The first grade loves to learn about God's creation. This quarter we had a wonderful time watching 10 baby caterpillars grow, turn into a chrysalis', and transform into a butterflies. It was an amazing process to watch! We were in awe of our creator's power and creativity. We released the butterflies to help the flowers of Bartlett grow. We have also celebrated spring be learning about weather, clouds, insects, plants, and the life cycle of a frog. It was especially exciting when we visited the Morton Arboretum and saw real tadpoles! In Bible we studied about the missionary trips of Paul and how we can be a missionary right here in our community. In math, the students became proficient in double-digit addition and subtraction, measurement, time, and money. In Social Studies, we did an awesome unit learned about our country through patriotic songs and symbols. The kids took home a research project where they learned about their heritage. We have over 15 nationalities represented in our classroom! However, the most exciting thing that has happened in first grade has been watching the students become excellent readers! It is a blessing to come each day and teach kids with so much energy, compassion, and determination. They created a unique classroom community and will each be missed!

Throughout this entire year we have been so blessed by parents who come in and help us out. Thank you so much to all the parents who take the time to help with the parties, assist creating power point presentations, drive for field trips, volunteer at lunch time, donate supplies, contribute towards teacher appreciation week, come in for mother's day, help each night with homework, and so much more! Your willingness to help out and actively participate in your child's education make this school unique and successful. Have a great summer!

Time is flying by in first grade! It is amazing to see how far they have come in such a short time. The first graders love to play learning games in class. We practice our sight words by playing WORDO, spelling by playing SPARKLE, and on Fridays we always play Bible Trivia.

In reading they love our Accelerated reader time. During this time, they choose books at their level, practice reading them, and then they take comprehension quizzes on the computer to earn points. It’s been a great program and has gotten the kids motivated to read.

We spent this quarter in Bible learning about Jesus’ ministry and miracles. Easter was a special time in our classroom as we made salvation bracelets to tell the story of our salvation using colored beads and we made resurrection eggs filled with symbols to tell the Easter story. A special thanks to our parent volunteers who made our Easter party so special.

Math has been challenging as we have learned about numbers to 100, telling time, and money. One of our favorite days was celebrating the 100th day of school. We made crowns with 100 stickers, had special 100th day centers, went on a 100th day scavenger hunt, and much more.

In social studies we have been learning about how powerful our God is as we have studied weather, types of clouds, the water cycle, and precipitation.

In social studies we have learned about how God gave each of us gifts and talents to someday help us get a job in our community. We have also learned about one of the most important jobs in our country – the president.

First graders love books! Some of our favorite books this quarter have been, Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters, Just Plain Fancy, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy, James and the Giant Peach, and Sideway Stories from Wayside School.

We have had a very busy quarter in first grade. It is such a blessing each day, to walk into a classroom of smiling first graders who are enthusiastic and eager to learn.

Since Christmas break, the students have been working hard at using "marvelous manners" in our classroom. It is a joy to see each of them politely greeting students and adults, waiting patiently for their turn, and using please and thank you. Every week we add new things to work on and each day, a student who has worked very hard is given the Marvelous Manners Award.

During our Bible time each morning, the class has been learning about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Around Christmas time, we started to learn about the birth of Christ and we made beautiful, 3 dimensional nativity scenes.

I've been amazed how quickly the first graders have been understanding new math concepts such as fractions, probability, plane and solid shapes, and using base ten blocks.

In social studies, we have been learning about rules. The students discovered why God wants us to have rules and have memorized God's rules for us - the Ten Commandments.

These past couple of weeks our class has become polar animal experts during science class. Throughout our research and experiments, we have been amazed by how creative our God is in designing polar animals to live in such cold weather. Check out our amazing polar animal power point presentations at Academic Night!

Here are a few highlights in our classroom: Making gingerbread houses with our parents, reading Little House on the Prairie, and watching each child continue to grow into an amazing reader.

The first grade class has had an outstanding first quarter. Each day they are energetic and eager to learn. We have started this year studying God's faithfulness through the stories of creation, the fall, Noah, Abraham, and Isaac in the book of Genesis. Math is always and exciting time in our day as we explore numbers and order through addition, subtraction, graphing, and patterning. In Social Studies, the children have been experiencing how God created each child unique including their special role as a family member and friend. In science, we discovered many of the animals God created by learning about animal classification, presenting animal reports, and visiting the Brookfield Zoo.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of first grade has been each child's success in reading. It has been very exciting to see their progress each day. We are looking forward to all the new things we will be learning next quarter!