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Friday, January 27, 2017

Post 17

HOMEWORK

The fluorescent green sheet that was sent home this week for homework is the new second grade homework format. It is both a reading log and their reading response sheet. You will notice that there are sentence starters on the back of the sheet. We expect students to use these sentence starters when crafting their response. This single sheet is what homework will look like for the remainder of the year; it replaces the packet format we had been following. This one homework product should be returned on Fridays.

Prior to having our new homework sent home, your child spent some time in the classroom learning and practicing homework expectations with an emphasis on achievement and effort. These are two of our school’s core values. We expect to see them represented on students’ homework, just the same as we seek to see these values represented daily in school across all academic and social domains.

The second grade teaching team expects to see this one homework product done well. Sentences should be properly constructed and follow conventions (i.e. capitalization and punctuation used properly). Handwriting should be neat and letters should be properly formed. Work that is less than a student’s best effort or which does not meet these standards will be returned. We thank you in advance for holding these high standards at home.

We appreciate your ongoing partnership and active participation in this process.

Best,

The Second Grade Team

Second Grade Homework Expectations:

·      Total time spent on homework is 30 minutes per night
·      Nightly reading of 20 minutes
·      Nightly reading response


Additional homework resources are available on our website and may be used at the discretion of individual families and/or at your teacher’s recommendation.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Wednesday, February 1, 2017 - 12:30 Release

REMINDERS: 

Wow words: Please continue to help your child gather new words each week through their reading and your conversations at home and bring them in on Wow Word Wednesday. Here are links to an online dictionary (Merriam Webster for kids - Word Central) and our wow word worksheet in case you need a new one. This is an ongoing reminder for the year. Please make acquiring new words part of your home routine.


CURRICULUM UPDATE:

In reading we
  • Learned about James Marshall and read some of his works, such as George and MarthaRats on the Roof and some poems from Pocketful of Nonsense
  • Learned new strategies for learning new words - looking at the picture and reading around the word to get context clues.

At home, talk with your children about the James Marshall books that we have read and about him as a person.     

In Fundations (Word Study) we: 
  • Began unit 7, in which we will learn about open syllables, when y acts as a vowel, how to combine open syllables with closed syllables and v-e syllables in multisyllabic words.
  • Trick words: eight, large, change  

At home, please refer to the Unit 7 family letter to learn how you can support our word study work at home. Also, look though the fundations/word study section on my website. There, you will find all of the first and second grade trick words. If your child needs practice with these words, please practice through activities such as playing bingo, memory or through reviewing them on flashcards. Here is a link to a great website with different sight word games that you might like to try

Next week, we will continue our work in unit 7.   


In writing: 
  • We continued writing and publishing informational books. 
  • We drafted a how-to chapter as a class to demonstrate how we need to use specific language when writing a how-to.
  • We worked to set personal goals for each day.
  • We discussed that each chapter should include many important details so that our books truly teach our reading something.
  
At home, ask your child about his/her writing. Have them share the important facts that they wrote in each chapter.    

Next week, we will continue our work on writing informational books and will begin sharing our published pieces.

In math:
  • We continued working in our geometry unit.
  • We discussed geometric vocabulary, such as parallel lines, intersecting lines, line segments, polygons, quadrilaterals, pentagons, and hexagons.
  • We sorted polygons by various attributes and explained how shapes are the same and different.
  • Explored 3-D shapes and noticed their attributes, such as their faces, edges and vertices.


At home, find shapes in the world around you. Look for both 2-D and 3-D shapes. Note how shapes can combine to form other shapes.

Next week, we will finish up on our geometry unit and begin a project-based unit called ages and timelines.  
    In Social Studies we:
    • Read about food in Mexico and learned some other things that come from Mexico.

    At home, talk with your child about what comes from Mexico. 

    Social/Emotional Learning:


    • We have been discussing kindness, cooperation and respect often as a class. This week, we framed this discussion by reading Have You Filled A Bucket Today? A Guide For Daily Happiness For Kids. Talk with your children about what they know about bucket filling and bucket dipping. Emphasize ways in which they can be bucket fillers both at home and at school. 

    Enjoy your weekend!  

    Friday, January 13, 2017

    Post 16

    Dear Second Grade Families,

    As you know, we've asked for your feedback regarding homework and have been working to reiterate expectations in the classroom.  To this end, we've been working to redefine expectations as necessary.  Our work with your children over the past two weeks has focused on clarifying what needs to be done to achieve individual hopes and dreams; and, as importantly, how this will be done.

    Our team has decided that homework tasks will change but will remain within the district's guidelines for total time spent on homework based on the following conclusions:

    • Homework routines are important
    • Most families value homework
    • Teachers and families value reading tasks above other homework tasks
    Moving forward:

    • Total time spent on homework will remain 30 minutes.
    • Nightly reading of at least 20 minutes will continue.
    • BEGINNING JANUARY 23rd - Nightly reading response
    • Nightly math and spelling review worksheets will not continue. 
    • Additional resources will be available to families on our websites, and may be given as “homework” at the discretion of individual families.


    Our team will spend next week teaching and practicing homework routines with students in the classroom.

    - The Second Grade Team

    IMPORTANT DATES:

    January 16, 2017 - NO SCHOOL - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

    REMINDERS: 

    Wow words:  Please continue to help your child gather new words each week through their reading and your conversations at home and bring them in on Wow Word Wednesday. Here are links to an online dictionary (Merriam Webster for kids - Word Central) and our wow word worksheet in case you need a new one. This is an ongoing reminder for the year. Please make acquiring new words part of your home routine.

