100th Day Festivities and Catholic Schools Week Wrap-Up!

We were finally able to wrap-up Catholic Schools Week last week, the students especially appreciated no math homework on Monday in honor of Student Appreciation Day. :) I hope you all enjoyed your special thank you letter your child wrote in honor of Parent Appreciation Day. Thank you, parents, for your support of Catholic education. You are truly giving your child a gift to last a lifetime.

Our 100th-Day celebrations last Tuesday were woven throughout our school day. The students wore their t-shirts and showed their friends their creative designs. The children wrote about their #100 art projects, and these are on display in the hallway. Since we have 3 specials on Tuesday, the specials teachers also incorporated the #100 theme. In Technology, Mr. Henschle used a special app to show the kids what they would look like when they are 100 years old. In music, Mrs. Blomeke wrote a 10-note phrase that they sang 10 times to make 100 notes! In STEAM, Mrs. Blakeslee had the students estimate then conduct how high 100 drops of water would fill a cup. We learned a 100th-day poem, made 100th-day glasses, and joined Mrs. Weaver's class at the end of the day to complete different exercise activities 100 times. It was a fun-filled day! Photos are below.

Reminders for this week:

Monday, February 11th - Special Food Day (Culver's) and Spirit Wear

Wedneday, February 13th - Casual Dress/Out of Uniform Day for February Birthdays

Thursday, February 14th - Wear red with uniform to celebrate St. Valentine's Day; send in valentines for classroom party.

Friday, February 15th - 11:15 am dismissal for 1st - 8th grade; no school for PK and K.  We will have Mass today hosted by 4th grade.

Snowflake Creations

Check out our creations in S.T.E.A.M. with Mrs. Blakeslee! Students created these snowflakes using K'NEX 

and our production studio.

January Happenings

This month we bean our study of snow using the works of "Snowflake Bentley" - a pioneering photographer who perfected a process of catching flakes on black velvet in such a way that their images could be captured before they either melted or sublimated. We learned that snowflakes are clear ice crystals that have six sides, but when they're all piled up together they look white. We learned how to fold and cut patterns to make snowflakes, and each child cut out and "glitterized" three snowflakes to make a mobile. These decorate our classroom. We continued our snowy theme last week learning about the Arctic, Antarctica, and polar animals. Our main focus was on the polar bear and penguin, their habitats, and their special adaptations for survival. We added pages to our science journals on these animals. With penguins, we also read penguin poetry then students chose their favorite poem to copy and write. Then then crafted a penguin, giving it a "fluffy belly" by mixing shaving cream and glue and sprinkling it with glitter. This was a fan-favorite activity. Our science experiments included "Why do penguins swim but don't get wet" and a hibernation bear butter experiment. I grabbed 2 empty food jars and labeled them "hibernating bear" and "awake bear".... we let the hibernating bear jar rest somewhere nice and quiet in the classroom.  The awake bear jar got passed around to each student for them to shake for 25 seconds and hold for a minute or so each.  Then we talked {and wrote} about our findings.

This coming week we will learn about snow men, create "snow" with a special science experiment, read the stories Snowmen at Night and Snowmen at Work, using these themes to write about the story, identifying nouns and verbs. Next week we'll wrap up snow with literature about snow globes, creating our own snow globes and and Arctic Animal snow globes. Our first grade snow projects will be showcased in our primary hallway entitled, "It's 'snow' secret, we're a great school!"

 In social studies we dive in to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We'll complete a study on the power of words and learn some of Dr. King's "BIG WORDS." We'll learn about Yolanda, Dr. King's grand daughter, and use Dr. King as one source of study in guided reading. If you are able to make it to our Catholic School's Week kick-off and Open House on Sunday, January 27th (beginning with 11:30AM Mass in church), be sure to check out our first grade wall "I Have a Dream" (in the primary hallway) where you'll see the dreams of our SMS Firsties on display.

We completed MAP math testing last week, and MAP reading tests will be administered this week. Students also completed the Unit 5 math assessment in class, and we move on to Unit 6 this week. The class was super-psyched to have our classroom store where they counted up their golden tickets and exchanged them for pennies, nickels, dimes and dollars to shop at store. They were able to utilize calculators to assist with totals, addition, and subtraction. They have so much fun learning about money this way! One of the kids' all time faves this past week was the Doubles Addition to 12 song. Be sure to check it out: Doubles Addition to 12 Song. 

A few quick photos I was able to grab of our math B.U.I.L.D. time!

