Warm Winter Wishes

I hope you were able to stay warm this windy and cold weekend! Our recess times have brought with them chilly play and bundled up second graders!
As we enter our last week together in 2010… here are a few notes from the classroom!
Many children are starting to run low on classroom supplies like glue sticks, crayons, markers… and especially dry erase markers. We use dry erase markers every day for math, so these have become quite important! I am now out of my class supply. Please ask your child if they are in need of any supplies for when we return in January.
Writing- We have been working really hard on a special writing project. This project has put to use our paragraph writing skills and knowledge of the writing process. Your child will be bringing this project home this week to share with you! This week we will also be thinking about our favorite winter things to do. The class will be making their own snow globe to go along with their writing!
Math- This week we wrap up our current unit. I am continually impressed with the hard work your children are showing me everyday. Thank you for helping to make sure homework is completed and returned to school. Sharing and correcting their homework with a math partner has proved a great opportunity to enrich so many math skills and math language.
Health- Over the last few weeks we have spent time talking about personal safety, staying well, and how to make good choices with medicine and drugs.

• This Thursday we will have our Gingerbread day! On this day our first and second graders will rotate between six different classrooms participating in many kinds of gingerbread activities… to many a favorite day of the year!

• Birthday breakfast is this Wednesday.

• Winter party Friday afternoon.

• This Friday we say goodbye to one of our classmates Miles. He and his family will be moving and not retuning in January. If your child has a special note they would like to send with him, I encourage them to bring it by Friday. We will plan to keep in touch and write to Miles whenever we get a chance! We will miss you Miles!

I hope you all have a safe and restful break with your family! I look forward to seeing you when we return in 2011.

Amber Crooker

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I want you to know how much I enjoyed visiting with all of you at conferences. I am enjoying sharing your children with you this year!
Here are a few curriculum notes before we leave for break:

Social Studies- Last week we began a new unit about our past. We started looking in depth at the first Thanksgiving and the pilgrim’s journey. We spent sometime studying totem poles and even created our own in class! We also extended on our understanding of picture/symbol writings and took some time to write our own symbol stories in class. This week each second grader was paired up to research two different Native American tribes and created a venn diagram comparing how they are alike and different.

Writing- Our writing last week followed the theme of… turkeys! Monday each child took a basic everyday work and used a thesaurus to come up with more interesting words. Each of the “interesting” words was displayed on the feathers of a turkey… our thesaurus turkeys! We have spent a lot of time thinking about the things we are thankful for and even wrote a journal from a pilgrim’s point of view. This week we took some time to write funny made up stories about silly turkeys.

Math- In math we have been working on estimating, odd vs. even, and two digit addition. This week I introduced the paper pencil strategy of carrying. This is one of the new strategies they can use when solving problems on homework.

I hope you have a restful and safe Thanksgiving break with your family. Enjoy!

Conference Week!

I can not wait to meet with you at conferences this week! If something has changed in your schedule please let me know as soon as possible. As always with conference, it is important to arrive on time, as many conferences are scheduled back to back. I am looking forward to sharing all of your student’s great work with you!
Last week we wrapped up our study of the human body and have spent this short week studying the food guide pyramid. We constructed a class pyramid and have created our own healthy menus!
Last week we also wrapped up our study of time telling and will be spending the next few weeks focusing on place value and representing numbers in different ways. We will also be learning about two digit addition strategies.
In writing this week we spent some time writing about things we are thankful for and have wrapped up our “How to Draw a Monster” how- to activity.
I hope you have a restful long weekend and I look forward to seeing many of you soon!

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!
This week a conference form went home with your child. Please confirm your conference time and return the form to school as soon as you are able. If for some reason you are not able to attend your conference time, please let me know and we can look at rescheduling. You should also see coming home a pink pre-conference form. If you could take a few moments to fill this form out, it will let me know what specific things you would like to discuss at your child’s conference. Return this form to school by November 3rd.
This week we have been celebrating red ribbon week! Friday is the last day as we say “boo” to drugs. Tuesday we were the audience for the sixth grade music program, dress rehearsal
Curriculum information-
Writing- This week we have continued our unit on descriptive paragraphs. Monday each child was given a paper bag with an object inside. Using descriptive writing each child took turns trying to get their friends to guess their mystery object! Last week we used apples as our inspiration. First we collected information using our five senses as we “experienced” an apple. Step by step we took this information through the writing process. The end result was a descriptive paragraph about apples. This week we used another fall favorite to inspire our writing… pumpkins!
Math- Last week we wrapped up our unit on story problems. Our focus now shifts to telling time. Wednesday we had a “mix it up” day. In efforts to focus instruction to our students needs, we grouped our second graders for additional practice in telling time, using the clock, and other time skills.
Animated literacy- We continue to work on parts of speech and are practicing contractions.
Science- We are studying about the 6 body systems in science. So far we have learned about the skeletal, muscular, digestive, and respiratory system. We even made our own skeletons… Thursday we will decorate them for Halloween! Next week we will take a look at the last two systems and will take our end of unit test.

