- I Can Fly by Joy Cowley
- Mrs. Wishy-Washy by Joy Cowley
- The Weather Chart by Ann Wilson
- Where I Live by Mary Cappellini
- Down to Town by Joy Cowley
It’s the first week of first grade for us, and I have to admit that this Mama was a little nervous when Monday morning rolled around and first grade began for my youngest, mainly because I remembered the struggle we had in Kindergarten over sight words and any reading that didn’t involve memorization, and I knew that wouldn’t cut it in first grade. Imagine my surprise when we started with I Can Fly this week, and he read it through like a breeze! Although the other four books weren’t quite as easy, he worked really hard all week long, and by the time Friday rolled around he was so proud of himself for being able to read 5 new books all by himself. His smile was priceless! Mine was too. I can tell that we have a lot of work to do, especially in the areas of comprehension, writing and prediction, but I know from experiencing the AlphaSkills model with my oldest son we will get there.
The activity I want to highlight this week comes from the Guided Lesson for The Weather Chart. Not only does each book come with a detailed lesson plan, an orange card that contains sight words featured in the book, and blue cards that feature the new words, but many of the non-fiction books come with an activity that links them to another subject matter. This book’s plan linked it to the science of weather where we learned about what causes different types of weather and what we should wear for the different types. Following the activity I read a question asking Malachi to show me the page with a picture of his favorite type of weather, and he turned to the rainy day page. Surprised, I asked him why, and he said he likes to feel the rain. I never knew this about my son! However, now I do know; so, when the next rainy day comes, instead of staying out of the drip drip drop, this Mama and her little boy will be out enjoying the feel of the rain!
My favorite moment from this week happened while we were reading Mrs. Wishy-Washy together on the first day of school. We were a little over half-way finished with the book when Malachi reached over to my hand and curled his fingers into mine, squeezing me into a little impromptu hand-hug, and I smiled so wide my cheeks hurt. I am so thankful to be able to share these learning experiences with my little one, and I am so thankful to have a curriculum that is exactly on the right level for my first grader. For more information about the AlphaSkills Read with Sarah curriculum and our family, see the AlphaSkills Blog Introduction.