Last Day of First Grade!

Today was the very last day with these sweet little kiddos!  I have been putting together their folders of work from the year, and cannot believe the progress they have each made.  The jump between the beginning of first grade, fresh baby faces right out of kindergarten, and the end of first grade.  Their handwriting, reading, writing, and math have improved so much!  I am very proud of each and every one of them!

Movie Time

Today was a very fun day with Ms. Allison!  The class covered the windows, kicked back with some popcorn, and watched "The Prince of Egypt".  This was a perfect movie to follow the first volume of "The Story of the World".  Ms. Allison, who has degrees in Humanities and Biblical Studies, used the movie as a teaching tool, pausing it to discuss different points with the children.  It was fun, and very educational!

Our big Language Arts review was in the form of a giant board game!  The class had to answer a question correctly to roll the die and move their game piece along a huge board.  The questions consisted of the different parts of speech, the spelling of different "special sounds", types of sentences, and much more!  The kids all did an amazing job, and really showed me that they have worked so very hard this year!  At the end of the game, each student had made it to the finish line and could choose a prize from the prize box.

In math class, I taught the kids how to subtract a single digit from a double digit, when it cannot simply be taken from the ones group.  For instance, 53-6.  We talked about different mental strategies for doing this, including taking 6 from one of the tens, leaving you with four ones... plus the original 3 ones (thus, 47), or by making a number bond with the 6 to show that 6 is 3 and 3.  Then, you can take the 3 away from the ones group first, and then take the remaining 3 from one of the tens.  Yes, it is a bit complicated to learn... but it works wonders for understanding the WHY behind "borrowing" or "regrouping", and help with mental subtraction!

Subtracting with Regrouping

Subtracting with Regrouping

Subtracting with Regrouping

Ms. Caroline held a science review today before jumping in to a fun enrichment activity!  The kids had to each choose a number, which correlated with a page number in one of six science books for kids.  Ms. Allison turned to the chosen page number, teaching the science tidbit found on the page!  They learned about topics from Earth science, biology, chemistry, astronomy... It was a perfect end of the year activity!

I cannot believe this entire year is behind us.  These children are so unique, so smart, and so full of energy and life.  I love their creativity and their enthusiasm for learning!

Thank you for giving me a fabulous year!