Classroom Celebration!

Our class has been working very hard this year and I believe it is time to reward them with a celebration.  They are bursting with excitement over the holidays, yet they continue to persevere through tests and challenging work.  I am proud of my scholars and want to celebrate that!  On Friday, December 20, we will be having a little celebration in class after we finish that morning's test.  We will do a small art project and watch a movie together in class.  Since we have the school spirit day of "Cozy Day" (my personal favorite!) and scholars will already be in their pajamas, they may also bring one stuffed animal with them to watch the movie.  If you would like to send snacks for your child to share with the class that day you are welcome to.  The school birthday celebration rules do not apply to this party, you are welcome to send whatever type of food you choose, although I ask that you please do not send anything with nuts (because of allergies) and please provide the necessary serving materials such as plates, napkins, etc.

Conference Reminders

Conferences begin this Friday and last all next week.  The dismissal time has changed this year to 1:40.  If possible, please bring your child with you to their conference so they can participate in our discussion of their progress.  If they aren't able to attend it is ok, but I prefer to involve them.

Here is a reminder of which day your child has their conference.  If you need a reminder of the time, please contact me.

Mrs. Smith’s Conferences

Friday 12/13

Alex R.

Trenton

Alex L.

Vivian

Kaitlyn

Monday 12/16

Joshua

Elkan

Zechariah

Sophie

Victoria

Catherine

Benjamin

Tuesday 12/17

Ethan

Lani

Zachary

Jenny

Uy

Wednesday 12/18

Tien

Kevin

Luke

Thursday 12/19

Sarah

Clairebelle

Amy

Tyler

Hailey

Friday 12/20

Mica

Social Studies Change Over Time Project

On Friday I sent home a packet explaining your child's new social studies project.  The focus of the project is for your child to compare and contrast certain elements of the past and present.  Your child will gather information from interviewing an older person and one or more other resources, such as the internet, a book, encyclopedia, or the social studies pages from class that were also sent home in the Friday Folders.   This project is not due for over a month, but I sent it home early so that your child has time to arrange an interview with an older family member (or other adult) which I understand may take time.  Last year some of my students used face time, Skype, the phone, or even email to contact family members who still live in Vietnam or other far away places.  This is absolutely a great idea.  It's not necessary for your child to conduct the interview face to face.  The important thing is for them to make the connection that the past was "real" and understand how life has changed from the perspective of someone who actually experienced it.

The other reasons I sent this project home so early are so that your child has plenty of time to work on it without feeling rushed, and so that I can share some feedback and examples with you during conferences.  During conference week we will be dismissed from school early, at 1:40, so that I have time to meet with all 26 scholars' families.  This extra time outside of the classroom can be used by your child to work on this Change Over Time project.  All I need your child to return to me this week is the signed slip on the bottom of page 2 indicating that you are aware of the project.  I just want to make sure that all the scholars have informed their parents and there are no "surprises" at the last minute.
As I said, we will have some time to discuss any questions that you might have about the project during conferences, and I will be spending a lot of time going over all of the details with the scholars in class.

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope that all of you will enjoy this week with your families and spend some special time together.  I am very thankful for the opportunity I have to be your child's teacher.  I consider this job an important responsibility and privilege, and it is a truly rewarding and enjoyable part of my life.  I am grateful for the trust you have in me to teach your gifted child, and I am so thankful to be able to work with such thoughtful, kind, creative, talented scholars.  Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families!

Weekly wrap up 11/11-11/15

Although this week was a short week it was jam-packed with learning and fun.  Here are a few highlights:

-On Friday the scholars took the Trimester 1 final math exam.  I have just finished grading them and I am very proud of how well they all did!  I will be sending the test results home in their Friday Folders this week. This test is a good overall indication of what you can expect to see on your child's report card for math, so I know that you will all be very pleased.

-On Wednesday we had some special visitors.  Your child may have mentioned to you that some teachers came to visit our classroom.  These are teachers from our district who are looking for ways to teach their GATE-identified and highest level learners appropriately.  I was happy to have them come and see how we do things in room 8!

-On Friday we did an art project to match our turkey descriptive writing.  These will be hanging in the classroom so feel free to come in and take a peek.  Each month I save one writing & art project to use for a a special memory book that your child will have at the end of the year as a keepsake.  The turkey art will remind them of all the learning we did (and the fun that we had creating it) in November.

**Please note:  Next Friday is the last day before Thanksgiving break and there are a few different things going on that day.  We have a schoolwide spirit day, which is optional but fun.  Your scholar may dress in sports clothes to celebrate Sports Day.  These can be clothes from a favorite sports team (including hats) but please don't wear any special equipment such as soccer cleats.  This Friday we will also be taking our Reading Theme Skills Test for theme 3.  The best way to prepare your child is to make sure that they get enough sleep and eat a healthy breakfast.  Finally, believe it or not, this Friday marks the end of the first trimester.  It's hard to believe that a third of the school year has already passed!  Our year has been going very well and we will all have so much to celebrate next week during Thanksgiving break.

Weekly Wrap Up 11/4-11/8

This week the scholars really rose to the challenge of the patriotic symbols research report.  This is a chance for them to investigate a part of the social studies curriculum more in depth and create a detailed report to share what they learn.  I am grateful to my GATE colleague Mrs. Rodermund for creating this fantastic project.  They are working together in table groups to research a different patriotic symbol that was chosen by their team.  I modeled the research techniques using Mount Rushmore.  The different topics chosen by the scholars were the White House, the Bald Eagle, the Great Seal of the United States (that group was very disappointed to discover that it was not the sea animal kind of seal!), the Star Spangled Banner, the Statue of Liberty, and the American Flag.
Using books I gathered from the public library, our school library, my personal collection, and internet research that I printed out ahead of time, the scholars took notes to answer important questions about their topic.  They had to determine why their symbol was significant, who chose/selected/built it and how that process was carried out, how their symbol may have changed over time, and to describe their symbol in detail.  In addition, they gave their personal opinion about their symbol and drew a cover illustration for their report.  Here are just a small sample of those illustrations:

The scholars were truly excited about the project and dove into the research eagerly.  I know you will be very impressed when you see their final reports.  I have some fantastic pictures to display in the classroom of the scholars collaborating on their research and literally putting their heads together to find the answers to some tough research questions.  I felt extremely proud of them all!!

In addition to our social studies project, we wrapped up our unit 4 addition strategies and took our test on Friday.  I hope to send the results home next week.  This week in math we will be reviewing and taking our Trimester 1 final exam.  Overall our class is very strong in math and your child does not need to worry.  However, I do ask that they make sure to get enough sleep and eat a healthy breakfast before big tests like this one.  Here are a few examples of our work with missing addends.  Yes, 1st graders are using variables now (and not just in GATE), oh how times have changed since we were 6 years old!

Here is some of our work from language arts.  We have been using the GATE icons to "frame" a story in a larger context.  Since it's still early in the year we have been consistently using the icons for Language of the Discipline (specialized vocabulary important for that story or topic), Big Idea (the author's message, the theme, or a generalization about the story that can be supported with evidence), and Unanswered Questions (things we still want to know about the story or topic that cannot be answered by looking at the book).  Here is how the scholars applied the GATE frame to a story we read called Seasons:

In addition, we have been practicing Multiple Perspectives, one of my personal favorites.  It helps the scholars to understand that there is more than one way of looking at a topic and that different viewpoints can provide insight.  For this assignment I asked the scholars to independently choose a season and tell me what they liked about the season.  Then they took the opposite viewpoint and explained what they did not like about the season.  I also asked them to highlight their evidence words.

I hope you enjoy seeing their work as much as I do!

Free UCI GATE Webinar series

I know this is hard to view, please email me if you are interested and I can send you the information.  It's a series of 4 free webinars regarding gifted learners.  It's intended for both teachers and parents of GATE students.

Weekly Wrap Up 10/28-11/1

This was a very fun and exciting week in room 8.  I'll stick to the fun highlights for now.  The scholars had a fantastic time at the Halloween Parade, we created Eric Carle inspired leaf artwork, and we met with our big buddies to do a Thanksgiving craft.

In addition to our descriptive writing, we have been working on opinion writing and this week we incorporated a Halloween theme.  Here are some of the scholars' opinions about what my costume should be (and their reasons WHY):

These were so fun and definitely made me laugh!  I showed them to some of the other teachers and a fellow GATE teacher commented that the devil drawing was a perfect example of the content imperative "paradox."  We have some very talented little artists in room 8!

Here are a few of our other opinion writing thinking maps from this week:

Making the Eric Carle inspired leaves was a fun new project that the scholars and I enjoyed.  This week we had an "Eric Carle Reading Club" where the scholars could sit and read great books like "The Grouchy Lady Bug" and "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" while small groups met with me to create their painted paper.  Each scholar created two different pieces of painted paper with multiple layers of paint.  We also experimented with using different tools such as combs, sponges, sponge brushes, and different sized paint brushes to achieve different effects.  After our painted papers were finished, we traced leaf designs on them.  The scholars had total control over their creative design, so each leaf collage looks very different and they are all beautiful!  These will be hanging up in the classroom throughout the month of November, so here are a few sneak peeks before they eventually come home:

Please check your scholar's Friday Folder for the green conference note and their Unit 3 math test.  In addition, the PTA has announced that the "I <3 Ethan Allen" shirts have finally come in and should be distributed some time this week.  I know many of you have been wondering about this!  

