Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

Thank you for all of the Christmas gifts.  I am overwhelmed by your generosity.  I received a gift filled with many amazing presents from the class (gift cards, a bracelet, a coffee mug, and cookie mix) as well as many gifts from individual families.  I am feeling extremely blessed!  It is such a gift to work with your children each day and for that I am super thankful!

Christmas Fun

A HUGE thank you to Jessica Troost (our room parent) for organizing a great Christmas party for the class.  Also, we couldn't have done it without the MANY other parent volunteers that helped out or contributed to our supplies.  Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you!  

At the party students made an adorable snowmen ornament, decorated cookies, played a fun game with candy canes, and tried to get a bunch of jingle bells out of a Kleenex box by jumping and bouncing around.  Check out our fun!

Newsletter: December 16

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Monday, December 19: Winter Wonderland 

Wear silver, white, light blue, snowflakes - anything that reminds you of a winter wonderland 

Tuesday, December 20: Festive Attire

Red/Green Day, Festive Attire

Classroom Christmas Party 9:30-10:30...We hope you can join us for the fun!

Wednesday, December 21: Christmas Morning 

Wear Pajamas or Comfy Clothing

Thursday, December 22: No School Christmas Break Begins

Tuesday, January 3: School Resumes

OTHER UPDATES:

Thank you for all of the Kleenex boxes donated to the classroom.  We have a good supply again.  However, we won’t turn any donations away if you still would like to contribute.  

This Christmas, our class will be exchanging gifts between boys and girls.  We would like to do a book exchange!  We are asking that each child buys a book that is age appropriate and does not cost more than $5.00.  Boys will buy a book for a boy and girls will buy a book for a girl.  The morning of our Christmas party day (Tuesday, Dec. 20), we will play a fun game and exchange our books.  Please have the wrapped book, along with a tag for boy or girl, to school by Monday, December 19.  If the cost of buying a book for this exchange is a problem, please let us know and we will take care of it for you.  Thanks and we look forward to some fun reading!

Also, beginning in January I am looking for five different parent volunteers to work with students in their reading.  Students will be reading short sentences to build their fluency and accuracy.  I am hoping to have one parent volunteer each day from 8:45-9:15 (9:30 at the very latest).  Please email me know if you are interested in helping and let me know what day works best for you.  If you would like to help, but that particular time doesn't work, we can find another time that is better for you! 

Just let me know!  At this point, I don’t have any volunteers.  Soon I will begin to beg!

READING:

Please look for a new SRC goal coming home after Christmas break.  Your child will have until the end of the year to accomplish his/her goal.  However, please make sure to watch for the dates when students should be at 25%, 50%, and 75% of their goal.  It will be important to stay on track so your child does not have a lot of catching up to do in May.  

Next week we will wrap up our informational reading unit.  We will also spend sometime getting into the Christmas spirit by reading Christmas books and making special Christmas presents.  

WRITING:

Next week we will wrap up our informational writing about communities.   We will spend time revising and editing our writing as well as sharing it with a writing partner.  

MATH:

Due to our recent snow day, we will be postponing our Unit 3 math test until after Christmas break.  Please look for a review coming home the first week of January.  

Also, don’t forget to have your child practice Xtramath at home. This week we had four students practice throughout the week!  We have a few students that are getting very close to earning their certificates for addition and will soon move into practicing subtraction.  Keep up the great practice!!!

Newsletter: December 9

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Monday, December 19: Winter Wonderland 

Wear silver, white, light blue, snowflakes - anything that reminds you of a winter wonderland 

Tuesday, December 20:Festive Attire

Red/Green Day, Festive Attire

Classroom Christmas Party 9:30-10:30...we hope you can join us for the fun!

Class Book Exchange (Bring in a new, wrapped book under $5)

Wednesday, December 21: Christmas Morning 

Wear Pajamas or Comfy Clothing

Thursday, December 22: No School Christmas Break

Tuesday, January 3: School Resumes

OTHER UPDATES:

Unfortunately, the last few months have been filled with many colds in the classroom and our supply of Kleenex boxes are dwindling.  We would greatly appreciate it if you could donate another box or two.  Thanks!

