Hey all! I hope everyone has had a wonderful week! We have had an awesome week. We are making progress in our reading groups and in math. I will be uploading this weekly newsletter and some photos to the 2nd grade blog that can be found on our Acton School website. Please feel free to check out the blog spot if this is easier for you.
Next week, we are going to have our official holiday party on Thursday. We will have a few different stations set up in the morning. One of those stations will be a cookie decorating station. I will be providing fruit for the students in the afternoon, and showing the Polar Express. If you would like to provide food or treats, for this party, please feel free to send things in. Students are invited to bring in their blankets or stuffed animals for the movie. Here’s a look at what has been going on in each subject this week.
Math
We have wrapped up our study on order and pattern. The students will be assessed on all the concepts in the chapter next week. Our next unit will be adding and subtracting within 1,000.
Reading
Reading groups are still very exciting! The students are doing very well with this, and are very excited to be part of the groups. I have begun to record the reading group sessions for assessment purposes. We often have wonderful discussions and it gives me a chance to go back and listen to how the students are reading throughout our time together.
I would like to begin a listening center. My plan is to use iPads or iPods and to use Kindle or Audible for audiobooks. If you have an old iPad or iPod touch that you are no longer using, or you know of someone who is looking to get rid of their old iPod touch or iPad or tablet of any kind, please let me know. Our classroom could use them for a listening center. I will be doing some work on my own end to get these items into our classroom to help build the listening center up.
Social Studies
After the break, we should be able to begin the presentation portion of our social studies research project. The kids have been working extremely hard on this!
Writing
We will be wrapping up our narrative unit next week. We will be starting to type our best stories on our chromebooks for the publishing process.
Important Dates
Tuesday, December 20: Makenzie’s Birthday! Wooooo!
Thursday December 15: Winter Concert 6:30 PM
Thursday, December 22: Class Holiday Party
December 23-January 2: CHRISTMAS BREAK
Math Strategy
Using Number Lines!!
We have been building and using number lines to help with counting on by 1s, 5s, 10s and 100s. One way to do this at home is to use the infamous dice. Roll the dice 3 times to create a three digit number. They can build a number line that uses the number to count on or back by 1s, 5s, 10s, or 100s. You can ask them what is 10 more than the number, 20 more than the number 25 more than the number, and have them use the number line to help them figure out the math. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
