We have been very busy in ol' E109. Here are a few of the things we've been up to:
Writing: We are continuing work on writing complete sentences and use adjectives to make our writing more interesting. We are also learning how to organize our writing using a Power Plan. The children are doing a great job of checking their work for uppercase letters at the beginning of sentences and punctuation at the end. Also, every other Friday we have been meeting with our Writing Buddies in Mrs. Roper's class. The children get together with their partner and work on a story that they are co-authoring.
Word Study: The last few weeks we have reviewed long and short vowel sounds (still a bit rusty on those), closed syllables, digraphs, blends, and the three sounds of /k/ (c, k, and ck) and the two sounds of /w/ (w and wh). We also worked on the vowel teams ee and ea. Ask your child for examples of words that have these features!
Reading: We finished reading Frog and Toad Are Friends today and completed a core assessment on identifying the beginning, middle, and end of a story. This assessment will go in your child's portfolio here in our classroom. We met with our Book Buddies in Mrs. Goldberg's class for the third time today and the children are already good friends! The second graders learned how to be helpful reading partners by showing the kindergartners how to hop on top of the words. Mrs. Goldberg reported that her students can't wait for Fridays!
Math: So far in unit 2, the children have practiced solving and telling number stories, were introduced to the difference between ounces and pounds and pan balances and spring scales, and we are working on our "fact power" by practicing domino facts, fact triangles, and making fact families. Today your child is bringing home a set of fact triangles to keep and practice at home! I should also mentioned that we dabbled in the beginnings of multiplication by adding equal groups together. (Ex. 2+2+2= is the same as 3x2= )
Social Studies: We continue to learn about goods and services and different types of communities (rural, suburban, and urban). Thanks to all of the parents who could chaperone our two field trips in the community! The children really enjoyed these opportunities to make connections between the content and real life! In celebration of Columbus Day on Monday, we also read a book about Christopher Columbus. We had a fascinating discussion about the different aspects of his important discovery.
Science: We just completed our fall observations and measurements of our class tree and of ourselves! Ask your second grader to tell you about all the measurements they've been taking and their predictions for the spring!
Homework: The children are doing a great job of completing their homework and returning it to school when it is due. Thank you so much for helping them establish this important routine and teaching them to be more independent. Next Friday, October 17th, we will add a new challenge to the reading homework. We will start our Book Bag projects. This homework is explained on page 6 of my orientation packet and I will send home an explanation letter with your child's first Book Bag next Friday.
Volunteers:This was our first week of having parent volunteers in the classroom during our literacy centers and everyone did a wonderful job, parents and students alike! The children were thrilled with the special work they did with you and they really enjoyed the change of pace that a small group setting can offer! Thank you so much for volunteering your time! We are still looking for Library Helpers for our class on Mondays from 1:00-1:30!
Sharing:I need to remind everyone about our sharing rule. The students may only bring in photographs, drawings, or books to share on their sharing day. If there is an item they want to bring that does not fall under these categories, it must be directly related to something we are learning about in class and I ask that the child discusses it with me prior to their sharing day. Thank you for your help with this.
Lastly, if you haven't sent me the name of a "Folder Friend" for your child, please do so when you have a chance. The Folder Friend is explained on page 6 in my parent orientation packet that you received at the start of school. Let me know if you need more information!
Well, I think that about covers it! As you can see, we are very busy here in E109 and the reason we can do so many wonderful things is because of this incredible group of outstanding students. Thanks for all of your hard work!!! Have a wonderful three-day weekend!