January 9th, 2026

Hello families,

It has been great seeing all the kids back at school! Here is what we got up to this week:

New Years Goals

Our classroom gratitude jar was introduced.

Winter Break Writing

In literacy we have begun using the Words Their Way program to further enhance our UFLI lessons. This program supports students in developing spelling and word pattern knowledge through hands-on activities through cutting and sorting words and pictures. By exploring sounds, patterns, and word features, students strengthen their reading, spelling, and overall literacy skills.

We also began our first Writer’s Workshop. This entails short lessons, independent writing time, and opportunities to share with adults and peers, using mentor texts to support planning, writing, revising, and editing skills. In Grade 1/2, the focus is on building confidence and enjoyment in writing while developing foundational writing skills.

Our mentor text is The Mitten by Jan Brett. Through this workshop we are going to be developing sentence structure and the use of sensory language for grade 1s, and synonyms for grade 2s.

1. PLAN - We sequenced using transition words and added adjectives to a graphic organizer.

Words of the Week

Spicy
resolution
positivity

value

January Calendars

In math we reviewed representing numbers with ten frames and tally marks before moving on to place value. Students began using base ten blocks and Montessori golden bead materials to represent numbers. Ask your child what place value means and why the number zero is so important in understanding it.