Friday is the big Halloween class party. Just a reminder that we will begin putting on costumes around 2:10pm and to refrain from blood and weapons on costumes. I am looking forward to seeing all the fun costumes! It sounds like the room moms have a fun party planned.

Have a safe and fun weekend!

Beautiful Autumn Day!

I hope autumn is treating everyone well and that you and your 2nd graders are finding time to enjoy the beautiful weather! This week we made stain glass pumpkins to hang by our window… and spooky bats to hang from the ceiling.

Curriculum for the next few weeks is as follows:

Math - In the third unit of Math Expressions, students continue looking at different types of story problems. I am really impressed with the progress they are making in showing their thought processes for various types of problems! We continue to look at examples of change plus, change minus, comparison, and collection story problems. This week, we have examined story problems that have either too much information or not enough information as well as solve story problem with multiple steps. Thank you for your continued support with math homework!

Writing - Students have been working on different paragraph writing activities. We touched on descriptive paragraphs about autumn (be sure to check out the 2nd grade display in the pod!) and are currently working on paragraphs about memories. They are wrapping up these paragraphs about their memory boxes!

Spelling - As spelling lists and pattern sorts become more challenging, it is so important that students continue to practice at home. Please help your child remember that some sort of spelling homework is due at least once a week...this can be anything from an art project using spelling words to words written out on a sheet of paper to a sticky note from you saying he or she wrote words with sidewalk chalk. It is also important to spend time studying the meaning of these words.

Health - This afternoon, students were assessed on our unit on taking care of the body, eyes, and ears. Next week, we will begin to study the different body systems, starting with the skeletal system and the muscular system. Thanks to those of you who have sent in books, X-Rays, and models...a big thank you to Mrs. Knapp for coming in to share the spine and heart with our class!

Reading - Students continue to work hard in their guided reading groups! Don't forget that reading group books that come home can be used on daily reading logs! Our author of the month is Mem Fox; we continue to read many of her best loved stories from Australia.

There will be no school next Friday, October 22.
There are sixth graders at school raising money for the oil spill in the gulf. This will continue through October. If you would like to send a check make it payable to: National Wildlife Federation.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Autumn Has Arrived!

It sure feels like autumn has finally arrived. We have been enjoying this cooler weather at recess. We are waiting patiently for our Monarch butterflies to emerge… many of our chrysalises are turning transparent. Hopefully by next week we will have 11 beautiful butterflies!
Last week each student performed their reader’s theatres for the kindergarten classes. They did such a fantastic job showcasing their reading fluency.
This Wednesday we wrapped up our study of butterflies and moths. The class did a really great job on their tests! This week we will begin our next science unit about the body. We will first take a look at hair, skin, and nails… followed by a study of the eye and ear. We will be looking at models of the eye and ear to study how each of them help us and how they work. Next week we will be visited by an ophthalmologist who will speak to us about proper eye care. There are a few health links on our blog to check out!
In writing our class has been working on using good word choice. They have been participating in fun class activities to help us “spice up” our writing and even got to use a thesaurus. Next week we will put our sentence writing skills to the test as we begin paragraph writing. Now that all of the memory boxes have been shared, each child will select their favorite item they brought in and will write their first published paragraph!
Tuesday our Boys and Girls Club leader Miss Laura came to show us a presentation on internet safety. I have added a link to Netsmartz on our blog. This is a safe site that teaches about internet safety in a fun way.
Our class earned their first marble party Wednesday and celebrated with pjs, stuffed animals, and a short movie! This was a fun reward for all of their hard work and super behavior!
Next week we will begin our new author study featuring Mem Fox. She is the author of the book our memory box project was based on Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge.
Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the weekend!

