Superhero News!

September, 2014
Sight Words to Study
Week 1: 9/15 9/19
the me I am as
Week 2: 9/22 9/25
play love to like my
Week 3: 9/29 10/3
see of and in said
Spelling Lists: Every Friday we have a
Spelling Test which will consist of 10
words. The first five words will be the
same for everyone (the sight words listed
above). The other five words will be from
their sort (which are individualized
according to their spelling skills). This
week everyone will have the same at
sort as we learn how to do our sorts, but
in two weeks we will begin the
differentiated sorts.
Welcome to First Grade!
Upcoming Dates
Next week (Tues. and Wed., Sept. 23
rd

and 24
th
) are SEPs. This is a chance for
you to come and see how your child is
doing in first grade. You should have
received your note about how to sign up
for a time (check your childs Important
Notes in their Star Book). Please bring
your child and their Star Book as we will
be making goals for the upcoming term. I
am looking forward to meeting you and
discussing your childs progress!
NO SCHOOL on Fri., Sept. 26
th
!
Were Flying High!
Your students are off to a great start! We are working hard
to learn all the procedures and routines that will help us to
be successful all year long. There is a lot that goes into being
a great first grader, and your child needs your support!
Please make sure your child is at school no earlier than 8:15
(if theyre eating breakfast), and a little later than that if not
eating here. Attendance and punctuality are life skills that
must be started early!
This week is a VERY important week! We are starting two
major parts of first grade reading packets, and spelling lists!
Reading Packets: Mon. through Thurs. six aides push
into our room. We quickly divide into six small groups
(according to reading skills), and each aide reads the packet
with that small group. This is a huge benefit for your child,
and this benefit is greatly enhanced by your reading the
packet with them after school as part of their homework.
Your child will be trained to read the sight word page first
(those are five of the words that will be on their spelling test
on Friday), then the sound page (there are letters and letter
combinations on the page, but we expect the children to tell
you the sound, not the name of the letter). On the back of
the sound page are words made up of those sounds which are
also found in the decodable book. The last piece of the
packet is a one-minute timing. This timing is simply the
words of the decodable book put onto one page for timing
convenience. Have your child read as many words as possible
in one minute, noting any errors. The number of words he
read, minus the errors he made, gives you the words read per
minute (WPM). Consistency is critical please read the
packet with them every day!
Miss Jean Turner Email: [email protected]
Diamond Ridge Elementary Webpage:
6034 Mill Valley Lane
West Valley City, Utah 84118
Telephone: (385) 646-4858 Cell: (801) 597-7286
Watching out for Math!
We are busily working on understanding basic number
skills and addition. We are learning about addends,
sums, and the commutative property!
Behind the red Math divider in the Star Book, there
are Strategy Letters. These were created specifically to
help parents help their children with their nightly
homework pages. The concepts we teach your children
become increasingly difficult (of course), but the teaching
and learning methods are so new that, as strange as it
may sound, there may be times when you will not know
how to help your child! Look at the strategy letters, and if
you still cannot figure it out, trust your first grader. The
homework page will NEVER be the first time they practice
this skill they know more than they think they do. Let
them do it the way they think they should, and write me a
note if you are still uncertain. I will check in with them
to make sure it is done correctly. (The goal here is to
have them be responsible for the information.) You will
be amazed at what your first grader will be able to do by
the end of the year!

Superhero Tips and Tools
Each month I will post ideas that you can use at home to help your child succeed.
Reading Tips: Read aloud to your child every day. Make this a happy, snuggly time, with no
pressure for them. It is simply a time for them to listen to some of your favorite books and
enjoy being with you.
Math Tips: Count everything! How many forks do we need for dinner? How many pennies
are in my pocket? How many pairs of socks are we putting in your drawer?
Handwriting Tips: Strengthening small motor skills is simply strengthening their hand
muscles. Playdoh is a great (and easy) way to do that!
Help Wanted
I would love a parent volunteer that can
come take pictures during the year and help
put together a dvd at the end of the year for
the students to remember their fantastic first
grade year. Any photographers out there?


Other Information
Snacks: Thank you for sending a snack once a
month it really helps our students get through
the long afternoon.
Homework: Thank you for your support with
homework everyone has done a fabulous job
of returning their work! Please be sure to have
your child check for their name on their paper!
Watch for Detective Notebooks! We will be
sending these home for students to look for
letters, numbers, shapes, etc. This is to help
students see that writing is useful in a variety of
different contexts, and that letters, numbers and
shapes are all around us! Please help your child
add something to the notebook and bring it back
to school!
Superhero of the Week!
Alyssa Scholl was the Superhero of the
week last week, and we got to learn a lot
about her as she shared the poster she
brought. Alyssa is a quiet but capable child,
and is great at following directions.
Next weeks Superhero is Andrew Wetzel!
Andrew is an enthusiastic learner with a
great smile.
Then its Erik Rojos turn. Erik is a hard
worker who gets right to work and can
really focus.
We look forward to getting to know these
students better as we spotlight them!
Word Sort
This week a white copy of the word sort is coming home.
Your child will be in a spelling group according to color (the
color of the spelling list in their Star Book is the color of their
word sort). They will bring home a white copy to practice
with each night in their Star Book pouch.
Monday: Cut out the sort, and sort it. (Cutting is an
important first grade skill even though it may be hard for
them, please let them do it!)
Tuesday: Time your child as they sort their words. Give
them 2 minutes, then 1 and minutes. They MUST read
each word aloud as they set it down in the proper column.
This is easy and excellent reading practice.
Wednesday: Play a matching game; turn all words
over, and try to find the matching vowel sound, etc.
Thursday: Have them sort their words (reading them
aloud!), and then take a practice spelling test.