November Newsletter 2020

FIRST GRADE NEWSLETTER
Ms. Esteban, Ms. Kreiger, Mr. Hayes, Ms. Modica, Ms.Taylor
November 2020
Reading
We are continuing through the “Readers Build Good Habits” unit. Students will continue to practice
strong reading strategies and habits that will help them become lifelong readers. This will include tackling
hard words and learning how to work in partnerships to extend their learning.
Later this month, we will move into a brand new unit in reading. Throughout this unit, students become
“Reading Detectives” to solve mystery words in books. They will learn to become great reading detectives
by applying different reading strategies. They will also learn to pause and solve difficult words by
studying words closely and using snap words (sight words) like the “real detectives”.
Please remember that the best way to support your child in reading is to continue reading at home as much
as possible. When your child reads his/her just right books to you every night, encourage them to stop
and to solve the mystery words independently, applying various reading strategies:
HOW TO BE A WORD DETECTIVE:
● Notice a problem and stop to solve it

● Look closely from start to end
● Use everything you know
● Do a s-l-o-w check
● Break long words into smaller parts
● Pay attention to the beginning of the word
● Break the ending off
● Look out for vowel teams
● Use parts of words you know
● Watch out for unusual words
USING SNAP WORDS TO READ:

November 2020
● Read words you know in a snap
● Read words you know and think, “What would make sense here?”
● Ask, “Does this remind me of another word I know?”

● Turn new words into snap words
● Scoop up words to make your reading smooth
Writing
Now that students have completed their first writing unit on Small Moments, we have launched a new unit
in writing known as, “How-To”. In our How-To unit, students will be tapping into their inner expertise.
Furthermore, they will generate a variety of procedural tasks that they know how to do, and in turn
creating their own “how-to” books to teach others about their topic. Some examples of how-to topics are...
● Cooking a recipe
● Brushing your teeth
● Growing a new plant
● Making a new friend
● Taking care of a pet
● Tying your shoelaces
Additionally, students will consider their audience as well as their purpose for writing by studying mentor
texts as models. Students will think about sequence and transition words, and students will continue to
practice editing their work for spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. Our How-To unit will also help
scaffold students into our next writing unit on creating informational chapter books.

How To Writing Process:

1. Think of a topic
2. Plan
a. Touch and tell across pages
b. Sketch and label across pages
November 2020
3. Write the words
a. How can I teach my reader?

Writing Strategies:
● Adding tips/suggestions
● Adding definitions
● Adding labels/diagrams
● Adding warnings
● Adding POP out words

● Adding ellipses
● Punctuation ( !, ?, . )
Math
We just began the unit “How Many of Each and How Many in All?”. This unit focuses on students’ ideas
about counting and quantity, place value and structure of the base-10 number system, the meaning of
operations with whole numbers, the development of computational fluency and generalizations about
numbers and operations (Investigations).
In every PS 33 first grade classroom, “Number Talks” are an essential routine that reinforce the skill of
subitizing, in other words, being able to see the parts of a whole without counting one by one. You can
support your child at home by playing board games with dice and encouraging your child to look for groups
instead of counting individual objects.

STRATEGIES & FOCI in this unit:

● Counting on/ Counting back
● Adding /Subtracting
● Composing numbers/ Decomposing numbers
● Decomposing numbers into two or more parts
● Addition with more than two numbers
November 2020
● Meaning of the equal sign
● Counting and comparing larger quantities
● Number composition

● Place value
● Visualizing/representing/solving story problems
Social Studies
In Social Studies, we are currently in Unit 2: Families Now and Long Ago. Throughout this unit, your child
will be learning about family life in the past and how family events contribute to change. Students will also
be learning about how memories and objects can tell stories of families from long ago. During this unit we

encourage you to talk to your child about family history along with sharing traditions and family stories
with them.
Social Emotional Learning

Book of the Month: The Spiffiest Giant in Town By: Julia Donaldson
Unit 1-Compassion (same focus unit from October)
● Respect
● Responsibility
● Giving
Compassion has two components: the first is empathy, which means putting yourself in someone else's
shoes and trying to feel what that person feels, and the second is action, which means helping someone in
need and performing acts of kindness without expecting anything in return. Compassion is when one
understands how another person feels and takes action to alleviate that person’s suffering. Students
apply their empathy and communication skills to support one another through compassionate action.

Humans are wired for connection and compassion. The activities help students make choices that benefit
their minds, hearts, bodies, and relationships. (www.jesselewischooselove.org).
November 2020
Important Dates:
November 3rd: Election Day (ALL students will learn REMOTELY on this day)
November 5th: Parent/Teacher Conferences (Half Day of School - 11:00 a.m. dismissal)
November 11th: Veterans Day (NO SCHOOL)
November 26th & 27th: Thanksgiving Recess (NO SCHOOL)
First Graders in action!

November 2020

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FIRST GRADE NEWSLETTER

Ms. Esteban, Ms. Kreiger, Mr. Hayes, Ms. Modica, Ms.Taylor

HOW TO BE A WORD DETECTIVE:

● Notice a problem and stop to solve it

USING SNAP WORDS TO READ:

How To Writing Process:

STRATEGIES & FOCI in this unit:

Social Emotional Learning

First Graders in action!

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