Hello!

Wow!  What a busy week we've had!  Practicing for our play, hosting our Mystery Reader, making shell observations in STEM, visiting the Children's Museum and enjoying Field Day...whew!

Next week we'll prepare for our Learning Celebration, work on our memory books, learn about the Windham Public Library's Summer Reading program, and celebrate our first grade year on Friday!  We hope you will be able to attend!

Thank you to our volunteers for the field trip and Field Day! :)

Ms. Kris Grant, former Windham PE teacher and 

WPS Assistant Principal, was our Mystery Reader!

We had a blast at the Children's Museum!

What a beautiful day for Field Day!

Have a fantastic weekend!  My niece is graduating from high school and I will be spending time here at school, but I am hoping to get out and enjoy the gorgeous weather forecast!  I hope you get to relax and recharge too. :)

Becca

Happy June (almost)!

I just can't believe how quickly this year has flown by!  We've been very busy during this short week -practicing for our play, finishing up assessments, and completing our ocean animal research.  Our field trip will be next Thursday, and Field Day on Friday will round out our week.

Mr. Bill Hansen, the RSU#14 Facilities Director, was our 

Mystery Reader last week!

Miss Hayden Thomas, a senior at Freeport High School, spent the month of May 

in our classroom for her senior capstone project!  She will be majoring in 

Elementary Education when she starts college this fall.

The book order should be here next week!

Green folders are due on Monday.

Sharing will be next Friday, June 7.

The Learning Celebration will be on Friday, June 14 at 2PM in the cafeteria.  We'll be performing our class play and showing our Ocean Animal research and related work.

Have a great weekend!

Becca

Hello!
      I think the "April" showers decided to be fashionably late this year!  Hopefully we'll get some sunny days soon!
      We've been busy here in first grade!  We had a blast at our Race for the Community and then the Community Day assembly, went up to the Art Show and saw our pieces on display, learned more about careers in Junior Achievement, and had a lesson about Optimism with Mrs. Patch!  We also started our Ocean Life unit and have been working with nonfiction texts.  Rehearsals for our play have started, too.  Lots going on!
       Thank you to everyone who has returned their field trip permission slips!  I attached the slip to the group email in case your family needs another copy.  If we could get those back on Monday, that would be great, as the office needs to write a check to the Museum.  Thanks! I am also sending home a form for chaperones that needs to be turned in if you plan to dismiss your child from the Museum. Kids participating in the field trip must travel to the museum on the bus to be considered present.
       Thank you as well for helping your child find a plain black, long-sleeved shirt and black pants for the show!  Those are due at school on June 10. Sweats/tees/leggings are perfectly fine. :)
        Be sure to check out our other Upcoming Events!
        Have a great weekend! My play is in its second weekend, so I will be busy with that and the Maine Education Association Representative Assembly. I hope you get to enjoy some fun too. 🙂

 

Race for the Community!

The first graders at WPS raised almost $2K for the Windham Fire Department!

(Sorry for the terrible pic-I took it on my phone :/ )

We were proud to see our polar bears in the Art Show!

Hello!

I hope the kids had a great vacation!  We came back from our break ready to learn about fractions, take our fiction writing even further, and begin our Ocean Life unit.  We also started being able to earn "Bee Tickets" for quality work and outstanding citizenship!  

We had some special guests this week!  

We played a fun game about Needs and Wants with Mrs. Stephen during Junior Achievement!

Firefighter/Paramedic Mike read us a story!

Kathy from the MSSPA came to talk with us about caring for animals, both at our house and at the Society:

We began learning about fractions in Math!

Next week will be the WPS BOGO Book Fair!  There is a flyer in this week's Eagle News.

The WPS Color Run will take place on Sunday!

There is a permission slip for our June 6 field trip to the Children's Museum.  If you or another adult from your family plan to chaperone, please be sure to submit a volunteer form ASAP (if you haven't already completed one for this school year).

We'll also be planning a First Grade Field Day for June 7 (rain date: June 1-I'll send more info as soon as we have sorted out details.

Be sure to check out the blog for more upcoming events!

Have a great weekend!  I'm rehearsing and building sets for the play, doing some yard work (finally!), and planning for the last 35 days of first grade!  

Becca

Happy Vacation, everyone!

We had a number of fun activities this week-STEM, Mrs. Becker's visit to talk with us about weather and the water cycle, Pajama Day, reading and watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...on top of the unexpected return of snow, it was a pretty exciting week!

When we return from break-on Earth Day!-we'll be learning about the environment and ecology.  Then, our last big thematic unit of the year will be Ocean Life!  We're really excited to do some work with both fiction and nonfiction!