(keep reading below)

In religion this month our focus has been on the Baptism of Jesus, the parables of Jesus, the Miracles of Jesus, and the return to ordinary time. We reinforced our learning about the Sacrament of Baptism by heading over to the church and visiting the Baptismal font where we filled little heart bottles with holy water. The children brought these home around their neck and are encouraged to hang them up someplace special so they don't leak, and also so that they can bless themselves, their family members, their rooms, and their stuffed animals.

The 100th Day of School celebration is rapidly approaching! Celebrations will be held on Friday, February 1st all day. Your child is responsible for preparing two items for this special day, and information was sent home about this on January 10th. In case you missed it, you can read all about it here! Also coming up is our Valentine's Day party on Thursday, February 14th from 1:15-2:15pm. First graders exchange valentines with their class. More information and a sign-up genius for volunteers will be sent via email within the next week.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a joyful and relaxing Christmas break. I want to extend a sincere THANK YOU to all of you for the generous and lovely Christmas gifts! Truly, I am grateful for your generosity and thoughtfulness! I hope you all enjoyed the beautiful snowmen handprint ornaments and "Gift of Jesus" cards that your child worked so hard on. They were so excited to give them to you. :)

The kids were very happy to be back at school last Thursday and Friday, and they worked super hard getting back into the routine of school. They had a great time chatting with each other and swapping stories at snack time. We read The Night Before New Year's Eve and sequenced the events of the story; we also drew a picture of our own family celebration of New Year's. We also read Squirrel's New Year Resolution and how squirrel resolved to help people. We learned the meaning of the words RESOLUTION and RESOLVED, and the students wrote about their own 2019 New Year's resolutions (these are hanging in the hallway!).

Students also took their Journeys Reading pretest for spelling on Lesson 12, and both pretests and word lists were sent home on Friday. We'll be back in the guided reading schedule this week, so be sure to check RED folders for nightly reading assignments. If you'd like a refresher on RED folder reading, re-read this letter from the beginning of the year. SIX FLAGS READ TO SUCCEED also came home in the RED folders Friday. Your child can simply record their reading minutes each night to earn a FREE TICKET to Six Flags Great America! All Six Flags logs are due February 22nd.

During the month of January we will hit the ground running in science, learning about the science of snowflakes and snow as well as our unit on animal adaptations, biomimicry, and hibernation. Animal adaptations will continue through the rest of the year as we compile information in our science journals about different animals and their adaptations. We'll extend this in spring when we go back to our learning on plants and apply biomicry to plant life. This month we'll also learn about the science of sound and polar animals.

In social studies, we'll learn about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and complete a study using BIG words. In religion, we'll study the parables of Jesus and have a special day of "Parable Theater" with our Mass Mates. We'll also prepare for Catholic Schools Week happening Sunday, January 27th through Friday, February 1st. Please mark your calendars to attend the 11:30AM Mass on Sunday, January 27th and have your child(ren) wear their school uniform. #representSMS Afterwards, there will be an open house in the school from 1:00-3:00 PM for all current and prospective students and families.

In Math, we are back into our groove with Rocket Math. Please remember that you can download the Rocket Math app or subscribe to the Rocket Math online game. The students have been incredibly engaged with their number scrolls - a "fast finisher" activity where they can count as high as they want by writing their numbers, beginning at 1. We have some students into the 2000s - WAY TO GO! Below are a few pictures of number scrolls that are getting taller than the students. :) There's also a few fun pics of playing less than/greater than.

On February 1st we will celebrate the 100th day of school! More information will be sent home this week via your child's GO binder as there are several at-home projects to complete for special school activities. It's truly an amazing day that the students thoroughly enjoy!

Until next time, I leave you with my favorite find of the new year:

 Number Scrolls

GREATER THAN/LESS THAN

Nothing makes a teacher heart more happy than seeing a cozy nook with reading buddies all camped out for reading!

Our combined first grade Advent wreath

Our "Advent Goal" candles

"Moosletoe"

Our combined first grade Christmas tradition ornaments

A fun picture of our snowmen gift bags all assembled and 

ready to be given to parents! 

