In 1st Grade, I will encourage and teach many study skills to help our learners prepare for assessments, better comprehend reading texts, and for future support!
Here are some great ideas to help your learner at home (and what we will touch base on in class):
Make sure his/her basic needs are met before working on assignments. Ex. cranky or hungry- have a healthy snack!
Read the directions. Very simple...highlight what you need to find/solve/do. *Look at the rubric or standard/goal to make sure your work matches and has all parts.
Add a sticky note at the end of each book. Write down key details from the text. What was the most important thing that happened? What is the main idea? Who was involved?
Highlight! Using a bright color, highlight keywords, phrases, main ideas, key details, cause & effect (2 different colors), text evidence, and more! Be sure not to highlight EVERYTHING!
Study a little at a time- Set a Timer! Use a visual kitchen timer or any timer to assist you and help you focus. When time is up, get up and stretch, grab a healthy snack, drink some water, and then continue as needed.
Find a quiet place to work/study- NO PHONES or ELECTRONICS in the same room as these tend to create a lot of distractions. Studies show that when someone gets a notification, it breaks their train of thought, and homework/studying ends up taking longer than what is needed.
For visual learners- create a graphic organizer for important notes/facts. Ex. Web, Venn diagram, draw and label, create flashcards, make a comic strip summary, write spelling words in shaving cream or sugar that's on a sheet pan, or even use fun colored pens to rewrite definitions/facts!
Grownups can look at the examples on the page and share what they notice. Use context clues (look for keywords or phrases in the text; find the matching heading; find the information or sentence that answers your question; encourage decoding each word and rereading!).
How to Write a Great Response to a Question
Restate the Question
Answer the Question
Give evidence from the text or explain thought
Optional: Restate the Question again and close
Ex. Question: What did the main character, Bingo, look like?
Level 3: Bingo looks big and brown.
Level 2: The dog is big.
Level 1: Big
Standard Based Grading (SBG) is based on a 3, 2, 1. When we are learning, we are aiming for a score of 2 and with practice and studying, our goal is to master the standard on our assessments by earning a 3!
Grown-ups: Use the phrase- Add more! Those two words can help your child add to their responses and stretch their skills to the next level.