Mrs. Becker helped us make clouds and snow during her visit!

Be sure to check out the Upcoming Events-there are many exciting things happening in our classroom and school in the coming weeks!

I wish all my young friends a wonderful vacation!  I've traveled a lot in the last few months, so I'm looking forward to spending some time at home, with one quick to trip to Augusta on Wednesday to meet with legislators and educators from across the state.  I hope you all get to have some quality time and fun together too.

:)

Becca

Hello, everyone!

Spring is trying to arrive-hopefully we'll have some warmer temperatures to prove it soon! :)  We had a great week here in first grade as we worked on measurement, writing realistic fiction, reading and thinking about springtime and caring for the Earth, and doing a STEM experiment to help us learn about how sap flows in maple trees.

Mrs. Burns was our Mystery Reader!

We had our first Junior Achievement lesson!

We wrote some great lab reports about our STEM activity!  Check them out in our Eagle News!

We really enjoyed attending the Kinderconzert on Tuesday!  

The featured instruments were the woodwinds.

Our calendar is starting to fill up as the end of first grade approaches.  Be sure to check out the Upcoming Events here on the blog!

Mrs. Stephen, former WPS principal, will be joining us on Fridays for the next few weeks for Junior Achievement!

Book orders have been submitted! :) We will have one more book order in May.

Just a reminder-there is no school on Friday, April 12th-it is a teacher work day.

Our first Mileage Club run will be on Thursday, weather permitting.  Please help us remember to wear shoes that are good for walking and running on the track.

It looks like the weather will be nice this weekend!  My daughter, who teaches biology, and I will be  attending a teachers' conference tomorrow.  I also have some spring DIY projects I need to finish before vacation.  I hope you all have a fun and productive weekend too!

:)

Becca

Hello!  Welcome to April (almost)!

     We finished out March with a new writing focus (Realistic Fiction), a new math unit (Measurement) new reading levels for several of us, and other fun activities!

Thank you for being a terrific audience for our concert on Monday!  I included photos of both the rehearsal and the performance, as a few friends had commitments elsewhere Monday evening:

          

Our STEM activity this week: thinking about how much condensation a cloud can hold before precipitation happens.  We put 10 drops of "condensation" in the first cup, 15 in the second, and 20 in the third.  The 2nd and 3rd cups showed "precipitation" right away, but amazingly our first cup STILL hasn't "rained"-since 11:55 Wednesday morning!

We were excited to have Mr. Howell, Assistant Superintendent, return as our Mystery Reader!  He was our first guest reader this year and has been hoping to come back and see how much we've grown and learned!

We are enjoying our new Realistic Fiction writing focus!

We'll be walking up to the High School on Tuesday morning to see the PSO Kinderconzert!  Please help us wear appropriate shoes for a walk.

Just a reminder that there is no school on Friday, April 12-it is a teacher work day.

Green homework folders with menus and calendars are due on Monday.
Reading folders and books are due on Monday.
Eagle News is due on Monday.
Library books are due on Thursday.

Thank you also for sending a snack, or helping your child remember to bring one every day, including any needed utensils. :)

The current last day of school is Monday, June 17th.

Be sure to check the Upcoming Events, especially as we move toward the end of the year...things will be very busy at school and at home, I'm sure!

Enjoy your weekend!  I have to be in Augusta tomorrow and most of Sunday for the MEA Board of Directors, but am hoping to squeeze in some spring cleaning and time with family and friends.  I hope you have a great time, whatever your plans!

Becca

Hooray!  It's officially SPRING!

     We had a great week!  To celebrate the new season, we created wycinanki, a Polish paper-cutting project!  They're really fun and the kids made some awesome examples of this traditional craft:

We also enjoyed meeting our next Mystery Reader, Giovanna Bechard!  She is the Communications Director for the Maine Education Association and a friend of Mrs. Cole's.  She shared a great Mo Willems book and talked about her job and family.

To cap off our exciting week, we shared our 120 Museum and our Poetry Reading with lots of friends and family members!  Thank you to everyone who helped us with our projects, our poems, and our performance!

Just a reminder that our concert will take place on Monday night!  Please be at the high school no later than 6:15 so that I can help your child find his or her spot on the risers.  I can't believe it's time for the spring concert already!

We'll be walking up to the high school in the morning to practice, so thank you in advance for helping us wear walking-friendly shoes. :)

Looking ahead: please mark your calendar for Friday, April 12-it will be a teacher work day, so there is no school for students.

Have an awesome weekend!  I will be attending a baby shower and visiting some extended family in Bethel.  I hope you get to enjoy some great family time too!

