November 11, 2016
Dear Parents,
We are beginning our unit about the Pilgrims, the Northeastern Native Americans, and the “First Thanksgiving.” The children will learn why the Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic Ocean (It took 65 days.) on a sailing ship called the Mayflower and how the Wampanoag tribe of Native Americans helped them to learn where to hunt for food and which foods would grow in Plymouth Rock. They will also learn how the Pilgrims and Native Americans lived then and compare it to how we live today.
The first year in America was difficult for the Pilgrims. Of the one hundred and two colonists that arrived on the Mayflower in 1621, only fifty-one survived to celebrate the Thanksgiving feast at Plymouth. We will discuss why the Pilgrims and the Native Americans celebrated together during this three day feast.
______You will find a feather in the folder. Talk or “brainstorm” with your child about things for which he or she is thankful. Have him/her complete the sentence “I am thankful ______.” Remember that the spelling will not always be standard. It will be “phonics-based” spelling where your child writes down the letters he or she hears. Remind your child to space between words and to put a period at the end of the sentence. Have your child use a pencil, instead of a pen, for the writing. Then have your child illustrate the sentence using different colored crayons. Make sure your child writes his or her name on the feather. We will make a gigantic turkey with our “thankful feathers.”
______You will find a feather in the folder for you, too. Complete the sentence and tell us why you are thankful. Send it back with your name on it. We will share your writing with the class and then display all of the feathers together.
______Math Focus: I have included an authentic Native American game for you and your child to play. The game is a toss-and-catch game that will give your child practice with counting and comparing numbers. It will take two players. Have your child and the second player write their names on the enclosed sheet under the headings: Player 1 and Player 2. Then place the beans in a small basket, a cup, or in the player’s hand. Have Player 1 toss the beans and then count how many of the beans landed with the black line facing up. Have Player 1 write that number down on the enclosed paper under his/her name and beside “first try.” Have the next player repeat the process. Have your child compare the number he or she had with the number the second player had. Which is more? (Ex. Four is greater than one.) Which is less? (Ex. One is less than four.)Repeat the process two more times. If you would like for your child to compare larger numbers, you can prepare some extra beans at home. Return the paper to school. Keep these beans for an adding game next week!
______Review: letters, letter sounds, beginning letter sounds in a word, ending letter sounds in a word, numbers to 20, counting sets to 20, counting to at least 50 by 1’s, 5’s, and 10’s, counting backwards from 10, naming the five senses, naming body parts, identifying the properties of matter (solid, liquid, gas), recalling birthday, address, and telephone number, writing first names,and identifying and describing a circle, square, rectangle, triangle, and hexagon.
______Review words: (a, am, and, can, I, is, it, in, like, no, run, see, to, the, we, yes) Have your child write each word on the enclosed paper without looking at the word. Have them write the new words “come” and “me” too.
______Please review the shape descriptions (2-D and 3-D) with your child. Put these in the “Songs to Learn By” folder.
______New words: come, me
______Have your child read the book “Come See Me!” to you.
______”The Makers of a Book” song: Review the parts of a book (title, author, and illustrator) with your child using the “Makers of a Book” song. Ask your child the following questions: “What does the author do?” “What does the illustrator do?” “What does the title mean?” You should have this song in your child’s “Songs to Learn By” folder already. If not, please let me know.
T.V. - If two letters can bring your child so much fun, imagine how much fun 26 letters can bring. Open your child’s imagination. Open a book!
_____Read five books to your child.
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____I have read 50 minutes (5 books) with my child this week.
Reminders
*Remember to try to spread homework out over the course of several days. It is not meant to be done at one time. The review work can be done in the car while you are traveling.
*Leveled Readers: Your child will bring home one book each week to read to you. This book is selected especially for your child, based on how many sight words he/she knows. As you know, the children are expected to read on Level D before going to first grade. By allowing your child to read these leveled books (and other books I send home) to you, you will be reinforcing words that he/she knows and will help your child work on fluency (reading like he/she talks). Please fill out the form that is in the bag after your child reads to you. Your observations help me when I am selecting books with your child. Please send the book and the form in the bag to school the next day.
*Class Books: These books are books that our class has made together. They will be sent home with the children on a rotating basis. Please make sure that your child takes good care of the class book and returns it to school the next day so that another child can take it home. The books should remain in the plastic bag unless it is being read. After reading the book, there is a place at the back of the book for parents to write comments about the book. The children love hearing what the parents say about their class book! All of the children will be bringing these books home throughout the year. I hope you enjoy reading these books with your child!
*Thanksgiving lunch will be served next Thursday (November 17th). If you would like to eat lunch with your child on that day, please let me know so that I can order it for you. The cost is $3.50 for adults. I have to know by Wednesday morning (16th) if you plan on eating.
*Thanksgiving break: The children will be out of school November 23-25 (Wednesday-Friday). Students will returnto school on Monday, November 28th.
*Sight words: I have enclosed some ideas for you to use to help your child learn the sight words. The children should be able to read and write these words quickly!
Your Partner in Education,
Alyson Fricks
Parent signature: Child’s name: