Curriculum News

We will continue to take a closer look at the changing seasons during our reading/literacy block time.  This week, however, this topic will be mixed in with a bit of music appreciation ….perhaps a different type of music than what these students are used to enjoying.  Our studies will involve reading about Antonio Vivaldi and listening to one of his greatest pieces of work- his concerto the Four Seasons.  Students will also become more familiar with some of the instruments that are used in classical music which help create some beautiful classical works as well as bands enjoyed today!

Second grade show & tell will also be starting up the first week of October.  Please watch for a monthly calendar which will be sent next week to let students and parents know when their show & tell day is for that particular month.  Each student will get one day per month to bring in no more than 2 things to share and discuss with the class.  Students will also be asked a few questions by students about these special things and it will usually take place after lunch recess (at about 12:20).  If a parent needs to bring something in or needs to set up a different time, that is fine too.  All I ask is that you reach out to me the day before or the morning of to set up a different time!

Spelling  

sigh      light     right       might      high      tight      flight      bright      sight     fight    night     fright

 

Reminders/Announcements: 

*This is our Volleyball Homecoming Week.  We encourage students to get into the spirit by taking part in dress-up days.

-Monday- College Day- *Favorite College Gear

-Tuesday- Decade Day-60’s, 70’s, 80’s….etc

-Wednesday- * USA Day-*Wear Red, White, & Blue

-Thursday- Orange & Black Day

-Friday- Tie Dye Day- *Anything neon or tie-dyed

*Family Reading Night will be Tuesday, September 24^th at 6:00 PM.  The Fall Book Fair will also be open for students and families to browse and enjoy!

*There is an early dismissal on Wednesday, September 25^th at 11:30!               

 

Mrs. Johnson

Curriculum News

We will be continuing to take a closer look at the many different types of stories that are available to read.  So far we have focused mostly on fiction.  This upcoming week we will be turning our attention to non-fiction stories and will take a closer look at the best way to read and study these fascinating books.  This will also give us the opportunity to focus on some books that explain the changing seasons, as fall quickly approaches and we get to enjoy the beauty of the season!  Some of our writing activities will also focus on this fun time of year!

 

This week in Math we will be working on a variety of other skills that will hopefully continue to develop their retention of both addition and subtraction facts.  Please continue to work with your child on the addition facts, as we have recently begun timed tests using the Rocket Math program.  The only way to retain these facts is with practice, practice, practice…..you can do this 2^nd grade!   Our study of the ocean will continue in Science as we discuss the job of oceanographers and marine biologists as well as the different zones found in the ocean.  Students are doing fantastic at doing some “digging” to learn a bit more about the many fascinating creatures found in the ocean!

 

Spelling  

girl       dirt      shirt      first       fern      serve      nerve      term      herd       bird       swirl       perk

 

Reminders/Upcoming Dates

September 25^th– 11:30 Dismissal

October 9th^{th &}  10^th – Parent Teacher Conferences 3:30-7:00PM

October 11^th & 14^th – No School

October 31^st– Halloween Parade @ 1:00/ Classroom parties will follow the parade!

 

Have a great weekend!!!

Mrs. Johnson

Curriculum News

During our Reading/Literacy Block time, we will be taking a look at a variety of stories over the next week.  Each day we will discuss and look closely at a different genre.  Students will get a chance to explore some types of books that perhaps they have never taken a look at before and might even develop a new favorite type of books.  This upcoming week we will be focusing on fantasies, biographies, and adventure stories.  If anyone has a good example at home of one of these particular genres feel free to bring it in and share with the class.

This week in Math we will be looking at several more examples of addition strategies and putting them to use on our timed tests.  We will start out by taking them twice a week but will soon increase that to three times per week.  Students must have this basic math skill mastered before tackling more challenging math work so I encourage everyone to be practicing those addition facts!

Not only will we be continuing with our Ocean unit in the afternoons but we will also be taking a closer look at a variety of different kinds of maps.  As we prepare to take a closer look at the world around us, it is important for students to be comfortable using tools such as this. This will only help students better understand what kinds of amazing places and things can be seen around us!

 

Spelling  

saw      law       raw      straw      draw      hawk       lawn      claw      thaw       yawn       dawn        fawn

 

Reminders:

*No early dismissals this week!

*We will be continuing to take our Aimsweb Fall Testing this week.  Second grade will be taking theirs on Tuesday and Wednesday in the morning and will last approximately an hour!  Make sure you are rested and ready to go!!

