In Fundations, we continued to practice tapping out Consonant/Vowel/Consonant (CVC) words. To practice at home, ask your super learner what sounds they hear at the beginning of words, or at the end of a word. You can also practice tapping out sounds: c–a–t, f–o–x, p–i–g. The vowels are the hardest sounds for them to identify.
Also, the children learned some trick words: the, a, and, are, and to. I explained that these words are called Trick Words because they can be tricky and we do not tap them out. The students practiced reading these words in sentences. I also briefly discussed reading with fluency, or reading with speed and expression. The children also learned that the word a is pronounced like /u/.
Finally, the children heard "Baby Echo Finds Echo at Last" again but the second time I performed the story without words and had a couple students tell the class what happened in their own words. We love hearing their versions!
In Math, I told "join" and "take-away" number stories. The children drew pictures to help solve the problems and shared the strategies they used with their classmates. Then we learned how to write a number model with numbers and symbols instead of words. I explained that the numbers and symbols that model, or match, the story is called a number sentence, equation, or number model.
Then, children one at a time chose a domino and placed it under the correct number card. As more dominoes were sorted, we discussed why some totals were more common than others.
First, we discussed the life of President Washington and filled in missing letters to complete an anchor chart about him. Next, I charted the children's ideas about what they would do if they were president of the United States. I told them they could be serious or silly :)
We finished up our unit on President's Day by completing our "If I were President I would...." writing prompt/craft. I took a picture of each child so they could see themselves as presidents. We even added white cotton balls for hair! So cute!
The next day, the children made connections to the story. Many of the children described a time when they were brave like the bear and others described times they helped family members/friends like the bear helped the bird. Take a look :)
- Word Work:"If I can Spell" CVC Mats: Children read a CVC word and wrote three more CVC words by changing the initial sound.
- Writing Center: Children worked in their writing folders on their how-to books.
- Reading Center: Children tapped out CVC words and read easy to read sentences to match each word.
- Math Center: Children played Growing and Disappearing Train.
- Play Dough Center: Children used alphabet cookie cutters to spell words.
Take Care,
Mrs. Nork