Important Dates:
Friday, June 15th- Highland Playground Tuesday, June 18th- LAST DAY! Walking field trip to Main St. Ice Cream |
We completed many cross-curricula activities this week regarding the Olympics. Next week is sure to be even more exciting as we have a morning planned to complete centers with Mrs. Smith's class, and Mrs. Peffer along with Mrs. Lauer will be leading one of the STEM centers! On Thursday we will be completing a break-out-box with clues centered around reading and math in connection to the Olympics! Break-out-boxes are similar to escape rooms, so it will be fun for students to test their stamina and patience through the challenges that give them the codes to unlock the box!
Wednesday is our classroom Valentine's Day party. We will be passing out Valentines if you choose to send your child in with some for the class. A list of students will be coming home with your child to ensure everyone in the class receives a valentine. Health with Mrs. Gallagher will begin next week. With the season of many germs around, please remind your child about proper hand-washing and techniques for staying as healthy as possible. :) Mrs. Agle gave more information on this in this month's Bulldog Buzz. Yearbook orders have gone home. If purchasing a yearbook is a financial burden for your family, but you'd like your child to have one. Please reach out to Mrs. Cantie, our school social worker, as she can assist with funding. [email protected] Remember to check Seesaw for updates and classroom pictures! Reading: This week we completed a few reading passages on the 2018 Winter Olympics and famous Olympians. Students practiced the strategy of going back to the passage and underlining where they find their answer, so it can be proven, vs. just writing down whatever they think the answer is. Math: Unit 4 Subtraction For many students, this is a more difficult unit. We are practicing subtracting using ungrouping and regrouping. The students were taught the following steps to solve: 1 - write and draw the total, the number you are beginning with 2 - look at the ones place, is there more on the floor or more up top? More on the floor - go next door and borrow ten more. More on the top - stop right now, do your subtraction (bringing in the Spice Girl's Stop Right Now tun to reminisce on the 90s). Update your drawing and problem. 3- Repeat step 2 if necessary for the tens place. 4- Solve. We have practiced this skill on workbook pages and whiteboards with problems about the students, they always enjoy when I work their names into word problems. This week we made Linus the Minus Man, a fun craftivity in connection to addition with regrouping. Please practice your student's math facts with them at home. Memorization and understanding of these facts assists immensely in these multi-step problems. The Dollar Store sells flash cards, and there are many sites students can access at home to practice this. Social Studies We read Olympic passages and discussed how many athletes were "failures" at first but didn't let that stop them from continue to pursue their dreams. They tried harder, practiced more, and saw success. Writing In writing students are learning to expand their writing into multi paragraphs. I have taught them to keep the writing they've already done as their first paragraph, then taking each detail paragraph and expanding on it in its own paragraph. We used our journal entries to study how we can do this, and will be practicing it more in the following weeks. We continue to ensure that answers to questions are written in complete sentences.
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What a joy it was to experience some mild winter weather this week. We enjoyed some time breathing in oxygen outside on the playground and releasing CO2 as we exhaled. This paired well with our discussion on matter and the different forms it takes, plus any excuse to go outside on a beautiful day is a good one!
With the season of many germs around, please remind your child about proper hand-washing and techniques for staying as healthy as possible. :) Mrs. Agle gave more information on this in this month's Bulldog Buzz. Yearbook orders have gone home. If purchasing a yearbook is a financial burden for your family, but you'd like your child to have one. Please reach out to Mrs. Cantie, our school social worker, as she can assist with funding. [email protected] Remember to check Seesaw for updates and classroom pictures! Reading: We focused on long vowel a and o this week in some groups, while also discussing the Summer Olympics in preparation for our next story. Other groups continued reading their books talking about setting and character traits. Math: Unit 4 Subtraction For many students, this is a more difficult unit. We are practicing subtracting using regrouping. The students were taught the following steps to solve: 1 - write and draw the total, the number you are beginning with 2 - look at the ones place, is there more on the floor or more up top? More on the floor - go next door and borrow ten more. More on the top - stop right now, do your subtraction (bringing in the Spice Girl's Stop Right Now tun to reminisce on the 90s). Update your drawing and problem. 3- Repeat step 2 if necessary for the tens place. 4- Solve. We have practiced this skill on workbook pages and whiteboards with problems about the students, they always enjoy when I work their names into word problems. Social Studies We collaborated with our partners in Mrs. Smith's room to complete information sheets on the Olympic countries we are studying. Students looked up the number of participants, males, females, sports participating in, language spoken, continent on, look of flag, and 5 fun facts. We can't wait for February 9th to start tracking the medals! Writing In writing students are learning to expand their writing into multi paragraphs. I have taught them to keep the writing they've already done as their first paragraph, then taking each detail paragraph and expanding on it in its own paragraph. We used our journal entries to study how we can do this, and will be practicing it more in the following weeks. Another wonderful week in Room 212! We have experienced a lot of illness this week, and missed various friends throughout the week. Please continue to remind your children of healthy practices such as washing their hands in warm soapy water and covering their coughs. We want to try to keep us all as healthy as possible!
