*Happy New Year!  We celebrated the beginning of 2025 with a class party.  We made a "ball drop" snack.  What items did we use to make our snack?  (A large marshmallow for the ball, a coffee stirrer, and either a chocolate cupcake or a Twinkie for the base.)  We toasted to the new year with sparkling grape juice!

*Focus Words  -  slid, ill, doll, dog, sag, gas, glass, class, Sal, Salad, lid, slid, sad, Icky, and, I, the, is, a
*Word Family  -  ad words  - sad, mad, had, pad, lad, Dad, glad, fad
*We celebrated Three Kings Day  - Epiphany on Monday.  It is a special day in which we celebrate the Three Kings, also known as the Magi and their long journey and visit to see Baby Jesus.  
*How did you decorated your Three Kings Day crown?  What did you use?
*In math, we are learning about the teen numbers - 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19.  Please have your child practice these numbers -  writing, identifying, counting, and the 1-1 correspondence.  The 1-1 correspondence is a math skill that needs lots of practice and it involves counting each object in a set once, and only once and it develops an understanding of number values.
*Please share your Icky book with your parents.  Read the rebus sentences  -  Icky is a _____.    Cass is a cat.
*Mrs. Keating visited our class on Tuesday.  She talked to us about new year resolutions and how we can be kind and helpful to others.  What resolution did you have?  
*In religion, we read the bible story of Jonah and the Whale.  Can you share the story with your family?
We also, learned about the Baptism of Jesus.  Who baptized Jesus?  (Jesus' cousin, John the Baptism) Where did Jesus' Baptism take place?  (in the Jordan River)  What happened right after Jesus was baptized?  (the clouds parted and a dove flew down from heaven)
*We enjoyed making a winter tree craft.  We made evergreen trees with snow on them.

*Focus Letters  -  Ll. Ii, Aa, Oo

*Focus Words  -  is, the, and, I
*This is the third week of Advent.  The theme of this week is joy!  This week it is time for us to celebrate the birth of Christ and to look ahead to the final week of Advent.  Rejoice because Jesus' birth is near.  This week we lit the rose/pink colored candle on our Advent wreath.  
*Our newest Superkid is Icky.  Icky likes to pretend that he is on TV.  Icky likes to watch, and pretend to be on TV shows about different people and places.  He likes to discuss what is going on in the show and be the narrator.  Icky's name is short for the name Ichabod.  
*We are learning about the letter Ii and the short i sound i/i/ like we hear in the word, igloo.  The short I sound is what we focus on, but we also learn about the long i sound like we hear in the word, ice.  In first grade, the Superkids reading program will focus more on the long vowel sounds.
*We played some Christmas themed games to strengthen our eye - hand coordination.  Using plastic spoons we moved a jingle bell and then an ornament from one spoon to another spoon.   In the other game, we held a clothes pin and had to squeeze to open and close the pin, all while holding and passing a candy cane.  Both these games also helped us practice our team work skills.  We needed to work together with the classmates that were next to us to be able to complete the tasks.  Did you have a favorite game? Try playing one of these games with your family over Christmas break.  Have fun!
*In math, we continue to learn about and practice addition.  Can you practice some addition equations/sentences with your parents?   example  -    2 + 5 = ?  
*Remember to use some of these strategies to help you solve the addition problems   -   draw a picture, use counters, use your fingers, count on, use a number line,...
*Winter animals are not like people.  These winter animals adapt to the cold weather  - foxes, mountain goats, reindeer, polar bears,.... They have thicker fur, fur between their toes, paws that allow them to climb and walk on ice, and hooves that act like snow shovels.
*Some animals migrate to warmer temperatures.  What are some animals that migrate?  (birds, whales, bats, insects,...)
*Some animals hibernate - they sleep all winter long.  Hibernation helps bears, frogs, chipmunks, snakes,... survive the cold winter weather and the lack of food to eat.
*In religion, we continue to learn about the story of Jesus' birth.  Who was the angel that appeared to Mary to let her know that she was chosen to give birth to God's Son, Jesus?  (Angel Gabriel)  Do you think Mary was excited, scared, nervous, worries, happy?  Do you think Mary was feeling a little bit of each of those feelings?
*Ask Jesus to help you be kind and loving like His Mother, Mary.
*Happy Birthday Jesus!!  *Did you enjoy our birthday party for Baby Jesus?
*****Merry Christmas to you and your family.  Best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year!!! *****

