We hope your second grader chooses to participate in the Brecknock Red Ribbon Week Spirit Days from 10/26 through 10/30.

Monday, 10/26- “Sock it to Drugs”- wear crazy socks

Tuesday, 10/27- Are you REaDy to be healthy?- wear red

Wednesday, 10/28- Theme day- dress up to fit this phrase. “I would rather be a _____________ than do drugs.”  Possible ideas: doctor, musician, athlete, teacher

Thursday, 10/29- Get in the spirit of being healthy and drug free.  Wear school colors (blue and gray).

Friday, 10/30- SNEAKer away from drugs.  Wear sneakers. All Brecknock staff and students will walk around the Brecknock campus before the start of school.

Fire Prevention Day on PhotoPeach

Today all second graders attended a Bright Kids Assembly. We learned about energy, natural resources that are renewable and those that are nonrenewable.  We participated in a cool experiment where we held hands to make a closed circuit with our bodies and were able to pass an electric current around the circle to set off a buzzer with lights.  We also got great tips about how to save energy at home: use LED light bulbs, turn off the TV when not in use, and turn off video game systems.

Each second grader that returned a permission slip took home a Bright Kids Energy Kit today.  The kit is yours to keep for free.  PPL asks families who accepted the kits to install the energy saving items in your home and then complete the family worksheet.  These family worksheets are due Tuesday 10/20. We will receive a mini-grant from PPL to use for classroom supplies and activities if all the worksheets are returned.

The Civics test is planned for Friday, 10/9.  Please review the study guide information with your child a little each night.  There is a link below to print out a new one if you misplaced yours. I can also give your child a copy at school if he/she requests one. This week we will be playing “Symbol Bingo” each day to review.  Your second grader will also be bringing home some review sheets that are great to study with.

Civics study guide

This week our Language Arts class read about Henry and Mudge going camping. The companion story was “How to Make S’mores”.  On Friday Miss Pysher (a Millersville Student who will student teach in our class this spring) helped students at the Collaborate Station read the steps and make their s’mores.  A delicious and gooey treat for the end of the week!

Brecknock PTO will hold its main fundraiser, the Race for Education, on Friday, Oct. 23.  The funds that are raised are used to pay for field trips, assemblies, library resources and other essential educational needs.  On the day of the race, students will choose to walk or jog around a 1/4 mile area for a 30 minute period.  This fundraiser becomes a success when sponsors choose to contribute a tax deductible donation.

We need your help!

Families are asked to complete mailing labels for potential sponsors.  Your 2nd grader brought home a label sheet last week.  If you need more labels just let me know.  Please neatly print in pen directly on the label the name, address, and zip code of each prospective sponsor.  All labels are due by Wed. Sept. 30th.  The PTO will take care of sending letters to the individuals on the list asking them to sponsor your child in this year’s Race for Education. Potential sponsors include family members, relatives, close friends and neighbors, Christmas card recipients, even out of state relatives and friends.  Don’t forget about people you do business with such as your dentist, piano teacher, barber, etc.

Prizes and Awards:

1. All students who submit 10 address labels or more by 9/30 will receive a FREE Brecknock T-shirt!

2. The grade that has the greatest percentage of students who submit 10 labels or more by 9/30 will receive an extra recess.

3. The student in each grade level who brings in the most address labels by 9/30 will be awarded a $15 Book Fair gift certificate.

Buy out option:

If you and your family choose not to participate in this year’s Race for Education and would still like to be eligible for the above prizes, please send in a check for $40 made out to Brecknock Elementary PTO for EACH student.  Please include your student’s name, grade & teacher as well as the unused labels that you have received.  The PTO will make sure your student receives a t-shirt and is included in the participation total for the extra recess.

For the past two weeks our math class has been working hard to learn the different forms of a number.

Standard form= 247

Written form =two hundred forty-seven

Expanded form = 200 + 40 + 7

Block form = drawing 2 large squares to represent the hundreds, 4 lines to represent the tens, and 7 small circles to represent the ones

Today students did a sort at my station.  They had fun cutting and gluing to show standard, written and expanded forms of the same number.  An easy way to practice this at home is to show your child one form of a number (up to 3 digits) and ask them to show you the other forms.  Our test for place value will be in about 3 weeks.

Twice a month students will have a chance to get a “new to them” book to read if they participate in the Brecknock Book Exchange Program.  Students may trade a book they no longer are going to read to the office for a Book Exchange Coupon.  These coupons can be exchanged for a “new” book between 8:45-9:00 a.m. on their grade level day.

Friday, Oct. 9 & 23: Kindergarten-Grade 3

Friday, Oct. 16 & 30: Grade 4-6

Students may bring in their books at any time to the office to get their coupon.  We will happily accept any children’s book donations to help build our library in preparation for our first exchange in October.

We had a wonderful Grandparents’ Tea on Friday.  Thanks to all the grandparents who joined us for the morning.

Grandparents’ Tea on PhotoPeach

Now that Brecknock students have Chromebook laptops that they use throughout they day they are doing more and more typing. In Language Arts we have begun to use a program to help students learn to type proficiently.  The program is called Qwertytown.  It has leveled lessons where students learn home positions and continue to develop their typing skills through interactive activities.  They earn Qwerty Coins when completing lessons that they can use to purchase outfits and accessories for their avatars.

We are using this program in school twice a week for 10 minutes a day.  To help improve typing skills your child can definitely practice at home as well.  Students should click on the Qwertytown tile on Symbaloo to access. Our Qwertytown accounts are managed using a system called Clever.  On the Clever screen students log in with their district username and password and then click on the Qwertytown tile to access.

http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/brecknockk-2