Don't forget to register your child for the UPES Learning Fair in February, deadline for registration is January 29th. The UPES learning fair is an exhibition that showcase the variety of student interests on topics including science, history, music, animals and more! Projects are displayed in a format of the student’s choice and design. Use of the school Media Center for research is encouraged, but projects are completed outside of school. This is always an excellent opportunity for students to research a passion project and use their creativity to demonstrate what they've learned. Yearbook orders have gone home. If purchasing a yearbook is a financial burden for your family, but you'd like your child to have one. Please reach out to Mrs. Cantie, our school social worker, as she can assist with funding. [email protected] Reading: Reading groups were in full effect this week. We began new books, studied long a and o vowel sounds, and discussed point of view. Math: Unit 3 Shapes and Measurement This week we reviewed our Unit 3 learning and took the test. This will be coming home next week; please sign and return it. Social Studies Students continued learning about the Olympic torch this week and the history of the Olympics. Students used our MakerSpace to create their very own Olympic torch! We are excited to continue this unit in collaboration with Mrs. Smith's class as we track an assigned country's medals, and learn about that country! "Life's most persistent question is 'what are you doing for others?'" Martin Luther King Jr.
We have been focusing our energy towards living an intentional life helping others in second grade through various activities. In November we walked to the Dollar Store to buy canned goods for the HHS food drive. In December, we spoke about the gifts we can give others that aren't necessarily materialistic. Now, in January, we have focused on thanking others and acknowledging their kindness, as well as our own kind actions. Our hallway bulletin board has displayed the quote "Through Kindness Around Like Confetti" since the start of the school year; we will now be sprinkling kind acts we witness on that board to continue to encourage ourselves and those in our school community to taking a proactive approach in making this world a bit more kind. On this note, I'd like to take a moment and thank so many of you who have donated to our classroom in various ways. Through your time, through class party donations, through donating extra stamps for our thank you letters, donating extra money for other students to use in the Merry Moose Shop, through donating extra money towards assisting other students in paying for our upcoming field trip, and many more ways, it's clear that our students have parents that exemplify doing for others- thank you for that. We had an enjoyable week studying Snowflake Bentley, beginning to wrap up our math unit, and listening to some wonderful presentations by a reading group who studied a specific dinosaur. Next week will be our first full-week in quite some time, we have certainly been spoiled with long weekends! Don't forget to register your child for the UPES Learning Fair in February, deadline for registration is January 17th. The UPES learning fair is an exhibition that showcase the variety of student interests on topics including science, history, music, animals and more! Projects are displayed in a format of the student’s choice and design. Use of the school Media Center for research is encouraged, but projects are completed outside of school. This is always an excellent opportunity for students to research a passion project and use their creativity to demonstrate what they've learned. Reading: We continued practice reading skills focusing on specific vowel sounds. We also finished up our school-wide AIMsWeb testing and running records for our classroom. Math: Unit 3 Shapes and Measurement We practiced measuring in inches this week and learned about inches, feet, and yards. Students were reminded to always read directions carefully to check if they should be measuring in centimeters or inches. We will take our unit test next Friday. Writing Students wrote their thank you letters to a family member or friend for a holiday gift they received. We discussed showing gratitude, writing more than just "thank you", and making sure the person knows how special they made us feel. These will be mailed out soon! With all of our snow days and holiday busy-ness, I have neglected to update this site for some time, my apologies for that! We have had some exciting times already in 2018 as we've wrapped up our Holidays Around the World studies, made goals and resolutions for the new year, and studied measuring and geometry in our new math unit!
