Last Update

Thank you so much for a great last week of school! I was overwhelmed with the many gifts, cards, and thank-yous all week long. Now it's my turn to thank all of you for trusting me with your precious people all year. It was a wonderful group of kids and a fantastic year. 

Our high school aide Ms. Pell helped us make a video, but I can't figure out how to imbed it here! So I'm sharing a Google Link. Let me know if you can't see it: Before&After

Here's a rundown of our last week in second grade: 

Monday:

Camp day #1 was a blast! We made campfires (pretend) and s'mores (real), and worked on Memory Books. 

Tuesday:

Camp day #2

We wrote postcards home from camp, worked on math puzzles, and hung out reading books in tents. 

Wednesday:

Glow Day! The second graders played with snap circuits, did some cool glow art on their laptops, and had a glow dance party. We also went to the all-school SOAR luau. It was a busy day of fun!

Thursday:

Beach day!! The second graders finished up their memory books and played Blooket to review skills they learned this year. We also learned about the legend of Rock Paper Scissors, played it with partners (100 times!!), and did some data collection too. 

Friday:

The last day went by so quickly! We did a major clean up of the classroom to get it ready for summer and then lined the halls to clap and cheer for the 4th graders who will head to the 5/6 building next year. Then we had fun celebrating our last day, laughing and playing games together. I will miss this group of kids!!

If you didn't get to see the hallway the last week of school you missed the wings Mr Johnson made for Park students to color at field day. He taped them up on the wall by the office and each of the second graders got a picture with them. It is in your child's memory book along with lots of other pictures from the year.

Weekly Update

Field Day:

The second graders had a fantastic time at Field Day. Thank you so much to Mr Beimers and everyone who helped make the day run smoothly. From hot dogs to pie pan relay the kids had a wonderful day.

Reading:

We are still working our way through folktales. Next week we will read fairy tales, fractured fairytales, and fables. We have been talking about the moral or lesson the characters are learning and the stories are trying to teach.

Writing:

The second graders finally got to share their fairy tales with the class. Everyone listened so well to each story because they were so good! They wrote such creative stories! The second graders also wrote letters to the third grade teachers. Next week we will write more letters and also work on making memory books.

Math:

We wrapped up marble runs last week with epic marble runs outside. They had a great time building ramps and collecting data. The second graders also took their very last math test last week. The test and a grade sheet will come home early next week. Next week we will work on solving math puzzles and applying the skills they have worked on so hard this year.

Theme days:

Next week we will be celebrating the end of second grade: 

Monday and Tuesday will be Camp Second Grade so the second graders should dress for camping.

Wednesday is Glow Day so wear neon or bright colors!

Thursday and Friday are beach days. Don't forget Friday is a half day!

Weekly Update

We had a great time on our field trip! Thanks to everyone who came on our walking tour of Hudsonville!

Reading:

We have loved reading fairy tales and are moving on to another genre in the oral tradition: Fables! We have continued exploring characters while also talking about the features of fables. The second graders were all excited to see familiar stories and be able to identify features of fables in them. We read so many, including The Fox and the Crow, The Lion and the Mouse, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, and The Ant and the Grasshopper. We will explore retellings of The Boy Who Cried Wolf more next week.

Math:

Everyone is loving marble runs! We have started collecting data around how far the marbles travel depending on what kind of marble and the height of the ramp. Next week we will spend more time interpreting data than experimenting. We are planning on our very last test being next Friday!

Writing:

We didn't get our fairy tales wrapped up yet! We are hoping to get them finished and read them to the class next week. The second graders who have finished wrote a fairy tale mad lib which was very fun! Next week we will do some fun end of the year writing.

Social Studies:

The second graders have been doing reader's theaters about community issues and then taking a stand and providing reasons why they feel that way. We have also been talking about how community projects can have a positive impact.

Other information:

We have so much fun planned for the last days of school. If you want to send in some supplies for the fun here is the link for all the things we need: End of Second Grade Fun!

May 28 - Second grade store day. If you have trinkets you want to declutter and gift to our store please send them in!

May 29 - All School Field Day and Park Picnic

If you want to volunteer check out the Park PPC Facebook page.

June 5 - Last day early release

Weekly Update

Writing:

We read with Mrs DeSmit's Kinder class this week!

The second graders have been writing a retelling of the Three Little Pig story. Their versions have different characters, but the same story pattern. They are loving coming up with their characters' phrases. We will finish them early next week and you are going to love reading these fractured fairy tales when they come home. We have to share them with our classmates before they can go home though!

Reading:

It has been so much fun to read fairy tales and be able to write them too. We have read many versions of the same fairy tales which has helped to inform our writing. It has also helped the second graders to see how author's change the characters' personalities in those retellings. This week we looked for the feelings behind characters' actions and did a little acting too! On Friday we read an older version of Cinderella with some unfamiliar words and tried to use context clues to figure them out. We will continue reading fairy tales next week too.

 

Math:

We are making marble runs! The kids have been having a great time building and exploring with marble runs. This week we became master ramp builders and then changed some features to see what would happen. We changed the height of the ramps and the material of the marble. Next week we will start using the ramps to collect data and create graphs. 

Social Studies:

Don't forget we walk to City Hall on Tuesday! We have been studying how communities solve problems so it will be fun to see where the people of Hudsonville can go when they have a problem or need city services. The second graders are also excited to see where the commissioners and mayor sit for meetings! We will leave right at 9:00 so please help your child be on time on Tuesday. If you are coming with us we will meet you in the lobby in the front of the school.

Extra Information:

Tuesday May 19 - Field Trip to City Hall - Wear Hudsonville gear and good walking shoes!

