* Note anything underlined in the table above or in the notes below is a clickable link for your convenience *
Key to Abbreviations:
GP- The Gospel Project- Home Edition
TB- Singapore Math Textbook
WB- Singapore Math Workbook
MM- Mental Math (see appendix in HIG)
CCC- Complete, check, correct
AAS- All About Spelling (click here to print any missing phonogram cards)
FLL- First Language Lessons
SF- Sounds First Phonemic Awareness Program (click here and scroll down to Grade 1)
OPG- The Ordinary Parents' Guide to Teaching Reading (click here to print OPG sight words)
SotW- Story of the World
G&B/A- The Good and The Beautiful, Arthropods
G&B/MB- The Good and The Beautiful, Marine Biology (click here for textbook)
COMING SOON...
Thursday, February 15- Spirit Day- (no pizza)
Thursday, February 15- Valentine's Day party; see note below
Thursday, February 29- Spirit/Pizza/DOGS day
Dear lovely parents,
We'll be celebrating Valentine's Day with a small party on February 15th.
Students may bring valentines from home to be passed out to each classmate. We have 14 students in our class; their names are below. Students are welcome to write who each valentine is for if they wish. They do not have to leave the "to" section blank unless they prefer not to write each name.
Class list: Micah, Jacob, Spencer, Bexley, Jack, Ulysses, Gavin, Everett, Laz, Harris, Lane, Luke, Andrew, Brynley
Students will need to bring TWO containers. One is for carrying the valentines they are going to hand out. A gallon ziplock, paper bag, plastic grocery bag, etc. is good for this purpose. The second container is for collecting valentines from others. Be as creative or simple as you like in decorating this box or bag. Larger openings are preferred over small slits as they allow the kids to distribute their valentines more easily. From experience, I've found that it does not work well if kids bring their collecting box already full of what they plan to hand out. So again, please make sure they bring their own valentines in a separate bag from their collecting bag.
We'll have a short and sweet party at the end of the day where we'll exchange Valentines, read a Valentine book, and enjoy a special treat.
Math:
Lessons are beginning to ramp up again. Before you begin teaching this week, take a look at HIG pages 25-26 which provide a review of last semester's strategies. These lessons are foundational for your child's future success in the Singapore program, so please make sure their understanding is solid using manipulatives and as much reinforcement as necessary.
(Note on HIG pg 27: the first example should say "3 ones + 4 ones = 7 ones")
Don't forget, your child's binder contains a number chart through 110 as well as a place value chart to use during math lessons.
A note on Mental Math: We will be skipping MM6 and MM7, but you are encouraged to have your student complete them if the extra practice would be beneficial. MM11 is assigned on Friday to provide review of the "make 10 to add" strategy. If your child is not solid on making a 10 to add, please use additional problems from MM10 and MM12 as necessary to ensure they are quick with this strategy before we move on to using it with numbers greater than 20 next week.
Keep practicing math facts! A one-minute drill sheet (one column of mental math) is sent home at the end of each school week to be completed and returned the following Tuesday.
Flashcard Games for math facts (or phonograms!)
Reading:
While we do review the phonogram sounds in class each day, please work on these at home as often as you can with the cards or the phone app. The app is espeically great if you're busy because the children can practice independently with it. These are the building blocks for decoding words, which is so important as the students progress and start encountering unfamiliar words in their reading.
As usual, provide assistance to your student with words in The Early Reader's Bible that we haven't yet taught them to decode yet.
