An orange letter went home today about our fall/Halloween celebrations to be held on Friday, October 30. Here is some information from the letter about what our day will look like:
In the morning the students will be rotating to each teacher's classroom for a special fall-themed lesson. The students enjoy sharing their learning with each second grade teacher and get a chance to visit their classrooms! After our Recess, Lunch and Related Arts, the students will be preparing for the Phelps Luck Halloween Parade! (Students who wish to wear their costumes may bring them to school in a bag labeled with their name. We will be changing into them before the parade). The parade will be at 2:00 and, of course, parents are welcome! After the parade we will be enjoying some treats in our homeroom. If you would like to donate a food item to our celebration, return the bottom portion of the orange letter to your child's teacher. Students who do not celebrate Halloween will enjoy a fun Fall Festival in our Media Center :)
Classroom Updates:
Writing: The students just finished vivid sensory poems about fall. We focused on using adjectives to describe the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings of fall. Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will be typing our poems to make a class book!
Reading: Last week we read all about fire safety and firefighters to help us get ready for our visit from a firefighter! Students enjoyed walking through a "fire safety house" that was brought to us by the fire department to learn about fire safety on Thursday.
Social Studies: Last week we learned about the continents and oceans. Then we learned about the earth's geography by examining different types of landforms. We made 3-D models out of clay of different landforms! This week we are learning about the characteristics of Coastal, Mountain and Plains Regions.
Home-School Connection: Here is a fun on-line game to review the continents! GeoSpy
Math: We have been solving story problems.
We came up with these steps for solving story problems:
1.) Read the problem. Visualize (picture) what is happening in your head.
2.) Start a number sentence to show what is happening. (+ or -). Ex: 24 - 7 = ___
3.) Solve the problem. Use your strategies and tools! (100 Chart, Number Line, Cubes, Picture, Tens and Ones)
**4.) Show your work and explain your strategy.
5.) Check your work!
**An important part of math class is being able to explain our thinking orally and in words. This can be tough for kids especially if they are able to solve a problem "in their head." Ask your child probing questions to help them express their math thinking: "How did you solve this problem? Did you start with this number? What did you do next? Did you break this number apart?" etc. Through speaking and writing students are often able to go deeper into their thinking as they reach new understandings and think further into the strategies they are exploring.
We have also been learning our basic facts: +/- 10.
*Last week a Math Log went home with flashcards to practice these facts. I asked the students to work with their families to complete at least 1 of the activities in the log. Please sign the log when you complete an activity. Another log will be coming home soon!
Students will be tested on these facts twice. Their first test will be Wednesday 10/28.
Home-School Connection: Online flash cards for extra review of new and previously learned facts: Math Fact Cafe
As always, your questions and comments are welcome!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Our First Field Trip!
On Wednesday, October 14th the second grade traveled to the National Building Museum in Washington D.C.!
The trip was a huge success! The students enjoyed synthesizing their learning in our Social Studies unit by designing a model city.
*First we reviewed the different types of buildings that make a community: residential, commercial, industrial, institutional and open space.
*Next, each student built their own model of a building.
*Then we placed them together on a map in the right land use category to create a model of a city.
Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers who could make the trip with us. It wouldn't have been a success without you! :)
The trip was a huge success! The students enjoyed synthesizing their learning in our Social Studies unit by designing a model city.
*First we reviewed the different types of buildings that make a community: residential, commercial, industrial, institutional and open space.
*Next, each student built their own model of a building.
*Then we placed them together on a map in the right land use category to create a model of a city.
Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers who could make the trip with us. It wouldn't have been a success without you! :)
Monday, October 5, 2009
Fall is Here!
Fun things are happening in 2nd grade this Fall!
We celebrated Johnny Appleseed's birthday on September 25th by eating delicious homemade applesauce. What a great way to jump start the fall season! In math we tasted and voted on our favorite apples (Granny Smith was the favorite). In Science we made apple observations and in Language Arts we learned about Johnny Appleseed's contributions to America.
On October 14th we are going on our first field trip of the year! We will be visiting the National Building Museum in Washington D.C to engage in a fun activity to learn about communities. Permission slip and and field trip information were sent home in the Homework folders today!
Classroom Updates:
Math:
We have been practicing many of our math skills from counting and identifying coins to comparing numbers and using counting and problem-solving strategies. Our "Investigations" math program is a hands-on approach to learning math that builds on previously learned skills and includes daily routines that reinforce math skills in many areas. The hands-on approach involves students in using math manipulatives or tools to explore math concepts. Next week we will be learning basic math facts that add and subtract 10 and focus on strategies to solve addition and subtraction story problems.
Science:
We just completed an exciting unit on Soil and Erosion. We completed investigations to explore the properties of soil and the "parent" materials that make up soil and its layers. We also investigated soil erosion by observing erosion models made from shoe boxes!
Social Studies:
We began our first social studies unit called "My Community." We learned that a community is a place where people live, work and play together. We will be creating and designing communities as well as learning about rural, urban and suburban communities.
Home-School Connection: While driving in the car with your child, help them point out places in our community where people live, work, and play!
Reading:
This week's reading skill is summarizing. We will be summarizing non-fiction texts by using the strategy of identifying the main idea and details.
Writing:
We learned about the writing trait; organization. We learned how to use "order" or "transition" words in our writing such as first, next, then, also and last.
We celebrated Johnny Appleseed's birthday on September 25th by eating delicious homemade applesauce. What a great way to jump start the fall season! In math we tasted and voted on our favorite apples (Granny Smith was the favorite). In Science we made apple observations and in Language Arts we learned about Johnny Appleseed's contributions to America.
On October 14th we are going on our first field trip of the year! We will be visiting the National Building Museum in Washington D.C to engage in a fun activity to learn about communities. Permission slip and and field trip information were sent home in the Homework folders today!
Classroom Updates:
Math:
We have been practicing many of our math skills from counting and identifying coins to comparing numbers and using counting and problem-solving strategies. Our "Investigations" math program is a hands-on approach to learning math that builds on previously learned skills and includes daily routines that reinforce math skills in many areas. The hands-on approach involves students in using math manipulatives or tools to explore math concepts. Next week we will be learning basic math facts that add and subtract 10 and focus on strategies to solve addition and subtraction story problems.
Science:
We just completed an exciting unit on Soil and Erosion. We completed investigations to explore the properties of soil and the "parent" materials that make up soil and its layers. We also investigated soil erosion by observing erosion models made from shoe boxes!
Social Studies:
We began our first social studies unit called "My Community." We learned that a community is a place where people live, work and play together. We will be creating and designing communities as well as learning about rural, urban and suburban communities.
Home-School Connection: While driving in the car with your child, help them point out places in our community where people live, work, and play!
Reading:
This week's reading skill is summarizing. We will be summarizing non-fiction texts by using the strategy of identifying the main idea and details.
Writing:
We learned about the writing trait; organization. We learned how to use "order" or "transition" words in our writing such as first, next, then, also and last.
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