*Focus Letters  -  Ll, Aa, Oo, Gg

*Focus Words  - is, and, the
*Word Family  -  -og family  -  dog, log, fog, jog, frog, hog, bog,...
*On Monday, we went to mass for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.  Fr. Michael shared with us that Mary did not have any sin - Mary was Immaculate.  Mary was pure so that she could be Jesus' Mother.  Mary's mother was Saint Anne and Mary's father was Saint Joachim.
*The Bible is a holy book given to us by God.  The Bible tells us stories.  It tells us how God made us, and tells us about Jesus and His love for us.  Jesus is the Son of God who came to save us.  
*We listened to the story of Noah's Ark.  Can you share this Bible story with your family?  What did God ask Noah to do?  What did Noah put on the Ark?  When the flood waters dried up, what did God give to Noah as a promise to not ​cause a terrible flood again?  (a rainbow)
*In math, we are learning about addition.  We are learning how to write and equation to show addition.  Our answer is called the sum.  We put the numbers together and get a bigger number when we add.  We can count to get the answer.  
*What sign/symbol do we use to show addition?  (the plus sign +)  What sign/symbol do we use at the end of an addition equation right before the answer that tells us how many in all?  (the equal sign  =)
*Can you write and solve some addition equations/sentences?  Remember to use the + sign and = sign.  Example  -  2 + 4 = 6    
*What are the initial/beginning sounds that you hear in these words?  door /d/, curtains /k/, stove /s/, dishes /d/, leaf /l/
*Listen for the final l /l/ sound.  Do you hear the /l/ sound at the end of these words?  bell - yes, salad - no, doll - yes, oil - yes, quick - no, tool - yes, lemon - no,...

*Focus Letters  -  Ss, Ll, Aa, Oo

*Word Family  -  ag family  -  sag, bag, rag, lag, nag, snag, flag, brag
*This is the first week of Advent.  The theme of the first week is HOPE.  Jesus is coming!
*Advent marks the beginning of the Church year.  During Advent, we should slow down and prepare to celebrate Jesus' birth at Christmas.  
*We learned about Saint Nicholas.  Saint Nicholas was a kind bishop who liked to surprise people with acts of love.  He also helped people in need.  Saint Nicholas reminds us to do kind deeds for others.  What kind deeds can you do for someone?  Remember - Saint Nicholas liked to surprise the people he was helping.  
*We have been talking about "wants" and "needs".  Things that we need in order to live and things that we want to have.  What are some things that we need?   (food, clean water, shelter/a place to live, clothing, a warm coat,....)  What are some things that we want?  (toys, candy, soda, stuffed animals,....)  Share your Let's Find Out Booklet.  
*In math, we are learning about addition.  Addition is when we "join" or "put together" numbers/groups of items and we get a bigger/larger number as our answer.  We get the answer by counting.  We are learning that addition can be shown in different ways - such as with objects, fingers, mental images, drawings, sounds, acting out situations, equations,...
*We have a new Superkid.  Her name is Lily.  What does Lily like to do?  (play with her stuffed lion family - Mom, Dad, Lad, and Lass)  She likes to sing lullaby songs and have lemonaide parties.  
*Please practice writing the letter Ll.  What some words that begin with the Ll /l/ sound?  (lion, love, ladybug, leaf,...) 

