Welcome to First Grade!

Danebo ElementaryMrs. Johnson

Room 32014-2015

Our Room 3 Daily ScheduleSubject to change as needed

8:20 am – 8:35 Breakfast served in cafeteria 8:35 am – 8:45 Class opening and check-in8:45 am School begins!8:45 am Reading 10:15 am Snack and Recess10:30 am Math11:40 am Lunch 11:55 pm Recess12:15 pm PE/Music 12:45 pm Calendar/Read-Aloud1:15pm Writing 1:45pm Science/Social Studies/Art2:30pm Compliments and Clean up 2:45pm Dismissal

“Danebo students take care of ourselves, we take care of each other, and we take care of the environment.”

The Seven Virtues at Danebo Elementary

* respect * responsibility *honesty * perseverance * kindness * giving * self-discipline

September 2014

Dear First Grade Families,

Welcome to first grade at Danebo Elementary! I am very excited to work with you and your child as we begin this exciting learning adventure. Together we are going to have a fantastic year full of fun, friendships,

adventures, and great learning. This handbook offers helpful information on many things you’ll need to know about your child’s time here at Danebo. Please feel free to call or email me any time if you have any questions or concerns. You can reach me before or after school at (541)688-8735 ext. 2241 or by email at angela.johnson@bethel.k12.or.us .

The School Day Begins!

The cafeteria opens at 8:20 AM and offers all students a nutritional free breakfast to start their day. Our classroom doors open at 8:35 AM and class begins at 8:45 AM sharp! A good night’s sleep, healthy breakfast, and arriving to class on time help insure a happy, productive day!

If your child will be late or absent, please call the office at (541)688-8735 and let them know as soon as possible. If arriving late, always check in with the office when you arrive so we can keep track of all children during the school day. Students will be given a Tardy Pass to let me know they have checked in with the office. Please be aware that all late arrivals and absences are recorded.

Lunch and Snacks

Lunchtime is at 11:40 AM and is followed by recess at 11:55 AM. We are fortunate to have healthy daily snacks delivered to our classrooms through the USDA-funded Fresh Fruit and Vegetable program. This program is designed to encourage students to promote healthy eating habits and the chance to try a wide variety of produce. Many of these items are grown locally

Dismissal

Students are dismissed at 2:45 PM. Please let the office and I know of any changes to your child’s normal transportation arrangements as soon as you can.

Visiting and Volunteering at Danebo

We love to have families visit and volunteer in our classroom! Visitors must check-in with the office and pick up a visitor’s badge before coming to the classroom. If you arrive to our class without a badge, I will ask that you return to the office to take care of that before you come in. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation with these school policies, as they are in

place to keep everyone on our campus safe. I invite you to come by any time and see what we are doing in first grade.

There are many volunteer opportunities at Danebo. Check out our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and consider becoming involved in the important and fun activities that they organize throughout the year to support our students. They meet once a month - check the school newsletter for dates. I love to have volunteers in the classroom as well! Whether you prefer helping with special projects, paperwork, field trips, or working with students, we have something for everyone. Whether you want to volunteer just once in a while or on a regular basis, your participation and help is greatly appreciated!! Contact me any time about how to get started.

P.E.

We have Physical Education on Mondays and Fridays each week. Please have your child wear tennis shoes on these days (preferably not black-soled shoes because these mark up the gym floor). Open-toed shoes, sandals, boots, and flip flops can be dangerous for P.E. activities and are not allowed.

Library Day

Your child will be checking out books every Thursday to bring home to enjoy. This is a wonderful opportunity to practice reading at home and sharing their reading skills with you! We ask that students take extra good care of their library books and return them to class on time so they can continue to check out more books all year long!

Birthdays

Birthdays are an exciting time for children and we love to help them celebrate these important milestones. Students will receive a special birthday treat from Mrs. Johnson (birthday pencil, card, paper bracelet, and sticker to wear). If you would like to send a special treat for the class to celebrate your child’s birthday, please contact me ahead of time so I can plan our day accordingly. In accordance with Bethel’s Wellness Policy, we ask that families send only healthy snacks (fruit, veggies, or popcorn) or non-food items to celebrate student birthdays. Also, please be aware that due to children’s allergies, we are a nut-aware building. Also, please do not send party invitations to be passed out at school unless all students in our class are invited. We try to avoid hurt feelings. Thank you for your understanding.

Star Student of the Week!

