Newsletters

1A Weekly Newsletter April 7, 2026

Check out our Photos of the Week:  https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

Welcome back from Easter break.  It was a lovely break, but I’m glad to be back here with your amazing kiddos!  We will be celebrating the Easter Season for the next month in 1A.  Jesus is risen- thank God!

Thoman Bucks:  We have started a fun behavior reward system in 1A to end the year on a positive note!  The children earn “Thoman Bucks” each day for following the MARY Rules. If they have a reoccurring misbehavior or a more serious event (hurting a friend) they will get a “Strike Out” paper.  If they “Strike Out” they will not get a Thoman Buck (I sent home a sample today). 

On Friday’s after Mass, they will use the money they earned to buy a small prize or a fun classroom privileges (read to a preschooler, bring a small stuffed animal to your desk for ½ a day, sit with a friend, sit in the teacher’s chair, take off your shoes for ½ an hour….).  If you come to Mass and have time to follow us back to the classroom, I would love you help running the “store”.  You must have clearances.  Simply email me (or whisper to me in church) to let me know.  😊 This will occur every Friday after Mass. *This Friday was the egg hunt, so we did it later in the morning. 

ILA- We read a lovely Easter book entitled The Parable of the Lily written by Liz Curtis Higgs. We discussed how parables are stories that teach us a lesson.  Jesus told many parables to teach us lessons.  We used this book to discuss character traits, problem and solution, and cause and effect.  Again, discussing these things while reading to you child teaches their brain to listen and comprehend while you read.  Then when they start reading for content, their brains will be trained in comprehending while reading!  Practice is exercise for the brain- so make sure you are reading with your child every night!    

Math- Measurement!  We are having a blast measuring many things using different units.  We are using cubes, paper clips, rulers, shoes, hands…. We practice starting at the bottom and measuring to the top.  This is a fun one to try at home!  If your child is looking for something to do, send them outside with a clip board and a ruler.  See what they can measure.  😊

Rocket Math Party is next Friday, April 17, 12-1:00.  Feel free to sign up to help or send something in.  Thank you!  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A4EACAF2FAAF5C61-63254024-rocket

Kiki passed Rocket Math Add to 20!  Way to go, Kiki!

Religion- Easter!  We are reading and celebrating that Jesus died for our sins and came back to us. He is God.  We are also reading about hope.  God keeps all his promises.  God’s promises give us hope.  We have hope that God will lead us to Heaven. 

Upcoming Activities: Please read In the Loop for more information and details:

Wednesday, April 15- Talent Show 1:15

Thursday, April 16- Dental Health Presentation

Friday, April 17- Lunch Bunch and Math Party!

Sunday, April 19- Adventure in Faith 1:30-3:30, SJY Open House 12-2pm

1A Weekly Newsletter March 23

Click below to check out our class website for some fun pictures!

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

ILA – This is our last week of fairy tales.  We ended with The Mermaid by Jan Brett.  It is a fun take on Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  We compared and contrasted the two stories.  We also discussed the beginning, middle and end of the story.  These discussions and projects help children learn to read with a purpose and comprehend what they read. 

Thank you so much for the donations to Stone Soup!  We had so much fun with 1B putting it together and eating it.  It made the whole school smell delicious!  Most students tried it and some even had seconds!  It was a blessing to be able to share a delicious treat with everyone.  Thank you! 

Math- We practiced adding 3 numbers!  We do this all the time with our calendar, so it was not a big jump for them.  7+3+1= 11  We focus on making 10 first, then adding the other number. 

Religion- Fr. Sahd came to discuss Lent with us on Tuesday.  That was special.  We love when the priests come and visit. We continue to focus on the Lenten Season, specifically Palm Sunday. 

Science- We are reading about oviparous animals- ask your amazing children what that means (answer- animals that lay eggs)!  We also studied octopuses- they are so fascinating and intelligent!  God is amazing!

Upcoming Events- Please read In the Loop!

Baby Bottle Campaign- Please send in change to fill our baby bottles to help the little babies!

Tuesday, March 31- Living Stations of the Cross 1:30 in the Church

Wednesday, April 1- Monday, April 6- Easter Break- No school

Tuesday, April 7- Welcome back and Spring Uniform (refer to handbook for any questions)

Friday, April 10- In school Easter Egg Hunt!  Mrs. Frattone could use help- read In the Loop 😊

Sunday, April 19-1:30- 3:30- Adventuring Together in Faith at SJY (paper came home today)

1A Weekly Newsletter March 9

What a lovely start to the week we had!  We had such beautiful weather!  The children LOVED all the new recess balls, toys, and bubbles- thank you again!  Unfortunately, it turned cold again!  Please make sure you send in coats because we do try to go out for recess when we can.   

ILA- Folk tales continued!  We read a fractured folk tale entitled 3 Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas. It is a very silly book, and we loved discussing the ch-ch-ch-changes! Fractured folk tales are different versions of the original tale.  They are usually written to be funny. 

We worked on using commas in a sequence of 3 or more things. It is hard to remember where the commas go, but introducing these skills in first grade only makes it easier to grasp them again in higher grades.

Shaving cream- Have you heard that we love doing our handwriting practice with shaving cream?  It is so much fun and not too bad to clean up.  It is cheap shaving foam cream, feel free to get some and practice at home.  The hardest letters to form are -f, q, n, p, b, d, and y (make sure your child starts at the top).  Capital letters are challenging too.

Math- We are working on missing addends 3+?=5.  We played a fun game with number cards on their heads (Maddy and Drew were our class winners this time).  This is a tricky concept, but we are doing well.

Congratulations to Dominic H. and Drew!  They both passed Rocket Math Subtraction! Way to go boys!

Religion- We love watching our daily Lent message from Brother Francis.  We also enjoy our weekly Stations of the Cross on Friday.  We are discussing the sacrifices we are giving up to Jesus during this Lenten Season.  Fr. Sahd is coming to visit our class on Monday to discuss Lent with our class.  That will be a blessing.  If your child has any specific questions for Fr. Sahd, please help them write them in their agenda and assuming time permits, Fr. Sahd can answer our questions. 

SJY Rules Reminder: Only translucent plastic water bottles.  Jumpers must be 3 inches above the knee, gym uniform- sweatpants and sweatshirts required until spring uniform. 

