This week (and next week) in 2nd grade...

7 more days before Winter break! I'm so excited to spend our final (school) week in 2016 enjoying lots of fun activities!!

Reading

We are continuing to look into non-fiction text features. This week we will look at: maps, sidebars, illustrations vs. photographs, changing words to make them make more sense, and time order events! These will tie into our writing this week as well.

Math

We are continuing mental math. This week we will work with hundreds charts, and also add to our addition strategies! So far, we have the break apart method, and keep one number whole to help us add 2 digit numbers!

Writing

We are continuing to write something we know a lot about. We will finish our plan and begin writing, hopefully finishing before we go on break! We have a lot to accomplish in a short amount of time in writing!

Winter Activities

Friday, Monday, and Tuesday will include lots of fun winter activities to enjoy! A pink paper went home in your Friday folder detailing all the fun events! We are very excited for our winter party on Tuesday as well! Attached was a list of items we are requesting for our classrooms to make these fun activities happen! Check it out, and see if there's anything you have on hand and are willing to donate :)

As always, you can reach me by email (klister@cpsk12.org) or on Remind!

WATCH one of our experiments!

Yesterday, we did a lab on elephant toothpaste! If you'd like to make it at home, email or message me for the recipe!

Donations

Good Morning everyone! As the year come to an end, we are beginning to run low on some of the things we use every day. If you would like to donate any of these items to our classroom, that would be much appreciated!

• Hand Sanitizer (any brand!)
• Goldfish (snack for students who forget theirs)
• Lined Paper (wide ruled)

So far, we are holding strong on pencils, dry erase markers, and Clorox wipes, which I was not expecting. Any donation of any supplies is always welcomed and, again, much appreciated!

UPDATED: Book It!

This entry has been updated to reflect grade-level changes.

We are starting a new program called Book It! Through this program, your child can win a personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut each month!

This means, it is extremely important for your child to bring back their reading log EVERY FRIDAY morning. I will track their minutes through a chart in my room.

Our goal this month (December) is to read 20 minutes, three nights per week! This means 60 minutes per week when we have a full week of school. Goals will be altered on shortened week.s This being said, reading for the reading log and reading for Book It can be combined. For example, if your child reads 20 minutes each night for one week, they will have met their requirement for school AND exceeded their goal for Book It!

Our overall goal for December is 140 minutes. When a student reaches this goal, I will send home a certificate!

For more information about the program, visit bookitprogram.com, or send me an email!

This week in 2nd grade...

I hope everyone had a wonderful fall break! I am so glad to be back. We have a lot of learning to do between now and winter break, and I cannot wait to see all they will accomplish!

**Book and T-Shirt Orders went home Monday, 11/28. Book order are due by 12/12, and T-Shirt Orders are requested ASAP! We hope you love the new logo!
            Our Scholastic.com code: Q4Z2H

Writing

We are continuing labs this week and will conclude the labs by Friday. 

NEXT WEEK: We will begin writing about something we know a lot about. I talked to the class yesterday about how it needs to be something they consider themselves experts in! For example: If they want to write about basketball, they need to know rules, how to play, etc. Please help your child begin thinking at home about topics they would be interested in and know a lot about. We will not be doing research, but simply writing from what we know.

Math

We will conclude geometry with a test on Friday of this week. Be watching for a review to come home on Thursday. This week we will focus on cutting apart (partitioning) shapes to make new shapes.

Reading

We are continuing with non-fiction text features. We will talk about labels/diagrams, photographs/captions, and how the author creates their topic. This will relate into our writing in talking about adding these text features into the writing we are doing in class. 

Social Studies

We will start civics this week and begin studying elections and government!

As always, let me know if you have any questions! klister@cpsk12.org or on Remind!

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy from our study of shapes last week. We made the shapes with our bodies and then traced the sides/angles on the Smartboard!

Thank you Ms. Lange! VIDEO

This is a wonderful video Ms. Lange (paraprofessional in Ms. Kolostov's classroom) made for us. It is filled with pictures from the field trip! I'm sure you will see some very familiar faces :)

This week in 2nd grade...

We have a very short week ahead of us, but we won't let that stop our learning! I hope everyone has a wonderful break and enjoys their time with family/travels!

Math

We are still working on geometry. Being gone last week set us a few days behind the other 2nd grade classes. This being said, we are still taking our time to really understand each concept. I am noticing a lot of success with geometry in our classroom, so this makes me very excited!! This week we will do a few fun activities to help us remember 2D and 3D shapes, and learn a new shape game!

