We are taking a week off from spelling this week, so don’t expect new words to come home on Monday. We will be focusing more on our writing process this week. We will be using  /s blends/ in our word work and in our writing.

In math this week we will find all addition combinations for a given number. We will do this in computation and problem solving.

We will be using what we have learned about the 5 senses to explore the four seasons of the year in science. The weather should be nice for us to go out to the Nature Center and see, smell, hear, and touch all the different things there.

Here are some upcoming events to look forward to:

Sept.28-Progress Reports Sent Home

Sept. 30-Fall Pictures

Oct. 7-Early Student Release @ 11:30

Oct. 16-End of Six Weeks

Oct. 16-Homecoming Early Release @ 1:15 (cars) @1:30 (buses)

Pep Rally @ 2:30

Thank you,

Mrs. Benson

Wednesday is the first day of fall… Maybe everywhere else but Texas! Please be aware that it is still hot outside, dress your child accordingly. They play hard at recess. I want to say thank you to all the parents who attended the Parent Orientation last Tuesday. I hope you all were well informed and remember to always feel free to email or call.

This week:

Reading: The students will be tested with the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI). This is a mandated reading evaluation for all first graders. We will continue using short and long vowels in our reading and writing for our word work.

Writing: The students are working on writing “Smiley Sentences” that include spaces, no misspelled sight words, capital, punctuation, and their best penmanship. We will build on this to develop stories with illustrations.

Spelling: Just like the past 3 weeks, you will receive the new spelling words on Monday (yellow/white writing paper) and the test will be on Friday. This week’s words are they, as, with, his, and at.

Math: More comparing of bigger numbers, listing numbers from least to greatest, adding with an equation and counters, and as always problem solving. Watch for homework on Wednesday.

Science: We will continue our study of colors-primary and secondary- and merge this into experimenting with the 5 senses.

Thank you,

Mrs. Benson

I hope you all can come out tonight to Lone Star Speedway to the Monster Truck Rally. It will help support the White Oak Education Foundation and our school. The show starts at 7:30 and gates open at 5:00. I’ll be selling tickets, so see you there!

Some students will begin bringing home books that are chosen from the class library. They will choose which ones interest them within the range that I’ve assigned them. While other students may have class readers. Please list any book they read on their reading log. We will also begin going to the library on Tuesday. If you read this book with your child, list this as well.  In our word work we will continue to differentiate between short and long vowels. This helps not only in reading but in writing.

We will continue to use different tools to add in math. Students should be able to use all of them, but will eventually choose the one they are most comfortable using to get the correct answer. Be sure and always watch for math homework. I send it home usually once a week.

There will be 5 more spelling words this week (he, was, for, on, are) with the test on Friday. Be sure and practice these throughout the week.

We will also begin our study of the 5 senses this week.

Parent Orientation is this Tuesday, September 15th from 6:00-7:00. I hope you are all able to attend. Continue to check your child’s planner each day and initial. I hope you all have a good weekend and next week.

Mrs. Benson

A small Mexican Free Tail Bat was discovered in the stairwell in the Intermediate School this morning about 9:45. No student ever came in contact with the bat at any time. The City of White Oak Animal Control was notified and came and removed it from the building without incident. The bat will be sent to Austin to be checked for rabies as protocol dictates. The school was searched and no other bats were found. This will continue for the next several days. There was little to no impact on the instructional day.

Thank you,

Mrs. Benson

Thank goodness we had an extended weekend! Our class was gradually dropping like flies with the stomach bug last week. Myself included. On Friday we had six students absent. That’s almost a third of our class!  I hope everyone is better now and ready to get back school on Tuesday.

This week in:

Reading: The students will be differentiating between vowels and consonants to improving reading and writing skills. I will continue to assess reading levels.

Spelling: in, it, is, you, that are our spelling words this week. Spelling is assessed in a cloze activity and dictation. The spelling test will be this Friday.

Math: The students will continue to count and compare groups and continue to problem solve using their tools -number line, ten frame, 100’s grid, and drawing a picture. By the end of the week, they should know which tool they prefer.

Social Studies: The students will continue to listen to children’s literature reinforcing Champs behavior and class community behavior.

Upcoming Events:

Friday: Spelling Test

Saturday, Sept. 12: Monster Truck Rally/ 7:30pm/ Lonestar Speedway

Tuesday, Sept. 15: Parent Orientation/ 6pm-7pm/ in classroom

September 30: Picture Day

Thanks for everything,

Mrs. Benson

Well, we are off to a great start. This past week consisted of a lot of rules, expectations, and classroom management. This will continue, strongly, through the next few weeks. I encourage parents to review the expectations and encourage good CHAMPS behavior. Good behavior goes hand in hand with good study habits and  steady learning. Check your child’s planner each day for a “Busy Bee” stamp that indicates good behavior. If your child moves to yellow or red, I will write a brief note in the yellow box. Please initial so that I know you have reviewed this each day. Also, read what your child writes in the planner. There will be a message each day. If there is something you need to let me know, please write it in the planner. I check these every morning and it is more reliable than the phone.

