¡Hola Familias de Inmersión!
It's been a great week filled with learning, fun, and excitement! The beautiful weather has been amazing to enjoy as well, with cool mornings and warm afternoons. We had a fantastic Walk-A-Thon on Wednesday, enjoyed reading and attending chapel with our buddies, had a surprise visit from 2nd graders learning about Johnny Appleseed, got to use our iPads for the first time, collected acorns during a fire drill for a spontaneous new math center, and more. Read more about our week below, and please check the bottom of the blog for pictures AND some important announcements regarding next week!
Our Week
Bible
This week we started learning about God's promises (promesas) through the story of Abraham and Sarah. We learned how Abraham had to trust God when he moved to a new land, and how God promised him a son even in his old age. Finally, we learned about Isaac's wife, Rebekah, and made noisemakers as a celebration of their wedding (boda).
Reading
In Reading this week, we've been studying the vowel "E" (pronounced like the short "e" in "pet"). The E and I are tricky in Spanish, since the "I" (to be studied next week) is pronounced "ee" (as in "three") and tends to confuse students. We also continued studying articles in Spanish "el", "la", "los", and "las" (they all mean "the", depending on the number ad gender), remembering that the plural ones end with "s". We are starting to practice some basic sight words in Spanish, and these words are included on the list. I hope to be sending some flash cards home with your student soon!
Writing
In writing this week, we have talked about revising our work and adding more information through labels, colors, pictures, and words. The children have practiced checking their work and adding a punto (period) at the end of a sentence. We also wrote about the Walk-A-Thon and our experience using the five senses (los cinco sentidos).
Math
In Math this week, we've been working in small groups and practicing rotating from center to center. This allows me to work with students individually or in groups to work with students with individual needs and levels. We practiced comparing quantities, sorting shapes, and writing numbers 1-3. We also learned how to use our iPads for the first time, which was very exciting! For now we are using the app Todo Math. It has many great activities for kids to choose from. (The app is originally in English, but you can change the settings to Spanish under the "parent" mode.) Feel free to check it out if you are interested!
Science
It being a shorter week, we did not begin to study a new sense this week. We reviewed the five senses through some cutting and pasting activities and wrote about them during writing time.
Immersion Tip of the Week
It may seem like your child spends SO much time every day learning in Spanish, but there is still much more English in his/her day! This week, try to give your child a chance to hear Spanish outside of the classroom. This could mean changing the language on a TV show or movie, going to a place where Spanish is spoken, or listening to some new music. Take advantage of every learning opportunity!
Reading Tip of the Week
Encourage your child to use "picture clues" to figure out words. For example (pointing to the word "elephant"): "This is a long word! It starts with the sound "ehh". Hmm, here's a picture of an elephant. I bet this word says "elephant"!" This is an important skill for students to use when reading and decoding new words.
Important Dates to Remember
*Thursday, October 4th is Grandparent's Day! Your child should have received 2 orange invitations in his/her folder. (Let me know if you need more!) Your child's grandparent(s) or grandfriends are welcome to join us from 1:00-3:00pm that day. Please email me if your child has permission to leave with his/her grandparent after school on Thursday.
Action Items
Could you please send in the following items with your child next week?
1. A baby picture (the more "newborn", the better--we're going to be reading a book about a baby). You may also email me one that I can print out.
2. 3-4 apples. We're going to have a special fall activity on Friday making cider with our buddies! Any variety is fine. Please send them in before Friday so we can get any more we may need.
I think that's it for now! Have a fantastic long weekend! Enjoy some pictures below.
¡Hola a todos!
It's been a great, full week again! We enjoyed beautiful weather while picking up trash at Holland State Park on Wednesday, had our pictures taken, and had fun using a parachute on Friday afternoon! I have really enjoyed seeing the children work, play, and be silly together this week, as they continue soaking up new language skills and gain more confidence. Here are some highlights from our week:
Our Week
Bible
In Bible class this week, we have learned about Noé (Noah) and the arca (ark). The students made puppets of Noé, el arca, el agua (the water), and el arcoiris (the rainbow) to tell this Bible story. Using pictures and gestures, we practiced telling the story of Noé and learning about how Dios cumple sus promesas (God keeps his promises). What a great reminder!
