Fall

Fall is a time to...

DISCOVER

A few brave parent volunteers helped us measure, describe, weigh, estimate, carve, and count seeds. In our sample of pumpkins the smaller ones had more seeds.

HAVE A LITTLE FUN

Here we are in all our spookiness on Halloween!

LEARN

As we study rocks, we learn that weather and water cause them to break down over time. It's amazing to think of sand as millions of tiny rocks.

VOTE!

We learned about citizenship, registered, and participated in the voting process.

CREATE!

The best way to learn about animal homes is to recreate them. We developed a true appreciation for the skill and patience these animals have. Here we are building bird nests.

BE CURIOUS AND CREATIVE!

How would you like to have lobster or eel for Thanksgiving this year? If it was 1621, those would be on the menu. We read about the first Thanksgiving and represented the feast.

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Facts, folders and formalities!

In reading this week we learned to identify facts from opinions in text. Doreen Cronin's Diary of a Spider delivers many facts about creatures within a humorous fictional story. Her other books in the series are formatted the same way. It was fun to read and compare the texts.

After reading the story we identified the facts and marked the pages with sticky notes. (Love those sticky notes!) We're using them to mark pages for book group discussions too! We watched a video of a spider spinning its web. It was mesmerizing. Using our choice of medium, we created our own webs mimicking the replicating pattern.

We've been making videos lately. We used the Face Talk app to give our pet rocks a voice and to allow characters from the Troublemaker book to express their thoughts about situations. Everyone needed a folder to keep these projects in. ENTER GOOGLE DRIVE. Mrs. Lord helped us to understand and set up our own accounts. Students will be able to upload school related text files, photos and videos and share their progress with me digitally. I'll be able to comment and advise along the way

In social studies we're beginning discussions about rights and responsibilities. With the election around the corner, it presented an opportunity to learn about a citizen's right to vote. Everyone "registered". We'll hold elections on September 7th. We will not be voting for president. Our voting will focus on preferences such as recess activities, Halloween candy and sports.

 

 

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Rockin' and Reading

We had fun with our Kindergarten Book Buddies this week. First we practiced listening skills. One buddy described a jack-o-lantern face while the other one drew it. Then we read books together.

Our pet rocks have A LOT of personality! We've named them and decided on their likes and dislikes. Today we'll use the app Face Talk to give them a voice!

 

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One month in...

LOOK at all of the amazing new books we have for our classroom library! A big THANK YOU to our PTA and to the families that purchased books for us at the Scholastic Book Fair.

It was wonderful to have so many families join us for open house. We studied the data collected from that night and came to some interesting conclusions.

Superintendent Clenchy stopped by and participated in the fun!

 

We've been experimenting with rocks, writing, reading and problem solving. Some students are even learning new words in other languages! Amidst it all we still make time to enjoy some relaxing activities.

 

 

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Settling in....

There's a lot to think about when you're in second grade.

We spent some thoughtful moments writing our hopes and dreams and creating poems and art that reflected who we are.

We use real coins to learn to count money. First we gave them a good cleaning. Once we could read the markings, we explored the dates and places where our coins were minted.

 

 

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First Day of School

What a great day!

It may have been raining outside but the sun was shining in here! We had a room full of smiling, friendly faces ready to start a new year.

We met on the rug for morning meeting and everyone contributed an idea for a classroom rule. It seems that everything we do or say fits into three categories. RESPECT YOURSELF, RESPECT OTHERS, RESPECT THIS PLACE. Those will be our three classroom rules. We had a chance to try them out at indoor recess.

Our class did EXCEPTIONALLY well during library class, earning 10 hearts!!!! We earned another 10 during the day. We are up to an unprecedented 20 hearts on the first day of school! Everybody earned a raffle ticket today. WOW, what a class!

Our African Dwarf Frogs Blue and Berry had a great first day back too. They enjoyed the attention from their new classmates.

Looking forward to another great day tomorrow!

 

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Back to School

 

Stop by our classroom on Thursday, September 1 for a sneak peak at the room.

You are welcome to bring in your supplies and set up your desk that day too!

Room 205 will be open from 2:30 - 3:00 pm

 

Summer's not over yet! What's left on your bucket list?

I've found many little furry friends to snuggle with but I'm always on the lookout for new opportunities!

I've gotten lost in the pages of several great books this summer. I think there's time to squeeze in one more.

Can you spot the dragonfly?

Have you been watching the Olympic Games? Imagine what is must be like to have the title of the fastest man or woman in the world or to be the very best at your sport. Were you inspired to try anything new?

 

See you soon!

 

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Around the World Week

What a week we had! It all began with opening ceremonies Olympic style. We stamped our passports and headed for Brazil. After making visors and flags, we met our fellow second grade athletes down at the field and recited the Olympic Oath together. Festivities kicked off with an Olympic torch relay.

Later on we made rain sticks to represent the rainforests in South America then we were off to Australia.

We practiced some of the slang from down under and played a fun game called "Who's caught the roo?". After learning about the Aboriginal Art form of dot painting, we tried it out. Mr. Gansenburg showed us how to play a didgeridoo!

The next day we stamped our passports to enter China. We joined our fellow Olympians for a chopstick chicken relay. Back inside we practiced using chopsticks, made tangram pictures, painted fans with Chinese symbols and played Chinese Checkers.

The next day we explored Africa. We began in the northern region learning about the customs of Egypt. Decked out in gilded headdresses and collars, we worked on reading and writing hieroglyphics. In the afternoon we traveled south and explored the cultural tradition of African mask making and played Mancala.

Our last stop was India. Two first grade students visited to teach us traditional games they play. In the afternoon we had fun learning a tag game called Ko Ko. We learned about the art form of henna and practiced some designs. Later, we read a traditional tale and played snakes and ladders. Mrs. C. brought in hand carved wooden elephants from India. We listened to traditional music as we colored in mandala elephant designs.

Where can your imagination take you?

 

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