Before Thanksgiving break, all of the lower school students participated in the Lower School Thanksgiving Parade. Since first grade recently completed a big project, we did not make floats. We did open the parade by performing the annual Turkey Pokey, it’s a bit of a tradition in my class. First grade did carry around a little flag they had made with what they were thankful for and participated the parading. The second through fourth grade students each made a float that represented something they are grateful for and on the Friday before break they paraded them around campus. It was a successful parade as family members, the preschoolers, kindergarteners, and many middle school students watched all of the lower school students march through a part of campus sharing their thankfulness. It was a typical feast, but we all gathered and shared a thankful heart with one another.

We closed out October with the annual book character day. It’s a fun tradition in Lower School where we dress up on Halloween as characters from some of our favorite books. It’s a neat way to put a spin on Halloween costumes.

One afternoon I tasked the class with making marble runs. It was their first attempt at it in these groups and while they turned out more like mazes, it was a great first try and gave them time to explore the materials. There will definitely be more attempts.

In reading groups I incorporated a new word segmenting game. It is crucial for students to learn how to break down and put together words for reading and spelling. We always tap out words on our fingers/makers before writing them. With this new approach the students had to hop out the sounds using a cut twister game. One stop was equivalent to one sound. Each group practiced using their own strip. They all hopped out each of their spelling words and had fun doing it! It was an effective way to hear every sound in the words.

A not so new activity that the children do regularly is use the build it binders to build their spelling words using legos. This helps with spelling, fine motor skills, and spatial reasoning.

It’s been fun in first, and we are just getting started!!

Last Friday, first grade students, partnered with their parents, built a model of a Mayan temple. This is such a fun project for first graders to do with their parents. In social studies we have been talking about early American civilizations, such as the Mayans. The curriculum has age appropriate engaging read alouds with illustrations that the students have enjoyed. Building a realistic model of a temple is a fun way to bring to life what we’ve been discussing in class. By learning about other cultures and civilizations the students broaden their perspectives about how other people live and feel. The weather was beautiful and no two temples look exactly alike.

What a fun day in first grade! It is Pink Out Day and it’s a bright way to bring awareness to breast cancer, since October is breast care awareness month. The children love being able to have a non uniform day and what a great way to unite with the community and show to support to our loved ones who have faced or who are facing this battle. 

One of our second grade friends brought her pet rats to school today. She was kind and offered to show them to first grade and tell us all about her pets. It was a unique experience that made all of the kids giggle and meet a new animal. Next week is big for first grade with the annual temple building projects!!

This year, first and sixth grade have partnered with Cornerstone Retirement Community for our community service outreach. At St. James we put a high value on community service. We teach our students, the youngest class of three year olds to the eighth graders, that it is important to be involved and give back to the community. Each grade level reaches out to a local organization and has multiple projects with them throughout the year. Sometimes it’s collecting needed supplies or raising money, but primarily we focus on giving the gift of time. In the past, pre-Covid, first grade would partner with a retirement home or nursing home. We’ve read to the residents and often sing songs around various holidays. This year we are able to be fully back and active like before. First and sixth grade visited Cornerstone and painted rocks with the residents. It was so special to see these young student not only working together, but with an elderly person too. I told first grade that our goal was to bring joy to other’s lives and brighten their day. It was a great experience for everyone involved. We are looking forward to the next community service project.