Friday, February 28, 2014

Friday February 28- Great Picture!

February comes to a close with a fantastic day! 

Our morning was filled with learning, and our afternoon was filled with fun as we celebrated Dr. Suess and our November, December, January, and February second grade birthdays!

Here are some pictures of our wonderful hats and favorite Dr. Suess books.
Have a great weekend! 


Thursday, February 27, 2014

Thursday February 27

Hi everyone!

Remember, tomorrow we will celebrate Dr. Suess with a read-a-thon!
There is also a preview of the art auction pieces!

Here are some ideas about today:
"I enjoyed helping Matthew design the Widgit tower." Alex
"Lauren helped me make my atmosphere book." Norah
"Ryder put the iPad away for me when I was running out of time to clean up- that was very kind." Layton
"It was nice of Hensley to be partners with me during math." Evalyn
"Alex helped me figure out iPad physics." Miles
"Bill Nye the Science Guy video helped give me more ideas about our atmosphere." Anders & others
"Playing Jump a Ten with Ezra was fun because he plays fair." Jasper
"I enjoyed playing Jump a Ten with Alex." Matthew

See you tomorrow!

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Wednesday February 26

Quick update before I rush off to class-

From the students:
"My mom helped with art today!" Roxana
"I liked writing because I got to work on my story with 42 sentences!" Layton
"It was fun to draw Pikachu during art." Alex
"I liked art because I was able to draw Pokemon." Sam
"Writing was fun because I was able to write a letter." Norah

Thanks again to all parents who volunteer to make our art program a success!

See you tomorrow!

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Tuesday February 25

Today we launched into a science discovery about weather!  If anyone knows a meteorologist or has weather books or measuring tools, we would love to borrow them so we can learn more about weather- thank you!

here are some ideas about today...
"Building Wigit creations with Matthew was fun because he is a good partner." Alex
"It was nice of Kali and Dah to draw a picture for me." Evelyn
" I liked being able to help Miles on the iPad." Matthew (thanks for helping each other!)
"It was nice of Ezra when he invited me to play a math game with him during math." Jasper
"We looked at weather books and heard others ideas about weather today." Matthew (and others)

 

Here are some pictures from yesterday of our 100's Day creations...these designs used 100 objects







See you tomorrow!

Monday, February 24, 2014

Mondat February 24 - The 100th day of school

There might be some debate about this day, but I went through the calendar and subtracted the snow days to reveal the 100th DAY of school!

We began the day with a Hershey Kisses Scavenger Hunt.  The students looked for them all around the room and on the bottom of each kiss, there was a number that matched a number on a 100's chart.  The students found, then ordered the numbers.  Then, we solved the problem of how many Kisses did each student receive if there were 23 students in the room (turns out, 4 each).

The writers were also challenged to write 100 words today!  Those word lists are on their lockers...

During math, we matched two addends to make 100 and wrote 100's equations.  Then we built creations using 100 pieces of a math tool (such as blocks or cubes). I took some pictures, but my iPhone is being glitchy with iPhoto, so they will have to wait!  Sorry...I'll post them if they import!

We have spent 6 weeks learning about food, germs, dental health- about being HEALTHY!
Today the students compiled this work into portfolios- be on the lookout for your child's classroom work.

see you tomorrow!

Friday, February 21, 2014

Friday February 21

We continue to have busy, learning filled days.

This morning began with independent literacy activities.  This independent time gives me the opportunity to conference with students in small groups or one-on-one to help them improve their reading and writing.
You should see this work come home on Friday.  Sometimes the work can seem sloppy because the students are rushing through their writing, so I have been requiring students to redo work that is too sloppy to read or understand.

After library and a quick recess, we learned a math game where students use an open number line (marked from 0 to 1, 000) to "jump - a - hundred" -  after five turns, the winner is the person closest to 500 wins.  This is an example of a student using an open number line to add.  We will be exploring this mathematical model more over the next few weeks as part of one Common Core Standard for mathematics. 


