May 22, 2017

We have had a VERY busy couple of weeks! 

In Social Studies, we finished our Around the World unit by learning about Brazil. The students had an opportunity to pretend that they were in Brazil and writing home to their families about their exciting experience. These postcards have been placed on their scrapbook pages which we will share with you soon! Please note that the MOUNTAINS AND RIVERS ASSESSMENT WILL BE MONDAY, MAY 22nd. 

The students have been working hard on their Ancestor Country research in the library! After each research session, the kids have used the information to write informational paragraphs about their country. These paragraphs are being turned into a wonderful book! Thank you to all the parents who have helped with library research! It is a big undertaking and made possible with the help of volunteers. 

During reading groups, we have been reading fictional texts and discussing comprehension strategies such as: problem/solution, most important event, lesson, and character traits. Next week, I will begin doing the Developmental Reading Assessment with each child to see the progress that they have made. 

We recently started Unit 9 in math which is our last official unit of the school year. The unit focuses on fractions which tends to be a challenging concept for many second grade students. Please know that we will continue to practice at school and we don't expect mastery of this skill. The purpose of this unit is to simply introduce the children to the concept of partitioning rectangles and circles into 2, 3, or 4 equal shares. 

We are looking forward to starting our last Science Unit next week which is about Earth's Surfaces! 

We had a wonderful Enrichment Program this past week called Day In Ghana. I'm sure your child told you about it or maybe came home singing and dancing! The children were very engaged in learning about the culture and daily life of those living in Ghana. Make sure you check out the adorable video and photos of the children participating in this program. 

Upcoming Events: 

Monday, May 22nd- Mountains and Rivers Assessment 

Tuesday, May 23rd- 2nd Grade Rainforest Enrichment Program 

Friday, May 26th- U.S.A. Spirit Day 

Monday, May 29th- NO SCHOOL- Memorial Day 

Wednesday, May 31st- Robinson Field Day 

May 8, 2017

It's hard to believe it's May already!  We have a packed month ahead of us, including some really fun trips to Crisafulli, two enrichment programs (Ghana and the Rainforest), and our all-school Field Day.  We are sure to really enjoy all of these special things and more this month!

The day after vacation we were VERY excited to welcome a new student to our class.  It's been fun getting to know a new friend and showing him all our 2nd grade routines.  I updated the friendship list to include his information.  A new copy was sent home this past week.  Please let me know if you didn't receive it.

Here are some other highlights from the past two weeks...

During our Reading time we got back to reading some more fiction texts with our guided reading groups.  We discussed and practiced some of the skills we’ve talked about throughout the year.  Our discussions focused on vocabulary, predicting, and re-telling. 

We had a great couple of days doing ancestor research in the library.  The kids were really excited to begin looking at the books about their country.  Everyone had a chance to find information about some things they were wondering about their country (food, animals, holidays, famous landmarks).  Thank you to all the parents who have helped out so far- your support has been wonderful for the children. We have two more sessions planned in the library to research our next questions.  

This past week during our Writing time we began using that information to write informational paragraphs.  We also spent some time writing letters to a third grade buddy.  The purpose of the letter was to introduce yourself, tell your buddy some things about you, and ask your buddy some questions you have about third grade and/or the Crisafulli school.  We got a chance to meet our buddies in person on Thursday when we walked up to Crisafulli to listen to the 5th grade chorus.  We will have a few more opportunities to meet our 3rd grade buddies in the coming weeks. So fun!!

We traveled from the very cold continent of Antarctica to a MUCH different place this week, South America.  Our Social Studies time was spent learning about South America's location, landmarks, animals, and land features.  We touched on the Amazon River and the incredible Amazon Rainforest, but we will learn more about both in the week ahead.

The past 2 weeks in Math we almost completed unit 8.  Our lessons looked at Equal Groups and Arrays (an introduction to how multiplication works).  We also reviewed what we’ve learned during this unit about 2-D and 3-D shapes, Polygons, and Equal Parts.  All of this work helped prepare the children for the Unit 8 Assessment, which we will do in the next few days.

The kids did a wonderful job on their book reports!  Thank you for helping them with this project.  The book reports have been turned into "flowers" and are displayed in the showcase as you enter the school.  I hope you get a chance to check out our "Garden of Great Books". They will be displayed for the whole month of May.

On Friday our class got a really neat opportunity to see inside a Westford Fire Truck.  Madison won a special ride to school on the fire truck, and we all went out to greet her!  The kids had a blast talking to the firefighters, seeing all the gear, and sitting in a real fire truck.  

Have a wonderful week!


Here is what the kids enjoyed about school over the past 2 weeks...

"I liked doing the book report because I like reading books."
                                                     -Raushan

"I liked exploring the Westford Firetruck because we got to wear the fire helmet."
                                                     - Alison

"I liked when we met our 3rd grade buddies because I like to make more friends."
                                                     - Dylan

"I liked playing tennis in Wellness because it was really fun!"
                                                    - Giana

"I liked exploring a fire truck because I like seeing fire trucks in real life."
                                                    - Sarah