1st Grade
Language is a part of every day. Reference books, picture books, story books, student-made books, and books representing different cultures are abundant in the classroom. Student writing, student/teacher made charts, relevant information from the current unit of inquiry, as well as various materials for writing are available for use.
A range of strategies including individual, group and whole-class instruction are used to respond to student needs. Books are discussed, analyzed, created and shared. All language strands can be observed separately and are also interrelated and interactive.
Oral communication: listening and speaking
Using an increasing vocabulary to talk about their own thoughts, feeling, experiences, and opinions.
Learn vocabulary such as numbers, shapes, colors, directions, categories, etc.
Clarify and support spoken messages with props, pictures, charts, etc.
Understand the importance of listening in small and large group situations.
Determine the purpose for listening (get information, solve problems, enjoyment).
Participate in rhymes, songs, conversations, and discussions.
Listen responsively and critically to stories and other reading, interpret and evaluate.
Retell by summarizing or clarifying.
Connect experiences and ideas with others through speaking and listening.
Speak appropriately to different audiences for different purposes paying special attention to volume and rate, grammar, and correct tense.
Ask and answer questions and present dramatic interpretations.
Written communication: reading and writing
Develop decoding, fluency, and comprehension through reading and listening to quality literature.
Demonstrate knowledge of concepts of print such as: represents spoken language and conveys meaning; reads left to right and top to bottom; words are separated by spaces; there is an order of the alphabet;there are capital and lowercase letters, and parts of a book; are correct spellings for words and features of a paragraph.
Demonstrate that spoken language is composed of sequences of sounds by: dividing sentences into words, segmenting and combining syllables within words, rhyming words, identifying initial and final sounds, blending sounds, and segmenting words.
Decode written language by learning and applying letter sounds (consonants, vowels, consonant blends, consonant digraphs, vowel digraphs, and diphthongs), blending initial sounds with common vowel patterns to read decodable texts, using structural cues such as compounds, base words, and inflections (-s, -es, -ed, and -ing).
Select reading material based on personal interest, relying on knowledge of authors and different types of text, and/or by estimating text difficulty.
Read with fluency and understanding in texts at appropriate difficulty levels.
Enjoy reading and being read to, read for a variety of purposes and respond to what is read.
Use a variety of strategies to make meaning such as: picture cues, directionality, phonics, self-correction, one-to-one correspondence, context, prediction, sight vocabulary, memory, punctuation, syntax, rereading, and reading on.
Recognize that stories have a beginning, middle and end.
Connect ideas and themes across texts.
Describe how illustrations contribute to the text.
Distinguish between fiction and nonfiction.
Recognize distinguishing features of familiar genres.
Understand and respond to the ideas and feelings expressed in various reading materials.
Begin to use reference books, dictionaries, and computers with some independence and confidence.
Read with expression and with regard to punctuation.
Identify relevant questions for inquiry.
Draw conclusions from information gathering.
Connect personal experiences with the life experiences, languages, customs, and culture of others, and compare experiences of characters across cultures.
Develop the foundations of writing with a positive attitude.
Write about a range of topics that are personally significant.
Write simple, sequenced stories with a beginning, middle and end.
Write for a variety of audiences and purposes and in a variety of forms.
Dictate messages, write labels and notes, record ideas and reflections.
Generate ideas before writing on self-selected or assigned topics; develop drafts, edit, and produce.
Write with proficient spelling of spelling patterns (CVS, CVCe, and one-syllable words with blends; inflectional endings (plurals and verb tenses); single syllable words with r-controlled vowels, final consonants f, l, and s and ck; conventional spelling of familiar words in final drafts.
Use nouns and verbs in sentences.
Evaluate his/her own writing and the writing of others.
Record or dictate questions for investigating.
Record pictures and lists and show connections among ideas.
Math in Grade 1
Students will apply concepts and strategies to solve mathematical problems and communicate their thinking. Students will explore mathematical concepts daily through various activities such as the calendar, number of the day, and math journals.
Constructivist math games are played to reinforce basic skills. Problem solving activities offer opportunities for application of various skills throughout the year which allow students to construct meaning from direct experiences. Meaningful experiences allow students to identify big ideas, ask questions and make connections between concepts.
Mathematical topics are taught independently as well as included in the units of inquiry.
