Happy February. Here are some new happenings and updates in the classroom:
Valentine's Party- Please note that our class party will be on Wednesday, February 13 at 2:30 instead of February 14. We will exchange Valentines at the party. A class list was sent home last week so kids can be sure to make a Valentine for everyone.
What I Am Is.....A Learner: This month our school wide focus is being a Learner. Our class especially is working on being Learners. It has been a difficult year thus far keeping academics in focus with disruptions throughout the day, everyday. We have had more conversations as a class and individually than I can count about attentively listening (eyes, ears and body), following directions the first time, doing what you are suppose to/making good choices, keeping silliness and silly comments at lunch and recess... Ask your child what being a learner means and what he/she can do to help our classroom of learners be more focused on learning.
New Behavior Management System- In partnership with being a Learner, I am trying a new system to help maximize learning in the classroom by decreasing the amount of disruptions we have. This new system charts any disruptions, rule breaking and missed learning as well as positive behaviors. You will automatically receive an email every Friday, but you have access to reports every day. Once you create a user name and password, you can log in at your convenience. Let me know if you have any questions.
Book Series- Your child brought home a packet on Friday that he/she worked on in January when studying a book series. This was a new, higher-level thinking study that second grade tried this year. All three of us teachers were very pleased with the "close reading" and book club conversations our second graders practiced! Please take time to look through the packet and have your child share the process.
Animal Reports- In the next couple weeks your second grader will begin a research project in school on an animal of their choice. It will be a lot of new and hard work! The kids will be using multiple source types to gather quality and credible information including books, magazines, videos and apps on the ipads and online articles and encyclopedias. We will have a celebration at the end of the unit in which families will be invited. I am aiming for the 1st week of March, but the kids progress will guide the timeline. I will keep you posted and get you the date ASAP.
2 Post Its- You probably noticed an addition to reading 20 minutes every night in your child's assignment notebook- now kids are expected to jot their thinking on 2 post its. In second grade, we want the kids to track their thinking every night on post its. We gave examples of possible thoughts your child can write on the back of the reading log located in your child's reading bag. Please use that as a reference if needed. Your child should keep the pad of post its in their reading bag everyday.
MAP Scores- Next week, you will receive a graph and description of your child's grown on the MAP test. This will be a great opportunity for you to talk about the graph with your child. I will also be helping the kids with goal setting using the graphs.
Ask Your Child:
*What is a biography?
*Which person in history did you study and publish a book about?
*What part of a plant makes its food?
*Did you mow grass at school? How? Why?
*What makes you proud at school?
*What is our school wide goal for PAW slips on the playground in 1 week?
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