Our little chick family

A look at our week

I hope you had a restful and wonderful 3 day weekend and R&R break!  It is hard to believe we are so close to wrapping up the year.

Please be on the lookout for information regarding a small Charlotte's Web celebration next week.  (The team is still finalizing the day/time, etc.)

This week we will have MAP testing on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

All Science Insect Project papers will be copied and sent home by Wednesday so your student can use the information for the final creation.  Please not the 4th part of the research is due this Friday (it will be checked and sent home the same day) and the final project is due one week from today.  We will have an entomologist walk-through after presentations so you can enjoy our class projects! 

This week we will be learning the following. 

Literature:  Charlotte's Web
Writing:  5 sentence paragraphs:  Expository and Narrative
History:  Civil Rights
Science:  Life Cycle of Plants
Math:  Shapes:  3D and flat

We always encourage our students to end the year strong!  Please continue to model the value of quality work and completed homework even until the very end.  We always strive to send the message that what you do matters, even in the final stretch!

Field trip tomorrow and no school on Friday!

This is just a reminder that we will be headed to the Arizona Science Center tomorrow!  Please pack a disposable sack lunch for tomorrow (no lunch boxes if possible!).  We plan to leave at 8:30 am and return by 2:30 pm.  I will email you all upon our return. 

Science Life Cycle Quiz- tomorrow when we return.

A look at our week:

Literature:  Charlotte's Web
Math:  Finish Data/Graphing unit
          We will have our end of the year Singapore Assessment this week.
Science:  Insects- Helpers vs. Pests (A look at honeybees and ants)
History:  Immigration Quiz on Thursday



No School on Friday!  Enjoy your 3 day weekend!

May!

It is hard to believe May is already here!  As we are gearing up for the final month we want to make sure we end the year strong! 

Please remember:  Insect Project part 2 is due tomorrow! 

Next Monday, May 8th is our class field trip.  Please do not order hot lunch for next Monday!  We will need each student to bring a sack lunch.
If you have not paid for the field trip, please go to the parent portal to pay.  This serves as your child's permission slip.  Parents who have not yet paid will receive a separate email reminder this week.

This week we will be studying the following:

History:     Immigration/Ellis Island (Ancestor sheet due on WEDNESDAY).
Science:    Life Cycles:  Quiz Friday
Math:        Graphing
Writing:     5 sentence paragraphs:  Expository Writing
Literature:  Charlotte's Web
Grammar:  Dictionary Skills



Please mark your calendars for our Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast on Monday, May 22nd and 8:00 am!

May is on its way...

I hope this update finds you all doing well!  This Thursday is our Spring Concert!  Our students sound absolutely amazing! You are in for an incredible night as we explore our wonderful world through the eyes of our children.  We are collecting any used eye glasses to help help sponsor those who cannot afford eye care.  If you have any old glasses that you would like to donate the night of the concert it would be greatly appreciated!

This week I have modified our history test slightly from the other 2nd grade classes.  We will have the assessment this Thursday.  This is a change from the other classes.  Notes will go home tomorrow as we finish our unit on the Civil War.  The unit has been an overview of the Civil War. This topic will continue to be expanded upon in subsequent grades. I hope this unit has sparked an interest and love of learning history and the importance of learning from our past. 

Our Math test over time is tomorrow.  You should have received any additional information needed from your child's math teacher. 

We are anxiously watching our chicken eggs!  We have 12 different types of chickens and I am so excited to see them hatch.  We have a calendar count down and we are learning all about the inside of an egg and the life cycle of a chicken.  I am also happy to report we have continued to keep Flash alive for almost a month! Wahoo!  :)  If you would like to watch him over the weekend, please let me know!

Spalding has been modified to less words this week. We are hoping this helps with the addition of cursive combined with harder words being introduced. 


This week we are learning the following:

ELA:  Charlotte's Web
Writing:  5 sentence paragraph
Math:  Time/ Graphing
Science: Life Cycles (specifically focusing on the chicken and frog this week)
             Please note the next portion of the Insect Project (Part 2) is due MONDAY, MAY 1st!
History:  The Civil War/begin Civil Rights

I am amazed that we are in the final week of April.  It never ceases to amaze me just how quickly the last quarter passes by. 

Have a wonderful rest of the week

Mid-April Update

 I wanted to highlight a few key events taking place this week:

This Thursday, April 20th @ 8:00 am an information session and reception will be taking place as we welcome Mrs. Atolagbe as our new Headmaster for next year.  This will allow parents time to visit with administration regarding the 2017-2018 school year.

E.B. White Biography questions due Thursday. 

Insect Project Part 1 due Friday.

Harriet Tubman Poem due Monday, April 24th!

Performance Notices will go home next Tuesday, April 25th.

Music Concert:  Thursday, April 27th!  (Homework will not be given on Thursday).

Homework Modifications as needed:  This quarter the Spalding words are increasing in difficulty AND we are adding a cursive component.  I recognize this is A LOT and might be creating some stress around the dinner table.  I have asked students to only write words ONE time in cursive.  I am noticing a decline in spelling because the focus has shifted off the phonograms and spelling words and focused onto the proper formation of letters.  This is causing a lot of errors in spelling the words correctly.  Therefore, please go back to print only if needed and if we continue to see a decline we will modify additionally.

Learning this week:

Reading:  Charlotte's Web (please bring in the book if you have not already done so)
               Main vs. Supporting Characters, vocabulary using text evidence
Writing:  Expository Text- writing a 5 sentence paragraph that informs or explains "how to".
Grammar:  Conjunctions, parsing review, dictionary skills
Math:  Telling time- quarter til, quarter after, half past
History:  Today- Ft. Sumter; Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation
Science: Insects!

Mr. Bubbles and other news....

Well, we have a sad announcement regarding our new and beloved fish, Mr. Bubbles.  I checked on him this weekend because I was concerned about our new tank.  Sure enough, the filter proved to be too strong for him and he passed on.  We have a new fishy friend joining us today and we will pick his name soon. I will be purchasing a new habitat for our new friend after school today.  (Who knew fish could be so high maintenance!) The class took it pretty well this morning, but I am sure it will be a topic of conversation around the dinner table tonight. 

This week we will be learning the following:

Math:  fractions (comparing, ordering on a number line)
History:  events leading up to the Civil War; Harriet Tubman
Poem:  Harriet Tubman
Science:  Life Cycles (thanks to Mr. Bubbles we will visit this earlier than planned); Insects
Literature:  Tall Tales
Grammar:  Sentence Parsing, Formal vs. Informal language; using synonyms in writing

Please remember:  Fraction Pizzas are due THIS Friday for ALL math classes!