I wanted to send a quick reminder to please send in your child’s baggie books tomorrow since we have an Early Release on Friday. Also, we will be having our Safari Day on the early release! Feel free to have your child dress up like an explorer. 🙂
Library Today
I wanted to give a quick heads up that your child will be coming home with a new library book today! We were able to squeeze into a library slot today since we have an early release on Friday. We were not able to go to library last week, so luckily most of the kiddos had already returned their books.
If your child still has an old library book at home OR if they were absent today, please return the old book either tomorrow or Thursday and they can check out a new one for this week! Please email me if you have any questions. Have a great night!
Week 33
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, May 2 – Art
- Tuesday, May 3 – STEAM
- Wednesday, May 4 – Music
- Thursday, May 5 – Gym
- Library and baggie books due
- Friday, May 6 – Early Release
- Safari Day – Please keep this a surprise, and your child may dress up like an explorer if he or she would like to!
Later Dates:
- Tuesday, May 17 – John Ball Zoo Field Trip
- May 27 & May 30 – NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day weekend)
Notes for Parents:
- For those who are attending the Sweetheart Swirl tomorrow, I hope you have a wonderful time!
- I did not receive any Scholastic book orders for April. I sent home one more Scholastic flyer today, and book orders will be due May 9 for anyone who wants to stock up for summer!
CELEBRATIONS
Stuffie Day: The kiddos had a great day hanging out with their stuffies at school!
Star Students: Our star students this week were Kole, Chloe, Kade, Elliot, and Cecily. They had the chance to be the pledge leader for the day and eat in the classroom with me at the end of the week!
Mystery Reader: This week Ethan’s mom surprised us as a Mystery Reader! She read Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! Thank you for sharing this fun read aloud with us!
First Grade Family Time: At the assembly, we celebrated our learning and birthdays from the week. We also give awards for the quote of the week, lost teeth, and shoe tying.
This week the quote was- “You don’t have to attend every argument you are invited to.”
We had no new friends join the lost tooth or shoe-tying club. Keep practicing those shoes at home… only 5 more weeks to join the club!
Birthdays: We celebrated Ethan’s 8th birthday which was this past weekend. Happy Birthday, Ethan!
OUR LEARNING
Writing: This week was the kick off to our last writing unit!! We are working on realistic fiction stories. We spent the week brainstorming our characters, settings, and a problem. Our class worked together to create a shared writing story as an example of what this genre will look like. We made a story about Bryson, a nine-year-old boy who lives in a mansion and lost his pet hamster, Lucky!
Math: This week we focused on time in our day and the tasks we carry out at specific times. We also learned how to tell and write time in half-hours which you saw on the first quick quiz that came home! The remainder of the week was dedicated to shapes and their attributes. We focused on squares, rectangles, triangles, and circles. Over the weekend, you can quiz them to see if they remember what the attributes are for these specific shapes!
Reading: We focused this week on figuring out life lessons that we can learn from our characters and our stories. We learned how we can save those lessons for times in our life when we might need them! We finished the week on how we can compare and contrast our books.
Word Study: This week, we learned about “Bossy R.” Bossy R changes the vowel’s sound when it’s next to it. We learned how to read and write words with ar, er, ir, or, and ur.
Social Studies: We wrapped up our Maps and Globes Unit with a quick assessment to show what we know and also worked to master our home addresses.
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!
Week 32
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, April 25 – Gym
- Tuesday, April 26 – Art
- Hudsonville Art Show ends
- Wednesday, April 27 – STEAM
- Zoo permission slip due
- Thursday, April 28 – Music
- Friday, April 29 – Gym, library and baggie books due
- April Scholastic book orders due
- Saturday, April 30 – Sweetheart Swirl
Later Dates:
- Friday, May 6 – Early Release
- Tuesday, May 17 – John Ball Zoo Field Trip
Notes for Parents:
- A yellow permission slip for our John Ball Zoo field trip came home in your child’s folder today. Please complete the permission slip and return it to school by Wednesday, April 27. A big thank you to all the parents/family members who volunteered to chaperone. Due to the overwhelming number of volunteers, not everyone was able to be selected. However, we are so excited that ALL parents who want to attend can come along as guests to walk alongside your child and participate in his/her group. Looking forward to seeing those of you who can make it on May 17!
