Weekly Preview December 12-16

It's almost here! We can't wait for Christmas! I understand that the children did a fantastic job singing at Jackson Hospital. Thank you so much for arranging your schedule to let your child share with others. We also enjoyed seeing the Kindergarten Christmas program and remembering what we did when we were young and in kindergarten.

We have been using the iPads and iPods in the classroom this week. I understand that some of the "giants" in the upper school would like to be back in first grade.

Please continue to count coins at home. We will add quarters to the mix next week.

The Christmas party is Thursday from 2:00-3:00. Carpool is at 11:30 Friday. Our first day back in 2012 is January 4.

Here is what we'll be learning next week:
Reading -- long u (ue, ui, ou, oo), details
Language -- nouns and verbs
Spelling -- Spelling City list 6-2
Math -- counting pennies, dimes, nickels, quarters
Science -- heat, light, and sound
Bible -- The Shepherds and the Wise Men (no memory verse--review the Christmas verses)

I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas. I am thankful for each of you and your children are treasures!
Merry Christmas!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview December 5-9

Wow! December is here and the air is filled with excitement! It seemed to happen overnight.

Thursday, December 8, is when Ahna's Angels sing at Jackson Hospital. I am conducting a vocal ensemble at my church for our Christmas drama on December 9. 10, and 11 and our dress rehearsal is that night. Christy Hale is going to line my class up and Mrs. Etheredge and Mrs. McNelley will also be there to help. I'm so sorry to miss hearing them sing. Thanks, Christy, for your help!

Grades for this nine weeks are due December 14. We are going to count the grades for that week on the next nine weeks. So next week's grades will be the last ones that will count on this report card.

Our Christmas party will be on Thursday, December 15, from 2:00-3:00. We will have early dismissal at 11:30 on Friday, December 16. Students will come back on Wednesday, January 4, 2012.

We will be counting money next week. We will count pennies, nickels, and dimes with amounts up to $1.00. If your child is having some trouble with this, you can break it down by counting nickels and pennies, then move to dimes and pennies, then mix dimes, nickels, and pennies. We will add the quarters when we come back from Christmas. This is a hard skill and practice at home every night with real coins will be very helpful!

Here is our work for next week:
Reading -- long o (oa, oe, o, ow), ABC order
Spelling -- list 6-1 on Spelling City
Language --verbs
Math -- counting money
Science -- heat, light, and sound
Bible -- Jesus is Born (memory verse Luke 2:11)

Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview November 28-December 2

Our Thanksgiving Feast was a huge success! The costumes were precious and the weather was great! Thank you to all of you who helped set up and clean up. I think the children really enjoyed it. I am thankful for each child in my class and for a wonderful group of parents!

I hope you are having a wonderful week off for Thanksgiving. I'm enjoying spending time with my family. My daughter has been accepted to a graduate program with Iowa State. She will be moving home after Christmas and she'll be doing her clinical rotations for her dietetic internship here and in Auburn from January to June. It's very exciting and we have lots to do!

I asked the children to take all jackets and sweaters home over the holiday to be washed. Please double check the names and make sure your child has his or her own jacket. Since they all look alike, some may have accidentally gone home with the wrong owners!

Here is what we'll be working on when we get back:
Reading -- long i (ie, ign, ild, igh), cause/effect, contractions
Spelling -- list 5-3 on Spelling City
Math -- mixed practice (addition/subtraction facts to 12)
Language -- verbs
Social Studies --maps and globes
Bible -- An Angel Visits Mary, Zacharias, and Joseph (memory verse Luke 2:7)

Happy Thanksgiving!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview November 14-18

Thanksgiving is here! We will have our feast at 10:30 Friday. We are planning to have it outside near the concession stands. If the weather does not cooperate, we will move inside to the New Gym lobby. We need to be dressed in our Pilgrim or Indian costumes. We will be learning Psalm 100 this week to say before our feast. Parents are welcome to attend and take pictures. (I hear that a special feathered friend may even make an appearance!)

