¿Que Pasa en Salón 6?

The Wayland fire department visited Loker on Tuesday and Wednesday to refresh a few very important fire safety practices. Bombera Taylor reminded the first graders of what to do in case of a fire emergency: 1) make an escape plan and establish a safe , non-moving rendezvous spot; 2) know your address and call 911; 3) stay low to avoid smoke 3) stop, drop, & roll if your clothes catch on fire; 4) practice fire drills monthly at home.

We met for our final time with our Amigos de Lectura this week! They surprised us with books, each with a personal message written inside. Having reading buddies is most definitely one of the highlights throughout the school year. We will miss them as they make their way to Wayland Middle School!

Field Day was so much fun on Driday! The kids loved having 5th grade buddies and super fun games and activities! The weather was also perfect so no one overheated or got sun burned! The spirit of teamwork was everywhere and fun was had by ALL!

We had the great privilege of learning from the Wayland Conservation Department this week. Staff came and taught our almost second graders about several of the plants that grow around Loker. This group already knew so much, but we also learned about a few new ones! 

The first graders each had the opportunity to have some personal playtime with our beautiful chicks this week. The kids learned how to hold the chicks safely and pet them gently. The chicks have now moved to their forever home on a farm in Littleton, MA. There they will spend the next 4-5 weeks growing (eating and pooping up a storm ;) in a warm brooder until they are big enough to be introduced to the flock. They have already grown SO much!

The first graders are digging into the games we have learned in math and reviewing coins by playing Race to $1.00. In this game they roll a die and collect that much money. They must make change when they can so that their pocket stays light and not heavy. The first to reach $1 with the fewest coins wins bragging rights! They LOVE this game. Check out the game instructions to our math games page!

In escritura, we returned to writing our opinions about what would make Loker even better. They used the opinion writing pillar and were sure to state two reasons for their opinion. These will be shared with Señora Sandza-Donovan next week!

Esta semana, en matemáticas we continued learning about fractions. The first graders learned that a fraction represents equal parts of a whole. The first graders are responsible for understanding ½ and 1/4. We practiced comparing these fractions and also made some fun pictures with them!

In science, we FINALLY set the chicken eggs in the incubators! We have 11 fertilized eggs warming for 21 days! The entire school is buzzing with excitement and anticipation for the upcoming hatching! In Salón 6, we are learning about the stages of development and body parts of the chicken. We will learn more about the breeds of chickens represented in our rainbow eggs as well as more detail about the life cycle of the chicken. So exciting!

Salón 6 received Great Northern tree seedlings in honor of Earth Day from the Wayland-Weston Rotary Club. An informational video was shared so you will know what to do with your seeding.

Esta semana, en matemáticas we continued learning about three dimensional shapes. We focused on new vocabulary to help us describe the defining attributes of each shape. We also reviewed ½ and 14 fractions, underscoring that fractions are divided into equal parts!

Each year the entire first grade celebrates Earth Day together outside. Spending time outdoors has so many benefits including fostering stewardship. Activities included a nature themed scavenger hunt, nature art inspired by Andy Goldsworthy, and felting wool Earth balls! Check out the photos to see the fun they had connecting to La Tierra.

Esta semana, en matemáticas we continued learning about the attributes that define 2D shapes. We learned a new game called, The Last Shape In Wins in which players must strategize and compose shapes to fill a rhombus-shaped play board. We also practiced composing different shapes and tallying the different shapes that fill a variety of puzzles.

Salón 6 had great fun visiting the book fair this week as well! Hopefully they came home with some new fun books! A huge thanks to the PTO for organizing this year's book fair!

En lectura, we visited our 5th grade reading buddies and watched more short documentaries about conservation and waste reduction. The two classes discussed ways they might help mitigate waste and create less garbage. Together they peeled the paper labels off broken crayons so that we could remelt them into rainbow crayons in new shapes including pigs, stars and hearts. By far the pigs were the favorite!

En Lectura, escritura y estudios sociales, we have launched into our informational text unit. The first graders are reading and researching a chosen animal in writing and a US symbol in social studies. This week they explored on Pebble Go and will be using a variety of texts and digital resources to learn more before writing next week!

