Summer Vacation

Congratulations, you are now second graders! I really loved having each of you in my class this year. I know you will do a great job in second grade. Work hard and don’t forget to have fun!

I hope you have a wonderful summer and enjoy your time off. Remember that even though it is a vacation, you still need to be reading, writing, and practicing your math! The more you practice over the summer, the better you will do in second grade.

Here are some ways to practice this summer:

READING

ê    Go on Raz-Kids! That’s right, you will still be able to use Raz-Kids during the summer. In case you forget, here is the login information:

Website: http://raz-kids.com

Teacher username: lhoreisa

Password: your initials

ê    Go to the library! Reading on the computer is fun, but so is reading real books! A great website to find books at your reading level is http://www.scholastic.com/bookwizard/. You can search for books at your guided reading level, and you can also search just for nonfiction books. Reading books at your level will help you improve your reading.

MATH

ê    Go on Math Score! Click on “Assessment”. Once you have finished the Early Skills Test 2, click on “View Results”. Always do any red topics first, and then black ones with a brown L next to them. Practice, practice, practice!

Website: http://goethe.il.mathscore.com

Username: your first initial and last name

Password: your initials

ê    Work on the math pages in this packet! Ask for help from a family member if you do not understand. Some of these pages may be things we have not done in first grade, but they are skills that will help you prepare for second grade.

WRITING

ê    Write me email and I will write back! You must get your parent’s permission first, so please ask them to send me an email before you do.

ê Keep a journal to write down all the cool things you do this summer!

ê    Write notes to your family each day!

Have a fantastic summer! I can’t wait to see you in second grade!

Love,

Mrs. Horeis

Friday Farewell

Tomorrow is the very last day of first grade! Students should still come to school at 8:40AM, but they will be dismissed on the playground at 10:00AM.

Please remember to bring your backpack to school as we still have a lot of things to bring home! Also, any school books (from our classroom or the Goethe library) must be returned tomorrow in order for students to receive their report cards.

The Final Week

Wow, how time flies! Over the last few weeks we have been busy bees in room 404. We have been finishing up our end of year assessments and working hard on various projects. Our Ocean display in the hallway is almost complete, and we have learned so much about the different habitats/biomes!

In social studies we finished our unit on France by learning about French Impressionist painting. We tried our hand at it on Friday, using Renoir, Monet, Degas, Seurat, and Pissarro as inspiration.

This week will be jam packed with end of year activities and events. Here is a quick peek at the week:

Monday: 8th grade graduation walk (students watch the 8th graders make a final trip around the school)
Tuesday: talent show
Wednesday: poster raffle (students take home the classroom anchor charts we created throughout the year), class party to celebrate summer birthdays and graduating first grade, empty desks
Thursday: no school
Friday: classroom cleanup, receive report cards, farewell on the playground at 10:00AM

Please send your child to school with a plastic bag on Wednesday to take home any remaining school supplies. Your child should still bring a backpack to school on Friday.

Students are welcome to bring snacks/treats to share with the class during our party on Wednesday.

Thanks! I hope to see you all on the playground on Friday at 10:00AM to say goodbye!

Computer Practice at Home

Math Score and Raz-Kids are really great online programs that all students should be doing every day. We are very lucky to have these programs, but only a few students have been using them. Please help your child log on to the computer each day to practice math and reading!

MATH SCORE

http://goethe.il.mathscore.com

When you click on “assessments” at the top, click “view assessment”. Green and purple topics are ones that were done well. Red topics need work immediately. 

Click on a red topic to get started. It will show you some example problems. Then click “Do Worksheet”.

When you have done all the red topics (or if you have no red topics), then do the topics that have a brown L.

If you are not sure what topic to choose, you can't go wrong with addition! All students should be practicing addition on Math Score.

In the beginning the students might need some help with reading the instructions or lessons to get them started, but once they are doing the worksheets most of the work will be independent.

RAZ-KIDS

http://raz-kids.com

Teacher username: lhoreisa

Students should listen to a book twice, then read it at LEAST twice, then try the quiz. If they don't get all the questions right they should read it again before retaking the quiz.

If you have a microphone in your computer, students can also record their reading. That way I am able to listen to them read even when they are at home! Students know that if they record a book they need to practice reading it a few times first.

If you have any questions, please let me know. It is so important that all the students use these programs to practice as much as possible!

We are keeping a class graph of the engaged time students on Math Score at home and the number of books read on Raz-Kids at home. Each week the three students who do the most Raz-Kids and Math Score at home will be announced over the intercom for the whole school to hear!

Have a great night!

The Most Wonderful Egg in the World

We have been reading the play, "The Most Wonderful Egg in the World". We are becoming very good at the different parts, and our wise kings, our vain hens, our strong narrators, and our delightful hen choruses are getting ready to put on a wonderful reader's theater production!

We would like to invite families to come see our performance on Wednesday, March 14th at 2:00 PM. Please wait for us by the security desk and our messengers will come to get you at 2:00. We look forward to seeing you there!