I hope you have had a nice long weekend. Remember that we will be out of school the whole week of Thanksgiving. Please go ahead and mark December 8 on your calendar. Ahna's Angels will be singing at Jackson Hospital after school. Mrs. Ahna will be sending home details soon.

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- long e (ee, ea), generalizations
Language -- Thanksgiving activities
Math -- subtraction from 12
Social Studies -- maps, Thanksgiving
Spelling -- list 5-2 on Spelling City (long e)
Bible -- Psalm 100

I am thankful for you!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview November 7-11

It's already mid-term! Please look for the mid-term progress reports in the red folder Monday.

I sent the spelling words home Friday since we will not be in school next Friday, November 11. We will have the practice test Wednesday and the test Thursday. The spelling words are on Spelling City as list 5-1.

I have added IXL Math to the links on my blog, next to Spelling City and Starfall. I will send home a letter in the red folder Monday that has your child's username and password. We went to this site in computer this week so the children are familiar with it. You can use this at home as excellent math practice.

Thanksgiving is approaching! We will dress as Pilgrims or Indians on November 18 for our feast. We will be out of school the entire week of Thanksgiving.

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- long a (ai, ay, a_e), compare/contrast
Spelling -- long a (list 5-1)
Language -- pronouns
Math -- addition practice to 12, 3 addends
Social Studies -- maps, Thanksgiving
Bible -- obeying God (memory verse Proverbs 3:5-6)

Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview October 31-November 4

Thank you so much for a great conference day. I really appreciate everyone coming. I hope it was helpful to you.

I told several parents that we will begin IXL soon. This is a math program that your child can do on the computer at home to practice math facts. I will be sending you a letter with your child's name and password and you can get started. I also had a suggestion today about putting spelling words on SpellingCity.com. I put next week's words on there today and your child can play several different games and even take a test on the computer. You can put in my name and find them under lesson 4-3.

I saw a big improvement in the real Daily Edit grades this week compared to the practice last week! I will not be sending home a math grade Monday because we did lots of hands-on place value practice this week and we won't get to the graded work until next week. They had a blast doing the math rotations!

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- e on the end (silent e makes the vowel say its name), more shortcuts (ing, ang, ong, ung, ink, ank, onk, unk), sequencing
Language -- special nouns
Math -- place value, greater than, less than
Science -- finish liquids
Social Studies -- communities
Bible -- Josiah reads God's Word (memory verse Proverbs 3:6)

Stay warm this weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview October 24-28

What a great Homecoming Week! Thanks for all of your help getting us dressed up for each day! It was so much fun, and the weather for the parade and picnic was perfect!

Since next week is a four day week for the students, I sent the spelling words home Thursday. We will take the practice test Wednesday and the test Thursday.

This week we did our first week of Daily Edit in language. Each day, I give them one sentence and read it to them. I tell them how many mistake are in the sentence, but not the type of mistake. There may be mistakes in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, or spacing. They write the sentence correctly and I take the papers up. Then we go over the sentence together and correct it on the SmartBoard. They know immediately if they got it correct. I go through the sentences before the next day and correct the mistakes in red ink. If they wrote the sentence correctly I put a little smile face at the end. When they get the papers back the next day, they see where I marked their answers, but they can't change anything on the previous day's sentence. The five sentences for the week will count as one daily grade in language and will come home in the signed papers. This week was a practice and did not count as a grade, but I will send it home Monday so you can see what I'm talking about. I marked it as though it counted so you can see what the grade would have been, but I wrote PRACTICE in big letters so you'll know it didn't count as a grade this week.

I look forward to seeing you on conference day. I have several things to give you as we look at your child's progress. I'm booked close together during the day. If my door is closed, just wait out in the hall and I'll get to you as soon as my other conference is over. I'll be very sensitive to the 15 minutes so you won't have to wait very long. Thank you in advance for your help in all that you do to help your child learn at school.

