Support the PTA through online Shopping!!1

Will you be doing any online shopping for the holidays? If so, you can help raise free money for Banks Road Elementary PTA by shopping at Amazon.com through the Fund Your PTA program! Amazon will send Banks Road Elementary PTA a check for 6% of all money spent at Amazon.com (4% on electronics) through the special link below... http://www.fundyourpta.org/banksroades.php. If you ever misplace the link, you can visit the online version of our October/November newsletter on the PTA web site at http://banksroadpta.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/october-2013-newsletter.pdf - the Fund Your PTA link is on Page 6. You can also earn electronic Box Tops for Banks Road by shopping through the Box Tops Marketplace at https://www.boxtops4education.com/marketplace. There are over 400 online retailers listed in the marketplace, and for every purchase, eBoxTops are electronically credited to our school. Thank you for supporting the PTA!

Another Exciting Art Residency Coming To Banks Road—

Another Exciting Art Residency Coming To Banks Road— During this year’s Artist in Residency, every student at Banks Road will get to experience working with a professional artist during their art special. January 21st through 28th we will be hosting the environmental artist Bryant Holsenbeck. The students will participate in her “Weaving Like a Bird” residency where they will use recycled materials, string, yarn, old sheets etc to weave a wall sculpture that will be installed in the school. We need everyone’s help collecting fabric for us to use in our artwork! Please send in scrap fabric, old sheets or curtains, ribbons, and yarn! The more colorful, the better! If you would like to contribute but don’t have these things lying around, gift cards to fabric stores like Joanne’s Fabric would be very helpful and much appreciated as well. Also, keep a look out for information on ways to volunteer to help with this residency. Our art teacher, Ms. Stephenson, will collect all contributions. Please send in contributions through your child or bring them in to the office with Attn: Ms. Stephenson. She will begin accepting them immediately. Thank you for your support of Banks Road Visual Arts! For more information about Bryant Holsenbeck’s Residencies check out her web page at: http://www.bryantholsenbeck.com/weave.html Contact Ms. Stephenson with any questions- mstephenson@wcpss.net

Pumpkin Day in our classroom!!!

Last Friday we had Pumpkin Day in our classroom!!! The students had an awesome time observing their pumpkins, discovering whether or not it sinks or floats, found out how much it weighed, and counted how many seeds were in their pumpkin. Thanks to Mrs. Howrigon, we made Mrs. Graf's Principal blog. Check out the link below to check out some fantastic photos that Mrs. Howrigon took during our hands-on learning with pumpkins!

Homework for the week of October 28th- November 1st

Reading: (Daily Activities) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Math: (due Friday) • Workbook Page 4.7 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice - back) • Workbook Page 4.9 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice - back) Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 11 Monday – Read the words and sentences attached 2 times Tuesday – Choose one activity from the list attached! Wednesday – Choose a different activity then the one you choose yesterday to complete from the list attached! Thursday – Practice Spelling Test

Weekly Newsletter volume number 13

In reading, we continued to read lots of non-fiction, or informational text, about Columbus Day and Fire Safety. We added lots of information to our prior knowledge, or schema, and had many of our questions answered about these two important items. In Math, we worked on comparing two digit numbers using the signs > (greater than or more than), < (less than) and = (equal to). To compare the 2 two digit numbers, we learned to show the number with ten sticks and leftover ones. If the number was 72, the number 7 is in the 10’s place, so they need 7 ten sticks and 2 circles since 2 is in the ones place. We also worked on word problems with teen numbers. We had groups of 10’s and left over ones. In Letterland, we learned the glued sound /all/. These three letters are a glued sound, so it only makes one sound, as in the word all. So if we had the word fall, it would be tapped out as /f/ and then /all/. We also reviewed the short vowel sounds of /a/, /e/, and /i/. Fire Safety- Last week we talked a lot about Fire Safety. We read several books about Fire Fighters and how Fire Fighters and safety requirements have changed from hundreds of years ago to now. Have your child share some of the things they learned last week. Important Information: - Pizza Party- We will be having our Pizza Party this Wednesday for lunch. Our class raised the 3rd most money in the school during our coin drive. Way to go!!! - Barnes and Noble Spirit Night- Our Barnes & Noble Book Fair is quickly approaching! It will be held on Thursday, November 7th at the Barnes & Noble store at Cary Towne Center! We have a great night planned! The Banks Boomers will be performing. A mystery reader will be hosting story time! The PTA will be selling BRES spirit wear and the Yearbook Club will open yearbook sales that night!

Homework For the week of October 21st

Homework for the week of October 21st- October 25th Reading: (Daily Activities) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Math: (due Friday) • Workbook Page 4.4 (Homework- front and Remembering - back) • Workbook Page 4.5 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice - back) Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 10 Monday – Read the words and sentences attached 2 times Tuesday – Choose one activity from the list attached! Wednesday – Choose a different activity then the one you choose yesterday to complete from the list attached! Thursday – Practice Spelling Test

Weekly Newsletter volume 12

In Reading, we focused on the reading “non-fiction or informational” text. This type of text is real information and the purpose of the book is so we can learn more information about that topic. We read a lot of informational text about Christopher Columbus. We worked on filling out KWL charts. The K stands for what we already know or our “schema”. The W stands for what do we want to know. And the L gets filled in after we have completed our research and stands for things that we learned. In math, we started a new unit working the counting by 10’s and adding on the extra ones. We have been working on making 10 sticks, which is doing a straight line for each ten and then drawing circles for the ones place. For example if we had the number 37, we would do 3 ten sticks (straight lines) and then do 5 circles on top and 2 underneath it. We do 5 and 2, so we can quickly add 5+2 to give us 7. Doing the ten stick saves a lot of time, so we don’t have to count up 10 each time, but instead can count by ten. In writing, we started working on persuasive letter writing. We first shared our schema, which is what we already know. Which we found out, wasn’t a whole lot. Then we read the book “I Wanna New Room” by Karen Kaufman Orloff. In the book, Alex, the little boy, was trying to convince his parents that he needed a new room by writing persuasive letters to them. Have your child tell you what Alex finally got and how he felt. Then we started brainstorming ideas that we could change for the school, community, and your family. In Letterland, we learned about the “Vowel Men.” These men say their name, which is the long vowel sound. We learned about Mr. A, Mr. E, Mr. I, Mr. O, and Mr. U. We also learned that Mr. I often times gets dizzy at the end of words, except for hi and I, so Mr. Y, comes and helps him and he makes the long I sound, even though he is the letter y. Important Information: - JDRF Walk- We will walk tomorrow, the 15th, from 9:30 to 10:15, during specials. All money collected will be due tomorrow. Thanks! - Scholastic Book Order- If you are interested, check and order form will be due to me by Friday, October 18th. If you would like to order online, our class activation code is: G229M. You can access that at www.scholastic.com/bookclubs. - Team Time- Last week was our first official week of Team Time. We use this time to meet students’ individual needs. We have remediation, enrichment, and review to help students succeed in math. We rotate for Team Time Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday’s from 12:40 to 1:00. Ask your child who their Team Time teacher is and what they worked on last week during this time.

Homework for the week of October 14th

Homework for the week of October 14th – October 18th Reading: (Daily Activities) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Math: (due Friday) • Workbook Page 4.2 (Homework- front and Remembering - back) • Workbook Page 4.3 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice - back) Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 9 Monday – Read the words and sentences attached 2 times Tuesday – Choose one activity from the list attached! Wednesday – Choose a different activity then the one you choose yesterday to complete from the list attached! Thursday – Practice Spelling Test

Weekly Newsletter volume 11

In Reading, we focused on the CAFÉ strategies “Ask questions before, during, and after reading” for C, which is comprehension and “Recognize words at sight” for A which is accuracy. We read both informational “non-fiction” and literary “fiction” books to practice these two skills. When you child is reading to you at home, see if they use two strategies while reading. In Math, we worked on math centers that were concentrating with place value. We worked on counting out different amounts and placing them in groups of 10’s and left over ones. For example, if we had 47 square tiles, we would have 4 groups of 10’s and 7 left over. Have your child show you how to show 47 with ten sticks and ones. We also worked on comparing two numbers using the more than (>), less than (<), or equal symbol (=). In writing, we wrote about a Small Moment Story that happened to each student during Track out. We made sure to include lots of great details, like specifically when the Small Moment happened, who was there with them, where it took place, what they were doing, and how it made them feel. Have your child tell you what my “Small Moment Story” was that took place in Atlanta. In Science, we started our unit on “Comparing and Measuring.” We first talked about what we already know, our schema, about comparing and measuring and then got with a partner and discussed how they are alike and how they are different from each other. Important Information: - Do you buy items that have Boxtops on them? If so, our school could earn 10 cents for each one you cut off and turn in. Once you have a nice collection going, all you have to do is put them in a bag that has come home in Friday Folders with “C. Bethel” on a label. We get money for the school and you didn’t have to spend any money! - Spirit Week- Spirit week will be October 16th through the 23rd sponsored by our Student Council. The days will be as followed: o 16th- Favorite Sports Team Day o 17th- Crazy Sock Day o 18th- School Spirit Day o 21st- Favorite Book Character Day o 22nd- Career Day o 23rd- Pajama Day

Homework for the week of October 4th

Reading: (Daily Activities) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Math: (due Friday) • Workbook Page 3.13 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) • Workbook Page 3.14 (Homework- front and Remembering- back) Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 8 Monday – Read the words and sentences attached 2 times Tuesday – Choose one activity from the list attached! Wednesday – Choose a different activity then the one you choose yesterday to complete from the list attached! Thursday – Practice Spelling Test Letterland Activity Choices - Choose 10 words from the list and write them 3 times each (ex: cat, cat, cat) - Choose 10 words from the list and blue vowel write them. (blue vowel writing means that the kids write the word normal, but the vowels are written in blue crayon instead of pencil) - Write 5 sentences and try to include at least 10 words from the list - Write at least half of the words in ABC order. - Write a story with at least 10 words from the list. - Choose 10 words from the list and type them 3 times each. (ex: dog, dog, dog) - Choose 10 words from the list and paint them on a piece of paper. - Choose 10 words from the list and pyramid write them. Example: m mo mom

Weekly Newsletter Volume 10

Welcome back! I trust everyone had a wonderful track out and is ready to get back into the swing of things. I really enjoyed meeting with everyone for conferences. It really is amazing how involved all of you are in your child’s lives. They are lucky to have such wonderful parents. Thank you for all of the support you give them and me! * We will meet again in the 3rd quarter or beginning of 4th quarter, but please let me know if you ever have questions, concerns, and/or comments and we can most certainly meet when needed! For the 2nd quarter, our specials will be as followed: Monday is Art, Tuesday is PE, Wednesday is Music, Thursday is Technology, and Friday is Art for the first 3 weeks of track in. Starting the week of October 21st- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday will stay the same and then Fridays we will go to Media.*Students will have a chance to get new library books in the morning before the bell rings on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Important Information: - Scholastic book order- October Scholastic book orders will be coming home this Thursday. This of course is completely optional, but it is a great opportunity to order some books for your child. If you are interested, check and order form will be due to me by Friday, October 18th. If you would like to order online, our class activation code is: G229M. You can access that at www.scholastic.com/bookclubs. - Book-It!- Starting Tuesday, October 1st we will begin doing Book-It! This is an optional reading program that runs from October 1st to March 31st. There will be more information coming home about this on Tuesday. - Fall Festival- Thank you to everyone who came out, volunteered, and donated items to our awesome Fall Festival. I am so happy to announce that my four legged child, Bootsie, is the new owner of the fabulous cat basket that our class and Mrs. Rodger’s class did! - Spirit Week- Spirit week will be October 16th through the 23rd. The days will be as followed: o 16th- Favorite Sports Team Day o 17th- Crazy Sock Day o 18th- School Spirit Day o 21st- Favorite Book Character Day o 22nd- Career Day o 23rd- Pajama Day

Homework for the week of September 30th- October 4th

Reading: (DAILY) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes • Writing- Write at least a 5 sentence story about your favorite thing you did over Track Out. Make sure to have capitals at beginning of sentences and for proper nouns, periods at end of sentences, and tap out the sounds for the words. Make sure to have your child reread over their story when they are done, to make sure they did not leave out any words and that it makes sense. Math: (due Friday) • Workbook page 3.7 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) • Workbook page 3.10 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)

Report Card Information

Dear Parents, This letter is to inform you that first-quarter report cards will be delayed for all year-round elementary school students. Students in tracks 1, 2 and 3 will receive report cards on October 11. Track 4 students will receive report cards on October 25. Report cards are delayed because of required software modifications to our new student information system, Home Base. The new system uses software called PowerSchool to track attendance, grades and assignments. The new software requires a change to accommodate the report card format. This issue affects elementary report cards only. We are currently working with the vendor to resolve the issue, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Teachers remain committed to keeping you informed regarding your child’s progress. If at any time you have questions regarding your child’s progress, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher.

Weekly Newsletter volume 9

In math, we took our test working with story problems and finding the unknown partners. We also started working with “Math Mountains” using subtraction word problems. Since we know the total, that goes at the top, then we know how many were eaten, taken away, lost, etc. so that goes at the bottom. So we get that number in our head and count up to the total. So, if we have the word problem: “I had 7 pennies and spent 3 pennies on a pencil. How many pennies do I have left?” We would get 3 in our head and count up to 7. So it would be 3 in our head- and now count on with our fingers 4, 5, 6, 7. So the answer would be 4 pennies left. In Daily 5, we focused on a Comprehension “C” strategy of asking questions before we read, during reading, and after reading. We also worked on an Accuracy “A” strategy of cross checking. That is where we ask ourselves “Does it look right? Does it sound right? And does it make sense?” If the answer is no to any of these, we need to try a different strategy to decode the word. In Letterland, we learned the letters “u and the other sound for s, which makes the /z/ sound when it is added as a suffix s.” We worked with the word families –un, -ug, and -ut. Our tricky words for the week that have been added to our word wall are “helps and two”. This week in writing, we worked on editing our stories. We know when we are done writing our story, we need to read it over and correct any mistakes. We have a checklist that we keep in our folder and refer to when we are done. Our Small Moments Checklist is looking for capitals at the beginning of sentences and when “I” is by itself, correct spacing between words, correct punctuation at the end of sentences, word wall words spelled correctly, and unknown words stretched out and their sounds recorded. A good first grade story should have all of these items correct in their story. Important information: Spirit Day- Make sure to wear your Banks Road t-shirt or school colors (green and blue) every Friday! - Conferences- I will be holding conferences next Monday, September 9th and then on Wednesday, September 11th. I have sent conference confirmations to everyone. If something comes up and you are unable to keep your conference time, please email me at cbethel@wcpss.net or call the school at 890-7333 as soon as possible and we can reschedule. Please make sure to be on time, since conferences are schedule back to back. Thanks and I look forward to meeting with you! - Track Out Packet- Not sure what to work on during Track Out? I will be sending home a Track Out packet for students to work on during Track Out. This is completely optional, but will keep skills fresh during our time out. - Spirit Week- Starting this Friday will be Banks Road spirit week. The days will be as followed- Friday: wear your school colors or Banks Road t-shirt, Monday: Hat day, Tuesday: Dress to Impress day, and then we will be tracked out for the rest. We will also be collecting money for our Coin Drive. You can bring any loose change that you have. Thanks! - Book Buddies- We have started Book Buddies with Mrs. Torrey’s 4th graders. Ask your child who their buddy is and what they have read together!

