First Grade Weekly Update April 14th-18th
Weekly Syllabus: April 14th-18th, 2025
Reminders
Thursday, April 17th is Holy Thursday and a noon dismissal. No Share and Care.
Sunday April 20th is Easter Sunday. Enjoy your break with family and friends! Blessings for a Happy Easter!!!
Religion
Praying the Jelly Bean prayer and reflecting on the Stations of the Cross.
Virtue of the month: Gratitude- Gratitude falls under the virtue of Justice- giving to each, beginning with God, what is due Him. Thankful disposition of mind and heart.
Gratitude perfects our will and all our relationships with others, including family, country, and Church. It is the constant and firm will to give to others what they are due. It disposes us to respect the rights and dignity of others, leading to harmony and equality in human interactions.
Saints associated with this virtue are: St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Mary Magdaline, and St. Augustine.
We will be keeping a gratitude journal this month and writing what we are grateful for daily.
Language Arts
No spelling words
We will finish our unit from last week.
Mathematics
Number Corner: April brings opportunities to review and extend many mathematical concepts addressed this year in Number Corner. For example, the Calendar Grid reviews fractions by folding geometric shapes, encourages students to define the shapes by attributes, and introduces line symmetry. During Calendar Collector students collect Popsicle sticks that they estimate, bundle into 10s and 1s, represent with tally marks, and use to measure and compare the length of classroom objects. Each of the number family patterns the students have met this year reappear in a 1–120 number grid, and students discover that familiar computational strategies for single-digit numbers can also be used to solve equations with double-digit decade numbers.
Bridges Unit 7 Module 2: This module and the next focus on numbers to 120 on a number line. Students enter the fairytale world of Hansel and Gretel, who create and mark paths by dropping pebbles every 10 steps. When these intervals prove to be too far apart, they use pinecones to mark each halfway point. Finally, they drop bread crumbs to mark each step. Hungry birds and squirrels have a way of making the bread crumbs disappear sometimes, leaving interesting gaps here and there. The pathlike number lines that emerge during this module give students many opportunities to count forward and backward by 1s, 5s, and 10s from a variety of starting points, read and write numbers to 120, and add and subtract 1-digit numbers to and from 2-digit numbers.
Social Studies
We will continue our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update March 31st-April 4th
Weekly Syllabus: March 31st-April 4th, 2025
Reminders
No School on Monday, March 31st in honor of Cezar Chavez
The Celebration of the Arts will be on Wednesday, April 2nd and Thursday, April 3rd from 3-6:30
Please continue to work on the Lenten Homework and turn in the grapes and leaves with acts of kindness. Also, take time to look at the Lenten Path packet with ideas for practicing the three pillars: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
Religion
We continue to focus on Lent. We will be reflecting on the Stations of the Cross.
Virtue of the month: Gratitude- Gratitude falls under the virtue of Justice- giving to each, beginning with God, what is due Him. Thankful disposition of mind and heart.
Gratitude perfects our will and all our relationships with others, including family, country, and Church. It is the constant and firm will to give to others what they are due. It disposes us to respect the rights and dignity of others, leading to harmony and equality in human interactions.
Saints associated with this virtue are: St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Mary Magdaline, and St. Augustine.
We will be keeping a gratitude journal this month and writing what we are grateful for daily.
Language Arts
Unit 13 Lessons 6-10
Word Work: Associate er, ir, and ur with the er sound. Learn about the trickers ar, or, and ear that also say er, and recognize and use synonyms
Spelling words: bird, third, turn, burn, cold, know, does, laugh, both, and again
Reading: Read memory words fluently (cold, know, does, laugh, both, and again), practice reading at an appropriate rate, listen to and read grade level informational text, understand and draw conclusions about characters and their feelings, and recognize and understand job names ending in er and or.
Writing: We are working on our animal reports.
