November 19-December 10

Hello Families! This my last blog post until I return from maternity leave. My due date is Dec 11. If baby doesn't come early, my last day will be Dec 10. Michelle Schlessler will be my long term substitute; she is absolutely fabulous. I feel very confident leaving our 22 second graders in her hands. She will be shadowing me when we return from Thanksgiving week and we'll have planning time together. She is very excited to come to our class after just finishing a long term position at Dixon. I am excited for everyone to meet her!
*This is our friend Cameron's last week, as his family is moving to Ohio. We are all sad we're losing a classmate, but know we will still keep in touch with our friend. We send our best wishes with Cameron and his family!
*I will see everyone at conferences within the next week. I'm looking forward to talking with everyone!
Here is what we have been doing in the classroom and where we are going:
Reading: We are focusing on thinking as readers. This week we have been making predictions before we read and throughout the book. We will also talk about visualizing, asking questions and making connections in the month of December. I encourage the kids to "Climb into a Good Book"- don't just read the words, but think about the story.
Writing: We are officially published authors. Everyone chose their favorite small moment to publish. Now we have become book reviewers. We have been reading book reviews to help us write our own review based on a favorite book. I have been so excited about the writing I have been reading. We will publish our reviews in a class book that the kids will be able to take home and share. We will begin writing friendly letters in Dec which will lead into Jan. Then we venture into writing research reports. It will be a fun couple of months!
Math: We just started Unit 4: Addition and Subtraction. In this unit, we will be using multiple strategies to add double digit numbers. Please refer to the Family letter in the homelinks to help support your child in adding. Ask your child what strategies they know: use a number grid, open number line, add tens and then the ones (Partial sums algorithm). It is very important for your child to understand place value (one, tens, hundreds) when they add. The strategies listed above help them to develop skills to mentally add numbers quickly.
Social Studies: We started our first unit on Maps and Globes. We will begin reading maps and coordinate grids, identifying continents and oceans, and learning cardinal directions.
Cog-at Testing: In second grade, we give a standardized, fill in the bubble, test. See the letter sent home today for more information. The testing will be the week after Thanksgiving Tues-Thurs in the morning. It is very important that your child come to school on time with full bellies from breakfast to give them energy and stamina for the test.
Other News:
We have a field trip to see My Son Pinocchio at 1st Stage on Dec 21. The permission slip and fee is due back at school on Dec 7.