Class 1b Programme Outline

2010-2011

Morning Routine

Please encourage your child to go through the morning routine of unpacking and getting ready for the day as independently as possible. The routine includes: changing shoes to slippers (or indoor shoes), putting shoes in the proper area, putting snack-lunch in their 'cubby', hanging up their bag and jacket and putting books and book folders in the proper places.

It is very important for your child to be at school promptly at 8:30 am on a daily basis. The children have French or English promptly at 8:30 on Thursday and library at 8:30 am on Tuesday. The door of the classroom will be locked at 8:35 for security purposes. If your child is late for school please enter the school building through the main entrance.

Morning Meeting

Morning Meeting time is important for building a sense of community. It is often a time where social skills are discussed. It is a time to review concepts and discuss concerns and questions. During this time many literacy and mathematical concepts are introduced and reviewed.

Homework

The homework for year one is reading and/or being read to every day. It is very important that children remember to bring their books and book bags back every day and to complete their reading journal. The children can also choose to take a non-levelled book home to return the next day.

Sharing and Star of the Day

All children enjoy being the 'Star of the Day'. It is a community building activity that also promotes the important skill of public speaking and fosters self confidence. Sharing day will sometimes have parameters whereby the sharing should pertain to a special topic – I will let you know in advance if this is the case.

Class Jobs

Most children have a job for the week. Children take on many responsibilities such as line leader, librarian or snack helper. In addition to giving them a chance to take on a leadership role, the jobs foster a sense of community and caring for each other and the classroom environment.

Lunch and Snack

Snack is at 10:30 each day. The children are asked to wash their hands and eat their snack in about fifteen minutes, the remaining time is spent playing outside. Please send a simple, healthy snack that your child can finish in approximately ten minutes. We are studying being healthy during P.E. and everyone is encouraged to bring a banana, carrots, an apple or yoghurt for a quick healthy snack. Every child should have a bottle of water to keep at school - please remind your child to bring it home every Friday to be washed.

Lunch is at 12:30. The children have about 30 minutes to eat, they play for the rest of the time. Please make sure that our child is dressed appropriately for ease of movement and warmth.

Literacy

One of the most important things we can do to nurture literacy development is reading to children. We expose them to the beauty of words and new ideas. It fosters an invitation for the children to join the literacy club where we enjoy literature in its many varied forms.

At Pregny we use the language resources entitled First Steps Writing. The children are assessed at the beginning of the year in order to place them on the writing continuum map. This assists us as we determine how to provide support to ensure our students growth and develop as writers.

Read aloud is an important part of the day. In addition to having an opportunity to hear a new story, the children then engage in a pair/share, whereby they turn to the person next to them and respond to the text. This also involves the important skills of listening to another persons ideas and responding\in a clear coherent manner. They then have the opportunity to share with the entire class – this allows everyone an opportunity to participate.

The children are placed in reading groups according to their reading ability. I meet with these groups and discuss important skills related to their reading level.

In guided reading groups the children get the chance to read “just right” books. “Just Right” books are books that the children can read 80 – 90 % of the text independently . They gain fluency and confidence while being challenged to practice reading strategies to figure out unknown words.

“Just Right” and “easy books” should be read by the child. Books with many sentences and paragraphs should be read by the parent. However if you notice that your child now knows the word ´the´or ´like´, you can ask your child to identify that word on a page as a fun, confidence building extension of the reading. Please note : children are allowed to bring a class book home for the evening to return the next day.

We write every day. Writing includes personal narratives, letters, lists, labelling, non-fiction and taking notes. Children are encouraged to invent the spelling of words and to learn the spelling of some high frequency words (words that appear all the time, for example:like, is, up, the etc. ). During writing mini lessons the teacher will gather a group of children who would benefit from a model demonstration of print concepts or an aspect of the writing process. We also engage in shared writing sessions where children are invited to help write a message or a story with the teacher while she reviews print concepts and spelling strategies.

Mathematics

Mathematics is taught with an emphasis on hands on experiences before introducing signs and symbols. We are concerned with skills and conceptual understanding in maths.

During the morning meeting time we review calendar skills, tallying, and sequencing numbers.

Throughout the day children work in pairs, small groups or large groups to explore mathematical concepts or to practice certain skills.

Units of Study

School is Cool – Our school is a community of people working together.

• the physical structure of the school
• the people in the school
• how we work together
• the focus curriculum areas are maths and social studies.

Peace Please – An inquiry into why conflicts occur among people and how we can resolve them.

• what is meant by peace
• finding peaceful solutions to conflicts. (curriculum areas of focus – social studies)

Play then and Now - An inquiry into how play has changed over time.

• What we can learn about the past by studying play.
• How playing does not depend on having toys (curriculum areas of focus – history, science, technology and maths)

Storyteller - An inquiry into the elements of a story.

• Favourite ways to tell a story.
• Why we tell stories.
• Focus will be on language arts and drama (focus is language arts, drama and visual arts)

Life cycles -An inquiry into the natural cycle of life

• How plants and animals grow and develop
• What plants and animals need to grow (focus on science and maths)

In Our Own Way – An inquiry into how we see ourselves and how we are alike and different.

• Reflecting on our growth as learners
• How we are all unique learners
• Learning styles

Art and Drama

In visual arts class we explore many different materials including collage, paint, various drawing materials and clay. Drama is an integral part of the course of study and reinforces learning in many ways. The children are formally introduced to drama techniques during our storytelling unit.

Music

The children will have music on Tuesday morning. The children also have choir/singing on Wednesday morning, We do a lot of singing in year one and many concepts and skills are reinforced through music.

P.E.

The children have P.E. on Thursday, please ensure they dress comfortably on these days and that they have running/gym shoes.

Handwriting

The children have handwriting once a week. Please find attached an example of the D`Nealian handwriting style that we use at Pregny.

French

Jacqueline and Rosalina are the French teachers. The children have French every day except Wednesday for one period.

EAL

During French some children will attend an EAL class with Mrs. Gleed.

Learning Support

Mrs. Harris provides extra support with language (reading and writing), fine motor skills and maths in addition to social skills for some children dependent upon need. Assessments are done at the beginning of the year to determine if your child would benefit from extra support in these areas.

Library

The children go to library on Tuesday. Please make sure that your child brings their book back on the following Tuesday.

Class Outings

These will be arranged to complement the unit of study.

Class Parent

We are looking for a class parent. The class parent is a party planner for class 1b. They help organize pot luck lunches for our Celebration of Learning and help new families feel welcome. He or She may be asked by the PTA to help with certain activities. If you are interested please let me know as soon as possible.

Communication

Please email me with any questions or concerns at

susan.kennedy-browne@ecolint.ch

Class Blog – Class 1b's World!

The class blog for class 1b can be found at:

http://class1bsworld.blogspot.com/

I will occasionally post pictures of the children engaged in various activities and pictures from our celebration of learning. Our class blog is a great way for all of us to share information and save paper.

Kind Regards,

Susan Kennedy-Browne

Year One Teacher - Pregny