Joakim Lewin via Compfight

We are beginning our Geography unit and are very excited to be sending out Flat Stanley’s all across the United States! Our Flat Stanley’s and Flat Summer’s are ready to travel, but first we have to write our letters and locate where all of our Flat Stanley’s and Flat Summer’s are traveling to on our United States map! It will be very exciting to learn about the United State’s geography through this project!

Parents, if you haven’t already, make sure you send back the label with a family or friend’s address so your son and/or daughter can participate in this exciting project!

This month we have been honoring our Presidents and Famous Americans! We have enjoyed getting to know different Americans…that we didn’t think were too famous! After reading stories and doing a research project on a Famous American, we realized how people do many amazing things that help our country become better. Our favorite project was definitely using the World Book Online and researching one famous American that we could choose. Many people researched George Washington, but many more researched about Francis Scott Key, Thomas Edison, and Betsy Ross. The informative writing of them go well with our own silhouettes in the hallway.

As we continue in the month of February, we are going to continue to learn about other Famous Americans while we read to determine the theme and author’s purpose in the text. As you read along with your child, make sure to point out and ask them questions like: “Is the author’s purpose to inform or to entertain?” “I wonder what the big idea lesson is of this text?” “How can I be like the character and (insert character trait)?”

Fred Locklear via Compfight

January is always the month of new…which is an exciting time! I am excited to see all that will happen in the year of 2016! As we start in January, we will begin studying the Solar System, which is always the students’ favorites! It is always fun to study the big picture of our solar system and to read about all the differences from the planets and Earth. We will begin to make our own informative book about our Solar System and study more closely on the Sun, Earth and Moon qualities. That is why your son and/or daughter brought home a worksheet to record the moon phases so that we can be active explorers of our own Solar System. We are also beginning our new unit in Math class to learn how to add and subtract within 1000, which the students are very excited about! With that being said, our students are becoming very proficient in adding within 100 and solving word problems, so feel free to have your child count up coins to pay a small grocery bill or make a flashcard game with addition and subtraction fluency.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me! Thanks for all that you do for your child!    I greatly appreciate it!

Mrs. Hoffsmith

Each year, my classroom door always says, “enter this room with a thankful heart” and I believe that to be true for the whole year, especially during the month of Thanksgiving. This year, I am thankful for how hard my students are working and for all the work that their parents do at home, which is you! As I meet with each one of you during Parent Teacher conferences, I realize how busy our lives can be but how you give up time each night to make your second grader a better learner. I am thankful for that as we work together.

Although there is not too many news in 2nd grade, there are a few things that are exciting. In the month of November, 4 of my students completed all their levels in the Reading Eggs program and are now beginning Reading Express! In addition, 1 student completed the Rocket Math of Addition and gets to begin subtraction fact fluency in class now. There are a few who are very close to completing the rocket too!

As we begin the 2nd quarter, continue to read with your students and engage in comprehension questions that are in your R.E.D. folder. Encourage your son or daughter to take a risk in reading by using different reading strategies to solve those BIG words! I will be sending home a paper on reading strategies home soon so that you can use the same vocabulary that they hear in my instruction.

With that being said, enjoy this season and the reasons you can be thankful.

Mrs. Hoffsmith

We had a great day on our field trip yesterday to Crystal Cave. When we arrived at the cave, there was an overall applause in the bus because they all were very excited. We began our field trip by walking up a very steep hill, but the kids had lots of energy! We got to learn about the cave’s history and how two farmers discovered the cave. The students watched a video on the different rocks and structures they would see in the cave as well. Our tour had us go up and down stairs throughout the cave, so much that we were over 100 feet down in the cave. When the cave turned the lights off so we could see how dark it was inside without any lights, I think all the kids were thankful that we didn’t have to tour the whole cave that way…and I was too! We got to enjoy a picnic lunch, but the favorite was definitely panning for rocks and crystals. Today, we get to sort the different rocks and crystals and identify them. It is going to be exciting and it is great that the students get to take home a little part of their field trip from yesterday. If I had a parent’s email address, I tried to send home a picture of your son and/or daughter on the field trip so that you could see how much fun they had, but I’m sure either way they told you all about it! Thanks for allowing your son and/or daughter to be apart of a great adventure in 2nd grade!    

www.fotoARION.ch via Compfight

Happy First Day of Fall! As much as I love summertime, I am looking forward to the crisp weather and those favorite fall foods like apples! In Reading, we have been learning how to read different types of stories and sequence the story by using our transition words. When reading a story with your child, ask them if they can summarize the story using transition words, like First, Next, Then, and Last. I know they can do it! In Math, we have been working on our place values and expanding our numbers to truly understand the value of a number, such as 42= 40 + 2. Check out my math unit overview if you need a review with your child. It is located under the Math tab!

