| Home | Staff | School News | Newsletters | Parent Council News/Min | EQAO | Canadian Parents for French |

Nouvelles de la première année... mai 2008

May is assessment month. Each student will be completing an Alpha Jeunes reading assessment which will be kept on file. This information is used to monitor reading comprehension and progress, as well as to provide the next year’s teacher with a starting point for targeted reading instruction. I will be conferencing with one student each day to perform the assessment during our Independent Reading time.

In late April we began a new at home reading program. I am assigning different books to each student based on their reading level; these are books with which the students should have proficiency. I will change the books each week so please remember to return the book bags on Wednesday!

In May we will spend a significant amount of time on our writing as we work through our Time Line project. Students will practice narrative writing as they write captions to describe people, places, and events in photographs of their choosing (please see attached).

We seem to have a number of students in our class who are natural bankers! We have completed our study of money but will maintain practice of these skills through our ‘store.’ Students accumulate points throughout the week. Each Friday they cash in their points for money, which they log in their ‘bank book.’ At this point, they can choose to purchase an item from Mlle’s Magasin, donate their money to the classroom fund, or save their money. If they make a purchase, they must log this in their bank book as a withdrawal. Once our classroom fund reaches 5$, Mlle will buy popcorn for the class and we will watch a movie together!

We now turn our attention to an introduction to algebra. We begin with an extensive use of pictures and manipulatives before working with numbers. We will be examining expressions of equality (ie. 3+4=5+2) and we will actually begin solving for x. You will be amazed at what we will be able to do! We will also be examining the concepts ‘greater than / less than.’

In April we close our look at Energy and its uses in our daily lives. The students have done much work around the idea of conservation as we strive to become more environmentally responsible citizens. We now turn our attention to Social Studies. Social Studies periods will be devoted to a study of Mapping skills. Students will learn the colours and symbols used on maps, as well as features such as legends and the use of a scale. Students will have opportunities to read and create their own maps of the classroom and the playground. We will also take a walk around the block to identify and record the streets and features that surround our school. Much of our time in Language Arts will be dedicated to our major end of the year project - the Time Line.

Much of our work for the next two months will be Top Secret... Moms and Dads will find out soon enough! I have scheduled our Horizon Line walk for the end of the month. Please watch for more details to come as we will need one or two volunteers to accompany us.

Dufferin is once again publishing a Yearbook for 2007-2008. The order forms were sent home in late April. If you wish to order a yearbook please remember that orders are due with payment by Friday May 9^th.

Scholastic orders for the month of May are here! If you wish to place an order please return the order form with cheque payable to Scholastic Canada by Tuesday May 20^th.

Remember: there is no school on May 19^th, Victoria Day! Enjoy the long weekend!

Nouvelles de la première année... avril 2008

It’s hard to believe we are ready to greet another month... The month of March is always come and gone again before you know it! The end of March also signals the close of the Second Term at school. Report cards were sent home on Thursday, March 20^th. As in the first term, we spent some time as a class discussing our achievements and successes over the course of the term, as well as identifying goals and areas for continued practice and improvement. Please spend some time to review your child’s report with them and develop some individualized goals for Term 3. Please remember to sign page 3 of the report card and return it to school along with the envelope.

Toward the end of March we began our formal inquiry into addition by examining numbers closely as a family of facts and stories. We spent some time ‘writing the stories’ of some numbers to show all of the different ways particular sums can be composed (ie. 2+7=9, 4+5=9, 3+6=9). Rather than focus on drilling these basic math facts, we have been emphasizing awareness of number relationships and ways in which numbers fit together, and the roles that they play; for instance, in the question 2+7=9, we have been working on identifying 2 and 7 as the Parts, and 9 as the Whole of the question. This will allow us to examine addition and subtraction as related operations. We will continue to practice and reinforce this concept throughout April. We will continue to refine and practice our addition skills as we begin our formal examination of money later in the month, where will be identifying coins and adding small sums of money.

Each student has now had the opportunity to complete at least five show and tell presentations. Please encourage your child to log their presentation date in their agenda to ensure they are prepared on their day. If you need another copy of the schedule, please send me a note in the agenda. I have been extremely impressed with the quality of the presentations and the obvious efforts students have put in to addressing the items in the evaluation rubric. The results have been wonderful dialogues on items of importance to the students; we have learned so much about each other through these presentations! Please remember that the last presentations will take place on March 27^th.

