Mystery Reader

Mrs. Denis was our very first Mystery Reader! Bella was very surprised to see her mom walk through the door!

She read a book by one of our favorite authors - Mo Willems!  : )

For more Mo Willems fun click here.

Wemberly Worried

Our mini lesson for Reader's Workshop was "Good Readers" make connections to the stories they read.  Students who make connections while reading are better able to understand the text they are reading. It is important for students to draw on their prior knowledge and experiences to connect with the text. Students are thinking when they are connecting, which makes them more engaged in the reading experience.

We read Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes. Wemberly is a mouse and she worries about EVERYTHING! She worried about spilling her juice, about shrinking in the bathtub, even about snakes in the radiator. She worried morning, noon, and night. And Wemberly worried about one thing most of all: her first day of school. But when she meets a fellow worrywart in her class, Wemberly realizes that school is too much fun to waste time worrying! 

Wemberly Worried Read Aloud

When I finished reading the book, I challenged the students to connect with Wemberly and think of something they worry about.  Here are some samples of student's work:

The rest of the children wrote what they worried about:

Sam - thunder and lightning

Griffin - going on a ride at Disney World

J.J. - starting school

Lucas - riding on the bus

Christina - going to the doctors

Christian W. - his brother taking his Pokemon cards

Rilyn - a power outage at her grandmother's house

Christian R. - starting school

Dylan - swimming at the All Star meet

Johnny - having bad dreams

Liam - starting school

Victoria - going to school

Bella - her sister shutting the basement lights off on her

Ellie - singing in front of the whole school with her friends

How can you extend learning at home?

When reading with your child, challenge them to make connections.

Focus on text-to-self connections: What does this story remind you of? Does anything in this story remind you of anything in your own life? Focus on text-to-text connections: What does this remind you of in another book you have read? How is this text similar to other things you have read? How is this text different from other things you have read?
Focus on text-to-world connections: What does this remind you of in the real world? How are events in this story similar to things that happen in the real world? How are events in this story different from things that happen in the real world?
Happy Reading!

Parent Seminar

It was great meeting so many of you last week at the Parent Seminar.  I hope you have a better idea of what your child is doing all day.  They are very busy and expectations are high (though we always manage to have plenty of fun while learning).  

I have included my PowerPoint for those of you who may want to refer back to it; click on the image below:

Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or concerns.  

                                     

Read to Self

As I discussed at the Parent Seminar, in order for children to improve their reading skills, they need to have many opportunities to read books that are "Just Right" for them. In the following photos, the students have chosen their books and are working on developing stamina. The rules for Read to Self include choosing a spot in the room quickly, remaining in the same spot, reading quietly, and reading the whole time. At first the class as a whole was able to read for 6 minutes and as of Friday they're up to 12 minutes with the goal being 20!

At times when I am blogging I will include some questions or statements which could be used to start a dialogue with your student about the post.  The following are related Conversation Starters:

What is a "Just Right"book?

How do you know when a book is "Just Right"?

What does stamina mean?

What is a dessert book?

Welcome to Mrs. Hancock's Fabulous Firsties!

Welcome to Mrs. Hancock's Fabulous Firsties!

It is always exciting to begin a brand new school year!  I am so looking forward to getting to know my new class of first graders; I know we will have a wonderful year of learning! I feel that home school communication is very important; therefore, keeping parents informed is high on my priority list. For the last two years I have maintained a classroom blog and received very positive feedback from parents. I do post pictures of students; however last names are never included. If you would prefer not to have your child appear, please let me know as soon as possible.

The blog will include posts about curriculum as well as classroom and school wide events and happenings. You will find additional information in the links located above.  There is a class list (including first names only), specialist schedule, 1st grade portal which includes many worthwhile educational websites, and the Steward School website. In order to receive email alerts when a new entry is posted, please enter your email where it says "Follow by Email".


Looking for ways to make the transition back to school easier for your child?


10 Teacher's Tips to Kick Starting the New School Year

Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions and/or concerns about the upcoming school year.  The most efficient manner in which to reach me is through email: lhancock@topsfieldps.org.

Enjoy the last days of summer!