January 5th-8th

Writing

We will be learning all about persuasive language and how to write an effective persuasive letter. We will explore various mentor texts and create our own persuasive piece.

Reading

This week in reading we will review expectations for reader’s workshop.  Students will make new reading goals for the semester and decide how to achieve their reading goals.  We will also begin to learn about the author's purpose for writing persuasive, informational and expository texts.

Math

We are starting the new year with fractions! We will learn how to partition a whole into equal parts and learn the names of those parts. Also, we will see how the more pieces that the whole is cut into, the smaller the pieces will be. We will learn to count by fractional parts when there is more than one whole.

We are learning about fractions with food! Let me know if you can bring in any of the following:

2 boxes of honey graham crackers

1 jar of chocolate frosting

Reeces Pieces

Mini M&Ms

Mini marshmallows

Important: In second grade we teach kids to talk about and write fractions using words, (one half) not the typical number notation (½). If you could help us stay consistent at home, that would be great!  

Get in on the fun at home: cook with your child and talk about measurements. If a cup is your whole, what will one half look like or one fourth?

Science:

We have finished our playground models this week. We will be taking our descriptive paragraph about them and using it to help us write persuasive letters to our school district about why our designs should be considered in the building of our playground here at Caraway. We will also be reading about several different types of disabilities, including visual impairments, hearing impairments, autism, and learning disabilities to help us write with empathy and better make our case.   

Research question of the week: What are the “Northern Lights”? Where are they and what creates them?

Reminders:

MLK Day- January 18th