Esta semana, en matemáticas we worked on solving several different types of word problems. The first graders determined if the problem indicated an acción (some more penguins were joining, some were leaving) or if the problem was asking us to compare groups. They had to show off their skills on Friday on the end of unit 5 assessment. 

We had a wonderful outing to the Loker Woods on Friday. The first graders looked for signs of primavera (Spring). They found the leaves are coming out on bushes and skunk cabbage is poking up along the stream bed! We also played, Ojo de Águila, a game similar to hide and seek, but with a predator/prey twist. 

Esta semana, en matemáticas we celebrated our 120th day of first grade! Can you believe we are more than 2/3 done with the school year? We also practiced solving a variety of math stories and identifying the strategies were most helpful to solve them. 

A friend recently bought Salon 6 this adorable new puppet. One of the first grader's favorite activities during indoor recess and indoor choice time is playing with puppets. I recently visited the Alpaca farm on Martha's Vinyard and this puppet came home with me. We still need to vote on a name :)

We planted some of the seeds for the Loker Garden. Some of the seeds included Amaranth, Lavender, and Lemon grass. These seeds will germinate and grow under grow lights until they are ready to be hardened off and then planted in the Loker Garden. Salón 6 is excited for spring!

We did a lot of math this week! We practiced using number trees to write out the fact families for a variety of equations. The first graders have learned that you can add in any order-the commutative property!

We LOVED watching the ZuZu acrobats on Wednesday. What a wonderful event! The first graders learned some phrases in Swahili and also watched some unbelievable feats of strength and flexibility!

During our Forest Friday, we were able to go as a whole class back to the stream. We observed a VERY full stream bed and collected some sticks to use to make ladders. We also discussed why the bird sound so loud this time of year :) Please help your first grader remember boots and rain/snow pants on Fridays.

In Ciencia, we completed our unit on Sound by learning about pitch and volume. We also began speaking about different types of energy and the importance of energy conservation

Señora Pirelli visited us this week and read the book, What if Everybody did That? by Ellen Javernick. This story encourages its readers to think about the collective actions of a community and ask what the consequences might be if all of us were to behave a certain way.

During our Forest Friday, we tapped the Loker Sugar Maple tree! We are collecting sap so that we can make our own maple syrup! We will tap more trees next week and hopefully have enough for a taste-test!

Esta semana en Matemáticas, we completed Unit 4-Leapfrogs on a Number line, in which the first graders learned to use the number line as a model for adding and subtracting ones and tens. They also spent time learning a few new games, including, El Saludo. El Saludo is a GREAT way to help the first graders build fluency with adding numbers from 0-20! Check out the Math Juegos on this blog site for instructions on how to play!

We returned after many weeks to the wild woods today! The energy and anticipation was palpable-they were SO excited to play around the stream, and we found deer and dog or perhaps coyote (?) prints in the snow. Big smiles tell a happy story of adventures with friends in the woods!

In Escritura, we continued sharing our informational writing about raccoons. When sharing our writing in Salon 6, the class offers up elogios and sugerencias (compliments and suggestions). This is a great way to practice receiving feedback and also celebrating their hard work!

Señora Pirelli visited Salón 6 to discuss the size of a problem. She read a story about a child whose reactions to problems didn't match the size of the problem. The first graders discussed what responses they might have to different sized problems and who would be needed to help solve them.

On Wednesday the Wayland High School Connect class visited Salón 6 for the second time this year. We learned how to winter sow the native plant seeds we had harvested in the Fall together! We will plan for them to return and transplant their seedlings at Loker in the spring!

In Lectura, read informative texts about Mapaches (raccoons) to help us with our own informative writing. We also listened to the read aloud for this week’s Whole School Meeting, The ABC's of Black History Next week we will begin first grade reading homework! The first graders are excited!

In number corner this month, the first graders have been collecting dimes and pennies. This week they estimated, then counted the money they had collected from each of the past three weeks. They then put the collections in order from least to most money. Counting dimes and pennies is a great way to help first graders practice adding by tens and ones as well as familiarizing themselves with coins!