Upcoming Events: Please read In the Loop for up-to-date information

Baby Bottle Campaign- send in change or have your child earn some money to donate

Monday, March 16- Fr. Sahd comes to visit

Tuesday, March 17- Mrs. Mathison (guidance lesson)

Thursday, March 19- Dress Down Day- Field trip to Appell Center to watch Stone Soup!  If you want to be added to our text group message for fun updates and photos, please email me your phone number (one per family).  Of course, I will put photos on our website as soon as possible!

St. Joseph’s feast day 3/19 too- Mass 8:30, Holy Day Recess, special treat and Dress Down Day!

Friday, March 20- Pizza and Bowling 6-8pm (RSVP- In the Loop)

March 25- Lunch Bunch – sign up - In the Loop

Friday, March 27- Talen Show forms due (In the Loop)

March 29- Palm Sunday

Tuesday, March 31- Living Stations of the Cross 1:30

April 1- April 6- Easter Break- Enjoy!

April 7- Spring uniform

April 10 – In school Easter egg hunt (please send in an empty egg carton and candy)

1A Newsletter March 2

Welcome back 1A!  I am so happy to have my whole class back (at least on certain days)!  I will continue to wipe down our classroom and pray the germs are gone for the rest of this year (one can hope).  We only have one student who is still sick and we pray for her every day!  😊

Field Trip- I know it can be scary to send your first grader on a field trip.  I am happy to make a large group text so I can send you pictures and updates as we go.  If you would like to be included in this text group- please email me with your phone number.  Only one phone number per family because there is a maximum of 20 numbers I can use.

ILA:  Folk Tales- Our next few books are all folk tales.  It is a very fun month of reading excellent stories where the author writes to teach us a lesson.  I love teaching in Catholic School because these lessons can easily be tied into the Ten Commandments and following God’s word.  We will also compare new funny folktales to the classics.  Comparing and contrasting is a great way to make sure students are comprehending what they read.

This week we started with Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion by Alex Smith.  We are discussing the characters, setting, problem, solution, and the good/evil in the story.

We also practiced reading and spelling the vowel sound long o made by the letters oa (goat, boat), and igh- long i sound (light, sigh)

Finally, we focused on adverbs of time (today, soon, after, later- these are sometimes tricky for first graders, but we practice daily with our calendar work (yesterday, today, tomorrow). 

Math:  We practiced moving the equal sign around and what the equal sign means.  We compared different addition math problems to see if they could equal the same number (5+5= 10 = 6+4=10). 

We also continue to practice adding double digit numbers and addition word problems. 

Congratulations to Dominic N. who passed Rocket Math Subtraction last week!  Way to go Dominic!  This week Declan passed Rocket Math Addition- super job, Declan!

Science:  We finally finished our Nonfiction Clouds stories.  They came home this week.  The nonfiction readers are written above a 1st grade reading level (we read them together in class) but are excellent and full of great facts!  To celebrate we finished the week with sky blue Jello treats!  Everyone helped make them and they were delicious! Check out our website for some fun pictures.  We even got to go in the school refrigerator!  https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

Religion:  Lent!  We are enjoying reading and learning about our faith. We are concentrating on the Season of Lent.

STAR Testing- came home today.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. That helps me with report card marks, but I also use what I see in the classroom on a daily basis.

Upcoming Activities- Please read In the Loop for more information

Baby Bottle Campaign is still going!  Please send in any change you have or have your child earn some money to donate to the babies!

March 7- Spaghetti Dinner 6pm in the gym

March 13- Mrs. Thoman is going to be absent.  I am going to watch Ava (my daughter) swim 100 backstroke in States!  😊

March 19- Field Trip to Appell Center and St. Joseph Day – Mass at 8:30 followed by recess! *Read above to joint text chain

March 20- Knights of Columbus Pizza and Bowling Event 6-8pm RSVP (In the Loop)

1A Weekly Newsletter February 23

Germs!  Yuck!  We started our week with 7 students absent (ended with up to 8 absent).  I have been wiping down the desks, pencils, opening the windows and adding more bathroom breaks to wash our hands!  Thank you for keeping your kids home when they have a fever and/or just feel miserable.  I am hoping we will all be feeling better very soon!

*I left early today to watch my daughter swim in Districts.  I am not sick- please pray it stays that way.

**Show and Tell Calendars- came home today!

Reading:  We read The Koala Who Could by Rachel Bright.  This story is about a frightened koala who is too afraid to come down from his tree and join the fun.  We discussed the “Central Message” or “Lesson”, this is what the author wants you to learn from the book.  We talked about trying new things even when we are scared.  Then we tried a FUN new recess toy that Olivia brought in, Skip It!  We had fun trying this new toy even though most of us were not good at it.  This tied nicely into having a “Growth Mindset”.  When we have a growth mindset, we are willing to learn and adjust to new situations.

Finally, since so many were absent, we skipped some content learning and did a quick artist study.  We learned about Georgia O’Keefe.  We learned how she loved nature and drew flowers and skulls (from the desert in New Mexico).  We loved her picture Above the Clouds 1. We took some time to paint our own masterpieces. 

Math:  We continued to practice adding 2 digit numbers (no regrouping).  We need to remember to start with the ones place!  The students are having fun with this!  Thank you for sharing your work at home!  Please feel free to send in more papers if you practice at home.  I would love to see their hard work.

Congratulations to Henry!  He passed Rocket Math Subtraction!  Way to go Henry!

Science:  Our heads are in the clouds!  We read our nonfiction readers about clouds. We made many cloud crafts!  Cumulous clouds are so puffy and fun to watch and see different things in them.  We even used one art project to write a story about a cloud.

Religion:  On Tuesday we went to church to spend time with Jesus during the 40 Hours of devotion to Jesus.  We are learning about the Lenten Season. 

Upcoming Activities -Please Read in the Loop for more information and details:

Baby Bottle Campaign- Feel free to bring in change

Monday, March 2- Field trip forms and money due (If your child is still absent, please just send it in when he/she returns to school). 

Monday, March 2- Dress down for Read Across America- Oh, The Places You’ll Go! Wear a shirt from a place you went or want to go (college, military, vacation spot, York Catholic, Race for Education Day) and silly socks!

Wednesday, March 4- Fr. Sahd’s birthday!