Writing

We have started informational writing and hit the ground running! Our classroom is looking into informational writing and combining it with a little science. We are using experiments to help us write lab reports. This helps us know how to write with detail, use our 5 senses, and use a few facts as well. Last week we talked a lot about physical and chemical changes, and that will continue this week! Here's an overview of our experiments this week:

• Monday: Putting an egg in vinegar. We will use our sense of sight to notice what happens when we put the egg in, make predictions about how we think it will react, and then check it out again on Tuesday!
• Tuesday: We are using milk, food coloring, and Dawn dish washing liquid. We will drop the food coloring into the milk then squirt a drop of Dawn to see what reaction is created!

I hope your child has come home just as excited as they are in school each day. It is so fun to see them ready to work on writing, and our classroom is quiet enough to hear a pin drop!

Reading

We are working on non-fiction text features. The first couple days this week will be focused on determining non-fiction vs. fiction text and telling how we know. Next week, we will move into features of non-fiction text we can carry over into our writing!

Health

We wrapped up health last week by talking about the heart. We will be beginning civics in the coming weeks and focusing on government/elections!

Finally, Friday Folders will come home this week with work we have completed BUT they will not include the behavior sheets. We will resume behavior sheets next week. Please be sure to send the folder itself back on Monday so we have it for next week!

As always, if you have any questions about anything, please contact me! klister@cpsk12.org or on Remind!

This week in 2nd grade...

Math

We are continuing money. Please continue to practice this at home!

Manipulative were sent home with your child Tuesday, 11/1. These were donated by the math department to each child. Please use these to practice at home (especially the money!).

Reading

Our new reading logs went home today, 11/1, for the month of November, please remember to return these each Friday!

Scholastic book orders are due November 14th! You may order online or send in check/cash. Let me know if you have any questions!

Writing

We concluded narrative writing this past week, and took our writing assessment. We will begin informational writing next week. Watch for more information to come about that unit! This week, we are focusing on America to do a few quick writes in preparation for Veteran's Day. 

Health

We are continuing the Organ Trail this week. Our organ focus for this week will be the brain! We are learning lots of cool things about the different lobes of the brain and how they function!

Fall Party

Thanks for all the parents who came to help with the fall party! I will add photos this evening! We had a blast.

This week in 2nd grade...

Reading

This week in our shared reading time we will work on making connections to the book. We will talk most specifically about text-to-self connections, where students use their own experiences to make meaning/sense of a book. All 5 reading groups are working on different skills at the current moment, which is the great thing about small group instruction! If you are curious for more information about what your child's group is working on, send me an email or message, and I'd be happy to talk specifics!

Math

We begin money this week. I outlined the topic and provided some resources in my previous post! Here is a link that will take you there... 2nd Grade Update

Writing

This is our last week of narrative writing! We will be working the first two days of the week on our final stories, and will begin our writing test on Wednesday. This leaves time Thursday to finish/publish our last piece, and time on Friday to celebrate Halloween and do some special writing/activities!

Health

We began our first health unit last week. We are looking at organs and the human body while taking a trip down the "Organ Trail". I had the students outline the organs they know in the human body, and we did an awesome job brainstorming a list of organs we knew! This week we will begin to look at specific organs and their functions in the body.

Empathy

This week our morning meeting/afternoon closing will be focused on showing empathy towards others. We are studying empathy through use of videos and class discussions. We did one empathy lesson last week, and the kids were so insightful and really understood the conversations we were having! It was so empowering to have a room full of kids who were so eager to share/discuss, and we tied quite a few lessons/talking topics back to empathy that day. 

Help NEEDED :)

We are planning a STEM activity this week that will be related to Halloween but also ties in with our previous math unit! As the Friday Folder letter stated, we are in need of toothpicks and candy corn to make this happen. If you would like to donate either one of these items, please send them to school with your child!

2nd Grade Update

Fall Party

Our Halloween party is this Friday. As a school, we decided not to dress up this year, so I do ask that students do not wear their costumes to school on Friday. We will have a busy and fun day planned for Friday! The party begins at 2:30 and will end at 3:00.