CELEBRATIONS
Earth Day: We had a great time celebrating Earth Day! The kiddos shared ideas on how they can show Earth love which tied in with a fun craft. We used shaving cream and food coloring to make an Earth design on paper… it was messy, but fun! We then got to enjoy some dirt cups for a snack while we watched the original Lorax. Thank you for sending in supplies to help with this day!
Star Students: Our star students this week were Rowan, Brenda, Ethan, Alex, and Azaylia. They had the chance to be the pledge leader for the day and eat in the classroom with me at the end of the week!
Mystery Reader: This week Elliot’s mom and sister surprised us as Mystery Readers! She read Amelia Bedelia Joins the Club. We also got a special visit from Mackenzie’s grandma who lives in England! She read It’s Earth Day. Thank you for sharing these fun read alouds with us!
First Grade Family Time: At the assembly, we celebrated our learning and birthdays from the week. We also give awards for the quote of the week, lost teeth, and shoe tying.
This week the quote was- “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” – Dr. Seuss, The Lorax
We had no new friends join the lost tooth or shoe-tying club. Keep practicing those shoes at home… only 6 more weeks to join the club!
OUR LEARNING
Writing: This week was the end of opinion writing. The kids had the opportunity to create their own persuasive letters. We saw many great ideas ranging from “We should get to bring pets to school, We should get more recess, I should get a dog/bunny, to we should get to pick our own seats.” The students came up with many great reasons and showed how convincing they can really be.
Math: This week we took the Unit 6 test all about comparing data. You should have seen this come earlier this week or today. Number 10 on the test was just a bonus question that I said the kiddos could complete as a challenge. If they tried the question, they earned a ticket. If they tried the question and got it right, they received a ticket and a piece of candy! We also started our next unit which covers time, shapes and equal shares, and measurement. The two lessons we did this week focused on time and how we progress from the morning to afternoon to night. We learned about digital vs. analog clocks and how to tell when it is an “o’clock” time on both.
Reading: This week we focused on paying attention to the characters in our books to see how their feelings change, how they talk, and what they like. We learned how authors leave clues to help us understand what a character is feeling or how they say something.
Word Study: We started a new unit all about BLOOPERS! Bloopers are common mistakes that writers (and even adults) make. We are learning to be extra-careful writers by thinking about the spelling patterns we already know when we spell words. We also started learning about Bossy R and the sounds that r-controlled vowels make (ar, er, or).
Social Studies: We created a flipbook based on the book, Me on the Map. Students talked about their planet, continent, country, state, city, and their home. We ended the week learning about addresses. We will practice writing our address next week and take a little quiz. If they are able to write their complete address, they’ll be able to share their house on Google Maps!
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!
Items Due This Week…
- Wednesday, April 20
- John Ball Zoo chaperone slips
- Earth Day supplies
- Friday, April 22
- Sweetheart Swirl sign-up/money – use this link to sign up: https://forms.gle/7Ufa59YZWLFD8AZY7 Please make checks payable to Georgetown PTC.
- return library and baggie books
*Also, tonight is Georgetown’s Reception Night for the Art Show. It is at Hudsonville City Hall (3275 Central Blvd.) from 5:30 to 7:30pm.
Week 31
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, April 18 – Music
- Tuesday, April 19 – Gym
- Georgetown Elementary Art Show Reception (details below)
- Wednesday, April 20 – Art
- Chaperone slips due
- Thursday, April 21 – STEAM
- Friday, April 22 – Music, library and baggie books due
- Earth Day Celebration
- Sunday, April 24 – Ethan’s birthday!