I will be sending out a reminder slip, but wanted to update you here as well that…

1. Spelling Words were given on Monday so that means that we will be having a spelling test on Friday.

2. Scholastic Book Orders are due Friday, September 25th. You can do it online or send in the book order. I will be placing the order this weekend!

3. Social Studies Review will be sent home soon to go over the American Symbols we learned about, the examples of rules and the importance for them, as well as the different types of communities.

October is going to be a busy month for us at school….so enjoy your last couple days of September and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask! 

Click here for the link for Reading Eggs.

Lyn Lomasi via Compfight

Hello Parents!

I hope you are enjoying the weather as much as I am. The students and I are graphing the weather each day and I cannot believe that we have had only three days of cloudy or rain! We love the sunshine, especially during break and recess time!

I wanted to let you know that we will officially begin with our spelling words on Monday, September 21^st. Over the past two weeks, we have been reviewing short vowels. Each student took a pre-test to assess their knowledge on all different phonics skills so that their spelling test will best fit them individually! Therefore, on Monday, we will begin their individual spelling word list! Look for a list (in their handwriting) to practice during the week. Although we will practice them throughout the week, it always help to make up little games or complete some practice at home.

Some Suggestions for Practice at Home:

-Use alphabet magnets or scrabble tiles to spell out each word.

-Write sentences for each word.

-Write the word list on a piece of construction paper and then cut the words into letters to arrange the word list again.

-Make spelling game of memory and spell the word when you get a match.

Also, the students have been completing lessons on Reading Eggs, which is a program that focuses on phonics and reading skills. Many of you said that you have internet access at home; therefore, your student can begin to access it from home as an educational site to use for additional practice. However, since not everyone does have internet access, it is an optional tool to use at home. The students really love the tool and I have the link on my blog if you would like to access it. Your child should know his or her password.

Thanks for all that you do! They are great learners because of your help and influence in their lives!

Happy Early Dismissal Day!

Rupert Ganzer via Compfight

Wow! What a great week we had in 2nd grade! It was a lot of fun to meet all my students and to get to know them throughout activities. I am excited to continue to get to know them as we begin the school year and participate in different types of learning. There were many favorite moments that I’m sure the 2nd graders would tell you about, but I think they truly loved getting to be apart of using the scientific method by using gummy bears. The experiment was predicting what the gummy bear would look life if it was placed in a cup of water, a cup of vinegar, and a cup of corn starch. We learned that the gummy bear changed shape because of the specific liquid in the cup. Another favorite would be that we started centers. Each morning, the students have a center to complete during the time, where they will practice writing short vowel words, writing in their citizen book, or designing their own superhero cape. During these centers, I have truly gotten to know their personalities, which has been a pleasure to see!

As we begin week two of 2nd grade, we will begin to slowly incorporate rotational learning and teaching the fundamentals of what it means to work by yourself, work with others, and challenge ourselves to use skills and strategies while reading and solving problems! I am very excited to see the 2nd graders partake in the different activities that we have planned as we launch our year!

In addition, I wanted to remind you that our lunch begins at 12:15 for this school year now, which means many students have had grumbling stomachs at break time. If your son and/or daughter would like to bring in a snack to eat during this time of 10:50-11:10, they may do so (just make sure no peanuts!). Also, students are doing a great job of reading 15 minutes a night and answering their questions to you. It is a joy to see them loving to learn and be so proud of their work!

Thanks for all that you do for your child so that they can be successful in the classroom. As always, if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask!

Mrs. Hoffsmith

JD Hancock via Compfight

Hello! Welcome to OUR SUPERHEROES CLASSROOM! We are all becoming 2nd Grade Superheroes this year and I am excited for all that is going to happen during the 2015-2016 school year! I am getting everything ready in the classroom and I am sending out a letter about the Back-to-School night soon! However, I wanted to attach the Summer Welcome Letter here as well. Make sure to mark your calendar for 2nd Grade’s Back-to-School Night on August 20th from 6 PM-7 PM in Room 125. I hope that you find the rest of the summer to be relaxing and enjoyable! I am looking forward to meeting all of you soon!