Terrific Tuesday!

Questions for the dinner table

Is oil transparent or translucent? How do you know?

Which liquid was most viscous? (corn syrup)

What reading goal did you set for your self? Why did you choose this goal?

Andy brought home some baseball cards. He gave 8 to Yuze. He had 9 left. How many baseball cards did Andy have at first?

Math homework: The math homework is dated wrong with last week's date at the top. I apologize for my confusion. 

Report Cards:  Report cards are being sent home in backpack this Friday, January 19. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. 

Upcoming Math Assessment

We will assess on addition and subtraction facts to 20 on Friday. Our assessments are dimensional, meaning that it is important for the students to be able to manipulate numbers up to 20 in a variety of ways. Practicing words problems like the one above about Yuze and Andy are great ways to build your child's understanding at home. 

Upcoming Dates

Jan 19- Report cards sent home in backpacks
Jan 19- Addition and Subtraction to 20 Assessment
Jan 26- Scholastic Book Orders due
(Sat)Feb. 10 - Captain PTO’s 2018 Book Fair at  Barnes & Noble, Ladue Crossing- Mrs. McCallister (and the whole McCallister family) will be at Barnes and Noble from 9am-10am checking our our favorite books! Wahoo! 

Tomorrow: Check out the blog for our most popular post: Day in the Life of a First Grader (in January)

Thankful Thursday

Reminder: Enjoy the four day weekend with your little one. We do not have school tomorrow (Friday, January 12 or Monday,  January 15). We look forward to honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on this important holiday.

Questions for the dinner table
What does "opaque" mean? Which solids were described as opaque?
Did you work on a closing sentence in your writing today? If so, which strategy did you use (ask a question, give an opinion, restate a fact)
Ava had 17 marbles. She gave some of them to Sophie. Now Ava has 11 marbles. How many marbles did Ava give Sophie?
____ + 9 = 17 

Notes from the desk of Mrs. McCallister:
We had another fantastic day in first grade! It's amazing to see how much your children are growing emotionally, academically, and socially. Today was filled with discovery, laughter, kindness, and a few fevers...😁

One of the my many joys in teaching is hearing your children read. Their ability to deepen their understanding of text through making connections, retelling, and thinking about the author's message has grown tremendously. Our students are using a multiple strategies to "decode" (read) unknown words. Keep up the hard work, first graders!

Writing nonfiction/teaching books

After learning about endings, this cool kid decided to use a "question for his reader" as his closing sentence.

If you're interested in reading a nonfiction/teaching book about Star Wars, talk with this awesome guy.

Thinking deeply about the authors message

 Exploring the properties of solids in the science lab. We have an amazing science program led by our head scientist, Mrs. Hwande. 

Guess the similar property???

Creating structures with different solids

Could he be a future architect? 

Small group with Mrs. Hwande

That's one empowered kiddo!

Might be our tallest structure

💙💛💚💜

Henry and Mudge Field Trip

Happy Birthday, Ava!

We love you!

We had a great (and quick) field trip to see Henry and Mudge at the Florissant Civic Center. The play was wonderful, our students were fantastic, and fun was had by all!

Unfortunately, since if was a live play, I was not allowed to take too many pictures. 😒
Here are the few I was able to capture:

We're ready for the show!

What a great way to spend your birthday!

My favorite picture! So much joy and excitement on their faces!

We had a great time!

Questions for the dinner table:
Retell the story of Henry and Mudge. Don't forget to include important details from the beginning, middle, and end. Also, remember to use the characters' names.
Why did Henry's parents get Henry a dog?
How was Henry and his cousin's personalities different?
Do you think it was a good decision for Henry to run into the forest? Why or why not?
Why was Mudge rolling over at the end of the play important in the story?

* This afternoon we had a guest teacher. How did you show leadership while welcoming another teacher into the classroom?

Marvelous Monday

Tomorrow is our field trip to see the play, Henry and Mudge. We will leave at 9:00am promptly. 

Homework: Math homework comes home today. Please return to school by Friday. 

Scholastic Book Orders come home today. If your are interested in ordering books, please order by Friday, January 26. 

Guest Teacher Tomorrow Afternoon: I will accompany our class on the field trip tomorrow. However, I will be out in the afternoon as my sweet little one is home sick with a fever. 

Questions for the dinner table
How did you introduce your nonfiction teaching book today? Did you ask questions, tell a story, tell feelings, or use sound words?
Solve: There were 13 baboons in the zoo. Some of them went away. Now there are 6 baboons in the zoo. How many baboons went away?
Why is it important to know to keep track of dialogue when reading? 

FANTASTIC Friday

Reminder: We have a field trip next Tuesday, January 9th to see Henry and Mudge at the Florissant Civic Center. We will eat lunch at school so we are eating lunch as regular. You can still buy a lunch from the school. We will not need chaperones on this field trip. We can't wait to tell you all about our adventures!

Questions for the dinner table
There were 11 dimes in the piggy bank. Some more were put in. Now there are 20 dimes in the piggy bank. How many dimes were put in? (extend: how much money is now in the bank in all)
How many nickels and pennys do we need to have 8 cents?
What 

Doing research on soccer plays during Discovery Time

Playing checkers- learning turn taking, good sportsmanship, and cooperation

Busy with Ozobot-learning codes and creating designs

Reading conference with Mrs. McCallister

Learning game strategies, the importance of rules, and having a great time!

Welcome Back!! Thankful Thursday

We have an amazing group of first graders! It feels wonderful to be back in the presence of our people. They are big thinkers, love a challenge, and have grown in their friendships.

Happy Half Birthday Andrew!

We love you!

Questions for the dinner table:
Retell the story of The Mitten. Did you remember to include the names of the characters and the important events of the beginning, middle and end?
How does your book box look? Do you have enough good fit books to keep you interested? Are you pursuing a series?
After rereading you nonfiction chapter book from writing, what you do you plan to start working on tomorrow?
Spell the word "wishing" for your families. What did you notice about this word?
Today we logged into our google accounts and went to a new website called Pear Deck. Share with your families about this new program.
How did you stretch your thinking during Discovery? Did you work on the Ozobots? Did you teach someone something new? Did you start a new project?

Students are responding to questions on their iPads and their thinking is reflected on to the SMART board.

Our friend is showing us his thinking in math. He showed multiple methods for solving an addition problem. His thinking was reflected from his iPad to the SMART board. 

Ready, set, go....WINTER BREAK BEGINS!

Enjoying time with our buddies: