Weekly Updates

Hi 1D Families!

We had another wonderful week in grade one! The children are learning so much and are working very hard each day. Thank you to everyone who was able to take part in the International Walk To School Day. We have started to work on our teen numbers in Math, and the children are challenging themselves to hear and record the sounds in words independently during Writer's Workshop. I'm very proud of their progress! We also spent time talking about gratitude and sharing the things we feel thankful for.

The students had their school photos taken on Thursday. I sent home cards from the photographer (Everest Solutions). You can scan the QR code or enter the online code to view your child’s photos. The deadline to order photos with free shipping will be Thursday October 22nd. 

On Friday, we will be heading on our field trip to Orwell Corner! Just a reminder not to order lunches/milk that day. The children will need a packed lunch and snacks. I will send a reminder e-mail later in the week about what they will need for that day. Thanks!

Here's what's happening in 1D this week:

• Playground: Back

• Monday: No School (Happy Thanksgiving)

• Tuesday: Day 6 - Phys Ed

• Wednesday: Day 1 - Music & Library (Book Exchange)

• Thursday: Day 2 - Phys Ed & Learning Buddies with KD

• Friday: Day 3 - Field Trip Day, so no specialist classes.

• Star: Connor will be our star this week. Next week will be Keaton.

• October Stars will be: Scarlett, Connor, Keaton, Emily

Words of the week - as/has, we/he/she/be/me **We will practice reading and writing these words** 

Highlights for this week:

• We completed Unit 2 of Fundations. I was so proud of the children for how well they did on their Unit 2 check-in! We will begin Unit 3 of Fundations this week. In class, I will be working on consonant digraphs. A consonant digraph is two consonants together that make one sound such as “s” and “h” together make the sound of /sh/. We will be working on learning the following consonant digraphs:

wh - whistle - /w/ ch - chin - /ch/ sh - ship - /sh/

th - thumb - /th/ ck - sock - /ck/

In class we will be working on tapping and blending to read and write words containing these consonant digraphs. We will also be working on “qu” which is referred to as the “buddy letter” because “q” always has it’s buddy “u” right beside it in words in the English language.

• Reading Homework: Thank you for your support with the first week of reading homework! I hope it went well at home, and please keep me posted if the books are too challenging or if they're causing frustration. I will continue to send home the Fundations review sheets once we have done them in class. They should practice the words and sentences. This is a great chance for you to see how your child is getting along with the skills we are learning in Fundations. Your child will have 3 practice books again this week that they can read throughout the week. Please return these books on Friday each week. I'm still missing a lot of the books from last week, so just a reminder to send those back ASAP as they are needed for other students this week. Thanks!

Dates to Remember

Monday, October 12 - Thanksgiving (no classes)

Thursday, October 15 - 1A and 1B Orwell Corner Field Trip
Friday, October 16 -  1C, 1D, and 1E Orwell Corner Field Trip

Friday, November 13 - Picture Retake Day

Have a great week, everyone! 

Hi Families!

We had another great week in grade one! We are settling into our routines and finished our first unit of Fundations, which was a review of consonant sounds, vowel sounds, and letter formation. 

I will be sending home a permission form on Monday for our class to go on a walking field trip to Cotton Park on Friday, October 2nd.  The grade one English classes will be walking to Robert Cotton Park to participate in some fun and educational activities. We will be leaving the school at 8:45am. We will be returning to the school by lunch (12pm).

The trip date will be weather dependent. If the weather isn’t cooperative, we will plan an alternate day to go.  I will touch base later this week to confirm the date. Part of our science curriculum is seasonal changes. At Cotton Park, we will engage in a variety of educational activities that will integrate literacy, math, and science curriculum. We will have a picnic snack, use binoculars on the trail to look for signs of fall, complete a fall scavenger hunt, create nature patterns, play games and use our imaginations in the Wild Child play area!

Here's what's happening in 1D this week:

• Playground: Back

• Monday: Day 3 - Phys Ed & Music

• Tuesday: Day 4 - Phys Ed & Library (Orange Shirt Day at school)

• Wednesday: No School 

• Thursday: Day 5 - Music & Chromebooks

• Friday: Day 6 - Phys Ed

• Star: Milow will be our star this week. Next week will be Scarlett.

• October Stars will be: Scarlett, Connor, Keaton, Emily

Cotton Park Field Trip:  Please sign and return the permission form that is going home in your child's homework bag on Monday.

Words of the week -  come, here, his, of   **We will practice reading and writing these words** 

Fundations:  We are working through Unit 2. In this unit, we teach/review how to tap and blend three-sound short vowel words (consonant-vowel-consonant aka CVC; example: sat). We will teach how to read and spell CVC words.

Homework: We will begin reading homework routines next week! Stay tuned for more information!

Dates to Remember:

• Tuesday, September 29th - Orange Shirt Day at school

• Wednesday, September 30th - No classes (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation)

• Friday, October 2nd- Grade 1 Field Trip to Cotton Park in the am

• Thursday, October 8th- Picture Day

September 21st-25th

Hi Families! 

We had a wonderful full week together in grade one! I am truly enjoying getting to know your children. We have had lots of fun together already! We continue to work hard on establishing daily routines and expectations. 