 

Mrs. Johnson

Students are doing a fine job of getting into the swing of things and adjusting to our regular school schedule.  There still might be some rather warm days but we are well on our way towards Fall!  The first week of school in the month of September will find us quite busy as we will be taking our first set of benchmark tests.  Students will not be tested every day and the tests are quite short.  These will be given at 3 different times throughout the school year to help give us an idea of where students stand and which areas we need to work on.  So students, show up ready to show us how smart you really are!  I have already seen some wonderful things from this group!

 

Curriculum News

During our Reading/Literacy Block time in the morning, we will continue with our Cynthia Rylant author study.   She has written many beloved children’s books such as the Henry and Mudge Series and has written numerous other amazing books which students have enjoyed.  During Math, we will be looking at many different strategies for improving our addition and subtraction skills.  We will be taking a closer look at maps and map skills during our Social Studies time.  We will also have some time to look at writing better sentences as we explore the different types of sentences during our English/Grammar time.  There is so much to cover this week!  This week’s spelling words are given below.  Remember that the test is given on Friday!

Spelling  

rain      mail      wait       paid       bait      sail     aim     pain     main     paint      train     aid

 

Reminders

* Just a reminder, if your child comes home with their things in a garbage bag it is just to help prevent the spread of lice.  We have not had any cases at all this year so far and have found that it is something that does truly help keep this from being spread among belongings that are brought to school.  Sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause!  Thank you for your help with this matter!

*There is no school on Monday, September 2^nd because of Labor Day.  Have a wonderful holiday weekend and enjoy the last “unofficial” weekend of summer!

 

Mrs. Johnson

 

Welcome back to school!  With our first full week under our belt, we are now off and running within a brand new school year!  It is always an exciting time of year.  By now, hopefully students feel more at ease about being upstairs with me and are ready to settle in to what will be a fantastic school year!

 

Thus far, we have mostly been going over and getting used to our new routines.  We have started to get into the first four areas of our Daily 5 / Literacy Block time.  Students are getting a better understanding of what my expectations are and how things run in 2^nd grade.  We have also spent some time learning a bit about the fascinating and beautiful ocean habitat.  We will be spending quite a bit of time on this at the beginning of the school year and at times throughout the year.   In math we have been starting back at the basics.  We have been discussing some basic addition strategies.  We will be starting with some Timed Addition Tests in a few weeks.  Students will get 2 minutes to complete 40 problems.  They will pass the level that they are on if they miss 2 or less.  Judging by what I am hearing from them, they will do fantastic with this!  We are starting our day with a morning meeting which allows us to form a stronger sense of community by sharing and discussing important topics and upcoming events!  It is always an excellent way to kick off our day!

 

This next week will mark the beginning of our spelling tests.  They will be given on every Friday.  I will post them to this website on the Friday before so that you can have extra time to study.  Students will also get a hard copy of the words on the Monday of that same week.  We will practice these words in class each week and there will be at least one other worksheet given each week to help them get familiar with the words.   Below are this week’s spelling words!

 

Spelling

cart       park        hard        barn         card          shark          warm       farm        yard       start       dark       sharp

 

Reminders

This week will be back to our regular 3:14 dismissal time.  Picture Day will be Tuesday, August 27th.  Order forms were sent home on Monday.  If more are needed, contact the office and we will be happy to send another one home.  Welcome back everyone!

 

Mrs. Johnson

Welcome back to a wonderful school year! I have no idea where the summer went but I couldn’t be more excited about another school year with some amazing students here at Hartsburg-Emden. There will be so much to learn and fun to be had that I am certain that it will be another fantastic school year!
This website/blog will be updated weekly and is usually done on a Thursday evening or on Friday morning. Don’t forget to check back because this is where you will find updated information concerning upcoming activities and events along with a weekly spelling list that can be accessed at any time from home! ClassDojo will also be used to share photos and updates of daily and weekly events happening in our classroom!
I look forward to working with all of you and to having a fantastic 22019-2020 school year!
Mrs. Johnson
*There is no spelling test during the first week of school! Hooray!!!!

Curriculum News & Information

It is so hard to believe that we are in the last week of our 2017-2018 school year.  I do not know where the past nine months have gone.  During our final week we will be taking a look at some fun summertime stories to get kids ready for their break.  This will allow us to talk a bit about summertime safety tips.  Students will also be writing a bit about their summer plans and activities that they are looking forward to participating in over the next several months.  I do strongly encourage all students to keep up with their reading through the summer…..even if it is 5 minutes a day.  We want students to start off strong when they return in August and I do expect great things from this group!  I will continue to keep the website RAZ Kids open for this class to use throughout the summer.  They know how to log on and are familiar with how it works.  Please also encourage them to practice their math facts as many are still struggling with the memorization of the basic addition/subtraction facts.  This will only help ensure success in the following year of school!