Homework for the week of September 3rd to 10th

(Homework is Due- Tuesday, September 10th!!!) Reading: (DAILY) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Monday: 10 minutes Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 7 See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions! • Tuesday – Read circled words and sentences (Make sure to practice the review words from previous weeks) • Wednesday– Look Say and cover Activity • Thursday – Write 5 sentences • Monday – Practice Spelling Test Math: (due Tuesday, September 10th) • Workbook page 3.4 (Homework- front and Remembering- back) • Workbook page 3.6 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)

Weekly Newsletter Volume 8

In math, we concentrated on “Math Mountains” where we work on plugging numbers in to help us figure out story problems and make an equation. At the top of the mountain is the total amount. We know this is the biggest number. The two numbers at the bottom of the mountain are the “partners” when added together give us the total. For example if I have the problem, “I had 9 marbles. Five were green and the rest were orange. How many are orange?” I would use the math mountain to put 9, the total, at the top and 5 at the bottom of the mountain, since I know that is already one of the partners. I would put a box for the other partner since it is the “unknown partner.” Then I would count on from 5 and say 6, 7, 8, and 9 and hold a finger up for every number. Since I said 4 numbers, (6, 7, 8, and 9) my answer would be 4. So I could make an equation of 5+4=9. In Daily 5, we continued working on our 5 components during our rotations. We continued meeting for reading groups. Ask your child which Daily 5 component is their favorite. We also started working on the CAFÉ board. The “C” stands for Comprehension, the “A” is Accuracy, the “F” is fluency, and the “E” is expanding vocabulary. In Letterland, we learned the letters “e, the double ll and the digraph wh.” We worked with the word families –ell, -en, and -et. For the double ll, we only tap out one l. So for the word, “yell”, it has 4 sounds, but we only tap out 3 sounds, first the /y/, then the short /e/, and last one /l/. Our tricky words for the week that have been added to our word wall are “she, do, and we”. This week in Social Studies, we talked about being a good citizen. We talked about how there are many different types of citizens, but a citizen is a person who follows the rules and is a good role model to others. We are working on each of us becoming a “GREAT CLASSROOM CITIZEN!” Important information: -Box tops- Start cutting out Box Tops and sending them in a baggie to school with Miss Bethel 1st grade, Track 1 written on the baggie. We are in a class vs. class competition until October. Let’s raise money for our school 10 cents at a time! -Spirit Week-Mark your calendars! Spirit week is right around the corner. It will start on Friday, September 6th and go through the 13th, but we track out the 10th. Each class will be doing a coin drive, so start collecting your coins! -Scholastic Book Orders- Our first order is due this Thursday! -Spirit Day- Make sure to wear your Banks Road t-shirt or school colors (green and blue) every Friday!

Homework for the week of August 26th

Reading: (DAILY) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for Unit 6 See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions! • Monday – Read circled words and sentences (Make sure to practice the review words from previous weeks) • Tuesday – Look Say and cover Activity • Wednesday – Write 5 sentences • Thursday – Practice Spelling Test Math: (due Friday) • Workbook page 3.1 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) • Workbook page 3.2 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)

Weekly Newsletter Volume 7

In math, we continued to work on understanding subtraction word problems and write a subtraction equation. We looked for key verbs like “ate, flew away, lost, and broke” to let us know we are taking away. We took an assessment last week and the students did a great job! In Daily 5, we started our rotations like it will be for the remainder of the school year. Reading groups have been established and all of the groups meet with me last week. Our class has 5 different reading groups, so I can differentiate for each group’s strengths and focus on areas of improvement. Ask your child which color of reading group they are in and who is in their group with them. In Letterland, we learned the letters “o and the digraph sh.” We worked with the word families –op, -ot, and -ock. Our tricky words for the week that have been added to our word wall are “they and went”. This week in Social Studies, we went to the computer lab and researched different community helpers using the website http://teacher.scholastic.com/commclub/index.htm. We learned more about the jobs that different community helpers do. Important information: Clothing drive- The clothing drive is going through this Friday, August 23rd. We are in need to underwear, flip flops, and boy’s clothing. Box tops- Start cutting out Box Tops and sending them in a baggie to school with Miss Bethel 1st grade, Track 1 written on the baggie. We are in a class vs. class competition until October. Let’s raise money for our school 10 cents at a time! Spirit Week-Mark your calendars! Spirit week is right around the corner. It will start on Friday, September 6th and go through the 13th, but we track out the 10th. Each class will be doing a coin drive, so start collecting your coins! Scholastic Book Orders- Our first order forms went home last week. This is a great way to purchase books for your child at a discounted price. I have set it up so you can order everything on line if you would prefer. You go to scholastic.com/bookclubs and our class activation code is G229M. Please let me know if you need help with any of this! Spirit Day- Make sure to wear your Banks Road t-shirt or school colors (green and blue) every Friday! Open House- Thank you to everyone who came out last week to our Open House. I know that was a lot of information to take in at once, so I have posted the PowerPoint presentation to my Blackboard site. You can access it from our school website, then click on staff and find my name and then to the right you will be see a chalkboard with “Bb”. Click on that and look for Ms. Bethel. I have also posted the link to access BlackBoard on the classroom blog.

