April Newsletter
Important Dates on Deck:
Friday, April 3rd—No School (Good Friday)
Wednesday, April 8th—1:00 Dismiss (Professional Development
Wednesday, April 22nd—1:00 Dismiss (Professional Development)
Friday, April 24th—Van Horne Elementary Spring Program, 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 25th—Keystone/Van Horne PTO Night at the Kernels Stadium
What's Happening in 1H:
Reading: We continue learning about inferencing, comparing and contrasting, and really driving home that retelling aspect of reading as well as improving overall fluency/accuracy. Looking ahead at our word work skills for the next month, your child will be learning variant vowels with -augh, -aw, -ough, and -au, as well as words with -oo and -ou like shook and could. We'll revisit the /oi/ sound and learn about soft letters c, g and silent letters.
Math: We are finishing up Topic 8 (Tens and Ones) and moving on to Topic 9 (Comparing and Ordering Numbers to 100). Soon, your child will be adding and subtracting two-digit numbers without regrouping! Now's a great time to brush up on those basic facts.
Science: We will be starting a unit on dinosaurs and fossils soon. This correlates to our Spring Program coming up on the night of April 24th. The kiddos will participate in a variety of dino-themed activities and will use a multitude of informational resources to research a dinosaur. They will also sculpt the dinosaur out of clay as a 3D model to show the class. We'll be measuring dinosaur's footprints (actual size!) and learning about what makes a fossil (and making some ourselves!) I've had a lot of students express interest in bringing in fossils from home. With your permission, that is fine :)
Spring Weather/Attire: As of right now, it's a good idea to keep boots at school until further notice. The playground can get muddy with spring rains. Keeping a lightweight sweatshirt or jacket here is also a good idea, as well as dressing in layers for cool mornings and warm afternoons!
Summer Activities/Step Up to 2nd: Mrs. Kiebach passed on some conversations she had with you at conferences, and it sounds like we'll have some interest in some summer work to keep your child going. Summer is a great time to brush up on the skills learned in first grade which will be necessary for success in second grade. I'll be sending a note home later in the month asking individual families about a "Step Up to 2nd" activity book. To cut down on paper, I'll only make these activity books for families who are interested (and this is entirely optional!) It's important to remember to let your child ride his/her bike, play in the mud, go swimming, watch a baseball game, etc., but to also do at least 15-20 minutes of sustained reading OR some sort of math activity to keep them sharp for second grade :)
Wednesday, April 8th—1:00 Dismiss (Professional Development
Wednesday, April 22nd—1:00 Dismiss (Professional Development)
Friday, April 24th—Van Horne Elementary Spring Program, 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 25th—Keystone/Van Horne PTO Night at the Kernels Stadium
What's Happening in 1H:
Reading: We continue learning about inferencing, comparing and contrasting, and really driving home that retelling aspect of reading as well as improving overall fluency/accuracy. Looking ahead at our word work skills for the next month, your child will be learning variant vowels with -augh, -aw, -ough, and -au, as well as words with -oo and -ou like shook and could. We'll revisit the /oi/ sound and learn about soft letters c, g and silent letters.
Math: We are finishing up Topic 8 (Tens and Ones) and moving on to Topic 9 (Comparing and Ordering Numbers to 100). Soon, your child will be adding and subtracting two-digit numbers without regrouping! Now's a great time to brush up on those basic facts.
Science: We will be starting a unit on dinosaurs and fossils soon. This correlates to our Spring Program coming up on the night of April 24th. The kiddos will participate in a variety of dino-themed activities and will use a multitude of informational resources to research a dinosaur. They will also sculpt the dinosaur out of clay as a 3D model to show the class. We'll be measuring dinosaur's footprints (actual size!) and learning about what makes a fossil (and making some ourselves!) I've had a lot of students express interest in bringing in fossils from home. With your permission, that is fine :)
Spring Weather/Attire: As of right now, it's a good idea to keep boots at school until further notice. The playground can get muddy with spring rains. Keeping a lightweight sweatshirt or jacket here is also a good idea, as well as dressing in layers for cool mornings and warm afternoons!
Summer Activities/Step Up to 2nd: Mrs. Kiebach passed on some conversations she had with you at conferences, and it sounds like we'll have some interest in some summer work to keep your child going. Summer is a great time to brush up on the skills learned in first grade which will be necessary for success in second grade. I'll be sending a note home later in the month asking individual families about a "Step Up to 2nd" activity book. To cut down on paper, I'll only make these activity books for families who are interested (and this is entirely optional!) It's important to remember to let your child ride his/her bike, play in the mud, go swimming, watch a baseball game, etc., but to also do at least 15-20 minutes of sustained reading OR some sort of math activity to keep them sharp for second grade :)
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