Here is our work for next week:
Reading -- "bossy" r (ar, or, er, ir ur), evaluate, compare/contrast
Math --place value
Language -- nouns
Science -- liquids
Bible -- Josiah the Boy King (memory verse Proverbs 3:5)

Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview October 17-21

I was so proud of Ahna's Angels today! Thank you for your presence. We had a terrific crowd. They LOVED the bus ride, too!

Next week is HOMECOMING! We have special days each day next week, so here is a brief description of what each day will bring:
Monday --Crayon Day: Dress in one color from top to bottom.
Tuesday -- Book Character Day: Dress as your favorite character from your favorite book.
Wednesday --Wear your regular uniform, but you can have crazy hair or a crazy hat to make yourself unique.
Thursday --College Day: Wear uniform bottoms and your favorite college T-shirt.
Friday -- Homecoming Spirit Day: Wear your Homecoming T-shirt or any Trinity shirt with long jeans or uniform bottoms, and wear uniform shoes.

The Homecoming parade will be at 11:15 Friday. After the parade, we will come in the room to vote for our favorite float, then we will be dismissed for lunch with our parents. If you want to order the Wildcat lunch, please send your form by Tuesday, October 18. Sage will not be serving lunch that day, so you will need to bring your own lunch if you don't order for our picnic. We will be dismissed from the picnic. Parents can get their child from my room and I will check you out as we leave for lunch. We will sit in the picnic area to eat, but you won't have to go back to my room. We will not need backpacks Friday.

Now, during the midst of all this hoopla, we will be learning! Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- 2 for 1's (sh, ch, th, wh), drawing conclusions
Language -- telling sentences and asking sentences (We will be starting our Daily Edit next week. It will not count as a grade yet. More to come....)
Math -- fact families, ordinal numbers
Science -- liquids
Bible -- Joseph (no new memory verse--we will review our previous memory verses)

Happy weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview October 10-14

Wow! The first nine weeks is over! Report cards will go home Thursday afternoon. Please sign and return the report card in the envelope.

I will send home a lunch order form for Homecoming in the folders Tuesday. Please return it if you would like to eat lunch after the Homecoming parade.

Remember that Holiday Market is Thursday and your child needs to wear the Ahna's Angels outfit.

Monday is a holiday! I sent home the spelling words for next week in their blue folders today so you can get a head start on them.

Here is what we'll be doing next week:
Reading -- more shortcuts (ack, eck, ick, ock, uck), classify and categorize
Language -- telling and asking sentences
Math -- subtraction facts to 10
Science -- solids
Bible -- Jacob (memory verse Genesis 28:15)

I've experienced some technical difficulties trying to export my very cute zoo slideshow to my blog. Bummer. Several people have tried to help, but so far it's still not working. I will try it another way and you may just have to sing "You've Got a Friend in Me" while you watch it. It will still make you smile. The children loved it when they saw it on the SmartBoard. Hope to have it to you this weekend.

Have a nice LONG weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview October 3-7

We had another busy week! Johnny Appleseed's birthday was fun and the zoo field trip was fantastic! We couldn't have asked for better weather! It looked like our dads were having as much fun as the children! I took lots of pictures and I hope to have a slide show for you soon.

Here are some important dates in October:
-This is the last week of the first grading period. Report cards will go home October 13.
-We will be out of school Monday, October 10.
-Homecoming Week is October 17-21. We will have early dismissal on Friday, October 21.
-Parent Conference Day is Friday, October 28. Children will not be in school that day. I will let you know more soon.
-Ahna's Angels will sing at Holiday Market at noon on Thursday, October 13. We will not need drivers because we will be riding chartered buses. Boys need LONG khaki pants and a navy shirt. Girls need the blue jumper and white blouse. Anyone who comes to hear our angels will need a ticket to Holiday Market. They can be purchased ahead for $5.00 from any Junior League member, from the Junior League website, or at River Bank and Trust. Tickets are $10.00 at the door. We will have a regular day of school after we sing, but you can stay and shop!