Esta semana en Matemáticas, we spent more time adding and subtracting using the number line. We learned and played a new game called, Super Frogs, in which players must add and subtract multiples of 10 on a number line. 

Games are truly the best way to engage first graders in math! Check out the math games page on this blogsite!

In Lectura, we met with our reading buddies, learned more about the Lunar New Year and made paper serpents to mark the year of the snake! Here Maya and Kate show off their completed snake!

The first graders absolutely LOVE their buddies, so it was a fun activity and everyone learned a bit more about the holiday.

In Lunita this week, we practiced dictating words from our current story, El Comedor de Don Marcos with a partner. We also practiced breaking 3-4 syllable words into syllables.  All of this practice helps our young readers build fluency.

Cold temperatures kept us inside for much of the week. Thanks to the many families who sent in fun games to make this burden actually kind of fun. Indoor recess and game playing offers first graders wonderful opportunities to take turns, play, learn how to lose and be a gracious winner. So much social learning! Special toy day was also a HUGE hit! 

In Ciencia we continued our study about sound. The first graders used tuning forks to witness the vibration that causes sound. Vibration causes sound, but it can be hard to see. The first graders witnessed how the vibrations of the tuning fork made a ping-pong ball jump and water splash. They could feel it and see the sound!

Esta semana en matemáticas, we completed our midyear iReady diagnostic. We also launched into Unit 4, Leapfrogs on the Number line. This unit revolves around the number line as an essential mathematical model, introducing beginning operations, including addition and subtraction. 

We rad LOTS of books this week, especially about the Civi Rights movement, leading up to MLK Jr's birthday on Monday. We also welcomed Evie’s Aunt Jenny from California as one of our Mystery readers! She read, Richard Scarry’s, Carros y Camiones. 

¡Gracias!

We launched into Unit 4 this week, Leapfrogs on the Number line. This unit revolves around the number line as an essential mathematical model, introducing beginning operations, including addition and subtraction. The first graders use their reasoning skills to fill in missing numbers on a variety of models.

En matemáticas, we practiced creating math stories that match equations with missing addends and subtrahends in Number Corner. We also began collecting dimes and pennies (leading up to Place Value and grouping by tens and ones). We practiced grouping bigger numbers (up to 50) into tens and ones by playing a new game called 50 o perdemos (50 or Bust). Here Gus and Binyi are paying, Number in my Pocket, asking questions such as, Is the number greater than ___? Does it have 4 tens? Games are the best ways to practice math skills!

This week, Señora Linda came again to do yoga with the class. They went to the circus and did many different yoga positions and mindfulness activities! Here the class is (trying) to do tree pose. The yoga poses are embedded into stories which helps engage the first graders and, well, it's just fun!

We had so many wonderful shares this week! Its so great when first graders come prepared with what they want to say written down in Spanish. This shows how they have prepared exactly what they wish to share (and makes it less intimidating). Parents,  please attempt to dissuade the sharing of toys or stuffies, unless they are accompanied by a really good story, or they have made (assembled) them themselves. Thanks to all families for supporting your first grader in preparing for their weekly shares!

This week we began investing sound. What causes sound? The first graders used cups, tongue depressors and elastic bands to discover that when objects vibrate, they emit a sound. We will be investigating sound more in the coming weeks!

This past week, we pivoted our forest morning a bit to make sure all could participate. We held our morning meeting just outside Salón 6 in William’s garden. We collected leaves for the Loker compost, and we created nature notebook covers using vibrant pictures from Ranger Rick, National Geographic, and other print materials.

Classmates and friends gathered around Reid during recess this week to sign his leg cast. Everyone has been so supportive, inclusive and positive about his new predicament and Reid has taken on this temporary challenge like a pro! 

n Matemáticas, Salón 6 we played a new game to help with addition facts called Doubles +/- 1. Here Nora and Kai are playing a game called, Make the Sum. Players choose a target sum and draw cards to find addends that sum to that target. Player with the most cards wins!

We enjoyed a wonderful trip to Wheelock theatre to see A Year with Frog & Toad. Everyone LOVED it! We had read many of the Frog & Toad stories together and they were excited to see these stories come alive in the musical. We also attended the Loker Band and strings concert on Monday and another whole-school meeting on Thursday! 