After having focussed in January on the verb être and the verb avoir in February, we are ready to turn our attention to regular ER verbs. We will be examining the form and use of the verbs in context, using very common verbs with which the students are already familiar (eg. parler, manger, sauter, écouter). This study will involve activities in all three strands (reading, writing, and oral communication).

In March we will also focus heavily on the skills of expression and use of punctuation when reading aloud. Students will be given many opportunities to read aloud for me, for small groups, and in front of the class.

Math

Throughout February we had an in depth look at our Five Senses. Our activities were based around identifying the senses and their associated organs. We also participated in many experiments designed to determine how we use our senses to interact with the world around us. As February draws to a close we begin a study of Daily and Seasonal Cycles. This will include an examination of each season’s characteristics, as well as ways in which living things adapt to deal with changing weather conditions. This unit also includes an integrated art project that is always a favourite....

In March we will be using our study of Daily and Seasonal Cycles to examine and use both organic and geometric shapes as we work to create seasonal cycles of trees using only torn paper. Of course, we will take break from artistic studies to create some Easter Holiday masterpieces for your collections!

Scholastic order forms are here! If you wish to order items to be received in time for Easter, please submit order form with payment by Wednesday March 12^th.

Remember... March Break is from March 7 - 14^th. Whether you are relaxing at home or on the beach, please enjoy a safe and well deserved holiday!

Congratulations Dufferin, we have made it to the half way point in the school year! We have five months of successes behind us and we are looking ahead to five more months of success, discovery, and growth. January always catches us by surprise at Dufferin... It is here and gone before you know it! We began the New Year with some changes; a new look to our classroom, and a new student to add to it! In January we welcomed Olivia G to our class. I was very pleased to see how each of the students in our class worked together to welcome Olivia and to make sure she learned of our routines and responsibilities; everyone was quick to offer a helping hand! Merci to all of the students for your cooperation and commitment to a friendly and inclusive environment.

We are more than ready to keep the momentum going as we move into February. We have many special activities planned, both inside and outside of the classroom, as we move through this very special month. I have attached a copy of our class list to assist you as you begin to make your Valentine cards. This month we will also be celebrating another momentous occasion.... 100 Day! We will be celebrating 100 Days of School on Monday, February 11^th (barring any more Snow Days of course!) Our celebrations will include a variety of activities in both Math and Language. Please see the attached note for more information and for what you can do to prepare.

This year, February brings with it one very significant change. This year, the first Family Day holiday will fall on Monday, February 18^th. Please note that in order to accommodate this holiday, we will be losing the Day 5 that would have otherwise been February 18^th. When students return on Tuesday February 19^th, it will be a Day 1 on our calendars.

As always, should you need to reach me please feel free to contact me at the school or send me an email at cmacoret@fc.gedsb.net.

Sincerely,

Mlle C. Macoretta

Each student has now had the chance to deliver at least one Show and Tell presentation. We have certainly had some jitters for this first time, but the students have done quite well! I encourage students to refer to our rubric as they plan their presentation. We have also been able to see some students make use of very useful strategies, including referring to a sheet of notes, as well as creating introductory and concluding statements. Well done! Please continue to watch the calendar closely for your day.

Through the month of January we had a considerable focus on the verb être (to be). In the month of February we will begin studying the verb avoir (to have). We will also make use of the occasion of Valentine’s Day to discuss singular forms of the verb ‘aimer’ (to like/love). We will use this verb as our model for all regular verbs ending in -er.

As part our 100 Day celebrations each student will be given a folder containing 100 words which should be familiar to them. As the students read these words with me, I will highlight the words. Once the folder is complete, I will send it home as a success for you to share. Please note that as a challenge for those who are ready, I have created folders of 200 words!

Throughout the month of January we studied the properties of 3D figures and their relationships to 2D shapes. Students had many opportunities to manipulate these shapes and to identify them in the environment. As part of our 100 Day and Valentine’s Day celebrations we will engage in a variety of math centres, with a significant focus on Data Management (collecting, sorting, and graphing data). The activities connecting our learning will be centred around the following:

Number Sense & Numeration:

• counting forward to 100 and backwards from 20
• count by 1's, 2's, 5's, and 10's to 100

Geometry & Spatial Sense:

• create symmetrical designs using concrete materials (folding paper)

Data Management:

• collect and organize data and display data on simple graphs
• organize objects into categories by sorting using one attribute

Social Studies / Science

We have recently completed our initial look into the local community by focussing on community helpers and the roles they play in our society. We will revisit this theme later in March as we examine some of the places in a community, and some of our city’s features.