Last week, we had some discussions about ways we can "fill someone's bucket" and we practiced giving compliments to each other. We are also working on solving problems that arise with our peers. 

On Friday, we continued our "Open House" during morning play. The children were given the chance to play in any/all of the grade one English classrooms with their friends from other classes. This was a big hit again! 

Thanks to everyone who was able to come to Meet the Teacher! If you were unable to make it, I emailed out the slideshow last week. Let me know if you have any questions!

This week, we will discuss and celebrate Terry Fox, and will do our walk on Friday. Please make sure that your child is wearing comfortable outdoor footwear that day, as we will be doing walking/running laps. 

Here's what's happening in 1D this week:

• Playground: Front 

• Monday: Day 4 - Phys Ed, Library

• Tuesday: Day 5 - Music, Chromebooks

• Wednesday: Day 6 - Phys Ed

• Thursday: Day 1 - Music, Library (Book Exchange Day)

• Friday: Day 2 - Phys Ed

• Star: Raizen will be our first star this week. Next week will be Milow.

Words of the week -  my, is, look, and   **We will practice reading and writing these words** 

Terry Fox Donations:  In support of cancer research, you can make a cash donation by sending money in with your child in their homework bag. Please label that it is for Terry Fox Donation. Or, you can make a donation online using the following link: https://schools.terryfox.ca/GlenStewartPrimarySchool 

Homework: We will begin homework routines later this month, stay tuned for more information!

Footwear: Please ensure your child is able to put on their indoor and outdoor footwear independently (ie - tie laces, or pull up zippers). If they have laces, it's expected they can tie their shoes themselves. 

Dates to Remember:

• Friday, September 25th - Terry Fox Run

• Tuesday, September 29th - Orange Shirt Day at school

• Wednesday, September 30th - No classes (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation)

• Thursday, October 8th- Picture Day

Hi 1D Families!

We had a great first four days of grade one! We are learning lots of new routines, building friendships and getting to know each other. We read a great book about families and discussed how we can build a wonderful class family together. We have been doing daily affirmations to boost our self confidence and belief in ourselves. To finish the week off, on Friday morning during Free Choice Play, we had an “open house” in our grade one hallway where the kids were able to visit and play with friends from the other classrooms. This was a lot of fun! It was nice for them to connect with each other and see each other’s classrooms. 

This week, we will continue to practice routines and establish expectations while having lots of fun together!
Here's what's happening in 1D this week:

• Playground: Back  

• Monday: Day 5 - Music, Chromebooks (for the first time)

• Tuesday: Day 6 - Phys. Ed

• Wednesday: Day 1 - Music, Library

• Thursday: Day 2 - Phys. Ed

• Friday: Day 3 - Music, Phys. Ed

• Star: I sent home a paper on Friday explaining our Star of the Week procedures! Ruby will be our first star this week. 

Words of the week - go, to, went, can  **We will practice reading and writing these words throughout the week** 

Learning Goals: Each month I will outline the curriculum outcomes and learning we will be exploring. Click HERE, or visit the "monthly learning goals" tab at the top of this website. 

Forms: Thanks to those who filled out the forms that were sent home on the first day of school. If you haven’t done so already, please send them back as soon as possible.

Photos: I’ll be taking photos of the students engaging in the various activities we do in 1D. I will post these photos under the "Our Classroom" tab at the top of my website.  

Meet the Teacher: You're invited to come into our classroom this Wednesday, September 16th from 6:20-6:35pm. This is a great chance to see our classroom and meet other parents. I'll have a quick slideshow to go over some information about grade one. If you are unable to attend, I will send home a copy of the slideshow for you. 

Hot Lunches: Our Hot Lunch program will begin Monday, September 14th.  To place these orders, you will need to create a new account (even if you had one last year) and place your orders for next week by 9pm on Sundays. 

Here is the website to register and order: https://glenstewartprimary.hotlunches.net/admin/?action=register-form

Monday: Cheese Pizza (Domino’s)

Friday: Cheese Pizza (Stratford Pizza Corner)

Lunch Notes: We have a microwave in our classroom to warm up food for lunch! Due to class size and limited time for lunch, each child is limited to 30 seconds for the microwave. Please don't send KD cups or frozen dinners as they take a long time to heat up and then cool down in time to eat! Thanks. Also, just a reminder that utensils are NOT included with the school hot lunch program, so children must bring their own fork/spoon each day. 

Homework: We will begin homework routines (reading) later this month - stay tuned for more information!

Breakfast Program: Our breakfast program begins this week and is open for all students! Toast with butter and toast with jam are always available. Additionally, there can be various options such as apples, bananas, cheese or yogurt. Breakfast is available between 8:00 and 8:25 daily. 

Footwear: Please ensure your child is able to put on their indoor and outdoor footwear independently (ie - tie laces, or pull up zippers). If they have laces, it's expected they can tie their shoes themselves. Thank you!

Scholastic Book Orders: I will be sending home book orders periodically. These are optional! If you wish to order books for your child, there are often great deals and every order benefits our classroom too! :) No pressure to buy!

Dates to Remember:

• Wednesday, September 16th - Meet the Teacher (6:20-6:35pm)

• Friday, September 25th - Terry Fox Run

• Tuesday, September 29th - Orange Shirt Day at school

• Wednesday, September 30th - No classes (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation)