One last week before spring break. Let’s work to make this a strong learning week with good attendance. The start of Ramadan is this week. I hope that the families observing have a blessed Ramadan.

Penny War fundraiser starts on Monday.

This is always a very exciting event and really generates fun rivalry and competition between the classes. All of the proceeds from our Penny Wars fundraiser will go to the Amity Foundation for their efforts in supporting the victims of Turkey and Syrian Earthquakes. Penny Wars will take place in the morning from 8:40am until 8:55am. Our fundraising committee and PTA will be counting money daily to keep us informed as to standings. Every teacher will have a tin can. Students are encouraged to drop pennies into THEIR class’ cans and nickels, dimes, or quarters into OTHER class’ cans. Pennies are added to the class total, nickels, dimes, and quarters are deducted from the total. The class with the highest amount, in the end, will win a Game and Ice Cream Party. The teacher also wins a free 45-minute prep. Let the Penny Wars begin!

Literacy Night is on Monday, March 20 from 4:30 – 5:30. Students must be with their parent to attend and participate, because we want this to be a family event. I will be in the bingo room.

Check the March is Reading Month calendar for the last week of activities. The kids really embraced spirit week last week.

• Monday – Penny War fundraiser begins. Literacy Night is from 4:30 – 5:30. (Children must be with their parents.)
• Wednesday – Parent Education Meeting at 9:30 – Please consider attending.
• Friday – I will submit the final grades for the 3 quarter report card.
• Saturday, March 25 – Sunday, April 2 is Spring Break
• Monday, April 3 – The start of our final quarter of the 22/23 school year.

Looking ahead…

• Thursday, April 6 at 7:45pm – The Geer Park Ramadan Iftar – The Ramadan Iftar tickets are $10 per person. Our Iftar Dinner will likely sell out and we hope that as many as possible will join us for a very special evening! Families may purchase tickets from the main office before or after school. 

Grades are submitted Friday. Absences this week may result in lower grades in Math and ELA on the report card. Your child will not have enough time to make up assessments and I will not have time to grade the work.

ELA BLOCK – We have switched our literacy block to the afternoon to match the other first grades. It is our largest chunk of time in the learning day. I will still give spelling tests on Friday in the morning though. That is when we are most alert.

• Reading – I am no longer sending the literacy log cards. I will be sending the book bags every night. If there is a new book, please sit with your first grader and listen/practice it. On all other days, they need to read their books for fluency. Fluency is reading smoothly like talking without sounding out words or errors. I’m going to start having a word list in each bag too. Your child should practice the yellow highlighted words. (It will take me a bit of time to get a list to everyone. If I have a parent willing to come and help, please email me.)
• Writer’s Workshop – We are finishing writing our opinion paper on our favorite candy at school. These are all guided and scaffolded pieces. We will have an assessment in about 5 weeks. Your child is expected to independently apply what I am teaching during these lessons.
• Spelling
  • corn
  • born
  • horn
  • core – the central part of something, for example your stomach area are your core muscles of the body
  • more
  • chore
  • boar – a male pig
  • roar
  • away
  • move
  • laugh
  • change

MATH – We will finish learning about data with some number stories. We will have our formative assessment for data this week on Wednesday and our Summative assessment for Module 3 on Thursday. If your child is absent, unfortunately, I must enter a zero in the grade book. A zero will drop their math grade on the report card. I will not have time to make up assessments.

SOCIAL STUDIES – We will be finishing up Geography by making a map of our classroom and practicing Right, Left, In front, and Behind. Our assessment will be on Thursday. Again, if your child is absent, he/she will have a 4 in Geography. They will not have time on Friday to make this assessment up.

Thank you for your support. Please work to have your child at school every day and on time.

Your partner in teaching.

Mrs. Korte