Author Study: Cynthia Rylant
Mathematics
Number Corner: April brings opportunities to review and extend many mathematical concepts addressed this year in Number Corner. For example, the Calendar Grid reviews fractions by folding geometric shapes, encourages students to define the shapes by attributes, and introduces line symmetry. During Calendar Collector students collect Popsicle sticks that they estimate, bundle into 10s and 1s, represent with tally marks, and use to measure and compare the length of classroom objects. Each of the number family patterns the students have met this year reappear in a 1–120 number grid, and students discover that familiar computational strategies for single-digit numbers can also be used to solve equations with double-digit decade numbers.
We will begin Bridges Unit 6 Module 3: The activities in this module center on story problems. Using their number racks and the fact strategies they’ve been working on, students solve three types of addition and subtraction story problems: result unknown (10 + 4 = ? and 15 – 6 = ?), change unknown (10 + ? = 14 and 15 – ? = 9), and start unknown (? + 4 = 14 and ? – 6 = 9). Students also work with part-whole and comparison situations. Translating story problems to equations is emphasized throughout, and during Session 3 the teacher introduces a new Work Place game in which students work together to draw number cards and arrange them to form true equations. The module concludes with a Unit Assessment.
Social Studies
We will continue our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update March 24th-28th
Weekly Syllabus: March 24th-28th, 2025
Reminders
Please continue to work on the Lenten Homework and turn in the grapes and leaves with acts of kindness. Also, take time to look at the Lenten Path packet with ideas for practicing the three pillars: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
Religion
We continue to focus on Lent. We will be reflecting on the Stations of the Cross.
Virtue of the month: Circumspection- Circumspection falls under the virtue of Prudence which enables one to reason and to act rightly in any given situation.
Circumspection is the careful consideration of the circumstances and one’s options to determine the best course of action. For example: I think before I act and ask for advice when making important decisions as well as praying to ask for God’s guidance.
Saints associated with this virtue are: Blessed Miguel Pro, St. John Baptist de la Salle, St. Jane Frances de Chantal, and St. Edmond Campion.
Language Arts
Unit 13 Lessons 1-5
Word Work: Identify, decode, and write ar and or words and understand the use of the suffix -ful.
Memory Words: both, again, laugh, cold, does, and know
Spelling Words: paper, even, silent, open, super, their, now, always, because, and been
Reading: Develop fluent reading with repeated readings of a story, read memory words fluently, understand characters and characters feelings, connect self to text, connect character feelings to problem and solution plot, identify key details, and identify main topic and retell key details.
Writing: Problem-Solution Fictional Stories
Author Study: Marc Brown
Mathematics
Number Corner for March: The March Calendar Grid features telling time to the hour and half-hour on both digital and analog clocks, and students explore elapsed time as they determine the time between each marker. Coins return to the Calendar Collector, and students practice counting mixed sets of dimes, nickels, and pennies to determine their total value. This month they review strategies for solving equations within 20 and learn how to “think ten” when adding numbers with sums greater than 10. The Number Line and Days in School workouts both introduce students to numbers beyond 100.
Bridges Unit 6 Module 2: The activities in this module continue to focus on addition and subtraction story problems and fact strategies to 20. Students make double-flap dot cards and picture cards, writing sets of fact family equations and story problems to match. They model and solve addition combinations to 20 on their number racks, identifying such strategies as working with easier combinations like 10 + 4 and 7 + 7 to solve more challenging combinations such as 9 + 4 and 7 + 8. A game at the end of the module, Pick Two to Make Twenty, sets work with addition combinations in an appealing and challenging context. The module concludes with a short checkpoint assessment.
Social Studies
We will continue our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update March 17th-21st
Weekly Syllabus: March 17th-21st, 2025
Reminders
Tuesday, March 18th is birthday free dress.
Thursday, March 20th is our field trip to the Oakland Zoo.
Religion
We continue to focus on Lent
Virtue of the month: Circumspection- Circumspection falls under the virtue of Prudence which enables one to reason and to act rightly in any given situation.
Circumspection is the careful consideration of the circumstances and one’s options to determine the best course of action. For example: I think before I act and ask for advice when making important decisions as well as praying to ask for God’s guidance.