Finally, I wanted to thank all of you who came to the Halloween Parade.  I know how difficult it can be to take off time from work, and your children were very excited to see so many of you there.  Baby Sebastian had a wonderful time meeting the scholars as well!

Halloween Mask Update

Dr. Heughins announced today that masks WILL now be allowed during the Halloween Parade.  Please have your child bring it in a bag so that they can put it on just before the parade begins.  Also please remember to have your child bring a change of clothes for after the parade.  We will be having some fun activities that day, but being in costumes all day long is too distracting for first graders.
The PTA sent out an email about this as well, please let me know if you have any questions.

Weekly Wrap Up October 21-25

This was a week filled with excitement!  The scholars had a lot of energy and enjoyed participating in the dress up days.  They are abuzz with excitement about Halloween, too.   Don't worry, even with all that excitement, we still managed to learn a lot this week!

We took our math unit test on Thursday covering addition strategies.  I will be sending it home in Friday Folders this week.  Overall the scholars did a great job, with 23/26 scoring 100% and those other 3 scholars missed just one question each (exactly the same as on our last unit test).  More importantly than the test scores, however, I have seen in class that the scholars all truly understand how to use the different addition strategies independently.  Understanding a concept is FAR more important to me than a test score.  Please remember that all currently scheduled test dates are posted on the calendar on this website (not quizzes, although I tend to give those on Wednesdays).

In language arts we practiced the reading strategies of recognizing story structure (characters, setting, problem, solution) and using that information to summarize stories.  We also spent time working on verbs (also referred to as "action words"), reading short u words (ex/ bug, butter), and reading aloud with expression.  Please remind your child to use expression when they read the fluency passage aloud for Tuesday night homework assignments.  That means the emotion in their voice should match the meaning of the words they read, as well as pausing at punctuation marks.  Reading slowly, word by word, similar to a robot, is NOT reading with expression and can show a lack of understanding.  Our Theme 2 reading skills test will be this Tuesday.

In writing we are continuing to work on descriptive writing, which is a big focus for 1st grade and lasts several months.  Challenge your child to describe what they see with descriptive details.  For example, if you are driving and you see a tree, ask them to tell you what the tree looks like ("I see a tall tree with a rough brown trunk and long skinny branches.  It has about 1,000 little green leaves that are blowing gently in the wind, and some are falling to the ground and landing on the long gray sidewalk.  I think a squirrel family might live in the tree because I see a large hole in the trunk").  If they reply simply "I see a tree" then prompt them with questions.  A palm tree?  A christmas tree?  A short tree?  Sometimes I tell them to pretend they are describing it to a blind person, a baby, or even an alien who has never seen a tree before.  That pushes them to use more descriptive details.  Another way to practice descriptive details that the students really enjoy is to pretend to be their "detail drawing robot."  Ask them to describe something to you and draw exactly what they say.  Limit your drawing to the bare minimum unless they provide you with more details.  They love to do this kind of activity and give directions to an adult.

In social studies we have been discussing the different ways that we honor our country and heroes, including the holidays that celebrate them such as Independence Day and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  I think you would be touched to know how many of your children said that their heroes are their parents.

Our habit of a scholar this week was to PONDER IDEAS.  We defined it as taking the time to think carefully about what you are learning or ideas that interest you.  Here are some examples the scholars came up with to show how they PONDER:

Something new that I introduced this week was the "ticket out the door" board.  My goal is to use it to wrap up the day, provide closure on the many learning activities and lessons we cover each day, and to see what stuck with each scholar.  Of course, anything with post-its is a huge hit with the scholars, and so far they are enjoying writing their notes about what they have learned.  Here are a few examples from Friday.  This is an informal tool so I won't be correcting students' spelling or grammar, which you may have also noticed on some of the work I send home.  I want them to focus on expressing their ideas and not worrying too much about their mechanics preventing them from reflecting on their learning.


 

Halloween :)

This Thursday will be our Halloween Parade and parents are welcome to join us.  Please have your child come to school in their costume (unless they don't want to dress up, which is ok).  We will go into the classroom quickly to take roll, and then head back out to the blacktop like we do for Friday Flag Ceremonies.  Parents, you should feel free (and encouraged!) to dress up too, I know how excited the scholars are to see you join in the fun.  I am hoping that Mr. Smith and Baby Sebastian will be joining us for the parade as well.

