Week of March 16-20th From the Classroom This week, our learning was full of creativity, connection, and hands-on exploration across subject areas. In Literacy , students continued building their reading and writing skills through heart word practice, focusing on Column E from our classroom chart. We also explored L-blends (pl, bl, sl, fl, gl, cl), practicing how these blends help us read and write new words. Students began early story writing , sharing their ideas through simple sentences and illustrations as they grow in confidence as young authors. In Math , we used the story The Napping House as an engaging focus text. Students created glyphs to represent the people (and pets!) in their own “napping house,” using symbols to organize information. We then explored repeated addition by asking: How many feet live in YOUR napping house? This activity also connected to Social Studies , as students discussed family members, roles, and responsibilities within a household. In Scie...
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Week of March 9-13 From the Classroom We had a wonderful and busy week in our classroom filled with reading, writing, problem solving, and creativity! In literacy, students worked with the words for the week from Column C of our classroom word chart . We also focused on several letter teams and spelling patterns , including Bossy R teams, ng , qu , and ck . Students practiced reading and writing words that follow these patterns. We also reviewed the Floss Rule and the rules for Magic “e.” Students worked on identifying words that follow these patterns and practiced applying them when reading and writing. During independent reading , students continued building their reading stamina. They practiced recognizing heart words and used sounding-out strategies to decode unfamiliar words. Optional At Home Literacy Practice: In math , students worked on solving word problems and strengthening th...
Week of March 2 From the Classroom This week, our classroom learning was connected to a real-world event: the RCMP “Name the Puppy” contest. We watched a short news item about the contest, which helped bring the learning to life for the students. You can view it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRAgXQ2SOJs This activity provided an opportunity to explore important places and ideas connected to our city, province, and country, while also making links to our Social Studies, Science, Literacy, and Math curriculum. Through discussion and shared thinking, students explored how names can reflect places, communities, geography, and experiences that are important to us. As part of the activity, the class considered three possible puppy names: Bowness (“Bow”) connected to our city and gave us an opportunity to talk about local landmarks and communities in Calgary. Breeze connected to our recent learning about weather and seasonal change. Students made links to chinooks and the changin...
Week of Feb. 23 From the classroom: Literacy: Letter teams (digraphs) this week included th/sh/ch . Letter sounds associated with each letter team and locating these teams in UFLI decodable reading passages used in class throughout the week were a focus of direct instruction. This week's UFLI passages are provided below should you wish to print and practice reading/illustrating them at home with your child. Grade 1 High-Frequency Words (Sight Words / “Heart Words”) The following list includes the high-frequency words we have been/will be practicing regularly in class as part of our daily direct phonics instruction. Although not all words have been introduced yet, they will all be taught and practiced in class by the end of May. *Please refer to the accompanying classroom photo for the words students were introduced to from this list prior to this past wek. Students learn these words through many classroom activities (reading, writing, games, shared texts, word work, and daily ...
Blog week of February 16th From the Classroom This week in Literacy, students continued to strengthen their reading and word-work skills by reviewing and identifying rhyming words and exploring word families. We were also introduced to the digraph “th” through direct instruction and guided practice, helping students recognize and use this sound in their reading and writing. Alongside this, we reviewed our heart words “they” and “the,” building confidence with high-frequency words that support reading fluency and comprehension. No new heart words were introduced this week. At home practice (optional work) -Copy and complete the roll and read activity pictured. In Math, students continued to deepen their number sense by practicing number sequencing and using tally marks to collect and organize information during a class vote. Students worked with number lines and explored multiple ways of counting, including counting by 5s, by 10s, and backwards from 100. We also continued develo...
Week Ending November 7th From the Classroom Math This week, students continued to build their confidence with numbers by exploring multiple ways of counting : Counting by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s to 100 Using number lines as a tool for counting and problem solving Exploring symmetry Literacy In literacy, we continued working with heart words — words we need to know “by heart.” Our new heart words this week were: ➡️ to ➡️ you ➡️ we We also reviewed letter sounds and formation, and students are very proud to know that we have now learned all but five letters of the alphabet! After Fall Break, we will wrap up individual letter/letter sound focus and begin shifting toward blending sounds and learning about letter "teams". Science We continued our exploration of seasonal changes , focusing specifically on the weather in fall — including the snow we experienced during class time on Friday! Students observed how weather changes affect animals, plants, and people. Lots of...
Week Ending October 31st From the Classroom Literacy / Phonics Reviewed previously introduced letters and sounds. Focused on W, V, and G — identifying and printing both uppercase and lowercase . Practiced stretching out words to hear beginning, middle, and ending sounds. Introduced syllables — students practiced clapping and counting the beats in words. Explored compound words and worked on putting them together (sun + shine → sunshine) and taking them apart (snowman → snow + man). Students also completed Halloween-themed sentence writing and illustrations in their writing books. Math Practiced printing numbers accurately to 30 and counting to and from 100 using songs and chants. Identified “what comes next?” in number sequences. Were introduced to number lines and dice as tools to support counting and problem solving. Science Visited the bear habitat on Grouse Mountain via webcam. Noted that the bear den camera is now operational , a...