Saturday, March 7- Spaghetti Dinner to help support our youth ministry

Thursday, March 19- Saint Joseph Day- Mass 8:30

Friday, March 20- Pizza and bowling 6-8pm please RSVP (In the Loop)

Friday, April 10- In-school Egg Hunt – please send in empty egg cartons and candy

1A Weekly Newsletter February 9

Love is in the air in 1A!  We love Jesus!  We had a wonderful week learning about St. Valentine and then having our amazing Valentine party!  Thank you for your help, contributions, and Valentines!  I could not have this much fun without your help and support.  God bless all of you.

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

Check out our website for some adorable pictures from our Valentine’s Day Party!

ILA- We read a cute story by Tom Lichtenheld, entitled Cloudette.  We used this fun story to practice inferring while we read.  Good readers don’t just read words, they think and predict as they go.  This helps them comprehend what they are reading.  At home, please have your child read to you and stop them when there is a funny or exciting moment - chat about it for a minute or two!  This makes reading come to life!  This also creates synapses in the brain and makes learning happen.  We also discussed the different schemas that we have when reading a story.  Our background knowledge is our schema (no, your children are not expected to know these words). I am just introducing them to expand their vocabulary and show them that big words are not difficult once you practice using them.  We brainstormed our different schemas using ice cream and doughnuts as examples.  We all know so much about them!  Yummy!

Our handwriting contest was very competitive in 1A!  We had so many close submissions.  The winner is Dominic H.!  Congratulations to everyone on improving their handwriting skills!

Math-   Doubles, doubles- Please ask your children their doubles when you can.  We moved on to doubles plus one… 6+7= 13, 7+8=15, 8+9=17.  We also started word problems for addition.  How many in all?  I bet your child can make up a simple addition word problem for you to solve! Make sure they end it with “How many in all?”.

Congratulations to Luca!  He passed Rocket Math Subtraction!  He is moving on to Rocket Math Addition to 20! He is especially proud because he went through the whole alphabet without repeating any letter… wow!!

Congratulations to Reed!  He passed Rocket Math Addition!  He is moving on to Rocket Math Subtraction!  Great work!!

Religion- We read and learned about St. Valentine.  It was a beautiful week.  Next week is Ash Wednesday. 

Science- We are going to do our blubber science experiment on Friday, February 20 after lunch at 12:00.  If any parents are available to help me put children’s hands in blubber and freezing water, you are welcome.  Please let me know.  You must have clearances. 

Upcoming Events: Please read In the Loop:

Monday, February 16- President’s Day- No school

Tuesday, February 1h7- Holy Hour 9:00

Wednesday, February 18- Ash Wednesday 8:30

Thursday, February 19- Lunch Bunch

Friday, February 20- Blubber science experiment 12:00, Stations of the Cross 1:45

Monday, March 2- Read Across America- Wear fun socks and/or a sweatshirt that represents Oh, The Places You’ll Go!  by Dr. Suess… maybe a York Catholic shirt, a college shirt, military sweatshirt or your Race for Educations shirt! 

1A Weekly Newsletter February 2, 2026

It was such an exciting week!  Please check out the photos on our website… A picture is worth 1000 words.  We loved celebrating the 100th  and the 101st  days of school!  We also found out the groundhog saw his shadow.  Unfortunately, spring is 6 weeks away. We did many crafts, math games, and wrote about this exciting time of the year!

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

Lost and Found:  We have 5 gym sweatshirts and one school sweater in our classroom.  They do not have names in them.  If you are missing one, let me know and I will do my best to match your child with a sweatshirt that fits.  😊

ILA- Penguins!  We started reading our nonfiction readers about penguins. We are practicing taking notes. 

We also discussed synonyms and how some words are stronger than other words even though they mean the same thing (cool, cold, freezing or sad, unhappy, miserable).  We are working hard to expand our vocabulary.  

Science- We are learning about penguins and how they stay warm in the freezing cold water.  We are beginning to learn about the scientific method with 1B. 

Math- 100th day activities!  We tried counting money (this is too hard for most first graders, but we worked together to count coins to one dollar).  We also tossed coins and graphed the results (heads/ tails won!). We are practicing doubles- 6+6, 7+7, 8+8 and 9+9 are tough ones.

Congratulations to Luciana who passed Addition Rocket Math this week, and Kiki who passed Subtraction Rocket Math!  Kiki is moving on to addition facts up to 20!

Religion- On Tuesday Fr. Sahd came for the Blessing of Throats. We discussed St. Blaise and how he prayed for a child who had a fish bone stuck in his throat.  The boy was saved by his prayers. 

This month we are focusing on compassion.  We discussed how having compassion and empathy for others is so important.  Jesus wants us to show compassion to everyone.  This tied in perfectly with our Blessing Bags that we put together as a school.  They came home this week and can be handed out to someone that you see who may need some extra blessings.  We discussed that children can never do this without an adult with them. 

Upcoming Events- read In the Loop for more important details and information!

Wednesday, February 11- Mrs. Thoman will be attending a math conference.  Mrs. Erb will be our substitute teacher.

February 12- Dress down for Valentine’s Day and our class party!!!  1:15-2:15 (volunteers, please arrive at 1:00).

Girls:  Riley, Olivia, Vienna, Luciana, Delilah, Izabella, Kiki, Lydia, Madelyn

Boys:  Reed, Luca, Dominic H, Drew, Henry, Dominic N, Jackson, Declan

February 13- Noon Dismissal, Fr. St. Denis’ birthday! Please pack a larger snack.  We are accustomed to eating at 11:15. We will starve if we don’t have a big snack at about that time- ha ha!  😊

February 16- No School

1A Weekly Newsletter January 20, 2026

It was a cold and busy week!  We had a great time discussing animals in the winter!  To top off a week of learning we made s’mores after Mass on Friday!  We decided that although children do not hibernate, they do like having fun in the winter!  Making s’mores on a cold winter morning was a fun treat!  Thank you, Mrs. Reass, for the s’more maker and help.

Mrs. Mathison came to our class on Tuesday to help us make friendship soup!  It was beautiful to see them add love, kindness, respect, trust, fun, and even a pinch of arguing (because it happens and we must forgive each other). 

Progress Reports: They came home today. If you have any questions, I’m here!

Snow Day?  If we have a snow day on Monday it will be a pre-planned one and the students do NOT need to do a Snow Day Packet.  If we have one on Tuesday, they will complete Snow Packet Day 2 (and this will count as their attendance).  I will email as soon as I hear what the school/weather decides. I am available for any questions via email- so don’t hesitate to contact me. 

