December 19, 2012

Day in review by Gabby Davis: 
Today we finished up our angels that are supposed to be ornaments.  We also made cinnamon ornaments.  We read the Judy Moody and Stink The Holly Joliday book.  In music we played a lot of musical games.  A woman from Cocheco Valley Humane Society brought her dog, Sasha, to teach us about the things that pets need.  We wrote thank you letters to Ms. Smith for doing a great job for the concert.  Don't forget about pajama day on Friday, December 21st.

12-12-12

Day in review by Samara Buck:

Today we started with snack instead of Morning Meeting.  Then we had Morning Meeting.  After that, we had Open Circle.  (We talked about dealing with teasing.)  Then we went to recess and lunch.  Reader's Workshop was after lunch.  In music we learned rhythms to do with your hands.  In Writing we learned that you can write letters about things that bother you so that people will change. 

We also thought that it was super cool that we stopped for a moment when it was 12:12 on 12-12-12!

December 11, 2012

Day in review by Caleb Flintosh:

We had library today.  Mrs. Buck read a Chinese book called, The Hunter.  In writing today, we did more work on our "writing for change" writing.  We made a chart that tells us some advice about writing for change.  In Morning Meeting we practiced our holiday concert songs.  We did more work with thermometers and change diagrams in math. 

REMINDER:  Pajama Day is on Friday, December 21, 2012. 

December 10, 2012

Day in review by Dakota Sargent:

In art we did splatter painting.  In reading we practiced reading with fluency.  During math time today we practiced reading thermometers.  We learned that 70 degrees fahrenheit is room temperature and that water freezes at 32 degrees fahrenheit and 0 degress celsius. 

December 5, 2012

Our day in review by Luke Whisler:

Today in Open Circle we talked about destructive and dangerous behaviors.  We learned that if we see dangerous or destructive behavior we need to tell an adult immediately!  We had music.  We practiced songs for our holiday concert.  Then we had an assembly about being a buddy, not a bully.  We got bracelets that say, "Be a buddy, not a bully".  We worked on our "writing for change" in writing and picked the piece that we want to publish.  We worked on reading with fluency during reading time. 

December 4, 2012

Our day in review by Samantha Szmyt

We started our day by having a visitor named Mrs. Shaw who did Open Circle with us.  We learned that people make mistakes and sometimes you can learn a lesson from your mistakes.  After recess and lunch we had a great writing time because people were working hard.  We also had reading and it was fun because people were reading quietly so we didn't get distracted.  Then at Social Studies we learned about communities and community workers.  

Switch in Special Schedule

Hello Families,
This is the week that our related arts schedule changes.  We will no longer have Library two times per week.  Our Library time is now only on Tuesdays, so Library books should be returned on Tuesday mornings.  We will now have Computer Lab on Friday afternoons. 

Questions that get at, "What did you do at school today?"

Specific questions are more likely to prompt a discussion about what we've done during the day.  Why not try some of these:

1.  What book did Ms. Monmaney read aloud today?   What happened in the book?  What did you learn?

2.  Who did you play with at recess?  Who did you eat lunch with today?

3.  Tell me about a game you played in P.E.

4.  Can you sing me a song that you learned at school?

5.  What did you write about during writing time today?

6.  What are you most proud of?

7.  What seemed hard?

8.  What happened at school today that was fun?

9. What did you like best about your school day today?

10.  What did you read during independent reading time?

What Did You Do At School Today?

 Our days are so full of learning that I bet it's hard for your second grader to answer this question at the end of the day.  So just what have we been up to?

Word Study-  In word study we have been reviewing first grade lessons, specifically short vowel sounds.  We recently moved into the second grade word study curriculum and are beginning to learn about vowel teams.  The first vowel teams we studied were 'ai' and 'ay'.  We learned that 'ai' usually comes in the middle of words and 'ay' is usually at the end of words.  We've practiced spelling words with these vowel teams and looked for them in our reading.  I was impressed with how well everyone did on our first spelling "test".

