It is so hard to believe that this is the last week of August.  Our first month of school is almost over.  We have been learning so much and having so much fun with our new and old friends.

Here is the preview of what your students will be learning about this week.

Literature: Issun Boshi, Thumbelina, and Tom Thumb are three stories from around the world we will read this week.  Story elements will be discussed as we compare and contract these three stories.

Science: We will further explore the states of matter by changing liquids into gasses.  Additionally, we will learn the properties of liquids and discover that liquids come in different densities.

History: This week we will continue the study of Mesopotamia, starting with making a pop-up ziggurat.  We will also begin learning about the Gilgamesh epic, learn about the Gate of Ishtar, and the importance of writing in a civilization.

Reading: We have sent home most of the reading bags and the rest will be coming home this week.  Please remember to read 20 minutes every night with your child as well as practice the sight words that will be coming home also.

Reminders: 
Please continue to send in the white pillowcases.

Week of August 19-23, 2013

Thank you to all the parents that came to Curriculum night.  It was good to see all of you and talk about this coming year.  We had a fun week exploring the Frog Prince, learning about what history is, and performing some science experiments.  I hope that you asked your children about some of the fun things that we learned did.

Here is what we will be learning about this coming week: 

Literature: We will be reading and studying Hansel and Gretel this week by the Brothers Grimm.  The children will discuss the elements of fairy tales, do some sequencing of events, and, at the end of the week, get to participate in a reader's theater of the story.

Science: This week the students will be introduced to atoms and matter.  We will talk about the different states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas) and learn that there are more than 100 different elements or atoms.

History: We will start our study of Ancient Mesopotamia this week.  This will include studying the map of Ancient Mesopotamia and learning about the places and geographic features.  We will end the week learning about inventions from Ancient Mesopotamia that we still use today.

Reading: We are working on getting all the reading logs and reading books ready to send home.  We are hoping to have books start coming home sometime this week.

We really appreciate all the support that you give to your students and to us and hope that you have a wonderful week.

Reminders: 

• If you have not sent in a white pillowcase, please do so as soon as possible so that we can make our scientist lab coats.  

Week of August 12, 2013

We had a wonderful first week of school!  It was so fun to start to get to know our new class and each of your students.  All of the kids have been learning what it means to be a first grader and the procedures and routines that go with that.

This week will be our first five day week of the school year and we have a lot of wonderful things planned.  The following are the things we will be studying this week.

Literature: We will be reading the story "The Frog Prince."  Additionally, we will be learning about story elements in a fairy tale.

Science: This week we will continue to learn about the scientific method and perform a few science experiments.  Please send in a white pillowcase by Wednesday this week.  We will be turning the pillowcases into Scientist Lab Coats to be used throughout the school year.

History: We will continue to answer the question, "What is History?"  Then we will also talk about timelines and ancient civilizations.

Riggs: This week we are still reviewing our Riggs phonograms.  Please help your children review these phonograms as we will be using them all year in our spelling.  Additionally, please help them focus on handwriting.  It is very important that their Riggs homework (and all homework) comes back written neatly.

Reminders: 
Curriculum night is this Wednesday at 6:30.  We look forward to seeing all you there.

The Polar Ice back to school social is this Saturday at 5:25.  See the headmaster update for details.

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Welcome to Mrs. Figueroa's First Grade Class!

We are so excited for this new school year with all of the new 1st graders coming into our class.  It will be an amazing year with lots to learn!

This week we will spend a lot of time learning procedures and how to succeed in 1st grade.  Along with that, we will be writing friendship stories, learning about different types of scientific inquiry, performing some science experiments, learning about what history is and introducing geography.  We will also be beginning to review our Riggs phonograms.

We cannot wait to meet your little ones at Meet the Teacher tonight and then to have them join our classroom tomorrow morning to start the brand new year.  Hopefully, everyone had a nice relaxing summer and you are all excited to start 1st grade.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Figueroa, Mrs. Pratt, and Ms. Noori