ILA- We read a “Narrative Nonfiction” story entitled Over and Under the Snow, by Kate Messner.  We compared our nonfiction stories to this narrative nonfiction story.  We discussed the author’s purpose.  In this story, it is to teach us about animals in the winter. 

We also learned about the pronouns- I, me and my.  Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns. 

The class is doing a fabulous job using and spelling their silent e (long vowel ) words in their writings.  We practiced with the -eat word family (treat, meat, wheat) this week.

Math- We are comparing numbers!  The students are doing an amazing job using the <, >, and = signs to compare numbers.  We are also ordering numbers and practicing adding and subtracting 10 from numbers.  We continue to work on place value as well.   

Religion- We discussed how we have a guardian angel that is always with us.  The angel is trying to protect us and guide us to heaven.  We can always ask for help and give our prayers to our guardian angel to help us.  We also read about Adam and Eve and how they disobeyed God and this is called Original Sin.  We discussed how when we turn away from God, we sin.  God sent Jesus to save us from sin. 

Thank you for the numerous donations to our Blessing Bags!  You are all so wonderful!  God bless you!  It is not too late if you would like to contribute and combs or rain ponchos, please send them in next week. 

Upcoming Events (Always read In The Loop):

Please do not send hand sanitizer from home.  We have children getting it in their eyes and that is painful and dangerous.  Thank you!

January 25- January 31- Catholic Schools Week (lots of fun dress down days- read In the Loop).

Saturday, January 24 - Battle of the Buildings:Cancelled.  SJY is offering to Masses on Saturday evening 5:00 and 6:30.

Thursday, January 29- Avalanche Xpress

Wednesday, February 4- Junior Achievement in class (Mrs. Hamberger is our JA teacher- thank you)

Saturday, February 7- Family BINGO 11-2:00 at SJY

Thursday, February 12- Valentine Party in 1A 1:30-2:30 and “Give a piece of your heart” dress down day!  Valentine cards and treats may be brough in on this day!  Please make sure you send one card in for every child.  We have 17 students in our class.

Snow days might be a great time to get Valentine cards done!  You are not required to send them in. 

Class List

Girls:

• Riley, Olivia, Vienna, Luciana, Delilah, Izzy, Kiki, Lydia, Maddy

Boys

• Reed, Luca, Dominic H, Drew, Henry, Dominic N, Jackson, Declan

Friday, February 13- ½ day of school (students dismissed noon dismissal). Please pack your child an extra snack (we are accustomed to eating lunch at 11:15). 

1A Weekly Newsletter -January 12

We had a lot of testing this week.  We did STAR Reading and Math as well as a writing test.  I use these results combined with what I see in class to complete the students’ report cards and progress reports.  If you ever have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me.  I am happy to meet with you anytime!

ILA:  The Darkest Dark is a nonfiction story about Chris Hadfield, an astronaut from Canada.  He was afraid of the dark as a child but learned to love it.  He took amazing photographs in space.  We practiced taking notes while reading this story and then took notes while watching a short film by him.  Mr. Hadfield explained how being an astronaut really works and how he learned to take photographs in space. The link is below if you would like to watch it.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jCg-LDJ-A0

Our weekly non-fiction reader is about the real lives of astronauts, and the class LOVES reading and learning about how astronauts work and live in space.

The complicated concept of adding -ing to verbs was also introduced this week.  It is very tricky!  We discussed how if the word has one syllable, has a short vowel, and followed by one consonant you double the consonant and add -ing (hop- hopping, grab- grabbing).  We also learned to drop the silent e- when adding -ing (hope- hoping, make- making).  They are not expected to master these spelling rules!  It is important to introduce the concepts that will be retaught in other grades. I’m just planting seeds. 😊

Math: We continue to practice place value (tens and ones place) for numbers 1-20.  We also introduced comparing numbers.  The <, >, and =  are the symbols they learned.  I noticed on STAR Math testing they were asking about these symbols… now we know! 

Religion: We are learning about Grace.  Grace helps us be holy.  We also read about Saint Rose of Lima and discussed how kind it was of her to give homes to the sick and homeless.  This tied right into our school “Blessing Bags”.  We are gathering supplies that adults can give to homeless people in our community.  First grade is sending in combs and rain ponchos.  There is more information In the Loop and in the flyer that comes home on Friday. 

Upcoming Events: Please read In the Loop for more information and details:

This week’s class pictures:  https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

Monday, January 19- No School for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Friday, January 24- Combs/ Brushes and Rain Ponchos for Blessing Bags are due (flyer came home today)

January 24- January 30- Catholic Schools Week!  😊 Please read In the Loop for dress down days and details!  (Hint- Monday 1/26- Celebrating America with a red, white, and blue dress down day!)

Thursday, January 29- Avalanche Xpress- get your tickets! 

1A Newsletter, Week of January 5

We had a wonderful week!  It was so nice to see all my students again and get to continue celebrating the Christmas season together.  We came back into the new year with a fun week of gingerbread stories and finished the week with our exciting gingerbread decorating party.  Please check out some pictures on our class website:  https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

ILA- We read many gingerbread stories and wrote our own!  The students wrote how they would catch a gingerbread man (or ninja, or girl).  Those stories will be completed and hung in the hallway for all to admire.  We also worked on story elements (characters, setting, problem and solution).  We also reviewed ABC order and made beautiful Epiphany hand-print camels.  It was a busy week!

Math- Place value was introduced this week.  We are working with base 10 blocks to make 2-digit numbers.  Your children are so smart we even snuck in some 100s just for bonus fun!  18- has 1 ten and 8 ones.  25 has 2 tens and 5 ones.  This is another great car or dinner conversation to practice with your children at home!  Ask them what number has 1 ten and 9 ones (give them sticks to represent the 10s and pennies to represent the ones if they need extra help). 😊

Religion- Father Sahd came in this week to bless our classroom door.  20+C+M+B+26.  That was a special blessing!  We read in our Word of Life book about the Liturgical Year of Christmas.  We discussed how we celebrate the season with the color white, which symbolizes joy.  Of course, we discussed the Birth of Jeus, and the nativity scene. We are all reminded of the joy of Christ’s Birth and the coming of the Light of the World.  God bless all of you and your families. 

