Welcome to grade one, 2020-2021. My name is Cynthia Batista and I am super excited to be teaching your children this year. Please see below for some information about the year.
Clothing: It is very important that students are dressed for the weather. We will often be outside in the rain or sun. In addition, we
will be outside every Friday afternoon for outdoor learning. rain or shine. If possible I would like parents to send rain gear (boots, rain pants
etc.) to leave at school for the year as well as a pair indoor runners. Please label all clothing.
Reading: There are many opportunities for the students to develop their reading skills at school and at home. At school we will often start the day with a board message where students fill in missing sounds, identify words and work with word families. There are also opportunities for shared reading where we read poems and chants to a buddy or as a whole class. The children will be starting guided reading by the end of September. This is an opportunity for small group instruction with students of a similar reading level.
At home, I will be asking you to support your child's reading development by helping with the home reading homework.
Writing: Students will participate in a number of writing activities throughout the year. They will also be introduced to different genres. Grade 1s and 2s will often be working with the same writing theme but are expected to write complete sentences adding descriptive language.
Spelling: The grade class will be starting their spelling program in October. They will receive a list of words each Monday and will be expected to do some home activities during the week. Each week will focal on a different word family as well as a few high frequency words. Grade 1 and 2s will have different sight words and be choosing word family words at their level.
Math: Early math literacy is very hands on. Manipulative materials are used to introduce and develop concepts. Following is a list of the concepts that will be introduced and or emphasized throughout the year.
-Numbers
-Patterns and Relations
-Shape and Space
-Statistics
Although the grade 1s and 2s will be working on the same concept their are different expectations and learning outcomes for each grade.
Physical Education: The children will be having their gym time outside until it its deemed safe to share equipment in the gym so we will be having our gym outside. We have started the year with kilometre club. the children will be running on Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays. For safety and comfort, students need to be wearing appropriate shoes or have shoes to change into at school. Comfortable clothing is also encouraged.
Library: The student's library day is Friday with Mrs Munro. Mrs. Munro comes to classroom, reads the children a story and does an literacy based activity. The Brooksbank librarians are currently sorting out how to have the children sign out books to take home. Stay tuned.
Music: Students will be receiving music instruction from Mrs. Swatzbach on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Theme Work: Social Studies, Science and Language Arts are incorporated in to theme work. Our first theme for September and October is Me, Governance (understanding the importance of roles and responsibilities at home and at school). I will let you know when a new theme is introduced.
Outdoor Education: On Friday afternoons from 1-3 we will be taking our learning outside . We will do a number of play based activities to support the grade one Socials and Science curriculum.
Homework Bags: Students will be bringing home a homework bag daily (when guided reading starts). Students may have a book or a Read Well sheet to read. It is very important for the students to read nightly for 10 to 15 minutes.
I hope you have found this overview helpful. If you have any concerns about the curriculum or your child's progress during the year please do not hesitate to contact me.
I am looking forward to working with you and your child and hope that together we can make this school year a very successful and exciting one.
