90 days smarter!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

Monday, 2/5: Progress notes available to families

Wednesday, 2/7: Early release - 12:30 dismissal

**Friday, 2/9: 100th Day of School...More information will come home with your child on Monday

**Wednesday, 2/14: Valentine's Day (see below)

**Monday 2/19-Friday 2/23: NO SCHOOL - Winter Vacation

NEW INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES:

Friday 2/9 is the 100th day of school. You child should collect 100 items to share on that day (and maybe even find 100 things to wear as well, such as 100 beads on a necklace or 100 polka dots on a shirt!). A bag to collect your items and more information were sent home today. The same information can also be found HERE. 

We will be exchanging Friendship/Valentine cards on Wednesday, 2/14. More information and a class list went home today in your child's folder. You may also click HERE for this information.

REMINDERS FOR FAMILIES:

Please send your child with weather appropriate clothing. Please make sure to send your child to school with weather appropriate clothing for both indoor and outdoor times. If you send your child to school wearing boots, please send sneakers or other indoor shoes to change into while we are inside. When there is snow on the ground, please send in boots, snow pants, hats, mittens and jackets so that your child can participate fully in snow-related outdoor activities. Thanks!

ASK ME ABOUTS: 

Ask me about...

• making inferences. Why do we need to make inferences? How do you make inferences?
• polygons. How can you tell a shape is a polygon? Go on a polygon shape hunt at home!
• my informational book that I am writing...What am I writing about? How am I working with my writing partner?
• What are some things that come from Mexico and what can one find at Mexican Marketplaces?

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• continue our work in our questioning and inferring unit in reading.
• finish unit 8 in fundations, focusing on the r-controlled vowels -ar and -or.
• continue our informational writing unit focusing on writing non-fiction about expert topics. We will begin publishing a favorite book soon! 
• continue our math unit in geometry, focusing on the various attributes of two dimensional shapes how we classify shapes using those attributes. Students will also examine the attributes of 3 dimensional shapes, focusing on cubes.
• continue our study of Mexico by learning about different regions in Mexico and their landmarks and comparing the responsibilities of children in Mexico with our own responsibilities

Happy New Year!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

Monday 1/15: NO SCHOOL - Martin Luther King Day

**Thursday, 1/25: Social-Emotional Morning in the cafeteria

**Monday, 2/5: Progress notes available

**Wednesday, 2/7: Early release - 12:30 dismissal

IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES:

Please send your child with weather appropriate clothing. Please make sure to send your child to school with weather appropriate clothing for both indoor and outdoor times. If you send your child to school wearing boots, please send sneakers or other indoor shoes to change into while we are inside. When there is snow on the ground, please send in boots, snow pants, hats, mittens and jackets so that your child can participate fully in snow-related outdoor activities. Thanks!

Field Trip forms are coming home today. Please check your child's folder for them. Read the front sheet carefully, as it should answer any questions that you may have. Please keep this sheet for future reference and sign and return the 2 colored forms with your payment by next Thursday (1/18/18). 

ASK ME ABOUTS: 

Ask me about...

• why Dr. Martin Luther King was important...and what are some interesting facts, too? How can I be like Dr. King?
• solving double digit addition problems using mental math. Pose a few problems for me to try.
• my informational book that I am writing...What am I writing about and how am I adding more and more to my writing?
• what I know and am wondering about Mexico.

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• begin a questioning and inferring unit in reading, using both fiction and non-fiction
• finish unit 7 in fundations, focusing on open syllables, y as a vowel and y, ly and ty suffixes. 
• continue our informational writing unit focusing on writing non-fiction. We will focus on writing strong introductions and conclusions.
• continue our practice of addition and subtraction strategies using place value understanding.
• continue our study of Mexico by learning about Mexico on the map and landforms in Mexico. 

a peek into our week

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

Monday, 12/18 and Wednesday 12/20: Fitness Peek Week. Families are invited to come in and participate with our class in P.E. Our P.E. times are: Monday from 12:15-12:45 and Wednesday from 1:15-1:45. Please click HERE for more information.

Friday, 12/22: Final day for donations for the Circle of Hope Coat Drive. There are boxes outside our classroom door and in the main hallway if you are interested in donating. Click HERE for more information.  

Monday 12/25-Mon. 1/1: NO SCHOOL - December Recess

**Monday 1/15: NO SCHOOL - Martin Luther King Day

ASK ME ABOUTS: 

Ask me about...

• the presentation given by the teachers and students from the Jingshan School in Beijing, China.
• our time with Ralph Masiello and what we drew with him.
• non-fiction text features...as you are reading non-0fiction at home notice features such as headings, photographs and their captions, diagrams, charts, etc. Discuss what you can learn from them.
• making change...how can I count up to make change for items?
• telling time. Continue practicing this at home with both digital and analog clocks. 
• my Plus Time group. What did I work on this week?
• what informational book I started this week.
• what I know about the Earth.

