Week 10

It was a hectic but fun Halloween week!  The students had a ball.

Witch's brew

Halloween party

Halloween party

Halloween party craft

Witch's brew drink

student with pet pig for party

Behavior assembly with high school guests

Funny Sayings from Kids: When discussing with students there opinions as to whether or not Halloween creatures are real, one student said, “I know vampires are real because I’m half vampire.”

First graders are beginning to understand the difference between questions and comments, but they’re still learning.  I said something like, “no more questions right now.”  A girl responded, “I have a compliment, not a question.”  (She had “compliment” confused with “comment.”)

After our assembly with some high school guests outlined below, one students said admiringly, "Now I just wish I could get their autographs."

Special Activities: This week we had several special activities.  First of all, the Wacky Witch has been hiding two or three ingredients to her brew in our room during the night. In the morning students hunt for the new ingredients. (Cheetos were worms; raisins were ants; pretzels were bat wings, etc.).  On Tuesday we opened up all of the brown paper bags to reveal their contents and make a trail-mix type brew.

We also had a costume parade for Halloween where students could show off their costumes.  After that, parents did a great job of throwing a Halloween party for our class, including a pumpkin craft, games, and treats.

Lastly, students have been earning coins for proper behavior throughout the year.  They were rewarded with an assembly where high schoolers came to cheer them on and explain why proper behavior is important.  I wish you each could have seen the explosion from the crowd of students when the high schoolers came through the door.  You can tell how much they each look up to those older students and athletes.      

Academics: This week in math we focused on solidifying concepts they already know, such as adding zero and adding one. Writing this week was focused on Halloween describing your Halloween experiences using complete sentences and decent penmanship. Our reading and spelling focus was ending –ng, such as sing.  Students learned that e almost never goes with ng.  If it sounds like an “eng” sound, it is actually “ing.”     The “ing” sound is so critical for them to grasp.  In social studies, we learned about elections.  I strived to present the viewpoints of both candidates without showing favoritism.  Then we turned my computer into a voting booth, and students got to vote.  Results can be seen at www.studiesweekly.com/vote In science, we did a ghost experiment.  Students were given a ghost to cut out.  They had to figure out how to make the ghost spin on its way to the ground if you drop it from as high as possible.  They really thought like scientists and soon discovered that putting a few paperclips at the bottom of the ghost caused a really effective spin.