Words of the Week

Thank you! Almost every single student had their Mots de la Semaine cahier ready to go today! Fantastic! We glued in our new words. 

Remember, grade 1s can keep their cahier at home until next Monday while you practice these new words, still using the sound 'a'.

Grade 1: papa, arbre, classe, table, balle 

Bonus words: maman, animal

Grade 2 homework has been checked! Look at last week's work to make sure your student is on the right track. I'm being fussy about their printing so that we can form good habits. Today students should be doing their Monday task of writing each new word 3 times (not 2... I didn't help this time!).

Tomorrow (Tuesday), they need to write one sentence for each word, underlining the word. For example, 

Je joue avec une balle dehors.

See? They don't have to be long.

Wednesday grade 2s need to write their words in alphabetical order, and Thursday they need to clap the syllables and write how many there are for each word. I'll see grade 2 cahiers back here again Friday and we'll do a little dictée. Thanks again for your help getting right into the routine!

Grade 2: avec, avion, pas, le canard, le rat

Just a few students came home today wearing bright pink reminder bracelets - super stylish if I do say so... Please send in those yellow school forms tomorrow!

Finally, a big BRAVO to the whole class. Mme Teresa, our main lunchroom supervisor, told me that our class is the best at staying seated and tidying up before waiting to be dismissed. This is not easy in a busy lunchroom, so I was very pleased to hear that our class is keeping things together! Continue le bon travail mes amis!

Parents, if you have not done so already, please label the outside of your student's lunch bag with their name and our room number (211). The bins are carried back to our class by grade 6 helpers. Should a lunch fall out of the bin, they will be able to find it's rightful home if it is clearly labelled. Let's avoid losing lunch bags! Thanks!

First Week!

Dear Room 211 families,

It was a hot and sticky first week in Salle 211. Thanks to all my new students for sticking with me and giving it their best even when we were all hot and tired! Next week will be much nicer!

I've quickly been getting to know my new students and they've been settling in quickly to our new routines. I've been wanting to share details from the first few days, but didn't want to clutter up the blog before you had a chance to explore all the beginning of the year posts. If you haven't had a chance to sift through all the information (I know, it's a lot), don't worry. Nothing ever gets erased, just archived. If what you're looking for is not below, just click on the Archives at the bottom.

Thank you for all the mail! I've already received lots of letters and forms, which I've very much enjoyed reading. If you haven't yet had a chance, please do try to to send all of that stuff in soon. I love and always look forward to reading those first day letters from you! Once I have everyone's media forms, I'll know if I can begin posting pictures here so that you can feel even more a part of our school day.

A couple other reminders:
- Library is on days 3 and 8. Our next book exchange will land on next Thursday, but students can drop off their books in our class bin anytime throughout the week.
- Thank you for jumping into our words of the week right away! We ALL get new words of the week on MONDAYS. Please ensure your student has their cahier in their pochette on Monday (most grade 2s remembered to give me their cahier on Friday).
- We have gym, dance or DPA every day. If your student is not wearing running shoes to school, please make sure they have a pair with them. We do have a bin ready to receive shoes that can stay at school.

This week we have established all kids of routines for our class. We know how to empty and pack our bags, where to put notes for me, where to line up after recess and where the safe places to play in the school yard are. We have practiced what we do in the case of a fire alarm and we have worked on including others during free time and recess. We discuss our 4 class rules regularly (ask your student what they are) and I have seen amazing listening behaviour from everyone in the class. Keep up the great work!

In French this week, we have been working on little Tout sur Moi (All about Me) books so that I can get to know my students. We are already experts at recognizing the letter 'a' and grade 1s began reviewing printing skills, including a comfortable pencil grip (more important than we tend to think) and forming letters neatly. If you have a chance to watch your child write at home, try to encourage them to start their letters at the top, the way they are practicing at school. This will help them form good habits.

In math,we are getting started with some counting and skip-counting activities. At home, you can review French numbers by asking your student to count various sets aloud in French (ex. Can you count how many juice boxes are left in French?)

