Category: We are readers.

We launched Family Literacy Week on Tuesday with guest readers from our local fire department. Students enjoyed listening to Firefighter Riley read us a storybook about the many different jobs they do. Before he could finish reading, they were unexpectedly called away to respond to an emergency. Fortunately, they were able to come back shortly after to give us a tour of the fire truck. Thanks to Firefighter Greg, they learned a lot about the many parts and tools on the truck. We are grateful for the firefighters for coming in to read and share a part of their knowledge with us!

On Wednesday, we dressed up as a character from a book. In our class, we saw Alice in Wonderland, Clifford the Big Red Dog, and students and teachers from Stephanie’s Ponytail to name a few. Thanks for making the effort to dress up!

During our Family Literacy Week assembly on Thursday, we enjoyed a variety of sharing from many primary classes. We read our haikus about snow. Maybe that might summon the snow next week! We felt proud of how they presented their poems and love to take opportunities to showcase their learning. We came back to class and shared some core competency statements: “I can feel proud of my haiku. I can feel confident in front of the school.” We have really been focussing on “I can” statements and hope that this language will be built into their regular speech at home. The more they can recognize their strengths and what they “can do”, the more they can build on their success and further develop in the areas of communication, thinking, and personal and social competencies. To learn more, go to BC Curriculum on Core Competencies.

It was neat and interesting to see the choices in books that students brought to school to read. They each had an opportunity to share a little something about their book. Although they have had many opportunities to read since the beginning of the year, there seemed to be something extra special during the times they had to Drop Everything And Read today. We always appreciate seeing parents come in during Family Read. Sorry, we know not all of you can but know that your child is still enjoying reading with another parent, a teacher, or their friends during that time.

Thank you for participating in the Family Literacy Week Bingo activities. Parents and students, what literacy activities did you enjoy doing most with your family? What did you think about our Family Literacy Week activities? What suggestions might you have for next year’s Family Literacy Week? Feel free to write a comment on our blog. Thank you!

We have access to a free online resource with hundreds of popular, animated, and narrated stories that have music and sound. To access, go to University Highlands website, hover over Library page, and click on Library Catalogue. Under Reading & Writing section, click on Tumblebooks. You will NOT need to login with a password if you go through this route. Enjoy the stories!

We have been learning about many different reading strategies during our whole class read alouds and during reading groups time. One of the biggest things children are learning is that they need to ALWAYS read for understanding. One way to self-monitor is to regularly ask ourselves, “Does it make sense?” Children are being taught that there are a number of different strategies they can use when reading and to notice the ones they are already using when reading so they continue using them.

Ms. Cowan just returned on Monday feeling invigorated from a 2-day weekend workshop about reading and I am a part of a District book club reading Catching Readers Before They Fall so we are both very excited to have these ideas and strategies fresh in our minds to teach the students.

Today, we introduced students to a new reading strategy: picture walk. Here, we went through the book A Poppy Is to Remember one page at a time to take a look at the pictures before actually reading the words in the book. We discovered that by taking the time to study the pictures, it helped us to understand and make predictions. Next time you read with your child, feel free to take a picture walk through the pages before you read the words in the book and see how this strategy might help improve comprehension.  

After reading the book, we discussed what a poppy is to remember and thought about some of the reasons why we wear a poppy. We then wrote our A Poppy Is to Remember poems which will be shared at our Remembrance Day assembly this Friday, November 9th at 10:45 am. Some of the ideas shared in their poems were simply heartwarming. Here are some examples:

• A poppy is to remember the people who risked their lives.
• A poppy is to remember those who fought for peace because they were brave.
• A poppy is to remember those who went to the war because they sacrificed their lives for us.
• A poppy is to remember those we love because they wanted peace and for us to be free.
• A poppy is to remember people that are still living (who were in the war).

Each child will receive a poppy on Friday. Feel free to send donations to the poppy fund as we are collecting at the school. All families are welcome to join us in the gym this Friday for the Remembrance Day assembly. If you are not available at that time, then we hope to see you during our Family Read at 8:55 am!

On Monday, your child was introduced to our new spelling program called Chunk Spelling. They all enjoyed discovering the new words they could make with the “at” ending while using their sound boards. It also helped them think critically when they came to a beginning sound that sounded like a word but wasn’t one or was a word but it didn’t have the same sound as in the word family. For example, dat (not a word) or what (has “at” at the end of the word but makes a “uht” sound rather than “at” sound).

Week after week, students will be introduced to a new word family to create words with different consonants, blends and digraphs. They record their words in a notebook in three columns: first column are words with just consonants, second column are words with blends and digraphs, and the third column is where they challenge themselves to think of larger fancy words with the word family. Some examples of bigger words were: scatter, flatten, and attic.

The homework pamphlet that went home is to be completed during the week. Every Monday, they will be given a spelling check and a new set of words for a new word family. Typically, grade ones will have five words and grade twos will have up to ten words.

Click here to learn more about the program.

Please ask if you have any questions. Thank you for your support at home!

We have been working hard on reading every day. We went “shopping” for books to keep in our book bins for reading independently during our “Read to Self” time. We are building up our reading stamina each day. During our “Read to Self” time, we have a job and so does the teacher. 

The students have learned that there are 3 ways to read a book. As well, they have been encouraged to re-read books to develop fluency and comprehension. 

We encourage your child to continue to read at home with you, a sibling, or to read independently. There are a few ways that you can support your child as a reader. Click here to view tips.

In the last couple weeks, we have been doing an author study on Kevin Henkes. Through these books, we have been learning about feelings, increasing our vocabulary, and making personal connections (text to self). 

We have the privilege of having access to an online levelled reading program called Raz-Kids. More information will be coming home soon. To learn more about the program, click here.