This week in reading, the students will be learning how to transition into Guided Reading stations. As they become familiar with this, I will begin testing for reading levels. Each child will be bringing home a book and their reading log beginning Monday. Be patient with me. If the book is too easy, read it several times to improve fluency. If the book is too hard, just read it to them. It will take me a couple weeks to get all of their reading levels for a better choice of take home readers. Please list the book, comments and initial the reading log each day and send it back to school the next day.

In math, we will be counting groups and combining them using different types of tools; ten-frame, number line, hundreds grid, counters, etc.

In writing, the students will get their first set of spelling words: the, a, and, of, to. Practice these at home and the spelling test with dictation will be on Friday. We also will begin penmanship and an author study of Kevin Henkes.

I hope all of you have signed up for the “Remind” texting app. This is a great way to relay simple messages to parents. Parent Orientation is set for September 15th at 6:00. I hope everyone can be there so I can go more in-depth of first grade expectations and answer your questions.  Thank you for everything you’ve done to help make this a great beginning of school.

You matter,

Mrs. Benson

There’s only one more week for each of you to enjoy your summer. The rest of the teachers and I will start back tomorrow getting everything perfectly ready for each of you to have the best school year ever. I hope you’ve had a relaxing and fun summer and you are ready to begin school with some new challenges. I know I am super excited to meet each and every one of you! Remember Meet the Teacher is this Thursday and don’t forget your supplies. I hope to see you all there! For now, enjoy the rest of the summer and I’ll be anxiously awaiting August, 24th at 8:00 AM for the first day of school.

Mrs. Benson

We’ve certainly had the April showers alright! We have roughly seven weeks of school left and that’s hard to believe. There is still a lot to do before May 29th though. Please continue to read each day and sign your child’s reading log. Always check Monday’s graded papers and go over them with your child and check the planner each day for messages and notes.

This week our end of the year Texas Primary Reading Inventory will begin. This is the state-mandated, individual, reading assessment that determines end of the year reading levels.

In math we will continue to work on adding groups of 2’s, 4’s, and 5’s along with our skip counting.

Our science unit, the Life Cycle of the Frog and Pondlife, will continue and our writing will revolve around this also. Applying the mechanics of writing (capitalization, punctuation, spelling, penmanship) as well as creativity in writing is what the students are working on. Staying on topic and adding details is equally important.

We will continue to read for comprehension and locate the answers in our reading.

Here are some upcoming events to be aware of.

April 21-First Grade Field Trip to Penick Park

April 25-Pink Heels Fun Run

Thank you,

Mrs. Benson

It’s hard to believe that it will be April this week. With the past bad weather and long winter, spring is a welcoming sight! This week will be a little off schedule with two early release days, but I hope to see the parents with scheduled conferences on Tuesday, and I hope the early release on Friday will allow all of you to get an early start on your Easter celebration.

This week in reading, the students will meet in their reading groups. Levels have changed so look for higher level books to come home. During our word work time, the students will be dissecting a text to find details and also infer reasonably.

We will be revisiting the 100’s chart along with the 120 chart in math. The patterning that we just concluded will be spiraled into this by finding number patterns within the 100’s grid. This will lead into place value of tens and ones.

The students’ writing is being graded on details, staying on topic, and mechanics of capitalization, punctuation, and spelling of all covered sight words. We will continue to focus on these things within their own personal writings, assigned pieces, and interactive writing.

Here are some upcoming dates to remember:

Mar. 30 Monday- STAAR Testing / Intermediate

Mar. 31 Tuesday- STAAR Testing  / Intermediate

Send 12 Candy-filled Easter Eggs

Early Dismissal @ 11:00 Primary Only   PARENT CONFERENCES

April 3 Friday- Good Friday

Easter Party 9:00

Early Dismissal @ 11:00

Thank you,

Mrs. Benson

I hope you all have had a great spring break, even if has rained almost the whole time. I hope you all found things to do inside or on vacation. Now, I hope all of the students come back rejuvenated and ready to learn and share with others.

This week, in reading, some testing will be done to assess for the end of the marking period which is this Friday. There will also be one-to-one reading with me with each student, checking fluency, comprehension, and improvement.

Our word work will review from before spring break on capitals and begin using different punctuation markings. The students will be using periods and question marks and sometimes exclamation points; as well as, applying capitalization in their writing.

In math, the students will continue to explore patterning and applying these to numbers. This helps in reasoning through problem solving and makes it easier and quicker to develop a reasonable correct answer.

Our social studies will shift to learning about our state of Texas. Our writing will also be based on facts and symbols of  Texas. This unit of study will continue for a couple weeks.

Here are some upcoming events to remember:

March 16-Reading Contest Begins

March 17-St. Patrick’s Day

March 20-End of Third Nine Weeks

March 24-Spring Pictures

March 31-Early Student Release-11:00 for Parent Conferences

Thank you for everything and your support,

Mrs. Benson