Saints associated with this virtue are: Blessed Miguel Pro, St. John Baptist de la Salle, St. Jane Frances de Chantal, and St. Edmond Campion.
Language Arts
Unit 12 Lessons 6-10
Word Work: Associate aw with the short o sound, decode aw words, read a story with aw words, determine the number of syllables in words, decode difficult words from an informational text, encode aw words, spell memory words, understand and use the conjunctions because and and, and understand and use adjectives and precise verbs.
Spelling Words: law, saw, dawn, lawn, crawl, come, coming, they, our, and put
Reading: Develop fluent reading with repeated readings of a story, read a story with expression, read memory words with automaticity, read and discuss a grade level informational text, identify main idea, retell key details, connect ideas with cause and effect, compare and contrast two texts.
Writing: Descriptive Writing
Author Study: Marc Brown
Mathematics
Number Corner for March: The March Calendar Grid features telling time to the hour and half-hour on both digital and analog clocks, and students explore elapsed time as they determine the time between each marker. Coins return to the Calendar Collector, and students practice counting mixed sets of dimes, nickels, and pennies to determine their total value. This month they review strategies for solving equations within 20 and learn how to “think ten” when adding numbers with sums greater than 10. The Number Line and Days in School workouts both introduce students to numbers beyond 100.
Bridges Unit 6 Module 2: The activities in this module continue to focus on addition and subtraction story problems and fact strategies to 20. Students make double-flap dot cards and picture cards, writing sets of fact family equations and story problems to match. They model and solve addition combinations to 20 on their number racks, identifying such strategies as working with easier combinations like 10 + 4 and 7 + 7 to solve more challenging combinations such as 9 + 4 and 7 + 8. A game at the end of the module, Pick Two to Make Twenty, sets work with addition combinations in an appealing and challenging context. The module concludes with a short checkpoint assessment.
Social Studies
We will continue our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update March 10th-14th
Weekly Syllabus: March 10th-14th, 2025
Reminders
Saturday, March 15th is our school auction. Hope to see you there!
Religion
We continue to work on our Lent Lapbooks and Stations of the Cross. Continue to do acts of kindness and turn in the grapes and leaves.
Virtue of the month: Circumspection- Circumspection falls under the virtue of Prudence which enables one to reason and to act rightly in any given situation.
Circumspection is the careful consideration of the circumstances and one’s options to determine the best course of action. For example: I think before I act and ask for advice when making important decisions as well as praying to ask for God’s guidance.
Saints associated with this virtue are: Blessed Miguel Pro, St. John Baptist de la Salle, St. Jane Frances de Chantal, and St. Edmond Campion.
Language Arts
Unit 12 Lessons 1-5
Word Work: Identify words with the all sound, read stories with the all sound, encode words with the all sound, understand and use adjectives, understand and use precise verbs, and combine sentences using the conjunction and.
Spelling Words: call, mall, small, stall, wall, baseball, basketball, hallway, fallen, and taller
Reading: Read and discuss grade level literary text, understand text structure (beginning, middle, and end), draw conclusions with text support, identify key details, identify main topic and retell key details, and understand and use Words to Know (puzzled, collapse, steep, and system)
Writing: Descriptive Writing
Author Study: Marc Brown
Mathematics
Number Corner for March: The March Calendar Grid features telling time to the hour and half-hour on both digital and analog clocks, and students explore elapsed time as they determine the time between each marker. Coins return to the Calendar Collector, and students practice counting mixed sets of dimes, nickels, and pennies to determine their total value. This month they review strategies for solving equations within 20 and learn how to “think ten” when adding numbers with sums greater than 10. The Number Line and Days in School workouts both introduce students to numbers beyond 100.
Bridges Unit 6is tightly focused on addition and subtraction to 20. During this unit, first graders continue to develop fluency with addition and subtraction facts to 10 and strategies for working with facts to 20. Students make extensive use of the number rack to model and solve number combinations and story problems of all types. In the process, they learn how to write and solve equations that involve unknowns in all positions and determine whether addition and subtraction equations are true or false.