Our Caterpillars are Growing!

We have had a very busy week this week in second grade! Our larvae continue to munch away and are growing by the day! We continue to make written and picture observations of their growth. In science we are studying the stages of the life cycle and even made a life cycle using various types of pasta! The second important thing that we have been studying is the difference between butterflies and moths.
Good News!... Reading groups will begin Monday the 20th! We are very excited to begin and start getting into routine. I want to stress the importance of the reading group folder. The night your child brings this home they are to read it and return it the very next day. Our first and second grade policy about folders is that if they are not ready and returned on that next day, your child will be asked to turn a card.
In writer’s workshop we have been writing our first published personal narratives! The true stories about our lives have been fun to read and fun to write! This writing requires we put our sentence writing skills to work! This week we have also begun to finally plan and write our letters! This planning, writing, editing, making a clean copy, and addressing of envelopes will take us into next week. It is fun to hear the class talk about how fun it is to write and “snail mail” letters!
In math we have been super busy! We have been talking about equations and how “partner” numbers are interchangeable in what we call a fact family. This week each table brainstormed together all types of combinations of numbers that would equal a number given to them. After all of their brainstorming… each table worked together to write all of the equations on strips; those were then connected to make “equation chains”. This week we met a new math friend named Bob… Bob is an alligator who is helping us to understand greater than and less than. We have been working on place value to order numbers.
Just a small thank you for helping your child to complete and send back math homework! Each child gets an opportunity to share their strategies used on math homework, we call this math talk, each day with many different classmates using a cooperative learning strategy called Mix, Pair, and Share!

*If you have not contacted our room moms with your child’s contact information and would like to be a part of the class directory, please contact Amanda Elo at ajaveyard@yahoo.com. They are putting together a resource that can be beneficial for play dates, parties, and other get togethers.

Coming up… this weekend there is a butterfly tagging even 9/18 at the Baker Wetlands. The even will be from 7:30-11:30 am. This event is open to the public!

Enjoy the holiday!

Just a quick note to check in about our week…

This week we began practicing for our first reader’s theatre puppet shows! Hopefully we will have these ready to perform for an audience next week. This is our final project with our Jolly Postman/fairy tale unit.
Next week we will begin applying our sentence skills as we start writing personal narratives. These stories about our lives are sure to be fun!
Although the testing continues for reading group placement… we will begin reading skill groups in the mean time beginning next Tuesday. We will be working with various reading strategies and comprehension activities.
In science we continue to study about butterflies and moths. Our Monarch larvae is scheduled to arrive next Monday! We can’t wait to begin our observations!
Our first research project will begin on Tuesday. Each child has been partnered up and assigned a specific butterfly or moth to begin gathering information. The final project will be called a “report in a can” and will be displayed in the library. (If you have any clean soup/vegetable cans to send in… we will need 13 total.)

Some important dates coming up:
September 10th- Grandparent day 3:00pm
September 13th- Picture day


If a family would like to be included in a class, please contact Amanda Elo at ajaveyard@yahoo.com or 785-856-0570 with your information. Participation is optional, but if you would like to be included, please contact Amanda by Friday, 9/10. The following information should be provided:
Child's name
Parent's names
Siblings names (and grades is applicable)
Address
Phone number to use to contact the family

Email address to use to contact the family


Enjoy your long weekend!

In Full Swing!

Well... it looks like our school year is in full swing and keeping very busy! We have been keeping our agenda full. In writing we have been working on our sentence writing skills. We have been studying the various components of what makes a complete sentence. We put our skills to work writing friendly letters to our new principal Mrs. Mickel, our author study Kevin Henkes, and many fairy tale creatures.
Our journey with the Jolly Postman is coming to a close with the many versions of The Three Little Pigs. Along the way we have been practicing our sequencing skills and story components. Friday we will begin an activity called goal mapping, with a book called The Three Little Javalinas.
Our librarian Mrs. Fredrickson, has spent the last few weeks helping us to pick "just right" books. We used the acronym CAN IT Be good? to guide our discussions. C-cover, A-author, N-number of pages, I-illustrator, T-title, and B-blurb.
In science we began our study of different animal life cycles and the basic parts of insects. This understanding will lead in to our unit on butterflies! Our caterpillars arrive September 7th! We are looking forward to learning the parts of the caterpillars, components of the butterfly life cycle, and all there is to know about these amazing insects!
If you have any questions about parent night, or the information sent home, please do not hesitate to ask. Thank you for your support with reading at home and math homework. Just a reminder that math homework will be going home on most evenings. As a good rule of thumb, if your child is spending more than 20/30 min on this work, please let me know. Also, one spelling homework is due every Tuesday. If your child's practice isn't something easily turned in, a note that your child practiced is plenty!
Friday we will get a chance to meet our fifth grade book buddies. Next week we will get to spend more time reading and getting to know them!