Our grade 2s have quickly gotten into the routine of taking themselves to library twice a week for their social studies/science periods with Mme Gaudreault and their other grade 2 friends. Grade 1s will soon begin working on a little self-reflection project during our time together, and we will need a bit of at-home help. Keep your eye out for more details!

Finally, thanks for your patience with pick-up. Very soon I will know who belongs to who, but for now it is helpful if you come say hi at the end of the day. I do need to see each child's picker-upper every day before I release them. Please remind your child to always stay with the teacher and not to leave without saying goodbye. Otherwise I worry! If it's ok for an older sibling to pick up your grade 1/2 student, please let me know!

If you need to contact me at any time, email is the best way to reach me. Don't forget the 2 in tamara.mitchell2@tdsb.on.ca (there is a principal by the same name).

See you Monday,
Tamara

DON'T WORRY!!

                        Welcome to Online Words of the Week!

I know, homework on the second day? It's not a big deal!
As I mentioned in the First Day Newsletter, we are beginning with our words of the week right away. I really want to match up our words of the week to the sound we are studying in class. Since we are beginning right away with the 'a' vowel, I thought we should begin right away with some words to practice that sound.
Grade 1 and 2 students have different words and expectations, to match where they are in their learning. Grade 1s need only review these words with a helper by writing them, saying them, or playing games with them. Grade 2s have some specific writing tasks to complete with their words over the course of the week. This is outlined in their cahier.

You can see that the grade 1 words are all very short, I expect many children won't need a lot of work on these words - maybe just a few minutes on a few nights to get warmed up. Today we made a flashcard for each word that we think could be a fun way to practice (maybe kids can test parents too!). Grade 1 students may keep their cahier at home until next Monday, when they need to bring their cahier to school to receive the next set of words.

Grade 1 words: a, la, ma, ta, va 

Bonus words: sa, Tamara

The grade 2 words are longer, but still focus on the sound 'a', which should be a simple review from last year. Students had time today to catch up on Monday's task, but we didn't have time to write a sentence for each word (Tuesday's task). I told them that if they have time, that's great, but I don't mind if they skip the sentences for this week and move on to writing the words alphabetically tonight (the normal task for Wednesdays). All work is due back at school Friday for checking. New words will come home every Monday.

Grade 2 words: avion, balle, classe, maman, papa

On this blog, I will attempt to give you a thorough explanation of what we have learned in class, and how to pronounce the sound correctly so that you can be your child’s at-home teacher. (Note: Most consonants are the same in French as in English, so although we will talk about them in class, and you may want to review them at home, I will not discuss them here.) Know that much of what I explain to you, I probably have not explained to the class - or I have explained it very simply. All kinds of rules and exceptions will be meaningless and overwhelming for students at this point. At school we are focusing primarily on what sounds right, and matching this up to what it looks like. The more detailed explanations that you will find here are for your interest and benefit. 

This week we are reviewing the sound ‘a’. In French, this letter is not as bright as in English. Think “dad”. For each new sound that we learn, I love the idea of using 3-D letters (maybe you have magnets?) or flashcards to experiment with the vowel combined with different consonants. We won’t be looking at each consonant in depth the way we are vowels, so this is a great way to make sure your child has a good grasp of the whole alphabet. Don’t worry if your combos aren’t real words, we’re just working on combining sounds in this game!

Grade 1 parents: If you find it is a struggle to get through a list of words, especially as the words get longer, feel free to focus on only some of the words. Similarly, if you feel your child could use a challenge, add the weekly bonus words to your list. You’re the teacher when you practice at home, and you don’t need my permission to adjust the workload to suit your child.
Grade 2 parents: Please help your child develop their responsibility skills by monitoring their at-home practice and ensuring they complete their daily word-study task. They are not long! If it seems to be a struggle, start by reviewing the grade 1 words and play the kinds of games I suggest to them. If you feel your child needs more of a challenge at home, feel free to speak to me. There's lots we can do!