Also, beginning in January I am looking for five parent volunteers to work with students with their reading.  Students will be reading short sentences to build their fluency and accuracy.  I am hoping to have one parent volunteer each day from 8:45-9:15 (9:30 at the very latest).  Please email me if you are interested in helping and let me know what day works best for you.  If you would like to help, but can’t come in at that particular time, we can find another time that works best for you!  Just let me know!

READING:

We will take the next week and a half to get a head start on the next round of SRC.  Their goal will be much larger this next time around.  They will have twice as much time to complete their goal, but I encouraged them to get started now!  New goals will be set soon.  Students will continue to take quizzes through the end of the year. Please remind your child to read each night and continue to take quizzes.

WRITING:

Next week we will wrap up our informational writing about communities.  Students will write all of their teaching chapters and a conclusion.  We will focus on writing main idea sentences with many supporting details.  Students will also take time to make sure their illustrations teach about their main ideas and include various text features.  

MATH:

It is hard to believe that we are almost done with our unit 3 math lessons.  This unit is significantly shorter than the previous two units.  We will wrap up our learning about measurement and shapes on Thursday.  That will give us just enough time to review and assess before Christmas break.  Please look for a unit 3 review test coming home at the end of the week.  

Also, don’t forget to have your child practice Xtramath at home. This week we only had four students practice throughout the week!  However, we did have our first student successfully complete all of the addition facts.  Congratulations to Thomas for moving on to subtraction!!  I am excited for many other students to move onto subtraction as well very soon!

VOCABULARY WORD OF THE WEEK:

Determine: to decide or choose something important

Newsletter: December 2

The kiddos did an amazing job at our Christmas Program! I loved seeing them in their fanciest outfits!  I couldn't be more proud of them!!!

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Monday, December 5- Santa's Secret Shop 10:30
• Tuesday, December 20- Christmas Party 9:30-10:30am
• Tuesday, December 20- Class Book Exchange (Please see the note in your child's Friday folder for more information)
• Thursday, December 22- Christmas Break Begins- NO SCHOOL

VOCAB WORD OF THE WEEK:

Suggest-to put forth an idea, to say/mention something

MATH:

We wrapped up our 2nd unit in Math and took the test today.  I will send your child's math test home next week.  This was another challenging test.  It covered place value, 2-digit addition, and counting money.  Please continue to practice these concepts at home as well.  Next week, we will dive into a unit on Measurement.

READING:
The students have officially completed their first session of SRC.  I am so proud of their dedication to their reading.  MANY students made it to their SRC goal by reading and passing 10 quizzes.  Congratulations!!!  You can check out your child's SRC report that was sent home today to see your child's progress.  We will start a new session of SRC after Christmas break.  The goals after break will be much higher because students will have until the end of the year to reach their goal.  Students will also be able to take as many quizzes as they want to in one week.  We will not be taking any new SRC quizzes for the next two weeks.  However, please continue to have your child read 5 nights a week at home.  

WRITING:
We moved into a new writing unit-informational writing.  Informational texts teach others interesting and important information and ideas about a topic.  Students will be writing about a topic that they know a lot about or that they have studied.  We will begin writing about communities.  We will use what we have learned in class and information from another book to do additional research for our writing.  We will begin by creating a table of contents and writing an introduction.  Also, we will work on planning our teaching chapters by brainstorming main idea sentences and supporting details.

WORD STUDY:
Look for the letter "o" picture sort coming home next week.  Please continue to practice this sort with your child at home.  Here are a list of fun activities you can do with the sort...
  *Beat the Parent: Parent sorts the words while being timed by their child.  The child then tries to beat the parents time while sorting their words.

*Speed Sort: Student completes the sort while timing himself/herself.  The sort is then repeated to see if he/she can beat his/her previous time.

*Concentration: Students lay word cards face down.  Cards are flipped over two at a time.  The student is to read the words and determine if they belong in the same category.  If the words belong in the same category, the student has found a math and keeps the words.  This continues with students taking turns until all words have been used.

*Students place the words in the appropriate category and spell the words correctly.