Have a wonderful and safe weekend!

Beginning a New School Year!

I am so excited to be starting a new school year! It has been great getting to know your 2nd graders the past few days. Rather than sending home a paper newsletter this year, I will be posting important class information on this blog. When there is an update, I will send out an e-mail. I plan to update at least every other week. I encourage you to check in often. To the right, there are several links that will be helpful to you and your 2nd grade student this year! These links will change periodically to tie in with our curriculum.
We have been busy these first few days of school with many fun and engaging activities. One of the big introductory units we have started is called the Jolly Postman. We are visiting many familiar fairy tales and have been practicing our sequencing activities.

Don't forget that the 2nd grade curriculum night is tomorrow, Thursday, August 19, at 6:00 in our classroom. I hope to see all of you then!

Mrs. Amber Crooker

Welcome back to school!

Well... it is that time of the year and school is ready to begin! I am excited about this upcoming year and can't wait to get to know you and your families. Instead of a weekly newsletter I will be posting all information about class events and other information on this site. The blog will also offer sites and links supporting our curriculum at school. You will receive an email notification when a new posting is uploaded.
I am looking forward to meeting with you at Curriculum Night next week!

Mrs. Crooker

Happy Summer!

I can not believe I am sitting at my computer… writing our last blog! Where did the school year go? The last few weeks of school are full of fun, friendship… and still a lot of learning!
In math this week we will wrap up our math unit on function machines. We have been learning the patterns of what happens to numbers when they enter this special machine. These machines have rules such as doubling, add 7, or subtract 2. We also have been using data to investigate real life situations… such as how many kids are in our classroom families! We have also taken our end of the year assessment.
Last week the Boys and Girls coordinator Miss Laura, came to talk to us about internet safety using an online program called Netsmartz. She shared all of the games on this “safe site” that are fun for kids!
We have taken some time these last few weeks to reflect upon the projects, fun times, and memories we have made in second grade. Our bulletin board in our pod is a “buzz” with memories! Each student chose a memory from the year to write about and made a buzzing bee to go with!
Our end of the year science unit is called All About Animals. As a class we have taken time to look at what makes an animal a vertebrate and invertebrate. We have also studied how many animals have learned to adapt to their environment in order to survive! Each student created a poster of their animal and labeled what adaptations help this animal to eat and live.
Friday this week is… field day! We will also be having a pizza party for lunch thanks to our room moms If your child would like to have pizza that day, please do not send lunch with your child to school.
Next Monday we will be participating in yearbook signing and Tuesday is our end of year celebration called blue and silver!

I just want to take this moment to thank you for sharing your children with me this year. I have truly enjoyed having each and every one of them in my classroom and have learned just as much from them as they have probably learned from me! I hope you all have a fun and restful summer. Encourage your child to keep reading, writing, and thinking about the world around them! I hope to see you around Langston in the fall! Happy Summer!

Mrs. Amber Crooker

Welcome May!

Welcome to May! Believe it or not… May is finally here! Our week kicked off with our visits from Jr. Achievement. Our teacher is from Peoples Bank and has been teaching us about jobs in our community and assembly line production. She will continue her lessons through this week.
We have finally wrapped up our non-fiction books! I am in the process of grading them and can not wait to send them home for your child to share with you! I am so happy with how they turned out. They put so much time and effort into this writing project. Our next unit in writing is called “You are in the picture”. Each student was given the choice of a picture book. They then were asked to select a picture that looked the most interesting. Next they wrote down what they could see, feel, hear, smell, and maybe taste in the picture. The final project will be a descriptive piece of writing!
In math we have started measuring distance, looking at direction, and have been using the axis to locate objects. Mr. Origin has been helping us to learn directions!
Monday a “Teach the Class” form was sent home with your child. Please take some time to discuss with your child, what they might want to teach their classmates. Return form by May 11th. If you have any questions please ask!
In spelling this week, we will begin reviewing patterns and will be working on theme words for the rest of the month!
We had such a fun week last week during Wellness Week! By far the highlight was a visit from KC Wolf from the KC Chiefs!! He came to talk to us about how important it is to eat a healthy diet and stay active! Thursday we had a smoothie challenge… although our recipe was not chosen as the winner, we had a lot of fun trying our smoothies!
Field trip… take 2! We are scheduled to go to the KC zoo on May 11th. I will send another reminder note home about sack lunch that day. Thank you for your patience and let’s think good thought about the weather!