Later Dates:
- Saturday, April 30 – Sweetheart Swirl
- Tuesday, May 17 – John Ball Zoo Field Trip (details below)
Notes for Parents:
- We will be having an Earth Day celebration next Friday, and I would love your help in preparing for that day. If you are interested in donating anything, please see the sign-up. Thank you!
- It’s time to celebrate our creative school community once again! The Art Department is excited to host an in-person art show featuring artwork from Kindergarten students all the way up to High School artists. Drop in during Georgetown’s Reception Night, or any weekday between April 18th through the 26th. More details below.
Hudsonville PS District Student Art Show
Hudsonville City Hall – 3275 Central Blvd.
Open Weekdays from April 18th – April 26th; 8:00am – 5:00pm
Georgetown Elementary Reception – Tuesday, April 19th from 5:30pm – 7:30pm
- Sweetheart Swirl will be held on April 30 from 6:30-8:30! Mark it on your calendars! This is for Georgetown girl students only and their special guest of choice. See this flyer to check out all of the details! Use this link to sign up: https://forms.gle/7Ufa59YZWLFD8AZY7 Please make checks payable to Georgetown PTC.
- Today there is a note coming home about our school field trip. We will be going to John Ball Zoo on May 17. Students will need to bring a sack lunch from home. We are greatly appreciative of our GES PTC, they will be covering the costs for all students and chaperones. Please look for the note and return it by next Wednesday, if you are interested in chaperoning. All chaperones will need to drive themselves and meet us at the zoo.
CELEBRATIONS
Star Students: Our star students this week were Kinsley, Will, Sadie, Grayson, and Anora. They had the chance to be the pledge leader for the day and eat in the classroom with me at the end of the week!
Mystery Reader: This week Rowan’s grandma surprised us as a Mystery Reader! She read It’s Not Easy Being a Bunny. Thank you for sharing this fun read aloud with us!
First Grade Family Time: At the assembly, we celebrate our learning and birthdays from the week. We also give awards for the quote of the week, lost teeth, and shoe tying.
This week the quote was- “Be somebody who makes everybody feel like a somebody.” – Kid President
All of our friends have already earned a quote for the year, but we will still focus on a new quote each week. We celebrated a lost tooth from Chloe. No friends joined the shoe-tying club this week.
Birthdays: This week we celebrated Cecily and Grayson’s 7 birthdays. Happy Birthday, Cecily and Grayson!
OUR LEARNING
Writing: We are continuing with opinion writing but taking a new turn- persuasive letter writing. We had an introduction to what persuasive writing is, how to still include our opinion and reasons, and how to conclude with a closing and our signature. Get ready for lots of letters home convincing you of allowance raises and pets.
Math: We began learning how to compare within a story with the help of comparison bars this week. These are very similar to math mountains, but instead of trying to figure out a total or partner we are comparing to see who/what has more or less and how many more or fewer. We will be taking our test for this unit next week. I sent home a homework page for them to gain more practice with comparison bars before we take our test on Tuesday. Thank you for your help with this!
Reading: This week we began a new unit called “Meeting Characters and Learning Lessons”. We focused this week on how readers can get more out of a story and remember more when they retell parts of the story and predict what will happen next.
Word Study: We wrapped up our vowel teams unit this week by creating our own “Vowel Town!” We worked in small groups to create town maps filled with lots of labels, places, and signs with vowel teams. (For example: “Beach Town”). It was so fun to see students’ think creatively for this project!
Social Studies: This week we are starting a social studies unit. We are learning about maps and globes. We will learn about our world, continent, state, city and begin practicing our address. Any support you can give with this at home is greatly appreciated. Students will start practicing their address next week.
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!
Books Due Tomorrow
Friendly reminder that library and baggie books are due tomorrow. Thank you!
Week 30
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, April 11 – return to school, STEAM
- Tuesday, April 12 – Music
- Cecily’s birthday!
- Wednesday, April 13 – Gym
- Thursday, April 14 – Art
- Grayson’s birthday!
