Let it snow!

You don't know how excited your children got to see snow!  I believe I heard little screeches!

We have begun the new year by reviewing our transitions (chime and count down), as well as the expectations in the classroom.  They were very excited to welcome to the classroom Sophia, who comes to us from England.

       

Writing:
The focus of our writing has been on the problem and solution of a story.  Students have used a graphic organizer to help them add sensory details to these parts.  We wrote a story together to help their understanding.  We talked about how a bear walks through the woods feeling the wind blow his hair around and smelling the sweet aroma of the berries that he can't quite reach with his sharp claws.  He is hungry, but retreats to his dark cave because he sees the bright white of lightning and the loud clap of thunder.  Inside the deep cave, he can almost taste the berries, but instead tastes the saliva that has formed in his mouth.  Students are well into weeks of writing their final story that provides these wonderful details to their story and they should be finished very soon.

    

I am excited to announce a collaboration with Henley Middle School theater students.  In small groups, Brownsville 2nd graders will write their best stories and present them to Henley students.  Henley students will then choose a few to perform for us later in the next quarter.  I have not mentioned this to the class, but can't wait to tell them to put their best effort into their next story, as it could become "real!"

Reading:
The strategy focus has been with asking questions.  Students ask questions before, during and after they read.  They ask both "thin" and "thick" questions.  Thin questions are those that can easily be answered in the book (or the part they've already read) by turning to a specific page and pointing to the answer.  Thick questions spark a conversation and there isn't an exact answer to the question, but more of an opinion of what the readers think.  I model these questions as we read our current read aloud book titled The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo.

When reading with your child at home, ask some thick questions.  Here are some question stems...
- I wonder what would happen if...
- I wonder why...
- What do you think about...
- Where do you think...
-  How did...

We have been reviewing ALL of our comprehension strategies this week.  They include:
Schema - schema is the information you have in your head about a certain topic.  For instance, in our read aloud book, Edward Tulane is a china rabbit who has wires as elbows and knees.  We talked about what a china doll is and many students already had that in their schema!
Visualization - this is the picture/movie you have in your head as you read.  For instance, Edward Tulane is tossed back and forth between two mean boys as Abilene (Edward's young owner) screams for them to give him back.  One last toss lands Edward in the vast ocean and sinking slowly to the bottom.
Connections - making connections to a book is a great comprehension strategy.  For instance, when poor Edward was snatched off a chair by a dog, students were able to get a picture in their head because they had an experience in which they have seen a dog shake a stuffed animal!  :)
                  

We will make predictions in the upcoming weeks, which will lead to sequencing of events.

All of this work at school and your help at home guides students with the goal of Brownsville's Reading Philosophy...

We believe that the meaningful interactions between students, texts, and teachers lead to lifelong learning, empowerment, enjoyment and success.

Word Study:
We took a hiatus from word study for the week before break and this past week.  We will begin new word study groups in the upcoming weeks. 

Math:
We are working on more story problems with larger numbers.  Don't forget making 10s when adding larger numbers.  For instance, you can take 7 + 3 to make 10.  You can also take 7 + 2 + 1 to make 10.  We are also gaining knowledge and understanding of odd and even numbers.  We are practicing counting by 2s and will begin 5s and 10s.  This should be a reminder, but we want students to understand the patterns they see when counting.  This will lead them into a clearer understanding of multiplication when they reach 3rd grade.

     

Enjoy working with your child on counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s!  Start with different numbers...

- When counting by 2s, start with 46 and go to 112.  Go forward and backwards.
- When counting by 5s, start at 75 and go to 145.  Go forwards and backwards.
- When counting by 10s, start at 13 and go to 123.  Go forwards and backwards.

Social Studies:
We finished our maps unit with our study of the United States.  Students learned where the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains are located.  They can locate the Mississippi, Rio Grande, and James Rivers, as well as the Great Lakes.  They love to use the map on the back playground to demonstrate this knowledge.  As a culmination of this unit, students made 3D dough maps.  Check out these photos...

       

We have recently been talking about American Indians.  We discussed what we know and what we want to know about them.  We then read a book titled Encounter, which is written from the perspective of a young American Indian who warns the elders of the coming Europeans wanting gold and to conquer their land.  Ask your child about the impact of this book.

In the upcoming weeks, we will learn about three American tribes; Lakota, Pueblo, and Powhatan.  Our class will learn about the Lakota tribe with me and then rotate to two other 2nd grade teachers to learn about the other two tribes for one week each.  When I announced this, they shouted "nooooooo!"  I said, "It will be so much fun learning from another teacher."  They said they would miss me so much!  ;-)