Christmas Program

Just a reminder the Christmas program is Tuesday night at Fair Haven Church-7:00 PM. Doors open at 6:30. Please have your child there no later than 6:45 so we can get lined up and ready to go. 2nd and 3rd grade will be meeting in the 400 wing of the church, on the east side of the building. Looking forward to a fantastic program. A lot of hard work has gone into this, and I can't wait to see these kiddos shine! 

November 18: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

November 23-35 Thanksgiving Break - NO SCHOOL

November 29 - Christmas Program

READING:

Students have until December 2 to make it to their SRC goal.  That is two short weeks away!  If your child has not passed 8 quizzes at this point continue to encourage them to take more than one quiz a week.  I know all students can get 10 points and accomplish their goal!

WRITING:

We have started a new program in our classroom-Words Their Way.  This is a program for students to learn spelling with word patterns.  We have completed two different sorts in class focusing on short and long vowel sounds.  I strongly encourage having your child practice the word sorts at home.  All sorts will be sent home on Fridays.  Below are some ideas of how to use the sorts at home.  There are some really fun ones that you can do together!  Please look for the word sort bags in your child’s Friday folder this week focusing on the letter a and i.

*Beat the Parent: Parent sorts the words while being timed by their child.  The child then tries to beat the parents time while sorting their words.

*Speed Sort: Student completes the sort while timing himself/herself.  The sort is then repeated to see if he/she can beat his/her previous time.

*Concentration: Students lay word cards face down.  Cards are flipped over two at a time.  The student is to read the words and determine if they belong in the same category.  If the words belong in the same category, the student has found a match and keeps the words.  This continues with students taking turns until all words have been used.

*Students place the words in the appropriate category and spell the words correctly.

MATH:

We have spent a great deal of time practicing 2-digit addition.  Many students have a secure grasp on this concept.  Please encourage your child to use the same strategy at home as they do at school.  Students solve 2-digit addition problems using the strategy Show All Totals or New Groups Below.  Ask your child to explain how they solve a 2-digit addition problem step by step.  We will begin review for our unit 2 math assessment the week after Thanksgiving break.  This assessment will cover 2-digit addition and counting money.  Please look for a review test coming home after break!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I am so thankful for each one of the students in my class and for everything they bring to our classroom.  We all learn so much from each other!  And I am also very thankful for YOU!  Thank you for being such supportive parents and making your child feel completely loved and adored!!!

November 11: Updates

It was so nice to meet with you at Parent Teacher Conferences!  I am so proud of the accomplishments that all of the second graders have made so far this year.  Due to Parent Teacher Conferences there will not be a new newsletter today.  However, I wanted to share a few updates with you about our day and the week to come.

On Monday, we will have time for students to shop at the Scholastic book fair.  If you would like your child to buy a few books, please send in the payment (plus tax) on Monday.  You should see your child's wish list paper to help determine what books you would like to purchase.  This is completely optional; however, there are many great books to choose from!  I couldn't resist buying a few myself!!!

Please check out your child's SRC report.  At this point, students should have six total points.  That means students need to have taken and passed six quizzes.  Please let me know if you have any questions!

Thank you for helping your child participate in Diversity Day today.  We learned so much about one another.  Also, students had the opportunity to taste a LOT of food from around the world.  Here are a few pictures from our celebration!  You will also notice it was Crazy Hair Day, too!

If I were President.....

If I were President of the United States, I would...

watch TV.

declare that nobody would be harmed.

make the world free.

make the world a better place.

have no school or homework.

help families that are poor.

ask people to build homes for people to live in.

make people happy no matter what I do.

make schools have longer recesses.

bring families back together if they are lost.

make big buildings...the biggest buildings ever!

go to different schools in surprise.

make rocket boots.

make jet packs.

answer people's questions.  

Written by your 2nd graders (future Presidents)

We are AWESOME!

