Second Grade Newsletter 3.31.23

 Hello Parents and Guardians,

 Important Dates: 

April 3: Entire “Harriet Tubman” poem due for recitation

April 7: No school

May 5: No school

May 17: Concert

News:

• Please make sure your scholar brings in their copy of Charlotte’s Web, if they have not done so already. We begin reading this book on April 3.
• The Spalding assessment will be on Thursday, April 6^th next week.
• Please encourage your scholar to finish the year strong (only 8 weeks to go!) by arriving at school on time, following classroom procedures and uniform dress code, being consistent with homework completion, and staying focused and ready to learn.
• Your student must bring a water bottle daily. They are getting hot and thirsty at PE and Recess.

Conversation Starters:

• Name three simple machines. How do they make work faster or easier?
• What was an exaggeration from one of the Tall Tales we read? 
• What did the southern states call themselves after they separated from the Union? Who was their president?
• Which word is the preposition? book, around, table
• Which word is the adjective? small, dog, house
• What should you read first on a graph before interpreting the data? (The title, the labels, and the key)

Studies:
Grammar: Scholars will continue learning about prepositions and will review nouns, verbs, adjectives, and conjunctions. The entire “Harriet Tubman” poem is due for recitation on Monday, April 3.

Math: Scholars will practice using line plots. Then students will review how to read, interpret, and represent data using picture graphs, bar graphs, and line plots.

History: As we continue our studies of The Civil War, students will learn about the Emancipation Proclamation, Ulysses S. Grant, and Robert E. Lee.

Literature: We will begin reading Charlotte's Web! Please send in the book if you have not done so already. Please consider volunteering to lead a Reading Group.

Science: We have live butterfly caterpillars in our classrooms! They are tiny now, but we are excited to watch them grow and change. Students will learn about Screws and Levers next week. What simple machines can you find around the house?

Have a fabulous weekend!  

2nd Grade Team

Second Grade Newsletter 3.24.23

 

Welcome to the 4^th quarter of 2^nd Grade!

Dates

March 29: Stanzas 1-4 of “Harriet Tubman” due

April 3: Entire “Harriet Tubman” poem due for recitation

April 7: No school

May 5: No school

May 17: Concert

 

Charlotte’s Web

We will begin reading Charlotte’s Web on Monday, April 3. Please send in your student’s copy of the book. We need Reading Group volunteers! Please sign up using your classroom's link.

 

Reading Logs

Please ensure that your student has completed every part of their Reading Log (including their name at the top!) and that a parent or adult who listened to them read has signed for each day. Students should write the name of the book, not the name of the series, if their book is from a series.

 

Conversation Starters

If we need to get to school at 8am and it takes us 20 minutes to drive there, when do we need to leave the house by? If I pick you up at school at 3:20pm and it takes us 20 minutes to drive home, what time will we arrive at home?

Let’s make a bar or picture graph to display all various toys you have in your room!

Which tall tale did you most enjoy: Johnny Appleseed, Pecos Bill, or Paul Bunyan? Why?

What is the preposition in the following sentence: Fred hopped over the rope.

What did it mean to be a free state? What does abolish mean?

Does it take less force to push something that is heavy or something that is light? What are the two types of force?

 

Academics

Literature:

We will continue reading and enjoying tall tales such as Pecos Bill and Casey Jones. Students are recognizing exaggeration and how tall tales were often set during America’s westward expansion period.

History:

We will continue our study of the Civil War. We will learn about Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and the Underground Railroad. Students will discover Lincoln's words and how his pursuit of knowledge and truth helped him lead our country during its darkest time.

Grammar:

Students will practice narration, copy work, and dictation using passages from The Magic of Oz . Students will continue learning about prepositions and objects of the preposition.

Science:

Students will learn about the six simple machines, beginning with the inclined plane and wedge. They will learn how these simple machines make work easier.

Math:

We will wrap up our unit on time by taking a test on Tuesday. Next up is a short unit on data analysis. We will start by learning how to read and complete a semi-finished picture and bar graph.  

