Eaglet News

What a great week! The weather had the Eaglets loving the great outdoors again! As the weather gets warmer it is even more important to check for your child's water bottle every morning. Check every day! When you go to put that lunch in the backpack, make sure the water bottle goes with it. We do not have extra water bottles and will be out in nature more and more. One more gear reminder: layers, layers, layers. It's still going to be cold in the mornings!

This week we started learning about measurement. 1st graders are focused on comparing lengths, 2nd graders are measuring length in different units, and 3rd graders are reviewing concepts of area and perimeter. We've all loved using our measurement tools in the indoor and outdoor classrooms.

Nonfiction is our focus in reading. We learned that "fiction" is fake and "nonfiction" is not fake (or really, really real). Students love our non-fiction book collection in our library and were excited to learn that Scholastic News is a great example of nonfiction text that we've been reading all year!

Measurement is such an awesome and engaging topic. I love that it is so real-world applicable. Here are some things you can do at home with your Eaglet to strengthen that understand of this concept.

1st Graders

-Use describing words like longer, longest, shorter, shortest, taller, tallest, smaller, heavier, heaviest, lighter, lightest, wider, widest, etc. These comparative words can get a little tricky for some students.

- Measure things around the house using other household objects like paperclip chains, equal-sized blocks, or string. It's a fun way to get moving and keep busy during the day. How many paperclips tall is your 1st grader?

- Compare the size of household objects. Which is longer, a pencil or a ruler? Who is the tallest person in your family? Who is the shortest?

2nd Graders

-Measure one object using several different units (i.e. centimeters, inches, feet, millimeters, etc). Is it the same? Why?

3rd Graders

- Measure the perimeter of different books in the house. The calculate the area. What book has the biggest area?

- Grab some graph paper and challenge your student to make a certain shape with a certain area.

- Find the area of other household objects like the fridge, their mattress, or the kitchen table. What is the smallest object you can find the area for?

Have a child in more than one grade? That only adds to the fun. Find ways for everyone to contribute to the challenge!

1. Gather up the nonfiction texts you have around the house. Newspapers, magazines, books, encyclopedias, manuals, etc.

2. Compare the different genres and styles in nonfiction. What do they have in common? What variation is there?

3. Explore the texts and discuss them. What are your favorite types of nonfiction to read? Does everyone have the same favorite or do you have different favorites?

4. Make a plan to get more! If your child loves magazines, look into magazines that might interest them. Heres a link to a list of great children's magazines! Great Magazines for Kids! | Reading Rockets

The weather was absolutely gorgeous on Tuesday. Here's what we did...

Reading: Students went on a nonfiction text I-Spy for text features. We learned about things like headings, indexes, captions, labels, maps, and so much more.

Writing: Students took a first swing writing a nonfiction text page based on the book/ magazine they explored by summarizing key details, adding a title and subheading, and illustrating. Some students were able to add a glossary to their work too!

Math: We brought our nature journals and measuring tapes into the woods and measured different objects in inches as a first go at measurement.

With our extra time, students chose to either keep exploring nonfiction text, practicing Stamp Game math, and reviewing telling time.

Great work, Eaglets!