Happy Thanksgiving

It is so hard to believe that tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  It seem like yesterday was the first day of school.  Even our school days go by so fast.  Just the other day, one of the students said, “I can’t be the end of the day.  Didn’t we just get here?”  That comment just warmed my heart.  It just shows that the students are so engaged in learning, and their day is over before they know it!  We have so much to be thankful for at Campus International School.  Here is a list of just a few of things that we are thankful for…

·      Our amazing students

·      Our caring parents

·      The friendly grandparents, aunts, uncles, and family members, friends

·      Ms. Beers, our fearless leader

·      Dr. Abate, our Professor in Residence

·      Miss Zehel and Miss Dangerfield who will be leaving in two weeks

·      The special teachers who inspire, Mr. Albright, Mrs. Dailey, Miss Lipka, and Mrs. Pohl

·      Mr. Tyus who guides with love

·      The cooperative first grade team

·      Mrs. Karas, our IB PYP coordinator

Happy Thanksgiving!

How We Express Ourselves

It is hard to believe that we will be completing our second Unit of Inquiry next week. 

How We Express Ourselves

Central Idea: Literature is one medium through which we explore traditions, values, and cultural celebrations.

Lines of Inquiry:

·       We unite through celebrations with other cultures (Connection) 

·       Celebrations (stories/literature) help people become knowledgeable/informed of other cultures (of differences) (Perspective)

·       Celebrations are unique but share similarities (Form)

The students have explored this unit by reading Cinderella books around the world.  Did you know the Irish version of Cinderella has a boy as the main character?  He is the Irish Cinderlad!  We’ve also explored the Native American Cinderella through The Rough Face Girl.  We’ve traveled to Africa and read Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters.  The first graders were introduced to a non-fiction book describing the countries traditions, foods, and celebrations.  The students were encouraged to look for the traditions, values, and celebrations that were reflected in each version of Cinderella. 

We were so excited to hear that so many first graders drug their parents to the library to find different versions of Cinderella. 

ADM Week

The first graders enjoyed ADM week.  We saw mismatched socks, accessories, and hats.  We also enjoyed having an extra recess.  Thank you to all of the parents who sent their child to school everyday on time!  We began unit 2 in math.  The students are exploring addends, playing math games, and writing in our math journals.  

Today was a special day at CIS.  Our 4th grade Explorers went to CSU to hear Barack Obama speak.  Many of our first graders looked out of our window to see long lines of people waiting to hear President Obama.  

The Daily 5 in Action

We thought we would share a few photos of what your child is doing during The Daily 5!

Daily 5

The first graders started fully implementing The Daily 5 this week.  We are practicing rotating from station to station.  The five daily stations are...
Read to Self
Work on Writing
Read to Someone
Word Work
Listen to Reading

During Word Work, your child is working on word sorts that are specialized to your child's developmental spelling area.  Next week, we will be using 10 of the Word Work words as spelling words.  

Please remember, send your child to school with their folder daily.

Fair Day

The first grade Explorers had a wonderful time at the second annual CIS county fair.  Mrs. Tylicki brought in a rabbit, tortoise, and a hen for the students to see.  She taught us the difference between a tortoise and a turtle.  Ask you Explorer to tell you the difference.  We also want to show our appreciation for all the parents who came out to help.  It was so great to have a few extra hands to pass out popcorn and lemonade.  

Fair Day

First full week of school

The first grade has had a busy first full week of school.  We learned how to pick good fit books, and have built our reading stamina to 8 minutes during Read to Self.  We introduced Work on Writing, and discussed the importance of circling words we're unsure of how to spell and move on.  By doing so, the students do not forget their thoughts, and increase their writing stamina.

Your child learned how to play many cooperative games, such as, Hospital, Octopus, Blob Tag, Mother May I?, and the Freeze Game.  We've explored math manipulatives, and discussed what scientists do.  We also had a chance to experience stations/centers. 

The teachers have spent many days getting to know each and every student.  On Friday, we sent home a letter stating who would be your child's homeroom teacher. We consider all the children our students, but you should contact your child's homeroom teacher first with questions or concerns. 

We cannot wait to see what next week brings!

First Day of School

We had a fantastic first day of school!  It was so great to meet all of our first grade Explorers and their parents.  We learned two of the three ways to read a book, and we started to build stamina while reading to self. 

First Day of Unpacking

The first grade team has been busy moving into our new home.  Take a look at all we've accomplished!

Sneak Peak!

Here is a sneak peak into some of the first grade space. 

Welcome Back!

Welcome back to a brand new school year.  We are so excited about our move to the Cole Center.  Again, we are requesting a $25 school supply fee.  The only thing we ask you to purchase is a back pack and lunchbox.  We are asking for donations of tissues ( 2 boxes please), zip lock bags (sandwich and gallon size), Post-it Notes, and Clorox or Lysol wipes.