Decodable words in "Joseph Forgives His Brothers" (sight words in parenthesis): had, (been, which is not an OPG sight word, but we did teach the spelling in AAS), mean, to, him, they, sold, so, a, slave, but, God, took, (of), he, tell, the, king, his, dream, put, all, day, came, see, did, not, that, (was), grain, sold, them, take, home, back, told, who, (would), kill, want, do, that, I, you, (said), this, us, too
Decodable words in "Miriam is a Brave Girl" (sight words in parenthesis): the, king, did, not, like, he, to, kill, all, boys, men, must, find, (said), but, can, we, put, him, if, in, house, will, made, a, this, she, then, on, I, stay, with, (was), brave, soon, came, wash, go, get, it, me, keep, want, take, (of), ran, who, do, my, so, (could), now, thank
Read Aloud:
In addition to Aesop's Fables, this week we'll adding "Quest for the Lost Prince," by Dave and Neta Jackson to our read aloud time. This book tells the story of Samuel Morris, born prince of the Kru tribe in Liberia and raised in slavery to a neighboring tribe. After enduring brutality from his enslavers, the prince received a vision from God and escaped. Through a series of miraculous events, he made his way to the United States with the goal of becoming a missionary among his own people.
In addition to Aesop's Fables, this week we'll adding "Quest for the Lost Prince," by Dave and Neta Jackson to our read aloud time. This book tells the story of Samuel Morris, born prince of the Kru tribe in Liberia and raised in slavery to a neighboring tribe. After enduring brutality from his enslavers, the prince received a vision from God and escaped. Through a series of miraculous events, he made his way to the United States with the goal of becoming a missionary among his own people.
This is a story filled with action and adventure, and while it is written for children, the beginning of the book does deal with physical harm done to the prince. I recommend that you preivew the first couple of home day assignments so that you're aware of any passages that could be too intense for your child, particularly on page 34. You're welcome to summarize these sections by saying something simple like, "The Grebo chief hurt Kaboo's body on purpose." After chapter 3, the prince escapes his captors and the physical beatings are no longer an issue.
Writing:
Spelling:
For your reference when checking your student's work, the sentences I will dictate for Step 15 / Lesson 20 in class are as follows:
Three club members came.
Winter frost can kill plants.
The cats like to doze under the ferns.
In Step 16 we'll teach another r-controlled sound, /ar/. A common spelling mistake on these words is for students to omit the a and just write r, since the sound /ar/ is the same as the name of the letter r. If that happens, remind your student that the letter r does not say its name. It makes the sound /r/. There's also a very helpful tip in this lesson which recommends going back to the token activity on pg 23 (B&W) / pg 50 (Color) if your student is missing letters when spelling words. It's important that the children listen for each sound and then represent it with a letter or letters. Remind them that the /ar/ sound is one sound but we use two letters to spell it.
Geography:
Equatorial Africa Map and Song due 2/29
History:
The stone sculptures and friezes of ancient Greece were of such high quality that when Greek towns and cities were conquered, the stone work was often carried off as bounty. This week in class we'll try our hands at "stone" carving!
At home you'll read about the life and death of one of ancient history's most famous characters- Alexander the Great.
Discussion questions for SotW Ch. 25: Do you think Alexander was "great"? Give some examples to tell why or why not. Why did Alexander the Great choose to build cities named after himself? Was his kingdom split up peacefully after he died?
Journal sentence: Alexander the Great was the conqueror of a vast empire.
This semester's at-home history project will be announced soon!
This semester's at-home history project will be announced soon!
Science:
Moving on from general ocean information, this week we'll take an overview of marine life, discover how and why scientists group- or classify- marine animals, and how the marine food chain operates. The ocean is teeming with extraordinarily beautiful and mysterious creatures!
How countless are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
Here is the sea, vast and wide,
teeming with creatures beyond number—
living things both large and small.
Psalm 104:24-25 CSB
Journal Sentence: Bacteria, protists, fungi, plants, and animals all live in the ocean.
Memory Work:
Quarter 3 poem: A Child's Prayer will be due 2/22.
Books of the Old Testament: Genesis- Job due 2/29. Here is a link to the song we practice in class. The Old Testament will take the rest of the school year to master. This quarter we will focus on Genesis through Job. As always, if you or your child are already familiar with a different song, I'll assess that no problem, as long as the books are said in order.