Bridges Unit 6 Module 1-During these five sessions, students review combinations of 10, Add Ten, Add Nine, and Doubles. They also investigate three strategies useful in working with subtraction combinations to 20: taking away, finding the difference, and using familiar addition facts to help solve related subtraction facts.
Social Studies
We will continue our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update March 3rd-7th
Weekly Syllabus: March 3rd-7th, 2025
Reminders
Wednesday, March 5th is Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent. We will have an all school mass on this day @ 9:30. All are welcome to attend!
Please check out the Enrichment classes Newsletter for January/February
January/February 2025 Enrichment Newsletter.
Religion
We will be reflecting on the Stations of the Cross and working on our Lent Lapbooks.
Language Arts
Unit 11 Lessons 6-10
Word Work: Decode long vowel trickers, read and decode a story with long vowel trickers, recognize spelling patterns for long vowel trickers, spell memory words (their, now, always, because, and been), understand and use synonyms, and understand and use “try short, try long” strategies.
Spelling Words: paper, even, silent, open, super, their, now, always, because, and been
Reading: Develop fluent reading with repeated readings of a story, read with appropriate stress, identify main idea and retell key details, give support of an opinion, compare and contrast two reader stories, identify topic of informational text, and discuss the main ideas and details of an informational text.
Writing: Opinion Writing
Mathematics
Number Corner for March: The March Calendar Grid features telling time to the hour and half-hour on both digital and analog clocks, and students explore elapsed time as they determine the time between each marker. Coins return to the Calendar Collector, and students practice counting mixed sets of dimes, nickels, and pennies to determine their total value. This month they review strategies for solving equations within 20 and learn how to “think ten” when adding numbers with sums greater than 10. The Number Line and Days in School workouts both introduce students to numbers beyond 100.
Bridges Unit 5 Module 3: After a project in which students create nine-patch mini-quilts by composing square quilt blocks into a larger squares, the focus shifts to fractions. Students fold and cut paper to decompose shapes and play a bingo game to explore halves, fourths, and thirds.
Social Studies
We will begin our unit on American Symbols. Students will learn about symbols on stamps, the Liberty Bell, the Bald Eagle, Landmarks as symbols, The White House, Mt. Rushmore, The American Flag, and the Statue of Liberty.
First Grade Weekly Update February 24th-28th
Weekly Syllabus: February 24th-28th, 2025
Reminders
Full Week!
Sunday, March 2nd is our Family Mass at St. Philip Neri Church @ 9:00 hosted by the 1st and 2nd grade classes. All are welcome to attend.
Religion
Virtue of the month: Perseverance-perseverance falls under the category of Fortitude.
Perseverance means taking the steps necessary to carry out objectives in spite of difficulties. Keep going and don’t give up.
Saints associated with perseverance are St. Peter the Apostle, St Maria Venegas de la Torre, and St. Monica.
Chapter 10 Signs of God’s Love. Students will explore how we can be lights in the world for others, discover the Sacraments and the effect of the Sacraments of Baptism, and decide how we can a light in the world with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Language Arts
Unit 11 Lessons 1-5
Word Work: Decode/encode and recognize spelling patterns for contractions with pronouns, decode homophones (it’s its, their there, you’re your), and recognize and spell memory words (their, now, always, because, and been).
Spelling Words: I’m, he’s, she’s, it’s, we’re, you’re, I’ll, he’ll, she’ll, and you’ll
Reading: Develop fluent reading with repeated reading of a story, read a story with appropriate volume, read and discuss a grade-level literary and informational text, identify the lessons a story teaches, recognize problem and solution, and identify the main topic and key details of a literary and informational text.
Writing: Answer questions about a text using story evidence.