Great trip to the Wetlands!

We had a great trip to the Wetlands last week! Thank you to all of the volunteers who were able to chaperone our class! The weather was beautiful, so there were many wildlife creatures out for us to see!
A note went home today with information about our next field trip to the KC Zoo. If you have any questions, please let me know. If you are signed up to chaperone our class on this trip there was also a hot pink form with information for you sent home with your child. The most important things to remember is to arrive on time to school that day (we leave at 9:00am) and to bring a sack lunch with all disposable items labeled with your child’s name and class.

Last week we wrapped up out study of area. Your children really became interested in making shapes and counting area. They loved using the geoboards and geobands to do this! We just began to work with 3D shapes this week. So far we have learned the names of the shapes including prisms and pyramids. We will be learning the attributes of each shape including the following: edges, vertices (corners/points), face (sides), if it’s able to be stacked, and if it can roll.

Our nonfiction books about our animals are getting close to being finished! Many groups have begun working on a glossary and index this week. When we are finished each child will have a copy to take home! They have put so much effort and time into this project! I have been so proud of their work!

In science we continue to study Herps… reptiles and amphibians. Last week we looked at the lizard family and then compared them with the newts and salamanders. This week we have taken a closer look at the turtle and will begin studying crocodiles and alligators as the week comes to an end. We will be learning lots of interesting vocabulary words about these creatures, as well as how to tell them apart!

Next week is wellness week! We will be having a smoothie contest as a school… if you have any ideas please share! PTO is providing a few ingredients to choose from. We will be rated on taste, how healthy it is, and creativity. Please let me know by Thursday if you have any good ideas. (May not have nuts.)

Okay… I dropped the ball… today our class earned a marble party to watch a movie. The class also wanted to wear pajamas, and I didn’t get a note home in time! I have offered to let them wear pajamas on Wednesday of this week if they would like!

Happy Earth Day Thursday!

Exploring the world of Herps...

It looks like spring is finally here!
This week, 2nd graders wrapped up their world travels and were assessed on their knowledge of maps, landforms, and the 7 continents. Everyone did an awesome job! It was great to see so much enthusiasm as we journeyed the world! In science, we are now moving into a month-long study of amphibians and reptiles. This week, students compared and contrasted these two types of animals and did some sorting. Our first animals that we has studied have been frogs, toads, and snakes! Stay tuned for more "hopping" news about these creatures!
We completed our math unit on geometry and took a break for an egg hunt! In our egg hunt each child searched for hidden eggs in the classroom and completed the math questions stored inside! Our new math studies are teaching us about counting the area of shapes. This week we also learned how to count the length and width of various shapes.
Please remember that our class will be going to the Baker Wetlands on Monday April 12th. A note explaining all of the details was sent home with your child this week. Each child should wear long pants, long sleeves and shoes suitable for walking. We will be leaving after lunch on this day and returning around 2:45pm.
Have a wonderful weekend!

Welcome back from break!

I hope you all had a safe and restful break! This week back has brought many adventures!
We have safely traveled to 6 of the 7 continents. It has been a whirlwind of a trip, but we have safely made it back to North America! Monday we will open up our passports and study the continent where we live. After this visit we will take our test over the continents and oceans.

Next week we will take a peek and have an introduction to our next science unit… reptiles and amphibians! We will be study about our slithery, scaly, and crawly friends for the upcoming weeks!

And speaking of animals… we have begun our biggest writing project of the year! You student, with a partner, has chosen an animal to research for a non fiction writing project. This week they gathered their resources and have started reading facts about their animal. Next week they will learn how to take notes and organize all of the new information they will be learning! Our final project will be a non fiction book about their animal.

