The 2A Express
The Weekly Roundup
Week Seven....
Here we are again at the end of another week,
The past five days has moved very quickly. I guess it is a testament to how busy we have been in the classroom. This week has seen 2A start many new units and have completed our previous ones. It is always fun to start new units and see the students engage with new material, whether physical or academic.
We have continued to improve our behavior as positive classroom citizens and have made a dramatic improvement from the previous week. It helps that we have a core group of positive classroom role models that can be called upon as examples of being in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.
There are many events on our ASD calendars that are fast approaching, be sure to check out the calendar below for a list of important dates.
One of those important dates is the Parent Teacher Conference on the 21st and 22nd of October, which is a great chance to sit down with me and find out how your child has settled into the year, share with you what I have observed and a time where you can ask me questions regarding your child. I am looking forward to seeing you all once again!
Please take the time to look through the bulletin, click on the images of your child engaged in learning and feel free to contact me with any queries or issues that may arise.
The Seventh Week
The Subjects
Math
To start the unit students were given a pile of straws and were asked to count them and see how many there were in the bag.
We began with the concept of bundling many smaller units, single straws (ones) into bundles of ten, and then bundled ten bundles of tens to make one larger unit (ie: a hundred) and then we bundled 10 hundreds to make a thousand.
We ended up with 2,022 straws and a great counting strategy. From this point we are building on showing numbers as visual representations, in expanded and word form. Please take a look at the attached Unit 3 parent letter to give you an idea of how to support your child at home.
Reader's Workshop
This week sees our readers look at a range of strategies that will support them as they work towards their reading goals.
A few of the strategies that we have looked at are 'Reading It Like You Have Always Known It', using the word wall to help us identify words, looking closely at the punctuation at the end of a sentence to ensure that our voice matches the punctuation.
Next week we will continue to strengthen our reading habits through the utilization of more handy strategies, partner reading and individual reading work.
I also found that we had 6 boxes of books in one of our classroom cupboards and half of them were nonfiction books, so we split ourselves into groups and categorized the nonfiction books into our own categories. It was an interesting project and quite rewarding as we managed to divide them up with relative ease. Some of our categories are transportation, birds, Earth and reptiles.
Writer's Workshop
This week we have started our new writing unit which sees 2A writing reviews and sharing our opinions, whether these are positive or negative. As long as these opinions are supported by a range of evidence, everyone is happy!
We have looked at a range of reviews that expand restaurants, hotels, movies and books. We are now currently getting to know the structure of a well written review.
Most of the authors, turned illustrators have completed publishing our personal narratives and these will be going home early next week so that they can share their small moments with you.
Science
We have looked closely at the role of the seed in the life cycle of a plant and the role germination plays in this cycle. This week we have placed a bean seed in cotton wool and are waiting for the seed to germinate. Also, we went to the science lab and dissected a bean seed and identified the seed coat, tiny plant and food storage within the seed. It was great to have an authentic setting to really fulfill the role of a scientist!
Next week we are looking at the role of pollination in the plant world.
Planting Our Seeds to Observe Germination
Dissecting Seeds in the Laboratory
Exploratory Time
The teams have sat down and have planned on paper how they will use the materials, using diagrams to show their build. They have also developed multiple other plans just in case their first choice plan doesn't work. However, when we get to step five of the EDP model we will be looking closely at redesign and slightly tweaking the original plan if applicable.
Next week will see the teams make a model and then test their model to see if it is successful. It is to be recorded and then shared with you via the newsletter to see how your child's team fared. It should be a fun lesson!
The Teams Planning Solutions For Their Task
Things To Do:
Things To Know:
2A Swimming Unit
Swimming Unit Reminder
Classes will be starting their aquatics program during PE beginning the week of October 18th, and will go for 3 weeks finishing on November 5th. There will be another 5-week unit later in the year.
This is part of the Physical Education program; therefore your child will be swimming on their scheduled Physical Education days during their regular P.E. class.
Students need to have the following equipment:
• STUDENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO WEAR FLIP-FLOPS OR CROCS TO SCHOOL.
• Swimming suit (girls-one piece)
• Swim cap – mandatory for all elementary school students. These may be purchased from most sports stores or from the Booster Club. If students forget their cap they will be expected to wear one provided by the school.
• Towel
• Plastic bag for wet gear
• Goggles (optional)- We do not have goggles for students to use.
Children who forget their swimwear will be required to use a school set. This is so they can still participate. The school suits and towels are washed and dried after use. Children should continue to wear their Physical Education uniform on PE days during the swim unit.
Please ensure their T-shirts and shorts are labeled with names or initials.
The aim of the Elementary Aquatics Program is to give all students the opportunity to learn and/or build on skills and knowledge in the following areas:
• Water confidence
• Buoyancy/floating
• Propulsion
• Safety
If you have any questions or concerns, or you are interested in helping with your child’s swimming lessons, please email Mr Van at bvandemeulebroecke@asd.edu.qa.
Halloween Carnival
We need parent volunteers!
If you interested in helping please fill out the form sent home with your child or contact mmartin@asd.edu.qa
Tickets will be sold BEFORE the carnival. Ticket forms will be sent home Thursday October 15th.
This event is for ASD students and their families ONLY.
Tuesday, Oct 27, 2015, 05:30 PM
American School of Doha, Al Bustan Street, Doha, Qatar
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Pumpkin Patch
The annual Pumpkin Patch will be held in the Administration Foyer from Sunday, October 25th - Tuesday, October 27th from 7:30am-3:30pm.
This is a cash ONLY event that everyone really enjoys and is a great opportunity to do some Halloween shopping. Items include fun gadgets, yummy treats, pumpkins and decorations.
Sunday, Oct 25, 2015, 07:30 AM
American School of Doha, Al Bustan Street, Doha, Qatar
Homeroom Activities and Money Request Form
If you have not completed it, please download, print it, fill it out and send it to school in your child's blue folder.
Arab Mothers Association Fundraising Activities
October Dates At A Glance
October 18 Let’s Do Math Workshop: Grade 2 Parents
October 21/22 Parent/Teacher Conferences (3:40-7:20, 7:40-12:00)
October 27 Halloween Classroom Party
October 27 Halloween Carnival
October 27 Full Day Tuesday – Thursday Schedule
October 28 PD Day – No Students
October 29 Day Off
November 8 AMA Bake Sale
November 20 PTA Gala Dinner
November 24 Full Day of School – Regular Tuesday morning schedule
November 25 Thanksgiving Classroom Celebrations
November 25 End of Trimester 1
November 26 Thanksgiving – No School
Mr Craig Campbell
Email: ccampbell@asd.edu.qa
Location: American School of Doha, Al Bustan Street, Doha, Qatar
Mrs. Danijela Delic-Domazet
Email: ddelic@asd.edu.qa
Location: American School of Doha, Al Bustan Street, Doha, Qatar