Writing Workshop- learning from famous authors!

Last week we began a new unit in Writing Workshop by looking at favorite books in our classroom library for story ideas!  Children were reminded of many wonderful stories from their own lives by looking at the works of famous authors.  These ideas were recorded in tiny topics notepads to be used in Writing Workshop.  Check out some examples below!  We have been talking about how stories are all around us in our everyday lives and how writers use these to create wonderful pieces of writing.  The tiny topics notepads have been a hit with second graders and they continue to add story ideas to them throughout the day!  In this unit, we will learn about how to write, revise, and edit narrative stories to make them interesting and easy to read. 



In other news, we continue to study stars in our sun, moon, and stars science unit.  In reading, we have been talking about making predictions.  Today in math we talked about adding 9 to any number (it's easiest to first add 10, then subtract 1!).  We'll continue to learn specific strategies for adding and subtracting numbers throughout second grade. 

Be sure to ask your child about the iPad apps we've been using for Word Work- Chicktionary and Cimo Spelling!

Hope everyone enjoyed a nice weekend and the Warner Fall Foliage Festival! 

Monday

Today your second grader learned about using the Chromebook computers to explore the National Geographic Young Explorers Magazine online!  This was a big hit and will become a part of our daily literacy workshop.  I encourage you to check out the site with your child!

This afternoon we also learned about Christopher Columbus and Columbus Day through the Scholastic News Magazine!  As we read we were focusing on determining the main idea and supporting details of the article.  Ask your child to share about what they learned!  Here's a link to the digital copy!

In math, we are working on comparing and ordering numbers through 1000, as well as adding groups of 10s and 100s.  

Enjoy the foliage this week!

Additional Homework Activities for this Month!

If you are looking for extra home practice for your child or would like a challenge for your child, check out these great ideas below!  Each month, new ideas will be posted as optional homework activities.  

You have the choice to do any or all of these activities. It covers a lot of subjects and will change each month. If the activity is underlined, click on it to go to that page. If you can print or bring in what you've been working on I would love to see it! Have fun!!

Reading 
* Pick a book and time yourself reading it. How long was your 1st time? Read the same book again. What was your 2nd time?
* Read a book of your choice. Write down the name of the book and one question you have about the story.
* Look around your home for all the things that have words on it that you can read. Make a list of things you could read
* Listen to someone read for 15 minutes. Draw a picture of what you imagined while they were reading.
* Read a book about fall or Halloween.
* Read The First on the Moon
Math 
* Go outside and grab an armful of leaves. Count all the leaves you grabbed and write the amount.
* Practice telling what time it is. One afternoon, write down what you were doing at: 4:00 5:30 7:45
* Go outside and collect a bunch of leaves. Put them into groups of 10. How many groups did you get? How many leftovers?
* Find a deck of playing cards. Pick two cards at a time and write an addition number sentence to find the sum. Repeat this 5 times. Hint: Take out the face cards.
* Write down when your started Trick or Treating. What time did you finish? How long did you Trick or Treat for?
Science
* Visit the NASA for Kids website.
* Find 5 different leaves and write down the differences and similarities you see.
* We have done the K and W of the KWL chart. Write down the L part for things you have learned about Sun, Moon and Stars.
* Go to space place and explore.
Writing
* Write a short story starting with the line, “Once I went for a walk on the moon.”
* What is the best thing about the Fall Foliage Festival and why?
* Make up a rhyming poem about the season fall.
* Write a description of what you are going to be for Halloween. Use lots of adjectives (describing words)!
* Make a list of as many fall words as you can. Then write a sentence using some of those words
Technology 
* Visit the Warner Fall Foliage website to see pictures from the festival and to see what's happening next year
Gym
* Go for a walk outside for ten minutes. Every time you step on a leaf do a jumping jack. Write down how many jumping jacks you did.
* Time yourself running from one end of your yard to the other. Try again and see if you can do it faster. Record your fastest time.
* Go outside and play shadow tag with someone or things out in the yard.
* Go for a walk and time how long you walk for.
Art
* Look at the moon and stars this week. Draw a picture of what you see.
* Create something that shows what is special about the season fall.
* Find two different leaves. Make leaf rubbings by putting a paper over the leaves and rubbing an unwrapped crayon sideways over the paper. Write down what is the same and what is different about these two leaves.
* Make a Halloween mask. It can be made of anything you have around the house, paper, socks, old t-shirts. Be creative and have fun.
* Draw a picture with a pumpkin in it- what is happening in your picture?
Music
* Make up a song or rhyme about space. Some words to include might be moon, stars, astronaut, explore.
* Write a list of 5 special sounds that you hear in the fall.
* Make a list of 5 spooky sounds you might hear around Halloween.

Our week in 2nd grade

This week's highlights included learning about the moon in science, using iPads for math games, and continuing to learn more reading strategies!  It was wonderful to see families at Open House!  I will be in touch soon to confirm Parent-Teacher Conference times.