As a class we talked about wearing our tie-dye socks and the same shirts. We discussed wearing our black Color the Park tshirts (I might be able to find extras for those who didn't run it this year), and then talked about the blue Park Elementary shirts, and finally landed on wearing any Hudsonville gear. It was a big debate, but the general consensus was that the second graders wanted to dress alike. They have really grown close as a group and developed a sense of community this year! 

Friday May 22 - Monday May 25 - No school Memorial Day Break

Friday May 29 - All school picnic and field day

PPC is looking for volunteers for this event. Check their link in this week's Park Newsletter for more info.

June 5 - Early Release & Last Day

Weekly Update

Writing:

The second graders have been having fun with our poetry unit and have written fantastic poems! We worked on poems with strict rules, like haikus, and poems without rules like acrostics. We will wrap that up next week and start planning for writing fairy tales!

Social Studies:

We will revisit and finish up our unit on Citizenship. We will talk about the roles and responsibilities of citizens and how citizens work together to solve problems in the community.

Math:

Last week we worked on graphing information with line plot graphs. We had Mrs DeSmit's kinders come and help us gather information to graph. They grabbed as many tiles as they could with one hand. As we graphed it, the second graders could compare that information to the information they gathered as when they grabbed as many tiles as they could.  Next week we are hoping to add more data! We also used tiles to build arrays and explore some multiplication concepts. Next week we will also be working on word problems with larger numbers. The second graders are getting good at adding and subtracting with bigger and bigger numbers!

Reading:

We continued reading fairy tales which has been so much fun. The second graders tried to find spots in their stories where a character has a big feeling because those are usually important parts in the story. We looked for the big feelings and tried to identify why the character was having that feeling and what it meant for the story. We continue our exploration of fairy tales next week as we study the characters themselves. 

Homework:

None this week. Happy Mother's Day!

Extra Information:

May 19- Field Trip

May 22- No School

May 24- Memorial Day

May 29- Field Day

Weekly Update

Playing adjective tennis. 

Writing:
The second graders have really taken off writing poetry. As poem readers the second graders have learned about stanzas and rhyme patterns, rhythm, how syllables can create a beat, and how alliteration can be used. As poem writers they are learning to look at things with a poets eyes and see everyday objects in a new way. We read a poem about bees in a pencil sharpener and one about the sky in the classroom. We will continue poem work next week too.

Phonics:
We are exploring parts of speech: verbs, adjectives, nouns, and adverbs. This will help us write some of those poems that have rules or formulas like diamante and cinquain.

Math:
Our class hosted some teachers from around the district who were interested in seeing math instruction. The second graders really knocked it out of the park! The teachers mentioned how respectful the kids all were as they talked to each other and listened to classmates' ideas. .They were impressed with the students' behavior but also their knowledge of the topic. We were talking about fractions and equal shares that day. On Friday the second graders took a math test. Look for these to come home early next week. Then we start our very last math unit! It's hard to believe it coming so fast!

Reading:
We are going to start reading fairy tales next week!  This is such a fun unit, since we are going to read some original fairy tales, and then also some spins on the originals, and read some fractured fairy tales.

  
Homework:
The five star sentence homework is due by May 8.

Extra Information:
May 8- Early Release Day

May 19- Field Trip

May 22- No School

May 24- Memorial Day

May 29- Field Day

Weekly Update

Writing:

We celebrated Earth Day!

The second graders finished their last realistic fiction story. This is their last graded narrative fiction for the year. We spent some time in class on Friday assessing all three pieces they have done since spring break. Students then selected their best story, did some editing and revising and turned it in. I will score them this weekend and on Monday the second graders will be able to see their narrative writing score for the year. Next week we will start writing poetry!

Phonics:

We have been studying prefixes and suffixes and how they change words. This week we studied the suffixes -ful and -less and -ly.

Math:

We will be finishing our unit with measuring and fractions next week with a test - probably on Friday.  This week we made a "garden" and practiced measuring using our flowers! The second graders collected data on flower heights and we built a data table as a class. The next step pis to make a line plot graph with the information. We also explored relationships between fractions and talked about fractions as part of a whole and part of a set. The homework this week has a little bit of fraction practice and some double digit subtraction practice. The subtraction questions have a place to put the steps the students will use to solve the problem as well a spot for the answer.

Social Studies & Reading:

We are going to have an election in second grade!  We have been learning all about the local government, and we are going to have our very own second grade mayor and commissioners.  The kids who want to run for these positions should write a three-sentence "speech" this weekend. They will read their speeches on Monday which will also be our election day! Some of the leadership qualities the second graders came up with are: good example, trustworthy, calm, kind, focused, good sportsmanship, problem-solver, and safe. Speeches can be written completely independently or with help. It will be a fun learning experience in how voting works!

Homework:

The two-sided math page is due by Friday, May 1.

Extra Information:

Pictures due by May 1:

If you haven't sent me a picture of mom and child yet for our surprise project please do so by May 1.  Thank you!

May 19:

Our field trip date is set. We will be taking a "Tour de Hudsonville". We will be walking to the City Hall from Park Elementary.  We will get to learn all about the Police Station, Fire Department, and also meet some of our very own City Government Officials!  We would LOVE for you to come with us!  Please make sure a background check is on file, and bring your most comfortable walking shoes!  We will leave at 9am, and be back before 11:50 to enjoy lunch at our normal time.  Please email me if you are planning on coming!

Math Request:

In our next math unit we will need cardboard tubes, so please don't recycle the cardboard from inside a paper towel or toilet paper roll. Send it to school instead!