Math- We are working incredibly hard at developing "fact power" or the ability to know our addition facts automatically when we see them.  Unit 2 in Everyday Math focuses on addition and subtraction strategies and number stories.  We have also been playing math games that require practice with addition facts.  Tomorrow we will take our October "Facts in a Flash" assessment and will compare it to our September assessment and see how much growth we've made.  Keep an eye out for these coming home.  

Reading-  We have been talking about the importance of being in the "just-right" book and also about what "grown-up" readers do.  We have been practicing using the strategy of looking for parts of words you know when you come to a tricky word. For example; if you come across the word "reached" and you know the word "each" you could use that to help you with the new word.  We have also been talking about the importance of being a "thinker" when you are reading and how expert readers think while they're reading and make sure that they are understanding. 

Writing- We are a class of writers!  I love the motivation and engagement that I see during writing time each day.  We have recently been working on making sure that our writing has capitals and punctuation so that when someone else reads it they will know how you want it to sound.  Our goal in second grade for this first part of the year was to get the kids writing, writing, writing, so they have have had more choice in the genre.  We are getting ready to do some assessment of nonfiction writing skills so that we can plan that unit of study based on what set of skills the second graders brought from kindergarten and first grade and identifying what they still need.  We are excited about writing this year!

Please feel free to contact me at any point during the school year with questions you may have.  You can also post your questions on the blog.  If you have a question, it is likely that someone else is wondering the same thing.  I'd love feedback regarding what you'd like to see posted on the blog.  I'm open to any suggestions. 

Second Grade Scientists

What do scientists do?  What would you study if you were a scientist?  These are the questions that launched this year's science work. 

Before beginning our Earth Science study of soil, we talked about the difference between a prediction and an observation.  The second graders shared what they thought they would find in soil and then had some time to make some observations and record their findings.  We will be practicing recording our scientific thinking and observations in order to share it with others.

 Below are some photos of our first science work. 

Welcome to the 2012-2013 School Year

I would like to welcome all of you to the new school year!   It's great to be settling into our first full week of school.  I'm really enjoying getting to know each and everyone of my students.  We are off to a really great start and I'm looking forward to a year full of adventures and learning. 

Throughout the school year I will post various things on the blog.  Sometimes I post photographs of special events, student work or just quick notes to keep you informed of what is going on in our classroom.  If you have any suggestions of things that you would like me to post, please let me know.  Please feel free to look through posts from last year as well. 

I hope to see all of you at Open House on Thursday, September 13th. 

It's a New School Year!

Dear Former Second Grade Families,
I'm going to begin posting for the 2012-2013 school year.  If you became a follower last year you have the option to unsubscribe so that you won't receive notifications of my postings.  If you'd like to stay, please feel free!    I hope that your third graders are off to a great start! 

Book Reviews

The following book reviews were written by the second graders awhile ago, but I thought I'd share them on our blog.  I hope you enjoy them and maybe even discover a new book that you might want to read.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Maddie Pettis
Do you like monsters?  Well, if you do, this is the perfect book for you!  This little boy, Ethan, needs his monster, but his monster Gabe has gone fishing for a week!  What will Ethan do?  All sorts of monsters start showing up, but they don't work for a substitute monster.  My favorite part in this story is when a girl monster comes and she has a bow on her tail.  She looks more like a giant slug with a bow on her tail!  I think people who are scared of monsters should read this book because this book is REALLY funny and it could make people who are scared of monsters NOT scared of monsters.  The pictures are really funny too!  But will Gabe ever come back?  You will have to read the book to find out!

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Eme Horvath
I liked the funny part when a female monster comes under the bed.  What happens next?  Find out what happens next.

Mrs. Watson Wants your Teeth, Reviewed by Rosayla Gonzalez
On the first page this little girl is so excited to go to school but...a second grader tells her that Mrs. Watson wants to take someone's teeth.  Will Mrs. Watson take someone's tooth?  My favorite page was when the little girl lost her tooth.   She thought Mrs. Watson was a 300 year old alien.  That was so, so, so funny!