Upcoming Events: Always read In the Loop:

Friday, January 16- Mass, Lunch Bunch

Monday, January 19- No School -Martin Luther King Day

1A Weekly Newsletter December 19

What an exciting week preparing for the birth of Jesus!  We had fun lighting our Advent candles and reading about ways to prepare our hearts for Christmas.  I am thankful for all of you and your amazing children. God bless all of you and may you have a joyous Christmas vacation with your families.  I look forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday, January 6 (Mrs. Freed will be in for me on Monday, January 5).  We also have a new student to welcome, Luciana Garcia!  She will be joining us for the second half of the year!  We are excited to have her in our class!

ILA- We read a cute story by Jan Brett, The Animal’s Santa.  We tried to practice drawing conclusions from what we read.  We also introduced plural nouns, practiced letter writing (Christmas cards), and worked on -eep words (jeep, sheep, sweep).

Math- We practiced finding 3D shapes in the classroom.  The students are amazing at identifying spheres, rectangular prisms, cubes, pyramids, and cylinders (that is the hardest one). Congratulations to Vienna, Dominic H. and Drew for passing Rocket Math Addition this week! In your child’s Rocket Math Folder, there are extra letters for them to practice ahead during Christmas break.  Please try to have them read daily too.  It’s a great time to allow them to show off their love of reading with grandparents, family, and friends!

Religion- Fr. St. Denis came to visit us on Monday morning to discuss the Advent Season. We love when the priests come to visit us!  We are learning all about Advent and preparing our heart for Christmas.  We were also blessed to watch the SJY Christmas Concert and participate in Las Posadas! What a beautiful Advent Season here at SJY. 

Upcoming Events (always read In the Loop):

Monday, January 5, 2026- Back to school!  (Mrs. Thoman will be absent, but I’ll be back on Tuesday)

Thursday, January 8, 7:50am- 12 Days of Christmas - Whole school song (take 2) 🙂

Monday, January 5- Friday, January 10- We have student dress down days… read In the Loop to see what is in store!  Hint: Monday is Pajama Day!!! 😊

Friday, January 9, 12:45- Decorating Gingerbread Houses!  Please let me know if you plan on joining us (I need to let the office know).  See flyer below and please send in your icing and candy.

Let’s Build Gingerbread Houses Together

When: Friday, January 9, 2026, at 12:45-1:45 (in the gym)

What to bring:  1 can of white frosting, and one bag of candy to share (M&Ms, Kisses, Cereal, candy canes, gum drops, licorice, star bursts, gummy candy….)

*If your child has allergies, please bring your own decorating candy that you will not share. 🙂

Who: First Grade classes (parents/grandparents are welcome if you have clearances)

Please bring your icing (put your name on it) and candy by Monday, January 5. If you are like me, and afraid of forgetting, you're welcome to bring in the sealed supplies before Christmas break. 

Thank you, 

Miss Oak and

Mrs. Thoman

1A Weekly Newsletter Week of December 8

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

ILA- I will be absent tomorrow, so I am sending this newsletter a day early (Mrs. Freed will be in for me).  What a fun week!  We read an awesome book entitled The Great Spruce by John Duvall.  It is about a boy who loved to climb his grandpa’s huge spruce tree that became the Christmas Tree in New York City.  Because this class is full of good listeners and amazing children- we had to try it for ourselves… yes, we climbed a tree!  No children were hurt in this mission!  Check out photos on our website to see their smiling faces.  It was so fun to hear them laugh and say the others looked like ants (they were about 3 feet off the ground- LOL).  Their enthusiasm and love are contagious and what God intended.  I am so blessed to be with them this year.

We also discussed verbs being used in the past (planted), present (plants) and future (will plant) tense.  This is tough for many children to comprehend, but I compared it to the calendar person’s job that tell us daily the date from yesterday, today and tomorrow.  

We also practiced -ay words (play, stay, pay…. Feel free to ask your child to spell these words while you are driving). 

Magic e- We are also practicing silent e words.  The silent e changes the vowel to its long sound.  This is another great one to practice in the car- especially if you have them write the words (examples, din – dine, mad- made)!  Writing takes more effort and improves learning.

Math- We moved on to 3D geometric shapes this week.  We had a blast using marshmallows and toothpicks to make a cube.  We discussed 6th grade vocabulary words such as vertices (make a muscle – and your elbow is your vertices), face- flat parts (like your face), and edges- where two faces meet.  These words and concepts are just being introduced in first grade. 😊

Congratulations to Jackson, Lydia and Luca- they passed Addition Rocket Math this week!  They are on to subtraction!

Religion- We started the week at Mass for the Immaculate Conception.  It was a beautiful way to start the week.  We also continue to discuss Advent and use finger paint to light our Advent Wreaths.  In class we are reading about creation and learning that God created the world.  It’s not too late to send in an ornament to hang on our Christmas tree in the lobby!  The ornaments should reflect the themes of hope and light.  Please label them if you want them back. 

Upcoming Events- Please read In the Loop for the most up to date events going on at school!

Feel free to send in your gently used shoes and coloring books.  The coloring books are for our Grandparent outreach program for our friends at Kingston Court.  We wrote them Christmas cards this week as well. 

Tuesday, December 16- SJY Christmas Concert 1:15 and 7pm

Friday, December 19- Las Posadas 1:15

Monday, December 22- Friday, January 2- Christmas Break- No school

Monday, January 5- Return to school (Mrs. Freed will be in for me on this day).

Friday, January 9- 1A and 1B: Decorating Gingerbread Houses- Parents and grandparents with clearances are welcome *12:45-1:45 (slight time change from last newsletter). Please let me know if you are coming so I can tell the office. Thank you!

1A Weekly Newsletter November, 17

Thank you for your support of Catholic Schools!  We enjoyed helping others by packing potatoes for the Catholic Harvest Food Bank.  We also were blessed by a visit from Father Saint Denis on Monday.  He talked to our class about being thankful to God for all his blessings.  He did make one mistake… he asked when we should be thankful to God.  The answers were innocent, beautiful, and hysterical (from my point of view)… “in the spring and winter” “at school”  “on Easter”  “at Christmas”  “when you pray”  “at church”  “at dinner”  “during the Thanksgiving feast that we have at my house and my grandma, grandpa and cousins come to visit, and we play games…...”.  It was so funny!  Father did lead us to understanding that we should be thankful to God all the time.  God bless their innocence!

ILA- We read A Plump and Perky Turkey by Teresa Bateman.  I introduced adjectives to describe a noun.  This concept is tough for many 1st graders to really grasp, but they do a great job adding details to describe characters.  It is just an introduction, and we will keep practicing. 