Your child will be honored as our “Star Student” for one week during the school year. A special poster for the “Star Student Bulletin Board” and detailed instructions will be sent home the Friday before your child’s special week. Honorees will be the center of attention and are invited to share their poster, pictures, and a special item from home (a book, small toy, or stuffed animal, for example). We conclude this time with a “compliment book” and Friendship Bracelet created for each Star Student to take home as a special keepsake. We invite you to join us for this special activity!

Homework

Homework is an important part of your child’s learning experience. It reinforces the skills they learn each day, boosts academic success, and teaches personal responsibility. Students are assigned math homework Monday through Thursday. Math homework is due the day after it is assigned. Beginning in the next couple weeks, there will also be assigned weekly reading homework, with books, passages, or practice word cards provided. We will also have weekly spelling tests on Fridays. The week’s spelling list will be sent home in Tuesday Folders each week to help your child study throughout the week. Throughout the year there will be writing and special assignments assigned as their skills develop. Each student will be given a special homework folder to manage homework materials. We appreciate your help in making sure homework materials are returned on time. Check our classroom blog and newsletter for links to additional skills practice and a current list of the week’s homework assignments.

Reading at home is another vital part of your child’s reading development. It’s very important that your child read every day for at least 15 - 20 minutes. Reading with your child, talking about the stories, and interacting together through reading is truly a gift you can give your child. It builds their reading skills, their confidence, and their knowledge of the world. Have fun with it!

Tuesday Folders

Each student has a green “Tuesday Folder” that goes home every Tuesday. Please remember to check it promptly for important information about school-wide events, classroom happenings, and newsletters. Thanks for making this a priority each week and for helping your student to return it to class each Monday.

Curriculum

We are excited to begin a new Common Core-aligned reading and language arts curriculum called Journeys. Students will be reading, writing, and developing their language skills using top-quality materials, lots of skills practice, and working collaboratively with peers. Bethel has also adopted a new Common Core-aligned math curriculum called Engage New York. Students will be developing their understanding of patterns, place value, addition and subtraction, time, money, measurement, geometry, and problem solving. Students will work extensively with hands-on materials and have daily timed math-fact fluency practice. This math curriculum presents concepts in new and exciting ways that will lead students to a deep understanding of these important math concepts. While some of the structures and formats may be unfamiliar at first, we believe this comprehensive and rigorous curriculum will provide your child with a solid foundation of understanding of number concepts. Along with the homework each day, the day’s in-class math work (“Problem Set” and “Sprints”) will be sent home so your child has a reference and reminder of the skills they learned in class. These practice pages do not need to be returned to class, but should be kept at home for practice! Only the homework should be returned to class.

Tips for Reading with Your Child

Helping your child become a reader is easy! Parents often worry that they are not doing the right thing. However, chances are, you are doing everything right! Just to reassure you, we’ve created a list of tips below.

Encourage your children to use the pictures! This is not cheating; it’s what good readers do!

Children learning to read should be encouraged to look at the beginning letters. Not all words can be sounded out but the first letter is a good clue to help children understand what will and will not make sense.

Have your child break the words into parts. They should look for little words they know inside of big words.

Read on. Have children skip the word they are stuck on and read to the end of the sentence. When they finish the sentence, ask them what would make sense.

Give your children vocabulary clues. If they are trying to read a new word, help them make a guess by telling them about the word.

Make sure you are giving your child just right books. Matching a book with your child is important. A child who is reading a book that is too hard will easily become frustrated and stop trying.

Most importantly….read with your child every day. Reading to your child is just as important as having your child read to you!

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“I Can” Statements and Common Core State Standards

Along with thousands of districts across the country, Bethel has implemented the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for all reading, language arts, and math instruction. These standards have been summarized into simple “I Can” statements to describe specific skills your child will be learning. Here are the “I Can” statements for each subject followed by the CCSS standard.

Reading:

I can understand how text is supposed to be read. RF.1.1 I can show that I know how books can be read. RF.1.1A I can find and point to the first word, the beginning capital letter and the ending mark in a sentence.

I can understand the sounds that letters and words make. RF.1.2 I can show that I know how words and their parts go together. RF.1.2A I can tell the difference between short and long vowel sounds when I hear a word. RF.1.2B I can put sounds together to speak words. RF.1.2C I can find and tell the beginning, middle and ending sounds in short words. RF.1.2D I can break down short words and say each sound by itself.