*Focus Letters  -  Dd, Xx, Yy, Zz, Aa, Cc, Gg, 

*Focus Numbers  -  1- 10  - greater than, less than, equal
*Word Family  -  at  - cat, mat, sat, pat, rat, fat, bat, chat, flat
*Thank you to our veterans and to those who are currently serving and protecting our country.   -  Thank you for your service yesterday, today, and everyday!!!
*On Tuesday, we went to mass with grades 1 & 2.  We did a great job!  Fr. Michael celebrated the mass.  At various times during the mass, Fr. Michael explained to us the parts of the mass and why we say the responses as a congregation.  
*On Wednesday, we celebrated World Kindness Day!   We celebrated our class motto - "It's Cool To Be Kind!"
*In math, we are focused on repeated reasoning  - where we repeat something from one problem to help solve another problem.  *What is one more/one greater?  *What is one less/one fewer?
*Play the "What number is missing" game.  On individual scraps of paper write the numbers 1 - 10.  Then, play the game.  An example -  put the numbers 4, 5 (number side up) and then 6, 7, (number side down), 8 (number side up).  Have your child figure out what the missing numbers are.  Play again.  Make it harder each time.  Bonus - extend the numbers to 15.  
*We continue to learn about our Superkid Doc and her love of fixing broken toys and creating new and sometimes odd toys.  
*Share your Science Spin booklet with your parents.  Share some interesting turkey facts that you know.  
*We made a turkey craft.  How did you respond to the writing prompt? -  Save the Turkey, eat more .....

*Focus Letters - Dd, Uu, Vv, Ww, Xx, Aa, Cc, Oo, Gg

*Focus Numbers - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
*Word Family  -  at family  - cat, mat, sat, pat, rat, fat, bat, flat, chat
*Please review your Alf book.  Tell your parents all about Alf.  Keep your Alf book, and all of the Superkids books to review the skills learned.  What does the letter Aa say?  What happens when "bossy R" is with the letter Aa?  Does it change the sound that letter Aa makes?
*Who is our newest Superkid?  Doc loves to fix broken toys.  Doc also like to put pieces from different toys together to make new toy and sometimes odd toys.  Do you have a favorite toy that Doc created?
*Please practice writing the letter Dd and make the sound that Dd produces.  What are some words that you can think of that start with the letter Dd?  (David, Dante, Dominic, Doc, doll, donut, dog,...)  Can you feel the breath come out of your mouth/lips when you make the /d/ sound?
*Veterans Day is on November 11th.  We are learning about Veterans.  Please share your Let's Find Out booklet about Veterans.  Do you have a veteran in your family?  Do you know a veteran?
*Continue to practice counting small items.  Line the items up in a row and count them.  Put the objects into groups and then count them.  Challenge yourself to drop a handful of items on a table and count them wherever they land.  Make sure to count each item only once.
*In Religion, we were reminded that Jesus welcomes everyone and that Jesus loves us very much.  
*We learned about Saint Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa).  St. Teresa welcomed everyone, especially people who were poor or sick.

*Focus Letters  -  Aa, Gg, Cc, Oo, Ss, Tt, Uu, Vv    Please continue to have your child practice writing these letters and practice producing the sounds that these letters make.  

*Focus Numbers  -  0 - 10   Please continue to practice counting, writing the numbers, and showing the 1-1 correspondence.  Also, ask your child - what is one more?  What is one less?
*Word Family  -  at family  *Can you think of some words that are in the at family?  (cat, hat, bat, pat, mat, sat, chat, rat, hat, brat,....)  *What do all of these words end with?  (the letters at)
*Please share your Golly book with your parents.  Save Golly's book to look at again and to practice the skills that we have learned.
*Who is our fourth Superkid?  (Alf)  What does Alf like to do?  (go on adventures)  Where does he go on these adventures? (in his backyard with his imagination)  Would you want to go on an adventure with Alf? Where would you want to go on your adventure?  (outer space, scuba diving in the ocean, at a farm, hiking a mountain,....)
*We are focusing on the short vowel sound that Aa makes - a/a/ like we hear in the words alligator and apple.  
*Alf likes to go on outdoor adventures.  Alf knows that when you visit wilderness places, you must be kind to and respect the plants and animals that are living there.  How can we respect the plants and animals when we are hiking, taking a nature walk, or camping?   (keeping the animal's home clean by not littering and picking up trash and garbage, putting out campfires completely,  use quiet voices so that we do not scare the animals away,....)