O Come, O Come Emmanuel

December is upon us, and that means celebrating and learning about the richness and beauty of the liturgical season that is ADVENT. In first grade, we will learn about Advent through the creation of an Advent lap book where we will understand the meaning of the 4 candles:

The wreath's symbolism of the Advent (coming) of Light into the world is clear. The gradual lighting of the four candles, one on each Sunday of the Advent season, combined with the liturgical colors of the candles (purple is the penitential color used during Advent and Lent; rose is a liturgical color used only on Gaudete Sunday in Advent and Laetare Sunday in Lent) help to symbolize not only our expectation and hope in Our Savior's first coming into the world, but also in his Second Coming as Judge at the end of the world. Our books will be assembled in the order of: HOPE, PEACE, JOY, LOVE.

The progressive lighting of the candles symbolizes the expectation and hope surrounding our Lord’s first coming into the world and the anticipation of his second coming to judge the living and the dead. As we "light" each of our candles in our lap books, we will read stories, watch videos, write and create special representations for HOPE, PEACE, JOY, LOVE. Our Advent lap books will come home on December 18th. I hope it becomes a beautiful keepsake to be enjoyed year after year.

'Tis the season for all things bright and beautiful, and first grade at St. Mary's school is FULL of special activities and events. Please mark your calendar for the following important dates!

1) TOMORROW! 12/4 - Holiday Bazaar - Please send money in the shopping envelope provided last week if you would like your child to shop at our holiday bazaar tomorrow. We will be shopping at 9:30AM in the Main Hall if you would like to join us for the fun - just sign in at the front office. *It's also crazy sock day tomorrow! Your child may wear any fun socks they'd like tomorrow. :)

2) This Thursday 12/6 - Field Trip for Shrek the Musical at the Marriott Lincolnshire -Please pack a regular snack and lunch; we will field trip in the morning and eat lunch upon our return. Just a heads-up for those ordering hot lunch: The Quest website says 1st & 2nd grade field trip on Wednesday (this is wrong!). Please check the status of your hot lunch order.

3) Friday 12/14 - 1st and 2nd Grade Advent Musical at 1:30PM in Church - Come watch the first and second graders perform the annual Advent Musical. Your child will need to wear dressy black and white outfits (traditional "choir colors") unless they are assigned a part that requires a costume. I will email parents directly with instructions for these students.

4) Tuesday 12/18 during lunch - Cocoa and Cookie Sale - Students in grades 1-8 may buy cocoa and cookies during their lunch. Every item will be sold for $1 each.

5) Wednesday 12/19 - 1st Grade Christmas Party - If you would like to contribute to our holiday fun, please CLICK HERE. We will join our 7th grade Mass Mates to watch the Polar Express together, snack on popcorn and hot chocolate, and make a jingle bell keepsake. Principal. Strutzel has asked us NOT to wear PJs on this day; instead, it will be a Christmas Top Day - Red, green shirts, sweatshirts or Christmas themed shirts on top, uniform on the bottom.  Students may bring pillows and blankets for the movie.

We will be reading tons of wonderful literature this month; there's so much to enjoy right now! As we prepare our hearts for Advent, we'll reflect on The Sparkle Box story, where a little boy learns about giving, kindness, and love. Students will write about living this story in their own Advent journeys. We've written a poem about preparing our hearts for Jesus and colored a quilt to cover the baby Jesus. We have already read fiction and non-fiction stories about reindeer and completed a "directed draw" on Rudolph. These are all hanging in the hall! We are also learning about Elves and learned how to write letters when we drafted a letter to Santa. We'll continue our letter writing skills with our class "furry friend" - Scruffy the Dog. St. Andrew, St. Nicholas, St. San Juan Diego, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and St. Lucia will round out our saint studies this month. We'll also learn about the Legend of the Poinsettia.

This week first graders take the Unit 2 assessment in reading and the Unit 4 assessment in math; in addition, we have moved on to Unit 3 - Lesson 11 in reading and Unit 5 in math. We'll dive in to base-10 blocks, greater than/less than, turn around facts and fact families (which we practice daily with Rocket Math, too!), +0 and +1. Hopefully we'll be ready to take our Unit 5 assessment prior to Christmas break.

I would like to wish each of you an Advent filled with quiet anticipation. If Christ is going to come again into our hearts, there must be repentance. Without repentance, our hearts will be so full of wordly things that there will be 'no room in the inn' for Christ to be born again. Our joy is a joy of anticipation...As Edward Hays so beautifully says, "Take time to be aware that in the very midst of our busy preparations for the celebration of Christ's birth in ancient Bethlehem, Christ is reborn in the Bethlehem of our homes and daily lives. Take time, slow down, be still, be awake to the Divine Mystery that looks so common and so ordinary yet is wondrously present."