November 4: Newsletter

Important Dates: November 4 - Early Release: Dismissal @ 12:15 November 9 & 10 - Parent/Teacher Conferences  November 11 - Crazy Hair Day November 14 - Book Fair Shopping for our class November 23-35 Thanksgiving Break - NO SCHOOL November 29 - Christmas Program Reading: Please keep encouraging your child to read each night and fill out their reading log.  Also, students should be taking an SRC quiz after one book each week.  Students should be around 50% of their goal today.  An updated progress sheet will be given to you at conferences.   Next week we will use the pictures and words in our reading to learn what our characters are like.  One way we will do this is by keeping track of our character's actions, thoughts, and feelings.  Also, we will try to describe a character by naming that character's trait.  We can do this by mixing together all that we have learned about a character through their actions, thoughts, and feelings as they try to get what they want.   Writing: Next week we will begin our next unit of study in writing.  We will continue to write personal narratives; however, now we will be using an author as our mentor.  Next week I will share many books with the students written by Cynthia Rylant.  She has written countless books (including the Henry and Mudge series, The High-Rise Private Eyes series,  Poppleton, and Mr. Putter and Tabby).  I am excited to share her writing with the class.  I know they will enjoy all of her stories and will be able to use some of the same writing strategies that she uses in their own writing.   Math: I am thrilled how well the second graders are understanding the value of two and three digit numbers.  Students are able to write a three digit number FOUR different ways.  Ask your student if they can show you how to write 162 in four different ways.  They should be able to write the number, the number name (we are still working on spelling), a quick draw, and in an expanded form.  Students have a solid understanding of place value.   This will be extremely helpful as we move into 2-digit addition next week.  Students will learn two strategies to use to solve.  A parent letter will be sent home next week explaining the Show All Totals and the New Groups Below methods.  You may recognize the New Groups Below method because it is a lot like the traditional way of carrying.  However, we use different terminology so check out the parent letter for consistency.  Social Studies: As we are studying community, we are learning the importance of diversity.  Diversity is a strength in a community and is something we would like to celebrate.  On Friday November 11, we will be having a DIVERSITY DAY in class.  We will focus on our differences related to our heritage including food, language, religion, and traditions.  Please see the note related to our diversity day in your child's Friday folder.  We are looking forward to learning more about each other!!! Vocabulary Word: Our vocabulary word this week is EXPLAIN. Explain means to clarify, demonstrate, interpret, describe in detail, and define. Other News:  Parent-Teacher conferences are next week. If you have not confirmed your conference time, please be sure to return those slips of paper to school so I know you can make it. Also, please see the list below to verify your conference time. Looking forward to meeting with all of you!  Don't forget to cut off and send in Box Tops! It helps raise money for the school!  PE CARES food drive has started! The class that brings in the most items will win a T-shirt and bowling party! How fun! To ensure a variety of items are sent in, it is suggested for 2nd graders to send in canned fruits and veggies. Anything will be accepted though, so please send it what you can. Thank you!

Parent Teacher Conference Schedule:

Wednesday, November 9:

4:30: Braedon Roose

4:45: Thomas Gunnink

5:15: Mason Herrema

5:30: Ava Patterson

5:45: Ainsley DeBoer

6:00: Charlie Quist

6:15: Jesenia Brouillette

6:30: Zaya Nederveld

6:45: Chester Karasinski

7:00: Ava Geissler

7:15: Mikayla Haight

7:30: Calvin Kasprowicz

Thursday, November 10:

4:30: Luke DeBoer

4:45: Ashley Wayne

5:00: Nora VanEerden

5:15: Abbi Ninan

5:30: Amalia Rivera

5:45: Ellis Neuman

6:00: Elijah TenBrink

6:15: Aiden Conner

6:30: Kaleb Roof

6:45: William Phan

7:00: Autumn Huizinga

7:15: David Amante

7:30: Angela Ragar

7:45: Kylee Troost

8:00 Jamison Sjoerdsma

Happy Halloween!

The Halloween party was so much fun!  A HUGE thank you to Jessica Troost for organizing the party and to ALL of the parents that come to help out.  We had a great turn out.  Here are a few pictures from the party..

October 28: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Monday, October 31: Halloween Party 9:30-10:30

Friday, November 4: Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15

Wednesday, November 9: Parent Teacher Conferences

Thursday, November 10: Parent Teacher Conferences

Today I have sent home a parent questionnaire for you to fill out before we meet for parent teacher conferences.  I would greatly appreciate your feedback about your child.  Please complete the questionnaire and return it to school by Friday, November 4.  Also, please let me know as soon as possible if your conference time does not work.  I look forward to meeting with you soon!

