Summer is Here!
Hard to believe that a whole year could fly by so quickly! We learned a lot and had a ton of fun along the way. I hope that we can Flex Our Faith throughout the summer no matter where we are and that everyone will continue to read and be Stemmy. One final piece of advice, "Be a pineapple, Stand tall, Wear a crown, And be sweet on the inside!' See you all in the fall.
Bash Bag PBL
First Graders wanted to help other students with their PBL this year after being inspired by a story we read in ELA. They began by creating a survey to see if any schools in our diocese needed anything to help teach kiddos like them. We found that there wasn't a great need for this at this time but, the firsties were not discouraged! We reached out to our community partners at OhGo and they had a way we could help the community and other children, Bash Bags. These are bags that will be given to families that use OhGo's services and have a child with a birthday approaching. They told us that families who are struggling to provide regular meals were heartbroken when one of their children had a birthday coming up and they were not able to afford a celebration. The students decided this was a problem they could solve. They created handmade birthday bags and cards. Then they stuffed the bags with birthday plates, napkins, candles, chalk, bubbles, and a birthday horn. OhGo will provide the finishing touches by adding a cake mix and icing for a full birthday bash in a bag. What a great way for these students to problem solve and help our community at the same time!
March flew by in a flash! We spent some time celebrating Dr
March flew by in a flash! We spent some time celebrating Dr. Seuss and Right to Read week. First graders built Truffula trees and embraced the phrase, "Only you" learning how to make a difference with our own 2 hands, even if they're small. Then students took turns reading to each other the story 10 Apples Up On Top. After becoming inspired they turned on their engineering mindset and developed ways to carry apples across the room without using their hands. Their creative thinking and problem solving was truly amazing! Lastly, we read here, we read there, we read everywhere around the room to celebrate Right to Read Week. The events were a roaring good time and before we knew it March had quietly slipped away!
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Sharing the Love
Sharing the Love in 1st Students in first grade had a monstrous Valentines Day celebration. We read " The Love Monster" books, made Love Monster bags, and worked in Valentines themed centers on ELA and Math. Love, kindness, and sharing were practiced all day in many lovely ways!
100 DAYS OF SCHOOL
First Grade celebrated their 100th day! They worked in centers with the number 100 in many different ways. First graders also displayed their 100th day fashion in a world class fashion show. HIp hip hooray for a wonderful 100th day!
February Friendzy
First Graders kicked off February filled with love. To celebrate the end of our mental wellness unit we made a Friendship Fruit Salad. Every student was given a turn to add some friendship, fruit, and fun. Then we enjoyed it together as an SJS Family. The students also made beautiful cards centered in faith to brighten the hearts of our homebound Parish members. We look forward to loving one another as God has loved us throughout the rest of February!
BRRRRRR.........
It's been a snowy spectacular January in first grade! We have spent our Flex Fridays building on material we have been learning in our typical subject areas.
The students have been learning about climate in social studies, habitats,animal groups and adaptations in science, and different communities and how they live all around the world in ELA. We also expanded our learning through these hands-on experiences. Students read "Snowflake Bentley" who was a great example of growth mindset and perseverance. Then we explored the question "Why is snow white?" In first grade we learned the answer to this question and so much more. We made paper snowflakes to study their design, matched large snowflakes with tiny slides using a scientific tool known as a hand lens, created fake snow with measurement, learned about how a polar bear's blubber keeps him warm in icy conditions, and built a polar bear habitat from just marshmallows and toothpicks. January may be cold but our learning is really heating things up!
Happy Thanksgiving!!
We kicked off our Thanksgiving Flex day with the book “Balloons Over Broadway “ which tells the story of how the Thanksgiving Day parade came to be. Students then designed and created their very own balloons. Some creations had a lot of “pop” but each idea came out a “floating” success with perseverance! Check out our pre-Thanksgiving Day parade!
Veterans Day
First graders celebrated Veterans Day by learning all about what it means to be a veteran. We were fortunate enough to have Mr. Savage come to teach us about his service. The first graders were very intrigued and thankful. A huge thank you to him for his service and the amazing presentation he shared with us.
Celebrating Fall
We also spent the afternoon exploring fall. Students became scientists in the classroom. They made many observations, groupings, and leaf rubbings. Overall, it was a ball exploring fall!
FIRST FLEX DAY OF THE YEAR!!!
Our first Flex Friday was all about Growth Mindset. We focused on the power of "YET" which is something we will use a lot in first grade. There are many things that we may not be able to do "YET" but just watch us grow. Students learned about the importance of making mistakes and that it helps us to learn and grow with our story, "The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes".
CHECK OUT THE VIDEO BELOW!!!
Welcome to first grade at Saint Joseph Parish School.
I hope that everyone had a safe, fun, and relaxing summer. We are going to have an incredible year filled with fun and learning. We will greet old friends and new with joy. I am looking forward to learning and growing with each and every one of you. I can’t wait to dive in to academics and STEM learning with open-mindedness in our learning adventures this year!
God Bless,
Mrs. Thompson