Handwriting- I am cracking down on letter formation in 1A!  We are learning how to properly form the letters, and I am making them fix them and write them every time I see them made improperly.  We should be starting at the top or middle line when we make all lower-case letters (top line for capital letters).  I am really picky about the letter-a (circle back all the way around; push up straight. Pull down straight). This formation helps with so many other letters (and eventually cursive- next year).   

A big new concept was also introduced in phonics this week…. The silent e!  We are talking about 2 of its 7 jobs right now.

1.        No English word can end in V (u or i)- so we add a silent e (give, have).

2.       When there is a vowel followed by one consonant, and then a silent-e, this word has the long vowel sound (cap- cape, mad- made).  This is the BIG one!  Please make games at home and in the car to spell different words with a silent-e. Then have them remove the silent-e and read the word with its short sound!  This should be fun- not a test!  Watch how quickly they catch on with practice.  Nonsense words are acceptable (pit, pite) if they say them correctly.  This will help with spelling, reading and comprehension.  Great Christmas gift idea… a small whiteboard and dry erase markers for the car.  The car is the best time to talk and play games.  Don’t let them get in the habit of “plugging in and tuning out”.  That was my free parenting advice for the week.  Ha ha (Trust me, it’s worth the battles now.  When they are big teenagers, it gets a lot harder). 

Math- I introduced “Touch Math” to the whole class.  Each number is assigned a dot to correspond to its value.  This helps some children quickly and accurately add and subtract by touching the points to keep track of the numbers.  If your child struggles with Rocket Math this might be a very helpful tool.  If your child is good at memorizing, then don’t use this as much.  It won’t hurt them, but they don’t need it. 

Special congratulations to Maddy and Kiki for passing Addition Rocket Math!  Way to go!!  😊

Religion- We are reviewing in our Word of Life books that God created everything, and it was good.  God created us to know, love, and serve Him.  This ties in perfectly with Fr. St. Denis’ lesson about being thankful.  Speaking of being thankful, I send home the December and January Show and Tell schedules this week. 

I’m sorry this newsletter was so long!  Next week we only have 2 days, so I’ll be short and sweet. 

Many great pictures of the week:

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

Upcoming Events (always read In the Loop)

Monday, November 24- Mrs. Slike’s class comes to share a Catholic Saint puppet show

Tuesday, November 25- 67th (6-7) day of school!  We will have some fun with this… and then I’ll NEED a vacation.  😊  God created the world in 6 days.  On the 7th day He rested.  😊

Wednesday, November 26- Monday, December 1 – Thanksgiving break!  God bless you and your families.  See everyone on Tuesday, December 2!

1A Weekly Newsletter November 10

God bless our veterans!  It was an amazing week with your children- thank you! 

There are many pictures on our website for you to enjoy: https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

ILA/Religion- We read a favorite teaching book of mine, Maddi’s Fridge by Lois Brandt. It is a story based on an experience the author had as a child.  She went to her friend’s house, and her friend had no food in her refrigerator.  We used this story to talk about how we as Catholic’s are called to help others through charitable works.  We also used this story to discuss how important it is to tell an adult if something scares you.  Even if we make a “promise” like Sofia did to Maddi to not tell anyone, we should break that promise and tell an adult.  Telling to help -is always the right thing to do. 

Your turkeys are AMAZING!  Everyone who walks by our hallway is amazed at the creativity!  The farmer is going to have a vegetarian Thanksgiving this year!  Ha ha!  Thank you!

We had fun on Tuesday making “Cheesy Pizza Bombs” similar to the ones the characters in our Maddi’s Fridge story!  They were delicious! 

We are working on writing a story about a turkey.  We are all past the brainstorming phase and onto the “sloppy copy”.  We stop and conference every sentence or so, to make sure we are getting our ideas onto the paper.  I look forward to sharing these stories with you when we are done (hopefully next week).  I will send them home before Thanksgiving.  I encourage you to practice with you child and have them read their story to family members at Thanksgiving!

As you know, we also do daily morning writing and I LOVE reading them.  Your children are improving and adding more details!  If you can, have your child read what they wrote when you see them after school.  That extra practice of reading what they wrote (or intended to write) really improves their reading and writing skills!! Plus, it’s a chance for them to brag about their work. 😊

Math- Rocket Math continues to be going well!  It really shows when you practice at home, so please keep up the good work!  It helps your child succeed and feel good about themselves.  If your child is struggling with this at home, please let me know and I will help you adapt things.   We took a fact family and subtraction test this week.  These are tough skills that we will be practicing all year. 

Congratulations to Reed! He passed Rocket Math Conceptual Addition and is moving on to Addition Facts 1-9!  Way to go Reed!

Upcoming Events: Please read In the Loop for the most up to date information!

Next Week: Catholic Schools Week!  November 16, 12-2:00- Open House- send friends and neighbors to check out SJY!

Monday, November 17- Send $1 to enjoy a dress down day!!  We will be bagging potatoes so comfy clothes will make the job easier!  The money goes to Catholic Harvest Food Pantry.

Tuesday, November 18- Spirit Day- Dress Down Day take 2!! 😊

Wednesday, November 19- Book Fair Family Shopping 5-8pm in the library

Thursday, November 20- Holy Hour 1:30-2:30, Lunch Bunch (must sign up), Book Fair shopping 4-6pm

Friday, November 21- Pasties with Parents- 9:30-10:00, Energy Assembly

November 26- December  1- Thanksgiving Break- God bless all of you.

1A Weekly Newsletter November 3

Emergency Snow Packets:  In case of unexpected snow days, I am sending home a white “Snow Day” folder today.  The instructions are printed on the white folder.  Please, please, please put this somewhere safe.  If we have an at home snow day and we must do work, I will email you (if you are not getting my emails, please let me know).  You do not have to do any packets unless you are directed by me (via email).  I believe we have a couple of “snow days” built in where the students do not have to do any work at home!  These packets are only to be used if we use up all those days.  I wanted to be prepared.  😊

ILA: This week we read a story entitled Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman.  The author’s purpose is to teach children that even when faced with diversity and obstacles to work hard and never give up!  We used this story to focus on learning what lesson an author is trying to teach us.  Good readers ask questions, make personal connections, and think about what the author is saying while reading.  We are becoming great readers in 1A!  We also learned about proper nouns and how they are capitalized.