Becca

Happy almost-Spring!
       It was a great week in first grade!  We tracked the first finishers in the Iditarod, read several books related to St. Patrick's Day, and began studying the weather by creating a water cycle map!  Our guest reader was Mr. Tom Nash, the director of RSU14 Adult Ed.  We loved his reading of Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs!

Be sure to sign up for a conference time in PTCFast.  The link is here, or you can access it from the WPS web page.  https://wps.rsu14.org/apps/news/article/1006199  If the dates/times don't work for you, let me know and we can find another option.  After 3/22 I will better know my early evening availability for the next few weeks.

Spring pictures will be taken next week!  A flyer went home in Eagle News last week, and it's noted in the Upcoming Events tab here on the blog.

Have a great weekend!  I'm at the airport on my way to the NEA Leadership Summit in Denver.  I hope you all have some interesting adventures too!

Becca

Happy Friday!

 I hope everyone has had a great week!  We packed a lot into just a few days!  We've been working on comprehension/retelling strategies, wrapping up our opinion writing, practicing our poems, following the Iditarod, and finishing up our work in Geometry!  Next week we'll be doing some more exploration about the weather, working with coins, learning some more poems, and beginning some narrative writing.

Our Mystery Reader this week was Dr. Hal Cohen!  He is a general practitioner and a theater friend of Mr. and Mrs. Cole.

These are our Poem Pockets!  Thank you for helping us practice our poems at home!  Our Poetry Reading will take place on Friday, March 22nd at 2PM.  We'll view our 120 Museum in our classroom first, then go to the cafeteria to recite our class poems and then break into small ensembles to share our individual poems.

We have had a blast following the mushers' progress in the Iditarod!

Just a reminder that book orders were due today! :)
Also, there is no school for students next Friday-it is a teachers' workshop day.

Parent-teacher conferences have been launched in PTCFast.  If your child has had recently, or will soon have an IEP meeting, that may be used as the conference if you wish.  If none of the dates and times listed work for you, we can find a different one.  I will know my further availability better after March 22. 

We're busy practicing our songs for the First Grade Spring Concert!  Please be at WHS by 6:15 so that we can help the kids find their spots and I can take a group photo.  I will find out at our rehearsal that morning where our class will be standing, and will send home an email that afternoon to let you know. :) https://wps.rsu14.org/apps/news/article/1006199

Spring pictures will be taken on Thursday the 21st- a flyer went home in Eagle News today.

Have a terrific weekend!  I'm going to spend some time with my family, visit my horse, and pack for my next NEA work session in Denver next weekend.  I hope you all have some wonderful time together.

:)
Becca

Hello!
Just a couple of weeks until Spring!
I hope the kids enjoyed their vacation!  Our flight home on Sunday was delayed, so it was a very short night but I was excited to get back to our classroom and hear all about everyone's adventures!
Kola enjoyed the NEA conference, but he had more fun on a chilly day at Myrtle Beach.  Can you spot his new friend in the background?

We've been enjoying our geometry work, opinion writing, and work with retelling/sequencing stories!  We're also practicing skip counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s to 120!

Valentine's Day was a fun afternoon!



Poems/Poetry Reading: Thank you for helping us bring in our poems!  We'll host our Poetry Reading and 120 Museum on Friday, March 22nd at 2:00PM in the cafeteria.  Friends and family are invited to attend!  The children will recite some poems we're learning as a class, then stand in groups around the room and take turns reciting their poems.  The audience will travel to each group at their leisure.  This will give the kids multiple opportunities to share their poems, and they won't have to stand alone in front of a big crowd. :)

120th Day Museum: If your child's 120 Art Project is large or fragile, you can bring it with you to the event vs. sending it in ahead of time.

Book orders are going home today; please submit online and paper orders by March 8.

Basket Raffle: Classes will be creating baskets for the annual Basket Raffle!  Our class is creating a Movie Night basket.  I already have the basket, so we just need donations of items that could be enjoyed on a Movie Night.

The Iditarod sled dog race will start tomorrow in Alaska!  We'll be tracking the mushers' progress and learning about the origin of this race.

Thanks for checking out the Upcoming Events list!

Enjoy your weekend!  I have a committee meeting in Augusta all day tomorrow, but am looking forward to some snowshoeing on Sunday.  I hope you all find something special to do too!
Becca

Hello!
It felt quite springlike this week!  I hope we get a few more days like that soon!

We've been working hard this week-learning how to write reviews, comparing and contrasting books using a Venn diagram, starting our geometry unit, and learning about Acceptance with Mrs. Patch.  We'll continue all of this great work next week!

