Second Grade Newsletter
March 2019
Are you doing awesome things in your classroom or school?
If so, we would love for you to present a session during the Summer Learning Events in July.
Pasco County Schools will be accepting session proposal submissions to present during the 2019 Together We Lead Leadership Conference and the Together We Learn Summer Symposium. This call will be open to all staff with innovative approaches to share their high-quality practices that result in supportive learning environments for all students.
Be on the look out for the Summer Learning Call for Proposals invitation which will go out to all staff during the week of March 11th.
ELA
Foundationally, students will use flexible phonics to decode syllabic words, including open and closed syllable patterns. Students will also decode words with soft c and soft g and will use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Writers understand that biographies tell the story of a person's journey and includes, actions, thoughts, and feelings. Students will write opinion and narrative pieces.
Building Fluency
•Reading fluency is necessary to become a proficient reader
- Students who are not fluent readers struggle with reading the words – this gets in the way of understanding what the text means
- Students who are not fluent readers struggle with finishing tests on time
•Helping students become fluent readers is not difficult and delivers big dividends – it’s “low hanging fruit”
Try using the Poetry Fluency Routine with the poems in your Text Collection.
Collaborative Conversations
- Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).
- Build on others’ talk in conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others.
- Ask for clarification and further explanation as needed about the topics and texts under discussion.
Check out this sample excerpt of a lesson encouraging accountable talk around a text, Bugs! Bugs! Bugs!
Leveled Text Library
#PascoSpringReads
WHEN
Friday, March 15th, 5pm to Sunday, March 24th, 11:45pm
WHERE
This is an online event.
MORE INFORMATION
We hope that you enjoy your spring break and spend some time recharging and relaxing! To celebrate and share great reads over break, please tweet a picture of yourself reading a great book with the hashtag #PascoSpringReads. Each person who posts a picture with the hashtag will be entered into a raffle drawing with the chance to win some additional great reads from our team.
Math
Looking for ways to create the conditions for student conversation? The My Math Talk Sentence Starter cards are a great resource to help students talk and ask questions about each other's thinking. These opportunities allow students to clarify or improve their own mathematical understanding. Click here for this amazing resource!
Module 7 presents an opportunity for students to practice addition and subtraction strategies within 100 and problem-solving skills as they learn to work with various types of units within the contexts of length, money, and data. Students represent categorical and measurement data using picture graphs, bar graphs, and line plots. They revisit measuring and estimating length from Module 2, but now use both metric and customary units. Be on the lookout for the Module 7 Study recorded webinar scheduled to be released on 3/5/19. It is recommended that Module 7 begin no later than 3/26/19.
New to Eureka Math? Be sure to join us for our Introduction to Eureka Math session on 3/27/19 from 4:30-6:30 PM. This training will be held at the District Office in Building 2 Magnolia Room. Registration for this session can be found through My PGS under Course #2119 Section #13242.
Science
In March, students will continue their exploration of weather, the sun and how it impacts water. This unit is full of opportunities to have students make observations outside about the weather and investigate during hands-on learning opportunities answering questions about how the sun’s energy impacts us. Before Spring Break, 2nd grade students will have the chance to explore air. One way to start this exploration is to ask students to prove the statement “Air cannot be seen, but it can be contained”. Provide students with a variety of objects that they can use to develop a model that demonstrates this statement (balloons, water bottle, cup, zip lock bag, etc). You can also use this riddle to begin to explore air.
After Spring break, students will shift to thinking about the Earth’s surface through learning about rocks and soil. Second grade is the only time that students in elementary school learn about soil. This is vital to understanding needs of living things and developing their understanding of the role that plants play in third grade.
Social Studies
Celebrating Women's History Month
Women's History Month in March is an ideal time to celebrate the brave, bold, and fearless women who have influenced history. The important role women have played in shaping our nation and the world can often be overlooked, whether in the fields of humanities, science, politics, law, the arts, and more. This month encourage your students to learn about her story. You may find suggested instructional resources to support student learning here.
March 25th is Medal of Honor Day
In Florida, March 25 of each year is designated as “Medal of Honor Day” and Medal of Honor has been added to s. 1003.42, F.S., Required Instruction, p.4. This is a perfect opportunity to embed the Medal of Honor Character Development Curriculum. Since the 25th is teacher planning day, this would be a wonderful way to kick off the 4th quarter on the 26th.
Reminder that the Medal of Honor National Convention will be hosted in Tampa next Fall and they have asked our county in welcoming all the attendees. Please find here directions for a letter writing campaign to have all Medal of Honor recipients welcomed by a personal note from our Pasco County students. Submit your student letters to Tina Stavrou in OLL by May 1st.
Art, Music, PE
PE Teachers please visit the Florida Safe Routes to School website for the free curriculum that is used with our Bike Trailers. We will be hosting a Safe Routes curriculum/Bike Trailer training on March 25th at 9:00 am. Register on myPGS.