Second Grade Scoop
Miss Roberts * Stoy School * November 5th and 12th
Reading Workshop
The second graders have been diligently working within the Journeys curriculum are beginning the last lesson in Unit 1. This week, we will explore another kind of neighborhood – the classroom! We will consider the question, “What clues tell you where and when a story takes place?" We’ll begin with Teacher’s Pets, a realistic fiction story about Miss Fry’s classroom. It’s a lively place for students and animals alike! Next, we will read "See Westburg, by Bus!", an informational text about this interesting community.
Target Vocabulary: share, noticed, suddenly, bursting, noises, wonderful, quiet, sprinkled
Phonics Skills: Consonant blends with r, l and s, including triple blends (burst, trunks, split)
spin, grade, swim, glide, stage, just, place, last, drive, climb, drag, price, table, little, both **visualize**
Vocabulary Strategy: Base words and endings –ed, -ing
Comprehension Skill: Story structure – to tell the setting, character(s) and plot in a story
Comprehension Strategy: Visualize – to picture what is happening as you read
We will be reading some touching stories about Veteran's Day. We will use them to learn about point of view; the narrator's position in relation to the story being told. The students will identify certain pronouns as clues to determine who is telling the story. When he, she, they, or characters names are used, a narrator is telling the story, while I, me, we, or my indicate a character is telling the story. America's White Table, Crow Call, and The Wall will be the books the students will use to develop their knowledge of point of view and develop a deeper appreciation for our country's veterans.
Reading Response
The next Reading Response will be sent home on Monday, November 12th. In class, we have been learning about Cause and Effect and while reading stories asking WHAT HAPPENED (effect) and WHY IT HAPPENED (cause). Next week, a short story will be sent home for the students to read. The students will be asked to read it and identify various cause and effect events from the story. They will not have to write a paragraph.
Writing Workhsop
Our lowercase letters will begin to focus on that descend below the line. Through demonstration, the students will observe and practice writing the letters y, j, and p. These letters are usually challenging to consistently write accurately. The students will be encouraged to make sure the are short and descend the line the other letters are written on. Then, they will focus on r and n. These letters will be introduced as "dive down" letters. Both letters begin with a short line down that bumps the line, then that line is traced back up and finally make a curve at the top. The two letters will be compared side by side to see the similarities.
The students have defined what an opinion is and learned that everyone has their own perspective or opinion. Prior to jumping into their own writing, the boys and girls will practice using Tomie dePaola's The Art Lesson and Steven Kroll's Patches Lost and Found to deepen their understand of how author's connect to their readers. They will practice thinking about the writer's craft used to spark a reader's thinking to connect to the words on the page. Then, the students will stand on the shoulders of these authors and fine-tune their craft of writing about books in ways which persuade others to love them as much as they do. The students will begin this by writing letters about books they have read.
Math
- Using base-ten blocks to subtract with regrouping
- Subtracting from a three-digit number with regrouping
- Applying the inverse operations of addition and subtraction
- Solving real-world subtraction problems
After completing Lesson 5, we will practice our problem solving skills and develop our perseverance as a class when we work the "Put on Your Thinking Cap!" challenges. Please try to support your child through the process of thinking through these multi-step problems.
Then, on Friday, the students will be introduced to Unit 4 "Using Bar Models: Addition and Subtraction." In this chapter, the students will learn strategies such as adding-on and taking-away sets represented by bar models to solve addition and subtraction problems. They will also learn to compare two models to solve more complex addition and subtraction problems. A combination of all these strategies is used in solving two-step real-world problems.
Social Studies
We will then practice the skill of using a calendar and noticing the features of each monthly page. The students will learn that a calendar gives the date and helps us keep track of important events. Without calendars, it would be very difficult to know when something begins or on what day an important event falls.
Social Expectations
Coming Soon
November 6th - School Store
November 8th & 9th - No School; NJEA
November 12th - W.E.B. Projects due
November 13th - Book Orders due
November 16th - Unit 3 Math test
November 15th, 16th, 19th, 20th, and 21st - Half Days; bring a healthy snack
November 15th - 16th, 19th, and 20th - Conferences
November 22nd and 23rd - No School; Happy Thanksgiving