- Friday, April 15 – STEAM, library and baggie books due
Later in April:
- Saturday, April 30 – Sweetheart Swirl (details below)
Notes for Parents:
- We hope you all have a wonderful and safe spring break! It will be a nice week for your kiddos to recharge and get ready to take on the last few months of first grade. We have some exciting things happening after break, so be sure to look for updates when we return. 🙂
- Sweetheart Swirl will be held on April 30 from 6:30-8:30! Mark it on your calendars! This is for Georgetown girl students only and their special guest of choice. See this flyer to check out all of the details! Use this link to sign up: https://forms.gle/7Ufa59YZWLFD8AZY7 Please make checks payable to Georgetown PTC.
CELEBRATIONS
Star Students: After break, we will be starting our final round of star students. Each day I will pick a surprise pledge leader to be our star student for the day. At the end of the week, all the pledge leaders will be able to eat lunch in the classroom with me!
Mystery Reader: This week Kinsley’s mimi surprised us as a Mystery Reader! She read Fluffy McWhiskers: Cuteness Explosion. Thank you for sharing this fun read aloud with us! We also had Chloe’s mom come in, and she read What Should Danny Do?.
Pizza Ranch Retell: The kiddos had a blast with our Pizza Ranch Retell! This was a great way for us to wrap up March is Reading Month and celebrate earning 10 stars with a pizza party. The kiddos worked on building their reading comprehension by doing book retells. They learned how to do a retell by identifying the setting, character, problem, and telling what happened first, next, then, and in the end. The kiddos were able to go up to the “book buffet” to gather materials needed to help with this skill. They even got to take a to-go bag home with “leftovers”. We then enjoyed pizza for lunch and completed a pizza graphing activity to work on comparing data. Thank you for your help in preparing for this fun-filled day!
Game Day: We filled the school’s outstanding box again, so the whole school was able to celebrate by playing board games. It was a great way to wrap up the week before heading out for spring break!
Spring Fling: We also enjoyed swapping teachers this week. We did a directed drawing with Mrs. Cooley, Tech games with Mrs. Blauwkamp, Spring Bingo with Ms. Hutchison, and movement activities with Mrs. Diniz!
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!
Week 29
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, March 28 – Music
- Reading Calendar due
- Scholastic Book Orders due
- Tuesday, March 29 – Gym
- Pizza Ranch Retell Day
- Wednesday, March 30 – Art, library and baggie books due
- Pajama Day
- Thursday, March 31 – Sunday, April 10 – Spring Break
After Break:
- Monday, April 11 – return to school
Notes for Parents:
- As a reminder, we will be having a pizza lunch on Tuesday. If your child does not like pizza, please send a lunch from home.
- If you are planning on leaving early for spring break, please send me an email to let me know which days your child will be gone. Thank you!
CELEBRATIONS
Mystery Reader: This week Elliot’s mom surprised us as the Mystery Reader! She read The Serious Goose. Thank you for sharing this fun read aloud with us! We also had Paige’s mom come in and she read Ferocious Fluffity: A Mighty Bite-y Class Pet!
First Grade Family Time: At the assembly, we celebrated our learning and birthdays from the week. We also give awards for the quote of the week, lost teeth, and shoe tying.
This week the quote was- “If it doesn’t challenge you, it won’t change you.” Kade was the student who showed us what this quote means this week. He has learned to face challenges head on to help him grow as a learner! No new friends joined the lost tooth or shoe-tying club this week.
OUR LEARNING
Writing: We started the end of book reviews this week. We focused on our introductions and conclusions and all the other important parts we have learned. It has been fun tying this into the March is Reading Month book battles and being excited about books.
Math: This week in math we focused on looking at data sets with three categories. We also created our own data by going around the classroom and having students choose their favorite color out of three different color choices. We then compared the data to see which color had the most and fewest votes. We also compared only two colors at a time using the terms more and less. This can be a tricky skill for kiddos when they are only supposed to compare two of the categories at a time. You can see how they did with this concept on the first quiz that came home this week!
Reading: Our reading focus this week was all about putting all that we’ve learned into a final reading celebration. We learned that Readers Have Big Jobs To Do like reading with expression, fluency, and understanding the story. We celebrated our learning by starting to record ourselves reading a just right book out loud.