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• continue learning about and reading non-fiction. We will learn more about how to determine word meaning in various ways.
• begin unit 7 in fundations, focusing on open syllables, y as a vowel and y, ly and ty suffixes. 
• continue our informational writing unit focusing on writing non-fiction. We will focus on generating ideas, thinking about the many different things we know about from experience. We will then determine how to sort our ideas into different chapters and begin our stories. Please talk with your child about any talents or interests that they have that they may want to write non-fiction books about.  
• work with data by creating and interpreting graphs.  
• continue learning about the sun, moon and Earth through videos, direct observation, non-fiction and fiction texts, poetry, making models and discussion.  

This week in Room 230

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

** Monday, 12/18 and Wednesday 12/20: Fitness Peek Week. Families are invited to come in and participate with our class in P.E. Our P.E. times are: Monday from 12:15-12:45 and Wednesday from 1:15-1:45. Please click HERE for more information.

** Friday, 12/22: Final day for donations for the Circle of Hope Coat Drive. There are boxes outside our classroom door and in the main hallway if you are interested in donating. Click HERE for more information.  

Monday 12/25-Mon. 1/1: NO SCHOOL - December Recess

ASK ME ABOUTS: 

Ask me about...

• inclusion...How can we take care of each other and make sure that everyone counts?
• what I have learned from reading non-fiction this week. What is the first thing we do when we pick up a new non-fiction text?
• the games Race 100 and Race to 0 that we played this week.
• my Plus Time group. What did I work on this week?
• my story that I published.
• Jazz Fly.  Share your favorite jazz music with your child. 

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• continue learning about and reading non-fiction. Please consider providing non-fiction texts for your child at home.
• finish our work in unit 6 in fundations, focusing on reading and writing v-e syllables. 
• begin a new writing unit focusing on writing non-fiction. Please talk with your child about any talents or interests that they have that they may want to write non-fiction books about.  
• work with time and money. At home, please practice telling time on analog and digital clock.s By the end of second grade, students are expected to tell time to the nearest 5 minutes, using a.m and p.m. Also have your child count coins and make change when paying for items. For example, pretend that they bought something that cost 36 cents and they paid with $1.  What coins could they pay with and what coins would they receive in return? How much change would they receive?  
• begin learning about the Sun, Moon and Earth through videos, direct observation, non-fiction and fiction texts, poetry, making models and discussion.  

Early December News

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

** Thursday, 12/7: Early Release - 12:30 dismissal 

** Friday, 12/15: Final day for donations for the Circle of Hope Coat Drive. There are boxes outside our classroom door and in the main hallway if you are interested in donating. Click HERE for more information.  

**Monday 12/25-Mon. 1/1: NO SCHOOL - December Recess

IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES:

Tonight is the last supermoon of the year.  - A supermoon is a full moon that looks bigger and brighter than usual because it is closer to Earth. The best viewing time is as the full moon rises after sunset. Today's sunset is at 4:12 P.M. If you can, please head outside to view the supermoon. Later this week, we will begin our Earth, Sun and Moon unit and will be observing the night sky frequently and this would be a great kick-off event! For an article for your child to read about the supermoon, please click HERE. 

Thank you to all who attended Integrating the Arts Morning! - We were delighted to host so many guests in our classroom and create art with you. The technique that we used to create our maps was called Art to Interpret - Creating to Comprehend. Please click HERE for more information and ways that you can use this strategy at home.

ASK ME ABOUTS: 

Ask me about...

• how I can listen with my whole body...What body parts are involved and what do they need to do? Please practice listening with your whole body at home, as well, to reinforce that this is how we should always listen to others.
• my George and Martha reader's theater that I performed this week (or will be performing next week).
• the small moment story that I am working to publish.
• place value. What do the digits 4 and 5 mean in the number 45?
• my Plus Time group. What did I work on this week?
• U.S. Landmarks...Please talk together and look through any family photos that you have at various U.S. Landmarks to reinforce what landmarks are and make connections to those that you have visited.

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• begin learning about and reading non-fiction. We will learn about various text features and how they can help us better comprehend non-fiction texts. To support this work at home, you could bring your child to the library to select some non-fiction books to read as part of his/her reading homework.
• continue unit 6 in fundations, focusing on reading and writing v-e syllables. 
• finish publishing a favorite small moment story. 
• work with time and money. At home, please practice telling time on an analog clock and have your child count coins and make change when paying for items. For example, pretend that they bought something that cost 52 cents and they paid with 60 cents.  What coins could they pay with and what coins would they receive in return? How much change would they receive?  
• begin learning about the Sun, Moon and Earth through videos, direct observation, non-fiction and fiction texts, poetry, making models and discussion.  