This Friday Pricilla Howe came to visit us and shared many of her favorite puppets…including many new bat puppets. She talked about what habitats are and reviewed the concepts of a life cycle. Her visit prepared us for our upcoming visit to the wetlands. Information about our Baker Wetland field trip was emailed to you recently. Our class will be going on Monday April 12th, leaving from school at 12pm and returning around 3pm that day. This field trip is happening thanks to the Lied Center as a follow up to our visit to Stellaluna. I am still looking for a few volunteers to come with us as chaperones and guide a small group of children.

We wrapped up our author study of Joanna Cole, author of the Magic School Bus. This week we designed a new “crazy” outfit for Ms. Frizzle and finished writing an ending to a volcanic adventure!

In math we are studying about shapes and the attributes that make them different. We visited Professor Peabody and his friends in “Flatville”, where everyone is 2D! We have been helping him get around using slides, flip and turns. Friday a homework assignment was sent home (Due next Tuesday) where your child needs to help the kiddie car move around Flatville!

Upcoming:
Class pictures will be March 30th
Book orders due March 31st
Wetland field trip April 12th
Zoo field trip April 30th

Traveling the world

This week began our travel around the world! We will be visiting each of the 7 continents and experiencing a little of what life is like there! Our itinerary is as follows:
March 9 Antarctica
March 10-11 Australia
March 12 Europe
March 22 Asia
March 24 South America
March 25 Africa
March 26,29 North America

As you can see we have many busy days ahead of us. Our class is really enjoying learning about the landforms, climate, vegetation, animal life, landmarks, and especially the food of the continents we have studied! If you have any pictures or souvenirs from continents you may have lived or visited, and would like to share, please let me know!
In math we have continued our study of fractions! We continue to divide things into pieces and share equally... this week we have been able to play many fun games to help us become even better at fractions! When we return from break we will begin Unit 15 on shapes and slide, flips, and turns.
We continue our author study of Joanna Cole the author of The Magic School Bus. This week we focused on her biography and how these famous books began!
No new spelling words were given yesterday due to spring break. In class we will be practicing geography words and vocabulary from the places we have visited on our "trip". No test will be given after spring break and new spelling words will resume March 24th.

Several exciting opportunities will be coming up in the month of April! Our school was chosen by the Lied Center to be one of the recipients of a grant for a field trip to extend our viewing of "Stellaluna" this Friday. 2nd graders at Langston Hughes will be visited by the puppeteer Priscilla Howe two times in April. She will be teaching puppet-related lessons on various life cycles. As a culmination to this study, our 2nd graders will be taking a trip out to the Baker Wetlands! I do not have information yet on a specific date, as the trip is being planned by the great people at the Lied Center. It will be in mid-late April. When that time comes, we will need 5 parent volunteers from our class to go to the Wetlands with us. Please let me know if you are interested in going on this half day trip with us! I know it's difficult to commit without a specific date, but let me know if you think you MIGHT be interested and I will contact you when I have more information.


In addition to our trip to the Baker Wetlands, our 2nd grade field trip to the Kansas City Zoo is scheduled for Friday, April 30. This is a full day trip that also requires five parent volunteers to ride the bus and tour the zoo with a small group of students (4-5 students in each group). I would like to start lining up volunteers for this trip as soon as possible, so please contact me if you would like to go on this fun trip with us! It's always a favorite of the kids. The cost for adult entry to the zoo is $6. Permission slips for students, as well as information regarding cost, times, etc. will be coming home on Monday, March 22, so please keep an eye out for these items.


If you have interest in attending one, or even both, of our field trips, please contact me by e-mail or phone. My extension at the school is 1831. I look forward to hearing from you, and will give more information on both of these trips soon!

Enjoy a safe spring break!

Mrs. Crooker

I really enjoyed visiting with all of you at conferences last week! I loved being able to share your child's work with you!
This week we began a new unit in math about fractions. We have been studying how fractions are equal parts of a whole. Reading books, playing games, and lesson activities have been helping us to understand fractions.
We have also begun a unit in social studies about maps and globes. This week we have taken a look at basic city maps, the difference between urban and rural areas, and what our town of Lawrence has to offer. Next week and the week after spring break, we will be packing our backpacks and "traveling" to each of the 7 continents. We will take a peek at famous landmarks, geographics of the land, and the continent's cultures. If you have lived in or have visited another country, and would like to send something in to share with the class, please let me know! We will be sure to take great care of your things and will return them to you quickly!
In class we have been talking about the process and importance of the US census. We will be participating in class discussions about why this happens every 10 years and what is does for our country.
We began reading Flat Stanley this week and are preparing our letters to mail. If you have not returned a stamped envelope and address, please make sure your child returns theirs by Friday. Soon our Stanleys will be traveling all over the country!
No spelling test was given this Wednesday. Our next spelling test will be next week.
Next Friday March 12th we will be attending a production of Stellaluna at the Lied Center. We are excited to see this performance!
Be thinking ahead… we will be taking a field trip to the Baker Wetlands and to the Kansas City Zoo towards the end of April. We will be asking for chaperones soon!