On Tuesday we had a great time with Election Day!  We worked with 1B to learn about the voting process and voted on our favorite cookie.  Check out our website to see some great pictures!  https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

Oh- Terrance the tortoise came to visit on Friday!  That was exciting too!  We used him to practice our t- blends (st, tw, tr). It’s fun to have a live pet to help us remember our sounds.

How are the turkeys coming along?  They came home last week and you should be working with your child to help disguise them, so the farmer does not make them into Thanksgiving dinner!  They are due November 11.  I hope you are having fun with this assignment.  That was my goal. 

Next week I hope to start our next big writing assignment in school.  We will be writing about our turkeys!

Math:  We took our 5 Minute Additon tests this week.  The goal was to know 30 facts in five minutes.  Your individual child’s results will come home with their report cards. 

We started learning about fact families in math this week.  This is a great thing to practice at home or in the car!  Give your child three numbers and have them create (and write) the four math problems that make a fact family!  This practice would be very beneficial. 

For example, 3, 4, 7…

3+4=7 

4+3=7 

Sutraction, start with the BIGGEST number

7-3=4

7-4=3

Religion: November virtue is gratitude

We went to church on Mondy to Pray the Litany of the Saints.  It was extra beautiful because we watched the upper hall students dressed as their Saint come to the front of the church while we prayed their name.  It was a very special prayer.  We continue to pray to all the souls in purgatory that they will join in heavenly glory.  This month in class we will be focusing on being thankful for our many blessings.  We will be writing about our blessings as well.

Upcoming Events: Please read In the Loop:

Monday, November 10- Last day to donate some Halloween candy to our local veterans and active-duty military. 

Tuesday, November 11- Veteran’s Day Prayer Service in the gym

Monday, November 17- Fr. St. Dennis will visit our classroom to chat with us about gratitude. 

Monday, November 17- Potato Service Project in school! Donate $1 to participate in the Dress Down Day!  Donations go to Catholic Harvest.

Tuesday, November 18- Spirit Day Dress Down Day!

Wednesday, November 19- Book Fair Family Shopping Night 5-8pm (details are In the Loop)

Thursday, November 20- Lunch Bunch (must sign up – In the Loop) and Holy Hour 1:30-2:30

Friday, November 21- Pastries with Parents (more details to come)

November 26- December 1- No school- Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

1A Weekly Newsletter, October 20

What a hoot we had this week! 😊

ILA- We read a fun story entitled Hoot and Peep, by Lita Judge. We used this story of owl siblings who disagreed about the proper way to hoot (or “sweepity-peep” as Peep liked to say) to discuss that we all have our own voice, and the freedom to use it.  We talked about how Jesus wants us to speak and listen to each other.  We also discussed how yelling is never the way to solve a problem with friends.   We finished writing our first story (most students wrote about an owl) and the rough draft came home for you to see and sign.  The final drafts are hanging in our hallway with our beautiful leaf owls.  We used the leaves we collected around our school.  Pictures on the website.

I hope you heard about our owl pellets!  That was amazing!  Please check out our website to see how many fascinating bones we found in our owl pellets. 

https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a

On top of all that we had fun learning about onomatopoeias (a word that imitates a sound- moo, ah-choo, buzz, pop....)

Oh- we also enjoyed owl snacks... I'm telling you; we had a hoot this week! (Doesn't get old). 🙂

Math- We are practicing subtraction and subtraction word problems.  Your children are very good at making up word problems when they have blocks to show them the numbers!  Feel free to test them at home.

Middle States- Our school did very well with our Middle State Accreditation visit.  They recommended we receive the accreditation, but that is just one step.  We still have more work to do to receive the actual Middle States Accreditation, but it was nice to hear other professionals see our school as such an educational, Godly, amazing place to be!  I am blessed to be a teacher here. Thank you for sending your children to SJY!  I hope to see you tonight at the Fall Festival! 6-8pm.  Vote for the 6-7 Pumpkin! Ha ha- Miss Oak and I made that one!

Upcoming Events: In The Loop always has the most up to date and important information

Friday, October 24- Fall Fest at SJY 6-8pm (I hope to see you there)

Thursday, October 30- Picture Day 😊

Friday, October 31- All Saints Day Party- Thank you for volunteering!  Last I checked, I only needed one more parent to run a St. Anthony Scavenger Hunt station.  It is a fun one- and I have everything you need.  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A4EACAF2FAAF5C61-59815449-allsaints#/

You must have clearances to volunteer

Also Thursday, October 31- We will have a school wide dress down day. This is an 'all things holy' dress down. Wear a shirt with a scripture passage, image of a saint, or something else that relates to the faith. Carlo Acutis, Stronger Together, and Race for Ed shirts ALL work! 

Monday, November 3 - All Saint's Day Litany - at 2:15PM in the Church

Tuesday, November 11- Veterans Day- Veterans are invited to pray with us in the morning 7:45 arrival time.  Students are welcome to bring a photo of a veteran if they can’t make it. God Bless America!

1A Weekly Newsletter October 14

ILA: We read a silly story this week, If Your Monster Won’t Go to Bed, by Denise Vega.  Although the story is silly, we used it to practice key details (characters, setting, beginning, middle, and end of a story- please try this at home when you read with your child). We also learned about adjectives!  We had the 4th graders come and help us write adjectives to describe some funny photos.  I have pictures on our website.

Writing: On Thursday we started our first creative writing story!  We are writing about a bat or an owl.  These stories will be completed step by step with lots of help, but soon your amazing children will be writing exciting stories all on their own! I am super proud of them! 

Math: We are practicing subtraction and subtraction word problems. Rocket Math continues to be going well.

Religion: We did our first cross word puzzle!  That was challenging and fun!  It was to review that God created everything and loves us.  Everyone did a wonderful job. 

Science: We are reading about owls in our non-fiction reader.

Upcoming Events: Always read In the Loop

Week of October 20- Middle States Evaluation

Tuesday, October 21- York Catholic Band comes for a visit!

Thursday, October 23- Noon dismissal and owl snacks at 11:30 (all are welcome with clearances). FYI- you will have to then get in the car line. You cannot take your child home from the classroom. 😊

Friday, October 24- Mass. Owl pellets in the gym at 10:00- 10:30. Fall Fest in the evening!

Thursday, October 30- Picture Day 😊

Tuesday, November 11- Veterans Day- Veterans are invited to pray with us in the morning 7:45 arrival time.  Students are welcome to bring a photo of a veteran if they can’t make it. God Bless America!

