Second Grade Newsletter 1.6.23

 Second Grade Newsletter 1.6.23

 

Hello Parents!

 

News: 

In preparation for third grade, Second Grade is moving from agendas/planners to a reading log to record daily reading practice. It is a colored paper that was sent home in your child's yellow folder. Each day your child should read aloud for 20 minutes and retell. Then, your child will correctly write the title of the book on the reading log paper. Parents will sign the reading log paper daily. The students will turn the reading log in on Friday and receive another log for the next week. In order for your child to receive credit for their reading homework, the title of the book (not the name of the book series), minutes read, and signature are required. Students will continue to write their daily assignments in their agendas/planners. Please reach out to your homeroom teacher with specific questions. We are excited for our second graders to grow in their independence and responsibility!

Thank you:

We appreciated your kind cards and gifts in December. Thank you, also, to those who donated items or volunteered in the classrooms for our Winter Celebration. If your kettle has not been returned to you, please let us know. 

Important Dates:  

Saturday, January 7th: Read Under the Stars Event

Monday, January 16th: No School-Civil Rights Day

Tuesday, January 17th: "The Hayloft" Recitations 

Wednesday, January 18th: Math Test 

Tuesday, January 24th: Class Picture Day

Conversation Prompts: 

What is a hypothesis?

What does it mean to "get a taste of your own medicine"?

Which two punctuation marks often follow an interjection? (a comma or an exclamation mark)

What was Shay's Rebellion? 

Academics: 

Math 

Students will continue to practice drawing bar models and using addition and subtraction to solve word problems. We will delve more deeply into solving two-step and two-part word problems. There will be an assessment this week over unit 4.

 

Grammar 

his past week, we reviewed parts of speech and capitalization rules. We also learned about a new part of speech, the interjection. Next week, we will then learn about conjunctions and write based on passages from The Midnight Ride. Students received the poem, "The Hayloft" by Robert Louis Stevenson. The first memory check for stanza 1-2 will be Tuesday, 1/10. The poem in full will be recited the week of Tuesday, 1/17.

Link to poem: https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/59/a-childs-garden-of-verses-selected-poems/4721/the-hayloft/

 

History 

This week, we have started the foundation for our unit about Making the Constitution.  We discussed what happened when the colonists came home from the war and Shay's Rebellion. Next, we will learn how the colonists united together to form laws which were fair and wrote the constitution we still use today.

Science 

This week students will learn about cells, the smallest unit of life. They will also discover how a microscope helps us observe tiny objects. 

*Parents please note that this week we will read Cells are Us by Dr. Fran Balkwill and there is a brief note on reproduction. The book will teach us this in order to introduce the idea that two cells join to make more cells. We will not be fielding any questions on the topic of reproduction, instead we will inform them that the topic will be covered in fifth grade and leave it to your discretion. 

Also, students will present their insect artwork to the class while reading the paragraphs they wrote about their insect.

Literature 

Students will begin their read of the classic, Little House in the Big Woods, on Monday. Thanks to those families that have already sent it in! Students will meet Pa, Ma, Mary and Laura. They will read about the family’s preparation for winter and how the family survives in the Big Woods. *Reading Groups will begin again, a volunteer sign up will be sent out shortly.

Second Grade Newsletter 12.16.22

 Hello Parents! 

 

Thank you to all who donated items or volunteered in the classroom for our Winter Celebration. Have a wonderful winter break! We look forward to welcoming students back on Thursday, January 5th. 

News: 

Winter conferences are by request the first week of January. If you would like to meet with your child's teacher, please email them. Thank you. 

Important Dates: 

• Winter Break - December 19-January 4
• Parent-Teacher Conferences - January 3-4
• Half day - Thursday, January 5
  Civil Rights Day - No school Monday, January 16
• 
  

Conversation Prompts: 

• Which country is the largest in South America? What language do they speak there?
  What is the most interesting fact you learned about insect thus far?
  What is a fun fact about the insect you researched?
• What mistake did Icarus make?
  What is a sum? What is a difference?
  
•  
•  
  Academics
  

History 

The scholars will review the beginning of our country and the Revolutionary War in preparation for learning about the Constitution. They will also learn about Shay's Rebellion.

 

Science 

Scholars finished writing their insect information in paragraph from. They will complete their insect artwork after we return from Winter Break and will present their project the week of January 9. We will introduce The Scientific Method after Winter Break, before beginning our study of cells, tissues, organs, and systems.

Literature 

Scholars will study figurative sayings when we return, (e.g., "get cold feet", "taste of your own medicine"). We will begin Little House in the Big Woods on Monday, January 9. Please send in your student's copy of this book.

Grammar 

We have learned about nouns, pronouns, verbs, and adjectives. Up next, students will learn about interjections and how they express a strong emotion. Our next poem will be "The Hayloft." Students will recite it in class the week of January 17th.

Math 

Students will continue learning how to draw a bar model and solve to match a given word problem. We will work with two-part and two-step word problems.  Please encourage your child to annotate, write a sentence, draw a bar model, equation, and check their work.

 

Happy Holidays!

Your Second Grade Team

Second Grade Newsletter 12.9.22

 Hello Parents! 

News:

We welcomed Mr. Albert, insect enthusiast, this week and heard about his adventures traveling the world and capturing rare insects. Students viewed part of his large collection of specimens. 

 

Thank you to everyone who donated items for our Ancient Greece celebration!

Please email your teacher if you would like to request a parent-teacher conference on January 2, 3, or 4.

Please consider signing up to donate an item or to help in the classroom for our Winter Celebration on Friday, Dec. 16th. 

2C still has sign up slots to fill: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0f44a8ae2da7fec70-2ndgrade1

Important Dates:

"Bed in Summer" Recitations: Monday, December 12

Insect Test: Tuesday, December 13

Early Release: 12:30 p.m. - December 14, 15, 16

Winter Celebration: Friday, December 16

Quarter 2 ends: Friday, December 16

Conversation Prompts:

Ask your child to tell you more about what they observed and learned during Mr. Albert's presentation.

Why was Hercules a hero?

Draw a bar model for this word problem: There are 18 children at a swimming pool, 6 leave. How many children are at the swimming pool now?

Give an adjective to describe a cat or the weather. 

Which part of speech can an adjective describe? (a noun or pronoun)

How many territories and provinces are in the country of Canada?

What mountain range is in the western part of the United States?

Academics:

History 

Scholars will continue to learn about the geography of the Americas and learn about important geographical features of Central and South America.

Science 

Monday we will review information from our Insect Unit. On Tuesday, students will show what they know by completing an Insect Test. Please help your child use their Insect Study Guide to prepare.

Literature 

This week we will read about Narcissus and Icarus, and we'll experience another version of the Trojan War story. Students will enjoy seasonal and holiday texts on Thursday and Friday.

Grammar 

Students will recite "Bed in Summer" in its entirety beginning Monday, December 12. Scholars will continue learning about adjectives, in particular the article adjectives, "a", "an", and "the." They will also write based on a version of the Greek myth, "Pegasus and Bellerophon."

Math 

Students have learned how to make a part-whole bar model to represent a word problem. Up next, they will learn about a comparison bar model with two bars rather than one. We will also work on two-step and two-part challenging word problems. Please continue to encourage your child to persevere and try several strategies as well as use flexible thinking while problem-solving.

Thank you! 

Your Second Grade Team