Honoring Famous Americans

This week in class we have been honoring our famous Americans! Two you may have already guessed.... Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. These former presidents were an important part in our country's history. Last week each student researched information about one of our former presidents, wrote a paragraph about them, and illustrated a portrait of them. We are also preparing for a reading performance entitled "By George". Each child's lines in the performance were sent home for extra practice. Reading parts do not have to be memorized... they just need to be able to say their lines fluently and with expression! We will be performing for our book buddies next week!
Other famous Americans we have learned about include Harriet Tubman and members of the underground railroad. We have been talking about the significance of the big dipper and the symbolism of quilts. We have learned how the secrets of the underground railroad helped many slaves escape to their freedom!
Wednesday we will be researching famous African Americans. In groups of two we will research a little about the person's life, what they are known for, and other interesting facts about them. This information will be displayed as a brochure for others to enjoy!
In math we have been working on basic multiplication and division concepts. The vocabulary we use in class is groups of (multiplication) and sharing (division). We use tallies and circles to show how things are shared and grouped.
Next week, your child will not be getting new spelling words due to a short week. Thank you for confirming your conference times so quickly! If for some reason something comes up, please let me know as soon as you can so we can reschedule. Also, if you have specific concerns/strengths to discuss at your child's conference, please return the yellow conference form prior to conferences. I am looking forward to visiting with you next week!
Class needs:
I know it may sound strange... but I am looking for 1 or 2 old computer keyboards you might like to donate to our classroom. One of our working with words practice is to use a keyboard to practice new words. They have loved the paper keyboards... and might enjoy the real thing! Have a great week!

Groundhog Saw His Shadow...

Well... I was going to change my background, and then I heard the weather forecast! I guess we will keep with snow for another week...
This week we have been busy learning lots of new things.
Writing- We will be wrapping up our poetry study next week. Each student is in the process of selecting their favorite poems they have written to edit, revise, and publish.
Math- Our next unit in math will be covering grouping and sharing. (Basic division and multiplication concepts.) In the following week we will also be taking our end of the second trimester assessment. We continue to practice math facts and have began taking weekly timed assessments.
Science- We wrapped up our weather unit this week with a bang. The highlight of the week, by far, was making lightning and thunder! Next week we will be participating in various activities honoring many famous presidents.

Conference confirmation notes went home this week; please let me know as soon as you can if we need to reschedule. I will also be sending home a class list this Friday for Valentines Day! Please feel free to start sending in Valentines for all students beginning Monday. This will allow us to have Valentines distributed into bags before our party on Friday February 12th. Thank you!

Thinking Ahead...
-We will begin to study the continents and maps in March. If you have any artifacts, pictures, or information to share with the class please let me know! (This could be from trips, family heritage,or collected materials.
- Book Fair is next week: February 8-10
- We are looking for any spare stationary (writing materials) to add to our writing center. If you have any fun materials you would like to donate, we would be happy to take them! This could also include extra recipe cards.
- The estimation jar will continue to come home for the next few weeks. Thank you for keeping it full:)

Stay Warm!
Amber Crooker

Happy 100th Day and Kansas Day!

It has been a busy and cold week here in second grade. Can you believe Wednesday marked the 100th day of school?! Our class studied the value of 100 in many different ways this week. Friday marks the celebration of Kansas Day. Our class will rotate between 6 different classrooms through the morning, participating in activities related to our state of Kansas.
Students continue to learn various types of poetry in Writer's Workshop; the final poem they have learned is the free verse poem. We will wrap up this unit next week with a final project highlighting each student's favorite acrostic, free verse, cinquain, couplet, and shape poems. After we wrap up poems, we will spend some time writing personal narratives and descriptive writing. We will focus on the 6 traits of writing.
In math we continue to work on subtracting two digit numbers. Next week, we will continue to practice and review the strategies we have been working on in class.
We will finish our study of weather next week... wrapping up with thunder and lightening! We will take out weather assessment on Monday February 8th. The next focus in social studies will cover famous African Americans. We will spend some time reading the book The Drinking Gourd and studying the significance of the underground railroad.
-Book Fair February 8-10
-Be checking your child's folder for information about conference times and student of the day information
-The estimation jar will continue to travel home daily. Please let me know if you have any questions!
-Spelling homework (just a note is fine) is due Tuesday.
Have a wonderful long weekend... and stay warm!