I can look at words and figure them out by using what I know about letters and sounds. RF.1.3 I can show what I have learned about letters and sounds by reading words. RF.1.3A I can hear and spell consonant letters that are blended together to make words. RF.1.3B I can read short words. RF.1.3C I can read words with long vowel sounds. (silent e or vowel teams) RF.1.3D I can use what I know about vowel sounds to help me figure out how many syllables are in words. RF.1.3E I can read words with two syllables. RF.1.3F I can read words that have different endings on them. RF.1.3G I can read first grade words that aren't spelled the way they sound. RF.1.4 I can read and understand books at my level well. RF.1.4A I can read and understand first grade books. RF.1.4B I can read aloud like a teacher. RF.1.4C I can stop when I am reading and fix words that I mess up or that I am not sure of.

I can read, understand and tell about fiction. RL.1.1 I can ask and answer questions about important details in stories. RL.1.2 I can retell a story I know using important details and show that I know the author is trying to teach me. RL.1.3 I can tell the characters, setting and what happens in stories. RL.1.4 I can find words in a story or poem that tell about feelings. RL.1.5 I can tell the difference between fiction and nonfiction.

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RL.1.6 I can figure out who is telling a story at different parts in the story.

RL.1.7 I can use the pictures and details in a story to tell about its characters, setting or events. RL.1.9 I can compare what happens to characters in stories. RL.1.10 I can read and understand first grade stories and poems.

I can read, understand and tell about nonfiction. RI.1.1 I can ask and answer questions about important details in nonfiction books. RI.1.2 I can tell the main topic and important details in nonfiction books. RI.1.3 I can tell how people, events or ideas are connected in nonfiction books. RI.1.4 I can ask and answer questions to help me understand new words. RI.1.5 I can understand and use all the helpful parts of nonfiction books to help me find important facts and details. RI.1.6 I can find some information from pictures and some information from the words in nonfiction books. RI.1.7 I can use the pictures and words in nonfiction books to help me tell about the main ideas. RI.1.8 I can find the reasons that an author gives to help teach about the main idea. RI.1.9 I can find things that are the same and different in two nonfiction books that teach about the same topic. RI.1.10 I can read and understand first grade nonfiction books.

Writing:

I can write different types of writing for different reasons. W.1.1 I can write my opinion about a topic and give reasons for my thinking. W.1.2 I can write to teach about a topic by giving facts about it. W.1.3 I can write to tell an organized story with details. I can make my writing better and get it ready for others to read. W.1.5 I can listen to others' ideas to help add details to my stories. W.1.6 I can use a computer or tablet to publish my writing. I can research topics with my class to help us write about them. W.1.7 I can help my class explore books and write about what we learned. W.1.8 I can use what I have learned to answer questions or I can find out the answers somewhere else.

Speaking and Listening:

I can have and understand conversations with all kinds of people. SL.1.1 I can show that I know how to have good conversations with my friends and teachers. SL.1.1A I can listen and take turns when I am having conversations. SL.1.1B I can be a part of conversations by listening to other people's comments and thinking about what to say. SL.1.1C I can ask questions during conversations to help me understand what is being shared. SL.1.2 I can ask and answer questions about things I hear and see. SL.1.3 I can ask and answer questions about what a speaker says to help me understand the person better.

© www.thecurriculumcorner.comI can share my ideas and what I have learned.

SL.1.4 I can use details when I tell about people, places and things to help others understand them better. SL.1.5 I can use drawings or other things like that to help others understand what I am talking about. SL.1.6 I can speak and share my ideas in complete sentences when I need to.

I can use proper English when I write and speak. L.1.1 I can show that I know how to use words correctly when I write and speak. L.1.1A I can print all of the upper and lowercase letters. L.1.1B I can use common, proper and possessive nouns.

L.1.1C I can use singular and plural nouns with matching verbs in my sentences. L.1.1D I can use pronouns. (I, me, my, they, them, their, anyone, everything) L.1.1E I can use verbs in the right way to tell about the past, the present and the future. L.1.1F I can use adjectives. L.1.1G I can use conjunctions. (and, but, or, so, because) L.1.1H I can use determiners. (a, the, this, that, my, many, few) L.1.1J I can use simple and compound sentences. (statements, questions, commands and exclamations) L.1.2 I can show that I know how to write sentences correctly. L.1.2A I can use capital letters in dates and also when I write people's names. L.1.2B I can use the right punctuation at the ends of my sentences. L.1.2C I can use commas when I write the date or when I make a list of things in a sentence. L.1.2D I can use sight words and spelling patterns to help me spell words correctly. L.1.2E I can use what I know about letters and their sounds to spell new words correctly.