On Monday, October 31 we will celebrate Halloween.  We will have a classroom Halloween party from 9:30-10:30.  All are welcome and we hope you can join us for the fun!  Students may dress up for the Halloween party.  Students may wear their costumes to school on Monday or change into their costume right before the party.  If your child wears his/her costume to school, please remember to pack a change of clothes.  Students will only wear their costume for the party.

READING:

By the end of next week students should be at 50% of their SRC goal.  Which means students should have read and passed 5 SRC quizzes by next Friday.  Please continue to have your child read at home to prepare for their SRC quiz.  Please check out your child’s SRC report to see how many quizzes they have taken so far.  If your child has passed 4 quizzes, they are right on track!

If your child has completed their reading for the Book-It program this month, please turn in the form on Monday.  Today I have sent home the new form for the month of November.  Happy reading!!

WRITING:

Next week we will take a short break from writing narratives.  Instead, we will be working a few surprises for you at parent teacher conferences.  In class, students will write down some of their thoughts and goals for the year.  I am eager to read their ideas and share them with you!

MATH:

Next week we will dive into Unit 2: Addition Within 200.  We will begin by representing numbers to 200 in different ways and identifying patterns involving place value.  Near the end of the week we will explore methods of 2-digit addition.  More information about these strategies will be coming home next week.

SOCIAL STUDIES:

 Next week we will spend the majority of the week discovering what regions our community belongs to.  Students will learn that our community is part of a state, a country, a continent, and the world.

VOCABULARY WORD:

Our vocabulary word this week is distinguish.

Distinguish means to set apart, separate, or tell apart.  

Go Green!  Go Blue!

October 21: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Monday, October 24: Holiday posters are due
• Tuesday, October 25: Turkey Trot
• Friday, October 28: Michigan vs. Michigan State Day
• Monday, October 31: Halloween Party 9:30-10:30

          We hope you can join us for the fun!

• Friday, November 4: Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15

READING:

Please continue to have your child read their SRC books for reading homework.  At this point students should have passed three SRC quizzes with 80% accuracy or higher.  Many students have met this goal.  Way to go!!!  Please do not worry if your child has not done this yet.  Ther is lots of time to catch up!  Please check out your child's SRC report in his/her Friday folder.  The SRC report will list the books that your child has be quizzed on as well as their overall score.  Students need 80% accuracy or higher for it to count as a passed quiz.  

WRITING:

Next week we will wrap up the writing process by taking time to revise, edit, and publish a small moment story.  On Friday, we will have a small writing celebration in the classroom.  Students will have time to read their classmates' stories and notice all of the great writing strategies used in each story.  Please look for many of your child's small moment stories coming home next week.  However, I will keep their final small moment narrative to share with you at parent-teacher conferences.

MATH:

This week we completed many two step word problems.  Two step word problems are some of the most difficult problems we will complete all year long.  Students will not be officially assessed on this type of problem until the end of the year; however, we will continue to practice how to successfully solve this type of problem.  It takes a lot of work to solve two step work problems, but they are getting it.  In class, we talked about having grit!  I introduced grit as...

G: Give it your all!
R: Redo if necessary!

I: Ignore giving up!

T: Take time to do it right!

Students had a lot of grit this week. I am proud of their smart thinking and determination!!!

Please continue to practice Xtramath at home.  The students are increase to build their addition fluency!  

SOCIAL STUDIES:

Next week we will study different communities and how they have changed over time.  We will find out how people have changed a community and identify the positive and negative consequences due to those changes.  

VOCABULARY WORD:

Our vocabulary word this week is distinguish.

Distinguish means to set apart, separate, or tell apart.  

October 14: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Monday, October 24: Holiday posters are due
• Tuesday, October 25: Turkey Trot
• Friday, October 28: Michigan vs. Michigan State Day
• Monday, October 31: Halloween Party 9:30-10:30

          We hope you can join us for the fun!

