Welcome to First Grade!

It often feels as if a miracle happens each time the light of understanding shines in a first grader’s eyes, and we know that teaching reading and writing well gives our students a lifetime gift. We are passionate about teaching, and love connecting the hearts and minds of our young students.

In our desire to make learning relevant, we integrate subjects and talk not just about what we’re learning, but how and why we learn. We want our words and actions to show the children that
we care and that we want them to succeed. Focusing on what each child is trying to do is very important to us. Reading and writing are connected through literature, and we always
desire to recognize and value our first graders’ experiences, building on this knowledge to ensure that each child is successful in their year with us.

We set goals together and celebrate gains, and learning is viewed as a continuum from dependence on the teacher to independence by the child. Our days are a balance of teacher modeling, such as explaining through a “think aloud” while learning together as a whole class, with opportunities for the children to apply what they’ve learned through partner work or a smaller guided group until they can practice independently at their own level. Ongoing assessment is a very important part of our instruction so that we can be certain we’re teaching at our students’ optimal level.

We teach and expect our first graders to be respectful, responsible, and safe in our classrooms and school, and follow a school-wide behavior system that reinforces making good choices and being supportive of one another. We believe in close communication with families and know that by working together, your children will have a very exciting and successful learning journey with us this year in first grade, and will be ready to move on to second grade filled with the skill, energy, and confidence needed to excel.

Links

Reading Tips
Summertime Suggestions
District First Grade Curriculum
Why do we have word walls and sight words?
What do good readers do?
Reading Levels
First Quarter Math Objectives
Homework Help

1st grade Benchmark