The Curious Garden, by Sydney Szmyt
In this book, there is a boy named Liam who loves to explore.  Even on the darkest, rainiest days you could find Liam splashing around.   My favorite part is when Liam explores the railroad.  I recommend this book to young children who love to explore.  Read this to find out what Liam finds on the railroad.  Oops, and my favorite illustration is on the last page.  Can't tell you anymore, sorry.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Ryker Willer
This book is about a little boy who has a monster, but instead of staying under his bed, Ethan's monster, named Gabe, went fishing.  All of the substitute monsters did not work for Ethan.  It is really funny when Mack pops up; you should see his tongue, it is really long!  It is really funny.  Read this book to find out if Gabe returns.  I would recommend this book to people who like monsters.

Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth, Reviewed by Jayden Guzman
Will Mrs. Watson take the little girl's teeth?  Who knows?  I would tell you more but I can't.  You will have to read the book to find out.  My favorite part was when her teacher went over to her and the little girl said, "NOOOOOO!"  Why did I like that?  Because it was funny.

Guinea Pigs, Reviewed by Kaytlyn Cornett
Guinea pigs have different colors.  They have no tail.  They have sharp claws.   Bunnies have tails, mice have tails.  Some guinea pigs have long hair.  You have to feed them.  They like vegetables.  (It keeps them healthy.)  I would give this book to someone that likes guinea pigs and if you have a guinea pig you can follow the rules in this book.

Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth, Reviewed by Ryan Patten
Has anyone ever told you something that's not true just to scare you?  Because in this book a second grader tells a first grader that her teacher is a "three hundred year old alien with a purple tongue".  My favorite part is when her tooth popped out...in the teacher's hand!  It was so funny.  When the tooth came out she yelled, NOOOOO!  I would recommend this book to dentists because it is a book about teeth.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Alessandro Serlin
In this book a little boy Ethan needs his monster to go to sleep, so he goes to the ground and knocks and a monster named Herbert comes out from under Ethan's bed.  BUT Ethan wants a scarier monster so Ethan sends Herbert back under his bed.  I would recommend this book to anybody who likes funny monster books.  My favorite part is when Gabe comes back from fishing and scares Ethan.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Will Chamberlin
Can you believe Ethan needs a monster to go to sleep?  In the beginning, Gabe, the monster goes fishing and four substitute monsters come.  My favorite part is when the girl monster comes.  I would recommend this book to first graders and kindergartners because they are usually silly.  He he he.

Migrant, Reviewed by Marguerite MacDonald
Do you like animals?  This little girl, Anna, loves animals.  Sometimes she feels like a bird because she goes from one place to another.  ("What would it be like to stay in one place", she wonders.)  Sometimes she feels like a jackrabbit because she has to go to old homes that do not belong to her family.  I can't tell you anymore.  But I can tell you this, my favorite part is when she imagines that she is a kitten. I can also tell you this, I recommend this book to people who like animals.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by John Browne
In the beginning Ethan gets up.  Ethan doesn't see his monster.  Ethan wants his monster.  He gets substitute monsters.  It does not work.  My favorite page is when a girl monster has a bow on her tail.  People who like funny books will like this book.

Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth, Reviewed by Walter DeSanctis
The first grade girl was so happy for school and this other girl told her that Mrs. Watson is an alien who takes teeth.  She was so scared that she just wanted to see her cat.  She really wanted to see her mom and dad too.  My favorite part was when she was so scared because it was a funny part.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Hauken Gala
The monsters name is Mack.  He has a long tongue and hair on his chin.  Ethan's laughing because he has a big tongue.  Gabe helped him to to sleep. My favorite part is when there was a slug monster that had a bow.  This is my favorite part because of the bow because the monster looks funny.  I recommend this book to my mom because she likes it when I read to her.

Fox on Wheels, Reviewed by Buzz Ford
Did your brother or sister pick on you if you got hurt?  Louise got hurt and Fox said "Oh no!"  Louise pretended to get hurt and Fox did whatever Louise said.  My favorite part was when she fell off the ladder.  This book is for brothers or sisters.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Cierra Kozak
Ethan needs his monster.  He finds a note, "Gone fishing.  Back in a week.  Gabe."  Ethan got out of bed and knocked on the floor.  Then other monsters came but they weren't the right ones for him.  But then Gabe came back and finally the boy went back to bed.  My favorite part is when Mack came with his tongue sticking out.