Number
Read, write, estimate, count, compare and order numbers to 1000.
Use addition and subtraction to solve problems with one and two-digit numbers.
Make reasonable estimates of quantities and check for accuracy.
Use mathematical vocabulary and symbols.
Automatically use addition and subtraction facts to 12.
Explore multiplication, division, and fractions.
Pattern and Function
Identify, describe, extend patterns to make predictions and solve problems.
Model the relationships in and between addition and subtraction.
Shape and Space
Describe the attributes of 3-D shapes, including 2-D shapes.
Sort objects according to attributes.
Recognize relationships among shapes.
Explore and solve problems using manipulatives and drawings.
Separate a whole into equal parts and describe.
Describe parts of a set.
Measurement
Estimate, measure, label, and compare using nonstandard units of measurement and understand why we use standard units of measurement to measure length, mass, time, and temperature.
Read, write time to the hour, half hour, and quarter hour.
Recognize temperatures such as hot and cold.
Identify and compare lengths of time (days, weeks, and months)
Data Handling: Statistics and Probability
Collect, record, and interpret data using simple tallies, lists, charts and graphs.
Identify, discuss, make predictions, and draw conclusions based on data.
Identify events as certain or impossible.
Science in Grade 1
Science and Technology will be explored within the transdisciplinary themes that have significance for all students in all cultures. Students and teachers work together to identify what they already know, what they want to know, what they need to know to answer their questions, and how to find it out.
A variety of science experiments and explorations will allow students to ask questions, make predictions, and form explanations. Students will learn to record predictions, observations, and outcomes in an organized way.
Life Science Unit of Inquiry “Sharing the Planet”
The study of the balance between species and their habitat.
Observations of characteristics, basic needs, and interactions among living things.
Physical Science Unit of Inquiry “How the World Works”
The study of balance, force, and motion.
Observation of properties and the effect of those properties.
Concepts include: forces, friction, movement, speed, acceleration, push, pull, lift, and gravity.
Earth Science Unit of Inquiry “Where We Are In Time and Place”
Explore and identify properties and uses of soil, water, and air.
Technology
Students will use computer programs to organize,compare, contrast, and communicate ideas.
Social Studies in Grade 1
Social Studies will be explored within the transdisciplinary themes that have significance for all students in all cultures. First grade students will inquire into their world, themselves, their friends and families, and their environment.
They will explore how and why people’s activities are influenced by their environment. Sense of time (past, present, and future), important events, and the effects of change.
Social Studies is integrated into the various disciplines.
History Unit of Inquiry “How We Organize Ourselves”
Identify contributions of historical figures who have influenced the community, state, nation.
Identify historical figures who have exhibited a love of individualism and inventiveness.
Compare similarities and differences of historical figures.
Describe the origins of selected customs, holidays, and celebrations of the community, state, and nation.
Sequence and categorize information obtained from a variety of sources.
Develop an understanding of transportation to exchange goods and services.
Identify examples of choices families make when using transportation.
Describe how jobs require and contribute to transportation.
Explain the need for rules and laws in the home, school, and community.
Give examples of rules or laws that establish order and provide security.
Describe how technology has changes communication and transportation.
Identify problems/situations, gather information, identify/list options, consider options, predict outcomes, choose and implement solutions.
Geography Unit of Inquiry “Where We Are In Place and TIme”
Create and use simple maps to identify the location of places in the classroom, school, community, and beyond.
Locate places of significance on maps and globes.
Identify and describe the physical characteristics of bodies of water.
Identify and describe the human characteristics of places such as types of houses and ways of earning a living.
Identify examples of choices family make in a community.
Develop a sense of place and understanding of human interaction with the environment.
Society Units of Inquiry “Who We Are” and “How We Express Ourselves”
Develop an understanding of the relationships of people within a group and society.
Develop an understanding of the ways values shape our social systems.
Identify the responsibilities of authority figures in the home, school, and community.
Identify characteristics of good citizenship.
Identify historic figures and ordinary people who exemplify good citizenship.
Describe various beliefs, customs, and traditions of families.
Compare stories and legends.
Express ideas orally, based on knowledge and experiences.
Identify main ideas from oral, visual and print sources.
Compare the observance of holidays and celebrations, past and present.