Obviously there will be no spelling test during our last week of school.  We will also be done with our assignment books.  Each day next week we will probably be sending some things home so please bring book bags each day next week!

I also want to thank all of the parents for helping encourage and push your students to be the best that they can be.  It has truly been a pleasure having this wonderful group of second grade students!  As I said before, I do see this group doing some amazing things in the future!  Hope everyone has a safe and wonderful summer break!

 

Reminders/Announcements:

Monday (27^th)- No School/ Memorial Day

Tuesday (28^th)-Fun Video Day

Wednesday (29^)- Walking Shoes Day

Thursday (30^th)-Exchange Autographs Day & 2:00 Dismissal

Friday (31^st)- Yellow Day & 2:00 Dismissal

Monday (3^rd)- Zoom Out of School Day & 11:30 Dismissal

 

Mrs. Johnson

 

 

Curriculum News

  During our Reading/Literacy time, we will be wrapping up our unit on famous artists and will begin our Summer Unit.  This will give us a chance to look at a lot of fun stories that celebrate the upcoming season.  This will lead us into some fun but worthwhile discussions about summer safety and fun and will allow us to use our creative ideas to come up with some fun, adventurous stories about summertime.

In Math we will be spending more time with fractions before moving on to the topic of measurement.  This will allow us to look at different ways to measure mass, liquids,  length, and weight.  We will also be reviewing some of the important concepts covered this school year!

During our Science time we will continue to take a look at our environment and the weather.  This will give us the opportunity to talk about the many different types of weather phenomenon that take place here in Illinois as well as around the world!

 

Spelling Words (Last Test of the School Year)

ocean   vacation   watermelon   jumping    heat   sand    insects    running     pineapple    saltwater    swimming    July      June     sandals

 

Reminders/News

*We are officially done with reading logs!  Keep reading throughout the summer!

Dress Up/Theme Days

Monday- Quiet Day

Tuesday-Rainbow Reading Day

Wednesday-Sunglasses Day

Thursday- Team Day

Friday- USA Day

 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Johnson

Curriculum News

  During our Reading/Literacy time, we will be taking a look at several different stories written by the author Laurence Anholt.  While he has written a variety of types of books, we will be focusing on some of his stories that tell a bit more about some very well-known artists.  Our stories will also give us a chance to look at some very famous works of art such as Van Gogh’s Sunflower painting and Monet’s Water Lillies….just to name a few.  Students will also be working a bit more on their concept books as we try to complete them before the end of the school year!

In Math we will be spending our time working with fractions.  Students will get the opportunity to see how important fractions are as we take a closer look at how they are used in our daily lives.  We will still continue our work with reviewing basic facts to help ensure retention as they progress to more challenging concepts in the years to come.

During our Science time we will continue to take a look at our environment and the weather.  We will be tracking and monitoring our weather and get a taste of what it takes to be a meteorologist!

 

Spelling Words

helpful     cheerful    useful   painful    careful    awful    thankful   grateful   forgetful   joyful   hopeful   tearful

 

Reminders/News

*No early outs or special events!

Dress Up/Theme Days

Monday- Letters to Your Teacher Day (L)

Tuesday-Mismatch Day (M)

Wednesday-Neon Day (N)

Thursday- Orange Day (O)

Friday- Pajama Day (P)

 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Johnson

Curriculum News

  Students will be continuing their work with concept books.  They will be given more time to do some research on their chosen topic.  During this time we will also be taking a look at some stories that reinforce those character traits that we have studied throughout the school year!

For math, we will continue to work on a few different geometry skills.  We will discuss the many different kinds of shapes along with working with fractions!  During our Science time we will be studying the topic of weather a bit more closely.  They will soon have a better idea of how meteorologists do their job and how they use science to determine our forecasts.

Students have continued to do very well with their reading logs!  We are down to our last 2 weeks of completing these!  Keep reading everyone!

 

Spelling Words

fastest     slowest   biggest     shortest     loudest    softest   smartest    bravest    greatest     tallest    hardest     funniest

 

Reminders/Announcements: 

  *Our K,1, & 2 field trip will be occurring on Tuesday, May 7^th.  We will be leaving at approximately 8:45 and returning between 2:00-2:30 that day.  We will be visiting the Kidzeum in Springfield.  This is a rather new and fun educational place for students to visit!  We will be breaking up into groups and exploring different areas which will allow students the opportunity to learn a bit more about their health and how to take care of their bodies.  If you turned in a form stating that you were bringing your sack lunch, don’t forget to pack it in a paper or plastic bag.  We will have coolers available to transport lunches.  There is no need to bring anything else!  We look forward to a fun-filled day!

 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Johnson