Class Update 11/26/17

Welcome back!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable break and a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends!

Important Reminders:

If you have not yet turned in the field trip permission slip and payment for the Magic House field trip, please send those to school with your child. Thank you!

Spelling groups will resume this week. Your child will receive new words on their regular spelling day.

Class Updates:
We had fun celebrating Thanksgiving in class! The children made Thankful Turkeys and wrote about the many things they give thanks for in their lives.

The children also played "Roll A Turkey" with partners and worked on reviewing their addition and subtraction facts with a Thanksgiving Turkey coloring activity.

We will be starting Chapter 4 in math, which covers subtracting two-digit numbers. We will focus on lessons 1 and 3-5 this week.

In reading, we will continue to work on main idea in non-fiction books, as well as find supporting details in the text related to the main idea.

The students will continue their work on opinion writing. They will learn ways to elaborate on their reasons and examples for their opinions about favorite books. We will also be focusing on what makes a strong ending to an opinion piece.

Our study of economics continues in social studies. In lesson 7, the children will learn about types of service jobs in our community. Then, in lesson 8, they will learn the difference between needs and wants and how to be a smart consumer.

Class Update 11/17/17

Important Reminders:

Field Trip Permission Slips went home on Thursday for our upcoming field trip to the Magic House, which will take place on December 15th. This field trip corresponds with our economics unit in social studies. Please sign and return the slip with the $4.00 payment for transportation costs. A limited number of parent volunteers are needed. Please note parent volunteers will be assigned to supervise a station.

There are no spelling words/tests next week due to the short school week for the holiday. School is closed on Wednesday - Friday for the Thanksgiving Break.

Class Updates:

In math, we have finished Chapter 3 on addition with regrouping. After Thanksgiving break, we will begin working on Chapter 4, which focuses on subtraction with two-digit numbers. Periodic review of addition and subtraction facts is beneficial for students as we move through these units.

We started a large social studies unit on economics this week. In lesson 6, the students learned about goods and services that can be purchased. They also learned the difference between producers and consumers. Students worked on putting pictures in order that matched the steps needed to transport watermelons from the farm to the store. After ordering the steps, the children wrote captions for each picture.

In reading, the students are learning strategies for determining the most important ideas in a section of non-fiction text. They are using this skill to write main idea sentences.

We have begun a new unit in writing. Students are learning how to write opinion letters about their favorite books. We read the book Mercy Watson to the Rescue to inspire us and use as a model book to write about. The kids really enjoyed the story and are now reading lots of other Mercy Watson series books! This week the children practiced writing introductions that hooked the reader. They are also learning how to list reasons and examples to support their opinions. 

Fun building with Legos!

Class Update 11/11/17

Important Reminders:

Friday, November 17th is Picture Retake Day. If you would like your child's school picture retaken, or if your child was absent on picture day, the photographers will be back at school on this day.

School is closed from November 22 -24 in observance of the Thanksgiving Holiday.

 We will be taking a break from spelling the week of Thanksgiving. Therefore, students will not receive new word lists this week. We will resume regular spelling routines once we return from Thanksgiving Break.

Class Updates:

This past week was full of special events! Show and Tell/Pajama day was a lot of fun, and the students liked sharing their special objects. The children enjoyed the Kindness Walk with their school families, performed in the Music Program, and took part in the Veteran's Day Assembly. I enjoyed listening to the children sing in the Music Program. They did a fantastic job!

In math, we have started Chapter 3 on addition with regrouping. Students have been learning how to add two digit numbers together, both with and without the need to regroup. They have used both base ten blocks and pencil and paper to solve the problems. We will finish Chapter 3 this week and focus on performing column addition of up to four two-digit numbers together at a time. There will be a Chapter 3 Test on Friday, November 17th. Review pages will come home prior to the test to help students study.

In reading, students have been continuing to read non-fiction books in their reading groups. We are focusing on determining the meaning of new vocabulary words. Over the next several weeks, the students will be working on finding text evidence to support their thinking about what they have read.

We will be starting an opinion writing unit next week that will incorporate what students have been learning about friendly letters.

During science, we have learned how sound is made. The children learned about the concepts of pitch, vibration, and volume. The class wrapped up their social studies projects on maps. They were able to share their completed maps with each other, and I am proud of their creativity! Over the next few weeks, we will be working on our economics unit.

Class Update 11/4/17

Important Reminders:

The students have filled our "gumball machine" with gumballs for good behavior! This means they have earned a reward. The children decided on a show and tell day. On Tuesday, November 7th, each student may bring in one special item to share with the class. They may also wear their pajamas on this day. They will need to make sure they have sneakers for P.E.

Wednesday, November 8th is an Early Release Day with a 1:40 dismissal time. Please make sure your child knows how they are going home that day in case it is different from the normal routine. Students will be participating in a school-wide outdoor kindness walk that day. Please make sure your child wears comfortable walking shoes and dresses for the weather.

The 2nd Grade Music Program is coming up on Thursday, November 9th at 6:45 PM at the Lindbergh High School Auditorium. Students can arrive at 6:30. The theme is patriotic music, and students are asked to wear red, white, and blue.

Our Veteran's Day Assembly is this Friday, November 10th in the gym at 9:00 AM.

Class Updates:

A huge thank you to all parents who volunteered to plan our class Halloween Party! The children had a great time with the games and crafts. During the day, the children participated in a "bone bridge" building STEM challenge. They worked in teams to create the longest bridge out of a given set of materials. The bridge had to be at least one inch off the ground and one inch wide.

Thank you to all families who have donated materials for our STEM projects! They are already being put to good use for our map projects in social studies. Students are working on one of three projects. One group is drawing a map of an island they would like to visit and writing about the places on their island. A second group is constructing 3D maps of playgrounds using the STEM materials. The third group is using Minecraft Edu to make virtual maps of towns.

In science, all of our class butterflies hatched. The students enjoyed observing them and drawing the patterns and colors they noticed on their wings. We released our butterflies into Long's outdoor learning space, so they can continue their life cycle in the natural habitat.

Take a look at some of the finished monsters created by the students, along with their monster descriptive writing pieces! We have started a unit on friendly letters. The children have been learning the five parts of a letter and are practicing writing some letters to their friends and teachers.

We are continuing to learn the strategies of reading non-fiction books. Currently, students are working on identifying a variety of text features, including headings, captions, diagrams, and more. They are practicing reading these text features to help them learn more about the topics of their books, as well as how to locate information.

In math, we will be starting Chapter 3 this week, which covers adding two-digit numbers. Students will learn how to regroup, as well as perform column addition. We will focus on lessons 1-3 this week.