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- shortcuts (an, en, in, on, un), adding -ed and -ing endings, possessives, predicting
Language -- animal reports
Math -- subtraction from 10
Science -- solids and liquids (This will be our first FOSS kit of the year. It's a great hands-on program!)
Bible -- Abraham (memory verse Genesis 12:2)

Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy this fall weather!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview September 26-30

We had a fun Fall Festival today! I'm so glad the sun came out! Steamy is better than soggy for a Fall Festival.

We will celebrate Johnny Appleseed's birthday Monday. Please remember to bring an apple Monday if you didn't bring one today.

Our field trip to the zoo is Friday. We will wear uniforms because it will still be a regular school day. Dads, we would like to leave about 8:40. We will be back in time for lunch in the room around 11:00. Dads will be able to go back to work. We will still do Bible verse and spelling test and other activities that day.

Here is our work for next week:
Reading -- clusters with l, s, and r (ex. sl, bl, tr, gr, sn, fl, cl, dr, tr) and main idea/details
Language -- We will be authors and illustrators for a special project!
Math -- addition strategies to 10
Science -- animals
Bible -- Noah (memory verse Genesis 9:11c)
We have also been working on a monthly theme for September. We have done lots of activities with apples and we will finish this theme this week.

Have a great weekend! Go Wildcats!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview September 19-23

Our reading groups went very smoothly. It was a great first week of groups! We also started our math notebooks this week. We do calendar activities every day, but we have added a notebook to record information. The children are enjoying this excellent learning tool.

In the red folders Monday you will find a form to help us plan for this Friday's Fall Festival and next Friday's zoo field trip. You can also go ahead and put October 13 on the calendar. Ahna's Angels will be singing at noon at the Holiday Market that day.

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- short vowel review, story structure
Math -- addition strategies (counting on, using doubles)
Language -- asking sentences
Science -- animals
Bible -- Rules (memory verse Ephesians 6:1-3)

Enjoy our little "cool snap" this weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview September 12-16

We are going to start our small reading group rotations this week! This will be lots of fun for the children and it allows me to work with them on specific skills and reading strategies. They will also have time to work independently and in small peer groups. It looks like a three-ring circus, but it is very effective.

I will be sending home the mid-term progress reports in the red folder Monday. It's hard to believe that we are already halfway to the first report card! It does not need to be signed and returned.

Here are our skills for next week:
Reading -- short u, story structure
Math -- skip counting, graphs, fact families
Language -- telling sentences
Science -- animals
Bible -- Work (memory verse Ephesians 6:1-2)

Have a nice weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview September 5-9

We have a short week next week so I am going to send home next week's spelling words in the blue folders Friday so you can go ahead and get started on them if you have a chance. They are doing FANTASTIC on the spelling words and I think they're excited about knowing how to spell that big, long word!

We will be out for Labor Day Monday. Our Fall Festival is scheduled for Friday afternoon, September 23. Our daddy field trip to the zoo is Friday morning, September 30. I'll send more details later.

Thanks for the great response to the book order! I can gets LOTS of books for our classroom library! I will send it off this weekend and it should be in very soon!

Next week we will be working on:
Reading -- short o, consonants d, w, l, x
Math -- subtraction from 10
Language -- sentences
Science -- animals
Bible -- God Makes Man (memory verse Ephesians 6:2)

Have a wonderful and safe long weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview August 29-September 2

We are settling in to our routines very nicely. Thanks for helping us with homework!

We had our first STAR test this week. I will send the report home Monday in the red folder. The children have library slips that they can use to help them find an appropriate book on their reading level. I used this first STAR test as a springboard to start them off and I will "kick it up a notch" as needed. I want each child to have at least one AR book to read independently, but most of the STAR reports also suggest that the children be read to daily at school and at home. I am reading to them every day and it is still so beneficial for you to model good reading for them at home.

We will have individual pictures made Wednesday. We will be out for the Labor Day holiday on September 5.