Author Study: Ezra Jack Keats
Mathematics
February Number Corner: The arrival of the tenth decade, the 100th day of school, makes February an exciting month. Both the Days in School and Number Line workouts pay tribute to this special number. The Computational Fluency workout brings focus on multiple addends, and students use a variety of efficient strategies to compose groups flexibly. In addition to the numeration work, students name and describe pairs of two-dimensional shapes shown on the Calendar Grid markers and determine whether or not the shapes in each pair are congruent.
We will begin Bridges Unit 5 Module 1: Module 1 focuses completely on two‑dimensional shapes, particularly those found in the pat‑ tern blocks (triangles, trapezoids, squares, hexagons, and rhombuses), plus rectangles. The work with shapes includes comparing, distinguishing defining attributes from non-defining, and developing problem-solving strategies. Students use pattern blocks to create composite shapes and solve puzzles, and practice drawing the shapes each day.
First Grade Weekly Update February 17th-21st
Weekly Syllabus: February 17th-21st, 2025
Reminders
Monday, February 17th is a holiday in honor of Presidents’ Day. No School.
Tuesday, February 18th is February birthday free dress.
Religion
Virtue of the month: Perseverance-perseverance falls under the category of Fortitude.
Perseverance means taking the steps necessary to carry out objectives in spite of difficulties. Keep going and don’t give up.
Saints associated with perseverance are St. Peter the Apostle, St Maria Venegas de la Torre, and St. Monica.
We continue with Chapter 9 The Church Celebrates Jesus. Students will explore how families celebrate Jesus, learn about the church year and Advent, learn about the seasons of Christmas, Lent, and Easter, decide ways to celebrate Jesus all year long, and pray a prayer to praise God.
Language Arts
Unit 10 Lessons 6-10
Word Work: Changing y to i before adding -er and -est endings, practice adding -er and -est endings to -y words, guide practice with comparative and superlative adjectives, review spelling patterns: ai, ay for /ā/.
Spelling Words: say, may, play, happier, happiest, down, too, work, many, and first
Reading: Guide fluency practice for the Superkids Short, Review Unit 10 Words to Know, identify sequence of events in a literary text, discuss characters in a literary text, identify picture-text relationships in an informational text, discuss the author’s purpose for writing either a literary or informational text.
Writing: Explanatory Writing: Revising a how-to text by adding details
Author Study: Ezra Jack Keats
February Number Corner: The arrival of the tenth decade, the 100th day of school, makes February an exciting month. Both the Days in School and Number Line workouts pay tribute to this special number. The Computational Fluency workout brings focus on multiple addends, and students use a variety of efficient strategies to compose groups flexibly. In addition to the numeration work, students name and describe pairs of two-dimensional shapes shown on the Calendar Grid markers and determine whether or not the shapes in each pair are congruent.
We will begin Bridges Unit 5 Module 1: Module 1 focuses completely on two‑dimensional shapes, particularly those found in the pat‑ tern blocks (triangles, trapezoids, squares, hexagons, and rhombuses), plus rectangles. The work with shapes includes comparing, distinguishing defining attributes from non-defining, and developing problem-solving strategies. Students use pattern blocks to create composite shapes and solve puzzles, and practice drawing the shapes each day.
First Grade Weekly Update February 10th-14th
Weekly Syllabus: February 10th-14th, 2025
Reminders
Valentine’s Day will be celebrated on Friday, February 14th. Students can bring in their Valentines to pass out to their classmates.
Friday, February 14th is also a half day. Noon dismissal and no school on Monday, February 17th in honor of Presidents’ Day. No Share and Care today.
Religion
Virtue of the month: Perseverance-perseverance falls under the category of Fortitude.
Perseverance means taking the steps necessary to carry out objectives in spite of difficulties. Keep going and don’t give up.
Saints associated with perseverance are St. Peter the Apostle, St Maria Venegas de la Torre, and St. Monica.
Chapter 9 The Church Celebrates Jesus. Students will explore how families celebrate Jesus, learn about the church year and Advent, learn about the seasons of Christmas, Lent, and Easter, decide ways to celebrate Jesus all year long, and pray a prayer to praise God.