Homework for the week of August 19th

Reading: (DAILY) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for the week See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions! • Monday – Read circled words and sentences (Make sure to practice the review words from previous weeks) • Tuesday – Look Say and cover Activity • Wednesday – Write 5 sentences • Thursday – Practice Spelling Test Math: (due Friday) • Workbook page 2.12 (Homework- front and Remembering- back) • Workbook page 2.14 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)

Weekly newsletter volume 6

In math, we started working on subtraction word problems. We know we have to start off with the bigger number and listen for key words like “rolled away”, “flew away”, “were eaten”, “gave away” and have to take that many away. So if we have the problem, “there were 6 birds and 2 flew away. How many birds are left?” They would start off with 6 circles, and we use circles since they are quick to draw, and cross off 2 and that would leave us with 4 circles. So we would write the equation 6-2=4. Then to show understanding we would need to write, “There are 4 birds left.” In Letterland, we learned the letters “I, w, x, g, and the digraph th.” We worked with the word families –in, -ick, and –ix. Our tricky words for the week that have been added to our word wall are likes, to, this, and he. For the digraph “th”, we learned it has two different sounds. It has the unvoiced th as in words like thick, thin, and thunder. And then it has the voiced th as in words like this, that, and then. Remember digraphs are two letters, but only make one sound. In writing, we worked on adding transitional words for the beginning, middle, and end of our story. For the beginning we use words like first. Then for the middle, we can use words like then, next, and second. For the ending, we can use words like last, finally, at last, and after. This week in Social Studies, we read more about the three different communities of rural, urban, and suburban. Then we compared how the three communities were alike and how they are different. Important information: - Assessments- To keep you better informed at home, I will be sending home assessments on Tuesday from the first few weeks of school for you to view your child’s grades. Please sign and date the attached sheet and return all assessments tomorrow. If I see that assessments are not coming back to school, I will stop sending them home and will ask that you make an appointment for a conference to discuss your child’s grades. - Scholastic Book Orders- Our first Scholastic book order forms are coming home this Wednesday. Scholastic provides a great way for you to build a great library at home at a very affordable price. If you are interested in buy any books, the order form and check (made out to Scholastic book club) will be due on Thursday, August 29th. If you would like to order online- see the attached sheet on how to do it on the computer. - “Book in a Bag”- The “Book in the Bag” for homework is meant to be a book on your child’s level that they can read independently. They can continue to read other books from the library or from home.

Homework for the week of August 12th

Reading: (DAILY) • A new “Book in a Bag” will be coming home this week. This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday: 10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for the week See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions! • Monday – Read circled words and sentences (Make sure to practice the review words from previous weeks) • Tuesday – Look Say and cover Activity • Wednesday – Write 5 sentences • Thursday – Practice Spelling Test Math: (due Friday) • Workbook page 2.9 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) • Workbook page 2.11 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back)

Homework for the week of August 5th

Homework for the week of August 5th – August 9th Reading: (DAILY) • Your child will be bringing home their “Book in a Bag.” This is a book that is on their level. Your child should continue to read their “Book in a Bag” several times throughout the week, but they can continue to read other books throughout the week. Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night. Monday: 10 minutes Tuesday: 10 minutes Wednesday:10 minutes Thursday: 10 minutes Letterland: (Daily Activities) Practice the Tricky Words, List A, and New Sentences for the week See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions! • Monday – Read circled words and sentences (Make sure to practice the review words from last week) • Tuesday – Look Say and cover Activity • Wednesday – Write 5 sentences • Thursday – Practice Spelling Test Math: (due Friday) • Workbook page 2.5 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) • Workbook page 2.6 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)

