Show and Tell

We had a great turn out for "Show and Tell" today! We saw pictures, vacation journals, various rocks, science kits, mobiles, a laughing mechanism.....and, unfortunately, one very dead wooly worm. What makes it worse is that the poor thing was living when he arrived at our classroom this morning....even worse is that our 'show and tell' is in the afternoon (and of course, he still had to be shown!) so he had to wait until late recess for a proper burial....which he received....complete with a few comments from the bereaved. He was put to rest under the large tree outside our window.....grave was decorated with leaves....I have found our class very much into pomp and circumstance :)
I am hoping next week's "Show and Tell" will not involve any requests for CPR!!!

Thursday

The kids are excited to have "show and tell" tomorrow (on Thursdays)! We have talked in class about not bringing in toys/stuffed animals, but rather something interesting such as a rock, leaf, small collection, picture of them doing something special or of their family, etc...

Don't forget that Friday is our school pool party, in the afternoon. We will walk over after lunch.

Busy First Week

Our class has been busy getting back in the routine of school...
We journal every morning and today's question was, "So far my favorite thing to do at school is...." We had several entries that mentioned P.E., some that mentioned becoming a better reader, and I loved the one that said, "getting a drink of water." This student must be easy to please :)

I was teaching a lesson to everyone on the carpet today and one child raised his hand and asked, "Mrs. Bode, how long have you been teaching?" I replied, "How long do you think?" His response: "About seventy thousand years."

I am really enjoying getting to know your children, they are fun and have a great sense of teamwork. They are seated in groups, they came up with their own group names, and have group captains that will rotate weekly. The captains take their jobs very seriously....they collect papers to turn in, they pick up supplies from me and deliver them, they make sure everyone is on the same page... and if someone needs help, they ask the captain first. Fabulous!

We posted classroom jobs today...everyone has a job to keep our class running smoothly. Ask your child what job he/she is assigned to. These will also rotate weekly.

Please help your child read a book....any book....at least one book...each night. We've talked in class about asking an older brother/sister, babysitter, grandparent, parent, etc. to read to them. Also, it is great for your child to practice reading to you. In class, we have been practicing "reading to self", with success strategies such as pointing to each word as we read. Ask your child to show you what it looks like.
Thank you for sharing your children with me!

Before and After the First Day!

This is how the classroom looked before the children walked through the door. A little welcome message on the board, the desks were ready, and I was anxiously waiting....
The table had name badges for the students to clip on, they seemed to work pretty well today.
Look at my desk! So beautiful!
And then the school supplies arrived....
I promise my desk is under there somewhere!
My students helped me put away some things and then I spent time after they went home to organize some more. The kids and I had a great time pretending it was Christmas with so many packages! Thank you to the parents for sending in our supplies!

Work in Progress

These are classroom pictures from yesterday, when I was busily getting the room ready for the students tomorrow! I converted a chalkboard that I won't need (I have a whiteboard on the other side) into a wall of popcorn words.
Popcorn words are sight words....the 100 most frequently used words in first grader texts. We will do a lot of journaling in my class....they can use the popcorn words as a reference instead of waiting for me to come help them spell...so they also practice self-reliance.
The literacy area is starting to be done...today I put some finishing touches and I will add more display books, that we will read this week,in the morning.
Still looking messy from this vantage point, but it is all straightened out now and ready for my students!
I've since added binders, journals, and name tags to the desks...and now they are just waiting for a first grader to sit down and begin learning!

The classroom

This was the classroom when I first walked in...in June. My mom was in town so she was able to take a quick tour.
Now the floors have been waxed and are extra shiny. The desks are in and set in groups. The posters are down and I am trying to organize....Riley tells me I need a theme, but for this year, it might just be primary colors....however, I did get a Mary Engelbreight (sp?) calendar that I love.
This classroom is larger than the ones that my children have been in....school starts in less than two weeks so I am trying to get it all organized so I can breathe a little before the rush.
I'll post pictures when it is all ready.