I can figure out what words mean and use them in different situations. L.1.4 I can figure out what words mean by using the strategies I know and thinking about what I have read. L.1.4A I can use the whole sentence to help me figure out what other words in the sentence mean. L.1.4B I can use the beginnings and endings of words to help me figure out what it means. L.1.4C I can find root words with lots of different endings. L.1.5 I can figure out how words are related. I can figure out how their meanings might be alike. L.1.5A I can sort things into groups and use the names of the groups to help me understand them better. (colors, clothing) L.1.5B I can explain a word by telling how it belongs in a group. L.1.5C I can tell how words are used in real-life. (places in my house that are cozy) L.1.5D I can tell or show the difference between verbs (action words) that are almost alike. (look, peek, glance, stare, glare, scowl) L.1.5D I can tell or show the difference between adjectives (describing words) that are almost alike. (big, large, gigantic) L.1.6 I can use the new words I learn in different ways to show that I know what they mean.

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I can write and solve problems using addition and subtraction. 1.OA.A.1 I can use different strategies for addition to solve word problems. (within 20) 1.OA.A.1 I can use different strategies for subtraction to solve word problems. (within 20) 1.OA.A.2 I can solve word problems where I have to add 3 whole numbers.

I can understand and use what I know about addition and subtraction. 1.OA.B.3 I can use fact families to help me solve addition problems. (commutative) 1.OA.B.3 I can use addition facts I know well to help me solve problems where there are more than two numbers. (associative) 1.OA.B.4 I can use what I know about addition facts to help me answer subtraction fact problems.

I can add and subtract any numbers from 0 to 20. 1.OA.C.5 I can understand how counting up is like adding and counting down is like subtracting. 1.OA.C.6 I can add facts within 20. 1.OA.C.6 I can subtract facts within 20.

I can work with addition and subtraction number sentences. 1.OA.D.7 I can tell if addition or subtraction number sentences are true because I understand what an equal sign means. 1.OA.D.8 I can figure out what a missing number is in an addition or subtraction problem.

I can count up. 1.NBT.A.1 I can count up to 120 starting at any number under 120. 1.NBT.A.1 I can read and write my numbers to show how many objects are in a group. (up to 120)

I can understand place value. 1.NBT.B.2 I can tell how many tens and how many ones are in a number. 1.NBT.B.2A I can show that I know what a "ten" is. 1.NBT.B.2B I can show that any number between 11 and 19 is a group of "ten" and a certain number of ones. 1.NBT.B.2C I can show that I understand the numbers I use when I count by tens, have a certain number of tens and 0 ones. 1.NBT.B.3 I can compare two-digit numbers using <, =, and > because I understand tens and ones.

I can use what I know about place value to help me add and subtract. 1.NBT.C.4 I can use math strategies to help me solve and explain addition problems within 100. 1.NBT.C.4 I can use objects and pictures to help me solve and explain addition problems within 100. 1.NBT.C.4 I can understand that adding two-digit numbers means I add the ones and then the tens. 1.NBT.C.4 I can understand that when I add two-digit numbers, sometimes I have to make a group of ten from the ones. (regroup) © www.thecurriculumcorner.com

1.NBT.C.5 I can find 10 more or 10 less in my head. 1.NBT.C.6 I can use different strategies to subtract multiples of 10 (10-90) from numbers under 100, write the matching number sentence and explain my strategy.

I can understand length. 1.MD.A.1 I can put three objects in order from longest to shortest and compare their lengths. 1.MD.A.2 I can tell the length of an object using whole numbers. 1.MD.A.2 I can show that I understand how to measure something by using a smaller object as a measurement tool.

I can tell time. 1.MD.B.3 I can tell and write time in hours and half-hours using any kind of clock.

I can understand how information is shared using numbers. 1.MD.C.4 I can organize, show and explain number information in a way that makes sense. 1.MD.C.4 I can ask and answer questions about number information that is organized.

I can understand shapes better by using what I notice about them. 1.G.A.1 I can understand and tell about the parts that make different shapes unique. 1.G.A.1 I can build and draw shapes that have certain parts. 1.G.A.2 I can create two-dimensional shapes. (rectangles, squares, trapezoids, triangles, half-circles and quarter-circles) 1.G.A.2 I can create three-dimensional shapes. (cubes, right rectangular prisms, right circular cones and right circular cylinders) 1.G.A.2 I can use two- and three-dimensional shapes to create new shapes. 1.G.A.3 I can understand that "halves" means two equal parts and "fourths" or "quarters" means four equal parts. 1.G.A.3 I can break circles and rectangles into equal parts and use the words whole, halves, fourths, and quarters to talk about them. 1.G.A.3 I can understand that breaking circles or rectangles into more equal parts means that the parts will be smaller.

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