We have now switched our focus back to Science. We have begun to examine the Five Senses and to experiment with their use in class. This unit allows us to make many connections to Language as we study adjectives for textures, sounds, actions, and visual stimuli. Toward the end of the month we will apply the study of ‘Touch’ as a transition into the examination of Materials, and the various materials that every day objects are made of.

Visual Arts

It’s official... We are painters! Our discussions surrounding works of art were an enormous success as students were able to make insightful comments about a piece based on the colours the artist chose, and the way in which the artist used his/her tools. With success we used different mediums to recreate Wassily Kandinsky’s famous print "Squares with Concentric Circles." We are so proud of these pieces, and they will remain on display in our class for some time. We now turn our eye to experimenting with different techniques to create texture, including the use of stencils and creating rubbings. As part of our Valentine’s Celebration, we will also be working on creating a series of like images which differ in texture based on the tools we use.

Scholastic

If you wish to order from this month’s Scholastic flyer, please send in completed order form and cheque by: Friday February 15^th.

 

---

Nouvelles de la première année... janvier 2008

Throughout the month of January we will be discussing the Virtue of Justice. As taken from the Virtues Project Website (http://www.virtuesproject.com/index.php),

It’s that time of year again... Can you believe the holidays are almost upon us? The Grade Ones are certainly catching Holiday Fever (not to mention Mlle Macoretta!) The end of November also brings with it the close of Term 1 and the issuing of report cards. Please take the time to review your child’s report together, noting both letter grades and comments. As a class we worked together to identify areas of strength and needs for continued practice and improvement, as well to develop some common goals for Term 2. Please take some time to develop individual, specific goals with your child. Please fill these out on page 3 of the report card and return the signed page 3 to school. These pages are attached to a copy of your child’s report which is placed in the OSR (Ontario Student Record). We hope to see as many families as possible during the student led conferences. If you are not available to meet during the times set aside for the conferences, please contact us at the school and we will be happy to arrange another meeting time with you. This year, student led conferences take place on the evening of December 6^th and the morning of December 7^th. Conferences are fifteen minutes in length. Your child will begin the conference by briefly sharing with you a few samples of work from their portfolio; they will describe the task for you and explain how they accomplished the task goal. I will then take a few moments to share my observations regarding areas of strength and need, while making reference to the report card. Before the conclusion of the conference you will have the opportunity to pose questions or share any concerns. If, by the end of the conference, we should feel that more time is needed, there will be an opportunity to sign up for an additional, extended meeting.

Curriculum

Nouvelles de la première année... novembre 2007

Can you believe that November is already here? We have grown as a group through 39 days of school. We have experienced successes, encountered difficulties, taken on new challenges, published our work, and made new friends. We have effectively become a team. The class is settling quite well into our routines as students regularly support one another to solve problems where able, and to meet expectations. This group of students was a source of inspiration in October as, while practising the Virtue of Thankfulness, I often heard statements of thanks and appreciation offered to peers in recognition of assistance, friendship, kindness, and generosity. Bravo Grade One!

Important Dates:

• November 2 : Spirit Wear Orders Due
• November 9: Remembrance Day Assembly
• November 16 : Mad Science
• November 16 : Permission forms for Safety Village Due
• November 19 : Photo Retake Day
• November 19 : Scholastic Orders due
• November 21 : Pizza Day
• November 21 : Safety Village

Nouvelles de la première année... octobre 2007

And just like that, September is gone! As usual, September was a very busy month that brought with it many new and exciting challenges, constant changes, and new routines. The students seem to be adapting well to our new Balanced Day schedule. Our classroom rules, created together on the first day of school, have set up an atmosphere of inclusion and respect that has proved conducive to learning, growing, and succeeding together. I am very proud of the way the students have successfully made the transition to full time school, and I am both excited and optimistic for the coming year.

Nouvelles de la première année.... septembre 2007

Bienvenue and Welcome to Grade 1! It was wonderful to see familiar faces and to welcome new ones on the first day of school. I hope that everyone had a relaxing and restful summer. I also hope you are as excited as I am to start this journey together! This year we are fortunate to have three teachers delivering the Grade One program. Mme Gorecki, Mlle Rohan, and myself will be working very closely together to further enhance and align our programs. In addition, we welcome Mme Martisius as both our Computers teacher and our Librarian for book exchange.

As you know, September is typically a very busy month at school, and this year will certainly be no exception. Due to the cap in primary classes that has come into effect this school year, class placements remain tentative throughout the month of September. I will continue to communicate with you on a regular basis regarding any potential changes. Please create a daily routine of checking your child’s agenda as I will use this as a tool to communicate with you.

