Golden Tickets

As we have been talking about the Mary Castle Expectations, we have implemented our school wide positive behavior program. If a teacher sees a student following the expectations, he or she can give that child a golden ticket as a reward. These tickets will be placed in a bucket in the office and drawn each day. Those whose tickets are drawn will have their picture taken and name announced on the morning announcements. Many of our students in first grade have already earned their first golden ticket!

Reminders

~Green folders should be emptied daily and returned with just the homework reading sheet. I would like to see what your child is reading each night.
~Please be sure to send lunch money with your child each week.
~Spelling test will be on Friday. I will read the words to your child and s/he will write them down on a paper. This week all the children have the same words, but next week they will be different.
~Daily snacks may be sent in with your child. Feel free to keep a couple day's worth in the backpack, but tell your child not to eat them all at once. One snack is all that is needed each day, not fruit and a granola bar.
~Mondays and Wednesday are PE days, so don't forget to wear tennis shoes.

Great Thinking

One area we focus on in STRETCH is the students' thinking skills. We have many games and activities for the children to choose from, and I also plan lessons to teach specific skills and strategies. For example, we will learn about chess later this year, reasoning, and different kinds of logic. This week I have a pattern set displayed and the students were challenged to create as many different designs as possible. I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were building in 3D rather than making a flat design. This is the first time I have seen this in first grade using these specific materials and I was rather impressed. Here are some of there creations.

First Day of School

I am happy to have shared a great first day of school with my new students. We made new friends today, and saw some old buddies from kindergarten as well. A lot of today revolved around discussing the Mary Castle Expectations, and going over procedures in our classroom. We practiced lining up and walking in the hallway.

We also read the book Chrysanthemum, and talked about our own names. We played a game to learn our friends' names and how they are spelled, and we also made a class graph to show how many letters each name contained.

I am hopeful that the buses run smoother tomorrow and students arrive home safely and on time. Everyday they should get better. See you all soon!

Student Assessment

The first grade teachers will be assessing all incoming first graders just before school starts this year. This will help us make decisions regarding your child’s reading and writing levels, and will allow us to match students with “just right” books from day one. We may also complete a short math evaluation as well if there is enough time left. This process will take approximately 20-30 minutes per child. If you are able to attend, please stop by Mary Castle Elementary on Friday, August 7th. I will be assessing students from 9am–12pm and from 2pm-6pm, in the Media Center. If you would like to reserve a specific time, please call the MEC office at 849-5672. You may also email me at michellesmelser@msdlt.k12.in.us. I hope to see you there.