After lunch, we had independent reading opportunities, then we observed our "egg"-speriment.
We submerged one boiled egg in soda (sugar), and another in vinegar (acid).  Ask your students about the results- hopefully it was a good lesson about why we should brush our teeth.

We ended the day learning more about the names of the different kinds of teeth and what they are used for from the story "Open Wide, Tooth School Inside", then created a "spinner" to show what we learned.  Whew!  After this week, I hope your child (if they didn't already)  has a basic understanding of the structures and functions of their teeth and the importance of brushing and flossing,

Keep sending those donations for the art auction project ($15-$20) and applied art program ($10).

Have a wonderful weekend - I'll see you Monday for a FULL week of fun-filled learning!

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Thursday February 20

Hello everyone!

Today we learned a new math game, read some new books, and learned more about the structure of teeth and the importance of keeping them clean and healthy.

Here are some ideas about today:

"It was very kind when Lola cheered me up when I fell down on the playground." Cassidy
"Lola was friendly when she helped me tie my shoe." Norah
"We really enjoyed seeing real teeth and learning from 'The Legend of the Tooth Kingdom." Alex, Roxana, Miles, Cooper, and others.
"The art auction piece is amazing!" Jasper
"It was nice when I played with Sophia at recess." Kali
"I appreciated Alex sharing the iPad with me today." Matthew
"Looking at the roots of the teeth was cool!" Lola
"I'm glad I was able to share my Minecraft book with Alex." Drew

Please stop by the room in the morning! Don has brought the art auction piece into the room and it is stunning!  Remember, if you donate $15-$20 towards the materials, that would be great.  Let the bidding begin!  :)

Please bring library books and homework tomorrow!  See you then!

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Tueday February 18

Happy President's Day yesterday!

Today we read a biography together about Abraham Lincoln and his contributions to our country.  We also evaluated our story problem solutions to decide what were the characteristics of a clear solution.
During the afternoon, we wrote about what we did with our baby teeth when they came out, then learned about what children around the world did with their baby teeth...most do NOT expect the Tooth Fairy!

Here are some ideas about today:
"We learned about what kids around the world do with their baby teeth." Lola, Matthew, Miles, Layton
"I enjoyed quiet reading a Pokemon book with Parker." Ezra
"I liked the Arthur movie about how he lost his tooth." Roxana
"I liked playing on the iPad with Ryder to learn more math." Beckett
"I learned more about dairy foods on the iPad." Anders
"It was cool when Jasper's tooth fell out!" Thomas (perfect timing!)
"I enjoyed writing a retell about the Abraham Lincoln biography." Jasper
"I was happy during writing because I finished my How To book." Norah

On a personal note, thank you for all of the kind words and support over the past few weeks.  I am so relieved that there has been a resolution so we can continue learning together.

Remember, school dismissed at 12:30 tomorrow.

See you then!

Friday, February 14, 2014

Friday, February 14 Happy Valentine's Day!

We had a fun busy day...here is the basic day:

1.  Learning with reading and writing.
2.  Library with Daniel
3.  Break outside
4.  Valentine candy (sorry about the sugar) math- we counted, sorted, and solved equations using the data from our boxes of hearts.
5.  Lunch (not as much sugar)
6. Read Aloud 
7.  Decorating Valentine Bags (no sugar, just stickers and creativity!)
8.  Passing out Valentines (let the real sugar begin!)
9.  Watching "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" (sugar continues)
10.  Break outside (running off some sugar)
11. Friday Choice time (yup, more sugar)

The students wanted me to write that "THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!!!!" (so, all it takes to have the best day ever is a little -or alot- of sugar?  good to know!)

Here are some pictures of the best day ever...






Thanks for all of the nice cards and treats!  Have a lovely three day weekend!  See you Tuesday...

Thursday, February 13, 2014

February 13, Thursday

Hi everyone!

