Weekly Update

We had a big week! It was only four days, but we did A LOT!

Mrs Stefanich read to our class, we started math and SEL curriculum - lots of team and community building - and we met our high school football players!

Here's the breakdown:

Writing:

We have been practiced sentence writing last week.  The second graders know to use capital letters at the beginning of sentences, but don’t always remember to do it. It’s a habit we will work to build all year long. Everyone knows to use punctuation as well, but again it’s a habit we will continue to build. Last week the second graders chose their very best sentence to turn in. I scored them on a 5-point rubric that we will refer back to often this year. Those sentences will come home next week and you can review them with your child.

Next week we launch our personal narrative unit and shift from sentences to ideas. In second grade our focus is on writing small moments, focusing in on one small moment, rather than writing a many-moments story.

Phonics:

The second graders took a spelling assessment last week, and I have to say I am impressed with what they all learned last year and hung on to through the summer.  This assessment will help me to differentiate instruction, and target skills the students need for spelling.

Math:

This math curriculum is really hands on and I hope your second grader said they had fun when you ask them about math last week. We solved math mysteries using clues, played games  and explored work stations. The students made bugs, categorized and sorted them and often I think they didn’t realize it was math. In second grader we spend far more time doing math than writing math.

Reading:

Our current focus is building reading stamina during independent reading along with making sure everyone has chosen 'just right' books.  We talked about how we want to make sure that the books are interesting to us, and also not too hard (if there are five or more unknown words on a single page then it's too hard), but we also don't want books that are too easy.  The second graders have also been trying out different flexible seating around the room, trying to find a comfortable spot away from distractions.

SEL:

As a class we made a classroom charter. We thought of words that we want to make sure we feel every single day when we are in the classroom, and came up with happy, safe, and calm & relaxed. Ask your child what they said will help them stay happy, safe, and calm when they are in our classroom. We also played an "I Have, Who Has?" game with our whole class's names and pictures, and worked in teams to keep a gummy worm from falling in the ocean. This is a great group and we are going to have a great year!

Homework:

Have a WONDERFUL Labor Day weekend!  If you are traveling, please stay safe. I’d love it if you would encourage your child to read at least 20 minutes a day.

Extra Information:

August 29- No School

September 1- No school- Labor Day

September 5 - Bike Bus is starting!

September 24- School Picture Day

September 26 - Early Release Day

October 3- Color the Park (sign-up links below)

Click here to Register

Click here to Volunteer

Weekly Update

We had two great days in 2nd Grade!  This is such a great group of kids! I'm so excited to spend the year with them. These past two days we did a lot of getting to know you activities and routine practicing. We will continue that next week too, but will also get started on curriculum!

Writing:

The second graders wrote stories today about something they did over summer vacation, and I noticed we may need some practice with writing sentences.  So next week we will practice sentence structure and talk about punctuation. 

Phonics:

Next week we will take a spelling "test". There is nothing to study for because I want to see how they spell and what strategies they use. This will help me determine who needs help with certain phonics skills and we can put these students into different groups for W.I.N. Time (What I Need).  

Math:

Next week we will start our first math unit! It will be all game-based activities designed to get us back into mathematical thinking and into the routine of math learning. I am so excited to help these kiddos LOVE math! 

Reading:

Our focus next week we will be building reading stamina. We will also work on routines and review how to select good fit books. This is the year students make the switch from Learning to Read to Reading to Learn so developing independent reading skills will be an important focus this year. 

Homework:

Homework will be in your child's yellow folder on Fridays, and usually it's a math worksheet. In second grade we use homework to keep parents informed about what we are doing in class, but also to give the students an opportunity to apply their math knowledge outside of the classroom and show off their learning to their parents. I know from experience how busy families are, so you will have the entire week to work on homework. Your child can turn in his or her homework any day before the following week. I will check the homework and go over anything that your child didn't understand. So feel free to write me a note and ask me to go over something specific. I don't keep track of who turns their homework in or when. This gives you as parents a chance to lay the foundation for homework habits at home now, before they are attached to a grade. 

Your child got his or her first homework assignment on Thursday. It is a pennant to fill out, decorate, cut out and return to school next week. We will use these to as community-building springboards when we share them with the class. A strong positive community and a team mentality are foundational to second grade at Park. It's going to be a great year!

  

Extra Information:

The specials calendar for August and September is in the back pocket of your child's yellow folder. That folder should travel back and forth with your second grader every day.

August 22- No School

August 29- No School

September 1- No School

September 24- Picture Day

October 3- Color the Park

We will take a snack break every day in the morning, but many kids also need a snack in the afternoon. We work hard at school! Please discuss with your child what will work for him or her and help them pack what they need to keep them energized for all the learning we do all day long.