Thank you for all of your generous gifts. I feel very grateful for teach in such a giving and thoughtful community with so many wonderful families. Don't forget to register your child for the UPES Learning Fair in February, deadline for registration is January 17th. The UPES learning fair is an exhibition that showcase the variety of student interests on topics including science, history, music, animals and more! Projects are displayed in a format of the student’s choice and design. Use of the school Media Center for research is encouraged, but projects are completed outside of school. This is always an excellent opportunity for students to research a passion project and use their creativity to demonstrate what they've learned. Reading: Math: Unit 3 Shapes and Measurement Students began their new unit on geometric shapes and measurement. Currently, we are measuring to the nearest centimeter and getting a lot of practice using rulers. It's important for children to understand that when measuring, they have to look at the ruler because many times you will not start right at the front. Students practiced measuring the distance around a shape by measuring each side and adding those lengths together. Writing Students practiced their writing skills throughout last month and this through paragraph writing on the countries we studied. We will be beginning our friendly thank you letter writing to a family member or friend next week. Social Studies: Holidays Around the World This was our last journey as we went to China to learn about their Chinese New Year. Students are bringing home their suitcases filled with airline tickets, mini-books on each country, and question/writing responses. While students wore their jammies inside out and flushed ice cubes down the toilet, their snowday dreams didn't come true this week! This was quite all right as we had many activities to get through during this week! Next week is our spirit week with many fun attire days. The students will be given a break from math homework and spelling next week! This is a great time at home for students to practice their writing skills. They also can access Sumdog and Xtra Math from home via the math tab above.
The HHS Junior class is running its annual toy drive. If you are looking to donate, they request that donations students and families donate board games, card games, and puzzles. If your family needs help purchasing new winter clothing, please contact our school social worker, Heather Cantie, at 646-3280 ext 4218. She also works with many local groups to anonymously provide holiday gifts for our families. Thank you! It was very nice to meet with many of you for conferences. I appreciate your understanding and flexibility with the rescheduling! Reading: Students worked on comparing and contrasting the countries we read about in their holidays around the world booklets. Math: Review and Test Students took their Unit 2 math test this week. This test was comprised of the skills they have been learning including double-digit addition, counting and adding money, comparing numbers, and writing the name of numbers. The tests will be going home on Monday to be signed and returned. We will continue practicing these skills throughout this week through various holiday activities. Writing Students continued to practice letter writing through writing a letter to another adult in the building. They practiced the different parts to the letter, and ensuring that they are using capital letters and punctuation in appropriate spaces. After the holidays, students will be writing a letter of gratitude to someone who gave a gift to them for the holidays. Science: Matter We discussed how matter changes through heating and cooling. Students identified items that could go back to their original form after being heated (water) and those that can't (eggs, noodles). Social Studies: Holidays Around the World Last week we traveled to Mexico and learned about their Christmas customs and traditions. This week we traveled to India to study the Hindu celebration of Diwali, the Festival of Lights. Students have loved using Google Earth to study these places and their important monuments, such as the Taj Mahal! We have adjusted well to our school routines after some days off enjoying time with friends and family discussing what we are thankful for! We brought in new skills, strategies, and concepts throughout the curriculum this week and enjoyed "flying" to The Netherlands!
On Thursday we had our monthly school community meeting where Aaron was honored with the Character Cadet award for showing initiative throughout the month! Our character trait for December is self-control. The HHS Junior class is running its annual toy drive. If you are looking to donate, they request that donations students and families donate board games, card games, and puzzles. If your family needs help purchasing new winter clothing, please contact our school social worker, Heather Cantie, at 646-3280 ext 4218. She also works with many local groups to anonymously provide holiday gifts for our families. Thank you! Next week, report cards will be sent home and parent-teacher conferences will begin. I look forward to meeting with you and discussing your child's progress thus far this school year. Reading: We continued learning and discussing author's purpose this week. We discussed that sometimes an author may be writing to entertain us, but include facts to inform us throughout the text. We focused on using our decoding skills to recognize that -ea and -ee in a word says the long e sound. We also began learning about compound words. Math: Word Problems Students are doing well with their new skill of solving double-digit equations. They are using the taught skills well. This week we incorporated money into our adding. We discussed how pennies can be thought of as our ones place, dimes as the tens place, and dollars as the hundreds place. Also, when we are writing dollar amounts, a decimal separates the dimes and dollars/tens and hundreds. Writing Students continue to practice writing complete sentences. It is imperative that they regularly practice the appropriate times for using capital letters, including for proper nouns. In their journals, students were reminded to include minimally 5 sentences about their topic. Science: Matter As we continue studying structures and the matter that they are comprised of, Social Studies: Holidays Around the World We began our holidays around the world study this week. Our exploration took us to The Netherlands in Europe. We located this country on our maps, read about its holiday traditions, answered comprehension questions, and then wrote about what we learned! Where will our adventures take us next week ... ?! The holiday season is one of my favorites in the classroom as we are able to experience and do so many fun things! This week we created Thankful turkeys and took time to reflect on all that we have in this world that we easily take for granted (like toilet paper-haha). We also took our walking field trip to the Dollar Store to purchase items for donating to the High School's Thanksgiving Food Drive. This was a great opportunity for the students to experience what using their own money to do something for someone else feels like - it feels fulfilling!
