First Grade Curriculum

Guided Reading

Children read leveled books with the teacher in a small group setting. These books are selected and introduced by the teacher. The introduction also involves a picture walk through the story. During the picture walk students are encouraged to notice details and begin to get a sense of the story. This activity also gives the teacher an opportunity to introduce any vocabulary that he/she feels the group might be unfamiliar with. The books that will be introduced will promote slight challenges to enhance reading skills. Eventually, children will have a selection of books to read independently. These books will be kept in their browsing bags.

Independent Reading

Independent Reading time gives the children an opportunity to read to themselves or with a partner. Sometimes students are asked to read books from their browsing bags. These browsing bags contain familiar books that have been read during Guided Reading. Reading these familiar books gives children the opportunity to focus on reading with fluency and phrasing. Other times children may select books from the classroom library. Over the course of the year children are encouraged to build stamina with their reading. So, a student who may start out only being able to read independently for 5 minutes, is encouraged to increase that time to 10 minutes, 15 minutes, and so on.

Read Aloud

Our Read Aloud time is generally the first whole group lesson of the day. Most of our literacy instruction is centered around the Read Aloud of the day. The students listen to a story and are encouraged to wonder about and discuss the different aspects of the story. Children learn how books work and are encouraged to use that knowledge in their own writing. They also begin to notice an author's style and are encouraged to experiment with style in their writing.

Shared Reading

Through shared reading, children experience and enjoy literacy texts they are not yet ready to read independently.

Teachers focus on specific concepts of print and strategies of reading; teaching is often direct and explicit, but it take place within a highly meaningful context. Many types of texts are used in Shared Reading. Texts can include big books, poems, excerpts from books and the students' own writing.

Math

Students in first grade are taught the Common Core Math curriculum through New Math York State Math Modules. Please click on the link below to go to the Engage New York site.

https://www.engageny.org/resource/grade-1-mathematics

Writing

Our LC Framework includes several areas of writing. Please find a brief description of each below.

During Shared Writing the teacher provides full support for the writing process. The teacher models and demonstrates the process of putting ideas onto paper. The ideas come from the children. The activity provides the opportunity to draw attention to letters, words, and sounds. This activity is usually done with the whole group. This writing also provides texts that the children can read independently.

Interactive Writing is similar to Shared Writing, but in this case the children are invited to "share the pen" with the teacher. The teacher will select individual children to come up to the chart paper to write a letter, word, or other writing concept, based on where that particular child is in his/her writing development. The piece of writing can be fictional, or more often in my classroom, is based on a story read or facts about a particular unit of study.

Writer's Workshop, sometimes called Guided Writing, begins with a whole group mini lesson. The mini lesson is developed from the teachers observations of his/her students' writing. For example, if the teacher notices that many of the students are not putting spaces between words, mini lessons would be developed to help reinforce this idea.

After the mini lesson, students are sent back to their seats where they can write about any topic they choose. Because many second graders find it difficult to come up with ideas, one of our first mini-lessons usually involves generating a list of ideas to display in a central location of the classroom.

As the children settle into their writing the teacher will work with individual children on needs specific to that child. We call this "conferencing." During conferencing the goal of the teacher is to develop the writer rather than the piece of writing.

Writer's Workshop is concluded with a sharing time. One to three children are chosen to share a piece of writing they have done. After children read their piece to the class, they may call on 2-3 classmates to ask a question (I wonder...) or share an observation (I like...) about the piece just shared.

Most writing pieces are kept in a cumulative writing folder at school.

Independent Writing time is provided during center time. Unlike Writer's Workshop, where children may choose what they write about, children are given a particular writing task. Sometimes they will be asked to write in a personal journal. Other times, they may be asked to respond to a Read Aloud selection. Whatever the task assigned, children are asked to complete the activity on their own.