Feb. 23-27

Dear Parents,

We had a fun-filled three day week in first grade and were able to accomplish quite a bit during our short time together! We have completed our unit of inquiry on the polar lands and are about to embark on an exciting journey through time studying some of America’s most famous heroes.

We will be studying leaders such as: Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Harriet Tubman, just to name a few!

Here’s a look into the curriculum:

Reading:

JGB “When I Grow Up” poetry selection

Please make sure to follow homework sheet that will go home on Monday, there will be assignments for Monday and Wednesday of this week. Please do not go ahead to any activities that are not outlined on the sheet as they are reserved for classwork.

Spelling:

Ending –ck rule

Words that end in the /k./ sound have –ck spelling after a short vowel.

Ex: Jack, stack, pick, tock, pluck

Red Words:

her, would, make

Grammar:

Identifying and using comparing adjectives properly by adding –er or –est.

Ex: Superman is stronger than Batman.

Superman is the strongest superhero ever!

Math

Understanding the relationship between addition and subtraction.

Social Studies:

Introducing our new unit of inquiry on “Heroes.”

Central idea: Explorations and discoveries of individuals influence culture.

Writing:

Creating an Opinion piece

 Important Updates and Reminders:

Congratulations to our newest Star Student, Jackie Dwyer! Jackie always strives to do her best and is a caring friend. We are proud of our new star and look forward to learning more about what makes her so special!

Thank you so much to those of you who have volunteered as my Thursday Helper! Your help is very appreciated and so is your time!

As always, please let me know if you have any questions.

All the best,

Jean Peake
jpeake@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Feb. 9-12

Dear Parents,

We had another GREAT week in first grade! The students have been gaining independence through their research project and are improving in reading to find important and specific information. This upcoming week the children will be making finishing touches to their page in our Polar Animal Book.

Our class was SUPER motivated to rack up minutes for the Read A Thon! I was very impressed by how much reading was going on at home and I can definitely tell a difference at guided reading. I believe the results of the Read A Thon winners will be announced some time this week. A HUGE thank you to Kathryn Brown for calculating minutes and encouraging our children! We loved your visits to the classroom and appreciate your time and effort.

It is still a requirement that students read 20 minutes each night so keep up the great reading! J

Here’s a look into the curriculum this week:

Reading:

Comparing Fiction and Non-Fiction Texts.

Phonics:

Ending blends (-ng)

Ex: ang, ing, ung, ong

Possible spelling words: thing, flung, sprang,

Red Words: these, so, some

Grammar:

Identifying and using adjectives.

Social Studies/Science:

Polar Animal Project Wrap Up and studying African American Civil Rights’ Heroes.

Math:

Balancing an equation using the equals sign.

Finding the unknown number to make a statement true.

___+4=10+3

Writing:

Writing an Opinion Piece: Why is my polar animal the best?

Important Announcements and Reminders:

·      Please remember that our Valentine Exchange is Thursday, Feb. 12^th. Prior to this event please have your child fill out his or her valentines to each member of the class. A class list went home in your child’s Wednesday Folder with a special note on the back from your child.

** Please also note that we are a PEANUT FREE classroom**

Congratulations to our newest Star Student, Marco Salazar!! We are all so proud of the way Marco takes learning risks and tries new things. We look forward to learning more about this special friend this week!

Thanks for your continued support! 

Feb. 2- Feb. 6

Dear Parents,

Team Peake had another fun-filled and busy week in first grade as the students continued researching polar animals, reviewed red words, navigated the hundreds chart and much more! Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm for Read A Thon with your child! I am proud of how many minutes the children are reading at home after school and on the weekends. We will be wrapping up this fundraiser this upcoming Thursday, February 5th.  Thank you so much to Kathryn Brown, our RAT Representative for motivating our children and communicating important information to everyone!

As you may know, the month of February is Black History Month. In addition to our regular curriculum we will be celebrating some of our country's most well known Civil Rights leaders. If you would like to come to our class and share any experiences, knowledge, or memories that you may have please email me.

Valentines Day is right around the corner and our class will be celebrating this special day by exchanging valentines. Our class will have a Valentines Exchange on February 12th, the Thursday before Winter Break. Our class has 24 students so you may begin planning accordingly. I will send home a class list so that your child may fill out their Valentines prior to our exchange.

Here's a glance into the curriculum for this upcoming week:

Spelling:

Ending blends -nk

ex: -ank, -onk, unk

Possible spelling words: shrank, honk, skunk

Red words: many, then, them

Grammar:

Using "see" and "saw" correctly.

Writing:

Continuing our work in writing Opinion pieces.

Reading:

Using our schema and text clues to make inferences throughout reading.

Math:

Comparing numbers by using >, <, and = symbols. Reading math equations and deciding whether they are true or false. ex: 8=2+6 is true 7<4 is false.

Click Here for Extra Practice

Science:

Continuing research and presentation of information on polar animals. 

Important Updates and Reminders:

• THANK YOU to those of you who have sent in emergency snacks and small treasures for our class treasure box! There is still a need for both of these items so if you are able to send in extra snacks or treasures it would be greatly appreciated.