In math we have been learning about comparing numbers up to 1000, adding and subtracting groups of 10, reviewing the basic facts we have learned.  Math games are a wonderful way to reinforce what we've learned and to practice for mastery.  Children have opportunities each day to play a math game with a buddy and/or play an online math game.  These activities are very engaging and I rotate the games based on what we are currently learning.  Looking for extra practice at home?  Check out this great site called IXL math!  It has dozens of online math games for each grade level and there's an app as well.

Want to learn more about your child's school day? Ask him/her about:
*using the iPads to practice comparing numbers in math
*the story they published for our Writer's Celebration
*the reading strategy we learned this week- making connections to our reading
*their new classroom job
*the new song we learned called "Doctor, Doctor" (this was a hit!)
*the moon project we did this afternoon using crayons and watercolor paints

                                    Oct. 2013

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
		1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30	31

Have a nice weekend!

Open House October 2nd at 6:30 p.m.!

Open House
Please join us for the Simonds School Open House tomorrow October 2nd at 6:30 p.m.!  I look forward to seeing families and having your child be your "tour guide" in our classroom!

Sun, Moon, Stars
Second graders began learning about the sun, moon, and stars last week.  To begin the unit, we are focusing on learning about the moon and how it appears in the sky.  Through books and online resources students learned about the phases of the moon and we also took a virtual tour of the moon using Google Earth!  Ask your child to share the most interesting fact they have learned about the moon and about making craters with Mrs. Stanley!

Writing
During September, children have been writing personal narratives (or true stories from their lives) during Writing Workshop.  We will learn about publishing our writing for a class writer's celebration this week.  Each child will choose one story to "fancy up" for publication and it will be shared with the class.  Our next focus in Writing Workshop will be on revising writing pieces to make them more interesting for the reader!

Math news!

In math, our focus has been on understanding the value of numbers, or place value.  Children have been using base ten blocks to build and write numbers in the hundreds and/or thousands, depending on the challenge they need.  We have also learned about writing numbers in number words and expanded form.  For example, 126 is written as 100+20+6 and one-hundred twenty-six.  As you may have heard, many states across the country have adopted the "Common Core Standards" for literacy and math.  The emphasis for second graders in math is on addition/subtraction and building a strong sense of numbers through 1000.  To meet these new, rigorous standards your child will be working in depth with numbers this year, at an individualized level.  To differentiate for various student needs, I meet with math groups of about 4 children each day.   Yesterday we began talking about comparing two numbers and the vocabulary "greater than" and "less than.," and "equals."  We'll continue this work today and next week.  

Base 10 Blocks

We have also been  using cuisenaire rods to explore numbers and master addition facts.  Cuisenaire rods provide a visual and tactile approach to developing number sense and are a favorite math tool in our classroom.

Cuisenaire Rods

We look forward to having families in at Open House to see our math work and these hands-on math tools!  See you Wednesday October 2nd at 6:30!

Monday's News

Our day today included library, exploring Word Work materials during literacy workshop, and a school assembly with our Artist in Residence!  We are settled into our daily schedule and it's exciting to observe children's engagement and independence!

This week students will work with Mr. King, our Artist in Residence.  He is working with Simonds students to design models of natural playscapes.  Be sure to ask your second grader about it!  You can check out pictures of some natural playscapes that Mr. King has helped design.  The goal is for our students to each create a model of an amphitheater with Mr. King for display at Open House on October 2nd!  Our class works on our models Tuesday afternoon!

This afternoon we used the Scholastic News children's magazine to talk about citizenship and community.  Click on this link for the digital copy and to watch the video that accompanied this week's magazine.

In other news, our class has completed our unit on immigration.  As a culminating activity, each child created a paper quilt piece to show what they learned about immigration.  Look for our class immigration quilt at Open House!  Our next unit is science- sun, moon, and stars!

Find out what your child does during Literacy Workshop!

Reminder: Tomorrow Sept. 19th is Picture Day!  

Literacy Workshop:

Daily literacy instruction is an integral piece of second grade!  To foster skills in reading comprehension, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and writing we have a daily literacy workshop in our classroom.  Within this block, children are engaged in small group work, independent work, 1-on-1 instruction with a teacher, and in whole class discussions.  Children will receive small group or 1-on-1 instruction with me each day in the area of literacy.  Some children receive enrichment or reading intervention from reading teachers during our literacy block as well.  While a child is not working with a teacher s/he may be engaged in the following activities during Literacy Workshop:

Read to Yourself: The best way to become a better reader is to practice each day, with books you choose, at a just-right level!

Read to Someone: Reading to someone allows for more time to practice strategies, helping with fluency and expression, checking for understanding, hearing your own voice, and sharing in a learning community.

Work on Writing:  Just like reading, the best way to become a better writer is to practice writing everyday!

Listen to Reading:  Children listen to reading from CD’s and online storybooks.  This allows children to hear examples of good literature and fluent reading.   It also expands readers’ vocabularies.

Word Work: Spelling strategies allow for more fluent writing, thus speeding up the ability to write and get your thinking down on paper.  Working with words benefits readers, as well as writers, as they explore how words are built and taken apart.

Ask your child what they enjoy most in literacy workshop!