weekly update

Thanks to everyone who sent in things for our Halloween festivities. The second graders had a great day!

Writing:

We launched our informational unit! The second graders made a list of all the topics they are experts on already so they have TONS of topic ideas. This isn't a research unit, because we want the second graders to focus on the structure and development of informational writing. Some of the students will want to read up on their topics at independent reading time so they know more, which is great! Our focus will be not on research, but on writing a great introduction and conclusion and adding expert facts and details - so bear in mind those will be "second grade expert" facts and details and might not always be 100% accurate. 

Math:

We are working hard on place value in math and we have starting to talk about time in math! This is always a hard concept at the beginning. See if your child can tell you what hand is the hour hand and minute hand. Can your child tell you what to count by when looking at the minutes? We have a quiz next week about place value and time. I'm thinking this will be more of a formative assessment where I check to see what the second graders know and what I still need to teach them.  

Reading:

We are still reading non-fiction books! We are looking at the features often found in non-fiction books, and we have spent time talking about how to read informational books. They don't have to be read straight through like books that tell a story! The second graders learned about what it means to browse and read browsable books. 

Phonics:

We have been learning a lot from animals in Phonics. Animals use camouflage to hide in plain sight just like some tricky consonants! So far we have learned about soft c and soft g and the dge ending. We will learn about more next week! This Friday, November 10, we are going to celebrate with a Safari Day!  Have your child wear a safari themed outfit!  They can dress up like an animal, or an explorer with binoculars, or since we have talked a lot about camouflage, they can dress up in camo! We will be going on a safari hunt looking for camouflaged consonants, and have a animal-themed snack. It will be a fun way to celebrate our hard work in phonics on the next Early Release Day.

Here is one of the animals we learned about: 

Just like the Lyrebird there are some letters that make sounds you wouldn't expect them to make!

Homework:

The math paper is due by November 10 (Early Release Day.)

Extra Information:

November 10 - Early Release Day, and Safari Day!  Have your child dress like they are in the safari!  Animals, explorers, camouflage, anything works!

November 17- Pie Making Day

So that we can get an accurate count of how many volunteers we will have coming to Pie Day please fill out this form: Pie making Volunteer Info

Anyone planning on attending must also have this form filled out: HPS Volunteer Background Check

Our goal is for every second grader to have an adult help them assemble (we don't bake them at school) their pie. We really don't want to send pies home on the bus either so if you can't be there to assemble pies, but you can pick up your child after school that would be great too!