Wow! As of yesterday, we are half way through our school year! I can't believe it; where did the time go!? I cannot say it enough... I LOVE working with your children! It has been a great 90 days learning with them, and I can't wait for the next 90.
Yesterday, we reflected on our first half of the year. I gave the students a writing prompt and asked them two questions. The first question was, "What have you done this half of the year that you are most proud of?" and the second question was, "What would you like to improve on for the next half of the year?"
I LOVED reading their responses. I loved them so much that I want to keep them, but I also want you to have the opportunity to see them, so I made a copy for you to keep at home. It's really neat for me as a teacher to see what my students believe are their strengths, and what they feel they need to improve on.
Be on the lookout for these prompts coming home today or tomorrow. I know you will be as touched and impressed with their responses as I was!!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
An Update from Room 16
We have really hit the ground running since being back at school!
Math
We have completed Unit 5, which focused on Geometry. Geometry is a difficult concept due to the multiple vocabulary words students are expected to know, but your children did a fabulous job! Their hard work was reflected in their Unit 5 test scores; I am so proud of them. We did many fun things during this unit. A definite highlight was having Mr. Weatherhead, Mrs. Weatherhead, and Mrs. Sward in for rotating center work. During these centers, polygons, symmetry, and tangrams were reviewed. We also created 3-D shapes using straws and twist ties. We created square pyramids independently, and various pyramids (rectangular, triangular, hexagonal, and octagonal) in small groups. Here are some pictures below!
We have now started Unit 6 in math. Just a reminder, if you would like to see what we cover in Unit 6, there is a link on the side of my blog which tells you all of what Unit 6 entails.
Reading
The past few weeks, we have been working on a difficult comprehension skill, summarizing. Summarizing is a tough skill for students because they struggle to differentiate what information is important to include in a summary, and what information is not relevant. This week, we are reading a non-fiction text about dancers at the Alvin Ailey dance school. In our small reading groups, we are reading other non-fiction texts, specifically biographies, about people involved in the arts.
Writing
In writing, we have been working on How-To's. We completed our "How To Make a Snowman" in class (see pictures below), as well as selected a final How-To topic that we will publish and place in our classroom library. Those should be finished up this week- I am so excited to see the final products!!
Grammar
We have been talking a lot about verbs. Last week, the students were extremely creative when they made their "Verb Man/Woman." They thought of different verbs that various parts of the body use, and wrote those verbs on the appropriate part of the body. They are hanging proudly in our hallway. We have covered present-tense verbs, past-tense verbs, and this week we are studying the verb "have." The students should know that they use "has" when the subject is singular, and "have" when the subject is plural, or I or you. We will be playing a fun game tomorrow to help us practice this skill!
Science
We have officially started out unit on Fossils!! The students completed a K-W-L chart where they shared with the class what they think they know about fossils, and what they want to know about fossils. We have covered the initial definition of a fossil, and today in Computer Lab students watched a video and completed a scavenger hunt while watching. Next we will learn about the different types of fossils!
Other News...
Please sign and return your child's report card at your earliest convenience. Additionally, we are collecting Star Wars items for the gala this year. Any Star Wars donations you can give would be greatly appreciated!!
I'll leave you with some other pictures of students "playing teacher" while reviewing partial sums, and playing "Pico, Ferme, Nada," a game that reinforces place value skills.
Math
We have completed Unit 5, which focused on Geometry. Geometry is a difficult concept due to the multiple vocabulary words students are expected to know, but your children did a fabulous job! Their hard work was reflected in their Unit 5 test scores; I am so proud of them. We did many fun things during this unit. A definite highlight was having Mr. Weatherhead, Mrs. Weatherhead, and Mrs. Sward in for rotating center work. During these centers, polygons, symmetry, and tangrams were reviewed. We also created 3-D shapes using straws and twist ties. We created square pyramids independently, and various pyramids (rectangular, triangular, hexagonal, and octagonal) in small groups. Here are some pictures below!
We have now started Unit 6 in math. Just a reminder, if you would like to see what we cover in Unit 6, there is a link on the side of my blog which tells you all of what Unit 6 entails.
Reading
The past few weeks, we have been working on a difficult comprehension skill, summarizing. Summarizing is a tough skill for students because they struggle to differentiate what information is important to include in a summary, and what information is not relevant. This week, we are reading a non-fiction text about dancers at the Alvin Ailey dance school. In our small reading groups, we are reading other non-fiction texts, specifically biographies, about people involved in the arts.
Writing
In writing, we have been working on How-To's. We completed our "How To Make a Snowman" in class (see pictures below), as well as selected a final How-To topic that we will publish and place in our classroom library. Those should be finished up this week- I am so excited to see the final products!!
We have been talking a lot about verbs. Last week, the students were extremely creative when they made their "Verb Man/Woman." They thought of different verbs that various parts of the body use, and wrote those verbs on the appropriate part of the body. They are hanging proudly in our hallway. We have covered present-tense verbs, past-tense verbs, and this week we are studying the verb "have." The students should know that they use "has" when the subject is singular, and "have" when the subject is plural, or I or you. We will be playing a fun game tomorrow to help us practice this skill!
Science
We have officially started out unit on Fossils!! The students completed a K-W-L chart where they shared with the class what they think they know about fossils, and what they want to know about fossils. We have covered the initial definition of a fossil, and today in Computer Lab students watched a video and completed a scavenger hunt while watching. Next we will learn about the different types of fossils!
Other News...
Please sign and return your child's report card at your earliest convenience. Additionally, we are collecting Star Wars items for the gala this year. Any Star Wars donations you can give would be greatly appreciated!!
I'll leave you with some other pictures of students "playing teacher" while reviewing partial sums, and playing "Pico, Ferme, Nada," a game that reinforces place value skills.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with family and friends. It is great to be back with your children; we're off to a wonderful start!
In Reading...
We read a fantastic folk tale this week called, "Head, Body, Legs." While reading, we focused on the comprehension skill of cause and effect. Cause and effect is a tricky concept for second graders to grasp. The way I explain it is that the cause is the "event" or "occurrence" that happens, and the effect is what happens as a result of that event/occurrence. I also teach the students to put the word "so" between their cause and effect statements. For example if the cause was, "I slept through my alarm" and the effect was "I was late for school" I would tell the children to think of it as, "I slept through my alarm so I was late for school." I feel like this strategy really puts things into perspective for the students.In Grammar...
We are talking about verbs. We were already introduced to verbs in the beginning of the year when we learned that all sentences have a "who" (a noun) and a "do" (a verb). We had a lot of fun practicing verbs in the classroom (I think "run" was their favorite to act out!). We have also played fun games on the Smartboard, as well as partner guessing games, to further practice the concept.In Writing...
We have begun a fun unit called "How-To." This type of writing requires students to explain to their reader how to do something. I introduced this subject by having my students verbally explain to me how to make a PB&J sandwich. To reinforce the significance of being specific and detailed in our explanations, I followed their directions exactly as they were told to me. So, when they said "take the peanut butter and put it on the bread," I ended up doing so with my hands, as they never said to use a knife. Hopefully, the image of my hand covered in peanut butter will remain engraved in their minds, and they'll remember to consistently add in important details to their writing!In Math...
We have started our unit on geometry. So far we have discussed points, line segments, lines, and parallel lines. While around your house or out and about, please ask your child if they notice any parallel lines. Hopefully, they will be able to identify them, and be able to explain to you the definition of a parallel line.We will continue to practice partial sums math as well as ball park estimates. I understand these are difficult concepts for second graders, and we will continue to practice this skill as the weeks progress.
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