Grade 1/2 – Reading, Writing, Maths and a Zebra-tastic Lantern Herd

There was plenty happening in Grade 1/2 this week: new reading achievements, letters in the class mailbox, English stories, maths on the number line, a botanical exploration of the school grounds – and finally 21 glowing zebras at the Lantern Festival.

Grade 1 – starting the third Lola workbook

The Grade 1 children were very proud to begin their third Lola workbook. It is wonderful to see how they are becoming more confident in reading and writing every day and are increasingly able to apply their newly acquired skills independently.

Reading-and-drawing tasks, reading dominoes and short writing activities now regularly complement their work with Lola. These activities provide many opportunities to decode words, understand short texts and begin writing their own sentences.

Grade 2 – writing neatly and checking carefully

In Grade 2, we are currently placing particular emphasis on neat and legible handwriting. At the same time, spelling is becoming an increasingly important focus.

The children are learning to apply familiar spelling rules more consciously and to check their own writing more carefully. After all, good writing is not only about having lots of ideas – it is also about writing them down so that others can read them easily.

Our class mailbox is still going strong!

We are especially pleased that our class mailbox continues to be used enthusiastically.

It contains letters to classmates, small riddles, funny questions and sometimes even homework tasks invented by the children themselves. This gives writing a real purpose – and makes it even more enjoyable.

English – Goodbye, Very Hungry Caterpillar!

In English, we completed our story series with a true classic: “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”.

The children learned new English vocabulary, listened carefully and had great fun retelling the story in their own words.

Later in the week, things became a little more relaxed during a cosy reading session featuring stories from the Jolly Phonics programme. Perhaps your child can tell you at home what the stories were about.

Mathematics – learning together at different levels

In Mathematics, both year groups practised calculating on a number line.

This method is particularly useful in a mixed-age classroom because the underlying principle is the same for everyone, while the number range can be adapted to the children’s level.

Grade 1 is currently working within the number range up to 10, while Grade 2 is already calculating up to 100. In this way, all students can work on the same method while applying it at an appropriate level.

General Studies – a botanical discovery tour

In General Studies, we took a closer look at the plants growing around our school grounds.

The children examined different plants, drew them and explored some of their special characteristics. Afterwards, they worked with a map of the school campus and marked where the various plants can be found.

This resulted in something close to a small botanical map of our school.

And now a little challenge for parents: Do you know where the mango trees, banana plants, papaya trees, bamboo and cocoa trees grow on our campus?

If not, there is an easy solution: let your child take you on a botanical discovery tour around GISA.

Art – 21 zebras take over the Lantern Festival

At last, the moment had arrived: Quak surprised us in Art with the prototype of our zebra lantern.

That meant it was time to cut, glue and get creative.

With lots of patience, a generous amount of glue and plenty of imagination, the children transformed simple paper plates into 21 completely individual zebra lanterns.

Our zebra-tastic herd was ready just in time for the Lantern Festival. With their glowing bellies, the striped animals lit up the darkness beautifully.

Quak was delighted – and the children were rightly very proud of their special lanterns.