Tuesday, September 16, 2008

We had our first fire drill in first grade today. Everyone lined up. Michael was the last person so his job was to turn off the lights and close the door behind him. We earned a marble for our jar for doing such a nice job lining up and leaving the classroom quickly and safely.

Ms. Stern read us two books today. One was called First Grade Stinks! Anthony thought it was good that Haley liked first grade at the end of the story. Nolan liked when she got to read a chapter book and then liked first grade better than kindergarten. The other book that we read was called I Went Walking. After we read it together, everyone made their own version using describing words.

This morning during Reader’s Workshop we focused on how to avoid interrupting other children or Ms. Stern. Here are the interruptions and solutions that we thought of:

Problem-Solution
*Going to the bathroom-Try to go before or after Reader’s Workshop (unless it’s an emergency)
*Getting a drink-Bring a water bottle or wait until the workshop is over
*Getting stuck on a word-Use picture clues
*Someone is bothering me-Use your words to address the problem; stay focused; tell the teacher
*Finishing reading-Reread or choose one of your other books
*Not knowing what to do-Ask 3 friends at your table; leave a note for Ms. Stern if no one else can help
*Talking-Focus on your book and wait for partner time
*Getting out of your seat-Sit down; keep 3 books at your spot

Tomorrow we are going to try even harder to concentrate on our work, stay focused, and not interrupt others.

We had art today. We made self-portraits using pencils. Next time we will trace and color our work. Everyone at all of the tables earned two stars today! Stars are earned when people are good listeners and good workers.

During Writer’s Workshop, we learned that writers can use words in pictures. Sophia, Zoe, and Nolan all gave it a shot! We also concentrated on not interrupting to keep us from making mistakes and to allow everyone to be able to work carefully and quietly.