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Throughout the year, a primary classroom goal will be to create a community of lifelong learners who support each other and work and learn as a team. The class will sit together each day at Morning Meeting to greet each other, learn about the day, share a personal story or observation, and complete a group activity. This helps build a sense of teamwork and helps the students to support each other in their joys ad troubles.
Green Woods is, of course, an amazing place largely due to its wild setting and because of this we will spend a lot of time on science. Our major unit of study for Environmental Science will be the pond. Students will study temperature, water cycle, seasons, and stewardship in addition to in-depth exploration of the plants and animals that live in and around the pond. In the fall, the class will learn much about frogs. They will study weather and seasonal changes during the winter. In spring, students will broaden their knowledge of water by studying wetlands, bogs, and other bodies of water. Our learning will culminate in the creation of our own pond exhibit for Green Woods' annual Museum Night, and a field trip to the John Heinz Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum.
Math lessons will cover a wide variety of concepts in order to prepare for later grades and more challenging work. Students will frequently practice skills involving counting, time, coins, and measuring. They will also introduce more advanced concepts such as fractions and making change. Students will develop a sound base for future math learning by frequent problem solving (and telling) and practicing math facts.
In First Grade, reading and writing are done in all subjects. All First Graders will have many opportunities to read and write on a daily basis. Students will enjoy books read aloud as well as stories they read along with their peers and on their own. The class will experience reading lessons as a whole class and in small group settings. Students will write daily in journals, and participate in Writer's Workshop, which is always a student favorite. First Graders always have lots to say and write about!
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