Tiger Reading Buddies

We have now completed 3 weeks of Tiger Reading Buddies! I hope that you are hearing about it at home. It is so fun to watch the Mizzou students work with the kids. This past week they dug into the kids phonemic awareness. This means they did activities to find out what they know about beginning/ending sounds, blends, and digraphs! They will then begin customizing what books they are picking for the students to read, based on what they know about their learning. It is such a fun process to watch. There is a new picture on our Twitter page, and I will also post it at the end of this post!

Money

We are beginning a new topic in math this week over money. We will talk about the different values of money as well as money equivalencies (ex. ___ quarters = $1.00). The 2nd grade team is asking that parents/guardians take advantage of each opportunity to make money equivalencies/calculating change a real-life situation for their child. For example, if you happen to be using cash at the store, just take a couple seconds to mention how you know how much money to pay with!

It will also be very helpful to practice money at home this week! We will be working on identifying coins and understanding their values this week, and will move into equivalencies the following week. 

Lastly, I am attaching a link to a practice test for this topic. This could be a helpful resource for at home practice! 

Topic 13 Practice Test

Reading Logs

I am so sorry for forgetting to send those home until Wednesday this week! I will make every effort to get them home on Monday. I have also designated a couple kids to remind me that afternoon! I do ask that you ensure you are sending them back on Friday morning! This is a great way to hold your students accountable, and will also ensure they get that extra check on their Friday Folder! Thank you!

I'm looking forward to another great week in 2nd grade! Please let me know if you have any questions! You can reach me on Remind, or at klister@cpsk12.org

Our first BBL and Electronics Day!

On Tuesday we celebrated our first Dojo reward with Electronics Day! We had a blast brining in our electronics from home and getting to use them at school! See below for some pictures!

Our other "first" on Tuesday was our FIRST Brown Bag Lunch! Parents were invited to come into the classroom and have lunch with their students. We had a great time enjoying lunch together and taking some time to chat! Students also showed off some of their work thus far. See below for some pictures!

Scholastic Book Orders: November

EXCITING NEWS!

Book Orders are going out from Scholastic for the month of November! I am asking that they be due back by November 14, which is a Monday!

You also have the option to order online! Our class code is Q4Z2H!

We LOVE Scholastic book orders because they give money back to our classroom for the money you spend! It is an awesome program, and the book prices are wonderful!

Thank you for your support, and if you have any questions let me know!

BBL FAQ

Hey parents! Here's a few questions I've gotten about Brown Bag Lunch! I just figured it would be easier to answer them here, just to clear the air!

Can parents come?

Yes please! Join us tomorrow for lunch in the classroom from 11:45-12:15!

Can I bring food?

That's the fun part! You can absolutely bring food for you and your student if you would like! This is not a requirement by any means, but is an option!

What will we be doing?

We will be having lunch as a class, and students can show you some of their work when we are done eating!

What time is it?

We are asking parents come around 11:45 (students come in from recess at 11:50) and leave promptly by 12:15! This allows us to stay on our regular schedule.

Do I need to do anything ahead of time?

Just be sure to sign in at the office when you get to school! Then, join us in the classroom!

I'm looking SO forward to seeing everyone! We are going to have a blast eating lunch and chatting! 

Audubon Field Trip

What an amazing day! We had such an awesome time on our first field trip and did such a great job representing Beulah Ralph to all the other schools/teachers/instructors! I am so proud of how well we did while interacting with each other and with the presentations! To give an overview of some of the things we saw while we were there, I'll do my best to summarize our day!

Disclaimer: this post is a little long, but is full of awesome pictures!

Our first station was Owl Pellets. We dissected owl pellets and looked at the bones we found inside. We were then able to compare the bones we found to bones of various animals, to figure out what the owl had eaten!

Our second station was Adaptations. We analyzed many different birds beaks and feet, and thought about how that adaptation helped that animal survive! It was fun to hear their answers and they also opened up some very meaningful conversations that dug even deeper!

Our third station was Banding. They talked to us about how they catch and band birds to help identify where they have been, continue to track their movements, and ensure the bird is in good health! At this station, they showed us some live, wild birds! We saw a Chickadee, Sparrow, and Cardinal! 

Our final station was Raptors! We talked about what made raptors different from other birds, and also got the chance to see a hawk and an owl. They were both beautiful birds!

Thank you so much to all the parents who volunteered to help and ultimately made this trip the success it was! I was so lucky to have so many wonderful people there being great models for the kids! 

It was a fun, rewarding, and very exhausting day!