The first graders also learned how to make simple math drawings to help show their math thinking. Math drawings are simple dot drawings in ten frame form. Here Kobi writes a matching equation to the math story to show his thinking and solve the story's question!

This Monday we celebrated another filled jar of pom poms for our spontaneous Spanish usage in Salón 6. This time the class voted to have a STEM challenge. Each first grader had 5 sheets of paper and were asked to build the tallest tower they could. STEM challenges are such a great way to promote problem solving and outside the box thinking!

This week with their reading buddies, the first graders listened to a translation of Snowmen at Night. Then togetehr with their buddies, they wrote their very own version of what they thought their own snowman might do at night. These will be posted outside Room 17 in the 5th Grade wing!

We have had so many great shares over the last 2 weeks. Thank you to parents for helping your first grader choose and prepare what they want to share. We have had X-rays, rock collections, staple stars, tortilla-making, photos from museum visits, song-writing, craft-making, and more! Here, Davian shared a Hot Cocoa themed, wooden frame he made in the kids Workshop at Home Depot. <3

Many first graders are choosing to share on their day-SO exciting. Parents, please help your first grader prepare what they want to say. It's okay for them to write it in English if they are not sure about how to say something in Spanish. We can help here at school to ensure their share is in Spanish! Thank you!

In Matemáticas, Salón 6 practiced the counting on and counting back strategies by playing a few new games. Gira & Suma (Spin & Add) and Gira & Resta (Spin & Subtract) help the first graders practice their strategies to build fluency with addition and subtraction facts. They also practiced using doubles facts to add by playing Dóblalo (Double it). Our second unit will end next week!

In Ciencia, this week we had an amazing time at the Blue Hills Weather Observatory! The people at the Blue hills were so excited about how much the first graders already knew!

In social studies we learned more about the election process and how it works. We read Sofia Valdez Presidenta, Tal Vez. and had a discussion about public service. Sra Pirelli also visited and led a friendship web activity underscoring the fact that many of us have interests in common.

On Wednesday, The Amazing Nano Brothers came and juggled and taught the kids about the mysteries of matter — including atoms, molecules, and nanotechnology. It was fun to see them juggle, ride a really tall unicycle and talk about science!

In Matemáticas, Salón 6 continued to work on identifying addition strategies that help add more quickly and accurately. The first graders played a new game called sort the sum!

In Matemáticas, Salón 6 learned multiple domino games! Games that use dominoes and dice help the first graders subitize numbers and build foundational fluency. As a class we made a list of addition strategies to help us add more quickly and accurately. We also used number trees to identify fact families for the number 6, 7 and 8!

This week we met with our 5th grade reading buddies and learned a new song about Jack-o-Lanterns in Spanish. Katherine’s mom was our first mystery reader this week! She read, El Conejo Escuchó. ¡Que divertido! Of course, it was also el día de las brujas, AND El Día de los Muertos. There were so many great character costumes!

In Escritura we reviewed the 5 senses and became detectives seeking evidence of the senses in the narratives we read., including El Hombre de Pan de Jengibre (The Gingerbread Man) and La Luna de Búho (Owl moon). Adding details to our writing helps the reader imagine the story. We also wrote details about nuestros Perros Asombrosos (Amazing dogs). We will finish these next week!

So many smiles were made on Wednesday! Thank you to all first-grade families who organized, set up, cooked for, or simply attended our Multicultural Potluck! It was such a fun evening!

During our forest morning this week, we explored and continued building our little casitas. We discovered that a wooden plank made a terrific homemade seesaw! We also practiced sit spots for the very first time and used our 5 senses to observe the forest. 

In Matemáticas, Salón 6 started our second unit: Developing strategies with dice and dominoes. We learned 2 new domino games and will be learning some strategies to help add and subtract quickly and accurately! 

We launched our Salón 6 share this week! Several first graders worked hard to prepare their share. Reid collected Sassafras leaves, Claire played a song on the piano, Anji shared a shoebox bedroom she made for her doll, and Kai shared an erupting volcano experiment! So fun!