Warm Regards,

The Second Grade Team

Second Grade Newsletter 3.10.23

 

Literature next quarter will begin with Tall Tales, but your scholar will need to bring in their copy of Charlotte's Web by April 3.

Dates: 

March 13-17: Spring Break

Conversation Starters:

How did Daniel Hale Williams show courage? How did Florence Nightingale show citizenship?

What happened to the hard-boiled egg that was soaked in soda? What can we learn from this?

Why were the bison important to the Plains Indians?

What is your favorite cursive letter to write?

How many adverbs are in this sentence? The cheerful puppy barked happily outside. (“happily” and “outside”)

Restate 4+4+4+4+4+4=? as a multiplication equation. What is the answer to both equations?

 

Academics:

Math: Quarter 4 will start with a week and a half long unit covering time. Students will learn how to read an analog clock to the nearest minute and will distinguish between AM and PM. Ask your student to practice reading analog clocks around the house!

Literature: Next quarter, we will continue enjoying the pioneer times and westward expansion by reading some famous American Tall Tales. Students will learn that this is a genre of fictional stories written about real-life folk heroes that features the use of exaggeration and humor! We will read tall tales about John Henry, Johnny Appleseed, and Paul Bunyan this week.

Grammar: Scholars will review adverbs and learn about prepositions and their objects. Scholars will receive their next poem: "Harriet Tubman".

Science: Next quarter, students will learn about the six simple machines: the lever, ramp (inclined plane), wedge, pulley, screw, and wheel and axle. Students will learn about each type and the work they do.

Spalding: Scholars now know how to write all lowercase and uppercase letters in cursive. We will continue to practice connecting letters by writing one spelling word a day in cursive this week. Please have your child practice the daily cursive word's spelling and cursive formation on their homework. They will demonstrate their command of cursive by writing three words in cursive on the first test of the quarter, gradually building to two words a day the week after, then three, etc. until the entire week's spelling list is written in cursive!

History: Moving forward in time, after Westward Expansion in the US, life in the North and South grew differently. Students will learn about the practice of slavery and the differences between the North and South that would eventually lead to a civil war.

As always, please feel free to contact your child's teacher with questions, concerns, or joys! We hope you enjoy a wonderful Spring Break.

Second Grade Newsletter 3.3.23

Hello Parents and Guardians! 

The students had a wonderful time at the Pioneer Living History Museum! Favorite moments included panning for gold and the western show. The students also enjoyed making butter (and tasting it!) earlier this week.

Important Dates:

• Land of the Counterpane Recitations: Monday, March 6 
• Athletic Field Day: Thursday, March 9
• Half Day: Friday, March 10
• Spring Break: March 13-17 

Conversation Starters:

• What is a threshing machine used for? 
• Describe how pioneers panned for gold. 
• In our science experiment, what two liquids are we using to soak chicken bones? What do you think the result will be?
• Tell me everything you know about reading a clock.
• Name the adverb in this sentence: "The students listened carefully."

 

Academics:

 

Grammar: Scholars will recite “The Land of the Counterpane” this week. We will continue learning about adverbs and their usage.

  

Math: Students will be reviewing the year’s worth of material on Monday and Tuesday. They will take a cumulative test on Wednesday. Our next unit (which will occur mostly after spring break) will be about reading a clock and telling time. There will not be any math homework next week, but your scholar is welcome to practice games on mathplayground.com or practice their math fact memorization/Rocket Math next week. We also encourage that extra math practice over Spring Break!

 

History: In history, scholars will make a tipi and learn what bison are and why they were important to the Plains Native Americans. Scholars will read a couple of Native American short stories and discuss the morals of the stories. We will play a review game to share their knowledge of the Oregon Trail. 

Literature: Students will discuss food in Little House in the Big Woods and review the steps for making cheese. We will also read biographical information about Daniel Hale Williams and Florence Nightingale.

 

Science: In science, we will study the impact of chemicals in our body. We will demonstrate this with hard-boiled eggs (acting as bones/teeth) soaked in various liquids. Students will then continue to observe the bone experiment before learning about white blood cells and their role in our immune system.

 

Spalding: There will not be new spelling words this week, but scholars will have cursive practice homework. 

 

Have a fabulous weekend!