Here is what we'll be working on next week:
Reading -- short i, consonants b, r, h, g
Math -- subtraction from 6
Language -- rhyming words
Social Studies -- My School
Bible -- God Makes Animals (memory verse Ephesians 6:1)

Happy weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview August 22-26

Our first full week of school was very busy! We have now been to all of our specialists. There is one change from the specialist schedule I gave you last week. We will now go to Science Lab on Mondays and we will go to Library on Fridays. We will start this schedule on August 22, so I will make sure the children get to go to the library early in the week so they can get another library book.

We plan to take the STAR test Tuesday. I will send home the report in next week's red folder. We took an AR test together on the laptops this week. The children are wanting to take LOTS of tests, but it is a slow process right now. It will be better after we have the information from the STAR test so each child can choose books on his/her reading level. We will get in our "groove" very soon!

In this week's red folder, you will find a brochure from the library. There is lots of information you can use. I am not going to continue sending hard copies of the AR reports like I did this week. I want to encourage you to sign up for AR Home Connect. The website is www.trinitywildcatroar.pbworks.com. Then click on the Home Connect icon which is a big apple. You will need to use your child's username and password to check test scores and points. I will include this in the folder.

Here is what we will be learning:
Reading -- short e, consonants n, f, p
Math --addition to 8
Language -- following directions
Social Studies -- My School
Bible -- Creation (memory verse Genesis 1:31)
We will also have our first chapel Thursday!

Hope you have a great weekend!
Mrs. Morrison

Weekly Preview August 15-19

We had a great first week of school. We went to P.E., Spanish, Science Lab, and LUNCH! I've slept like a rock every night since school started. Your children have probably been tired, too. They have been wonderful. I'm excited about the year.

We will go to the library for the first time Monday. I have not given the STAR test to determine AR level, but it will be soon. I'll tell you more about AR after we have taken the test.

I am still fine-tuning my schedule, but here are the days we will have specialists:

P.E. --every day

Library -- Monday

Music -- Monday and Wednesday

Spanish -- Wednesday and Thursday

Science Lab -- Friday

Computer will not be a separate class, but will be integrated into the curriculum. We will use the Apple Cart in the classroom and the computer room in the new library.

Please look for the red weekly folder to come home Monday. We have a homework packet for next week! Here is what we will be working on:

Reading --short a words, consonants m, s, t, c

Math --addition to 6

Language --classifying

Social Studies --manners and safety

Bible -- Creation (memory verse Genesis 1:1)

Have a restful weekend!

Open House

Parents, I really enjoyed meeting you at Open House! There was so much to say and only a little time, so of course I forgot to tell you a few things.

When we talked about snacks, I forgot to let you know that your child just brings his/her own snack each day. In kindergarten they had snack buckets for the whole class, but in first grade you just send snack for your own child each day.

If your child's chair pack was not here today, Mrs. Hastey will get it to my class as soon as she can. She will probably have them all finished in a day or two.

I can't wait to meet your child Wednesday! Thanks for coming out in the rain tonight!

Welcome to First Grade!

Welcome to first grade! It's going to be an exciting year!

Supply boxes will be available for you to pick up in the Science Lab August 1-5. The school will be open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and there will be a sign-out sheet in the office. I will go ahead and get folders, tissues, wipes, and paper towels out and have them in my room. You may bring the supplies to our Open House or you may bring them the first day of school.

P.T.O. Open House will be August 8th at 6:00. We will have our general meeting in Willett Hall at 6:00. My meeting will be 6:30-7:15 in my room. I have a handbook to go over with parents and we will have sign-up sheets for room mother activities and events. There will be time for you to attend other classrooms and to see our new building.

The first day for students is August 10. We will have a half day, 8:00-11:30. You are welcome to walk your child in that first day and take pictures. Thursday is our first regular day, complete with lunch in the lunchroom!

I am looking forward to a great year! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. My email address is cmorrison@trinitywildcats.com.