Language Arts
Unit 10 Lessons 1-5
Word Work: Associate y with /ī/, associate y with /ē/, distinguish between y/ī/ and y/ē/, associate ay with /ā/, Memory Words (down, too, work, many, and first), and -y as an ending for adjectives.
Spelling Words: by, fly, cry, try, belly, jelly, smelly, bunny, funny, and sunny
Reading: Fluency practice with a literary text, Words to Know (produce, plenty. disturb), identify sequence of events, identify setting, recognize text features, make predictions, understand main idea and key details, and draw conclusions.
Writing: Explanatory Writing: How to…
Author Study: Ezra Jack Keats
Mathematics
February Number Corner: The arrival of the tenth decade, the 100th day of school, makes February an exciting month. Both the Days in School and Number Line workouts pay tribute to this special number. The Computational Fluency workout brings focus on multiple addends, and students use a variety of efficient strategies to compose groups flexibly. In addition to the numeration work, students name and describe pairs of two-dimensional shapes shown on the Calendar Grid markers and determine whether or not the shapes in each pair are congruent.
Bridges Unit 4 Module 3: The third module continues to develop students’ conceptual understanding of our number system through explorations with open and closed number lines. In particular, it focuses on skip-jumps along the number line in multiples of 5 and 10. Students have fun guiding frogs that hop over stones and lily pads, racing along number lines both forward and backward in distances of 1, 5, and 10, and develop confidence adding and subtracting in multiples of 5 and 10 both on and off the decade.
First Grade Weekly Update January 20th-24th
Weekly Syllabus: January 20th-24th, 2025
Reminders
Monday, January 20th No school in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.
Tuesday, January 21st Students need to be ready to recite their Oratorical reading. We will be choosing students at random, so everyone needs to be ready on Tuesday. They may not be presenting on Tuesday, but they do need to be ready. We will have presentations all week.
Tuesday, January 21st is January birthday free dress.
Wednesday, January 22nd is a noon dismissal for faculty and staff professional development and Spirit Day-Pajama Day.
Religion
Chapter 8 The Church. Students will learn: how we live as members of the Church family, how the church helps us live as followers of Jesus, how people who help us live as followers of Jesus, how to show reverence for God and service to others, and to praise and thank God for the Saints.
Language Arts
Unit 8 Lessons 6-10
Word Work: Decode CVVC words with ue and ie, decode CVVC words with ing and ed endings, read an informational text, recognize and spell memory words, recognize and understand dialogue punctuation, and identify speakers in a play.
Spelling Words: blue, tie, heat, keep, would, could, some, one, new, and were
Reading: Read and discuss grade level literary text, understand characters and connect ideas using cause and effect, discuss plot structure, identify the topic of an informational text, understand and use homophones, and determine the meaning of key vocab words.
Writing: Generate ideas for a debate, choose a side for the debate, use a web to plan a debate, discuss a briefly record ideas for the debate, complete a debate plan using opinions and reasons, review and practice good speaking skills for a debate, review good listening skills, and debate and respond to each side.
Author Study: Laura Numeroff
Mathematics
January Number Corner begins, and students find familiar routines infused with fresh elements. Calendar Grid markers feature single equations and story problems with missing addends, minuends, or subtrahends, and students tell math stories to match the equations and use various strategies to solve for the unknown parts. They return to collecting coins in Calendar Collector and record their collection on a graph. They also learn to use known facts to solve related facts of 1 more or 1 less. Finally, they meet a favorite frog’s little sister and join her in skipping across the number line by 5s as they come within a decade of reaching the 100th day of school.
Bridges Unit 4 Module 2: In Module 2, students work on the number line as they continue to develop a rich sense of numbers and number relationships. This engaging module challenges students’ reasoning abilities as they work to determine the value of empty number boxes placed strategically on the open number line. Students help frogs move across stones on a number line in jumps that include multiples of 5 and 10, tell stories about the frogs’ actions, and record equations to match.