Mid-November news

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

Wednesday 11/22: Early Release - NOON dismissal

Thursday 11/23-Friday 11/24: NO SCHOOL - Thanksgiving 

Wednesday, 11/29 - 6:30-8:30: Responsive Home Workshop - Are you struggling with behaviors at home or think that things could run more smoothly? The Social and Emotional Learning Department of the Newton Public Schools will be sponsoring Responsive Home Workshops for families to help you create a calm, supportive and encouraging environment at home. This workshop goes hand in hand with the Responsive Classroom work that we are doing in the classroom. My husband and I attended one of these workshops last year and it was definitely 2 hours well spent! We left with a concrete plan for how to tackle our most tricky times as home (such as setting up morning routines that work for everyone or how to agree on what "clean" means when we say, "Please go clean your room."). If you can't make it on 11/29, they are also offered on 1/10, 2/7 and 3/6. All sessions are from 6:30-8:30 in Room 210 at the District Education Center, 100 Walnut Street, Newtonville. I would HIGHLY recommend that you try to attend one of these workshops. If you do attend and you would be willing recommend attendance to others, please email me your thoughts so that I can post in future newsletters. Thanks!

** Friday, 12/1: Integrating the Arts Morning (8:30-9:15) Please plan to attend or find someone (a friend, neighbor, grandparent, aunt, uncle, nanny, babysitter, etc.) to accompany your child during this time, as we will be creating art together. 
**Click HERE to RSVP**

IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES:

Circle of Hope Coat Drive: The kindergarten and second grade classes will be holding a hat/mitten/coat drive to benefit Circle of Hope – a Needham-based nonprofit that collects and distributes new and gently used clothing and accessories to homeless families in Boston. Please consider donating. Click HERE for more information.

REMINDERS FOR FAMILIES:

Facts to 20 practice at home: Is your child fluent in math facts to 20? If not please practice at home.  Here are some ways:

1. Fact triangle flash cards: Click HERE. 

2. Online games to practice facts to 10: Click HERE. 

3. An online game to practice facts to 20: Click HERE. 

4. If you find any other ways that you and your child are enjoying math fact practice, please share so that I can share with our classroom community. Thank you!

Wishlist: Thank you for your support with our wish list! I will continue to post items to our classroom wish list when there is a specific need or wish that would help enhance learning in our classroom. The items posted will likely change throughout the year, but for now they are mostly books that will enrich our classroom’s independent reading and read aloud libraries. If you are curious, you’ll always be able to find it through our classroom’s Sign Ups page. Click HERE to go there.

ASK ME ABOUTS:

Ask me about...

• the book fair! (Also, thank you so much for all of your generous book donations! We are more motivated and enthusiastic about reading as we have more variety in our book choices!) 
• bulb planting. 
• whose birthday was today.
• my Plus Time group. What is my group focusing on and who is my Plus Time teacher?
• when it is important to let an adult know about unexpected behaviors.
• the books that we've read by James Marshall and what are some similar features.
• the trick words against, knew, know
• my current small moment story. How am I using sound effects, talking to the reader, the setting, or dialogue to hook my reader in the beginning?
• showing you my double digit addition skills. Pose a double digit addition problem and listen to me tell you how I solved it. Please click HERE to refer to the math practices section of our website to learn about how this will be taught in second grade and how we would like you teach teach your child at home. 
• urban, suburban and rural areas. As you are exploring different areas, discuss what you see and hear that clues you into what type of area you are in.

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• meet George and Martha, two of James Marshall's most famous characters.
• continue unit 5 in fundations, focusing reading and writing words with more than 1 syllable and the suffixes ful, ment, ness, less, able, en, ish (Click HERE for unit 5 family fundations letters.)
• begin publishing a favorite small moment story. 
• wrap up our project-based math unit, Measuring for the Art Show and begin a new math unit on place value, time and miney
• continue our study of the United States by learning about U.S landmarks. If you have photos you are willing to share of your child/family at various U.S. landmarks, please send them in! Please write the name of the landmark where the photo was taken on the back of the photo. If you send in photos, please be sure they are copies that we can keep at school. They will only be used for in class purposes, but they will not be returned. 

Week 9 was fine!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

** Newly added dates are marked with ** for those who follow and mark their calendars every week.

** Wednesday, 11/8: Bulb planting We will be adding to the beauty of the garden in the back of the school by planting bulbs along the walkway. If you are available on Wednesday, 11/8 at 1:10 and you have any interest in getting your hands dirty with us, please let us know. We are looking for 2-3 volunteers. 