Reading
The letter U was our focus in reading this week. We made books for the letter U, noticed and highlighted vowels A, O, and U in words, and did other activities with letters. We also read a fun book about Clifford's first day at school while listening for the indefinite articles un/una and unos/unas! Our grammar focus was distinguishing between singular and plural words with these articles. The kids have also been working on recognizing their first sight words in Spanish, including no, la, el, un, and una. More info on these to come!
Writing
Thank you to those who sent in family photos! We used those photos as inspiration this week as we wrote about our families, labeled them, described them, and drew our families in different places. We also worked on going back and editing our work to add more details, pictures, and punctuation.
Math
In math this week, we compared numbers using manipulative cubes using phrases such as más grande (bigger) and más pequeño (smaller). The students also practiced stories with sumas (sums/addition) and restas (subtraction). Finally, we sorted shapes and noticed how they are similar and different, focusing on círculos (circles), cuadrados (squares), and rectángulos (rectangles).
Science
We had a fun time in science this week as we learned about los ojos (the eyes) which we use to see (mirar). We painted special binoculares and then took a walk around the school playing Veo, Veo (I Spy) with colors. We also played Memoria to practice using our eyes and our memories!
Immersion Tip of the Week
You may be wondering about the "sorting" pages your child brings home every week (usually we do them on Tuesdays or Wednesdays). As part of the add.a.lingua curriculum, we highlight second-language-specific points that are not the same in English. We build on those skills each week and touch on them in all subject areas so they are taught in context--one of the most crucial ways to teach a language.
Reading Tip of the Week
Using a favorite picture book (i.e. any book with pictures), have your child "read" you the story by telling you what happens. Ask questions like, "What's happening here?" "How does (character) feel? How can you tell?" Retelling a story helps your child build his/her oral language skills.
Important Dates to Remember
*This Wednesday, September 26th is our Walk-A-Thon! We will walk as a class from 1-2:15 at the HCHS track. Feel free to join and cheer us on!
*NO SCHOOL on Friday, September 28th (Staff Development).
*Thursday, October 4th is Grandparent's Day from 1:00-3:00pm. Your child is welcome to bring special grandparents/grandfriends to share this afternoon together.
Being a Friend / Ser Amigos
As we are in the fifth week of school already, the kids have gotten very comfortable around each other. Since our class size is small, this can sometimes lead to conflict between friends. There have been a few incidents on the playground this week where issues have come up between classmates. Please, remind your child that everyone can be a friend, and to use kind words with one another. When issues come up, they should always talk to a recess monitor for help. Thank you for your support!
New Behavior System
To promote positive classroom behavior and to continue to hold students to high expectations, I will begin using a "traffic light" behavior management system with my students every day. In your child's folder next week, look for a calendar where we will record his/her daily "color". Please make sure you initial and return it in his/her folder EVERY DAY. I appreciate your help in creating a positive, successful learning environment!
Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy your weekend! More pictures of this week below.
In Reading this week, we've been studying the vowel "E" (pronounced like the short "e" in "pet"). The E and I are tricky in Spanish, since the "I" (to be studied next week) is pronounced "ee" (as in "three") and tends to confuse students. We also continued studying articles in Spanish "el", "la", "los", and "las" (they all mean "the", depending on the number ad gender), remembering that the plural ones end with "s". We are starting to practice some basic sight words in Spanish, and these words are included on the list. I hope to be sending some flash cards home with your student soon!
In writing this week, we have talked about revising our work and adding more information through labels, colors, pictures, and words. The children have practiced checking their work and adding a punto (period) at the end of a sentence. We also wrote about the Walk-A-Thon and our experience using the five senses (los cinco sentidos). 
In Math this week, we've been working in small groups and practicing rotating from center to center. This allows me to work with students individually or in groups to work with students with individual needs and levels. We practiced comparing quantities, sorting shapes, and writing numbers 1-3. We also learned how to use our iPads for the first time, which was very exciting! For now we are using the app Todo Math. It has many great activities for kids to choose from. (The app is originally in English, but you can change the settings to Spanish under the "parent" mode.) Feel free to check it out if you are interested!
