First Grade: January 12 - 16, 2026
Dear First Grade Families,
Thank you for your heartfelt participation in our MLK Day of Service yesterday. Your help serving those in need locally will be greatly appreciated.
The class is now deep into their third Math block and becoming more comfortable with their math facts and strategies. They have been introduced to all four math operations: addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication. A story about doubling fruit quantities, a job entrusted to Pearl Plus and Tommy Times, helped students make the connection that both addition and multiplication, although different processes, make more! The children had already learned about even and odd numbers in addition to practicing skip counting by twos, orally and with movement. Therefore, learning their twos times tables is a natural progression. To illustrate the twos, students drew groups of fruits in duplicate based on images from a story featuring the Math Gnomes.
During Circle, the class engaged in creative movement in response to a story about elves who, in true mischievous elfin style, get into a painter's cans of paint. Using rainbow silks as props, students moved their bodies in a variety of movement pathways: straight, zigzag, curved, and dotted. The pure expressiveness and playfulness truly captivated the class and allowed them the opportunity for low-pressure performance; this builds their confidence and prepares them for the class play in May.
The class continues to have lunch, recess, and some lessons in the fresh winter air in a variety of locations around campus. When walking past the pond one day last week, the group was astounded to find that the dock had moved! Lunchboxes in hand, students trooped over to investigate the new location. Now further west and therefore closer to the farm, the dock is currently positioned in a sunny spot perfect for cold weather sunbathing. Students commented on how good the sun felt on their bodies as they listened to a book read aloud while eating their lunches by the calm waters of the pond. Once they had finished, they were free to observe the wetland via another dock on the other side of the path. The children were delighted to find a duck couple and now cherish a hope of seeing ducklings this spring.
Announcements & Reminders:
January 31: Community Work Day
February 7: Early Childhood & Grade Curriculum meeting at 11 am & All School Meeting (Spring) at 12:30 pm
February 12: Lunar New Year Performance 2:30 pm (all families welcome)
Warmly,
Ki Michelle
