Week of February 1st-5th

Curriculum News
There always seems to be so much material to cover and not enough time! This next week will probably be the same! During our Reading/Literacy block, we will be starting our “Journey to Freedom” unit as we take a close look at our 16th President, Abraham Lincoln. It is important for our students to understand the awesome sacrifices that President Lincoln made to help make our country as great as it is today! Our math time will be spent with some extra practice on 2-digit subtraction with regrouping and will continue with the introduction of a unit on telling time. Clouds and weather will be a topic of discussion as we explore the idea of the water cycle in Science. Also, our continued exploration of the seven continents will be happening during our allotted time for Social Studies. This next week will take us to Asia as we take a closer look at the country of China. Students are enjoying the opportunity to learn a bit more about the culture of each country that we explore….see if they can fill you in at the end of each week about our new discoveries that were made about our amazing planet!

Spelling Words
As we are getting closer and closer to these students becoming 3rd graders, we will not be having any challenge words but instead will have 16 words each week on the regular list. This week’s words are below:

still       learn      should       America      world      hush       slush      dash       wash        wish       dish       money

coin       bill       dollar      cent

Announcements/Reminders
While there are no early dismissals or days off, we will be celebrating Homecoming Week for our high school basketball team at the grade school. Dress-up days are given below!

Monday- Patriotic Day
Tuesday-Celebrity/Favorite Character Day
Wednesday-Western Day
Thursday-Squad Day/Dress the Same As Your Friends
Friday-Orange and Black Day

Quote for the Week: You learn something every day if you pay attention. ~Ray LeBlond

Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Johnson

January 25th-29th

Curriculum News

With a full week of school coming up, we plan on making a lot of gains in 2nd grade this next week!  (Except for the early dismissal on Wednesday!)  We will need to continue our author study of Tomie DePaola, because there are just too many excellent books of his to explore.  Students are enjoying the opportunity to get to know the author a little bit better and getting a better grasp on what exactly “Author’s Viewpoint” is about.  We will also get an opportunity to take a closer look at homophones which will only strengthen our writing skills and get us ready for third grade!  During our math time we will be spending more time on 2-digit subtraction and more thoroughly exploring the topic of regrouping/ borrowing, which is always a challenge at the 2nd grade level.  As we are wrapping up our unit on animal classifications, habitats, and adaptations, students are going to be given a Science assignment that might include a bit of help from you.  Watch for detailed instructions which will be passed out on Friday, January 27th!  It will be a busy week for sure!

Spelling Words

This week’s words will be words that have something to do with our author-Tomie DePaola!  (No challenge words!)

author         legend          country         practice        sound        early        leader         chance       tonight          magic        history

trouble        promise        picture       pasta      cheese

*What stuck with you?

We have been experimenting with a new way to review important facts that were learned each day at school!  Students are asked to fill out a “sticky note” with one important or interesting thing that was learned each and every day.  The following day we start out with a bit of a review and discussion of these key points from the previous day!  It seems to be an excellent tool for reviewing and hopefully retaining valuable information…..so take the time to ask your child, “What stuck with you today?”  You might be surprised with what they are able to remember and the enthusiasm that they have shown with their learning!

Reminder– Early dismissal @ 11:30 on Wednesday, January 27th!

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Johnson

Week of January 18th-22nd

Curriculum News January: 19th- 22nd

As things do often go, we are slightly behind with our lesson plans in Reading! After wrapping up the student favorite children’s novel, Charlotte’s Web, we decided to watch the movie and compare the two slightly different versions. This allowed us to talk about comparisons among characters and settings and helped wrapped up our discussion of building bridges among people and unlikely friends. The next two weeks should give us plenty of time to take a look at several of Tomie DePaola’s fun-filled stories and will give us a chance to take a closer look at his particular style of writing. During Math we will be getting back into our Math folders and really pushing to get through our math facts! We will also really be focusing on subtracting 2-digit numbers with regrouping. As we continue our exploration of the 7 Continents, we will turn our attention to Europe and get a chance to explore the beautiful country of Italy. We will get the opportunity to learn a bit about the history of this amazing country and will have some fun learning about its’ culture as well. In Science, we will turn our attention to animal adaptations which will help us better understand how the amazing species that inhabit our planet are able to survive in some rather harsh habitats.

Spelling Words
letter      mother       found          study         much          such          church            search           march        starch           repeat subtract       divide        group
Challenge Words:          answer              remainder

Announcements/ Reminders
There is no school on Monday, January 18th because Dr. Martin Luther King Day! The remainder of the week should be regular schedule!

Have a great weekend and stay warm as it sounds like the frigid temperatures will return!
Mrs. Johnson

Week of January 11th-15th

Curriculum News

By the middle of this next week we should be wrapping up the novel, Charlotte’s Web, and moving on with an author study of one of my favorite children’s authors….Tomie dePaola.  He has been publishing children’s books for over 40 years and has written and/or illustrated over 250 books during this time.  Students will definitely enjoy the next couple of weeks as we explore some of his most popular stories!  During our Math time, we will be working on adding 2-digit numbers with regrouping and getting this very important skill mastered before moving on to more challenging and necessary skills!  Also, we are trying to push ahead with our addition/subtraction facts!  Keep practicing those as both need to be mastered before moving on to third grade! Our Social Studies time will be spent taking a closer look at the continent of North America.  Students will also get the opportunity to explore one of the fascinating countries found inside our own continent- Mexico!  This is always a great opportunity for 2nd graders to learn a bit about different cultures and the geography of different places on our beautiful Earth!

Spelling Words:

away      animal       house       point         page       desk         mask         task         ask         tusk      disk       events     equal        array

Challenge Words:        process          multiply

Announcements/ Reminders

This next week should be pretty calm with no early outs our upcoming events!  Just remember to keep reading and getting those reading logs turned in!  It is always so wonderful to see this class sharing and showing their excitement about reading!  Keep it up 2nd Grade!

Have a great weekend….stay warm!

Mrs. Johnson