March 31- April 4

Reading

This week in reading we will be going over some important skills and concepts to help prepare us for our research unit starting next week. We will be reviewing topic vs. main idea, supporting details, and text features. At the end of the week, students will have the opportunity to use their very own tool kits to help organize their thoughts while reading a nonfiction article.

Writing

Our friendly letters are on the way to their destination.  This week we are going to create our own versions of Mr./Ms. Potato head!  We will focus on writing using descriptive language and correct transition words.   This is a fun way to dig deeper into our vocabulary.  

Spelling

Our words have “bossy r” again this week.  We will practice throughout the week and check for understanding on Friday.  

Math

This week is going to be long as we dive into measurement. We are beginning with length this week. We will learn that an inch is about the length of a paperclip and a yard is close to a baseball bat. We will go to great lengths to measure monsters and measure how far a buddy can jump.  

Science:

This week we are moving into a new unit in science. Students will observe, record, and compare how the physical characteristics and behaviors of animals help them meet their basic needs such as fins help fish move and balance in water.  We’ll sing a fun science rock song called “Plants and Animals.”  Students will have an engaging lab where they will identify how physical characteristics are used to help animals survive in their environment.  We’ll discuss how noses, eyes and limbs are useful.

Can a beetle walk on a raised tightrope?  We’ll find out in a very exciting experiment that students are going to do with live beetles and yarn!

As a class, students will research a habitat and one animal that lives in that habitat. We’ll discuss all the adaptations for their animal to survive in that habitat. Students will then create their own animal and identify its characteristics, behavior and adaptations to their environment.

Reminders

**No Parent Volunteers- Tuesday and Wednesday due to STAAR testing

• Family Fun Night is Friday, April 4th at 6:30
• Life Journals due Friday
• Spelling check on Friday
• Library day is Thursday

March 24-28

Reading

This week in reading we will be practicing retelling a story. As a class, we’ll be making a story map using illustrations and sentences to help us retell a story. Students will have the opportunity to create their own story maps on their own as well!

Writing

This week we will continue working on the parts of a friendly letter.  We review the date, greeting, body, and closing.  We’ll discuss the purpose of friendly letters and begin writing our letters.  We will find a clear purpose for writing the letters.  We will work through the writing process to create a well written letter.

Spelling

Our words have “bossy r” this week.  We will practice throughout the week and check for understanding on Friday.  

Math

We are going 3 dimensional this week. We will learn about the edges, vertices, and faces of several different 3D shapes. We will learn how the point of a cone isn’t a vertex and a sphere is just one large curved surface. After reviewing on Thursday, we will check what we learned at the end of the week.  

Science:

This week we are going to be scientists and observe the appearance of objects in the sky, such as the Sun and Moon.  We will learn about how they change position and appearance at different times.  We’ll have fun singing our Science Rock song called “Objects in the Sky.”  Students will discuss how they have seen the moon’s appearance change and why.  Phases of the moon will be fun to observe when we make our own salt dough moons and watch how it changes.  We’ll ask ourselves, “does the moon really change shape? Or does it just look like it does?”  At the end of the week we will make fun moon phases w/ shaving cream and glue.  

Reminders

• Group picture day on Tuesday, March 25th. Pictures must be ordered ahead of time. Individual portraits will also be taken. Proofs will be sent home for later purchase.
• Life Journals due Friday
• Library day is Thursday

March 17-21

Reading

This week students will recognize different purposes of media. They will use their comprehension skills to analyze how words, graphics, images, and sounds work together in various forms to impact meaning. Students will have the opportunity to explore newspapers, magazine articles, commercials, etc.

Required supplies: Please bring a cereal box stuffed with newspaper and covered with white paper for a fun activity- due March 17th

Writing

This week we will work on the parts of a friendly letter.  We will learn about the date, greeting, body, and closing.  We’ll also be able to recognize parts of a letter by reading examples.  We’ll discuss the purpose of friendly letters and who we could write a letter to.  We’ll end the week by creating a “letter doll” and brainstorming a first draft in writer’s workshop.

Spelling

We will practice taking the singular form of a word and making it plural.  Our words will end with -y, -f, -lf, fe, rf.  We will practice throughout the week and check for understanding on Friday.  

Math

We are getting in shape this week with a new unit on geometry! We are beginning with 2D shapes or plane shapes before moving into 3D shapes. We will learn some new vocabulary, such as edge, face, and vertex. Through some fun Star Wars activities, second grade will be in perfect shape in no time!

Science:

This will be a review week of weather and the water cycle.  We’ll begin our week with a fun experiment for making clouds. We will do an interactive virtual investigation, where we’ll move through the water cycle and see how weather conditions are connected.  Our sense of humor will get a laugh as students write a Wacky Water Mad Lib and share with their classmates.  Going on a trip and don’t know what to pack?  Well, not anymore because we’re doing a fun packing for the weather activity.  Students will imagine they are a weather reporter for a television station that will travel to three different locations to record live weather reports. Students will get to pretend to pack a suitcase for each of their trips.  At the end of the week we will review with a jeopardy challenge and then assess on Friday, March 21.

Reminders

• Life Journals due Friday
• Spelling check on Friday
• Library day is Wednesday
• Early Release Day: March 19