Señora Pirelli visited Salón 6 on Tuesday and led a discussion and activity that focused on Rock Brain and flexible thinking. 6-7 year olds can sometimes get stuck, so thinking flexibly about a problem can really help!

In Science we collected native plant seeds and learned that seeds form as a result of pollinations. I am so proud of this class for sharing with the high school Senior Connect class what they know about plants, seeds, and pollinators! We plan to meet two more times this school year with our WHS Connect buddies! 

In matemáticas, Salón 6 measured objects in the classroom using first popsicle sticks then unifix cubes. They made the connection that they would need MORE cubes than STICKS because the cubes were so much smaller! Go first graders!

In Escritura, we read, ¡Yo no Quiero ser una Rana! and created a response to the text. We will display these creations just outside our classroom very soon!

In Lectura, the first graders completed our first week in reading groups! In readers workshop they meet in groups, learn high frequency words, practice independent reading and develop their Spanish literacy using our new app, Boost Lectura. These first graders love reading! We also went to the Loker Book Fair! So fun!

The first graders continued to explore air last week! They The first graders have learned that air can move objects, it is a type of matter, it takes up space and can be compressed The best part was discovering the pop-off. If they had enough air in the system, they could make the plunger pop off-so fun!

Salón 6 visited the Loker Garden on Wednesday to help harvest kale, Adirondack Blue potatoes, carrots and more! They were so excited and Ms Chen prepared potato wedges and carrot slices in the cafeteria for lunch on both days! YUM!

Math workplaces are a time for the first graders to review and practice. Here they are practicing subitizing or quickly identifying numbers in ten frames and writing the numbers correctly. Many first graders will reverse their numbers and it is important to point these reversals out and have them write them correctly. It is very normal to do this throughout the entirety of first grade.

n Escritura, we are reviewing the two main genres of text Informative and Narrative. This week the first graders created book covers for each, making sure their Informative book cover had real photos and titles that reflect the theme. Their narrative book cover had drawings and titles reflected an experience or story. We also are working to complete our writing practice of some of the most tricky letters using the Fundations lines!

In Lectura, the first graders have begun exchanging their independent reading books independently during arrival. We also practiced making connections to narrative text by thinking of stories as windows or mirrors. We also made Glifs with our Amigos de Lectura on Thursday!

Our second Forest Friday was a huge success! Many first graders arrived already dressed for the forest-which was a HUGE time-saver!. This week we had plenty of time to explore in the deeper woods. They discovered downed logs and practiced their balance walking on them. There is still no water in our stream-maybe we should resort to a rain dance! We discussed how the turtles and frogs and other animals and plants need water to survive. They observed many changes in the leaves. It was so much fun! 

This week we finalized the norms for Salón 6. All of the first graders agreed it is important to have norms to keep us safe, happy and to help us learn. The norms we decided on as a class (with some help with wording from me) include: Be Kind and Honest, Participate in Everything, Be responsible, Set personal goals, Accept your mistakes and grow. 

In Matemáticas we have reviewed the number line and also have practiced counting by 1s, 2's and 5's. We have also reviewed the value of pennies and nickels and spent time looking for patterns in number corner! The first graders LOVE writing on the digital whiteboard and they also worked in groups to solve simple math problems using student white boards to make math drawings.

We also had our first Forest Friday this week! Thank you to all for sending your children dressed for the forest. We recommend light-colored, lightweight, long sleeves and pants, and natural, organic insect repellent to protect against ticks and other insects. Some came this week with shorts underneath for a quick change after our exploration, which was very helpful. ¡Gracias!

Everyone was very excited for their first day of first grade on Tuesday! Thank you parents and caregivers for all of the preparation, sharing and collecting of materials you did to make the first day so successful!

We spent a bunch of time this week getting to know each other better. Here the first graders are completing the first in a series of self portraits. The growth and development in reading, writing, and drawing that we will see in your children this year will be great.

We also spent time this week reviewing our sounds and proper letter formation. I tell the first graders that a big reason we need to write neatly is so we and others can read what we have written! :)