Please remember these important rules to keep costumes appropriate for school:
1.  Absolutely no toy weapons.  Even though we know they are fake it's still not allowed at school.  This includes things like swords and light sabers.
2. No blood or other gore.  Usually this isn't a problem for 1st graders but this rule is to help keep things fun rather than scary, especially when it comes to upper graders' costumes.

Please let me know if you have any questions!  Also... since I know Halloween is on a Thursday this year and your child may be celebrating with fun activities that night, they are allowed to turn their homework in EARLY this week if they want to.  They can still turn it in on Friday as usual, but I will allow them to turn it in early if they want to be able to have Thursday night free.

Smock for Art Project

I sent a note home in Friday Folders requesting that scholars bring an old shirt to serve as an artist's smock for our art project on Tuesday.  After school I found two of these letters on the ground, so here's a copy of the letter in case yours didn't make it home.

Dear Parents,

On Tuesday, Oct. 29 we will be creating painted paper.  We will use this later to create Eric Carle inspired Halloween artwork.  We will be using tempura paint which can get messy.  Please send your child to school with an old shirt or apron that they can put over their clothes in case they get paint on them.  It’s easier to get creative when we don’t have to worry about protecting our nice school clothes.

Thanks!

Mrs. Smith

This is not a requirement, just a request to help keep your child's nice clothes clean.  One of Dad or Grandpa's old shirts would work perfectly!

Red Ribbon Week and Spirit Days

We have some fun dress up days this week to celebrate red ribbon week.  Dress up days are optional, but fun!  In addition, our student council representatives, Zechariah and Lani, informed us that this Friday will also be a "Halloween shirt day."  Save your costume for the parade on October 31st, but if you have a special Halloween shirt that you would like to wear, Friday the 25th is the day!

Weekly Wrap Up Oct. 14-18

This week ended on a great note with the Ethan Allen Walk-a-thon.  It was nice to see so many parents and I know the scholars had a great time walking and running to support our school.  I was a little disappointed not to be able to walk due to my sprained ankle, but I enjoyed cheering the scholars on.  My ankle is improving daily and the scholars have done a good job "being my helpers" while I hobble around.  Thank you for all of your concern, I especially loved the cards and notes that some of the scholars made for me.

Here's a little snapshot of what we worked on this week:
-This week our Habit of a Scholar was PREPARATION.  We defined it as "being ready to learn with all tools necessary for the job."
-In math we have continued to work on addition strategies.  These strategies include using a numberline, doubles facts, ten frames, the commutative property, and counting up.  Our math unit test will be this Thursday.  I've attached some of my classroom notes so you can see what I mean by these strategies.

 

Here are some students' examples of the commutative property:

-In language arts we focused on the skills of monitoring and clarifying (asking yourself if you understand what you are reading and knowing how to make the meaning more clear when you are confused), distinguishing fantasy and realism, short e words, and nouns ("naming words").  We are continuing to work on descriptive writing.
-In social studies we learned about map skills including the cardinal directions and using legends.
-We have continued to practice explaining our answers using evidence.  The scholars are growing strong in this skill and have learned to provide evidence without prompting from me.  I added an award for "providing evidence" on Class Dojo to recognize their good habits.

Depth and Complexity Overview

I am still working on getting the icons to show up next to their descriptions, but here is an overview of the Icons of Depth and Complexity as well as how we recently applied some of the icons to the story The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.  I recorded the scholars' ideas on the chart paper as we read the story together and they recognized how different story elements could be understood better through application of the different icons.

A Brief Explanation of Kaplan’s Icons of Depth and Complexity

Dimensions of Depth
	Language of the Discipline:  Indicates identification and usage of appropriate language relative to the discipline.
	Details:  Indicates elaboration and description of an idea or event.
	Patterns:  Indicates recurring elements or repeated factors of an idea or event, as well as the order of events.  Identify & predict.
	Trends:  Indicates identification of changes throughout a period as well as the factors, influences & forces. Note causality & predict.
	Unanswered Questions:  Indicates unclear ideas & information as well as what is unknown, unexplored, unproved.  Identify & guess.
	Rules:  Indicates organizational elements relevant to curriculum.  Note order, determine relevance, organize, & identify learnings.
	Ethics:  Indicates possible rights & wrongs of an event, idea, or issue. Reflection on bias, prejudice, discrimination.  Draw conclusions, argue, and prove with evidence.
	Big Idea:  Indicates a generalization, principle, or theory about the curriculum being studied.  Identify theory, state principle.
Dimensions of Complexity
	Over Time:  Indicates a change over time where changes are identified and causality examined.  Predict, order, & sequence.
	Points of View:  Indicates multiple perspectives. Examine ideas and events from different perspectives.  Think like a . . .
	Interdisciplinary Connections:  Indicates a connection between the curriculum under study and other.  Associate, integrate, & link.