Hopefully all of you received the automated messages from the District regarding our calendar changes due to new State Mandates. You can find a list of these changes here. Due to these changes to the days in December, many conferences needed to be rescheduled. I have deleted the former Signup Genius and created a new one. Please us the link about to sign up for a new conference time if your's was one that was affected. Also, keep in mind that I am very willing to do phone conferences if you'd prefer. Thanks! Next week is a VERY short week with only two school days. Reading: Students practiced the reading skill of author's purpose this week. We also continued to focus on main idea, what a story's mostly about, and using our beginning, middle, ending sound skills. Math: Word Problems Students are doing well with their new skill of solving double-digit equations. They are using the taught skills well. Writing We created thankful turkeys, deciding on things we are thankful for and expanding upon them. Science: Matter Students began their matter unit this week. We begin this unit with exploring solids and the materials used to build a structure, as well as the components of a strong structure. Social Studies: Thanksgiving This week we read about and discussed the first Thanksgiving. We discussed the gratitude the Pilgrims and Native Americans showed to one another. We briefly went over how historians now believe this story is a myth, but one we should and enjoy and encourage us to help others. We survived Halloween and all the craziness that comes with it! Students enjoyed a fabulous party on Tuesday thrown by our homeroom parents. Thank you to all who donated items and their time for the party!
We are looking forward to the school's author visit next Tuesday. It's hard to believe that we are already 3 days deep into November. This means that December is sneaking up on us and conferences will be here before we know it. Please use this link to sign up for a conference time. If these times do not work for you, or a phone conference would be better, please let me know and we can try to work something out. Reading: Students will be taking their first reading benchmark throughout next week. We have been practicing the skill of going back and underlining where in a passage we find the answer to given questions. Math: Word Problems Students reviewed for and took their Unit 1 math test. This will be sent home next week. Please sign and return it. Writing: Personal Narrative We are wrapping up our personal narratives through completing our books. Students continue to practice their paragraph writing skill of: topic sentence, detail sentences, and closing sentence. This should be used regularly in their formal writing. Science: Balancing and Weighing Students wrapped up balancing and weighing through balancing the witch and her animal friends on a balance. It was a great creative thinking activity! I have often said that a true "test" of a class is their behavior for substitute teachers, and on Monday this group passed their first test of this type! Our substitute spoke highly of the children and their behaviors :). Students enjoyed some more time in the Giving Garden this week learning about worms and how they assist in breaking down compost.
Next week Tuesday will be our Halloween party. As a second grade team, we ask that students dress in their costumes from the neck up. Face-paint, hats, etc. are welcome but please refrain from sending in props and masks. If a student's costume is similar to an every day outfit (not baggy or with fancy footwear and extra distractions) they are welcome to wear that; we are encouraging students to participate in the school wide black and orange spirit day. Also please remember that this is a P.E. day so students will need to be dressed appropriately and ready for that class. If you have not taken a look or signed-up already, you can find the Sign-Up Genius link for our classroom party here. Any volunteering or donations would be greatly appreciated. Reading: We continue to focus on the concept of main idea and detail and using this skill in our writing. This week students also continued their focus on subject and verb use in a sentence. They know that every sentence should have a subject and a verb and should be able to identify these items, even when the verb is a helping/linking verb. In our small reading groups we continue other skills and stories. Math: Word Problems This week student's advanced their word problem solving abilities with solving 2-step word problems. We discussed in great detail how this can be tricky and it's necessary to work slowly, triple checking our work that we've answered the correct question. Our first math test will be next Thursday, November 2nd. We will review all next week for this test. The skills we've been working on such as basic addition, addition in word problems, comparison problems, and 2-step word problems will be on this test. Writing: Personal Narrative Students chose their favorite draft and are working on editing it. This story will be used to write their final personal narrative book. It's very important for students to be starting all sentences with a capital letter and ending with punctuation. This will assist in greater writing success throughout the year. We practiced adding dialogue to our narratives to help the reader feel like they are there in the moment. Science: Balancing and Weighing .Students wrapped up their practice with weighing objects and comparing the object's weights. Next week we will be finishing this unit with a balancing activity using the story Room on the Broom. |