Hi First Grade Families! Welcome to our class website! I will send you a link to this blog each time it is updated. I update it when there is news/events taking place at our school or classroom. I hope you find it useful. Let's go green! This blog will be my main source of communication, so please be sure to check it for important classroom information. Please be sure to sign up for Skinner West's newsletter as well. You can do that here: www.skinnerwest.cps.edu/index.html
Open House: Monday, September 17, 2018
Open House will take place at two locations.
4:30 - 5:00: Branch in Room 405 for classroom information
5:00 - 5:30: Travel to Main Building
5:30 - 6:00: Main Building gymnasium for school wide information with Principal Clark.
If you are unable to make it to our Open House, no worries. I will email you all information that is presented. The Open House is for adults only, however, Mrs. Johnson will be supervising kids in the lunchroom if childcare is needed.
Walkathon: Thursday, September 27, 2018
Our annual Walkathon is on Thursday, September 27th. Our class is still in need of 5 volunteers. If you are willing and able to volunteer from 9:30 - 11:30, please let me know.
First graders will meet at the branch as usual. We will walk to the main building around 9:30am to begin our portion of the Walkathon. Students who raised $100 or more are welcome to bring their bikes or scooter! Bikes / scooters must be dropped off at the main building before school. There will be a parking spot for our classroom and volunteers to help you. Students who bring a bike or scooter must also bring a helmet.
Thank you to all of our volunteers! Each volunteer will be in charge of a small group of students from 9:30-11:30. Groups are welcome to walk around Skinner Park and explore the other options available such as water breaks, snack breaks, bouncy house, DJ booth, etc. Our class will be given a schedule for some events but otherwise you are free to roam the Walkathon area with your group.
If you are signed up to volunteer, but are now unable to join us, please let me know as soon as possible so that I can rearrange our groups.
Volunteers are free to dismiss your children after the walkathon, if you wish. Our afternoon will be reserved for much needed restful activities.
You can submit Walkathon money in the Take Home Folder or online through Friends of Skinner West. You can pay online through Chase Quick Pay or PayPal at [email protected] . If you choose to do so online, please let me know what your donation was. I will group kids in two groups, Walking Group and Bike Group. It will be helpful know what group your child should be in. All students who fundraise $100 or more can choose to bring their bike and will be placed in the Bike group. This will help me make groups and place the volunteers. Thank you for helping me stay organized!
Scholastic Book Orders:
Our first monthly Scholastic Book Order will be placed on September 24th. If you are interested in purchasing books for your child, please do so before this date. You can sign up here: clubs.scholastic.com and use our class code: NHCGY. It is always an exciting day in First Grade when our Book Box arrives in the mail! Books range from $1.00 - $20.00. The more books our classroom orders, the more books we will receive for our classroom library and for our beloved Prize Box!
Stay tuned for monthly Scholastic Book catalogues sent home with suggested books. You can also search by author or topic. Most often, book orders will be placed mid month. I will always remind you of the book order date.
Xtra Math:
Our class started using Xtra Math to build our math fluency. I suggest using it at home as well! It only takes about 5 to 10 minutes to complete and really helps build math fluency skills. I sent home your child's log in information on Friday. Please let me know if you have any questions.
This is one of many online educational programs we will use in the classroom. Soon, your child will be given login information for an I Ready account.
Take Home Folders:
Please be sure that your child brings the Take Home Folder to school each day. Please check it daily and empty it of old school work and notes. This will help your child stay more organized.
Class Dojo:
Have you joined our class on Class Dojo? I love that I can share our days with you. If you need a code to sign up, just let me know. Also.. you can always message me here if you have a quick question or comment... It works like a text message. It's a great way to communicate.
Reding Homework:
Homework will start this week! Look for it in the Take Home Folder on Monday. It is due the following Monday on 9/24/18. This week, every student will have the same homework packet. Differentiated homework will begin soon once our reading groups are created. Packets will be based on reading level. Reading passages will be different. However, phonics, comprehension and writing will be the same for each student.
Shout Out!
A gigantic thank you to our Room Parent, Shavani for completing the tedious task of compiling all of our emails. Thank you so much for your time and hard work.
Thank you all for your support during these busy first weeks of school! We have a wonderful group of kiddos, I'm looking forward to a great school year!
Please remember that I am always available at [email protected]
All the Best,
Mrs. Martin