Our Parent Council is once again hosting it’s annual Meet the Teacher night, to be held on September 20^th. Please come out for a pizza dinner and for the chance to meet classmates and friends, to visit our classroom, and to learn a some information regarding classroom routines and expectations. I will also briefly share some key information about our program. I am looking forward to seeing you there!

If you haven’t already done so, please send in $8 to cover the cost of the agenda. We thank Parent Council for once again generously subsidizing the cost. In Grade 1 we use the agenda every single morning to enter dates and events relevant to our activities. It also represents a significant word knowledge and grammar exercise that will increase in difficulty and complexity over the course of the year.

Curriculum

Français

We begin the year with an intensive review of the entire Jolly Phonique program. At the rate of one sound a day, we review each letter in class as well as suggest relevant words to add to our word wall. New this year, we will also be using our Jolly Phonique books as a personal dictionary. Each time we learn new vocabulary words from another curricular area, we will include this words in the relevant section of our book. As such, these books will remain at school for the duration of the school year. Upon completion of review I will be sending home tools which you can use to practice identifying individual sounds and blending sounds to make small words. Students will also be engaged in directed journal writing on a regular basis, the topics for which will vary and will reflect a teaching point relevant to curricular content and personal ability. For the month of September, we will be focussing largely on learning to read each other’s names, to recognize the days of the week, and to recognize high frequency words in shared texts (ie. le, la, les, des, etc).

We begin the year with a unit from the strand of Number Sense. By the end of September students are expected to be able to count to, identify, and write the numbers to 25. A significant emphasis is placed upon the ability to identify numbers out of sequence, as well as the ability to count from starting points other than 1. Each day I will be asking for some volunteers to count as high as they can in order to obtain a base line of abilities. We will supplement our work on counting by focussing on one to one correspondence while counting, as well as introduce the concept of estimation. Throughout the month we will also be integrating and reinforcing the use and spelling of the number words un-cinq. You can help support your child at home by having them count for you in French.

Science / Social Studies Throughout the year we will be alternating our units in Social Studies and Science. We begin the year with a unit of Social Studies on Relationships, Rules, and Responsibilities. Our focus for September will be to identify the important people in our lives, their relationships to us, and the roles they play for us. We will be discussing some of the rules we experience and how these rules are affected by the relationships governing them. We will also be reviewing and introducing new vocabulary terms related to family and relationships which we will revisit frequently during Language Arts.

Our creative work will begin with a careful look at different types of lines in art work and in the environment. We will be looking at the different ways lines are used in art to create mood. Students will be asked to select and use a variety of lines in their work. Now for our first request... We have a back to school craft planned for the end of the month but we need your help! We would appreciate donations of cardboard egg cartons.

As mentioned, Mme Martisius will be providing French language instruction in Computers to our class. This will take place in the library. As our teacher librarian, Mme Martisius will also be hosting our weekly book exchange in the library. In order to encourage independence in the library, Mme Martisius will involve the students in games and exercises designed to teach them research skills, the components of library, and the location of subject and age appropriate books. We are excited to have Mme Martisius as our French language librarian and appreciate her expertise.

Along with Mme Gorecki’s and Mlle Rohan’s class, our class will be involved in a rotary program for Drama, Music, and Health instruction. Each of these components will be taught in French, and will last one term. Mme Gorecki will be teaching the music component to each class, Mlle Rohan will teach the Health component, while I will teach the Drama component. As such, each of these subjects will be assessed and appear on only one report card throughout the year. Please see our attached timetable for information regarding subject scheduling for our class.

Scholastic orders for the month of September are here. If you would like to place an order, please fill out the attached form and return them to the school by Monday September 24^th. Please remember to make your cheque payable to Scholastic Canada. When ordering books for your child please consider that books levelled 1 or 2 are ideal for Grade One students. For strong readers, some of the Level 3 books may be appropriate.

Neighbourhood walks

From time to time throughout the year we will be leaving the playground to walk through our school neighbourhood. These excursions address a number of our curricular expectations, including; Visual Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Math. I will inform families of our purpose prior to each walk and will also include detailed schedules. However, the school is not required to collect formal permission forms for these walks. Please sign and return this portion of our newsletter to indicate that your child has permission to participate in these excursions over the course of the year.

I _________________________ grant ______________________ permission to participate in neighbourhood walks throughout the 2007-2008 school year.

Signature __________________

Date ______________________