April 22nd-April 26th

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Homework packets are due tomorrow!

Students are bringing home a packet that shows you how to add and subtract two digit numbers using all of the strategies we have been learning here at school.  Please let me know if you have any other questions?

We will be having a special presentation tomorrow!   The Chewonki Foundation will be coming to do a presentation about bats!  This presentation will serve as a way to build excitement for our animal research projects that we will begin in May!

New things in the classroom...

WOW cones:  Wow cones are to reward individual students for "WOW" behavior!  If a student is being a role model or helping out another student in need, for example, they could earn a "WOW" cone.  The cone will stay on their desk all day!  At the end of the day, they will earn an extra "B" buck.

Go for Gold:  To inspire teamwork in small groups, each table is now a team.  These teams are trying to earn points throughout the week.  Teams will earn points for staying focused on their work, cleaning up their table, being ready after countdowns, listening to directions, etc.  The team with the most points at the end of the week will earn gold medals and an extra 5 "B" bucks.

IXL:  Please refer to previous posts for what to practice.

Team Jerseys are not quite finished yet.  I still have a couple kiddos who need to finish their shirts.  Once they are finished and dried,  I will take the jerseys home, wash them, and bring them back to school.  To celebrate, we'll have a Team Jersey Day!  The date for that is TBD.

This week in...

Phonics:  We are working with silent w, silent b, silent g, and silent k.  Here are our words for the week:  wren, wrist, sign, gnaw, debt, lamb, know, knife, and knee and knot.  

Vocabulary:  Our vocabulary words are:  blooming, prickly, muscles, aroma, scent, and trade.

Comprehension:  We'll be working on summarizing and telling the sequence of events.  When we summarize, we are retelling only the most important parts of the story.  When we identify the sequence of events, we are telling about the events in the order in which they happened.  Doing these things will help us understand the story better.  We'll practice these things while we read The Ugly Vegetables by Grace Lin.  Students will also have the chance to practice these skills while they read their campfire reading books.

Grammar:  We will be working on pronoun-verb agreement.   This means we'll be making sure that the verb in our sentence matches the pronoun.  For example, if we use the pronouns he, she, or it, we will add -s to most action verbs to form the present tense.  Here are some examples:

She WEEDS the garden.

He BRINGS the hose.

It MAKES the soil damp.

Writing:  Continuing with some of the poetry that we have been talking about, we will be writing list poems.  A very famous list poem is called "Sick" by Shel Silverstein.  We'll read this poem and then create our own "Clouds" and "Ouch!" list poems.  Here is my example:

OUCH!

beestings

falling off the swings

tripping over rocks

stubbing my toes

getting a papercut

doing a bellyflop

thorny bushes

dislocated knee

broken arm

OUCH!

Math:  We are continuing to work on adding and subtracting two-digit numbers in word problems.  Here are the steps for solving a word problem:

Step 1:  Read it!

Step 2:  adding or subtracting?

Step 3:  is there more or less at the end of the story?

Step 4:  write a number sentence

Step 5:  solve it!

We have been practicing how to solve these problems using tools like a hundreds chart, number line, or drawings of base ten blocks.  Most recently we have been working on solving with the tens and ones strategy.  We'll use all of these strategies when we solve problems with unknown change as well.  For example, 54 + ____ = 76   or 43- ___ = 21.

NECAP problems:  In order to help second graders prepare for the NECAP tests next year, we will be working on one problem from previous years math test each day.  Students will attempt the problem on their own first and then we'll talk about the problem.  We'll develop test taking skills and also help students get used to the kind of "test language" they will see next year.  Each day, students will bring the practice problem home.  I'm hoping this can be used as a conversation starter between you and your child.  They may not have the correct answer on their paper but they should be able to explain to you how we figured out what they correct answer would be as a whole class.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

Flashback Friday:  I'm hoping to leave Fridays as a day for review for students so that they can continue to build on some of the foundational skills that we have been practicing throughout the year.  This week, students will focus on time, money, and math facts.  Students will be working on independent and small group activities (like worksheets, games, projects, etc) that will build on their knowledge as well as review concepts they have already practiced.

Earth Day:  In honor of Earth Day, we read The Lorax by Dr. Seuss and brainstormed things that we could do to help our Earth stay clean and healthy!  We each made an Earth Day promise and then worked together to create a world out of our handprints.  Later in the week, students will get to make their very own truffula trees and lorax mustaches!