    CURRICULUM UPDATE:

    In reading we
    • Finished My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett and wrote and answered questions about important parts of the story.
    • Read multiple books about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and wrote about what we learned about him, why he was important and how he can inspire us. 
    At home, discuss Martin Luther king Jr.'s work and how we can solve problems peacefully, both at home and at school.   

    In Fundations (Word Study) we: 
    • Continued work in unit 6, moving into reading and writing multisyllabic words with the vowel-consonant-e syllable within them.
    • Played fundations bingo
    • Trick words: only, house, move, place, together, right   
    At home, please refer to the Unit 6 family letter to learn how you can support our word study work at home. Also, look though the fundations/word study section on my website. There, you will find all of the first and second grade trick words. If your child needs practice with these words, please practice through activities such as playing bingo, memory or through reviewing them on flashcards. Here is a link to a great website with different sight word games that you might like to try

    Next week, we will continue our work in unit 6.   


    In writing we: 
    • Continued writing informational books. We discussed how to best work with a writing partner and began choosing our best chapters for publishing our first piece.  
    At home, talk about your child's writing. Ask about what each chapter is about and feel free to make suggestions. You could also encourage your child to do research on his/her topic to have more information to add to his/her book. 

    Next week, we will continue our work on writing informational books, adding in a research component for those who choose to.

    In math we:
    • Continued practice with number stories.
    At home, continue to help your child to apply their understanding of adding double digit numbers to real-life situations, such as when adding money and when talking about time. Ask them to explain how they solved their problems as well.

    Next week, we will begin a new unit about geometry.  
      In Social Studies we:
      • Learned about the Day of the Dead. We chose traditions to write about and all made a calaca (a skull figure that is commonly used for decoration during Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico).
      At home, talk with your child about what they learned about The Day of the Dead. 

      Enjoy your long weekend!  

      Friday, January 6, 2017

      Post 15

      Dear Second Grade Families,

      We welcomed back your children this week to a time in the school year when teachers typically spend time re-teaching expectations for how we all will take care of ourselves and our learning, each other, and our materials.  Time was also spent reviewing whole-school expectations.  Our second graders will be spending a significant amount of time reviewing rules, reflecting on individual hopes and dreams, and routines next week as well.

      HOMEWORK

      Thank you for your feedback regarding homework this past week.  We've heard a variety of opinions and have looked closely at the data we've collected via the survey.  Our second grade teaching team has spent a significant amount of time considering your feedback, studied research on the matter by thought leaders in the field, and discussed our past and current research practices at length. 

      At this time, we would like to extend the conversation for another week so that we may make what we feel would be the best-informed, most reasonable decision regarding future homework practices at the grade level.  

      Please take a moment to share your voice via the brief homework survey if you haven't already done so.  The homework expectation for NEXT WEEK will be the same as for last week: Read for 30 minutes each night.

      Thank you in advance for your feedback and flexibility as we "reset" expectations for the remainder of the year.


      -- Second Grade Team

      HOMEWORK SURVEY DATA TO DATE


      IMPORTANT DATES:

      January 16, 2017 - NO SCHOOL - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

      REMINDERS: 

      Wow words:  Please continue to help your child gather new words each week through their reading and your conversations at home and bring them in on Wow Word Wednesday. Here are links to an online dictionary (Merriam Webster for kids - Word Central) and our wow word worksheet in case you need a new one. This is an ongoing reminder for the year. Please make acquiring new words part of your home routine.

      CURRICULUM UPDATE:

      In reading we
      • Read Squirrels New Years Resolution by Pat Miller and wrote our hopes and dreams for the remainder of second grade. We then made an action plan for how we will work on our most important hope and dream.
      • Read My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett and discussed story elements. 
      At home, set goals together. Show your children how you work towards goals.   

      In Fundations (Word Study) we: 
      • Began unit 6, in which review the vowel-consonant-e syllable.
      • Trick words only, house, move   
      At home, Please refer to the Unit 6 family letter to learn how you can support our word study work at home. Also, look though the fundations/word study section on my website. There, you will find all of the first and second grade trick words. If your child needs practice with these words, please practice through activities such as playing bingo, memory or through reviewing them on flashcards. Here is a link to a great website with different sight word games that you might like to try

      Next week, we will continue our work in unit 6.   


      In writing we: 
      • Continued writing informational books. We learned techniques from writing more down the page and adding more chapters.  
      At home, talk about your child's writing. Ask about what each chapter is about and feel free to make suggestions. You could also encourage your child to do research on his/her topic to have more information to add to his/her book. 

      Next week, we will continue our work on writing informational books

      In math we:
      • Worked on various addition problems in conjunction with money. 
      • Worked on our math games.
      At home, continue to help your child to apply their understanding of adding double digit numbers to real-life situations, such as when adding money and when talking about time.  
        In Social Studies we:
        • Discussed the qualities of an effective leader.
        • Learned about Diego Rivera, a famous Mexican artist. 
        • Compared responsibilities of some children in Mexico with our own responsibilities. 
        Next week, we will continue our exploration of Mexico, learning about Dia de Los Muertos and foods traditionally eaten in Mexico.

        At home, talk with your child about what they are learning about Mexico. 

        Enjoy the weekend!