September 4th through 7th

Parents,
We had a great first week of second grade. Everyone had fun getting to know more about our classmates! 

No school on Monday! Enjoy your day off! 

Language Arts:
We will be starting Daily 5 this week. Daily 5 is our reading program that has five components. We are beginning the first component this week called Read to Self. After lots of practice, the goal is for students to be able to sit and read for 20 uninterrupted minutes. We will be introducing the rest of components in the following weeks. We will also begin learning about and using different strategies to improve our reading, such as checking for understanding. 

Writing:
In writing, we will be reviewing what makes a complete sentence. We will also be discussing the different types of sentences (interrogative, declaratory, etc.) and how we use them in writing. 

Math:
This week in math we will be focusing on time again. We will be reviewing the basics of analog clocks and telling time to the 5's (12:00, 12:05, 12:10, etc.) Homework is a worksheet called "Draw the Hands," and will come home on Tuesday and will be due Wednesday.

Social Studies:
This week we will be discussing different cultural elements. We will discuss holidays and why we celebrate them. We will also discuss cultural celebrations unique to Austin, such as Pioneer Days and the Hairy Man Festival. We will wrap up the week with a discussion about monuments around the United States and Austin and why they are important. 

Reminders:

Open House or Orientation is on Monday, September 10th. Second grade's time is at 6:30, followed by a PTA meeting. Grades 3-5 are at 7:30 after the PTA meeting. 

If you haven't returned the forms that were sent home in the Tuesday folders, please do so as soon as possible!

We will have lunch every day at 11:15. Your child can bring a lunch or eat from the cafeteria. If you plan to join your child for lunch, please let me know so I can mark down your lunch choice. Adult lunches cannot be put onto student accounts, and need to be ordered in the morning since our lunch is delivered to the school.  There are extra sides your child can purchase, in addition to the lunch. Your child will need permission to purchase these extras.  Please send me an email and let me know.

Make sure you are recording your child's reading minutes in the yellow communication log as well as signing in the box! 

August 27th- August 31st

It was great to meet so many of you this morning at "Meet the Teacher".  Our first day of second grade is right around the corner and I couldn't be more excited!  We have some neat activities planned and I know your children will just love second grade.  

Language Arts:
Second grade will have an Olympic theme this week.  We will be working on many things such as interviews and glyphs to learn more about each other. We will discuss and write about what expectations second graders have including manners and school rules.  We hope you will continue to read at home.  All second graders are expected to read 100 minutes a week.  You will be able to record their reading time in the communication folder that comes home every day.  

Math:
This week we will focus on time.  We will review analog and digital times and counting by fives.  Math homework will come home on Tuesdays this year and it will be due on Wednesdays.  There is no homework the first week of school.  

Social Studies:
We will talk about what makes a "gold medal" second grader this week!  We will also practice filling each other's buckets with compliments.  We will review the school behavior goals: Be Safe, Be Responsible, and Be Respectful and make some posters to share with the rest of the school.  

Reminders for the Week:
* Go to the cafeteria in the morning and sit with our class until the bell rings at 7:35
* Your child will be counted tardy if they are not in our classroom by 7:45
* Please send a nutritious snack each day
* Open House is September 5th (details to come)
* Send back communication folders each day, signed
* "What lights you up" homework is due on Friday, August 31st
* Me in a Nutshell (brown bag) homework is due Friday, August 31st
* Complete and return pink cards on Wednesday (they will be in the Tuesday folders)

Have a great rest of your weekend, and I will see everyone on Monday morning!

-Ms. Hoveland

Meet Ms. Hoveland

This is my first year at Caraway and I am excited to be part of this wonderful school and to be your child's teacher!

I attended Trinity University in San Antonio and graduated in 2010. I stayed an extra year to work on my Master's degree in Teaching and graduated the following May. I came up to Austin every weekend during the fall for Texas football and I knew I had to move here after I graduated!

I love everything about teaching and I am honored to have your child in my class this year. I am excited to come to school everyday and look forward to learning and laughing with my students! During the year we will focus on the individuality that makes each child unique and every student will learn to appreciate and value the differences in all of us. I also hope to instill a love of learning in each child and promote an appetite for new knowledge and unique experiences. This is going to be a great year of learning and trying new things. Parents, I look forward to working with you this year in order to give your child the best experience possible!

Welcome to Second Grade!