October 2018

We have found our groove here in 2nd grade...and it includes a lot of flossing and dabbing!  I am so proud of the students and their hard work!  We have found the perfect combination of hard work and silliness; group work and tech time; listening and contributing to whole class discussions.  I am honored to be their teacher and lucky to spend our days together.  That being said, they are who they are because of thier parents!   You are doing a great job and it shows in our classroom!  

This Week in 2nd Grade

Math- We zipped through Chapter 2 in our math books!  Arrays are always fun to build and create with repeated addition sentences!  They will take their test the first week of October and we will move on to Chapter 3!  Chapter 3 will introduce adding to 100 with similar strategies from the first chapter.  For example, a hundreds chart will be a learning tool to add 10 to 55.  This will take us to the end of October.

Science- This month we will continue to focus on the properties of matter:  solid, liquid and gas.  We will add to our Science Notebooks where we will keep our collection of activities and notes.  Students will be able to classify and describe different materials by their properties.  Throughout this unit, we will be asking the big question:  What is the best material for the job?  This question will allow students to observe, conduct investigations, make connections and gather evidence to support a claim.  The best part of this unit is how it ties to the past (our social studies unit) and how different items have "improved" due to the discovery of a better material.  Another extension of our science unit will be the use of technology to create a project for Grandparents Day.  It will be a fun project that I will share with all of you once it's complete!

Reading- I love the Read Live program for this class!  Not only does it give me an opportunity to meet and hear each student read, it challenges everyone right where they are at!  For example, we have some students working on fluency (reading rate) and others are working on finding evidence in the text to answer questions.  These strategies are talked about not only in our reading groups, but in most texts read in class.  Reading at home is the MOST important academic activity you can give your child...these strategies can be practiced and strengthened with you!  

Writing-  At this point, students have been working hard at writing sentences.  This month we will focus on writing a paragraph with a topic sentence, including details/evidence with transition words and a closing sentence.  Our practice this month will prepare us for writing the Grandparent Report.  Another writing focus for our class will be tidy handwriting.  Writing activities will be added to the homework menu sometime this month, so encourage your student to practice tidy writing whenever they write!  Idea:  Have your student write a sentence with one or two of their spelling words.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
Social Studies- These kids are making some great connections with their life in the present compared to their grandparent's life in the past!  You should hear some of our conversations!  And we listened to their grandparents music today...the Beatles were a hit!  This unit has so many levels of connections, the most valuable one being the interview with their grandparent!  Grandparent's Day in 2nd Grade will be the conclusion of our unit.  We will dazzle the grandparents with our reports, videos and some special music from the past!  Please let grandparents know they are invited on Friday, October 19th from 9-10 am.  

Please share with all grandparents!!!  We would love to honor our grandparents on this special day!  I am  looking for someone to help organize a small snack or treat that morning.  If you are interested in organizing this, please let me know.  Stay tuned for ways you can contribute!  Thank you in advance!

STAR Homework

We are slowly building our homework menu to include reading (always and forever the best choice!), math, spelling and writing. Here are some ideas of what each area can include:
Reading:  THE MOST SIGNIFICANT HOMEWORK ACTIVITY! Students can read aloud, silent, or parents can read to them.  Reading at least 20 minutes each night is highly recommended! Ask students to retell what they read or ask them questions to check for understanding! 
Math:  Math practice pages; ST Math at home; Math game (dice, cards or flashcards); parent-approved math app on home device. **Please note that the practice pages are not mandatory.  They are just an optional activity to practice math at home.
Spelling:  Any practice or Spelling City.
Writing:  Writing a story or letter; writing spelling words in sentences (2 for 1 deal!)

10/15-Staff Development Day {no school} 
10/17-ACS Board Meeting
10/19-Grandparent's Day for 2nd Grade 9-10am
10/31-End of 1st Trimester
11/1-Staff Development Day {no school} 
11/8-9 PLP Conferences {half days}
11/12-Veteran's Day {no school}
11/19-23 Thanksgiving Break {no school}
12/19-Half Day
12/20-1/4 Winter Break {no school}
1/21-MLK, Jr. Day {no school}
2/15 & 2/18-President's Day Weekend {no school}
​2/28-3/1-PLP Conferences {half days}

Please contact me if you
have any questions!