We All Scream for Ice Cream!

Help Women’s Care Center fill an emergency need for larger sized diapers (sizes 4, 5, 6, and 7) and your child’s class could win an Ice Cream or Italian Ice Party! Please send diapers into the school for collection by 10/24 or drop off at Fall Fest that evening. The class that brings in the most diapers will win their choice of an Ice Cream or Italian Ice Party.  Thank you for your help with this! Any questions or concerns may be directed to Kay Donato at kay@supportwcc.org. Good Luck!

1A Weekly Newsletter October 6

Thank you for coming to parent teacher conferences.  I was such a pleasure to meet all of you and discuss your amazing children (the good, the bad, the ugly- ha ha- just kidding, you know they are all super stars in here!).

We read an amazing non-fiction narrative story about Dr. Temple Grandin, The Girl Who Thought in Pictures by Julia Finley Mosca.  As a child, Temple was diagnosed with “full blown autism” (her words).  She grew up to become an amazing scientist with three college degrees.  She is just another example of how God has a plan for all of us.  We are all created in His image and must work together to lift each other up, work hard, and be the best we can even when we are faced with difficult struggles.  We are also blessed as Catholics because we know that Jesus died for us and when we make mistakes, He will forgive us. 

In math we started subtraction.  I can’t believe how quickly your children picked up on this.  One thing I am working on teaching them is to count on… this means when we add 7+3, we say 7, then add 3- 8, 9, 10.  I’m trying to emphasis keep the big number in your head, and count on (yes, you can use fingers at this point). 

Thank you for your support at home!  Please email or call me if you ever have any suggestions or ideas to help your child.  If you are thinking of it, I guarantee many others are too.

I almost forgot, we also had York Fire and Resue visit us on Tuesday!  The class was able to try the fire hose!  There are pictures on our website. What a busy, chopped up week! https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

Upcoming Events: Always read In the Loop:

Monday, October 13- Columbus Day- No School

Tuesday, October 14- Regular Uniform begins (we can still wear sneakers! Please try to find laces that stay tied- whoever made those laces that un-tie (by themselves) should be forced to do recess duty for a month). 😊

Friday, October 17- No Mass

Thursday, October 23- Noon dismissal

Friday, October 24- First grades are dissecting owl pellets in the gym 10:00- 10:30 (you must have your clearances to join the fun).

Fall Fest at SJY in the evening (I hope to see you there)

Welcome to 1 A Newsletter August 22, 2025

What a wonderful first week of first grade!  It is always stressful to start a new school year, but your children have been amazing!  They are learning the routine.  Following the rules. And being helpful to each other and me.

We made our classroom rules together.  They are MARY rules.  We try our best to think of Mother Mary and how strong, kind, obedient, and prayerful she was. 

M Make Friends (be friendly)

A Act Responsibly (follow directions, bring your homework to and from school daily)

We did not get to the R and Y yet.  We will next week….

R Respect Others (raise your hand, keep your desk and area clean, listen)

Y Yearn to Learn (do your best work!)

1.       Please sign your child’s agenda every night and empty their homework folder.  They should be sent back to school every day.  Your child should help you unload and reload their backpacks.  This teaches them to Act responsibly.  Of course they will need your supervision.

2.       Please send in a healthy snack daily. Please stay away from potato chips and Doritos (they are greasy, orange, and make a mess).  Again, this is an opportunity to have them pack it every day. After they unload their backpack, have them load it up for the next day (agenda, snack, folder).  Teaching these “independent” jobs in first grade will make their (and your) life much easier in all the school years to come. 

Our specials schedule and some great pictures of our first week of school are on our class website. You will need to request access to the website.  Once you do, I will get an email and confirm your request. 😊 (Gym on Wednesdays, library on Thursdays)

 https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/whats-happening-in-1a?authuser=0

I normally only email a weekly newsletter home (not a printed copy). If you did not receive an email from me, please let me know and I will make sure I add you.  😊

Upcoming Events:

All About Me Show and Tell starts next week!  Your child should have brought home an All About Me poster and Show and Tell Calendars for August and September.  If they didn’t let me know, I have some extras.

Thank you for sending in healthy snacks! 

Wednesday, August 27- Back to school picnic 5-7pm. I hope to see you there!

Thursday, August 28- Back to school Procession 8:30am

Friday, August 29- Noon Dismissal for students

Monday, September 1- Labor Day- No School

Have a blessed weekend!  Thank you for all the wonderful birthday wishes.  I was having fun passing out strawberries and whipped cream and didn’t get many pictures of that fun.

1A Weekly Newsletter August 25

We are moving along now!  This class is amazing!  Your children are so cooperative, eager to learn, helpful, and willing to try new things.  This is such a gift for me as a teacher.  I love hearing about your children with their All About Me posters. 

ILA (Integrated Language Arts)- We enjoyed reading School’s First Day of School by Adam Rex.  We discussed how we should treat our books like friends, with love and respect.  We practiced some new vocabulary words such as gasped, embarrassed, and janitor, and we reviewed consonants and short vowel sounds (apple, egg, itch, octopus, umbrella). 

We are also reading about one room schoolhouses from the 1800s, using our non-fiction reader.  The children loved hearing how children were disciplined back then (holding books and wearing a dunce hat).  We said how we would never do that in our school!  There are a couple of pictures on our website showing children holding books with sad faces.  Don’t worry, it was a staged photo!  😊

Math- We are practicing counting on from a number.  If I say 7… they have to keep counting up (or down).  This is an easy game to practice while driving anywhere with your children.

Religion- Fr. Saint Dennis gave us a wonderful tour of the church.  There are some great pictures on our class website.  The class was so well behaved at our Eucharistic Procession on Thursday morning. 

Please be aware, and let grandparents know, that students can no longer leave the class to sit elsewhere.  We will have a pew behind our class for you (or grandparents) to sit in.  I will do my best to put your child in front of you. This is for safety reasons. More information is available In the Loop.

This weeks photos under “What’s Happening in 1A” tab: https://sites.google.com/sjy.org/mrsthoman2025-2026/home

Upcoming events: Please always read In the Loop for important information:

Monday, September 1- Labor Day- No school

Wednesday, September 3- Back to School Night 6:30-8:30 (I hope to see you)!

Friday, September 5- 1st school Mass

Sunday, September 7- Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati Canonizations