• Friday, November 4: Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15

READING:

The students officially completed their first week of SRC (Scholastic Reading Counts).  Many students earned their first point for SRC by taking a quiz this week and passing it with 80% accuracy!   Way to go!!!  Students learned a lot about taking a quiz on the computer or iPad!  They are also finding out how important it is for them to have their SRC book bag at school each day...even if they don't need to take a quiz.  Students do have time to read their SRC books throughout the day.  Also, students will hand in their weekly reading logs on Fridays.  Today you will find a new gold reading log in your child's SRC bag.  Please help your child fill out the chart, sign the bottom, and return it to school on Friday.  Thanks!

Next week we will focus on building comprehension strategies while reading.  Our focus will be on what great readers can do before, during, and after their reading.  We will also practice building our reading fluency.

WRITING:

Next week we will continue to write small moment narratives.  We will work on keeping our stories organized and in order.  To help the reader fully understand the events of story in order, we will add in transitions words.  For example, students could add the words first, next, then, finally, suddenly, or immediately.  I am excited to see how transitions words can transform our stories and make them even easier to read.

MATH:

Today you find a note in your child's Friday folder about Xtramath.  This is an online program that doesn't require much parent help once it is set up. We use XtraMath to increase speed and accuracy with addition and subtraction facts. Please help your child use Xtramath a few minutes each day to practice their math facts on a computer, tablet, or phone.  Even if your child used the program last year, you must register this year to be linked to our classroom.  I receive weekly emails of your child's results.  It only takes a couple minutes a night!

Also, you will find green flashcards in your child's Friday folder.  These are "make a ten" cards.  Ask your child to show you how they can quickly make a ten to solve each addition fact.  The back of each card shows this strategy using a picture.  

SOCIAL STUDIES:

Our focus next week will be on the natural characteristics in a community.  We will learn about many various landforms and bodies of water.  Students will complete a short assessment at the end of the week to see if they can identify the different landforms (mountain, hill, valley, etc.) and bodies of water (ocean, lake, pond, etc.).

VOCABULARY WORD:

Our vocabulary word this week is compare.
Compare means to find likenesses between two or more things.

OTHER NEWS:

• If you child didn't not complete his/her scrapbook page you still have time to finish it.  Please have them turned in by Monday.  It has been so fun looking at all the pages!!!

Book-It

We will once again be participating in the Pizza Hut Book-It Reading Incentive Program. Each month there is a reading log that is sent home. The goal is for students to read fives nights a week for 20 minutes each night.   At the end of the month, please send your child's reading log back to school.  Students may count their SRC reading homework for the Book-It program!  Kids that achieve the goal will be given a certificate for a free personal pan pizza. No other purchase is necessary. 

October 7: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Friday, October 14:  Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15
• Monday, October 24: Holiday posters are due!
• Tuesday, October 25: Turkey Trot
• Friday, October 28: Michigan vs. Michigan State Day
• Monday, October 31: Halloween Party
• Friday, November 4: Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15

READING:

Today is the official kick off to our reading homework.  Please look for your child's SRC book bag that came home today.  You will find a letter further explaining homework in 2nd grade and the Scholastic Reading Counts (SRC) program.  Please help your child establish a steady homework routine.  I'm not sending as much work home this year, but would like all 2nd graders to consistently read five nights a week for 20 minutes each night.  Also, they should be asking you to help them fill out their weekly reading log each night they read.  Reading logs are due back to school every Friday.

This session of SRC will continue until December 4th.  It is our goal to have all students take and pass ONE quiz a week.  That means it is their goal to take 10 quizzes by December 4.  In order to take a quiz, your child will read one of their library books at home.  Students may even want to read their book more than once!  When they are ready and have returned their book to school, they will take a 10 question quiz online.  Please help your child bring their SRC book bag to school each day.  I know they may not take a quiz daily but we want them to begin the habit of having their books with them each day to build responsibility and consistency.

WRITING:

Next week we will work on adding details to our small moments that help develop the characters in our stories.  Students will work on describing their characters' feelings, actions, thinking, and talking.  Also, we will take time to look at the first small moment that was written at the beginning of the year.  It will be exciting for the students to see how they have grown as writers already this year!