Newsletter volume 5

In math, we began a new unit. We have been working on finding the partners and the total, by counting up all of our circles from our circle drawing and then writing an additional equation. We talked about how the equal sign goes in the equation to show that the addition number sentence is true. So for example 7+2=9, would be a true addition sentence, since 7 plus 2, does equal 9. 8+1=10, would be not equal, since 8 plus 1 equals 9. We also worked on the counting on strategy. This is where we get the bigger number in our head and count on the lower number. For example if we have the problem 6+2, we could get 6 in our head and add two more to it, giving us 6: 7 and 8. This is a much easier and quicker strategy than using the counting all strategy where we count every number, like 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and then adding two more 7 and 8. In Letterland, we worked on three more word families this week: -am, -an, and –ack. –Am and –An are glued sounds and they only make 1 sound. Have your child show you how to tap out the word “can.” It has three letters, but we only tap out two sounds. It would be /c/ and then /an/. –Ack is also special because the /ck/ only makes one sound as well. For the word “back”, it would be /b/, /a/, and then /ck/. Our tricky words last week were: and, like, and I. These words will be added to the word wall since they cannot be tapped out. Once we have gone over the words, they are expected to spell these words correctly in their writing and be able to read them. In Daily 5, we learned another component. This week we learned “Word Work” by working with the word families –am, -an, and –ack from Letterland. Monday we cut our words out and sorted them into their respective groups. Tuesday, we sorted the words and spelled them with Wikki Sticks. Wednesday we sorted the words and made them with magnetic letters. Thursday we sort the words and Rainbow Write them and on Friday we glue the words into our notebook in the correct sorts. In writing, we discussed how we hold writing conferences each day. As students are writing, I will come around and conference with one student at a time. I will tell them something they are doing great with and something they need to continue to work on. We also practiced putting periods at the end of complete thoughts. Remember- “Think a thought. Write a thought. Put a period.” This week in Social Studies, we learned about community helpers. We found that these people, teachers, fire fighters, police officers, mailmen, doctors, nurses, and trash men are all important people in each community. Important information: - Picture Day- Remember this Tuesday is picture day. If you want to purchase pictures, please make sure you have the money in your child’s folder Tuesday morning!

Newsletter volume 3

In math, we have been working on odd and even numbers. We have also been working on finding equal partners for even numbers.  For example, 8 can have equal partners because it can have the partners of 4 and 4.  But 7 and 9 cannot have equal partners. We have also been working on finding 1 more, 2 more, 1 less, and 2 less than a number between 0 and 20.

In Daily 5, we began building our stamina for read to self and work on writing. We made an “I-chart” for each of these rotations and have talked about what the expectations are for students and for the teacher during this time. We started with 3 minutes for each of these rotations and have built our stamina up to 10 minutes so far. Our overall goal is to be able to work independently for 20 minutes.

In writing, we have been focusing on stretching out words and writing down the sounds they hear.  This is a great tool to use for homework too.  As the year goes on, we will learn more about phonemic rules and our spelling will improve, but this is a great tool to always use.  The last thing I want a student to do is stay stuck on a word.

We started a phonics based program called “Letterland”. Last week, we learned the letters a, b, c, d, f, h, l, m, n, p, r, s, and t. We learned the “character” that goes with each letter and the motion for each letter. Ask your child about these letters and their characters name and their motion.

Important information:

- Checking Out-If parents need to check students out of school early for an appointment, the student must be checked out in the office by 3:00 p.m. The office will be closed at 3:00 p.m. each day for student check out. The reason for this procedure is student safety. In case of an emergency, parents may call the office at 890-7333.  A staff member will return your call if necessary. We discourage early check outs and late arrivals but understand that they may happen a few times each year.

- Lunch Time Visitors Information Parents are always welcome at Banks Road Elementary to enjoy lunch with their children. While visiting at lunchtime, we ask that all visitors observe the following guidelines:

1.              Sign-in at the office and wear your Visitor’s Badge in a prominent and visible location;

2.              Meet your child in the cafeteria when he/she arrives with his/her class, please do not walk to the classroom;

3.              Sit at the Visitor’s Table with your child only (for safety and security, students are not permitted to invite friends to eat with them);

4.              Allow your child to return to class when his/her teacher arrives to pick up the class; and

5.              Check-out at the office after lunch, remove badge, and place in trash before exiting the office.

Banks Road Elementary and Child Nutrition Services encourage healthy lifestyles and healthy food choices. Parents may bring in outside food and drink for their child, but may not bring lunch for another child.

-Please continue to bring bus tags back.  Students need to bring those back for 10 more school day.  Thanks!

- It is hot outside!!!! It might be a good idea to send a reusable water bottle to school with your child so they can take it out to recess with them.

Homework for the week of July 22nd

                     Homework for the week of July 22^nd – July 26^th  

Reading: (DAILY)

• Learning to read and improving your reading skills are some of the most important things your child will learn in first grade.  For that reason, I would like your child to begin reading nightly for about ten minutes.  Once your child has completed their time, initial below to show that they have read each night.     

Monday: 10 minutes	Tuesday: 10 minutes	Wednesday: 10 minutes	Thursday: 10 minutes

Letterland: (Daily Activities)

See Step by Step Worksheet for more detailed directions!