Word Study: Our vowel team chart is filling up! This week we learned about oi and oy, which make the same sound (coin, toy). We also learned about ew and ue, which both say /oo/ like in stew and blue.
Social-Emotional: We talked all about respect this week! This can be a tricky time of year for kiddos because it is the longest span of school between breaks. It was the perfect week to review what it means to be respectful. We brainstormed ways we can be respectful in the classroom and at home. We talked about how respect is making people feel cared for and important, saying please and thank you, and having the power to choose who to listen to and when.
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!
Week 28
Upcoming Dates:
- Monday, March 21 – STEAM
- Reading calendar due
- Tuesday, March 22 – Music
- Wednesday, March 23 – Gym
- Wear a shirt with winter words
- Thursday, March 24 – Art
- Family Charter Night
- Friday, March 25 – STEAM, library and baggie books due
Later this Month:
- Wednesday, March 30 – last day of school before break
- March 31-April 10 – Spring Break
- Monday, April 11 – return to school
Notes for Parents:
- The kiddos voted to have a pizza party for when we earn our next 10 stars, and we are very close! Instead of just having a pizza party, we will be making a whole day out of it. We are calling it the Pizza Ranch Retell, and it will be a fun way to wrap up March is Reading Month. I will be providing a pizza lunch for our class on Tuesday, March 29. If you would like to donate supplies for our Pizza Ranch Retell day, please take a look at this sign-up.
- Please join our PBIS team on March 24th from 6:30 for a Family Charter Night. During this time we will introduce you to and guide you through the creation of a Family Charter. Please RSVP here if you plan on attending.
- If you are planning on leaving early for spring break, please send me an email to let me know which days your child will be gone. Thank you!
- Also, we are almost out of Clorox wipes for the classroom. If I could have a few families donate some more containers of wipes, I would really appreciate it. Thank you!
CELEBRATIONS
Mystery Reader: This week Chase’s mom surprised us as the Mystery Reader! She read The Very Impatient Caterpillar. Thank you for sharing this fun read aloud with us! We also had Mackenzie’s brother, Ashton, come in and read Just a Special Day!
First Grade Family Time: At the assembly, we celebrated our learning and birthdays from the week. We also give awards for the quote of the week, lost teeth, and shoe tying.
This week the quote was- “Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it yet.” Kinsley was the student who showed us what this quote means this week. She always sees the good in things and believes everything is unique in its own way. We had no new friends join the lost teeth or shoe-tying club this week.
OUR LEARNING
Writing: This week in writing we are focusing our review writing on book reviews. This is a great tie into March is Reading Month because we have a school-wide book bracket and we are voting for our favorite books. We are really focusing on adding details and making our writing exciting and convincing. We worked to introduce the characters, use conjunctions, and made sure we told our book title and author.
Math: We learned a lot of new vocabulary words to help us be stronger mathematicians for this new unit! The kiddos learned words like: data, sort, compare, more/most, and fewer/fewest. We started the week by sorting bugs into groups like legs vs. no legs and colors. We then used that data to compare and see which group had more or fewer bugs in it. The remainder of the week was spent strengthening this skill through the use of various categories.
Reading: This week in reading we continued to be the boss of our own reading. We tried to track dialogue and figure out which character is talking. This is a great question to ask your child while they are reading. “Who said that?” We also worked to make sure we understand the words we are reading.
Word Study: Our exploration of vowel teams continued this week with some sounds that have multiple different spellings. For instance, ‘ou’ and ‘ow’ both say the same sound (couch, cow). We also learned that the spelling ‘ow’ can make two different sounds (cow, snow). Plus, we practiced reading and writing words with the two sounds made by ‘oo’ (book, spoon).
Social-Emotional: As we have wrapped up most of our RULER lessons we are going to focus on Little Penguin lessons. This week we are talking about Growth Mindset.
PICTURES
Click here to see our pictures from this week!