  We will be receiving a package from the North Pole later this week and will need to know how to write a letter!  SHH...the package is a secret!

Math is all about the equal sign.  We will spend the week learning the importance of the equal sign and that it means "is the same as."

In reading, we will be investigating ways people help around the community. We will learn about common nouns, proper nouns, and antonyms.

We made pumpkin bars last week.  The kids loved it!  They cracked eggs, measured, poured, stirred, poured, and frosted.  Here is the recipe if you would like to try it at home.

Pumpkin Bars
4 eggs
1 cup oil
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups pumpkin
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups flour
container of cream cheese frosting

Mix all the ingredients together.
Spread on cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
Frost with cream cheese frosting.
ENJOY!

Got snow gear?

It looks like snow.  Have you located your child's snow gear?  Please make sure to label everything. It is amazing how many kids shop at the same stores and show up with the same coats, boots, etc. Look for mittens that are waterproof and will make it through 3 recesses.  It is also important that they are able to put them on themselves.  We only have 15 minutes for recess which means the kids have to be quick in getting ready to go outside.  We go outside if it is above 0 degrees. Kids need to have snow pants and snow boots to play on the equipment, otherwise they have to play on the blacktop.

A few important dates to remember...

Wednesday, November 16 is Panda Express Fundraiser Night and the last day to turn in book orders.

Thursday, November 17 there is a PTA meeting from 6:30-7:30 in the library.

Tuesday, November 22 is a noon dismissal day.  If your child needs a sack lunch please fill out the form that will come home Wednesday.

Wednesday, November 23-Friday, November 25 are no school days. School resumes Monday, November 28.

Wednesday, November 30 is picture retakes.

This week in reading, we are learning about communities in nature and are trying to answer the question, "Where do animals live together?"  All of the reading groups will be reading a nonfiction text called, Meerkat Family.  We will also be learning about various habitats.

In writing, we will begin How-To writing.  We will start with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and move on to the turkeys the kids disguised at home.  Please make sure your child has brought their completed turkey to school on Monday.

We will continue to work on missing parts in addition and subtraction problems.  This is one of the toughest concepts we work on so we will be taking it slow and spending quite a bit of time on it.  We will also be working on extending the counting sequence starting with any number between 0-120.

We will continue working on our Light and Sound Module in Project Lead the Way.  Last week, we learned what the problem is that we will be solving at the end of the module (A group of hikers is lost and needs to communicate with the other group but only has a few items they brought to use). We learned about the engineer design process.  Over the next month or so we will be working on activities and projects that will increase our knowledge on light and sound.  We will then apply that knowledge when we solve the problem and create a way to communicate using light and sound.

Have a wonderful week and Happy Thanksgiving!

Thank You!

A huge thank you for those of you who made donations for some new books.  I was able to pick out an excellent read aloud that the kids will really enjoy!

Also, thank you for attending conferences.  It makes such an impact on your child's success in first grade if we are working together and are on the same page.

Ms. Voigt's class is hosting a food drive November 7-November 18.  They are working to raise 1,200 cans, bags, and boxes of food.  If you are able to donate they would greatly appreciate it.

Your child has some homework this week. They will need to disguise a paper turkey.  We will be using these turkeys for a writing project, so please make sure they are returned no later than Monday, November 14.  The paper turkey and more detailed instructions will be in your child's green folder on Wednesday.  Please do not go out and by supplies for this project.  Only use what you already have at home.

In reading this week, we are focusing on buildings and what they are made of.  We will also be learning about a new genre...fantasy!  This week we will also be taking a look at the similarities and differences of homes around the world.

Our phonics and word work focuses this week are short u words and contractions with an 's.

This week in writing we will continue working on our opinion pieces.  We have learned about the introduction, stating an opinion, giving as many reasons that you can think of, adding transition words, and ending with a conclusion that tells the reader what to do next.

In math, we will be working on finding missing parts in addition and subtraction problems.  We will start with results unknown 4+2=_____ (sum/difference).  We will move on to the change unknown (4 + ___ =6, 6-___ = 4) and end the week with the start unknown (___ + 4=6, ____ -4=2).  We will also incorporate some word problems into this weeks lessons.  The skills taught this week are much easier to understand when the students know their addition and subtraction facts.  Xtramath is a wonderful tool to help students master their addition and subtraction facts.  If you need your child's Xtramath information please email me and I will get their login information to you.

Here is our delicious spider soup!  Have a great week!