• Monday  – Read circled words and sentences
• Tuesday – Look Say and cover Activity
• Wednesday – Write 5 sentences
• Thursday – Practice Spelling Test

Math: (due Friday)

• “Comparing Names in my Family” Journal Prompt
• “Comparing Numbers” Journal Prompt

Newsletter volume 2

Thank you to all of the parents who turned in the “Student Information sheet”. I enjoyed learning more about your child and will work very hard to ensure their first grade experience is a wonderful one!

This week in Social Studies, we worked on coming up with our class rules. And they are as followed: 1. Use your best behavior, 2. Keep hands and feet to yourself., 3. Use appropriate voice level., 4. Listen to the teacher the first time, 5.Use your manners., 6. Come every day ready to do your best., and 7. Be respectful when others are working. Together as a class we also came up with rewards and consequences and talked about how we can be good classroom citizens. That is someone who is a role model to others in our classroom and school.

In math, we have started our daily work with the money flip chart, the secret code cards, number flashes with our fingers, the number path, and number splash. Have your child tell you what we do with each of these items daily.

In reading, we have been discussing how important it is to read as much as possible, because “the more we read, the better we read!”  This can be books, signs, video games, things on television, the comics, or anything else they can find.

In writing, we have been focusing on using correct spaces in our story and adding more to our story because “When we are done, we have just begun.” It’s important to go back and add more to our picture, more to our writing, and then starting another piece.

Important information:

- I would first like to thank all of the parents for bringing in so many wonderful supplies for the beginning of the year.

- We went to the library last week and had a chance to check out 2 library books each.  I will allow students to go the library and check out new books in the morning before the bell rings and any free time throughout the day.

- Bus riders are required by Wake County to wear their bus tags for the first 20 days of school.  Please make sure your child returns their bus tag each day! We want to make sure they are getting off at the appropriate stop.

- Homework will always be due on Friday.  I will have students pull out their homework on Friday mornings, so it should stay in the folder till Friday.  I will not pull it out before then.

-Please keep the “Home-School Connection” in the homework folder.  I will collect those on Monday and keep for my records. Thanks for your understanding.

Homework for the week of July 15, 2013

Math	Complete attached Math Expressions pages: 1-7 (Homework- front and Targeted Practice- back) 1-8 (Homework- front and Remembering- back)
Writing	Writing workshop is a very important part of first grade.  We often ask our students to write about things that relate to them.  I would like for you to sit down with your child and make a collage.  The collage can consist of pictures that you have taken of family, friends, trips, sports/activities your child participates in, pets, etc…  It can also be pictures cut out of magazines that your child likes if pictures are not available to you.  When you glue the pictures on the cardstock for the collage, please use only one side and make sure the pictures fit on the cardstock.  We will use the other side for something else.  The students will be allowed to use this collage during writing workshop time to help with the writing/story telling process and refer back to it during the school year.
Reading	Read for at least 10 minutes each night.  Write the title on this sheet. Monday _________________________________________ Tuesday__________________________________________ Wednesday_______________________________________ Thursday ________________________________________

First and second homework assignment

My First Homework Assignment

Learning to read and improving reading skills are some of the most important things your child will learn in first grade.  I’m sure you have already begun this journey by reading to your child at home.  Your child’s first homework assignment is to bring one of their favorite books to school tomorrow or by Wednesday at the latest.  Talk to your child about his/her memories of you reading to him/her.  Talk about books or magazines that cover a favorite topic your child is interested in.  Talk to your child about any books he/she reads, pretends to read or ones you have read to him/her.  Then have your child pick one book to bring to school to share with the class.  It is not necessary that your child is able to read the book on his/her own, but he/she should be familiar with the book.  I would like to keep these books for a week or two while we have discussions about our favorite books and how to cherish them.  I promise we will take good care of them while they are here.  Please put your child’s name on the book.  If it is a library book, put your child’s name on a post-it note inside the front cover.  Thank you so much for your participation! 

  My Second Homework Assignment

Each week your child will have reading homework.  It is important for you and your child to consider where in your home is the best place to read.  Does your child need to read in a cozy spot or in an upright chair?   Do they need it to be in a quiet place or do they perform better with the “buzz” of family noise?  Have your child sketch a picture of the best place in their homes for them to read.  Then have your child label the picture.  Don’t forget to have your child put his/her name on his/her drawing.  This assignment is due on Friday. 

Welcome to Miss Bethel's class!!!!! Newsletter volume 1

Welcome to First Grade! We had a very successful first day of school!  We settled into the classroom and all the boys and girls were such great listeners as we discussed the many routines and procedures that will be a part of each school day.  This week will be coming up with our class rules and appropriate rewards and consequences for our actions.

Communication

-      Student homework for the week, will go home today, the 8^th.  There are two assignments, the first will be due Wednesday, which is their favorite book, and the second is a drawing of where in the house they will do their weekly reading homework. That will be due on Friday.  There is a yellow sheet with more information pertaining to this week’s homework coming home in the green homework folder today.

-      Each week there will be a new Home-School Connection that stays in the green Homework folders.  I will write any comments, praises, or concerns on that days box.  So make sure you check it daily and initial the box. Please leave that sheet in the folder.  I will take them out on the following Monday when the new sheet goes in.

