Sunday, August 29, 2010

Week 2: The old became new!

What a wonderful week we had in our K-1 class.

In social studies we learned all about the meaning behind the Pledge of Allegiance and the symbolism of the flag. We saw how both changed over time and in this process the old became new. We ended up watching a few "film strips" on our flag, the pledge and what we can do for our country and some of our responsibilities as citizens of this great nation. We ended the week by leading the school in the Pledge of Allegiance on the morning announcements. Our class did an amazing job!

In math we have been studying our shapes. We used some hands-on manipulatives of 3-D shapes to explore vertices (corners), faces, and how objects move. We will be creating our own 3-D shapes to solidify this concept.

We finished our very first reading Unit that themed itself around how people are special and unique. We explored how we are alike and different from one another. We read a few books together and practiced creating and sharing how we were unique with words, pictures, and special objects brought in from home. We learned that a few students are athletes ranging from dance to soccer, to football all the way to golf. We also have students who were given very special presents they identify themselves with from a first blanket or toy, to the first wallet their father ever gave them.

This week has been one of excitement and learning about the world around us, why we do some of the things in our daily routine and more about our friends we share the classroom with. I would like to leave a special thank you to the Wood family for donating pillows to our reading corner and to all of the families for the interest in volunteering in the classroom. What would we do with out our amazing Samsula family?

Hoping you have a wonderful week yourself,
Miss Ellis' K-1 class

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Welcome to K-1 at Samsula Academy




Hello Families and Friends,

I am Miss Ellis and I would like to welcome you to Samsula Academy's premiere K-1 multi-aged classroom where we learn and grow!

Our first week of school is coming to an end and what fun, exploration, and learning we have had. We have learned and practiced many classroom procedures and routines. We have taken time for socialization with some really fun name games, had time for singing and movement and reviewed many letters and sound. We are reading and practicing our manuscript writing of letters and numbers daily.

This past Wednesday was an especially fun day when we planted our "learning and growing" sunflowers. Over the next weeks we will tend to and monitor the growth and development of of our flowers in our science notebooks. Look for pictures and updates in the near future.

As the year progresses stop by and see what is new and exciting in the lives of our K-1 family here at Samsula.

Warmest rays heading your way,
Miss Ellis