Friday, 11/10: NO SCHOOL - Veteran's Day 

Monday 11/13-Friday 11/17: Book Fair @ M-S

• Monday, 11/13 - 10:40-11:00: Book Fair Preview We will be previewing the school book fair on 11/13. After our preview, your child should come home with a written or mental list of books that s/he would be interested in purchasing at our book fair. 

• Wednesday 11/15 from - 1:20-1:40: Book Fair Classroom Visit - This is our time to purchase books at the school book fair. If you and your child choose to purchase books at the book fair, please send in your child's money on this day in an envelope labeled with your child's name, my name (Ms. E-J) and book fair $. If you are able to join us during this time, please let me know. It would be much appreciated.

Wednesday 11/22: Early Release - NOON dismissal

Thursday 11/23-Friday 11/24: NO SCHOOL - Thanksgiving 

Wednesday, 11/29 - 6:30-8:30: Responsive Home Workshop - Are you struggling with behaviors at home or think that things could run more smoothly? The Social and Emotional Learning Department of the Newton Public Schools will be sponsoring Responsive Home Workshops for families to help you create a calm, supportive and encouraging environment at home. This workshop goes hand in hand with the Responsive Classroom work that we are doing in the classroom. My husband and I attended one of these workshops last year and it was definitely 2 hours well spent! We left with a concrete plan for how to tackle our most tricky times as home (such as setting up morning routines that work for everyone or how to agree on what "clean" means when we say, "Please go clean your room."). If you can't make it on 11/29, they are also offered on 1/10, 2/7 and 3/6. All sessions are from 6:30-8:30 in Room 210 at the District Education Center, 100 Walnut Street, Newtonville. I would HIGHLY recommend that you try to attend one of these workshops. If you do attend and you would be willing recommend attendance to others, please email me your thoughts so that I can post in future newsletters. Thanks!

Friday, 12/1: Integrating the Arts Morning (8:30-9:15) Please plan to attend or find someone (a friend, neighbor, grandparent, aunt, uncle, nanny, babysitter, etc.) to accompany your child during this time, as we will be creating art together. 

IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES:

Resources at the Newton Free Library: This week, one of the children's librarians from the Newton Free Library came to tell us about all of the great things that we can find and do at the library. Click HERE to check out the offerings at the library. As our reading-based homework is starting next week, it would be wonderful to take a family trip to the library to check out some new books. The librarians are always willing to help with suggestions.

Dismissal changes made in the morning: If you have any dismissal changes that you did not let me know about prior to the day of the change, please email and also send a written note in your child's folder, as I sometimes do not check email after 7:30ish.

PTO Directory: I spoke with many families at conferences about setting up playdates for your child. Click HERE for a link to the PTO directory, where you will hopefully find contact information for the family that you would like to contact. 

REMINDERS FOR FAMILIES:

Facts to 20 practice at home: Is your child fluent in math facts to 20? If not please practice at home.  Here are some ways:

1. Fact triangle flash cards: Click HERE. 

2. Online games to practice facts to 10: Click HERE. 

3. An online game to practice facts to 20: Click HERE. 

4. If you find any other ways that you and your child are enjoying math fact practice, please share so that I can share with our classroom community. Thank you!

Wishlist: Thank you for your support with our wish list! I will continue to post items to our classroom wish list when there is a specific need or wish that would help enhance learning in our classroom. The items posted will likely change throughout the year, but for now they are mostly books that will enrich our classroom’s independent reading and read aloud libraries. If you are curious, you’ll always be able to find it through our classroom’s Sign Ups page. Click HERE to go there.

ASK ME ABOUTS:

Ask me about...

• exploring pumpkins with our 4th grade buddies
• what I know about the Day of the Dead
• landforms in the United States and the landform I created with oil pastels today
• the percussion concert we experienced today
• my monster that I created this week. How did I write so that my reader would be able to visualize my monster?
• the trick words again, please, animal, sure, use, used
• my current small moment story - what spicy words are in my story?

LOOKING FORWARD:

Looking forward, we will:

• share our monster descriptions and try to create one of our classmate's monsters.
• begin an author study about James Marshall
• begin unit 5 in fundations, focusing reading and writing words with more than 1 syllable and the suffixes ful, ment, ness, less, able, en, ish (Click HERE for unit 5 family fundations letters.)
• continue strengthening our small moment stories through adding thinking and bringing in the 5 senses. 
• continue work in our new project-based math unit, Measuring for the Art Show. This unit focuses on the development of the open number line model within the context of measurement. Next week, we will begin using the open number line to solve problems requiring double digit addition. Please click HERE to refer to the math practices section of our website to learn about how this will be taught in second grade and how we would like you teach teach your child at home. 
• continue our study of the United States by looking at urban, suburban and rural areas and what we would experience in each of these areas.