Insect Museum
This Friday we had the pleasure of presenting our culminating event of the insect unit to parents: The Insect Museum! We were joined my moms, dads, brothers, sisters, and special friends who wanted to learn all about the insect world from our First Grade experts. Our young scientists presented research on local insects, insect writing and photography, life cycle diagrams, and numerous art projects. It was an impressive body of work and we may have demystified the world of insects for our grown-up guests!

 

Math 
This week First Graders learned about a new kind of number puzzle: Frames and Arrows. Frames and arrows are a way to teach number sense, addition and subtraction, mental math, pattern recognition, and skip counting. These diagrams show sequences of numbers—numbers that follow one after the other according to a rule. Frames and arrows diagrams are made up of shapes called frames and arrows that connect the frames. Each frame contains one of the numbers in the sequence. Each arrow stands for a rule that tells which number goes in the next frame. Here is an example of a Frames-and-Arrows diagram. The arrow rule is “ Add 2.”

In a Frames-and-Arrows problem, some of the information is left out. To solve the problem, you have to find the missing information.

You can easily make up your own frames and arrows problems at home. Try it!

 

Movement
There is a new phenomenon in Grade 1 and it is called Castle Ball. We introduced the game last week and it has completely taken recess by storm. Some games that we teach children at TCS are cooperative and some are competitive. Castle Ball is a competitive game that is high-energy, high-engagement, and very, very exciting. It involves playground balls, hula hoops, and jump ropes, so you can imagine how wild things can get. Ask your child about the rules of Castle Ball to find out more!

 

Important Dates

• Monday and Tuesday, November 14 and 15 – Parent Conferences, Half-Days, 11:30 dismissal
• Tuesday, November 22 – Harvest Feast, 10:00am (Half-Day, 11:30 dismissal)
• Wednesday – Friday, November 23-25, – Thanksgiving Break, No School