Today we worked hard, beginning our day with reading and writing and thinking work from both fiction and non-fiction books. 
After a great music class, we continued "shopping" for and solving each others' story problems. 
After lunch we had choice quiet reading and writing our "How To" books. 
We ended the day talking about a time we were sick followed by information about how our bodies fight germs and how germs are spread.  (then we wiped down our tables again!)

I have asked the students to please store their Valentines and treats in their lockers until it is time to pass them out.  Thanks!

Here are some ideas from the students today:

"I learned about germs by watching the Bill Nye Science Guy video." Alex & others
"I was able to start publishing a new "How To" book during writing today." Matthew
"I enjoyed getting to read Widget and the Puppy with Cooper during quiet reading time." Norah
"I liked writing because I have finished publishing my 'How to Play Pokemon' book." Jasper

It's been a few weeks since we have had library, so PLEASE RETURN BOOKS tomorrow...and homework!
See you then!

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Wednesday February 12

Hi everyone!

We had a fun busy day and the students had lots to say about the day!

" I enjoyed playing outside with Kali, Ryder, Matthew, and Sophia- we made up a great game!" Alex
"I enjoyed drawing animals during art and finishing my sloppy copy of my How To book." Cooper
"I liked writing because I am almost done publishing my How To book." Jasper
"Cooper made me something nice today!" Norah
" Art was fun today!" Hensley
"Sophia helped me finish my valentine project." Kali
"I learned more making a rocket on the iPad physics game."  Matthew
"Miles shared the iPad with me!" Layton
"It was nice when Kali gave me a bracelet."  Cassidy
"Shopping for story problems (that we created) was really fun! " Beckett and the whole class
"I was really fun to share an iPad with Beckett!" Anders


I'm glad we all had a fun day- special thanks to Evalyn and Hensley for being extra teacher helpers today!
Thank you also to the parents who gave their time today for art class.
See you tomorrow!

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Tuesday February 11

Let it snow, let it snow...

What a wild ride it has been for the past few days!  I hope you all enjoyed your bonus time with your family.  We jumped right back into work today!

We are writing story problems using larger numbers during math and continuing our study of healthy living by discussing more about the digestive system and how to keep germs out of our bodies.

We will be having a small Valentine's Day celebration on Friday this week.. Your child should have brought home a class name list...any valentines or treats are completely voluntary!  Don't make a bunch of extra work for yourselves!

Take a look at this amazing picture:
This is the final product for our class contribution to the art auction...I am impressed!  This is a glorious piece of art that reflects the beautiful diversity of our classroom.  Please read the email regarding contributing to this project.

Here are ideas from the students today:
"My favorite part of today was reading from my chapter book." Cassidy
"Drew and I read a Spiderman book together today." Alex
"Learning about the digestive system was interesting." Matthew
"Math was fun because Anders and I worked on an iPad math game together." Beckett
"Physics on the iPad was really fun!" Miles
"LIteracy was good because the poem was fun!." Jasper

See you all tomorrow!

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Wednesday February 5

Hi everyone!  We had a really fun day with our visitors from Panda Express!  It was great to learn more and eat some yummy food with chopsticks!
Thanks to Jean & Jocelyn for jumping in and helping with our art lesson today!
Thanks everyone! Have a great day and I'll see you tomorrow.










Monday, February 3, 2014

Monday February 3

Happy Birthday Anders!
Happy Chinese New Year!
Today we completed many projects where we learned more about Chinese culture and New Year celebrations.  Ask your child what they learned today.
This week book order needs to be returned on Friday please!

Here are come ideas from the students:
Matthew and Alex both enjoyed reading with each other during quiet reading.
"Today I enjoyed making the Dragon Mask" Cassidy
"I really liked creating the Dragon Mask Puppet." Cooper


We know the weather will be very cold this week.  Please plan accordingly and dress very warmly later this week.

See you tomorrow!