-      There will be a monthly behavior calendar that will stay in the left hand side of the homework folder. Please see the calendar for daily behavior updates and initial the box every day. I will take this out after the month is over. 

-      In an effort to save paper and copies this year, I will be sending home many newsletters and weekly updates via the class blog.  It can be found at: http://missbethelsfirstgradeclassroom.blogspot.com/ and also on the magnet that came home on Meet the Teacher.  If I do not have your email please send it to school with your child or in an email to cbethel@wcpss.net so I can add you to the list.  If you do not have access to a computer please let me know and I will send hard copies home in the Homework folder. I will always send homework in folders and post on the blog as well.

Important information and clarifications:

-      We will have lunch from 11:05 to 11:30 for the entire school year. (Early Release lunch time will be at the same time.) Recess will be from 1:00 to 1:30.  Our specials for the year are as followed: Monday is Media/Technology, Tuesday is Art, Wednesday is PE, Thursday is Music, and Friday is Media/Technology.  Media will be on Mondays and Fridays the 1^st and 3^rd quarter and Technology will be on Monday and Fridays the 2^nd and 4^th quarters (for the first 3 weeks of the quarter). Then the last 6 weeks of the quarter will be Media on Mondays and Technology on Fridays.

-      Each day, students will have the opportunity to have a snack time. I will not provide snacks. If you so wish, please provide a healthy snack and drink for your child daily. We will not have snack time on Early Release days.

-      Volunteering- I will love to have volunteers come and help out in the classroom.  I just ask that you give us the first few weeks of school to get our procedures and routines learned and kinks worked out.  I will be sending sheets home about things you would be interested to volunteer to do in the classroom.  Be on the lookout for this sheet soon!

Weekly Newsletter- volume 33

- Team Time- Last week we have been working with the “Bossy R”. The “r” makes the vowels a, e, I, o, and u say a new sound. “Er, Ir, and Ur” all say /er/ as in sister, bird, and church. “Ar” says /ar/ as in car and “Or” says /or/ as in corn.

- Math- Last week we continued to work with nonstandard units of measurement. We have been working on comparing measurements using the words shorter than, longer than, and the same as. We put ourselves into small groups and ordered ourselves from shortest to tallest and then found items around the room and discussed how they compared to each other in size.

- Reading – We have been working hard on our Reader’s Theater plays. The five plays we have are “The Gingerbread Man”, “The Elves and the Shoemaker”, “Puss in Boots”, “Mrs. Tizzy’s Shopping List”, and “Town Mouse and Country Mouse”. Students have been working on reading their parts using great fluency and expression and changing their voice so it matches their character. We have also discussed the setting and how we can transform ourselves into our characters. You are invited to our performance of the plays next Monday, May 13^th at 12:30. Hope to see you there!

- Writing- We have been using the writing process to help us write great first grade stories. We first plan what we are going to write about filling out a graphic organizer, then we write our first draft, then we edit our story looking for correct punctuation, spelling, capitals, and finger spacing. Then we revise our story, going back and adding in more details. Then we write our final copy and publish it and then last share our story.

- Wilson’s Fundations- We have been working on closed syllable words that have 5 sounds. Words have parts that go together called syllables. A syllable is part of a word that can be pushed out in one breath. Closed syllables have only one vowel and must be followed by or closed in by a consonant and it can be more than one consonant. A closed syllable gives the vowel the short sound. For words that have 5 letters and 5 sounds tapped out, like trust, we tap out the first sound /t/ with the thumb and index finger, then /r/ with the thumb to middle finger, then /u/ with the thumb and ring finger, then /s/ with the thumb and pinky finger, and then do the final sound /t/ going back to the thumb and index finger.

- Important Information:

- Family Fancy Dance- Keep on turning in the RSVP’s for our first Banks Road Family Fancy Dance. It will be from 5:45 to 7:45. If you need a new sheet to RSVP, please let me know.

- Individual Spring Pictures- Keep on turning in checks made out to Lifetime, if you want to order pictures, or return whatever pictures you do not want to keep.

- May Scholastic- Our last Scholastic book order for the year came home last week and are due Monday, May 13^th. Remember, you can order online using our activation code: G229M.

- Word Lists and Math Masters- We only have 18 more days of school, so keep on practicing both of these. A huge congratulations goes out to Seth Landron for completing all 20 words lists!!!! Keep up the great work everyone!

- Spirit Week- Track 1 ONLY: May 28th- May 31^st is as followed: Tuesday: Backwards Day, Wednesday: Wacky Tacky Day, Thursday: Hawaiian Day, and  Friday: School Spirit (5th grade Clap Out)

- Reader’s Theater Plays- We will be having our dress rehearsal for our 5 classroom plays on Friday. If you would like to have your child bring in props or clothing for their play/character, they can bring it in on Thursday. It will go back to you next week. Please don’t go out and buy any materials. We will use whatever materials and props we have.