I Need My Monster, Reviewed by Grace Jenkins
Are you scared of monsters under your bed?  I'm not scared of monsters under my bed!  So Gabe has left a note under Ethan's bed.  It says, I have went off fishing, see you in a week. Gabe!  "What am I going to do without Gabe?", Ethan said.  Then he heard a noise under his bed.  It was the first monster Herbert!  "Hello, I'm your substitute monster."  "Listen Herbert , said Ethan, you are not going to be my substitute monster."  He was gone in a flash.  There there was another noise under the bed.  It was the second monster Ralph.  "Ummm Ralph, do your nails have nail polish on them?", asked Ethan.  "Why yes", said Ralph.  "You are not the right monster for me."  So Ralph was gone.  Then he heard another noise under the bed.  It was Cynthia, the third monster.  Then some other monsters came later.  Will Ethan ever get Gabe back?  You will have to find out and read it!  My favorite part is when Mack came because he has a really long tongue and it's really funny!  I recommend this book to kids who like monsters.

Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth, Reviewed by Jordan Porter
This book is about a little girl who was told that her teacher was a 300 year old alien with a purple tongue who wants Earthling's baby teeth.  That makes the little girl really scared so she keeps her mouth closed.

As you can see, Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth and I Need My Monster are among our favorites.  The humor in both of these books is engaging and appealing to young readers who can relate to two issues that are close to them.

Happy Reading!

Big Thanks to the Horvath Family!

We had a wonderful walking field trip today to the Horvath's home to learn about the process involved in making maple syrup.  There was a moment that it was like a picture book; sunny skies, a blanket spread out with 19 curious little minds sitting and listening to Mrs. Horvath read a book about maple sugaring, while sipping hot chocolate, and watching the wood smoke drift into the sky as the smell of boiling sap began to fill the air.  What a fun day!

We got to see the sap flowing from the trees and even got to empty the sap buckets.  Then we were treated to a little taste of fresh maple syrup before each getting our own little bottles and a great coloring book.

I was very proud of how respectful the entire class was and it was so much fun to watch them having such a great time.  I hope that you all get to enjoy some pancakes, french toast or waffles this weekend.

Thank you to Mrs. Hill and Mrs. Patten for accompanying us on our walk today.

Thank you so much to the Horvath Family!

Math Fact Practice

Each month you see a "facts in a flash" sheet come home.  The number at the top is the number your child got correct in a 3-minute timed test.  There are 64 problems per sheet.  When a child gets 60 or more correct in the 3 minutes they can then move onto the next operation.

We talk about having "fact power" and the importance of knowing your facts quickly so that you don't even have to stop to figure them out.  Of course, like anything, improvement comes with practice, practice, practice.  That being said, I've decided that I will be sending math fact practice home on occasion.

Some of the strategies that we've learned are:  +0 and +1 facts, doubles facts and turn-around facts.  We've also talked about using your doubles facts to figure out problems that are near doubles.  For example, if you know that 8+8=16 then you can quickly figure out that 8+9=17.  It's important for children to have these strategies and utilize them when practicing facts.  It's much like using decoding strategies when reading and the more you practice, the more automatic they become.

Each and everyone of my brilliant second graders have been improving each month!

Where Does the Time Go?

It's hard to believe, but we are half way through the school year.  This is a really great time to step back and look at what we've learned and think about goals for the next couple of months.  That being said, I have new reading assessment information on all of my students and would be happy to share that information with you.  I use this information to plan whole class lessons, small group lessons and 1:1 lessons in our reading conferences.

In reading we have been working on the skill of inferring.  We will spend some time in the coming weeks really focusing on how you determine the author's message in a story.

Are you wondering about book titles that are appropriate for this time of the year?  Below is a list of books that you might want to check out at the library.

Amelia Bedelia Books
The Cam Jansen Mystery series
The Horrible Harry series
The Marvin Redpost series
The Pinky and Rex series
The Pee Wee Scouts series

Please let me know if you'd like to set up a time to meet to review mid-year progress.

As always, it's a pleasure to be able to share your child's learning with you.  I'm fairly certain I have the best job in the world!