MATH:

We will continue to work through various word problems next week.  We will practice strategies to do before, during, and after finding the solution to each word problem.  Students know to read the word problem and retell it before trying to solve.  Then as they work on the word problem students are identifying important information, writing an equation to match, and showing their thinking through a math drawing.  Finally, students will double check their answers and label their work after they have found a solution.  Through this process students are able to thoroughly explain their thinking and are successfully answering very tricky word problems.

SOCIAL STUDIES:

Next week will spend the majority of our week creating our own maps of Hudsonville.  Students will make a map of their neighborhoods and as many other parts of Hudsonville that are nearby.  All students will need to include natural characteristics on their map as well as human characteristics.  Natural characteristics are characteristics of the environment that are part of nature (rivers, lakes, mountains, etc.).  Human characteristics are characteristics that a human made (bridge, buildings, railroad tracks, etc.).  See if your child can identify the natural and human characteristics around your neighborhood!

VOCABULARY WORD:

Our vocabulary word this week is retell.
Retell means to tell in your own words.

OTHER NEWS:

• Please see the note regarding our classroom scrapbook that was sent home last week.  Our classroom scrapbook becomes one of our favorite books in the classroom.  Thanks for helping with this fun project!

September 30: Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Wednesday, October 5: Evacuation Drill
• Friday, October 7: Maize and Blue Day/Popcorn Day

• Friday, October 14:  Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15
• Monday, October 31: Halloween Party
• Friday, November 4: Early Release/Dismissal at 12:15

READING:

Next week we will be focused on strengthening our decoding strategies.  Students will learn that readers use more than one strategy to figure out tricky words.  As we read, we will make sure to slow down to think about each unknown word and use various strategies to figure it out.  The strategies we will practice next week will be reading through the entire word making sure we don't miss word endings, using parts of the words that we already know, flipping the sounds of certain identified letters, and making sure the word looks right, sounds right, and makes sense.

Also, next week we will begin reading homework!  Please look for a book bag and letter coming home next week that further explains reading homework in 2nd grade.  Your child's reading homework will be connected to an online program called Scholastic Reading Counts (SRC).  2nd graders are typically quite motivated by this program and the incentives they can earn at library.  Stay tuned for details coming home next week Thursday!

WRITING:

Students are on a roll drafting their small moment stories.  Next week we will work on adding details to describe the character's actions, thoughts, and feelings.  We will also revise our leads and endings.  Our goal will be to write a lead that grabs the reader's attention and makes them want to read more as well as writing an ending the wraps up our stories with a wish, a hope, or a feeling.

MATH:

This week we spent a lot of time practicing our double facts.  Please continue to practice these facts at home too!  We are learning that when we know the doubles facts it helps us know many other related facts.  Please ask your child how they can use a doubles fact to solve 6+7.  

Next week the majority of our time will be focused on solving word problems.  We will make a problem solving book that will teach us important steps to follow to obtain accurate solution.  We will work hard to fully understand each word problem before trying to solve.

SOCIAL STUDIES:

Our study on communities continues!  Next week we will be exploring maps.  Students will learn how to read a map, how to use a map key, how maps are organized, and will eventually create their own maps of Hudsonville.  

VOCABULARY WORD:

Each week we will learn a new vocabulary word.  The identified vocabulary word is a word that is used in all content areas.  This week our word was DESCRIBE.  Students learned that describe means to tell in your own words.  This word was used all throughout the week and students had fun catching people using it.  Many students even told me that they heard you use it at home!!

Next week our word is IDENTIFY.  Identify means to locate or find something.

OTHER NEWS:

• Please see the note regarding our classroom scrapbook in your child's Friday folder.  Our classroom scrapbook becomes one of our favorite books in the classroom.  Thanks for helping with this fun project!
• You will also find a Holiday Poster in their Friday folders.  This project is from the Hudsonville Area Chamber of Commerce and is completely optional.  All submitted artwork will be displayed throughout town.  The winning posters from each grade will be displayed at City Hall.  The winners will also receive a special prize bag and get to ride on the Holiday trolley in the parade.  All posters are due back to school by October 24.  
• I couldn't resist posting a picture of the "twins" we found in the classroom this week!  Too cute!!!