Our Mystery Reader this week was Mr. Michael Tooher!  He is the president of Mrs. Cole's theater club, but he is also a consultant who helps people with pyrotechnic special effects for concerts, films, tv shows, and other productions.  He specializes in the safety aspects of SFX.  Quite a cool job!

I sent an email on Monday with a list of our first names for children who would like to bring in valentines.  We can't distribute valentines that have candy/other food attached.

Nearly everyone has read 100 books!  Don't forget to tally and return those reading calendars!  February break is a great time to catch up :)

Don't forget to find a poem for your Poem Pocket!  The criteria are on a sheet in the green Homework Folder.  If your child didn't return a homework folder yet, I am sending the criteria in today's Eagle News.

Here are some pictures of our math work this week-we are having fun and learning a lot about shape attributes and spatial relationships.

Thank you for all of the donations for the 100 Day Food Drive!  We contributed 2 bags of personal care items!  Outstanding!

Monday will be the 100th Day of School!  We will do some 100th day activities, but our big celebration will be on the 120th day in March! 😄

Thank you for helping us make sure that we have a snack and a pair of gloves or mittens each day...

I'm going to help build the set for Biddeford City Theater's next show tomorrow, then spend Sunday preparing for my conference in North Carolina.  I hope you have a fun weekend with family and friends!  It sounds like several of the kids will be attending the Father-Daughter Dance! Enjoy!
Becca

Happy Groundhog Day!  I sure hope he doesn't see his shadow tomorrow!

We wrapped up our polar animals theme this week by learning more about penguins!  We also estimated with penguin erasers, read books about how snowflakes form, and reviewed the parts of a complete sentence.  We compared the work we did at the beginning of first grade with our writing now-what a difference!

Our Mystery Reader last week was Mr. Bowker!  He is an IT specialist for a company that helps people get loans for houses, cars, and other large purchases.  We had a lot of great questions for him about his job!

In February we'll be learning more about poetry, dental health, and geometry!  We'll have a Project Day on February 13, and next week the green Homework folder will have a sheet explaining homework for the month of February, which will be a little different from the usual menu... 😄

Thanks in advance for sending back reading folders, Eagle News, and the green homework folder with the menu/calendar on Monday!

Thank you for returning library books yesterday!  Almost everyone brought their books back!

Thanks for having kids finish their home breakfast before coming the classroom. :)

It was a pleasant 60 degrees in New Orleans last weekend!  I am ready for some spring temperatures here, too!  Darla enjoyed our visit and the Leadership Conference.  In two weeks, it will be Kola's turn to join me as I travel to Raleigh, NC for a Leaders for Just Schools conference, also with the NEA.  This weekend, I will be in Augusta for a two-day MEA Board of Directors meeting...I'll also sneak in a trip to Barnes and Noble :) . I can't wait to find some new books to share with my young friends!  Whatever your plans, stay warm and enjoy some family time!

Becca

Happy snowy weekend! ⛄

I'm sure the kids will enjoy getting out and playing in the white stuff this weekend-we had indoor recess a few times this week because of the cold/wind chill, so they're ready to get outdoors!

We learned even more about polar animals this week!  It was fun to compare the ways they have adapted to their cold environment.  We talked about why the Arctic and Antarctic days are different from ours at certain times of the year, and started reading and thinking about Inuit culture as well.  We wrote nonfiction chapter books about polar bears too.  In Math, we're working on addition/ subtraction facts and starting to work with graphs and data.  Thanks for your help as we practice skip counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s to 120!

We have loved creating our pinch pots in Art!

                                   

 

Our Mystery Reader was Mr. Streadwick!  He is a college student and also works at Lolli and Pops, a new candy store at the Maine Mall.  He shared about how the candy reaches the store and how he helps customers find just what they are looking for, as well as how some of the candy is made by their supplier.  We watched a short video clip that showed how macarons are made-yummy!

There is no school on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  I also wanted to let you know that I will be out on Friday, January 25th and Monday, January 28th.  I am headed for New Orleans after school on Thursday to do some work with the National Education Association.  I have not been out of the classroom yet this year, so the kids and I will be discussing expectations for when there is a substitute.  I just wanted to give you a heads up, since it is the first time we will be hosting a guest teacher. 😊

We were really excited to receive a book from the Maine Education Association!  MEA President Grace Leavitt wrote a grant which provides a book to every first grader in the State!  Thank you!!

 

Stay warm this long weekend!  My play closes tomorrow, my extended family will be visiting for a late holiday celebration, and I will be getting ready to teach an adult ed class that starts next week.  I'm sure there will be some shoveling to do, too!  Whatever your weekend brings, I hope you have some fun together!
Becca