Busy In Second Grade...

We have had a busy week here in second grade. We are officially off to a busy start! I hope your second graders have been telling you about the Daly 5 language structure in our classroom. It has been quite an experience to look around and see all 21 of my students actively engaged and truly enjoying reading and writing. They are loving being able to make choices in thier learning. We will resume reading groups Monday January 25th; this start has been pushed back a few days due to our snow days. We were more than eager this week to finally make it outside for recess.
In math we have finished studying about volume and our current unit covers subtracting larger number. This is a really important unit, and we will spend much time in class practicing. We have been learning how to subtract with base 10 pieces, tallies, pictures, and will begin paper pencil soon!
Our current study in writing is poetry. We have been making shape poems, acrostic poems, and cinquain poems this week.
In science we continue to explore various types of weather. We have been using the Beaufort scale to measure wind strength and have been studing the components of the water cycle this week. We continue to log weather observations every day!
Reminders:
-Book order due January 26th
-Weather homework due January 28th (Will send home on the 21st)
-Kansas Day is January 29th

We are finally back in the swing of things...

It looks like we are finally back in the swing of things... and it looks like the weather is warming up! Since we have been back, there have been a lot of new things going on in our classroom.
Our Daily 5 structure is under way! We are quickly building our reading stamina! The first three components have been introduced: read to self, read to someone, and listen to reading.
In writing we have launched our poetry unit. So far we have studied couplets and shape poems.
The weather has been our inspiration for science this week, as we take a closer look at what makes weather. This week we are taking a look at various cloud types and the formation of clouds. Later this week we will be studying the wind and types of precipitation. I would encourage you to tune in with your child to the evening news to observe the weather forecast!
In math we have been practicing filling and reading measurements of graduated cylinders. We have been using this measurement tool to find the volume of liquids and various solid objects.
A few announcements:
- Our "student of the day" will begin at the end of the month. Look for information to come home in your child's folder.
- For information about the Langston Hughes science fair please log on to our school's website!
- As we begin our Daily 5, if you have any old CD/tape players with headphones you would like to donate to our classroom, please let me know.
- Next Wednesday we will be having a marble party! The class decided on a "Gum and Games" party. On Wednesday January 20, your child is welcome to bring gum to share and a game to play. (Please no hand held electronic games.)
- January 27th we will celebrate January birthdays with a birthday breakfast.

Exciting Beginning to 2010!

I hope this newsletter find you all well, rested, and ready for 2010!

There are going to be some very exciting changes going on in our classroom starting January 4! As a building, Langston Hughes staff members have been studying the book "The Daily Five", by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser. In the weeks to come, you will be hearing your 2nd graders talk about our use of the Daily Five framework in our classroom! The Daily Five is a way of structuring our reading block so that every student is independently engaged and challenged in meaningful literacy tasks. These research based tasks are ones that will have the biggest impact on student reading achievement, as well as help foster children who love to read. Students receive explicit instruction and then are given independent practice time to read independently while receiving focused instruction in regular guided reading groups. When the Daily Five is up and running smoothly, students will be engaged in the following five components:

1. Read to Self
2. Read to Someone
3. Listen to Someone Read
4. Writing Practice
5. Word Work

There are very specific behavior expectations that go with each Daily Five component. We will spend the next two weeks taking a break from regular guided reading groups in order to work intensely on building reading and writing stamina, learning behaviors for the Daily Five, and building our classroom community.

One thing that you will notice that will be a change for you is a decrease in the number of worksheets your child brings home. They will spend most of their time actually reading and writing, which research supports as the most effective way to to improve reading and writing success! Your child will be taught to select "Good Fit" books (books they are able to read and understand, as well as are interested in).

The first and second grade team is excited to give your child the opportunity to be involved in a structure that will have such a positive effect on his or her education. Please let me know if you have any questions as we begin this new adventure at Langston Hughes!